She's All Mine!

Meet Nissy. She is my loyal little car who has been on so many adventures with me. She has been to San Diego, Reno, Pocatello, and has been my trusty means of getting myself to Payson every day for the last 9 months. She survived giant potholes in California. She made it through a week in the shop when a lady backed her SUV into her bumper. She survived a flat tire on the side of Geneva Road. She has dutifully helped me haul my stuff as I have moved in and out of apartments. And today I paid her off! And now she is all mine! :)

(Yes, I realize I am posting about my car before I post about graduation. Fear not. A graduation post will be coming shortly.)

I Have Officially Graduated....

from Physical Therapy (aka physical torture). That is a lovely thing.

On another note, which just might be as equally as happy (or more so), there are only 25 days left for me to teach my dear sweet kids. 5 Mondays. 5 Fridays. 25 days total. Wowzers. That year went fast.

2 Days

That, my friends, is the length of time until I am on Spring Break. And boy does that feel good.

(Those of you who are in school... don't be too jealous. You'll be able to rub it in my face when you are out of school a whole MONTH before I am!!)

On Your Marks, Get Set, Go!!!

Once upon a time (4 years ago), my way cool friends Marianne and Julie convinced Kelsey and me to run the Rex Lee Run with them. We all ran it together the first couple of years. Sadly, last year I had to skip the run and sit on the sidelines because of a nasty cough and broken rib. This year, I was determine to run it. Unfortunately, Mare had to skip it this year, since the walking boot she is currently sporting does not allow for running. Kels decided to skip it because she wanted to use her money for other causes, and Jules was in the process of moving. Lucky for me, my sister Nicole decided she would take on the challenge with me (despite her currently-healing foot). So we packed up Miss Mia in the stroller and started off.
I'm proud to say we survived. And I'm amazed that after a 4-5 month hiatus from any exercise in general, the soreness is at a minimum.

The Crew- Mare, Kels, and Mom came to cheer us on as we crossed the finish line.

We survived!

She slept through the entire race and woke up as we crossed the finish line. What a good sport!

(Also... Happy 100th Post!!!)

A Funny Story

A couple of weeks ago, I got a call from the secretary in the stake. A member of the stake presidency wanted to meet with me, which set my mind reeling as to what they wanted with me. Panic set in at this point. Turns out they just wanted me to say the closing prayer in the Saturday night session. Sweet. I figured I would be able to only call minimal attention to myself, seeing as how it's a prayer... and everyone should be closing their eyes.

Fast forward to tonight. We sing the rest hymn, and then the counselor gets up to announce the rest of the program. He announced the rest of the speakers and the closing hymn. The rest of his announcement went as follows:
"And our closing prayer will be offered by Brother Logan Koster. Logan, are you here? Will you please stand up so I can make sure you are here?"
Don't worry... I was already on the stand... and as I felt my face getting hotter, I knew all hopes of drawing little attention to myself were gone. After a few snickers from the congregation and a few pointing fingers, he turned around to see me. And then with a shocked look on his face turned back to the microphone and said, "Oh! It's a sister! Sister Logan Koster will give our closing prayer." Poor guy was mortified. He apologized quite humbly after the meeting ended. I assured him he wasn't the only one to have made the mistake. I must say, however, this was the first time it happened to me in such a large setting.
I found it all quite amusing. So much for only having minimal attention called to myself. :)

(I realize the attention grabber could have been much worse... tripping, falling, clothing malfunctions, etc. Thank goodness it wasn't! And at least it wasn't something that I did to myself. I do feel bad for the counselor, though. Poor guy.)

I've Been Thinking...

- There are only about 3 months left in the school year. How'd that happen?
- I need to start looking for a job. Hmmm. It sounds daunting.
- I REALLY want spring to come. I am thinking that the bitter cold can be done. I won't miss it.
- Why do I crave treats... all the time? Why can't I crave a good apple or carrots or something?
- The Olympics are so fun to watch. And it's especially neat when we win.
- In fact, watching them has made me think that I should give skiing another try. It kinda looks fun.
- Only 2 months until graduation. Holy smokes. I can hardly wait to put on the glamorous cap & gown and hold that diploma. It's been a long time coming.

I should probably go take care of that craving for a treat. Have a happy day!

Words of 9th Grade Wisdom

I was helping a student with an assignment today after school, and my phone happened to ring. (side note: my ring tone is "Bleeding Love") I quickly silenced it and apologized to her. She just laughed and said, "Oh, it's okay. You have like the worst ring tone ever. I hate that song. It's like totally last year. I like Lady Gaga."
Well, at least she was honest. And good thing I don't really care if they approve of my music choices. It just made me laugh.

Also, I was forced to once again ask myself the question (this has crossed my mind at least weekly since school started... today was just particularly bad): "Why do 9th graders SMELL SO BAD?" I want to tell them that attempting to cover their post-P.E. stench with various noxious body sprays does not work very effectively, and yes, I can still smell them... from across the room... and so can their classmates. I pity the kids who have to sit next to the especially odiferous ones. Hopefully by the time they graduate high school (or hopefully sooner), they have discovered the magic of a bar of soap.

And... to the sweet girl who picked up her pencil the other day and proceeded to talk on/to it like a phone, while I was teaching, nonetheless, I would like to say that perhaps she should not draw attention to herself in such odd ways. But, I must admit that it provided a bit of entertainment as went through my day.

(Sorry if you find these stories pointless and boring... I just wanted to remember some lovely moments from my crazy kids!)

I've Just Gotta Say...

TGIF.

I LOVE weekends. They are quite possibly the bomb dot com. Really. Time to sleep in, relax, hang out with friends, and get caught up on so many things! Is there anything better?

Am I The Only One

that wishes the long weekend won't end? That tomorrow morning, school will magically be canceled? And I can have one more day to relax? That'd be swell.

Well Hello There...

If anyone knows where the time goes, please clue me in, because I am amazed at how quickly it flies by. Yet another month has gone by since I last posted.

Here's what has been happening over the past month:
- I completed course work for my degree! (YAY!) I will walk in April and make it official!
- The school year is already half way over. And it's time to start sending my file into new districts. (yikes!) Here's to hoping that there is an English job somewhere... anywhere. :)
- I had lots and lots of fun spending time and relaxing with my family and friends over the holiday.
- I enjoyed 2 straight weeks away from school and a break of forced relaxation.
- I am becoming better and better at being one-armed (and left handed). My students still laugh at my horrible left-handed handwriting. Most of the time it looks like Skyler wrote on my board. Nice. Hey... at least it's legible. (and it's far better than some of theirs...)
- I read a few good books, and added a bunch more to my list! (kudos to Mare who is the best at finding me new books to add! Thanks!)

I think that about sums it up. While my list does not look all that impressive or super exciting, I assure you that I have not been too incredibly bored nor have I wished I was busier. Life is great. Here's to 2010 and the good things it will bring. I think it will be a fabulous year!

And, just for kicks... here is a picture of me and my sisters (and niece) ringing in the New Year! (Please excuse the somewhat frumpy look I've got going on. I didn't feel the need to get all gussied up to sit at home.)