I found out on Thursday that I will have a teaching job next year. Don't get me wrong, I'm VERY thankful but it was a hard day. Thursday I got good news, but six teachers at my school didn't get good news. They found out that they wouldn't have a job next year. So even though I was relieved, thankful, excited and all other emotions, I was also filled with sadness for some very sweet people who are now facing some tough decisions. Please continue to pray for them. While I rejoice every time I think about it, I also pray for them that God would give them wisdom, peace, and His provision. He can and will do that, I know.
Right now we're at home enjoying a relaxing Saturday because Sam has come down with hand foot mouth disease otherwise known as hoof and mouth. He started running a high fever on Thursday and broke out in a mild rash, but by Friday the fever was gone and the rash was out of control. My poor Sam was covered from head to toe in the awful rashes and bumps. I immediately wanted to take him to the doctor because 1. I'm an over protective worrier of a mom 2. Somebody's got to give him something, right? Well...apparently there's not a whole lot you can do but let it run it's awful course. We got up Saturday and Sam was back to his normal, crazy self. He's still got a rash but it's starting to get better. I didn't feel like crying when I saw him today so I think we're on the up and up. Monday we go back to our regular pedi for a checkup and to check on his ears from the double ear infection he had two weeks ago and now to check on this too. Boy...this kid is keeping us on our toes for sure!
Baby Nate is also growing right along. He's moving a lot more but usually at night when I lay in bed and in the mornings when I'm getting ready. During the day, he seems to be pretty mellow. Don't know exactly what all that means, but I'm curious to see if his temperament is already forming. I go for my next checkup on May 23 and can't wait to schedule our 3D ultrasound! I haven't had as many ultrasounds this go round and the more pictures the better! It's an amazing miracle God performs when He knits together a baby in a mother's womb. Quite breath taking when you sit back and think about it.
We were supposed to have a house showing on Thursday, but the couple was a no show. A little nerve wracking but I know that our house will sell in due time. I'm praying daily for it to sell before school gets out so that we'll have the summer to settle in before Nate gets here.
Well...I guess that's about it for now. We're rocking and rolling and gearing up for the summer! Can't wait to start swimming lessons, see my sweet nephew (and sister and BIL), and soak up the sun!
Saturday, April 30, 2011
Saturday, April 23, 2011
Update through pictures
Night time reading...usually done by Momma, but here lately he's "reading" on his own. It's the cutest thing to see!
Completely destroying his room....daily. Sam LOVES to play with his blocks and basketball...as you can see. This is a glimpse of his right before bed playtime.
I can't even describe how much this little guy means to me. He is so funny and is learning more everyday. At 20 months he is:*speaking in sentences ("I fall", "Fix it", etc.)
* learning shapes (circle, star, heart, triangle)
* "working" on colors (everything is blue at the moment)
* counting (1,2, 5!!!!)
* learning that manners like please and thank you can go a long way
* climbing everywhere!!!! (like trampolines and chairs and tables...not cool)
* learning and loving sports (baseball, basketball, and his most recent golf)
* loves talking on the phone and even calls the phone "hello?"
* throwing fits when told no :(
* very passive towards others his age (will let others take his stuff and not snatch it back)
* prays: Jesus, thank you. Amen (before meals) and Jesus, I love you. Amen (before bed)
* loves reading his Bible and going to church
* points to Momma's belly and says "baby?" (also did that to Jared so we're still working on learning who can and can't have babies)
I can't imagine what my life would be like without this little man and can't imagine how crazy life is going to be with another little man coming soon.
Nathan Daniel is growing and doing great. He's not quite the mover and shaker that Sam was at this point, so I'm praying that he is going to be a more mellow boy than my crazy monkey now...though I wouldn't trade him for anything.
We're still trying to sell our house and have found a cute house in town that we would love to buy. I'm praying that our house would sell before the summer so that we could get everything settled in before school starts back and Baby Nate comes. Would you join me in this specific prayer request too? I know that God has taken care of us this far, and will continue to do so.
We still haven't heard anything else about my job so far. I'm not sure when we'll find out any information, but I know that all will be fine. That feeling of peace in and of itself is a huge answer to prayers. Knowing the type of person I am, and knowing that I'm not stressed right now is only evidence of the goodness of God. I think that about covers everything for now. Just wanted to share some fun pictures from our house on a regular night. Fun times in the Hollier's house!
Wednesday, April 13, 2011
Lessons Learned about God's Provision
When I sit down and think about all the Lord has provided, just in this week alone, I am absolutely blown away. I don't know what the future holds for me, whether it be having a job next year or not, but I can say that the Lord is certainly teaching me to trust in Him for all things and that His plans completely outdo what I could ever dream up or imagine for myself or my family. Here's just a few things that God has provided this week: 1. Our tax guy called Jared and told him that he and his wife felt so bad about what's going on with the teachers in our area that they would mail off our tax stuff and we could pay them whenever we could. That doesn't happen everyday I imagine....for them or us. Wow. That was a HUGE blessing considering that I've already gotten $700 worth of medical bills from when I was in the emergency room arriving daily. 2. I talked with our benefits gal at school because I was concerned about losing my insurance before the baby was born. The c-section is scheduled for August 26 and they usually keep c-section babies/mommies for 4 days. That puts me leaving to come home on August 30. Guess when my insurance would end? August 31. Yep. Some people would say that's cutting it too close, but I know that's God continually reminding me that He's got this all in His hands. 3. We were given a truck. Did you just read right over that??? WE WERE GIVEN A TRUCK!!!! Jared's pastor growing up gave us their other truck! And I don't mean, here's a clunker you can drive around town. It's a nice truck that has a back seat (which has been a big deal for us since Jared has been driving his dad's truck which doesn't have a back seat). This verse came to my mind when I was telling a friend of mine all the things that God had done this week....and it's only Wednesday! Malachi 3: 10~ "Test me in this,” says the LORD Almighty, “and see if I will not throw open the floodgates of heaven and pour out so much blessing that there will not be room enough to store it." T hat is exactly how I feel right now...like God has opened the floodgates of heaven and He's pouring out his blessings and PROVISION on our little family right now. I don't know if that means that He's letting me know that He can take care of us if I don't have a job next year or if He's teaching me to remain faithful to Him that He will provide. Either way, I'm trusting that God has this all in His Hands. And to be quite honest...I'm learning more each day that there's no better place I'd rather be than in His capable, loving hands. ~Elizabeth
Sunday, April 10, 2011
Lessons learned on Faith
Since finding out about the possibility of not having a job and then receiving my letter about not getting a contract next year, the Lord has been doing a mighty work on my faith. Here are some of the things that He's been teaching me through this whole experience:
1. Your faith is only as strong as it is during the tough times. Does that make sense? I just got up from the computer and tried explaining this to Jared, and I even asked him to reword it so that it made sense to everyone. He said it made perfect sense so if it doesn't to you, take it up with him. :) What I mean by this is, I feel like for me, God has been teaching me that it's really easy to SAY you have faith when everything is going great. But what about when everything isn't? What about when you lose your job? What kind of faith do you really have if when the going gets tough, you bail out?
2. Faith is about losing or rather GIVING control. If you know me at all, then you know that I am a planner, most of the time I'm super organized with lists about the lists that I have, and I'm a little OCD about random stuff that only bugs the mess out of me. Now, in almost every area of life this works for me. I get stuff done, I'm an organized structured teacher who thrives on routines and consistencies, which most children thrive in as well. So it works...MOST of the time. However, in the area of faith being a control freak is definitely a hindrance. When you're a control freak you have to have a plan and you have to know what's going on...AT ALL TIMES! Faith is believing that someone else has a better plan than you're own (what?!?!) and that you have to trust that God's plans and control are better than yours. For me, the control part is the hardest. I have no doubt trusting in God's plans. I know my life in His Hands will be way better than anything I could ever orchestrate myself. But the releasing of control is hard. You see....I trust God and believe God, but I want Him to let me in on the plan. In my relationship with God in particular, God keeps me waiting. Now sometimes I like to think that God has a sense of humor in torturing me, but all jokes aside I know exactly why he keeps me in the dark most of the time. Because HE KNOWS ME. He created my inmost being. He knows exactly how I'm wired....He made me that way! So it comes as no surprise that keeping me in the dark is the Father's way of keeping my faith in constant exercise. Remember when you were in P.E. or athletics? I was in P.E. (of course) but we did these exercises in drill team as well. You had to lean against the wall and sit as if you were in a chair. Now for the first few seconds, you were good. Your beautiful thigh muscles were working for you. But before long, your thighs started shaking and you felt as if you were about to fall over. That's what I feel like right now. God is building my faith muscles and right now my muscles are shaking and I feel like I might fall over, but I know if I keep up these exercises that my faith will come out stronger. Wow....hard lesson to be learning these days.
3. Key verses that have been especially encouraging right now:
James 1: 2-4 "Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything." What that tells me is: 1. Don't try to get out of trials. 2. These trials are going to grow your faith and even though that's hard, the end result SHOULD BE a joy.
Matthew 6: 26-27 "Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, yet your Heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? Can any one of you by worrying add a single hour to your life?" What that tells me: God loves you so much more than all of creation and He takes care of them. He'll take care of me. Stop worrying. We recite this verse a lot in our house, particularly after we write out all our bills for the month and we see what's left in our checkbook. :) We simply say "birds and flowers"...I should get a sign made that says that.
I wanted to write down all these things God's been teaching me for a couple of reasons. 1. It's really therapeutic. 2. I know that as time goes by, God will continue to show me why I'm going through this, and what HIS purpose is for it. 3. Maybe this could be an encouragement to you, for whatever trial you're going through.
~Elizabeth
1. Your faith is only as strong as it is during the tough times. Does that make sense? I just got up from the computer and tried explaining this to Jared, and I even asked him to reword it so that it made sense to everyone. He said it made perfect sense so if it doesn't to you, take it up with him. :) What I mean by this is, I feel like for me, God has been teaching me that it's really easy to SAY you have faith when everything is going great. But what about when everything isn't? What about when you lose your job? What kind of faith do you really have if when the going gets tough, you bail out?
2. Faith is about losing or rather GIVING control. If you know me at all, then you know that I am a planner, most of the time I'm super organized with lists about the lists that I have, and I'm a little OCD about random stuff that only bugs the mess out of me. Now, in almost every area of life this works for me. I get stuff done, I'm an organized structured teacher who thrives on routines and consistencies, which most children thrive in as well. So it works...MOST of the time. However, in the area of faith being a control freak is definitely a hindrance. When you're a control freak you have to have a plan and you have to know what's going on...AT ALL TIMES! Faith is believing that someone else has a better plan than you're own (what?!?!) and that you have to trust that God's plans and control are better than yours. For me, the control part is the hardest. I have no doubt trusting in God's plans. I know my life in His Hands will be way better than anything I could ever orchestrate myself. But the releasing of control is hard. You see....I trust God and believe God, but I want Him to let me in on the plan. In my relationship with God in particular, God keeps me waiting. Now sometimes I like to think that God has a sense of humor in torturing me, but all jokes aside I know exactly why he keeps me in the dark most of the time. Because HE KNOWS ME. He created my inmost being. He knows exactly how I'm wired....He made me that way! So it comes as no surprise that keeping me in the dark is the Father's way of keeping my faith in constant exercise. Remember when you were in P.E. or athletics? I was in P.E. (of course) but we did these exercises in drill team as well. You had to lean against the wall and sit as if you were in a chair. Now for the first few seconds, you were good. Your beautiful thigh muscles were working for you. But before long, your thighs started shaking and you felt as if you were about to fall over. That's what I feel like right now. God is building my faith muscles and right now my muscles are shaking and I feel like I might fall over, but I know if I keep up these exercises that my faith will come out stronger. Wow....hard lesson to be learning these days.
3. Key verses that have been especially encouraging right now:
James 1: 2-4 "Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything." What that tells me is: 1. Don't try to get out of trials. 2. These trials are going to grow your faith and even though that's hard, the end result SHOULD BE a joy.
Matthew 6: 26-27 "Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, yet your Heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? Can any one of you by worrying add a single hour to your life?" What that tells me: God loves you so much more than all of creation and He takes care of them. He'll take care of me. Stop worrying. We recite this verse a lot in our house, particularly after we write out all our bills for the month and we see what's left in our checkbook. :) We simply say "birds and flowers"...I should get a sign made that says that.
I wanted to write down all these things God's been teaching me for a couple of reasons. 1. It's really therapeutic. 2. I know that as time goes by, God will continue to show me why I'm going through this, and what HIS purpose is for it. 3. Maybe this could be an encouragement to you, for whatever trial you're going through.
~Elizabeth
Thursday, April 7, 2011
Update from this morning's meeting
This morning was the day....I along with 77 other teachers were invited to attend a meeting with our superintendent. Of course the rumors had been flying but thankfully I went to my principal a couple of days before to ask about this meeting. Had I heard all this news for the first time at 7 am there would be no way I could have taught 42 children today.
The meeting was grim, dark, depressing....insert any other adjective you can think of that is negative here. What it boils down to is that our state budget is being slashed and the biggest part of the state budget is schooling. What that means for my district is that we're being cut anywhere from 2.3 -2.8 million dollars. The biggest part of our school budget is personnel. So in order to make the biggest dent in the budget they have to lay off all probationary teachers. I was told that we are in survival mode and that it's just business at this point. Thankfully I'm not head of our school, because this business would sink. I kept looking around thinking about how each person there represented a family, a life that would be greatly affected by the future of this meeting. Some married couples were there together because they both were getting laid off....that made me feel even worse. So here's what lies ahead for me and 78 other teachers in Jasper: tomorrow we will all receive a letter from our principals saying that we are going to be terminated aka non-renewed for next year. From there we have two weeks to let our principals know if we are either going to find employment else where (good luck) or ask to be rehired if the funds become available. From there we will be presented to the board and our names will be in the newspaper as being non-renewed (boo). As funds become more available (hopefully by May) slowly people will be asked to be re-hired BUT not everyone will get their jobs back. So as of tomorrow, I will be jobless for next year and hopefully I will get a letter of intent which states that I will have a job for next year. Not a contract but just as good. The letters will come slowly and I don't know when or if I will get one. So that's all I know for now. Thank you so much for your prayers. I can't begin to tell you how at peace I've felt through all of this and I know it's because of those of you who are praying for me. Please continue to pray for all teachers, not just me, who will be affected. It's going to be a long journey.
God is good, and I know He's going to take care of us. What kind of faith would I have if I just gave up when the going got tough? Boy, that's a hard lesson to learn.
The meeting was grim, dark, depressing....insert any other adjective you can think of that is negative here. What it boils down to is that our state budget is being slashed and the biggest part of the state budget is schooling. What that means for my district is that we're being cut anywhere from 2.3 -2.8 million dollars. The biggest part of our school budget is personnel. So in order to make the biggest dent in the budget they have to lay off all probationary teachers. I was told that we are in survival mode and that it's just business at this point. Thankfully I'm not head of our school, because this business would sink. I kept looking around thinking about how each person there represented a family, a life that would be greatly affected by the future of this meeting. Some married couples were there together because they both were getting laid off....that made me feel even worse. So here's what lies ahead for me and 78 other teachers in Jasper: tomorrow we will all receive a letter from our principals saying that we are going to be terminated aka non-renewed for next year. From there we have two weeks to let our principals know if we are either going to find employment else where (good luck) or ask to be rehired if the funds become available. From there we will be presented to the board and our names will be in the newspaper as being non-renewed (boo). As funds become more available (hopefully by May) slowly people will be asked to be re-hired BUT not everyone will get their jobs back. So as of tomorrow, I will be jobless for next year and hopefully I will get a letter of intent which states that I will have a job for next year. Not a contract but just as good. The letters will come slowly and I don't know when or if I will get one. So that's all I know for now. Thank you so much for your prayers. I can't begin to tell you how at peace I've felt through all of this and I know it's because of those of you who are praying for me. Please continue to pray for all teachers, not just me, who will be affected. It's going to be a long journey.
God is good, and I know He's going to take care of us. What kind of faith would I have if I just gave up when the going got tough? Boy, that's a hard lesson to learn.
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