10 Simple Things

The school year has started for us, and MAN has it started.

Evan's been in either football camp or practice for the last 3 weeks, even though school just started 2 days ago.  No one signed up to be Grace's Junior High Cheerleading coach, so I put in my application...AND I got hired.  Yippee.  Yikes.  Oh boy!

I've worried about Evan's first year in Junior High, getting his locker open each time he tries, getting to class on time, and even how he handles leaving the house in the morning at 7:15, and not getting home till around 6pm at night after practice.

For Grace, Junior High is already old hat.  She's navigated the hallways and made it to class on time (even with time to talk to friends), figured out how to get through the lunch line the quickest, and how to look cool just about every minute of the day, despite having P.E. first period.  She's eager to start Cheer next week, and start tumbling classes the week after that.

I've filled up the van with gas twice in the last week.  It's gonna be a long year.

But, Evan brought home an interesting assignment for English tonight.  He had 10 questions he had to answer, in paragraph form, and then use it as a speech tomorrow.   He could write the answers in any order, and he had to add details.

These were the questions.  I thought I'd try my hand at the assignment as well.

1.  What is your name?
2.  What is your favorite color and why?
3.  What is your favorite food?
4.  What is your most memorable experience?
5.  Who is the most encouraging person you know, or the most encouraging experience you've had in the last year?
6.  What do you want to get out of this class this year?
7.  What is the most valuable lesson you've learned in the last year?
8.  What are your hobbies?
9.  What is your favorite book or movie?
10.  What is the quality you most admire.

     Hi, my name is Lorie Yoder.  I am a wife, mother, sister, daughter, granddaughter and employee.  My favorite color is too hard to pinpoint to one, so I'll list my favorites:  aqua, kelly green, red, gold, and chocolate brown.  I love ALL those colors because they most resemble what I have in my life.  They make me feel calm and comfortable, and they are what I most often pick to wear, or use in my home.  My favorite food isn't just one thing...it's a TYPE of food.  I could eat anything Mexican and be quite happy and satisfied.  It's also the food I like to make the most because it's usually the easiest to make.  I'm all about ease in the kitchen!  The quality I most admire in people is a sense of humor.  People who have this quality are the people I most gravitate to.  I laugh ALOT.  My husband makes me laugh, my kids, and my co-workers.  Nothing makes you feel better than laughing, and I hear it keeps you young, so why not do it more often?
     The most encouraging experience I had in the last year was when I had someone offer me a job.  A job I didn't even know existed until my friend offered it to me and said they thought I would do a good job.  I LOVE this job, and am so glad I decided to pursue it.  It's the perfect mix for me.  In my spare time I like to work on crafts, scrapbook, read, and watch movies.  My favorite books, well, there are too many to list, but my favorite authors are:  Diane Chamberlain, Anita Shreve, Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child, Kate Morton, Kristin Hannah, Jude Devearux, and many more.  I like all movies.  Action, comedy, drama, suspense and mystery.  I have to supply my habit by having a membership to Netflix.
     The most valuable lesson I've learned in the last year is to watch EVERYTHING my kids do.  Time has FLOWN in the last year, and I feel like if I don't watch more closely, I will miss all the important things.  They have grown so smart, so funny, and so strong in their faith, and I am so proud of them.  My most treasured memory this year...going on vacation with our good friends.  We had an absolute blast, and we'll talk about the memories we made for years to come.  I'm so glad we made it happen.
     As far as what I want to get out of this class...well, I'm just glad I'm done with classes!  School seems like so long ago, but I'm reliving it through my kids, and even through the teachers they have that used to be my teachers.

Wow.  I haven't had an "assignment" like this for awhile.  I hope Evan does well in class tomorrow when he gives his speech.  He did a great job writing it.

How would you tell your story?