GREAT NEWS!!

So for the last year or so Travis has been interviewing to teach art at a Jr. High or High School (preferrably High School) but has had no luck being hired. With the economy the way it is administration is able to be EXTREMELY picky. Well, Trav was called last week for an interview and on Friday we found out he got the position!!! We are both so excited!

Travis will be teaching at Oquirrh Hills Middle School starting TOMORROW! Yeah, they had an unplanned increase in students and are needing someone immediately. So, Travis is the man for the job! There are some pro's and con's with this job.

CON'S:
1) Trav has to commute to and from work. However, the good news is he will miss rush hour both directions. He has to be at school by 7:20 and will be done with his classes at noon (he's part-time).

2) Trav has a teachers salary. But teachers don't teach for money. They teach because they love their subject and want to change lives. So, we'll gratefully take what we can get!

...I think there's only two con's for now. :)


PRO'S:
1) Travis is able to get his teaching license through an ARL program but until then he's still able to teach (phew!).

2) The added income will significantly help our poor-starving-student finances and we may actually be able to pay off some necessary debt. BIG HORRAY!

3) Travis is going to get some good experience teaching before moving forward with his masters degree. This experience will provide him with the "experience required/preferred" on all job postings. I swear, everyone wants their applicants to have experience, but they're not willing to GIVE the experience they need. Does that make sense?! Thankfully Travis impressed the administration so the whole experience thing isn't as heavily weighed.

4) Travis will be close to his sisters family. This is good because his nephew, Braxton, is crazy about Trav. Every opportunity Braxton has to spend time with "brother Trav" he jumps at. Now Trav will be able to stop by occasionally and spend time with him. Braxton will be THRILLED!!

5) Travis will be able to apply for other teaching jobs because he will be licensed and experienced. Hopefully in a year or so he will be able to work a little closer to home. But until then we'll gratefully take what we can get!

6) Travis is the third generation "Mr. Braun". His Grandpa Braun was a teacher, his Dad was a teacher (just retired a couple of years ago), and now he's a teacher! It's in his blood! (However, he hopes to eventually pull out of teaching and be a free lance artist as a full time career.)

7) Travis is excited to work with the students and introduce them to a subject he is passionate about. He doesn't doubt his capabilities either. I think that's a GREAT thing about him. He'll just do his best and learn from his mistakes. What a guy!!!

So, this week Trav will be job shadowing and learning about lesson plans, policies, etc. and next Monday he'll officially be Mr. Braun!

What a stud! I love you handsome!

6 months ago

...I wonder what miracles she's helping with. I wonder what work she's participating in. Whatever she's doing, she's doing incredibly well. Perfectly, I dare say. Mercydez is not one to settle for mediocre. Everything she does, she does whole heartedly and completely.


We love you, Sweetie. Thank you for everything. We miss you.

To be or not to be?

School is in full swing now. It's crazy. It's not as hard as I was expecting but I still have HOURS of homework each night. With my many instruments, theory class, and theatre class it's hard finding time to just sit and watch a movie. But sometimes I sit and watch anyways.

Today I sang in my master vocal class. This is a class where ALL the vocal majors attend and critique those performing. It's supposed to be a positive, uplifting experience and for the most part it is. I have come to realize that most (if not all) of the students want those who are performing to do well and succeed. But even with this knowledge I am still TERRIFIED! I can barely breathe when I get up to perform. I'm always thinking about what others are finding wrong with me and/or my voice. I worry about disappointment. I worry about messing up.

Well, today I did just that. I completely messed up. I was up there for about 20 - 25 minutes and was terrified to begin with. However, my success comes in that after I was up there for about 15 minutes I was able to calm down. My nervousness went away. I was able to just SING and not think about my flaws, my weaknesses! That, in and of itself, is a huge step forward for me. I don't know why but I have this huge fear - bordering paranoia - of performing. I am determined to overcome this stumbling block. I don't want to be defined by my fears. I know that one day, be it months or years from now, I will be able to perform and radiate confidence. I won't allow myself to be arrogant, I will simply be confident (those are two very different things). I dream of that day.

The only way to overcome fear is to face it. And face it. And face it. And face it. And face it. And face it. And face it. And face it....you get the idea?! There's no easy solution. There's no way around it. In fact, I read a quote a year ago that states it perfectly: "The best way out is through".

So I am going to be that person who faces my fear. I am going to keep getting up there (all be it my knees are knockin' together, my neck is bright red, while barely breathing) and I'm going to overcome this. I have too. I have no other choice.

But until then I'll have to settle for extreme nerves....and after 15 minutes of pure pain and fear the evantual peace that will come.

Thank goodness I have an incredible husband who not only supports me, he believes in me. Thank goodness for an amazing vocal coach who is not only talented but understanding and highly influential. Thank goodness for my inspirations - which are small in number but profound in strength.

We're ba-ack!

School started yesterday. I have been having some serious anxiety for the last week. I don't want to bite off more then I can chew, like I did this past Spring, and seem to feel that no matter what I do, I'm biting off more then I can chew. It's a scary feeling.

Today was day two and I feel a little overwhelmed...I will be improving and/or learning 7 instruments (you read that right!) this semester: piano, guitar, clarinet, flute, trumpet, horns, and of course vocal (no matter what you believe, the voice IS an instrument). I'm kind of nervous about it, but know if I manage my time wisely I will be fine. So, my life as we know it has ended. I will be doing nothing more then homework for the next four months...but the pay off will be incredible!

It has been very inspiring to see my mom, Ashley, Nic, and Kody all take classes as well! This time last year I was THE ONLY ONE going to school. I'm not saying they weren't spending their time wisely because they were, without a doubt, spending their time and energy on someone so much bigger, better, and incredible then school. I am so excited that they have been inspired to return and study nursing (Kody and I aren't studying nursing but the other three are). All this because of my amazing and precious niece, Mercydez. She is so inspiring...and they have definitely been inspired. They will be incredible nurses. I know it. Everything we do, we do with our Angel baby in mind. She is our motivation. She is our drive. She is our example. She is a part of our daily decisions. We love you Mercydez. We miss you.

So, this semester will be interesting. Over half of the house hold is going to school! It will be crazy-busy around here. Lots of people and cars coming and going at random times. But will be worth it? Absolutely.

Wish us luck!

Weekend with the kiddos

Trav & I regularly have the kids over for a night or two. Since moving in with my parents we have them over for one night because the house is packed full of people. But this weekend we had them Friday night through Sunday evening. We had activity after activity planned. It was a lot of fun. So fun, in fact, that I'm still recovering from the running around.

Of course we HAD to take the kids to 7 Peaks! That's a must during the summer season. Since my camera isn't water proof I didn't get any pics of that but that's okay. Here are a few pics showing some of what we did:





Friday night Marin had a "sleep over" with Makenzie (Haws). They have really gotten along well and enjoy sticking together at Seven Peaks. The girls were cute! They played with each others hair, took quizzes from a "girly" magazine (one Marin checked out from the school library), watched a movie, etc. I'm glad they have so much fun together.





Playing with the dogs. Don't worry. The dog hasn't been decapitated. He's reaching for his ball under the cabinets. Grayson and Braxton especially loved playing fetch!



Saturday morning the kids went out and helped Ashley in the memory garden. I'm really shocked how much the kids loved being out there, picking produce, watering the plants, etc. I forgot to take pictures, but I thought it was awesome...they spent well over an hour or two out there. So...if you're looking for ways to entertain kids - throw 'em in a garden! :)




After spending Saturday afternoon at Seven Peaks we roasted marshmallows and starbursts in the back yard. The kids had fun but were SUPER tired. Trav & Grayson were a little edgy, Kacey made Marin cry (suprising, I know), and Braxton took a bite of a roasted marshmallow, decided he didn't like it, spit it out in his hand, and started clapping. It got everywhere. It was an interesting night but fun nonetheless.










Travis, Marin, and I went to the Oquirrh Mountain Temple dedication bright and early Sunday morning (thank you, Ash, for watching the boys). When we got home we had breakfast.




We made swidish pancakes Sunday morning. All three kids cracked eggs (that was interesting) and helped stir.





Sunday afternoon we made puppets and put on a puppet show. Uncle Trav and the kids wrote and performed the play. It was soooooo cute! The kids absolutely LOVED it! Here's a picture of the characters. Cute huh?!?!

Last day in Paradise

I wasn't able to download these pictures yesterday because the internet wasn't working at our resort. So here's our last day in photos - a day late.




The first half of the day we hung out at the villa and played games, twisted on the hanging swings, went swimming in the pool...just hung out and took advantage of our surroundings.






Kellan and Megan playing on the swing.






Kade & Kellan had a blast together. I swear, Kellan was more entertaining and fun then any sort of water gadget or toy. Kellan laughed and had as much fun being chucked as Kade did doing the chucking.









More pool time! :) We had a lot of fun together!





Me & Trav relaxing on the patio at our villa. Nice huh?




The second half of the day we spent in down town Akumal.





We walked along the beach to "down town" Akumal. It was about a 15 minute walk. On our way we saw a shark out yonder in the ocean. It was FREAKY! I was standing on the beach and I STILL screamed out loud! You better believe I stayed out of the water after that.







Had dinner on the beach while in Akumal. It was as gourmet as it gets! Lots of yummy food and a gorgeous view!





Kellan was so excited to eat his chips and guacamole he ended up nose diving it and got a face full of guacamole! We tried not to laugh while he was crying, but it was pretty funny.







While we were eating a mariachi band walked along the beach. There was a wedding on the beach! It was so beautiful, but I don't think I prefer a beach with people sun bathing in the back ground...for wedding pictures anyway.









Building a sand castle - er, a sand village.







Enough said (I tried to turn this picture but it won't turn).





We've been so blessed to be able to come down here. I'm sure gonna miss this place...

A change for the better

We were originally planning on going to Cozumel this morning, to spend the day snorkeling, shopping, and exploring the island. But after talking with the receptionist here at the resort we decided to hang out at Playa Del Carmen again and then spend the rest of the afternoon at a place called AKTUN CHEN which is just a short distance from our hotel. We were told Cozumel is a lot like Playa Del Carmen only we'd have to pay for a ferry ride over there. I thought it sounded fun to begin with, but the more we discussed it the more I realized it would be better to change our plans.

So, here are some more pictures. :) Enjoy!




PLAYA DEL CARMEN - ROUND 2

We have learned the way of the natives (sort of). In order to get anywhere around here we have to walk out to the main high way and stand on the side of the road. We stand there until a shuttle or taxi pulls over. We then climb in and hope we don't get kidnapped and beheaded.






Trav & I got matching tatoos! Woot! Woot! Just kidding. These are temporary tatoos, also known as Henna tatoos. Don't worry, it'll wash off in about two weeks!




AKTUN CHEN
We spent most of the day here, so there are a lot of pictures. Brace yourself.





I think Trav looks sooooo handsome in this picture! Hotty, baby!





Like father, like son.





Does this look familiar? In a sort-of-very-distorted-way, I saw this (I turned the picture sideways - but scroll down):



Michael Angelo



The gang in the underground caves. It was crazy! Hot and Humid but we were able to escape the blasted misquitoes (Megan was SERIOUSLY attacked), so we were happy.





Bruce was in heaven - clearly with THAT smile! He is a collector of rocks so this adventure was right up his alley.










Imagine that ceiling falling on you! Eeek!





A picture taken in the under ground cave. My husband's so hot!




We didn't wipe oursevles down to look shiney and sexy...that's 100% sweat. It was hot!






Yup. There were lots of bats! They were flying around us the entire time. Uhg.





More cave shots (we got a lot of these).





There was a beautiful pond in the caves. The water was perfectly clear and perfectly still. It was almost therapeutic to look at the reflections of the cave ceiling and walls. This picture doesn't show the pond at all because it was really dark in there. But it was amazing.




Another view of the underground pond. You can sort of see the reflections. It's still REALLY dark but hopefully this gives you a SMALL idea of what we saw.






What a romantic!





Look how clear the water is. It was unbelievable.





Snorkeling in the underground caves. This water was COLD! Megan and I froze! It was waaayyyy better then snorkeling in the ocean. I didn't get motion sick at all, thank goodness!















They had wild monkeys on display. We were told to hold on to our hats and sunglasses! I guess the ones that aren't caged up have a bad habit of stealing accessories.





There were many, many deer in this part of the jungle. They weren't tame or anything but they sure didn't mind being in the company of humans. This deer walked right up to us and let us pet and take pictures of her.


John, Kahli, Kellan, and Mary Kay stayed in Akumal and played on the beach. They said they had a great time. So everyone had a successfully super satisfying day. :)



I still wish my whole family could have come with us...