This past weekend I visited Aaron in Atlanta. It is definitely different than Albany! We spent most of the weekend marveling at all the lights :)
Friday night I had a chance to freshen up and then Aaron took me out on a big city date. We went to a restaurant near downtown that one of his co-workers recommended. It was amazing! The name was Murphy's. The atmosphere was unique, and the food was delicious. We will go there again I hope. It was a very romantic outing. On the way out, we stopped by his new workplace and he showed me where he gets the job done everyday:

That thing on the wall in the back was his Christmas present from me: his diploma framed. It has come in quite handy!

On Saturday we slept a little late and just hung out together. We went looking for apartments but only toured one...we got kind of distracted with Chik-fil-A. We headed downtown to browse in the Underground shopping area, and we ended up touring the Coke museum. Aaron knew about the part where you get to sample all the different flavors and brands of Coke, and he promised to drink until he got sick. He sampled all the drinks, but thankfully didn't get sick! On Saturday evening we met with Tom and Sarah and their new baby, Noah. We ate dinner at a nice Mexican restaurant (almost too nice...the food was really fancy!). We were thankful to get to know a wonderful couple. Tom works with Aaron. They had Aaron over for dinner last week so he didn't have to eat pb&j in the hotel room! Afterwards we quickly ran by the Perimeter Mall to find an Anne Taylor Loft. Jackpot! I found some cute dressy things. If you're wondering about my birthday coming up... :)

Sunday morning we were invited by Aaron's boss to go to church with them. We really enjoyed it. They have a beautiful family (two sweet girls) and a God-glorifying church. The folks in their Sunday School class were so welcoming! After church we ate near Stone Mountain and drove around to look for rental houses. We didn't find much, but we aren't discouraged. We know God has great plans for where we will live.

It was a fun weekend. Now back to more testing and lesson plans! Have a great week.

I am heading up to Atlanta to enjoy spending time with Aaron. We will look for a place to live, visit a church, and maybe even go shopping!

It's been a difficult work week...thanks for all your prayers for patience and joy. Please pray for my students. God, pour out your grace on these young people!

Aaron and I couldn't take it anymore...we had to see each other! We agreed to meet halfway between here and Atlanta, which is a city called Macon. We ate at Carabba's and loved it. It was a special date and not at all like talking on the phone. Thank you for all your prayers...it's not easy being separated!

This is a big week in Lee County... we are giving our students THE test (here it's called CRCT...). The tension level is high and the kids are pumped, but I'm looking forward to when things calm down. I am proud of them, though. Hope you are doing well!

Happy Birthday to Peggy (mom)! We can't wait to celebrate with her this weekend. The Fernandez family is making the long trip to south Georgia on Friday. We will also have a chance to celebrate Easter together. It will be fun to post pictures when I get back on Monday! (no school on Good Friday)
For your reading interests, here is a sermon devoted to the glory of God at Easter:
http://desiringgod.org/library/sermons/83/040383.html

CROWN HIM WITH MANY CROWNS!

Crown him with many crowns,
The Lamb upon his throne;
Hark, how the heavenly anthem drowns
All music but its own!
Awake, my soul, and sing
Of him who died for thee,
And hail him as thy matchless King
Through all eternity.
Crown him the Son of God,
Before the worlds began,
And ye who tread where he hath trod,
Crown him the Son of man;
Who ev'ry grief hath known
That wrings the human breast,
And takes and bears them for his own,
That all in him may rest.
Crown him the Lord of life,
Who triumphed o'er the grave
And rose victorious in the strife
For those he came to save;
His glories now we sing,
Who died and rose on high,
Who died eternal life to bring,
And lives that death may die.
Crown him the Lord of Heav'n
Enthroned in worlds above,
Crown him the King to whom is giv'n
The wondrous name of love.
Crown him with many crowns,
As thrones before him fall;
Crown him, ye kings, with many crowns,
For he is King of all.

Amen.

Aaron and I have been so fortunate to be loved on by others so far this week. God is really showing his faithfulness through other people. On Monday night Aaron's boss and his wife invited him over for a feast in Atlanta! He was able to spend time with good people. Marcela invited me over for dinner on Monday night so I didn't have to eat pretzels by myself at home. And last night, a woman from church invited me to their house for a Bible study! But even if we spend an evening alone, we are not really alone :)

This weekend was full of joy. Aaron got home a lot earlier than I thought he would on Friday and we were able to go out to a nice dinner to celebrate- the Riverhouse. On Saturday we spent time outside when it was not raining. I got to talk with Molly! She is doing well in Kentucky. She is teaching Spanish at an elementary school and really loves the church God has involved her in. We went shopping together for some snacks that he could keep in his hotel room. Aaron studied the Bible on Saturday night while I read it. He led the college S.S. class on Sunday morning! He did a wonderful job. He talked about risk as it relates to Christians. Ask him for a more detailed explanation :) I also baked him a Congratulations cake on Saturday night.
We borrowed a pressure washer from the neighbors and Aaron thrived with this toy all weekend. Here he is on Sunday afternoon...we are cleaning up a little for this weekend!

This week in my kindergarten/2nd grade class, we made a book together about a picnic. We learned new vocabulary words (one of which was picnic- they didn't know what it was and had never been on one), and used a wordless picture book to make our own story. Today I took them on their first picnic and we read our book! They loved it...there was a lot for conversation about picnics. We had popcorn, cookies, chips, and Coke. It was a great experience for me.
Another fun teaching moment happened today- we are doing a unit on "famous things" in my 6th grade class. We have read and talked about the history/facts of such things as coffee, gum, Braille, soccer, and today we did neckties. We did a listening comprehension activity in which they had to follow my directions to tie a tie. They actually got it! The funny part is that I had never learned how to do it until today- I got some directions off the Internet and taught myself before going to class. It worked great and now we all know how! They were so proud :)

Aaron has accepted a job in Atlanta with Waste Industries! This came as a big surprise (not so much to me- I know my husband is great at his job!) on Tuesday of this week. We haven't really had time to think or talk about it much because he had to start work there yesterday. It's been a blur. Since I am still working in Albany, I will stay here until the end of school and he will come on weekends- this is still our home. I am so proud of Aaron and his commitment to excellence in his work. He is a great example to me.
We are sad to leave Albany. This has been our first home that we've made together on our own and the people have been so good to us. It is the close of a good season of our life, but we know another great season is ahead. We marvel at the unmerited favor of God.
Please pray for our transition and time apart from each other. Pray that we will find an appropriate place to live there, and that we will find the perfect church (for us), a job for me, friends to know, and that Aaron will feel comfortable in his new job right away.
Congratulate Aaron, if you have a chance! His email address is afernandez@waste-ind.com
He will drive back tonight and I can't wait to hear how his first 2 days were. We'll let you know!

Aaron's grass experiment is finished. Jonathan (zorbacon) was right...the lack of drainage in our baking dish caused fungus to grow and kill the grass! I don't have a picture to show you its pitiful plight because I was quick to throw it out and wash the dish. I was getting tired of looking at it in the kitchen every day!

Acella before the birth. Even small women's bellies get round!

A happy family...

A happy and tired dad! She's beautiful. We can't wait to meet her soon.

I can't believe Spring Break has already come and gone! It was a perfect one, though. I have a lot to tell since I haven't been able to get online until now.
Not this past weekend, but the one before, we relaxed. Aaron and I saw the new movie Inside Man and recommend it (watch for language, though). He played golf on Saturday with church friends, and among other things I went to see Mussrat and her growing baby Mushan. He is a happy baby! I left on Sunday after church for Savannah. It was a nice drive...Molly, I listened to sevillanas music quite a bit! I met mom, grandma, and Marie at the hotel before going to eat at Outback across the street. We watched TV and read Sunday night to prepare for the touristy day ahead. On Monday we ate a Cajun breakfast on River Street after getting lost trying to find a bakery.

Lost...already :)

We took a limousine to our trolley tour (??) and toured all of downtown Savannah (the historical district). The old houses are beautiful and the azaleas were in perfect bloom all over the city.

After the trolley tour, we drove ourselves to Tybee Island nearby to see the lighthouse and enjoy the sound/ocean. On our way back in to Savannah, we ate again! We had Uncle Bubba's- great seafood.

On Monday night we took a Ghost Walking Tour- we walked around the historic district and listened to a man tell stories about strange things that people have seen in Savannah. He was entertaining! Mom and I of course had to stop by Starbucks on our way back to the room. Tuesday morning we slept a little later and walked to Ms. Wilkes' for an early lunch- we thought it would be an early lunch. It turned out that there was a long line out front and they were only letting 15 people in at a time. We waited for an hour but it was worth it- very impressive spread of country cooking! It's a popular spot in Savannah and we were glad we had the experience.

Tuesday afternoon we went on a Riverboat cruise on the Savannah River. This is where we got a lot of Savannah history and fun facts. Afterwards we strolled along River Street in search of candy (found it!) and praline sauce.

The ones at the top right are called Bear Claws...mMmMmM

On the eve of our departure, we relaxed in the room and made a point to see American Idol. Everyone was pretty into it :) Check out Grandma and Marie waiting for it to come on:

It was a great trip. Thanks, mom, for inviting me! On Wednesday I got home in time to have lunch with Aaron. The rest of the week was filled with errands and laundry and a new book. This past weekend we spent a lot of time outside putting down pinestraw. We're getting ready for when the Fernandez' (Aaron's parents and Brooke) come to visit in less than 2 weeks!