Mi Casa es Su Casa

You asked for and now you have it....only five months later! Check out mi casa!!!

1st picture: The front view of my house.
2nd picture: This a picture of the big grassy space that served as runoff storage during a huge storm--the field sits just northeast of my house.
3rd picture: My kitchen...
4th picture: Just to the right of the kitchen sits my dining room...
5th picture: Still rotating to the right is the living room.
6th picture: My backyard--small jungle or what?? I am tackling this task this weekend with my shiny new lawn mower (thanks mom and dad)!

My classroom

Here is the Buckeye Ag Facility in all it's glory. Our building sits just north of the rest of the school , unattached and out of the way. It's nice, I like being isolated (just kidding)! I feel so blessed to teaching in this program and below you will see why with pictures of our greenhouse, tractors, covered arena and livestock pens, and a couple of views of my classroom. I also included a picture of my the most recent bulletin board I did--I was pretty proud of it.

This is the south wall of my classroom. You can't really tell but all my students sit at table to the right of this picture.

Christmas Greetings

“But be sure to fear the Lord and serve him faithfully with all your heart; consider what great things he has done for you.”
1 Samuel 12:24

As the end of 2007 draws to a close, this verse reminds me that I should truly consider what great things the Lord has done for me and my family. It is at this time of year that we celebrate the most important thing—the birth of Jesus Christ! I am thankful for the hope I have because of Jesus and the ways that this hope has transformed my life. I pray you too know this great hope—

This entire year has been a transition to teaching for me—I student taught at Pine Ridge HS in Deltona, Florida for 12 weeks last spring. Deltona is a suburb about 45 minutes north of Orlando; I taught under Erin Johnson, a seasoned teacher who taught me much about the art of teaching but most importantly about my own motivation to teach. May was the month that I graduated with my Master’s of Science in Agricultural Education and Communication from the University of Florida—Go Gators! I figured I might as well retire for a few weeks since I hadn’t been paid for the previous five months and I thoroughly enjoyed my time as a retiree—it gave me plenty of time to say good-bye to the amazing friends and family that I had made during my short two years in Florida.

God is surely generous as He helped me line up a job before I even graduated! I came out of retirement promptly after moving back to Arizona so that I could start my job as one of two Ag Ed teachers at Buckeye Union HS, which is about 45 miles west of downtown Phoenix. Teaching is honestly the hardest thing that I have ever done but I love it dearly. There have been a few potholes, some of them deeper than others, but God has given me a heart for this age group and this topic, both of which I am thankful.

My brother helped me find a beautiful home in Buckeye in early August and I moved in over the first weekend in September. Home ownership has been fun—I love figuring out where I want to hang things and am continually rearranging trying to find the perfect spot for items. The hardest part has been finding time to maintain my backyard and it currently looks like a small jungle—my goal for the spring is to mow it more than once every 12 weeks. What can you expect though when I spend more time in my classroom than in my own house?!

I wasn’t the only one in my family to move this year—both my mom and dad moved into new offices at the beginning of this year. Paul and Gretchen (my brother and sister-in-law) moved their four kids up to Cottonwood and are living in my grandparent’s old house which sits across the road from my parents. My sister, Anna, completed the year of great moves of the Groseta’s by moving in with me after she graduated from the University of Arizona with her BS in Agriculture Resource Economics and Management in December.

God’s blessing upon my life was far beyond what I deserved this year yet He continually showered down more. I praise God for the health and happiness of my family and am eager to start a new year full of exciting changes and new adventures! If you’re ever in the neighborhood, please stop by—I am never too busy to cook a good meal for good friends!

Blessings in Christ,

Katy

When opportunity knocks

2 Corinthians 4:11 says, "For we who are alive are always being given over to death for Jesus' sake, so that his life may be revealed in our mortal body." This verse is the answer I've been looking for over the past year in my search to understand what it means when I say I want to love God more. I have prayed, read the bible, meditated on, journaled, reflected, and discussed with friends what love is and what loving God more looks like in my life. I have been confused, frustrated and almost afraid of what the answer might be at times. But (the merciful "but") this scripture made it so clear--I am to die to my worldly self (translation: my own needs, wants, desires, justifications, etc.) so that Christ's character (translation: God is love) may be revealed in me.

Hmmph. Well, that seems pretty simple. And it's clear as day in my mind. No confusion, honest. I guess it's time to see if I truly want to love God more because we all know that knowledge without implementation is useless. What am I going to do with this new knowledge?

As I updated my friend Brian on this last night, he shared some insight--oftentimes when we ask for something from God, he doesn't just give us what we ask for. Instead, he gives us the opportunity to demonstrate more effort on our part to become that way. For example, when we ask for patience God doesn't always wave a magic wand and "wa-la" make us more patient, right? Oftentimes He will provide the opportunity to become more patient. Think about it--how many times have you prayed for more patience and then found yourself in the slowest line at the grocery store and behind the slowest car in every lane for the next two weeks? Or maybe you find yourself waiting for an answer for an additional month, or six months. And it's in these moments of opportunity that we find that God is more than enough for whatever it is that we want. He has enough patience, joy, love, grace, kindness, and mercy for any situation that we're ever in. Once we ask for it, we must make the connection between wanting it and knowing that God provides it.

So go on, ask for it. Do you want, to want God more? Do you want more mercy for those around you? Are you desiring more patience? God can knock your socks off if you let him.

Pictures I am thankful for...

Thanksgiving Day was absolutely beautiful! I couldn't have asked for better weather or better company. I am so in love with my nieces and nephews that it's not even funny. I hope you enjoy a few of my favorite pictures from Thanksgiving~
Gracie, my two-year-old niece is snacking on a banana...so cute!


Check out this super cute pilgrim on my lap-Dylan made this at school and sported it all day! When I asked her who the pilgrims were, she couldn't quite remember...but she learned real quick and could tell me the rest of the day!



















My two nephews are heart throbs, aren't they? Pete turned one on November 23rd and he is so cute when and he smiles (and even when he doesn't)! I'm not really sure why Jake didn't smile for this picture, but at least it looks like I had a good time. Totally diggin' his trucker hat!

L-O-V-E

I know it's not Valentine's Day, but love has been on my mind a lot this past year and I was reminded of that this morning as I listened to Toby Mac's song "I was made to love." I attended the Passion '07 conference in Atlanta, Georgia last year and several speakers really challenged my thoughts on loving God. I know I love God, but I have a really hard time wrapping my small mind around this HUGE concept.

The bible says God is love--how do I love love? How do I love God more? What does it mean to love God? What will loving God more look like in my life (I am very visual)? With the help of the Holy Spirit I have sorted through some of this jumble of thoughts over the past year and right now, simply put, loving God more looks like loving others more. In practical, every day ways. God created people, and He loves his creation. If I am to become like Christ that means I too must learn to love people in the same way that Christ does. Selflessly. Unconditionally. Mercifully. Graciously. Consistently. Perfectly.

On top of it all, I know that I am already unable to love the way that I am supposed to. Again though, I must remember that God's love is so sufficient and generous in my life, that I am able to, in a very small way, begin loving as Christ did.

I am thankful for...

• My friends, family, and the fellowship of my many. Often times I sense God's favor most when I am reminded of the wonderful relationships that I am blessed with. God has shown me that he values relationships and I am trying to become more relationship focused rather than being so occupied with being productive and efficient all the time.
• Having access to the world's safest, most abundant and most affordable food supply. Isn't it wonderful the confidence we have each time we enter the grocery store. Yes, I would like to see more American grown products in the super market, but I am confident that the food I consume is safe above all else.
• My students!! (and my job:)) Regardless of anything else in my life right now, I feel so blessed to have the students I do. I pray that I am able to develop a meaningful teacher-student relationship with each one. I pray that not only do they process the technical content I teach but more importantly I pray that they feel valued in my classroom. With the ever-changing landscape of demands upon teachers, it is easy to lose sight of my objective in teaching. I want to develop considerate, kind young people who know how to think on their feet and make good decisions regardless of the topic or situation.
• God! I couldn't be more blessed, truly and honestly. I am a child of the living God. I have hope because of Jesus. In all things, through all things, despite all things, I can approach each day with a renewed sense of purpose and meaning because I know that God is in control and works for the good of those who believe in him. Praise God for his goodness and mercy!