Queen Jen's Gems

How many of you like to take naps? Some of you are quick to answer yes 😀. Some of you may say yes in hesitancy or say it depends on the situation. Still others may say no. You may even be the one that can fall asleep no matter where you are and what noise you hear around you. That was my Daddy - my favorite guy💙! I remember when we were on a bus trip one time. I look over and Daddy was sleeping sound even though the bus was noisy! Now, for me, I can't take a nap on a loud bus! A big shout out to those that can do that 😀! Now, I'm going to take you back a minute to elementary school when you had nap time. Do you remember that? I do. I also remember not liking naptime when I was in kindergarten. You might be wondering what child doesn't like naptime. This girl right here did not! I got in trouble at school because I didn't want to take my nap. Instead, I wanted to be curious and talk to my friends. Back then, I didn't appreciate the naps. Now, let's fast forwar...

 A few weeks ago, I had the amazing opportunity to have a new adventure 😊. Guess what my new adventure was?! A paint party!! Yes, I went to my first ever paint party and I loved it! It was so much fun 💝!! I'm so glad my friend invited me and hosted the party. She was a wonderful hostess!! Growing up, I loved to color and draw. My first real excitement for art was in first grade, which was great! Then, I remember in middle school, I loved art and it really helped me through tough times in middle school. Art was my favorite class and I always looked forward to going!! It was always a bright spot in my day 😊. It put a smile on my face, helped me to relax, and feel less anxious. I have a few pieces of artwork from middle school hanging in my bedroom currently 💜. In fact, one of those pieces was in an art show when I was in 8th grade. My former art teacher found some of my pieces in later years after I left and gave them to me. So, when I was able to attend my friend's paint par...

 When you think about a fresh start, you might think about a new year, a new week, or a new month. You might even think about a new  job, new place to live, or a new set of classes for the school or college term. The word "fresh" itself means not previously known or used and something new and different.  All of the things mentioned above are definitely fresh starts 😊! When referring to a person feeling fresh, it means being full of energy and vigor. One feels energetic, rested, and refreshed. Fresh starts can begin anytime and anywhere. At any moment of the day, we can choose to make a different choice that will help us move forward and be better 💚. Almost a month ago (time is flying by!), I started a new school year in teaching a new group of students. When every new school begins, I view it as a fresh start. Today, I want to take a moment and share with you some ways I am learning to embrace a fresh start.  1. Change the arrangement of my physical space . In my c...

 Can you believe it?! It's September! It's the 9th month of the year already, which means there is only 4 months left of 2023. Wow! Time is moving quickly! As I go throughout the year, I'm learning to do more self-reflection and check-ins with myself 💚. I'm learning to check in and look at my progress, growth, boundaries, health (mental, physical, spiritual, emotional), and goals reached or in progress of being reached. At the beginning of this year, I set out on a mission to accomplish one of my goals. It's a goal that had to do with my career. It's a goal that I had thought about it before and didn't step out on faith and do until recently. When we think about what a mission is, we see it's an important assignment carried out for a particular purpose. It typically involves travel and the word mission is related to a journey, task, or charge. The mission that I just recently accomplished was an educational journey 😊. You see, there are different journ...

 We've all had those days. You know the days that it seemed like nothing was going right. It seemed like one thing after another was popping up and they seemed like an inconvenience. Perhaps, wrong things didn't start to happen until the afternoon or evening of your day. Perhaps, it was your morning that didn't start off good. We know our morning sets the tone for our day. I'm not saying you can't get back on track, but sometimes it can be harder depending on the circumstances and we have to make sure we are intentional. You might think to yourself when those different things are going on- not today. Of all days, you may be saying "Not today." I've learned we can't always control our situations, but we can control our response and attitude towards it 😊. When we've had a bad morning or things didn't seem to be going right, being negative doesn't have to be our first reaction (It has been mine before though as I'm sure it's been ...

 Have you ever had anyone say that to you before? I know I have! I got it a lot when I was younger, but I still get it a lot as I've gotten older. I especially get it now because of my glasses 😊. When I was younger, I used to think it was a bad thing. If you remember from a previous blog post, I talked about not wanting to stand out when I was younger and feeling weird and embarrassed when it happened. Now that I've gotten older though, I don't see it as a bad thing. I now have a different perspective. I now see that different can be good. After all, God made me like no one else and I am unique 💜.  I wasn't called to blend in, but I was called to stand out. As I said in a previous blog post, I have to dare to be different (go check it out if you haven't!). Today, I want to take time to share four ways about why something's different about you and me. May you be encouraged to know that different is okay. 1. You are the salt (Matthew 5:13)- When salt is added t...

 Throughout my days, I hear a lot of questions being asked. My students love to ask questions in my classroom. Some love to ask them more than others 💜! Sometimes I know the answers to the questions and sometimes I don't know the answers. When I don't know the answers, I either go search and look it up or I ask someone who does know. Now, I have heard many different types of questions that my students like to ask. Some are easy answers while others are more involved. There's one particular type of question they LOVE to ask that starts with two words. Can you guess it?! Hint: Adults like to start their questions off with these two words also 😊. Are you ready?! It's the famous "What if?" We like to think or ask aloud, "What if this happened or didn't happen?". "What if people knew this or didn't know this?" In thinking back to my classroom for a minute, I heard a lot of "what if" questions in my Reading class as we were re...