Just a recommendation...

Having graduated in English, I get exposed to great book after great book. So, when I read a book I enjoy, I just write a review about it on my Goodreads.com account. However, every once in a while, I come across a book that just makes me freak out. This morning, I just finished The Hunger Games by Suzane Collins, and I couldn't even breathe! Seriously. The book kept me so captivated that I finished the last few pages barely able to breathe! If you want a book to read, pick this up. Truly amazing!!!! I've got the next in the series coming in the mail and I just hope that I can make it until it gets here!

Loving gLee!

I have a new favorite telly show that combines my adoration for broadway music, my lifelong fetish for chart-topping hits, my love for catchy dance moves and flashy costumes, and my guilty pleasure for quirky high school shows. (I watched "High School Musical a good 30 times in my single college days. I know....I'm lame.) Aside from a few racy dance moves that would make my mother blush, I have thoroughly enjoyed this series. It's funny, but watching has really made me reminisce on the memories of Kelli Jean Biddulph and I singing "Rent" songs at the top of our lungs in her family suburban. And I think there is a hidden desire in all of us to be the amazing performer that stands up in front of the whole school, as a nobody, and delivers an amazing vocal performance that makes the whole school give a standing ovation in approval. Oh wait...that was only my fantasy? -awkward-
For those that didn't get to see the episode this current week that had me and my mother rolling, here is a hilarious clip. Oh- and if you haven't seen the "Single Ladies" music video by Beyonce, then 1. You need to crawl up out of that hole you've been hiding in, and 2. you need to look it up. That lady can shake it.
So, without further adieu, here it is........:) hahahahahahahahahaha

Back to blogging...

So, after a long recess from filling out my blog, I'm back to try again. Much has changed since the last time that I posted...but I guess that is what 5 months will do to you, right?
Josh and I are now living in Idaho Falls and loving it! It's nice for both of us to be so close to work. Oh, and did I mention that I am now Josh's boss? Josh left his job at Melaleuca in exchange for a pay raise and his sanity back. He now works as a teammate on my team at the Buckle, showing more potential in his first few weeks than I could have hoped for. He's a natural. Which makes my job a lot easier! We get the question every day, "Is it hard working with your spouse?" Thankfully, Josh and I get along like Pam and Jim from The Office. :)

Josh and I are happier than ever, except for the seasonal allergies that keep us sneezing all day. Mer........

Well, I'll post something else soon. Peace out.

Bring on the SUMMER!!!! (Part 1)

Sometimes waiting for the heat waves of summer can be long and depressing. To help invite pass this awkward phase between an Idaho winter and brief summer, I am going to reminisce on the fun events of last summer that never got posted. Oops!
CAMPING!!!
Camping is always the big pastime of the summer that Josh and I look forward to. Both sides of our families enjoy camping, so it is a great way to hang out with our loved ones.
Here are some highlights from Sucher Family camping trips last summer!

This was our little trip to John Sack's cabin, which was just a few miles from Buffalo, where we went camping!Look how precious my parents are in this picture!

Kayla and I always find time to take goofy pictures.

This is my favorite picture of Kayla. haha. I caught her taking a picture of herself. I think it is hilarious. She looks so cute.
This is Josh and I posing in front of Johnny Sack's cabin! Despite how boring this attraction appears, it is actually quite amusing to tour the cabin! He was very short, and there are really old antique pictures of him. I would say he was probably under 5 feet or so. He built everything himself, which makes you wonder how such a small man got the roof on. Well, that is what I wondered.
I think Josh looks so handsome in this picture. I, on the other hand, have my infamous curly "Sucher Fro" to try to tame without the use of modern conveniences. But you're not supposed to look good when you go camping, right?
Icky! I can't remember if Josh found this on the side of the road or if he squished the can of his own Mountain Dew. Either way, he was looking out for Mother Nature: saving the planet one soda can at a time! Mom and Dad! Dad is always decked out in his Wheeler's paraphernalia and sucking on Life Savers mints. And mom always shines the brightest in candid pictures...mostly because if you tell her you are taking a picture, she either frowns or tries to hide. hahahaha This is Kayla and I feeding the fishies. The fish were huge!

New Opportunities

Well, I unfortunately didn't get the job at Madison High. Today I got texts from about 20 students from the school. Here are a couple samples:

"Mrs. Cooper! You were an amazing teacher and you will get an awesome teaching job someday really soon. You totally had my vote!"

"I think you're a great teacher. I'm sorry about the job. Don't give up. Keep trying. When you get a job, you'll be the best!!!"

When I first heard I didn't get the job, I was sad. But as you can imagine, given my emotional tendencies, reading these texts just made me break down and cry. I really will miss the kids. It is a great school. However, today proved to me that sometimes when one door closes, another one opens. Or even a couple of doors. Stay tuned.

In the REAL WORLD now!

So, life since graduation has been great, but it has also given me a little taste of the world of adults. After working at the Buckle for five years, it has been a while since I have been interviewed for a job, especially a REAL job. I did my student teaching at Madison High School, and one of the teachers in the English department, Diane Madsen, is retiring after this year. The school held interviews for the positions and narrowed the applicants down to a top 5. Lucky for me, they liked me enough in my interview to include me in that 5. Unlucky for me, they wanted the 5 applicants to teach a lesson in front of the Principal and any teachers in the department that want to come. The past days have been filled with the stress of putting together a 20 minute lesson that would be interesting, interactive, and instructive (now that is a parallel sentence, right?) Now, a 30 or 60 minutes lesson would have been a little more ideal, but I made the 20 minutes work. I got to teach my lesson in Ryan Snelgrove's CREATIVE WRITING class, which was so fun!!! For part of my lesson, I morphed the face of the Principal, Mr. Hampton, into the face of my dad. Here is the before and after.

Before

After

I really think that Josh and I did a great job manipulating the photo a little bit! I really see Dennis Sucher when I look at this picture! I do think that I'm channeling a little bit of my uncle, Mike. However, my dad and Mike are practially twins anyway, right? My lesson went really well, and I couldn't be more happy with myself. If I don't get the job, I'm happy to know that I did my best, and that it is just not meant to be. It was a great day!

Graduation!

On April 10, 2009, I hit a huge milestone in my life: graduation! I finished my degree in English Education, and it feels so strange not to be starting school with Josh this next semester. Although I am going to miss school, I am really loving the extra time that I have to read. In the time since I finished school, I have read The Wednesday Wars, the second and third Diary of a Wimpy Kid, and started The Atonement. Once an English major, always an English major, right?
It was so fun to have some of my family up for my graduation. Unfortunately, they make the graduation gowns the size of a circus tent. Thankfully, Josh bought me some really cute shoes to make up for it. :)

Marsha and Bob came to my graduation. I chose this picture because it displayed Bob's natural talent for looking like a big goof in most pictures. He's so funny. Bob and Marsha share have really got us hooked on American Idol. Bob agrees with me; Lil Rounds has got to go

My family also made an appearance. I especially like the look on my father's face. I wonder what he was thinking when this picture was taken. Here is my guess:
I wonder if I can see my job from here....
That man takes pride in his work. :)
I think Grandma Bonnie looks particularly vibrant in her purple sweater.

Altogether, it was a grand day, and not nauseatingly formal. Now it is just time to answer the question that looms in the mind of every college graduate: What next? Fortunately, a wise man (my father) once said (almost every day) that "everything has a way of working out."
So regardless of what my next step is, I know that it will be the right thing for me!