Too HOT for Words...

I don't even know where to begin this post...so I'll just say it. Remember in this post when I said I was considering starting a reality tv show about the life of a high school administator? Well, people, I am seriously going to start calling CBS this week, because the ratings for my reality show would be OFF THE CHARTS with this episode.

Long story short...we had a visitor on campus this past Friday. She came into the front office and asked for a fire extinguisher because the cigarette lighter in her mini van was smoking and she was afraid it was going to catch on fire. As we walked out to the front of the school, with the fire extinguisher in hand, her mini van was already engulfed with flames...HUGE FLAMES!!! Unfortunately, she was parked in an area where her vehicle was close to about 10 cars and as I suspected, both cars on either side of the mini van were a total loss.

Here are a few pics that I took with my cell phone after the fire department arrived and put out the fire...

Can you believe this is a mini van??? This picture makes me think of something that I've seen on CSI.

This is the inside of the mini van. Every single thing was absolutely destroyed...just ashes.

Thank the Lord no one was hurt because this could have caused serious harm.

 I wasn't kidding when I said this post was too HOT for words :(

A Little Bit of Love...

I was wanting a little something to brighten up our mantel for Valentine's Day and I found the PERFECT decoration!!!

I found this adorable bunting banner from Blue Moon Studios .

The detail of the fabric is just perfect.

This banner was exactly what I was looking for to give our mantel a little pink and red for the upcoming Valentine's Day holiday.

It's like a little bit of love!!

UNBELIEVABLE and an Update!

I just can't thank you all enough for your generosity, encouragement, and prayers!

I really think it's UNBELIEVABLE that after just two days of posting about my friend in need , we were able to raise our goal amount of $500 to help her and her family. I have decided to keep our Chip-in up and running throughout the weekend, in the event that more people would like to help her out.

I did want to give an update on Tiffany's status, as she called us yesterday to let us know the next step in the plan to get rid of this cancer.

Starting on Monday she will be admitted into the hospital and will begin an agressive chemo treatment called Interleukin 2 or IL2 on Tuesday. It is a drug used to treat melanoma and is given intravenously every eight hours in a high-dose regimen. Tiffany will receive the chemo Tuesday - Saturday and then remain at the hospital for the following week. She will repeat this regimen for five treatments (take the chemo for five days, then remain at the hosptial to be monitored, and repeat).  Because there are significant side effects with this regimen, Tiffany will be hospitalized while the drug is being given. Her doctor wants to start immediately because the cancer seems to be spreading so rapidly.

Please keep Tiffany and her family in your prayers. Everyone at our school, her family, and friends know how strong Tiffany is and we all believe she WILL fight this and WIN.

Again, because this agressive chemo treatment will keep Tiffany hospitalized for months now, I will keep the Chip-in up HERE  for those that can give a monetary donation to support the family.

I had a blogger leave a comment asking that I share Tiffany's Caring Bridge Journal with all to read. At this time, I have decided not to share her journal. Tiffany is such a private person and she writes her TRUE feelings, experiences, etc. on her journal, so I would rather ask her permssion first before giving everyone the link to her journal.

Until I get her permission to share it with the blogging community, I would love it if you would leave some words of encouragement, motivation, and prayers to this post. I will send Tiffany an email with all of your kind words to help lift her spirits.

Until the next update...please keep praying, add Tiffany to your church's prayer list, and share her story...it's going to be an UNBELIEVABLE journey of a strong woman overcoming cancer.

A Friend in Need...

I have a friend in need...in need of your prayers.
Tiffany, my friend and co-worker, has cancer...more specific, she has Stage 4 Metastatic Melanoma. It seems as if every time she gets a break through, another negative situation arises.

She has gone through FIVE different cancer scares and has survived every single one of them. Her most recent set back happened this past week.

Let me give you a little background that leads up to her latest diagnosis...

Tiffany went into the hospital on December 13 to begin chemo treatments but found out that she was bleeding internally. As the doctors were trying to stop the bleeding, they found  a mass between her small intestine and pancreas. On December 21, Tiffany had Whipple Surgery. This surgery is very dangerous and takes along time to recover. Unfortunately, during this exact same time, her husband had a blood clot in his lungs and was admitted to the hospital too.

Tiffany AND her husband were released from the hospital and were able to spend the New Year at home.  When she left the hospital her right side of her neck was a little swollen from where the doctors had inserted a needle. She visited her doctor this past Thursday because her neck was continuing to swell. Her doctor performed an ultrasound and biopsy and the test came back positive. The melanoma has now spread to her lymph nodes.


Throughout this entire ordeal, Tiffany has remained strong and full of faith. She has created a Caring Bridge Journal that she sends out periodically to keep all of her friends and family up to date on how she is doing. But, when I read her journal from yesterday, I can't tell you how sad, upset, and frustrated it made me...she is losing faith. Tiffany is one of the strongest women that I know AND she is one of the strongest women of faith that I know. But, understandably, she keeps getting knocked down over and over again with negative news.

When Tiffany called last week to let us know that, yet again, the cancer had spread, she shared that her husband had STILL not been released to return to work. I have no idea how this family is making it with their everyday expenses, groceries, bills, and medical bills. Besides praying for her and her family every single day, I thought it would be a good idea to get the family a Walmart gift card or maybe just cash to help with some things around the house. I just know this family needs our help.

If you'd like to join me in helping out, please click the Chip-In button below to donate. ANY amount is welcome, whether you can donate $5 or $50, I would so appreciate it and I know this family will too. BUT above all else, please say a prayer for Tiffany and her family today. I know that the Lord can perform miracles and Tiffany could surely use one.




If you have a blog, I would love it if you would post about this Chip-in to spread the word. The more people praying for Tiffany, the better.

"For where two or three are gathered in my name, there am I among them.”~Matthew 18:20

Challenge Day...

I had one of the most awesome experiences last week at school. We participated in a three-day event called Challenge Day. If you've ever seen the show, If You Only Knew Me, on MTV, it's the same program.

This company has changed lives of students and teachers all over the world. Their vision is to create a world where every child feels safe, loved and celebrated. The Challenge Day mission is to provide youth and their communities with experiential programs that demonstrate the possibility of love and connection through the celebration of diversity, truth, and full expression.

You MUST check out this clip for the MTV show to really understand what the program, Challenge Day is all about...

If You Really Knew Me - MTV Shows

I attended Challenge Day on Thursday and the experience has enlightened me, humbled me, and changed me.

I will NEVER look at our students, or a human being, the same without first asking myself, “What life experiences has this person been affected by? What obstacles has he/she overcome?” But more importantly, “What can I do to make him/her have a better day?”

If you are in education or know someone that works at a school, you should REALLY recommend this program to the principal. It's one that has already made a huge impact in the lives our students and teachers.

I Love You!!!

My hubby shared this video with me this week and I just LOVE it! Although most people think that huskies look a lot alike, this dog looks EXACTLY like our Kodi.

Here are some pics of Kodi...

Now check out the video.

The markings on this dog look SO similar to Kodi's!! I had to watch it over and over again because I thought it was the strangest thing!!!

I wonder if we can teach Kodi how to speak like that?!?!?

Don't forget about my Scentsy Party...the deadline to order is soon approaching!!!

Little Acts of Kindness...

I was not too happy when I found out that I was the administrator that needed to attend the National Honor Society Inductions this past Tuesday. I feel like I spend the majority of my evenings at school and Tuesdays are my nights to be home ALONE!! The hubby bowls on Tuesday nights and although I love him to pieces, I enjoy my alone time :)

But, the evening turned out to be a very special one. We had over 70 students inducted into our National Honor Society and it was a lovely (and SHORT) ceremony. Although we had so many students, the entire ceremony lasted all of 45 minutes. To tell the truth...after I saw how proud the parents were of their children and how excited the students were of this accomplishment, it made the time I spent at school SO worth it.

It made it even BETTER this morning when I walked into my office and saw these...

These were the flowers the sponsors used as the centerpiece at the NHS Inductions.

The sponsors attached a little note on the vase that read "Thanks for attending the NHS Inductions, we apprecaite you."

This MADE MY DAY!!!

It's the little acts of kindness that mean SO much :)

OH...please don't forget to visit THIS post if you want to place an order from the Scentsy party I am hosting!!!

Thoughts???

I really loved our mantel decorations for Christmas...especially the word vinyl that I purchased this year.

So I had this brilliant idea to get a decorative vinyl to put over our mantel AFTER Christmas. I searched and searched until I found the one that I thought would be perfect. This is what I picked out...

I thought it would be a good idea to get this vinyl in white, so it would stand out. But, now that I have it up on the wall, I am starting to think that I should have gotten it in black instead. 

What do you think? I'd love to hear your thoughts... 

AND please don't forget to check out my post HERE and join in on my Scentsy Party!!

It's a PARTY!!!!

One of my dear friends sells Scentsy products and I have decided to have a PARTY this month!!!

If you haven't heard of Scentsy, you are missing out. My mom gave me this pretty Scentsy warmer for Christmas...

Can you say LOVE??? But I have to admit that the Scentsy bars in Sentimental Cider and Cinnamon Bear make me REALLY think LOVE!!!

The difference with Scentsy warmers than regular candles is that the decorative warmers melt the Scentsy Bars by the heat of a light bulb instead of a traditional wick and flame. They are so much safer than leaving a candle burning all day long AND you don't have the smoke residue on your walls, carpet, or counter tops.

Another plus about Scentcy products is that they are AFFORDABLE!!! The warmers range from $15-$30 and the bars are only $5!!! You can't beat that :)

If you'd like to see what all the hooplah is about, please visit this LINK and browse the site. Just click on Lianna Knight's Party and order away!!! Also this month, Scentsy is bringing back retired bars. So if you had a favorite and it was retired, January is your month to order it again!!!

My party will last until January 28, so don't delay...

A New Reality Show...

I am seriously putting out my feelers for a new reality TV show...The Day to Day Happenings of a School Administrator!!

I am not even kidding when I say that not even the writers of Grey's Anatomy could write something as good as what I deal with on a day to day basis.

Let me give you a run down of how my day went today...

First, my principal is out of town at an Art Conference in California for the entire week. No big deal...except for the fact that one of our Assistant Principals is attending a workshop with two teachers AND another Assistant Principal is at an all day curriculum meeting. We have a fourth Assistant Principal...BUT, she sends me a text this morning to let me know that her daughter is sick and she won't be in today. Soooo, my Monday starts off knowing that I will be the only administrator on campus for the day.

This is my fifth year as an Assistant Principal, I know what I'm doing, so I put my big girl panties on and get to school. I'm not in the building for longer than 15 minutes and the fire alarm goes off. FIVE different building alarms are going off!! We evacuate the building, search the buildings, and discover that it's a system malfunction. No fire (thank goodness), but my blood pressure just went up...a lot!

The kids come back into the building and about 5 minutes later the bell rings to go to first period. Our police officer calls me on the walkie to see if I could "assist" her with a situation. I think to myself, "GREAT!" Three students got into a yelling match in the cafeteria. Let me rephrase that...three GIRLS got into a yelling match in the cafeteria. Enough said.

I finally had enough time to do my daily job...return emails, make some parent phone calls, approve payroll, get a school security code for a new custodian, etc. Then I am interrupted by an upset parent. The parent is upset because her ex-husband wants her 14 year old son to ride a bus. The boy has never riden a bus and the area where the dad lives is not very safe. The parents SHARE custody, but the mom literally wants me to call the dad and tell him that his son can't ride the bus to his house. "Riiiiiiigggghhhhht......", I say to myself. In my nice Assistant Principal voice, I share with the mom that if her and her ex-husband share custody, both parents decide on what type of transportation the child will take on their days. She wasn't happy, but what can you do??

I eat a banana and gulp down some yogurt right as our police officers calls me on the walkie again. This time? A cyberbulling situation. After a little research, I discover it's a Facebook argument that was brought to school. I have both students write a statement, I conference with the boys and let them know how this will NOT happen again (at the same time, I have one of the students get on Facebook on his phone and delete the other boy as his friend), then I call both parents to let them know.

Lunch is over and I think the day starts to slow down. Little did I know that fifteen minutes before the last bell rings, I would get a call from our police officer again, notifying me that one of our students passed out in class and hit her head on a TV cart. LOVELY!!! I grab the walkie, tell a secretary to call Rescue, and head out to the classroom. EMS arrives, checks her vitals and her blood sugar. Everything looks good, but because she is underage, we call the father and he comes to the school to drive her home.

I wrap up the rest of my day by returning emails, creating a spreadsheet for a test that I'm organizing next week, making a few follow-up phone calls, checking my calendar, and grabbing my notes for the Principal Meeting I'm attending tomorrow.

Now this was just ONE day!! I'm telling you, I could make big bucks on this new reality show.

***Keep in mind...I left out the heated conversation I had with the security officer, the meeting with five students about a college fair I want them to attend for scholarships, the parent conference I had today with a mom that wanted her daughter to get special permission to drive her car because mom is having back surgery, signing in and out benchmark tests to teachers, and  talking with two students and explaining why they can't listen to their electronic devices at school.

Apps for the iPad...

I was lucky to receive an iPad for Christmas and I'm in LOVE with it! It is just too cool for words...way too cool!

I found a few apps that I really am enjoying...

Words with Friends...

It's like scrabble and you can play it with other people online...although I'm not very good, I feel as if it's educational and it's helping me expand my vocabulary (my BFF would be SO proud of me)!!!

Pocket Frogs...

I knew Pocket Frogs would be nothing more than an addiction for me...you basically breed frogs to create baby frogs and then collect different species.

Flipboard...

This apps allows you to see all the social networks (like Twitter and Facebook) but in a magazine style layout where you flip the pages...just like a magazine.

I have played Angry Birds a few times too (another one of those addictive games) but wanted to find out what apps YOU have found that you think I just can't live without?!??!

Frame It...

My brother and sister-in-law gave me a pretty picture frame for Christmas AND they also gave me the best idea on what to put inside the frame. It just so happens that the frame has 6 picture holes...just enough holes to spell KNIGHT.

This is how it turned out...

LOVE!!!

New Year's Eve 2010...

This year we brought in the new year at our cousin's house. We had the three F's...fun, food, and fellowship!!!

Here are a few pics from our night...

Brenna and Bryce...

 Me and Grammy...

Smaro and Judy...

Grammy and Brenna...

Randy and Tim playing ping pong...

The girls hanging out by the fire...

Grammy trying to stay warm...

We had some fun playing Just Dance 2...

 Mikey getting ready to celebrate the new year...

Probably my favorite pic of the night!!! Priceless!!!

My mother-in-love and me...

David and I...

Happy 2011...may all your dreams come true this year!!