Trip to Helen GA

The Friday after Thanksgiving We took an overnight trip to Helen. It is a small "Bavarian" town that decorates for Christmas and is cute and touristy. We stayed in an awesome hotel with a suite. It was funny though what happened when we checked in. One guy started the process and then someone who he had been helping previously came back so he handed me over to another clerk. Well he told her the room number and she made us the keys and we went up to the room. ( on the second floor) We went into the room and the couch bed in the living room was unmade and we could see that the bed in the bedroom was all messy. We had walked about half way into the room when we realized this room was occupied. Now I am not sure if the people were in there hiding in the bathroom or behind the wall in the bedroom or if they were gone. We hightailed it out of there. When we went back down to the desk, the man realized that he had told her the number for the room on the second floor instead of the third floor, which is where we ended up. It was pretty funny!

We walked around a lot and saw the sites and just happened to find a quaint little store at the edge of town.

Me and my honey at the park.

Not For the Faint of Heart (or Easily Bruised)

Ready to take on the world.
When school got out on Friday at noon most of my class, a few Fathers, Matthew and I went paint balling. The place is huge and had many playing fields : junk yard, a western city with small buildings, three story buildings, an Indian fort... It was a lot of fun but I might add it is not for crybabies or whiners. It is also not for those who bruise easily as you can see from below. This picture was taken about 3 hours after I was "shot".

A Lovingly Bestowed Gift

Cry Baby brought us a very special treat last week. She sat at the window and meowed with it in her mouth as if to say-"open up I have a treat for you." Needless to say I did NOT open the window until she had put it down on the ledge. She then began to grab it in her mouth and toss it up into the air like a toy. Gross but very funny!

I am Ridiculous!

I am ridiculous. I know it and I know you know it but as Dr. Phil says "you can't change what you won't acknowledge." A couple of weeks ago I was in a hurry and went by the post office to get a stamp and mail my mortgage payment. Well, Matt went in for me to get the stamp out of the machine and came back with a bunch of change and a 1cent stamp. I must admit I got irritated at him and went in myself to "do it right." When I got in there I found that the overpaid government workers (who at this post office are condescending and a bit rude.) had not filled the machine and I did not have time to go in and wait in the super long line. So I bought 41 of those stamps and put them on my envelope. The back was completely cover and the front nearly covered as you will see below. I know, I am ridiculous! But it sure felt good!

ARG Mateys!

Matt's class just finished reading Treasure Island and so they had pirate day. They had a treasure hunt and went to Long John Silver's for lunch. When I told my husband why they were eating there he said about Treasure Island "Why, is the book about fish?" I guess he never had to read it!

The kids loved it-especially getting out of their uniforms! Matthew did complain that I made the earring to tight though!

Important Information Concerning Children & Husbands

I just today received this important information concerning children and husbands. While this phenomenon generally affect these two groups it may also affect others such friends and coworkers. I hope that this expert in his field (I mean woods) will improve your interpersonal communication.
"If the person you are talking to doesn't appear to be listening, be patient.It may simply be that he has a small piece of fluff in his ear." Pooh's Little Instruction Book

So That's How it Works?

"The one with the most school supplies does not win. It is how we use what we have that makes the difference." Fly Lady

So that's how it works? Here I have been thinking all the junk on and in my desk was setting me up for Teacher of the Year. Boy, is that a let down! I guess I need to clean it off before I win the infamous Messiest Teacher of the Universe award.

Salsarific!

I made salsa the week before school started with all the bounties of our garden. The only thing we didn't grow was the onion and cilantro. It ended up making 16 pints!

Ready to begin cutting.(note the lone squash!) This is one week's worth of tomatoes. I had to line them up on the dining room window sill as well as the kitchen's.
Ready to cook.
The cooking begun.

Whirl Wind and a Great Fire!

It is been a humdinger of two weeks. I have made it through and all of my students are still alive and kicking. I have a little Julie in my class this year which is pretty funny. Too bad I don't have my Dad there to spank her little rear! Spanish class is going fine and some days it is a wonderful treat to go to class where I don't have someone doing wrong every two minutes. We had a birthday party for one my students the first Friday of school-of course they loved it. I only have 5 students in Spanish. While I was just typing this my son bought in his paper that has black fleck that looked like soot particles and asked me what it was from. I went down stairs and found out that I just narrowly averted (by the Lord's grace) burning down the kitchen! I had left a candle burning in a plastic candle holder ,which must be just for looks,-I know very stupid- and the candle caught it on fire. It had burned all the way to the counter top and there is soot every where. And the house stinks! But thank you Lord it is still standing.

Like Home Sweet Home

Sunday evening I attended, for the first time, the Spanish church that was started by the church where I teach. I have told most of you that I see but some of you may not know that I am broadening my horizons to include teaching high school Spanish-and I am terrified! Not of the kids but that my Spanish is not so great. So I will be going to Iglesia Bautista Calvario twice a month. I was pleasantly surprised to see one of my former student and her family (her dad is Mexican and her mom American). They shared a bilingual Bible which I will surely need to invest in. The Pastor is Uruguayan and his wife American. They are so warm and friendly and the people so sweet. I really really enjoyed the service and got choked up when singing the precious hymns of our faith in Spanish. It reminded me so much of Panama it was almost like being there (except not so hot-ha ha) Besides, as my cousin Jamie says "everything sounds so much better in Spanish". It is a very beautiful language.
So any way we had a great time. Matt was enamored with the ear bud for hearing the translation into English and prayed with one of the boys he knew and then they played out side. The other boy was thrilled to hear that we would be coming regularly.
I find it also important to note that we used to tease our mother mercilessly for getting choked up (especially if she had to speak). I guess it is only just that my castigo (punishment) is that I now am more emotional than she ever was!

Things I Love # 2-smells

I love the scent of real Christmas trees, especially when it is very cold outside. The scent is so strong. I love to smell fresh paint, baking bread, honey suckle, gardenia and jasmin, cooking onions (I know I am weird), cilantro, leather, rain and cloves... vanilla, sheets just taken from the clothes line, freshly mown grass, the ocean, a baby's head, air conditioning and citrus fruit peel. These are a few of the things that tickle my proboscis.

I've Had Enouph

I am in a clearing organizing mode. Normally I do this room by room at the beginning of the summer but just never felt like doing it. Mathew and I have been cleaning and sorting room his room together. He tossed me a small yellow notepad to throw away and I checked through it to see if it was usable. I found the following entry. I laughed until I was crying and coughing and gagging on the coughs. Of course he vehemently (with hysterical laughter) denied writing it.

Dear journel, My
parents won't let me play, there forcing me to clean I've had
enouph.

Just priceless! Thought you might enjoy a chuckle.

Uncle Andrew

My brother came to visit with his girlfriend Kristine while Vickie and her crew were here (all stayed with Mom and Dad, about 10 miles from me). Let's just say the kids love him and Kristine too. I thought this was a great picture of Andrew with all his nieces and nephews. It is very hard to get this many kids looking at the camera, smiling and happy!

Andrew with Kristine- It sounds like she may be THE ONE, so we are excited.

Vacation Bible School

Two weeks ago we had VBS. I worked in the craft department. The theme was finding treasures in God's word and was based around pirates. The kids had a blast and so did I. Every night was a blurr because the activity was so intense. Here you see all the craft workers. We tried to dress up each night. I was in charge of the green table and the other ladies worked at the red, blue and yellow tables. (you can tell by our bandannas) We had several young people that helped as well. We had a great week and at least two children were saved.

I Love Airports!

There is just something about an airports that draws me. Maybe it is the reminder of all the past trips. Maybe it is the fact that we get to go see friends when they fly in. Maybe it is just woven into me from all the flying I did as a child. I just love to airports! Our airport here in town has two neat fountains that have statues of children playing in them. The Miami airport has long hallways of moving sidewalks and 5 stories. The Orlando airport has a gorgeous hotel connected to it that is visible from a very large open plaza. The Atlanta airport has fun shuttles and a great Chinese food restaurant. The airport in Panama is small and constantly under repair. It is air conditioned which makes it a big shock to walk outside. The Cincinnati airport is very cute and up to date for its size.I didn't get to see much of the Huston airport last year because it took quite a long time to get through customs. I have also been to airports in Detroit, Chicago, Omaha, St. Paul/Minneapolis, Hawaii, Auckland, New Zealand, Sydney Australia, Adelaide, Australia, San Fransisco, Los Angeles, Dallas, Charlotte, Memphis, Key West and Sanford, Florida and another one in the Midwest -Indianapolis or some other town where we sat for an hour and half or more while they waited our turn to take off and sprayed deicer on the plane before we finally got to take off. I think I have passed this mania on to my son. The other day he made the comment-"It smells good in here-just like a plane." =)

All in all I think airport are a blast especially when you get to see friends you haven't see for awhile. My friend Penny Sue and her children arrived here last night after 17 hours travel from Beijing China. We were so glad to see them!

More Niece and Nephew Photos

Matthew plays with Ella (6 months old)- He loved making her laugh. She is a cutie and wants to be right with everyone else. If she is in her seat or exersaucer and everyone leaves the room, she starts to cry. She is definitely a people person.

Julia (almost 3) and Auntie Julie

Julia "does" ballet. She was so funny going around on her tiptoes. She wore this outfit the whole day except she ditched the slippers. She thinks she is a ballerina.
Nicholas (6 years old) wouldn't let me take any pictures. I had to be sneaky. Most of the ones I tried to take his head is turned or you see only a foot etc. He let me take this one I guess, because it was a cool pose. I have a good one of him climbing the tree but it is a bit too dark. As you can see we had a good time visiting our family.

Aubrey's Recital

We went to Florida last week for my niece's ballet recital. It was very cute. She did a good job and looked so pretty. Her dance was called Secret Garden. Her tutu was green with a light peachy orange top layer making it look gold. She looked so grown up with her hair up and make up. My sister got on the computer with Sarah and she and Ellie (who was in her dance class before the cancer) and they chatted away. We had a great time. The recital was long and the studio she attends teaches ballet, tap, jazz and hip hop. The tiny dancers (ages 3-5) where hysterical. At one point I was laughing so hard that I was crying. They would just do their own thing and looked so cute. One girl did nothing but hop up and down. The hip hop was very funny too and they had a guest group in to do the last dance before the finale. They were doing break dance stuff like spinning on their heads. One guy jumped though the legs of another guy who was on his head. My nephew thought that was great. He said "That was awesome!"

Update on Dad

Dad is doing so much better. They gave him a shot in the muscles which stopped the spasms which were cause the extreme pain. He is home and the pain is being well managed with pain meds. (they weren't even touching the pain before) They have an appointment in a week or so to discuss long term care and the possibility of surgery. Dad would really like to see a doctor that specializes in his problem but that will probably entail going out of state. So that is another thing to pray about. I have a good picture of Matt and Dad but will have to post it when I get home from Florida.

Memorial Day Fun

Monday we went to Columbia to the Riverbanks Zoo and Botanical Gardens. We left home and made a day of it getting breakfast and lunch on the road. My favorite part other than the garden was feeding the lorakeets. You could buy a cup of nectar for a dollar and they would come and drink out of the cup. I think there had been toooo many people there that day as most of the birds just shied away from us. A couple were on the screen wall though and I got them to come on my finger and then handed one to Matthew. I also has one on my shoulder in the photo above. The rose garden was absolutely gorgeous and these were some of my favorite roses.

We had a wonderful day! This picture was taken at the end of the day just before we left the park.

A Peek into May Part 2

My class went to Old Salem, a colonial town in Winston Salem North Carolina. We had a great time. We toured the town, went out to eat, went bowling and then after devotions hit the hay. Well, some of us did. I had a hard time settling down the girls in my room.

I had to call the front desk at 10:30 because our air conditioning quit working. This picture of me on the phone was taken by one of my students. The lesson learned: never leave a camera where children can get it or they will take ugly pictures of you.

A Peek into May Part 1

May has been a very busy month.It always is with school wrapping up and as you know I didn't post much (or at all!) So I thought you might like to see some of the things I did then. I made several costumes for the K5 graduation. They did "The Tortoise and the Hare" combined with some other nursery rhyme characters. It was very cute. The hare kept shaking her hind end to watch the tail flop. The Three Little kittens were very funny. Of course they had to find their mittens and put them on, but that pretty difficult for them. One of the kitten was a K4 child as they didn't have enough kindergartners. They were to put the mittens on and then the song would begin. It took quite a while and one little girl dropped a mitten at least 3 times. It was a riot! I have also included a picture of Humpty Dumpty. I did not make his costume but thought he was so cute. He was to fall down at one point and the Hare was to help him up. Well, one time during practice he fell down (accidentally) and could not get up. By the time two of the daycare helpers had gotten him on his feet we were all in stitches. They all did such funny things that their teacher was soon crying form laughing so much. The children were very concerned and the little Tortoise came down off the stage to hug her which made it even funnier. All in all it was one of the funniest school moments I have witnessed.

Back view to so you can see their tails! Humpty Dumpty

Please Pray for Daddy

My Dad is having a lot of trouble with his back. The diagnosis is spinal stenosis- basically the bone is shrinking around the nerves that come out of the spine. He has been in tremendous pain. On Monday her turned in the shower and felt shooting pain go down his leg. Mom got him into bed and then called 911 and the ambulance came to get him. At the hospital they gave him several shots of a medicine which is supposed to be 10xs stronger than morphine but it really did nothing. He has been in the hospital 2 nights and it seems like they are keeping the pain manageable for now. He still hurts but not that shooting debilitating pain. They are going to try physical therapy and pain management. I guess as a final attempt to help, they may try to do surgery which is "not recommended". We were all supposed to fly to Florida for my niece Aubrey's ballet recital next week and now it looks like Mom and Dad will not be able to go. Please pray!

Bubble-Gum-Pink Socks

Last night I was taking some clothes out of the dryer when I noticed a sock still inside. So I reached for it but it didn't really want to come out. When I pulled it free I realized why it was sticking. The was gum all over it. Well, I dried the next load of clothes (I know, not smart) and then this morning when I was taking them out I thought "dummy, you ought to see if there is more gum still in there!" Sure enough there was a huge wad firmly stuck with a nickle embedded in it. When I told my son about the gum he said"Oh, yeah, I forgot to eat it." So at breakfast I informed him he had a special job to do today. "But I didn't mean to, it was an accident" he said. "Does it look like I am punishing you?" I asked. "No." was about all he had to say. So I turned the dryer on to loosen it a bit and made him scrape it and then use Goof Off (great stuff for ink, wax, lipstick, gum...) on a paper towel. He got pretty tired and I let him take a break. So I took a turn. Your should have seen me-hovered in the drier opening with a flash light in one had and steel wool in the other. After another round of his scrubbing we got it all off. I don't think he will leave gum in his pocket again-but then other lessons have not been learned so easily- I guess we will have to see.

Commenting Enabled for Everyone

I have changed the settings for my blog to allow anyone to comment. So comment away! =) Things have calmed down a bit now that school is over so I will be able to post a bit more often.

I Am Alive!

Hi, every one! I have been catching flack for not changing this! I guess I am important after all. Tee hee. I have not been able to post for awhile as there have been technical issues. I was unable to type only cut and paste-hence the "Somebody said". Even cut and pasting was troublesome but anyway in the magical way of computers (where problems pop up and go away with no trace or seemingly sensible reason) it is fixed! So I can now let you know what is going on in my boring little life. I hope to put garden pictures on sometime this week.

My Aunt has unleashed a sleeping giant within me! She came to visit my parents and gave me a pair of London blue topaz stones in an oval cut. So now I have been scouring ebay for settings and other pieces to match. NEVER, NEVER get a girl going on pretty sparkly things! It makes her dissatisfied with the plain Jane! So now in addition to ruby, diamond and pearl earring from my hubby I will have topaz and malachite. (another pretty semi precious stone I found and bought while searching for other stuff!) Well that is all I have to say tonight. Sleep well my friends, love you!

Somebody Said

Somebody said it takes about six weeks to get back to normal after you've had a baby. Somebody doesn't know that once you're a mother, "normal" is history. Somebody said you learn how to be a mother by instinct. Somebody never took a three-year-old shopping. Somebody said being a mother is boring. Somebody never rode in a car driven by a teenager with a driver's permit. Somebody said if you're a "good" mother, your child will "turn out good." Somebody thinks a child comes with directions and a guarantee. Somebody said "good" mothers never raise their voices. Somebody never came out the back door just in time to see her child hit a golf ball through the neighbor's kitchen window. Somebody said you don't need an education to be a mother. Somebody never helped a fourth grader with his math. Somebody said you can't love the second child as much as you love the first. Somebody doesn't have two children. Somebody said a mother can find all the answers to her child rearing questions in the books. Somebody never had a child stuff beans up his nose or in his ears. Somebody said the hardest part of being a mother is labor and delivery. Somebody never watched her "baby" get on the bus for the first day of Kindergarten or on a plane headed for military "boot camp." Somebody said a mother can do her job with her eyes closed and one hand tied behind her back. Somebody never organized seven giggling Brownies to sell cookies. Somebody said a mother can stop worrying after her child gets married. Somebody doesn't know that marriage adds a new son or daughter-in-law to a mother's heartstrings. Somebody said a mother's job is done when her last child leaves home. Somebody never had grandchildren. Somebody said your mother knows you love her, so you don't need to tell her. Somebody isn't a mother. --Unknown And here is one of my own. Somebody said their kids would never be as bad as mine. Well somebody must not have any kids of their own yet!

Miracle on Easter

More to praise our Savior for. During church on Sunday morning I looked down at my hand and saw the diamond was missing from my engagement ring. I knew I had had it at church because it had bee slidding around and I thought "I need to get these things soldered". Well, I continued taking notes and yes, I did listen to the rest of the sermon. But as soon as the invitation began all I could think about was all the places I had been in our huge building. I left right away to look in the bathroom and dig through the paper towels in the trash. I was about to go to our Sunday school room when Matthew told me my Dad thought he had found the diamond. And sure enough, there it was. THANK YOU LORD! I was reminded of the woman in Luke who lost the coin and lit the lamp and swept to find it. I have heard before that it may have been like their wedding ornament-coins on a chain. (Which reminds me of those things belly dancers wear on their forehead! tee hee!) Anyway this verse is exactly how I feel:

Luke 15:9 And when she hath found it, she calleth her friends and her neighbours together, saying, Rejoice with me; for I have found the piece which I had lost.

No One Ever Cared for Me Like Jesus

I would love to tell you what I think of Jesus, since I've found in him a friend so strong and true. I would tell you how he's changed my life completely, He's done something that no other friend could do.
No one ever cared for me like Jesus, there's no other friend so kind as He. No one else could take this sin and darkness form me, O how much he cares for me.


Recently I have had impressed upon my heart how important to our spiritual well being the hymns we sing are. Around Christmas time our pastor asked us to pretend that we were in an underground church that had limited printing abilities. He encouraged us to choose one or two hymns and to really think about why those songs are important enough to preserve and how they would encourage an oppressed body. The next Wednesday evening was like a testimony time only each person would talk about the hymn they chose and why. There were very few dry eyes in the auditorium that night. It seems to me that our hardened hearts are often softened and pierced by the words that hymn writers have written sometimes hundreds of years ago.
If you have been keeping up with Ellie's condition on Sarah's blog you have seen many instances when the Lord has used hymns and praise songs to encourage Sarah and calm Ellie. I myself am so blessed when I sit down at the piano and begin to just flip pages and play. Often I am so overwhelmed by God's grace and love, that I have to stop playing and get a tissue to "wipe my weeping eyes".
As a teacher I have begun to notice that a lot of Christian young people are not familiar with many, many of the songs that I can sing form memory. I have also found though, that when we teach these same songs to them so that the words are familiar, they become favorites for the children as well. So I guess my thought for to day is... SING those hymns for your self as well as those around you. TEACH the hymns to your children or those you work with, and ENJOY the hymns as they draw you closer to your Savior in worship.

Sleep With the Sharks

The Diver Feeding the Rays

I just came back form the Ripley's Aquarium in Gatlinburg, Tennessee where Matt's class did an overnight field trip. It was really neat. We got to see a diver feed the sting rays, dissect a squid, do a scavenger hunt and sleep on the floor in the tunnel with the shark tank overhead. The sleeping part was a bit rough as the girls would NOT SHUT UP! We went to bed at 12-12:30 but they kept talking pretty late, and with the floor being hard it was a bit tough to sleep. When I finally did get to sleep I did sleep quite well. Well, one time a loud snore from a neighbor woke me up! =) All in all it is a great experience. I was amazed at the expert design that God used when creating these ocean animals. How anyone can study nature and deny God is a mystery to me. He is truly awesome.

In the Mars exhibit.

Matty and Mommy (of course I'm saying something!)

Much Ado about Clooney

Well, our little Greer is in the big time now. Our small town had such an upheaval that last few days I am not sure if it will recover. A couple of months ago it came out in the news that George Clooney and Renee Zellweger would be coming to South Carolina and shooting a film. Last Thursday they were filming in downtown. (I wanted to take my class on a walking field trip-tee hee) By the time I was able to get down there they were no longer filming. I found out that they would be filming on Sunday as well, so I went after the morning service and drug Matthew with me. We saw them setting up and a purple haired man carrying a couple of shotguns that were props. A young officer told me the action would heat up from 2-4pm. So I went back at a little after two. Basically all I saw was them setting up the huge lights on a big boom and water blasting the lines off the street. I ran into a coworker and her Mom and after an hour or so we had worked our way to the front of the police tape. We then got a tip that Clooney would be coming to his makeup trailer and so we went to stand over there. Finally I left for the evening service at 4:30. Not a half and hour after I left Clooney came out and shook hands with the people standing right where we had been at the police tape! After church I went back to try and get more pictures of the set (they didn't even have the cars on the streets when I left.) I had Matthew with me again, so as there was nothing going on we just took pictures of the cars and left. My coworker Charlotte and her Mom stayed until 11:00pm and got to meet Clooney, shake his hand, get an autograph and have their picture taken with him. So needless to say there has been a lot of hubbub around this town. The movie is called Leatherheads and is about early football players in the 1920s. I hope it is a decent movie after we have made such a big deal over it!

These picture are of store fronts they converted for the movie. One is a variety store (mercantile) and the other a barber shop. I know they filmed inside the barber shop but am not sure about the other. I think they must have just been outside because I peeked behind the curtains on the store doors today and it just looked like a warehouse with props and junk inside. The following pictures are thanks to Belinda, Charlotte's Mom. THANKS!

Extras in costume

Body Doubles for Clooney and Zellweger

and

what you have been waiting for...

George Clooney and Body Guard

It's a Heart Thing

This past Friday my cousin Jamie spoke to our 4-6th graders in chapel. For those of you who do not know him, he is a missionary in Panama and had been one of my parents coworkers for many years before they retired. He spoke about Josiah, the boy king (I Kings 34). One thing that he said that really impressed me was that Josiah continued to follow God all through out his reign. It mentions the 8th year as well as the 18th year. He continued to follow God, to have his heart right before him. Verse two says And he did that which was right in the sight of the LORD, and walked in the ways of David his father, and declined neither to the right hand, nor to the left. That is such a testimony for a child! It was a rebuke to me. I have been saved since I was four and yet I still need to continue do what is right in the sight of the Lord and not to turn to the right or the left. It was a real blessing.

Whew! Life Is on Its Way Back to Normal

Boy has it ever been a week! Matthew was sick, home from school for three days. I did a lot of house work while home. I got caught up on laundry, did some major work in the kitchen -Did you know we have about 16 feet of counter top in our kitchen? Me neither!=) I went back in to work today to barely controlled chaos. The kids did really well with me being gone for so long but you should have seen all the papers I had to deal with today. Sometimes I hate paper!=) Other than having to get everything back on track it was a fairly good day. I have one student out who has been out all week. They think he may have pneumonia. Poor kid. This year sure has has a whopper of a virus season. Anyway I have nothing of importance to say other than it sure is nice to have spoons in the drawer, several outfits to choose from in the closet and students who say "we missed you!"

Thou Shalt Not

Wouldn't you have loved to hear the teacher's response to this one?

A Sunday school class was studying the Ten Commandments. They were ready to discuss the last one. The teacher asked if anyone could tell her what it was. Susie raised her hand, stood tall, and quoted, "Thou shall not take the covers off the neighbor's wife."

New Hair Do

I recently (in January) got my hair cut into a new style. Both my sister Vickie and our friend Sarah were trying to get me to go for layers last summer. But I have always known that layers = work, so I never wanted to do it. Well I found a picture I really liked (incidentally it was Martha Stewart!) and I went for it.I was right. Layers do equal work but I really like it, and so does my husband and everyone else. Sorry the picture is light but my camera is not working too well. It seems to be overexposing everything. Which is weird with it being a digital camera. Any way I hope you can still see it.