Something Heavenly

This past Sunday I had the opportunity to reconnect with my friend, Jenny, and be part of a great concert experience! Due to all the sickness floating around my house (that has now attacked me) I didn't get to see Jenny's sweet baby like I would have wanted to. I didn't want to get too near her.  I did get to see Baby Annie for just a minute.  She is so cute, and such a good baby!  The concert was great though, and I just enjoyed hanging out with Jenny and her bandmates. 

I was also introduced to Jason Gray.  I'd never heard his music before that night, but somewhere in the middle of his second song, I knew I HAD to buy his cd before I left that night. It's pretty much been all we've listened to since. His new cd is called, "Everything Sad is Coming Untrue".  I love his way of writing.  The lyrics to his songs just speak to me.  It's tough for me to pick a favorite, but I think it would be the title track.  I can't say enough good things about Jason Gray! I got to chat with him for a few minutes after the concert too. He's a really nice (and really tall) guy, and sooo funny!  If you get a chance, check out his website and for added fun, turn on the narration. So fun!

Next up was Addison Road.  I love these guys!  Jenny and I met over a year ago and I consider her one of my friends. I just don't get to see her or talk to her very often.  I mean, touring in a rock band is a LOT of work.  They unload their own stuff, set up their own merch table, and pretty much it's work.  Yeah, it's rock and roll and it's fun, but it's their job! To top that off, they're traveling with a baby.  I so admire that they have left living a "safe" and "comfortable" life to do what God has asked them to do.  To write songs that bless people like me and many, many others.  Jason Gray said it best that night, "to be a musician and in the ministry is certain finacial ruin." Yet, they love God and HE is taking care of them.  It's awesome to see! My favorite song by Addison Road is the last track on their cd called, "What Do I Know of Holy?" 

The headliners for this tour were Sanctus Real.  I enjoyed their concert a lot too.  I didn't realize how many of their songs I knew. I really liked that they played the songs that get air play on the radio.  It's no fun to see someone live and they play all their obscure songs that no one has ever heard.  I like to sing along.  Which may be why my voice is suffering so now, but it was worth it!   One of the neatest things was that it was the last night of the tour, and Matt Hammitt, the lead singer for Sanctus Real was having a birthday the next day.  All the bands were very excited to be wrapping things up and heading home to their families.  I think the last concert of a tour has the same excitement as the last day of the school year.  I was loving life for them. 

One of the best things was the concert being an hour away...headed east. Which meant, they were an hour ahead of us.  So, going home we gained an hour!  I don't get why so many of the concerts I want to see are on Sunday nights.  It wrecks the whole week to start Monday off dragging and tired.  But you know me, I would do it all over again!

Apparently, Squarespace only likes Jason Gray, because it's not letting me upload any of the other photos. Which is really ticking me off!  If you want to see the rest of my concert pics, you'll have to go check them out on my facebook page. 

Down For The Count

I fought as long as I could. I tried to stay strong, but alas, I've taken a hit. Those germs got me! Whether through my own sick kids or through the chorus of coughing in my classroom, I'll never know.  I do know that I feel horrible.  I made it through this morning teaching my students, but barely.  I'm in bed with piles of work to do, but my head hurts so bad all I want to do is lay here and not think. Thinking hurts. Blinking hurts. Breathing hurts. Everything hurts. 

The good news is I don't have a fever. The bad news is I had to send my husband to the store with a grocery list because there's no 'quick' food in this house. We're also lacking the components to make a complete meal.  We could have some noodles, some stuffing, and some olives, but I don't think that counts as an actual meal.  My husband has called me 5 times already. In my haze of illness I wasn't able to write a "husband proof" list.  There's only 8 things on the list.  I'm telling you, if the phone rings again I'm going to weep. 

Ooh! I just thought of something though. I think we have a new episode of house on the dvr. Yeah. A little Dr. House is sure to make me forget about the sandpaper in my throat.

A Picture Is Worth...

...a decent blog post.  I'm not feeling to well, and constant pounding in my head is making it hard to think, so this is all I've got for today.

Remember way back before school started in August when a friend was helping me make a tent for my classroom?  Turns out she is amazing and I'm not much help at all when it comes to sewing things.  Here's the finished product!  Isn't it cute?  The tent that I originally found was $350. I wouldn't spent that in a REAL tent!  This one ended up costing right around $45.  To thank her for her hard work making this awesome tent for my classroom, we went out for a great brunch at the neatest restaurant called, Jelly. They have an amazing spinach-feta omelette. 

The kids are loving the tent. I've dubbed it our "reading tent" and the rule is if you're in the tent you have to have a book with you, and you need to be looking for letters and blends in the books.  The library center has previously been avoided like the plague, but now children are in there "reading" the books. I love it!! 

Choices

I've been making poor ones this week. Not eating enough veggies. Not getting enough rest. There are valid reasons (at least some) for the lack of good rest.  It's like I'm a runaway train waiting for a wreck. Yep, I'm ALL sunshine and roses today. Seriously, I'm not down, just really, really tired. Lack of sleep will hit me like nothing else can.  I just need to stay well. I have some really fun stuff to do this weekend, and I need to be healthy to do it. 

Bekah is sick with a sore throat and fever, and Alisha and I have been having trouble breathing.  Since they all laid around in MY bed with their germs, I sprayed the bed with anti-microbial stuff and now I'm waiting for it to dry. I'm so tired! I just want my pillow and my blanket and my bed!  Maybe if I turn on the ceiling fan it'll dry faster.  Someone might just find me asleep at the dining table with the impression of a laptop on my face in the morning. 

I give up. Damp with germ-killer or not...I must go to bed. Goodnight.

Tiny Talk Tuesday

Some days you just have to be real with the kids and let them know you're not on top of your game. That was my day.  As we were sitting down for group time, two girls were arguing about who-knows-what (uh-huh, uh-uh, uh-huh- you know) and two others were giggling and rolling around on the floor. I sat down on my chair, put my head in my hands and things got kind of quiet. One little girl commented that I looked like a Philippino girl (huh?) and another asked if I was practicing a 'tomato drill' (tornado drill.)  One wise student declared to the class, that no, I had a headache.  For the most part the rest of today went ok. Only two green fish were lost for temper tantrums (not mine) and blatant disobedience (complete refusal to stop trying to sit on top of the child who sat in "her" spot.) Oh yeah, I love my job.

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Our Bible lessons have been very entertaining this week:

We've been learning about the Israelites in the wilderness this week. I asked them who remembered what the people of Israel called the food God gave them.  One child called out, "Chicken!" 

One little guy missed a few days of school with a cold, and only managed to memorize part of our memory verse for the week. He gave it a go at test time though..."How awesome is the roof on high!" (Psalm 47:2) For those of you who aren't Bible scholars, that should be, "How awesome is the Lord Most High." 

During center time, some of the students broke out in spontaneous singing of one of our praise songs.  They were singing "Who is the King of the Jungle", which goes: Who is the King of the jungle? (oo-oo) Who is the King of the sea? (bubble-bubble-bubble) Who is the King of the universe and who's the King of me? J-E-S-U-S...yes! Except, their version went something like this: Who is the King of the jungle? (oo-oo) Who is the King of the sea? (bubble-bubble-bubble) Who is the King of the "inaverse" and who's the King of me? K-R-A-Z-S...yes!

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Our curriculum lessons are also quite entertaining at times:

"When 9 steps on his head he looks like number 6." (translation 'stands on his head')

We were learning the t-blends (ta-te-ti-to-tu) and I was asking them to think of words beginning with those blends.  I even gave clues. You take a bath in a tu-, tu-... One confident girl raised her hand and told me that the blend 'tu' is in the word 'tup'. I told her I wasn't familiar with that word and asked her what it meant (yeah, my bad.) She told me, "It means up in Chinese."  I responded, "You speak Chinese?" She said, "NO! I just know it does!" Ok then. Tup it is.  Hey, at least she heard the blend.

The class was to be working on a dot-to-dot picture of a squirrel.  A number of them were doing more talking than working and someone was trying to tattle on someone else.  I said, "I'm sure she was getting ready to say that you need to be doing more working and less talking."  One very honest little boy called out while still diligently coloring his squirrel, "No. She said he has a big butt." (referring to the  squirrel)  I had to stick my head in my cabinet and pretend I wasn't laughing.

Each of the children have a job that they keep for a week.  I was having the teacher's helper collect the worksheets at the end of our lesson time.  As she collected another student's paper, the little girl tattled, "I didn't obey her to take my paper!"  (translation: I didn't give her permission to take my paper.)

On the day we were learning letter Bb, I had a bird puppet and some berries that we were going to "feed" it in a game.  I asked the class what birds eat.  A little guy raised his hand and answered, "Chicken."  (cannibalism??) 

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Well, there you have it. Those are just a few of the funnies that keep me loving my job. I really do love those kids!  One of them told me he misses me and loves me when he doesn't see me.  Awwwww!  I melted like butter.  And after the whole head-in-my-hands circle time admission of defeat, they all offered hugs to me before they ran off to play in centers.  I am so blessed I can handle a temper tantrum or two. 

Shocker

This week is turning out to be crazy-busy.  Some of the things keeping me busy are fun and some are just stuff that needs to be done.  Like dishes and laundry. The fun stuff, sadly, I don't have time to write about. It's SO fun I need more than the 5 minutes I have right now to do it justice!  Anyway...

My hip is still healing, and I have 2 1/2 more weeks of physical therapy. This is actually a blessing!  I love my PT place, and my physical therapist, Nicole.  As part of my therapy, I get 15 minutes of h-wave treatment.  That's where they hook you up to a machine that sends out electrical pulses. Sounds painful, but it's actually not.  The best part is that I get to lie down for this treatment.  I'm left alone to lay down in the middle of the day for 15 min. on a somewhat comfy table, with a pillow and a cover.  Beautiful!  I even tried to sleep today, but couldn't. The only downside is the ice pack. I HATE being cold and the ice ruins my chance for a nap. I'm seeing it as a huge positive though. A forced moment of rest in the middle of my busy day is a wonderful thing!

Me

My plants haven't been watered in weeks. I haven't been able to run or exercise in almost 3 weeks. My hip is really hurting today.  I started working with the youth group at church about 4 weeks ago.  My students are hilarious! My girls have made me so proud over the past few weeks.  The holiday season will be upon us before we can say...snow.  Baby, it's cold outside! My house has not had a showing in over a month. 

These are all thoughts that have flown through my head this week as I've thought about updating this blog.  For one reason or another, I just haven't.  The main reason is the fact that despite the people who tell me they read this blog, it's just hard to see that no one is commenting. I'm not saying that to guilt people into commenting or garner your sympathy or praise, it just is what it is.  When you do something (anything) and no one notices it (or very few) you wonder why you bother. Depends what your reason is for doing it in the first place. Your motive. My reason for this blog is selfish. It's for me. I get to talk about what I want to talk about. I get to express myself and see my thoughts in print. I get to brag on my kids (the ones that belong to me, and the ones I have the honor of borrowing for awhile.) And as my husband says, "some things just don't require a response."

I'm a social person who married a would-be hermit.  My husband would be ok if he never had to talk to another person outside of our family again.  He is ok with never being invited to do anything or have anyone over to our house.  I'm not ok with that.  Over the years, I've let his hermit-like ways (unknowingly) rub off on me.  This blog was one way I felt I could continue to stay connected to people. I need that connection like I need water.  Like I need air.  Sometimes I think I need others too much, and I see it as a flaw in my make-up. But then I remember that God made me this way. And HE doesn't make mistakes. So I continue to "connect" with others through facebook and twitter (taking much flack for it sometimes too.)  I do connect with people "in real life", but in this day and age, it's much more difficult to meet up with a friend for coffee than it is to send them a text, or shoot them an email.   The point is I stay connected the best way I can. 

There were so many funny, light-hearted (not whiny) things I wanted to write about today, but when my fingers hit the keyboard, this is what came out.  I like that about writing/blogging.  I let what's inside come out, and very rarely (aside from spelling and grammatical errors- 'cause I'm OCD about those) do I edit or censor what I've written. With me, what you see (or read) is truly what you get! When I'm discouraged and think most people are annoyed with what they're seeing, I remember the people who aren't. The people who continue to love me the way I am. You guys know who you are. And there are a LOT of you.  That warms my heart (if not my hands- because it is freaking cold here!!) 

This is where I'm at. At least for today.

It's Your Life

Last Thursday Rebekah sang a song by Francesca Battistelli for the youth group. Seeing as how my video taping skills are lacking, this is not the best recording ever.  I'm proud of her for getting up there and using the gift God's given her.  Enjoy!

On Hiatus

I finally got back on the exercise bandwagon and was doing pretty well.  It took quite a few weeks to work up to running 3 miles, and I was on my way toward running 4 miles.  Well, the bad news is I've been side-lined.  The good news is it's only temporary. 

Around the end of September, my right hip was hurting pretty badly.  I bought some new running shoes thinking that would solve the problem.  It helped a little (retail therapy is always helpful ;), but the pain was still bad enough to send me to the doctor to check out what was going on.  The diagnosis is bursitis. The doctor gave me a shot in my hip, which sounds horrible, but really wasn't all that bad. The bruise on the other hand is!

I also get to go to physical therapy twice a week for four weeks!  I love physical therapy. Maybe it's the place I go. They are all soooo nice and they make it fun.  Maybe it's Nicole, my physical therapist. She's awesome! When my Jeep was totalled in a car accident 3 years ago, I got to work with her for my neck and shoulder pain.  She's helping me out with my hip now too.  I had my first session today, and it was great! It's kind of like having a personal trainer. I learned a lot about my injury and how to help my body heal quicker.  My hip is hurting a little more than usual tonight, but I'm sure it's because of all the stretches I did today.  I know it will keep getting better and better, and I'll be running again soon enough.

For Your Viewing Pleasure...

Last night I was at a great birthday party for a friend, but didn't get to bed until 2am! That pretty much renders me useless today.  Marissa woke me up at 8:50 to get her to a meeting at school by 9. I pulled my hair up in a ponytail, stuck some very minty gum in my mouth, and drove her there in my pajamas. I think the guy at the DD drive-in was impressed with my pink and blue penguin pajamas.  Or not.  I got back home and slept another 2 hours, but I still feel pretty wrecked.  Had crazy dreams all night too. Please, please tell me our school is not doing a Sponge Bob Christmas musical this year. I'll quit.  My plan for the rest of the day is to snuggle up under a blanket (it's sooo cold here) and read. 

I did want to let you know that my friends' music video (the band Reilly) won an award at the San Diego Film Festival.  You can read all about it on their blog.  I love this video! It's so well done. Let me know what you think. Enjoy!