The Stewarts' Little Family

100 Days to Go - A Preggo List

2012-01-30T08:55:00.000-06:00

In honor of the 100th Day mark (eeep!) I'm giving you a preggo list. I've actually been meaning to jot some of these down for a while now. It's mostly for my own reference for Stewart Little's future brother(s) and sister(s) but with so many preggo and new mommy friends, I thought some of you might have things to add, too. (Boys, you might want to stop reading here. Don't say I didn't warn you!)

It's ok to take more than one pregnancy test. It's fun to watch those little lines turn pink!
It's also ok to save one or two - even if it really is just pee on a stick. (Don't forget to clean off the outside though - ew!)
Digital pregnancy tests are awesome, but take a picture because the digital reading doesn't stay on longer than 24 hours. (As of 25 weeks though, the plain old cheap ones with the lines are still crystal clear! Just sayin' . . .)
Just because you're not throwing up in your first trimester doesn't mean you feel fine and dandy. I've never had so much sleep and still be so utterly exhausted!
For a long time, your boobs will be WAY bigger than your belly. That part happens FAST! (And it hurts! Be prepared!)
Ignore the coworkers who missed the announcement that you're expecting and then tell you they thought you'd been eating a few extra hamburgers. They still mean well. (This is not a joke!)
You know the whole, thicker, fuller hair and longer, stronger nails myth? It's true.
What they don't tell you about that myth is that the thicker fuller hair part doesn't necessarily mean the hair on your head. I'll leave it at that.
Ok, no I won't. I confess - I have been fighting off a rather dark Miss-stach for months now. Future me, stock up on tweezers!
Even before you're officially "showing", maternity pants are the MOST comfortable pants on earth! Wear them early and be proud of it!
Yeast infections suck. I've had more in the last 3 months than I've ever had in my life.
Likewise for colds.
And pink eye! I've NEVER had pink eye before! (And it would show up IN BOTH EYES the day of my cousin's wedding when I'm a bridesmaid . . .)
Be careful when brushing your back teeth. Even if you've made it to the end of the 2nd trimester without puking, your toothbrush will still make you gag every morning.
Eat a big Thanksgiving/Christmas feast if you want to feel those first movements! Stewart Little LOVES Grandma's dressing recipe. Her first kicks came right after Thanksgiving dinner.
Stewart Little either loves Daddy's horn playing and tries to dance to it, or she desperately tries to get away from it. Either way, she can't hold still if Daddy is playing! I'm choosing to believe the first one!
Enjoy every kick and bask in every wiggle (even when it's on your bladder). It means baby is healthy and growing - what a blessing!
Orange juice, apple juice, and any type of fruit also make our baby girl wiggle!
Sometimes it feels like I swallowed a jumping bean (and a rather large one at that).
Speaking of large, in the last couple of weeks, I've actually started feeling "large" - particularly when trying to roll over in bed or get out of bed. I can only imagine what that will be like by April and May! Oy!
Apparently it's normal, around 25 weeks, for your boobs to let you know they're ready and waiting for baby. Yep, I'm officially wearing nursing pads and I won't actually be nursing for (hopefully) 3 more months! THAT was a fun(ny) thing to wake up to this weekend.
Enjoy basking in the 5 and 6 month glow of pregnancy! Strangers can finally tell you're pregnant and not just chubby around the middle - hooray! I've never been told I'm beautiful/cute/adorable this much in my life. I could get used to this . . .
Oh, and watch out for too much of that "glow". I have more pimples currently on my face than I did through my entire teenage years (yeah, I was lucky back then). Seriously, my face rivals a 13 year old boy's right now. Thank you, Lord for giving someone the brain to create cover-up makeup! :)
You know those stories you hear of pregnant women sneezing and, umm, leaking? They're all true! Note to self: don't sneeze when you're washing your hands in cold water. You end up needing to wash a few more things, too! Think of it as a right of passage.
Around 20ish weeks, start watch for your belly to start moving! It makes everything so much more real!
Speaking of that 20 week mark - I noticed a shift in my thinking somewhere around there. The first half of my pregnancy I was still in awe and wonder that I was pregnant. Now I'm in awe and wonder that we have a baby in there. It's a subtle but important difference. This is not about me, it's about her. She's real! And we'll be meeting her in 100 days or less! Yippee and yikes!
Never forget to stop and wonder about this beautiful miracle. God is so good to allow us (girls) to experience, know, and love our babies before anyone else and like no one else can. I am in constant amazement to the point that there are really no words . . .

Well, Hello There!

2012-01-30T07:34:00.001-06:00

Hello Blog World!
I've been keeping up with you the last two months, but realized I haven't given you the same chance! Goodness how time flies!

Here's a recap of what our little family, and Stewart Little have been up to.

We had a wonderful Thanksgiving break! We drove down to San Antonio to visit with Pat and Eloise (B's dad and stepmom) in their new house. We're so glad they're back in Texas! We also got to spend some time with our friends Jared and Laura and my adorable God-son, Noah! Isn't he the sweetest!

To end the weekend, we met up with our dear friends Emily and Eric while they were in town. Emily was pregnant with sweet baby Keller (3 months ahead of us) and, of course, Keller and Stewart Little had to have some bump-bonding time. (NOTE: Keller was born last week and looks so much like her big sister, Piper! I can't wait to snuggle her in person!)

On December 12, we had the joy of learning that our sweet little Stewart Little is a GIRL! Of course, I went out that night and bought a pink tutu. I couldn't help myself! And yes, I cried at the doctor's office, and again when I called my mommy to tell her she was going to have a granddaughter. (I was vividly reminded of the afternoon she called me from the hospital to tell me I had a sister. That's still one of the best days of my life!). I showed up at school that afternoon, as promised, with a big pink balloon announcing the news to my students (amid cheers from the girls and a few boos from the boys - one little boy was even mad at me! Sorry, hun, I don't get a say in that! Haha!)

Brandon and I survived the three weeks between Thanksgiving and Christmas break with our crazy musician holiday schedules and escaped to Alabama to relax and recoup at my parents' house. We stayed until the day after Christmas and had such a wonderful time that neither of us wanted to leave.

We spent the rest of the week traveling and spending time with Brandon's family here in Texas and in Oklahoma. We got next to nothing done on my giant to-do list for the house, but it was worth it to see so much family. We know it won't be so easy to pick up and travel everywhere in the near future.

Since Christmas we've jumped back into the swing of things and are sloooowly making a dent in that to-do list around here (it's a long list) as we get ready for Stewart Little. I taught my last three Kindermusik classes and said goodbye to some of the sweetest families and babies in Texas. That last class was hard, but I still know stepping away from that was the right decision. 6-day work weeks, plus church and family visits on Sundays make for a very tired pregnant girl (and a very messy house).

As for Stewart Little, she is movin' and groovin' and loving life in her mommy's tummy. At this point she should be approaching the 2 lb mark as we're nearing the end of our 2nd trimester (I'm 25 weeks right now). Over Christmas Aunt Anna got to feel her kicking and Brandon got to feel and SEE her moving (since then my mom and Brandon's mom have both been kicked by their grandbaby too!). It's so fun to just lay back and watch my belly move! I think we may have a gymnast on our hands!

This past weekend I flew back to Alabama and then drove down to Florida with my family to be in my sweet cousin, Samantha's wedding. It was so great to spend more time with my fam! It's so rare that I get to see them this often (twice within a month!). The wedding was beautiful, Sam was stunning, and I'm told even my belly bump shrouded in a bridesmaid's dress looked pretty good. :)

And that brings us to today. When I should be at work. But I'm not. I have pink eye. Yippee. BUT, I think that's it for the highlights of the last two-ish months. Hopefully there will be more to come in the NEAR future this time. Until then . . .

I'm Thankful

2011-11-24T07:37:00.001-06:00

I'm thankful. I'm thankful for so so many things - especially this year. I didn't jump on the bandwagon of posting one thankful thing per day this month for fear of leaving something or someone out. But, I could not let this day go by without at least putting down a few of the reasons my cup is overflowing this year. So, here is a (not even close to comprehensive) list of the top ten things that make my heart sing with gratitude.

I'm thankful for my Savior and His complete and unconditional love.
I'm thankful for my wonderful husband. I am so blessed to be Mrs. Stewart.
I'm thankful for our growing family and this little life that is growing (and apparently leaping and bounding) inside of me. It is such a miracle!
I'm thankful for my fuzzy little doggie. That adorable Gizzy pup has brought more joy and laughter into our lives than I ever could have imagined.
I'm thankful for my Mommy - a true Proverbs 31 woman. She loves and lives with her whole heart. I hope I can live up to her example.
I'm thankful for my Daddy. I love every bit of him and truly miss waking up to his goofy singing every morning. I cannot wait to watch him and my mom become grandparents!
I'm thankful for my sweet brother and sister. We're closer today than we were when we all lived in the same house and it is such a blessing to watch the two of you become such wonderful adults. I'm so proud to be your big sissy. :)
I'm thankful for the rest of my Alabama (and beyond) family. For sweet grandparents, aunts and uncles, and my wonderful cousins. I am blessed because of you.
I'm thankful for the amazing family I married into. Brandon's family (Stewarts, Pollards, Gregorys, and all) have taken me in as one of their own from the very beginning. I couldn't even begin to list the reasons and ways they have blessed my life!
I'm thankful for my friends - far and near. Friends who share their lives, their faith, and their families with me and allow me to do the same. I love you!

So, yes, I'm thankful - for these and so many more. My list could stretch on for days and not be complete. I could list my home, my church, my wonderful job and the people (staff, students, and parents) that come with it, the AMAZING food we will eat today (Grandma's home canned green beans - out here in Texas!!), the fact that I'll be eating it all in maternity pants (hooray for elastic!), and so many many things.

I am rich because of these. I am blessed. I am thankful.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Stewart Little Update

2011-10-25T08:07:00.001-05:00

Stewart Little is doing great, according to our Perinatologist yesterday! Baby is measuring 2.75 cm with a heart rate of 167 bmp. Good and healthy! 2.75 cm also means baby-thing is about 12wks 2days instead of 11wks 5days like my due date says. I know they say the first ultrasound is the most accurate, but my symptoms and other dates line up much more accurately with the 12wks 2days mark, putting my due date back at the original - May 2. (Of course, that's unofficial since my OB actually has to make that call, but I'm personally aiming for the 2nd.)

It was so amazing to see that sweet baby moving around in there! It's crazy to think just 6 weeks ago, at our first ultrasound, you could hardly distinguish anything other than a tiny little heartbeat flicker. This time, there is no doubt there is a BABY in there!! It's completely awe-inspiring. We saw Stewart Little jump, stretch, wave ("Hi Mommy!"), open and close her mouth, kick, everything! I know it's still a few weeks off, but I cannot wait to be able to feel all of those amazing little movements! We got some great pictures and even a DVD of the whole ultrasound! I'm going to try to figure out how to get part of that video on a private YouTube channel so family and close friends can see Stewart Little wiggling around like a little jumping bean. :)

Here are a few of my favorite pics.

Sweet baby-face!

Waving at Mommy!

By the way, even though it's still early, my peri has certain things he looks at to give his best guess as to whether Stewart Little is a boy or a girl. He said he gives it a 4 out of 5 shot that we will have a . . . .

. . . oh sorry, you'll have to wait until our Dec 19 appointment to find out for sure.

(message me if you are really curious to know what he thinks!)

A Much Needed Day Off + Baby Stuff

2011-10-14T10:13:00.000-05:00

Ahhh . . . It's 9:30 on a Friday morning, I'm still in pajamas and relaxing in bed with my fuzzy little doggie and growing belly. I can't imagine life getting much better. :)

I have the day off for an ENT appointment to figure out what's going on with my voice (can't seem to keep it for more than a few school days in a row). The nice thing is, the only time they could fit me in before November is today at 11:30, which means I can't just take the morning or afternoon off, I have to be gone all day. I originally did NOT like this idea, since I'm trying to save as many of my off-days as possible for when Stewart Little arrives. Now that it's here, I am oh so thankful I took the full day. I needed a chance to rest and relax a bit. This whole working-six-days-a-week bit is really wearing on me this semester and I feel like I haven't had the chance to just be in a good long while. So yes, today is much needed and oh so nice. :)

In other news, Stewart Little is growing and growing (and my belly is showing and showing - or, at least starting to). I've had several teacher friends comment this week on being able to see a bit of a bump! Isn't that exciting!! I can tell a difference (and Brandon can too), but I didn't realize anyone else could see. Of course, they know I'm expecting so I know they are looking for it. I'll be really excited the first time someone who doesn't know comments on it! I officially cannot button my favorite jeans, I'm wearing my old size 10 dress pants (I'm usually in a size 8) and even they are more comfy unbuttoned. Really, every pant is more comfy unbuttoned (thank heaven for belly bands!). Who decided buttons were a good idea, anyway?

We're beginning a nice collection of baby things around the here now. Thanks mostly to the soon-to-be grandmothers! My mom and Brandon's mom have both sent bags/packages full of cute baby stuff. The only things in this picture that we have bought are the ducky outfit, the "I Love My Daddy" and elephant onesies, and Baby's first elephant (Roll Tide!).

Look at those ADORABLE hoodie towels!

Here's a quick story about the Thumper doll. Before I was born, my parents called me Thumper (apparently I should have been a soccer star with the way I kicked!). My parents even have birthday cards "from" me signed "Love, Thumper". My mom found this little guy when she was baby shopping and sent him to me. Little Thumper marks the first time I really teared-up in this pregnancy. Isn't he just the cutest!

Very soon we'll be adding a swing and bouncer to the collection - courtesy of one of my Kindermusik moms!! She has one-year-old twins and when she was pregnant she registered for two of everything. They've ended up mostly using one swing/bouncer set and have decided to sell the other barely-used set to us!! $50 for one of the best and cutest swings and bouncers out there! It's the Fisher Price Little Lambs swing and matching bouncer. The swing itself sells online for upwards of $150! How great is that! We're going to pick them up on Sunday. Yippeee!!

Meet Stewart Little!

2011-09-21T21:46:00.001-05:00

And now we come to the biggest change of all . . .

Yep, that tiny little dot is the long awaited, much anticipated Stewart Little! Just a tiny little guy (or gal) for now, but as of this week, that little pea is officially the size of a blueberry (I can just hear Brandon quoting from Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, "I have a blueberry for a daughter!"). We've known for over three weeks now, and I've been dying to shout the good news! As of today, I am 7 weeks and Stewart Little should make an appearance sometime around May 9. We are so so so excited!

And I'm so so so exhausted! This new Mommy is heading to bed. More to come soon!
G'night!

A List (inspired by one Carrie Wiley)

2011-09-20T16:58:00.002-05:00

I am still at school.
It's 5:00.
I was done and ready to go home by 4:15.
I am avoiding my 40+ minute commute.
I'm also avoiding my empty house (Tuesdays and Thursdays are B's late days).
By avoiding it, I've managed to wait until peak rush hour.
I must be super smart.
I've accomplished nothing but this blog post and a few facebook messages in the last 45 minutes.
I'm very very tired.
I wish I could snap my fingers and be home.
Or maybe click my heels three times.
I might need cuter shoes for that.
I should probably just brave it and go.
I'm hungry.
That is all.

A Season for Change

2011-09-17T17:44:00.001-05:00

Ahh . . . Fall weather is here!! Hallelujah! I can finally go outside and not melt! The yard work that has been put off during our 60+ days of 100+ temps can finally be done. We can let Gizmo go outside for more than five minutes at a time (poor fuzz-coated puppy). We can start taking walks again! And, I had my first Pumpkin Spice Latte of the season this week! Hooray!

Yes, Fall is BY FAR my favorite season of all. It's a season of change with its cooler weather and beautiful colors, and it holds nearly all of the most important changes and dates in the life of our little family. Brandon's birthday, our first date, our moms birthdays, our wedding anniversary (3 years in October!), and my birthday (plus Thanksgiving, Bumpaw (Brandon's stepdad's bday) and it all leads up to Christmas!). Yep, I love this season and all the changes it brings.

To celebrate, I've even changed our blog a little. I'm experimenting with a couple of different layouts. I really like this denim one, but I may find something a bit more fall-ish soon, too.

So, what is your favorite thing about the changing of seasons?

Dorm Days

2011-08-21T21:52:00.000-05:00

My baby sister is officially a college freshman! She moved into her dorm on Friday and starts her first classes tomorrow. I can hardly believe it, and I am so excited for her to have this experience. Makes me miss my old New Hall days! I pray that her years in college are as near and dear to her as my own and that she will be a shining light on Huntingdon's campus.

Here is her side of her dorm room. Isn't it adorable!

See that big empty space above her desk? Very soon it will be displaying this lovely little bulletin board, made by yours truly. I found all of my supplies at Hobby Lobby (isn't that fabric a great match for her bedding colors?) for less than $10. It was super easy and I'm thrilled with how it turned out! I'll do a how-to post on it soon. For now, enjoy!

I've been playing around with some typography lately and couldn't resist adding a couple of verses to her board.

I can't wait to see it in her room!

Babes, I love you and I am so proud of you!! Good luck tomorrow!
Love,
Sissy

San Antonio Visit

2011-08-09T16:52:00.001-05:00

Wow! What a great weekend! On Saturday morning I loaded up little Maddie Mazda and headed south to San Antonio to visit my good friends Jared and Laura Theismann. They are expecting their first little one at the end of October and Laura's coworkers and Texas friends were throwing her a shower on Sunday. I got to stay with them through the weekend and came home yesterday.

It was very funny trying to explain to people at the shower exactly how we knew each other and why/how one of their Alabama friends ended up at their San Antonio shower. Here's a brief synopsis for those who may need a little background, too. The Theismanns and the Stewarts go back nearly ten years (actually, right at ten years this fall). Brandon, Jared, and I were all horn majors at Alabama. Laura was a eupohonium player. Brandon and Jared were roommates when Brandon and I started dating. Jared and Laura started dating just a couple of months after us. We had lots of double dates and dinners at the guys' apartment. Jared was the best man in our wedding and Laura caught the bouquet. We were in their wedding eight months later. We ended up in Texas because of grad school (first TTU, then UNT). They ended up in Texas because of Laura's music therapy job. We all enjoy having friends from home that are close enough to visit occasionally (and it's always nice hearing someone else say "Roll Tide!" in Texas!).

On Sunday after the shower, we took Laura's camera around the common areas at their apartment complex and got a few maternity pictures. I've never done a photo shoot before (at least, not from behind the camera), but thanks to budgets and Dave Ramsey, this was Laura's only chance to get pictures of her and Jared together. We had a great time and, I think, the pictures came out pretty good! I mean, they're obviously not professional by any means, but they're a little better than your average point and shoot, too. Here are a few of my favorites. Click the link below to see the slide show I put together for them to send to their families.

Click here for video slide show of Laura's photos

Blessings and Mercies

2011-05-15T23:08:00.002-05:00

It's been a tough few weeks to be away from home. From illnesses to tornadoes, destruction and the death of a friend - I have never wanted to be home more. For the sake of memory and the chance to just get it out, the following is an account of the past 3+ weeks. This will be a pretty long post - you're welcome to click the post title and read it all if you want/have the time. Otherwise, here is the point of it all:

I believe that through it all, God is still in control. I believe that nothing that has happened in the last month has taken Him by surprise. I believe and hold on to Romans 8:28 - "And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose." I also believe that as deeply as I love my friends and family back home and want to comfort them, He loves them infinitely more than I ever could. He is able to provide more comfort and peace than anything I could fathom. I believe that even though I say "all I can do is pray", praying is the best and most important thing I can do to help in all of these situations. I don't know why these things happen, but I know that somehow, someway God will use these trials for His good purpose.

There is a song that has been playing on the radio lately that has really hit home through all of this. The final question of this song asks our Father, "What if trials of this life - the rain, the storms, the hardest nights - are your mercies in disguise?"

I have to believe, somehow, they are.

__________________________________________

From Holy Week to Now

Leading up to Holy Week - Emotionally I had been through the ringer and completely torn between my home here and my home in Alabama. My specials team here at my school learned that we would be losing our PE teacher due to budget cuts next year. This sent a shock through our entire campus because my sweet friend Karin was our Teacher of the Year and had just won a huge national award for our school because of her efforts to make us the nation's first Healthy Zone School. We'll be getting $9000 over the next three years because of this! Yet, she was let go and others were not. We did not even get a say in who would be replacing her next year. It was unjust and just sucks all the way around. My team, our school, and especially our kids are hurt deeply - and that's nothing compared to how Karin feels and what she and her family have to deal with now.

In Alabama, our dear friends, the Gordons, were going through some rough trials as well. Anna Gordon, the 23 year old daughter of Mrs. Pam Gordon (our favorite piano prof from UA) and Mr. Chris Gordon (the choir director at my family's church in Fayette) was still fighting for her life after having a second bone marrow transplant in hopes of ridding her of her Acute Myeloid Leukemia. She was on and off the ventilator and deteriorating rapidly in front of her mom (who never left her side) and family. It was absolutely heart breaking to hear her mother's updates and know that we could do nothing from here but pray.

April 22, Good Friday - After going back and forth from the hospital to the rehab wing of the nursing home multiple times since Jan 1, my grandma was admitted to the hospital again - this time with multiple blood clots in her lungs (one large one in her pulmonary artery). My mom, an RN, hospital administrator and pastor had to rush to Cullman from a meeting in Tuscaloosa (without stopping at home first) to be with her. (NOTE: Holy Week is the busiest week of the year for church workers - my poor mom had to miss the Good Friday service and still prepare an Easter sunrise service message!). I couldn't help but worry as much, if not more, for my mom as I was for my grandma.

April 24, Easter Sunday - Another emotional day - but for good reasons. I serve a risen Savior! He conquered the grave! This Sunday, I thought, was the boost I needed to shake off the trials of the previous week. It was, instead, the bright spot and reminder I would need to make it through the following weeks.

Wednesday, April 27 - On my commute to work, I called home as usual (mornings are usually the one time of day I can catch both of my parents at home) but couldn't get through on the land line. Instead I received a message that said something about service being temporarily unavailable in the area - not an uncommon message for cell phones considering where my parents live, but I've NEVER heard that for a land line. Very strange. I couldn't get through to my mom's cell, but was finally able to reach them on my dad's Linc phone. My mom was very breathless when she picked up the phone and I immediately knew something was not right. My stomach always flip-flops when someone begins a sentence with, "We're all ok, but . . ."

She said that phone lines were down across the state because a series of severe storms with high winds and tornadoes had been moving across the state that morning (with more on the way). They had lost a few small trees, but nothing major. My grandparents and uncle in Hanceville (Cullman County) had some damage and my uncle had trees on his house and vehicles. Most schools in the area were cancelled either because of damage or the threat of more severe weather (this turned out to be one of the smartest things they could have done that day!).

I go on to work worried about and praying for my family and friends back home. After school I called my dad for an update. My mom was stuck at the hospital where she has to be present and on call during any weather emergency, and he and my sister were huddled in the neighbor's basement because there was a tornado on the ground heading for their area in the next half hour. Then he recounted watching a live skycam feed of a tornado tearing through Cullman (his hometown) not long before I called. The downtown area was destroyed and there were reports that it had hit the hospital where my grandma was staying. At that point there was no word on injuries or the state of the hospital and, since land lines had been down all day, no one could get through to check on grandma. I quickly told a few teacher friends to pray, called Brandon to tell him to watch the weather, and quickly headed to our house to join him.

Let me pause here to say that for anyone who grew up in Alabama, when there is an emergency or weather crisis happening, there is only one voice you want/need to hear, one voice that can calm you down, and one that you can trust with your life. That would be the world's best weatherman, James Spann.

Naturally, as soon as I got home, I pulled up his live feed on abc3340.com. My original intent was to make sure my parents and sis were ok in Fayette. Cell service was down again, but I learned that the tornado that had been aiming for them went south and instead hit several small communities and the little town of Berry. While I was taking this in and trying to get more information on the Cullman hospital and my grandma, James Spann broke in with a live feed of a huge tornado just outside of Tuscaloosa. Brandon and I immediately began facebooking/calling/texting our many many friends in the area telling them to take cover. By then, ABC had switched to a live Tower Cam from the top of the federal courthouse in downtown Ttown (next door to the church where we were married). We watched, live, as that monster went right through the middle of the town we once called home. Once again, all we could do is pray. Then the first damage reports started coming in . . . it was awful.

The reports from across the state from that day are gut-wrenching. As of this past Wednesday, Gov. Bentley announced the death toll to be 238 for the state, with 41 in Tuscaloosa alone. There are still people unaccounted for.

Amazingly, the lives of my family and friends were spared. My grandma was safe (minus a large gash on her hand where it was caught between the bed and door as they tried to rush all the patients to safety during the storm). Comparatively, my family had minimal damage. Many of our friends in Tuscaloosa have extensive damage and a few completely lost their homes. Our friends, the Gordons (yes, Anna Gordon's family) have major damage to their home and are living out of Anna's old apartment in Tuscaloosa right now.

My heart absolutely aches for my sweet home Alabama,my friends and my family. I've never been more homesick than I am now.

May 3 - Once again, I call home on my way to work (though I'm getting pretty gun shy with all that has happened). My sister answered the phone and told me that my mother wasn't home. She had to go "rescue" our grandma during the night and they were now together in Fayette's hospital. She didn't know the details and couldn't even tell me what room they were in. After trying repeatedly to reach my mom on her cell, I called the hospital and was transfered to grandma's room. My poor mother answered and sounded utterly exhausted. She recounted what had happened.

Since Cullman's hospital was overflowing with tornado victims (and cleaning up the little damage they received in the storms), Grandma's condition was deemed stable enough to be transfered back to the Hanceville nursing home's rehab unit the previous Friday. As of that Monday evening, the nursing home (and most of north Alabama) was still without power and had been running on generators. Since Grandma still had to be on oxygen, her bed had to be left in the hallway to access the generator power. Monday afternoon the generators began to fail. Grandma was not receiving the oxygen she needed and was quite literally scared to death. Around sunset she talked to my mother (via my uncle's cell phone) and tearfully begged my mom to get her out of there because she couldn't make it. My mom had the nurses put her on an O2 tank and tried to convince her she could make it through til morning (though my mom says at that point even she wasn't convinced). My mom made several phone calls, asked a few favors, and within a couple of hours was riding in an ambulance from Fayette to Hanceville to pick Grandma up and transfer her to Fayette.

My mom said that when she arrived, the power had been completely off for over three hours and it was nearly 85 degrees inside the nursing home. She found Grandma in the hall, in the dark sobbing by herself - her O2 tank was empty. (This was two weeks ago and it still makes me sick to my stomach to even type it!) Thankfully, the EMT's went straight to work and got Grandma loaded up in the air-conditioned ambulance and hooked up to their oxygen while my mom and the other nurses gathered the necessary paperwork in the dark.

They rode the hour and a half back to Fayette and arrived at some early hour of the morning. My mom told my grandma that she really had "arrived" - that Fayette's hospital was the best hospital with the best staff in the world. When my mom was telling me all of this, she started sobbing at this point and said that from the moment the EMT's pushed Grandma through the doors every single person they encountered truly lived up to her words. Thank you FMC staff, for taking such good care of my Grandma AND my mother during this time!

Later that week - It turned out that gash that my grandma received as she was wheeled to safety from the tornado wasn't healing right. She had a large blood clot that was feared to be infected and was becoming more and more painful. It had progressed to the point that she had to have surgery on it to remove the clot and skin around it. The surgery went well but they're waiting to see how it will heal (there is talk of a possible skin graft - this would be her second graft this year if they go ahead with it!). It's still hurting her quite a bit.

May 8, Mother's Day - We got word that morning that our friend, Anna Gordon, had taken a turn for the worse and was being placed back on the ventilator. The doctors had called her family in to be with her and did not give her more than 48 hours to live (imagine Mrs. Gordon hearing this news on Mother's Day!). We, and so many others around the world spent the day praying she would improve and pull through.

May 9 - Anna made it through the day Sunday, rallied Monday morning and fought hard throughout the day. Unfortunately, her weakened body didn't have the strength to keep fighting. Anna Elizabeth Gordon went to heaven at 10:02 pm that evening. So many hearts broke that night, but we are all thankful that she is at peace and no longer suffering. Once again, I felt the desperate need to go home - to be with my family and love on them, to somehow be there for Mrs. Gordon and at least give her a hug. But again, I was unable to go and all I could do (and all I can still do) is pray.

May 12 - Anna's funeral. My mother officiated. I had to stay here in Texas with a plethora of responsibilities and obligations to my precious students. Still, I so wanted to be there - for my mom and for Mrs. Gordon and our friends. It's so hard being this far from home.

________________________________________

That brings us to today. Today was a good day. Today I am able to say all of this, and still say, as I said before, that I wholeheartedly believe God is in control. I believe that nothing that has happened in the last month has taken Him by surprise. I believe and hold on to Romans 8:28 - "And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose." I also believe that as deeply as I love my friends and family back home and want to comfort them, He loves them infinitely more than I ever could. He is able to provide more comfort and peace than anything I could fathom. I believe that even though I say "all I can do is pray", praying is the best and most important thing I can do to help in all of these situations. I don't know why these things happen, but I know that somehow, someway God will use these trials for His good purpose.

There is a song that has been playing on the radio lately that has really hit home through all of this. The final question of this song asks our Father, "What if trials of this life - the rain, the storms, the hardest nights - are your mercies in disguise?"

I have to believe, somehow, they are.

Designs

2011-05-07T16:57:00.000-05:00

Lately I've had the pleasure of designing several invitations for various events and people. I am so enjoying being creative and coming up with different ideas! Here are a few that I have made in the last few weeks (in what little spare time I have).

These were sent to school board members and various businesses around McKinney. We also made this into posters to hang around the community. BTW, if you're in the area, PLEASE come this Thursday!

This is design #1 for my friend Jennifer's baby shower. I can't make it to Alabama for the shower, so my "hostess duties" are to handle invitations and RSVPs! How fun!

Design #2 for Jenn's shower. She hasn't decided which one she wants yet. I'll keep you posted.

Design #3. This one was really fun. I made the boat using MS Paint. Super simple!

So, anyone need and cards or invitations? I'd love to make more - especially once June gets here and school lets out! :)

Happy Mother's Day!

2011-05-07T16:06:00.001-05:00

Yep, that's my mom! Most people who know her know what an extraordinary woman she is. But even most of those people don't know the extent of it. If, in my lifetime, I become even half the woman my mother is, I will consider it a life well lived. I love you, Mommy! :)

Christ IS Risen!

2011-04-24T13:50:00.000-05:00

Happy Easter!

Love,
The Stewart's Little Family

Ahhh, Spring Break . . .

2011-03-16T14:33:00.003-05:00

. . . the time of the year when teachers get to catch up on everything they don't have time to do when they're teaching!

We are officially at the mid-point of our break now. So far I am feeling somewhat rested and very accomplished. Projects for the week so far:

SB Project #1 - Gizmo

The poor puppy desperately needed to be groomed. Unfortunately, the one place around here that is reasonably priced rarely answers the phone and has lost our business countless times because of it - this time they lost it for good (I am so not sad about this, though. I'm pretty sure that lady hated us.). After much research and many YouTube videos on how to groom your Shih Tzu/what to use, we went to PetSmart on Sunday and purchased a nice set of Andis clippers. Three+ hours later a very clean, somewhat ragged, short-haired Gizmo emerged from our bathroom leaving behind a mountain of fluff. Project #1 - done!

Before

After

SB Project #2 - A Clean House

It seems like our house never gets squeaky clean until right before we have company. I'm ashamed to say we're more dumbesticated than domesticated when it comes to this area of our lives. Our second project of the week is to conquer the house. Monday was spent doing just that. I am proud to say that by the end of the day the entire downstairs was squeaky clean and upstairs only has a few more things to be done (namely vacuuming and dusting). And I still need to tackle the master bath (I keep finding bits of Gizzy-fuzz here and there . . .). Oh, and downstairs isn't quite as squeaky clean now . . . Project #2 - in progress

SB Project #3 - Tech Specs

After spending the previous day deep-cleaning, we decided that we (and our sinuses) needed a break. I slept in (a rare occasion for me) and Brandon, my adorable nerd of a hubby, played on his computer. Sometime that morning Brandon noticed his computer was running hot (apparently a dangerous thing for the video card). He took the whole thing downstairs and opened it up to find a couple of fans had disconnected and a TON of dust had collected. This prompted a "quick" run to Best Buy for a can of air (yes, apparently even air has a cost!). On the way there, Brandon surprised me by telling me we were also going to look at laptops! (NOTE: My laptop died last August and we've been sharing B's one desktop all year. Not an ideal situation when you have a teacher and a doctoral student in one house). After a bit of searching, a little haggling, and a trip down the road to find it (and that can of air) in stock we are now the proud owners of a (very cute) 14" HP laptop! (shhh . . . I'm not supposed to call cars or computers "cute"!) Yep, I'm happily sitting on the couch blogging with her right now! In fact, I think I'll name her "Happy"!

Brandon's desktop is fine, by the way. Once he he attacked it with that can of air and the dust settled (all over my kitchen counters) it worked like new! But that "squeaky clean" kitchen resembles a construction site now. Project #3 - done!

My "Happy" HP!

There are more projects and more pictures to come this week! Stay tuned for updates on our next projects including "pampering the teacher", "photography phun", "the playdate", and, if we're lucky, "the garden"!

Happy Spring Break!

Hallelujah

2011-03-07T23:12:00.001-06:00

In reference to my previous post, here is the Heather Williams song, Hallelujah. If you have the time, watch the video that tells a little about the story behind her lyrics.

Jesus, please come
please come today
hear me
heal me
be near me I pray

I have fallen so far
flat on my face
I'm in need of your grace today
I stumble and fall
but in spite of it all
your love always stays the same
Hallelujah
Hallelujah

Jesus, please come
please come today
break me
mold me
use me I pray

but don't give up on me now
I'm so close to you now
I'm in need of your grace today
wipe the dirt off my face
hold me in your embrace
your love always saves the day
Hallelujah
Hallelujah

I have fallen so far
flat on my face
I'm in need of your grace today
Hallelujah
Hallelujah

Sing Hallelujah
Sing Hallelujah
Sing Hallelujah amen

On my knees here I fall
in spite of it all
Hallelujah
And though it seems hard
I'm still trusting you Lord
Hallelujah
Hallelujah

The Unknown . . .

2011-03-07T23:08:00.000-06:00

Well, it has been an interesting few weeks around here. Actually, I don't think interesting is the right word. I'm not sure what the right word is for how I feel. I don't want to say "difficult". As far as day-to-day affairs we've been doing pretty well. We're both healthy, Brandon survived his recital, my students seem to be learning, and we only have 4 more days until Spring Break. Emotionally though, I feel like we're teetering on the edge of a scary unknown and a lot of it has to do with the budget crisis our state is currently in.

This seems strange for me to write about, because I don't normally speak up about politics or budgets or the like. I'm a responsible citizen - I educate myself on issues and I vote (when I can), but having a conversation about those things does not appeal to me in the least. In fact, I have written and rewritten this post over and over this last week, because this is such a hard topic. Unfortunately, this budget crisis is beginning to hit home. It's personal, and to say it has shaken me is an understatement - I really need to get this off my chest. Feel free to take this as your warning and read no further (I can't say that I would blame you!).

Just in the last week I have had three good friends who have been told they will no longer be teaching music or, in one case, will not even have a job with her district after this school year. (FYI - these are excellent, hard working, caring, loving, experienced and successful teachers!) And there are many many more teachers across this state (and country!) in similar situations. Add to that the constant bickering and, as one friend put it, "villifying" of teachers that is going on in the media. I've literally been sick to my stomach for a good week (and no, I'm not preggo)!

Even my own district is looking at some very serious and very scary cuts between now and the official last day to give contracts/notices (April 18 for certified teachers in McKinney). Somehow Fine Arts is miraculously not on the list of departments that are being looked at for reduction and/or elimination. I don't know how we dodged that bullet when so many others did not. Unfortunately, my "specials" team (myself, our sweet art teacher, our amazing and award-winning P.E. coach, and her wonderful assistant) will still be majorly impacted this year. Fine Arts is not on the list, but our elementary P.E. programs are (plus our library aide, other aide positions, and our school nurse)! It scares me to think of who will or will not be back after this year. To top it off, it seems to be common knowledge that this is not even the worst of the budget crisis. They are predicting that the budget cuts this time next year will be even more drastic! Yikes!!

So, where does this leave the Stewarts' Little Family? Well, for now we are saddened and sickened by the losses and changes our friends are dealing with. We are trying to be proactive and planning, both financially and career-wise, for the possibility of me needing to find a new job after the 2011-2012 school year. And we are prayerfully trusting that somehow this is all in God's bigger plan. We don't know what will happen, and the unknown is a scary place to be. My biggest prayer for now (aside for comfort and guidance for my friends who are facing this sudden career/life change) is that when and if the time comes for me, I will handle it with grace, faith, and hope. I want to say, like Heather Williams, "On my knees here I fall in spite of it all, Hallelujah! And though it seems hard, I'm still trusting you Lord. Hallelujah!"

Random Thoughts

2011-02-20T17:18:00.000-06:00

My mind is full of random thoughts today. I thought I'd share a few - mostly so I don't forget them, but maybe they'll spark a good conversation or two as well.

I LOVE Sundays - especially when I get to sing with our Praise Team at Faith.

I'm so happy to have the chance to sing with a great group again - especially at church!

I'm so thankful to have a husband who supports me and believes in me!

I've really missed singing (as in performing - not just for my students)

I guess, if you think about it, I really do perform for my students every day. I always try to set the example of using my "best singing voice". I think some of them get that.

I miss choral singing. I wish we could have our little Kodaly ensemble with Soma year-round.

I miss playing my horn, too. Brandon is working on Mozart's 4th Horn Concerto right now. Once upon a time I played that pretty well.

I went on a shopping spree this afternoon with a gift card I've had for two months. I'm not a good shopper - I spent over 2 hours in 2 stores and didn't actually pick something to buy until the last 15 minutes!

I may be the most indecisive person I know. Maybe . . .

I need a personal shopper - someone who can wade through the ADD-ness that is department stores and find good, cute deals for me.

Shopping is dangerous for me. It's very hard to be content with what I have when I see what I could have.

I did get a couple of cute blouses and cardigan and a necklace - and I still have $16 on my gift card! Thanks for the card, Eloise!! :)

I love this glorious weather we're having right now! I hope it stays! So long winter!!

Maybe I should move to Florida . . .

I told you this was random . . .

A-MAZ-ING!

2011-02-13T22:15:00.000-06:00

This week Brandon and I were blessed to get to hear some absolutely amazing music made by some of the kindest and most awesome people around! Let me just say, I love the Swingle Singers! Talk about some phenomenal music! They are, I believe, the original a cappella vocal jazz group (the original group even predates The King's Singers by a few years), and are most certainly the best at what they do! What is really great, though, is to know what genuine, humble, and down-to-earth people they are. We were fortunate enough to spend a little time with them while we were in San Antonio for TMEA this last week. If you ever have the chance to see them perform - TAKE IT! Drive however far you need to drive, pay whatever you can for a ticket, and go see them!! Trust me, you'll love it!

(BTW - Alabama friends, they will be at UAB on March 4! Don't miss it!)

Here is a live performance of their Flight of the Bumblebee (yes, the one you hear on Glee!).

Good music is always that much sweeter when you know it's coming from the heart. Here are the girls of the Swingle Singers singing Amazing Grace. This may now be my favorite recording of this hymn.

This week's TMEA has certainly been the best to-date for me. From the great music, to meeting these new friends, spending some much needed time catching up with old friends, and of course, getting some great new ideas and materials for my classroom, I couldn't have asked for a better way to spend these last four days. It's been a true blessing!

Here's a Great Website!

2011-02-05T20:45:00.002-06:00

Come follow me on Pinterest! As mentioned before, Pinterest is this great online tool where you "pin" pictures and links to things that pique your interest (pinning your interests . . . ). I've known about it for a while now but, since it's a brand new community, I had to request and wait for an invitation. It came today!! I have had so much fun filling up my "boards" this afternoon! My favorite one, the one that tells the most about me, is my "What Inspires Me . . ." board. As the title says, it's the people, stories, books, quotes, movies, etc. that are some of my inspirations in life. Cheesy, maybe, but I love it!

The board that will probably be the most useful to me, at least in the near future, is my "Master Bedroom and Bath" board. For Christmas, Brandon's parents gave us a new comforter set (or, well, the money to buy whatever new comforter set we want). Since then, Brandon's mom and I have been browsing and perusing various catalogs to find that perfect combination of color and pattern. This board gives me a chance to compile all of those great pictures that we've found so we can start deciding what to do in there. I think I'm starting to see a theme develop in which things I like - see, my Pinterest board is already doing its job!

So, check it out when you get the chance! If you find, like me, that it's a little addicting and you'd like to start your own, let me know. I have a limited number of invites that I can share. Otherwise, you may end up waiting a while like I did.

Enjoy!

Screenshot of my "What Inspires Me . . . " Pinterest Board

More Craftiness

2011-02-05T17:44:00.000-06:00

Here are a few more mini-projects that have worked their way into my schedule over the last year.

The iPhone 4 case.

iPhone 4 case

Made from leftover apron material


It's a nice, snug fit so it doesn't fall out.

Painted lettering for the "Word Wall" in my classroom.

I painted and cut out the letters (from poster paper) that go above the "word wall" in my classroom. Below the letters is a section for each grade, and as we learn new music terms, we put those words up on our wall.

The "Word Wall" at the beginning of the school year

My "Word Wall" was part of the inspiration to help a friend with her nursery decorations. She went to Hobby Lobby, picked out different scrapbook papers that matched her nursery colors and I decoupaged them onto wooden letters to spell out sweet little Maddie's name.

And of course, I can't find the pictures right now, but trust me, it's adorable (almost as cute as Maddie, herself!). Hopefully I can share the pictures soon!

Dish Towel Aprons!

2011-02-05T12:36:00.000-06:00

I'm so excited! This morning I woke up to find an email I've been waiting on for a while now - my invitation to join the Pinterest community - a great web tool where you can "pin" (and link) pictures and ideas that interest you (pin your interests = pinterest! Get it?)! But, more on that later.

Because of my new Pinterest account, I've been reviewing some of my blogs over the last year and realized I never got to post about my first sewing endeavors last summer! So here ya go.

Last Christmas (2009), Brandon gave me a sewing machine - something I had been wanting for a long time. Between teaching, earning my Kindermusik license, and finishing my Kodaly homework for the year, I didn't have the chance to start using it until my summer break began. My first project was inspired by a picture I found in a magazine (maybe Southern Living - I wish I could remember). I had no pattern, just a little help from the sweet old lady in the Hobby Lobby sewing department. Here are some pictures of my first creations - dish towel aprons!

Dish towels - $1 at WalMart, Fabric and thread - Hobby Lobby

The first one!

Close-up


Wearing it!

I was only able to finish two of the three last summer, and unfortunately haven't had the time to finish the third yet. Hopefully I will have more time this summer to get these and more done.

I also attempted to make a child-sized version for my friend Emily's sweet little one year old, Piper. It's still a little big for her, I think. There are lots of things I need to fix with this pattern, but I think it's a good start.

Piper's pint-sized apron

It's Curtains for Us!

2011-01-29T10:00:00.002-06:00

Since I have this rare free morning, I'm using part of it to catch up on some of the things I've been meaning to post. So . . . here ya go!
___________________
Two weeks ago, I got to enjoy one of our rare teacher workdays (no kids, no meetings, just a much needed "get-stuff-done-in-my-classroom" day). I had planned to clean out the giant closet in the back of my music room. This closet is so big and so stuffed that in the 3 semesters that I've been at Burks I haven't even made it to the back until now! I knew Brandon had the day free as well, and asked if he would come out to the school and help me. He waffled around before giving me an answer, so I let him off the hook, but I was a little bummed that he didn't want to come. Little did I know, he had other plans for the day . . .

That afternoon, after an entire day spent cleaning, dusting, sneezing and organizing, I came home feeling pretty accomplished and a little proud of myself for tackling that monster on my own. What I found was a husband who shared a few of those feelings himself! While I was gone, he and his parents worked their magic in our living room and breakfast area and hung up the curtains that we finally (after a year and a half of living here) bought!! What a great surprise! I love having a husband that takes initiative and finds little things like this to surprise me with! I love him so much!!

It looks great - exactly the kind of look I've been wanting to acheive in there! See for yourself! (Curtains - Ikea, curtain rods and rings - Lowe's)

Breakfast nook

Living Room (we're in the process of putting fans up - ignore the dangling light)

Living Room/Breakfast nook (plus our new fans in the boxes!)

Sunshine

2011-01-29T08:57:00.002-06:00

If you can't tell, I love mornings! Mornings are fresh, invigorating, and exciting! I especially love rare mornings like these where I can make my own agenda.

Item #1 - Relax in bed (note - that does not mean sleep in. I've never been able to do that). There's something delicious about being awake, in bed, while the sun is up. It's a luxury I don't usually have so this morning I'm taking full advantage.

I don't know if I'd say I'm a morning person though. This school year, where I've had to get up at 5 and leave just after 6 has been hard. It doesn't help that even after my 40+ minute commute, the sun still has not come up.

I'm not a night person either. I start getting droopy-eyed not long after dark (whether that's 5:30 or 9:30). I'm a terrible party guest (was never even into the party scene in college). I always miss the end of football games (even the few that I care to see!) and most nights I'll fall asleep on the couch long before Brandon is ready to go to bed.

I think, instead, I'm a sunshine person. I have to have sunlight (heaven help me if Brandon ever gets a job in Alaska!). If I had it my way, my days would start at sunrise and end at sundown. I have an extreme dislike of daylight savings time because it means the sun comes up even later in the day. My favorite part of my house is our big windows. My least favorite part of our house (aside from the shared pantry/laundry room - I don't ever want that again btw) is the fact that the front of our house gets zero direct sunlight in the winter. I just need sunshine. Period. I'm a sunshine person.

Hey, I could think of a lot worse things to be. :)

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Joy in the Mornings

2011-01-23T08:26:00.001-06:00

Happiness is waking up nose to nose with your puppy, and elbow to elbow with your husband.

I love Sunday mornings. They are my chance to relax, reflect on the past week, and mentally prep myself for the week ahead. Plus, Sunday is the one day of the week I can stay in bed long enough to watch the sun come up - one of my favorite things to do!

Right now the sun is just coming up and I am still snuggled down with my two very sleepy boys. I am happy.

But, I believe that happiness is circumstantial (though I am thankful to be happily basking in this circumstance) - and that true JOY (my favorite word!) is constant. I have long believed that there is a huge difference between those two words.

My joy comes from loving, and being loved by my heavenly Father. Regardless of my situation, I know He is faithful and I can have joy in that knowledge. He is constant, so my joy is constant. Any blessings I receive (such as mornings like this with my sleepy, loving husband) are wonderful extras that add to my happiness - and when I'm aware enough to catch it, can serve as reminders of my Father's love, but my joy is complete only in Him.

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Roll Eagle/War Tide

2011-01-12T18:35:00.001-06:00

I know i will catch some flack for this - probably most of all from my die-hard Alabama fan of a husband, but this is worth it.

Let me explain. I grew up in a very Auburn family. Very. Auburn. My great grandad went there (before it was even called Auburn). My grandad went to Auburn. My dad went to Auburn (and works for them!). My brother is a student at Auburn. It's in my blood. I love Auburn - always have.

But, I'm an Alabama fan. I went to Alabama. Lived it and love it. I've cheered the cheers, sung the songs, and played the music. All while Alabama football was going through one of its darkest times. 3 head coaches in my four years of school and a losing Iron Bowl record. Yet, I cheered them on. Imagine my excitement then when last year we went undefeated and won the Heisman trophy (our first ever!) and the National Championship (something that hadn't happened since I was in 2nd grade)! To live in Texas and have those bragging rights made the victory even sweeter.

I love my sweet home Alabama, but I still love Auburn too. Distance has a way of lessening state rivalries and living out here, I find myself cheering for the boys from home (regardless of their uniform color) with all that I have. In fact, there is only one day a year that you won't find me hoping for both of my teams to win. (Though for the record, I yell "Roll Tide!" loud and clear on Iron Bowl day.)

With that in mind, I'm sure you'll understand the elation I feel knowing that my home state has now claimed 2 Heismans and 2 National Titles in as many years!! The child in me is overjoyed to see the team I've cheered for all my life finally win it all! The adult in me is bursting with pride to claim that I'm from the great state of Alabama! I may be in the minority here, but I couldn't be happier with these last two football seasons!

Roll Eagle!! War Tide!!

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Snowed In!

2011-01-10T16:10:00.000-06:00

When I was a kid, my favorite part of having a snow day was going out and playing! Now, my favorite part of a snow day (aside from watching Gizmo bounce around in it) is having a day at home to catch up and clean!

Thank you Jesus for giving me a day at home!!

Seriously, this is the first day I've had since last summer where I've actually stayed at home all day. I've gotten so much done! So far today I've,

Cleaned the kitchen
Finally finished taking the last of the Christmas stuff down (if you'll notice in the picture above, we still had wreaths and garland on the house until a couple of hours ago)
Organized our glasses/cups cabinets
Finished going over my lessons and got a head start on next weeks'
Made fun manipulatives for my lessons
Washed our sheets (they really needed it!)
Somewhat organized the pantry (it's going to take more hours than I have to give today to really get it organized the way I want it)
Almost completely caught up on laundry (one more load to go!) (Brandon's coming home to a laundry folding party tonight - he just doesn't know it yet)
Dusted the living room
Updated my blog with this post
And have still had time to relax and play with Gizmo!

I have a couple more items on my to-do list for the day, but I'm definitely feeling accomplished, relaxed, and caught up! Having an unexpected free day could not have come at a better time!! Thank you, Lord, for snow days!

Hoping for Snow!

2011-01-09T11:42:00.001-06:00

There's no use in being cold unless there's snow to play in!

I hate being cold! I'm definitely southern born and southern bred. And sometimes even the South is too cold for me!

Today is a different story though. Today I am more excited with every degree the thermometer drops. There are snow clouds above, and I nearly busted Brandon's eardrums when we passed through OKC and saw a few flurries!

We are currently on the road home from Tulsa after spending the weekend with Brandon's grandparents (and pigging out on yummy Merritt's Bakery treats)! The snow we saw in OKC has stopped, but the roads are wet and it's beginning to sleet.

To make things better, Brandon's folks who live 25 mins from our house just sent us a message saying the rain there has officially changed into big fat snow flakes!

Here's to coming home to a winter wonderland! Yippee!!

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Happy New Year

2011-01-01T18:49:00.001-06:00

Happy New Year from the Stewarts' Little Family!

2010 was a great year for us. Brandon successfully completed his first year and a half of the doctoral program at UNT and has built up a nice size studio of private students. If all goes well, he could potentially complete his coursework in another year and a half! Of course there's still quals, a lecture recital, and his dissertation to finish after that, so we'll still be in the area for a while. And I couldn't be happier about that! :)

I'm still happily teaching elem music in McKinney. I adore my kids and couldn't ask for a better team to work with. This year I also started teaching Kindermusik classes twice a week. That has opened many doors for me and I've gained some great experiences. I love teaching the little ones, but that paired with my commute to McKinney has made for an exhausting fall semester. I'm still keeping the same schedule this spring and just hoping to survive. We'll revisit the scheduling of everything at the end of this school year.

Which brings me to 2011. This year Brandon and I are following tradition and actually making set resolutions for the year. We've got a few of "family" resolutions and I have a couple of my own. So here we go . . .

Family resolutions:
•Get healthy! We're pledging to eat better, drink more water, and start a couch-to-5K program.

•Make a conscious, weekly effort to spend quality time together. With our crazy schedules this fall, we regularly went weeks without really spending time with each other. We will not let that happen this time.

•Take a vacation together. If our "plan" works out the way we want (haha, the best laid plans . . . ) 2011 may be the last year we have with just us and Gizmo. After that, we're hoping to add a Stewart Little to the mix. So we want to take the opportunity to do a few things together that you can't easily do with a little one.

My resolutions:
•Keep up with my blog(s) more.

•Start journaling again. I recently found the journal I kept in college and remembered how much clearer things are to me when I write my ideas out. I bought a fresh new journal today to get started.

•Finish my Kodaly certification. I'm afraid if I don't finish this summer, I won't finish at all. I have a LOT to do between now and June, but this is a must.

•Continue growing closer to God. I long for the closeness I once felt and have recently felt more tugging toward Him than I have in a long time. I want to be more diligent in my study and in my prayer life.

•On a related note: Keep a prayer journal.

I think that about covers it. Here's to a great 2010 and an even better 2011!

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Overwhelmed

2010-08-22T09:38:00.000-05:00

There's a positive perspective for that feeling of, "I'm overwhelmed!" View it as a reflection of your choice to put your passion into action and make a difference that really matters. Your degree of overwhelm correlates to the magnitude of the contribution you have chosen to make to the lives of others and to yourself. Never forget that YOU ARE ENOUGH and you can chose EVERY moment to do your best - nothing more, nothing less. - Carol, from Kindermusik International

What do you get when you add the approaching first week of school, three Kindermusik DemoDays classes, a classroom computer that's on the fritz, a car wreck - I'm ok btw, and a cold together? You get OVERWHELMED!

It is an overwhelming time of year (even without these lovely little extras). I seem to have a lot of these times lately. I came across the quote above in my weekly Kindermusik email and it really hit home for me. I AM putting my passion into action - this week of all weeks! I know I am making a difference in the lives of my students - from the youngest Kindermusik baby to my oldest 5th grader and hopefully beyond! I WILL do my best to make every moment count this year, to let God's love pour through me to my kiddos, and remember that overwhelmed is an ok place to be once in a while.

Surviving

2010-05-19T21:19:00.000-05:00

If ever there was a testament to how amazing my husband is, it has been/will be this month. I am pretty much going non-stop right now between teaching, Kodaly homework, Kindermusik homework, and various and sundry other obligations that keep me in McKinney or otherwise away from home. Not to mention that the last couple of weeks (and unfortunately, most likely the next couple of weeks until school lets out) have left me exhausted at the end of every day. Kids (and fellow teachers) are not pleasant people to be around this time of year. Everyone is anxious and antsy anticipating summer vacation and what changes may come in the next school year. It brings out the worst in people and it's enough to make even the most patient person go crazy.

It certainly would be enough to make me go crazy, were it not for my sweet Brandon. When I come home, totally exhausted knowing that I still face a mountain of homework, I don't have to worry about the house, the puppy, the yard, the garden, or dinner. Since his schedule isn't quite as full right now, Brandon has been busy taking care of things here; leaving me time to rest, spend time with him and Gizmo, and make a dent in the mountain of homework I must finish by the end of this month. I do not know how I ever survived without him, but I know that because of him, I am and will continue to survive this crazy month of May.

Happy Mother's Day!

2010-05-09T08:19:00.000-05:00

To my many "adopted" moms over the years - friends' moms, teachers, co-workers.
To my friends who now are now moms themselves.
To my many friends who are new or very soon-to-be moms.
To my teaching colleagues, who are moms to hundreds every day.
To those of us who can't wait for the day that we are moms.
To my two wonderful moms-in-law - I am so blessed to be a part of your family!
To my grandma - an amazing mom, grandma, and great-grandma to our family.
To my own Mommy. If ever there were a Proverbs 31 woman, it is you!

I love you all. Happy Mother's Day!

Her children rise up and bless her;
Her husband also, and he praises her, saying:

"Many daughters have done nobly,
But you excel them all." Proverbs 31:28-29

You Still Have a Reason to Sing!

2010-04-14T21:08:00.004-05:00

This song has been on my mind and heart the last few days when I think of what our friends, the Gordon's, are going through right now. On Saturday Anna Gordon will be receiving a bone marrow transplant. My prayers are with Anna, her sister Tori, and Mr. and Mrs. G. Dare to believe!!

Before The Morning – Josh Wilson (Life is Not a Snapshot)

Do you wonder why you have to feel the things that hurt you?
If there’s a God who loves you where is He now?
Or maybe there are things you can’t see
And all those things are happening to bring a better ending
Someday, somehow you’ll see, you’ll see

Would you dare, would you dare to believe
That you still have a reason to sing?
‘Cause the pain that you’ve been feeling
It can’t compare to the joy that’s coming

So hold on, you gotta wait for the light
Press on and just fight the good fight
‘Cause the pain that you’ve been feeling
It’s just the dark before the morning

My friend, you know how this all ends
And you know where you’re going
You just don’t know how you’ll get there so say a prayer

And hold on ’cause there’s good for those who love God
But life is not a snapshot, it might take a little time
But you’ll see the bigger picture

Would you dare, would you dare to believe
That you still have a reason to sing?
‘Cause the pain that you’ve been feeling
It can’t compare to the joy that’s coming

So hold on, you gotta wait for the light
Press on and just fight the good fight
‘Cause the pain that you’ve been feeling
It’s just the dark before the morning

Once you feel the weight of glory
All your pain will fade to memory
Once you feel the weight of glory
All your pain will fade to memory

Would you dare, would you dare to believe
That you still got a reason to sing?
‘Cause the pain that you’ve been feeling
It can’t compare to the joy that’s coming

Come on, you gotta wait for the light
Press on and just fight the good fight
‘Cause the pain that you’ve been feeling
It’s just the hurt before the healing
Oh, the pain that you’ve been feeling
It’s just the dark before the morning

Anna with her giant get well card from the students at my school.

The Bus

2010-03-27T17:29:00.000-05:00

A beautiful take on The Parable of the Lost Sheep from my Lubbock pastor and friend, Andy Wood. As a fairly new teacher who just led my first field trip this year I can relate to this story more than I ever have before. Of course my number one concern would be finding that one lost child - regardless of who he or she was, or what they have done! How much more then does our Father care about bringing us back to Him - regardless of what we may have thought, said, or done! Please take the time to read this and may it touch you like it has me.

The Bus

Posted using ShareThis

Kindermusik!

2010-03-27T17:19:00.001-05:00

I'm going to be a KinderMusik teacher! Hooray!!

I've been considering getting my license for KinderMusik for some time now. I have many friends that teach who have been telling me for years about how wonderful it is and how much I would enjoy the program. Over Spring Break I did a lot of reading up on it and checking out the materials on their website. I noticed that one of the teachers listed in my area on the website was looking to hire in the next 6 months. On a whim I emailed her on Friday of Spring Break just telling her that I was interested and sent her a short version of my resume. In just a few short hours I got an email back asking if we could meet that Saturday! Well we met and I now have a job (provided that I finish my certification requirements by this summer)! The sweet lady I'll be teaching for is amazing! She's a past president of the KinderMusik Educators Association, helped write the training curriculum for teachers, and has been mentoring new KinderMusik teachers for years! I couldn't have fallen into a better situation to start learning about KinderMusik. Plus, she's just a genuinely sweet person and she has a huge passion for instilling a love of music in children. She's exactly the kind of person I would want to work with!

I don't know which of her facilities I'll be teaching at, but it will most likely be two or three around the north part of the Metroplex. We're even looking into starting a program here in Providence Village - which would be fantastic! Now, all I have to do is wait for my next paycheck, order my training materials, and get started! It shouldn't take me any more than 8 weeks, which will be perfect timing to be ready for summer classes. The great thing is, this is something that I can continue even once the next school year begins since I can offer my classes on week nights or on Saturday mornings!

I don't know how or why I keep getting blessed with all of these wonderful teaching opportunities out here, but I am oh so thankful!

Spring Break 2010

2010-03-20T23:24:00.001-05:00

Wow! What a week it has been! While our original plans for spring break (going home to Alabama) didn't pan out like we had hoped, we have had a very busy, somewhat productive, and mostly good (mostly spring-y) spring break here in Texas.

The weather was gorgeous all week long, so we started out last weekend by working in the yard, weeding and mulching the flowerbeds, and getting ourselves ready for spring. I so love having a yard of my own! What makes it even better is having someone to work at it with you. We had a great time just being outside with each other. I think Gizmo enjoyed greeting all of our neighbors and their pets from the front yard, too.

Tuesday was not so fun, though. I had to have my first ever colonoscopy, which meant Monday afternoon/night was spent "prepping" for it. It really wasn't too terrible, but it wasn't as easy to recover from as I had been told. To answer the inevitable question, yes, I'm quite a bit younger than the average colonoscopy patient. And yes, I'm ok for the most part. I have a mild to moderate case of ulcerative colitis - look it up if you need to. It's certainly not the worst thing that I could have had. And it's manageable with the right treatment (which I'm now on). So, nothing major to worry over. I don't like the fact that it cost me a day and a half of my spring break though.

The rest of this week has been pretty terrific though. I've spent some good quality time with Brandon's folks while he's been traveling back and forth to Waco to play with their orchestra. I got a lot of projects done around the house. I got to see my friend Susan (who is due with her first baby in just a couple of weeks!) and her beautifully painted nursery! AND I have found a wonderful summer job that will keep me teaching music and satisfy my urge to work with PreK's again! I'm going to be a KinderMusik teacher! (look for my next post to hear about it!)

All of that brings us to now. I'm sitting upstairs finishing my recap of this beautiful Spring Break . . . . . . . and watching the snow pile up in my front yard. Crazy, no? I find two things wildly ironic with this.

One, this winter has been the snowiest this area of the country has ever seen. And I have missed the two biggest snows of the year - Christmas when I was in Alabama and in February (when we had a FOOT of snow!) when I was stuck in San Antonio. But here, when there is no chance of school being cancelled and when I had just dug out my flip flops from the bottom of my closet, we have a freak snowstorm. I think God might be laughing at me - just a little.
Two, I can't help but think that I just secured a summer job while on spring break in the middle of a winter weather advisory. I guess it was just the right day for things to fall into place. (ba dum, chh!) :)

Happy Spring Break 2010, everyone!

Donors Choose!

2010-02-22T20:30:00.004-06:00

I have a new Donors Choose project up and running for my classroom! Hooray!

For those of you who don't know, DonorsChoose is a website where teachers can request materials for their classrooms and students. Teachers "shop" for the needed materials though vendors that are associated with Donors Choose. Teachers then write a short essay explaining their situation, need, and how these materials will help their students. Once approved, Donors Choose will post the essay and request on their website. ANYONE can donate any amount you wish - it works just like checking out on Amazon.com! When the project is fully funded, Donors Choose will purchase the materials and send them to the teacher's school. Everyone that donates gets a thank you (if you donate over $100 or you are the donor who gives the last amount to fully fund you get homemade thank you cards from the students!).

You may remember that last year I was able to get two new cd players for our music room at my old school in Odessa. I am teaching in a new district this year and I am requesting a digital video camera for my classroom. You can view my teacher page at http://www.donorschoose.org/mrs.stewart and view my project from there. Or you go directly to my project page at http://www.donorschoose.org/donors/proposal.html?id=362881.

Please please pass this on to anyone you think would be interested in helping us out, or if you're so inclined, donate a little yourself (even if it's $1). Every little bit helps!

iMuchas Gracias!

Home Improvement

2010-02-06T08:04:00.001-06:00

Today we're taking on our first real home improvement project and I'm so ready to get started! For my homeowner friends who read this, you're probably thinking, "She's nuts!" I mean, who gets excited over home improvement? Well, me. :) We're painting the living room and kitchen today. This is the first time in my life I've lived somewhere that I got to choose the paint color and decide what, when, or even if I want to paint!

Since our house was a new home, but was built as a spec, we didn't have any say in the color of the walls before we moved in. EVERY wall in our house is a very neutral, off white color. Not terrible, but not terribly appealing either. We've picked out a very pretty light brown color for the downstairs areas. It's going to make the rooms look so much homier (in a good way). I'll definitely post pictures when we're done! So, perhaps I am a little over zealous here, and I may very well be singing a different tune by tonight, but for now bring on the paint!

Homeward Bound

2009-12-27T21:10:00.000-06:00

We've come to the end of our holiday festivities in Alabama. I would like to say that we've spent as much time as we would like with everyone that we would like, but unfortunately that is never the case. I can say that we were so happy to spend what time we could with family and friends. It's always so great to come home to Alabama. I love this place and the people here. As the old song says, "My home's in Alabama, no matter where I lay my head . . ."

However, my immediate home (which, thankfully, feels more like home this year than ever before) is in Texas. And it's calling me back. I'm ready to sleep in my own bed and wake up in my own house again. I'm looking foward to spending this next week at home making it ready this new year. First thing in the morning, I'll be homeward bound!

Merry Christmas!

2009-12-25T19:12:00.001-06:00

On this day two years ago, the love of my life suprised me by showing up in Fayette, Alabama on Christmas morning to ask me a very important question. I said yes. Today, we have been happily married for over a year and are the proud parents of a sweet, fuzzy Gizmo puppy. I can easily say that these have been the happiest two years of my life. I am overwhelmed by the blessings God has given our little family.

We've been in Alabama for almost a week now visiting my family and part of Brandon's. We got in early early early last Saturday morning (around 2:30 am). We spent Saturday driving to Decatur and then Huntsville for my dad's big family get-togethers. On Sunday we went to Hanceville for my mom's family Christmas. It was so great to see all of my cousins (most of whom we haven't seen since our wedding). We had so much fun being together again.

On Monday we drove down to LA (lower Alabama) to Dothan so we could spend some time with Brandon's dad, his step-mom Eloise, and her mom Joyce. We had a great time visiting with them (although I wish we could have stayed even longer). Gizmo loved getting to spend time with his Mimi. :) Unfortunately I didn't get any pictures from our trip down there, but I think Eloise got some good ones. I'll have to post those later.

We got back to Fayette on Wednesday night and have thoroughly enjoyed our time here. Last night we got to attend my family's church for a beautiful Christmas Eve service, then started our family Christmas tradition. We came home, had dinner, then opened family presents. Then this morning, we watched Jonathan and Anna open Santa presents and we all went through our stockings. I have to say that Gizmo and DC (my family's adorable dachshund) racked up. :) Today has been a very relaxing day. It couldn't have been a better Christmas.

On Monday, we will head back to Texas and have more Christmas with Brandon's mom and that part of the family. For those of you who we missed today, we give you our love. I hope you have all had a very merry Christmas. May God bless us, everyone.

Love,
Brandon, Melanie, and Gizmo

Thankful

2009-11-26T17:04:00.000-06:00

Today, I'm thankful. Actually, I guess I'm thankful pretty much everyday. But today, you get to hear about it. :)

I'm thankful for . . .
the love of my Savior
my wonderful husband
my sweet fuzzy teddy-bear of a puppy
my family
great in-laws (seriously, I'm blessed!)
amazing friends, even though we're spread out all over the country and the world
having the best job in the world
having a house
knowing I won't have to move out of it for many years (I've moved at least once a year since 2002)
getting to host Thanksgiving in MY house for the first time
getting to decorate it for Christmas tomorrow! Yay!
. . . and, I could go on all day.

God has truly blessed our little family so much in the short time we have called ourselves a family. We are so thankful.

Happy Thanksgiving to all!

One Year!

2009-10-11T10:45:00.000-05:00

One year ago today, we started our life together! And what a wonderful year it has been!

Blah . . .

2009-09-29T09:22:00.000-05:00

Here we go again. I am constantly around snotty sneezy kids and Brandon is constantly around lots and lots of instrument spit. It was bound to happen. We have now both had our first rounds of back-to-school sickies. Brandon ended up with a cold and awful mouth ulcers last week. This week I'm down with (surprise!) a very sore throat. We've found a good doctor here though, and I'm going to see him here in about an hour. My throat is almost as sore as it was this spring when I had that awful case of strep. Odd thing is, this time, I'm not really running a fever. Our school nurse says that's actually possible with some of the newer strains of strep. Since I'm in a new environment with new kiddos, it is entirely possible that I could have a version of strep that I've never had before. I guess we'll know soon.

Other than the two of us passing around the sickies, we're doing alright and I think we've adjusted well to our new schedules (I don't even mind the 40 min drive every morning). This next month will be pretty busy though. Brandon has his first two concerts at UNT this week (I can't wait to hear them!), then he's off to play in San Angelo for the weekend.

Next weekend we celebrate our FIRST ANNIVERSARY! I cannot believe it's already coming up on a year! We haven't decided what we're doing yet, but it may involve a free trip to The State Fair (I got 2 free tickets for being a teacher! Ha!). Whatever we do, I know it will be special. :-)

The next three weekends we have: a wedding in Galveston, a trip to Tulsa with Brandon's folks, and then (I think) a visit from Brandon's other folks and several All Saint's Day gigs. Should be fun!

And now I'm off to the doc. Yay me.

2009-09-19T08:19:00.000-05:00

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, BRANDON!

Remembering

2009-09-11T21:35:00.001-05:00

September 11, 2001. I sat with my fellow senior classmates in our high school government class when our school librarian rushed in to turn on the tv. We watched together in awe at what was happening to our country. When 1st period was over, most of us moved to the big screen tv in our library. There we watched as not one but both towers fell.

Today, eight years later, I had the opportunity to tell the story of that day to my students. The oldest of these students were barely toddlers on September 11, 2001. Most of my students had not even been born. I was amazed today at how little my students knew about what had happened. The majority of them met me with blank stares when I asked them what was special about today. My favorite response, "It was when they blew up the Whitehouse!" Of course, that was met with many "Nuh-uh's!" and "You're making that up's!" Then the kid said, "Well they didn't really blow it up, but they took it apart! I saw it! And then they put it back together!" (I'm still not sure who "they" is). Maybe he saw a picture of renovations or Independence Day?

On the more serious side of things, we said that while, yes, today is a sad day because we remember those who gave up their lives that day and in the days since, it is also a day to be thankful for all of the men and women who help keep our country safe (municipal and armed forces). And so many of my students have family members who are serving in some way or another. It's always interesting trying to explain things of this magnitude to kids. Somehow, simplifying things for them has a way of putting things into perspective for me. Of all the things I heard, read, or thought today though, I'd say the perspective that I would like to keep when I remember today is the perspective that my friend Jack offers here. Read it if you have the chance. It's good.

Sonic and Donors Choose

2009-09-08T21:31:00.000-05:00

Here's another great bit of news from Donors Choose. For a the month of September, anytime you go to Sonic and get a Limeade or any drink you have the chance to go to Limeades for Learning to vote for your favorite project. Sonic is donating over half a million dollars to participating teachers' project. Again, I have no projects listed of my own, but there is still at least one project from a teacher at my school. On the Limeades for Learning, search for projects in Collin County, TX. The project on there from my school is Books Books Books! Books Help Us Become Great Writers!

Of course, if you're feeling generous, you can always donate at the Donors Choose website. Please help my students and the great faculty we have!

Images

2009-09-06T10:25:00.002-05:00

Well, yesterday we finally got to meet little Miss Piper Grace Baker. She is the sweet, tiny, 3 week old daughter of our good friends Eric and Emily. It's been a while (I guess about a year and 4 months, right Carrie?) since I've held a baby that little. She is so precious! I could sit all day and watch her make faces (she is definitely trying to test every muscle God gave her in that tiny face!) and feel her soft baby skin. There are few things better in this world, I'm convinced. It's so amazing to me to know two people like Eric and Emily, to be so familiar with their expressions and their reactions, and then see that mirrored in their daughter. I could look at Piper and be convinced that she looks exactly like her beautiful mother, and then in an instant see Eric all over her. She is made in their image - not an exact copy, but a unique representation of her mother and father. Much like, I believe, we are made in the image of our heavenly Father. What a beautiful and tangible example of that He has given us!

It was so wonderful to catch up with Emily and Eric (we used to see them nearly every day when we were neighbors in Odessa) and love all over their sweet little Piper, though I have to say that the highlight of the visit for me was watching Brandon hold Piper. As far as he can remember, he has never held a baby at all (no matter what age). It was so sweet to see tiny little Piper cradled in his arm, even if it was for only a minute or two. For it to be his first time, I have to say he looked pretty natural. One day, I imagine, it will be our own child cradled there. Not that that will be anytime soon, mind you. But one day . . .

Fall, Football, and Fun

2009-09-05T08:25:00.006-05:00

Fall is in full swing in the Stewart house! Brandon is officially a student again and has survived his first week and a half in UNT's doctoral program. I now have a full two weeks of teaching behind me and I have to say that we're both very glad to have this long weekend to rest, relax, and have a little fun.

Sometime this morning, we will head over to Keller to see our good friends Emily and Eric from Odessa (man have we missed you guys!) AND meet their precious new baby girl, Piper. I will definitely be posting pictures when we get home! Later today, we are heading to Ben and Sarah's to celebrate the official start of Fall - the first Alabama football game! Roll Tide Roll! I'm so excited - if only we were heading to Atlanta instead! Even Gizmo is ready to cheer on the Tide with his Bama collar and squeaky bone (I'm afraid his Alabama t-shirt is too small for him now, Eloise)!

Tomorrow night, we join our friends Jen and Travis for the Dallas Wind Symphony's Picnic in the Park, followed by (I think) a showing of E.T.! Should be fun!

Hopefully, I'll get another update in later this weekend and tell you more about the house, the jobs/schools, and things. Until then . . .

ROLL TIDE!!!

Donors Choose Update

2009-08-15T14:19:00.003-05:00

Yet again, within hours of posting, ALL THREE projects from teachers at my new school are FULLY FUNDED! Thanks to all who gave or shared! You are making a difference!

If you didn't have the opportunity to contribute this time around, I know of several more projects from my teacher friends (and maybe one or two of my own) that will be posted soon. Stay tuned!

New Donors Choose Projects

2009-08-14T22:34:00.002-05:00

Many of you remember my own Donors Choose project from last spring, "Help Us Hear the Sounds of Music." That project was so successful that it was funded within the first 48 hours! Because of that, many people who would have gladly pitched in did not get the chance. Well, here is your chance!

While I do not have a current DC project of my own, here are several projects from teachers in my new school that could use your help. Since, as a music teacher, I see every student in the school, these projects directly affect my own students. Please check out my giving page and consider supporting these projects and my students by donating or sharing this page with others. Thank you for making a positive impact on the life of these children!

My Giving Page

(cross posted on my teacher blog, Melodious Carols)

Invitation

2009-08-02T15:14:00.002-05:00

To those of you who follow our little family here - I invite you to also check out my teacher blog. I use it occasionally (though, not much during the summer months, obviously) as a sounding board for teacher-y things like new classroom ideas, thoughts on elementary music, teacher philosophies, inspirations, and the situations and revelations I have as a young teacher. I welcome your feedback, ideas, and encouragement and would like to see this blog as a jumpstart to some good educational conversations. So, take a look, and see what you think!

Melodious Carols

Good Times

2009-07-29T16:37:00.001-05:00

Well, Brandon and I are finally moved in and getting settled in our new house. All of the big stuff is unpacked. The kitchen is finished (except for whatever I decide to put on top of the cabinets). All that's left to do now is decide where bookshelves should go and load them up with books and what-nots, and then decorate! Fun stuff! :)

I love it here! The neighborhood is so gorgeous! I can sit out on my balcony and look out around the different brightly colored houses and I almost feel like I'm at the beach! The saltwater pools and the beautiful white egrets that fly around from the lake only enhance the feeling.

My parents got to visit us this last weekend. They drove the 10 hours all the way from Alabama on Friday and just went back yesterday. It was so great to see them and get some good Mommy-time. We haven't been able to spend a lot of quality time together in the last few years since I've been living in Texas, so this was really nice - and much needed. We all had so much fun. Brandon and I took them to Ikea (which, by the way, if you haven't been, GO!) and got some fun stuff for the kitchen AND some super fun stuff for my classroom. I actually found a big, heart-shaped pillow with arms and big hands. Perfect for working on steady-beat with my little ones! Ikea is wonderful! It's like the DisneyWorld of furniture/home goods.

While they were here, we discovered that the ponds and lakes around the community here are actually catch-and-keep until the end of August, so we spent a good bit of quality time fishing with my dad, too. He and Brandon ended up catching enough for us to have a fish fry! That, coupled with the fresh gulf shrimp that my dad brought with them, made my favorite meal. It was so good! I think Brandon may be hooked on fishing. :D

All in all, it was a wonderful weekend and we were sad to see it end. Even Gizmo misses my folks. He had so much fun playing chase with my dad and snuggling with my mom - it was adorable (sometimes I wonder if he likes my dad even more than us!). He's even gone up and whined at the guest-room door a couple of times today, hoping to find them.

In other news, I will hopefully be able to get in my classroom tomorrow to drop off some of my boxes and see what kind of supplies I have. I've been told I should have a pretty big puppet collection - I'm really excited about that! I'm ready to start setting up and planning! I've already been to new hire orientation and my staff development starts August 10 (kids come on the 24th). In a few weeks, Brandon will have his placement exams and ensemble auditions at UNT, and by the end of August, things will be in full swing for both of us. I think we're both looking forward to it, but for now we're enjoying this vacation time too. :)

A New Blog Design . . .

2009-07-26T14:28:00.003-05:00

. . . in honor of our summer FINALLY starting. Hooray for having a place to call home, the cutest puppy on earth to play with, family and friends to visit, and plenty of fishing and swimming to enjoy!

Home at Last!

2009-07-22T17:41:00.004-05:00

We are finally here!

Last Friday, after several more gut-wrenching snags, we signed the papers and officially became homeowners! Hooray!! By 8:00 that night, the movers that our sweet broker hired for us had completely unloaded everything from the Uhaul and we got to spend our first night in our new home. Since then, we have been unpacking, swimming in the community pools, grilling out on our patio, watching Gizmo zoom around the backyard, and just enjoying having a place to call home. It's so wonderful! All of the stress, worry, and tears from the last three weeks are nothing but a memory. It's over - we are home at last!

(And, yes, Brandon carried his bride over the threshold)

-Melanie

Another day goes by

2009-07-16T17:15:00.003-05:00

Well we got closer than ever today, and still did not close. We were told that as long as the documents were at the title company by noon, we would close today. This time, the documents made it out of the bank and to the attorney's office. By late-morning the papers had been cleared to go on to the title company so we could close. However, there is one (and only one, apparently) person in the attorney's office that handles sending completed files to title companies. She decided to leave for an early lunch today (without sending our file) and didn't come back. No one there knew where she went and they couldn't track her down until well after 1:00. By the time she got everything sent to the title place, they said it was too late to get everything ready and that there was no way we could close today.

We are scheduled for 11 in the morning. I'm not holding my breath anymore.

Still no house

2009-07-15T12:57:00.007-05:00

By the numbers:

52 - the number of days since we first looked at this house.

44 - the number of days since we signed the contract on the house saying we would close July 1.

15 - the number of days we've been in breach of that contract because we didn't close on the 1st.

9 - the number of days we've been officially without a place of residence (I don't want to say homeless, because as bad as this situation is I know there are people in much much worse, at least we have friends and family that can put a roof over our heads for a while).

? - the amount of money we have spent on hotels and food (though greatly reduced thanks to good friends!).

5 - the number of potential closing dates that we have had so far.

3 - the number of "worse case scenarios" that have already come and gone.

2 - the number of moving trucks we've had to use (our original movers had to take our stuff from their truck last week and move it into a Uhaul since we couldn't get in the house).

1 - the number that you should add to all of these numbers since we aren't closing today.

1 - the number of days we have been told we have left to wait before we can close.

12:00 - the time we are supposed to close tomorrow - we'll see.

What Happened Today
We should have closed today. Instead, after everything was supposedly finalized, our "wonderful" bank decided to come up with yet another condition for our loan. They wanted more paperwork from our builder about the warranty on the house. Our builder sent them the standard forms that they send to every lender over a month ago, but the bank for whatever reason decided today that wasn't good enough. Seriously???

What's really frustrating about all of this is that there is nothing we can look back on and say, "Oh well, if we had done this differently we wouldn't be in this boat." Not a single one of these delays had anything to do with us, our credit, or anything. It's all just formalities and paperwork, and people not doing their jobs when they are supposed to. There isn't a single thing we could have done to prevent this.

I feel like we've been on a rollercoaster ride this whole time. Up and down, up and down. We're going to close, no we're not . . . etc. I've always thought of myself as a pretty positive person. I've even tried my best to put a good spin on all of this ("we're just on a nice long vacation" or "well, at least we're not moving furniture in 100+ degree weather"), but this has stressed us so much that the last few days, both Brandon and I have even started to fight nausea on and off. It's becoming physical! It's very hard to put on a happy face when your stomach is churning.

As a friend pointed out, this is becoming a test of Christian virtue. I'm really struggling with keeping positive and not letting anger get the best of me. This isn't affecting my faith, but I'm afraid it's affecting how I show it - and not in a good way. At least, this hasn't had a negative influence on mine and Brandon's relationship. If anything, it has brought us closer together - I'm so glad we have each other through this. So there's a positive spin!

Please keep us in your prayers!

House Update

2009-07-12T14:18:00.002-05:00

Well, we're out of the hotel. We've been staying with our good friends Ben and Sarah for the last couple of days and have had several other friends offer us a place to stay. We are so blessed to have good friends that live here! Thanks guys - and thanks to everyone who has been praying that this ends quickly!! :)

As of Friday at closing time, our file was #3 in line at the USDA, which means we should have a commitment from them sometime tomorrow. Depending on what time that gets to the lender, the paperwork will be ready and we can close either Tuesday or Wednesday. Either way, we should know something tomorrow! It's hazy, but the end (or, I guess rather, the beginning) is finally in sight! Hooray!

Waiting Stinks

2009-07-10T08:17:00.004-05:00

It has now been 9 days from our original closing date (June 1) and we are still not homeowners. We have been cleared to close for 2 weeks now, and we're just waiting on paperwork to come back from the USDA saying that our property does qualify as a rural area. That's it. Just a formality. But that formality has kept us in this hotel since Monday and will most likely keep us here over the weekend. And while we're here, all of our stuff is just sitting in a Uhaul in what will one day be our driveway. Oy.

We've been trying to keep ourselves busy (without spending too much, since we didn't expect to be in a hotel for a week!). We've been saying we're treating this like a vacation. We spent a good bit of time in Ikea (amazing store!), went to a 5-star restaurant in a Conoco gas station (no joke! And it wasn't too expensive), and today I want to find a puppy park for Gizmo. It's getting harder and harder to keep the "vacation" mentality though.

Plus, we've been so excited about this for so long that I'm afraid once we FINALLY get in the house, we're not going to be able to enjoy it like we would have. We keep telling ourselves this will all be worth it in the long run. What's one more week when we have years to live here, right? It is worth it, right?

Moving Day is Here!

2009-07-06T07:38:00.005-05:00

This will be a short one because today is moving day! Hooray, it's finally here!! :D

We are waiting for the movers to get here, and then as soon as they have all of our stuff loaded we'll do a little cleaning and head to Denton for good! Here's where the tricky part comes in. Since we didn't get to close on the house last week as we had hoped, we will be staying in a hotel for tonight and possibly tomorrow night until they call us to tell us to sign. The movers won't be there with our stuff until Wednesday morning, so if all works out we will sign tomorrow and be ready to move into our new home when the movers get there. We're really praying that we can sign tomorrow!

We won't have good internet access for a little while (just Brandon's iPhone) until everything gets set up at the new place. So, unless I really want to try to type on that funny keypad, the next time you'll hear from me it will be from 9132 Greene Dr. Aubrey, TX 76227!!

Until then! :)
Melanie

2009-07-04T13:45:00.005-05:00

Happy 4th to everyone!
Love,
Brandon, Melanie, and Gizmo

Whirlwinds and Waiting Games

2009-06-29T15:12:00.007-05:00

The Whirlwind

It has truly been a whirlwind month for us! Are you ready for this?

While I spent two very time/energy/life consuming, yet rewarding, weeks earning my Level II Kodaly Certification in Lubbock at the beginning of this month, poor Brandon was left to tend to the puppy and pack up our apartment. (We still have more to pack! It's amazing what two people can accumulate over 10 months!) When I returned from Lubbock, I had a day to wash and repack my clothes and then we headed off on our Tour de la South. In the last week, we have traveled 5 1/2 hours (in the car, with Gizmo) from Odessa to Denton and did a "blue-tape walk-through" of the new house with the builder. Then drove 9 hours to Fayette, AL where we stayed a couple days. We then left Gizmo with my parents and drove 8 hours to Hartsville, SC for the Harbin/Theismann wedding extravaganza (which was BEAUTIFUL!). Yesterday we drove 8 hours back to Fayette, and tomorrow we will load up the pup and head back to Texas.

The Waiting
And the adventure is still not over. We were supposed to close on the house on Wednesday, drive back to Odessa, finish packing, and then move on Monday. Unfortunately, someone in the lending office decided to drag their feet and there are important papers that are still not in the right hands, which is delaying everything. Right now we don't know when we will get to close. If we can't do it Wednesday (which is nearly impossible at this point) we may have to wait until next Tuesday. Brandon has a gig in San Angelo over the weekend that we can't afford to cancel.

So, that means that we will have the movers in Odessa on Monday, empty out the apartment and turn in our key. Only to have nowhere to call home until we sign everything sometime Tuesday. This should be really interesting.

On the upside, the movers called today to say that while they will be loading our stuff on Monday, we are not the only ones they will be moving to the Dallas area then. Because of that, they won't be able to deliver our furniture until Wednesday, the 8th. At least that is working in our favor.

I know stuff like this happens and is expected. We've even had a handful of friends who have had to deal with it just this summer. So, we're not really bummed (what's a couple of days when we're about to spend years in this house, ya know?), just tired of waiting. We're so excited and ready for this whirlwind of a month to end so we can get busy settling in to our new home! This is like the Christmas Eve that would never end! Haha!

BIG News from Our Little Family!

2009-06-04T23:37:00.007-05:00

Our "little" family is so very blessed! We have a wonderful marriage, an adorable fuzz-ball of a puppy, and great friends. And pretty soon, we will be moving our little family into our very own house! Wow!

Yes, our move is officially official! This fall, Brandon will start his doctorate in music at the University of North Texas and I will be the new music teacher at Burks Elementary in McKinney (just down the road). To put the icing on that cake - on Monday, Brandon and I signed a contract on our very first home! If all goes well, we will be closing on July 1 and moving to 9132 Greene Drive, Providence Village, TX (just east of Denton) on July 6!! It is the most beautiful house and I cannot even begin to say how excited, humbled, and even a little overwhelmed I am about all of this! Pretty much all I can say is God is good!

Here are a few pictures. The rest you can view from my Facebook album, here.

A New Look

2009-05-16T20:33:00.004-05:00

So, I should be doing a million other things - cleaning house, working on my Kodaly homework for this summer, fixing supper, etc. Instead, feeling creative, I decided to change up the blog a little and try my hand at creating my own header. I have to say I'm kind of proud of myself.

Making it was actually the easy part. The hard part came from trying to save it in the correct format for blogger to use. Since I don't have Photoshop or even Microsoft Publisher on my computer, I had to create it in Word, "print" it to Image Writer, save it as a TIFF, open the TIFF in a free photo program that came with my camera, THEN save it as a JPEG. Whew! But I did it all without getting Brandon's help!

In other news, Brandon and I are looking forward to heading to the DFW area next weekend for Memorial Day. Both of his sets of parents will be there, plus sisters, brother, nieces, and nephew (our cute little ring-bearer). It's going to be great. Plus, by then we should know for sure where I will be working next year - so we can hopefully start seriously looking for a house! Yay!

Are We Moving?

2009-04-25T10:16:00.005-05:00

Hi all! Everyone keeps asking about the job search/moving status, so I thought I would give a quick update. As it stands right now, we will still be moving to Denton sometime this summer. I really can't imagine us not going since Brandon has such a great offer from UNT.

I still do not have a job yet. But there are some good prospects out there. I attended two job fairs weekend before last (Little Elm ISD and Carrollton/Farmers Branch ISD). Both districts seemed very interested. Little Elm has two anticipated openings but since they are not official, they can't interview for them yet. Carrollton does actually have an opening at Las Colinas Elementary. It is an International Baccaluareate school, which means there are a TON of foreign students (but nearly all speak English in addition to their native language). From what I understand, IB schools were originally created for families of international business people and politicians so that when their students get bounced around from school to school, they will still be on a similar level. It seems really great. I met with their principal at the job fair and have been invited to her campus to meet the special areas team this Friday.

Everything about the school sounds amazing - except the location. From where we want/need to live with Brandon being in school, it would mean about an hour long drive down I35 E for me. I am not thrilled about that. In fact, if there was a way to live in the metroplex and completely avoid all interstates, I would do it. Traffic there really scares me. So, anyway - we'll see how Friday goes, and if I have any other leads. Keep the prayers coming!

In other news, Gizmo is growing and growing. He went for his second round of puppy shots today and weighed 5.6 pounds! Of course, the whole vet office knows him and adores him already (and what's not to love - he's just so cute!). He got a puppy present in the mail the other day from Max, Moe, Dolly, and Button Stewart (Eloise's doggies). He now proudly sports his snazzy Bama collar, chews on his squeaky Bama-bone pillow, and cheers on the Tide in his puppy shirt. :)

Gizmo Can Sit!

2009-04-11T09:24:00.006-05:00

So far, our puppy parenting skills are on the right track. Gizmo will piddle when we put him on the puppy pad now (though he hasn't learned to go on his own yet). AND he has learned how to sit! We are very proud of him - he learned it so fast! Watch him show off his skills! Oh, and watch for him to smile at you at the end! :D

-Brandon, Melanie, and Gizmo

Introducing the Newest "Little" in the Stewart Family

2009-04-03T17:19:00.006-05:00

Meet Gizmo - our new baby! He's a pure bred Shih Tzu and will be 7 weeks old tomorrow. He is a Valentine's baby. Isn't he a little darling?

We have been looking to get a puppy for a while and almost had ourselves convinced to get a Basset Hound pup a couple of weeks ago (we had also talked about a Maltese - since Brandon grew up around them). But we decided it was too expensive and since we'll be moving in just a few months, maybe better to wait until we have a yard. UNLESS the right puppy came along at the right price.

Enter Gizmo. On Wednesday, while signing in at my school that morning, I noticed a flyer with the most adorable puppy pictures on it and a phone number. I asked our school secretary if she knew who was selling and was told to talk to our assistant principal, Lina. So I went to my classroom/trailor (yeah, we're in a portable), emailed Lina, and sent Brandon an early-morning text saying I may have found us a puppy - for a really good price. I was told at first that he was a maltese/shih tzu mix (the Maltese part got Brandon's attention). I talked to Lina around 9:30 and was informed that the puppies were actually pure bred shih tzus and that she was selling them for her father, who just happened to be coming to the school for lunch and could bring the puppies for me and some other teachers to see.

I went back to my room, sent Brandon a message on the computer and warned him that I may be in danger of falling in love with one once I see him. Brandon says he knew then that I was coming home with a puppy. :D Lina's dad brought them to the school and let them out in an empty room. My baby came right up to me, crawled up in my lap, and started giving me puppy kisses. It was love at first lick! I called Brandon right then and there, told him I was in love and he would be too. He said that he guessed there was nothing we could do then except bring him home! I mean, who could really say "no" to a face like this?

So we found a nice empty box, lined it with paper and an old jacket from the bottom of the school's lost-and-found closet, buckled the box into the front seat of my car, and I carted little Gizmo off to my next school. He slept most of the day (when he wasn't being adored by every teacher at the school). He even slept through my rowdy and loud Kinder class!

Brandon finally got to meet him that afternoon, and has, of course, fallen for Gizmo too. He is a very good daddy to our little guy. It's sweet to watch them. I love my boys!

Since Wednesday, Gizmo has been the (almost) perfect little pup. We've decided to crate train him, and he stays in there all night without crying or piddling or worse! We've had a few piddle spots on the carpet, but he's not old enough to have full control of his bladder yet, so it's ok. He's still a baby-thing. He's picking some things up quickly though. His favorite toy is his Squeaky Duck (a tiny little plush thing with a replaceable squeaker) and last night he figured out how to make it squeak and did it again for Brandon today. He is also figuring out that he has his own toy built-in toy - yep, this afternoon I caught him trying to chase his tail. Trying is the key word here, though, because he's still in the clumsy-puppy stage and hasn't learned how to turn around that much without collapsing in a heap of fluff. :D

I'm attaching a couple more pictures of Gizmo in his favorite spot - he LOVES to lay/play/sleep on his back! He went to sleep in my arms right after I took these. So far all we have are phone pics, but I'm charging up the real camera's battery so I can hopefully get some good shots tomorrow. Enjoy!

Lots o' love,
Melanie, Brandon, and Gizmo

Donors Choose

2009-03-29T23:55:00.003-05:00

I am so very excited! I just got word that my project has been approved and posted online at DonorsChoose.org!

Here's the scoop. At this nonprofit website, public school teachers (like me!) submit projects for materials or experiences their students need to learn. These ideas become a reality when concerned individuals choose projects to fund. Donors who complete project funding or give more than $100 receive photos and personal thank-you notes from the students they helped. It's easy - and very rewarding. Anyone can donate!

The great news is that my project, Help Us Hear the Sounds of Music, is now posted at DonorsChoose.org! Check it out at:
http://www.donorschoose.org/donors/proposal.html?id=252946

I am asking for two portable boomboxes for myself and my co-teacher to use in our classroom. Right now, all we have is our classroom computer and a rather old and unpredictable mp3 player (the speaker system for it barely "speaks").

Hopefully, if we are funded soon enough, my students will be able to see the benefits of this project before our school year ends! Take a look. Also, please consider supporting me and my students by forwarding or linking this message to others who may be interested in improving education.

EDITED TO ADD: My project was fully funded before hardly anyone had the chance to see it! Wow! Thanks to Patty and Steve for being so generous - my kiddos are so excited! And thanks to everyone else who read about our project, even if you couldn't donate. Hopefully, we will have more projects like this in the future!

ONE MORE EDIT: Our CD players are here! My kids are LOVING them and it makes our lessons sooooo much easier! We have been dancing, singing, and practicing for our 2nd and 4th grade program with them! Thanks again!

Supper Club

2009-03-22T18:32:00.003-05:00

Well, here we are at the end of a wonderful Spring Break. I'll have to give a full update of all our fun times later, because we're about to be off to our "supper club." That's right, we have a supper club. How cool are we?! :) It's really just us and two other couples from our apartment complex, but we're all musicians and these guys are our closest friends here. Tonight we will be at Emily and Eric's. They're providing the main dish and side (steak and mashed taters!), Christi and Joseph are bringing the salads (two because some people don't like anything in their salad except lettuce and ranch), and we get to book-end the meal with Aunt Janet's Mushroom Logs (Brandon's fave!) for appetizers, and Key Lime and Chocolate Pies with homemade whipped cream for dessert. Mmm! It's gonna be good!

PS - Thanks for the recipe, Aunt Janet! We love it! :)

Ahhh . . . Spring Break!

2009-03-15T19:23:00.002-05:00

I LOVE spring break! We have nothing to do, and nowhere to go this year. And it's SO nice! It's warming up here and should be in the 80's all week! I'm looking forward to a week where I can just be a wife, cook real meals, get lots done around the apartment, and just relax.

We officially kicked it off last night with a nice date-night to Midland (15 or so mins from us) where we ate at the cutest little Italian restaurant called Luigi's. They had drippy candles on the tables and everything! Brandon and I both agreed that it wasn't nearly as good as the Spaghetti Warehouse in Tulsa though (that place is amazing!). Today, we drove the 2 hours up to Lubbock to visit some friends at Turning Point Community Church, where I used to work, and to tour the Llano Estacado winery. We had such a great time!

I'm amazed at how much TPCC has grown in just the few months I've been gone! We saw plenty of friends and familiar faces, but there are so many new people that are already invested in the church now that we were actually greeted (more than once!) as newcomers! Haha! What a great indication of church growth!

In other news - only one more day to go without wheels! We got the insurance check on Friday, but the tire place couldn't send anyone out here until Monday (and it would be a little hard for us to just TAKE the car to the shop, ya know). But I'll be back on the road sometime tomorrow - hooray! We've had so many blessings come out of this though. In addition to our insurance covering so much, we have some amazing friends that have really pulled through for us. Wednesday night, after Brandon left for a rehearsal, our friends Emily and Eric decided to take it upon themselves and treat me to dinner - just because. Then, to top it off, they insisted that I take Emily's car to work on Thursday (since I have to travel between schools during the day). Wow. We truly are blessed. :-)

PS - Hi Stewart family followers! I'm glad Eloise passed our website on to you! Much love, Melanie and Brandon

Hard to trust . . .

2009-03-11T20:55:00.007-05:00

We recently treated ourselves and upgraded our cable to a DVR box. What an awesome little invention (no more commercials!). Since then, we've been watching a ton of House, M.D. - great show, awesome acting, and very insightful observations. One thing they always say on House is "everybody lies." Now, I'm usually more of a "glass-is-half-full" kind of gal, but even I have to admit that statement is probably true. And here lately, you could almost say "everybody steals" too. At least, that's what it seems like in our neck of the woods.

Last Monday, I had a 6th grade student swipe my iPod out of our music room. Actually, swipe may not be the best word, since it implies an impulsive action. This was actually thought out enough that when the kid took MY iPod from the speaker set it was plugged into, he also replaced it with our large 6-year-old classroom mp3 player - hoping no one would notice. Eventually, the kid returned it after several guilt trips from his teacher, myself, and the other music teacher, threats from our assistant principal, and a threat to involve the police (which would have been the 2nd time in less than a week the cops would have been called for this particular class). I don't know which kid it was, and honestly, I don't want to know. I'm afraid I will treat him differently - and I don't want that. He fessed up and I have my iPod back (and I will not be taking it back to that school). Enough said.

Unfortunately, it doesn't always work out that way. Last night, around 1:15 am I woke up to a car alarm going off. MY car alarm. I woke Brandon up, ran to the window, and attempted to turn the alarm off so as not to wake the neighbors. From our upstairs window I could tell that no windows had been broken and nothing looked out of the ordinary. Brandon went downstairs to check just in case. When he got to my car he realized what was wrong. My car was sitting in the parking lot of our apartment on cinder blocks with all four of my wheels gone. No joke. Someone stole the wheels off my car.

To top it off, whoever did this didn't really balance the car very well (not that I really think they cared) and my poor little Mazda has actually fallen forward off the blocks a little. You can't really tell in the picture, but part of the weight is actually resting on the bumper/curb and the right front axle. Not exactly a good thing there. We think the car falling forward and hitting the ground is probably what set off the alarm last night. So, yeah.

We have had a few blessings come from this though. First of all, it turns out that my insurance has a $50 deductible and they have been very nice about all of this. Secondly, yesterday afternoon, I did a marathon cleaning job of the inside of my car and emptied EVERYTHING out of it so that I could pick up some friends at the airport. So last night, when whoever was stealing my tires, there was absolutely nothing in the car to attract his/their attention. So, this whole thing could have been worse. Unlike my iPod though, I'm pretty sure I'm never going to see those tires again. *sigh*

Is there a doctor in the house?

2009-03-05T07:49:00.004-06:00

We're sick. Again. And we're starting to think maybe there's something wrong with this apartment. Between the two of us, we've been sick for almost two months. I would say we're just passing things back and forth (because as soon as I start to get well, Brandon seems to get sick, and vice versa), but we never have the same thing. The latest is this two-week long throat infection that I can't seem to get rid of. I've been on two different antibiotics and visited the doc three times, and nothing seems to be helping - I've never in my life had such a sore throat. Brandon has hardly been home this week since he's been uber busy with rehearsals, but when he got home last night, his eyes were puffy, red, swollen, and goopy (is that a word?). Pretty sure he has pink-eye. In both eyes. Looks like we'll be making yet another trip to the doctor as soon as they open this morning. Oy. We just can't seem to get well . . .

The Stewarts

2009-02-25T20:26:00.002-06:00

Just bought this print for us - it's too cute not to pass up!

Visiting Denton

2009-02-21T11:21:00.004-06:00

This weekend, we made our second trip to Denton for Brandon to get a lesson with the horn prof at UNT. He drove up here Thursday afternoon and spent Friday playing horn and sitting in on a few classes with his friend Ben. I flew in after work last night and we had some amazing sushi at a place in Southlake with Ben and his fiancee. We should be driving back sometime tomorrow.

It's looking more and more certain that we'll be moving to the area sometime this summer. Everything at UNT looks promising. Now if we can just find a job for me (as close to UNT as possible). I'm in the process of submitting a bajillion online applications for the Denton ISD and surrounding districts. Here's hoping for some bites!

-Melanie