This speaks perfectly

The Christian School Journal: "Daddy, Is That the Bad Man?" Election 2008

This was written by the headmaster of my school. His insights are wonderful and more eloquent than any I could express.

Nutshell

This time of year is always crunch time. Being a teacher, I am perpetually "in school" and have been going by almost the same calendar since I have been 5. My year consists of 2 glorious months off and 9 on, with weeks here and there for holidays and testing. At the end of each semester, though, comes that old familiar feeling...that i'm not going to get it all done in time, that i'm not going to prepare my students like I should, that something is going to go wrong that i'm not worrying about. I handle this in 2 ways- worry and denial. Usually it seems i'm worried about the things that will fix themselves, and i'm in denial about the things I might need to actually examine. Anyone else on board with that? I can't be alone!

I spent last night curled up watching election returns. I really thought we would have a different outcome. However, God is sovreign, and though he protects his children, he also disciplines them, so perhaps the next 4 years our country can grow closer to Him and realize his will for our land and peoples.

Thus ends my 5 minutes of freedom this morning...

Update

I made it!

The surgery was not so bad-- Dr. Sciacca is amazing. Endoscopic surgery is so the way to go. I had little swelling or bruising, but lots of soreness. Actually, I had my stitches in my sinuses out today and that has hurt the most of anything during the whole ordeal! Go figure. My pain meds also kinda counteracted with steroid drip they had me on during my 2 hours of surgery, so I didn't sleep much at first, but I definitely stayed home and healed last week. I already feel like I breathe easier, and though it will be about 3 weeks til i'm 100% normal, I am very thankful to be progressing like I am! My mom was a sweet nurse, and my Keith was amazing as usual. By my side and helpful. I have zero complaints! If only all surgeries could progress like mine with such great helpers...we'd all be peachy!

I am in a wedding Saturday back in my hometown, and Friday my sister drove me to pick up the bridesmaids dress...that i'd never laid eyes on (just called in the measurements!). It fits so nice, and I was nervous about a two piece dress, but it's just wonderful. Here's a skinny person modeling it (and the cute shoes!) below:

I am also singing in this wedding and my mom is the pianist! This is not the first, and probably not the last time that this has happened. That's being from a small town for you!



Speaking of weddings, I attended the ceremony of one of my oldest friends on Saturday (my first post-surgery event). It was bittersweet, as her father is terminally ill. It was a beautiful day, though, and I got to see lots of old friends. Here's a shot of my best friend Cassi and I (with our respective gentlemen friends :)...she and Justin will be married Jan. 31!)



My kids were super excited to see me back at school today...and I was excited to see them. 25 days til Christmas, only one month until our trip to Disney, and 5 weeks til the semester end concert. I just need to make it til then!

Politics at lunchtime

Francois Guisot (1787-1874): "Not to be a republican at twenty is proof of want of heart; to be one at thirty is proof of want of head."

a little food for thought. See also,

http://anncoulter.com/

A Sinus Tale

Yes, dear readers- this post is about my sinuses. Why, you might ask? Well, after a much procrastinated trip to the Ear, Nose and Throat Dr., it has been determined that I will be having surgery in 3 days. On my sinuses.

It was totally a God thing that any of this even happened, because I was able to get an appointment, have a CT scan, and have that CT scan read all in a period of about 6 hours. WHO ELSE DOES THAT HAPPEN TO?? wow. Dr. Sciacca called me back to his office and then proceeded to show me lots of slides which indicated these things:

1. 11 of my 12 sinuses are completely blocked, and show signs of "sinus disease", or infection lingering for many months.

2. My septum is deviated and looks like a "knuckled letter S" in the words of Dr. Sciacca

3. My sinuses are filled with cysts and polyps that have been trapping infection and not letting my sinuses heal. This explains why I go a month or so without a sinus infection, and then wham, another one pops right up. The slightest irritation can trigger this.

So, basically, during surgery the Dr. will straighten my septum (ow), and scrape and snip all the polyps and cysts out of my sinuses. None of which sounds particularly delightful, so I hope you are not eating while reading this. My mom is coming up to be...well, a mom, and nurse me back to health (AKA keep the pain meds comin'), and it just so happens that K had the day off anyway, so he'll be around to help out, too. I could not have asked for anything more. If I have to have surgery, this is the way to go!

This also means that in the next 3 days I have to write a weeks worth of lesson plans, and not just any lesson plans like most teachers, but CHOIR lesson plans which totally throw subs off kilter. Here's hoping I can get them all done.

Days gone by

I am really lucky to have 2 wonderful, generous, loving grandmothers. I got to live in the same town as one of them (mimi) growing up, and only about an hour away from my mothers's mom, Grammy. Here's a little photo essay and birthday wish! What a tech savvy grandmother she is, as well, as she's been "on-line" for years now. If only she'd blog....

Grammy and I the day of my college graduation, Aug. 7, 2006

My sweet, dear Grammy and her two little ones. My mom is on the left and my Aunt Lori is the cutie in the black patent shoes! Grammy is one of the sweetest, funniest and most thoughtful people i've ever known...and she gets to be my Grandmother, too! I, for one, am really glad she's been around 79 years this week :)

My Grampy, Grammy, and a pre-meeting-my-dad Mom!

Lorilyn, Me, Grammy and Mimi at my Jr. Voice Recital in Auburn. 2004

My sweet Grampy (and me--1984), my Grammy's other half and husband. 7 years of dating led to one of the most wonderful pairings of people God ever concieved!

Some Grammy memories:

-playing beautyshop with her in the kitchen sink of her old house in Andalusia

-going with her to get her hair done at Miss Connie's

-visiting her at work at the Courthouse. she was a hard workin' Grammy for a very long time!

-many many trips to "Penney's" and a shoes shop that just might have been housed in an old bowling alley??

-VBS at FBC

-Many day-after-thanksgiving's spent in Andy

-her playing with my hair when I was younger

-talking and laughing whenever she's around

-the generous family thanksgiving beach trips and the sweet prayers she gives

Happy Birthday!

Cold (?): Day 8

Boxes of Tissues: 3

Boxes of Tissue with Lotion after I got smart: 1

Packs of Tylenol Sinus: 2

Packs of Dayquil: 1

Packs of Nyquil: 1

Days at work being grouchy because of feeling bad: 5

Blessings in spite of a little head cold: millions.

Shower

The shower went well! I will never wear polka dots again, but other than that, I call it a complete success! :)

Preparation

The last few days have been spent in busy preparations for my dear friend Abigail's Around the House shower that 6 of my childhood friends and I are hosting. Saturday at my house, things should be hoppin! I cannot express how thankful I am that everything seems to be coming together so well!

I will post more and have some pretty pictures later this weekend :)

The NFL and other things

It's only week 5 and espn and scout.com have already "predicted" that UA will be in the BCS Championship game.

I can't handle it! GAH! They do realize there are 13 total weeks to play, right?

In other football related news, I attended my first NFL game last weekend. K's cousin married Matt Schaub this year (who is the quarterback for the Houston Texans), so I went with his family to see them take on the Tennessee Titans at LP Field in downtown Nashville. Here are a few things I noticed about NFL Football games in general:

1. The demographic makeup of the "crowd" is disturbingly different from the makeup of collegiate spectators...mostly because of the lack of connection to a higher education institution. I'll just let that lie.

2. Everyone wears jerseys to watch the game. Everyone. We felt out of place in polos and jeans. We were obviously not true fans.

3. NFL is so made for TV it isn't funny. It's showy. It was meant to be, i understand this, but still. The atmosphere is eerie.

4. The crowd was quieter than I imagined during commercial breaks. It was like they all just stopped talking.

All that being said, it was a lot of fun to be there- I especially liked being able to go "behind the scenes" after the game and meet up with some more of K's fam and watch the team come out of the locker rooms all snazzed up in suits for post game stuff. Too bad the Texans lost. Maybe next time! K keeps up with all forms of football (even arena leauges) religiously, so I'm sure he'll let me know.

Also, I think that SNL should be paying Sarah Palin royalties for the great Tina Fey impressions that are boosting their ratings. Hirlarious! (but I do love Sarah).

More later..

Meet Mr. O

I love him :)

Ramble

Hooray :)

I miss $0.99/gallon gas. Let's just start off with that.

Today is a big FOOTBALL FRIDAY here at school (or it will be when school starts in an hour), and to me its quite interesting to observe. My high school never really won any football games, and so school spirit was something that never really caught on. Sure, we all wanted to beat the seniors at the pep rallies, but that was about it. It's also hard to have much school spirit when you have devastatingly unacceptable facilities and a police-state mentality from the administrators...but I digress....Here at BCHS, the kids love football. They make it to state every year, have top notch facilities and the pep rallies are like nothing i've ever seen. Kids care, and it's strange!!!! Today is officially the first "dress up day" for homecoming (which is next week), so the kids could wear jungle/animal attire or either a school tshirt and jeans (which are usually banned). This goes for faculty too, and although i'd probably make a rockin' lion, I opted for the school t-shirt and jeans. Comfy!

I am swearing off going to see my college alma mater play any more football games. The three I have attended as an alumni, we have lost (Arkansas 2006, NMSU 2007, LSU 2008). This is very sad for me, as I love going back to that college town and reminiscing. However, for the good of the team and conference, I feel this personal decision must be made and adhered to. I will have to resort to merely supporting my team through the attire I wear, and watching the game on HD TV at KO's house (when it doesn't conflict with bammernation). I will accept your condolences in the form of email, card or personal check. OOooh, or cash.

Today was the first day I turned the heat on in my car. It wasn't for but a few seconds, but mark it down. Next milestones to watch for: first time to wear a jacket, first time to wear thick socks on purpose, first time to wear long sleeves during the middle of the day and be comfortable.

Ah, Alabama!

Things I love about Fall

There are a few things about Fall that make it my favorite season. Since the first official day of Fall was just this week, I thought i'd list a few!

1. Feeling that first chill of the breeze in the morning...

2. Seeing the leaves change (i'm officially an old person now!)

3. Going to high school and college football games

4. The days getting shorter (call me crazy, but I love seeing the sunlight inch closer and closer to being gone by 5 p.m.!)

5. Wearing long sleeves and jackets!

6. Thanksgiving

On a different note, what did people do before email and facebook? I am helping to throw/coordinate 3 different wedding showers this fall, and so much of it has been accomplished "virtually". It's amazing and so convienent to shoot ideas and options back and forth with ease, especially since for one of the showers, we all live in different towns, and even as far away as California. Yay technology!

I am up early, early 3 days a week for All-State Choir practice with the 30 or so students of mine who are auditioning for the select ensemble later in the fall. It is amazing to me how much easier it is to get to school when you're leaving the house at 6 a.m. vs 7:15 a.m., especially living in the area that I do. I always wanted to live in a bigger place, and while I've had that wish granted, I neglected to remember that this would also mean more traffic and longer lines for things (like my car tag renewal!!! thankfully when I moved, I moved just across county lines, so my new county is a tad bit more efficient).

Here's a thought: Crocs are ugly shoes. There is no good reason to wear them. Even in a garden or at the beach. In my life, I have found that plastic shoes in general are never desireable-whether you're looking for comfort or convienence. I first noticed Crocs when I did my internship in college and all my kindergarteners had them on, but it's to the point now where I keep a daily Croc count here at school, and so far, it's 9 pairs.

And it's only 12:30.....

:)

Tuesday mornings

Welcome to my new blog, complete with individually designed layout! Perhaps since I have a snazzy new look, I'll be a bit more consistent with updating. Please visit the link to the left hand side of the blog to see Jennisa's blog design business. She was wonderful to work with, a preacher's wife, and lives in South Dakota, which holds a special place in my heart. Don't be in too much of a hurry to get a new design because she's very successful...i'd been on her waiting list for a design since JUNE! :)

The title of this blog is "Sequined Seafoam", which I pulled from the lyrics of a Jason Mraz song...here is a little snippet:

The night
She brushed her hands upon my flushed cheek
Smelled of childhood remnants of a dusty weeping willow
Clouds soothe, Shredded by the calico
Were oh so vast and quick as I was on my own now
This time like every other time
I believe that I never find
Another sweet little girl with sequined sea foam eyes
Ocean lapping voice smile coy as the brightest quiet span of sky
And I'm all alone again tonight not again, not again, not again.


I liked the imagery there, and I have green eyes, so I thought it was great.

I felt the first little "gush" of Fall weather this morning as I walked outside to my car. It's coming! Hooray :) Off to get the day started...