Pool Memories

My grandparents have always had a pool in the center of their backyard. Every summer for as long as I can remember, we would have family picnics, and swimming in their pool was always one of the highlights of the day.

I mean really...how many little girls have a chance to ride on the back of a "killer whale"? :) I feel very blessed indeed!

Although its not always been the same exact pool (they've had 3 over the past ummmm...many years!), a pool has ALWAYS been there.

However, as the years have gone by, its gotten harder and harder for my grandparents to take care of a pool, and it just wasn't worth keeping up anymore because we didn't go in it as much.

So last July 4, the guys took down the deck...

The pool sat empty and alone for awhile until a couple of Saturdays ago. It was finally decided that it was time to take down the rest of the pool.

Doesn't it look so sad and lifeless sitting there? Look! There is even a "tree" growing up in the middle of the pool. Apparently a squirrel's nut found an opening in the liner and decided to grow. :)

I mostly just stood back and observed as the menfolk took down the pool, although I was handed the occasional screw to put in a bag. :) That was my BIG task of the day!

My camera battery died before I was able to get a picture of the end product, so that is why I didn't post about this right away. I had to wait for Andy to take a picture of it when he went to mow my grandparent's yard the other day. :)

Their backyard looks so bare now! Its going to take awhile for me to get used to seeing it without the pool. :(

However, although the pool may be gone, the memories will linger on forever. As I was thinking about this blog entry, I remembered something significant that happened on the pool deck's steps. I asked my mom this morning, "Didn't Dad propose to you on the deck steps?"

Indeed, he had! In fact, I discovered this morning that yesterday it was 28 years ago that my Dad proposed to my Mom on the deck steps. That actual deck had been rebuilt since then, and apparently, as he was building the new deck, my Pop-Pop had asked my parents whether or not they wanted to keep the old steps as a memory. :) Awwwwwwwwwwwwwwww!

The happy couple!
Engaged August 28, 1981

So, yes, there are lots of good memories of my grandparent's pool(s) over the years. I don't even know half the stories, because they hosted so many church and family picnics. Although the object that created all the memories is gone forever, the memories themselves will never go away!

Ready or Not...

...the time has come!

Today was Sarah's last official day at work before she heads off to college next week. Wow, this summer has just zoooooooooomed on by! It feels like only yesterday I was stepping into both offices for the first time, and now...training time is officially over. Oh I am sure there will still be issues to deal with...which is why I am glad there are such things as cell phones and email!!

Today some of the lovely ladies of LVBC got together, and we had a special "good-bye" lunch for Sarah. We ordered from Panera Bread...and yes, it was yummy! Because the phones and security doorbell never stop ringing, some of the ladies couldn't be out of the church office, so we had the lunch right in there. We tried to transform the room into a cozy haven by turning off some of the lights, and locking the door so none of the guys could get in. ;-)

Its been a rather stressful week for me with school starting, and my "official" schedule starting to kick in. However, over these past months, Sarah has been an awesome teacher, always enthusiastic about the new things she is teaching me, and I know everything is going to be okay (her cell phone number will be on my speed dial :P)

I just want to say a BIG "Thank You!!!!!" to you, Sarah, for ALL your patience, enthusiasm, encouragement and understanding these past few months as you have trained me in these two new jobs!!

Let the fun begin as we both step out into a time of new and exciting adventures!! :-)

Sarah and I in the Challenge Press office at church

Happy Thought Indeed!

I was just figuring out the list of elementary students our school has this year so I could start working on a weekly job schedule for Mrs. Lytle.

And do you know what?!

There are lots of EVEN numbers this year!!!!

There are 16 students....

There are 8 boys and 8 girls....

The Elementary Learning Center splits up the 1st - 3rd grade students and 4th - 6th grade students for various classes and activities.

Sooooooooo....

There are 8 1st - 3rd graders....

There are 4 boys and 4 girls in 1st - 3rd grade....

There are 8 4th - 6th graders...

There are 4 boys and 4 girls in 4th - 6th grade...

This makes me quite happy.

End of story.

Reminiscing...

School starts this next week...and I am not teaching. I am not sure if "reality" has sunk in yet for me. I know once school starts, it will probably hit me more so! This week has been "teachers-in-service" week and I just remember how for the last two years, this was always a crazy week for me, making sure the classroom was spotless, the curriculum was all organized, and my brain was in gear. This coming Saturday would be Orientation day, where my students would come excitedly into their new classroom, their backpacks filled with classroom supplies to be shoved in their "new" desks (I had the same desks when I was in Kindergarten so -NO -they are not necessarily new!). They would have huge smiles on their faces as they explored all the fun things to do around the classroom.

*Sigh*

I am going to really miss that this year! At the end of the school year last year, I was just so relieved to have survived the year and gotten through the graduation preparations and program, that I wasn't too sad about not having any Kindergarten this year. I would be starting a new line of work, something fresh and exciting, that didn't involve dealing with screaming, hyper kiddos on a daily basis! The grass is always greener on the other side though, right? :)

Don't worry though!! I am enjoying what I am learning in the accounting world - although at times it is still a bit overwhelming - but I think with school starting this next week, I got "bit" by the "teacher bug" again. (And here I just thought it was a mosquito!)

I am thankful that I do still have the chance to help out in the school in a small way, but it won't be the same. Teaching at EBA became my "comfort zone" after two years. Now, my "comfort zone" is slowly being changed into new areas.

This morning, I was reading the devotional from Proverbs 31 Ministries, and at the end the questions were asked,

"Are you in a season of being uprooted? Has God re-arranged your plans and your future? Are you struggling to trust His ways?"

Hmmmmmm...it's funny how the Lord times things just right! This morning I had been getting all "bent out of shape" wondering how I was going to possibly figure out all the "new things" happening in my life. Change isn't something I seek. I like things to stay the same (boring, I know!) I do enjoy my two new jobs, but right now I am being "uprooted" from the familiar and being planted somewhere in "unknown" territory. However, I am learning that there is nothing wrong with that! I think the Lord does that to us at times, because we get too comfortable with where we are, too secure in our own capabilities, that He has to bring something new into our lives to draw us back to Him in full dependence and surrender.

I may hate change, but change is inevitable, and I can either let it crush me or I can "bloom where I am planted".

(Note to self: *Read this blog entry again as a reminder when you are complaining/panicking about change in the future...Practice what you preach, girl!!!...okay, note to self over now*)

At my church, we have what we call "Super-Duper Cleaning" each August before school begins. Each member is given a certain area of the church that they are responsible to do a thorough cleaning. I had my Kindergarten classroom again this year, and I was working on that yesterday. I think being in that room again, cleaning the shelves, just brought back all the fun memories I have of being in that room with my kiddos! I hope to be in that room again in the future, but we shall see what God has planned. :) Right?! One day at a time, one day at a time...

So as I was reminiscing I decided to look at pictures again and remember the "before and after" look of when it was transformed into a Kindergarten classroom two years ago....

-Before-

-After-

Wow, I didn't expect this blog entry to be so long, but its been awhile since I posted anything. :)

Cute Old Couple

While I was "stumbling around" yesterday on Mozilla Firefox (thanks to a certain someone I know ;)), I came across this video clip.

This couple are in their nineties and have been married for 62 years. One day they decided to give an impromptu piano recital for the residents at the Mayo Clinic. I just love how he keeps bouncing up and down to the music as they play together. :)

A Fun-Filled Week

My friend, Elizabeth, came for a visit this past week. We had lots of fun together! We had made a "to-do list" together previous to her coming and it helped us complete most of the things we wanted to get done while she was here. Last year we had made a list of 100 things to do which ended up being WAAAY too ambitious. This year we had 30 things on our "to-do" list and we got about 26 of them done, which is pretty good!

Here are some of the things we did...

1. Watch the 3rd season of Robin Hood (yes, I got her addicted to the show)
2. Went to Shady Maple for lunch (a lot of the week centered around food!)
3. Played tennis (I need help with my hand-eye coordination apparently)
4. Went to Rita's
5. Went bowling
6. Played games with the family (Dutch Blitz, Swap, Scattegories)
7. Went shopping (South Mall, Wal-Mart, Goodwill, Kohls...very successful shopping day!)
8. Went for a walk (we walked to Giant which is near my house to pick up some ingredients for a treat we were making and to get more candy)
9. Watched the premiere episode for the final season of Monk
10. Decorated my chalkboard outside my room (we had a Robin Hood theme going)
11. Watched Enchanted
12. Watched a few episodes of "Wipeout" on Youtube (cool show!)
13. Ate LOTS of candy (Twizzlers, Laffy Taffy, jellybeans, skittles, Mike & Ikes, M&Ms, 100 grand bars, chocolate...yeah, that would be a lot!)
14. Went to Panera Bread for lunch
15. Made frozen hot chocolate (the name intrigued us so we had to give it a try...yum!)
16. Went to Dunkin Donuts
17. Went canoeing as a family
18. Had a picnic lunch
19. Watched Dad and Andy play softball with guys from church
20. Swung on the swings (rather squeaky swings!)
21. Watched the Duggars (18 kids and Counting)
22. Stayed up late talking each night
23. Painted our toenails
24. Took TONS of pictures
25. Got hooked on "Stumble Upon" from Mozilla Firefox (thanks to Elizabeth! :))
26. Went to Bob Evans
27. "Stalked" Andy at Kalmbach Park (where he works)
28. Played Mad-Libs (with a lot of LOL out loud :))

I feel like I am missing some things...which I am sure I am...but that's pretty much what happened this past week! Lots of fun, lots of sugar, lots of laughter!!

Before she left, Elizabeth and I worked on creating a desktop background, and so now we both have the same background on our laptops. :)

A Cherokee Legend

Do you know the legend of the Cherokee Indian youth's rite of passage?

His father takes him into the forest, blindfolds him and leaves him alone. He is required to sit on a stump the whole night and not remove the blindfold until the rays of the morning sun shine through it. He cannot cry out for help to anyone. Once he survives the night, he is a MAN.

He cannot tell the other boys of this experience, because each lad must come into manhood on his own. The boy is naturally terrified. He can hear all kinds of noises. Wild beasts must surely be all around him. Maybe even some human might do him harm. The wind blew the grass and earth, and shook his stump, but he sat stoically, never removing the blindfold. It would be the only way he could become a man!

Finally, after a horrific night the sun appeared and he removed his blindfold. It was then that he discovered his father sitting on the stump next to him. He had been at watch the entire night, protecting his son from harm.

We, too, are never alone. Even when we don't know it, God is watching over us, sitting on the stump beside us. When trouble comes, all we have to do is reach out to Him.

Moral of the Story: Just because you can't see God, doesn't mean He isn’t there.

"For we walk by faith, not by sight."

Birthday Pictures

Alayna requested the same ice cream cake that Andy had for his birthday. Yum! YUM!

Alayna LOVES to play the piano! She has been trying to figure out the notes to the Pirates of the Caribbean theme song, so Mom got her the actual music to help her along in that process. We'll be hearing it every.single.day for the next few weeks or months....believe me!

During the winter time at school when break time was indoors, the high school would play this card game called "Swap". Its similiar to UNO, with just a few more complications....like swapping hands with other people...hence the name "Swap"! :) So I figured it would be a fun game to get to play as a family, or with friends.

Andy and I got Alayna a pink camera. Every girl needs to have her own camera, right? :)

Taking pictures is so much fun!

Happy 14th Birthday, Alayna!

So my little sister's birthday is today. Since I dug out embarrassing old photos for Andy's birthday, I simply had to do it for Alayna's birthday as well! :)

I LOVE this picture! Andy and I were staying at a friends' house when Mom was having Alayna, and Mrs. P did a great job capturing the exact moment when I found out I had a little sister!! You gotta love Andy's expression though. (I think he was hoping for a little brother!) However, home videos prove that he soon got over his "disappointment" and simply adored his baby sister...for awhile at least!

My first time holding Alayna at the hospital. She was sooo tiny!

11 years ago today, we brought our puppy, Christy, home with us. It just happened to be on Alayna's 3rd birthday, so she felt it was HER puppy. Oh my, this picture makes me want to cry. Alayna and I just got done watching the movie "Marley and Me" and I was crying buckets at the end. I had originally said I would NEVER watch that movie because I heard it was a sad dog movie, but curiosity eventually won out. We watched part of it last night, and the rest this morning. It was a sister "bonding moment" that's for sure as we sobbed together. What a sad, sad movie!

Even though we are 10 years apart in age, Alayna and I are the bestest buddies....most of the time! I still tend to be that annoying big sister, but hey...that's my job! Especially in recent years, we have had lots of fun together doing "big girl" things like shopping, getting a manicure, watching movies together, and just talking. The last time I went shopping I took Alayna along because I wanted her opinion on the clothes I was trying on. When your little sis becomes the one you turn to for clothing advice, you know she is getting older!

Since we got our hair styled similarly in the recent past, many people have started saying that we look sooo much alike. Personally, we don't see the resemblance, but its rather amusing to hear people always saying it! (at least it is for me...not sure how thrilled Alayna is about that though!) Our personalities are rather opposite, but I think we balance each other out rather well. She brings out my crazy side, and I do my best to bring out her serious, think-before-you-speak side. ;) I can't wait to see how our relationship will continue to deepen over the years. I am so thankful for my little sister and the LIFE she brings to our household. We often say...life would be so dull without Alayna around!!!

I love you, Alayna!!!

Hope you have a wonderful birthday!

Just a glimpse of my goofy lil' sis!