Southern Hoosiers

8 month update

2010-12-09T15:04:00.005-05:00

So I'm not a very good blogger. I read some of these REAL blogs and I'm just amazed! But there are a few people that aren't on Facebook (I know, crazy) that enjoy reading updates on us Hearns so I'll keep at it. Plus it's still a great way for me to document everything since I'm apparently never going to get a single scrapbook finished! :-)

Catherine turned 8 months old on December 5th and here's what's new with her:

1) She is sitting up all by herself and actually enjoys it now. Now we just have to figure out how to get out of the sitting position gracefully, lol. Right now it's more of a fall over and that scares Mommy a little.

2) No crawling yet, but we just keep saying any day now. She rocks on her knees and pushes a little. She can get anywhere and everywhere rolling so we think she's content with that for now. We aren't rushing it....it's hard enough to keep up with her now!!!

3) She's said her first word which wasn't mommy or daddy it was GUH which is apparently what she is going to call Pudge. We say Pudge's name A LOT so this should have been expected. She makes the funniest, cutest sounds and is VERY vocal....hmmmm...I wonder why?

4) She loves her feet, pulling off her socks, and eating her shoes. Sid blames this on me because I didn't teach her to like socks (because I hate socks). This is a problem when its 6 degrees outside and she's pulling off her shoes when we are out and about. She's so proud of herself when she does it though that we have to laugh a little!

5) She is eating a few finger foods (i.e. puffs). She is such a good baby I'm honestly scared to try a lot of new things but it's obviously inevitable. If we actually ate dinner (a healthy dinner) I would give her some table food. We'll see how that goes. I'm not in any big hurry for that. She seems fine with milk and baby food for now!

6) She officially has 5 teeth that have cut through. Three on the bottom and get this 2 on top but only one of the two is the front tooth. lol The other front tooth will cut through any day now though. The last 3 have pretty much all come at the same time. Other than a little drool and some occasional fussiness she has handled teething VERY well (knock on wood!).

7) Finally, she is just SO much fun right now. We can actually sit and play with her and work on learning things. She just laughs and laughs and we have a big time. She LOVES her bouncer and spends a lot of time there but every night we get in the floor and play and this is our most favorite time of day.

It just keeps getting better and better. The top picture is my profile pic on FB and I just love it. The bottom pic is one I took trying to get some shots for a Christmas card. You can see the snow in the background! It really portrays her cute personality right now. We leave in the morning for Tennessee to celebrate the holidays with the Richardson clan. I'm excited for C to get to meet great Aunts and Uncles and cousins for the first time.

Wishing you all a wonderful Holiday season with your families. I know this will be one to remember for us.

Happy Halloween!!

2010-10-30T13:46:00.003-04:00

We hope everyone has a safe and fun Halloween! Our community is celebrating Halloween tonight instead of tomorrow. Looking forward to having trick or treaters for the first time in years!! Catherine is a strawberry.....definitely the cutest strawberry on the block! Made my first taco soup pot of the season, football on the TV, and feet propped up....it's going to be a good day!!

Until next time.....

Hearn happenings!

2010-10-27T14:09:00.006-04:00

Where did October go? What a fast month! It has also been a busy month at the Hearn house. So I thought I'd share some of what's been going on!

1. We are the proud Aunt and Uncle of our new niece, Reagan Mackenzie Hearn. She arrived 6 weeks early but thankfully is doing fabulous! This is when being away from family is hard because we wish we could be there to help Paul and Sarah and to love on this sweet girl! How fun that Catherine and Reagan will only be 6 months apart! Hearn family gatherings are going to be a blast. Here's Miss Reagan:

2. Rolling....lots and lots of rolling....all over the place. Catherine is now spending lots of time in her exersaucer/bouncer and her pack and play (aka jail). Only a matter of time before the REAL fun begins (crawling). In this picture, I had put her on her play mat and this is where she wound up. About 5 minutes later, she was half way across the living room floor. Like I said, lots of rolling!

3. Sitting up...well, most of the time. Catherine CAN sit up, she just prefers not too. Can we say strong willed? She is so interested in everything going on that she doesn't want to stay in one place. She does better when she has a toy or something to focus on. We practice sitting up everyday so hopefully she'll "prefer" to sit up soon!

We are SO excited about Halloween this year. Catherine's costume is a surprise for Sid....it has been a big topic of discussion around our house. LOL. I finally decided on a costume and thought surprising him would be more fun! We are going to the Marian Band costume party Friday night and look forward to lots of kids coming to trick or treat on Saturday! Life is just WAY more fun with children.....we are having the time of our life!

Until next time....

6 months already!

2010-10-10T16:12:00.003-04:00

We celebrated Catherine's 6 month birthday this past week. Although, Sid said it's not really a birthday, lol. I can't believe she is already 6 months and I'm sure before I know it i'll be saying, I can't believe she's already 16! Scary!

With family and friends being so far away I decided to make a montage, video/slideshow of pictures from Catherine's first six months of life...complete with cheesy music. I thought I'd share with my blogger friends.

Click here: Catherine 6 month video

Sid and I enjoyed a weekend away, actually our first weekend away from C. Sid judged a marching contest but we were able to spend some quality time together as well. It was much needed and we had a great time!

Until next time.....

Life is Short

2010-10-02T07:30:00.003-04:00

Those of you who are mom's know the anxiety that you feel often about things happening to you or your little one. Well, being a new mom all of these feelings had been new (and quite vivid at times) and were finally starting to subside until recently.

It seems every time I get on Facebook someone is posting asking for prayers for a sick loved one or posting about a tragedy. I have been personally impacted by two tragedies recently. One of the students in my theory class (an older, non-traditional student) lost his ex-girlfriend and 2 yr. old daughter in an apartment fire. I don't know all of the details but do know that it was arson, so someone deliberately and thoughtfully planned to set the fire. He missed a week of class but has returned and seems to be doing exceptionally well considering the circumstances.

The other tragedy effected many people I know and love. If you are in the Birmingham area you probably heard about a family (dad, mom, and daughter) killed by carbon monoxide poisoning. Many of my Hueytown friends went to church with this sweet family and I had the privilege of getting to know Malorie when I co-directed the school musicals. I also helped Mrs. Howerton advise her on dating during lunch many times, lol. Malorie was a beautiful girl on the inside and out and SUPER talented. She was going to make something of herself. But God had a different plan. I lost a good friend in high school and know how traumatic it can be for the students and teachers, as well. Some good WILL come of this awful situation....time will tell and heal.

I don't mention these events to put a damper on your day but it has definitely put things into perspective for me. LIFE IS SHORT people!! I'm holding Catherine and Sid a little closer and making sure to live every day to its fullest. Most importantly, I thank God every day for the chance to live and hopefully, make an impact on someone's life. We aren't guaranteed tomorrow....make the best of today! Love you all!

Catherine's New Tricks

2010-09-23T18:28:00.004-04:00

Catherine is now 5 1/2 months old. Her development is moving at warp speed right now which makes each day at our house new and exciting. I thought I would update everyone on her latest "tricks"!

1. She's rolling over. Yay for reaching milestones. However, she's a tummy sleeper and she can only roll from her tummy to her back so we wind up going in her room and turning her back over 3-4 times so she'll sleep. What's funny is she just has a BALL in her crib when she's on her back. At least she doesn't cry, right? Video to come soon, of me catching her on her back!

2. She is SO vocal. She's making the funniest sounds and has discovered her tongue. She's constantly rolling and moving her tongue to figure out new sounds. Our favorite is the shriek she makes when she's super excited.

3. She is inundated with Pudge. She watches her closely and reaches out to touch her. We are trying to teach her to PET her instead of grab as much fur as you can and squeeze really hard. Pudge is a good sport!

4. She is eating big girl food. Well, not really but the next step to big girl food. Rice and various fruits. So far she hates apples and pears. She likes bananas but #5 trick has postponed bananas for now. Videos to come of this as well......she's gags and makes the funniest face when she doesn't like something. Just like her momma.

5. With solid food comes FUN diapers. I'll spare you the gross details. But, a couple of days ago she sounded like she was hickuping and I quickly realized she was gasping for air. SCARY! This went on for a few minutes until she finally began to cry. Crying=breathing. Whew. Well, she had a super dirty diaper. Fast forward to today. Same thing TWICE. Gasping for air, coughing, and a super dirty diaper both times. So we went to see Dr. Hensley. She gave her an all clear and said that she is probably having to push and she's holding her breath. She asked if I kept a video camera handy.....DUH, lol. She told me to video her doing it. I figured a $20 copay is well worth the piece of mind. So now we are eating oatmeal and prunes to hopefully make going to the bathroom a little easier..... TMI? :-) Here's a pic of our first prune experience!

Three weeks from today we will travel to Birmingham to catch up with family and friends. I can't WAIT to see everyone and for you all to see Catherine's new tricks first hand!!

New Blog, New Adventures

2010-09-17T21:07:00.002-04:00

It has been way too long since I last posted. SO much has happened in the last three months since my last post, hence the changing of the blog title. The most important thing obviously being our move from Birmingham to Indianapolis. Well, technically Avon, Indiana. As a kid, I remember "Hoosiers" being one of my dad's favorite movies. I just assumed that the Hoosiers were solely associated with Indiana University. WRONG! If you live in Indiana you are a Hoosier. So now we are southern transplants adjusting to living in the mid-west. A shout-out to my sister-in-law Sarah....didn't even realize I was using your title idea until it was done, lol! They are "southern yankees." Hoosiers sounded better than "mid-westerners", bleh.

Positives:

-AWESOME westher

-The Colts and other professional sports teams

-So much more to do and get involved in

-2 1/2 hours from Chicago, Cincinnati, and Louisville

-Culturally diverse and full of musical events and festivals

-Down to earth, hard working people just like us southerners

Negatives:

-Being away from family and friends

-Being away from family and friends.......get the point?? :-)

With that being said, I'm actually surprised at how content and happy I actually am considering I have no social life or friends to speak of....yet! I think that speaks highly of my marriage and how much I absolutely adore Catherine. I never get tired of spending time with her and her daddy. We started Kindermusik this week and there are some other moms my age that I'm hoping to befriend. Also, I think we have finally settled in on a church....but not 100% decided. Homewood was such a special place it makes finding a new church very difficult!

Finally, God answered many prayers about what exactly I was going to do with myself this year. I had decided to take a break from full-time teaching but after just a few weeks of staying home I quickly realized I missed teaching terribly. An opportunity came available for me to teach Music Theory as an adjunct instructor at Marian University where Sid works. This has been absolutely PERFECT for us. I teach 10:00-10:50, on MTWF. Sid stays home with her on MWF until I get home and she goes to a sitter on Tuesdays. PERFECT....LOVE IT! I'm also training to be a Kindermusik educator and will teach 2-4 classes in the spring. God is good and I feel so blessed to be able to do what I love (teaching music) while still having plenty of time to be a mommy to Catherine!

Whew....now we're caught up!! Check back for updates and to watch our sweet girl grow! Everyday she has a new trick, sound, or look. We take ridiculous amounts of pictures and videos to try and freeze each moment in time! We have extra beds and plenty of room so we expect visitors SOON! Happy football season ........in other words ROLL TIDE! :-)

Almost!

2010-06-17T11:24:00.000-04:00

Catherine has been very routine in her night time feedings. She usually wakes up between 1:30-2:00 a.m. and then again at 4:30 -5:00 a.m. Well, last night 2:00 came and went and of course I woke up expecting her to be ready to eat. I quickly realized she was still asleep and got SOOOOO excited. Then about 10 minutes later I heard that sweet whimper. BUT, the good news is she didn't wake up again until her "first" feeding at 7:00 a.m. So we are getting closer to sleeping through the night! Although, I wonder how long it will take me to get used to it once she actually does it. I'll miss how cuddly and sweet she is during the middle of the night.

We are packing up today to go to Gatlinburg for a few days with the Richardson's. Looking forward to spending time with family but also for me and Sid to get to spend time together sans Catherine. Then we will travel back to Birmingham to make the big move (furniture and everything else) to Indianapolis. I'm so ready to get settled into our house and into the community. I'm definitely missing my family and friends badly but hope to make new acquaintances soon. Guess I need to come up with a new blog title.....any suggestions?

Growing quickly

2010-06-09T15:46:00.000-04:00

Well, 2 months have already flown by and Catherine is really starting to develop now. In those 2 months, we have also moved (kind of) to Indianapolis. Our family is finally back under one roof which has definitely been an adjustment for all of us, especially being in a tiny one bedroom apartment (poor Pudge).

Being a mom is everything I expected it to be and more. Tiring but oh so rewarding. Everyday is something new and I just love watching her grow and figure the world out.

Thought I'd share a video I took of her today. She just loves to sit and have chats with Mommy and especially Daddy. When he gets home she gets this HUGE grin on her face....priceless! Enjoy the video. (Ignore my very country sounding voice!).

Catherine Allyn Hearn

2010-04-13T11:25:00.000-04:00

On Monday, April 5th, 2010 we welcomed Catherine Allyn Hearn into our world. She was born at 4:26 a.m., weighed 7 lbs. and 11 oz., and was 19 3/4 inches long. I was in labor around 8 hours and Dr. Wideman and all of the nurses at Brookwood made my birthing experience so comfortable (well, maybe that's not the best word but you get the point!).

So I guess I will be renaming the blog soon because it will probably turn into the Catherine show. It will be a great way to keep grandparents and friends up to date with Catherine's development. She has already changed so much and time seems to be flying by. When you are nursing and constantly watching the clock it makes the day go by so fast. She was a little jaundiced but after two sets of lab work on Friday and Monday, her levels are returning to normal. We quickly realized doctor visits are not going to be much fun and Daddy was so miserable he could stand to go back yesterday.

She is definitely a Daddy's girl already. Sid has been WONDERFUL with her. He has probably changed more diapers than I have.....seriously!! We are dreading him leaving in a few days. As sad as we are he's 100 times more sad though. This too shall pass....and it won't be long until we are all under one roof again!

That's all for now....off to nap while she is napping. I'm exhausted but it's worth every minute of it. She's a really good baby. I'm just praying that lasts for a while!! We feel so blessed and are humbled everytime we look at her or hold her.

Showered......literally!!

2010-03-23T17:50:00.000-04:00

Do you want to feel loved and realize how extremely blessed you are?? Have a baby. Sid and I have been completely taken back by how gracious and giving people have been to help us prepare for baby Catherine. Over the last 4 weeks we have had 7, yes SEVEN, showers!! From HHS folks, to our amazing family, to our friends, we are more than ready to welcome Catherine into our home.

As mom and I finished unpacking the last of the baby stuff, Sunday night, I started having some pain in my abdomen and back. She made made me stop right then and pack a bag. It was at that point that this all became extremely real to me. If all goes as planned, we are scheduled to induce on the evening of Easter Sunday. I finally feel READY to meet her and know that the fun and the real journey are just beginning. It's truly amazing how God does everything in His time and takes care of His children. Enjoy some pictures from my showers! In reverse order:

Decatur Shower

Muscle Shoals Shower

HHS Choir Shower

Homewood COC Shower

Birmingham "Friends" Shower

HHS Shower

HHS Guard Shower

The next big thing

2010-02-15T16:35:00.000-05:00

Following Thanksgiving my life went into overdrive. For choral directors, Christmas is a super busy time of year which is usually followed by a nice break and downtime until after Spring Break. Well, this year has been different and for the past 3 months I have constantly been preparing for the "next big thing." In December it was Dinner Theater. In January it was AMEA. Then started February with UAB Honor Choir, All-State auditions, and District all in a matter of a few days. Oh yeah, let's not forget winterguard rehearsals 2 days a week and 2 weekend competitions in Tennessee.

This morning I arrived home from my most recent "big thing", our choir trip to Orlando/Disney. It was a fantastic trip. I got on the bus every night exhausted, feet swollen, back hurting but so happy because I teach a truly wonderful group of kids. They were so sweet and worried about me being preggo and treking around Disney for 3 days. I also had a great group of friends who are also my colleagues who went above and beyond to take care of me and make sure that everything went smoothly. Even though it poured rain and was FREEZING they were troopers and survived another memorable and successful trip.

So I'm sitting here today trying to recuperate from a long trip but excited because all of the other "big things" are over and I can FINALLY focus on the biggest thing......bringing Catherine into this world! I feel like I haven't truly been able to prepare for her because of so much going on at work but now my full attention is hers and making sure that we are prepared to bring her home. We have no crib, no changing table, no nursery decor and I feel so behind. But have no fear.....I'm in official baby mode. We are attending a birthing class next weekend and I think that's when it will really set in. We are also blessed to have great friends and family throwing us quite a few showers over the next few weeks so I'm looking forward to those as well.

Here's Catherine at 32 weeks....

Sigh......and smile.

2010-01-24T16:50:00.000-05:00

I was at the ACDA Summer Celebration in July when I found out that my choir had been accepted to perform at the 2010 Alabama Music Educator's Association annual In-service Conference. I had mixed emotions that day because I knew what an honor it was to be invited to perform but it also scared the mess out of me knowing we would be performing for my colleagues and people who KNOW music.

Since then, I have spent a lot of time and energy into preparing my students to rise to the challenge of performing for this conference. There were days where I said to myself, "What was I thinking doing this?" or "There's no way we are going to be ready." My choir is young and the first few months of school I thought I had made a mistake in applying for this performance.

Well, on Friday, we performed. I have never felt such a since a rush of emotions all at one time like I did that day. I looked out in the audience and saw my family, my friends, my former students, parents of students, and colleagues and knew that I was about to share with them something so special, a part of my heart. This group of kids came together over the past few weeks to create some magical musical moments and I was so happy that we were able to recreate that on Friday. They sang with passion and a true understanding of what it was they were singing about. Those were our goals and they surpassed them.

I have put my heart and soul into building this program and Friday's performance is one that I will always remember. Through tear's, I told this to my students on Friday before we performed along with how proud I was of them and how blessed I was to be their teacher. From their reactions, it will be a performance that THEY will remember for years to come and that my friends, is why I teach.

Now it's on to get ready for district and Orlando!! No rest for the weary but there will definitely be a more relaxed feeling in the choir room at HHS this week!

If it wasn't for bad luck......

2010-01-06T18:24:00.000-05:00

.....we'd have NO luck at all. We like to call it Hearn luck!

Sid's checking accounts were hacked by a certain "Arabic language news network." I'm afraid to say too much...don't want the FBI tracking my blogs! LOL. Needless to say, the timing could not have been worse. Thankfully, the bank says he'll get the money back and he caught it quickly so it could have been worse.

AND, school is cancelled tomorrow. Now normally I would be jumping with joy....however, I have only the BIGGEST performance in my 7 year career coming up in 2 weeks and we desperately needed all of the rehearsal time we could get. It better come a darn blizzard. It seems like there have been endless interruptions at school this entire year. Very frustrating but we'll hit the ground running on Friday.....assuming they don't cancel school Friday too......I'm not even going to think about that possibility.

I guess I'll try and enjoy my day "off"...... oh wait, the TIDE plays for a National Championship tomorrow...I'm suddenly feeling much better. ROLL TIDE!!!! :-)

Pregnancy Pics

2010-01-03T12:07:00.001-05:00

So here are all of the ultrasound pics I have. Currently, I'm at 26 weeks and feeling GREAT!

26 weeks

21 weeks

16 weeks

12 weeks

Back to Blogging!

2010-01-03T11:52:00.000-05:00

So apparently I'm a horrible blogger. Now that we are getting closer to the baby arriving I want to try to blog more often. Not that many people follow my blog so this is more a scrapbook of sorts of all of the exciting things that are going on in our life right now.

I had saved a few blogs regarding my pregnancy when we first found out, before we had told anyone. I'm going to publish those now and will update with new pictures as well. The old posts are on August 9th and September 11th. I enjoyed going back to read these and relive how I felt when I first found out I was pregnant!

We had a fantastic Christmas filled with lots of food, family, and friend time. I love getting time off during the holidays. Sid was able to come home for 2 weeks and we enjoyed spending lots of quality time catching up and reconnecting. We visited the Hearn's and Richardson's for a few days and enjoyed our time there as we always do.

For now it's back to work. January is going to be a SUPER busy month with AMEA, winterguard, and getting ready for baby. The countdown is on to meeting Catherine and to our family being reunited and living under one roof again. I can't wait!!!

The most wonderful time of the year.....

2009-09-07T22:33:00.001-04:00

It's been a while since my last post but all that really matters is the start of college football!!!! I did go to my high school reunion last weekend but it was pretty uneventful so I won't waste time on that.

Saturday, Megan and I went to Tuscaloosa to Derek and Heather's house to watch the game. I had a great time seeing everyone and even got to play with babies!! We had fun just chatting, catching up, and cheering on the Tide!! I think it's going to be a great season. I can be a tried and true Bama fan and not have to worry about that Auburn fan I used to live with! lol. Thanks to the Reeves' for hosting us!!!

Tonight I went over to Melissa and Daniel's and grilled out hamburgers. Pudge and Paisley enjoyed each other's company and I enjoyed getting out of the house and being around good friends who like to watch TV as much as I do! :-)

I feel so blessed to have wonderful friends who have been so hospitable and thoughtful during this difficult time of being apart from Sid. I hope that Sid is able to find the same in Indy. This will be a tough month as we won't see each other for a while. Distance makes the heart grow fonder right?? We'll see!!

Week 9

2009-09-07T22:17:00.000-04:00

I had another doctor's appt. this week. I was at 9 weeks and 1 day. Mom came down and went with me again. We were able to hear and see the baby's heartbeat. CRAZY!!! Because things have been relatively easy up to this point I often forget that I'm pregnant but wow, was that heartbeat a big eye opener!! Here is the picture from the sonogram. He wasn't able to get a very clear picture this time. There were better pictures on the machine but he didn't record them quick enough.

I went over to Melissa and Daniel's tonight for dinner. Pudge and Paisley enjoyed playing together. Ok, they didn't really play but they didn't fight and for Pudge that's an accomplishment. She surprised me with my first official baby gift. She said she had picked them up at Target to give to someone having a baby. A little weird....I'm still getting used to the idea of a baby! Here's a picture...... very cute things, and unisex!!!

2 more weeks and then I'm dying to share this news with the world. I have told more people than I would prefer to but such is the case when you are a teacher and have lots of responsibilities and arrangements to make.

Down on the farm

2009-08-24T13:06:00.000-04:00

Sid and I decided to meet in Nashville this weekend at my parent's farm. It belonged to my mother's parents and when they passed away she inherited it. It is quite convenient for our situation because Nashville happens to be about half way between B'ham and Indianapolis.

We had a great time just catching each other up on all that has been going on with both of our jobs and lives in general. Of course, Sid was so happy to see his #1 girl, Pudge! Here are some pictures from the weekend:

My reminder.....

2009-08-19T19:13:00.001-04:00

So this summer, early June to be exact, Sid and I decided to plant some sunflowers. Well, Sid can't do anything half way and soon because obsessed with nurturing and caring for his precious flowers. He was SO worried about them when it moved because I'm not the best at gardening (i.e. taking time to water things so they don't die, lol).

I told him I would think of the flowers as a symbol of our relationship and that just as the flowers needed to be watered and cared for so did our long distance relationship. Yeah corny I know. Here's what the flowers look like as of today.

The pictures really don't do them justice. They are beautiful and almost 6 ft. tall. I can't wait for Sid to come home next weekend and see them in person. He's coming home for my 10 year high school reunion. It should be fun!

Finishing out my first full week of school. Still good so far...in fact getting better, believe it or not!! So ready for football season. Last weekend was really tough. I'm NOT a homebody and all of my friends were either out of town or busy. Although my best friend Jessica stopped by Sunday evening and we had a great time just catching up. I miss the days of Sunday night dinners in Tuscaloosa....great times. Ok, I digress....don't need to stoll down memory lane tonight! 17 days.....Roll Tide!!

Whew...one week down.

2009-08-14T18:34:00.000-04:00

The students came back to school on Wednesday and althought it's been a great first week I am absolutely exhausted. I have had a tougher time than unsual adjusting to being back at work. Hopefully, I can get back in a routine and stop feeling utterly spent when I get home in the evening. With Sid not being here, I'm taking it back to my single days when I took naps....lots of naps.

My "even" day, which is, planning (except not really because I have to oversee guard), women's choir, men's choir, and concert choir is a demanding day. I'm going to have to figure out how to find time to take a break at some point during that day. Poor 4th block is going to get the brunt end of going a whole day without a break. They are tough though...they can handle it!!

Thought I would update everyone on how Sid is doing. He is absolutely LOVING teaching at Marian so far. They had band camp this week and everyday has just been story after story about how great the kids are and how much fun he is having teaching them. It makes me so happy to hear that from him. I can't wait to meet his students and see the band perform. He said they were like a "mini drum corps." lol

This will be the first weekend we've been apart. I can already tell that's when it will be tough...for me anyway. Netflix delivered two movies: Sisterhood of the Travelling Pants 2 and Revolutionary Road. So Pudge and I are going to clean house and watch movies this weekend. I might even throw in a little pool time too!

I smell football in the air too.....14 days until the first HHS game, 22 days until the Tide rolls! :-)

Ah, validation!

2009-08-12T19:32:00.000-04:00

So after pumping myself up about this school year I was secretly afraid that the first day was going to be a big let down. I was worried I would have horrible kids, that I would regret making the decision to stay but I'm happy to say, SO GOOD SO FAR!!!

Of course, it's the first day but after teaching for a while you can tell pretty early the classes and kids that will or won't give you trouble. Everyone seemed really excited today. The best part is that I always ask the kids why they are in that class to find out if they chose to take the class or if they were dumped in there. I always tell them to be honest and that they won't hurt my feelings if they were put in the class. Well, for the first time the majority of my choir kids actually REQUESTED to be in the class. HALLELUJAH!!!!

Now, I'm just ready to get all of the introductory stuff over with and get down to making some music! The longer I teach the more I realize how lucky I am to get to do something I love everyday. That sounds really polyanna I know but it's how I feel. Concert choir (some of them, won't have ALL of them until tomorrow) sang today and I was slightly apprehensive of what kind of sound was going to come out of their mouths, but it was pleasantly delightful!!

My difficult decision to stay in B'ham has been validated as of today.....check back with me in a couple of months! lol Hope everyone else had a great first day back whenever your first day was!!

Good things are a comin'

2009-08-10T21:37:00.000-04:00

Well today was my first "official" day back at school. There is such a good vibe at HHS right now. I hope it carries throughout the year. We have a new principal, Mrs. Gober, and I really think she is going to do great things at HHS with the help of a supportive faculty and community.

I have spent the evening trying to program our AMEA concert. Here are some pieces I'm thinking about. Any suggestions from you choir people out there would be greatly appreciated!

Hodie! - Leavitt

Sing Unto God - Fetler

Cantate Domino - Pitoni (from this past year)

Adoramus Te, Christe - Palestrina

Jai vu Le Loup - Hatfield

Gota - Karlsson

Ritmo - Davison

Dide Te Deo - Brown

MLK - King Singers

The Seal Lullaby - Whitacre

The Epitaph - Martin

Give me Jesus - Kauffmann

Up to the Mountain - Shaw (listen to Kelly Clarkson sing it on YouTube...awesome!)

Ain' A That Good News - arr. Dawson - spiritual

Just some ideas. Of course we won't do all of them but I want to program pieces that are educational for the kids, yet enjoyable, but also plan a little something for everyone as well.

One more day of planning, cleaning, and organizing then the kids come Wednesday. Usually at this point I'm having trouble sleeping because of my crazy nightmares about school (teachers, you know what I'm talking about) but honestly this year I am really looking forward to gettng started.

If guard camp and band camp were any indicator of what this year will bring it is going to be a FANTASTIC year!! I get another student teacher in November too! Woo hoo!! Best of luck to all of my teachers friends and students heading back to school

SURPRISE!!

2009-08-09T21:57:00.000-04:00

On Monday, July 27th, I felt the need to take a pregnancy test. We have not been "preventing" anything from happening so I typically keep the tests on hand, just in case. So I took it and didn't really think anything about it and continued to complete my morning routine. Well, when I went to brush my teeth I looked down at it and it said had a "+" sign. Uh oh. So I thought maybe that was just a mistake, it was just a cheap Target brand test. I stopped on my way to school (we were starting guard camp) and bought a more expensive test. I took it when I got to school....positive. BIG UH OH!

After a mild panic attack I called my friend Lisa. I couldn't call Sid or my mom because I didn't want to make them stroke out. Anyway, she told me two positives pretty much meant that I was pregnant. Well, that wasn't good enough so I texted (yes, I text my doctor) Dr. Wideman, my OB/GYN and said, I'm slightly freaking out can I come in this afternoon. So sure enough.....went to see him Monday afternoon and it's official. I'm pregnant.

Pregnant.....PREGNANT. Wow! I have really been wanting to get pregnant lately but with everything going on with Sid and the move knew it wasn't the best time. Well, I guess God had a different plan.

I went back to the doctor on 8/6 and he did an ultra sound. It's VERY early which is why I'm saving this post for a later date. I'm only about 5 1/2 weeks but there is definitely a baby growing inside of me.

Crazy huh?? I still can't believe it. I'm VERY worried that something will go wrong but I'm hopeful that it won't. Both of our parents know and our brothers and sisters. We are weary of telling too many people too early. We are excited and scared!! We are trying to figure out ways for Sid to be as involved as possible even though he's not here. Yay for technology!!

I will go back to the doctor in 4 weeks and should be able to hear a heartbeat. So many exciting things happening for us right now!! I just continue to be amazed! Wow....that's really all I can say right now.

Let the blogging begin

2009-08-09T21:29:00.000-04:00

I thought I would go back to the beginning of this journey as I have decided to blog my thoughts, frustrations, and general comments regarding this exciting, yet challenging time in our life.

So the saying "When it rains, it pours" could not have been more true during the month of July. In May, Sid graduated from Auburn University (boo) with a Ph.D. in Music Education. After MONTHS and MONTHS of job applications, interviews, and overall frustration things really started to happen for Sid and his job hunt. He had all but given up on the chance of getting a college teacher job and had interviewed at a local private high school. In a matter of days, 2 to be exact, he was offered that high school job and had been contacted by multiple colleges to come interview. After a lot of thought, we decided it was best that he take a gamble by turning down the high school job and going after the two college jobs.

Sid had a phone interview with Marian University in Indianapolis, IN during our beach trip the last week in June. I could tell something was different about this job. He went on and on about the things they had going on there and that he really felt like he was a perfect fit for the job. He went and interviewed at Marian July 6th and 7th. We really didn't get to talk much because he had another interview in New York on the 8th and 9th. Well, on the 9th, he sent me a message saying Marian had called........to make a long story short he thought it would be cute to play a little trick on me and act like he didn't get the job. BUT HE DID!!!! Words cannot express our excitement at that moment. He had worked SO hard to finish his degree and apply for numerous jobs during a time when SO many people were looking for jobs. But the excitement quickly wore off when we realized we had some tough decisions to make.

After a lot of prayer and tough conversations we decided that for a myriad of reasons it was best if I stay in Birmingham and he go to Indianapolis. My choir was accepted to perform at AMEA, the state music eduators conference. This invitation was a great honor for myself and the students and I just couldn't pass up the opportunity to perform at that conference. Also, I have a great job (most days anyway :-) and we just couldn't rationalize leaving that late to have to settle for an OK job or possibly no job at all in Indiana.

So, we loaded Sid's truck down (yeah, we looked like the Beverly Hillbillies) on Friday, July 17th and headed up I-65 to Indianapolis. He started work that Monday...they weren't playing around! We were able to find him a nice apartment in a great part of town. I stayed most of the week then came home. Indianapolis is a great city. I can't wait to get to explore more.

Leaving was tough....extrememly tough. I have lots of great friends and my family to take care of me but Sid is alone. Not to mention Pudge is here with me which is killing Sid...she's his baby. I try not to think about this too often because it makes me really sad.

It's been 3 weeks but it's felt like 3 years and we've seen each other every weekend. I went this weekend for DCI Finals which was AMAZING. I can't wait to go back for a Colts game in that stadium!! I'm hoping we can become Colts fan and be done with this Auburn/Alabama sillyness (ok, yeah right, but here's for hoping!).

School starts for both of us this week. In a way, I think that's a good thing but I also worry that we will both be so busy we will neglect to make time for us. That has already become a challenge...especially since Sid isn't a big phone talker. I guess I'm just going to have to buy a Macbook so we can Skype (yes, I know I can do that with a PC, just looking for an excuse to buy a macbook!).

Continue to keep us in your prayers as we are just taking this journey one day at a time. Wow, I feel better already! LOL! Blogging = therapy....who knew!!