Not really spring break

It is spring break week – for Columbia Independent School. However, it was spring break two weeks ago, too – for Central Methodist University. Which means I really don’t get a full spring break. Waa waa. But, having a partial break from my 30-hour work week two times in March was actually not too bad. I took the hours that I would have been traveling/teaching at CMU to make the final push on my 2011 photo book. Those long hours hunched over the computer paid off and I am done! This week, I am going to take the morning hours that I would be teaching orchestra at CIS and work in the yard. With our unseasonably warm spring, every plant has just leapt out of the ground and my fingers are itching to dig in the dirt. So much to plant – my three little blueberry bushes, the broccoli, cauliflower, and Brussels sprouts seedlings I started indoors under a grow-light. So much to transplant. So many flower beds to clean out.

I do love plants. I took some pictures of the little miniature worlds I have created with plants.

see my little turtle?

Continuing with the miniature motif, I also took photos of the two doll houses I am working on.

Notice all the little dogs in them! Ya, I even have too many pets in my pretend worlds. Sarah was sorting through one of her childhood treasure boxes and came across all the little dogs she collected and she kindly donated them to my doll houses.

Finally, Steve is currently in Utah visiting his family and his mother. He left Tuesday and will return this Wednesday. So, while he has been away, I have been entertaining myself with DVDs. I saw Limitless on Wednesday – quite thought provoking. On Friday, while making pizza, I watched Persuasion and Mansfield Park – from my personal Jane Austin DVD collection. Last night, while making tamales for Beckie’s birthday dinner tonight, I watched Kate and Leopold (a recent purchase because I am such a Hugh Jackman fan). Then, because my back was tired, I went downstairs and watched The Big Year – which I thought was great. I was not sure what to expect – not as funny but certainly had a great message and it was about birds! But, I don’t think I could ever do a big year – too much money and too much memory on bird calls and recognition. Earlier in the month, after I finally finished Emma, the book, I watched two versions of Emma on DVD (Gweneth Paltrow version and Romola Garai version – both from my collection). Steve and I watched Hoosiers in honor of March Madness and another time we saw an old Bob Hope flick called Casinova’s Big Night – it reminded me a little of The Court Jester. And, also earlier in the month on my own I watched Hugo – I loved it - Real Steel – surprisingly good and it had Hugh Jackman, and Insidious – eee, too scary for me.

Remembrance

The above obituary is for the mother of my oldest best friend. Jamie Kaye and I were born 6 months apart and we lived next door to each other in El Paso. She appears in my family photos and I in hers from the time we were toddlers. We played with each other practically every day. I thought her mother was the most beautiful woman I ever saw. And, I loved her name – Arnolda Edwina – it was so exotic. She and Jamie’s dad divorced sometime when we were in grade school so Arnolda had to go to work and she started as a school secretary at Ross Jr. High where Jamie and I attended 6^th grade together. It was so cool to have connections with the school office. My family moved from El Paso right when I started 7^th grade and I didn’t see Arnolda again until about six years ago when my sister, Juli, and I took a road trip to El Paso and down memory lane. Arnolda was, by then, a little frail but she was still able to walk and talk and live a relatively normal life. Sadly, her health started to decline and she has spent the last four (maybe five) years in a hospital bed in the house she and Jamie moved into after the old neighborhood started to decline (my old house is now a drug-runner’s home – complete with high fence and concertina wire! The beautiful yard my mother worked so hard to keep is now a cement parking lot). Jamie has cared for her mother at home this whole time and, while it is a beautiful release for Arnolda to go home to join her mother and father, it has left a huge hole in the life and heart of my friend. So, I want to remember Arnolda here and to pay loving tribute to the tireless sacrifices of my dear friend, Jamie Kaye.

On toffee, tapioca, Trissy, and tunes

I made tapioca pudding tonight……in the crockpot! It was so simple and no standing over a pot on the stove stirring and stirring. Like I had to when I made toffee earlier in the week. I think toffee has surpassed fudge as my all-time favorite holiday candy. But, you say, what was the holiday occasion for making this toffee??? George Washington’s birthday? Actually, Beckie had returned the faulty candy thermometer she gave me Christmas 2010 and got a new and improved one. I needed to try it out rather than put it away and learn ten months later that it, too, did not work. I am happy to report that, despite the tedium of stirring for about 15 minutes, the result was perfect. And delicious.

Speaking of holidays, Beckie bought a HUGE rawhide bone for Trissy for Christmas and, happily, Trissy’s digging ceased. Now, I realize this might possibly be a coincidence but maybe not. Was she just digging out of boredom??? So, when I could see very little remains of the bone, I bought another, even larger one this past week to hopefully continue digging-prevention. I took some photos of a very happy Trissy….

The annual Central Methodist University music festival was held on Friday (has a year passed already since the last one?!?! ) I only had to accompany one student this year – woo hoo – so it was nice to just sit and listen to solos and ensembles all morning. Five CIS students participated (three are in my orchestra) and they were outstanding. I am so blessed to have such talented kids in my program. And, Columbia Civic Orchestra had a concert Saturday night. It was an all-Hungarian program with pieces by Bartok, Kodaly, and Liszt. Steve and Sarah attended and said we sounded good. It was fun music to play. The Bartok was a collection of folk tunes and my very first memory of La Habra High Orchestra involved a piece from that suite. I was only an 8^th grader but, because the orchestra rehearsed before school, and because they had only one cellist, I was asked to play. In my first rehearsal, we worked on the Bear Dance. I had only been playing two years and I had NO IDEA that a half-note with two lines across the stem meant a measured tremolo. I was so intimidated by the whole experience (playing with high schoolers!!!) and embarrassed that I was clueless that I have never forgotten that episode while most of the rest of my high school memories are faded to practically nothing.

Big Rivers

We went to St. Louis Friday and Saturday. The temple was Friday night and then we went to Emily and Joe's to sleep - on our old bed (now in their basement) Joe was watching the Simpson's movie when we arrived and I had many a laugh. Saturday morning was nice and relaxed. When Lucy woke up from her morning nap, Steve, Joe, Lucy, Noah, and I made a little trip to the Mississippi-Missouri confluence. Translated, the confluence is where these two massive rivers meet just north of St. Louis. It is pretty impressive. The following are some photos of Noah right at the very edge.

We had a little picnic lunch while we were there. Here is Lucy enjoying a banana.

Brrr, the north wind was cold and poor Lucy was fighting a cold.

Steve and Melanie and I watched “17 Miracles” last night when we got home from St. Louis. It was really good. As I thought about it after, I tried to count the miracles – I came up way short of 17. It might have been nice to have listed them during the credits maybe? Definitely would have been tacky to have a little “ding” or something to mark each miracle while they were happening during the movie, I guess. One thing that was nice was a follow-up of the major characters in the film. I like that – “the rest of the story”.

On Friday night, Sarah went to a dance sponsored by the YSA branch. It was a “formal” which meant we had to resurrect her formal dress from her high school prom. She is now a lot slenderer so my project last week was to alter it. I unsuccessfully tried to add some cap sleeves with the fabric I cut off to make the dress a little bit shorter. That was disappointing. I feel like I am losing my sewing touch. But, in spite of my blunder with the sleeves, the dress altered very nicely and she looked beautiful.

Happy President's Day - CIS is out of school tomorrow and Tuesday. Gonna watch the final episode of Downton Abby - eeeeeeee.

Conferences and grandkids

Guess what? I added up all the hours I am working between CMU, CIS, and my private studio and I am putting in 30 hours a week! NO WONDER I have no time to do anything fun like blogging, reading blogs, sewing, reading, watching movies. And, I did it to myself by taking on seven applied string students at CMU. Won’t make that mistake again. I really hate feeling so boxed in time-wise. But, I shouldn’t whine. Full-time workers experience this all the time. I have really been fortunate to not have to work full-time throughout my life. I have really had to carve out time to watch Netflix movies now. I did manage to see Rise of the Planet of the Apes with Sarah. It was believable – not like the original that Sarah and I then had to rent and watch. Boy, we have come a long way in filmmaking over the past 40 years since the first Planet of the Apes was made. I also rented Battle Los Angeles much to the mockery of my children and I was surprised how much it captivated me. It was nice to see the military as the good guys since so many films these days paint them as dumb or bad. Finally, I am thoroughly enjoying the new season of Downton Abby on PBS. Thank goodness for Beckie’s TiVo that allows me to watch it at various odd times throughout the week.

Speaking of work, I got to attend the annual Missouri Music Educator’s Association conference the end of January down at the Lake of the Ozarks. My CIS student, Harrison, earned the privilege to play in the All-State Orchestra so, as his school teacher, I was required to attend (Missouri State High School Activities Association rules). I had let my MMEA membership lapse (just one more set of magazines I had to read!)so I had not attended the conference in several years. It was good to return because I heard some incredible performances, attended some interesting workshops, hob-knobbed with all my fellow string teachers from Columbia and beyond, and had a chance to break away from my regular routine.

Here I am outside the room Margaret Lawless (string teacher for CPS and member of Prairie Strings) and I shared at the conference

Central Methodist University band was invited to perform Thursday night and, oh my, they were fantastic. Over the past four years, I have taught most of the ensemble in string tech so I felt a pride almost like a mother’s as I watched them perform. They are a great bunch of young people. I heard a fabulous performance of Stravinsky’s Rite of Spring by the UMKC Conservatory Orchestra. I am not really a Stravinsky fan but sitting in the second row where I could watch up close and personal those talented musicians play that insane music, it was quite amazing. (although it still didn’t win me over to Stravinsky. Give me the Fantasia version every time) The All-State Orchestra performance was the Shostakovich 9^th Symphony ! And, it was a superb performance. Harrison had a rocky start to his All-State experience – he got sick the night he arrived and he pretty much stayed in bed all Thursday. Thankfully, it was a fast-moving virus and by Friday, he was back at rehearsals and was able to play the concert. He also had some room-mate issues – one of them kept trying to get him into a fight and, when Harrison would not comply, called his mother to say that Harrison had threatened to kill him! So, mom called hotel security and caused quite a stir. The fact that both boys were allowed to stay and perform is pretty fortunate.

Harrison and me right before his performance.

I saw many old friends while there – one was a real blast from the past – Brian Elder. He graduated from Hickman with Julina’s class and went on to study music at MU. He played in Prairie Strings all those four years. He is currently teaching all music (band, orchestra, choir) as well as social studies and coaching basketball at a small private school in the St. Louis area. He and his wife have two little boys. So good to see him!

Steve came down to join me Friday night and we celebrated our 37^th anniversary (a few days early). We went out to eat that night and we explored Ha Ha Tonka State Park Saturday morning before returning to the conference to hear the All-State orchestra perform that afternoon.

(the photos below are in a collage which doesn't show up completely on the blog so you can click anywhere on the picture and you will see the entire collage. Same with the pics of Lucy and Noah)

Just last Saturday, we visited St. Louis and enjoyed a relaxed visit with Emily and Joe and family after going to the temple. Joe’s mom, Vicki, was in town and it was great to catch up with her news. Here is adorable Lucy....

Noah with his buddy, Bumblebee the Transformer

Vicki with Noah

We have been altering our Sunday cookie nights a bit – instead of inviting new members from our ward, (it is growing so fast and we are so rarely there in attendance that I think I have given up trying to keep up with all the new families) we are inviting members of the Young Single Adult branch. Steve and I both have church duties covering the YSA branch and Sarah is now attending so this is a great way for all three of us to get to know members of that congregation better. We had our second group last night and had a great time.

Well, this was supposed to be just a short entry…..TOO LATE!

Mid-January update

So, our January has been pretty good for Steve and me. We just got back from spending Friday night and Saturday with Emily and Joe. We, of course, had temple plans for Saturday but we also took our full-size iron bed to be set up in their basement. However, before moving the bed IN, Emily and I had to clean OUT what was already in the basement. Recall that when they moved into “Kate’s house”, it was only to be for about 6 months. SO, anything that was not immediately needed was just set in the basement in a rather haphazard fashion. Fast forward two years and they are still living in the house and will continue for at least a few more years. And, in the meantime, the crazy basement just got crazier. Emily and I rolled up our sleeves yesterday and organized, cleaned, and pitched (I have never broken apart so many cardboard boxes!)for about 3 ½ hours and now there is a place for the bed. Boy, it feels good to clean and organize.

We saw Emily and Noah the weekend before on a little trip to Nauvoo. We arrived Friday night and stayed in a nice two-bedroom condo at the Nauvoo Villas. Noah had just gotten new snow gear (overalls and boots) so he had to try them out the next morning while Steve fixed breakfast. Not a whole lot of snow but enough fell that Thursday to make a snow day in Columbia. Nauvoo, being a bit farther north, had a few more inches on the ground. Thankfully, roads by that time were perfectly clear. While Steve went to a morning temple session, Emily and I took Noah to the family living center in old Nauvoo and had a great time – only one other family was there so we got the personalized treatment. Here is Noah helping to make his very own rope.

Noah's "mai" riding on a lamb at the family living center.

Then, we bundled up and took a wagon ride. Brrrrrrrr!

And, while Emily and I went to the temple, Steve took Noah to the blacksmith shop where they were the only visitors so, of course, Noah got the demonstration horseshoe. After a nice afternoon nap, we all parted ways around 6:00 to return home. We had a wonderful time and will try to make this a winter tradition. We had hoped to see lots of bald eagles along the Mississippi river but Steve and Noah only saw one pair (which is one pair more than I got to see, darn it) Three Januarys ago, on another trip up to Nauvoo, we saw dozens of eagles along the frozen river. It was an amazing sight.

Remember the organ cabinet I blogged about awhile back? On the MLK holiday, I finally got the extra shelf put in and filled them with CDs. All the “pop” music is now downstairs. Our classical CDs have been multiplying over the years and were spilling out of their shelves upstairs so now there is plenty of room for them and even more.

You all know my love for movies and Netflix…. I watched “Rise of the Planet of the Apes” this past week and found it pretty good and a believable scenario. We watched “Super 8” while up in Nauvoo. Also good. Other recently watched DVDs have been super-hero flicks: “Captain America” (liked that one so much I purchased it) and “The Green Lantern” (good – but not so much that I want to buy it). Steve, with his busy calling, just doesn’t have much time to watch all the movies I do but he HAS created a “must-see” collection of uplifting/inspiring movies (from our own collection) to watch throughout the year. Check it out and see if you agree with his picks:

January – Man for All Seasons

February- Groundhog Day

March – Hoosiers

April – Field of Dreams

May- Sound of Music

June – Chariots of Fire

July – Lord of the Rings marathon over 4^th of July holiday

August – Remember the Titans

September – Chronicles of Narnia marathon over Labor Day holiday

October – What Dreams May Come

November – Family Man

December – Scrooge

Finally, the semester has begun at Central Methodist University and my Tuesdays and Thursdays are just swamped now. I still teach the string tech class from 1-2:00 but I now have SEVEN applied music students. I have had to just eliminate all other activities from those days as I go from teaching orchestra at CIS to traveling to CMU and then back home to my private students and then it is dinner and evening commitments. BUT, I am grateful for the work. That is a blessing in this day and age.

Well, on to Sunday dinner……

What??? 2012 already?!?!

Happy New Year, all. We enjoyed a quiet start to 2012 – didn’t stay up until midnight. We drove up to visit the Macon congregation on Sunday and we had our year-in-review plus goals for new-year on the way. I met many of my 2011 new-year goals. Probably the best one was that, over the course of the year, I have lost 10 pounds. I attribute it to the extra 30 minutes of walking I have added to my weekdays. (Steve and I already walk 30 minutes every morning) I have five more pounds to go before my BMI will not read in the “overweight” category. Yahoo!

Our Christmas was relatively quiet, too (except, of course, when the grand kids were here. LOVE their kind of noise, though). Elise made it in from Syracuse and Julina from Lafayette. We missed Kirsti who was with Ryan and all his family in Utah. Ryan’s parents were so great to include several Lambson Christmas traditions into their celebrations. Here are some photos from Christmas day.

mmmmmm, Christmas buffet feast

Noah and Lucy

Steve and I had Christmas lunch with Ruth Marshall at Candlelight

The BEST gift I got for Christmas was a camera. Emily, the photographer, spearheaded the whole thing – all the kids contributed money – and I got a Canon Rebel. Wow, it is fun to be taking pictures like I used to with my Minolta film camera

We had our annual visit to historic St. Charles on the Friday before Christmas. Here is a photo from that event.

CIS is back in session. CMU starts on Tuesday. I have a different responsibility in my stake R.S. calling – I am now over weekday meetings so my duties just ratcheted up a few notches. We have been enjoying some unseasonably spring-like weather the past few weeks. Not good for the farmers and my garden but wonderful for doing things. So, Steve and I got some horse manure yesterday in our truck and shoveled it onto our driveway.

Next week, I get to put it all around our garden and flower beds. Goodie. And, we are trying a new bed situation. The full-size bed we have been sleeping in for almost 30 years is now in the garage and we have two twin beds side-by-side in our bedroom. Steve is such a restless sleeping that hopefully, this will improve both our sleep-patterns. We did all the furniture moving yesterday.

The BEST outcome of this project was that we found Steve’s cell phone. When we moved the bed and the bookcase, there is was. After being missing for three months! Finally, later in the afternoon, we went to see Mission Impossible 4 (which was very good, by the way, but certainly NOT a relaxing movie). Busy day.