Wednesday, March 18, 2009

Oh my students, how I love them

So today was phrase day, my favorite day of the semester. I love it so because my students get to "teach" class. It's a tradition I've had since my first semester teaching here. I get a break, and my students get to be creative.

Today was an exceptionally creative day for them. One group played a game show; one group did a skit and one group drew on the board.

I'm going to share with you, internet world, the artistic skills of my infinitive phrase/appositive phrase group. I think you will enjoy it, even if grammar isn't your thing.


Here's the infinitive tree. The amazing part of this drawing was that my student wrote UPSIDE down and BACKWARDS. Her classmates candidly pointed out that it doesn't really look like a tree at all but more like a stick figure. Kudos for trying is what I say.


This picture is by the same talented girl. It is a pictogram of an appositive phrase. The sentence is suppose to say, "A teacher, tall and bright, something, something something." I told them if they had included my name, they would have gotten a better grade.

Tuesday, March 17, 2009

A Wagon Ride


Because the weather has been so fantastic today, we took a wagon ride down the street. Grandma came for dinner, so she joined us.


I tried to get a picture of Abby making this really funny "oooohhhhh" face, but she turned her head.


When we got home Maddie came in for a little bit. Abby LOVES Maddie, and Maddie loves to lick Abby.

Friday, March 13, 2009

It's All About Hygiene


I decided several weeks ago that I needed to make sure that the few teeth Abby now has stay healthy, so I bought her a teeny tiny toothbrush and some flouride-free toothpaste. I wasn't sure how the venture into teeth brushing would go, so Jason and I crossed our fingers.

Amazingly enough, it went very well. Apparently my daughter is more hygienic than I thought. She loved it! I don't know if it's the bubble gum flavored toothpaste of the way the bristles feel on her gums, but now all the says to us when we get near the bathroom door is, "teef, teef."

We haven't mastered spitting yet. Mostly she just sucks on the toothbrush and swallows. I guess that's why we buy flouride-free!

I thought you might enjoy some of the pictures of her first toothbrushing (to coin a nice southern term)!


Getting ready. She looks kind of fearful doesn't she?


Those front teeth are very important!


Make sure to get the molars!

Monday, March 9, 2009

And Then We Saw a Monkey!


Today we took the princess to Riverbanks Zoo in Columbia. Jason took today, tomorrow and Wednesday off because it's my spring break. Yay for working in higher education! The weather couldn't have been better. It was a nice 80 degrees with a slight breeze.

We were going to go to the aquarium in Atlanta, but we are very poor, and the aquarium is very expensive, so we opted for the cheaper outing. We have a zoo membership, and Jason discovered that we could get into Columbia for free with our cards. We did, and it was so worth it.


The last time we took Abby to the zoo she didn't have much of a concept of what was going on, but today she yelled like the birds and the monkeys and was fascinated by the fish.

After two hours in the zoo we went to the "park" (I put it in quotation marks because the word park is used here very loosely) and ate lunch. We walked down to the river and looked at the trees and the rocks.

It was a wonderful day!


Looking at the birds in the birdhouse with Mommy.


You can't really see it, but Jason's got a bird on his arm. Abby was fascinated here.


Awed by the Elephants.

Friday, March 6, 2009

And One Day We'll Show Her Boyfriend



Your eyes are not deceiving you; Abby is standing in the sink at my Nannie's house. We went to visit this afternoon, and Abby insisted that we look at the red birds that are outside of Nannie's kitchen window. Obviously the best view was from the sink. I know it appears that we have reached the height of redneckiness, but in reality, it was just the best way to keep my arms from getting tired. Call me selfish.

I'm thinking this should make it into her senior yearbook.

What do you think?


Doesn't she look so innocent.


Here's Abby with Nannie. This one's free.

It's Because I'm Literary I Guess...

I've been thinking alot lately about marriage (not getting married, that's in the past, but the state of marriage in general, mine, my friends). It seems that society, the church, our friends and colleagues have all sold us a bill of lies that says marriage is supposed to be happy, easy and blissful. I'm beginning to wonder if Margaret Atwood didn't come closer to the point with her poem "Habitation".

Marriage is not
a house or even a tent

it is before that, and colder:

the edge of the forest, the edge
of the desert
the unpainted stairs
at the back where we squat
outside, eating popcorn

the edge of the receding glacier

where painfully and with wonder
at having survived even
this far

we are learning to make fire.

I wonder if Atwood hits closer to what many of us feel in our marriages. The day-to-day step of it all where we pass on another in the hall and the kitchen, brushing shoulders and asking, "can you please change the baby, wash the dog, take out the trash" and we forget to ask "how was your day?"

For those of you who aren't nerds like I am, Atwood is clear, marriage is a journey. Marriage is more than a house, two kids and a dog. Marriage is learning and growing and experiencing together. It is primitive. The need for companionship and passion is at the crux of our desire for marriage.

When I was in college one of my goals was my MRS degree. I thought if I could just get that then I would have made it. I would be complete. I realize now that nothing changed when I got married. Well, let me be clearer, my name changed; I as a person stayed the same.

Please don't misunderstand me, my marriage is wonderful. I have a handsome, loving, caring man who gets me most of the time. I get frustrated and irritated and angry like we all do. I wake up some mornings wondering if it is really worth all this energy. My marriage is a struggle some days.

That leads me to my next point. Why can't we be honest. Why can't our pastors stand up and say, "have you lost the passion. Is life not what you imagined it was going to be? Here's some help." Why do we have to go to women's banquets and have ladies stand up and rave about how wonderful their husbands are and how they never fight or disagree. Why can't we remove the mask and get real? I wonder.

Paul Laurence Dunbar said it best:

We wear the mask that grins and lies,
It hides our cheeks and shades our eye, -
This debt we pay to human guile;
With torn and bleeding hearts we smile,
and mouth with myriad subleties.

Why should the world be over-wise,
In counting all our tears and sighs?
Nay, let them only see us, while
We wear the mask.

We smile, but O great Christ, our cries
To thee from tortured souls arise.
We sing, but oh the clay is vile
Beneath our feet, and long the mile;
But let the world dream otherwise,
We wear the mask.

Wouldn't it be better if we got honest. If we were real. If the world saw us for what we are growing, struggling, reaching humans?

Just a thought.

Thursday, March 5, 2009

It's 'nowing, it's 'nowing!




Hello! I'm sure most of you know by now that we had about 3" of snow here on Sunday afternoon/night. It was amazing! I've been waiting all season for a good snow. Jason of course was a major party pooper all day on Sunday. We assured me that we were going to get NOTHING and that I was getting my hopes up entirely too much.

Me, being the ever-hopeful person that I am, was convinced that we were going to have snow up to our eyeballs. Well, Jason and I met in the middle and enjoyed a lovely snow afternoon on Sunday and snow morning on Monday. Class was canceled for me, and Jason didn't have to go in until 10.

Since Abby adores snowmen (she discovered her love around Christmastime) we were certain that the snow would be a big hit. We bundled her up while it was falling and took her out to catch snowflakes on her tongue. She didn't mind and actually managed to taste a few.



Monday was a different story, however. The snow was NOT a hit. It must have scared her, being so wet and cold. I guess to a 20 month-old it looks dry and warm? When I encouraged her to put her hand out and touch the white stuff, she put her little fingers in it, it fell and she cried. It was classic.


We did get a snowman built, which was done by her wonderful cousins and uncle. She admired it until its head fell off and it was just a snow bottom. I'm certain this is the last of the snow pictures until next year!

Tuesday, March 3, 2009

Our little executive in the making


We snapped this picture of Abby just a few days ago. She seriously looks like she's planning an event or something.

I'm amazed at how much she has grown and how far God has brought our little girl.

I vividly remember what a dear colleague of mine said after my ultrasound of Abby. The doctor's told us they were afraid something was wrong with her head and spinal cord. We were scheduled for another ultrasound, and I was praying fervently that nothing was wrong. Robbie Bowman who I worked with prayed for us and said to me, "God has great things planned for this little one."

Looking back, I'm certain that Robbie was right. How can we deny the awesomeness of God's ultimate plan?

Happy Valentine's Day - A Little Late

Here are some pictures from Valentine's Day. Abby made Daddy a card. Nothing says, "we're on a budget" like a homemade card!


Abby coloring the picture.


Such a sweet girl!


The card upside down. Use your imagination here.


Playing with Daddy!