Operation Madison

Yesterday was a big day! I started at 10a.m. with "Operation Madison". I walked into her room with one task at hand: I needed to install new blinds--her blinds were the six-dollar-2 month-quick-fix-paper-blinds-that-you-buy-at
Lowes-the-day-you-move-in-and-realize-the-whole
world-can-see-you-change-model. We moved in 3 summers ago. Let me restate that. I have lived in this house for about 1000 days and never saw a need to finish the job! The new blinds have been sitting in their box next to her bed for 2 years! I have tucked her in 1000 times and about 500 of those times I thought, "Oooooo, I should get to that job tomorrow." As I was fighting with the screwdriver this morning, I looked around from my stool and here is what I saw:

Dresser of doom.

THIS CLOSET WAS AWFUL!

And 9 hours and $60.00 later (some new storage cubicles), here is how it turned out.






Her comment was, "WOW! I have never seen the floor of my closet before. It is so lovely! Thanks Mom!"


Heidi

Convention of Fun

On Sunday afternoon, I arrived at the MSU Convention Center/Hotel to attend a vocal music conference until Wednesday. Although it has been difficult to be away from my family AGAIN, I know that I should be here learning and refining my vocal music teaching techniques so that when I walk into the classroom in September, I am "new and improved". Just like toilet paper!

The conference is set up so that about three sessions run simultaneously and focus on a varied palette of musical choices. Yesterday, we (Cheryl and I) were able to attend a few reading sessions (previews of music), listen to a clinician talk about how to make a proper "AH" sound for 45 minutes, sing through new elementary musicals, and peruse the stacks of endless sheet music in the exhibit room. I even listened to a very funny man tell us how "20th Century music has a place in our high school choir". I am sure you can guess from my descriptions which sessions I found boring or sort of useless.

Cheryl and I are both quite tired of spending lots of money and then getting here and finding that the clinicians address choral programs that really don't exist in the public schools. We find that the things they talk about are far out of reach for the "normal choir". In order to remedy this, we came up with some conference titles that we would like to see at next year's conference.

So without further adieu, here is the new workshop list for our summer workshop '09:

1. "Your Entire Musical Repertoire Chosen for You".

2. "Elementary Lesson Plans--Step by Step Notebook".

3. "Movement Videos to go with Workshop numbers 1 and 2!

4. "All MSVMA Forms and Fees already submitted for the year ahead".

5. "Fund Raising made simple--Chat with Oprah and Donald ".

And now, I am off to attend another session....hopefully it will be a good one!

As promised

Here is my "working house" this week.

This is the entrance to the theater. It was redone in 1970 and
hasn't been touched since then.
This is where they practice the "drama" since
the piano is in the "big room".

This is the dance/music room.
It is a large room that holds 350 people.
I don't know how that is humanly possible
but that is what the fire code sheet says at the door!

This is another shot of my rehearsal room
with the stage in the background.
There is a big throw rug on the stage.
My flash did a really good job of lighting up the room! It is
really dark and depressing. I can't wait until quitting time each day!

2 more days,

All good things must come to an end.....

My husband decided to stay an extra day at my parents house! I have been home alone for 3 days. Drama Camp has taken up my mornings, afternoons, and partial evenings so I basically come home, collapse on the couch for an hour, prepare and eat dinner, clean up dinner, and then I pack my lunch for the next day. By this time, it is around 9 p.m. and I am tired again!

Tomorrow Stu will be home. (He said that he has to "stay in Lapeer until noon so that he can finish up the leftovers from last night's meal!) It will be nice to have someone over the age of 12 to talk to again! This drama group is not quite as stong vocally so it has been a challenge today. Tomorrow, we will spend most of the morning working on songs and dances....it will be a challenge but the day should go quickly.

I took some pictures of the place we are working in but I left my camera in the car and I don't feel like going down to get it. Tomorrow...I promise!

Drama Camp Part 2

Today began another grueling week of Drama Camp. This time, instead of being at my auditorium, it is being held in South Haven. It is going to be another long week because besides working with 2nd-8th graders 8 hours a day, we have added a 1 hour commute onto each end of the day! So needless to say, I am exhausted and it is only day one!

As most of you know, I am a survivor/ thriver. I really try to make the best of every situation even if it isn't my favorite. I would say that Drama Camp has definitely brought out this coping technique. The room that I am working in this week is a very old tiny theater that smells of mothballs, contains run down furniture and amenities, and has very limited lighting. I am thankful for the air conditioning but it sounds as if a jet plane is hovering overhead when it is on so then I can't hear the kids singing!

The 21 students are very fun and I think the week will pass relatively quickly. I found a very dangerous but wonderful foofty chocolate shop a stone's throw away....things really started to look up after that discovery. I will try to remember to take my camera and snap some pictures so that you can get a first hand look at my "new house" for the week! See you tomorrow!

Singlehood

Today something very rare happened in my life. Everyone in my family left me to go to Grandpa and Grandma's house for a few days of rest and relaxation. We had planned for the children to go for a week long visit for quite some time since I have Drama Camp part 2 this week in South Haven. But my husband surprised me a few days ago with the announcement that he would be taking the kids (it's about 2 1/2 hours away) and would be staying in Lapeer for a few days!

Today is the first day that I have had not just 3 hours alone but and entire day. The son, daughter, and hubs were up and out of the house at 6:30 a.m. this morning! And guess what? It has been pure heaven. (I'm sorry family....please read on!) I am preparing for bed and just realized that I have NEVER in three years spent the night alone in this house! I checked the locks twice (once for me and once for Stu) and now am tucked into bed!

So why has it been heaven you ask? Let me try to explain. Here is what my day looked like:

1. I was at church for an 8 a.m. rehearsal and the 9a.m. service. I was the soloist today. This was the extent of my planned activities for the day.

2. I came home and ate a nectarine, changed clothes, and decided to work upstairs for a bit. I processed and folded 4 loads of laundry, changed the colors in the kids bathroom(surprise!), picked up "stuff" in every room, and made the children's beds.

3. I decided to go to Walmart and buy some new phones for our house. We have tried to "use them up" and wait to buy new ones but it was getting ridiculous because all of the phones were becoming unreliable. I hope I got good ones.

4. While I was out I got a phone call that there was a "problem" at the auditorium. So I ran over there (alright, I drove!) and 3 hours later solved it and was back home!

5. I realized that I was hungry. I threw a piece of marinated chicken (italian dressing--one of my favorites) on the grill, microwaved an ear of corn (delicious), and ate up some green beans. Oh, and I had some blueberries! Yummy.

6. I finished "decorating" the kids bathroom with some purchases from Walmart and then I packed my lunch for tomorrow at camp.

7. At 8:30p.m., I realized that I hadn't turned on the TV, stereo, or computer all day. I picked up the living room and kitchen while I watched shows that I got to choose myself. No Disney Channel tonight!

So, I am still in a bit of singlehood heaven, but I do miss the noise and busyness that a family has to offer! It was fun to be a bit "selfish" today but I don't want it everyday....I love the three that are gone way too much to settle for that!

All I need is a cash register and a fresh fruit section.

Since we have had quite an increase in our monthly budget line for gas, we have decided that it would be wise to try to "cut back" on going out for dinner. This has been a bit of a sacrifice for us because we love to eat and we especially love to eat when it involves good food and no dishes!

In January, I started using a frozen food home delivery service called "Schwan's". It is a bit expensive but Stu and I both figure that we are paying for the convenience of having things delivered to our home on a biweekly basis. All in all, you can pretty much count on the fact that things will taste good and quality of product will be excellent so it is worth the extra money to us.

If you know me at all, you would think that I have a sickness called "pantry hoarding". I like to have in my basement a miniature grocery store that is fully stocked- Just "in case" I need a random jar of black olives or a spare can of jalapenos. Because really, it seems to be quite logical to have 8 jars of ketchup, 9 boxes of cereal, and 7 cans of baked beans sitting in the wings for that special "cooking" project. I can only imagine what made me stock up on 8 jars or ketchup... And tonight I realized that I have kicked it up a notch without even knowing it....I am now not only a "pantry hoarder" but I seem to be a "freezer hoarder" as well.

You see, in March I convinced my husband that we needed another chest freezer (to store the Schwan's stuff) and after about a month of begging, Stu decided that I could go get a SMALL one. So now, we have not one but two small chest freezers side by side in the basement grocery store. And guess what? They are both full to the brim with frozen peaches (from last summer) and Schwan's food items.

I have come to another sad realization... I am starting to really miss going out to eat. So to fill that void, I am admitting to the blogging universe that I am buying from the Schwan's man because he brings us "out to eat" food. And last week, I realized that if I ordered online, I can save 5% on my bill until August 31st! So now my "out to eat" food is on SALE! And how many restaurants ever run a sale on their menus anymore? And from the looks of my stock piles in the basement, I love a SALE! Guess what again? The ICE CREAM was on a 2 for $8 sale so I got some for a great price PLUS an additional 5% came off of my bill! Isn't this sounding fabulous? Sort of like Kohl's and their "Bonus" coupons!

Last night our Schwan's man came back to my door with my order and I promptly paid him and he pulled away in his big yellow truck. It was then that I realized my little mistake. You see, if he doesn't have something from the visit before, he just puts it into his magic handheld computer and makes sure to "save" the item for the next visit. On the last visit, I tried to order 3 different ice cream flavors and he had none of them. (We are his last stop of the night.) He put them ALL into his computer to save them for me for this week and then I ordered online for this week as well. So dear friends, I now have SIX half gallons of delicious ice cream.

And Stu's comment was absolutely priceless. "Wow Heidi, we are going to have to really eat a lot of that stuff so that we can buy more when Mr. Schwan comes back! (he paused as if to realize how gluttonous that statement just sounded.) I mean we wouldn't want the man to think that we don't like him next time and not buy anything from him." Good cover, honey!

So, there you have it...please feel free to stop by and eat loads of ice cream- Raspberry Rumble, Peanut Butter Chocolate, Vanilla, Chocolate Chip, Snickers, or Cookies N Cream. Yum. Schwan's definitely works for me this week!

A New Activity

Since I don't have enough to keep me busy this summer, I decided that it would "be fun" to do the musical directing for a local drama camp. A colleague's husband approached me in May about the idea and since I was borderline crazy in May, I gave it not a moment's thought and said "yes".

Tomorrow starts my dreaded two week commitment to boot camp drama camp. I have been asked not only to do the music (7 songs!) but also to be the emergency cell phone contact, make signs, work with some student musicians, and provide SNACKS for 25!

I am looking forward to the change and Madison will be part of the cast but the director is EXTREMELY creative and isn't into the small details. I will probably go crazy in the first 30 minutes so then all should be good for the rest of the week.

If you think about it, say a prayer....it could be a long 2 weeks. I'll keep you posted!

Happy 11th Nathan!

Today was a great day. Nathan finally turned 11! He celebrated the day by bowling a few rounds and then having his favorite meal of grilled burgers and then topped off the festivities by enjoying his favorite Pepperidge Farm German Chocolate Cake. Yum! (It's one of my favorites too!)

Here is why I like Nate so much! He chose to be frugal and spend the day with his family. He is really not the birthday party type. He would rather just play it low key and hope to rake in the gifts! Today I spent $16 on bowling and $3.39 on a birthday cake! I love this boy. Maybe next year we can just get the birthday cake and call it good.

Nate will start middle school in the fall. He hasn't talked much about it....I think avoidance of the subject is high on his list of priorities right now. I keep thinking how there will be a "divide" in our family during the school year...Madison and Dad will take the later waking time and Nate and Mom will be getting up before the roosters in order to catch a 6:50 bus! Nate has enjoyed being able to sleep in until 8:30 this summer so I think in September, this may be a real problem!

Tomorrow our entire family heads to Lapeer for a few days of relaxation and visiting with Sally, Thad, Josiah, Mom, Dad, and Uncle Jon. I found out I am cooking dinner which is always fun because I love crowds and I love massive amounts of food!

We have been under 3 consecutive thunderstorm warnings tonight with more on the way...it's a great way to end a birthday party! I just hope the power doesn't go out... at least I know where there are birthday cake candles!