Where did it go?

Is it really almost 2010? When did that happen?

I very clearly remember teaching six little students and having to remind them to write 2009 on all their papers.

I also very clearly remember getting excited for Shannon as a propoasal was coming up.

I'm sure it was only a few days ago that I left for a month for MWF.

And yet the calendar is telling me that that was five months ago!

Now I have a whole new class that I have to teach to write a new year on their papers.

Shannon is, at this very moment, moving the boxes out of her room to move to the apartment on Tuesday. The big day is 13 days away!

And I'm anxiously waiting to find out what play has been selected for this year at MWF.

Yeah, I guess it has been a year. The Lord has been so good!

And the winner is.....

After writing out the names and piling them together

I reached in and pulled out

Congratulations, Bernie! I'll contact you for your address!

Thank you all for entering. I had a lot of fun.

Tiffany

Reminder

I wanted to remind everyone that I'll be doing the drawing today at around 4 o'clock. This is your last chance to enter! :-)

Tiffany

Take the First Step

I mentioned before that I was able to go to an amazing Christian theatre festival this summer. I met some really and truly wonderful people there and we've been keeping up since then.

Masterworks is an amazing place, really. You spend four weeks preparing and performing a full lenth play. That means days of rehearsals, more rehearsals, and yet more rehearsals (btw, that's sounds insanely fun to me:-). The leader is Rich Swingle who provides many wonderful Masterclasses for the students and we are privileged to be able to spend time (on top of rehearsals :-) learning with some of the most amazing Christian performers.

As if that weren't special enough, Masterworks is dedicated to showing Christian artists how to use their art for Him. So each day there is a Quiet Time and an evening Bible Study. On Sunday morning we all gather together to worship the Lord. As wonderful as all the technical experience and learning is, it truly has touched my heart each year (this was my third year) to see how God uses those who give themselve completely to Him.

And it's easy......at Masterworks, where your whole life is centered around your art (they have dance, music, and sometimes opera concentrations as well) and you are constantly reminded of Him.

But then you get home, and suddenly things aren't so easy anymore. It's not that you've forgotten that God is with you, or your faith has been shaken, or you don't want to spend so much time with Him anymore. It's just hard when everyday life comes in to remember how completely and wholly the Lord took care of you there and will continue you do so at home.

At Masterworks, it was easy to take the first step the Lord directed you to take, because you could usually see the second step looming ahead. With everything being so focused on your art and Him, you could be fairly certain the second step had something to do with one of those. So you followed what He told you to do.

But here at home is much harder. Your life isn't just focused on your art and Him. You have a family, a job (that may or may not have anything to do with your art), you have friends, you have other responsibilities. When God asks you to take a step, you don't necessarily see the step after that He's going to ask you to take. That's scary. I mean really, really scary.

I was chatting with one my friends from Masterworks a while ago about this difference. They said something that really stuck with me.

"God doesn't tell us what the second step is. He just tells us to take the first one."

I can't tell you how much I've quoted that to myself these past months. It's still hard, but sometimes just knowing that God knows the second step is enough to remind me to trust Him and take the first step.

So, remember in all you do today, to take the first step......He'll show you the next one.

Tiffany

Copy Cat

Actually I'm not truly a copy cat. Shannon and I came up with the idea to have a give away at the same time without consulting each other.

But this give away is for this 8X10 print from my etsy shop Focus This.

To enter, just leave a comment. How simple is that! I'll draw the winning name on Saturday, Dec. 5th.

Blessed providence to you all!

Tiffany

I won!

This year I decided to take the National Novel Writing Month challenge. The challenge is to write 50,000 words of a novel in 30 days. Well, 30 minutes ago, I won and got this really neat poster.

Yay! Now for a month or more of editing! :-/

Now to celebrate winning!

Check back tomorrow to find a chance for you to win something. :-)

Thanksgiving Day!

Thank You, Lord, for this wonderful land that You have given us. Thank You for the Pilgrim Fathers who stood up for their faith and chased down a Land for them to worship You freely. Thank You for all Your guiding of the meetings in the New Land that allowed the Pilgrims to survive. Thank You for directing all those who have risen up in our history to give us a place where we do have freedom to worship You. Thank You for surrounding us with those who love You and encourage our love for You.

Thank You!

Wonderful Wednesday

Yay for thankfulness!

I'm thankful for

~my Parents

~my Sister

~my books :-)

~a school where I can work and be under my father's protection

~the opportunity to use drama for others

I'm Thankful for.....

I was reading through my posts from last year and saw the posts about things I was thankful for for the week of Thanksgiving. Obviously I'm a little late, but I will be posting on Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday.

I'm going to challenge all of you to do the same! I'm going to limit myself to writing 5 things I'm thankful for each day. Will you join me? If you do, please add a link to your post! It would be wonderful to see all the things we're thankful for.

Tiffany

Teach a Child

Psalm 8:1-9

"Oh, Lord our Lord, how excellent in Your name in all the earth, Who have set Your glory above the heavens!
Out of the mouth of babes and nursing infants You have ordained strength, because of Your enemies, that You may silence the enemy and the avenger.
When I consider Your heavens, the work of Your fingers, the moon and the starts, which You have ordained,
What is man that You are mindful of him, and the son of man that You visit him?
For You ahve made him a little lower than the angels, and You have crowned him with glory and honor.
You have made him to have dominion over thew orks of Your hands; You have put all things under his feet,
All sheep and oxen --- even the beasts of the field,
The birds of the air, and the fist of the sea that pass through the paths of the seas.
O Lord, our Lord, how excellent is Your name in all the earth!"

One of the things I love most about teaching 4 year olds is teaching Bible. I don't get to teach all the stories (they have those in another class), but I get to teach the Scripture memory passage. I mentioned our Scripture Memory passage.

It has been such a blessing to see all of the students learn the Scripture passage. One of the most wonderful things I do each month is listening to these little people recite God's Word.

If you have never seen a young person recite Scripture, find the nearest one and teach them one (Psalm 8 is a good because it starts and ends the the same way. Psalm 1 is also good because it flows easily.), then have the recite it for you. If you want to bless those around you, let them hear as well. To make it even more enjoyable, teach them motions with it.

I have been so encouraged to hear the students (K4-12) reciting God's Word together during morning meeting. I really think this is missing in a lot of "Christian circles".

I'm so thankful for school who not only teaches the students' minds, but their hearts as well.

Tiffany

The Art Fair

I was so excited to go the the local Arts Fair on Saturday. Mom and Shann had told me about this amazing photographer, Scanlan Photography, who did landscape pictures from all over the world. The Ball was Saturday evening, but we had a little time to spare before we started the dressing frenzy.

So headed off to the fair. My jaw dropped as I walked into the Scanland Photography tent. I could have stayed there forever and just admired all those pictures. We stayed there as long as we could, but eventually had to move on.

We went to the historic arts section and there was a tent with all kind of herbs and teas in it. They had a really neat bottle with vanilla beans in it to make vanilla extract. That was where I spent my money:

The jar of tea came with a diffuser and a stick of rock candy. I also bought a stick of licorice root to knaw on. It was surprisingly good! It tasted just like the candy that you buy.

After wandering around a little more, we went home to get ready for the ball.

Tiffany

The Hundred Acre Wood

Today was the Day! The K4 class finished our first literature book (Winnie-the-Pooh). To celebrate we had a Pooh Celebration. I was Kanga with Tiggles as Roo. It was quite fun. I can't post any other pictures because of the other students in them, but we all had a great time....and a great nap after. ;-)

Tiffany

Yes, I am still alive...

Nope, I didn't fall off the face of the earth....completely anyway. But I have been extremely busy.

First of all the Lord has given me a very busy little K4 class this year. They are adorable! But I'm VERY tired at the end of the day.

Second, after getting home from the Masterworks Festival I was very excited about pursuing acting, but had no idea how to go about it with our beliefs about young ladies staying at home. But I really felt that the Lord wanted me to get more involved. At first I thought I would be using it at school, but that fell through and I was so confused. Then out of the blue, a friend from another city called and asked if I would do a monodrama about John Calvin for their Reformation Celebration! God is so good!

Thirdly, after that I felt so blessed! Then, the Lord being as good as He is, gave me another opportunity. The ladies in our church each year host a Christmas Banquet. The leader of the group asked me to put together a Christmas program for them. So now I'm blessed to be working on that as well!

Fourthly, in K4 we are finishing our first literature book, "Winnie-the-Pooh", so I have been planning our Winnie-the-Pooh Celebration for next week.

Fifthly, coming up insanely fast at school is the K4, K5, 1st grade, and 5th grade Thanksgiving Feast. So that has needed to be planned.

Sixthly, I have "reopened" my etsy shop Simply Scrumptious Scarves. This didn't actually take that much time as I had just allowed my scarves to expire and had to relist them.

Seventhly, (it's really fun to make up number words:-) I have opened a new shop! After getting my new Nikon, I have discovered that I love to take pictures. Really pictures of anything, but especially God's magnificent creation. So I opened my shop Focus This.

So, that's what I've been up to. Not much, right? ;-)

Tiffany

We are still working to get the wireless connected at our house, but while we're waiting, I managed to upload a few pictures of the trip.

After waiting a while, and only being able to whisper, we got to watch one of the pandas in the San Diego Zoo while it played with some of the bamboo in the enclosure.

Near the entrance to the zoo, there were some pretty amazing flamingoes.

This the the Suprise, star of the movie "Master and Commander" (you only thought Russell Crowe was the star). I did get to see this one up close as Mom and I were watching Wicked while Shannon and Dad went to the Maritime Musuem, but Shannon took some great pictures!

One of her great shots of the rigging.

Well, hopefully I'll be able to share some more of them soon!

Tiffany

They're coming! They're coming!

I have tons of pictures from our vacation to post....Unfortunately they are all on my little netbook. Also, unfortunately, we don't yet have wireless connected in the new house. Sooooooo, when the wireless is connected you can expect LOTS of pictures (well, I may try to limit myself to just a few from each place).

Tiffany

Some Pictures of My Baby

We're in our hotel overlooking the most amazing view of the Pacific Ocean. Unfortunately I can't take any pictures because we're on a military submarine base.

So, to compensate, I thought I'd post a picture of my baby, Tiggles.

You can just look at that and know she's thinking, "And why did you put me in here, again?"

I know, I know, she's not quite the Pacific ocean, but she's pretty cute!

Hopefully I'll get some pictures in the next couple of days to share!

Tiffany

And Off We Go

Just in case I got too used to being at home, we're heading out tomorrow morning for a family vacation! My bags are not packed, and I'm ready to go! I can't wait to take some pictures!

Tiffany

Home Again, Home Again

Well, I've been home almost a week now! It's really hard to believe! I came home to a room full of boxes and have dwindled the boxes down so you can see my bed when you go in.

I was going to try to sum up Masterworks, but there's no real way to do that. I mean to fill you in on everything, I would have to do a minute by minute account. The Lord worked so mightily there among our amazing group that literally things were new everyday! I have definitely come home a different person than I left.

I guess I could say that I learned two things at Masterworks: God does not want me to live a life of fear, and on-camera acting feels more natural than stage.

That first Sunday we were there, God used the worship time to really convict me of living with a spirit of fear. Fear of what others thought, fear of using my gifts for Him, really what amounted to fear of everything. After showing me this, He then led me to the wonderful arms of the theatre group to help heal and grow me. Wow, what an experience to allow God to work in your life with no help from you. That theatre group has become some of the most important people in my life. When you've gone through something like that with a group of people, you are bonded forever I think.

Also, we were able throughout the month, but specifically the last full day, to work with a casting director from Hollywood. Bev Holloway was/is amazing! She took us through what it would be like to audition for her. She had a camera set up and really worked with us in being in front of a camera. Most of the theatre people were just that, theatre people. We were used to the stage and big movements and projection. All of which are not always necessary for the camera. I have to say working in front of the camera felt so natural and exciting! I was amazed.

Now those were, by no means, the only two things I learned, but they are the ones that changed my life the most. Some of the other fun things were: seeing friends again, some of whom I hadn't seen for 5 years!, getting to know so many others who are interested in the same things I am, meeting people who are influential in Hollywood, being cared for and helped by those same people, and I'm serious the list could go on and on with stories upon stories for each.

God was so gracious and kind and faithful during this last month! Praise God from whom all blessings flow!

Tiffany

After three weeks......

I knew I wasn't going to be able to post much, but I really didn't think it was going to be this long. We are starting our last week (which I really, really, really don't want to think about) and getting down to the rehearsal crunch time. We got out early tonight, actually 11:30 p.m.

It's really late and I can't think of anything witty to write, so I'm just going to share some of the pictures I've taken this month. Enjoy. Waking up in the morning, with the spider webs and dew still on the plants.

The Village Green

Wait, I thought I left these in Florida!

The flowers here are so pretty.

Our aparment building.

"Mornin', Howie!"

Rearranging the furniture...again. "Now, where did I put that stove?"

"Children! Time for breakfast!"

Resting while stringing beans.

"Look at that moon, Julia!"

Well, that's a brief cap of what's been going on here. I'm off to bed to get ready to start a new day.

Tiffany

TTFN

Tata, For Now!

My bags are packed, except for things I'll need in the morning. Tickets in hand and I'm off!

I'll try to post some while I'm gone, but knowing the schedule, it probably won't be very often.

See you later!

Tiffany

Change

I'm sitting on my bed with my cute, I mean, handy computer surrounded by books, and boxes. I started contemplating all the changes in my life right now.

Shannon's getting married (remind me to look at that ring again, Shan;-), I'm going away for a month, and my family's moving houses while I'm gone.

How's that for someone who does NOT like change.

You know, I'm kind of afraid that the Lord might be preparing me for something. I mean, this not liking change thing is not new. I've never liked change, but I grew up in a military family that moved every two years.

God certainly taught me about change then. And how He's always with me.

Then I thought (which was probably my first mistake) that we were finally settled in our nice house. Then Shannon got engaged. Wow! Talk about a big change!

But God's teaching me about change through that. He's the One I need to lean on.

On top of that, we're moving house....exactly what I'd come to think I was safe from (except for moving out when/if I get married).

Again, God's teaching me about how to deal with change through this. No matter how many changes are going on around me, He will never change.

I'm really getting concerned with how well I need to know this lesson about change......

Tiffany

Getting Organized: Lesson 7

So sorry for the delay. Life is crazy as I count down to Masterworks! Trying to finish school, get ready for next school, and pack takes up more time than I thought it would.

All right, the next task is to make cards for everything. The article talk a lot about color and system organization. I have decided….I don’t know actually. The color issue is what’s stumping me. I know I want to have dividers for Sun-Sat, 1-31, Jan-Dec. That just makes sense to me. But she presented so many neat ways of using color. Do you color code according to frequency? What about job type? Then there are all those wonderful colors to choose from! Ah, too many decisions.

Well, I’m not going to worrying about that now. I’ve decided to make my cards on the computer and print them out. That’s just easier for me. Plus it’ll give me some extra time to figure out the whole color thing.

Tiffany

Getting Organized: Lesson 6

Okay, now to make the BWP (Basic Weekly Plan). Again you’re supposed to do this on a 3X5 card, but I haven’t gotten my supplies yet (seeing as I’m impulsive and decided to do this on a whim). But I’m going to do it here and transfer it once I have all my cards.

BWP
Monday- wedding
Tuesday- wedding
Wednesday- organizing
Thursday- shopping
Friday- cleaning at school
Saturday- cleaning at home
Sunday- Wedding

This really is for me right now very flexible on everything except for cleaning. Friday is the general cleaning day at school. All the students pitch in to get their classrooms and the school looking sparkly.

I do my shopping on Thursday because I have voice that day and inevitably I forget to get out the money to pay. So I do the shopping that I need and get out money at the same time. Of course, if I get organized and remember to withdraw all my lesson money for the month right after I get paid, I may not need to do this anymore. :-)

Tiffany

Perspective

I'm blessed to be able to tutor Tobi in Math on Mondays and Wednesdays. Tobi is very special to me. He was a part of my third grade class two years ago and brightens up every day I see him. Tobi also has Aspergers.

Yesterday we had a very interesting conversation. It went something like this:

Tobi: "Why don't animals have souls?"

Me: "Because that's the way God made them."

Tobi: "But why? I don't think that's fair."

Me: "Really?"

Tobi: "Then they can't go to God. That's sad."

Me: "That's the way God made them."

Tobi: "That's not fair."

Me: "Tobi, do you think God is good?"

Tobi: "Yes."

Me: "Do you think God is perfect?"

Tobi: "Oh, yes. He's God!"

Me: "So don't you think He made things perfectly?"

Tobi: "Well, I still don't think it's fair."

Me: "Tobi, do you think you know better than God?!"

Tobi: *horrified look* "Oh, no, ma'am."

Me: "Don't you think we can trust God to do the best thing?"

Tobi: *thinks for a minute* "I don't understand, but God is perfect, so it must be all right."


Ah, if only I would remember to answer that way: "I don't understand, but God is perfect, so it must be all right.

Praise the Lord for these little ones who so often, and sometimes unknowingly, offer so much wisdom.

Tiffany

Getting Organized: Lesson 5

Hmph, the next lesson is entitle “Press As You Sew”. How did she know I hate to do that!?

Well, she explains how she knows.

Those of us who are “blessed” with being sidetracked often have the attitude of “well, if it doesn’t show, it doesn’t matter.” I’ve discovered that isn’t true in sewing (although I still don’t like to do it) and I have a feeling I’m about to learn it in becoming organized.

Basically this lesson was “It’s going to be tough. Some of it isn’t going to be fun, but if you skip something it will negatively effect the rest of what you’re doing.” So bring on the ironing!

Tiffany

Getting Organized, Lesson 4

Well the next thing is to write down your activity list, but I sort of already did that at the top. So I’ll just use that list for whatever comes next.

*Just a note as I do this. I’m focusing mainly on my room and my classroom. That may/will change once Shannon gets married and Mom and I will again be responsible for the running of the house. So I’ll repeating this process then.*

So now I need to assign frequency to my lists and length it will take to complete it. I’m reprinting my list here for me to see it.

School
1. Trash needs to be emptied Weekly 3 minutes
2. Baseboard needs to be wiped Monthly 5 minutes
3. Math Center needs to be tidied Weekly 20 minutes
4. Surfaces dusted Weekly 10 minutes
5. Books put away Weekly 5 minutes
6. Organize projector cart Monthly 15 minutes
7. Vacuum Weekly 20 minutes
8. Clean desks Weekly 20 minutes
9. Wipe out pencil baskets Weekly 20 minutes
10. Wipe door handles Weekly 5 minutes
11. Clean white board Weekly 10 minutes
12. Clear off desk Daily 15 minutes
13. File papers Daily 10 minutes
14. Reorganize once a week Weekly 30 minutes
15. Send Home papers Fridays 3 minutes
16. Magistra Thursdays 10 minutes
17. Grade Spelling Wednesdays 20 minutes
18. Enter Grades Wednesdays 5 minutes
19. Grade Bible Tuesdays 30 minutes
20. Enter Bible Grades Tuesdays 10 minutes

Home
1. Make bed Daily 3 minutes
2. Dust Weekly 20 minutes
3. Vacuum Weekly 15 minutes
4. Pick up clothes Daily 5 minutes
5. Reorganize once a week Weekly 25 minutes
6. Clean fan blades Monthly 10 minutes
7. Baseboards Monthly 10 minutes

Personal
1. Shower Daily 20-30 minutes
2. Brush teeth Daily 5 minutes
3. Wash face Daily 3 minutes
4. Oil bath Weekly 20 minutes
5. Moisturize Daily 2 minutes
6. Laundry (if needed) Weekly 60 minutes
7. Exercise Daily 45 minutes
8. Track points Daily 20 minutes (total for day)

My mind is spinning just thinking of all those cards!

Tiffany

Getting Organized: Lesson 3

All right, the next task doesn’t look so bad. Write down 5 (no more than five) frustrations on a three by five card. Since you can't see my card, I'll write them down here.

1. I can’t seem to stay organized. I’ll get everything just the way I want it and then one little thing gets left undone and all the work I’ve done goes out the window.
2. I can’t seem to get a good way of keeping track of my points during the day. *pauses to go add lunch points into the online tracker*
3. My finances are not where I’d like them to be, ie. Budgeted and clear.
4. My writing seems to take a side road because I always feel like there’s something else that has to be done first.
5. Not getting to sew as much as I like. I’m going to cheat and put a couple of reasons down here: because when I walk into my area of the sewing room, I feel overwhelmed before I even begin things and I never get organized enough to know exactly what I need and when.

That wasn’t too painful, but I like the next one better. Write down 5 things you hope you will accomplish by becoming organized. Mostly these will just be the opposite of what I have above, but something may surprise me.

1. Keep everything exactly the way I have worked so hard to get it.
2. Be able to lose weight
3. Have a budget and know what it is ;-)
4. Be able to write and polish my ideas into screenplays that might actually look interesting to a filmmaker.
5. Being able to finish all the sewing I need/want to do.

Not too bad. Maybe this won't be too hard after all.

Tiffany

On the road to organization- Lesson 2

The next “lesson” is to get up 30 minutes before everyone else. Um, I don’t think so. I have a medical excuse. With adrenal fatigue, I need to sleep in in the morning as long as possible (I’m already getting up around 5:45, I just simply can’t get up any earlier than that.) However, the reason for getting up earlier is to be able to shower and get ready for the day. I shower at night, so perhaps right now at this stage of my life I don’t need to get up so early. I won’t feel guilty for this…I won’t….I won’t.

Okay, It's Time.....Really This Time

I can't even count all the times I've tried to get organized and stay that way. Now, I'm not a "dirty" person, just an unorganized one. I know this is an area to work on, so here I go!

I'm very interested in "The Sidetracked Sisters' Cardfile" system. But the book isn't in our local library and I'm just not ready to purchase it.

Fortunately I found a site that explains how one lady uses the system. She even has a nice 21 day plan to put it into use. So I began that journey yesterday.

I thought I'd post my progress here. It's going to take me some time, I know. I'm determined not to read everything and just do what I feel like. (That's the method I've tried before and it didn't work....any of the times.)

But I'll post a link to her lesson, a summary of what she says to do and then what I did.

So here's the first lesson.

*Stand in the center of the room and list EVERYTHING that needs to be done in that room.*

Right, I'm at school, so I'll start with my classroom. Then I'll mentally go home and go through my room.

School
1. Trash needs to be emptied
2. Baseboard needs to be wiped
3. Math Center needs to be tidied
4. Surfaces dusted
5. Books put away
6. Encyclopedia put away*
7. Move cubbies in here *
8. Organize projector cart
9. Vacuum
10. Clean desks
11. Wipe out pencil baskets
12. Wipe door handles
13. Clean white board
14. Clear off desk
15. File papers
16. Reorganize once a week
17. Magistra

Home
1. Make bed
2. Dust
3. Vacuum
4. Pick up clothes
5. Reorganize once a week
6. Clean fan blades

Personal
1. Make bed
2. Shower
3. Brush teeth
4. Wash face
5. Oil bath
6. Moisturize
7. Laundry (if needed)
8. Exercise
9. Track points

Because I’m also beginning to think ahead to next year, I’m adding a list of things I need to do before then.
1. Get boxes for the letters of the alphabet
2. Organize Math
3. Organize Letters
4. Organize Letter activities
5. Finish supply list

Now that wasn't too bad. I think I'll go right on to the next "lesson."

Tiffany

P.S. If you want to join me, I'd love to do this with someone!

Another Exciting Event!

I've been waiting to say this until all my ducks were in a row. Now they are and I am announcing that I've been accepted to the Masterworks Festival theatre program. I will be leaving June 21 and getting back July 19. Yep, it's a month long. I'll be in beautiful Winona Lake, Indiana.

During that month we'll be putting on a full production of Our Town by Thorton Wilder. Yes, in four weeks time we will completely cast, direct, find costumes for, and perform a full lenth play. Fortunately I love rehearsing.

It was actually up in the air for a while because the school where I teach is having a conference the first week of the festival. But the theatre department leader was able to arrange it so I can go to the festival for the first few days, leave, go to the conference, then go back to the festival. fortunately I love flying! :-)

So now I'm furiously trying to get everything together to go! I can't wait!

So you see the new arrival is actually needed, ahem, I mean will be well used. And with the SD reader right on the computer, hopefully I'll be able to share some pictures!

Fortunately I love taking pictures. :-)

Tiffany

A New Arrival

As of 1 hour and 30 minutes ago, I became the excited (and somewhat proud) owner of an Acer Aspire One Netbook.

That doesn't really give the right perspective. Let me see if I can find another.

This isn't the right color, I got the blue, but this does give a good idea of size.

Obviously I've only started using it, but I'm having a lot of fun. It's so cute and little. Not the best reason to like a computer, I know, but it really is a great computer. Very versatile and has exactly what I need without the extras.

Thank you for letting me squeal. Oh, wait, I haven't squealed yet. Here it is: SSSQQQUUUEEEAALLL!

Now that that's settle, I'm going to go look at some other things on here.

Tiffany

Hmph

One of the most ridiculous questions I get asked is, "Did you get sunburnt?"

I took the K4 on a field trip to the zoo on Thursday. Summer has officially arrived. It was about 86 degrees with full sun. I got red. Very, very red. But the funny thing was that all these people who knew I had been out in the sun for about 6 hours asked me if I got sunburnt.

My new answer for them....

"No, I just overdosed on vitamin D."

Cheekily,
Tiffany

Possibly, Maybe

I mentioned script Frenzy in this post. I thought it might be fun if I posted an excerpt from it on the blog. I archived it so that if you're not interested, you can just pass it by. However if you are interested in reading it, it's here.

Tiffany

Change in weather

Our family has felt some changes in the weather. If you haven't heard about it, head over here.

Tiffany

School Jokes

Michael: "Why did the plane grow a graden?"

Me: "Because he wanted to see flowers grow."

Michael: "No."

Me: "Because he was going to land and he wanted somewhere soft to land."

Michael: "No."

Me: "Because he was going to pick flowers for his mommy."

Michael: "No."

Me: "I give up. Why did the airplane grow a garden?"

Michael: (pause) "I don't remember the answer!"

Ah, I love these jokes!

Tiffany

Yes I am still alive

Well, contrary to popular belief, I have not fallen off the face of the earth. "What have I been doing"? you ask (you probably are not asking and really don't even care to know, but I'm going to tell you anyway). Well, I've been up to a few different things.

Last Friday was the opening night of the school play, Anne of Green Gables. I was in charge of keeping costumes sorted and getting people changed. That was a big chunk of my time.

Some other things, that shall for right now remain anonymous.

And then this:

I've been hearing about NaNo WriMo for a while now, but just was reminded about the Script Frenzy about four and a half weeks ago. It's a challenge: write 100 pages of script in 30 days. The challenge begins April 1st at 12:00am and ends April 30th at 11:59 pm. At 5:30 today, I verified my pages and officially won!

What do you win? The cool banner right up there, a certificate you can print off, and an insane amount of excitement at finishing something like this!

That's what I've been up to.

Just in case you wanted to know.....

Tiffany

Script Exerpt

INT. SUBURBAN HOUSE- DAY

Libby is in the kitchen fixing sandwiches for the girls' lunch. Elizabeth is in her high chair eating Cheerios. Outside the window, Ella and Emma Kate, are playing on the swing set. Suddenly sirens go off. Libby runs to the door.

EXT. SUBURBAN HOUSE- DAY

Libby is standing at the door.

LIBBY
Girls, come in quickly!

GIRLS
Coming!

As Libby watches the police car stops at Jessica's house. Libby goes inside with the girls.

INT. SUBURBAN HOUSE- DAY

Libby unbuckles Elizabeth and picks her up out of her highchair.

LIBBY
Ella, Emma Kate, I want to to hold onto my skirt and don't let go.

ELLA
Where are we going?

LIBBY
To Jenny's house.

EXT. SUBURBAN HOUSE 2- DAY

Jessica is standing in her driveway talking to the police officer. Libby rushes towards her.


LIBBY
Jessica? What's wrong? Can I take Jenny for you?

JESSICA
She's missing.

LIBBY
What?

JESSICA
Jenny's gone. She was outside playing. I went inside to get more sunscreen. It was right inside the door. I came back out and she was missing.

POLICE OFFICER
Have you looked for her inside?

JESSICA
Yes. After I called the police I looked through every room.

LIBBY
Let's look again. Maybe she found a really good hiding place. We'll let the officer call it in and we'll all go look for her.

SERIES OF SHOTS
- Libby with children looking in the living room. Libby is looking in the closet. Ella is looking under the couch. Emma Kate is just following everyone calling, "Jenny!" Libby looks around the fireplace. Ella opens the bottom cupboards of the bookshelves.
- Jessica looking in Jenny's bedroom. She checks the closet. She looks under the bed. She mvoes the clean laundry. She continues to call her name.
- Libby & co looking in the master bedroom. They check closets, bathroom, sitting room. Under bed, under furniture, around T.V.
- Jessica looking in guest room. Again, looking under everything and in everything.
END ON: Jessica coming down the stairs to meet Libby in the foyer.

BACK TO SCENE:

JESSICA
She's gone.

POLICE OFFICER
We've called it in. Is there anyone who can stay with you?

JESSICA
My husband's on his way home.

LIBBY
We'll stay with her till he gets here.

The Wit and Witicism of C. S. Lewis

"When it was almost dark Tirian heard a light pitter-patter of feet and saw some small creatures coming twoard him....Then, in a moment, they were all standing up on their hind legs, laying their cool paws on his knees and giving his knees snuffly animal kisses....They fed him with oat-cakes and fresh butter, and then with some more wine.

"'Now hand up the water,' said the first Mouse, 'and I'll wash the King's face. There is blood on it.'"

The Last Battle

C. S. Lewis

What are you?

I really liked this quiz. The Bible verses supporting each question are wonderful.

So what are you?

City of Ember

Sometimes there are just certain books that I read and I have to let others know that they exist. This is exactly what just happened.

The City of Ember (the book, not the movie) is actually the first in a series of four books, The City of Ember, The People of Sparks, The Prophet of Yonwood, and The Diamond of Darkhold.

It's hard to explain all the reasons I love these books without giving away anything. So here's the generic reason to read these books. *

They are a wonderful tool to use to talk with your children about many different issues: truth, courage, responsibility, death, family, relationships, proper conduct, etc.

Books 1,2,4 are books I plan to read with my children and talk about things, but they are safe enough to be given to them to read on their own (remember, this is my opinion).

Book 3 I believe deal with much deaper issues that are best left for parents and children to read closely together. They are not "mature" issues, but things like, discerning between truth and lies, childish dreams, etc.

If you can get hold these books, I would very much recommend reading them.*

Tiffany

*I do recommend these books, however, I also firmly believe that each family has to make its own decisions as to what is appropriate. If you have any doubts, please talk to the head of your household and follow their direction.

How to begin a project

Tiffany is starting out on a big project and she has asked me to help her. So here's how you begin a project

First thing to do is layout your pattern pieces on newly ironed fabric (Tiffany didn't want to do this, but if you've read the right books* you know that you should always iron).
Check to make sure you have all your tools. (Hint: You may have to prickle up your forhead to make sure they don't go anywhere)
Then make look around to make sure you're alone. (Tiffany doesn't count....she always comes in exactly when I'd rather be sleeping. Though I was a little suspicious at first this time, she had a big black thing, bigger than me, up to her face.....but humans can be strange like that.)

Then make sure you check the markings, so that all is in place.

At this point in the project, I had to wonder why there was another pin cushion, when I usually carry all my pins around with me. Must be another unexplainable human thing. It's very hard work getting ready to cut things out. (I think I now know why this is Tiffany's least favorite part of sewing.) So the next thing to do is to take a rest.

I'll keep you all posted on our** progress

Mrs. TiggyWinkle (with Tiffany)

*ie, The Tale of Mrs. TiggyWinkle

**Tiffany is trying to take some of the credit for all of this. I think it might be best to just let her.

And so it begins

As I've said before, we're going to England this September. Well, one of the days in London we're dressing to go to one of the places. So I decided to make a hisortical dress for that day. I knew I was already taking a Regency gown, so I really wanted something from another time period. I settled on the 1850s because 1) you don't need hoops, 2) I like the silhouette, and 3) I found this dress:

When I first saw the dress, I was in love. But not wanting to get too excited I searched for patterns to see if there was anything close that could be adjusted. I allowed myself to get ecstatic when I found this pattern:

With a few adjustments, I think this will be perfect.

I'm going to try to keep a diary of a dress for this project.

Let the fun begin!

Tiffany

Clever and respectful

I was reading The Retro Housewife blog and read this very clever post she had received in an e-mail.

Tiffany

A science professor begins his school year with a lecture to the students, "Let me explain the problem science has with religion." The atheist professor of philosophy pauses before his class and then asks one of his new students to stand.

"You're a Christian, aren't you, son?"
"Yes sir," the student says.

"So you believe in God?"
"Absolutely".

"Is God good?"
"Sure! God's good."

"Is God all-powerful? Can God do anything?"
"Yes."

"Are you good or evil?"
"The Bible says I'm evil."

The professor grins knowingly. "Aha! The Bible!" He considers for a moment. "Here's one for you. Let's say there's a sick person over here and you can cure him. You can do it. Would you help him? Would you try?"
"Yes sir, I would."

"So you're good...!"
"I wouldn't say that."

"But why not say that? You'd help a sick and maimed person if you could. Most of us would if we could. But God doesn't."

The student does not answer, so the professor continues. "He doesn't, does he? My brother was a Christian who died of cancer, even though he prayed to Jesus to heal him. How is this Jesus good? Hmmm? Can you answer that one?"
The student remains silent.

"No, you can't, can you?" the professor says. He takes a sip of water from a glass on his desk to give the student time to relax.

"Let's start again, young fella. Is God good?"
"Er...yes," the student says.

"Is Satan good?"
The student doesn't hesitate on this one. "No."

"Then where does Satan come from?"
The student falters. "From God"

"That's right.. God made Satan, didn't he? Tell me, son. Is there evil in this world?"
"Yes, sir."

"Evil is everywhere, isn't it? And God did make everything, correct?"
"Yes."

"So who created evil?"

The professor continued, "If God created everything, then God created evil, since evil exists, and according to the principle that our works define who we are, then God is evil."

Again, the student has no answer.

"Is there sickness? Immorality? Hatred? Ugliness? All these terrible things, do they exist in this world?"
The student squirms on his feet. "Yes."

"So who created them?"

The student does not answer again, so the professor repeats his question. "Who created them?" There is still no answer. Suddenly the lecturer breaks away to pace in front of the classroom. The class is mesmerized. "Tell me," he continues onto another student. "Do you believe in Jesus Christ, son?"

The student's voice betrays him and cracks. "Yes, professor, I do."

The old man stops pacing. "Science says you have five senses you use to identify and observe the world around you. Have you ever seen Jesus?"
"No sir. I've never seen Him."

"Then tell us if you've ever heard your Jesus?"
"No, sir, I have not."

"Have you ever felt your Jesus, tasted your Jesus or smelt your Jesus? Have you ever had any sensory perception of Jesus Christ, or God for that matter?"
"No, sir, I'm afraid I haven't."

"Yet you still believe in him?"
"Yes."

"According to the rules of empirical, testable, demonstrable protocol, science says your God doesn't exist. What do you say to that, son?"

"Nothing," the student replies. "I only have my faith.""Yes, faith," the professor repeats. "And that is the problem science has with God. There is no evidence, only faith."

At the back of the room another student stands quietly for a moment before asking a question of His own. "Professor, is there such thing as heat?"

"Yes," the professor replies. "There's heat."

"And is there such a thing as cold?"
"Yes, son, there's cold too."
"No sir, there isn't."

The professor turns to face the student, obviously interested. The room suddenly becomes very quiet. The student begins to explain. "You can have lots of heat, even more heat, super-heat, mega-heat, unlimited heat, white heat, a little heat or no heat, but we don't have anything called 'cold'. We can hit up to 458 degrees below zero, which is no heat, but we can't go any further after that. There is no such thing as cold; otherwise we would be able to go colder than the lowest -458 degrees."

"Every body or object is susceptible to study when it has or transmits energy, and heat is what makes a body or matter have or transmit energy. Absolute zero (-458 F) is the total absence of heat. You see, sir, cold is only a word we use to describe the absence of heat. We cannot measure cold. Heat we can measure in thermal units because heat is energy. Cold is not the opposite of heat, sir, just the absence of it."

Silence across the room. A pen drops somewhere in the classroom, sounding like a hammer.

"What about darkness, professor. Is there such a thing as darkness?"

"Yes," the professor replies without hesitation. "What is night if it isn't darkness?"

"You're wrong again, sir. Darkness is not something; it is the absence of something. You can have low light, normal light, bright light, flashing light, but if you have no light constantly you have nothing and it's called darkness, isn't it? That's the meaning we use to define the word."

"In reality, darkness isn't. If it were, you would be able to make darkness darker, wouldn't you?"

The professor begins to smile at the student in front of him. This will be a good semester. "So what point are you making, young man?"

"Yes, professor. My point is, your philosophical premise is flawed to start with, and so your conclusion must also be flawed."

The professor's face cannot hide his surprise this time. "Flawed? Can you explain how?"

"You are working on the premise of duality," the student explains. "You argue that there is life and then there's death; a good God and a bad God. You are viewing the concept of God as something finite, something we can measure. Sir, science can't even explain a thought."

"It uses electricity and magnetism, but has never seen, much less fully understood either one. To view death as the opposite of life is to be ignorant of the fact that death cannot exist as a substantive thing. Death is not the opposite of life, just the absence of it."

"Now tell me, professor. Do you teach your students that they evolved from a monkey?"
"If you are referring to the natural evolutionary process, young man, yes, of course I do."

"Have you ever observed evolution with your own eyes, sir?"

The professor begins to shake his head, still smiling, as he realizes where the argument is going. A very good semester, indeed.

"Since no one has ever observed the process of evolution at work and cannot even prove that this process is an on-going endeavor, are you not teaching your opinion, sir? Are you now not a scientist, but a preacher?"

The class is in uproar. The student remains silent until the commotion has subsided.

"To continue the point you were making earlier to the other student, let me give you an example of what I mean."

The student looks around the room. "Is there anyone in the class who has ever seen the professor's brain?" The class breaks out into laughter.

"Is there anyone here who has ever heard the professor's brain, felt the professor's brain, touched or smelled the professor's brain? No one appears to have done so. So, according to the established rules of empirical, stable, demonstrable protocol, science says that you have no brain, with all due respect, sir."

"So if science says you have no brain, how can we trust your lectures, sir?"

Now the room is silent. The professor just stares at the student, his face unreadable.

Finally, after what seems an eternity, the old man answers. "I guess you'll have to take them on faith."

"Now, you accept that there is faith, and, in fact, faith exists with life," the student continues. "Now, sir, is there such a thing as evil?"

Now uncertain, the professor responds, "Of course, there is. We see it everyday. It is in the daily example of man's inhumanity to man. It is in the multitude of crime and violence everywhere in the world. These manifestations are nothing else but evil."

To this the student replied, "Evil does not exist sir, or at least it does not exist unto itself. Evil is simply the absence of God. It is just like darkness and cold, a word that man has created to describe the absence of God. God did not create evil. Evil is the result of what happens when man does not have God's love present in his heart. It's like the cold that comes when there is no heat or the darkness that comes when there is no light."

The professor sat down.

Hold on Just a Minute!

What in the world happened to March!? It seems like just yesterday we changed the Month on our calendar and the students were reciting last month's Bible passage. And now, we're almost done this month!


Well, looking back, I guess there has been a lot to keep me busy:

Play rehearsing

Costume finding

Teaching

Lesson planning

Hedgehog caring

P/T conferencing

Report carding

and my favorite




Familying

Well, here's to the last few days of this month.

Tiffany

Psalm 47

This is the passage that the students had to recite today (if you've never seen a little four year old recite Scripture, go out and find one to teach it to. They are so dear!). As I read it and listened to it (6 times:-) I was so blessed and wanted to pass it on to you.

Psalm 47

Oh, clap your hands, all you peoples!

Shout to God with the voice of triumph!

For the Lord Most High is awesome;

He is a great King over all the earth.

He will subdue the peoples under us,

And the nations under our feet.

He will choose our inheritance for us,

The excellence of Jacob whom He loves.

God has gone up with a shout,

The Lord with the sound of a trumpet.

Sing praises to God, sing praises!

Sing praises to our King, sing praises!

For God is the King of all the earth;

Sing praises with understanding.

God reigns over the nations;

God sits on His holy throne.

The princes of the people have gathered together,

The people of the God of Abrahom.

For the shields of the earth belong to God;

He is greatly exalted.

Mr. Tiggy-Winkle Comes to Visit

One of my students brought "Mr. Tiggy-Winkle" (a stuffed hedgehog, but don't tell Mrs. Tiggy-Winkle) to school. Mrs. Tiggles wasn't too sure about him at first.



But by the end of their visit, she was tolerating him pretty well.

He's back for another visit today!

Tiffany

An Announcement

I'm glad to present "Take Two", a movie review blog.

Follow the link to see the new site!

Tiffany

The Day the Knights Visited

What happens when you're woken up from nap to go watch some knights

(Picture by Tiffany)

fight on your playground?

You get very tired

(Picture by Shannon)

while watching them fight and win.

(Picture by Tiffany)

But then you wake up just before it's time to go in and the world is all happy again. (Picture by Shannon)

Tiffany

Thoughts

I'm thinking about starting a new blog. This blog would be to review movies following the example Mr. Botkin has given at the SAICFF and the Christians at the Crossroads conference.

If you're not familiar with how his family watches a movie, I would suggest going to an event where Mr. Botkin goes through a movie with the audience. Since that isn't practical for most people, I'll explain it a little bit. As I watch a movie, I will stop the movie each time I see a problem and comment on it. This is not just bad words, immodest clothes, etc, but more about the attitudes, the worldview that the director is displaying, the characters of the people on the screen, etc. (hmmm, two "etc."s in one sentence. Shannon, is that allowed?). It's amazing how much to "see" that you had missed before.

So be looking for the announcement of the new blog!

Tiffany

Correcting an Error

In the side bar on the blogs I regularly read, I put in Breezy's blog, not realizing that she had moved her address. But I adore the blog I had originally found, so I'm putting the link to that one here, so I'll be able to find it and then changed the link in the side bar.

Tiffany

In Honour of Valentine's Day

In honour of the very "red" day tomorrow, I decided to pull out the china I received from my Grandmother. I love it's "vintageness" and am so glad that we are going to use it. Many pieces have been broken over the years, but I love each piece that's left.

Ahhh, lovely. I'm ready to go eat now. :-)

Tiffany