Taking Care of Business
This week has been crazy busy, but I don't feel crazy. (Well, not crazy over the busyness, anyway. :-P) Everything just got addressed in its time.
I had all my new dance classes begin Monday & Wednesday. They're fine. Fine. Yep, just fine. I wish I had the same students and same classes all year, from Sept-May with full recital dances; but b/c I can only teach while Will & Annelise are in school, I can only do the pre-recital tiny classes (18 months - 4 years) and the turnover is just expected, b/c it's a very "try this, try that" environment. I do enjoy the actual classes and being in my tap, jazz, & ballet shoes, but my passion is recital choreography. One day down the road, whenever we move next, I'll look for a private non-competition studio that has a safe family waiting area where Will & Sis could play for a hour while I teach. (My studio now is in a wide open community center, and I would never leave them on the other side of the door w/o me!)
Junior League was another big focus of my week. I had a General Membership Meeting Tuesday night and my community project, Cinderella's Closet, meeting last night. Our League's big annual fundraiser, Spring Fling, is coming up in March and all members are required to raise $300 in silent auction donation items. There are NOT WORDS for how much I HATEHATEHATE soliciting donations!!! Every year I've been active in the League, it's been the one part that makes my stomach churn violently. By God's grace, I am officially DONE, though, this week - over a month early!!! Biggest thanks to my friend, Michelle, and her new massage therapy business - Bella Rosa Massage - for donating enough gift certificates to put me over the top! I do LOVE getting to support & promote a business I really believe in, so that makes it even better. And the weight that has lifted off me now is indescribable!
I made trips to the car dealership Tuesday & Thursday. Tuesday for an oil change. Thursday for them to fix what they messed up after my "low oil pressure" signal came on & wouldn't stop beeping. I miss our old dealership that had all the free diet cokes you could drink and all the fresh chewy chocolate chip cookies you could eat, along with a separate playroom for the kids. Going there was like a vacay in the middle of the day! But since Saturn is going the way of the dinosaur, maybe they don't do all that there anymore now, either... Oil changes are so boring now! :-(
MOPS business this week, too. We had our steering (leadership) meeting this morning, and boy - almost every single one of us is really going through some extreme stuff. A couple extremely happy, a few extremely rough. We spent a full quarter of our planning meeting going over prayer requests. I'm not going into details, but if anyone wants to offer up prayers of strength, health, provision, & comfort over our steering team & loved ones, that would rock! I love these ladies so much, and I really feel what's going on with each of us.
On the emotional front, I had to explain Haiti to the kids last night. I don't get freaked out or scared when I have to talk to my kids about tough topics. I kind of see it as a honor that I *get* to have. I explained earthquakes (which paralleled fantastically with their recent study of the layers of the Earth at school! They know all about the crust, mantle, & core!) and that earthquakes only happen along fault lines. I explained how the buildings there weren't very strong, and - like in the Three Little Pigs - most of them fell down. A lot of people there got hurt or stuck when the buildings fell down, and some of them died. Now they need help, and like the offering Will & Sis gave on Sunday, money like that goes to help those people who are hurting. They watched part of the news with me, and we saw a 5-year-old boy (same as Will) with a broken leg, waiting for aid. Instead of being scared or sad, Will got all happy & excited: "Hey! We can give the extra money we have, and it can help him get better!" I wanted to burst... And we did!
My pastor - and really good friend!!! - went to Haiti on a mission trip less than 2 months ago to work with the group New Life for Haiti. If any of you are looking for a reputable organization through which to donate, Neil knows first hand that 98% of all money they receive goes directly to relief efforts. If you have any questions about them, I'll give you Neil's email, and he can speak in great detail!
Finally, Annelise is sick, so add her to your prayer lists, too. Fever. No school or tap for her today, which was heart-wrenching, b/c apparently the girls saw their recital costumes!!! I'm not telling her she missed that...but I am SO checking them out Monday when I go in! ;-) *I* can't wait!
Tomorrow? Chocolate festival! I'm excited, b/c I actually used to watch Gale Gand's Sweet Dreams show on Food Network as a newlywed all the time! :-)
I had all my new dance classes begin Monday & Wednesday. They're fine. Fine. Yep, just fine. I wish I had the same students and same classes all year, from Sept-May with full recital dances; but b/c I can only teach while Will & Annelise are in school, I can only do the pre-recital tiny classes (18 months - 4 years) and the turnover is just expected, b/c it's a very "try this, try that" environment. I do enjoy the actual classes and being in my tap, jazz, & ballet shoes, but my passion is recital choreography. One day down the road, whenever we move next, I'll look for a private non-competition studio that has a safe family waiting area where Will & Sis could play for a hour while I teach. (My studio now is in a wide open community center, and I would never leave them on the other side of the door w/o me!)
Junior League was another big focus of my week. I had a General Membership Meeting Tuesday night and my community project, Cinderella's Closet, meeting last night. Our League's big annual fundraiser, Spring Fling, is coming up in March and all members are required to raise $300 in silent auction donation items. There are NOT WORDS for how much I HATEHATEHATE soliciting donations!!! Every year I've been active in the League, it's been the one part that makes my stomach churn violently. By God's grace, I am officially DONE, though, this week - over a month early!!! Biggest thanks to my friend, Michelle, and her new massage therapy business - Bella Rosa Massage - for donating enough gift certificates to put me over the top! I do LOVE getting to support & promote a business I really believe in, so that makes it even better. And the weight that has lifted off me now is indescribable!
I made trips to the car dealership Tuesday & Thursday. Tuesday for an oil change. Thursday for them to fix what they messed up after my "low oil pressure" signal came on & wouldn't stop beeping. I miss our old dealership that had all the free diet cokes you could drink and all the fresh chewy chocolate chip cookies you could eat, along with a separate playroom for the kids. Going there was like a vacay in the middle of the day! But since Saturn is going the way of the dinosaur, maybe they don't do all that there anymore now, either... Oil changes are so boring now! :-(
MOPS business this week, too. We had our steering (leadership) meeting this morning, and boy - almost every single one of us is really going through some extreme stuff. A couple extremely happy, a few extremely rough. We spent a full quarter of our planning meeting going over prayer requests. I'm not going into details, but if anyone wants to offer up prayers of strength, health, provision, & comfort over our steering team & loved ones, that would rock! I love these ladies so much, and I really feel what's going on with each of us.
On the emotional front, I had to explain Haiti to the kids last night. I don't get freaked out or scared when I have to talk to my kids about tough topics. I kind of see it as a honor that I *get* to have. I explained earthquakes (which paralleled fantastically with their recent study of the layers of the Earth at school! They know all about the crust, mantle, & core!) and that earthquakes only happen along fault lines. I explained how the buildings there weren't very strong, and - like in the Three Little Pigs - most of them fell down. A lot of people there got hurt or stuck when the buildings fell down, and some of them died. Now they need help, and like the offering Will & Sis gave on Sunday, money like that goes to help those people who are hurting. They watched part of the news with me, and we saw a 5-year-old boy (same as Will) with a broken leg, waiting for aid. Instead of being scared or sad, Will got all happy & excited: "Hey! We can give the extra money we have, and it can help him get better!" I wanted to burst... And we did!
My pastor - and really good friend!!! - went to Haiti on a mission trip less than 2 months ago to work with the group New Life for Haiti. If any of you are looking for a reputable organization through which to donate, Neil knows first hand that 98% of all money they receive goes directly to relief efforts. If you have any questions about them, I'll give you Neil's email, and he can speak in great detail!
Finally, Annelise is sick, so add her to your prayer lists, too. Fever. No school or tap for her today, which was heart-wrenching, b/c apparently the girls saw their recital costumes!!! I'm not telling her she missed that...but I am SO checking them out Monday when I go in! ;-) *I* can't wait!
Tomorrow? Chocolate festival! I'm excited, b/c I actually used to watch Gale Gand's Sweet Dreams show on Food Network as a newlywed all the time! :-)
can i just say that i love your blog! also, if you ever need help fundraising, remember i sell mary kay and will always participate in stuff like that, especially to help a friend! i'm so glad you were able to get your portion done and taken care of this go around! i love how you explained what is going on with haiti to your kids. they have a great mom! you rock and i hope you enjoy the chocolate festival tomorrow!
ReplyDeleteAwww! I LOVE you for saying that!!! And I will *totally* hit you up for future donations - I had no idea. How would that work, for example, for a silent auction?
ReplyDelete