A Musician's Life

Snapshots of a Wedding: A great way to return to blogging!

2011-10-08T16:51:00.000-07:00

This weekend I am enjoying visiting my cousin Cathy and her family in Ontario. Today was the highlight of the trip: Seeing her oldest daughter Sarah Newton marry Joseph Underwood. Right now is the perfect time NOT to be on vacation. You see, I am behind on accompanying and have many obligations at school. However, for that same reason, it was also the PERFECT time to go! Life passes us by and it never slows down. I wanted to enjoy this opportunity to be with family because I don't know when the next opportunity might come. I rode up from Carlisle PA with my cousin Caleb Bohon and his girlfriend Alyssa Colby. We are also going to enjoy celebrating their Grandpa's (my Uncle Clyde's) 77th birthday tomorrow and eat left-over wedding cake. On Monday we are joining everyone at the lake (including the newly-weds) for Canada's Thanksgiving. And then it will be back to reality for me. I do not have my camera's computer attachment so, you can enjoy pictures when I get back. Suffice to say, the wedding was gorgeous :)

THEY'RE COMING!!!

2011-01-08T22:07:00.000-08:00

No, not the martians....Elizabeth's 2011 New Years Post!! Argh, I can't believe I let it go THIS long...even for me!! Just a heads up to check back here over the next few days. I have birthday, new years, Christmas, thanksgiving, recital, baby pictures galore!! CHECK BACK SOON! :)

Olga Kern!

2010-10-24T20:17:00.000-07:00

Today I had the privilege of hearing and seeing UP CLOSE Olga Kern perform Rachmaninov's First Piano Concerto with the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra at WVU. I have waited many years to hear this pianist in person. For those of you unfamiliar with this name, she was one of two pianists who tied for 1st place---the 1st tie in the history of the Van Cliburn International Piano Competition which is held every 4 years in Houston, Texas (Or...Dallas?!). Anyways, she won this competition/tied way back in probably 2002 (so, I would have been about 19 years old). My best friend Sarah watched the re-run of it with me on t.v. and remembers how exciting it was even then.

She is a great inspiration to me as a pianist. After the concert, during intermission, she was doing signings and photos. A friend from my piano studio graciously took this picture for me and I will cherish it! I had no idea I was going to get to sit RIGHT UP FRONT---front row, perfect seating to watch her hands and hear every little detail so clearly. Anyone who has been in WVU's Clay Theatre knows it is quite large and the difference sitting that close to the orchestra was night and day in terms of clarity, detail, and just the inspiration of feeling the intimacy of a performance that close-up! Just wanted to share my picture with you all :)

Recitals!

2010-09-24T04:40:00.000-07:00

I just thought of posting my recital dates here on my page for anyone who doesn't get e-mails from me and is curious and interested in coming!

Tuesday November 16th at 8:15 p.m. DMA Chamber Recital

Program:

Beethoven Sonata for Piano & Violin in C Minor (Elizabeth Etnoyer, Molly Christie)

Brahms Sonata No. 1 for Piano & Cello in E Minor (Elizabeth Etnoyer, Sara Beattie)

Piazzolla: 3 Pieces (Primavera, and most likely yet still undecided: Oblivion & La Muerte del Angel)

Saturday December 4th at 6:00 p.m. DMA Solo Recital

Program:

J. S. Bach Prelude & Fugue in G minor, Well-Tempered Clavier Book II

L. v. Beethoven Sonata in E-flat Major, Op. 81a "Les Adieux" (this means 'goodbye')

F. Chopin Polonaise in F-Sharp Minor

William Bolcom "3 Ghost Rags": Graceful Ghost, Poltergeist, Dream Shadows

Claude Debussy "Images": Reflets dans l'eau, Hommage a Rameau, Mouvement

R. Korsakow "Hummelflug: Flight of the Bumblebee (arr. by Joseph Strimer)

Both recitals will be in Bloch Recital Hall in the Creative Arts Center at West Virginia University. Please RSVP if coming! :)

PRACTICE PRACTICE PRACTICE

2010-09-18T11:58:00.000-07:00

Today I found the solution to letting go of my worries.

Practice.....

PRACTICE.......!!!!!

I have literally spent all morning and afternoon just taking care of dogs (house-sitting) and practicing piano, and organ....and now, I don't have the brain power to worry about anything except how good my mattress feels :)

And then Wake UP and PRACTICE SOME MORE! :)

Figuring out Life

2010-09-15T19:04:00.000-07:00

I had someone who I deeply admire tell me recently that I should consider whether God is calling me to journal my life to share with others. Now, if you read my blog, you're probably thinking "what?" Because I don't write on a blog like I would a paper or a book. The truth is, I think I've been handed down my mom's gift for writing. But, when I'm on here it's more like a page for me to 'dump' my thoughts---to put it VERY non-poetically :)

Anyways, the title is fitting here because this is what's been really occupying my time lately. Yes, I've been busy working, house-sitting, cleaning up dog pooh, balancing my daily duties of teaching piano, school, work at church, etc. But the whole time, it feels like I'm walking through clouds just trying to 'figure out life'.

I wonder how many of us feel that way so often. We like to think we have things all figured out. We say things like "God knows all things and I trust Him" or, "I've learn to expect the unexpected". But, the truth is, while God does know all things and we do need to trust Him, it really doesn't help us 'figure out' life. We gain insight. We grow deeper in our wisdom and in our faith. But, so much of it still just doesn't make sense. And, not always but, so often much of it hurts.

I heard a Christian artist say, when speaking of their many life trials they've been walking through that what they've learned in all of it is to 'sit in your trouble' and 'wait for God'. This is exactly where I'm at right now.

I'm not really ready to blog about all of my 'stuff' but, I will say this. I'm learning to see others even more clearly. I'm learning that facades are more transparent than we like to think they are. And, I'm learning that in an odd way, all the 'stuff' we all go through is a blessing. Because, it brings us closer together. It teaches us that we are all human. We are all 'clueless' in a sense. And, we are ALL in need of a Savior. For some odd reason, I find comfort in knowing that those around me are just as 'lost' as I am. It feels like a game we all play day in and day out. We put on 'faces' for our jobs, our families, or friends. But, we all know we're just playing the 'game' together. And when things come up that challenge us in our walks, we realize that we don't have to play. We can just be ourselves, flaws and all.

Today I visited my piano :) I noticed as I started to play that my emotions were hiding in my daily 'busyness'. So, my challenge for myself this week is to achieve this goal of being a poet. But, at the piano, not on paper.

How do you express yourself? Is there something you love doing that helps you feel like you can take off your 'mask'? Whatever that is, I encourage you to do it. Because, we all need reminded of our humanness and that in that reality there is beauty too and, also a lot that we can learn from each other.

5K and Pictures!!!!

2010-08-08T18:11:00.000-07:00

BRENDA MICHELLE: 5 weeks old, sleeping in the car : )

I'll admit it. I was TOTALLY loving this!!

Mommy's arms....the best place to be :)

Brenda, "Hm, this is a new face!"

Me holding baby Brenda right after finishing my 1st 5k!

YOU think changing diapers stinks....just try being a baby (I think there is probably a good reason we don't remember our infant days! :)

Quiet time with food and Mommy.....ahh

As you can see, yesterday was a very fun-filled day with a very beautiful little baby girl....a little girl that I know my friend has been waiting YEARS for. See, I remember a certain evening about 8 years ago. I met this very nice red-headed girl, about my age, in my college girls dorm. We immediately became fast friends. I had been praying for a close friend ( I only had one or two at the college) and she was praying for a good friend, being a new college freshman.

I have to take just a moment to brag on this friend of mine, Malorie. See, there are NOT a lot of people like her in the world. In the time that I've known her, here are just a FEW of her very note-worthy, and rather interesting accomplishments

1) She took a missions trip (2 I believe) to Bulgaria. Aside from her love for the Lord, she shared this love with the natives in a very sincere, self-sacrificing way. Not once but BOTH TIMES she returned from the country with a practically empty suit-case and the clothes on her back. Was she mugged? NO! Did her luggage get lost in air-port security? NO AGAIN! She had such compassion on these people that she couldn't go home with any of her clothes, feeling too frivolous. She gave them all way. Not only that but she gave her guitar away too! (BOTH TIMES!) The second time people told her she was crazy. She replied that God provided her with a guitar the first time and if He wanted her to have one again, He'd do it again. Sure enough, a mysterious check came in the mail one day, for just enough money to buy the guitar---and the mystery as to how she got this money was never solved....except WE knew!

2) Most girls spend hours shopping for that PERFECT dress for a college-dance. A really talented young lady might even make her own. Malorie beat them all with her amazing DUCK-TAPED dress! That's right, from the dress right down to the purse, it was ALL made of duck-tape. And, it didn't look half bad!

3) The rubber-band ball. This started out as a small project, meant to help her get her mind off some very stressful hard times in her life and occupy her mind and her fingers. It quickly turned into a MASSIVE BALL that can only be rolled around because it's too heavy to pick up. It is held together by nothing other than rubber-bands. She would like to beat the world-record but even if she doesn't, it's still VERY IMPRESSIVE.

4) She is one of the most honest, loving and accepting friends I've ever had. After I helped her through some years of college temptation, she quite literally dragged me back to church when I started to slip from my faith. Her faith in the Lord and desire to please Him and bring others to Him, is what makes her such a special person.

5) And above ALL of these crazy, admirable, interesting things, of which I could add much more (like the hot-red/orange hair-do she let the Bulgarian Gypsies give her :) her newest, tiniest most beautiful and proud accomplishment is bringing Baby Brenda Michelle Scott into the world on July 2nd. For years we have shared in our desire to become mommies and wives. It was such a joy to hold this baby yesterday, give her kisses, introduce her to her new "Aunt Lizzy" :) and see the love and pride in her mother's eyes. You've got to love this little baby---with her curious eyes, her mom and dad's head full of red hair, her sweet little lips and fingers and toes. What's NOT to love?

On a separate note, that last picture didn't really match all of the baby pictures! That was all of the winners of the DeBerry 19th Family Reunion 5K! This was my very first 5K run! I came in 2nd place in my age-group and finished at 34 minutes and 6 seconds! Half of the race was literally up-hill which definitely made things more difficult! But, it was a wonderful experience that I really enjoyed and am looking forward to doing more in the future! I'm very proud of my DeBerry Family Reunion medal that is hanging over my mirror now to remind me every morning to get out and run faster!!! :) I also should mention, for the sake of good sportsmanship, that Malorie's husband Aaron (who is in his early twenties, tall, thin and works out in the Air Force! Won the overall with a 25 minute 10 second record. Congrats Aaron but you better keep runnin' cause I'm catching up with you next year.....mooohaahaaa!!!!!!! :) :)

Hope you all enjoyed the pics and have a wonderful remainder of summer...it's too nice to stay inside!!

Heat Wave 2010

2010-07-06T20:07:00.000-07:00

I would like to start this post with an opportunity to vote.

1) To get more comments on my site :)

2) Because I'm REALLY CURIOUS!

Which would you prefer?

A) A very cold winter with beautiful snow. Warm blankets and hot coco to keep you warm.

B) A HOT! Summer, like most of us are experiencing this week---with pools and ice cream to cool you down.

I for one vote for summer. I'm amazed at all those people who would prefer the winter....do you remember your cars being stuck in the snow, the decreased amount of day-light hours accompanied by many people suffering depression from lack of sunlight? How about the icy roads, down power-lines from top-heavy trees, chapped lips and hands, that urge to 'go to the movies, go to the mall, go ANYWHERE but wait, you don't want to because you have to put on your boots, hat, gloves, coat, and about 10 other layers. To me, this is a NO BRAINER!!! BUT, I really do want to know what YOU think.

4th of July was fun this year. After an extremely busy morning at church I had a loooong nap (it took me 3 attempts to wake up!) Finally, waking up smelling brownies (which was really WEIRD by the way because nobody was making brownies but I thought my mom might be making some when I got home....and indeed she WAS!!!!! So, upon getting home we had a nice family cook-out. Dad, Mom and I drove to Shinnston to see 'the best fireworks in the area' haha!! They were pretty good...would have been better had we been closer but we enjoyed them just the same. Mom and I spent about 20 minutes sitting in our car in the dark on our back-WV country roads waiting to take pictures of just ONE Firework!! (UNSUCCESSFUL!!!) We saw some great ones, anyways.

Mom and I picked up ice cream and took home for us to have with her brownies. Around midnight I went swimming at my friend Sarah's house---just me and her---in their new pool---with the boys all asleep in bed :) :) Her wonderful husband even warmed up our beach towels in the dryer and delivered them to us!! (It's very cold, even in July when the sun goes down!!!

Today I went to the Wave-Tech Pool in Fairmont with Sarah, Christian, Luke and my Dad. This evening I enjoyed a nice fresh pot-luck dinner my mom made at home and got back to Morgantown just in time to hear a summer piano recital and wish my piano teacher off on his trip to Malaysia.

So often I'm wondering 'who will I marry? when will I marry? What kind of guy do I want to marry? Well, tonight I've decided at least 1 thing. If I could marry a season, it would be SUMMER. Me and Summer (Summer and I!) get along just great :) I would even be willing to 're-locate' to live with Summer....year round. :) Sounds like a happy marriage to me!

-Elizabeth 'MARY' Summer......does not my name say it ALL???!!! :) (a certain blogging friend might be somewhat disturbed at the other memories that come to mind with the adoption of this name :) lets leave the 's' off the end, shall we?!

Baking Time!

2010-06-25T15:20:00.001-07:00

Sometimes it's just time to bake some cookies! :) This is my first ever home-made batch of chocolate oatmeal cookies. They contain:

Hershey's semi-sweet chocolate chip morsels

Oatmeal

Cinnamon

Baking soda

Vanilla Extract

Flour

Eggs

Salt

Light Brown Sugar

White Sugar

Walnuts

And they taste MMMMM GOOD! :)

Movies and More

2010-06-24T20:21:00.000-07:00

I have always been a movie-junkie. Sometimes too much. It occurred to me that I should start blogging about some of the really good ones that I've seen. Ones that I thought others might enjoy seeing as well and are maybe not as widely known. I will be upfront about what I did and didn't like.

"Smile"~(PG-13)There are some issues here with parenting. Katie, a teenage girl who thinks she might be ready to have sex gets away with more than she should due to her parents constant arguing. But, that's not at ALL what the movie is about and it is good to know that the girl decides on her own that she's NOT ready. The movie is really about a girl named Lin from China who was born with a cleft lip. Katie and Lin were born on the same day but live two very different lives---one in L.A. as a spoiled teen and another sheltered by her father who was abandoned by his wife and son for taking in the adopted deformed girl (Lin) as an infant. The movie is extremely touching as Katie goes on a missions trip to China where she takes it upon herself to meet Lin in person and finally talk her into having the surgery she's wanted her whole life. It really makes the experience of 'being there' on a missions trip---not just hearing about it, very realistic. (As a side note, having never been on a missions trip but having studied abroad myself, I think Katie's character does a great job of portraying how scary the experience of traveling that far away from home can really be!) It also shows how both girls lives are drastically changed because they were brave enough to try something new (traveling 1/2 way across the world to do something totally selfless and having a major surgery where others would see her face that she hid her entire life). I give this movie 2 thumbs up!

2nd favorite recently watched movie "As It Is in Heaven".

Things I did NOT like about this movie: There are two or three scenes with total female nudity----it's a European movie (Swedish more specifically) and those Europeans aren't afraid to 'show it' by any means. My mom actually watched the movie and wanted to share it with our family until we got to those scenes and she said, "FORGET IT!" However, I will also say that my mother was BALLING by the end of this movie----and I didn't want to admit it but I watched it twice in one week--the second time with her--and I cried both times too!

I also find the pastor's wife's concept of God and sin to be very disturbing and unbiblical. You come to understand why she believes what she believes---because she has been hurt deeply. But nevertheless, it does not fairly or accurately portray who exactly God is. The statement "There is no such thing as sin" seems to stand out in my mind!!

Why do I love this movie so much? Well, it's about a Swedish man who has to retire from his very accomplished career as a conductor at an early age because of health. He returns to his small home-town in Sweden where he reluctantly chooses to take over the position of choir director for a very small volunteer church choir. Not only did I find his approach to working with the choir amusing and educational (having experience in this myself and coming from a classical background!) but, what he teaches them, what they teach each other and what he learns from the experience is invaluable. In a nutshell, the title is fitting in that they learn to love each other not just in words but in action loving each other as we can imagine it would be in heaven. It highlights the ugly, pathetic human side of people BUT, in that it also shows what real compassion looks like. I can't tell you the end of this one but I do recommend you watch it (maybe fast-forward through the inappropriate parts).

Two movie reviews in the looooong 'Elizabeth version' is probably enough for one night :)

What else have I been up to? Well, I'm coming up on my 4th Sunday at my new church organ position. I'm house-sitting for the pastor this coming week and hosting a whole bunch of people there for one night! I'm babysitting for a women's bible study group next week. Teaching piano (not very busy in the summer but there are a few good students who didn't quit on me for the summer!! :) Hmm...I've spent a lot of time job searching and have some interesting prospects.

I was thinking of moving my piano/re-arranging my apartment tonight. I went for a long (almost 1 hour) bike ride alone on the rails-to-trails tonight, right before dark. I haven't decided yet whether I'll move the furniture and piano or not. I just see my piano teacher laughing in my mind. He knows that would be just like me to spend more time re-arranging my room than sitting on the piano bench and practicing!!!! In my defense---the piano is REALLY out of tune right now and playing it makes me want to cry for it :) The movie made me cry enough for one night! :)

If anyone has anything they would like to see me blog more about, please let me know! Of course this is my blog---my time---my space---so, I just do it for enjoyment. But, I could use some fresh ideas and input!

Summer Happenings

2010-06-14T18:17:00.001-07:00

Dear Friends,

I just learned today that the first day of summer is still a week away. They could have fooled me...I thought we were already there! :) I realized April to June was just a little too long to not put up a new post!

This past weekend I had a wonderful visit with my friend Jaime and her three kids and new baby girl. My mom and I enjoyed the time together as well. It amazes me that no matter how many babies come into the world every day, when you hold one and look at their tiny fingers and tiny toes and there sweet little mouths, you realize all over what a gift from God they are. It also amazes me that we ALL came into the world this way! Totally helpless, innocent, and dependent on the love of our mothers. What a wonderful gift to have a wonderful mother and also to be one! I truly can't wait until I reach that point in my life. I believe that is my calling one day and my friends have really inspired me through sharing their experiences and challenges of parenting.

Anyways, I have some absolutely precious pics from our visit and I want to share them!! I also have other pictures I would like to share with you.

Leanna Rose born on 5/30/10~almost 2 weeks old

I've always been told how small my hands are....not next to her though!

The proud big sister ;)

This is one tolerant and sleepy baby!

My Mom and Leanna

Her hands were like this forever...this is her relaxed state..hehe :)

Mama and her girls :)

Jaime was so nice to let me dress up her little doll baby :) I put this little white and blue dress on her and the barrette needs some more hair to stay put but, we thought we would play dress-up anyways :)

A couple of weeks ago I went to Virginia Beach for a couple of days. The moon was beautiful over the ocean.

My good friend Malorie opening up a gift box from my mother---gifts for baby Brenda who is due very soon! Mom got her her very 1st baby doll! :)

My hair is a mess but it's o.k....it's the beach and I look relaxed and happy :)

Busch Gardens: One of the coasters

TIME TO GO TO BED :)

2010-04-17T21:44:00.001-07:00

Here is a nice calming color-purple :) Why? Because I SHOULD be sleeping right now but, I'm in a blogging/internet surfing mood :)

These are TOTALLY random pictures :)

Exhibit A) A Frog on my computer...well inside my computer...well, not exactly...a PICTURE of a frog inside my computer...oh forget it :)

B) Me trying to take a picture of myself and look natural---not like a geek that just took a picture of herself :)

C)Part of our MTNA chapter that ate out at Applebees Tuesday night---they clearly weren't looking at MY camera during this :)

(Oh, and the only 'dude' in the pic is Pawatchai---he did a great job on his recital tonight...and definitely knows how to make a degree recital a good comedy act :) Only a Tai could pull that off!!

D)Stuffed peppers I made for dinner last Saturday night and got to eat after hearing the Pittsburgh Symphony at WVU w/ guest pianist Stephen Hoffman, performing a very rarely performed Tchaikovsky's Piano Concerto # 2

If you have not heard this piece (even most professional musicians have not) you've GOT to listen to it!! Especially the concerto trio of the second movement... phenomenal!

Well, off to bed now...enough randomness to put one to sleep :)

GOOD NIGHT!

A Nice Visit and some other things

2010-04-10T10:51:00.000-07:00

Today I had a nice visit with a friend I haven't seen in quite a while, and her oldest child. Since I know she reads my blog occasionally, thank you for coming to visit!! Here are a couple pictures from today. We had nice strawberry chocolate smoothies & soup, picnic style in my living room :)

This picture, for my mom, is of my new printer. In case you want to look it up yourself, it's an HP Color LaserJet CP1510. I also rearranged a couple of book cases to accommodate this since it's too heavy to sit on top of the book shelf like the other one was. If anyone is in the market for a new printer, I have a nice scanner/copier/printer that just cost too much on ink. I'm keeping it on hand until somebody wants it or as a spare for scanning and copying.

SPRING IS HERE & HE IS RISEN!!

2010-03-23T18:26:00.000-07:00

Happy Easter everyone. Today is the most significant day of the calendar year for Christians. Like Beth Moore said, "Even if Jesus had been born and lived and done all of the wonderful things he did, and died for us, still, NONE of it would have counted, had he not RISEN" (loosely quoted). So, let's celebrate today, and every day, that nothing is impossible to conquer because Jesus already conquered all of it for us on the cross. That's how much God loves us!

It's been a while and time to share some pictures! The two above are especially for Mom, part of our Easter tradition :) Below are my cantata pictures someone took for me during the service, and lots of pics of yesterday's day at the Pittsburgh Zoo!

Have a blessed Easter

LET IT SNOW!!!!!

2010-02-06T21:18:00.000-08:00

Hello from the North Pole!!! At least, that's what it looks like here! :) Thought it was time for some more pictures :)

Sarah--out for her birthday ( a lil' early :) (oh---the picture was supposed to be with her and her yummy birthday dinner---except I forgot to take the picture til' after we ate it! :)

Some music friends that went with me to the Hard Rock Cafe and Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra in Pittsburgh

Me--At the Symphony

Yummy! Warm blueberry muffins and hot coco--perfect way to be snowed-in!!

Straight out of the oven! :)
Pictures of my poor car ;)

Last night I made Shrimp & Squash Pasta w/ Mushroom Alfredo Sauce, Garlic Bread, and fruit, and a small cup of wine...and some chocolate...it was better than eating out!!! :) I really wish I had a nice guy to share these meals with :)

Pictures!!!

2010-01-05T19:30:00.000-08:00

Happy New Year! The last several weeks have been packed with events and fun, to say the least! I've dumped A LOT of pictures into this post. So, grab some hot coco and enjoy ;)

(My brother Dan and me at Thanksgiving)

Decorating my apartment for Christmas!

Black Friday/Early Christmas Present from Mom and Dad (and yes...I already have a cow-girl hat :)

First Day of Snow in Morgantown!

A new dish: Spinich/Ricotta Cheese (& some other stuff :) LASAGNA (yeah, this is a pretty random picture considering the overall Christmas/New Years theme here...oh well!! :)

Some members of my new chancel choir at Waynesburg 1st United Methodist Church (This past Sunday was my 90-day review/end of probation period. Already!!!)

While Nick was home for the week, for Christmas, we also had his belated birthday party (his birthday is in November near Thanksgiving)

Christmas with the family...all FIVE of us :) (well, 7 with Tommy (the cat) and Jack (the dog)

Dad got slippers! (this is a funny facial expression but trust me, he like them! :)

Mom FINALLY got her Digital Camera she's been wanting forever!! HAHA :) I made her wait a looong time before I gave it to her..she honestly didn't think she was going to get one...don't you love the "surprise" face :)

We each got a copy of the John Adams DVD Series. Good movie!

Dan happy with his presents (not sure which one this is :)

Score! I got Nick his "favorite" Christmas present! Waaaay back in July at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida. What is it? A Zippo lighter. It also has the Apollo Mission Picture/emblem engraved on it and 40th anniversary since 2009 was 40 years for the KSC. Nick's dog's name is Apollo too so, this was the perfect gift! :)

Family Picture (Yes, I INSISTED Tommy be in the picture!)....the camera was set on the tri-pod so we could all be in it...by the time we got it right, Tommy obviously wasn't in the mood to have his picture taken, HA!

A picture of our back-yard in the winter (this picture might not actually be from this year, but it looks about that way every year! :)

I went skiing with a friend at the end of finals week...no better way to release some stress!

I took Jack for a couple of walks while home. I think I spoiled him because now whenever he sees me putting my coat and shoes on, he gets really excited and thinks he's coming along! :)

And FINALLY! My New Years party (this was the 7th year of my tradition, already!!!)

Mom's incredible crepes!

My 1st, and surprisingly successful attempt at tiramisu!!

Spinich Dip Bread Bowl

There was A LOT more food than that!! You don't want pictures of all of it though, do you? :) And now, on to the people.....

Little people first :) (Isaiah pushed this chair the entire way across the room and was soooo proud of himself!!! :)

Christian and Luke are wearing the 3-d glasses we had left-over from watching Avatar in the movie theater :) Christian is 6 and Luke is 5 now....where does the time fly???? At my first New Years party, Christian was about 2 months old :( Way to make us feel old, kids! :) haha

Having fun playing the new Super Mario Brothers for Wii :)

Dad and I

Cute group picture :)

And lastly, yesterday I found a good deal on a piano for mom! What does this mean? It means in the next week or so, I'm going to have my grand piano moved into my apartment!!!! Mom and I can't wait to have our 'own pianos' and have the whole thing settled...I do believe between my kitchen and computer and piano, I won't feel the need to leave my apartment much :) (especially in the cold!! )

I do believe that's enough pictures for one post!! I hope you feel caught up now! Happy New Years and God Bless :)

God IS Enough

2009-12-12T07:38:00.000-08:00

It's been a while since I've talked because it's been a while since I felt I had something worth saying. This morning I was reading a devotional and scripture that seemed to go perfectly with the song I was listening to. Here is what I heard "GOD IS ENOUGH"

Psalm 23. We all know it (or we should). I learned it as a little girl in Sunday School. And almost 20 years later, it's significance keeps growing.

The Lord is my Shepherd, I SHALL NOT WANT

He makes me lie down in green pastures

He leads me beside still waters

He restores my soul

He leads me in paths of righteousness for his name's sake

Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death

I will fear no evil,

for you are with me

your rod and your staff,

they comfort me

You prepare a table before me

in the presence of my enemies

you anoint my head with oil;

my cup overflows

Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life,

and I shall dwell in the house of the Lord, forever.

How refreshing to hear these words AGAIN! Here are a few things I get from this passage:

1) God PURSUES US. This was the theme of my devotional---God will follow us around until we finally follow Him. How many people can you say that about? The world is full of 'leaders' who use all types of means, often unethical, to get us to follow in and submit to their 'power'. But, God, the Almighty and all powerful, quietly follows us and whispers to us, until we submit. Amazing, isn't it?

2) Last Sunday, I had a 'moment' that I can't describe as anything else than God speaking to me and putting a desire on my heart to share that message. And so, share I did, in church. I was scared to death but I knew it was from God and it needed to be said. What was it? That God loves us sooooo much and that if we could only realize how MUCH He loves us, that alone would be enough motivation to stop doing whatever it is that we do to separate us from God...low and behold, this was EXACTLY the pastor's sermon for the day :)

3)He leads me beside STILL waters---not waters of stress and turmoil and depression and a need to 'earn' His love for us...STILL waters. God can't meet us until we slow down enough to meet Him

4) Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I WILL FEAR NO EVIL. My pastor talked about valleys that separate us from God that WE create (aka, SIN) but I'm talking about actual death. Just in the past week, a friend lost a grandparent, another friend lost a pastor, a family member lost a husband, and certainly, many other people to whom I'm unaware, lost loved ones. Sometimes, all we see is sin and death around us. But, I know that there is life after this death, for those who love Jesus Christ. And, even though these deaths remind us of the brevity of life, they also remind us how close we are to an eternity with an loving, pursuing, patient, eternal, God. "death has lost it's sting" comes to mind. Praise God!

That's it. Those are my thoughts. My theme this month seems to be "less of me, more of Him". I hope I've encouraged at least one person. No, I hope God has encouraged you. Remember this month, despite what anyone might say to you or things you might see or hear about, that God is in control, God loves you, and He values you HIGHLY, despite anything that you could do.

Merry Christmas!

Back to Blogging

2009-10-22T06:02:00.000-07:00

In an attempt to get back into the "blogging" routine...of which I've never actually arrived at a "routine", I just wanted to post a few pics.

Things are going well here. VERY busy, as usual. God is good ALL THE TIME!! :)

1st picture: A-B Homecoming visit with my friend Jaime and her daughter in front of a GORGEOUS sunset!!

2nd picture: The day after--Roshana and Cameron's wedding (My godparent's daughter that I grew up with). I still can't believe we're all grown up now!!! :)

3rd picture: Out front of the CAC (Creative Arts Center) (around the same time as the other two pictures) I LOOOVE FALL!

There you have it---not much but it's something! Hope you enjoyed :)

"Show me Your Ways, O Lord; Teach me Your paths. Lead me in Your truth and teach me, For You are the God of my salvation; On You I wait all the day"

2009-10-07T02:59:00.000-07:00

Psalm 25:4-5.

This was part of my scripture reading this morning. I did something I love to do but do rarely. I woke up a little after 5am! I was in bed quite early. There is something about getting up early that is special. It's also hard but, it always seems worth it.

I chose this scripture because it depicts my life so much, right now. Isn't this what we all want, as Christians? For God to reveal his Ways to us. To walk with Him and hear His voice? To let him teach us and to wait on Him ALL day.

I find that in the most hectic times of my life, my prayers don't really have "Amens"...they are more continuous conversations and cries to God. I think maybe that's what is meant by "Wait on Him All day"

In the past few weeks, my life has changed A LOT. I received a new music director position at a church in Waynesburg, PA. On Sunday, I said goodbye to my church that has become family to me. Nothing could have prepared me for how hard this was going to be!

On top of that, relationships have ended and new ones have begun, in many areas of my life. I also see people that I care about sick and/or hurting. It can seem overwhelming, at times. What is your purpose in all of this, God?

But, I've been dwelling on the purpose of all these changes. I find God moving me out of my comfort zone....hmm, I seem to vaguely remember praying for something along those lines.....be CAREFUL what you pray for!!!!

But, God is good. Today, I encourage each of us to be like the Psalmist. I hope and pray that the desire of each of our hearts is to pray "Lead me in Your truth and teach me".

Last night I watched a t.v. show that I've never seen before, about the lives of modern-day teens and sex and pregnancy. I wasn't surprised but the more I watched, the more I realized how sad our future generation's lives are. We have a calling as Christians, like never before, to stand up in our faith. Kids need to know that God is more than religion. He is living, He reigns, and we cannot follow Him if we follow the world.

That is my hope and prayer for today. That God will see past my weaknesses, ...NO. That God will SEE my weaknesses, and work through them to show His strength to others. I am weak but He is strong. All we need is a heart that desires to follow God and He will help with the rest.

Please be praying for me as I enter into a new position of worship leading. Something at the core of who I am believes that this position is going to be an opportunity to share my faith in ways I've always wanted, but never experienced. But please pray for me to develop a connection with this church that is healthy, deep, in spiritually satisfying. Also, please pray for my home-church Duff St. as they seek God's will in many areas--financial, musical, spiritual. Pray for the continued friendship with the people I met there who have truly changed my life!!

I'll leave with one of my favorite scriptures....if I need a reason to practice more, here it is:

"Sing to Him a new song; Play skillfully with a shout of joy"

God Bless!!

A NEW SEASON

2009-09-16T19:25:00.000-07:00

As the leaves are turning on trees and the days are getting shorter, I am reflecting on all the different implications of "new seasons". God speaks of these seasons. In my life, I have entered a new season (or chapter). I've been quiet on here as so much has been going on. I STILL have my pending summer blog that hasn't been finished!! (IT WILL BE ON HERE SOME DAY!!!)

To sum up a few things, here is what my life looks like right now:

I am living in a new apartment in Morgantown, all by myself with wonderful peace and quiet :) The 2nd best part? It only takes a minute to get to school! (other might say that the 2nd best reason would be that I can park at home and walk to the football games but, I've never been a huge football fan....sshh.....don't let the player living above me know I said that!! :) :)

I am in year 2 of the my DMA program. I'm taking 2 heavy courses, one called Music in Transition and another Theory Pedagogy. Part of this 2nd class's requirements is to observe 12 Freshman and Sophomore Aural and Written Theory classes (3 of each) throughout the semester. So far, a kid fell asleep in the back of one class and this morning, a fire-alarm went off at the end of class....no dull moments yet!!! (except maybe for the kid snoozing :) What is most intriguing to me is not necessarily the lessons I observe but the uncanny feeling, watching these kids, fresh out of high school (hence, I supposed why they care called FRESHman! :) and realizing how old I'm getting! Seriously, some of these kids I think "there is NO WAY they don't have parental supervision! It's a different perspective, for sure! When the GA (graduate assistant) TEACHING the course is also YOUNGER than you, you really start feeling old :)

I'm in a state of transition with my church position. Without going into great detail, I am no longer the choir director at my church but just the pianist. Tonight I had my first interview at a church much closer and it went GREAT! They even gave me a gift bag just for moving my schedule to be there. They put me through the ringer, so to speak but, I feel I did well and that there was a good connection, personality-wise between the choir and myself. All I can do is pray and leave it in God's hands. They will let me know VERY Soon what the decision is

I have another interview at another church this Friday. Please keep me in your prayers

I just found out this week that I was elected President of the Student WV-MTNA Chapter (West Virginia Music Teachers National Association). It's a big job and I have soooo much more to do now on top of all my other responsibilities, but, it's a position I've wanted for a long time and am glad to do it.

I'm working on a 4-hand recital, a solo recital, accompanying 2 singers and need to begin learning a Mozart Violin/Piano Sonata for a 1/2 recital for a violinist. I'm also playing mv. III of Chopin's Concerto No. 1 for the Young Artist's competition at WVU---preliminaries in Dec. and competition in January (16th).

For those of you who are able to come, I'm planning on giving my solo recital January 23rd (a Saturday)---TBA time (I still need to get this date confirmed).

So, there is A LOT going on right now. But, I feel God is growing me in my faith and also teaching me that I have more abilities than I thought and challenging me to grow them more, as well.

For the visual pleasure of my readers (cause I KNOW I always talk way too much :) Here are some random pictures, the most recent I have on my pc, as of now. The first is from my mother's birthday, in July. The guy is my brother Dan :) (I don't have a lot of pictures with him so I thought this one was nice :) I think we didn't know we ran out of candles so mom got to be "1" again----you know what they say about growing old...it's your 2nd child-hood!! Haha :) (just kidding mom :) :)

This is from, I think our last day on the beach in Daytona. My mom and I spent the morning together shopping for some pretty ocean-glass jewelery and then, she braved her fear of heights to ride the little gondola (I'm not sure what else to call it) that stretched over the pier and out over the ocean. I like this pic of the two of us :) I was taking it with my hand which is why it's so close up and I think we're both a little "vacationed out" at this point but you know, you know you've had a great time when you come home "tired" from vacation! :)

So, that's enough for now. Thanks for reading and I promise to try and get that summer blog posted before the snow starts to fall :)

God Bless

A Week in My Life

2009-05-29T19:41:00.000-07:00

I am always amazed at how fast the summer weeks and months pass by. No sooner am I out of school than the first month of vacation is almost over! No worries though. My family and I are looking at a very fun-filled summer ahead of us. Here's just a few things I've been doing this past week or two.

-I bought a new 24" iMac desktop pc last week. Ok, well, I'll be paying it for a while, but I still bought it! This is my new pc/t.v./entertainment system. It works really well with my i-pod, making videos and blogs and recordings is super easy, and the picture is really REALLY nice. Mom and I have watched 2 movies on it already. Now that I'm moving into my own place in two months, I'm looking forward to having a new way to conserve space (instead of having a t.v. and computer, I'll just give the t.v. to my brother or something). I can use my old laptop for taking notes in class or if I go on vacation and want to take a pc with me I can (or not! :)

- I have been running. Trying to get in shaping. Key word...TRYING. Though the pounds and the inches have not budged, I have been getting faster. I was shooting for 15-16 minute miles. Then on Memorial Day I made 1.5 miles in 24 minutes, and the 1.5 miles back in about 21 minutes and 15 seconds. I pushed a little too hard. I was so out of breath and thirsty when I came in the house I couldn't speak. I spent about 4 hours after that sitting, playing with my mary kay makeup (my mom sells it) and just thinking "WHY did I do that to myself?!" after running I did 100 ab crunch/workouts, about 80 for each arm (using dumb-bells) and stretching. Wednesday I had a pretty good work-out at the YMCA, and for part of the run I was doing 10 minutes and even 9 minute miles! (not for the whole mile, of course). Tonight was my new record breaker. My stomach is feeling a little weird so it's good tomorrow I won't have time to work-out. I can rest my body. Tonight I did 1 mile out in 13 minutes and 1 mile back in just under 13. Then I walked a mile in 20 minutes (just cooling down).........some time soon this is all going to pay off!!! :)

-I went to my friend's house Monday for a memorial day picnic. I also fed the baby canned baby food. This is the first time I've ever done that! I couldn't believe that after all these years of being around kids and babies, I somehow missed that experience!

-I saw Night in the Museum 2 with my mom. Good movie! Better than #1!!

-I started my first week of musical rehearsals in Fairmont. Realized I'm in waaaay over my head!!! Been practicing A LOT!!

-Been practicing 4-hand Brahms variations on theme by Haydn for friend's recital. Still have several other pieces for same recital, not yet begun.

-Been practicing solo recital music for MY recital

-Spent about 7 hours yesterday at church planning choir and piano music for church and getting all organized and prepared for the summer

-Spent much of today searching the internet for travel packages for our family

-Bought two pairs of sandals for the summer....one pair is really comfy flip-flops...I'm actually wearing them now as slippers :)

-Keeping Lurtle the Turtle alive :) He's been eating well!! (Needs a clean tank though....it's getting skummy despite the filter)

-Erased all the music on my i-pod and am downloading music again on it through my new pc. I finally learned, after much trial and error and patience, how to categorize the music into albums and collections. Now I can actually find what I'm looking for on it!

-Got a big scratch on my leg from walking my dog...he conveniently made a line across another scar on my leg that was from my cat from about 9 or 10 years ago...I now have an "x marks the spot" on my leg...just to prove that these animals really do run our lives!!

-Babysat my friend's baby on Sunday. Had a really good time with that :) He's such a sweetheart and he was so good while they were gone! Made me want to have my own even more :)

Going to bed soon to get up early tomorrow and drive to Maryland to visit my friend Jaime! Can't wait to see you!!!!! :)

That wraps this up. I hope to have some good pics from tomorrow to share.

God Bless!!

Just a Better Picture

2009-05-18T09:40:00.000-07:00

It dawned on me last night. The reason the last picture looks so bad is because I was sick! I was horribly sick that week with a sinus infection so I just looked tired in that picture. Mom took a pic. of me outside our house today. I have my hair down, took my glasses off and, I feel MUCH better! So, just felt like sharing. I'll put up a new picture in a month or two after I've lost some weight and then I'll REALLY be excited! :)

A New Season

2009-05-17T20:27:00.000-07:00

Recently, while struggling with some big decisions, my piano teacher said something to me that was really funny, although so true at the same time! I was talking about making decisions (in regards to myself and someone else). He said (speaking in the 3rd person...as he LOVES to do in teasing his students :), "Yeah, why can't you just make your decision like me? Changing your mind isn't so hard! I do it all the time!" Then he made a comparison to my inability to stick with a decision to a smoker who says, "Have you tried to quit smoking? It's not that hard. I do it all the time!"

My teacher has put up with me for 5 years now. So, he knows me well!! That's 1/5 of my life that he's had to put up with my quirks, and I with his!

So, why am I telling you this? Well, because I have reached a point in my life where I'm TIRED of making decisions and changing my mind. I'm tired of looking behind me all the time, worrying if I've made the right decision or not. Today my pastor gave a really good sermon about worrying. He talked about how God doesn't want us to live that way and how we can turn our worrying into opportunities to pray over those things worrying us. Boy did this speak to me! I will make a decision, feel like a new woman, and at a moments notice, because of my worrying, I'll switch back!

Well, welcome to the NEW me! This girl has decided that God IS sovereign and that I need to stop worrying! He's guiding me wherever I go and, if for some reason I AM messing up, well, He loves me enough that He's going to fix it, some how:)

So, what kind of decisions have I made, lately? One, I got a new apartment this week! I'm moving in the 1st of August. I LOVE the place!! It's my first single apartment ever! I love the layout, the kitchen, the appliances, the location, having my own washer and dryer, the fact that I can have my grand piano there.....I LOVE IT..I LOVE IT...I LOVE IT!!!!! This was a very significant step in committing to my DMA program...to envisioning myself as the hard-working doctoral student I know I can be...as opposed to the wavering, tired, constantly driving, person :)

Secondly, I'm really focusing now on my playing! I got a gig this summer playing for a musical called, "A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum". This is my first time doing something like this. It works perfectly around my teaching and church schedule, as well as vacation and moving time. I'm also working on my solo program for the Fall, my Rachmaninov concerto for the chamber recital, a 4-hand piano recital, and continuing learning organ and also my church music and preparing for piano camp coming up. So, I'm focusing on music! And I'm LOVING it!!! It's amazing how much energy one can put into something when they set their mind to accomplish something and stop WORRYING about everything else!!!

Ok, so a visual representation of my new commitment to being a worry-less, more committed individual. I got bangs! I haven't had bangs in over 10 years and I've really been wanting them! I also had partial blond highlights put in. I really like my new look! See, decisiveness can lead to more fun too!!!

So, here's a pic. of my bangs. My hair looked much better when I had it straightened. But, if you have curly hair you know that it's much more time-consuming than what it's worth, unless you're getting dressed up to go somewhere special (and the only place special I'm going this week is to my living room to practice :) Anyways, here's a pic, in case you care :) And yes, I know it's not one of my better pictures :) It was more like one of those, "ok, we're taking a picture of my bangs....smile!" pictures :) I look tired I think. Anyways, whatever! I'll have new pictures soon enough.

I guess that's it for now. I've been up late several nights in a row now and my body is screaming for sleep! Today I finished mowing the lawn (I spent 1 hour, 15 minutes mowing Friday night and took another 45 min. to finish today). Then I walked the dog 1 mile. Came home. Ran 2 miles (walked/jogged/ran). The first mile I did in 15 minutes and the second in 13 minutes. Then I walked another mile. Came home. Stretched and did some floor weights. Then sat and had a snack. Took a shower. Realized I am REALLY REALLY sore! And now I'm going to crash :)

HAPPY HAPPY JOY JOY!!!

2009-04-28T18:10:00.000-07:00

Words do not adequately express how happy and relieved I am to be finished with school! Ok, so I have one more 75 minute class on Thursday and we have to share our abstracts, and I've got more piano lessons to teach and 2 juries to accompany...but in my head, school is over! I have no more school assignments and the dreaded paper that was looming over me is turned in and out of my hands now!

What am I doing with this wonderful new time? Well, at this moment I'm sitting on my bed-room floor, in my P.J.s, typing this (why I'm not sitting on a comfy couch or bed...I don't know...guess I just felt like sitting on the floor tonight!). I'm about to go find something good to eat and watch "Eighteen and counting" on TLC (I really like this show...too bad there are not more positive Christian programs like this on T.V.!)
Then, I plan on getting LOTS of sleep tonight :) I'm not even going to set my alarm, and I'm going to turn off my phone so nobody can call me while I'm still sleeping like they did this morning! (or was that yesterday morning?)

I'm going to sit and chat with my mom who has had to put up with a cranky daughter the past few weeks who has not had much to say lately except "Hello" "Goodbye" and "Don't talk to me, I'm busy"...she deserves a nice, content "movie buddy" tonight :)

Again, I thank each of you (because pretty much the only people who read this are my good friends or relatives) so I know who you are and thank you for reading my blogs and praying for me. I can't believe I've finished 1 year of my doctorate already....I guess I just might make it after all!!!

God Bless and Happy Summer! ( I don't care if it's not "officially here" yet. In my rule-book, hot weather, summer clothes, and the first "Etnoyer strawberry shortcake dinner" initiates the beginning of summer! Now all I need is a good camp-fire and s'more party...sounds like a nice plan for saturday :)

UGH! THE SOUND OF STRESS (w/ a capital S)

2009-04-18T18:38:00.000-07:00

Hi everyone. Sorry, but I don't have new exciting pictures of the beach or anything else. I just needed to vent a whee whee bit, and then get on with it. I have a 15 page paper due a week from Tuesday and I've been so busy there hasn't been much time at all to start the thing! So, I have TWELVE books/sources that need to be sorted through, skimmed, notes taken, etc. to form my outline and get started on this thing! Today I was gone all day teaching, a meeting, more teaching, and 2 rehearsals. Tomorrow I've got church, and about 3- 3.5 hours in the evening at church too for our last cantata performance! So, that leaves me NOW and tomorrow between 1 and 4 pm and at night, after the cantata to work on it. Monday I've got until I leave for teaching (I leave around 2:30 pm) and get home around 7:30, and then teach again until 8, and then have a couple of hours to work on it before bed. Tuesday...don't even ask!!! I go alllllll day looooong!!! Not to mention my piano lesson and organ lesson are both on Tuesday, of which I've practiced a LITTLE bit for, but also have music history tuesday and would like to come to class knowing I've at least started the paper! Wednesday I go to a junior high Christian school to accompany a choir rehearsal for their concert next week, then come back to the CAC (WVU) to teach until 6:30, then have studio 7-probably 8pm or so, then get home around 9 or 9:30 and have a couple of hours but have to be up early the next day to drive back to Morgantown a 3rd time for class. Then I come home, teach, then go to choir, work on the paper....oh yeah, I'm supposed to actually plan the choir's music in the next two or three days so I can have it in the church bulletin and practice/prep. for rehearsal! Hmm...I guess I could do that if I skip sleeping. Then Friday I teach, have some time during the day to work on the paper, but then in the evening teach 4 boys and then have Jon visiting me for the weekend...so Saturday and Sunday our OUT for working on the paper....then Monday I have the day time to finish it up, Monday night have to play for the junior high choir's first concert (I cancelled my teaching for that evening) and then Tuesday morning get up early go to class and turn in the paper.......

Think I can get it all done??? I honestly don't know! I know I'll probably do my best but I know a lot of other things are going to be left UNDONE this week for the sake of the paper...and sleep will likely be one of those things.

Ok, thanks for listening..or reading, or whatever. I'm going to start now...which is always the hardest part!!

LE TOMBEAU DE MURTLE

2009-04-09T17:44:00.000-07:00

MURTLE THE TURTLE (March 2009-April 2009)
Sadly, this post is in memory of my little friend Murtle who was only with us but a month! As my brother nick predicted, he wouldn't make it til' Christmas...he didn't even make it to Easter!

So, here's the story. My first little piano student had just arrived at the house. As she finished her first page, I ran to my room to get her stickers...which she absolutely LOVES!! As I ran to my room to grab the stickers, I noticed one of the two turtles jump off the log into the water and I said "WOAH! Look at that!" Sara quickly ran to my room to see what it was and I left the room to get her focused on her lesson! Fast forward a couple of hours later. I'm jumping out of the shower, hurrying to get ready for the 7pm Maundy Thursday service and passover meal at our neighbor church. As I bend down to say hello to my little turtles, I notice one isn't moving.....uh oh! He's glued to the side of the filter! At first I think, "maybe he's relaxing...or napping...wait, turtles don't nap under water!" I quickly figure out that he is...GULP,.... DEAD! Then I start blaming myself! Thinking...oh, the filter sucked him in, or I scared him when I ran into the room too fast..or I didn't pay enough attention to him this week!! Oh poooooor little Murtle!!

I skooped him out with a tiny plastic fork, layed him in the plastic bag, set it on the front porch, and left for church.

When I got home, my parents were gone at their church. The plastic bag is gone now. I checked on little Lurtle. He seems lonely and confused :( I gave him a little snack because I feel bad :(

I'll miss you Murtle. You were a cute little friend! All the memories of driving back 15 hours in the car...the day we walked on the beach, the night in the hotel, the excitement of the new acquarium,.....we had fond memories...and I'll miss you!!

(Enter sobbing now)

Please exit this post quietly and with reverence

Finishing Up

2009-03-29T22:45:00.000-07:00

One more sunset picture, with me in it. I was wearing my black pjs anyways, but because the sun is so bright, it's just a shadow of me. I still love it though :)
My mom asked me to take a picture for her because I was getting up early the last day to watch the sunrise. Lynn walked with me to the ocean and I got the most gorgeous photos! This is one of them.
another person I don't know. Just a picture of the pool at our hotel, facing the ocean. The pool water was a bit warmer than the ocean water, so we swam in there a bit more :)
The waves were crazy our last day there....a storm was moving through and there were a lot of rip-currents...So, I respectfully watched without getting very deep in the water....good to have a healthy fear of nature!
I don't know these people. It's just a nice beach picture
This is what our hotel looked like from the beach...it was soooo nice :)
Murtle and Lurtle. My new pet turtles :) The only way to tell them apart is Lurtle has a tiny mark on his left side that Murtle doesn't. It looks kind of like the shape of Florida...that's the ONLY difference between the two...aren't they cute? :)
Another photo of the shuttle
Thanks to good timing, we were able to see the space shuttle that took off 2 weeks ago, from outside the back of our hotel, on the deck, facing the ocean. It happened about 50 miles from where we were standing, and only about 2.5 hours after we arrived in Daytona and settled in to our hotel. I took many pictures of this, but this one is pretty good. IT was amazing to watch, and also to see it as it went over the ocean, and got smaller and smaller. We even saw the (gaskets?) that dropped off after it reached a certain point...this experience really fueled my excitement for our trip to the Kennedy Space Center that we took a few days later.
Outside the front of our hotel (looking out our hotel room window). I miss those palm trees!
I'm not sure what happened but the last several pictures I added to my blog didn't show up when I published the page. So, now that you've seen pictures of the Kennedy Space Center, how about some of the beach?

Beach, Additions to the Family, and More

2009-03-29T20:52:00.000-07:00

This is the thing that you always see in pictures...the part that lands on the moon...and I think the space craft lands on it or something...I don't know! But here it is :)
Girls, if you ever feel "fat" just stand in front of one of these....you'll feel wonderfully small :)
I talked about this below. All of these would have had fire blowing out of them during take-off. These are the missiles that were used for the Apollo launches. What they use now is a bit different and while probably just as powerful, not really comparable to these in that they are compared to the power of an atomic bomb!
One of the engines for one of the...umm...I think it was for one of the missiles?? (I don't think that's right...anyways...it was an engine!!! (or rather it IS an engine..just not one that's used anymore :)
The most I understood about this massive 'thing' is this. We had to drive way out past the sand track to get close enough that we could climb up a tower, and I could zoom my camera as far as it would zoom, to get a picture of this thing to turn out like it did. The actual space launches are on an island, about 3 miles from land (and we were in the building where the control panels are..and got to see them ourselves! And outside that building is the bleachers where close family/friends only were permitted to view the take-offs. This is part of many other constructions near the island, that helps power the process. That's all I know...sorry!! Interesting fact: If you are 800 feet from the actual take-off, the sound is so loud that it would kill you! When we stood inside the control room, they reenacted a simulation of a take-off so we could feel how hot and loud the room got, 3 miles from the action!!! There is a strip of solar panels at the top back of the room and they flipped open and shook violently and heated up....it was pretty neat :) Can't imagine what that was like for the families to be sitting outside and see it that close-up....also, the old apollo missions used missiles that had the power of an atomic bomb when they heated up!! Pictures of that on here too (see above)
An up-close visit with the NASA Space Center. Interesting facts: 1) See the large parallel gray things on the right side of the building (around the corner from the NASA emblem)? Those doors open up and they store the space shuttles inside of that building! They come out of those doors and are wheeled down a sand-track to the launching pad. This process of a relatively short trip takes about 8 hours....gotta be careful with billion dollar flying objects!!!! Fact #2) The blue area of the American Flag (the entire area...yes, where the stars are) is the size of an NBA Basketball court!! That's how massive this building is, in case the picture doesn't do it any justice (which it definitely does not) By the way, this is as close as we got to the building. We were taken in other buildings but this one is I'm pretty sure closed off to the public completely (doesn't that make you curious of what other projects and possessions are inside of there??? It does me!!)
The Explorer-an up close view of a real space craft that has been to space...too cool!!! (my friend's husband explained to me that the black tiles were part of the heat shield and that EVERY SINGLE SQUARE had to be checked or the craft could burn up before its return to earth)
Standing inside part of a display at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida
Well here it is! I finally did some new fun and exciting things this month! Ever since my parents got me a digital camera for Christmas, I've had so much fun taking more pictures than I did in the past. Here are a few of the things I've been up to in the past several weeks:

1) I went to Daytona Beach for the first time over spring break with my friend and her husband and mother. The four of us had such a wonderful time and I've got some great pictures to prove it :)

2) I adopted 2 little turtles on the trip. Their names are Murtle and Lurtle (the 2nd name was taken from a 3 year old cousin as my cousin and her children were helping me come up with good names. I'm really looking forward to telling him when he grows up that HE named the turtle Lurtle...just in case that poor little turtle gets made fun of :)

3) This weekend my parents took a trip to where we used to live in PA to visit my brother. So, I'm enjoying some much needed and appreciated time by myself. Time to think and pray about a lot of things weighing on me lately. And time to relax a little and remember that God is STILL totally in control and aware of all things.

4) School has really been winding down for me, in large part because of my decision to take on less this semester and a lack of practicing---one of the top reasons I chose to stay home this weekend. However, this has been a very busy teaching semester for me and between students and church activities, I manage to keep busy enough. In case your looking for a reason to pray for me...on top of the many other great reasons!! (relationships, guidance, decisions with school...guidance in general) you could also pray that God would help me develop and use the communication/leadership skills to know when to put my foot down or draw the line, so to speak, when it comes to students cancelling lessons and making them up. This has been quite an issue this semester, even more-so than in the past, and it's something that really needs to be dealt with as these students are taking more and more of my time rearranging and cancelling things.

Ok, enough talking. I can't wait to show you these pictures! And unfortunately, I still haven't figured out how to get them to post BELOW my text, so you've already seen them by the time you've read this! Oh well, minor detail. Thanks for keeping up with me and God Bless!!!

March is here!

2009-03-02T17:05:00.000-08:00

So, I'm trying to make a point this year of being more regulary with my blogging, a bit shorter and concise, and thinking of things interesting to others. I've come to learn one thing through this, I'm NOT that interesting!!! :) Hence, the blog title "March is here!" I really couldn't think of anything more exciting, sorry!

I do have one bit of exciting news, although it's not the kind that will make you jump out of your chair and yell "YIPEE!!!" But it's enough for me :) I finished my paper on Bach's Orgelbuchlein project, about 20 minutes ago! I've been working on it since Saturday and had no idea it was going to take 3 days of work to finish! Now, I still have to type the hand-out and practice GIVING my presentation, which needs to be about 25 minutes long. I'm the first one tomorrow morning, at 9:30 a.m....and aside from not being much a morning person, I don't realy like going first! But, the good news is, I get to be done first! :) I had no idea this project would take so long....oh wait, I ALREADY SAID THAT!!!

When this boring and BORED doctoral student finishes this project she's going to come up with some nice new and exciting things to talk about...promise :)

Until then, HAPPY MARCH!

Birthday, Weather and Other Happenings

2009-02-14T14:37:00.001-08:00

It has been a while since I posted anything new so here are a few updates.

1) My birthday last weekend was great!! I've attached several pictures. We didn't do anything huge or expensive, but it was an enjoyable, and relaxing day spent with family and friends. What more could I ask for?

2) Last week I drove home from Morgantown in a 60-70 mph wind storm that almost blew my car over! I was counting my blessings when I got home that night, even though power was out and several places had wind damage.

3) Tuesday night I got a really sore throat, and finally went to the doctors this morning thinking I had strep. The good news is I don't have strep, but the dr. did give me an antibiotic because my throat was so swollen and red, and my ears had extra fluid and my sinuses were a bit swollen. Tis' the season! I am thankful though for medicine, and the excedrin which has temporarily taken all the pain away!

4) This is REALLY exciting!!!! A few weeks ago God answered my persistent prayers to get out of my apartment. It was sub-leased and the day they called I had to be out by the next day! My dad was also wonderful about driving up with me to help get my things out and staying up late on a work-night. The living situation was stressful with one roomate in particular, so I was extra-thankful to have 'Daddy' there to ward off a very disgruntled roomate. All ended well and I'm so happy and content being home again :)

5) I finally got my room organized! I had piles of pictures, letters, cards, etc. etc. ETC. all over my floor and I'm a neat freak, so this was REALLY bothering me! I was allowed to get a nice little wooden night-stand at A.C. Moore for my birthday which was extremely helpful in organizing things. Now I have more desk space, and floor space, and walking around in the middle of the night is no longer a hazard :)

6) School has been going well. It hasn't been as busy for me, intentionally because I only signed up for 1 academic class this semester. But, organ lessons are going really well and I'm getting pretty good at the pedal and finding and coupling stops, etc. :) Also, piano lessons are back into the swing after a short break away after not winning the YA competition. My teacher just had emergency surgery but he's back now too, so we're going to get the show on the road and April 28th I'm giving my first DMA chamber recital!! All of Rachmaninov Piano Concerto No. 2

7) I am, as of today, up to 23 piano students now...yup, that's a lot. I'm so thankful though! Not all of them signed up for the full 13, so having a few extra really helps compensate for that. I'm trying so hard to get ahead on bills this year, and have not used my credit cards once, since the first week of the year! It's a good feeling to change to healthier habits, and especially in the economy we are all living in right now, I am extra thankful for the income and stability.

8) I am looking forward to spring break this year! For the first time in all my college years, I'm going to go on vacation, to a place of MY choosing (with my friends :) , where it is warm and sunny :) We're planning on going to Florida March 14-21st, God willing and finances allowing. I'm really looking forward to it.

9) The pounds have not shed yet, but I've been working out a lot the last month or so. Since my throat has been so sore too, I've had very little to eat today, and am hoping for good results by Monday morning (I refuse to weigh-in until next week because I'm thinking weighing every day is obsessive and not healthy. I'm just focusing on diet and exercise and using common sense!!!

10) I am thankful for my church job!!! I had a recent re-evaluation and with the exception of a few easy improvements, which I've already started to put in place, they want to keep me!!! This was wonderful news. I'm so blessed to have this position, and to be part of such a loving church family.

That's enough for now. Enjoy the pictures! :)

BREAKING NEWS

2009-01-11T14:47:00.001-08:00

Or, you can re-name this the NOBODY cares Blog. But I do!! I just realized that the text-book I need for the ONLY academic course I'm taking this semester ( the rest of my credits are going to be organ and piano lessons and 2 recitals). But anyways, I already own the book! And it's a really good one that I've been wanting to read for over a year! Some friends of mine baught it a while back for this same class and they thought I was sooooo weird for buying the book just for fun. I didn't realize this was the same class...It's on Johann Sebastian Bach.

That's it! I'm happy :)

End of the beginning

2009-01-11T13:51:00.001-08:00

The title for this blog sounds deceivingly depressing. But it's not! Even I am surprised that there are no new pictures on my camera to share yet (aside from a couple of the dog getting blow dryed last night...which I guess could be entertaining for some :). So, I just wanted to give an update at the end of my first full week of the new year on how I'm coming along with some of my new years resolutions.

First, I managed to go almost 2 weeks without chewing my nails. They were looking gorgeous. Last night I had a weak moment and was chewing away on "a few". Today I decided to count how many a "few" was...I only have 3 nails NOT chewed on. Oh well, I'll start again. I'm doing better with this, and since my dad baught my mom and I nail pedicure kits for Christmas, they've been looking much more feminine. So, I'm NOT giving up.

Practicing, which was one of my most important new years resolutions is coming along MUCH better. I've already logged about 16 1/2 hours this week, and almost 22 hours for the year. So, already much improvement from last year!

Devotions have NOT been better yet. I've been busying myself and noticing that I'm long overdue for more quiet time. I did get in 1 good day this week, but that's really pathetic considering the other 6!

Worrying less...I've been doing better in this area I think. The apartment ALMOST got sold the other day, then at the last minute this girl backed out. So, instead of getting all upset about it, I decided God needed me to wait and trust a little longer. So, that's what I'm doing. And praying more.

Working out and dieting, definitely on the right track! The scale hasn't really budged but I'm not letting that get me down. I probably go to the gym 4 or 5 days a week and get a good 30 minutes of cardio + sometimes weights and then I usually get in the hot tub and sauna to warm-up. We've also been cooking more often and eating more salads and vegis.

I've been reading a LITTLE more. One way I'm trying to improve is this. Whenever someone is being loud or watching the news, or doing something that is distracting me from practicing. Instead of getting really frustrated, I'll take a break, go to my room, and read a few pages while they do what they need to, and then I'll come back when it's calmed down. This is good for my brain too. I sometimes push myself to go longer than I really can and end up playing something a million times over that could have been easy the FIRST time.

There hasn't been too much exciting going on around here lately. I went over all my finances, and have been pinching pennies, and really geared up to pay off some large chunks of debt this year. Every time I think of something extra I want to buy I remind myself that buying it won't feel nearly as good or good for as long as saving that money to pay off debt will feel. The other thing I noticed about this too the other day was this. We accumulate all these little things throughout just one year. But, when I look at what I use day in and day out, the clothes I wear, for example, it's usually comfy clothes I've had for years.

I heard a while back a very inspiring story. Two girls got together a year or two ago and set out to not spend A PENNY all year long. They must have had assistance from parents or something. I think I remember them being around college age. So, I guess aside from living and eating and going to school, they didn't spend money on a thing. And they did it! That story was really inspiring to me as I thought, how much of all this "stuff" can we just do without? And don't you hate it when you look at your house and realize you have to "unclutter" to relieve stress and that all the stuff you're "uncluttering" is stuff you REALLY REALLY wanted in the first place? Maybe that's just me. I have heard that women tend to be "gatherers" though. So, if I can just find HEALTHY things to gather, I'll be better off. Anyone got any ideas? How about gatherin....umm....acorns? Yup, no ideas yet :)

Mom and I are going to get pizza now! It's cold outside and I'm hungry from working out...and yes, I know, pizza is NOT diet food. But, we've been pretty good this week and it's Sunday...and those are my excuses, lame as they may be :)

Hope you all are doing well and to hear from some friends and family soon. Hopefully, I'll have some nice new pics on here soon.

Oh, and please pray for my competition this weekend! I'm competing for the WVU Young Artist's Concerto competition on Saturday the 17th at 11:48 a.m. I'm playing the 3rd mv. (finale) of Rachmaninov's 2nd piano concerto with my accompanist and friend Khe Sin. Thanks!!!

God Bless

Off to a New Start...BRAND New

2009-01-04T18:13:00.001-08:00

Happy New Years everyone! This is my post of new-years resolutions and, the past weeks' events. Also, hopefully, a little food for thought.

My mom and dad went to PA on New Years Eve, leaving me to the house alone (don't misunderstand..I WANTED to stay home this year...nothing against them :). I decided to spend new years with my friend and her family. It was also nice to have a few days of complete quiet solitude. It sure doesn't take long to start getting lonely when you're so used to company though! Still, I got some much needed rest, a start on the new year's practicing (and many upcoming performances) among other things that needed done (the least glamorous of which included cleaning the poo out of the kitty's litter box and spraying and cleaning out the whole thing.....the only good part of that (aside from that it doesn't stink downstairs anymore) is that tomorrow it will be one less thing to have to NOT look forward to!!

So, as anyone who knows me knows, I am a list FANATIC...making New Years resolutions one of my FAVORITE things to do!! The hard part of course for all of us is keeping them....at least a little!

Here are some of my 2009 New Years resolutions. Feel MORE than welcome to ask me about them now and then. Pray for me and help hold me accountable. We all need that.

1) Read the whole Bible. Now is the time to admit. In all my years I have NEVER read the entire Bible. I'm very ashamed of that. I'm sure I've read almost all of it at some point in my life, but to really sit down, memorize verses, be able to site scripture, that's something I've never been able to do and really WANT to be able to.

2) A more steady devotional and prayer life...as my pastor was saying today...the more you set out to pray whenever you worry, the faster the worry slips away!! And I am certainly the QUEEN of worry warts, so this would be a fantastic start for me :) (and yes I AM aware that there is a scripture passage that speaks about how worrying doesn't add any years to our lives...and how God takes care of all the other creatures..and not to worry about tomorrow...now by Jan. 4th, 2010 I'll be able to pop out the scripture that's in!

3)Stop chewing my nails...which I've actually not been doing since a day or two BEFORE New Years!! They are looking quite nice I must say :)

4) Lose about 50 pounds....yes that's right. FIFTY POUNDS.

5)Eat healthier and take more preventative steps towards healtier living (like more regular exercise...which I've also been doing much better at for about the past 2 weeks :) and taking multi-vitamins, drinking more water, stressing out less, sleeping more regularly, etc. etc.

6)Paying off a very large amount of debt this year...so, cutting back on all kinds of unnecessary spending, pinching pennies, and learning the true meaning of "necessities" vs. "wants" Yes, I will need MUCH prayer in this area.

7)Read at least 50 good books this year. God must be out to see me read more because yesterday someone gave me a book, a friend put a blog on about wanting lists of new books to read, my mom came home with a new book today for me to read, and then she told me there was another one I HAD to read before that one :) ...oh yeah, and I also had someone else mail me a book...so, yes, my reading is cut out for me :)

8)Give 3 recitals and at least 2 competitions before the year-end. 2 recitals will be this spring, and one in the Fall.

9)This is redundant to another resolution but I MUST say it...fit into ALL the pretty clothes sitting in my closet....waiting and waiting...some for YEARS to be worn!! No need for me to shop when the pounds drop...I've got about 4 different size wardrobes...yes, wardrobes, in my closet, droors, and basement storage!!!

10)Realizing this is TOTALLY in God's hands, I pray that this year will be the year I meet my future husband...and who knows...maybe even get married?! :) I would be willing to settle for at least meet and get to know though :)

I guess that's it! Ah, enlightening thought. Well, my pastor was speaking about new years resolutions today. And he was also saying out the place between our two ears (haha) is where the battle-ground lies for whether we do or don't do what we set out to. Either we PLAN to fail, or we PLAN to succeed...now that's not saying you can't try to win and still fail...which really wouldn't be failure anyways. But, what he said hit home for me. I know when I look back on certain moments in my life that I see spans of laziness, where I let the excuse of days, weeks, months, or even years passed by to weigh me down and discourage me not to change anything. Then, there are times I remember working so hard, focusing so much on the goal, and feeling so wonderful when I achieved it. The one thing that happened during those positive times was that I didn't really think too much about doing it. I just DID it....I guess Nike knew what they were talking about after all :)

God Bless each of you in the new year. Best wishes with your new years plans. Don't forget to include God, and He will help you not only meet those goals, but strengthen you as a disciple for Him...what more could we ask for than that?

Happy New YEARS!!!!!

All about the Baby

2008-12-28T20:44:00.000-08:00

I have decided that babies are THE MOST PRECIOUS creatures on earth....and I can't wait till the day I have some of my own :) Until then, I am taking a lot of joy in my friend's children...This post is all about my best friend Sarah's newest little baby boy, Isaiah Micahel, born on Tuesday December 23rd around 8:47 a.m. and weighing in at 8 pounds, 4 oz. He LOVES to eat. He coos and moves his eyes around when he hears your voice. He cries very little. Sarah, her mother, my mom, myself and the baby went out tonight to Applebees. He slept the WHOLE WAY through!! So anyways, these pics are from today, at only 5 days old. Enjoy and feel free to say "aaawww!!!" as many times as you feel necessary :)

Getting ready for my outing with the girls
Checking out this new person

She's not so bad...she fed me & burped me! Now I can sleep again.

Sleeping before my first "night out on the town"

Meeting Elizabeth's mom. These two girls are already fighting over me!

Nobody does it like Grandma does :)

Christmas 2008

2008-12-27T11:20:00.000-08:00

SURPRISE!!! Elizabeth got a digital camera for Christmas! Yipee!! I've been having fun learning how to use it...and FINALLY my blog has pics now!!! Mom and I are hoping to see baby Isaiah today (see below for my 1st pic with him). Hopefully I'll be down-loading a bunch more after our visit. Enjoy these photos and Happy New Years!!!

Nick and Myself, saying goodbye...that coat was definitely UNnecessary today...70 degree weather!!

Saying goodbye to my brother 12/27 (Dad, Nick, Mom)
The only Etnoyer who could have cared less it was Chrismas :)

Baby Audra at 10 months--friends stopped by to surprise us on Christmas!

Isaiah Michael and "Aunt Elizabeth"--2 days old Christmas day!

Etnoyer's Christmas Tree...and my piano's side-profile :)

6 Days Til' Christmas

2008-12-19T20:49:00.000-08:00

Tell me someone. Am I the only one shocked that Christmas is only 6 days away? I'm so glad it's coming, but also a little sad because I know in 7 days it will be over til' next year! Here are some updates from me. Things I'm thankful for, happenings, not happenings, etc. :)

1. My brother Nick is home for Christmas. He hasn't been home for Christmas in 3 years (due to his job), so we are very happy to have him this year. All 5 of us will be here Christmas morning.

2. School is over and I got a 4.0 :) That makeups for knowing I needed to practice more. And now I'm looking forward to a new semester of less classes and more piano playing and recitals!!

3. In 2 days my friend's going to have her 3rd baby boy. That in itself is a reason to be really excited about the season. What a great reminder of Christmas!!!!

4. I was able to make it to my friend Jaime's house on a day when it didn't snow!!! We had a wonderful visit and the kids were so much fun to play with and the baby was irresistable to hold :)

5. I got my stuff moved out of my apartment....not happing...selling the place!!!! I'll keep praying about it and would appreciate help in the prayer department there too!!! It's nice to have my things home again though.

6. Not happening: Lots of "down time". And I wouldn't have it any other way :) It's actually been a nice balance of Christmas shopping, games, visits, and then down-time watching movies, talking, S-L-E-E-P-I-N-G!!!! Just not too much down-time to the point where I get antsy.

7. My church's children's Christmas play was adorable! They did such a great job. And this Sunday we'll be singing the adult cantata. Plus, I get to play a beautiful arrangement of a Christmas song with a friend who plays violin, while the congregation sings. It should be a nice addition to the service.

8. For once, not swiping the credit card to erase the guilt of not buying enough Christmas presents is actually allowing me to relax more and remember the true meaning of Christmas. I'm learning that time with my family, cooking, making memories, is a lot more valuable to me than wrapping and opening gifts. And I seem less stressed too staying away from all of the frenzy!!!

9. I am very thankful that I didn't get sick once this whole semester!! (Knock on wood!). My parents and I all had the flu before school started in August. Since then I've felt a few oncoming bugs but they've disapeared! Maybe I'm starting to learn the importance of sleep, even when I am overly busy, and that's helping keep my immunity up.

10. A warm house, food to eat, clothes to wear, family and friends, an education, jobs, solitude, pets, utilities,....ok. I know that's a really random list. It's just that I've had some close-encounters recently with loved ones who are struggling to meet the basic necessities. I guess it's just teaching me not to take advantage of even the most basic needs.

If I don't get pictures up here soon, Merry Christmas to everyone! Next time I get some good pics (hopefully Christmas day) I'll do my best to share them.

MERRY CHRISTMAS & HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!!

My Shortest Post

2008-12-03T19:38:00.000-08:00

My shortest post I've made of late
Quickly learning to savor each day
Practice for hours and let go of stress
Sit in the quiet and learn how to rest

Don't be distressed cause life's sometimes a mess
Just be content that it's all for the best

Trust in the Lord in all that you do
Forget your mistakes and know He loves you

When you feel clumsy ask God for His grace
And when you feel scared ask Him for more faith

Forget about yesterday and look to tomorrow
Praise God for the blessings and let go of sorrow

Enjoy this moment for it won't last for long
and reach out to others in action and song

When someone attempts to tell you your wrong
Consider the thought, but don't hold it for long

Many will push you with worries and frets
Just pray for the insight to know good from wrong
And live your life joyfully without any regrets

Happy Advent Season. I hope this finds you each enjoying the season and anticipating the celebreation of Christ's birth.

THANKSGIVING

2008-11-22T17:06:00.000-08:00

This post is sweet and simple. I am FINALLY on my Thanksgiving break, and so I thought it would be nice to share some things I am thankful for (good practice for Thursday :)

I am thankful for:

A hair cut and a good hair dresser!! :) :)

Ok #2 Friends and family (haha! Just kidding..of course this should be #2)

Oh wait!! #3 GOD!! Ok...I'm not off to the best start here am I?? Let's start OVER!

#1 GOD, Jesus, the Holy Spirit, my Salvation in Christ, my church family, etc. (I think I covered my bases there)

#2 Family and Friends plus co-workers, teachers, mentors, in general..PEOPLE

#3 Good health

#4 A job...well, a few jobs.

#5 A roof over my head (well, 2 roofs over my head :)

#6 Clothes to keep me warm in the winter...and for central air and heat

#7 My grand piano :)

#8 My cat Tommy and dog, Jack (somehow I don't think they would appreciate coming AFTER the thing they hate hearing the most, but oh well...they can't read :)

#9 Surviving my first semester of my doctorate

#10 The beautiful snow-fall we got this past week..and for not wrecking my car in it

#11 For piano students who add joy and meaning to my days

#12 Hot chocolate, chocolate chip cookies, chocolate cake, chocolate ice cream....CHOCOLATE!

#13 Pumpkin pie, turkey, and all the other great stuff we get to eat this week :)

#14 Internet and phone...the ability to keep in touch with people I other-wise would have no clue how they were doing right now...so, it DOES have it's up sides

#15 Free-will. The ability to choose devotion to God, and to WILLINGLY accept His grace He has to offer us. Also, the opportunity to make life-choices, although not always the right ones, and God's sovereignty which guides us when we get off track

#16 The ability to look at each day as a gift from God, and to live it in gratitude. To leave behind regrets and to anticipate the future and to appreciate the present.

#17 MUSIC(This feels like it belongs higher up). The ability to participate in it, share it with others, and reflect on one's self. My teacher has a wonderful saying. "The piano is not just an instrument with black and white keys. It's really just a big mirror"....think about it (it may make more sense to you if you play an instrument)

#18 CHRISTMAS DAY. The one day of the year that we can all get so excited about. The Christmas trees, ornaments, gifts, decorations, cards, and more. I am thankful that we have symbols such as wreaths and candles to make these days resonate with all of our 5 senses so we can carry the joy with us through-out the year.

#19 Remembering my dreams...it always gives me something fun to talk about the next day :)

#20 My dear bloggers who read my plain, no picture blogs and appreciate them anyways.

And now I must go... What are you thankful for this year?

Long Time...NO BLOG!

2008-11-14T14:11:00.000-08:00

Hi there blogging friends!! Are you still with me? Hopefully I haven't lost ALL my interested readers...I know it's been QUITE a while since I checked in! I suppose since it's been such a long time since my last posting that an update is in order. And maybe some pictures soon after :)

1)I am now going into the last week of school before Thanksgiving Break! I only have one more week of classes after that, plus finals/concerto-preliminaries competition week, and then it's time for Christmas!!!

2)I am super glad the elections are over!! Perhaps not entirely excited about the outcome, but still glad they are O-V-E-R!!! Now comes the part where we all dutifully start or continue to pray for our country...

3) My diet has been at a stand-still! I'm finally getting back into woring out again. Mom's helping by cooking healthier meals when I'm home (and when I'm not home). I no longer purchase groceries for my apartment, so I try to eat-out inexpensively, or take a morning trip to Krogers for just that day, on the days I'm there.

4) One of my best friends is down to about 1 month until baby #3 arrives...I'm so excited for them!! :)

5) My Walk to Emmaus....that really needs to be a blog in itself. It was an amazing life-changing experience. I highly recommend you experience it at some point in your life, if you have not yet. They have one for men, and one for women.

6) Jon and I are back together again...and so the saga continues :) I'll be a woman of few words on this topic...just pray for us when you think of it!! Thanks :)

7) Did I mention school is almost over??!!! YIPEE!!!!! Oh yeah, and I got smart this time, after a whole semester of struggling over whether to continue the DMA degree program or not (which by the way, I'm not entirely finished struggling with) I at least wised up and signed up for 10 credits in the spring, instead of the SIXTEEN I took this semester!! No wonder I felt burnt out!!

8) My good friend Malorie visited me a few weeks ago. We hadn't seen each other in over a year! She's in the air force and just got re-located on the east coast...it's about time!! Not only did we have a great time together, but since she visited our friend Beth in Virginia, I also got my silly blue cow-girl hat back that I left at Beth's house in 2007!! AND, even more exciting, I get to be in a wedding next summer....beth and I both..in Malories!! We're very excited. It feels like the reunion of the three muskateers....watch out for those donut groomsmen cakes Mal!!! HAHAHA :)

9) I'm still stuck with my apartment in Morgantown, although I've been advertising around town, on line, word of mouth, etc. Just going to have to keep praying. I'm dealing with it by moving stuff home each time I come home (probably about 1/2 or almost 1/2 of my belongings are home now) and being away whenever possible. It makes the weeks a little more stressful than necessary, but then again, even if I had my own place, I think I'd still be out all hours of the night at the library, practice rooms, etc.

10) I've gotta go eat!!!

Hope that was at least minorly interesting to my bloggers...I'm going to try real REAL hard to get some pics on here soon!! First I've got a 15 min. presentation to get started, a concerto to work on, a movie to go see, a 15 page paper to right, and counterpoint assignment to finish...among other things :)

HOPE ALL IS WELL WITH THE REST OF YOU!! LEAVE ME A MESSAGE :)

Elizabeth (why do I sign my own blogs???Oh I don't know..but it feels right...

AAAAHHHH!!!!

2008-10-03T20:19:00.001-07:00

"And He will give you peace which transcends human understanding"...as usual for me, I don't know the location of that scripture...but I know it's in the Bible!! And, it's going to become my quote for the weekend, for the week, for the semester, and for the rest of this year!!

You see, I have spent the past aproximately 13 hours, give or take a few small breaks to teach a student and finish a couple of chores/errands, but most of that time was spent at my desk, at home, studying Beethoven sonatas, and reading reading reading!! My word for today is "axiomatic" You don't know what that means? Well, it's SOOOO axiomatic!!! :) (look it up and you'll get my joke :)

As I mentioned in an e-mail earlier today...I'm beginning to seriously question whether my dollars are paying for an education in music, or the art of sounding snooty when I talk to people :) It's bad enough that musicians use words like exposition, thematic development, modulatory transitional material, recapituations (which I one humurously confused with another word on a vacation...I said "I'm all recapitulated!!" I think I meant to say turned around or something like that...everyone in the car looked at me with the "HUH?!" look :) Or how about this, taken from one of many obserdly over-complicated passages in an article I've been reading for the past several hours.

"All of which is tantamount to the truism that sonatas can no more succeed without significant ideas, however these may be defined and typed, than without convincing rhythmic flow, compelling tonal organization, or euphonious, idiomatic scoring"

I KID YOU NOT!! I literally looked at the page I was reading (Before I got off-track with blogging :) and just randomly selected one sentence from the page...I've been stuck in this world of lofty musical analysis for hours!!! Let me see if I can sum that sentence up into laymen terms! "A sonata won't sound good unless the musical idea or theme is just as convincing as the other elements of the music (such as the rhythmic flow, tonal organization, or idiomatic scoring..meaning the piece fits the demands of the instrument it's written for" ....any better???

Well, I'm back to my idiomatic, axiomatic, altruistic, contemplative, and obscurely dissolutional world of Wm Newman's chapter on "Romantic Sonata Form: Process, Mold, and Unicom"

and would someone please do me a favor, after praying for me, and remind me WHY IN THE WORLD did I want to get my doctorate????

THANKS! :)

Another Day

2008-09-23T21:04:00.000-07:00

Some days it is hard to find something really interesting to say. Sometimes you wake up, go through the motions, and go to bed. Today was kind of like that. However, even on ordinary days, there is always something EXTRAordinary, even if you have to search a little for it. Here are some special things about my day today.

First of all, I woke up with a big cold sore, a sore gland, but no stuffy nose! That was a blessing in itself. I felt just fine all day long, except for maybe a little tired.

Secondly, I found time to eat today, and even to relax a little! That's a REAL miracle when you consider I also had 2 classes, 5 piano students, and practicing to do today.

Thirdly, my jeans started to feel a little looser!!! This could also be just because I've worn them 3 days in a row now but HEY! I'm going to look on the bright side..They ARE bigger! :)

Fourth, I got to talk to a good friend on the phone today. Between her busy life as a mom, and my busy life with school, it really was a miracle that we had 5 minutes to talk!! It's always great to have a friend like that.

Fifth, I didn't sleep through my teaching!! You're probably thinking, "And you do on other days?" Well, lets just say Tuesdays are tough for me and I need a power nap between 5 and 6, but I often find myself waking up after 6...which is very bad, cause I teach AT 6!! Part of the reason I didn't sleep through was a combo. of my phone alarm, AND having my mom call me and give me a "wake up" call....which I barely even remember picking up the phone!!

Sixth, I'm sitting here, having some "me" time and everything is quiet. I'm learning to relax a little more around my roomates, be friendly with them, but am still paranoid (and rightly so) about crossing that line between "friend" and compromising my morals for the sake of a good laugh......I can use more prayer in this area.

Seventh, I got a 97% on my first music history exam!! YEY!! :)

Eighth, I have a patient counterpoint teacher, who also has a sense of humor...good thing cause I was about ready to rip my hair out at the end of class today!!!

Ninth (I'm trying to make it to ten :), I had a nice afternoon sit-down at chick-fil-a and still a bunch left-over for tomorrow!

Tenth, no matter how busy my day gets, God gives me an incredible sense of optisim. Sometimes it's the smile on a student's face. Other times it's something like realizing what a blessing it is to be doing something I love with my life.

And I have to add one more thing. Considering the long and hard struggle I had getting over my losses and/or separations of two extremely close friends, I thank God every day for the amazing friends He has put in my life. He has filled that whole in my heart, healed the hurt, and restored in me a heart that's not afraid to love. Somedays are harder than others, but I am continually reminded that life is filled with seasons, and the more I can let go of the past, the more I can be aware of what God is doing RIGHT NOW in my life.

I guess that's it. It's after midnight....time to shower and hit the sack. GOOD NIGHT!!

When Saying "It's Going to Be OK" Isn't Enough

2008-09-20T18:29:00.000-07:00

How many times do you run into a person in a day and the following exchange occurs. You can tell the other person looks tired, stressed, worried, upset, etc. You ask them if they are "ok" and they say "yes" or "I'll be fine" or something like that. If they tell you they are tired you respond with something like "I know how you feel" (A phrase many of us LOVE to use more often than we'd like to admit). Or, maybe the wheel is turned. YOU are the one having the bad day, and someone else responds to you in a similar way.

Well, this post isn't really about how we should respond to others when they seem upset or stressed, it's more about a testimony of how I am learning to deal with these day-to-day troubles, without SOLELY depending on the reassurance of others.

Let me first start by saying that God has blessed me with some AMAZING friends and family. I am never really at a loss of someone who will pray for me, listen, give a word of encouragement, etc. But, sometimes hearing "It's going to be ok" from a friend isn't enough.

Tonight I had such a moment. It was one of those moments when you are all alone, and you have time to "let out" all of your feelings. I found myself losing it. Crying for quiet a while, without an exact understanding of why. As some of you who are close to me know, I've been under quite a load of stress lately, on top of classes and teaching and work, with my living situation. Just when I thought I FINALLY found a quiet place of solitude, it turns out to be another case of "bad roomate-itis" :)

On top of all that, there are a lot of questions I'm still searching for answers to. Is school really the best place for me right now? Why am I STILL not in a relationship? Is teaching the best thing for me? Is there another way that is better? All of these questions seem to creep into my mind, demanding my attention, which destracts me from things that need to be done day-to-day.

Well, tonight, I think there was a serious "GOD" moment. As I sat at home, I realized first of all, it's OK to cry. Even when things aren't ok, or when things are ok...either way, human emotion is perfectly normal, and sometimes, we girls just need a "good cry". So, I did. And, with no one around to be embarassed by, I kept crying, until I started to feel the gentle Spirit whispering to me. I heard Him telling me that it's ok. That I don't need all the answers. I don't even need some of the answers. All I need is HIM. As I sat on my bed, with my thoughts and with God, I opened my Bible and read Psalm 118

"Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good; his love endures forever......skip to verse 8 It is better to take refuge in the Lord than to trust in man. It is better to take refuge in the Lord than to trust in princes.

Finally, I felt like I had had a "break-through" Moving wasn't the solution to my problems. Talking to people wasn't either. Neither was trying to avoid them. All these things were my way of trying to solve the problem on my own. Instead, I now realize that the only way we can truly say "It's going to be ok" when our lives are chaotic, is when we know the God who runs the show. He's the one that allows us to be in these difficult situations, and because of them, we draw closer to Him.

Next time you have a hard day, pause for a moment. If you are like me, your first reaction is to find a near-by friend/family member and call them, or talk to them. Before you do that, try something. Find a place that is quiet. Sit in silence for a while, and don't say anything at all. God already knows your thoughts, worries, frustrations, and questions. Ask Him to speak to you in the quiet and to give you peace. Then, when you're done having your alone moment with God, go to that person you were going to go to, or do what you need to do. But remember that God is by your side, and that nothing you face in life EVER has to be on your own.

And that's my novel/sermon/word of encouragment/ whatever you want to call it!! Take it or leave it for whatever it's worth. Just remember,

GOD LOVES YOU and He's always there to let you know "It's going to be ok"

Where Did the Time Go?

2008-09-09T21:54:00.000-07:00

Yes friends, I am still alive!!! I feel like such an un-devoted blogger, seeing that is has been almost a month since my last post! I will say, in my defense, that I love reading friend's blogs. I just don't seem to have much time these days for my own stories.

Here is a brief overview of what my life has been like since I started my doctoral program about 4 weeks ago:

1) Going to bed around 1-3 a.m. and waking up loooong after "the roosters crow" (although there are no roosters within ear shot of where I live :)

2) Morning and bedtime prayers for peace and quiet, first of all, for the time to sit and rest or sleep, and secondly, for actual SILENCE when I get to my apartment...there are lots of loud college students near where I live.

3)Student after student after student.......after student!!! Lots of washing my hands too. I've had a few sick students already, and am amazed, especially with the lack of sleep I've had lately, that they haven't shared their diseases with me yet!! (KNOCK ON WOOD!!!)

4) Hours upon hours at the Evansdale Library...some spent studying, just as many or more spent thinking "I should just go to bed and try again tomorrow"

5) Occasional bursts of practice efforts, followed by short vacations from the piano, while I struggle to balance all of my course work and teaching and other work

6) A new appreciation for SUNDAY. Not just for the day of rest, but for the loving, caring Christian family that meets me each week. If only I lived with such a strong group of believers....how different my home away from home-life would be!

7) More frequent devotions..they say that adversity makes one stronger. This must be true because of all the years I've struggled with regular Bible Devotions and prayer time, I seem to be getting it down better than ever with my hectic schedule. I truly CRAVE that morning quiet time. And on the days I trick myself into thinking it can wait until the afternoon or evening...you guessed it, there goes my quiet time until the next morning....isn't it great though to know that God loves us no matter how much we fail?

8) An unfinished bib for a baby who will soon be too big for it.....friend, you know who you are, I promise I'll TRY to get it finished this weekend!!!! :)

9) Another friend who is anxiously awaiting baby #3 around Christmas.....this gives me something to truly look forward to at the end of this semester which has just begun

10) A new understanding of the word "surrender" and the phrase "BE STILL AND KNOW THAT I AM GOD" Practical application #1. I dropped out of my plans to compete in MTNA again this year. I realized I needed to focus on doing well in my classes, and preparing my new program for DMA recital #1, plus my prospectus. On top of all that, one needs time to eat, sleep, worship, exercise, rest, socialize now and then with other two-legged beings :)

I'm not even going to try and make new promises to post pictures, at borders, or links, or anything else cool that I would love to add to my blog. For now, I will be content with this bit of time I took at 1am, to simply write (or rather type) and share my events with others. I ask that you would please keep me in my prayers, that God would grant me success in all that I do, as long as it is pleasing to Him, and in line with His will for my life. I also ask for prayers for my apartment/roomate life, that God would continue to give me a gentle heart, and a mouth that is slow to criticize, and quick to encourage.

God Bless and I hope everyone enjoys the Fall weather which seems to already be upon us!

Random Thoughts

2008-08-16T19:36:00.000-07:00

Hello friends! It is late Saturday night, the 16th of August, and tonight is my last "summer night" before school starts. Vacation this past week with my family in PA was wonderful! Relaxing, enjoyable, refreshing to the body and soul. In fact, my cold seemed to clear up quite fast once I got out into the clear and fresh mountain air.

Soon I will be sharing photos from our vacation, which was also during my parents 41st Anniversary...congratulations again mom and dad! For now, just some brief, random thoughts.

The Olympics have been incredible to watch this year. Growing up, I can remember watching them, especially mesmerized by the ice skaters in the winter, and gymnasts in the summer. Those were my two child-hood dreams before music began to be my life. I have several friends at WVU who are natives of Asian countries, some of China. I have taken some time to face book a few of them and their enthusiasm and pride for this year's Olympics bubbles over, and makes me so happy to see someone aside from America experience the pride that comes with hosting the Olympics. I am currently typing with my eyes and watching out with my ears for Michael Phelps, to see if he will break the world record with 8 medals tonight.

Our vacation consisted of canoing, biking, hiking, camp fires, a few rainy moments (the first night my tent got soaked so badly I had to sleep in my parent's tent and wait to dry everything out again the following day), book reading and other leisurely activities, and of course eating out. We were very happy to have my brother Nick come and vacation with us most of the week, which also included playing a couple of board games....he ALWAYS wins Monopoly!!!!!

I think I'm pretty well organized and ready for school to start now. Today was filled with more laundry, a hair appointment, shopping, catching up with several friends, and organization. The only reassurance to me starting my DMA, is that I have several friends starting with me, who are just as apprehensive, and knowing that God will be with me all the way. It will be a great experience, but I don't like this waiting period...it's just making me nervous.

I have to go now..in several ways. Tomorrow a piano student of mine, senior in high school, who is also a talented voice student, will be singing at my church. She and her mother are meeting me in the morning so I have to hit the sack!!!

More (and hopefully more interesting) news soon :)

Reminiscing and New News

2008-07-26T06:35:00.000-07:00

My good friend Beth, myself (and her cat) at her house in Virginia, Summer 2007...and the hat in the corner where I left it!

Two cow-girls got loose in WV. They were last sited in this Virginia Beach board walk store Please dial 1-800-Mamacomeback! if you have any information leading to the findings of these two suspects

One of my new favorites!!! Vegi Tales, mom and myself (they must have been HOT in there!!!)

Me at Creation, standing on the over-look, 2008

My friend Jocelyn's baby Audra, born the day after my birthday!! Both pictures were taken at our house, around Easter. She was only about 1-2 months old in these pictures.Isn't she adorable in her hat?! :)

Today's post is green, because it reminds me of the green grass, and the freshness of summer. I LOVE the smell of freshly mown grass, taking longs walks by our house and seeing all of the horses, and cows, and occasional rabbits, or deer. Probably my favorite part of being home was enjoying the nature. Mom and I love to walk up and down the road, and my dad can be caught almost every day after work, riding his bike or walking our dog Jack.

But, as I squeeze every last drop of summer fun out of my last week at home, I realize there is still much to look forward too! A new apartment, more education, new friends, new music, and probably most exciting, seeing what God has in store for me during this period of transition. While I have been focused on school starting, God seems to be nudging me more and more into different church ministries. Right now I am participating in a PDYM (Purpose Driven Youth Ministry) study in which I am part of a small team, working on transforming the purpose and form of youth ministry at our church. In addition, we have begun an exciting Prayer Team ministry, in which we are coming up on our last week of a 4 week book study on "Pray the Price" by Dr. Terry Teykl (a book I highly recommend reading, focused on "prayer evangelism" and reviving and transforming the prayer life of the United Methodist Church).

There are a lot of things I could talk about now, like my room which is beginning to look empty, and the mounds of boxes sitting in the family room. But, today I just want to share some pictures. Some are from last summer, and some from this summer. I hope to have some really nice new ones when we get back from our family vacation. In two weeks I will be moved in, home again, and leaving for vacation with my family in north-central PA (or somewhere around there). When I get back, classes start up, right away! So, please enjoy my pictures, and pray for me while I'm making this transition. My next post will probably be around the beginning of the school year.

(p.s. please forgive me for the formatting problems...oh I wish I had a digital camera!!! :))

Now or Never

2008-07-06T23:25:00.000-07:00

Muddy, high-rised waters at North-Bend, following July 3rd rains

North-Bend 4th of July Bike Trail

Mom, Sarah, and myself at Creation 2008

Our Camp Site

My Mom and I at Creation 2008

Creation Candle-Lighting Service

Sarah and Elizabeth at Creation Candle-Lighting Service

Hello friends! Wow, considering how addicted I can sometimes get to internet and blogging, I was really surprised to see that I haven't blogged in about 3 weeks! Things have been pretty busy around here lately. Following my last post I was preparing for Creation 2008, and then was on vacation. This past week was filled with laundry, organizing, shopping for the new apartment, and some nice family time with my mom and dad. We had some 4th of July fun this weekend with fireworks and a cook-out with my friend Sarah and her family, as well as a day with just the three of us at a state park. I have included some pictures from our Creation vacation, as well as our day at North Bend State Park. We biked about 6 miles and went through some really cool old tunnels on the Rails-to-Trails path. It was a great day for swimming Saturday. Sunshine, and warm-weather, which was welcomed after the rain we got on Friday.

Enjoy my pictures! I knew if I didn't do this tonight, it would be who knows how much longer. I'm trying to get prepared for this move, and that also includes LOTS of organizing and scheduling so I can be on top of things before school starts in August. Hope you all are doing well!!

Love,

Elizabeth

The Last Days of Spring

2008-06-18T17:32:00.000-07:00

Can you believe it? Only 2 more days of Spring, and Summer will be here. I know I can! In just 6 days my mom and I, and possibly good friend, will be going on vacation to Creation East, our annual Summer event. That is, if it doesn't get rained out.

I just wanted to post a few updates on my life. Nothing particularly important, just what I've been up to. I won't be on here next week while I'm camping, so this may be my last post for a couple of weeks.

First, my mom aunt, cousin and, myself have decided to go on a joint diet! We started at different times, but record our weights, in complete confidentiality, to each other, via e-mail, every morning. My starting date was June 3rd. So far, I have lost 7 pounds! WOOHOO!!! Ok, so some of that was water weight that dropped off pretty fast after I stopped pigging out at Dairy Queen :) But, there is nothing like group accountability to help one change their life style!

Second, please pray for me. I haven't been to the doctors yet, but, it seems I am getting more signs of arthritis, or something. Like this morning, while I was doing floor exercises. My left elbow was making loud cracking sounds every time I moved it. It didn't hurt, but it was a bit worrisome to me, as I couldn't really make it stop.

Third, I DID get to go swimming this past week!!! :) My dad and I went to the wave-pool on Sunday afternoon, Father's Day. That evening my mom and I went to my church to hear the Wesley Bell-Ringers from Utah perform! They are a group of about 14-20 year old teenagers that tour the U.S. every summer. This is the groups 42nd annual tour. They are going to be on CNBC or one of those early morning news shows I believe this Friday. If you have cable, watch for them!!! They are a great group of kids, and even though they don't all actually read music, they are great performers! They also have a very nice conductor. They are affiliated with their home United Methodist Church in Utah as well. We barely fit them in our little church!!! We had a great audience though, and they enjoyed being there, or at least seemed to be enjoying themselves :) It was the groups first time in West Virginia, so it was something new for them to experience.

Fourth, tomorrow I'm getting my hair cut! Maybe I'll post a picture after it's said and done, if I'm happy with it :) My hair dresser, Allen, is so good! He's been doing my hair for 2 years now. It took me years to find a hair-dresser that understood my wacky, inconsistent, and very stubborn half curly/half wavy hair. He also knows me and how indecisive I can be...So, he's the perfect hair dresser for me! My mom's getting hers cut by him tomorrow too, because she's always jealous when I come home from having him do it. Maybe we'll get a picture of the two of us together tomorrow, after we're done.

Fifth, I am now up to 18 students. For the past couple of weeks I have been trying to set a cut-off, but they keep coming in. I prayed for God to give me more than I could handle and what do ya know!!!! You really do have to be careful what you pray for :) In fact, I may have a couple more coming my way, PLUS I have 4 students returning in the Fall, or at least planning on it!

Sixth, I've got about 7 weeks left at home until I move into my Morgantown apartment. I'm quite excited, but also a little sad. I know I will still be home every weekend for teaching and church. But, I've really enjoyed being home this past year. I'm 25 and single, so it's about time I move out, and stand on my own two feet, again. It's kind of hard to meet single Christian men, when most of my time is spent with my parents, at home :) I am very grateful to them though, for letting me live at home this past year, catch up on some of my finances, and just take a breather. Now I'm rearing to go get that DMA degree!! :)

Seventh, tonight they made the decision on my position as choir director, BUT.....I don't know the results yet. I'll be in suspense until they tell me. Either way, I'm ok. I'm definitely not leaving as the pianist, either way.

I should go now. We're having another movie night tonight. I have ONE MORE piece of REALLY WONDERFUL news that I want to share......

my best friend Sarah is due to have baby #3 in about 6 months!! I just found out last night, and she said it was ok for me to tell others....so I just have to share this wonderful news!!! :) Please pray for her and her husband. They will be quite busy between their future plans with school, and possibly law-school for Stan, and having three children. The great news is, Christian and Luke will be 4 and 5 when this baby comes, so they will be big enough to help out! We are all hoping for a little girl this time....but, God will bring them what He chooses, and we will love him or her just the same either way :)

Movie time!!! Hope you all enjoy the beginnings of Summer time :)

Elizabeth

HA! Just Kidding..

2008-06-11T17:13:00.000-07:00

This is NOT from the end of today's excursion..my mom just thought it would be hilarious to take my picture during one of my much enjoyed cat naps...the cat doesn't look like he's enjoying it very much though :) In case you didn't know this about me...I sometimes take naps in VERY acquared positions...this COULD have something to do with why I'm always sore when I wake up!

Doesn't it look inviting?

This picture turned out so well, it almost looks like I went to Hawaii for the day! Can you believe this is in West Virginia?!

Well, today was SUPPOSED to be a perfect day for swimming. And, it was. Except, everything in the world was keeping ME from enjoying it! Let me give you a quick review of what my day was like today.

HOT! I took a nice short walk (1 mile) with my mom, and then declared that it was a perfect day for swimming. Although she didn't want to swim, she was sweet enough to agree to come with me for the day. However, she preferred we go to a nice quiet state park, instead of a crowded, noisy public pool. PLUS (and this is a KEY POINT in the story) we wanted to save about $3.50 on a pool admission ticket.

Ok. So, we looked through some West Virginia State Park pamphlets and decided that either Tygart Lake State Park or Audra State Park would be nice places to swim. I called Audra and they said the swimming season was open, and there were no life guards anymore, so no admission. PERFECT!

We get in the car. I'm wearing my bathing suit because I can't WAIT to get into the nice cool water. I pack the towels, water bottles, etc. and we head off. As we are driving out I look at my mother and ask, "Should we go to Audra or Tygart?" Audra is a nice park, but Tygart is BEAUTIFUL and they are basically the same distance from home. So, we decide Tygart would be nicer.

Hear comes the adventure. First, we drive through Bridgeport, where we see a DETOUR sign. There is a huge sink hole in the road. So, they have to send everyone back around Bridgeport, towards Shinnston, and over Rt. 50 past the F.B.I. center. We had to drive all the way around, just to avoid a 4 mile strip of road, because there is a gigantic whole in it.

Still determined, we continue our journey....la, la, la, la...we are taking our good old time and chatting, laughing, just enjoying the nice quiet and sunny day.

OK. We arrive at Tygart. So, we drive, and drive, and drive, and drive, AND DRIVE!! WHERE IS THE SWIMMING ENTRANCE????!!! We can see the lake the whole time, but don't know how to get into it. FINALLY, we stop at a park ranger station, where people register for camping. I get out and here comes the rain on my parade.

"I'm sorry, but we don't have swimming this season."....wait a minute, "WHAT?!" No rhyme or reason, but I can't go swimming, even though there is a HUGE lake of beautiful, warm, clean lake water. The park ranger tells us we can only go swimming IF we have a boat to swim off of. Does that make sense to you?

So, I go back to the car, deliver the disappointing news to my mom, after a short bathroom break (we've been driving for about 2 hours to get here!!) we continue on....distraught :(

Suddenly, happy, cheerful, talkative Elizabeth is solemn. As we drive AWAY from Tygart lake, we decide to stop at the lodge/restaurant and at least enjoy some ice cream over the lake view. Those are the pictures you see here. Isn't it beautiful?! Can you feel my pain?!!

Once the ice cream was finished, and I parted with the beautiful lake, we continued home (still considering driving somewhere else to swim for the day!). As we drive, several miles, we run into ANOTHER detour sign!!! So, we have to drive all the way back towards the park again, and start over! Ugh....

While mom and I were driving, she was asking, "What do you think God had in mind for us today, that we would come all the way out here, spend our whole day looking for a place to swim, and find nothing?"

Well, an hour and a half nap later, once I have calmed my emotions of disappointment, I think I have some fresh perspective on the day.

1) That was the first quiet, non-stressful day away from home my mom and I have had together in a long time. We get plenty of days at home together, but we are both great at busying ourselves. If you are in the car, driving through the woods, there isn't much left to do but watch the road, and talk, or listen to nature.

2) Although I didn't get to swim, the lake WAS beautiful. We watched boaters, and water-ski boats skim the water. Watching them have fun, was almost as fun as doing it ourselves.....almost :)

3) I was able to experience the generosity of my mother, who filled up my gas tank, after a long day of driving in circles. Not like she isn't generous to me quite often (she and my father), but today I was particularly thankful!

4) Our day together meant I wasn't sitting at home reading a book. A book that I thought I had to read 3 chapters of by tonight, but later found out the meeting was cancelled, and I would have made myself do all that reading today for nothing! So, instead I got to be outside.

5) We discovered the "no swimming" rule WITHOUT my dad, who most likely would have been quite upset, had we driven with him all the way out there, and then had to admit "No, we didn't call them before we left the house, to make sure they were open!"

6) We now have a paper with info. on boat rentals that we may use in the future if we get a group together.

It's 8:30pm, and getting dark outside. Enjoy these beautiful pictures, and think of me....hopefully I WILL make it to A POOL (notice how I'm not being very picky anymore?!) this week.

Sunday Afternoon

2008-06-08T12:00:00.000-07:00

No pictures this time! I am just enjoying the air conditioned house, and decided to type a bit, before I go out into the scorching sun again :) The weather in WV has been BEAUTIFUL this past week. I'm so thankful that my Chick-Fil-A job ended so I can spend most of my days enjoying being outside!

I will post a picture sometime soon, but in the mean time, I would like to ask for your prayers for a very special person. As some of you know, I have been sponsering a child through Compassion International for a few years now. His name is Billy, although he is 14 years old now, and I believe likes to be called Bill instead of Billy. He is such a sweet kid, and his letters have ministered to me more than I could ever do for him. As any of you who have ever sponsored a needy-child know, you usually end up getting more out of it than they do.

I am asking for prayers for Bill because in his last letter to me, he told me he was being treated, for about 6 months, for tuberculosis. In the letter, it sounded like he was doing better. However, this week I received an envelope from Compassion with pictures of Bill (newer ones) and a message with bad news. They said he has been suffering from some sort of lung disease, but that they don't know exactly what it is. It could very well be a continuation of his tuberculosis. I have to admit, regretedly, that I haven't been that faithful of a friend to Billy. He hasn't received a letter from me in a very long time. Well, as soon as I got that message, I wrote him a letter the next morning, and put pictures in it. It will go in the mailbox first thing tomorrow morning. He will not receive the letter for about 3 months, because that's about how long it takes for the letters to go through translators and customs. I have been told that sponsored children treasure ANYTHING they receive in the mail from their sponsors. They love letters, and save all of them....shame on me for not writing more often. Please pray for an accurate diagnosis, and full recovery for Bill. From his letters, he seems to be very strong in his faith, but I keep encouraging him. He needs all he can get right now. Also, pray for his parents and sibling, and friends, that the disease doesn't spread to others.

On a lighter note, my dad and I played tennis yesterday, for the second time. I am getting much better! Also, when I weighed in this morning, I was 5 pounds lighter than Tuesday morning, when I started! I was quite happy with that. It's amazing how hard it is to lose weight...I just keeping chugging water (about 10-12 BIG glasses a day), exercising about 2 hours a day, and watching what I eat.

There are only 16 days left until my mom and I leave for Creation East!! We are excited. We seem to be more layed back about it this year, not planning so far in advance. We've been there enough times by now, that we know how to shop, pack, and plan for the trip. We will not be volunteering in the prayer tent this year. We just want to go and relax and enjoy being ministered to. We are both looking forward to it! We will be leaving Tuesday, June 24th, and the festival runs from the 25th-28th, then we will return Sunday the 29th.

I think that's about it. I've said it before, but I'll say it again. I'm SO GLAD I took a year off of school. Even though I've already had a lot of time off by now, I'm savoring every moment in these last two months of freedom :) Early August I will be moving into my new Morgantown apartment, and although we are planning on one more big family vacation, mid-August, on the 18th of the month, school will begin, and I'll start my doctoral studies.

Sundays are too nice to spend all day on my computer, so I'll go now...hope you all have had a restful weekend! God Bless.

EARLY BIRD

2008-06-06T03:34:00.000-07:00

I think I know why Jesus got up early in the morning to be with God. It seems like the most peaceful time of the day. As those of you who know me at all know, I am NOT a morning person. I like staying up late watching t.v., and sleeping in. However, last night my mom and I actually went to bed at decent times, and low and behold, I was up at 5:56 a.m. this morning! I looked at the clock and thought, "No way! I did? I'm actually up before everyone else?! WEIRD!" So, what am I doing with this wonderful morning? Enjoying the peace and quiet. Feeling the cool breeze come through my window, and taking in the scenery of the morning, and the sounds of the birds. It brings back memories of being a kid. I used to wake up around 5:30 or 6am every morning for school. But, as an adult, it's more enjoyable because I don't have to rush to get ready for school.

I think I like this change, and just might try to make it a habit! The way I see it, we only have so many hours in a day, and I'm one who needs 8 hours of sleep, typically, to stay healthy. So, why have I been waisting 3 or 4 hours of each day in the dark, watching t.v., when I could be enjoying these peaceful and calming morning hours?

While I was trying to post new pictures the other day, I managed to get two up on the site, and then was having difficulty. So, I have decided to try again this morning. The picture above was taken 2 summers ago, when my mom, friends Sarah and Lynn, and myself took a spontaneous trip to Kentucky. It was the year Creation East got rained out, and the car was already packed and ready to go! I just wanted to share this picture because it's one of my favorites. Sarah is such a great friend to me, and I really enjoy any time we get to spend together.

I guess that's it for my morning thoughts. I'm going to go enjoy the morning weather and get a nice big walk in...till later, God Bless! :)

PICTURE #2

2008-06-04T13:38:00.000-07:00

A BEAUTIFUL SUNSET IN DENTON, TX

Rainy Days

2008-06-04T13:13:00.000-07:00

Today is one of those days, also part of one of those WEEKS of rain...it just keeps coming! I love it though. It's refreshing, and relaxing. The only down-side for us, is that we have to keep our new bikes inside until the roads clear up. There are stones and streams running through and over all the roads, so it's not good for riding at all.

I am taking advantage of this quiet time to do some things I NEVER do.

1) I'm reading the first book I've read in.....a LONG LONG time (and that's an understatement). I have to admit, that's not because I never have time, it's just because I rarely motivate myself to read. I am reading a book called "Too Small to Ignore" by Dr. Wess Stafford, CEO. of Compassion International. I just started it, but it looks like a great book. My mom and I both sponsor children through Compassion, so I'm hoping this book will make the reality of what my sponsored child, Billy, lives with on a daily basis, a reality to me as well.

2) I'm going to post pictures today!!! We'll see how this goes. But I'm going to try adding at least some, to make things more interesting.

I also wanted to mention, that my diet and exercise routine is finally off the ground, at the same time! Usually it's just the exercise, and not the diet, but I'm on day 2 of doing both, and I've already lost about 3 pounds! If I can make it past tonight, I'll know I'm on a roll (night-time snacking is my biggest weakness!).

I'm going to talk less this time, so I have time to work on pictures....ENJOY!! :)

(PICTURE ABOVE: My mom and I on Valentines Day (my 25th birthday)

Signs of Summer

2008-06-01T21:43:00.000-07:00

Every year I tend to think "summer is here!" WAY before the official 1st day of summer. However, this year I have some pretty good proof that summer IS here.

1) My beautiful sunburn all over my shoulders and neck. The first hot and sunny day we got this year, this past Friday, I couldn't resist 2 hours of biking, walking the dog and hiking in scorching hot weather

2) The wet dog, Jack. I soaked him down with the hose after our walk, to cool him off.

3) Strawberry Shortcake. The official summer dinner at our house. We've already had it once this week for dinner.

4) Company! We haven't had out-of-state company stay with us (aside from my brother) in 8 years!! My aunt and uncle are visiting us from Lancaster, PA for a few days. I'll miss them lots when they are gone. I even gave them my bedroom hoping they would stay longer! :)

5) Hot nights, even with the windows open.

6) Exercise Fanatic...it happens every year. I'm like a bear. I hibernate and eat for 8 months, then try to shed it all off in 4....only problem is...it doesn't work that way!!

7) Bugs...I was attacked by swarms of them while riding my bike this evening..I have the bug-magnet tee-shirt in my laundry pile to proove it.

8) Gas prices...yeah, ok, that's all the time...but doesn't it usually seem even worse in the summer when you're trying to travel?

9) Smores and bonfires...we've got the ingredients, as well as a very LARGE pile of wood in our back-yard for the fires. (Left over from the dead trees we had cut down in our back yard)

10) Longer days. Isn't it wonderful having day-light until 9pm?!

There you go. 10 solid proofs that summer is here!

Quick Updates from WV

2008-05-16T21:40:00.000-07:00

I have been quite busy lately, and thought I better post something, just to keep you al updated on my life. First of all, as of about 25 seconds ago, I started sneezing and runny nose...we JUST got back from the movies....hope I'm not getting sick!

Tomorrow is my 4 day of work in two weeks at Chick-Fil-A. The workers are nice. It doesn't make much, but helps pay gas. God has been blessing me with more piano students day by day. I had two new students at the house today, 1 child, and 1 adult (well, it was the adult's 2nd lesson, actually) and a 3rd new student starting this coming Monday. The church job is going well, although I think I will be relieved to only be in charge of piano/organ come August. I will have to do more accompanying and teaching to compensate for it, but choral directing is not my specialty.

Monday I found my apartment for August move-in, right before school begins. I will have 2 female graduate roomates. It's a 3 bedroom, 3 bathroom suite, (yes my OWN bathroom :). Just about anything you can imagine an apartment complex might have to offer, they do. And the price is great. God is good!!

Last weekend my pastor's wife was in a bad car accident. She fell unconscious at the wheel, due to a steroid shot she received at the doctor's office recently before the accident, that morning. Praise God, he guided her car around 4 long windy turns in the road, with NO guard-rails, while she was unconscious the entire time! The car hit a utility pole and parked car at an Enterprise Rent-a-Car center. Aside from some cuts and bruises, she is ok. What a miracle!!!!

Thursday May 22nd, check out K-Love or Air-One Christian Radio!! If you don't have the stations, go to the K-Love.com web-page any time Thursday the 22nd, and check out the day's newstips link. Dustin, the contemporary worship director at my church, started a new church event called Hebrew's Cafe. The word got out to K-Love and they are featuring him and an article on the cafe, the entire day, on the radio stations, and on the web-pages. This is GLOBAL coverage!!! VERY exciting for our church. And what is best about this is that Dustin is a very humble, and godly man. So, he is not letting any of this go to his head. We are all just so excited at the potential impact this could have on bringing new faces to the church!

I have been working out A LOT lately...although I'm very unhappy with my weight right now. I have been running/walking outside, near our home, and/or going to the YMCA to get my workout, and lift weights, almost daily. I've never been great with dieting, but I'm at least working on it. I could work harder at it too though. But, I'm trying to work out and get in shape this summer....I hope it doesn't take until Fall comes and it's cold again before my summer clothes finally fit!!!

I think that's about it. If I think of something else, I can mention it another time. Sorry for STILL not having pictures on here. With my jobs now, and working on my DMA recital music, and helping keep up the inside and outside of the house, I've just been busy lately.

I hope you all are doing well and to hear from some of you soon.

God Bless,

Elizabeth

Fasting, Food, and Fitness

2008-05-06T19:59:00.000-07:00

This past weekend I participated in the "30 Hour Famine", a nation-wide church youth-event intended to raise awareness of the world-wide famine. I have been aware of this event/fundraiser for years, probably more than a decade. Every year I found a reason not to do it. No food for 30 hours? Yuck! I can just imagine starving, but I don't actually have to do it!

Well, this years, for one reason or another, I felt a calling to follow-through. I was one of 4-6 adults who took turns in shifts spending time at the church with 4 teenagers (3 girls and 1 guy). Three of us spent Friday night in the church's Multi-Ministries building with the teens. I didn't sleep too well on the couch, but then again, I wouldn't have slept much better at home because my stomach was already hungry.

At the end of the famine, I realized that I learned much more than I expected from participating. I should mention that we didn't just sit around and starve for 30 hours. The teen girls raised $100 walking around the neighborhood, door-to-door collecting sponsor's money for the event. We played basketball, video games, board games, etc. etc. There was also time for some good talks, and, especially towards the last several hours of the famine, a Bible devotion and discussion to remind us what we were to take home from the experience. During the last 1/2 hour of the famine our pastor had communion with us, consisting of 1 wheat cracker and a bit of Sunny-D. This untraditional communion was to remind us that Jesus used what He had available. Never in my life was I so thankful for one little cracker!

The biggest thing I took away from the experience was learning patience and commitment. My desires and emotions (and stomach) did not support either of those values, but by denying myself, I learned something much more valuable. The fast not only gave me a renewed appreciation and compassion for the needy, but it taught me how I can be more patient and committed in other areas of my life. I truly believe that God blessed us through the weekend, and as a result felt much closer to Him and more at peace. Beyond the "emotional rush" that is easily felt in those "feel good moments" I took home a mental-awareness of how grateful I am to have food, a roof over my head, family, friends, a church, a Bible, clothes, air conditioning and heat, clean water, the list goes on and on...and on...

I think what I want to share with everyone is best summed up in the following Bible verse. This passage of scripture was used in reference to the race a good friend of mine has been running for two years. The youngest daughter of my god-parents, whom I have known all my life, is nearing the end of her two year mission work as a school-teacher and servant of God in Honduras. While our experiences are different, the purpose is the same. To deny ourselves, follow Christ, and spread the good news of Jesus Christ as far as He is willing to let us.

Paul says in 1 Corinthians 9:24:

Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize? Run in such a way as to get the prize. Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training. They do it to get a crown that will not last, but we do it to get a crown that will last forever. Therefore I do not run like a man running aimlessly…I will not be disqualified for the prize.

God Bless you in whatever your race is!! Know that you are not the only one who gets tired, sometimes lazy, irretable, or wants to try and find the "easy way out". But also remember that whenever following God gets hard, the reward gets bigger, and it is eternal...you can NEVER out-give or out-do God.

FINALLY Making a Decision

2008-04-25T20:06:00.000-07:00

It has been a long year, and at the same time has gone by so fast. No, not 2008. Of course, it's almost 1/2 over already too! I'm talking about the year I took off from school. I can remember about 1 1/2 years ago, about, when I walked into my piano teacher's office crying. Being the wonderfully sympathetic teacher that he always is, he sat and listened to my frustrations.

I have always been a driven person. The problem is that I tend to sway from over-driven, to burn-out, just a bit too often. When I entered his office that day I had had enough. I had travelled to Wisconsin, Cincinnati, and took a mid-term exam, involving the memorization of all 32 Beethoven Sonata themes, all in about 2 weeks! I was plain exhausted and sick of school. After we talked, we agreed that time off from school was just what I needed. I needed to have a little fun in life, take a breather, and think about whether the DMA degree was really what I wanted.

Since then, as those of you who talk to me often already know, I have gone back and forth about a million times! Not only that, but I have been in and out of one very close relationship, and also swayed between getting married and going to school. I remember my friend Jaime saying to me back then, when I first made the decision. "It sounds like you know what you're doing. And if you aren't doing the right thing, God is great at making detours." Thanks for the advice Jaime, it's so true!

I have learned a few very important things in the past year.

1) Don't talk about marrying someone, and having kids with them, until you're sure you love them first. You only break their heart, and yours, and it's unecessary.

2) Don't be afraid to wait. When we try to push ourselves through something we cause more stress than is needed, and sometimes take 10x longer than if we just waited for God to help us through it.

3) Don't be afraid of change. I didn't know how I was going to handle it when I got 17 piano students in the Fall. But it was a great experience for me. Here I am just a couple of years into teaching and I already feel like I'm so much better at it. My people skills are better, and I've learned how to teach kids vs. teaching adults. It's been a very rewarding experience for me.

4) A break doesn't have to be a trip to the beach. It can be simple things like waking up and chatting with my mom at breakfast, sitting in my pjs for hours, not eating breakfast until lunch-time. b vggggggggggggggggm

ok, pause! I could delete the jibberish above, but I thought I'd keep it...that was my cat Tommy saying hello to you all while I stepped away from my computer! THANKS A LOT TOMMY! :) ..yes, another great thing about being home for a year..waking up to Mr. Thomas sitting on my head, giving me a head massage :)

Ok, anyway. I guess that's about it. I don't need to go on and on about this. I just wanted to share with you all that I am very grateful for the time I had off of school. I taught piano, played and directed at church, accompanied, had temp. office job, spent time with family and friends, and got to do some traveling to (mostly for auditions and MTNA conference, but it all still counts).

So, last night I e-mailed my teacher again and told him I had finally made up my mind to get my DMA. He was very happy. I have put my poor teacher through so much in the past year! (at least!). He has had to deal with, "I don't think I want my doctorate".."Well, maybe I do".."No, I don't".."Well, maybe yeah but not here"..."Well, I was rejected everywhere else, so maybe not".."Ok, WVU isn't so bad"..."But what if I meet Mr. Wonderful and he whisks me away...then I won't need it!" And FINALLY, "Ok, well, Mr. Wonderful isn't anywhere in sight...at least not yet, and times not going by any slower, so if I want this degree, I better do it now!"

I spent a lot of this morning organizing my summer teaching schedule, and printing off and reading all the graduate manuals and such for the DMA program...there is SO much involved! But instead of feeling overwhelmed, I'm actually excited about it...ok and a little overwhelmed too. I think the part I'm most afraid of is the comprehensive exams. They come after all the course work is finished, which is at least a year or two from now. I will hopefully have most of my 6 recitals done by then too, except for the last solo recital, and maybe another chamber recital. But when they do come around I have 1 week to complete a take-home bibliographic music history exam/project and a take-home theory exercise/project, in preparation for the following week. The following week I have a 3 hour history exam and 3 hour theory exam, all written, and both in a 6 hour period, in one day!!! The exam questions are specially crafted by my DMA committee. That's the part I'm really scared about. After that I have an oral-comprehensive exam with my 5 member committee.. sometime within a few days or weeks from the written exam. The entire take-home, written and oral all counts as 1 exam. If I don't pass the entire exam the first time around, I only get one more try, granted the committee grants me the 2nd try, and if you don't pass it after the 2nd try, you cannot continue the DMA degree. Granted all of that goes well, then I have to complete my thesis project prospectus with my advisor (probably my piano teacher) followed by an approval from the committee, and then the actual project, followed by lots and lots of revisions, followed by a meeting with my committee where I have to defend my paper, and FINALLY finished with my final solo degree recital....I am hoping to have all of this completed before I am 30 years old (if I do it in 4 school years, I'll be 29).

Yes, you can tell I'm rambling....which is because I had a 2 1/2 hour nap this afternoon and am not sleepy!! I have to be in morgantown tomorrow morning though. So, I better go to bed.

Thanks for reading! And also, thanks for everyone's prayers..of course I'll need more if I'm going to try to get this degree... :) But, I have felt a strong sense of peace in the decisions I have made, knowing that whatever I do with my life, God is making it work out. Now, when I find Mr. Wonderful, which hopefully I will, eventually, I can still get married and have kids.....I'll just be Dr. Mom :)

Why I Believe In Homeschooling

2008-04-22T18:34:00.000-07:00

I have needed something worth while to talk about for a while now, and have also been getting tired of my dull blog site with no pictures. Well, I have no pictures to offer you tonight. Instead, I would like to address a question that my cousin, along with several other people have asked me. Why does a girl who was public schooled her entire life, feel so strongly against any other type of schooling than home-schooling? Since my paragraphs get long and tiring, I will make a list, which may be easier to skim through and read.

#1 I want my children to learn about God, Jesus, the Bible, and to not feel afraid to pray out loud, and worship God as we were created to do. And I certainly don't need the school principle suspending them because they have infringed on their peers "freedom of religion"

#2 While every child needs to know how to function and get along in the real world, there are a few things I think my kids can go without learning about until they are older. Such as? Well, violence, sexual promiscuity, bad language, etc. I can share several stories of children saying things to me as a kid that caused me to learn about things no child should be learning about. In fact, at one point, a group of boys I went to school with were threatened to be suspended from school because the things they said to be on a day-to-day basis were so terrible. I remember HATING waking up in the morning and going to school because if I stood up for myself, the teachers would reprimand me, instead of the people verbally abusing me.

#3 Children have a right to wake up, go to school, learn, and never be afraid that the school might blow-up because someone brought a bomb to school. Think I'm exagerating? No! I have memories of sitting on the school hill-side in Michigan, on a regular basis, because of bomb-drills, waiting to make sure the school wasn't going to blow-up, before we could go back inside. About 6 years after that I was living in WV where book-bags were either not permitted, or only those that were see-through or mesh. We also had a team of police officers that swatted us down as we entered the school doors, to make sure we weren't armed. And when we did have actual bomb or other violent warnings at school, we were not permitted to call our parents and be picked up. Instead, we got out of classes early to sit in a gymnasium for a pep-rally, lead by the school principle, to convince us that whomever was making the threats couldn't scare us or keep us from going to school...not very comforting!

#4 Kids don't need to wake up at 6am, go to school from 7-3, and then spend all night doing homework. It makes more sense to me to teach school, and get the homework done by evening. This way you can actually spend family time doing other things..church, music, going to a museum, taking a walk, doing things kids like to do, like going outside to play!

#5 The home-schooled people I have known have always been smarter, on average, than most public-schooled kids I have known. I think it's fair to say a lot of home-schooled seniors (in high school) are smarter than most college grads I know. They also seem to have better work-ethic when they are on their own. Maybe part of this is because many public schools have eliminated having to read entire books, and writing essays. Everything is so dumbed down that many college students don't even know how to write a college-level paper.

#6 Home-schooled kids are only sheltered if parents make them that way. They can have social skills equal to public-schooled kids, as long as the parents make an effort to involve them in church activities, home-school umbrella groups, and other activities. They get to develop social skills without parents worrying as much about their kids picking up un-Godly habits.

#7Children spend less time sitting in class while the teacher struggles with the "troubled students" and more individual attention, helping each child meet their potential.

#8 More flexibility with scheduling. If the family wants to take a vacation, have a reunion, or whatever, we can take our work with us, and pick up when we need to. We don't have to worry about driving to school on bad snow days, or getting behind on school work because of it. We can work things around our schedule, instead of the other way around.

I probably sound very idealistic explaining my feelings. I realize that kids will pick up bad habits, do things they shouldn't, and just be kids, no matter where they go to school. But, if I can do something to assure that my kids grow up happy, healthy, safe, and with a knowledge of God, they have a greater chance of being happy, healthy, and most importantly, Godly, adults. And while I was public schooled, and yes, obviously had to work through my issues, there are many things I wish would have been different from my school-days. The grass is always greener on the other side, but in this case, I think the grass actually IS greener.

Oh yeah, lastly, #9 I think home-schooling will be fun, and educational for both them and me!

Judge Etnoyer

2008-04-13T19:41:00.000-07:00

This past Friday I got to do something I have never done before. I was a judge for a piano competition! A good friend of mine, who works at a Christian K-12 private school, asked me if I would be one of the judges for the competition. They had several categories, all ages, and not just music! They also had a variety of art-work. When I agreed to the judging I did not know anything about the competition, including that it was going to be held at a private Christian school. I could not have had a better first experience though! The girl I judged with was a former grad. school roommate as well as a peer from my piano studio at WVU. We worked so well together. We judged around 15-17 kids, from very young to middle school age.

Aside from experiencing judging, this was also my first experience inside of a Christian school. I am somewhat of a pessimist when it comes to any kind of schooling outside of the home, even private Christian schooling. However, I was pleasantly surprised at what I saw! Kids had bible verses on their lockers, the school was very clean and bright, with lots of windows. Mainly, it looked just like any other school, but there was a sense of love and belonging that radiated from most of the teachers and students I ran into there. The best part of it for me was that before the judging began, all the judges/teachers gathered in a room to discuss logistics and then we all prayed before going to our separate stations. This was particularly special because I happened to know that one of the girls judging for the vocal competitions, a student at WVU, is an atheist! What an experience that must have been for her to be surrounded my sincere Christians who prayed together!!

As for the judging, it was really something to be in the same position as those I usually feared! It really shed new light on the nature of competitions for me. I felt so bad for some kids, and it was really hard for me to sit there and not say, "It's ok. You can get out your music" I had to treat every child equally, and for some that meant watching them fall on their face, (so to speak), and find their way to the end of a piece. Regardless of the performance each student gave, my friend and I were sure to smile and thank everyone who played. I was very conscientious of what I wrote on their comment sheets, with the scoring and written comments. I wanted every child to go home feeling like they learned something from the experience, and could be proud of themselves for something, even if it was just making it to the end!

I should add at the end of this a note to my mom, who with such confidence in her daughter cautioned me the morning I left not to "Make the children cry". Thanks mom!!! And in case you are wondering, no child cried, at least not in our presence! If anything, some of the kids were overly distracted by the mob of family/friends that accompanied them to the performance. We sometimes resented this because a child would come in very prepared, but was so distracted by the crowd and parents flashing pictures, that we knew they didn't play their best. The best kids were sometimes the ones who came in alone, with no one inside the room but us.

The one last thing I must say about the competition is that some teachers are really crazy!!! We had one guy who actually came in after his student played and had lots of memory slips, sat down with us (which you are DEFINITELY not supposed to do...no contact is supposed to be made with judges at a competition). Anyway, he sat down with us and started to tell us how amazing and perfect his student was the week before, and how this NEVER happens. I was very nice, told him I had a student working on the same piece and that we were both very understanding that memory slips happen, even to the best of us. I just don't know what he was expecting us to do!! We had already written our comments, and scored the performance, and we certainly couldn't go back and change anything! It seems like some people just have a hard time letting their students stand on their own two feet, and learning that the student's performance is not always a direct reflection on the teacher's ability to teach. Some people just can't get past that though, I guess.

Anyway, I guess that was about all I wanted to share. I am pretty tired and it's getting late. Spring keeps teasing us lately. It was like summer for 3 or 4 days, and it's been freezing for the past 2 days!! Oh well, maybe "the sun will come out tomorrow" :)

Good night and God Bless! :)

p.s. One last thing I have to say about all this, in regard to my blog title "Judge Etnoyer". I want anyone who might question my intentions to know that I certainly, in no way shape or form, view myself as better or more important because I got to do this. It was a humbling and rewarding experience. The biggest lesson for me was learning that we are all just people, whether we're the student, teacher, or judge. We should never feel intimidated by another person. The whole reason we have competitions is to grow, learn, and be rewarded for our hard work, whether that's getting a medal, or just intrinsic satisfaction in a job well done. And most importantly, we do it to glorify God, and not ourselves. That's what made this competition very special.

Trip to Colorado

2008-04-04T08:07:00.000-07:00

I am back! I wanted to take a few minutes and post a short blog to give you all an update on how my trip to Colorado was, earlier this week. First of all, my #1 favorite thing about the trip was seeing the Rocky Mountains! Almost 4 years ago I spent the summer at the Aspen Music Festival & School in Aspen, CO. I felt so inspired by that trip, and it was just as wonderful seeing those mountains for the second time! My professor and a former student of hers shared a hotel room with me on the 14th floor of the Hyatt Regency. We could see all the way out, several miles, to the mountains that bordered the city.

In case some of you are wondering, I was in Denver attending the MTNA (Music Teacher's National Association) National Conference. This was my first time, and I got to go for an extremely low rate due to the WVU Collegiate Chapter fund which helped sponsor me, and the fact that I still get in for the college/student rate. College-age students were definitely in the minority at this convention. I was surrounded by many of the top music pedagogues, publishers, and music clinicians in the country. I will admit, some of it was kind of boring. I still haven't fully adapted to the idea of "conformed business atire". During some of the events I wanted to jump up and down and say "Music is FUN not Business!!!" But I also have to admit, in all fairness, that behind the staleto heals and suits, there were some very friendly and light-hearted musicians, who had a lot of wisdom and experience to share with me. In fact, one of the nice things about the MTNA conventions is that unlike many other business gatherings, people feel completely comfortable sitting and talking with strangers and making fast friends. It is just part of the advantage of meeting others who share a common love for music.

While at this convention I attended three seminars (I would have attended many more but I have been struggling to over-come a cold for almost 2 weeks now). One was focused on the "Celebration Series" which I found very applicable since I am currently teaching 4 piano students out of this series. One seminar focused on the generational differences between most current music educators, and the current rising generation. They discussed ways that teachers need to learn to understand the way children learn today, using technology and group learning. The third session I attended focused on how to make your students fabulous and fearless performers. The speaker focused on transposition, improvisation, using MIDI technology in the lessons, and much more.

Aside from seminars, the high-light of the trip for me was the performances. I was able to hear all of the national winner recitals for the Junior and Senior divisions, as well as the Young-Artist winners. The students were so inspiring to me! In addition, on the final night of the convention, aprox. 2,000 of us crowded a down-town United Methodist Church to hear a very memorable performance by the world-famous concert pianist Lang Lang ( I should mention here that he is only 25 years old!). This was my second opportunity to hear Lang Lang, just in the past year or so. He also performed with the Pittsburgh Symphony last time I heard him. This pianist is so phenominal that they are beginning to rank him in the same category with Horowitz and Rubinstein. He has been performing since age 5 and has already performed in every major city in the world. If you ever get a chance to hear this musical-wonder perform, I strongly encourage you to take it!!!

The rest of my time in Colorado was spent eating some great food, doing some church-music shopping at the convention sales booths, and even visiting the Denver Art Museum where I saw some beautiful Impressionist art work, including pieces by Renoir. For the first time in my life, I actually understood the definition of Impressionism, as opposed to my past trips to art museums when I had a very confused idea of what Impressionistic art was about. It really helped me as a musician too, because now I have a clearer understanding of what a musician means when they talk about the "Impressionistic Music" of Debussy.

I think that is about it. I am busy catching up on work now that I am home, still getting over my cold, and really on fire to get back to practicing. I believe a month away from practice and the convention trip were just what I needed to get back into the swing of things. In fact, at my church choir rehearsal last night, my choir members said there was a noticeable difference in my conducting! This was very encouraging to me for two reasons. 1) I have not been working on my conducting since the last time we met and I chose the piece we were singing just before rehearsal. 2) I felt a big difference as I was conducting in my awareness of all the details of the music, and in the ease of expressing them to the choir. It was nice to have it reaffirmed that I am in fact improving and that time away from practicing can open us up to be better performers.

I'll let you all go now. I hope in a few weeks to have the pictures from the Lang Lang concert developed, and will try to post them on here.

God Bless!!

LONG LOOONG DAYS

2008-03-27T21:41:00.000-07:00

I just checked my blog and was surprised that the last post was only yesterday morning. It seems like it was 3 days ago! So, what have I been doing with all of this time? Well....

1) I have finished off 2 boxes of tissues
2) Watched about enough t.v. to last me through the summer, including movies
3) Filled and re-filled my humidifier
4) Slept more than a bear in hibernation
5) E-mailed a college professor a novel which will probably take him at least 3 months to reply to
6) Bugged Aspen Music School again, waiting to hear the results of my admission audition package
7) Scared my cat with dynamite "kachoos"
8) Well, I have done a LITTLE laundry!! :)
9) Repeatedly checked peoples blog pages in desperate search for something new and exciting to consume more of my couch time
10) Lost the hearing in my right ear due to a major clogged-up head
11) Drank enough green tea and water to fill a bath-tub
12) Started to transform my nose into a replica of Rudolph's
13) Actually dirtied up all of my "lounge clothes" in a week!
14) Started to read a very good biography on the life of J.S. Bach which has been sitting on my book shelf for over a year at least
15) Let my mother serve me more food than since I was probably about 15 years old
16) Played "Super Collapse!" about a million times on my computer, still trying to beat my mom's score of 1,500(something),000.

Um, I think that sums it all up! And what am I doing now? Well, I'm about to stop waisting time and go to bed.

Good night!!! :)

The Early Bird Catches the Worm!

2008-03-26T03:38:00.000-07:00

Good morning!!! This post has one very simple purpose. To brag (and prove) that for once I am an early bird!! In fact, Jaime, I am probably up before you this morning! And that's saying something!! :)

It's funny how when you are sick all you want to do is lay around. But, I guess I have been doing so much laying around that my brain and body were tired of it, so I woke up at 5:30 a.m. after lying awake for about an hour with an irritated head and throat and decided to clean my room! Now it's 6:40 a.m., my parents still aren't up yet, and I may just be either playing on my computer or back asleep by the time they get up!! I am very thankful to say the least that this is WVU's spring break, which for me means getting some much needed recoup. time without having to cancel rehearsals and lessons, because they are already off for the week!

That's all. Have a great day! :)

Post-Easter Update

2008-03-25T13:52:00.000-07:00

Here is a post-Easter update for you all. There is good news and bad news. The good news first! We had two men come to our house this morning and by around lunch time had completely finished putting laminate flooring in the rest of our dining room/kitchen area. Now our living room and kitchen area match! It looks so much nicer and cleaner, and brighter...and cleaner!! My mom and I love it. We can't wait for my dad to get home soon so he can see it too. My parents have done so much to our house the past several years we have lived here. If we had before and after pictures they would be drastically different!

The bad news is that I'm sick. Just when I thought I escaped the flu season, it hit me! I'm not sure if it's flu or bronchitis, but I went to the doctor's this morning and was put on anti-biotics. Hopefully between that, lots of fluids and healthy food, sleep and rest, and aspirin and mucinex, I will be better by the time I fly to Denver on Sunday! I have to count my blessings though because my little cousin Timmy is in the hospital sick and I know it's worse when a little kid is sick. If you have been keeping up on my family news, I would appreciate, and I know they would appreciate your prayers. They have a brand new-born baby at home and Timmy is their 2nd to youngest, so I know they are anxious to have him better and home again.

That's about all my news for now. The weather is beautiful in West Virginia today! I don't know what to expect day-to-day around here, especially in the month of March. Sunday it was snowing and freezing, Sunday afternoon it was beautiful, yesterday it was snowing, and today I could take a walk if I wasn't sick! I hope Spring is right around the corner because I'm already ready for summer!!!

Hope you all are enjoying nice weather as well....more later!

God Bless

Babies and Easter

2008-03-23T17:34:00.000-07:00

Happy Easter! I hope you have enjoyed your Easter Sunday. I spent by Easter Sunday at church, followed by a wonderful ham dinner and dessert (Thanks Jaime for the recipe...it was great!! :)....although we had to use frozen strawberries because the raspberries got moldy :(..it was still really good! Then, after doing the dishes to make my mom happy and give her a break, I had a loooooong nap!! I know I always take long weekend naps, but this was long, even for me!! Around a quarter after 4pm I layed down on my bed with my cat and it wasn't until around 8:15pm that my mom came in the room and asked if I was sick!! Haha, nope, I'm just fine. But I'm going to be up for quite a while now!!

I also have some very exciting news for those of you who have been keeping up on my family news. My cousin Cathy gave birth yesterday evening (they live in Canada) to baby #10!!! His name is Samuel Thomas Newton. I can't wait to see pictures! I think it is so sweet how all of the kids were at home waiting anxiously to see their new baby brother. My mom immediately got texted from Sarah Newton and one of the boys that their little brother had arrived at 7 lb and 3 oz. If you would like to see pictures of my new little cousin, you can visit Cathy's blogspot at the address below.

www.ofgreatprice.blogspot.com

Happy Easter again and God Bless!

Good Friday/Easter

2008-03-22T07:11:00.000-07:00

Good Friday was a special day for me this year. Yes, of course it is special EVERY year, but the way I spent my day this year made the preparation up to Easter Sunday even more special for me. First, I had the joy of spending a few hours baby-sitting my friend Sarah's kids at the park. I offered to take them to the park while she house-cleaned. It worked both ways. She needed some time alone in the house to get things done, and I missed playing with the boys.

It had been a while since I spent a day with the kids and forgot how much Christian likes to ask "why", and how Luke's smile can brighten up your day :) It was enlightening to me to be reminded of what our world looks like through the eyes of a child. There are so many curious things!

Yesterday evening I went to our church's Good Friday service. I played piano, listened to our Praise & Worship director give the sermon, and the P&W group sing special music. After the sermon he left the altar open. Something I had not had the opportunity to do in a long time. Usually I am sitting at the keyboard during this time, but this time I get to sit in the pews and take advantage of kneeling at the altar.

Something happened last night that reminded me of how much our Lord loves us and wants to be near us. As I went to the altar it felt as if I was closer to God than when I am alone in my room with Him having devotions. Although the altar was so filled with people that we could barely fit everyone there, it felt like one of the most alone and intimate times I had shared with Jesus in a very long time.

As we were kneeling at the altar a song by Nichole Nordiman was playing. I don't know the title but it's about a little girl who asks her father why Jesus is dying on the cross. The song portrays the little girl actually being there in the moment that changed history. It is a very powerful song.

I think what made last night so special was that the story of Jesus didn't feel so long ago. I could imagine Him going through the suffering, looking at me, and all the while, knowing without a doubt in His mind, that He wanted to do it, because I was worth it to Him. The sermon story of the little girl who watched the church play of Jesus' Crucifixion and how her mother could not comfort her or convince her that it was "just a play" made me think how easily we forget the reality of what really happened. And it also made me wonder if we always do our best to help little children understand.

In a world where sex out of marriage, violence, power, and many other kinds of evil are so blatantly advertised in the media, I can't help but think that as Christians we have a responsibility to children to make the story of Jesus louder and clearer, and more "real" than all of the negative influences around them.

I suppose that is all. Those are my reflections on the Easter season this year. I hope you too have an intimate and joyful experience with Jesus this Easter!

God Bless!

Life is Short, Handle with Care

2008-03-17T19:40:00.000-07:00

The quote for today's blog seemed appropriate for this week. This phrase was cross-stitched by my mother when her father was recovering from open-heart surgery many many years ago (correct me if I'm wrong mom :)). This came to my mind because in the past 2 weeks, I have been to 3 funerals or viewings. You know the phrase, "Everything comes in 3s"? Well, I guess it is true a lot of the time.

First I played for a funeral of someone I did not know but who was a life-long member of our church, two Saturday's ago. This past Saturday I attended the funeral of a pre-mature baby, born only 5 months after conception at only 14 oz. This evening I attended the viewing of a woman who along with her husband were among the first people my parents and I met upon moving to WV. They made us feel very welcome. Her husband was at the time the assistant principal at my high school, and they were members of the church we attended. There 2 daughters have now lost their mother due to lung cancer at a very young age, the younger of the two being my age, 25.

Events like births and deaths always make us think more about the quality of life. For some reason though, at this time in my life, it seems especially significant. I am surrounded by so much joy with several friends and family expecting or recently celebrating the birth of new children. At the same time, I am surrounded by those who have recently lost loved ones way before their expected time.

All this has just made me appreciate life even more and realize how much we take it for granted. There are so many things that I would like to do with my life, and so many things I would also like to change. There are people I want to mend relationships with, and souls I want to help minister to, but don't because of fear. There are goals I set for myself but procrastinate on completing, and things I need to let go of, but struggle with the "how to and what if's".

I just wanted to write this post to encourage anyone who reads this, or who is going through their own struggles with the loss of loved ones, or maybe is just struggling with questions they don't have the power to answer, that one thing we can be sure about is that God loves us and has us here for a reason. If there is anything you feel compelled to do, ask God if it is His will, and if it is, don't wait another second. The world we live in expects so much from us, and too many people live their lives trying to please others or work their way up the "corporate latter" and then before they know it, their life is gone.

Of course there will always be things we will wish we could have done differently, not done at all, or maybe wanted to do and didn't. That is just part of our human nature. But most importantly, we need to remember that we only get 1 day to say what we want to say to a friend, relative, collegue, or maybe even a complete stranger. Every day is a gift, not to be taken for granted, and every encounter with another person comes without guarantee of a 2nd chance to say what we want to say. I know it's been said a million times, but it is so true "Live your faith for everyone to see. To some you may be the only Bible they ever get to read"

I said all of this for myself more than anyone else. But it was just on my heart and I wanted to share it.

God Bless!

Easter Week

2008-03-16T20:37:00.001-07:00

Today we performed the Easter cantata at our church. We had a very nice turn out and also a good size choir. Our pastor's wife Susan directed us, and did a wonderful job.

My excitement for the day was getting to play piano for the regular 11:00 service on a slanted sanctuary floor. You see, our church is in serious need of a renovation, or possibly a new building all together. So, today the keyboard was moved from it's usual place to the side of the sanctuary so there would be room for the cantata choir risers. As a result, the keyboard was situated on a slanted floor which meant I kept scooting up the bench to keep myself from feeling like I was falling off. It was interesting because I did not want the pastor or his wife to feel they had inconvenienced me, so all the while he was preaching I kept nodding my head and keeping good eye contact to show I was listening, but in reality, half of me was trying to keep from falling off the piano bench and trying to figure out how to get in and out around the people and palm branches. It was a very nice service though, regardless of the situation.

While I am mentioning it, it seems appropriate to ask for prayers for our church. We are in the middle of a long process of deciding what is to be done about the church building. We have a committee that meets regularly to discuss it but the building is on it's way to being an unsafe environment, because the roof is slowly caving in on itself and eventually it will not be safe to sit inside the church, unless a major renovation is done. The church is so old that building a new building may very well be the more affordable and long-term practical decision, but of course as with any church, there are many who grew up in it and are very emotionally attached to the building and hesitant if not adamant about changing their place of worship. So, if you could pray for our church, as well as the committees, prayer groups, and the pastor as he is often unfortunately a target for many harsh critical comments from those who have strong feelings of what they individually feel is best for the church.

Enough about the church. I don't have too much else to say right now (for once!). I will say that I am needing to lose a lot of weight. I feel kind of silly asking this, but since that is what friends are for, I would appreciate it if you would pray for me to get in better shape. It scares me a bit because each year I weigh a little more than the year before and my older brother and I both keep gaining weight and our whole family is trying to make changes in our lifestyles to be healthier. It is especially a concern for my brother and I because on our father's side of the family we have a history of diabetes, obesity, and heart conditions, and on my mother's side more heart problems, cancer, arthritis, etc. So, while we are still young, we need to make changes that are practical for a life-style rather than a "crash-diet" or expecting myself to run 6 miles a day.

I also realize that I'm bringing all of this up during Easter week. It would be helpful if we could go into Easter week remembering the true meaning of the holiday, and not feeling obligated to eat chocolate and candy all week because "everyone else does". Honestly, I'm ready to dump it all it and go to the grocery store and buy a bunch of vegis and fruit.

Ok, nough said! I'm done complaining now :) Hope to have more exciting news in the near future so I'll have something worth talking about!

Good night

A Day Away

2008-03-14T19:11:00.000-07:00

Today was a day away from the ordinary. I got to spend the entire day with my friend Jaime and her two children, Cosette and Elias. It was so much fun to play with the kids, see how fast they are growing and learning and to catch up with my good friend. As you can imagine, a day with a 3 year old, and almost 2 year old, is never uneventful. I am happy to say though that nothing that happened today or that I got to help with today was a burden. It was all a joy! I say this partially so Jaime can stop feeling bad for the thing I got to help out with in the bathroom :) :) That was no problem at all. If only you knew the things I clogged up or burned up or tore apart when I was little!!!

It is so enlightening to spend a day with a child. You think about what you say more, how you act and react to situations, what is literal and what is sarcastic, and what is considered telling a "joke" as opposed to telling a "story". But I think one of the best things to learn from a child is their sense of wonder and eagerness to learn. As I was driving home this evening I was thinking back to my recent audition experiences. It occurred to me that if professors/teachers/people in positions of authority and/or power would approach every student in the same way as a child (in one respect), there would be a lot more eager adult learners and less timid students.

What I mean by all this is that I believe adults lose a very important characteristic as they approach adolescence and adulthood. We forget that it's ok to make a mistake, it's ok to be misunderstood, and it's ok to laugh at ourselves and try again! The number one thing that I learned from auditioning over the last several months is that there are a lot of very "successful" people in the world who are missing out on a lot of joy because they are too busy trying to be perfect and have forgotten how much fun it can be to mess up and learn from our mistakes, and get a second chance! I am constantly reading books and articles by musicians about how making a mistake is like a child learning to walk. It isn't something to feel ashamed of, it's just something that gives us information. "Oh, that didn't work that way. I need to try this differently next time." The only problem is I see more wisdom and grace in their articles than I do in real-life.

Maybe that was a little too much to read into just one day playing with a couple of cute kids, but it's also something to think about.

I guess that's it. Not too much else to say. My brain and body are tired and for once I'm hitting the sack (excuse me Cosette...I'm not actually going to HIT anything, I'm going to "go to bed") before midnight. Good night!