Girl Talk & Itzhak!

Last weekend was a lot of fun; so much fun that I want to share it with you. Friday night started with a "cleaning party" at school. Anna and I turned on some music and worked on getting things organized in the classroom. She has been great for me in that area of my life. I've never seen the bottom of my desk for a week at a time, yet alone almost every day of the school year! Afterwards, she followed me home and we headed to dinner at Taco Mac in Decatur. I had a delicious fish & veggies dish. I was surprised at how good it tasted since Taco Mac is more known for it's selection of beers. Claire joined us after dinner for a glass of wine at Tastings - right across the street. I really enjoyed getting to spend some time with these ladies. We talked about Claire's upcoming wedding, shopping, school, and whatever else was on our minds. It was a great night out with the girls! One point Anna brought up was how great it is that we get along so well. We spend all day together working, and still like each other enough to hang out in social settings afterward. I've heard, that we will be working together next year too. Yay! Saturday was date night! I found out in September that Itzhak Perlman was coming to play with the Atlanta Symphony. We decided to grab dinner at our favorite Chinese place beforehand. Can't go wrong with Fortune Cookie! As we were sitting in the concert hall, and the music started, I realized that nothing really makes me happier than great classical music. I get goosebumps when I hear an orchestra. And man, is Itzhak good! (duh!) One thing I was a bit disappointed about was that he only played one piece and then conducted the last 2 symphonies. I would've loved to hear him play more. But it was a great night. We are very fortunate to be in a city where there is a spectacular orchestra within 10 minutes of our house! I love going down there - it makes me feel very "big city". :o)

"Play Ball!!"

Every year I anticipate the start of a new baseball season. This year was no different. Some may say I was even more excited. Back in the fall when the baseball schedule was announced, I realized that the Royals home opener would fall on the 2nd weekend of my spring break! In addition to the excitement of being at home for the start of baseball season (Andrew and I didn't make it to the K last year), we also got to be some of the first to see & explore the new stadium. Kauffman Stadium had $250 million in renovations in the off-season. It was a beautiful day for baseball & the "new" stadium is gorgeous! I have not been to all of the ballparks but it is definitely the prettiest I've ever seen! Too bad the Royals lost the game (& to the stinky Yankees). I told Andrew the experience of the new stadium with the loss was similar to seeing all the pretty packages on Christmas morning; opening them to find underwear!! But we are off to a pretty good start for the year (7-5)! Let's keep it up. Here are pictures of the stadium: Ok...pictures coming later. My photo uploader isn't working...

5/3/09 - Sorry it took so long...my computer had to be reimaged and I lost a few pictures that were on my laptop. But, here they are now... Also, the Royals are still doing very well 13-11 and in first place in the central division. Woohoo! Enjoy the pictures!

Welcome to the New K!!

First view of the field as you exit the escalators - perfect!

The new Pepsi Porch and Rivals Party Deck

View from the outfield of the press boxes

Fountains above the Pepsi porch all lit up at night

Andrew and I with the scoreboard - the crown is new this year.

Glasses!

While at home for Christmas I realized my vision was getting to the point where it was time for a check-up. I haven't had great luck with eye doctors here in Atlanta, but finally decided to pony up a little more money to have a doctor from Emory eye center. (In the top 9 in the country!). I'm so glad I did, because I have a doctor that has been very patient and willing to work with me.

I tried soft contacts, but never got used to the fact that they weren't as sharp as the gas perms I'd had my whole life. I went back to gas perms, and got a new set of glasses. They are much lighter than my previous pair so they don't sliiiiiiiiiiiide down my nose. I was reluctant to get a new pair when I didn't "really" need them. But my doctor told me that I was going to continue permanent damage to my eyes if I only wore contacts.

And...here are my new glasses and I LOVE them!! I've become a glasses person again!

Let me know what you think. :o)

How Would You Measure A Lion?

We've been doing measurement in math this week. Yesterday's lesson was about converting feet and inches to only inches (Ex. 3 feet, 4 inches would be 40 inches). One question on last night's homework asked for an item they wouldn't use feet and inches to measure and explain why not...here are some of the answers we received: 1. An apple seed because it's too small to measure with feet and inches. (good!) 2. You wouldn't measure water with feet and inches because it's liquid. You could use cups (great!) 3. I wouldn't measure a lion with feet and inches. I think he would be so mad that I was touching him, he would just kill me. (hilarious!) That is one of my favorite answers I've ever received while teaching 3rd grade. I laughed out loud for several minutes when I read it, and then again later while thinking about it. Ahhhh kids. They really do say the darndest things!

Happy Valentine's Day

Yay!!! Notice the picture - it's time to Rock again! :o) After several months without a CD player, we finally got it replaced in the car. This was my Valentine's Day present from Andrew. I couldn't be happier. If you know me, you know I love music. It was very tough not to be able to listen to my music to and from work. The commute is about an hour 45 minutes every day, and music definitely helps pass the time.

To go along with the new CD player, Andrew got me the Rush greatest hits CD. 80's Canadian Rock....yes! I found out that I'm really into them when we started playing them on Rockband. I heard a few of their other songs on the radio (while without a CD player), and enjoyed them as well. It's kinda cheesy, but I like it.

Thanks, Andrew for my Valentine's present!!

Just Jetta

Jetta in her cute piggy tails

Over the Christmas break, Andrew and I got to spend a whole week with Jetta by ourselves. My other niece and nephew stayed in Kansas City to spend some time with Nina and Grandpa. While I was disappointed in the lack of time I would have to spend with Julia and JC, we had a lot of fun with Jetta! We went on a few walks around Baylor, out to lunch, and to a few basketball games. One thing we found Jetta was a huge fan of was the singing (and preferrably dancing) characters that were at the Kirkpatrick house. She would dance along and then go back to push the button for more. So adorable! (Towards the end of the video, that's Edward and Courtney you hear discussing Oprah's magazine) Jetta also seemed to have a great time at the basketball games. She loved hearing the music and clapping and dancing along. Cheap (and very cute!) entertainment. We also found out first hand her love of the words "No, no!" This was especially amusing to us when we had her use these words against the opposition at basketball games. She would point to the player shooting free throws, shake her little finger and say "no no!"...and then to our chagrins they would miss the shot! :o) Andrew and I had a lot of fun with Jetta, and have many memories to take from our special time together.

<--- Jetta and Andrew doing the "Sic 'em Bears!"

Better Late Than Never. . .

Ok, so I realize it's been a while since I've updated. Obviously, much has happened in the last few months.

We celebrated the holidays with family and friends. We traveled through 11 different states in 2 weeks...whew!

One of my favorite holiday traditions took place before we left town. The 4th annual cookie decorating party. We've hosted it every year while at Emory. I must say, we've seen the bar raised every year. Unfortunately, neither Andrew or I have many skills with the decorating, but we do throw a pretty good holiday party!

The winners with their cookies -(L to R) Andrew's best effort "Cartman", Emily's best star decorated like Jesus, Susan's best gingerbread men - Batman trio, Josh's best tree-hidden aliean, Nigel's double-decker cookie.

Theme of the night: Batman - here are all 5 cookies. Nice job!

And of course, no party is complete without a white elephant exchange. I ended up with some Ninja Turtles video tapes. Oh boy....do I see some re-gifting for next year's party? Possibly. :o)