Beautiful Winterwood Lakeside Cottage Visit May 2015

View from our balcony

Our outside dining

Dusk

Dusk

View from the bedroom

Lots of walking

Wild flowers everywhere

One of many "road" pictures

My feet are in Winterwood

Our cottage that overlooks the lake

This definitely must have a story to go with it.

Welcoming, huh! ha

See the tiny mushroom?

Grand Entrance

Prayer garden

Babbling brook for real

Ron taking a close-up

Prayer spot

Jorden Orin was born on my birthday!  His parents own Winterwood.

What a birthday! May 20, 2015

Winterwood Cottage is a perfect place to start a birthday.  After spending the morning reading, writing, and a couple of cups of coffee sitting on the porch overlooking the lake, Ron and I headed toward Rogers. This was quite a trek and consisted of a lot of curves but we were rewarded with beautiful scenery along the way.  While riding I received my yearly birthday call from W. L. McCulloch, my dear childhood friend.  He never forgets and I look forward to his call.

Once we reached Rogers, we went to the Chrystal Bridges Art Museum.  I had heard that this was a spectacular place and we were not disappointed.  The building and grounds alone were a sight to behold.  Of course, a little sunshine would have made it glow even more, but the temps were cool and we were grateful for that.  The art was more than we could cover in one day but we did see some wonderful art pieces and I will include some of them in this post.  It was a wonderful experience and I would like to go back.

Crystal Bridges Art Museum

Crystal Bridges Art Museum

Rosie the Riveter

Georgia O'Keefe

Beethoven's Trumpet (With ear) - John Baldessari

Dolly Parton - Andy Warhol

Lunar Rendezvous - Circle of Flowers by Alma Thomas

Around 4:30 we arrived at my cousin, Anita Sue's home.  Anita has lived in Rogers for many years. She recently retired from being the Dean of the English Department at Northwest Arkansas Community College.  She has been so happy here personally and professionally.  Our mothers were best friends and both shared the characteristic of never letting any grass grow under their feet, a tradition that Anita and I are successfully carrying on.   Anita made us feel so welcomed and was such a fabulous hostess.  We have always been close and I treasure these times we can spend together. 

We had my birthday dinner at a place called Crabby's where the food, drink, and fun were definitely present.  Our waiter was excellent and we could not have asked for a better celebration.  After being given my creme brule to take with me, we left and went back to Anita's for a scrumptuous dessert that she had prepared.  After a little more visiting we had to say our good-byes because Ron and I really didn't want to get caught in the mountains when it got dark.

So much for that plan!  We decided to try a "short cut" and got a little lost.  We found our way back to the main road eventually, of course, but it was a little stressful and we were so happy to get back to Winterwood safely.  We got comfy and watched my traditional birthday movie, "You've Got Mail" before going to bed.  Actually we weren't able to finish it because we fell asleep.  We will finish it later today.

So, that was my birthday.  There was only one other surprise that I didn't find out about until today.

Sativa and Eric, the owners of Winterwood have been expecting a baby that was predicted for next week or the next.  Well, guess what!  Jordan was born yesterday on my birthday!  Eric called this morning to tell us the great news!  I just think that is the coolest thing.  

It is a beautiful day and Ron and I are going to go walking in awhile.  This has been a wonderful trip and it will be hard to leave.  But, we will return......

Winterwood: What Are Those Sounds?

Reflecting on My New Pups!

2015 Coppell Cadre with Dean Thomas!!

It is Thursday, May 14th, 2015, and I am sitting by the window at one of my local Starbucks "offices" enjoying the beautiful day.  A few minutes ago I completed all of my grades, which means I have officially wrapped up my semester.  This is always a bittersweet time for me because I have attachment issues with my students and that has genuinely been the case with this Coppell cadre pictured below.  I could tell the first day of class in January that they were going to be a special group.  Even though they might have looked a little sleepy-eyed and had a normal sense of apprehension, I could tell that they really wanted to learn about teaching kids and becoming the best teachers possible.  In order to do that they would be expected to be in class, be there on time, do quality work and make the effort to quit thinking like a student and begin thinking like a teacher. I am happy to write that this is exactly what they did.  By the end of the semester, they had established a trust within their cadre and a love and support system for each other that will continue throughout. 

They know the importance of establishing this same community in their future classrooms and they know about the power of their words.  Somewhere along the way, they also learned about keeping the dignity of a child,  teaching kids to write with the help of researching great gurus, writing their own lessons, sharing ideas, and maybe even a thing or two from me.  They were like butterflies ready to take off and as hard as it was, I had to let them go!  I know they will fly high and add beauty to this world, and I know they will remember to ask themselves, "Where are my feet?"

I am so very fortunate to still be able to live my dream of being a teacher.  There have been many who have come before this group and there will be 19 new ones in the fall.  I feel so blessed to cross paths with students and attempt to help them along the journey that I have taken and continue to take.  

Yes, I am definitely the lucky one.

Olivia

Ally 

Julia

Jackie

Sierra

Catherine

Grace (Ms. Italy)

Ashley

Kamille

Cami

Lori

Chelsea

Laura

Laura

Alexandra

Cindy

Grace

Katie

Girlies Gone but Not Fogotten

If you follow me on Facebook, you know that two of my very best friends from my Arkansas roots have been visiting in our home since Thursday.  I just got back from "leading them out of town" to George Bush Turnpike.  As I headed back home, I began to experience the "dip in emotions" that I always feel when someone leaves.  This always happens when my kids leave after being home or when I have to leave them.  It usually lasts about thirty minutes because by then I get myself focused back on things I need to do.  At this time, I have chosen to stop at one of my Starbucks offices and recall our good times.  Oh, my friends do have names:  Kay Allen and Sandra Garrett.  I am not going to even try to explain our history.  It is too long but just know, I love them dearly.

They arrived around 4 p.m. On Thursday.  I met them at the Highland Village train station parking lot so I would not have to confuse them with the directions of plowing through the construction to get to our

house.  We quickly changed clothes to get back on the road to Plano so we could have a celebratory birthday dinner for Kay at Papadeux's before Ron's concert. (Yes, they got to experience the fun of 5 o'clock traffic on George Bush.) Everything was so good and we had a lot of fun.  Afterwards, we traveled to Colin College to attend a wonderful concert where Ron played his clarinet in the orchestra that accompanied a fabulous pianist. Once we arrived back at home, we pretty much headed to bed because it had been a long day for all of us.

On Friday morning we had a long coffee conversation and Sandra was feeling a little queezy.  She had a slight stomach bug which tried to ruin our day.  However, for those of you reading this who know Sandra Garrett, you know she managed to fight it off.  We went to the Arboretum and she just took it easy as we all enjoyed the beauty of that fabulous place.

After the Aroboretum I took them to Highland Park so we could drive up and down the streets to look at the beautiful homes around Beverly Drive and Turtle Creek.  Sandra had not seen SMU so we made a quick trek through the campus.  By this time, it was time to head to Prestonwood Baptist Church where the Bill Gaither Homcoming of southern gospel music would be taking place at 7. We were on the second row but eventually moved back because we were seated right in front of the speaker and it was extremely loud.  The music was great and we had a lot of fun.

On Saturday morning we left the house mid-morning and I drove them around Highland Village, Flower Mound and showed them some of my favorite places.  We eventually made it back to the Carrollton area where I was able to show them where my mother lived before she died in 2006.  Both of these ladies loved my mother very much.  It was a special time to share.

The second concert started at 3 p.m.  We were able to see Mike and Betty Goff beforehand and enjoy a short time together in the parking lot!  Mike is also from our hometown and it is always a treat to see him and Betty. This time Kay waved our second row seats in the air and got someone further back to trade with us.  Seemingly, the loudness didn't bother them because they didn't come looking for us to trade back.  Needless to say, a great time was had by all...AND Sandra was feeling like her old self again and that made us very, very happy.

After the concert, we pretty well closed our weekend down by a great dinner.  We were the last ones to leave the restaurant.  It was always hard to know when to "cut off" the conversation in order to move to the next place.

We had a final meal together this morning at Egg and I before they left.  If you haven't noticed, there was no cooking being done the entire week-end! :)

So now my girlfriends are traveling back to Arkansas.  We were reminded again of the importance of friendships and staying in touch.  Can't wait to do it again!

What a Week!

Have you ever had one of those weeks where each day you think it just can't get any better?  Well, that is how this past week has gone for me!

It began with my son, John, becoming a member of the Music faculty at Youngstown State University in Youngstown, Ohio.  Along with being extremely talented, John is also a natural teacher; this is something I have noticed for many years.  Plus, I should know since I am in the business of "teaching teachers"!  He, along with his friend, Nick, will also be conducting the Trombone Retreat again this summer in Michigan.  Only this year they have tripled the number of applicants.  John will continue to be the Principal Trombonist for the Pittsburgh Opera. Lots going on with him right now and probably more on the way.

The next joy for me was to attend the premiere of Gallows Road, a movie in which my great niece, Megan, was one of the cast members.  Seeing her on that screen was simply breathtaking for me.  She has many movies ahead in her future, I am sure.  The other great thing about the premiere was that I got to see many family members; my sister-in-law, Tommie; my niece, Ann Marie, and her husband, Alan, who had his beautiful daughters with him. Tommie's brother, Bobby was there, too, and I haven't seen him in many years.

 Madison, Megan's big sister, was such a joy to see again because she has grown so much into a beautiful teenager.  It was great to see their parents, my nephew Mark and his wife, Mandy, who are incredible parents.  It was an amazing night.

Right before the premiere I was able to surprise a student I had taught when she was ten years old at her "Senior Presentation" with the Lewisville Farmers Softball team.  Gabriella Vasquez is now about to graduate from LHS in the top 10% of her class.  She is beautiful and just as sweet as she was when I last saw her six years ago.  It was thrilling to reunite with her.

I feel so blessed and grateful to God.