Well hell...

I guess it's about high time I write something on this bloggy thingy, since it's been about two years since last time. It must be something about autumn that drives me to write, create, etc... Maybe I'll make this be a biannual occurrence. Then I don't have to feel guilty for not writing more often.

Things that are new, in no particular order: (by new, clearly I mean things that weren't as much around/in my life 2 years ago)

• Hermy, my Hermann's tortoise. I received him from a Montessori student after he lived in my Montessori classroom for about a year. So he's been around for awhile. He's at least 7 years old anyhow. What's new is that now he mostly lives in our apartment since I'm only at school 3 mornings a week. He gets to come to school with me and be patted, fed, and otherwise tormented by the children fairly often though. Jeff and I love him a lot. He may be cold blooded, but he's friendly and follows us around when we let him out to peruse our place. 

This is what Hermy would look like if he was this tiny.

• Middle Eastern Dancing. I started doing this a bit in 2010, but really got into it in 2011. Last year I helped to plan a big fundraiser with Ten Thousand Villages for artisans in areas of natural disasters to help support themselves. We served hummus, pitas, baba ghanoush, tabbouleh (that I made!), couscous, and mint tea. We did 3 sets of dance (about 15-20 minutes each) Folkloric Egyptian, Turkish "Canti" Romany, and Egyptian Oriental. PLUS we had a silent auction that everyone collected donations on and I put together. A LOT of work, but great fun! What was very special was that I got to put so much effort into making a difference, rather than just donating $$! We raised over $2000! *Note, we're totally doing this again this year, Nov. 17th at Goshen Theater! I can't wait! There's something that just fills me with joy when I'm dancing. Even if I'm just learning new choreography or practicing! I love the idea that I'm connecting with cultures from across the world, and just the dance itself makes me giddy!

Troupe Svatura dancing "Rompi Rompi" in Ft. Wayne at Ozgen's Gala

• Jeff is in grad school. This is really awesome because he gets to study something he enjoy. Even though it's a lot of work, in about 2 years, he'll get to start doing something that he wants to do that really makes a positive impact on the world around us. This, along with his job as a pharmacy tech makes for a kind of chaotic schedule at times, but I'm really thankful for this opportunity for us.

 

We were able to "get away from it all" camping with friends in Michigan this summer!

•  Dominion. We've been playing this game with friends whenever we have some time and friends that are free! We like it a lot. We're also playing Carcassonne, Settlers of Catan, SmallWorld, and poker on occasion. 

• Both my grandpa's passed away, as well as my uncle. Grandpa K in Oct. of 2011, and Grandpa M. and Uncle L. in Feb. Plus we found that my dad has a horrible degenerative disease. Not cool. I'm still experiencing grief from the loss of their presence here on this earth, but I am content to know that I will see them again soon, that all their pain is gone, and that they are safe in the love of Jesus. Dad seems to be dealing fairly well, but I am still concerned for his well being. 

Anyway, I should wrap this up for now, lest this post become ridiculously long. Ooh! I'm also thinking about turning some of my dream stories into young adult fiction. (Seriously, my dreams are epic...this could totally work)