Sprechen Sie Urban*

Blog?  What's that?  Well, I still know what a blog is, and that I have a blog.  I just haven't had much to say.  I know, right...hard to believe.  

Some of you know that James participated in the Tuscaloosa Sister Cities program to Schorndorf, Germany this summer.  He spent ten days with a host family, and also took a side trip to Paris.  Part of that deal is that the German's come to Tuscaloosa in October.  Each American family has the option of hosting the German student that served as host to (James) in the summer.  I must admit that when I encouraged J to apply for this trip, I wasn't considering this.  Hosting someone in our home is way out of my comfort zone.  I figured that we would not have to reciprocate.  There would be somewhere else for Lukas to stay.  Ummm...not exactly.  James asked me if Lukas could/would stay with us.  He really wanted to do this.  I did not.  I must be honest and say this is something I agreed to only for the love of my child.  I did not want to let him down.  So, for two weeks in October we had a visitor.  A 15 year old German student from Schorndorf (actually Wylie).  If you are wondering, the connection is through Mercedes.  

It wasn't bad at all, really.  The American host students planned most of the social events.  James attended more parties in those two weeks than he has all year.  There were even plans for dinner most evenings, although J opted out.  He and Lukas stayed at home and we sat down to the family dinner.  This is where we really got to know Lukas.  Again, I am reminded how thankful I am that we have made a habit of supper together.  It is where we talk and get to know each other.  

Another Urban family thing we kept in place was Sunday morning church.  This is just part of what we do.  Our family has been attnding church together since the kids were born.  We attend Riverwood Presbyterian, PCA.  Lowell and I have been members for 24 years.  This is our family.  This is where we go to set our minds and hearts on that which is most important in our lives...our Lord Jesus Christ.  

We took Lukas to church with us twice.  On the first Sunday, I had no idea what he would think or do.  Lowell and I didn't have any leading as to whether we should discuss the service first or just let Lukas observe and participate.  So we didn't say anything.  As I sat there the first Sunday morning, many thoughts were flying through my head.  "I wonder if he knows the Lord's prayer?"  "I wonder if he knows to stand and sing?"  "I wonder if he knows what a sermon is, and since we have all male leadership, does he even know that we have not had a sermon yet?" And most of all, "Will he take communion?" 

These thoughts caused me to reflect on my own experiences with the church.  I suppose you would say I grew up in the Lutheran church.  That is where I had my first communion, attended Bible school, sang Father Abraham and about Noah building an "Arkie".  What was the name of that song, anyway?  Rise and Shine??  I digress.  Then there was a lapse in my church years until my mom became sick with cancer and began attending the Methodist church.  Here I attended membership classes, memorized creeds and prayers, and joined the Methodist church.  Just a few months later, my mother passed away.  Another break in church until a wonderful friend of ours and mother of my best friend at the time invited me to the Presbyterian church.  There I have stayed, although Lowell and I changed to the PCA when we moved to Tuscaloosa.  

The thing is, though, I did have a background in the church.  I was familiar with the order of the service, the hymns, and the Bible stories.  As I thought about Lukas, I wondered...what if he has never been to church.  Many German's stay away from the church. Most are Catholic or Lutheran.  They have beautiful cathedrals yet they stay empty.  Growing up in the Bible belt, I can't imagine what that might be like.  I found myself thinking, why don't I ask everyone I know if they have even been to church.  Not  if they know the Gospel, just if they attend church. Surely if something is such an important part of my life I should be sharing it with everyone.  My church family is awesome.  Come and meet them sometime.  If you do that you will surely come to know the goodness and mercy of Christ. 

As it turns out, Lukas attends a Protestant church in Germany.  They even went when James was staying with them but J did not attend because he knows not a word of German.  Well, I think he knows about six now :-).  I don't know the depth of Lukas' faith, but I am glad he has a foundation.  I am glad he attended church with us and youth group with J in spite of the language barrier.  I am proud of James for choosing to hang out with his family on several nights when they could have gone elsewhere.  I think Lukas had a good time, and I enjoyed having him.  No surprise, really.  I am used to teens.  They are much the same no matter what nationality.    I also found that there were many more German phrases tucked away in my brain than I had remembered.  

*So if you want to know why I ripped off Scarlet Simms' blog title, I found myself wondering what Lukas thought of our family.  For two weeks he found himself "speaking Urban".  We are who we are, I suppose.  By the end of the two weeks, the house had returned to its usual messy state, we had to eat left overs on the run in order to make it to Friday night football games, and we were a bit tired and whiny.  But all in all it was nice, and I am glad I agreed to do something out of my comfort zone for James.  I hope Lukas will come back some time, and bring die ganze familie.  

High school football season has drawn to an end.  Fall is in the air and today Lowell and I went hiking to enjoy the crisp air.  Here are a few pics of our afternoon hike at Lake Nichol.  Behold the Glory of God.   

Thrifty bathroom facelift

I had a little fun this week.  I painted the bathroom.  In our house we call this the girls' bathroom, I guess because it was previously pink and flowery.  Let me say I really liked the bathroom the way it was.  The wallpaper, however; was probably original to the house which was built in the 70's.   It was a floral metallic Impressionist  kind of print.  I have always liked the Impressionists, particularly Monet so it pleased my eye.  Unfortunately, the seams were pulling away from the wall.  I have contemplated (for about two years)  whether to try and fix the seams, or repaint.   Finally tired of the peeling seams, I opted for paint.  I knew what my wall would look like once I peeled the wallpaper, because I have done this once already in another bathroom.  Only the pattern comes off of the wall, and it leaves a fuzzy texture behind.  This can be removed as well with a little water spray and elbow grease, but I am lazy!!  I have not wanted to go to the trouble of removal.  With that being said, I have to give full credit to this decorating idea to my niece Alyssa Urban.  Her bathroom walls look the same, but are a different color.

 Here are the pictures of the previous paper.  You can see how the seams were pulling away from the wall.

 

Deciding on a color was tough. I was going to go with a pink rose color to match the existing shower curtain and towels.  I thought I had some paint lying around in that shade but I didn't so I looked around some more.  I found a gallon of paint in a neutral shade.  It was given to me by our painter a couple of years ago.  He just had it "lying around".  So the price was right!! Free.  I had to buy a new roller and I got white tissue paper at the Dollar Tree.  Twenty sheets.  I also had a little extra lying around the house from gift wrapping. Cost so far?  $4.78

Yes.  I said tissue paper.  I gave my walls a Feaux finish using tissue paper.  It is very simple but also quite messy.  

• Step One:  Tear the edges off of the tissue paper  Keep some of the strips to place along the trim and then wad the paper up.  
• Step Two:  Smooth out the papers and place them in a  stack.
• Step Three:  Paint  lines along the trim.  It is very difficult to line up a full sheet of tissue paper with the ceiling or floor.
• Step Four:  Put on glovesand then with a roller, paint an area slightly larger than the tissue paper.  While the paint is still wet, press the tisssue on to the wall and smooth out the wrinkles.  There is no set look.  Make it as bumpy as you wish.
• Step 5:  Paint over the tissue paper with the roller.  Be sure to keep a wet edge and repeat the process. If you don't have a wet edge the tissue paper won't stick. That's it!

Here is the picture of the wall in progress:  

 Warning, this is not for you if you are in any way inclined to perfectionism, or OCD, or any other term you might want to call such tendancies.  This method is for those who want to hide imperfections, and still have a cool look on the wall.  Or those who are too lazy to scrape wallpaper, or have bumpy drywall :-).  

Okay, so that being said at this point I now have a bathroom with a shower curtain and towels that do not match.  I have no idea what I am going to do to coordinate with the new look.  Possibly a fancy new shower curtain in a coordinating color.  I'm not in a hurry to finish that.  I will get to it when the budget allows, UNTIL...I stopped at a garage sale on Thursday.  There sat a full shower set for only $15.  Set includes:  two bathmats, one hand towel, shower curtain and matching tabs, wastebasket, a planter, and a cute picture of a palm tree.  I actually liked it and low and behold it matched.  SOLD!   So...who is keeping up?  That brings my total cost to $19.78. 

All I am missing now is the shower liner.  I chose K-Mart because it is close to the house and all I needed was one quick item.  Ummm...guess what peeps?  K-Mart still sells the shower set, and the curtain alone was on SALE for $16.99.   Yay!  Now I am feeling even better about my garage sale find and savings.  Also if I need a soap dish or something like that I know where to go.  So I purchased the liner for $4.98 and went home.  Wait...I had some $$$ on my rewards card so the liner was more like $2.98.  Happy, Happy thrifty me!!!

The bottom line:  Under $25 for a bathroom facelift.  The final test:  My daughter, and I quote: "I like it much better than my old bathroom."  "I love palm trees."  Me, too girl.  

The Reveal

 If you look above the picture you can see the texture on the wall.  I took down the old pink towels that don't match anymore, and I'm not sure when I will replace them.  The pic is a little grainy because I lowered the resolution on my phone camera. 

Thanks again, Alyssa.

Blessings,  

Monica

   

No Hope For Jellyfish

I am a beach walker.  I have been since my teenage days.  The reason stems from vacations with my step-mom Barbara and my dad.  If you know me, you already know my dad remarried when I was 13, after my mom died from breast cancer the previous year.  They bought a condominium in Perdido, Florida so many days were spent there decorating and planning.  NO offense to them, but my brother and sister were off to college and being the teen that I was they were not cool to hang out with, so I tooks lots of walks.  They also took me along on some beach vacations where I spent plenty of alone time on the beach tanning or walking.  One year I got my worst sunburn ever.  I had goose bumps but still managed to get burned.  I digress.

June 30 my dad celebrated his 80th birthday.  The whole family gathered at the condominium complex.  I took a long beach walk every day.  I am finally able to do that again because all of my childern are now old enough to go to the pool or beach without an adult present.  And one of my childreen is an adult, and can supervise.  How about that for cool. 

Okay, so I got to take a really long walk.  You see many interesting things along the beach, and it is never the same from day to day.  That is the beauty of it.  On this particular afternoon, the tide had washed up several pools of water.  These can be pretty yucky...filled with foam and broken shells, or sometimes they are close enough to the breaking waves to be clean and enjoyable for the little ones to play in.  This one was a little yucky, but fairly deep.  I looked down to see a jellyfish swimming in the pool.  It was fascinating to watch.  I could see it swim sideways and watch its tentacles at work.  Then I felt sorry for the little guy.  He was certainly about to die.  The water was prety shallow. Unlike something else that may have washed up, I couldn't pick up the jelly and throw him back to sea! Ouch!  So I proceeded to do the best I could at pushing the jelly into the deepest part of the water pool.  I used my foot and some sand.  Minimal success.  Then I continued my walk.  Who knows how far.

After turning around, I searched each pool along the way to find my jellyfish.  No luck.  Why?  The tide was no longer coming in as high, and water was not reaching the pools anymore.  The pool was empty...for that matter all of them were, and all I found was a (actually numerous) dead jellies.  Heavy sigh!!

Now you are thinking...who cares.  No one likes jellyfish anyway.  They sting and drive people out of the water.  You are right.  My story continues.  The water on this particular afternoon was beautiful.  It was clear and the waves were just right.  If ever there was a day for swimming in the ocean, this would be it.  So my kids and their cousins plunged in with Boogie boards in tow. When I walked up to our claimed spot of beach, I found our cousins looking forlorn.  What's wrong, I asked?  The answer...jellyfish.  My kids did not get stung, but their cousins did; hence, off to the pool and clear water.  I stayed down by the beach and watched the crowd.  I was amused by a couple of adults with nets, who really must have wanted to ride the  perfect waves.  Both men would enter the water, catch jellies in their nets, and take them on the shore and bury them.  This cleared the way for a little swimming.  Very little, because five minutes later they were fishing them out again.  Finally one guy gave in and said...too many jellies!  

So you see, there is no hope for the jellyfish.  No one likes them in the water, because they sting, you really can't remove them from the water, and if they wash up they are certain to die. In this case they kept a beautiful ocean free from swimmers.  One of the best days we had actually, but no swimming in the ocean.  

I am glad I am not a jellyfish.  I am so thankful that there is hope for my soul.
 I don't know if there is a time when you can feel closer to God, but I do know that my walks on the beach come pretty close.   This is the hymn that came to mind that day.

My hope is built on nothing less
than Jesus' blood and righteousness. 

I dare not trust the sweetest frame,
But wholly lean on Jesus’ name.

On Christ the solid rock I stand,

All other ground is sinking sand,

All other ground is sinking sand.

When darkness veils His lovely face,
I rest on His unchanging grace;
In every high and stormy gale,
My anchor holds within the veil.

His oath, His covenant, His blood,
Support me in the whelming flood;
When all around my soul gives way,
He then is all my hope and stay.

When He shall come with trumpet sound,
Oh, may I then in Him be found;
In Him, my righteousness, alone,
Faultless to stand before the throne.

On Christ, the solid rock I stand,
All other ground is sinking sand.

Cousins

Blessings,

Monica

  

May Mania

It is just over a week into June...I'm aware of that.  We made it through the usual end of May mania, which actually begins about mid-April.  Well now that I think about it, this year it was the end of March. 

I will use this post to do some bragging, so if you are not into that, time to log off.  If you don't mind, then indulge me. 

On April 23rd, Hannah participated in solo and ensamble competition for flute.  She performed one solo, one duet, and one quintet.  Kudos for her making  a superior on all three...which is a score of one for you non-music folks.  May 3 and 4 were the Alabama Choir School Concerts.  Hannah sings in the Girls Tour Choir.  We always welcome this night of talented singers, featuring six choirs ranging in age from 2nd grade through 12th grade.  All three of my kids have been involved in the ACS, beginning with Scott his 3rd grade year.  That gives us a grand total of 13 years of concerts.  Yep...that's a lot!  May 9 Hannah was inducted in to the National Junior Honor Society.  On May 11th she played for the National  Guild Auditions (piano).  There was yet another honors ceremony for the A/B honor roll.  Applause, please :-).

 

James was inducted into the National Honor Society and Mu Alpha Theta.  Both are honor societies for maintaining at least a 3.5 in academic subjects and math, respectively.  May 23rd James was honored once again as Most Outstanding French II student, and as a Band Captain for the 2012 football season.  Most importantly, he won the GIBBY award from the Seniors in NHS band.  Inside joke, y'all but it is true.  Woot!!

                                                                                         

Scott came home from Auburn on May 3rd, and maintained above a 3.O GPA.   He is spending the summer at home so it is much more like a jungle around here again.  Nonetheless I love the humor he brings to the family, and even the added sibling rivalry.  (most of the time)  It is hard to believe he has made it through his freshman year in college, to which he answered me "Yea, only 7 more to go."  Ugh! 

Oh, and did I mention Spamalot on March 22-25, Honk Jr. on April 5-6, and the RQMS/NHS band concert on May 9th, as well as two birthdays on May 11 and Mother's day on May 12?  Yep, we were busy.  Thus the absence of  blog posts. 

The perks of being a teacher:  holidays with the family.  So now we'llI have a little respite, although summer has its own kind of busy. 

Blessings,

Monica

Easter

This year continues to be one of change for me.  I really wasn't into Easter this year.  It just wasn't the same for a couple of reasons.  For one, it fell at the end of Spring Break, a much needed time away from school for all...the teacher and the students that reside in my house.  So...I was feeling really lazy, and selfish, and wanted to enjoy my last day of doing nothing.  Second, Scott wasn't able to come home.  He intended to at first, but had a biology field trip out of town on Saturday, and understandably did not want to drive so many miles for just a few hours.  I really missed him.  Our first family holiday with one member missing.  It was tough, and would have been much easier for me to hibernate and be sad.  J and Hannah wouldn't let me though. 

On the way home from church, Hannah asked when we were going to dye eggs.  We're not, I said.  No one has mentioned it this year.  (Insert a huge pouty face and whine from Han)...but, we always color eggs.  (Now it is my turn to pout)...No way!  I'm not going to Wal Mart on Easter to buy egg dye.  So I looked it up on the Internet to find out I had everything needed...except eggs.  No No No!!!   I proceeded to take my nap.  Upon awakening, I found my family ready to go to Wal Mart.  J to purchase the Starburst jelly beans that I forgot, and hubs and Han to get the eggs and store bought dye.  Aint' he a great guy!! 

I had planned our usual dinner together so as not to be too much of a spoil sport, so while they were gone I started to cook the roast.  I didn't have an onion, so guess what...hubs brought one of those home, too.  Then he disappeared into our bedroom with the plastic eggs.  Tradition is to fill the eggs with loose change saved from the previous year, hide them in the yard, and let the kids hunt.  Due to the sogginess of our yard, I really wasn't counting on this to happen either, but alas it did.  Hannah sported her rain boots for the occasion. 

We enjoyed our family meal of roast, rice and gravy, green beans, and some sauteed mushrooms.  I got plenty of compliments on the meal, and it was quite enjoyable at our table of four.  Strange, but still pleasant. 

Growing up I never liked Easter much.  There are many sad memories associated with it.  Twice during this supposed joyful time of Resurrection celebration, my mother was very sick with cancer.  Once, I was in the hospital with a rare disease called ITP.  There is a long scientific name  for the acronym that I will spare you.  The long and short of it, my platelet count was dangerously low, causing severe bruising and high fever.  I had a huge bruise on my arm, and I remember the nurses called it my Easter egg.  The doctors tested me for Leukemia.  It was negative. 

When Lowell and I first married, these rotten Easter memories continued.  It is a privilege to be able to look back and see time change things.  As we attended worship together, and later with our young children, all the poor memories faded.  I began to see the power and importance of the Resurrection of Christ, a cause for joy and celebration.  I wish I had understood that as a "tween" as the modern day term goes.  Presently, the old memories have been replaced with joyful ones, and the joy is more plentiful. 

Pastor of Riverwood Church, Tim Lien, loves Easter.  To quote him loosely...it should be better than Christmas.  I tend to agree.  Now that the children are older, Easter is much, much more than fancy clothes and a picture under our magnolia tree.  Those times are changing, but Christ has not, and never will.  I loved seeing the Facebook posts with the cute dresses and smiles, children and family from all generations.  It did make me a little sad that we were only four, and the rain kept us away from the magnolia tree.  Then I remembered...He is not here; he has risen, just as he said.   Matthew 28:6  Joy to the World!!  He is risen indeed. 

And yes, there are pictures, because you know me, and I can't go without those. 

Easter shoes???  And the garden hose, not a giant snake :-)

Let's count and see how many remain.

  

There is always an egg in the mailbox, maybe two.



Apparently at 16 you are not too cool to hunt Easter eggs.







Masters at work...don't interrupt, please.





The finished products



Theater thoughts

Once upon a time my husband became involved with The Actor's Charitable Theater.Since childhood,  he has always had a love of  the stage:  singing, songwriting, and acting.  Marriage, a sensible career, and three children put these activities on the back burner.  Until....the kids grew up.  Guess what?   They are talented,  and they are interested in theater.  J. tried out for some Tuscaloosa Children's Theater productions and got a few  parts.  He also did some roles at Northridge where mom (that's me) teaches.

Hubs always said that if a production of Oliver came to Tuscaloosa, he would like to try out.  At that time J. was younger and might  have been a good fit for the title role.  Sure enough, TheACT produced Oliver.  I noticed it was coming up on their website, so I informed hubs that it was indeed time to try out once again.  Thus began a journey....

Love those chops...




Seriously sad orphans

Here is the thing about theater.   When you accept a role, it isn't always the one you wanted, or even one that seems appropriate.  For example, along with the role of  the cop in Oliver, Lowell also played a barkeep.  He sang a solo and led a rousing crowd of drunks in song and dance.  Well...hubs has never even been drunk himself.  True acting, I say. 



Second role for Hubs at theACT:  Wilbur in Hairspray.  Perhaps a little more fitting as far as roles go.  Here is a character description: As Tracy’s supportive father, Wilbur wants nothing more than for his daughter to pursue her dreams. 
As proud owner and operator of the Har-De-Har Hut, he knows what it means to follow your dreams, and dream big. He tries to balance Edna’s discouragement with his good humor, but sometimes it can be difficult. Wilbur is willing to do anything for his family and friends - including bailing all of the 
women out of jail!  Wilbur may be on the lighter side, but he has a huge heart. Not so bad, really.  However, this description does not mention the fact that Wilbur has to dance with his wife, who is played by a guy dressed in drag...YEP.  Totally hilarious, but a tad bit ton humbling for the non-stage wife.  (that's me :-)

That's Joey Lay as Edna and Lowell as Wilbur.

Alisha Lay as Tracy alongside Joey as Edna

Fast forward to 2013...and the production of
9 to 5.  Hubs won the role of Franklin Hart Jr. Problem:  Hart is described as "a lying, sleazy, egotistical bigot" He treats the women in his office as sex objects.   Joy!!  Well, Franklin Hart Jr. is all of that, but hubs isn't.   Not at all.  Quite the opposite, actually.  I just thought you all should know.  

Lowell and his leading ladies

So why I am I okay with these crazy out of character roles?  Good question.  It isn't always easy.  What if people who don't know what a great guy my hubby is think he might be like Franklin Hart Jr.?  Here is what I've come to terms with.  Lowell and I have been married almost 24 years.  Our marriage is secure.  It is based on the Biblical principles for marriage, and those won't falter.  He's the spiritual leader of our household, and when he is in a production, he is also a light in the darkness to all those he is around.  The stage needs that...tremendously.  

So what's next: On the lighter side, Monty Python's Spamalot.  J, Lowell, and Greg VanderWal all have roles in this one.  One of my favorite bloggers Mary Katherine Matthews has already done a promo for this production on her blog.  Check it out:

http://mathewsfamilyhappenings.blogspot.com/2013/01/spamalot.htmle.