Let's Readjust That a Bit.

This is how playing my violin makes me feel sometimes.

And like this.

You can't see it but my fingertips have calluses!

All due to this lovely instrument.

I went to my violin teacher's viola recital tonight. She's been playing 20 years. I've been playing 6 months. I am at 1/40 of her level. Let's just say I changed my mind and will play the violin in a symphony by the time I'm 40. That gives me 11.5 years to be reasonably good.

Her bowing arm is MAGNIFICENT. Her wrists are MASTERFUL. Her slurs are TO DIE FOR. And her pizzicato!!!! I'm sorry, I'm lusting after another person's musical talent.

Someday. Someday I'll be good:) I LOVE IT!!!!!!!!!!

Oh My Stars!!!!

So here's what I've been dragging from the back seat of my car for the past 2 days:

1. 2 hats
2. 1 pair of boots
3. 1 pair of eco happy shoes
4. A bra (left this at someone's house and apparently didn't miss it enough to actually bring it in the house for DAYS)
5. 1 bottle of ginger ale
6. 1 bottle of vodka (I was carrying this for a friend, I promise!)
7. 1 lime
8. 1 violin and practice book
9. A stack of social studies tests to grade
10. A poofy black jacket
11. A loose bag of onions (some are still rolling around under the seat...)
12. 4 canvas grocery bags
13. Jasper Fforde (hehe, I wish, just his book)

I think my organized house wonders what the heck is going on with my messy car. I'll just tell it to mind its own business.

I'm listening to Joshua Bell to inspire my hurting fingers and drooping confidence with my violin. It's getting quite hard and seriously makes my brain cramp with exertion. THE VIOLIN IS SO HARD TO PLAY. But I love it!! My goal is this (I decided today): Within 5 years, I would like to be playing in the local symphony. Should I up the years? I don't know. I won't ask my teacher cause I don't want to cry. But I thought having a goal would help me. I WANT TO PLAY FLUENTLY AGAIN. But man, this stuff is hard!!!

Panera tomato and mozzarella sandwiches make my tummy nauseous. FUN.

I'm a barrel of laughs tonight, I realize. Sorry, in real life I'm happier than this.

Amazing!!!

You know what I love? Seeing people grow. Not physically, but more mentally and academically. I was trying to express this to my kiddos today and they stared at me blankly.

I was working with a small group on summarizing an ENTIRE book. Incredibly hard for a 9 year old. Trust me;)

Me: "This is hard, isn't it?"
Them: "Yes!"
Me: "You know the amazing thing though? In 6 months, I won't need to help you this much at all! You'll be able to do this well all on your own! Wow isn't it?"
Them: Stare. So?
Me: "You will have grown and learned SO much that you will be able to summarize a WHOLE book without my help! It will be so amazing!!"
Them: Stare, nod for loony teacher's sake.

Hehe. Kids. Don't appreciate their growing brains:)

Today was violin lesson. I LOVELOVELOVE that I have bow strength now, that my tone is rich. I love that Mary Had a Little Lamb is now child's play. I love that I can play a 3 note slur. Amazing! Vibrato, here I come!!!

She's So Fine:)

Just a note to say: My violin is back and it is as if I haven't seen a good friend in months. Oh, I missed it!! All I want to do tonight is play but I can't forget J's poor ears need a break every once in a while;)

Update on Me

23 out of 32. That's how many goals I've accomplished this year. Not too shabby. I got a 78% on life this year! SCORE!!! Considering I added in 2 new hobbies and have been happily maintaining them, I think I get at least a C+ (maybe even a B-, what do you think?). I'm a better person this year!

I really love playing my violin! It makes me very happy though I'm not that great at it. Each time I practice, J tells me I'm sounding so much better. I think he's being a little nice but it is nice not to be confined to playing songs like 4 Shorts and 1 Long. Having that one stuck in my head was a little dull. I had to sing it to J a lot for a while since it was stuck in my head. Imagine me singing 4 long notes and then one short one. ENDLESSLY.

My repertoire now includes Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star, Edelweiss, and Mary Had a Little Lamb. So now I sing those to him. Along with some of my other favs: New World Symphony, The C# Finger Game, and A String Mixer. And, oddly enough, I love playing scales. I think I hated doing those on the piano.

Yesterday, J finished tweaking our wedding video and I finally got to watch it after 2 years! I didn't realize how much I smiled. I mean seriously, I SMILED SOOOO MUCH. Most of what I remember about my wedding is stress. Stress over getting everything ready, doing a TON of it myself (w/ the fam), and wondering what the heck I was getting myself in to. Yesterday I was sad that I didn't remember that I smiled so much. I need to revamp my wedding memories. It makes me smile right now to think of it.

And here's something I didn't know would happen: I love J 12,000 times more today than I did when we got married. We were talking about this and how I wish we could have another wedding (now that I REALLY love him). Of course, how will I feel 2 years from now? I think maybe next year we should have a giant anniversary party, kind of like a fake wedding, during which I can feel like I'm marrying him again.

Belle and Sebastian are regaining their spot as my favorite band. Sorry Killers, Lizzy overdid you.

Alas, I Ate Your Beloved Dessert

I must think happy thoughts right now because J is a bit miffed at me for having eaten his last-Friday-dessert. I seriously somehow thought he didn't want it. I don't know how I came to that conclusion because I realized this evening HE VERY MUCH WANTED IT!! My best guess as to why I consumed it is: it was TIRAMISU (coffee!!). AND yesterday, while attempting not to fall asleep while tutoring, it was the only coffee available to me in 5 minutes between kids. Plus, it being almost a week old, I didn't even stop to think about it....

Enough airing of The Jarvis Marital Problems. We seem to fight over desserts a lot. Hehehe:)

Here are a few things that make me happy this week:

1. Lizzy and I eat a piece of zucchini carrot bread each evening.
2. I played my violin very well today while practicing and only slightly less well at my lesson.
3. My fingertips are getting calloused!!!
4. I have exercised 5 times in the past 7 days.
5. My house is clean!!!
6. Coming home tonight are: my mom. my sister. my brother. I get to see them all tomorrow afternoon, after work! Sadly, leaving on Saturday are: my sister. my sister. my brother-in-law. my nephew. my nephew. my delightful niece. Alas, I will not be able to borrow any children for 2 weeks:(
7. Lizzy goes home tonight! We will have the house to ourselves. Oh. My. Gosh. I am just about jumping with excitement!!!! J and I have remarked "This is how it will be when we have kids? We'll only be able to have face to face conversation after 10:00? We'll be exhausted and only want to clean the house and then sleep? AND SHE'S A GROWN KID. AND ONLY ONE KID." I'm a little disappointed in us already.
8. I went to the library on Monday. I got a ton of new books, 2 of which I've already read 4 days later. It had been 3 weeks since my last book and all the magazines I've been catching up on aren't as good as a book. What made me sad was my $5 fine for late books. Sigh.
9. J is wonderful:)
10. Spock hasn't gone to the bathroom on our carpet in weeks! J's idea of aluminum foil on places Spock especially loves seems to be working. Also, my efforts at cleaning carpet helped too. I have to think this because if they didn't, what was all that effort for?!?! 20 pounds of baking soda and a gallon of vinegar!!!!

That's all the happiness I can give you this week!!

Violin and Others

In preparation for my violin lesson today at 4, here's a pic of the lovely instrument. I am reminded of a dream I had a while back in which I bought a violin but accidentally broke it before I could learn to play it. Hehe, because of that, I'm being careful today! I've wanted to play the violin ever since I was a little girl and am finally going to!! TODAY!!

Moving on: recently I've been sneak brushing my cat while he is eating. Spock is a huge pig and LOVES to eat perhaps more than I love anything in the world. Since he has such long fur and he can't seem to lick it all off/clean, I'm left w/ the job. It's actually calming and a practice in patience to get all his excess fur off w/ that fine toothed comb! Like hanging laundry on the clothesline (of which I did 3 loads today) or baking bread (I've got dough in the fridge needing to be baked tomorrow). Unfortunately these 3 things don't seem to be helping my overall patience level day to day. Alas.

I finished The Story of Edgar Sawtelle on Tuesday (couldn't go to sleep until I had so I stayed up late!). The author had great voice but I'm not sure I'd enthusiastically recomend it to many people. 

My little sis, Lizzy, is in the hospital again. She's been having kidney issues and they think they've found the the name of what she has so she's been on meds for a while. She's very swollen though (lots of fluids hanging around in her!) and is getting stretch marks on her legs. Today she got worse so my parents are taking her to Riley again. I wish I could do something more than pray.... I'll visit her tonight or tomorrow and try to cheer her up. Poor kid, she's been like this since the end of May and it's going to take her whole summer to get better!