Aunt Anna

I found out on Dec 23 that I am going to be an aunt!!!!!  Megan and Bob are going to have a baby!!!! Well, Megan is going to have the baby:)

She is 10 weeks pregnant and is due on July 28, 2008.  

Yay!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Well, the birthday weekend was fabulous.  I don't think I have ever celebrated any other birthday so thoroughly as 26.  Johnny took me to a fabulous little restaurant in downtown Louisville called Artemesia.  We sat outside on the patio and the outdoor space-heaters and fireplace kept us warm on the 30 degree night.  A jazz trio played and white Christmas lights gave a warm glow to the tree and garland. We finished off the night with my favorite...fun-fetti cake with strawberry icing...Johnny's very first attempt at baking was a great success. Saturday we celebrated in Lanesville.  It was so wonderful to have everyone there...except for Megan and Bob who we can't WAIT to see in a couple of days.  Renee and Mom made a fabulous veggie lasagna and caesar salad.  Cake: yellow with chocolate icing....had to change it up for all of the cakes this weekend.  Very good too.  The night was complete with a wood-burning fire.  Sunday, we went to the Brinkworth's house and Grannie and Grampies came too. Margaret made a great dinner and a homemade, out of this world, cheesecake. 

Must head to the gym soon.

Oh, and if I wasn't deserted out enough this weekend, my supervisor at work brought in a german-chocolate cake today for a belated-birthday gift. 

Christmas cookies ahead...yay for sugar:)

Grandma Clark will have her open heart surgery tomorrow at 7 am in Nashville, TN at Vanderbilt Medical Center.  Please keep her in your prayers.

And the seasons, they go round and round.

Well, I had to work today...but it was worth it because I get to take a comp-day this Friday...my birthday! If Mom isn't in Nashville for Grandma's surgery recovery, then Mom, Renee, and I will all get to hang out during the day on Friday.  Johnny is taking me out Friday night to a surprise restaurant for more birthday celebration. Yay!  I can't believe I will be 26 in a couple days. That kind of sounds old to me...yikes. 

Flecktones, Tuvan Singers, and some folks from Indiana

                                  

                                           

Bela Fleck and the Flecktones

December 6th, 2008

The Brown Theatre

A night to remember...

We gave Mom and Dad tickets to Bela Fleck and dinner out for their 30th Anniversary.

And of course, if Bela was in town, we couldn't miss out.  So Renee, Ben, Johnny and myself all purchased tickets as well.  Everyone met at our house to hang out before the show.  Mom and Dad left early to enjoy a dinner at Pat's Steakhouse, and Renee helped me make pizza rolls and a spinach salad.  We all met up at the Brown Theatre before the show and made our way to the balcony in plenty of time for Bela to hit the stage.  The Brown is such and intimate theatre, I don't think there is a bad seat in the house. 

If you've never seen Bela Fleck and the Flecktones, it would be hard to imagine how amazing this show was...it was the opening night of their holiday tour and they played with Tuvan Throat singers from Tuva on select pieces. "Testing the limits of vocal ingenuity, throat-singers can create sounds unlike anything in ordinary speech and song...carrying two musical lines simultaneously." Amazing. This was Christmas music like you've never heard before...jazzy, folky, classical...all mixed together.  It wasn't over-kill either, because it was so different from regular Christmas music.  And, they opened with "Big Country" one of mine and Renee's favorites (not a Christmas tune). 

They were surprisingly funny too.  The entire audience was literally laughing out loud....every face had a smile on it. They were kind enough to stick around after the show and we got to meet each one of them...see above pictures!

Stuart Spartans

Johnny has done it again!

Today it was announced over the intercom at school that not only has Mr. Brinkworth just received Teacher of the Month, he was this week's "Notable Spartan of the Week" and his classroom went up in cheers.

What a good week.

Oh, and I am free of cavities....(just went to my cleaning today)....LOVE getting a clean bill of health from the dentist. Yay!

Off to a Christmas party for work tonight at The Bristol downtown.  Should be a fun night.

Teacher of the Month

Johnny brought home some very exciting news today.  He was selected out of ALL the teachers at Stuart Middle School as "Teacher of the Month"....very well deserved I must say. Some of the veteran teachers told him that they have never seen a first year teacher perform so well. The principal of the school summed it up pretty well: "If I could bottle up all of what Johnny brings to Stuart Middle, to his students, and to this field and give it to all of the other teachers, amazing things would happen."  

The kids that have Johnny are lucky and are learning and experiencing science in ways I never could have dreamed of when I was in 6th grade. 

Congratulations Mr. B!!!!!!!!!!!!

Thanksgiving

Well the pecan pie turned out great!  And much easier than I had imagined (although I did cheat a little as the crust was not homemade).  The day was great too.  We ate with Johnny's side of the family at Grannie and Grampies first and then spent the afternoon and into the evening with the Wahl/Clark side in Lanesville.  It was a crisp night and we toasted ourselves by the bonfire while Dad gave us a lesson on the constellations.  The only ones I can ever seem to remember besides the Big and Little Dipper is Orion and  the 7 Sisters.  I'll have to keep relying on Dad until someday I decide to study the night sky and remember for myself.

A big THANK YOU to Derek for taking such amazing wedding photos.  We just received all (4,356) of the originals this past week and the "highlights" already put in an album for us.  You can check out the highlights at: http://dbrittonphotography.com/gallery/annaandjohn/highlights/

Preparing for the Holidays

The holidays are fast approaching.  I have the essential supplies purchased: flour, sugar, butter, vanilla extract, plenty of cinnamon, pumpkin, condensed milk, pecans, and whip cream.  Yay for baking! I will be making my first pecan pie this year for Thanksgiving and am searching for a great recipe.  

I also stopped by Actors Theatre after work today and picked up 8 tickets for "A Christmas Carol".  This is a play I have seen multiple times as a Wahl with the Wahl family...and this year I go as a Brinkworth.  A long-time Louisville holiday tradition, we will be attending this year on Dec. 23, and I'm already looking forward to it. 

The Smell of Fall

Fall on Bayly Ave is so much different than fall in the Lanesville woods.  Yes, there are big trees on our street, whose orange and red leaves are spattering the sidewalks and our tiny front yards.  But the intensity of color and smell is muted in the city.  I am looking forward to my next smell of the woods. 

A Prayer for Uncle Lou

We pray for Uncle Lou and the Kennedys

On Monday, may God guide the surgeon's hand

We pray for a successful surgery

and for a swift recovery

We hope for the best

Uncle Lou has helped heal so many people and has dedicated his career to serving others

We pray now for his own healing

Free Range Humans

Golden

It is hard to imagine that when a tree's chlorophyll begins to be metabolized, the year round color (in this case, yellow) is expressed.

Auxier Ridge

Haystack

Auxier Ridge

First time on Auxier Ridge...wonderful landscape and incredible perspective. Anna took this beautiful photo. Look closely and you may see me looming on the horizon!

Red River Gorge

The Red was in peak color this weekend. We were treated to a beautiful light show this morning and I tried to capture it on film. This is that attempt. More pics will be posted soon! 

Trick or Treat

It was fun being on the opposite side of the door yesterday, handing out candy in our own neighborhood.  Our pumpkin was glowing and the porch light was on, inviting the little dragons and princesses up for trick-or-treat.  A tiny 2-year-old-Elmo was the first to ring our doorbell, with mom close at hand. Big blue eyes stared up at me, and stood out from the bright red costume. We drank festive apple cider beer, and enjoyed the crisp night. We even got a scare from an unknown masked goblin (later found out to be Mitch, my 15 year old brother in law) who lured Johnny outside saying there was a person hiding around the back of our porch.  As Johnny went outside and looked over our porch behind our house, Mitch came towards me acting like he was going to come in the house and get me. I started to pull the storm door shut and Johnny turned around and pulled off the stranger's mask.  For a split second, I really thought this freaky person was going to try to get me, and invade our house.  It was a good laugh when the mask came off. 

Standing All Over Again

Mr. P recognized me as I came into his room for the second time today. A big smile came over his face. He has expressive apahsia, meaning he has all of these coherent thoughts racing through his head, but he can't get the words out (a common impairment for someone who has had a stroke). He remembered what I promised him earlier in the day. Having suffered a stroke a couple days previously, his right side was completely flaccid and the most we had accomplished in our therapy session from the morning was maintaining a midline trunk position while sitting on the side of his bed without my assistance. He frantically had tried to stand, pushing up from the bed and swaying to his weak side....but I deterred him. I didn't have an aide with me and there was no way this guy could stand with just me. 

So, here I came, at the end of my day... very ready to go home but I had promised this guy we would try to stand later. It wasn't pretty, but we got Mr. P standing...looking out from his room at Jewish Hospital, to the traffic on hospital curve, tears were streaming from his face and he tried to hug me and my aide at the same time laughing and crying and grumbling some sounds. It was the purest joy I have seen in a long time. He had hope...and a big challenge ahead of him, but hope. And this is why I love my job. It was SO worth working late for. I won't ever forget his first time standing all over again. 

Braided Bread

Smells of homemade braided bread are wafting through the house.  There is just something about making bread in the fall and winter that appeals the senses.  

I made some bread last night to go along with our chili. Yum. 

The new loaf today will be traveling to Lanesville where we will share it with mom and dad to go along with dinner.  

It is interesting how I use the same recipe each time, but each time the bread is unique..in how long the yeast takes to froth up in the mug in preparation, the time it takes for the dough to double in size, the way I braid it, etc. 

And so we never get tired of homemade bread in the fall. 

And eagerly await the surprise in the oven.

To be enjoyed again and again. 

Knock on our door anytime, and I will be happy to start a loaf just for you.

The happiest day of our lives. Thank you for celebrating with us. 

photo by: Derek Britton

We finally bought 2 pumpkins from a farmer's market down the street from our house.  Carving will take place tonight, and of course, roasting the seeds.

Here is to tradition. 

And to starting new ones of our own.