ELF

So I received an email this morning from the front office that was telling teachers to collect all fuzzy hats, candy canes, candy, etc. It made me wonder what the office would think of my lesson today: We will be watching "Elf" as a class and then they will be telling me how Buddy the elf is an archetypal hero- they must identify the four steps to a Hero/Quest Archetypal Story:
1. Separation from the known world
2. Initiation into a new world
3. Discovery about oneself of the world
4. Return to previous life

I am tempted to respond to the office's email with this quote from the movie...
"We elves try to stick to the four main food groups: candy, candy canes, candy corns and syrup."- Buddy

So the next time you watch "Elf" as a family, you can think about how you are not only being entertained, but you are also watching an educational video. :)

English teachers are creative, what can I say?! May everybody discover their inner ELF this holiday season!

Holiday Cheer!

Seven days until Christmas! I just can't believe it's almost here. Between Christmas shopping, work, and holiday parties (what a rough life, ha) we have been keeping plenty busy! Last week we welcomed a special guest- Jamie, Lindsay's boyfriend, who was in town on business. Lindsay and Jamie have been dating since August and yet I have only met him twice, so it was wonderful to get to know him better and show him around Austin. I know that Drew especially loved having another guy around! We cooked out, took the pups to the park, and of course ate some delicious Mexican food at Polvos :) Here are the guys at the park...boys will be boys.

Last night we went to another holiday dinner at the McMurray's home. There were five couples there and everybody brought over a side dish. We had a wonderful time visiting with friends and feel so blessed to have a great group of friends here in Austin! No pictures from the evening...I really need to be better about that!

Last weekend we went to our first holiday party at our friend Elizabeth's house. There were about 70 people there, so it was a great way to meet people. Most of the people there were Elizabeth's church friends; however, I ended up talking to a girl named Ellen who went to a different church. She told me that it is downtown and is more contemporary, so Drew and I decided to try it out today. We loved it! We have been really bad about attending church since we moved here because we couldn't find one we connected with. The preacher today was great and he delivered the message in an entertaining way. We can walk there, which is also a bonus :) We stopped for brunch on our way home and had a great afternoon together! We are so thankful that Lake Hills was a good fit and are looking forward to going back.

Zilker has taken a new liking to Drew's fuzzy socks...trouble maker.

Three more days of work and then we begin the long drive home for the holidays! Can't wait to see friends and family!!!

Rain, Rain Here to Stay!

Well, I don't have a lot to post about this week, so thought I would blog about the weather, which has been determining our outings lately :) We have been in a serious drought here in Austin, so the rain is much needed, but is sure does make us lazy! It has been raining for several days and it's supposed to continue through tomorrow with temperatures dropping over night. Good news though- the "burn ban" has finally been lifted, so we are talking about going camping sometime soon (I refuse to go if we can't build a fire). I also want to buy a chiminea for our back porch. We have a fireplace, but our building is so old that I am not sure I trust building a fire inside.

Friday night was date night; we went to Zax's and then came home and watched a movie with the pups. Saturday was another wet and low key day for us. I did venture outside a little for the Travis County Art Tour. People open their homes to different artists and then you get a map and decide which houses you want to visit based on the art medium. Little treats and drinks are served along the way, making each stop worth the walk. I had a blast seeing all the artwork and getting the chance to see the inside of some of these beautiful, old homes. I bought some jewelry, homemade soaps & a mosaic magnet. I wish I could have afforded some of the gorgeous oil paintings...maybe one day :)Then later in the day we had people over to eat chili and watch the SEC Championship. LSU won, but we were still proud of our Bulldogs. We ended the night at the Rainey Street District bars- what a fitting name.

Today we are watching Christmas movies...Drew said I had a gift for choosing the worst Christmas movies ever, haha. Sorry, but I love the Family Channel and Lifetime movies ;) Meghan and Clinton come over tonight to continue our "Breaking Bad" series. It's a cold, rainey, apple cider, TV watching kind of day...and I'm lovin' it!