Natalie's Wedding

I'm still a little overwhelmed, but I wanted to reflect on last week and Natalie's wedding. She was absolutely the most beautiful bride I have ever seen, and the wedding and reception were wonderful. Maybe I'm a little biased, but I really think it all was just perfect.

Our weekend started on Thursday when Natalie's two friends from ETBU got to Paris after trips to China. Brittney (BRob) and Brittany (Jones) spent the day finishing all kinds of projects for the wedding - tying bows on bubbles, stuffing welcome bags for hotel guests, and generally taking care of everything that Natalie and I needed. My sister Karen and her awesome husband Mark also got here on Thursday. They brought the table toppers from the rental store in Texarkana, and were ready to help with whatever needed done. Thanks to all their help, I even found time for a manicure and pedicure!

Brandon and his family arrived on Thursday also. They checked into the hotel and then came to our house for dinner. Chris did a fabulous job of grilling hamburgers and hot dogs, and we spent a very relaxing evening talking and laughing and enjoying ourselves. It was great.

The girls and I went to Chili's for a party hosted by Taylor and Melissa. They called it "Natalie's Final Fling Before the Ring." We ate some snacks and cake, and then all the girls went to Taylor's grandmother's house to swim. It was a fun night for all of them. Nick, Angela, and Ethan arrived Thursday night, so everyone was here for all of the wedding activities.



Friday was BUSY!!! We met at the church at 9 to decorate and then went to the Country Club for the bridesmaid's luncheon hosted by my good friend Paula. Nat and the girls went to get their nails done while I joined Chris, Karen and Mark, and several friends at Heritage Hall at 1 to decorate for the reception. We had a grand time getting everything done, and I loved seeing Natalie's expression when she arrived to see it all together.

Next was the rehearsal and rehearsal dinner. We were all a little concerned about Ethan - we didn't know if he would walk down the aisle with Brittany or if he would balk at the door. After running through the processional a couple of times, he was walking down the aisle like a pro. He just had a wonderful time. Brandon's dad Jay and my friend Becky did a great job of making sure that everyone knew where to stand and what to do. Once we were sure that the ceremony was good to go, we headed to Magel's for the rehearsal dinner.

The Wash family did a great job of decorating and hosting a wonderful meal. There were a few roasts with various people telling stories about Brandon and Natalie. Then, things got kind of serious as Natalie thanked her attendants in a very special and unique way. She brought Chris and me to tears when she made comments about us. I'll never forget them. We came home to try to get some rest while the kids spent some time together. It was a great night for all of us.

Wedding Day finally arrived! Nat and I were up early for hair appointments and brunch hosted by friends from church. Bless Elizabeth's heart, it took her almost two hours to get Nat's hair up. It just didn't come together as easily as it had for bridal pictures last month. Nat got her make-up done after her hair was finished while I ran home to get our clothes. I picked her up and we headed to the church. The girls got dressed, I got dressed, and then I helped Natalie get dressed. I stopped in mid-dress and said that I couldn't believe I was helping my daughter into her wedding gown for her wedding!!! I had helped her into it and out of it so many times through fittings that it kind of caught me by surprise that this was the last time and the most important time that I'd help her into it. I stopped myself from getting emotional about it and finished getting her ready. We quickly went into the sanctuary to take pictures and then hustled back to the fellowship hall to wait for time to go. The girls and I had a sweet prayer time together, Natalie had a last conversation with Brandon on the phone, and then I had a couple of very special minutes alone with her. We were both almost giddy we were so happy.

Everything about the ceremony was perfect. The brass quintet, the decorations, the lighting, the girls' dresses all were a beautiful background for Natalie and Brandon as Jay led them through their vows. There were many special moments throughout the ceremony including a beautiful song by Taylor and Jordan and a marriage braid ceremony. I had never seen this done during a wedding, but it was perfect for Natalie and Brandon. I can't wait to see the video because I know I'll see details that I didn't see during the wedding.

After a couple hundred pictures, we headed to Heritage Hall for the reception. Everyone seemed to really enjoy themselves as they ate and visited with one another and watched Nat and Brandon cut cakes, drink milk with the groom's cake, dance, toast, throw the bouquet and garter. They left through a cloud of bubbles as many friends and family stayed to see them off.

We cleaned up the reception and headed home while Nat and Brandon headed to Dallas and then to Orlando.

All in all, we had a wonderful week full of memories to last a lifetime. Melissa, one of Natalie's attendants, summed it up by telling me that the weekend was such fun and exactly what it should be for a bride and her bridesmaids. What a compliment!! All the work that went into the wedding and reception was completely worth it. With God as a partner in their marriage, Natalie and Brandon will have many happy years ahead of them.

I'm not as young as I used to be

Natalie and I made a long awaited trip to Six Flags today. We had a great time and learned some lessons to pass along to those of you who might be considering a trip this summer.

Today was a great day to make the trip to Arlington. The weather was great - temps in the high 80s, low 90s with a nice breeze, but it was a little on the humid side. Also, Wednesday is an awesome day to make the trip - very short lines! Our goals were to ride as many of the roller coasters as we could and enjoy plenty of junk food. We almost met our goals but not quite.

First for our Lessons Learned:

1. Do visit Six Flags on a Wednesday. Don't bother with the Flash Pass; you won't need it.
2. Don't bring aerosol bottles of sunscreen. Those are confiscated at the gate.
3. Don't bring a bag at all. We consolidated our stuff into one pretty small shoulder bag. Each of us only brought the essentials - wallets (travel size for me), sunglasses, chap stick, Advil, and tissues. Six Flags has instituted a strict No Bags policy for most of the Thrill Rides. To help their guests keep their belongings safe, SF has lockers (see Loose Articles) near most of the Thrill Rides that guests can use for $1.00/120 minutes. I'm sure they have their reasons for this policy, but there were several rides that we could have tucked the bag in the seat with no problem. Looks like a way for SF to earn some extra money.
4. Do bring a non-rider to hold your bags to avoid the locker fee.
5. Do get a Pink Thing. They're only sold near the entrance, so make sure you get one on your way in or on your way out. Better yet, do what we did and get one and take a break near the Merry-Go-Round.

Back to our day and the reason for the title of this post. Again, understand that Natalie and I LOVE roller coasters and thrill rides and Six Flags in general. I'm usually the first person on the ride and the last person to leave the park. Catch the adverb - usually. We first rode Flashback (AWESOME ride; no bag storage required) and then paid the dollar to stow our bag to ride Batman and Tony Hawk's Big Spin (both great rides...we scored front seats for Batman). The Tony Hawk ride was my first indication that this would not be a typical SF day for me. I made an unscheduled trip to the restroom with some tummy difficulties...something I've never had to do at SF. After spending $3.50 for water and munching on a snack bar we smuggled into the park, I thought I was good to go. For insurance, we made it to the front gate and found Pink Things which really do help everything feel better. So, we found yet another locker (and spent another dollar) and rode Titan and Runaway Mountain. By the end of Runaway Mountain, I knew that this day was going to end sooner than I wanted. Add another trip to the restroom, a Sprite (Chris's go-to drink for all tummy upsets), two Pepto-Bismol tablets, and a stop in the Crazy Horse Saloon to rest in an air conditioned room. We walked around a little more, but I was certain that I'd toss my cookies (and Pink Thing and everything else) if we tried another ride. That means that we didn't get to ride Shockwave and Superman and Runaway Mine Train, three of our favorite rides. Reluctantly, we made our way to the front gate, got Ethan a super Batman shirt with cape, and left Six Flags behind.

Before you think that all's well that ends well, think again. By this time not only did I feel pretty lousy but we also were pretty hot and sweaty. We were ready to get into the Jeep, kick up the AC as high as we could get it, and head to Paris. Sounds like a great plan, right? The AC died while we were in the park. We found someone to check the coolant for us (the "Coolant Low" reminder had been flashing) but it was all good. Evidently we have a bigger problem. So, Nat and I drove from Arlington to Paris through Dallas rush hour traffic with no AC.

There were several wonderful things about our day:

• We had a great time riding the roller coasters and screaming our heads off.
• We took a much deserved break from wedding planning (altho I'll admit that we made a list and talked about a few details as we were driving).
• We enjoyed a wonderful dinner at La Madeline, one of our favorite "girly" restaurants.
• We made it home before the storms hit.

But, by far the best thing of all was spending a fun day with my daughter. These times have been far too few and far between lately (wedding shopping and planning don't always count as fun), and I realize that those days will become much more infrequent after June 27. I'm going to miss hanging out with my favorite daughter.

Changes

It was time to change the template. Boredom set in, I guess. That's pretty obvious by the lack of posts lately. I updated my reading blog this morning and then read Amanda's blog about when to remove something from your RSS feeds which spurred me to update this one. When I opened it I was completely put off by the template. I mean, really, what was I thinking to have an orange blog?

Speaking of orange, I found some trash on my car this afternoon. Attached to it actually. Can you guess what my reaction was to the Texas Longhorn magnet I found on the rear of my Jeep? Not funny. There are lots of suspects, but I'm not sure who the actual perpetrator is. I'm thinking of putting it back on the car but upside down. That has always been my favorite way to view Hook 'em anyway.

'Tis the season for basketball! By tomorrow night I will have attended three games (one college and two high school) in less than a week. We went to the Ladycats Quarterfinals game Tuesday night in Royse City and will go back to RC tomorrow night for the Wildcats game. The girls had a fabulous season, and I was sorry to see it end Tuesday night. They're a young team, so we're looking for great things from them in the next couple of years. The boys are undefeated since they started district play, so we have high hopes for them. Three of the seniors are library assistants, so we've talked about basketball all season. They're great guys, and I really hope that they go all the way to Austin this year.

The college game I went to was in Denton Saturday night. UNT played the University of Arkansas at Little Rock where one of our graduates is on the team. Sharon and I had a great time watching the game, cheering for Courtney and the Trojans, and visiting with Courtney and his family after the game. A double bonus for me was to see Joe Kleine, an assistant coach for UALR. Joe played for the University of Arkansas several years ago and played professional basketball for a while as well. I met him and had my picture taken with him in Dallas back in 2000 or so when he was playing with the Phoenix Suns.

Wedding plans are moving right along. We've mailed most of our Save the Date magnets, and we're meeting with the caterer Saturday morning. Nat and Brandon are having engagement pictures made next weekend and we're meeting with the wedding planner. We're hoping to get the invitation decision made either this weekend or next weekend. There are so many details still to decide...and pay for! It's going to be a beautiful wedding, and I really can't wait for June 27 to get here. Natalie is going to be a gorgeous bride, and their day is just going to be the absolute best.

I'm so glad we already have Nat's dress and the bridesmaids dresses since I still haven't found my dress. I couldn't deal with the stress of looking for her dress and mine at the same time. I'm getting pretty anxious about it. I shopped all day last Saturday and couldn't find just the right combination. I have a couple of possibilities in mind, but no dress yet. Surely the right dress is out there somewhere. I just have to find it.

The Dark Side

I've officially succumbed to peer pressure...at the age of 50 no less. I now have a Facebook account. Yep...I've joined the dark side.

Let's just say that so far my Facebook experience has been a lot of fun. I've reconnected with people from college and from Little Rock as well as connected with friends in Paris and friends I've made through TLA. I've even connected with former students and friends of my kids. All of those links were initiated by the kids...not by me. Bottom line is that Facebook really isn't only for college students.

I've learned how to manage my Wall and I've written on friends' walls. I've posted pictures, tagged some and commented on others. I know what "Pieces of Flair" is, and I have given and received some. I've written notes including that wonderful "25 Random Things about Me" and I've added comments to friends' Random Things. I've joined groups, linked to pages, and proclaimed that Chicago and Arkansas are among my favorite places. I've updated my status daily. I've even become a virtual tree-hugger by contributing to the "(Lil) Green Patch." All of this since only last Saturday! Amazing!! I will admit that I've asked for help in private messages with a friend, but I'm getting the hang of this thing. And I already have 41 friends! Of course my total pales in comparison with the hundreds of friends most college students have, but it's a start.

One thing is certain - Facebook is addictive. I'm so glad I can't get to it at school because even when I plan to just sneak a peek to see what's going on, I find myself totally losing track of time. People post so many interesting things about themselves.

So...if you're a Facebook person, look me up and add me as your friend. Send me some Flair and comment on my 25 Random Things. I'll post something on your Wall!

Inauguration 2009

Chris and I attended President Clinton's inauguration in 1993. I get a little misty each time Inauguration Day rolls around because I remember how it felt to be there and to experience all of the ceremony. It's almost like riding a great roller coaster and wanting to ride it again and again. Once you've been there it's just not acceptable not to be there again. A small group from school got to go this year; I can't wait to hear their stories.

We attended the same church that President Clinton attended in Little Rock. Both Chris's quintet and the church choir were invited to participate in events during the inauguration. The choir sang for a church service the night before the inauguration, and the quintet played for the church service on inauguration morning. We still have the invitations and letters and other items we received. One picture I regret not taking was of the bomb-sniffing dog with his nose buried in the tuba bell at about 5 AM that very cold January morning.

One of the highlights was the church service the night before the inauguration. We shared the stage with Bill Moyers, President Jimmy Carter, Barbara Jordan, and Ken Medema. I even got Moyers' autograph on my program. President Carter's speech was wonderful. He was so down to earth and humble. The choir was seated on the platform, so we could see all of the dignitaries in the audience. I think I remember Vernon Jordan being there.

When the Inauguration began yesterday, I couldn't wait to watch it. I justified turning it on in the library because we didn't have any classes scheduled so I could watch it without interrupting anyone. Due to poor cable reception in some classrooms, three groups of students joined my little watch party. They were so very quiet and attentive through the swearing in and the speech. One of my favorite non-Presidential moments was the performance by Itzak Perlman and Yo-Yo Ma. WOW! I love "Simple Gifts," and the John Williams arrangement was wonderful. Chris and I watched it again last night.

There were some in the building and some family members who were not interested at all in watching the Inauguration. I know that there are people that I know who are not pleased with the new administration, but I don't understand how some can't appreciate the history involved in this or any inauguration. Our responsibility is to pray for the President and support him whether or not we agree with him. Not agreeing with the President's policies doesn't take anything away from the ceremony and peaceful transfer of power that we as Americans celebrate every four years or so. It's one of those things that makes me especially proud to be an American.

2009???

Oh my...more than two months since my last post. Where has the time gone? Here's the Reader's Digest version of life with the Kornegays since November:


Thanksgiving - All of us traveled to Texarkana for the Stow Family Thanksgiving celebration at my sister's house. There were 17 of us but we had enough food for about 30 people. Ethan had a great time playing with all of Karen's boys' toys because the other boys weren't there to play with him. Jamie's boys were in Florida with their other grandfather, and Samantha's boys went home for naps pretty soon after lunch. Chris, Natalie, and I went to El Dorado Thanksgiving night to spend time with BooBoo, but Nick and Angela headed back to Paris before going to Angela's mom's.


Christmas - We had a great Christmas! Nat got home from school on the 13th, we got out of school on the 19th (Ethan's birthday), and Nick and his family got here on that night and stayed until Christmas Day. It was wonderful. We had the Stow Family Christmas in Texarkana on the 20th, and then all six of us went to El Do to see BooBoo for a couple of days. We cooked a feast in El Do - chicken and dressing and all the fixings - and BooBoo thought that batch of dressing was about the best we've made. We went to church in Paris on Christmas Eve which has been a tradition with me and with our family for as long as I can remember. It just helps put the holiday into perspective. Christmas morning was so much more fun with Ethan here. Watching his face light up as he opened his presents was very special. Here he is surveying all the gifts along with a picture of all the kids from the SFC.





Natalie spent some time in Houston/Baytown/Plano with Brandon and his family during the holidays. They got their registry started and went to a cousin's wedding. They're doing a great job getting things together for the wedding and their life together. I'm really proud of them.

I spent New Year's Eve and NYD painting our bedroom. In fact, the only thing I asked Chris to give me for Christmas was for him to move the furniture so that I could paint. Several years ago I was in a green phase so I painted the bedroom green to go with a really pretty green and white quilt I found for our bed. Fast forward two or three bedspreads and quilts later to a new king size bed and headboard and beautiful blue and brown bedding. I think you can see where I'm going. The green just wasn't working for me any more. Much to Natalie's chagrin, we now have a beautiful...drum roll, please...beige bedroom! (Natalie is my child who has a BLACK wall in her bedroom. Beige is way too boring for her.) It's really a beautiful color and I couldn't be happier with it. The next thing on my list is painting the bathroom cabinet which I would love to do this weekend. We'll see...


Be sure to check out Shelfari. My shelf is in the widget on the left. Paula is over the moon with it...it's her new obsession. It really is pretty fun to see who is out there reading the books I'm reading or seeing what my friends are reading. It's a great place to get ideas. Jennifer, you should be able to get lots of ideas for books for you and books to read to Ava.


I'm hoping for this blog to become more reflective and less rehash of what we're up to. Don't look for great prose...just some more thoughtful posts. Glad you stopped by!

Book Lover's Meme

My friend Dee challenged me to do this. Frankly, I don't have a clue what a meme is, although I found an explanation on this link. Bottom line - here is a list of questions that I'll answer and challenge the rest of you to respond or repost. Be sure to send me your link if you post your responses. Here goes:

1. Do you remember how you developed a love of reading?
I don't remember not reading. We visited the library regularly in elementary school, and I read a lot then. In junior high, the library was adjacent to the study hall room, so I was a frequent visitor. I don't have memories of lots of trips to the public library as a child, but I know that I always had plenty to read from school libraries and books we had at home.

2. What are some books you loved as a child?
Henry and Beezus (anything by Beverly Cleary), A Wrinkle in Time

3. What is your favorite genre?
I don't have a favorite. I like mystery, romance, adventure...I've even read some science fiction and fantasy that I like. I've read more non-fiction in the past few years than ever before, and I have really enjoyed many of them.

4. Do you have a favorite novel?
To Kill a Mockingbird

5. Where do you usually read?
In the car and in bed

6. When do you usually read?
Any road trip; just before falling asleep

7. Do you usually have more than one book you are reading at a time?
I do now. I never used to have more than one book going, but lately I find myself with a fiction and a non-fiction going at the same time.

8. Do you read nonfiction in a different way or place than you read fiction?
Not really. When I get into a book, where and how I read doesn't really change based on the kind of book it is. I do try to read books that I plan to learn something from while I'm in a sitting position rather than lying in bed. I try to either highlight or take notes as I'm reading, so I need a more active reading environment for those books. I don't always read nonfiction to learn, so that's the difference. Gee...does this response make any sense at all???

9. Do you buy most of the books you read, or borrow them, or check them out of the library?
Good question. I probably do a little of all three. I buy a lot of books, but I don't borrow many from friends. I'm usually the loaner; I love sharing books with my friends! And, of course I check books out of the library. I try to keep something from the PHS library on my bedside table all the time, and I usually read from the Paris Public Library during the summer.

10. Do you keep most of the books you buy?
Yes, I keep most of what I buy unless the people I loan them to don't return them. Many times I'll donate books to the PHS library that I think kids or teachers would enjoy.

11. What are you reading now?
My friend Cheryl loaned me a James Patterson novel - Mary, Mary. I have a partially read Max Lucado on my bedside table as well.

12. Do you keep a To Be Read list?
No, I don't have an actual list, but I do have some titles in mind that I'd like to read.

13. What’s next?
Another good question. I really need to whittle down the stacks at home before I buy anything else. And, I really have to bring something home from school to read.

14. What books would you like to reread?
To Kill a Mockingbird, He Still Moves Stones

16. Who are your favorite authors?
Max Lucado, Marilyn Meberg, Patricia Cornwell, John Grisham, Dee Henderson, Chris Crutcher

If you're interested in seeing what I've read recently, check out my reading blog at A Book is Good Company.

Perfect Day

I had been looking forward to today for weeks. The Kimball Art Museum in Ft. Worth has 92 works from the Impressionists collection from the Art Institute of Chicago that I was determined to see. The exhibit ends on Nov. 2, so I waited until almost the end of the exhibit to see it. It was wonderful. I'm sorry that I waited so late to go because I won't have time to see the exhibit again before it returns to Chicago.

Monet, Manet, van Gogh, Cezanne, Degas...what's not to love? Monet is one of my absolute favorites, and we were treated to several of his paintings. The Artist's House at Argenteuil and Poppy Field (Giverny) made the biggest impression on me today. Caillebotte's Paris Street; Rainy Day was quite impressive as was Seurat's Oil Sketch for "La Grande Jatte" . I would love to go to Chicago to see the actual,full-sized painting.

Just to make the day more enjoyable, I got to spend it with my friend Julie and her daughter Trish. We had a great lunch at Esperanza's before going to the museum. (If you haven't eaten there, you should definitely give it a try.) The weather was wonderful...couldn't have asked for better.

Here's the icing on the cake that has nothing to do with my wonderful day in Ft. Worth: The marching bands from Paris High School and North Lamar High School competed in Area competition (state qualifier) today in Longview. Both bands placed in the top 7 during preliminary competiton today and competed in finals tonight. NL qualified for state (YAY NL!!), but Paris did not advance. This may have been the first time ever for Paris to make finals at Area. I know it's the first time in at least 14 years. What a great day for the Paris and NL bands!

Too young

We lost a student this week in a car accident, and I just heard that North Lamar lost one this morning. Both were seniors. Is there anything more difficult than losing a child? I can't imagine it. My thoughts and prayers are with both families and with both senior classes. Like one of my friends said on her blog this week, it's time to hug our kids - both our own and those we teach - and let them know how much we love them and how special they are to us.

Is it really mid-October???

Has it really been three months since my last post? Maybe that's an indicator that we've had a pretty busy fall.

Nick, Anglea, and Ethan have gotten settled in Jarrell and are doing well. We got to spend a short weekend with them a few weeks ago on our only free weekend until after football season. We went to Nick's football game on Friday night and to a marching contest on Saturday morning. We shopped with Angela and Ethan Saturday afternoon while we waited for Nick to get home. Unfortunately, we had to come back Saturday night because Chris had a rehearsal in Arkadelphia Sunday afternoon.

Ethan is officially a big boy. He has pretty much mastered potty training, is going to school, and can ride his bike just like the older kids. He also had an adventure at the ER with stitches! They went to the bowling alley for a family outing where Ethan fell onto a bowling ball. He had to have six stitches in his chin. OUCH!




Natalie and Brandon are great. Nat is taking 18 hours this fall and will take a class in January so that she will be able to graduate in May. They're both RAs this year in the same dorm/apartment complex. Wedding plans are moving right along. Her dress came in this week, and all of the bridesmaids have their dresses. We still have tons to do, but things are moving along pretty well.

Chris is super busy with marching band. Marching contest is next week, and we're deep into football season. He is the official truck and trailer driver for the band. He's still playing tuba with the Arkansas Brass, the South Arkansas Symphony, and a new group called Mass Brass. We're driving to Malvern, Arkansas tomorrow for a MB concert which should be lots of fun. We saw several old friends at the last concert a few months ago.

We're staying busy in the library. In fact, this six weeks is one of our busiest. We have research classes scheduled every day for the next three weeks. In addition to all that, our district technology director moved to Austin recently to work for TEA. I've been asked to coordinate all of our websites and work with each campus webmaster. It's been a lot of work, but I have enjoyed it.

Life continues to be good for the Kornegay's. We're thankful for that.

Overwhelmed!!!

There are times when God just brings us to our knees because of how He provides for us and loves us. Nick just called, and I'm overwhelmed.

Nick: Well, the truck is unloaded.
Mom: Great! Who did you call to help?
Nick: We started unloading and this guy from a few doors down came by and helped us. You won't believe this - the guy is a former professional mover. He's huge! The two of us (scrawny, skinny Nick and the burly fellow) unloaded the piano by ourselves.
Mom: WOW! That's great!
Nick: Guess what, Mom? He has a son who is 2 1/2 also. His birthday is three days before Ethan's! He and Ethan played in the waterhose and while we were unloading.
Mom: You're making me cry!!!
Nick: And, there's another family three doors down that has a 3 yr old son.
Mom (still crying): How wonderful! God has surely taken care of you, hasn't He?

So...can you count the number of answered prayers?
1. Jobs for Nick AND Angela
2. Awesome place to live
3. Not just help unloading the truck, but a professional mover!
4. Not one but TWO boys Ethan's age for him to play with!

Thank you, Lord, for taking care of my kids!!!!!

A really long day

We spent Friday helping Nick and Angela pack and move to their duplex in Jarrell. We left Paris at 8:30 Friday morning and returned at 5:30 Saturday morning. Yep...21 hours. The things parents will do for their children and grandchildren!!

Angela rented a moving truck which they had just gotten home with when we got to Bedford. Nick and Chris left pretty soon after we got there to get their stuff from their storage unit while Angela and I packed. She had these great boxes from Outback that were all the same and made packing and stacking go very well.

My main assignment for the day was to entertain Ethan. We took walks, ran errands, watched movies, and played in the truck while the others did the hard work of loading the truck. My favorite Ethan quote of the day was while he was "driving" the truck - "Look out all you peoples! Here comes Ethan!" He was so adorable. His absolutely favorite thing to say these days is "Is it?" which is 2 yr. old speak for "What is it?" We played "Is it?" with everything in the truck from radio to air conditioning to speedometer to signs and posters inside the cab.

We finally got on the road around 8:30 last night, obviously much later than we planned to leave. What a caravan we had! Nick drove the big truck, Angela followed in her car, Ethan and I were next in Nick's car, and Chris pulled up the rear in the Jeep. Ethan was asleep before we got one block away from the house, so I didn't hear a peep from him for a couple of hours. I discovered that my cell phone was dying and that Chris had my charger, so we stopped in West to get it. The next stop was even more unexpected - Chris got stopped and ticketed for having a tail light out. I pulled over at the next decent place to stop and waited for him to catch up. Sheesh! Just what we needed.

When we got to the duplex, Nick and Angela were walking around using their cell phones as flash lights trying to find the breaker box. The four of us wandered around for a while until Chris finally found it. What a relief to have lights and air conditioning! We spent a little while with them oohing and ahhing over their duplex and then unloaded the three cars.

Unfortunately, we couldn't stay last night to help unload the truck today. (Chris has to be in Hot Springs, Arkansas, this afternoon with the Arkansas Brass for a wedding.) I made Nick promise he would get on the phone and find some teachers or coaches or kids or SOMEONE to help them unload. The boxes won't be a problem for them, but the furniture and piano will require additional muscle power.

The duplex is fabulous!!! It's a two-story, three bedroom, two full bath unit with a galley kitchen, great pantry, and large living/dining area. It's 300 square feet larger than the house we built in Little Rock. I'm including a few pictures from another duplex that is arranged just like theirs. I'm thrilled that they found such a great place so quickly that is close to work for both of them. (Angela will be teaching middle school math in Jarrell!!) The only negative is that they're at least two hours farther away from us.

It was about 1 AM this morning when we left Jarrell. We stopped a couple of times for drinks and snacks and to replace the pesky tail light. I napped a little and made Chris let me drive the last couple of hours while he slept. We fell into our bed around 5:30 this morning. YAWN!!! What a day!

1st picture - Front view; they have the unit on the right

2nd picture - Living/dining looking toward kitchen

3rd picture - Ethan's room with the dormer window

Happy 4th!

Celebrating the 4th of July always meant a huge family gathering when I was growing up. Unfortunately, we've gotten away from that in the past few years, but I caught myself thinking about those fun days quite a bit today.

My grandparents hosted a 4th of July celebration from as long as I can remember until they couldn't do it any more. They had two daughters and a cousin who lived with them who was just like a daughter to them. Each of their daughters married and had children (two of them had 4 children, and one had 3), so when just our families got together we had 11 kids. I was the oldest of the group, but I don't think that distinction earned me anything. Mamaw and Poppa each had several brothers and sisters, so most of the time some of them and their families would join us. By the time my generation got married and had kids, we had four generations under one roof. Trust me, when the Woolard clan gathered, there were LOTS of people involved.

We spent the day outside eating and playing all kinds of games. I remember playing in Poppa's freshly plowed field making what I called "foot houses." We climbed trees and played in a wading pool. They lived outside of town and their water came from a well, so that dip in the wading pool was cold! My kids are mortified when they see home movies or pictures of us in the pool wearing nothing more than our underwear. No one thought ahead to bring bathing suits, so we just stripped down to our whitey-tighties and jumped in.

Food was always a major component of any Woolard family gathering. We didn't grill hamburgers and hot dogs like most people do on the 4th. We just pot-lucked it. I remember one year that we had some really good barbecue - barbecued goat, that is. I think a cousin brought a friend that year, and everyone watched to see what he thought about the barbecue! We had everything you could imagine to eat. Poppa built some extra long picnic tables for us, and one was always completely filled with food.

Poppa always grew watermelon. I never see watermelon without remembering Poppa's garden. He grew red and yellow watermelon and always had a cold one ready to eat. He was pretty particular about his watermelon - I remember him throwing out just-opened watermelon if he thought it was too ripe or if it just didn't taste right to him. I learned at an early age how to spit watermelon seeds particularly at my siblings and cousins.

After lunch, it was firecracker war time. Oh my, did we have fun! We each had packages and packages of Black Cat firecrackers to pop. It was a sign of maturity when we graduated from propping our firecrackers on the sidewalk or fence post to light and then run like the dickens before they popped to being quick enough to light and then throw them. Another rite of passage was twisting the fuses of several firecrackers together before running or throwing. Of course there were always misfires and firecrackers that were thrown in the wrong direction, but thankfully we never had any serious injuries. I remember one year when Uncle Ken threw several at me and I threw a hissy fit. He still makes fun of me about that. We never got really big stuff for after dark. We always had Roman candles and sparklers and bottle rockets, but we didn't get much that went "boom" with big displays. One year my Roman candle was a dud and sent balls about two feet in the air. I couldn't wait for the next year to come so that I could redeem myself. We had fun with various forms of "chasers" that chased all of our moms out of their lawn chairs more than once. About six years ago we went to my sister's house on the 4th and did some of these same things. I felt twelve years old again with my cup full of Black Cats and my "punk" lighter! I think I scared Natalie!!

Even though Poppa was a World War II veteran and my dad served in the Marine Reserves and Uncle Ken served in the Air Force, I don't remember spending time talking about patriotism. For my family, patriotism was something we lived, not something we talked about. We spent the 4th of July enjoying our freedom to gather as a family. It was always the highlight of our summer. I'm so thankful for my grandparents and my parents for making sure that we spent time together as a family. My, do I miss those days!

Here's a trip down memory lane and a picture of my sisters and me in Mamaw's kitchen on July 4 in 1981 or 1982. Sorry I don't have a picture of me in the wading pool to share!

Catching Up

Here's what's been happening with the Kornegays this month:

IRL Race. Chris and I celebrated the end of school in style...at least in a way that I really enjoyed. We decided at the last minute to go to the Texas Motor Speedway for the Indy Racing League race on June 7. What a blast! I had a great time, and Chris indulged me the whole night. We got to the track early, shopped in the souvenir stands, rented our scanners, got some junk food, and found our seats. IRL races in Texas aren't well attended, so we scored some awesome seats on the front stretch not far past the start/finish line. It was a great HOT night for racing, and we enjoyed ourselves. I called Karen from the track and told her that we have to consider the whole race weekend next year. She loves all things NASCAR, including the truck series. The trucks run on Friday night and the IRL guys run on Saturday night the first weekend in June. It would be great fun for us to go together.




Nat is home! Nat and Brandon got back from Greece on June 1o, although technically it was June 11 when they actually returned to Texas. They had a great trip, saw wonderful sights, and visited many locations where the apostle Paul worked, preached, and was jailed. They took hundreds of pictures and had great stories to tell. The toughest part of their trip was when they returned to the US. They landed in Washington, DC on time, but they were six hours late leaving DC. They got to DFW after at 1:00 AM on the 11th instead of 7:00 PM on the 10th. By the time we found out that their flight was delayed, we were already more than half-way to Dallas. We passed the time with Nick, Angela, and Ethan at Cabarras, Southlake Town Square, and finally at their house. Needless to say, we all slept pretty late the next morning since we didn't get home until around 4 AM. Brandon stayed until the 12th, so we had time to see all of their pictures and hear their stories. I'm so glad she had this opportunity. It was a great experience for her. Here's one of my favorite pictures of Nat and Brandon from the trip. They were in a beautiful place called Meteora. She leaves for Alaska for her next big adventure on Thursday.

Certification!! I am officially certified as a principal!!! Scary, isn't it? I got my official certificate in the mail last week. I can't wait to get it framed and hang it in my office. Who knows when I'll use it as an administrator, but I'm quite proud of myself for accomplishing it. I met a goal I set for myself several years ago, so I'm thrilled to have it.

Job Search. Nick has taken a job in Florence ISD as the band director. WOO HOO!! He reports to work tomorrow (July 1), and Angela and Ethan will join him as soon as they get an apartment secured. He's excited about it, but he's also a bit nervous about it. I know he'll do a great job. We'll just have to make sure we make lots of trips to Florence to see them. I have several friends who have children in the Austin area, so I'll just have to get together with them to make a road trip to see the kids. Just what I needed - another excuse to go to Austin!!

50th Birthday. Everyone was here to help me celebrate my 50th birthday last weekend. We kept Ethan while Nick and Angela went to a wedding in Little Rock, and they were back in time for us to celebrate together. Natalie got a great cake, lots of candles (though she didn't use 50 on the cake), and ice cream; Nick and Angela gave me lots of old people gifts (Depends, Fixodent, and prune juice); and I got lots of funny cards from family and friends. The best part about my birthday was spending it with my family. I really didn't want anything else.

If you've held on this long, you're up to date with the Kornegays. It's been quite a month, hasn't it?

30 Years?!?

Yep, that's right. Chris and I are celebrating our 30th wedding anniversary today. My, where has the time gone? When we talked about it this morning, we couldn't quite wrap our minds around the concept of 30 years. It seems like we've always been together, but just the thought of 30 years is mind-blowing.

One word I'd use to describe our relationship is commitment. Through thick and thin, good times and bad, we're committed to each other. He's my best friend...the person I want to wake up with every day of my life...the person who truly accepts me as I am. I'm a much better person because of Chris, and I honestly can't imagine a day without him.

I saw "Sex and the City" last night, and I discovered what a romantic Ludwig von Beethoven was. One night, Carrie read love letters to Big, and she read an excerpt from "Immortal Beloved," letters Beethoven wrote to his love. The third letter was quoted most in the movie. Of course I looked up the letters as soon as I got home. I guess the romantic way the lines were used and thinking about our anniversary today really made them stick with me. Here are some quotes that made me think of Chris and our marriage:

Can our love endure except through sacrifices, through not demanding everything from one another

Remain my true, my only treasure, my all as I am yours

Is not our love truly a heavenly structure, and also as firm as the vault of heaven?

Oh, continue to love me - never misjudge the most faithful heart of your beloved... ever thine, ever mine, ever ours

Enjoy these pictures of our wonderful day 30 short years ago. I hope the next 30 are as great as the first 30.

Greece, anyone?

Natalie is on another fantastic trip. She's in Greece for the travel component of a class she took in the spring - Acts and the Pauline Epistles. She and Brandon are with a group of 12 on a 12-day tour called The Journeys and Letters of Paul. They're touring several places Paul visited as well as many other important historical locations. They have to journal while they're gone as part of the course requirement. What a way to start the summer!

Nat and Brandon were both RAs during the May term at ETBU which didn't end until Thursday, May 29. After closing down the dorms late Thursday night, they got to Paris around 1 AM Friday morning. We unloaded their cars and tried to get some rest before leaving Paris at 6:30 AM for the airport. I felt so bad for them - they were exhausted before they started their trip. We made it to DFW airport just in time for them to meet their group at the ticket counter. Their plane left Dallas at 11:30 AM on Friday, and they arrived in Athens at 2:00 PM on Saturday.

We've heard from them a couple of times via email. They have to pay by the minute to use the Internet at the hotels, so they're not taking much time to communicate. That's fine with us; it's great to hear from them, but I don't want them feeling that they have to contact us. I'd rather they spend their time and money enjoying themselves. I tend to take a "no news is good news" approach to overseas travel. Nat's trip to Zambia in 2005 taught us that. This is Brandon's first trip out of the country, and he's been the one sending the email. He's so sweet...both messages have included statements about how safe they are. Just what parents need to read.

This wonderful adventure ends on June 10. They'll return to DFW at 7:30 PM. We're planning to drive over after lunch on Tuesday to spend some time with Nick, Angela, and Ethan before we meet Nat and Brandon at the airport. I have no doubt that they'll spend most of the day Wednesday sleeping and getting back on our schedule. Brandon will probably have to leave on Thursday. I know his parents will be anxious to see him back on US soil.

I've been the typical librarian-nerdy mom for this trip. I bought a map of Greece, and I highlighted all of their stops. I needed to "see" where they were. I also checked a book out of our church library on Greece that has lots of pictures so that I can kind of virtually visit Greece with them. Of course I've looked at all kinds of websites on Greece as well. Another really cool thing Nat sent before she left was a list of the hotels they'll stay in complete with web sites. That's an even more specific way for us to trace Nat's travels. Don't forget the world clock on the cell phone. Mine is set to Athens, so I can see what time it is in Greece. Oh, the wonders of modern technology! It truly does make the world seem much smaller.

I'm anxious to see the souvenirs they bring home. One special souvenir I hope they get is a beautiful picture of themselves to use as an engagement picture for the newspaper. Other than that, I'll be happy with a magnet or bookmark.

Arkansas Brass

Chris started a blog for his quintet last weekend. Check out what's going on with the Arkansas Brass!

Graduation Day

Mother's Day couldn't have been any better. We were in Arlington for Nick's graduation from the University of Texas at Arlington. We're so incredibly proud of him - especially for his perseverence to complete his degree in music education. Now for the fun part - finding that first job!

The weekend was great. Natalie and Brandon got to Paris on Thursday and took care of some wedding stuff on Friday morning before going to Frisco. They shopped at Sam Moon and Stonebriar and the surrounding shopping centers until Nick met them to drop off Ethan. Nick and Angela had a some things to do Friday night and Saturday night, so we volunteered to keep Ethan for them. Nat and Brandon did well driving home with Ethan...or should I say that Ethan did well in the car with them. Anyway, they made it in safe and sound. It certainly got fun around here pretty quick!

Nat and I took Ethan to the Paris Art Fair on Saturday morning. What fun! His first order of business was the inflatables. He climbed almost to the top of the big slide before the older kids crowded him which scared him. Aunt Natalie to the rescue! She climbed the ladder and took Ethan down a couple of times. He loved it. Next was the bounce house. We were sure Ethan would have a big time, but when a well-meaning dad latched the "door," Ethan got scared and wanted out. No problem...there was still lots to do. He rode in a buggy pulled by a miniature horse, shot basketballs, picked up ducks, ate a corn dog, and picked out prizes. We also took in some of the art and exhibits in the Civic Center. We had a great time.

Graduation day arrived and we were eager to get to Arlington to see Nick and Angela. My mom met us here and rode with us. Daddy and Evelyn spent the night in Dallas, so they met us in Arlington. Nick found us in front of Texas Hall and gave us our tickets. We got in and got everyone upstairs to the balcony so that we'd have a bird's-eye view of the stage. Besides, Ethan could roam around without distracting too many people. Nick was all smiles as he and his classmates processed onto the stage. The preliminaries were pretty short, so we didn't have to wait long for Nick to walk across the stage. We clapped and yelled and made sure that Nick could hear how proud we were of him. Chris did a great job capturing Nick's walk across the stage on the camera.

After the ceremony, the whole gang met in the courtyard for pictures and then went to a great Mexican restaurant for dinner. Soon we parted ways - Nick, Angela, and Ethan went to Bedford; Natalie and Brandon went to Marshall; Daddy and Evelyn went to Texarkana; Angela's mom Diane went to Cedar Hill; Chris, Mother and I went to Paris. It was a long day, but it was wonderful.

Here are a couple of pictures of the day. We'll get to do this again next May when Natalie graduates. We can't wait!!

Miss ETBU

Natalie was a contestant in the Miss ETBU pageant this past weekend. Yep, that's what I said. Our Natalie...in a beauty pageant. She was wonderful. She represented Student Foundation, one of the many organizations she's involved in.

The competition included interview with the judging panel on Saturday morning, and then evening gown, talent, and on-stage interview Saturday night. She wore her two favorite prom dresses - the gorgeous black sequined dress for the runway portions and the blue shorter dress for the talent portion. She looked beautiful and did a super job on her clarinet solo and in all of the on-stage competitions. Even though Natalie was definitely the winner in our eyes, she didn't get the crown on stage. Here's the article from the Marshall newspaper.

We celebrated the evening with Nat and Brandon at IHOP, the college students' favorite late-night hang out. We are so proud of Natalie for participating and jumping out there and doing something unexpected.

The pictures of her on stage didn't turn out so well, but I hope you can see how great she looked.

Hospital time again???

What a week! This was one of those weeks that reminded me that I am NOT in charge of my life.

Just after lunch on Tuesday I began to have pain in my abdomen. I left school thinking that going home to my potty would make things better. Two hours later with no relief from the pain, Chris took me to the ER. I continued to writhe in pain until we saw the first doc around 5. Thank God for Demerol! Two x-rays and one CT scan later, the diagnosis is obstructed bowel. The second doc ordered the CT scan which confirmed the diagnosis; doc #1 was certain I was coming down with stomach flu. Anyway, the next thing I know, I have an NG tube, an IV, and a room on the 5th floor. (This is the Reader's Digest version of the story; I didn't get to the room until midnight.) The best guess is that the obstruction was caused by scar tissue left from a surgery almost 15 years ago. Who would have thought that it would cause problems so many years later.

Wednesday was a miserable day. The tube and the general yuk involved with it were awful. The pain was gone, and the tube did its job of clearing the obstruction. Obviously, I couldn't have any food or even water until the tube came out. The tube finally was removed Thursday morning, but I still needed IV antibiotics and other meds until Friday morning. I finally got to come home late Friday morning. Sleeping in my bed last night was heavenly!

Chris has been a prince. He felt so helpless on Tuesday, but he got help for me as quickly as he could, let me squeeze his hand just like I did when Nick was born, packed a bag for me by following my drug-induced instructions, called my absence in for me, and even called my professor to let him know that I wouldn't make it to class Wednesday night. He got supper for me from Magel's last night, and today he made breakfast and went to the grocery store and fixed the light in the kitchen. What a guy! He truly is the best husband in the whole world.

I haven't ventured far from the sofa and my easy chair all day today. I was hoping for more energy by now, but it's just not here yet. I plan to try to get out and do as much as I can tomorrow so that I can get back to work on Monday.

So...what can I do to prevent a recurrence of this experience? Eat healthy foods, drink lots of water, watch how I eat and how much I eat, and keep everything moving.

The bottom line, though, is that we never know what's around the next corner. It doesn't matter if it's a sudden health problem or an accident or an unexpected blessing. God is totally in control, and He uses every experience we have to teach us something either about Him or about ourselves. The best we can do is acknowledge His sovereignty and thank Him for getting us through. This experience has certainly taught me that I can't ever take my health for granted and that I have to slow down and take much better care of myself.