Winter Whirlwind

We have had a whirlwind Christmas break so far. Our Oregon trip flew by, but it was nice to be with family for a few days. We took zero pictures. Oops. The day after we got back Andy's parents got here. We had a blast showing them around Austin. Here they are at Rudy's. Mmm, brisket and smoked turkey.

 I got Andy a new camera for Christmas. We had our Passwater Christmas when we got home from the airport. This pic is at about 1:30 a.m. on December 26th in front of the tree which is already back in it's box for next year.

 We got a dining room table at Thanksgiving and our dining room has also been our office since then. I couldn't take it any more. So we rearranged all day yesterday (which is why the tree is already down). If you look closely you can see my proudly displayed Dedza pottery. The surviving pieces, that is. We packed a bowl in our carry on bags and then they took it away because we flew on a little plane. And my favorite bowl shattered. So sad. I have another picture to hang in that big white space, and then our dining room will be oh so cozy.

Last, please pray for the Passwater family. Andy's grandmom passed away yesterday. Praise God that she is with Him now, and pray for comfort for those who will miss her here on earth.

Oregon!

We're off to Oregon for Christmas! It promises to be a whirlwind trip full of clouds and rain. Good thing I love my Oregon friends and family so much, because we're leaving 70s and sunny Christmas for 40s and rainy.

We'll be back on the 25th, in time for Andy's parents to come spend a few days with us. Yay! It's fun to have visitors!

The bad news about all this fun and excitement is that it's going to make Christmas break fly by and before we know it we'll be back in school.

Merry Christmas, everyone!

Mugabe and the White African

Andy and I just got done watching the movie Mugabe and the White African. We put a bunch of Christmas movies on our netflix list, but they were all delayed so we got this movie sent to us. Not exactly on par with It's a Wonderful Life. But very good.

In many ways, I don't understand how the world can allow what has happened, and what is happening in Zimbabwe. But I know that I am guilty of forgetting or turning a blind eye, even though I know people who have been driven from their farms and families.

Why do these things go unnoticed by the majority of the world? Andy says it's because it's a different kind of story. We want to believe that colonialism was righted when countries were given their independence. It wasn't. I don't claim to have the answers, but this movie provoked plenty of questions.

Interesting that it was only short listed for the Academy Awards and a movie about saving dolphins won for best documentary instead. I like dolphins as much as the next person, but I think the message and story of Mugabe and the White African is one that needs hearing long before a message about dolphins.

last few weeks...

Here's what we've been up to:

1. Buying a new truck. A Nissan Frontier. It's black. We really needed another vehicle so that Andy doesn't have to ride the bus. He was spending almost 4 hours a day on the bus, making his part time job a full time job. Now, I can come straight home after work so I get home way earlier too!

2. Thanksgiving in Houston. We spent Thanksgiving with Andy's aunt and uncle and their two girls. We had a great time relaxing with family, doing puzzles with the girls and playing with the sweetest little dog!

3. Listening to Christmas music on Pandora. We made a compromise this year. No Christmas music until after Thanksgiving (Andy's rule), but LOTS of it between Thanksgiving and Christmas. We also set up our little tree. It was so fun to begin our own family traditions.

4. Baking lemon cheese bars to take to all Christmas events that include food. My aunt gave me the recipe and they are so easy. They also make a nice change from all the chocolate-y rich deserts that usually accompany Christmas parties. Here's the recipe if you want to try it!

• 1 yellow pudding cake mix (the Betty Crocker kind says "pudding in the mix")
• 1/3 C oil
•1 egg

Mix together (will be very crumbly). Reserve 1 cup. Pat remaining mix into the bottom of an ungreased 9 x 13 pan. Bake at 350 for 10-15 min, until slightly browned.

• 1 8 oz. package cream cheese
• 1 egg
• 1/3 C sugar
• 1 tsp. lemon juice

Blend all ingredients until light and smooth. Pour on top of the bottom layer. Sprinkle with reserved cup. Bake for 10-15 minutes. Cool and cut. Refrigerate.

Mmm. Don't eat too many, they do make you sick. I know that from experience. :)

A day in the life

My schedule at work changes regularly. We often have people out sick with no subs (teachers, assistants) and we have to cover for them. I like the change in routine every once in a while, especially when I get sent down stairs with the little ones!

Today I had been at work for about 4 minutes when I was told, "You are going to be Mrs. Pitts today." It took me a few minutes to even register who Mrs. Pitts is. As it turns out, she's a second grade teacher. So, I got to be a second grade teacher today. It was really fun, but man she has her hands full with that class. They are all very naughty. I was fairly exhausted by the end of the day. But, it was nice to be in the same classroom all day. I miss teaching! I take it as a compliment that the principal was comfortable and confident enough to throw me into a situation like that.

What we do for fun

We tease that we are the oldest 25 year olds that we know. We go to bed by 11 every night and our favorite date night is watching Netflix. I say Netflix, not movies, because we can rarely make it through a whole movie before it's time to go to bed. We watch documentaries and King of the Hill (which is MUCH funnier when you actually live in Texas).

This weekend we went to the talent show at the elementary school where I work for our Saturday night entertainment. We weren't disappointed, either! We were thoroughly entertained by the sweet kids who were brave enough to get onstage and share their talent. We went because one of my 5th grade students performed a dance. She did a great job, and even won 2nd place!

All that being said, I'm going to go put the casserole (see, I told you we were old...) into the fridge and get ready for bed!

Two more weeks until Thanksgiving break. I think I can, I think I can...

Milestones

For the first time in my short life as a Texan (okay, let's just say resident of Texas...Texan sounds too....well, Texan)....

...I did not use the air conditioner in the car. In fact, I used the heat. Yes, even in the afternoon.

...We have all of the windows closed and it is perfect temperature inside.

...The temperature did not reach 80 degrees. It didn't even reach 70 degrees.



...It rained and felt like FALL!!!

I've been living in the illusion of fall with cinnamon spiced banana bread and a pumpkin spice air freshener and even cooking soup for dinner (it doesn't taste as good when it's 85), but at least for today it FEELS like fall. Yay! I even hear rumors that the tree outside of my classroom is going to turn flame red soon.

**DISCLAIMER: I am not complaining about warm and sunny weather. I would take months of sun and heat over months of rain and cold. I am celebrating wearing sweatpants and a hoodie, while looking forward to wearing shorts and flip flops later this week.

Alaura in Austin

The Alamo- San Antonio

River Walk- Tex-Mex appetizers and a beer for Andy

Hahahaha. Love this pic!

Happy 20th Birthday, sister!

Tex Mex again! Mmm!

We had so much fun! The best part of having visitors (besides just hanging out with my sis, of course) is being a tourist in your own city! It was fun to show off our new home and hang out with my sister, and have a girl to shop with. Andy's good about shopping with me but if I'm being honest, Alaura is more fun to shop with. :-) I'm so glad today is Friday and I can stay in bed until the sun comes up tomorrow!

Austin Adventure #3, #4, and #5

We've been making it into downtown pretty much every weekend for one thing or another. Austin really is a nice city. Neither one of us have lived in a city before and something tells me I'm getting spoiled by Austin!

First of all, the weather is BEAUTIFUL. It's been nothing but sun and blue skies for the last three weeks. I'm getting a little anxious to break out my sweaters and scarfs, but I'm definitely not complaining.

A few weekends ago we went to Stubb's BBQ for a Black Crowes concert (Andy's favorite band). Stubb's is a great BBQ place that we discovered on accident the first time we visited Austin. It turns out they host tons of concerts there, too. Before the concert we went to the "Old Pecan Street" festival. It's like a huge art market type thing. I was so excited because I found the same sandals I have from Malawi there (I think they're made in Tanzania). I didn't buy any, but I was glad to know that I could get them here if I wanted (since my Dad's dog ate mine this past year). We also ate dinner at a Cuban restaurant. It was so delicious! I would post some pictures except we don't have any. I brought the camera but they wouldn't let us take it into the concert. Andy had to run a half mile, uphill to put it back in the car....oops.

Two weekends ago we went back to Barton Springs for a Jazz festival. I love free live music! I also went to Whole Foods (which is almost the size of a whole city block) and bought a pair of Tom's shoes. I know, I'm so trendy. But seriously, I love them.

This weekend we went to the Austin Book Festival. We heard a few authors and browsed through lots of books. We drank over priced lemonade and enjoyed people watching on the lawn of the Capitol building. I was excited about taking some pictures because the Capitol building is really cool (and, as the Texans brag about, is taller than the Capitol building in DC). However, the batteries in the camera were dead. Sad days. Next time.

I'm starting to enter count down mode until Thanksgiving. I'm ready for a break from school/work. Things are going well though. I'm starting to build relationships with my students and figure out what makes them tick and what they need from me.

My sister comes in 5 days!! I can't wait!

Any other takers to come visit? We have lots of floor space (especially since we don't have a dining room table yet).

Favorite Quotes from working in schools...

"Mrs. Passwater, I really like your name. Know why? Because I like the color blue," announces the second grader. "Yeah, I like your name too because....because I like water," adds another second grader.

"Weren't you wearing those same clothes yesterday?" (to Andy)

"I just love my class because they are all silly just like me. I fit in just right!"

"How do you always know it's me whistling?" (We tried explaining that the puckered lips are a dead give away).

Andy says elementary school is growing on him. He'll be starting to meet with more students this week. I'm starting to get into the swing of things at my job. I really enjoy the second grade class I work in. I really don't enjoy the drama that goes along with working with all women. Such is life in an elementary school, I suppose.

Blog about last weekend's Austin adventure AND this week's (which hasn't happened yet) coming soon...

Austin Adventure #2

Last Friday was our last day of summer. We can't really complain since neither one of us has worked since June. It was kind of like an extended honeymoon. But, we had a lot of time to make up for since we were apart for the whole year! Anyway, to celebrate we decided to head downtown to explore some "Austin-y" things.

First, the Lyndon B. Johnson presidential library and museum. It was really interesting. We watched a video and saw lots of artifacts from his presidency. My favorite thing was a letter to LBJ from Jackie Kennedy the morning after JFK's funeral. It was very moving. Andy knows all these crazy conspiracy theories about the JFK and LBJ...I'm not so sure. Anyway, here's a picture of him in front of the museum (he thinks I'm silly for always taking pictures).

Then, we headed to Barton Springs. It is a natural spring in the middle of the city. The water flows out at 68 degrees all year round. There is a pool there and a big park. Unfortunately, thanks to Hurricane Hermine, the pool was closed. (We are too far inland to get hurricanes, but we sure can get a heck of a lot of rain!). Don't worry though, this was not another failed Austin Adventure (see the bat story...) because we walked around and found this:

Can you read the sign? Evidently no one can. So, since we're locals now, we did what the locals do... changed into our swimsuits and hopped in! We mentioned to some friends of ours that we did that and they said that that's the only place they ever swim and they had never even noticed the sign until recently. Ha ha ha.

Oh, and one more thing. I got bit by a fish! Okay so fish don't really bite, they nibble. Either way, I didn't like it, it really freaked me out!

Well, we have started work. Andy is working with AmeriCorps/Communities in Schools doing tutoring and mentoring. I am working at Mason Elementary (Go Mustangs!) as an instructional assistant in special education. (I'm not working at the preschool anymore...I got offered this job, which is full time and better pay, so I took it. I'm sad not to have a classroom, but this is a good way to get some more public school experience.) We're thankful to be settling into a routine in our new home!

Austin feels like home when....

1. You have sat in a traffic jam for 20 minutes.
2. You know when to get on the highway and when to stay on the service road.
3. You know which direction Cedar Park, Leander, Georgetown and Round Rock are.
4. Lower than 95 degrees feels a bit chilly.
5. You start to see people you know around town.
6. You start to recognize and be able to impersonate (Velcum to Valmart...) the greeters and checkers at Wal-mart.
7. You can effectively use the shoulder of the road as a turning lane.
8. You know that driving is defensive. Those Texans sure are friendly, until they get behind the wheel of a car...need over? Too bad. Red light? Who cares? Waiting behind someone who is turning? Over-rated, just go around.
9. You learn the hard way that the libraries are closed on Thursdays, and then remember it the next time it is Thursday so you don't waste time going.
10. You make plans to go to the local farmers market on Saturday to hang out with and cook like the locals.

Prayers and Praises

We are really blessed to be getting plugged in to our church so quickly. The people at Crosspointe have been so welcoming. We've been invited out to lunch twice, and over for dinner once. By the time church started today, next weekend was full with dinner invites. We're going to an international potluck (Korean themed) next Saturday and on Sunday we are going go have Greek food with a missionary family from Niger and a couple other folks. Last night we ate with a young couple and their three girls (a three year old and 15 month old twins...wow!) It was really fun, and their girls are adorable.

Things on the job front are looking up, I think. I was hired as the Pre-K teacher at Little People's Academy. It is a brand new school, so I am very part time right now. As soon as we have three kids enrolled in my class I will be full time. I really like the school and the director and I am really excited about the possibility of having my own classroom. The pay is not that great, but better than nothing. So now, all I need is kids! Please pray with us that they will enroll!

After church today Andy and I ate at Rudy's Country Store and Bar-B-Q, real Texas BBQ. It was delicious and there was absolutely nothing healthy about it. Now we can cross that off of our list of things to do. Mm, mm, mm!

Wedding Photos

Here are a few of my favorite wedding pictures. Happy two month anniversary to us! Another update is coming your way, but for now feel free to browse our wedding album by clicking here. You can view it as a slide show to see my descriptive and sometimes witty captions on each picture. 

Austin Adventure #1

Touristy Activity: Seeing the bats at the Congress Bridge.
Location: South Austin
Rating: FAIL!

If you click the link above there will be a nice little video explaining that the Congress Bridge is home to 1.5 million Mexican free tail bats, the largest urban bat colony in North America. According to the legend, these 1.5 million bats take flight every night at dusk to eat their evening meal. Sounds cool, right? We thought so too. So we braved the 103 degree weather and ventured downtown to explore and planned to end our evening with the bats.

Unfortunately, the 1.5 million bats were MIA. How do 1.5 million bats just disappear? Or escape unnoticed? Andy and I have theorized that this is a joke for Austinites to play on tourists because we sat on a bench within view of the bridge for about an hour until it was close to dusk. Then we climbed to the top of a nearby bridge to watch the action. We waited, and waited, and waited. No bats. After an hour, when it was pitch dark, we decided to call it a night.

If it is, indeed, a joke then these Austinites go to great lengths to fool their tourists. There are bat stickers everywhere, several websites, and even bat cruises along the lake. As you walk along the path, and under the bridge, it even smells like a large colony of rhodent like creatures lives there. Yeah, I know, gross.

We did take some pictures of the skyline of our new home town. None of us though we were hot and sweaty (perhaps a bit cranky? no...not me!) and not in the mood for pictures.

See any bats? Me either. Lame.

Apartment pictures

Living Room Side 1

 

Living Room Side 2, with Craigslist couch and nothing on the wall because I am scared to decorate large spaces of wall.

Kitchen, complete with his and hers Nalgene bottles bought with our REI gift certificate, pictures on the fridge, and Malawi decorations.

Bathroom- the only room in the house without African decorations. 

I don't have a picture of the bedroom because a) it was messy the day I tool the pictures, b) it is still messy, c) there is nothing in it except for our mattress set sitting on the floor and things on the floor that will eventually hang on the wall. So stay tuned for pictures of our bedroom. I know you are all on the edge of your seat waiting for that day. I wouldn't hold your breath if I were you.

Becoming a Passwater

Social security, driver's license, bank cards and few other small things are all changed over into my new name. I'm really a Passwater now. Spell check doesn't even know how spell Passwater! Neither does anyone else.

We have been married for almost two months. We have lived for more than a week in three states and slept in around 10 different beds. We are on our way to being settled now, though. Our apartment is cute and filled with African memorabilia. It was almost entirely furnished by Target gift cards, with the exception of the hand-me-down chair that we brought from Alabama and the $80 craigslist couch (which has seen better days, but looks much happier with some throw pillows). Oh yeah, and the $6.00 Goodwill coffee table.

We've been going to Crosspointe Church and looking for ways to get involved. Today we went to the church clean up day. Andy trimmed trees and changed light bulbs and I spend 4 hours organizing and cleaning out the kitchen with a few other ladies. I am excited about getting involved there. Not necessarily because I have a complete servant's heart, but because I am excited to build relationships with people here in Austin. Mixed motives? Definitely.

Andy and I have been sending out resumes and filling out job applications for the last week. I have been applying at a lot of preschools so I can start working while I get my Texas teaching license sorted out. I had to take this crazy test asking me all kinds of personality questions. Then I had to rate myself on how well I did on the test. Well, I think I have a pretty good personality, thank you very much. Weird.

I was going to end this post with some pictures of our apartment, but alas, we do not have a card reader or cord for our camera. I better add that to the Target list....