First Summer as Wife and Mother...
So... another three months have passed... in fact, Saturday was our three-month anniversary... of our first wedding... let me explain and catch you all up....
On Friday afternoon, May 12, 2006, Shane and I were married in a private ceremony in the Maryville College Woods (beautiful spot with an overhead cathedral of trees!!!), with only the minister and his 11-year old daughter present. It was wonderful. We wrote our own vows and developed our ceremony from a basic Presbyterian ceremony the minister had provided. We then said goodbye to the minister and had a wonderful picnic down the hill in what's known as the amphitheatre in the College Woods. Gorgeous spot! Then we spent our first Saturday as a family running our daughter up to her track meet and her storytelling competition... then she went home to her mom's house, and we had a sweet and romantic night at home.
THEN... on Saturday, May 20, 2006, we (just Shane and I) had a private, private (just the two of us) and more extensive ceremony, with wedding gown/suit and all, at a cabin by a pond in a place called Muddy Pond, Tennessee, just over an hour West of Knoxville/Maryville. We wrote our own ceremony entirely for this "second" wedding.
Our two-week honeymoon to Barcelona and two of the Canary Islands was fabulous... we did plenty of touring and visiting museums and famous places and all of that, but we also (eventually) just rested and relaxed and enjoyed being together and married... if I can find a way to post some pictures here, I will, but I'm not sure I know how to do that....
When we returned, we had our daughter (my stepdaughter... but she's quickly become just "our daughter" now...) for two weeks in a row (we normally have her about half the time, splitting custody with her mother), which was terrific... she and I did lots of mother-daughter things as well as just running errands, cleaning house, etc. It was a nice long period for us to bond even more... I still feel so lucky that things have been so smooth and wonderful with her! During our two weeks with her, Shane had a conference in Atlanta, so we traveled there with him and hung out during the day while he was at the conference. We went to the Atlanta Aquarium, the World of Coke, and just running around shopping and trying new breakfast restaurants! :)
Then I went off to teach at the Governor's School for gifted high school students at the University of Richmond in Virginia for FOUR WEEKS in July...!!!! It was so hard this year to be there instead of here with Shane and our daughter. But I enjoyed my students and classes again this year (my 4th year on faculty there!) and was so happy to spend time again with the dear friends I have made there over the years. And, of course, I was delighted to be able to see my niece and nephew and the rest of my family and friends a few times while I was in the area! Nonetheless, I was very happy to return home to Maryville after four weeks in Richmond....
After I returned from Governor's School, we had our daughter with us for another two weeks in a row, and this time Shane was off the first week, so we did all kinds of fun things together. But we also spent a lot of time at their old house painting and repairing and cleaning and all that... pretty fun! We are trying to prepare the house to go on the market very soon.
Our daughter had a sleepover here with two of her friends last week. It was a great new experience for me! First, one of her friends called me "Mrs. Colter." I wasn't sure to whom she was speaking at first. I guess I'll get used to that! The girls were up up up up up half the night, but I and the other moms expected that, having been young girls ourselves at some point way back when! Anyway, it was cute and fun, and they had a good time. They didn't try to do prank calls or have boys over or anything like that... instead they slid down the hardwood floors in the hall in their sock feet (making up new styles/ways to do this each time, of course!), made their own pizzas, made a super-big cookie and decorated it with icing and candy and chocolate chips and whatever else they could find, made a big American flag on the floor out of our daughter's collection of coins, took a lot of pictures, listened to a favorite mix CD they had made at another sleepover this summer), and watched 2 movies... and we all survived!
So, I think I'm adjusting pretty well to life as a wife and mother... I've learned to do everything (laundry, dishes, Maryville College work, eating, checking email) ten times as efficiently, for example. This morning, as of 8:45 am, I have the second load of laundry in the wash and am in my workout outfit ready to head to the gym soon before I start my workday...! I have learned (at least so far) to manage the mini-crises as they come along... for example, late last week, one of the cats had pooped all over the wall in our daughter's room and all over a stack of her clothes and other belongings... big bummer... I knew something was up when I came out of the bedroom at 8 am and she came down the hall, hugged me, and said, "Did you get enough sleep last night?" :) Then she said, "I need your help." Another day, another poopy cat mess, right?
Our daughter's first full day of school is today, and I'll pick her up today and get the full scoop on life as a 6th grader... scary thought! So, this week will be my first week trying to work everyday again. Our faculty retreat is in one week, and I'm NOT ready for school to begin at all, although I know I'll enjoy it and be glad to be back as soon as things get going. After retreat, we have about a week of meetings galore, then we begin classes on the 30th of August...!
So, all is well here... but what's going on out there...? Write or call soon and let me know how you're all doing... take care of yourselves, and enjoy the remaining days of summer...!!!!
Love,
Crystal
On Friday afternoon, May 12, 2006, Shane and I were married in a private ceremony in the Maryville College Woods (beautiful spot with an overhead cathedral of trees!!!), with only the minister and his 11-year old daughter present. It was wonderful. We wrote our own vows and developed our ceremony from a basic Presbyterian ceremony the minister had provided. We then said goodbye to the minister and had a wonderful picnic down the hill in what's known as the amphitheatre in the College Woods. Gorgeous spot! Then we spent our first Saturday as a family running our daughter up to her track meet and her storytelling competition... then she went home to her mom's house, and we had a sweet and romantic night at home.
THEN... on Saturday, May 20, 2006, we (just Shane and I) had a private, private (just the two of us) and more extensive ceremony, with wedding gown/suit and all, at a cabin by a pond in a place called Muddy Pond, Tennessee, just over an hour West of Knoxville/Maryville. We wrote our own ceremony entirely for this "second" wedding.
Our two-week honeymoon to Barcelona and two of the Canary Islands was fabulous... we did plenty of touring and visiting museums and famous places and all of that, but we also (eventually) just rested and relaxed and enjoyed being together and married... if I can find a way to post some pictures here, I will, but I'm not sure I know how to do that....
When we returned, we had our daughter (my stepdaughter... but she's quickly become just "our daughter" now...) for two weeks in a row (we normally have her about half the time, splitting custody with her mother), which was terrific... she and I did lots of mother-daughter things as well as just running errands, cleaning house, etc. It was a nice long period for us to bond even more... I still feel so lucky that things have been so smooth and wonderful with her! During our two weeks with her, Shane had a conference in Atlanta, so we traveled there with him and hung out during the day while he was at the conference. We went to the Atlanta Aquarium, the World of Coke, and just running around shopping and trying new breakfast restaurants! :)
Then I went off to teach at the Governor's School for gifted high school students at the University of Richmond in Virginia for FOUR WEEKS in July...!!!! It was so hard this year to be there instead of here with Shane and our daughter. But I enjoyed my students and classes again this year (my 4th year on faculty there!) and was so happy to spend time again with the dear friends I have made there over the years. And, of course, I was delighted to be able to see my niece and nephew and the rest of my family and friends a few times while I was in the area! Nonetheless, I was very happy to return home to Maryville after four weeks in Richmond....
After I returned from Governor's School, we had our daughter with us for another two weeks in a row, and this time Shane was off the first week, so we did all kinds of fun things together. But we also spent a lot of time at their old house painting and repairing and cleaning and all that... pretty fun! We are trying to prepare the house to go on the market very soon.
Our daughter had a sleepover here with two of her friends last week. It was a great new experience for me! First, one of her friends called me "Mrs. Colter." I wasn't sure to whom she was speaking at first. I guess I'll get used to that! The girls were up up up up up half the night, but I and the other moms expected that, having been young girls ourselves at some point way back when! Anyway, it was cute and fun, and they had a good time. They didn't try to do prank calls or have boys over or anything like that... instead they slid down the hardwood floors in the hall in their sock feet (making up new styles/ways to do this each time, of course!), made their own pizzas, made a super-big cookie and decorated it with icing and candy and chocolate chips and whatever else they could find, made a big American flag on the floor out of our daughter's collection of coins, took a lot of pictures, listened to a favorite mix CD they had made at another sleepover this summer), and watched 2 movies... and we all survived!
So, I think I'm adjusting pretty well to life as a wife and mother... I've learned to do everything (laundry, dishes, Maryville College work, eating, checking email) ten times as efficiently, for example. This morning, as of 8:45 am, I have the second load of laundry in the wash and am in my workout outfit ready to head to the gym soon before I start my workday...! I have learned (at least so far) to manage the mini-crises as they come along... for example, late last week, one of the cats had pooped all over the wall in our daughter's room and all over a stack of her clothes and other belongings... big bummer... I knew something was up when I came out of the bedroom at 8 am and she came down the hall, hugged me, and said, "Did you get enough sleep last night?" :) Then she said, "I need your help." Another day, another poopy cat mess, right?
Our daughter's first full day of school is today, and I'll pick her up today and get the full scoop on life as a 6th grader... scary thought! So, this week will be my first week trying to work everyday again. Our faculty retreat is in one week, and I'm NOT ready for school to begin at all, although I know I'll enjoy it and be glad to be back as soon as things get going. After retreat, we have about a week of meetings galore, then we begin classes on the 30th of August...!
So, all is well here... but what's going on out there...? Write or call soon and let me know how you're all doing... take care of yourselves, and enjoy the remaining days of summer...!!!!
Love,
Crystal
posted by Crys_Wright | Monday, August 14, 2006
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