bakery – April Coker, Author

TEACHER TUESDAY: Wedding on the brain. . .

Right now all I can think of is my daughter’s upcoming wedding on Saturday. I can’t imagine how I would be handling the preparations and pressure if I was still teaching. I wonder if I would have been able to take this week off. There are so many last minute details I can’t imagine how I would have been able to plan lessons or manage classes. My former colleagues and students don’t realize how thankful they should be that I am not there. I don’t think I would have been very pleasant to be around!

I’ve seen other teacher/mother of the brides continue to work before their daughters’ weddings, though. Lots of times! I don’t remember them acting any differently. I wonder if they just have it together better than I do, whatever “it” is?

None of that matters. What matters is that I am blessed to be able to plan Natalie’s wedding without the added stress of working outside the home right now. We both have colds at the moment and are hoping that we feel much better by Saturday. We did venture out of our respective nests this afternoon for a short consultation with the bakery, and then we visited our favorite junk store, Uniques and Antiques, for the most fabulous find!

Get ready. . .it’s an extreme closeup!

Scary, huh? But that brass hand with the pointing finger was an amazing find! Amazing because I wanted to have pointing fingers on some of the wedding signs and this little item will enable me to do that! You’ll just have to wait for the photos. . .

In the meantime, be patient with teachers of children, children of any age. If the children are preschoolers, mommy is stressed because of child care or illness. If they are school-aged, mom is stressed because of other teachers, homework, bullying, sports events, etc. If children are grown, mom is stressed because of college expenses, distance from home, relationships, wedding planning, divorce, grandchildren, etc., etc. Let’s face it: being a parent is stressful, and when you are a teacher, you are dealing with other parents’ problems as well as your own. Give ’em a break!

XOXO

AT HOME MONDAY: It figures. . .

. . .that I would come down with a cold the week before Natalie’s wedding. What’s worse is that she has one as well. She had hers first so I guess I caught it from her. I would feel even more awful if I had given mine to her! So she and I have been dragging around trying to get our work done and squeeze in a few naps as well.

Thank goodness I have most of the wedding preparations done. There are still a few last minute things to do, of course, but at least I am not in a panic. . .yet. Hubby took off work this week for the opening of deer season, thank goodness. He helped me today by cutting some chicken wire and adding it to an old window frame and door. He also mowed the wedding site and helped me decide exactly where the tent and chairs will go. The weather is supposed to be gorgeous, and even if it is warm, the area will be shady at that time of day.

I also did some last minute spray painting and found some weathered boards to make some more signs. I gathered a few twigs for some embellished jars as well. Then I embellished her cake server and knife and a framed photo of the happy couple.

Tomorrow I will take her homemade cake topper to the bakery and make sure our requests are being met, and then I will do some junkin’ while in Mineola. There is a Goodwill store and a wonderful place called Uniques and Antiques. Melissa is supposed to have gotten some new stuff in from a trip to Austin last weekend.

Well, here are some photos of hubby’s man cave. Yes, that is Jimmy in the doorway. He has covered the backyard shed with old signs and made it uniquely his. Once a sheriff’s deputy stopped to ask where the old signs came from (have you heard of Canton?) and then once a mother asked permission to take photos of her daughter in front of the shed. Maybe some photos of the bride and groom might be in order. . .

Yes, folks, this is the country!

See the tree growing out of the barrel to the left? Country junk abounds!

I am hopeful I will be feeling better tomorrow. I hope Natalie feels better as well, and I hope she doesn’t give her cold to Bryan! I will be praying that everyone is well and everything goes well. Only five more days!

XOXO