A "King"- ly Wedding

At the beginning of October, our family went to Myrtle Beach, South Carolina to celebrate the marriage of one of my best friends, Melanie. She and her long-time boyfriend, Chris King, got married in a beautiful outdoor wedding on October 2, 2010. I was the matron of honor and Grace was the flower girl. We were so happy to be there to share that wonderful occasion with our friends!

We got to Myrtle Beach early on Friday and went down to the beach for a few hours. It was overcast and a little chilly, but we enjoyed some peace and quiet on the sand.

















All cleaned up and ready for the rehearsal


Grace had her professionally done, and I allowed her to wear a little make up, so she thought she was a big girl! She looked beautiful, and she did a great job walking down the aisle!




The finished product, my beautiful baby




The Beautiful Bride



Our family before the wedding


The bride and my parents


Me and Mel



After the wedding, my parents, Grace, DJ, and I went back down to the beach to enjoy some night air. Grace and I walked the beach looking for sea shells, while DJ and Dad talked about sports.












Congratulations, Mr. and Mrs. King!

Disney on Ice- Toy Story

Last Wednesday, we went into the city with several of our friends to see the latest Disney on Ice show, which just so happened to be Toy Story 3! We bought our tickets back in the summer, when Grace was REALLY into TS3, so we took the chance that she would still be into it three months later. We needn't have worried...she loved the show.







We got to the CNN Center early to eat some dinner, and the girls played excitedly until we were allowed to go into Phillips Arena to find our seats. At one point, they banded together to try and lift DJ! That's how excited and hyped up they were!







Once in the arena, we bought all three girls matching Jessie the Cowgirl cups and sno cones. They loved them and ate them intently for a while, until they started melting. Then Grace and Taylor decided they were done! We scraped some of the ice off the top, and they happily finished them.






Grace enjoyed the show, but did get a little wiggly right before intermission and again right before the end. We all enjoyed the jokes and the music, especially the 80's throwback tunes! Grace and Taylor danced for us during intermission.




All in all, it was a fun experience! It left us with a very tired little girl, who fell asleep on the way home! Til next year!

Home Field Advantage

I always knew that I wanted to be a teacher. From the first day of Kindergarten, all through high school and into college, I knew. I was never one of these people who have trouble declaring a major, or waffle between academic courses in the interest of trying to discover what interests me. Teaching is my passion, and there are so many great things about it, but I have found possibly the best thing of all...being there with my daughter every single day.

Being able to pass her in the hallway and see her sweet smiles and waves, getting to peek in on her classes, watching her play with her friends, having her skip down to my classroom every afternoon and run into my arms...it's wonderful! Getting to hand pick her teachers and be there for every moment is also pretty great!

So, since I am there with her, I get to be part of all the fun, and sometimes silly, moments! It's definitely an advantage. For example, a few weeks ago, Grace was invited to be a part of the morning announcements. She was supposed to stand up there with a few other Pre-K kids, but when she came in to the media center, she got a little shy. Then, she saw a few of my fifth grade QUEST students, whom she knows, and decided to go sit with them...on the actual announcements! So, the part that was televised to the school, Grace is smack in the middle of the "big" kids, listening and looking around! I was embarrassed, but everyone thought it was funny.






Another advantage is that my dad is welcome to come to the school and spend time with her and her class. He comes once a week to read to them, and Grace really enjoys it! I sneak down sometimes and watch them. My dad thinks Grace hung the moon, and I am happy for them that they have this time together.





Yep, teaching at an elementary school definitely has it's advantages!

Making a Joyful Noise

Grace joined our church's children's choir and has really enjoyed it! She loves to sing, at home, school, and now, at church. Hearing her sweet little voice lifted in song, praising the Lord, makes me so proud and happy!

Her choir group performed at church a few weeks ago, and they all did a wonderful job. Here are some pictures from that morning.









My soul will be satisfied as with the richest of foods; with singing lips my mouth will praise you.
Psalm 63:5

Grace Sings at Church from Teri Elliott on Vimeo.

Fall Festival

On Saturday, September 26, our school had a fall festival full of games, candy, and school pride fun! It didn't feel much like fall, since it was SO hot, but we enjoyed our day. As the QUEST teacher, I had a booth selling Sandy Candy in an effort to make money for our QUEST classroom. Grace and my parents came up as well, and Grace and I had fun jumping in the moon walk and playing the games. She loved all the junk food she got! Pizza, candy, Sprite, cotton candy...she was on a sugar high all afternoon! It was worth it though. Building memories and being a part of our community is so important to our family, and I love raising our child here!