Filled That Week...

Tuesday, March 5th, I started a new adventure. I will facilitate a Self-Reliance Personal Finance group at Elizabeth's Village. This is a home for women. We had 6 people participate this first week. It was a good experience and I totally enjoyed it. There will be eleven more weeks to complete this course. It is very different not 'teaching' and 'facilitating'. I enjoyed the difference. 

Wednesday, March 6th, Claude and I went to Lexington to meet with Strategic Wealth Design. Don't let that name cause you to believe we are 'wealthy'. Such is not the case. But we are both approaching 70 (Claude is 9 months ahead of me in this regard) and we each started a savings when we were working that we will need to begin to draw from. We attended a dinner and instruction at The Castle Thursday, February 28th, to see what these people do. We have questions about the best way to use these funds and it seemed they might be able to help us. Hence the meeting Wednesday. We visited with them for about a hour. Came away with a plan and an understanding we have made good choices so far. We wanted time to think about their suggestion and to determine if we feel it is best for us. We go back Monday and have a final discussion and determination if we will have them help us. Bless Claude's heart. He has the persistence to read and study our funds and come up with any and all questions we might want to ask before making any commitments. I am grateful for him and his diligence in these matters. 

Thursday we had one of the fun Grandparent moments. Hayden's is in the Oldham County Middle School 8th grade band. The 7th and 8th grade bands from the Middle School and two of the bands from Oldham County High School will compete at the Kentucky Music Educator's Association's (KMEA) Assessment this coming Tuesday at North Oldham County High School. To prepare the kids for this competition, the Middle School and the High School hold a concert and perform the numbers they have prepared for parents and friends. Claude had a meeting that day in Frankfort. He dropped me off to visit Papa in Georgetown while he attended his meeting. Then he came back to Georgetown and picked me up and we drove to LaGrange. We stopped at SteveO's for pizza and took that to the Marx home for dinner for all of us. Then we went to the High School to listen to the concert. This is a fun concert because you hear the progression of the ability through their years of school. By the time the final band performs, you can tell they are ready for the college level. The 7th and 8th grade bands each also did a sight-reading piece. This will be part of their competition on Tuesday. So doing it for us gives them a bit of experience before the big show. It is an excellent evening of music. We very much enjoyed it and were ever so grateful the snow held off until after we got home at 11pm. 

The first number the 8th grade band performed was Beautiful River (Shall We Gather at the River). It was conducted by the High School band teacher, Mr. Rogers. This is one of the things I really like about this program. There is a lot of cross teaching and work between the Middle School and the High School. 

The second number was Lightning Field and it was conducted by Mr. Wise, the Middle School band teacher.  

Hayden is the third from the end and you can't see him when he performs because of the huge tuba on the end of the row.  

Friday the 8th I spent all morning and until 1pm crocheting. I am trying to finish this baby afghan for Katelyn and Drew's baby. It is taking forever. When I came home from visiting Papa, I plopped myself down on the love seat and crocheted all evening. My poor hand will need surgery when I am finished. No kidding. I now have five rows put together and am working on the 6th. There are fifteen rows total and then a border crocheted around them. Endure with joy. Endure with joy.

My cousin, Hershel sent another family picture. This is my father holding Hershel when Hershel was a baby. My comment to Hershel was, "Papa has hair!!"

It has been a good week.