A Pilgrim & An Indian

I would just like to take a moment to post how awesome my husband is and how much of a trooper he can be when it comes to putting up with my childlike ideas. I'm a kindergarten teacher, so silly ideas are to be expected!

It was two Fridays ago when all of kindergarten had a Thanksgiving feast together. My students wore their Indian headbands, macaroni necklaces, or Pilgrim hats and I wore an Indian outfit I found at an vintage/costume shop. My sister spotted the dress and at $7, I couldn't resist. I fringed the bottom and sleeves, and found a headband for $3 at the same store. Not bad for something cheap and simple! When I got home from school that day I said, "Why should this only be worn once, when it's very appropriate for this time of year? Let's dress up for Thanksgiving!" (Picture my husband rolling his eyes). Matthew laughed a little at first, then realized I was serious and didn't say much else until Thanksgiving morning. I helped him choose Pilgrim-ish clothes and he wore the hat I made just for him - same as my students, just adult size ;) I got excited at the thought that this could be a new tradition and we can dress up for Thanksgiving every year... but my husband told me he thought differently...

Here we are Thanksgiving day at my parents' home. This Indian maiden is in love with one handsome Pilgrim!

A little fun with the SiStErS! (oh, and some little Thanksgiving friends!)


Comical...yes, but silly things lead to great memories!

An Answered Prayer

Let me begin this post by saying God is SO good and will always provide. He quickly answered our prayers for me to find a teaching job and did so in a matter of just two short weeks of living in NC! With the referral of a friend, I had an interview the day after turning in my resume and was offered the position a few days later. Oh and the best part? It's kindergarten, just like I was hoping for!

I have been hired at a Montessori school which means I will have to go through extensive training over the next year to be Montessori certified while teaching full time. The school is not completely Montessori though, because they are still a public magnet school, so I don't have to toss out all of my traditional teaching methods and tools (thank goodness, because this was incredibly terrifying to me!). It is going to be incredibly hard, as some coworkers have informed me, and I am prepared for this I believe. I have a very supportive husband, God who is faithful, and a loving family close by that I can lean on. This last month has been filled with some stress, anxiety, deep breaths, and prayer as I prepare to meet the challenge that lays before me this school year. I report to the classroom Tuesday for a week of meetings and I meet my children the following Tuesday. Oh goodness!

As for my sweet spouse, he has spent his days applying for jobs, doing small home projects for my parents here and there, and editing a wedding he filmed in Savannah (more to come on that later!). Matthew has an interview lined up (yay!) the week of the 23rd with a company in Burlington that we are praying about. It will be his first interview here in NC and even if he doesn't get the position, he's just happy to have an interview to break the ice. It's only been a month and a half, and we are trusting God's timing with Matt's work situation. Once he is employed, we plan on beginning our search for a place to live that is closer to work. Unfortunately, my job is an hour drive, unless there is traffic, near downtown Raleigh and the drive alone is exhausting. I'll be relieved when we live a bit closer... We look forward to having a place to call home outside of the city somewhere in a peaceful setting, although we'll most likely live in an apartment for the next year or two to save up for a house :) We don't know yet. In the meantime, we will continue to live here in my parents' house enjoying the blessing their home is to us.

I'd close with a photo, but after 10 minutes of trying, it's just not going to happen. You see, internet out here in the country is quite slow... and uploading anything can take years when the satellite is acting the way it is now. Not too mention that if we go over our daily usage limit, they shut our internet down for 24 hours (gasp!). I don't quite understand it, especially when a mile down the road they have high speed internet and cell phone service, yet here we have neither. Oh well. Photos will come at another time when we're out using internet somewhere else. At least for now I was able to put up an overdue post :)

Critters, critters everywhere!

Let me begin by saying that I am in no way a fan of small rodents... especially ones with a rat-like tail. Ironically, I happen to have 7 gerbils under my care. Yikes! It all began when I decided to give my students a class pet for their "holiday" (Christmas) present.

You see, I thought I'd be smart and let the children vote on either gerbils (another teacher had one and it was all they talked about), fish (I already have a tank), or hermit crabs (definitely my first choice). After they opened their surprise from me, we took a vote. I made sure to explain ALL the responsibilities that came with each pet and we talked about working together to provide a happy home for whatever was decided. Unfortunately for me, gerbils won by a landslide. You know in kindergarten, it only takes one kid to say, "Vote for gerbil, ok?" and all follow suit.

In early January, I headed to the pet store to purchase a cage and gerbil. Thankfully my husband was there to guide me in cage decisions, etc. because he and his brothers owned little rodents when they were kids. We left the store with two gerbils - I didn't want one to get lonely - and cringed as I listened to them scratch and scurry in their box on the way home. I told myself it would be worth it when I saw 20 smiling faces the following morning... and yes, it was (the children's smiles and squeals of delight get me every time ;)

Unbeknown to me, gerbils can begin the whole mating process at a young age. Oh, did I mention that the guy at the pet store couldn't tell me if I was buying male or female? His response... "Uh, they're too young to tell. We just got them in." Silly me, I bought them anyways. Well, about two weeks after purchasing them, I noticed that their affection for one another had blossomed quite quickly. I did some major research on the habits of gerbils and found out that in approximately 24-28 days, little pups would arrive.

That day was Wednesday...

Imagine my surprise when I glanced over at the cage Wednesday after school in between meetings and saw an unattractive pink squishy thing in the cage. I gasped and called my husband right away. "Matthew, dear, I think my gerbils had a baby!...no wait, two, no four... oh my goodness, there are five babies! What do I do?!" I said as I counted and recounted. He assured me that they have a natural instinct to care for their young so I don't need to do much of anything. After staring at these critters for a very long time, I decided they weren't so revolting after all. Even a hairless, blind, squishy pink gerbil pup can have a teeny bit of cuteness to it - not to mention watching a mother and father care for their young is cool to watch. I was reminded that God created such animals and instilled in them this instinct to nurture that's pretty fascinating for a small rodent. Nice.

Eww...and Aww...are appropriate responses

Well, the babies are now 5 days old and all 5 are still alive. My knowledge of gerbils has grown more than I ever thought it would...ever... and I hope the babies all live! My students were absolutely THRILLED with having an entire family in the classroom. It also works as a great tool to keep the class quiet because "the babies need to rest." :) I haven't told the kids yet, but I already found another home for the male gerbil and hope to have him rehomed in a couple weeks. When the babies are old enough (7 weeks) I will re-home what's left and keep a female with the mother. Smart plan, I think. Lord-will there will be a female in the mix! For now, my class and I will continue to watch as they grow and develop - hoping nothing goes terribly wrong and they have a happy classroom life!

It's a New Year!

I'm back and ready to set forth in the blogging world again. It's a bit embarrassing that I haven't posted since September... but I'm going to try much harder this year. My life has been crazy busy since my last post, with teaching and the holidays making time to sit and type a bit difficult. I want to record more events that happen with us Taflans because it's important and satisfying to me to have memories and thoughts stored somewhere that I can revisit in the future. So here's my enthusiastic attempt at blogging more than once every few months...

I'm not going to spend time catching up on all that's happened in the last few months because I'd like to get on to what's currently taking place. I will sum up Oct-Dec. with:

1. My kindergarten class is exciting, a blessing, challenging, and tiring - but I am learning so much as a first year teacher!

2. Married life just gets better and better. We had our one year anniversary Dec. 27th and eagerly look forward to the next year together

3. Our holidays with family in NC and OH were filled with many precious moments. God truly blessed us with amazing parents and siblings :)

You can see photos of 2009 here:

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2525895&id=5123936&l=e959dc0e8f

Today was one of the most relaxing Saturdays I've had in a while. My husband and I slept in (no work for him today!) and we went looking for garage sales. We enjoy this activity although our routine is usually the same: Stop at many, many homes... ooh and ahh over odds and ends that we think we would like to have... mull over whether it's a necessary purchase... drive on to the next place and do the same :) We have actually bought things at garage sales before, but usually because a great idea comes to mind and we figure we can do some kind of project with an item. A few times we've driven away saying, "Oh, we'll come back later and if it's still there, then we'll get it." Do you know what happens when you do that? The beloved item is always gone! I passed up an amazing country style wooden kitchen cupboard once because I couldn't make up my mind. Deep down I wanted it because we could fix it up and make it so charming, but we live in an apartment and honestly had no room. We said we'd come back and it was gone. I kicked myself for it the rest of the day. Today I decided to actually go with my gut and get something if it's reasonable. I bought cute snowman accents for next year's Christmas/Winter decor. Matthew bought a staple gun for $2. We got to experience our first estate sale today as well. Very, very strange going through someone's house... we decided it was a bit creepy having so many people walking around a house buying food items, looking through linen closets, and walking out with anything they could get their hands on.

We decided to go to Wekiva Springs afterward and have a picnic lunch. I can't believe people were swimming in the spring! Yes, today the high was 76, but it was chilly in the shade and the water is only 72. We enjoyed some card games and walked the nature trail, soaking in this beautiful weather before the heat comes and sucks the life out of things once again. Last time we were there we had a new addition to our growing camera family... a Canon HG-20. Today we had our newest addition - the Canon 7D (very exciting!).

We were in need of a new camera, especially with a wedding coming up in March. Our other camera is still good, but the new Canon is great :) TaflanPictures, our videography/photography business is something we are pursuing with even more dedication. Matthew has had video gigs here and there through freelancing, and our opportunity for filming weddings on the side is becoming more numerous. I absolutely love assisting with shooting weddings! Here is a link to our latest: www.taflanpictures.com/vrbensky

Our website is getting a needed makeover and we hope to book more events in the near future. Matthew loves filming and editing, and he's been doing it for 9 years or so - definitely his niche. He's currently working here in Borders on editing a wedding we shot last weekend (a beautiful one with unique details that make me want to plan a wedding all over again!). We pray God will use us and TaflanPictures for His glory as we meet new people and produce new things.

I think I'm going to go explore the craft/diy magazines before the store closes. I only have 20 minutes! I love being inspired by neat ideas - although usually this inspiration happens late in the evening and by the time I round up supplies for a project, I'm tired and ready for bed :) I would like to work more tonight on the afghan I'm crocheting. I chose colors from our wedding and a simple pattern I found in a magazine. I'll have to post pictures soon. It takes me a while because I'm teaching myself and would like to spend more time on it in the evenings after school. Oh dear school, takes up so much of my time. I think about my classroom as I go to sleep, when I'm out shopping, as soon as I wake up (no exaggeration) - possibly because I'm a first year teacher? There's ALWAYS some cute poem or song I can research, project I can buy supplies for, and techniques I can read about to incorporate in our daily routine. Wonderful job, it truly is... a consuming one, but wonderful and rewarding!

Time to wander on over to the magazines...

2 Months in One Post!

About a week and a half ago, I was flying over Georgia during this time. I had about 45 minutes before the plane touched down in Florida and it was back to my husband (smile) and work. I had just spent Labor Day weekend in NC with my family and it was great!

So much has taken place since I last took the time to write. I spoke of a cruise with my family to the Bahamas and shortly following our return, Matthew and I boarded a plane to Ohio for a week with his loved ones. We stayed in his parents’ home, visited with many friends and family, and relaxed during our time up there. My in-laws planned a reception for us at their church that Saturday so those who couldn’t come to the wedding could come fellowship and see wedding photos, etc. It was nice to celebrate our wedding once more. We even had a small, beautiful wedding cake! Aside from seeing some of Matthew’s friends, we spent the majority of our time relaxing with family that we don’t see often. Actually, I hadn’t seen them since the wedding and that was 8 months ago! We held our three week old nephew (that makes 4! And one niece!), toured OSU where his brother attends, played card games with Matt’s grandma, and drove around Bellaire – enjoying the sights of his hometown. It’s neat to visit his side of the family because his parents live in a log cabin they built in the hills around 30 years ago. The property is the same property that his Grandma grew up on and the sidewalk, as well as the stairs from the house still remain. Also, the local high school was attended by Matthew’s dad, brother, sister, sis-in-law, and bro-in-law. Lots of family history in a small town that I find interesting because I’m married into it ☺



On our way back down from Ohio, we stopped in Charlottesville, VA for the night. It’s a city we have considered re-locating to in order to be closer to family. We drove around looking for garage sales as a way to get to know the area better. We were praying that if God wanted us there, we would know. We left feeling ok about the place. It’s beautiful and very historic – but we didn’t feel a strong pull in that direction. I don’t think God has closed the door completely, but it’s not in our near future. From there, we drove to my parents’ house for the night. It’s always so good to go home. I love being there at the house and seeing my sisters and parents. Walking around the property is exhilarating. The two of us left there with an even greater longing to move. We even considered moving things out of our apartment and into my parent’s basement starting Thanksgiving if I didn’t get a full-time teaching job… which leads me to my next news…

Driving home from NC after our Ohio trip was a long, bittersweet drive. We were sad to leave family behind and go back to life in the Sunshine State. We were happy though to know that our quaker parrot we’d been wanting was weaned and ready for pick up! Yes, we now have a new addition to our family – Sunny ☺ We decided on that name because it seemed fitting for a bird from Florida. He’s about 4 months old now and has quite a personality. Matthew has enjoyed building perches and play areas for him and we enjoy spending time with him, waiting to see what noise he’ll make next. So far he can say “step-up,” and makes a LOT of noise when we turn on the tv. Here he is:



Now, back to my news. On the drive back down to Florida, I received a phone call to come in for an interview at a local elementary school the following day. Well, I went and was called back the same day to come in again for a second interview, and then was called later that evening to let me know that I got a kindergarten position! I was so incredibly excited. It’s such a blessing! And here I thought I’d have to go back to subbing all school year… When Matt got home that evening, I waited for him to greet me with a kiss and I said, “do you know who you just kissed?” A bit confused, he said, “yes, my wife.” I then proceeded to tell him that he kissed not just his wife, but a teacher! We went out to dinner to celebrate and now I have a classroom of my very own.
I can’t believe we have been in school for four weeks now. My class of 18 is quite wonderful! The team of 8 K teachers I work with are such a blessing as well. So far, so good for a first year! It’s been exhausting and overwhelming, but each time I’m in the classroom most of that fades away. Now Matthew and I can really begin saving to move out of state, Lord willing! We discuss and pray about it quite often.



The day is coming to a close and sleep comes earlier now that I have so many little ones to care for. It feels great to post again. Hopefully once I get a better grasp on a schedule and routine, I’ll be able to post more! I look forward to catching up on my reading of other blogs…

Weekend Picnics and Relaxation

I can't believe the weekend has come and gone so quickly! It was my first full week teaching kindergarten, and I must say that I was ready for the break. Last week consisted of many efforts to get the class somewhat caught up on all the knowledge the poor kids have missed out on. I'm very proud of my students for catching on to the routine of literacy centers and math centers. Although discipline is still a MAJOR issue for a handful of kids in there, I still love them and try hard to get them to where they need to be! Here's a photo of most my class taken on Friday - minus two. We planted sunflower seeds and radish seeds that day (they were SO excited!) and I was shocked to find that all of their seeds have sprouted over the weekend. My excitement matched theirs as we peeked into each cup this morning - I had said a little prayer that something would grow before school let out for the summer. I didn't really expect it to happen over 3 days :) Aren't my students cute?


When I got home from tutoring a student Friday night, my husband shared that he wanted to take me out. There was our lovely picnic basket by the door and a bag packed with blankets. Ahh... romantic and relaxing - could a girl ask for more? He drove us to Crane's Roost Park (we could walk there, actually) where we sat on the grass overlooking the pond, listening to live music. Perfect! I just love live music and being outside during the last couple hours of daylight is my absolute favorite. He cooked fish, chicken and rice, and brought applesauce. We ate, played a game of cards, and enjoyed each other's company as we listened to the band play. The security guard on duty joked about getting us candles and a lighter to add to the night :) Here's a photo of that a jogger offered to take for us...



Saturday was busy as I prepared for a meeting for my summer job. Being site coordinator is a great promotion, but also a bit more stressful! Saturday evening was spent at Borders scoping out books and magazines. I found a sewing one that has motivated me to try sewing again! We later came home to catch up on episodes of Lost (we just finished season 3!). Sunday morning consisted of Sunday school and church - then lunch with friends. This family is one of our favorites to be around - wonderful people that truly leave you feeling encouraged. They are missionaries with New Tribes and it's great having friends with which you can spend an afternoon relaxing.

Now I'm off to bed. I'm very tired and tomorrow is another busy day!

Day 1 of Kindergarten!

I began teaching kindergarten today! I will teach until the end of this school year (a few more weeks) and then it'll be time for summer break :) My first day went quite well and I'm blessed to have some nice teachers on my grade level. Unfortunately, the original teacher has been out for almost a month - meaning lesson plans and student work are a bit off schedule... I have my work cut out for me. It'll be a great experience though - not to mention it'll add to my resume! I love being called Mrs. Taflan, and I look forward to doing the best I can to make these remaining school days memorable for the kids.

As much as I'd love to write more and go into detail about the kids and classroom, I'm completely exhausted. I'm going to be balancing teaching all day and then tutoring each afternoon - at least until the month of May is over. Before I head to bed, I would like to share what my sweet husband had waiting for me when I arrived home in between school and tutoring... It made me smile and feel even more blessed!

A Mess of Blessings

What a week it has been! I can't believe this time last Wednesday I was on a flight with my husband to NC. It was an incredible trip and seeing family was so wonderful. Here's some trip highlights:

Thursday morning we visited my Papa. It was good to see him because I'm not sure how much longer he'll be around. Afterward, we came home and took my youngest sister to have her ears pierced - second hole. That was part of our birthday present to her.




I can't believe she's 16! She got her license while we were there so we were sure to have her drive us around some :)

On Friday, Matthew, Meredith, and I went to visit my other sister at UNC Chapel Hill. She's a music major there and loves it. It was fun walking down Franklin St. and the beautiful campus (probably my favorite!) and seeing her dorm. We hung out in her room while she went to Spanish class, then took her home so we could all get ready for Meredith's party. Matthew took a picture of us with a UNC ram (not the official, I don't think) - he was just wandering around the area...



Friday night was the Sweet 16 party. What fun! It was held at this classic soda shop and they let us have the entire front portion of the restaurant. There was a stage for karaoke, a dance floor, everything was in the classic red/black/white colors, and of course there was unlimited soda! It was the cutest place and I'd love to go back on a Saturday when they have live music. Matt & I provided the music for the party and even sang karaoke with my middle sister and her friend (nothing to brag about). The cake was very unique and overall it was a great birthday for her. Here's just a couple of the photos taken that night. I don't have a good one of the inside of the place - it's on another camera in NC.





Saturday morning Matt & I left with my mom to go visit relatives on both sides of the family. They all live in the same town which makes visiting easy! I love going to Danville, VA because it's where we've always gone to see family since I was born. I like the familiarity of it and the memories the town has. We started off seeing my Grandma - she's the crazy one (dad's side) :) - and then saw my mom's aunt, stopped for lunch at Momma 'Possums (yum!) and off to visit mom's sister. When we left my aunt's house we visited my cousin and her husband at their adorable home. They've been married a year now and seeing their house made me hope Matthew and I can have one of our own closer to everyone soon! Our Saturday was busy, but completely worth it!

We had a unique opportunity while in town. Matthew's cousin happens to go to college somewhat locally and was in an art show this past weekend. The art show was in Durham, less than 20 minutes from the house. We took advantage of the opportunity since Matt doesn't get to see his cousins often and headed to the big art show. Adam is so talented! You can see some of his work in the background of our picture. You can view his artwork at www.achmoser.wordpress.com



Sunday was filled with church, relaxing, and good-byes as we boarded our plane back to Florida. It was 5 days filled with family blessings.

The blessings kept coming when we got back to our apartment. On my way to a sub job Monday morning, I got a call from a secretary at a school in Orlando letting me know a temporary teaching position for Kindergarten opened up until the end of the year. She basically told me the job was mine if I got all my paperwork in and the county approves, etc. Overwhelmed at first, I wasn't sure what to do. Just the week before I had come home from a day at that school and told Matthew I wasn't crazy about going back there again. Then the next day the secretary called and said she was going to use me more... and now she's been bending over backwards to help me get this job! I finished all the paperwork today so I now just wait to hear something. I'm still going to try to sub somewhere tomorrow, since I've spent the last two days getting paperwork done and missed out on working. What a blessing it'll be if I do get it! Even though it's only for a month... it's consistent work and that means the stress of not knowing where I'm going or what I'm walking in to will be gone (for the most part!) It'll also be teacher pay for a month which would be great :) We'll see what happens...

Another blessing happened yesterday when the lady in charge of my summer job e-mailed and asked if I'd be willing to step up from servant leader (teacher) to site coordinator (more like a principal). It's a 5 week job for the Freedom School and I was looking forward to being a teacher to the students. The possibility of being site coordinator would be wonderful too! I've always wanted to organize and oversee things and this would be great experience. The pay is $800 more too - not that money is everything, but every little bit does help pay those bills and Matt's student loans. I won't know until Monday because she is waiting to hear from the current site coordinator about whether or not she will be able to fulfill the role based on family problems. God's been opening some major doors this week and I'm anxious to see where they go...

My evening has been quite relaxing - I baked us some grouper, caught up on e-mails, drank pineapple smoothies with my husband by the pool, and played an intense game of Rummy while watching Planet Earth. He won by the way... we were tied and then his natural winning ability took over :( Next time I'll get him! Time for bed...