Todd & Sally Tied the Knot!

I was blessed with the opportunity to witness the marriage of Todd McClure and Sally Heckthorn (McClure) this past weekend in Tennessee. I am so happy that I could attend this wonderful and memorable event, which was loaded with love, fun, food, and a little bit of dancing!

Before I even reached the first of many festivities, I had an episode worthy of its own movie scene during my travels from Madrid to the USA. Before my IBERIA plane landed in Chicago, I realized that it was not on schedule and that our 3:00 PM landing time would not give me sufficient time to make my 3:15 PM boarding time for my flight to Memphis. Despite the Spanish flight attendants’ condemnation of missing my connection, I decided to make a run for it anyway. The adrenaline kicked in, and I sprinted through the Chicago airport, faster than I’ve ever run in my life, which was a God-sent miracle since I had been sitting on a plane for 9.5 hours. Even though I was one of the last ones off the plane, I passed everyone and made it to the front of the passport control and security check lines. In what might have been record time, I dashed up to the designated gate (in a different terminal, mind you) only 30 minutes after disembarking my previous plane. By the grace of God, my Memphis flight was delayed about half and hour, and I arrived at my gate minutes before boarding, albeit sweaty and out-of-breath. Extremely relieved and exhausted, I was overwhelmed with emotion and gratitude for this stoke of luck, which my disoriented and sensitive brain could barely handle in public!

My flight to Memphis allowed me to gain control over my excited and over stimulated emotions. By 8:00 PM CST Thursday night, I was happily reunited with three fabulous Furman friends: Alex Snyder, Jessica Slagle, and Anna Beth Bonney. We rented a car and drove two hours in the dark and in the rain. Finally after almost 20 hours of traveling, I made it to my final destination: Dyersburg, Tennessee. That night my carpool crew was welcomed by an attack of friends and a surprise dance-party in a Holiday Inn Express hotel room. As people were tackled onto beds, shouts of laughter and enthusiasm erupted from everyone. What a joyous gathering it was! Among a handful of some of my closest Furman friends, Todd and Justin were also at the hotel to welcome us. Later, we drove to the country house where all the wedding party was staying for the weekend, and I rolled into my bunk bed to get some much needed sleep!

Friday was a rainy and relaxing day-- and it was Justin’s birthday! He was a faithful Best Man and drove to Memphis to pick up another groomsman. While he was gone, I spent the afternoon with some of my favorite people in the world. With several hours free to entertain ourselves, Miller asked the lady at the BP gas station what was the most fun thing to do in Dyersburg. “Applebee's,” she responded immediately. We ate lunch at Applebee's. Afterward, we wandered through a pumpkin patch that was more like a pumpkin swamp, and we drove the length of the town, twice, in about 20 minutes. Despite what may seem like an unexciting afternoon, I enjoyed every second with these dearly loved Furman friends all the same.
As the Best Man’s date, I was invited to be at Friday’s Rehearsal and Rehearsal Dinner. Watching the rehearsal made the impending nuptials all the more real, and listening to the many toasts at the dinner made my heart smile. After the dinner, the rest of the Furman gang was invited to have dessert with the other guests at the Country Club. Above is the fantastic portrait of my friends with Todd & Sally on the eve of their wedding (Sally and Todd are the two tall ones in the middle!).

On Saturday morning David, Todd, Justin and Marius (not pictured below) showed off their manliness by playing on the rope swing at the pond behind the country house. Todd took the plunge into the chilly waters before taking the plunge into married life… brave man.

We went to the Saturday brunch at the Country Club, mixing and mingling with mimosas in hand. Some of my favorite Southern-style dishes made the menu: shrimp-and-grits and warm cheesy biscuits. I think eating fantastic food with friends and family helped ease Todd’s and Sally’s nerves… it sure helped mine! ;-)

While the wedding party had their photo-shoot Saturday afternoon, the rest of us changed into more comfortable attire and had a spontaneous dance party under the hotel awning before caravanning to the local park to soak up some much-welcomed sunshine. At the park, we swung on the swings, threw the Frisbee, climbed on the children’s playground, chatted together, and simply took pleasure in each other’s company.

Erin and Myles got engaged last weekend! Congratulations to my two dear friends!

At 7:00 on Saturday, Sally Heckthorn walked down the aisle with her father. Shortly thereafter, she and Todd swapped rings, said their vows, and kissed each other for the first time as man and wife. Hooray for Mr. and Mrs. McClure!

The reception was elegant & classy and revolved around the fall season. I loved the gourmet chocolate-covered apples, the gorgeous bridal cake, the tomato-shaped grooms’ cake (Todd’s in the tomato farming business), and the abundance of oranges, reds, yellows, browns, and greens.

The gourmet apples were a hit... but I don't think Mae and Edward realized that they were being served in slices, not whole.

Sally, the beautiful bride, posed for a cake-cutting shot.

I wonder if these are the same tomatoes we planted on Todd’s farm back in August!

Furman’s Chi Omega encircled Sally and sang a special song for our newlywed sister.
Casey (my little XO sister) and I just can’t believe Sally is, in fact, married!

Above: Todd and Justin. Groom and Best Man. Two very special guys.

Below: We sent off the happy couple in a shower of crackling sparklers. Brian, fellow Furman alum and official photographer, worked hard all weekend to capture all those priceless moments!

To wrap things up, Justin, Marius (Todd’s childhood friend), and I left Dyersburg early (like before dawn) on Sunday morning. They were driving Todd’s car all the way back to Florida and had almost as long of a trip as I did. They dropped me off at the Memphis airport, and I was sad to say goodbye to Justin. Fortunately, I had no problems getting back to Madrid—except for the fact that the Iberia flight attendants went on strike. However, I was so exhausted that I stretched out across three seats in the back of the very empty plane and passed out for most of my second trans-Atlantic flight of the week. And now, I’m back in Madrid, teaching English to Spanish children and fighting off the jet lag. Thus far, life is pretty normal here.

Todd and Sally’s first dance was to “Cheek to cheek.” Check out my video of this sweet moment. CONGRATULATIONS TO THE McCLURES!

An Active & Altered Agenda

My life in Madrid is really starting to kick into high gear. From teaching English to kids of all ages to participating in new extracurricular endeavours, I am maneuvering my way through the hustle and bustle of city life on my figurative motorbike (if only I could have a real one!), shifting gears for stops and turns along the detoured-prone road. Currently, my weekly route takes me through the following:

School: My “time-table,” as Cristina calls it, has been changed multiple times in the past few weeks. Originally, I was working only with 1^st & 3^rd grades. Since our fourth assistant never showed up, everything was sent into chaos mode. After several rearrangements in my school schedule, my time at school is now spent mostly with 5^th grade; the rest has been divided up between 3^rd, 1^st, and kindergarten. All of the switching and inconsistency has been keeping me on my toes, literally. I’ve been running up and down the three flights of stairs enough times to make me an expert at the Stairmaster.

Even though I want to get a fixed schedule so I can really start working with my kids and my co-workers, the cool thing that has come from all this craziness is that I now know almost every single kid in the bilingual program (with the exception of this year’s 2^nd graders). It always makes me smile to hear the kids call out my name, “Laura! Laura!” (explanation of my identity crisis found can be found in the Blog post made on September 29, 2008) and to see them waving and grinning at me as I walk through the patio. Sometimes, they even latch onto my arms and legs and won’t let go until I pry their small fingers apart. This “celebrity status” thing is really nice and it really does create some kind of blissful high that I can imagine would become addicting. My sympathies to the real celebrities in this world.

Private classes: By the grace of God, I was able to arrange my private classes perfectly so that I don’t have any dead time between classes, a major inconvenience and downright annoyance I had to deal with last year. I am working with three of the same families from last year: the twins Marcos & Aitor, the little girls Paloma & Lucia (& now Ana, who’s maybe 3), and my two “big kids” Fernando & Belén. I have also picked up classes with two 4^th grade girls (Andrea & Andrea) and a class with three 4^th grade boys (Yes…Kike, Manuel, & Omar are quite a handful!) and two 6^th grade boys Javier & Alex. I have a total of 10 lessons per week, which is such a blessing and a joy. I am very fond of these kids, and I love getting to work with them one on one.

Swimming: I’ve started going to the pool near my school and swimming three times a week during my two hour lunch break. I’ve never been a competitive swimmer—although, I always did want to be a Dothan Dolphin—and I’m trying to pick up some tips on technique by watching other swimmers around me and by researching a few internet sites. If you’ve got some good advice on proper swimming, please send it my way! I am really enjoying this activity because it breaks up my day quite nicely, it gives my body some good exercise, and it’s something I think I could get into for the rest of my life. My only complaint is that, by default, I am surrounded by naked Spanish women of all ages for longer than I would ever care to be every week. Too much information? You bet!

Volleyball: Remember those girls with whom I played volleyball back in June? (If not, see Blog Entry from June 17.) Impressed by my superior skills when we played together in June, Maria asked me to join her team once the season started in October. Of course, it was the opportunity I had been hoping for, and I said “count me in!” I am now a registered team member of Las Otras, a misfit group of Spanish women who play in a community volleyball league. We had a scrimmage match a few weeks ago but our first league match this past Sunday. We won. The season goes through March, and I hope to have many more W’s when all is said and done!

Church: It’s been such a wonderful thing to have a church home to return to this year. My involvement with The Community Church of Madrid and my friendship with Pastora Cathy are great examples of the living and loving body of Christ. Unfortunately, most of my volleyball games are on Sunday mornings, and therefore, I’ll have to pick and choose when I go where. Luckily, Oasis Madrid, another international English-speaking church, holds services some Saturday evenings, so I will have the opportunity for Christian fellowship there, too!

Spanish class: I am going to stick with my Mosaic Spanish class on Friday evenings. Hopefully, I can drill in some of those grammar rules that don’t stick when speaking Spanish. Unfortunately, I will be missing a very helpful lesson on the subjunctive tense this coming Friday, but with good reason…

Traveling: I am flying back to the United States on Thursday in order to attend Todd and Sally’s wedding in Tennessee! I can’t wait to tell you all about it!

Latin Flavors & Fresh Air

I felt like I got a colorful breath of fresh air this past Sunday and Monday.

The much anticipated Viva America parade, the climactic event ending a festival celebrating the Latin American community living here in Madrid, was held on Sunday evening. I'll let the pictures and videos illustrate the beauty of these people and their culture.

Beautiful people.

Colorful dress.

Sweet music.

Lovin' life.

Each Latin American country was represented by their people dressed in traditional costumes who performed their typical dances.
The parade ended with a moving dance party, where notable Latino bands perform on the top of tractor trailers. The Colombian singing sensation, Mojarra Electrica, brought rhythm and dance to the crowds in the streets. They were my favorite!




On Monday, SK & I traded the bustling city sounds for the quiet hush of the winds in the mountains above the small pueblo called Cercedilla, just an hour train ride from Madrid. We hiked for over 4.5 hours, only stopping for a snack and an overlook photo-shoot, and we were happy to be in the Great Outdoors... as seen in my exciting pose below!

The Teacher Becomes the Student

I live in Spain. I teach English. I speak Spanglish.

Coined as an official word in 1965, Webster defines Spanglish as “Spanish marked by numerous borrowings from English” and “any of various combinations of Spanish and English.”

Spanglish is a lot of fun, and SK and I often pull from our grab bag of favorite Spanish words and expressions when in conversation. Sometimes, we forget how to say things in English, and so we just utilize the Spanish phrase instead. It’s a fun and cool way to chat among friends who know both languages, and it takes the pressure off for having to speak one over the other. However, while Spanglish does have its benefits, it becomes a crutch when trying to speak correctly in either language. Actually, it’s causing a lot of problems for me right now, as I am trying to express myself in presentable and publishable English!

In addition to Spangish messing with the linguistically-inclined parts of my cerebral lobes, I discovered months ago that working with Spaniards who aren’t fluent in English can have a disastrous effect on any native English speaker… and before you know it, you’re telling the kids to “stop to talk” or “please, explain me this.” At school, I constantly am trying to ignore the gross grammatical errors that are committed in my presence so that I don’t pick up the dreadful habits. Yet, even my concentrated efforts to better my British English aren’t enough to prevent a few incorrect phrases to seep into my vernacular involuntarily.

These days my head is full of Spanglish, but I would prefer it to be full of English and Spanish. Other than clearing the small hurdles at school, my English is fine. My Spanish, on the other hand, still needs a lot of work. Some of you may be thinking, “But, Hailey, you live in Spain! Isn’t your Spanish just great after being there a year already?” To that, I would reply, “Actually, I haven’t spoken as much Spanish as you would think…”

Since my job requires me to speak English and since most of my best friends are English-speaking, I don’t spend as much time speaking Spanish as I’d like (or at least, I didn't last year). Of course, I do have to use Spanish on a daily basis, but it can be very minimal. At the end of last school year, I was a bit disappointed that my Spanish level hadn’t jumped off the charts. Don’t get me wrong. My Spanish really has improved, and I am comfortable communicating with anyone in Spanish (I’ve learned to get over the fear of making a mistake when speaking… that will always happen). In fact, ever since I returned to Madrid a few weeks ago, Spanish has come much easier than ever before!

With hopes of strengthening my grasp on the Spanish language, I am currently enrolled in a Spanish class at Mosaic, an international language institute here in Madrid. My class meets on Friday nights from 6:00-8:00, and we just had our first class this week. Our professor, Lara, is from the Canary Islands, and she seems like she would keep class fun and interesting. We the students formed a small assortment of young people from all over the US, Brazil, and Holland. Mosaic is a well run language institute and they have offered some special (and discounted) classes for the people in the bilingual program. At this point, I am still unsure if I want to make this commitment, but I’m going to attend a least one or two more classes before I decide.
And so, after beginning my Spanish studies a decade ago, I find myself back in the classroom… as a student!