Pacific Coast Road Trip

We took the long and scenic route to Sacramento this December. We spent 4 days and 3 nights along the PCH. It was a wonderful trip!

Monday: Headed to Santa Barbara after work. Luckily no traffic the whole way. Stayed in a darling guest house with homemade banana nut bread. Watched TV!! (we don't have TV anymore, so that was a treat).

Tuesday: Lunch in Old Town Santa Barbara. Explored an old Catholic Mission, which was surprisingly fascinating and educational. Jeremy and I keep realizing how nerdy we are because we keep finding ourselves liking historical things! Continued our drive up the coast through pretty orchards and hills. Minimal rain. Paid $27 for a medium pizza (the lowest point of the vacation). Watched TV and enjoyed our private, real fireplace.

Wednesday: Enjoyed green rolling hills, enchanted trees and the misty weather--felt like England. Spent almost 2 hours watching the wild elephant seals on the beach. Great free entertainment! They were bellowing, fighting, mating, sleeping, snoring, scratching, nursing, and birthing. Incredible!

Then, we went on a tour of Hearst Castle. It was like a trip to a fairy tale.

Thursday: Spent more time with the elephant seals--couldn't get enough of them! Headed to Monterey with sunshine and clear skies. Had to keep stopping to take pictures of the GORGEOUS views of the ocean and cliffs. Spotted several whales blowing out in the ocean. Could have spent the whole day stopping and watching along the PCH.

Then, we explored the Monterey Bay Aquarium. Most fascinating to me were the cuttlefish (kind of like mini octopus that kept changing color), the jellyfish, and the kelp (seaweed). Jeremy had to drag me away from the kelp booth because I overstayed my welcome with a few too many questions...but I couldn't help myself! Kelp has to be the most fascinating seaweed there is. It grows 12-24 inches a day and the holdfast (roots) contains almost all the necessities of life for the entire ecosystem. And kelp only grows in moving water, is used in ice cream and toothpaste... okay... I'm getting carried away again, sorry!

We made it to Sacramento by Thursday night, with enough time to visit family before going to bed. What an awesome vacation for just the two of us before the Christmas festivities!

Thanksgiving Highlights

We were in Sacramento for Thanksgiving, which featured:

• All 5 Zavoral kids together
• Decorating church Christmas trees as a family
• Lots of meals out- including Spaghetti factory with Granma Ginny and cousins
• Boys playing basketball
• Katie got engaged to Steve Garrett
• Football bowl on Thanksgiving day with hot chocolate
• Family "howling" contest with Cody (the family dog)
• Big turkey dinner at Gramma Davidson's house
• Pie party at Brian Hill's house
• Wii sports games
• Pancake breakfast made by Jeremy and Steve
  

What Happened?

This is what our back door looked like on Friday afternoon when Jeremy came home from his business trip. Submit your guess to what happened. The person that is closest to being correct will be the winner!

The Interview

Interviewer: Jeremy

Interviewee: SarahLynn

Question: So SarahLynn, it's been a while since you've blogged about anything. What is your post going to be about?

Answer: Well, nothing has really happened to us in the last few weeks. I've literally just been at work, and you are always at work or school. So there is nothing really interesting to post about.

Q: Well, why don't you tell them about the shows you are directing at school?

A: I don't think people want to hear about that.

Q: Well, they might. What's your show about that you are doing this Wednesday?

A: Oh, it's the 2nd grade show, called DinoStars. It's going to be SO cute. The kids basically sing and dance about dinos, and they will each be dressed up like a different dinosaur.

Q: Cool! Who makes all the costumes?

A: The parents do. It's really great because it makes each child look unique, and it's one less thing I have to worry about.

Q: What about the next show?

A: Well, two weeks after Dinostars, the 4th graders will be doing a play I wrote called Gold Fever.

Q: Wait, YOU wrote it? I thought you've been buying all those kids' musicals. Other people can write the plays you know.

A: Yeah, I know. I bought two different gold rush plays, but neither of them were that great. So I took what was best from each play and then kind of meshed them together to fit my own artistic preferences. It's probably not legal, so don't tell anybody.

Q: By the way, where were you Friday night?

A: Oh! I was at the 8th grade girl over-night bonding trip!!! I got to be one of the chaperones. We stayed at this huge mansion on a hill in Orange. There were 19 girls, and they gave me hand massages and braided my hair.

Q: Didn't you make them wear you underwear or something?

A: Huh?

Q: You said earlier that they were passing around your bra and trying it on?

A: You're making me sound like a pedophile! Okay. It's kind of long story. All the girls were sitting in a circle confessing who they liked. Then they decided to confess their bra sizes to each other. When they asked me, I honestly didn't know because I haven't shopped for bras in like years. So one extra spunky girl volunteered to go get my bra and check my size. When she came back, she had gotten both mine and another teacher's bra and put them on over her PJ's!! It was hysterical! Then, a bunch of other girls passed around the bras and tried them on. It was late at night. Haha.

Q: 8th grade girls are kinda insane.

A: Not as much as the 8th grade boys. Luckily, they went fishing with the principal.

Q: So, who are you voting for on Tuesday?

A: Uh....I'm just gonna vote for all the people you vote for. I don't really have time to learn about each candidate.

Q: You should at least know about the education candidates.

A: Oooo. Good point. I don't trust you on that subject. Okay, let me get out of this blog window so we can do some research on those guys.

Project Bandaloop

We found a free performance at the OC Fine Arts Center last week. It was a show where people dance outside, on the side of a building, hanging from ropes! They call themselves project bandaloop. It was really cool!

We were able to make a triple date out of it, so that was an added plus. We haven't done a group date in a really long time, so it was definitely a hallmark in our social life!

Seriously, how cool is this? I want to learn how to dance while hanging from buildings, too!

Laguna Wilderness Hike

Last week, we joined Jeremy's MBA friends on a hike through Laguna Beach Wilderness. The hike was short-5.5 miles- but it was 108 degrees out that day, with no shade on the entire trail. Plus, the night before the hike I got 3rd place in my school's teacher-pie-eating contest (out of 26!), so that made it pretty interesting.

Even though it was boiling, we had fun and there were wonderful views of rolling hills with deserty wildlife. When we made it to the hill that overlooked the beach, it was so relieving! We hiked into town and ate lunch together at a yummy restaurant.

Can you see Jeremy's beard in this picture (above)? He grew it out for an entire week to see exactly where his beard line is. Since he's a "ginger," his hair grows in red, and it has a funny pattern to it. Here's a closer picture for you to see the areas where the hair grows long and where he has what we call "desert patches."

ships, bouquets and cousins

Our Saturday, we began our trip with a tour on the USS Midway. Mom and Dad R were in town for the wedding, so they came with us and some of Jeremy's friends from work. It was really, really cool. I can't believe how huge the thing is and how they were able to get planes to take off and land on that thing. The craziest part is how they cram all the military guys into the ship. I would never be able to do that.

It was funny to see them show planes and ship technology from 1991...as if it was ancient artifacts.
There was so much to see and learn! I wish we could have stayed on the ship longer, but we had to go to a wedding!

The wedding was for a distant cousin on my mom's side. It was really nice, on a beach in la Jolla. The best part is that- thanks to Uncle Lyman- my cousin Amanda was there!! She has always been one of my favorite cousins because of her spunk and energy. I still laugh out loud thinking about her as a four-year-old sauntering around grandma's backyard, purposefully being sassy and silly all at the same time. Too cute! Anyway, Amanda has truly become a beautiful young woman. She is SO ambitious and proactive. It was awesome to catch up with her!! I love you Amanda!!!

books, projects and possibilities

Jeremy and I have officially made it through two weeks of craziness with the new school year. Other than me not coming home from work before 8:30pm, things are going pretty well. I've still managed to make us nice meals for lunch. I make 5 meals on Sunday and put them in lunch packs for the week. And I've kept up on laundry and housecleaning, so that's super!

Jeremy is in full swing with his MBA program. He is currently taking 3 classes: microeconomics, financial accounting, and management communications. He goes to class TTH nights and works with his group of classmates for projects and homework assignments on Fri&Sat.

He's been learning about some neat businesses, and today he read a chapter about the effects of child labor in developing countries. Now he is pretty convinced it's not as bad as everyone makes it out to be!

This week, things might get crazier because my new Children's Chorus will start. I have a whopping 62 students that have agreed to come before school to rehearse as a choir! We will meet 3 days a week, 40 minutes before school starts. The student hype is really huge, but several teachers are very doubtful the kids will stick with it. (I just love how supportive people can be sometimes, don't you?) We'll just have to prove them wrong! Granted some students will drop out, but I'm still really excited, trying to stay realistic with my goals, and overall just really gitty about the possibilities that such a huge chorus could have at our school! Please wish me and the students luck!

Getting Publicity

Since I was hired at my school, I've been very fortunate to have multiple articles in the press about the music program that I've built. It's a wonderful opportunity to be a part of it! I've had two neat appearances most recently...

In July, an article in the Orange County Register was written about a Preschool Music Event that I helped host at our school. You can click here to read it.

This September, in the Orange County Family Magazine, an article that I wrote was published on page 84!! It's an advertorial section called "Experts Speak Out." Don't get too excited for me, as "advertorial" means that our business paid the magazine to put the article there, but it's still pretty neat to see my words in print. The school marketing director said that she wanted me to be featured. That's quite a compliment considering there are 9 music teachers that teach at all of our school's campuses. Below is the page with a picture of my students and me drumming, and the text of the article. Enjoy!

Experts Speak Out

Music Boosts Brainpower

SarahLynn Zavoral is the Music Specialist at {school name removed by blogger}. She holds a BA in Elementary Music Education from Brigham Young University and has many years of experience sharing her love of music with children of all ages.

I have the best job in the world because I get to bring children joy through music! Children need the freedom to sing, dance, bang on a drum, and express themselves through music. It helps them grow socially and emotionally and does amazing things for the brain and for learning.

When children learn to read music, keep in time with beat, and improvise new melodies, they are developing literacy skills, mathematical skills, and problem solving skills. Scientists have discovered that when a musician is playing his or her instrument, multiple areas throughout the brain are highly engaged—a feat that few other activities can accomplish.

The music program at {school name} focuses on developing music literacy through joyful musical experiences. In our sound proof studio, students in JK-8^th grade sing, dance, and play a variety of percussive instruments, including our Orff xylophones and 20 African drums. Students also read, write, dictate, and compose musical rhythms and melodies.

While many public and even private schools are eliminating regular music instruction, our program is growing. This year, we are excited to start our first children’s chorus, which is already 50 students strong.

As a parent, you can greatly influence your child’s musical growth. Here are five simple ways to get started.

1. Spend 10 minutes a day singing folk songs, lullabies, or religious songs with your child. Children who are sung to are more likely to develop acute listening and singing skills, making it easier for them to read music and play instruments.

2. Create a music playlist for listening to in the car. Include selections from all genres, especially classical music and children's folk songs. Avoid music that substitutes real instruments for electronic sounds.

3. Sign yourself up for instrumental lessons. If you want your child to learn to play an instrument, the best thing you can do is set the example for your child by learning to play that instrument.

4. After you've set the example, a great time for your child to start piano lessons is in first grade or when your child can read. Make sure your child has opportunities to improvise and create his own songs at every level of instruction. This will help keep him motivated.

5. Enroll your child in a school that offers music education as part of the school day or choose an after-school program that offers developmentally appropriate music instruction.

We Got Married!! (4 years ago)

View on Catalina Island over-looking the ocean and toward the mainland.

We could see Huntington Beach from here!

Four years. That sounds like a long time. To us, it feels like it's only been one or two. And here's something to prove how newly-wed we still feel.

Things we said to each other our first month of marriage that we STILL say to each other:

• I can't believe I was able to get you to marry me.
• I love how we don't have to say goodbye at the end of our date!
• I'm going to be with you FOREVER? That's so cool!
• You are the perfect person for me.
• So who's gonna be in charge of taking out the trash?
• You are so hot!
• Being married to you is so fun. Did you think it would be this fun?

To celebrate, we were able to take a weekend trip to Catalina Island. We see the island almost everyday from our beach, so we decided it was time to actually go there. It only took 1 hr and 45 min to get there from our front door to the hotel on the island. Cool!

In addition to the pictures above, we went on a night-time flying fish tour and saw seal lions and flying fish, went to church-just a group of members (not even a branch), and stayed in a guest house/hotel that shared the toilet and shower with the room next to us. It was a really fun adventure!

Tanya's Visit

Tanya came to visit us with her boyfriend a couple weeks ago!! We had a very fun time together. We all got along really well. Here's the highlights:

• Downtown Disney. We began to discover that all 4 of us are easily entertained by water fountains. And Chris was the only guy who could climb the jumbo legos.
• The beach and boogie boarding. The boys spent a lot of time in the water while Tanya and I talked and tanned.
• Main Street. Too much walking for Tanya.
• Movie night at home.
• Church.
• Venice beach. Those skateboarders are so entertaining! But that freak show was kind of scary.
• Hollywood. Tanya was so excited to find Harry Potter's hand prints! Hopefully it made up for all the walking.
• Griffith Observatory. We had a little kissing photo shoot. First Tanya and Chris, then me and Jeremy. And we also learned!
• Thai dinner. Yum!
• Chili's lunch
• Music Around the World Day. Tanya came to my school with me to see me teach a Mommy and Me music event. She seemed to really enjoy it.
• Tanya and Chris also went to Duke's and Knott's Berry Farm by themselves.

We are SO glad they came to visit. They were really fun to be with and made us feel really cool.