Graduation Pictures!

Here are a few pictures from Andy's graduation!!


Andy's Mom was here for graduation!

Andy was asked to sing the Alma Mater at Graduation!
My attempt to video him singing was not the greatest. I was trying to watch him and video him at the same time. I kept pushing all of the wrong buttons and for some reason was having a hard time keeping the camera steady. - Sorry for those of you that get sea sick!! I didn't get the whole song but here is a little snippet for you all to enjoy!!
CONGRATS BABE on a job well done!!!!!

ALL ABOUT ANDY!!

This post is in honor of my wonderful and talented Husband!!!

As you all know our 2 year adventure here in Knoxville, TN is quickly coming to a close. In 2 weeks Andy will be graduating with his Masters in Opera Performance and then we'll be moving at the end of the summer to Rochester, NY where he will receive his Doctorate!

We are excited for this next step but I can't move on yet without acknowledging all the work Andy has put in here at UT to receive his Masters! Many people are under the impression that "Music Majors" have a cushy life. Go to class listen/sing/play music all day, what a life, Right? WRONG.... It is one of the most strenuous, demanding, and time consuming professions to go into. All "music people" should be nodding your heads in agreement!!

This past week, in particular, is an example of his crazy busyness... Andy completed his hour long solo "Graduate Recital", performed in an Opera 3 times, plus did all of his other school responsibilities on top of that!! Oh, he also had his 28th birthday but that is besides the point!

He did so well performing in both his recital and the opera one would never know how stressful it all really was!! What a great accomplishment Andy has achieved in our 2 short years here in Knoxville. He is now a MASTER OF MUSIC!!!! And I am so proud of him!!

The following pictures are after Andy's recital...

Andrew Wenztel, Andy's Voice Teacher

Judith Bible, Andy's Accompanist


The rest of the pictures are some friends from the program

Denisha & Andy

Rachel, Andy, Sarah

Evan & Andy

Me & Andy - excuse the fact that I look like a fat cow!


These pictures are from the Opera, Gianni Schicchi (Jonny Skeeky)...

Andy in his makeup - on stage he had a walker and it made him look like Mr. Fredrickson from the movie UP!

Isn't it amazing what they can do with makeup? They even did his hands to make them look old!

Gianni Schicchi Cast

Happy Birthday to Andy

THE DECISION!!

Andy keeps asking me when I am going to blog about our latest news, and I must admit I have been procrastinating this post because it means that I must face the "change" that will shortly happen in our lives!

We are moving to Rochester, NEW YORK!!!

Andrew got accepted to Eastman School of Music, where he will continue in music and receive his Doctorate!
Currently Eastman is tied for 1st as the top music school in the Nation!!! So we are very honored to have been accepted to such a prestigious and competitive school.
I am so very proud of Andrew, he is extremely talented and he deserves this wonderful opportunity.
We will probably be moving sometime in August, and we are both very excited about this new adventure! Yes, I am a little apprehensive about moving to a new place, but just like when we moved here to Knoxville we will get adjusted and make wonderful friends! Wish Us Luck!!!!

Won't My Mommy be so Proud of Me!?!

My dear mother has definitely rubbed off on me when it comes to keeping my house clean!! She taught me well and I am proud to tell her that my Spring Cleaning has officially been completed!
It took about a week to do it all but my checklist has been checked and I am DONE!!!
Now if only my house would stay this clean....

• Base Boards Washed
• Corners and Edges of Carpet Vacuumed
• Doors and Door Knobs Washed
• Cupboards Organized
• Cupboards Wiped out and Washed Down
• Closets Gone Through and Organized
• Windows and Window Sills Washed
• Vents Dusted
• Walls Washed
• Fridge Cleaned

Did I miss anything? I sure hope not because I am sick of cleaning!! But I sure love the reward of having an EXTRA clean home! Now I guess I will just have to wait until Grayer is old enough to help me clean so I can pass on the torch of his Grandma Christensen's special cleaning powers!!
Right now this is how he helps me clean... not very helpful but stinkin' cute!!!



HAPPY SPRING EVERYONE!!!

p.s. Mom I must admit, I did not wash out the garbage cans - sorry!! I'm not sure if that will ever be apart of my Spring Cleaning!!!
Love you Mom, thanks for everything you taught me!!!

FUN PICTURES!

This week I have gotten some cute pictures of Grayer and just wanted to share...

What happens when Mom forgets about her open yogurt that was left on the end table!!

I haven't taken any pictures of Grayer in the bath since he was a little baby!

Trying on Mom's pink shoes!!

Tired little guy fell asleep while playing with his toys. He had never done this before so I had to get pictures!!

Children's Museum

Last week Grayer and I had the opportunity to go and visit my sister, Megan, and her family in Bloomington, Indiana. Unfortunately, Andrew couldn't join us because he had his Comprehensive Final Exams for school, which required him to research and write 3 ten page papers in a week. Actually, that was the reason why Grayer and I took the trip, I knew that with all the work that Andy needed to get done it would be best for him to have the house to himself without us as a distraction!
As usual we had LOTS and LOTS of fun in Indiana, but the highlight of the trip was our visit to the Children's Museum in Indianapolis!!!! I was so excited to go because I had never been but had heard raves about its awesomeness!!! And let me tell you I was not disappointed and neither was Grayer!! We ended up staying for almost 5 hours and only left because we were exhausted not because we had seen everything there was to see!!

Bob the Builder Exhibit


Merry-Go-Round

Megan, Eva, Grayer, Susan

Fun at the Water Table

Driving a Race Car

Egypt Exhibit

Susan and Maggie