This is not the time of year I typically think of growing a garden. It's been a warm, gray winter here in Cleveland, Ohio, and even when the sun does peak through my natural gardening abilities are so lacking it doesn't bring to my mind any desire to dig a plot in the backyard. But …
Continue reading What Are You Growing in Your Studio Garden?
It's mid-December. How are your Christmas shopping and your sanity holding up? I'm currently finding myself in the frenzy but looking ahead to time I have scheduled to slow down. Because time seems extra fast and extra precious this time of year, this post will be mercifully short (both for the writer and reader). But …
Christmas music is in full swing, and the excitement is tangible around my studio 🙂 Now that it's December, we've had a few snowflakes, and there are sparkling Christmas lights hung everywhere, I have joined my student’s excitement in hearing the carols coming out of my studio (key word being December, not November). But sometimes …
Continue reading Can Santa Deliver Gifts AND Good Practice Habits?
The holiday season is in full swing, and because of this my husband and I took a close look at our calendar yesterday. We are blessed with families we love to be around, a church we are active in, and jobs we are grateful for and want to give our attention to. The closer look …
Tis the season where we often feel frantic. Holidays, events, performances, family ... and suddenly I feel tired just sitting here! Studio life can feel just as frantic - especially if your students will be performing. But providing fun and engaging holiday-related activities will add the push you and your students need to get to …
I always laugh when I see this quote. I have several people in my life that live this way, and I've tried to adopt the "always have a book on hand" philosophy as well. Partially because I love reading, partially because it's a much better practice than checking social media every spare moment (see Digital …
It's November! And around my studio, that means the Christmas music makes its first appearance. Everyone has their own philosophy on when Christmas music should begin. Because I'm a musician and I understand the idea of practice, I dutifully hand it out after Halloween. But my piano teacher ears can't handle Jingle Bells much before …
Any C.S. Lewis fans out there? Concept albums are always fun adventures ... and this month I'm drawing my student's attention to one of my recent favorites from The Gray Havens! Blue Flower is based off of C.S. Lewis's autobiography, Surprised by Joy. Each song on the album depicts an idea that shaped Lewis. In …
Sometimes the oldies are still the best 🙂 Take a listen here! Most recently? Soul won the award in 2021. Joker won 2020. Black Panther in 2019. The Shape of Water won 2018. And La La Land in 2017 🙂
This past week knocked me flat down. I went from a mild cold and enough energy for online teaching to a very bad cold where I couldn't even teach online due to lack of sleep and voice. This week's main activity of choice was sitting on the couch and sleeping or reading, and coincidentally enough, …
Piano Possibilities 