Batten Down the Hatches

Oh my...my summer has disappeared in a whirlwind of crazy!  I don't know about all of you...but I think something was in the water this summer and kept everyone's schedules stirred up and flying left and right! I think this very moment is the first chance I've had to breathe in about two months.  Anybody else experiencing this summer anomaly?   I thought summer was supposed to be lounging on the beach and eating watermelon!!!! Well...I have officially decided to take back my summer starting today...and that means back to blogging with you guys :)

So lets start by rewinding.  I simply MUST share with you the incredible trip that I took this summer with my family.  Family vacations are limited once kids become grown and live in other cities (enjoy your vacations now boys and girls!).  However, my family has always been close and managed to keep with tradition this year and get both me, my little (not so little) 19 year old brother, mom and dad all together for a family trip to (drumroll pleases) IRELAND!!! This was my first time out of the country AND to the place where my family originally comes from (can you tell by the pale skin, red hair, and freckles?) so I was in awe the entire trip.  Let me let the pictures do the talking:

Real Italian Food

I developed a new love for hot tea...mmmmmm

Cathedral on a BEAUTIFUL sunny day

Look at that organ....breathtaking 

Can you tell I liked the food? 

Me and my little brother <3

The Cliffs of Moher (ummmmm beautiful...but TERRIFYING)

The Cliffs of Moher (at this point I threw a hissy fit and made the whole family stop and go back...my reason? The path from here on out was ON the cliff edge...no more pretty grass and flowers between us and certain death...one mis-step and you were over the edge...We ended up enjoying the cliffs from here with a cup of hot tea and watching the bravest of the travelers try to wind along the rest of the path.  My fear of heights kept us all on safe ground ;)

Incredible castles everywhere

Beautiful

Green :)

Sam and Mama

Castle Moat

DUNGEON DUNDUNDUNNNNN

Scary Moat around the castle after a crazy storm. 

Driving through the Countryside

Summer updates: to be continued....

Play me, I'm Yours

These videos are a little old...but I ran across them today and I love them!!! British artist Luke Jerram started "Play Me, I'm Yours" and it has been pulling people together since 2008.  It's amazing how a little bit of impromptu music can draw such a crowd!  Whether they have never touched a piano before, or they've been playing for twenty years, these public "Play me, I'm Yours" pianos are attracting everyone!  How much fun would it be for a bunch of us to get together and play in downtown Charleston, or out on Folly Beach?! What would you choose to play???  Maybe its time to bring "Play Me, I'm Yours" to our little corner of the world.  Food for thought for this fun-loving piano teacher and her wonderful students.  

Song of the Week

Lets step back in time for a moment shall we??  Everybody remember the movie Anastasia?

One of my all time favorites!  In the movie her music box plays a song called Once Upon a December.  It has always been one of my favorites and a long time ago I found the sheet music for it.  Every now and then on a rainy day I'll pull that out and start playing.  Its the kind of song that you can feel in your bones.  I found this on YouTube so you can hear the song and see some of the work:  Once Upon a December.  You've got to practice hard if you want to get this one down guys...its no easy feat....but its EVER so worth it in the end :D


**Everybody remember:  I've got a couple of In-Home Piano Lesson time-slots still available for Charleston, SC and surrounding areas!  Shoot me an email (ashleyerinw@gmail.com) or a text/phone call (803.370.1275) and we can start playing!!

Song of the Week!! (and some other stuff too)

SOOOOOOOOO I'm a little behind on my song of the week I know I know....But in my defense I've been horribly distracted by two dear friends of mine...I mean really...who could turn this down?

Puppy love makes everything better!! This is Bindi (she looks just like a fox!) and Oliver (big black and white baby).   I've been taking care of them for a friend this week and its taken a toll on this piano teacher's productivity ;).

BUT BACK TO MUSICAL BUSINESS!

My song of the week?

Love Story

by Taylor Swift (rumored to be another animal lover)

This is such a great song to work on for a bunch of reasons...but right now the puppies are yapping my name so I'm just going to give you my favorite one.

My middle school girls reallllyyyyy want to play it...they are willing to take on the most complicated versions of this song simply because it speaks to their love-struck hearts.

This is why I mix up the music in my curriculum.  Yes we will play classical music.  Yes we will play pieces designed to teach a specific technique or a piece that focus's on a specific lesson we're working through.  But we will also play music that makes you feel excited and proud and determined.  If what you're playing doesn't speak to your soul...you simply won't work as hard!  Love Story has my kids practicing twice as long every day and calling me up during the week with questions to make sure they're getting the music just right.  I love it!

Now lets find out what music speaks to you :D  

mmmmmmmmmmm monday

Nothing like a box of cookies to throw me off of a healthy eating kick and into a sugar coma!

But hey...everybody needs a little pick-me-up to get through the beginning of a busy week.  Always reward yourself after a really good practice session! 30 minutes of piano practice = 1 delicious lemon meltaway cookie = happy students and a happy piano teacher :)

**Time-slots for piano lessons still available in Charleston and the surrounding areas!  Give this cookie-devouring piano teacher a call/text 803.370.1275 or email ashleyerinw@gmail.com to book a spot!!

Facebook Page

Happy Wednesday everybody! We're half way to the weekend :)...I just wanted to let you guys know that my Facebook Page is up and running now so go take a look (and show all your friends)!!

Piano at the Beach Facebook Page

Song of the Week!

Happy Tuesday!  First of all, I apologize for being MIA the past few days.  My crazy schedule is finally giving me an opportunity to jump back on here.

Now, down to business...this week's song?? The Bare Necessities!  I've never met an adult or child that didn't like Walt Disney's The Jungle Book.  My favorite character would have to be Bagheera simply because he looks like my my cat Boo, but Baloo certainly comes in at a close 2nd.

I ended up choosing this as my song of the week because one of my newest piano students has volunteered to play a song at his school's music recital in a few weeks.  The music is a little more technically challenging than he is ready for (he's only been taking piano lessons for a few weeks!), but since he'll be playing with other students who have been taking piano lessons for years, he wanted something familiar that he could impress his friends with.  Normally I wouldn't give my students something that was considerably above their difficulty level, however, I know how excited he is to be playing something his friends will recognize and I know he'll put the time in to learn everything he needs to learn in order to pull this off.  Nothing like a little outside motivation to push students into something new and challenging!!

We are kicking off the week with page 1 from this three page piece, so I'll update you next week on how our crash course is going! We are determined to have this ready for his recital in a few weeks :).  

**PS everybody...Time slots are still available for in-home piano lessons in Charleston, SC and surrounding areas!  Shoot me a text/call 803.370.1275 or email ashleyerinw@gmail.com to schedule now!!! I can't wait to hear from you!