Happy Friday!
I must admit, it was a little hard to write that phrase. It’s been a hard January, but life is still a gift, and that’s what I’m holding onto.
Todays featured image from this past month is of the most amazing biscuits that have ever touched my lips. I’m pretty sure they have half a stick of butter in each one. LOL
This was the last time I got to indulge in these delightful, fattening specimens, as our favorite restaurant is no longer offering Sunday Brunch.
Yes, it was a sad day when we found out, and I immediately booked us in for one final brunch.
Other than that, January has been full of loss – the kind that’s much harder than simply losing your favorite biscuits.
Whether it’s a teacher friend losing her husband to cancer after a lifetime of illness, another whose mom was on the verge of tragedy, or the three uncles and aunts I lost in the span of two weeks, with another not far behind… it’s just been a sad snowball.
(My mom is from a family of 10, and my dad is from a family of 6, so there are lots.)
Some were expected, some not.
I am so blessed, though, with a wonderful family – with cousins on both sides that I hold dear. Here we are gathered after the first funeral in early January in eastern Ohio. My brother is in the light blue shirt just near me. (There are more than 40 of us on my mom’s side!)
We all agree that being together grounds us so much, even when it’s to mourn and also celebrate a life.
Sorry to have the start of our Friday Finds be a bit of a downer, but that’s where life is right now and that’s the kind of stuff I like sharing in this monthly recap post.
Thanks for putting up with me in all the twists and turns I’ve made with this series in the past 10 years. 🙂
1
Speaking of feeling “grounded,” here’s more thoughts on that and how it impacts teacher life:
018 – Grounded: Mental and Emotional Resets (The Piano Pantry Podcast)
Don’t forget transcripts are now available for all episodes on the show notes page!
2
This series was originally inspired by Joy the Baker’s Let It Be Sunday series on her website. In Friday Finds #292, I announced that she was discontinuing that series and was starting something fresh.
Here’s the first post in her new monthly series called “The Bakehouse Almanac.“
3
I often forget about this website, KoertsMusic.com. I have a couple of arrangements that I love from there, though, including Joy to the World and Joyful, Joyful, We Adore Thee. (The latter one, I have a student working on for a private school music competition right now.) If you’re looking for some fresh church arrangements, check it out!
4
I can’t wait to try King Arthur’s 2026 Recipe of the Year (after I get done eating low-carb pizza options for a couple of months. Ha!)
5
Seven Black Composers in the Piano Teaching Repertoire (Field Notes on Music Teaching & Learning podcast | Ashley Danyew)
6
Did you know there are two different types of QR Codes: Static and Dynamic? One is changeable; the other is not. Here’s what you need to know on that.
7
I went looking for a warm morning drink that wasn’t high in sugar or caffeine and came across Golden Milk! I’m still playing around with that combination of ingredients, but I already know I hate putting coconut oil in something I’m drinking. Bleh.
I HAVE found that it helps to simmer it all for about 5 minutes, then run it through a fine-mesh strainer to remove some of the grittiness from the powdered seasonings. Not sure how much of the “goodness” that removes, but it helps the texture.
8
I found this episode from The Daily on The R.F.K. Jr. Era of Childhood Vaccines helpful for understanding what’s going on.
9
Shows I’m currently enjoying on Netflix:
Mindhunter (2 seasons) – This is a dramatized true story of the FBI in the late 70s, when they began investigating what we now call serial killers (and coined the term as well). One of the main characters is Jonathan Groff, who plays the King in Hamilton!
Salt, Fat, Acid, Heat by Samin Nosrat (4 episodes)
Based on her book of the same name (it’s all about cooking if you didn’t gather 🙂 ).
10
If you’re not on my email list or you missed the announcement, another product in the shop has gone through a big update (yes, I determined this was my year for current product updates). What was previously called the Note Rush Sequenced Assignment Series is now “Note Progressions: Sequenced Practice Sets for the Note Rush App.“
It now includes more practice sets to help you track student note learning, QR codes for quick, easy access to sets in lessons, printable QR code labels for assigning note practice at home, a CSV File, and more.
It’s basically a whole new product because that’s what I’ve been all about recently – making what I already have even better before launching into new products.
It’s on sale 25% off through February 4, 2026, using code NOTE25 at checkout.
