WeJoySing Welcomes Samantha Lin to Our Instructor Staff!!

Mrs. Sam is a self-proclaimed lover of singing; singing every chance she can get, both alone and with her daughter, Ellie. She and Ellie play, sing and dance a lot at home; but as a Mommy she also wanted her daughter to be with kids her age to share the music experience. She began searching for mommy and me classes and WeJoySing came up both on a Google search and in her Facebook ‘Powell Parents in the Know’ group.

“At our first WeJoySing class, Eleanor’s smiles and giggles filled my heart as we shared in the joy-filled experience together! I quickly learned WeJoySing is not only for the children, but gives moms and dads a chance to bond, let loose and be silly with their children; because let’s face it, taking care of a child is no easy task.”

Mrs. Sam’s love of music began as a child playing the piano, singing in choirs and joining orchestra and band. She could often be found putting on little shows for friends and family and singing in the car during family road trips! After high school, she majored in piano and minored in voice at Kent State University obtaining a degree in Music Education. As a Preschool teacher, Mrs. Sam incorporated music during circle time and provided private piano and music lessons to many children and centers. Currently, she enjoys sings with the Worthington Chorus!

Samantha was born in Akron, OH but lived in Texas for most of her childhood. She recalls going to three different middles schools in three different states; 6th grade in Texas, 7th grade in Ohio and 8th grade in Michigan, finally landing in Westerville.  Samantha and her husband, Alan, lived in Victorian Village then moved to Powell in preparation for their daughter Eleanor. Bo, the Yorkie dog and Dottie the cat are family members too!

In her personal life, Mrs. Sam enjoys organizing her home, she feels that giving everything a ‘home’ of its own is very satisfying! When asked where the family likes to travel, it was without hesitation - Disney was first! “We love all things Disney. I should say, I love all things Disney. It’s a huge part of our life. Alan proposed to me at Minnie Mouse’s house, we had a Disney themed wedding, I celebrated my 30th there and Ellie had her first trip in March to Disney world. We get our Disney fix by going to the Disney store.”

Locally, Mrs. Sam likes to visit the Columbus Zoo regularly with her family to see the elephants and the Christmas lights. Eleanor’s favorite thing to see at the Franklin Park Conservatory are the butterflies! Mrs. Sam LOVES Target, she says “there’s something so therapeutic just walking through it. I live very close to one, so it’s quite dangerous!”

Get to know Mrs. Samantha even more during Winter session as she joins the WeJoySing Instructor family teaching classes in Upper Arlington on Saturday mornings and in Powell on Tuesday evenings! “I believe that music and movement is second nature and an amazing way for children and adults to express themselves. Let’s get together, sing, dance, play and make new friends! I look forward to beginning this musical journey together with your family!”
       

Welcome Megan Davenport - Getting to Know You Part II

I was born in Shelby, Ohio and lived in the country where my 3 younger siblings and I loved to play outside.  When we were inside, our favorite pastime was singing and making up dances to songs (and convincing our dad to videotape our dances!)  We moved to Stow, Ohio when I was 9 and I quickly got involved in softball, tennis, choirs, marching band, and community service.  My parents still live in Stow.

Mom sang to me ALL THE TIME and took me to the library story time, where I learned more songs. I have never stopped singing.  I started playing piano and sang in choirs at 5 years old.  I played trumpet, French horn, and mellophone in middle and high school and was involved in concert, marching, and jazz bands throughout that time.  In college, I pursued my interest in singing and was fortunate to be a vocalist in an all-female a cappella group and a bluegrass band.  Currently, I sing with my worship band at church once a month (and with my son every day!)

My husband, Remington, and I are high school sweet hearts who stayed together while attending separate colleges and finally came together in Columbus.  We love living in Columbus!  Brecken, our 2 year old son, is our little miracle and the light of my life.  We all love spending time together playing outside, cooking, reading, singing, and just being silly.  We also have two adorable and loving adopted dogs named Mason and Claire.

I hold a Bachelors degree in Psychology and Educational Studies, as well as a Masters in Early Childhood Education and a Masters degree in education from Kent State University. Over the past 9 years I have been a classroom teacher for students ages preschool-2nd grade at Chapelfield Elementary in Gahanna. Teaching is absolutely my passion and my calling.  I currently stay home with our son and am so blessed to get to teach and learn from him every single day. I am so blessed to get to spend each day with my funny, curious, spunky little boy. I am also LOVING teaching WeJoySing and getting to use my teaching background in a brand new way.  

 My husband and I were heavily involved in CrossFit and Olympic Weightlifting prior to Brecken.  I have always been interested in fitness and joined a gym where I could nurture that interest and pursue some personal fitness goals.  In 2014, I competed in Olympic Weightlifting at the Arnold Classic and qualified to compete in a National Olympic Weightlifting competition in Washington D.C. later that year!  It’s still surreal to think that I got to compete at that level, and I am so thankful for the opportunity to have had the experience. 

I love to cook and wanted to share that passion with friends and loved ones through my recipe blog: Don’t Worry Live Healthy . Although I am not currently active on the blog, I have quite a large collection of recipes already shared and plan to start working on it again in the future.  It’s a fun creative outlet and a way for me to share my recipes with the world! 

Can't wait to get to play with you and your child at WeJoySing!  We'll have a delightful time singing, learning and playing together!
La La's!
Mrs. Megan

"Getting to Know You" - PART I

 "Getting to know you. Getting to know all about you!"  These familiar lyrics from "The King & I" are a great way to introduce  our newest WeJoySing Instructors.  Part I of "Getting to Know You" will feature Kristi Frazier. Her Granville and Childhood League children and families have already begun to bond and share together the delight of learning and growing through musical play.  Enjoy Part I as Kristi shares her life, family, love for education and music!  She writes:

I grew up in rural Knox County, outside of Gambier, Ohio on a small farm adjacent to my grandparents. I attended Mount Vernon City Schools for my education and obtained my first teaching job there in 2000 after attending OSU-Newark for my Masters in Education. My dream to work as a teacher started with a position as an itinerant preschool teacher where I traveled to pre-school facilities and homes to transition children from Help Me Grow to our District Special Education program. I then served as the teacher and director for our district special needs pre-school which was an incredible journey! I spent one year as a Kindergarten teacher, four years as a First-Grade teacher and four years as a Second-Grade teacher. Each grade level I taught brought about new discoveries about children at that age level and I loved it!

During my childhood, my mother made a point to get me in piano lessons, which I dreaded at the time, but am most grateful for now. I went on to play in the band; clarinet for concert season and trumpet for marching band season. My choral experiences started in the church setting, singing in children’s choirs, soloing and eventually leading the children’s choirs. Choir, praise band, local theater, and belting out songs in the car kept my musical skills fresh. When I taught in the public schools, music was a constant in my classroom, whether it was a transition song to get the kids to line up or the classical music I played for its calming effect; music was ever-present within my classrooms.

I lived in and taught in Mount Vernon for 11 years before meeting my husband-to-be. He owns a business in Pickerington, so Granville happened to be a great middle ground for both of us. Living just outside Granville makes access to the eastern outskirts of Columbus a breeze, while still providing us with the small-town feel. We currently live on 3 acres with about 2 of it under pasture. We are only pasturing sheep right now, but have had chickens, goats, ducks, cows, rabbits and pigs on our mini farm. Once our daughter Lila, who is just 22 months now, gets older, we intend to bring more chickens onto our mini farm so she can help collect their eggs and tend to them. My favorite animals we have cared for thus far are the goats because they are rambunctious and playful; but chickens come in at a close second.

            Joining the WeJoySing community with my daughter when she was just 6 months old was an incredible experience. Not only did it provide me with several new songs, bounces and finger plays to do with Lila; it also provided a sense of community with the other moms. We all looked forward to our weekly “La-La” class as the children came to call it! Now when my family visits, my daughter Lila has started passing out instruments to everyone in the room for sing time…perhaps another teacher in the making?!

La La's for ALL!!
Mrs. Kristi