Sunday, June 19, 2011
Saturday, June 18, 2011
Lucy's 2nd Birthday
Can you believe that we have a two year old at our house?? At this time two years ago, I was sitting in a hospital bed, holding a tiny, 5 lb baby in my arms. And tonight, that 23.5 lb. little girl is asleep in her crib just down the hall from me.
After a good night's sleep, Lucy and I got up this morning and had breakfast together. She played and played this morning; she also brushed her teeth about three times. No cavities for her!!
She played bubbles outside for a while this afternoon and then it was time for her party. Lots of her friends were out of town this weekend, but we had a good time anyway!
Aunt Nae got Lucy a tricycle for her birthday. She was extremely thrilled with this gift! She didn't actually ride it around the house, but she did let Papa push her for a while. . . and she wanted to sit on it all afternoon. We distracted her enough to get it out of sight so that we could continue with the festivities!
Lucy's friend, Maddy, was able to come to the party. Lucy had great fun playing "Doctor" with her new patient. :)
Lucy opened presents for a while, until she got to this one. . .
After she opened her Elmo camera, she and Maddy both wanted to play with it. Unfortunately, an 18 month old and a two year old are not the best at sharing! :) They made it work though - there were plenty of toys to go around.
Then it was time for cake!! :) Lucy had a Curious George birthday party, so everything we had was George!
Lucy very much enjoyed having all the attention on her as everyone sang "Happy Birthday." I wish I had a picture of her face, but she just glowed!
Mrs. Ann also came to the party and brought Lucy some cute outfits. We love Mrs. Ann!!
Mmm. . . .cake!!!
We had a fun time today and it was a wonderful celebration of Lucy with family and friends. We'll continue celebrating tomorrow at the covered dish at church they are having as a farewell party for us. Lucy will be one tired little girl after this weekend is over!
After a good night's sleep, Lucy and I got up this morning and had breakfast together. She played and played this morning; she also brushed her teeth about three times. No cavities for her!!
She played bubbles outside for a while this afternoon and then it was time for her party. Lots of her friends were out of town this weekend, but we had a good time anyway!
Aunt Nae got Lucy a tricycle for her birthday. She was extremely thrilled with this gift! She didn't actually ride it around the house, but she did let Papa push her for a while. . . and she wanted to sit on it all afternoon. We distracted her enough to get it out of sight so that we could continue with the festivities!
Lucy's friend, Maddy, was able to come to the party. Lucy had great fun playing "Doctor" with her new patient. :)
Lucy opened presents for a while, until she got to this one. . .
After she opened her Elmo camera, she and Maddy both wanted to play with it. Unfortunately, an 18 month old and a two year old are not the best at sharing! :) They made it work though - there were plenty of toys to go around.
Then it was time for cake!! :) Lucy had a Curious George birthday party, so everything we had was George!
Lucy very much enjoyed having all the attention on her as everyone sang "Happy Birthday." I wish I had a picture of her face, but she just glowed!
Mrs. Ann also came to the party and brought Lucy some cute outfits. We love Mrs. Ann!!
Mmm. . . .cake!!!
We had a fun time today and it was a wonderful celebration of Lucy with family and friends. We'll continue celebrating tomorrow at the covered dish at church they are having as a farewell party for us. Lucy will be one tired little girl after this weekend is over!
The Youth Choir in Duck (Quack!)
WARNING: This will be a LONG entry. . . it includes days three through six of choir tour. I'll try to keep it brief!!
We started Wednesday morning by sleeping in a little and then singing at the Sunnybrook Healthcare center in Raleigh at 10:30. This was a sweet audience, and we really enjoyed singing for them.
This lady held her baby doll through the performance and after every song would say, "Baby likes this; baby loves this music!"
We visited with them for a while after the program . . .
And then we were on our way to Duck, NC! It was quite a ride, and my van took that time to enjoy a nap!
Finally, we arrived at Duck UMC, unloaded the vans, and had a quick moment to look around.
We ate dinner at Duck Pizza at a shopping center just down the road from the church and then came back to sing at Duck's Wednesday night Contemporary service.
And then they served ICE CREAM afterwards!!
We had a great time that evening, just laughing together . . .
The next day, we headed to Spring Arbor of the Outer Banks to sing. It was a beautiful facility and the residents were so attentive and receptive to our kids. I think out of all the concerts we did, this was by far their best one. :)
We ate lunch at a restaurant called Goombay's - everyone had been begging for some fresh seafood and this place didn't let us down! It was delicious! We then drove to our final concert at Colony Ridge Nursing home and Rehabilitation center. Avery decided to remind me on the way to the nursing home that this would be the last time that we would all be together as a group. So, needless to say, when they began singing their program in the Alzheimer's unit, I started to get a little emotional. Thankfully, they stopped us mid program to have us go and sing for the rest of the residents, so I was able to compose myself. . .
Our kids were extremely excited about meeting the woman in the picture below . . .she was 104 years old!
Finally, it was time to go to the beach! We had beautiful weather the whole time we were there. However, on the beach with the ocean breeze, it was just a little chilly! And that water was COLD! But this wasn't going to stop our kids from enjoying their time!
The girls and Brian buried Ari in the sand. . . .if you look closely at this photo, you can find his face in the pile of sand!
Who knows what interesting chat these two were sharing!
After the beach, we had some free time back in Duck. You never know what will happen when you turn these wild and crazy kids loose. . . .
We had devotions out in the chapel by the sound. . . .I wish I had a good picture of it, but I don't! It was beautiful though! The next morning, we cleaned and loaded up the vans for the long drive back to the mountains.
To my sweet, wonderful, amazing youth choir: What a wonderful week it was. I am so incredibly proud of the people you are becoming. You worked so hard this week in everything you did, and shared the love of Christ through service, singing, and loving everyone you met. I pray that you will continue to let God use you to share his love with others and that for as long as you live, you will "testify to love." Remember 1 Timothy 4:12 - "Don’t let anyone look down on you because you are young, but set an example for the believers in speech, in conduct, in love, in faith and in purity." I look forward to all that you are going to be doing in the future - I'm looking forward to coming back and to hear you sing and hearing about all the ways that you share the love of Christ in the future. You are amazing, I love you, and I will miss you more than I can say.
Well, before I shed more tears, let me finish up with thoughts from this wonderful week. These are the best kids in the world and I am so proud of all the accomplished. I know that the church will be blessed at youth Sunday when these kids share their own experiences because the stories I heard from them have been incredible. Make sure to stop one of them next time you see them and ask about our trip . . . you'll learn a lot. And if these blog entries haven't had enough pictures for you, you can click here: CHOIR TOUR 2011
We started Wednesday morning by sleeping in a little and then singing at the Sunnybrook Healthcare center in Raleigh at 10:30. This was a sweet audience, and we really enjoyed singing for them.
This lady held her baby doll through the performance and after every song would say, "Baby likes this; baby loves this music!"
We visited with them for a while after the program . . .
And then we were on our way to Duck, NC! It was quite a ride, and my van took that time to enjoy a nap!
Finally, we arrived at Duck UMC, unloaded the vans, and had a quick moment to look around.
We ate dinner at Duck Pizza at a shopping center just down the road from the church and then came back to sing at Duck's Wednesday night Contemporary service.
And then they served ICE CREAM afterwards!!
We had a great time that evening, just laughing together . . .
The next day, we headed to Spring Arbor of the Outer Banks to sing. It was a beautiful facility and the residents were so attentive and receptive to our kids. I think out of all the concerts we did, this was by far their best one. :)
We ate lunch at a restaurant called Goombay's - everyone had been begging for some fresh seafood and this place didn't let us down! It was delicious! We then drove to our final concert at Colony Ridge Nursing home and Rehabilitation center. Avery decided to remind me on the way to the nursing home that this would be the last time that we would all be together as a group. So, needless to say, when they began singing their program in the Alzheimer's unit, I started to get a little emotional. Thankfully, they stopped us mid program to have us go and sing for the rest of the residents, so I was able to compose myself. . .
Our kids were extremely excited about meeting the woman in the picture below . . .she was 104 years old!
Finally, it was time to go to the beach! We had beautiful weather the whole time we were there. However, on the beach with the ocean breeze, it was just a little chilly! And that water was COLD! But this wasn't going to stop our kids from enjoying their time!
The girls and Brian buried Ari in the sand. . . .if you look closely at this photo, you can find his face in the pile of sand!
Who knows what interesting chat these two were sharing!
After the beach, we had some free time back in Duck. You never know what will happen when you turn these wild and crazy kids loose. . . .
We had devotions out in the chapel by the sound. . . .I wish I had a good picture of it, but I don't! It was beautiful though! The next morning, we cleaned and loaded up the vans for the long drive back to the mountains.
To my sweet, wonderful, amazing youth choir: What a wonderful week it was. I am so incredibly proud of the people you are becoming. You worked so hard this week in everything you did, and shared the love of Christ through service, singing, and loving everyone you met. I pray that you will continue to let God use you to share his love with others and that for as long as you live, you will "testify to love." Remember 1 Timothy 4:12 - "Don’t let anyone look down on you because you are young, but set an example for the believers in speech, in conduct, in love, in faith and in purity." I look forward to all that you are going to be doing in the future - I'm looking forward to coming back and to hear you sing and hearing about all the ways that you share the love of Christ in the future. You are amazing, I love you, and I will miss you more than I can say.Well, before I shed more tears, let me finish up with thoughts from this wonderful week. These are the best kids in the world and I am so proud of all the accomplished. I know that the church will be blessed at youth Sunday when these kids share their own experiences because the stories I heard from them have been incredible. Make sure to stop one of them next time you see them and ask about our trip . . . you'll learn a lot. And if these blog entries haven't had enough pictures for you, you can click here: CHOIR TOUR 2011
Wednesday, June 15, 2011
Choir Tour - Day 3
Today was another busy, fun-filled day for us. We spent the day in Raleigh, singing and playing all over. After a quick breakfast at the hotel, we loaded up the vans and headed to the Hilltop Home. The Hilltop Home is a place for severely disabled children. All of these children, ranging in age of three to fourteen live at the home. Many of them face issues such as severe cerebral palsy, respiratory issues, etc. Some of them are completely unresponsive to any form of stimuli, and some of them are hyper-sensitive as well. We had a great time singing for them - we did an abbreviated poem and then a few childhood favorites as well. One little boy danced in his wheelchair whenever the music played; others smiled and watched our kids carefully and you could tell they were enjoying it. After we sang, we got to visit with them; it was so hard to get our kids to leave! For confidentiality reasons, there are limited pictures from that event, but here's one for you:
After we left the children's home, we did the easiest thing we could think of for lunch - food court at a mall. Don't worry, parents: There wasn't enough time to really shop, so no one walked out with too many bags! :) Then we headed to the museum of Natural Sciences. Look how much our kids learned:
Oh well, that's what you get for planning something educational! We then headed to the City of Oaks Nursing Home and Rehabilitation Center. Some of us were very excited and ready to sing. . . .
Others of us had a little too much fun at the museum. . .
Our kids sang their program for the residents that were there. Taylor finally got to dance as well to one of our songs, "What Love Really Means." We had a very receptive audience.
Afterwards, we got to visit with the residents for a little bit. Our kids do such a great job with this and that makes me so happy, because I believe that is the real reason why we do this. The singing is what gets us in the door, but the visiting, the handshakes, the hugs, the smiles. . . that's what these residents will remember.
I look forward to our kids getting a chance to share their experiences with you. One resident told one of our kids, "I guess this is what I get for never doing what you all do. I never went and visited anyone in a nursing home when I was younger, and now here I am." That statement had quite an impact on her.
We went back to the hotel, showered and changed, did a few makeovers (pictures of those later!), and headed to the Durham Bulls Game.
We had a great time - if you've never had a chance to hang out with these kids, you've got to make time. They are EXTREMELY entertaining. . . . and they sure can make baseball a lot of fun. The chaperones had some fun of our own and had told them that we were singing the National Anthem at the game. Most of the older ones caught on quickly, but several of the younger ones believed it until the end of the game and we had never sung. :)
Here's all (ok, most!) of us after the game. . .
Avery loves baseball - can you see how relaxed he was this evening?
We had a quick devotional when we got back from the game. Most of our kids were wiped out by this point, but you can always count on the chaperones to have some energy left!
We may not have internet at our next stop, but we'll try and keep you updated about the rest of the trip as we go. This afternoon, we're headed to Duck, NC in the Outer Banks! Woohoo!!
After we left the children's home, we did the easiest thing we could think of for lunch - food court at a mall. Don't worry, parents: There wasn't enough time to really shop, so no one walked out with too many bags! :) Then we headed to the museum of Natural Sciences. Look how much our kids learned:
Oh well, that's what you get for planning something educational! We then headed to the City of Oaks Nursing Home and Rehabilitation Center. Some of us were very excited and ready to sing. . . .
Others of us had a little too much fun at the museum. . .
Our kids sang their program for the residents that were there. Taylor finally got to dance as well to one of our songs, "What Love Really Means." We had a very receptive audience.
Afterwards, we got to visit with the residents for a little bit. Our kids do such a great job with this and that makes me so happy, because I believe that is the real reason why we do this. The singing is what gets us in the door, but the visiting, the handshakes, the hugs, the smiles. . . that's what these residents will remember.
I look forward to our kids getting a chance to share their experiences with you. One resident told one of our kids, "I guess this is what I get for never doing what you all do. I never went and visited anyone in a nursing home when I was younger, and now here I am." That statement had quite an impact on her.
We went back to the hotel, showered and changed, did a few makeovers (pictures of those later!), and headed to the Durham Bulls Game.
We had a great time - if you've never had a chance to hang out with these kids, you've got to make time. They are EXTREMELY entertaining. . . . and they sure can make baseball a lot of fun. The chaperones had some fun of our own and had told them that we were singing the National Anthem at the game. Most of the older ones caught on quickly, but several of the younger ones believed it until the end of the game and we had never sung. :)
Here's all (ok, most!) of us after the game. . .
Avery loves baseball - can you see how relaxed he was this evening?
We had a quick devotional when we got back from the game. Most of our kids were wiped out by this point, but you can always count on the chaperones to have some energy left!
We may not have internet at our next stop, but we'll try and keep you updated about the rest of the trip as we go. This afternoon, we're headed to Duck, NC in the Outer Banks! Woohoo!!
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