Practice Makes Perfect, Part 1, With Pics!

For anyone that has ever taken dance or voice or theater or band or any combination of those, the phrase "One more time" actually means "800 more times in the next 5 minutes". This time, though, I was there with my camera. Ready? One more time...



A Musical from Something Rotten

 



OK, I'm using this pic for 2 reasons. The 1st, it's a great pic of the big girl. The 2d, it's 1 of 3 that is not flattering of JB. I don't mean that in a vicious way because I love JB like he's family. But you have to understand, of the over 1000 pics I have and the 10,000 that our friend DC took, there are 3, count them 3, that he is not photogenic in. 3 out of over 10,000!! I did warn him, though, that I was posting this one and even showed it to him before hand. Just, ugh, JB. Just, ugh!

 

Welcome to the Renaissance from Something Rotten

 

The next few blogs are going to be from dress rehearsal. I have almost 100 pics to post, so I have to break them up. You know what they say: one more time!

 

Have a great day.



Lift Your Voice

One of the best part of New Dawn Singers, besides the amazing and amazingly talented people involved, is that it is a ministry. They perform gospel concerts at local, and some not so local, churches. The kids and I performed a mime called "Bondages" about the things of the world that bind us to the world and keep us away from Jesus. It is not always easy to find the time to rehearse, load equipment, drive to point A, unload and set up equipment, make ourselves pretty, perform, unhook and load equipment, then drive home. But this group made it look easy. Here's a look at our days.

This was our itinerary. The churches fed us before each show, except the first show. They had cookies and punch after. So many cookies, so little time! One of my favorites was the Nazarene church in Warren, PA. Amazingly friendly people that took the time to prepare what I can only describe as a feast. We met a lovely man that taught the big girl and the baby how to make aluminum foil roses. There was a sweet lady that dragged the kids into the kitchen after the concert to pack up the leftover desserts for them. You know the kids were kicking and screaming over that, lol. The church in Chapmanville had a pizza party for us before the service and sent us home with 3 extra large pizzas. The pastor moved me to tears with his short sermon after the performance. Great people that love Jesus.

This is our group at the last church. JK, third from left, soloed during Psalm 62. JB, far left, had a solo in Mountain Mover. PW, on the far right, sang His Eye Is on the Sparrow. All of these voices together will give you goosebumps...

New Dawn also performed at an assisted living facility. They did a combo of the gospel show and a patriotic show. There was one sweet lady sitting just to my left that sang every song. Every word to every song. I told her she was wonderful and she smiled from ear to ear.

This is PH singing By and By. He was so. stinking. good!! Good grief, y'all, I wish I had video so you could hear him!

 

PW singing his solo with JK looking on. Every time he sang, he gave it his all and you could tell when he sang that he loved it.

 

This was from the 6 o'clock show. It was a God and Country show. This is CC and PW singing I've Just Seen Jesus by Sandy Patty. The power behind this song and the group when they joined in was awesome and powerful.

Some of the stained glass windows and the organ in the last church we performed in. Stunning...

Most of the churches were old and had lots of narrow, steep stairs. I didn't care for that at all. But the people more than made up for that. We were fed, we were prayed for, we were loved on by people that thought we were there to bless them with song. In reality, we were blessed by them and all they did for us. It was very humbling and a huge honor to meet all the people that attended the concerts. We were blessed as much, if not more, than we blessed.

Have a great day.

The View from the High Road

Normally, I like to say "The view from the high road is amazing." I don't always take the high road since I am a throw it in the gutter kind of gal, but the views here were truly spectacular.

Our first stop was at the house of a friend of the New Dawn Singers, and now a friend of ours. She graciously allows the group to invade and take over her home and her life and her barn while they rehearse the show for Knoebel's and prepare for a few local gospel concerts. Hubby and I would get up early, hubby would make coffee, and we would sit on the back porch to spend a few minutes together before the rest of the house woke up. The mornings are nothing like the mornings at home. And even though hubby and I like to sit in our garden and have coffee, we will certainly miss these views! 

We came out one morning to see the clouds crawling through the mountains. Yup, clouds crawling through the mountains. The majesty of it all left us speechless. Well, for half a second anyway...

This was one spectacular morning and the pic does it absolutely no justice at all. The tree line in the front and the mountain in the background. And what looked like a bowl full of clouds in between. It was so close it seemed like we could take a spoon and eat it. Just stunning...

And when you have a view like this from the pool, how can you say no to a dip or two?

 
Obviously, the boy and the baby couldn't say no. Hubby and I joined them one day and it was lovely. Warm water, great company, and that view!

 

And this darling with her kitty cat. This is the owner's grand daughter who is the sweetest, cutest, smiliest baby. She would watch the rehearsals and smile and wave. The kitty, however, was all about rehearsing with the group. She would run in and out of numbers, in and out of the curtains, and chew anything she could, including cords to equipment. 

We are so grateful for this opportunity, but also that we were able to spend time every morning together in the beauty that God created. Hubby and I still talk about it and I'm so glad for the memories of it all!

Have a great day.

Road Trippin'

Good grief, we're tired, y'all. We traveled over 2,000 miles and had the most amazing time with a group of fantastic people. The kids and hubby and I got to travel with the New Dawn Singers. We spent just over 2 weeks in Pennsylvania. The scenery and the weather were beautiful and the company was outstanding. Wanna see some pics? Good, because I took over 1700...

We hit the rest area at each welcome center for each state we went through. I thought this was pretty cool. This was probably one of the prettiest rest areas we have ever been to. The scenery was amazing and the lay out of the area lent itself to stretching your legs and getting the pent up energy out. I liked this sign because I have ties to the Air Force and I'm super proud of our armed forces.

 



I had the big girl drag down all the suitcases from her closet so we could get packing. Beau had to try every one of them. He and Stella went to a kennel during our trip. I would have loved to take them with us.

 



I tried to get every sign as we crossed the border into each state. I missed South Carolina, but I got a cool sign with their state emblem on it. For some reason, West Virginia is just a little later in the pics. Leave it to West Virginia to be difficult. I have to say , it was a beautiful trip.

 



These are just some of the pics from the road. Ignore the dirty windshield. I wasn't a fan of some of the twists and turns and the steep roads. I did have my peppermint essential oil, so at least the motion sickness wasn't too bad. The views of the mountains and the clouds and those almost empty roads, though, were gorgeous...

 



 

 As much as I am not a fan of bridges, hubby is not a fan of tunnels. We got to drive through 2!

 

Not that you can tell very well, but there is light at the end of the tunnel.

 



 

Stinkin' West Virginia being difficult...

 

 

There were also some super cool bridges that crossed the interstate. This is one. I think the pic of West Virginia ate the other one...

 

 

We took 2 days to get to our destination for the first week. That was the rehearsal barn and the main hub for the gospel concerts all week. I'll tell you more about that in the next blog. We spent the night in NC and I cannot tell you how much I appreciate a Hampton Inn! It was 2 long days in the Jeep. This was our first vacation we've taken that didn't involve visiting family, but we sure made new family! Gorgeous part of the country if you ever get to travel it. As soon as I get the other pics chosen and edited, you can bet you'll get to see them. Lucky you!

 

Have a great day.

On the Agenda

Before our school year is over, I sit down and figure out what in the world we're supposed to be doing the next school year. You would think it would get easier as the years go by. Yeah. I wished it worked that way. There are a couple of used curriculum sales that I like to hit in May, so it's good to have a plan. Only, we know how well I follow a plan. At one of the sales, I actually put back all of the stuff I had picked up for the boy's literature and changed tacks. The big girl (oh my heart) won't be schooling with us this year. The boy and the baby are at the stage where we can do several subjects together, so that helps. Here's what I did:

• I already know that the boy and the baby girl are going to have bible and German together. I'm not sure what we're using for bible yet, but I do know that we'll finish an Acts study we started towards the end of our last year. After that, it's wide open. German is Power Glide and we're restarting that. Last year was a bad year for foreign language. As in, we didn't foreign language. Ugh!
• The kids will be using Mystery of History, Volume II for world history. I like that it has activities for different levels. I'll be mixing and matching them through out the year. I'm hoping to keep current on the timeline. I think it would be cool to have it around the kitchen and living room. We'll see. The book is huge and just a bit intimidating, so I joined a page on the social network. That has been amazing. I feel much more confident about something we've never used before.
• For literature, the boy will be using a Progeny Press study guide and a Memoria Press study guide. The PP will be Beowulf and the MP will be The Odyssey. It fits in with the time period of the history. I'm a little excited for the boy. These are a different type of reading than what he's used to and I think he'll like the storylines. He'll also be using Cliff's Notes to help with whatever we don't get and to give him some background information. The baby will be using a study guide from In the Hands of a Child for Island of the Blue Dolphin and a Progeny Press study guide for A Wrinkle in Time. I am a huge fan of PP, but there wasn't one for The Odyssey. I have both PP and HOAC for Island of the Blue Dolphin, but I want to get the baby out of her comfort zone.
• Science this year is A Beka Biology. Both kids will be using it this year. The baby will be an 8th grader and she can get high school credit for it. I'm not worried about this one since I taught this at co-op a couple of years ago. This should be easy peasy.
• Grammar is Rod and Staff for the baby and A Beka for the boy. I like both programs but I have to admit that R&S is my very favorite for teaching grammar, hands down. It is clear and concise and I like the way it's put together.
• Math this year is A Beka for both kids. Algebra for the baby and Algebra 2 for the boy. I had looked at a couple of different things for the boy, but went back to A Beka. It's what he's used to and I think he'll do fine with it. The baby will get high school credit for algebra, so let's just start marking things off now! Woot!

So far, we don't have any plans for a school co-op. I'm kind of glad because that frees up some time. We'll be looking at new dance studios this year as well. I think I know where we're going. It's closer to the house than our previous studio and that saves us some time. I'm not sure what that schedule will be like so I need to keep that in mind. Hubby and I decided that we need to get used to a new studio before we commit to a performance or competition team, so that's off the schedule, thank goodness.

I'll wait until we get back from our summer trip before I start planning. You have to know, though, that I am champing at the bit. Lesson planning is one of my guilty pleasures. I am so weird.

Have a great day.

Letting Go

We had huge milestones this year.

It was the big girl's senior year and as of May 20, she is officially graduated!! It was a hard fought battle, but, by golly, it's done. The dance load was huge this year, but that was lightened when we got kicked out. That's a different story for another blog, but you can bet your bippidies, it's coming out (full of angst, jealousy, butt hurt, and back stabbing. I cannot make this stuff up). Her school load was heavy this year. She could have saved herself a lot of trouble, but you know how that goes. Hello, senioritis, it's been a while since I've seen you. We both had a HUGE case of that. We all know the only cure for that is to be done, done, done with school, which was not an option. Here are some pics of our year.

Senior pics. The struggle is real, y'all. I teared up during the shoot and balled like a baby when I got all the pics back. She is so stinkin' gorgeous, but that goes all the way through to her soul. She is kind and generous and giving and loving and funny and intelligent and here come the tears again!!

 



I have more company pictures, but they're on my old phone, darnit. I might just have to do another post. Well, ok, if you insist...

 



My kids can hula hoop like nobody's business. At the kingdom one day, there was a nice cast member handing them out. So my kids took them. And I took this! There was a little girl that said "Mommy, I want to hoop like that!" Me, too, child, me, too.

 

This amazing young lady is one of our favorite people on earth. She choreographed the big girl's solo, gave my kids dance lessons after the big debacle, and found opportunities for the big girl to present her solo. I have so much respect for her and her outlook on life. I will forever be grateful for her spirit and grace.

 



The big girl and her bestie attended a couple of cons this year. Her bestie, A, likes to cosplay and so the big girl joined her. A is Kylo Ren and the big girl is Rey. They were like rock stars when they walked in and pretty much all day. I had no idea what a big deal it would be, but they had an amazing time.

 

 

They also went to Megacon this year and had a huge Lord of the Rings group. The big girl was Arwen, A was Legolas. They also had Boromir, Gandalf, Faramir, and Gimli. Along the way they met a group of guys that were Gondorian troops, so they all took a pic together. That was super cool!

 

 

 

So what else? She had a big role in our Christmas play this year. It was bigger than what we've done in years past and she rocked it. She got her driver's license, thank God! That has been a blessing. She performed at a recital at a friend's studio. She performed in skits at church. I know there's so much more, but I'll be darned if I can remember anything else right now.

 

What does her future hold? So much! This summer she and her siblings will be touring with the New Dawn Singers. If you happen to be in Pennsylvania this summer, message me and I'll let you know where she'll be. She wants to attend a special effects make-up school that's fairly close. She will be auditioning, auditioning, auditioning when she turns 18 because she wants to dance at the House of the Mouse. And later, she'll attend a local technical school to get her cosmetology license so she can work in special effects when she's done with that portion of her schooling.

 

And, as always, her future is bright and wide open! I am so excited to see where the Lord leads her. Y'all hang on. I know this is going to be a great ride!

 

Have a great day.