Mother's Day--Part 2

On Sunday night, we were honored to perform our church's Easter play once again. This time, we went "on the road" to a neighboring church, about 20 miles away. Going "on tour" certainly presented a few challenges, as we had to adapt our sets to another facility, this one much larger than our own. As always, though, God worked everything out and we had a wonderful service.

I so wish that I could show you the entire video, but given that it's an hour long, I don't think that's an option! However, I managed to get someone to take some photos during the dress rehearsal, and I will give you a little synopsis of the play. Our pastor wrote it himself, based on a verse in Galatians that mentions that Paul went to visit Peter for 15 days. Paul wasn't there for the events surrounding the crucifixion, and you can imagine that during that visit with Peter, Paul wanted to hear the stories surrounding those days. So the play was written like a conversation between Peter and Paul, with flashbacks to the events surrounding the crucifixion. We used a lot of familiar songs, as well as a couple of new ones.

Here's the condensed version of the scenes and songs:

Opening Song--"His Life for Mine"

Meeting the Woman at the Well

Song--"There is a River"

The Garden of Gethsemane

Song--"For What Earthly Reason"

The Story of Barrabas (Soliliquy)

Song--"The One I'm Dying For" (I sang in a trio on this song.)

The Crucifixion

Song--"Mary, Did You Know?" (I sang this as a solo.)

The Resurrection

Song--"Then Came the Morning"

The Ascension

Song--"Because He Lives" (chorus)

I really can't put into words just how powerful this play has been, not because of anything WE have done, but because of what God did through it. We all had such a good time preparing for and performing it, and we all received such a blessing from it! Then, on Easter Sunday, six people accepted Jesus as their savior! God is doing some mighty things in our church, and we praise Him for it!

Mother's Day Weekend

We had a very nice Mother's Day weekend. On Saturday night, Tracy's dad's side of the family to take Grandma out to eat. Then on Sunday, Tracy grilled and my mom and his parents came to eat with us. I'm really over the whole going out to eat on Mother's Day thing. It's just soooo crowded everywhere. I'd prefer to just stay home and go out to celebrate the weekend before or after!

I did receive a very nice Mother's Day gift this year. The Sunday prior to Mother's Day, Tracy was teasing me, saying he was going to buy me a vaccum cleaner. I informed him that I already had a couple of things in mind, and he'd better not come home with a vaccum cleaner! He said, "Well what if I'd already thought of something else?" He eventually told me that he had thought about getting me a Nook. I was tickled, because that is something that while I've kind of wanted one, is something I'd never buy for myself. I didn't get the color version, because I figured I'm not going to use it for the tablet PC features. I have a smart phone, so why do I need another "computer" to carry around? Anyway, so far I'm loving it! My favorite aspects are the fact that I can get a brand new release for what it would cost me in paperback, without having to wait a year! I also love that I can browse at home, anytime the urge to read strikes me, rather than having to wait until I have time to go to the bookstore.

Here are a few photos from dinner on Saturday night. There was more to Mother's Day weekend, but that deserves a post all its own. Be back with that one soon....

A Few Weeks Ago

If you recall, a few weeks ago my family accompanied me to FBLA state conference. While we were there, they hung out at the hotel, did some shopping, and even went to Gatorland. I expected Gatorland to be kind of cheesy, but they said it was quite good, and the boys loved it! I don't have any photos to share, but be sure, Luke could tell me all about those gators!

For once, I had another photographer in the group, so I handed over my camera and got to be in a few photos. There's nothing particularly exciting about any of these...they're just a few of my favorites. Given the fact that I was working, and I also got sick while I was there, it wasn't a real exciting trip! Still, it's a much better trip to have them with me for the "off" time!

This Says It All...

This pretty well sums up how a lot of us are feeling right now!

For My Mama

This is a tribute to my mama.....yes, Mama. Not Mom or Mother, but Mama. (I guess that's a Southern thing!) I have been blessed with a wonderful mother, and even more blessed to have such a close relationship with her. She is truly one of my very best friends!

Mama is a true Southern belle.....always neat as a pin, hair perfectly fixed (at the beauty shop once a week), face always "made up". I don't know that I've ever seen her look "messy"! She's not dramatic, but when she needs to make a point, believe me, she can, and with a sweet smile on her face. And strong.....she has faced things in her life that I don't know that I could. My daddy died when I was 10, and I think that is a part of the reason that we are so close, maybe even more so than most mothers and daughters. I know a lot of women do it, but the thought of having to raise a child by myself is overwhelming. Of course, we had a lot of family support, but still, the responsibility was hers. We were blessed to have Granny (Mama's mother) live with us after Daddy died. Granny had stayed with us on an off after Granddaddy died, about two years before Daddy, but after Daddy died, she lived with us permanently. It was just the three of us "girls".

I can't begin to put into words how much I love my mama. She has always supported me in whatever I've done. From FHA and FBLA to pageants, she's been there, cheering me on. She's also traveled with me, as I went to state and national conferences, and to appearances as the state agriculture queen, and we had a blast!

She is a wonderful Grandmommy to Matthew and Luke. What a blessing to have her keep both of them since they were born! Mama used to teach school, at the same rural K-12 school that I teach at. The school year before Matthew was born, she had a really difficult year, with Granny having a stroke in the fall, then passing away in January, and then Mama's husband passed away in June. She just wasn't ready to go back to school at the end of July, so she took a year's leave of absence, and kept Matthew for me that year. After that, she just retired! She did get a few months' break when Matthew started to kindergarten, but in January of that school year when I went back to work after having Luke, she started keeping him. I am fortunate that the boys haven't had to go to daycare, and that they are with someone who loves them just as much as I do!

I could go on and on about Mama's wonderful qualities, but maybe the best way to sum it all up is that I hope that I can be half the mother to Matthew and Luke that she has been to me. Happy Mother's Day, Mama! I love you with all my heart!