Celebrating Taylor

For Taylor's birthday, she got 2 VIP tickets for BarlowGirl! She was very exited and the concert was this past weekend. We had a wonderful time together and it was another very memorable time for Taylor. Before the show, we participated in the BarlowGirl Meet and Greet. I asked the girls if they would give Taylor some pointers on handling the Drama of pre-teen life and Allysa spent several moments talking straight to Taylor of how God has chosen us to be "different" and we should wear that as a badge of honor! It was a special time!

We got to see three bands. The first was VOTA. We only knew a few of their songs, but they were wonderful!
The second group up was Stellar Kart, and we knew a lot more of their music, and enjoyed their playfulness on stage! They put on a fun show!


And finally it was BarlowGirls turn! Again, an amazing show!
A little shot of Taylor with Allysa in the background!

This was the final show of the tour, so all the bands had some fun with it. There were pranks going on throughout the show and it was fun. For the final songs, everyone came out on stage and just danced and had a grand old time!

After the show we got to get some autographs again. Becca Hardt, their stage manager, gave Taylor a set of Drum Sticks because not only did they all remember her from the show in December, Taylor got to be their "camera holder girl" again! That was unexpected but a very nice surprise for Tay! And she and I got matching sweatshirts and had the girls autograph them as well!


God is Good!

Grace Kids Camp

I finally got to attend and lead at Taylor's Kids Camp for her final year attending! This is something I've wanted to do for a few years, but for one reason or another it hasn't worked out. This year, God's timing was perfect as always and it was just what we needed!! Taylor came home from a very rough day at school, and heading off to this camp, with like minded friends and a focus on God and His purpose for her life, was just what she needed!! Here are a few pictures from her FINAL Kids camp (but don't worry, between Drew and Toby we potentially have 8 more years of it).

Some games kicked off our time at Pleasant Valley Ranch. Here we play a hula hoop game.

And a toilet paper game, trying to keep the square of TP in the air with just their breath! They did a great job!
Then, that night, Taylor helped kick off the evening session by sharing her testimony with the other students. I can not put into words how proud I was of her, and her maturity in Christ! What a blessing she is. Aunt Mer got to be the one to interview her! Which also made it special!
Here is a photo of all the girls in our cabin! There were 44 students attending this year!
A little time out in the wilderness on a wonderful scavenger hunt, a favorite of many of the campers.
And of course singing some of Mr. Randy's songs always make for a fun time!

We had to leave early, right after lunch, to get back in town in time for a soccer game. Taylor was disappointed about that, but had a wonderful time at camp!

I'm NOT looking forward to what is next, Jr High Missions Trips!! UGH!!

God is Good!

Toby's Turning 5

Well, Toby turns 5 on Wednesday! I CAN NOT believe it!! How in the world did he go from 2 to 5 in the blink of an eye? Because that is exactly what has happened!! Its hard to believe we no longer have any "babies" in the house! Wish I could change that, but it doesn't look like that is going to happen any time soon, so instead, I mourn that season, and look forward to celebrating what is ahead!!

Since Toby's birthday is on a Wednesday, and our Wednesdays are totally packed, we celebrated over the weekend!! With our basement still in a state of disarray from the water damage (we are getting closer) we can't have a party at our place, so sadly there will be no big 5th birthday bash :( Instead, we decided to celebrate as a family at the Curios George Live show!! We didn't tell Toby about it until we were just a few days away, but he was SO EXCITED! Our day was full, with baseball practice and a soccer game, but then we headed straight for Cleveland and the Palace Theater.

We had cheap seats, but still had a very good view of the show! We got there early, and Toby could not wait for the show to begin!
Here are a few photos from the show. It was cute, but rather long for the many, MANY young children in the audience. I could hardly hear the show over the whining and crying and moving around of all the kids. Toby didn't seem to mind though. He was glued to the show!

And after the show, we decided to stop off for Ice Cream, but realized it was nearly 6PM, so we hit Friendly's and got dinner and ice cream. I hadn't been to a Friendly's in quite a while. It was fun to tell the kids about the one we USED to have in Wooster and how mommy and daddy went there on dates (imagine, me going to an ice cream place for a date!!). And I talked about how I remembered going as a kid with my grandmother and Great Grandmother and as a kid, all I wanted was desert, too! So I couldn't blame them for rushing through their dinner! Toby didn't eat much of dinner, but he sure did lick his ice cream bowl clean!!

So on Wednesday, we may use the kids coupons for kids meals at Bob Evans before church, and give Toby his other gifts. Even without a party, I'm sure this will be a birthday Toby will remember!! OMG He's FIVE!!!!

God is Good!

Soccer

Our weekend was a busy one, but started off with Baseball practice and a soccer game. Here are some photos of our girl in action.




God is Good!

The Easter Story

A great video of Josh Atkins telling the Easter Story at Church Sunday.

ENJOY!!

Easter at Wooster Grace from Wooster Grace Students on Vimeo.

God is Good!

Easter

Oh, Happy Day, Happy Day... You Washed My Sin Away! Oh Happy Day, Happy Day... I'll never be the same! Oh, what a glorious day, what a glorious way... that YOU HAVE SAVED ME!

We had a wonderful Easter Service this morning at Wooster Grace! I enjoyed having two of my three kids with me in the service as well! Before we went in, we stopped for a photo in front of Kaleb's tree at the church! I took several, and this is the best one I got!

After the service, the kids and I headed over to my parents for a little while, since Nate had to stay and play for the second service. We knew we would be eating at Nate's parents house, so I let the kids just "snack" on some of their goodies from Aunt Katy. The poor peeps, this is what Toby did to his...
Then we headed over to Nate's parents house for lunch, and our annual Easter Egg hunt! Over 300 eggs for 8 kids is a bit crazy, but they all enjoyed it!



God is Good!

Soccer Begins

Time for Spring Soccer!! Another jam packed spring season, with games beginning this coming week! Looking forward to another season of great soccer and continued improvement for Taylor!

They had an inter league tournament to start off the season and the kids had a lot of fun. They also took a group photo. I had to zoom in to find Taylor...
Among all the players in the OSU Soccer Club!
God is Good!

She's 12!!

Again, the time has flown by! Taylor Brooke has turned 12 and I have no idea how it happened! She asked me to make mini cupcake bites for her birthday, so we worked together and made some for her class! She enjoyed handing them out to her classmates and I believe from what I heard, they enjoyed eating them!
We actually broke out the gifts the night before her birthday because she had, of all things, soccer practice on her birthday! She she opened her gifts and was thrilled to find...
BARLOW GIRL TICKETS!!!
She got a few tee shirts and a book, but also enjoyed some love from her brothers!



God is Good!

BONES

Drew's second grade class did a wonderful production of "Bones". They were all different bones that got all mixed up and needed to be put back together. It was filled with humor, songs and a little learning! They all did a wonderful job! Here area few photos from the program.

A Group shot
A fun photo of Drew in action!
And here's Drew, believe it or not, doing his favorite part! He got to play the drums on a few songs! He really did enjoy it, but I guess he was just taking it seriously!

God is Good!

Fine Arts Festival

The end of March we had the Fine Arts Festival for Wooster Schools. Drew had a painting on display, and Taylor got to sing several songs. I would love to upload some of them, but our computer's memory is shot. Hoping to find a way soon to be able to load/create my videos again and share with all of you! Until then, here are some still photos (taken with my broke camera!)





God is Good