Wednesday, October 22, 2008
Williamsburg Fun
Last weekend I had the wonderful opportunity of taking Caitlin to Williamsburg for her 11th birthday. October was very busy and so it worked out that the only available week that worked for both families was her actual birthday--what a special treat!
She and her brothers, Grant, Jacob and Quinn spent the night because Tiff and Brent were involved with taking the Explorer girls rock climbing. We had a wonderful evening all together making caramel apples and eating ice cream (after dinner, of course!). The boys had a camp-out in the back yard with Dad-Dad in our new pop-up but Cait and I retired early (9:00 p.m.) to the guest room to watch a movie, "Girl of the Limberlost", one of Cait's favorites and fall asleep. However, we were both so excited about the trip that I think it was close to midnight before we actually got to sleep.
I woke early and dressed and waked Cait and we were off at about 5:30 a.m. Caitlin was excited to see the sun come up which wasn't until after 7:00 a.m. I had hoped we could make it all the way to Williamsburg before we had breakfast but we made it to Richmond at about 9:00 a.m. and decided we were too hungry to go any farther. (I think this was because I talked with Dad-Dad on the phone about that time and he was telling me all about the pancakes he was making the boys.) We found a Perkins Restaurant and ate there--huge breakfasts for both of us. Cait got a bit of attention because she had dressed in her colonial garb when we had stopped earlier for a bathroom break.
Our first stop in Williamsburg after we had purchased our tickets and made reservations for the ball at the Capitol that night was a leisurely walk from the Governor's Palace to the Public Hospital, which houses the DeWitt museum. We browed through some paintings and clothing displays and then spent some time looking at the toys and dollhouses on display. They have some really neat exhibits and activities for kids, including a scavenger hunt for pictures of snakes and a really cool exhibit of pictures and art objects that they have arranged around a room telling a story about a dog who is visiting the country to find his cousin.
Cait was very anxious to take me to the Yankee Candle store and had been telling me all about it, so we headed there next. It turned out that our motel was located just across the street! Wow! What a place. There were all kinds of activities for kids, face painting, pumpkin decorating and what Cait was excited about doing, candle dipping. We each chose a candle and dipped it in different colors of hot wax until we had what we wanted. There was also a Christmas room where it actually snows every five minutes!
We then checked into our motel and donned our bathing suits for some time in the pool before changing for the evening ball. Caitlin had seen Carrabbas's next to Yankee Candle so we decided to dine there. We arrived at the Capitol very early and I was concerned because it was a bit chilly and the program didn't begin until 7:00 p.m. God was so good! Cait had been very nervous about the dance and although I kept assuring her that she would have a good time and didn't have to participate if she didn't want to, she was still a bit apprehensive. Well, lo and behold when we approached the Capitol there was a group of children in costume dancing. It turned out to be two homeschool families, one from Tennessee and the other from Cary, North Carolina (and I am sorry Kimberly we left without getting their names or addresses). The moms were sisters and they were doing a field trip to Williamsburg together. Even the moms were in colonial garb so at first I thought it was part of the program. Well, they invited Cait to join them and they had a wonderful time keeping warm and having fun. As more people joined they kept adding kids and it was just so cool to see these homeschool kids reaching out to others. Of course, this broke the ice for Caitlin and suddenly she had two friends! When the program began and they asked for volunteers Caitlin was grinning and waving her hand in the air with the others. She was chosen to dance at the second opportunity and just beamed the whole time. When NiNi finally was chosen for the final dance (and became the head couple, which meant that I had to choose the song--actually the lead man whispered it to me and I just had to repeat it but it was a French title and I had to call it out for the whole assembly to hear).
No pictures could be taken during the ball but afterwards the actors were on the portico and I was able to get a shot of Cait with one of the ladies. She fits right in, doesn't she? (Good work, Tiff!)
On Sunday we had devotions in our room together. I was so impressed by Cait's familiarity with God's Word--good work Brent and Tiff! We read Proverbs 31 and talked about it and she told me it was her favorite book of the Bible and that two verses were underlined three times in he Bible. Great start to being a godly woman!
We spent the whole day in Colonial Williamsburg on Sunday--our first stop was purchasing tickets for a carriage ride, which we both had been anxious to do. Cait opted to ride the stagecoach over the open carriage as it was twice as long a ride. Our driver was quite a character and kept up the conversation. We learned all kinds of little tidbits about living in Colonial Williamsburg. He even sang us a song, "O Brittania" which I was able to video as we traveled along.
For lunch we ate in Chownings Tavern which was fun--this was the one tavern I had never been to before. The only other tavern opened that day was very crowded and Cait was getting hungry but it turned out to be a good choice as it is a little more casual and she was able to get a sandwich and soup. She asked me why the waitress kept calling us, lovey. She had a British accent and I think probably was genuine. She graciously agreed to take a picture of us.
We did a little more touring, visiting just about every shop in the area, I think! At 3:00 there was a program at the museum so we headed back there. It was a fun ending to the trip. It centered on a new display they have of quilted clothing, much of it petticoats so we learned some interesting things about under garments in the 18th century. She talked a lot about ladies' pockets and we saw some beautifully embroidered ones. At the end there was an activity for kids which we brought home with us. It was a paper with the outline of a pocket that Cait could decorate and on the back was instructions for making a pocket--so now Tiff has another project to work on!
This was an absolutely wonderful experience--I had as much fun as Caitlin so it was a treat for me as well as her. Although she did have me locked up at one point--I don't have the name Meany NiNi for nothing!
She and her brothers, Grant, Jacob and Quinn spent the night because Tiff and Brent were involved with taking the Explorer girls rock climbing. We had a wonderful evening all together making caramel apples and eating ice cream (after dinner, of course!). The boys had a camp-out in the back yard with Dad-Dad in our new pop-up but Cait and I retired early (9:00 p.m.) to the guest room to watch a movie, "Girl of the Limberlost", one of Cait's favorites and fall asleep. However, we were both so excited about the trip that I think it was close to midnight before we actually got to sleep.
I woke early and dressed and waked Cait and we were off at about 5:30 a.m. Caitlin was excited to see the sun come up which wasn't until after 7:00 a.m. I had hoped we could make it all the way to Williamsburg before we had breakfast but we made it to Richmond at about 9:00 a.m. and decided we were too hungry to go any farther. (I think this was because I talked with Dad-Dad on the phone about that time and he was telling me all about the pancakes he was making the boys.) We found a Perkins Restaurant and ate there--huge breakfasts for both of us. Cait got a bit of attention because she had dressed in her colonial garb when we had stopped earlier for a bathroom break.
Our first stop in Williamsburg after we had purchased our tickets and made reservations for the ball at the Capitol that night was a leisurely walk from the Governor's Palace to the Public Hospital, which houses the DeWitt museum. We browed through some paintings and clothing displays and then spent some time looking at the toys and dollhouses on display. They have some really neat exhibits and activities for kids, including a scavenger hunt for pictures of snakes and a really cool exhibit of pictures and art objects that they have arranged around a room telling a story about a dog who is visiting the country to find his cousin.
Cait was very anxious to take me to the Yankee Candle store and had been telling me all about it, so we headed there next. It turned out that our motel was located just across the street! Wow! What a place. There were all kinds of activities for kids, face painting, pumpkin decorating and what Cait was excited about doing, candle dipping. We each chose a candle and dipped it in different colors of hot wax until we had what we wanted. There was also a Christmas room where it actually snows every five minutes!
We then checked into our motel and donned our bathing suits for some time in the pool before changing for the evening ball. Caitlin had seen Carrabbas's next to Yankee Candle so we decided to dine there. We arrived at the Capitol very early and I was concerned because it was a bit chilly and the program didn't begin until 7:00 p.m. God was so good! Cait had been very nervous about the dance and although I kept assuring her that she would have a good time and didn't have to participate if she didn't want to, she was still a bit apprehensive. Well, lo and behold when we approached the Capitol there was a group of children in costume dancing. It turned out to be two homeschool families, one from Tennessee and the other from Cary, North Carolina (and I am sorry Kimberly we left without getting their names or addresses). The moms were sisters and they were doing a field trip to Williamsburg together. Even the moms were in colonial garb so at first I thought it was part of the program. Well, they invited Cait to join them and they had a wonderful time keeping warm and having fun. As more people joined they kept adding kids and it was just so cool to see these homeschool kids reaching out to others. Of course, this broke the ice for Caitlin and suddenly she had two friends! When the program began and they asked for volunteers Caitlin was grinning and waving her hand in the air with the others. She was chosen to dance at the second opportunity and just beamed the whole time. When NiNi finally was chosen for the final dance (and became the head couple, which meant that I had to choose the song--actually the lead man whispered it to me and I just had to repeat it but it was a French title and I had to call it out for the whole assembly to hear).
No pictures could be taken during the ball but afterwards the actors were on the portico and I was able to get a shot of Cait with one of the ladies. She fits right in, doesn't she? (Good work, Tiff!)
On Sunday we had devotions in our room together. I was so impressed by Cait's familiarity with God's Word--good work Brent and Tiff! We read Proverbs 31 and talked about it and she told me it was her favorite book of the Bible and that two verses were underlined three times in he Bible. Great start to being a godly woman!
We spent the whole day in Colonial Williamsburg on Sunday--our first stop was purchasing tickets for a carriage ride, which we both had been anxious to do. Cait opted to ride the stagecoach over the open carriage as it was twice as long a ride. Our driver was quite a character and kept up the conversation. We learned all kinds of little tidbits about living in Colonial Williamsburg. He even sang us a song, "O Brittania" which I was able to video as we traveled along.
For lunch we ate in Chownings Tavern which was fun--this was the one tavern I had never been to before. The only other tavern opened that day was very crowded and Cait was getting hungry but it turned out to be a good choice as it is a little more casual and she was able to get a sandwich and soup. She asked me why the waitress kept calling us, lovey. She had a British accent and I think probably was genuine. She graciously agreed to take a picture of us.
We did a little more touring, visiting just about every shop in the area, I think! At 3:00 there was a program at the museum so we headed back there. It was a fun ending to the trip. It centered on a new display they have of quilted clothing, much of it petticoats so we learned some interesting things about under garments in the 18th century. She talked a lot about ladies' pockets and we saw some beautifully embroidered ones. At the end there was an activity for kids which we brought home with us. It was a paper with the outline of a pocket that Cait could decorate and on the back was instructions for making a pocket--so now Tiff has another project to work on!
This was an absolutely wonderful experience--I had as much fun as Caitlin so it was a treat for me as well as her. Although she did have me locked up at one point--I don't have the name Meany NiNi for nothing!
Wednesday, October 15, 2008
Camping in North Carolina
What a gorgeous weekend the Lord gave us! We had been planning for months to use this long weekend to travel to North Carolina to camp at Falls Lake Campground near Butner, NC where Kimberly's parents live. We camped here three times before, twice while Carl was in Kuwait and Kimberly was living in Butner. It is a beautiful, but no frills, campground. No campstore or concessions but a large lake and wooded campsites, just our style. The kids loved camping there because we had always found a site on the lake with access to a tiny beach where they could swim right from our campsite. Twice we camped next to a man, named John King, whom the kids became good friends with. (He was almost completely deaf, so he had no problem camping next to a family with several boisterous boys!) The boys were disappointed that he wasn't there this time--once he had his teenaged grandson with him and the boys had a great time wrestling in the water with him.
We had a rough start this time. We left work at about 11:00 a.m. thinking we would be early enough that we would miss traffic. But alas, traffic was slow around Dumfries so we decided to stop and eat at the Cracker Barrel, hoping things would be moving faster when we got back on I-95. It was still slow but our biggest slow down was that we goofed when we got to Richmond. Instead of staying on I-95 so that we could pick up I-85 on the south side of Richmond, we went around 295 and missed I-85. Finally, as we crossed into North Carolina, I pulled out the map and sure enough we should have picked up I-85 two hours back! Ahhhhh! By this time it is 6:00 p.m and we had thought we would be setting up camp by this time. Carl had gotten off work early and had arrived at the campsite and been set up since 5:00 p.m.(with the help of five kids ages 3-9 years!) We consulted the map and found a road that took us across to I-85. It was getting close to 8:00 p.m. by the time we approached our exit and we were very nervous. Not only were we now going to have to set up our pop-up for the first time in the dark, but in North Carolina state parks they close the gate at 8:00 p.m., no exceptions, and no one can get in or out. Carl went to the Ranger Station to explain our problem and was told that if we didn't arrive by 8:00 p.m. we would have to park outside and walk in--and the fact that we had a camper was a shame, wasn't it? Well, we kept calling Carl to let him know where we were and finally arrived at the campground at 8:07 to find Carl waiting with the kids in his van and the gate open! Happily, the camper went up easily with Carl's help. We started a fire and roasted hot dogs and then fell into bed sometime after 10:00 p.m.
The rest of the weekend was wonderful. We love cooking and eating outside and I always take something to cook in my iron Dutch oven. This time I had taken a roasting chicken and looked forward to roasting that on Saturday night. However, when I went to retrieve it from out camping tote, it was missing. Bill was sure it had been packed but we remembered later that we had carried it home from our last camping trip with leftover peach cobbler still inside and had cleaned it out at home. It apparently then had not been packed with all our camping equipment. We grilled hamburgers and hot dogs over the open fire that night instead. We still enjoyed cooking pancakes and bacon over the fire--my favorite way to cook when we are camping! Carl made breakfast on Saturday morning using his campstove--delicious eggs and bacon and toast.
It was warm enough for the kids to swim in the lake (not however, warm enough for the adults to do the same!) They had a ball splashing and swimming.
Carl and I took Esther and went out Saturday morning to find the Super Wal-Mart and picked up the rest of the groceries we needed for the weekend and Dad-Dad and the boys had a great time looking through Alex's survival book and then making a lean-to shelter with a tarp and some sticks. They were so excited to show that off to us when we returned and ate their lunch in its shade. They insisted they would sleep there that night. Alex did fall asleep there but Carl moved him to the tent when we all went to bed.
Of course, camping (or any outdoor activity) means finding wildlife and catching it, if possible. The boys caught a little skink and Esther, being a true Trautman woman, found a snake--and caught it. She was so excited about it and the fact that it was small and a beautiful green color (it was a green vine snake) made it all the more attractive as she posed with it in her hair.
On our other trips to this campground we had found some very interesting mushrooms and this trip was no different. Just walking around the campground loop we found many. Dad-Dad encouraged the kids to name them. We found a "fried egg", "popcorn kernel" and a "golf ball on a tee" (this one named by Carl). Isn't it the coolest mushroom?
Kimberly stayed home with little Samuel but joined us for the day after church on Sunday. We had a great time visiting with her and seeing little Samuel taking a few steps. Carl and Dad went out in the evening and brought back pizzas and subs for dinner (not our normal camping routine--but Bill was trying to make up for the chicken fiasco--and at least Carl and Kimberly had a chicken to take home for Monday's dinner!) Dirty, tired and happy kids were packed into the vehicles and headed home at about 7:00 p.m. for showers and bed. And NiNi and Dad-Dad relaxed by the fire and enjoyed the quiet (the entire loop had been filled with families--and they all packed up and left Sunday afternoon, leaving us totally alone on the lake). We took one last walk around the camp loop before it got totally dark. There was a beautiful full moon shining on the lake, which I tried to capture but only got a fraction of its beauty.
And then we retreated to our little pop-up and enjoyed one last night sleeping snuggled under covers with the screens open, enjoying the night breezes and sounds. It was glorious waking up each morning and the first thing you saw was the sun coming up over the lake! I loved every minute of our trip (well maybe not the minute when I discovered I had no way to cook a chicken!). We got up and packed up the next morning and had an uneventful trip home, arriving at our exit at about 6:00 p.m. and decided to call Ryan and have him meet us for dinner at Cracker Barrel. What a nice ending to a perfect weekend.
We had a rough start this time. We left work at about 11:00 a.m. thinking we would be early enough that we would miss traffic. But alas, traffic was slow around Dumfries so we decided to stop and eat at the Cracker Barrel, hoping things would be moving faster when we got back on I-95. It was still slow but our biggest slow down was that we goofed when we got to Richmond. Instead of staying on I-95 so that we could pick up I-85 on the south side of Richmond, we went around 295 and missed I-85. Finally, as we crossed into North Carolina, I pulled out the map and sure enough we should have picked up I-85 two hours back! Ahhhhh! By this time it is 6:00 p.m and we had thought we would be setting up camp by this time. Carl had gotten off work early and had arrived at the campsite and been set up since 5:00 p.m.(with the help of five kids ages 3-9 years!) We consulted the map and found a road that took us across to I-85. It was getting close to 8:00 p.m. by the time we approached our exit and we were very nervous. Not only were we now going to have to set up our pop-up for the first time in the dark, but in North Carolina state parks they close the gate at 8:00 p.m., no exceptions, and no one can get in or out. Carl went to the Ranger Station to explain our problem and was told that if we didn't arrive by 8:00 p.m. we would have to park outside and walk in--and the fact that we had a camper was a shame, wasn't it? Well, we kept calling Carl to let him know where we were and finally arrived at the campground at 8:07 to find Carl waiting with the kids in his van and the gate open! Happily, the camper went up easily with Carl's help. We started a fire and roasted hot dogs and then fell into bed sometime after 10:00 p.m.
The rest of the weekend was wonderful. We love cooking and eating outside and I always take something to cook in my iron Dutch oven. This time I had taken a roasting chicken and looked forward to roasting that on Saturday night. However, when I went to retrieve it from out camping tote, it was missing. Bill was sure it had been packed but we remembered later that we had carried it home from our last camping trip with leftover peach cobbler still inside and had cleaned it out at home. It apparently then had not been packed with all our camping equipment. We grilled hamburgers and hot dogs over the open fire that night instead. We still enjoyed cooking pancakes and bacon over the fire--my favorite way to cook when we are camping! Carl made breakfast on Saturday morning using his campstove--delicious eggs and bacon and toast.
It was warm enough for the kids to swim in the lake (not however, warm enough for the adults to do the same!) They had a ball splashing and swimming.
Carl and I took Esther and went out Saturday morning to find the Super Wal-Mart and picked up the rest of the groceries we needed for the weekend and Dad-Dad and the boys had a great time looking through Alex's survival book and then making a lean-to shelter with a tarp and some sticks. They were so excited to show that off to us when we returned and ate their lunch in its shade. They insisted they would sleep there that night. Alex did fall asleep there but Carl moved him to the tent when we all went to bed.
Of course, camping (or any outdoor activity) means finding wildlife and catching it, if possible. The boys caught a little skink and Esther, being a true Trautman woman, found a snake--and caught it. She was so excited about it and the fact that it was small and a beautiful green color (it was a green vine snake) made it all the more attractive as she posed with it in her hair.
On our other trips to this campground we had found some very interesting mushrooms and this trip was no different. Just walking around the campground loop we found many. Dad-Dad encouraged the kids to name them. We found a "fried egg", "popcorn kernel" and a "golf ball on a tee" (this one named by Carl). Isn't it the coolest mushroom?
Kimberly stayed home with little Samuel but joined us for the day after church on Sunday. We had a great time visiting with her and seeing little Samuel taking a few steps. Carl and Dad went out in the evening and brought back pizzas and subs for dinner (not our normal camping routine--but Bill was trying to make up for the chicken fiasco--and at least Carl and Kimberly had a chicken to take home for Monday's dinner!) Dirty, tired and happy kids were packed into the vehicles and headed home at about 7:00 p.m. for showers and bed. And NiNi and Dad-Dad relaxed by the fire and enjoyed the quiet (the entire loop had been filled with families--and they all packed up and left Sunday afternoon, leaving us totally alone on the lake). We took one last walk around the camp loop before it got totally dark. There was a beautiful full moon shining on the lake, which I tried to capture but only got a fraction of its beauty.
And then we retreated to our little pop-up and enjoyed one last night sleeping snuggled under covers with the screens open, enjoying the night breezes and sounds. It was glorious waking up each morning and the first thing you saw was the sun coming up over the lake! I loved every minute of our trip (well maybe not the minute when I discovered I had no way to cook a chicken!). We got up and packed up the next morning and had an uneventful trip home, arriving at our exit at about 6:00 p.m. and decided to call Ryan and have him meet us for dinner at Cracker Barrel. What a nice ending to a perfect weekend.
Wednesday, August 27, 2008
Day at River Valley Ranch
I have been trying hard to be a good mother and give my darling daughter by love, Tiffany, a chance to brag first but I have decided that five days is enough time to wait!
Last Saturday, August 23 started early for us. We were out the door and heading towards I-95 by 6:30 a.m. Why would we do this after a full work week? Because we wouldn't miss seeing our granddaughter Caitlin and her dad (our son, Brent, or course!) in her first 5K race at River Valley Race. Caitlin had been with her mom and Dad to a "Do Hard Things" conference earlier in the summer and Cait had decided that running in this race and stepping out of her comfort zone to ask people to sponsor her would be her hard thing to attempt. When we arrived she was all smiles, excited to be doing this with her dad.
It was a delight to us to see the excitement and bonding in their family getting ready for this event. Cait was faithful in preparing, running daily with her dad and sending out letters to let people know what she was doing and why. It gives me such joy to see my boys taking their parenting one giant leap beyond ours. Which is why we have 14 fabulous grandchildren!
Grant and Jacob were taking part in the one mile Fun Run (along with Ethan Canfield, whose brother Zach and Amanda Schmidt were also running in the 5K). Although he didn't attend the conference, Jacob was also doing his "hard thing" emulating his sister. He was a little nervous about running without mom or dad along but he did great and they all had a great time.
And finished the race with determination! Way to go, Jake!
We were waiting on the other side of the covered bridge in excitement, watching for Cait and Brent to come into view. It was neat to see him running backwards and encouraging Caitlin on as they came to the finish! We could imagine him saying--You're almost there, keep going! Come on, come on! And she made it. She came in 6th place in her category (under 16 girls)!
The boys enjoyed playing at the stream while we waited for all the runners to finish and the award ceremony to begin. (Water draws boys like a magnet--but amazingly no one got wet!)
Cait's goal had been to raise $500.00 She reached this goal a week before the race and ended up exceeding it, raising a total of $790.00. She was excited about receiving an Ipod for raising $500.00 but then the surprise came. In her category she raised the most money! Although she was more excited about getting the Ipod, it was a thrill to have her name announced and have Tracy Tiernan (WRBS Morning Team and who also ran in the 5K) present her with a bike!
It is hard for me to express the blessing it is to see my children and grandchildren making so much more of their lives than I could have dreamed of. I have so many regrets of the way I wasted my youth. I was a "good" kid in the eyes of the world and even at church, I guess. But I was so wrapped up in "me" and pleasing myself, never pushing myself to be more or to do a "hard thing". Watching my kids and grans feels like God giving me a second chance--to at least encourage them to walk farther than I did and be more than I am. What an awesome and grace-giving God we serve!
Last Saturday, August 23 started early for us. We were out the door and heading towards I-95 by 6:30 a.m. Why would we do this after a full work week? Because we wouldn't miss seeing our granddaughter Caitlin and her dad (our son, Brent, or course!) in her first 5K race at River Valley Race. Caitlin had been with her mom and Dad to a "Do Hard Things" conference earlier in the summer and Cait had decided that running in this race and stepping out of her comfort zone to ask people to sponsor her would be her hard thing to attempt. When we arrived she was all smiles, excited to be doing this with her dad.
It was a delight to us to see the excitement and bonding in their family getting ready for this event. Cait was faithful in preparing, running daily with her dad and sending out letters to let people know what she was doing and why. It gives me such joy to see my boys taking their parenting one giant leap beyond ours. Which is why we have 14 fabulous grandchildren!
Grant and Jacob were taking part in the one mile Fun Run (along with Ethan Canfield, whose brother Zach and Amanda Schmidt were also running in the 5K). Although he didn't attend the conference, Jacob was also doing his "hard thing" emulating his sister. He was a little nervous about running without mom or dad along but he did great and they all had a great time.
And finished the race with determination! Way to go, Jake!
We were waiting on the other side of the covered bridge in excitement, watching for Cait and Brent to come into view. It was neat to see him running backwards and encouraging Caitlin on as they came to the finish! We could imagine him saying--You're almost there, keep going! Come on, come on! And she made it. She came in 6th place in her category (under 16 girls)!
Is she a happy girl or what?
The boys enjoyed playing at the stream while we waited for all the runners to finish and the award ceremony to begin. (Water draws boys like a magnet--but amazingly no one got wet!)
Cait's goal had been to raise $500.00 She reached this goal a week before the race and ended up exceeding it, raising a total of $790.00. She was excited about receiving an Ipod for raising $500.00 but then the surprise came. In her category she raised the most money! Although she was more excited about getting the Ipod, it was a thrill to have her name announced and have Tracy Tiernan (WRBS Morning Team and who also ran in the 5K) present her with a bike!
It is hard for me to express the blessing it is to see my children and grandchildren making so much more of their lives than I could have dreamed of. I have so many regrets of the way I wasted my youth. I was a "good" kid in the eyes of the world and even at church, I guess. But I was so wrapped up in "me" and pleasing myself, never pushing myself to be more or to do a "hard thing". Watching my kids and grans feels like God giving me a second chance--to at least encourage them to walk farther than I did and be more than I am. What an awesome and grace-giving God we serve!
Saturday, August 23, 2008
Open Bible Jubilee
What a glorious day! Our first Country Fair Jubilee was wonderful. The weather couldn't have been nicer--low 80's and a clear sky. I thought later how the day was a taste of what heaven will be like. Everyone worked together, laughed, spread the hospitality of Christ--and worshipped all day.
The brand new pavilion on the hill poured forth praise music all day thanks to the efforts of our very own Praise Team and OBCA past and present students.
The food booth seemed to be the favorite place to work--they all had so much fun no one wanted to take a break! Even Saige got to be a part of the action!
The only sad part of the day was when Dawn Hauf, cut her finger badly trying to dislodge some ice in the snowball machine and leaned forward with her hand inside and accidentally turned on the machine. Eric and Shawn were on duty at the First Aid Station and got her cleaned up and bandaged and sent her off to the hospital. She received many stitches at Upper Chesapeake and has had to have further follow up at Union Memorial's Hand Unit. We were all happy that her finger could be saved, although it may have some deformity and lack of feeling. However, this event was one of the few incidents (Sofie gave them a little excitement and someone got a bee sting) that kept them distracted from the real work of being silly.
The cotton candy machine was a favorite attraction. It was amazing how well everyone figured out how to use all these unfamiliar appliances. Julie Ford became the expert at cotton candy.
We also had a popcorn machine (here being used by Andi--her newly decorated finger sparkling--but protected by latex gloves!), funnel cake (manned by CrossCurrent), hot dogs, and some fabulous chili made by Bill Hayes.
There was a moon bounce, dunking booth (a favorite activity was "dunk the principal") where even the kids volunteered to be dunked, enjoying the cool water. There was a water slide, games, puppet show, face painting and crafts--the whole works!
Caitlin, Abby Bynion and Gwenyth helped Marcella and me with the crafts. It was not a busy booth--we were in the back of the tent with the face painting and rubber ducky game so I'm not sure everyone knew were were there. After a while the girls went off to have some fun at the fair but they were a big help in setting up the crafts and helping little ones.
It was a very relaxing day even though we were working. The crowd was moderate (about 200 people outside Open Bible--we probably had about that many again of Open Bible members) so there was lots of time to relax and visit with one another.
At the end of the day we enjoyed a lively praise time. The Christian band, Sum of One, led us in worship and lots of fun. We went home very tired but invigorated at the same time. The next day in our worship service (one of our largest turn-out for Sunday morning) you could feel the new excitement, almost electric. It was like a revival had taken place among us. God was good and was glorified on that day. Makes me look forward to the Kingdom in a new way.
Monday, August 18, 2008
Shawn & Andi
Well, the day we have been waiting for finally came! Shawn presented Andi with an engagement ring on Friday, August 15, the 4th anniversary of their courtship. We celebrated this occasion with a family dinner at TGIFridays on Sunday after church.
The beautiful ring--"He went to Jared!" They chose it because it has an antique look about it. Like me, Andi prefers white gold rings.
Andi, are you ready for this? Well, if she isn't by now...... The real question is: are Chip and Kim ready?
I think all the kids already think of her as Aunt Andi (or as Reid says, Dee-Dee). Sorry Andi that I caught you with your eyes closed, but it was just too cute a picture.
No reason to add this picture other than that Saige is so cute even when she is crying. Doesn't this just break your heart?
Sunday, August 17, 2008
Williamsburg Trip
We spent a delightful five days in Williamsburg, arriving in the evening of August 10. The next morning we drove to the Visitor Center to purchase our tickets. We opted to purchase the Independence Pass which gives us full access to colonial Williamsburg for a year, including evening programs. We were so glad we did this as the evening programs were a favorite part of the trip. The first morning and many other times that week we decided to walk from the Visitor Center to the colonial city. The weather was beautiful all week and it was a pleasant 10 minute walk. The first morning we stopped to visit Hope Farm which is along the path from the Visitor Center and is in the process of being recreated. This is a picture of men sawing logs into planks for a building. Looks like hard, time consuming work. No need for a gym work out in colonial America.
Every day from 10:30 - 12:30 there were performances in the Revolutionary City. These were wonderful and we saw at least part of them almost every day. Sometimes there were speeches about what was happening on whatever day of colonial history they were portraying. We enjoyed the country dancing demonstration on Monday. Other days we "eavesdropped" on a conversation between a woman and her husband as they "discussed" his joining the continental army and listened in on an informal discussion of men on the need to declare independence from Great Britain.
One day we were outside the Capitol building awaiting a visit from Martha Washington who was coming to the city to accept a presentation for her husband. While there we heard from a man who had served in General Washington's army and complained to the crowd about being injured in the battle and was now unable to work and had not been able to receive compensation from the army. Mrs. Washington "overhead" this conversation and called the man to her where she listened compassionately to his story, assured him that his grievance would be heard and then took coins from her purse to give him, thanking him profusely for his service to his country. It was a very touching scene. I found myself really getting caught up in all the little dramas, forgetting that I was viewing actors and actresses and not the characters they were portraying. I found myself often getting teary eyed. It really brought the history of this time to life for me.
Another day we heard a black preacher who had just been granted his freedom. What a powerful speaker this man was and showed a love for the Lord and compassion for his people. I wasn't alone in that crowd to be wiping my eyes as he spoke of the plight of the slaves in trying to gain their freedom. I thought it was a bit sad, though, when I looked around and saw how few blacks there were in the audience. It was a large crowd, but mostly white. It seems that this would be something very interesting and valuable history for black people to be a part of. The preacher spoke as though he were addressing his congregation, which I assume would have been entirely black. So it really made me put myself in the place of a slave during the colonial period.
We chose three evening programs. On the first evening we attended "Dance, Our Dearest Diversion" which was an audience participation program. Anyone who desired it could volunteer to be a part of the dances. This was interspersed with demonstrations of dance by actors in colonial costume. Of course, Bill and I both took part. We were chosen for different dances so that we could observe each other from the sidelines. It was a lot of fun. There were many families we saw during the week who came dressed in colonial costume--I suspect many of them were homeschooling families! Especially at the dance programs there were many little girls in long dresses and we were actually surprised at how many girls and women were in skirts or dresses even during the day, strolling the streets. I wished I had packed more skirts as it seemed more appropriate to the culture than wearing shorts or capris. Below is a picture of me with my colonial dance partner of the evening.
Another evening we attended a colonial ball at the Capitol. That was Bill's favorite program. We first saw a puppet show, then were escorted upstairs to meet some colonial men partaking of punch and singing drinking songs and we were all taught some of the lines and encouraged to sing along. Then we proceeded to the ballroom where we witnessed more colonial dancing. During one of the dances the dancers went through the crowd asking some of the children to join them for a simple dance. It was cute to see, one young lady in particular, who had some dressed in a sweet "twirly" dress, as she took the floor and just beamed through the whole dance. We also went one evening to witness a witch trial which was very interesting and also interactive. After we had heard evidence we were asked to vote on her guilt or innocence. She was found guilty by a slight margin. The woman charged was a real person from history but the records were destroyed in a fire during the Civil War and they don't know whether she was found guilty or innocent but from records from her home county they know that she was still alive twenty years later. She could have been found guilty but given a lesser sentence than death or been pardoned or found not guilty.
We also attended some daytime programs. One was on the theatre (one of the actresses is pictured above). Although it was staged outside, in colonial times it would have been at one of three indoor theatres. Later, we went to a program at Raleigh Tavern or song, theatre and dance. We really enjoyed learning a little more about the entertainment (diversions) of that time.
On our last day we attended a lecture by Patrick Henry. The actor was excellent and I was spellbound by his words. How relevant to today's politics. All of the things he warned against about this new form of government were so true. He was very much against uniting the states and foresaw that if we did that we would one day have a civil war. He cautioned the audience of that day to be vigilant about controlling the government and saw it as a real danger to have too much government control. At the end, he took questions from the audience. In answering one question about his family he told the sad story of his wife, who had recently died, after having struggled with a mental illness for over four years, after the birth of her sixth child. He told of our he cared for her at home for all that time after having looked into putting her in the public hospital. We had just that morning toured the public hospital which was the first hospital in America to deal solely with mental illness. After touring the hospital, Patrick Henry said that he could not subject his wife to that treatment and instead built an apartment for her in the basement of the family home where he could take care of her. In 1970 my mom and I visited Scotchtown, VA and toured the home of the Henry's and I remembered hearing the story of his wife then. After that, I always teased my mom that when she got old I was going to lock her in the basement.
We also spent a day in Yorktown and enjoyed that day as well, touring the historical town and having lunch in a restaurant (The Tomato Tree) housed in a historic home. In Williamsburg we several times packed a lunch and ate on a bench while enjoying the ambiance of the city. One day we had lunch in the garden of the Kings Arms Tavern and one evening enjoyed dinner inside the same tavern. Before leaving to head home on Friday we had an early dinner at Shields Tavern. It was fun to go in the evening when the candles were lit and always there was a little period entertainment, often participatory (we got to sing along--which would have been true in colonial times). Sometimes we ate in our motel room in the evening, thanks to a microwave and refrigerator in our room. Just about every afternoon we came back to our motel and enjoyed the pool and some relaxation before heading back out in the evening. Almost every morning we enjoyed making our own Belgian waffle at the motel's continental breakfast, although one morning we headed into town early and visited the Raleigh Tavern and chose some baked goods and a couple of ham biscuits to eat in their garden for breakfast.
It was a delightful week and the only rain we encountered was the last day as a storm began while we were dining in the tavern. It was still raining when we headed to the bus to go to our car so we did get a bit wet. But at least we were heading home at that point so it didn't matter that we (well, at least I) looked like a drowned rat!
Saturday, August 9, 2008
Ladew Gardens
Kim Bauer and I spent a relaxing day touring Ladew Topiary Gardens in Monkton. (From 1990 until 2006 we lived just 10 minutes from there and somehow never got around to going!) We toured the house and grounds, spending almost five hours just walking, looking, talking and taking lots of pictures. I took over 100 pictures and I think Kim took even more. Harvey Ladew was a very interesting person and built and maintained these gardens almost by him. He had sold the family business when his mother died. At that time he was in his 20's and decided that he had enough money to live and have fun until he was 50 and then he would get a job. He lived to be in his 90's and never held a job again. He spent his entire life just having fun. And apparently he did. He left these beautiful gardens for the public to enjoy but other than that it seems he spent all his money just making himself happy. I find that very sad. I hope he really enjoyed himself during his stay on earth because I have a feeling he isn't having such a good time now.
There were so many gardens and so many fountains that I couldn't possibly share it all. It is definitely worth a visit. Above Kim is sitting at a little stone table and chairs. They were beautiful and each chair had carved into it a different nature scene. They obviously were not built for comfort!
There was a pink garden. (I took lots of pictures for you, Caitlin!)A water lily garden.
A Garden of Eden, complete with Adam and Eve (seen through a "Keyhole" from the Keyhole Garden.A yellow garden,
white garden,Tivoli Tea House and garden (the "house" is actually from the ticket booth from the Tivoli Movie Theatre. Inside is a little living room and on the opposite wall is a small window looking out over the
grounds. It is framed to look like a picture and is labeled "The Everchanging Landscape".),and lots of topiary (this was my favorite and is a
hunt scene--the fox is in the front with the hounds and mounted rider following.
Our only regret is that we didn't pack a lunch. We had intended to eat in their cafe but found that it was not open on Wednesday. By the time we left at 3:00 p.m. I was ravenously hungry (the gift shop was able to supply a pack of almonds and bottle of lemonade which kept me from eating the flowers from the gardens. Food was allowed in just about every part of the grounds and we passed a couple with a picnic basket as we were leaving (what a romantic date!).
I am so grateful for that chance to be with a friend and do something fun and relaxing! What a wonderful gift is friendship!
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