Year 4, December 6th-8th, 2019: Christmas Happenings

I had a really rough, emotional night and didn't sleep well. It continued throughout most of the day but I kept doing the next best thing. We had our church nursery volunteer party tonight and I knew it was going to be fun. I just had to get there. I bought gifts for the gift exchange a couple of weeks ago, I just needed to wrap them. I made a small pan of gluten free brownies. I had some leftover boxes of a caramel popcorn/cheez it mix so I brought that as a snack. Simple. Took a shower, taught school, made sure kids were fed dinner, and away we went. I originally had told Benaiah that he and Ava could come here but had forgotten about the party so they did their best to just randomly go shopping after their dinner at Cheddar's. This Christmas party was the only one that Jared and I have been invited to this year. There's no staff party.  There's no kids' school or co op party. Even Benaiah doesn't really have anything at school. This was it. So, I sucked it up and went and had a great time. It was just what I needed.

There's just a lot of things that go on in my little head and I get stuck and the same negative phrases and thoughts get put on repeat. And then I have a good cry. And then I write, a lot, at 3 am. And cry some more. And then I keep moving forward, step by step. Kids don't wait for you to have a meltdown. But Abishai was very cuddly with me today.  Somehow he just knew I needed extra lovings.  And so did Socks. Abishai even came into my room with his "schoolwork," aka his McQueen learning computer and ABC magnet books. I asked him, "Why do you need me?" And he says, "Because I love you." "Even when I'm mad" " Even when you're mad." Awww....that kid has mad social skills, I'm telling ya.

We stayed at the party until 9:30! We didn't tell the kids we'd be back at a certain time (it was in our neighborhood), so Keturah stayed on electronics too long, and Abishai was almost upset that we weren't home yet. Oh well. Tomorrow is Saturday and Mommy and Daddy need social time, too. I had turned off my phone, so I didn't get Benaiah's 3 messages and 3 texts. Yikes!  I guess I was engaged in the moment for once.  That's a great thing! It was just what God had ordered. Friends. Adult time. Laughter. Games. Food I didn't prepare. No kids spilling things and fighting. Ah. Perfect.  And there might be some other changes coming up in the New Year regarding finances and our social lives, etc. I just can't be the planner and initiator right now. I can't do the research and make it happen. I can make the decision and show up and be committed to whatever. I just can't lead everything. There is hope.

We played a game of wrap a person up in wrapping paper. We were disqualified because  I was supposed to be completely covered from head to toe. Whoops! Erica did a great job on the booties, though!

Some of our nursery voluntteer group at church from all 3 services.

Jared got wrapped up as well.

Bwahahahaha!  They did win, especially since their wrapping paper had owls on it like Ollie in the nursery and preschool curriculum.

Someone needs some extra snuggles and that person would be me.  I retreated to my room to recollect my thoughts and emotions, and Abishai followed me there with his chool work.  He brought magnet ltters, his compiterr with word games and some great little books.

After matching up some ABC letters and knowing some of their names (thanks YouTube), Abishai did some ABC order things on his McQueen "computer."  I'm getting really excited about trying this new approach of learning with him. I'm letting him lead the whole thing. I mean, of course I'll drop hints, or eventually do more leading, but I want it to be his idea to learn his letters and read. We are getting there! And then, we have these, these big baby feet that won't stop moving ever! Again, I don't want him sitting in a chair for long periods of time yet. I want to do things differently. He was born into this world different than the others, and this is our chance to try things differently with the knowledge we have of parenting. I do sometimes have guilt and shame and regret about how we've brought up the others. But every kid has that. Firstborns are the guinea pigs, Jared and I know that well. Babies of the family get the benefits of experienced parents. And that's ok. We just all keep learning and doing our best. And today, Abishai knew I need extra snuggles. He kept saying, "I love you, Mommy. I just want to snuggle you."

Books, snacks, drinks, doggy, play table, signs of a great childhood I hope. I get so upset when there's a mess, but I need to remember, it's part of the process.

Keturah made Lego stairs to go with Abishai's Paw Patrol calendar pieces.  Sweet!

Some of the ladies (and gents) that also volunteer in our nurseries at church. Nursery is up to age 2/potty trained. Then they go over to KP in the preschool area.  It takes a large team to take care of all babies and toddlers for three services!  We love these times we get together as a whole group.  Such lovely people!  We were about ready to do our white elephant gift exchange.

The exchange was fun! Some interesting gifts, a few people "stealing" from others, but I think most were happy with their gifts.  There were two personal heated blankets, and I really wanted one!  I was 2nd to last, and both blankets had been stolen 3 times and were out of the playing by the time it was my turn. I was pretty bummed. We ended up with a handmade heavy fleece blanket with a Coca-Cola print, a cat poster, a candle, and some candy. I'm regifting the candle because I don't do candles anymore for many, many reasons. I'll eat the candy. I'm not sure on the cat poster yet.

There were a couple of mother/daughter teams here! Like Sarah and Brianna Simpson and Adrienne and Ava Smith (our hosts this evening).

Attending a social event together without kids is very, very rare and a special treat.

Jared was number 1 and he opened the biggest gift.  It was a blanket and a cool advent pillow I really liked. But both were stolen. Oh well.

Now what are we to do with this?  Keturah and Justin thought it was cool. It does have pickles on it.  I might regift it to Justin or Abishai. We'll see.

Yeah! We had an "accomplish lots of things" Saturday! Jared got up and went to the "working stores" (Home Depot and Lowe's) for supplies for some projects. I tried getting caught up on the blog but got distracted with emails. Abishai has been crazy today, pestering everyone for attention.  Justin left early with Elliot to an indoor water park sleepover for Elliot's birthday party, so I didn't have him to play with Abishai.  Keturah doesn't tolerate Abishai for as long as Justin does. Benaiah got up about noon and then went to work at 2. We ate lunch and then headed off to our little set of village shops in Wanamaker for Christmas in Wanamaker. I've been a vendor there a couple of times but hadn't walked the whole thing. It was a gorgeous 45 degree, clear blue sky, winter day. We overdressed but that's ok.  We walked to all the shops to collect stamps on a car for a prize drawing and see the vendors. We saw a few friends along the way as well like Shelly and Shae Wynn, Justin and Alison Hankins, Betty at the flowers shoppe and Heather Bruce, who was selling her yummy cheesecake bites.  We didn't stop for long at any one place and was ready for the parade in a little over an hour. I just liked seeing inside all the shops that I drive past all the time. We even dropped Jared's shirt off at the dry cleaners because it was one of the stops! It was good just to get out of the house for a little while.  Keturah hadn't gotten dressed into regular clothes or stepped out of the house since Sunday night!  She didn't complain too much, but I know this wasn't her cup of tea.

Abishai however thought it was "magical!" He enjoyed getting the stamps and looking around in the different shops. Again, my new goal has been making sure I take him to place and do things with him that I did with the older kids like go to parades, do a field trip to the fire station or police station, go pumpkin and apple picking, etc. I took the other kids to the Beech Grove parade a couple of times. These are very small hometown kind of parades with a few local organizations. The parade was not super long and they barely blocked the road for it. But Abishai and I stood on a corner by ourselves towards the end of the parade route and so we didn't have to compete for the candy that was thrown.  He just thought that was awesome that they threw candy directly to him! But he also said he loved the cars and vehicles, too! There was a Jurassic Park car with a dinosaur on the back, Santa on an old fire truck, an army medical vehicle, some older cars, a pace car, some girl scouts, some boy scouts, an elementary school class, a church promoting their Christmas program, the Marion County Fair queen, our Senator Aaron Freeman, etc. Oh, and the Grinch! And some Marvel characters!  And Star Wars!  There definitely was a mixture of things but nothing objectionable. It was nice and short and sweet. I know Jared hates crowds and events, so by going to these little ones, we get a taste of the big ones and learn to appreciate the small businesses in our local community.  It keeps the world a little bit smaller around us.

After Christmas in Wanamaker, we went grocery shopping.....in Grandma's fridge!  They are out of town for a week long cruise so it's time to eat up their leftovers!  Except for a few things, we are all set for the next 3-5 days. Thank goodness because I wanted to go home and work on the blog. But that didn't happen then either because I got myself involved with helping Abishai with my brother's Erector set after Benaiah bought a new one for himself last night.  Jared started working on his projects and Keturah had some screen time. The family dynamics have been different all day with Justin gone and Benaiah at work.  A little less drama but a whole lot of "Abishai go play. Abishai stop trolling.  Abishai sit still."  I need my Justin! After a late dinner and cleaning up everything, it was 7:30 and I just wanted out of my kitchen! But here I am, and I'm very tired. We'll see what we accomplish.

Just a few details about the Christmas in Wanamaker event.

Anybody else combine herbal tea and caffeinated tea? I want the benefits of both.  I never mind if tea is over steeped and I don't use sweeteners. I do take the Early Grey out at 3 minutes and leave the herbal tea in for the whole time. I do this often.

Somebody liked having a map to follow and couldn't wait to get it stamped!  It's nice having a kid old enough to have fun with these things, but not so old that they think it's stupid (like some teens do.)  Plus, he choose the fancy Santa hat and would only allow me to wear one, and not Keturah. He said because he only wants me to be like him.  Ok then, boss.

We found the Grinch!  At first, Abishai was shy, but he got over it quickly. Keturah, however, who is still not comfortable with people in costumes, gingerly extended her hand for candy but removed it quickly. We did find where Santa was and there was no line, but the kids weren't interested. Abishai might have been but Jared said they didn't want to stay in the building so we didn't.  We also didn't get any of the free popcorn or hot chocolate, although many businesses offered it. I'm grateful that Keturah didn't beg for it. It's hard to drink and eat in heavy coats.

It's an old fire truck!  And both of the kids noticed different things on it. Sweet!  The wonder of childhood was coming back for Keturah a bit thanks to Abishai's enthusiasm.

This is Mrs. Shelly Wynn, whose realty office is in Wanamaker. She's so sweet! She had a make your own cookie bar. Keturah took her up on her offer, although she didn't eat it all because it made her feel ill.  Abishai wouldn't do it.

Too much sugar!

Abishai was insistent that we checked out the firepit, lol. We do love our fires!

I couldn't have been happier with how excited and into everything Abishai was, including petting the animals! He wasn't scared and he smiled big. It was so sweet!

Awwww, he melts this animal loving Mommy's heart.

The crew that has put together Christmas in Wanamaker year after year do such a great job! They are VERY well organized and I've never had an issue being a vendor. This little strip of shops is one of those sweet secrets. And I'm grateful that we have connections and memories with a lot of them!

Oh.....I'm ready for the parade! We walked around the whole town in an hour and then went back to our car to wait for the parade to start.  Jared and Keturah stayed in the car, while Abishai and I had so much fun enjoying the cars and candy and fresh air.

When does it start, Dad? I want to see!

Somebody let his whiskers grow too long again and his gray hairs are showing! I find it very attractive, lol!

Abishai couldn't contain his excitement and was jumping up and down. You should watch all these videos! Simple, short, home town parades are the best! We stood on a corner all by ourselves so we had plenty of opportunity to gather candy.  At first Abishai wasn't sure about standing in the road, but we worked as a team and stayed safe while gathering the loot.

First up, the boy scouts led by two of the finest men I know! Shea Wynn and Scott Isaacs.  The Wynns, remember, lost their 2nd born, Seth, last year to suicide.  This troop means a lot to them. It was good to see them there!

A few fancy cars and motorcycles, old and new.

A church promoting their Christmas play.

Marion County Fair queen.  Yes, that's the same pageant that Amy Sloan won about 20 years ago.

It's a reindeer and my good friend Paul Hilton, owner of Focus Therapeutic Massage.  I went there for years for massages because Helen wanted to love me and gave me a great discount.  She might be the one in the reindeer costume.

That's our senator!  And an Indy 500 pace car.  Sweet!

Abishai was just as excited about the tractors as he was about all the other vehicles.  Definitely the perfect timing to enjoy these things.  He's old enough to obey and not run into the street and not too old that this stuff is boring to him.

Hey! It's Noah Paulson and some of his siblings! Sweet!

I think I was more excited about the limo than Abishai was. These are sweet though. And this limousine company based here in Wanamaker is well known throughout Indianapolis.

Then the party truck came by.  I think it's a comic book store! It had all kinds of cool characters and Abishai was super excited!  Marvel, Star Wars, Lego Batman, Guardians of the Galaxy, Loki, Captain Ameria. Ah!

Abishai said he wants this costume! Who needs to spend $1,000's to go to Disney World to see storm troopers?  Not us! Sweet!

Abishai also loved the army vehicle and recognized that it was a hospital one!

It's a Jurassic Park jeep! And a velociraptor! Abishai totally understood that everyone in costume were actors. But he still called it "magical!"

Girl scouts!

Santa!

When the grandparents go on vacation....we get to go grocery shopping in their fridge....before raiding the fridge....

....after raiding the fridge! You never know what odds and ends you'll find in here! Or ours of course!

Benaiah bought himself an Erector set last night without remember that we had some of my brother P-M's in one of our Lego drawers. So, I brought them out!  There's a few pieces missing, but we'll see what we can come up with.  I changed the batteries in the little drill and Abishai went to town with it all over the house. He actually slipped in the kitchen again on his super long pj pants and thankfully didn't poke his eye out.  After that, I took out the bit and told him not to carry around the house again. It's too dangerous and real.

Real nuts and bolts! Tiny pieces!

Thank you Uncle P-M! We love power tools!  Meanwhile, Daddy was using his power tools in the garage.

Old school erector sets.  Because my parents and I don't throw anything away and we keep original packaging, lol.

This took way longer than I thought it would, but we did it!

The first vehicle to throw things to us at the parade said, "Here, I have something very special for you!" And it was this dinosaur coloring kit!  Abishai gave up coloring pretty quickly again, but he tried to stay in the lines and finished the one section when I asked him to, so that's progress.  Again, I'm trying not to push too hard and let him lead.

He was really working hard to figure out how to put it all together and he didn't want help.

Moving around and lying down I guess is a way to think through your problems.

Oh my goodness, this is so Abishai!

I guess Jared saw this falcon? Hawk? on his drives today.

Working in the messiest garage on the planet.  Ugh! I keep trying to clean it up and Jared keeps making it a mess again.  He refuses to make a work bench. I really, really don't like all the dust and paint and such so close to my clean clothes. And now we have Christmas gifts, Christmas wrapping, Christmas decor boxes, extra cardboard boxes for wrapping Christmas boxes in EVERYWHERE! I just wish things would stay where I put them! So, I just back away slowly and close the door and pretend it's not there. I do the same with our bedrooms. I give up sometimes!

Gorgeous sunset!

I love it when the deck and surroudning area have a reddish purplish glow to them.  The window is reflecting the sunset quite well, too.  Sweet!  Oh, and on another note. Socks has been asking to go outside quite often, I think because of the squirrels. It's driving me crazy!  He's also eating more food.  And since I am not going outside with him, I can't watch if he's throwing up or how his poops are to tell if something's up. Sigh. If he continues to eat like this, I may take him in for a weight check in a few months. We'll see.

Taken from Instagram, yes, this is me.

Oh Sunday. Fibro flare perhaps? Not quite feeling myself today physically. But I did have some emotional and mental angst this morning about today's sermon topic. I'll post below what I just wrote on Facebook because it will make more sense. But first, church itself was fine. Jared took Keturah for the 9:15 because she likes to go to both services and we don't feel comfortable having kids at church without one of the four of us around. Worship is not a drop off service, although Keturah and Jared would be in two different parts of the building. Leah and Gary are gone on a cruise this week, so Leah wasn't doing her normal routine this morning. In fact, Gary said he couldn't find any Fox news channels and I retorted, "Good. Detox from Fox!" Justin was with Elliot for the sleepover at the indoor water park and I made sure he wasn't signed up to serve at 11 because they weren't going to be back in time for Crave and small groups tonight.

Benaiah was at Shelby St. playing drums and tonight, he gets to play piano for Crave! Oh man, that kid has practiced and practiced and practiced. I feel guilty I haven't taught him more piano theory and such, but I'm right there talking to him about how he's learning and where he's learning it from on whatever website there is. It's not sheet music, unfortunately, but I'm letting that go right now. I'm just proud of him for branching out and Aaron Shhroeder taking a chance on him with that.  I wrote to Aaron and explained that Benaiah doesn't have the piano background that would help him right now, but like my youth leaders did for me and several other young people who didn't know how to play well, I am grateful that the youth leaders are willing to take a chance on the young people. Benaiah was slightly nervous. He is a very confident guy and will get up there, but I could tell it bothers him that he was making a lot of mistakes. I kept telling him he has to start somewhere and I know how hard it is. That's why I have never volunteered to be part of the worship team at the Creek. I don't have their level of professionalism. I've started playing a bit more at home again, but I'm just not confident enough to be with them. I appreciate the talent and practice it takes to be up there. I understand and love their lingo and the tech side of things. I'm proud that I did what I could with Benaiah and he has had others teach him and encourage him and he's taking the musical mantle of many generations past and carried it forward. Remember, my great grandfather was the head of the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill in the early 1900's. My grandmother I'm sure played something and had a piano and violins in her house. My mother and father played various instruments and sang in the choir.  My siblings and I all took piano lessons and my sisters can sing and have sung on worship teams. (My brother, not so much, lol, although apparently, he likes to go to karoke bars now, lol). My cousin on that side plays the piano well. I think my aunt did at one time or another. And now our kids can sing on pitch and play instruments if they choose to. My parents loved watching Benaiah in the kids' choir musicals and they would be so uber proud of him up there on stage carrying on that legacy. I know he wants to do youth ministry because he wants to reach his peers and  think he has some important things to say to them because he's been through some things.  However, I think God has been grooming in over the last 3 1/2 yrs to be in worship and creative arts. Well, not so much the art part, but the music part, lol. But, who knows. Sometimes experience doesn't always equal your passions.  Maybe your experience will be used for a career or maybe it's just for volunteering. Maybe your talents will be used now or in God has you in the future. Who knows but God does. I'm just so proud of how far my little boy has come. So what if he spent his money on a PS4? It's so minor to what that kid does with the rest of his talent, treasure, and time. And it's because of our church community, not because of Jared and I as parents. We can't raise these kids on our own. We need their help. We don't need them to take over. We just need the help. And again, that's why God has us HERE at this MOMENT. In a healthy, vibrant church community where we have healed and we are growing. We are learning and making new friends. Our kids are growing and learning. We are not alone like I felt earlier this week. We just aren't. Satan, I rebuke you.

Ok, now, onto the totally different topic of today's sermon. I'm just going to leave it here as is because it's something to wrestle with. Jared was mulling it over in a different way and says he has some ideas he'll share with me later. Sometimes, it's hard when you are deep, serious thinkers and have grown up with people that talk about being intentional and think about the consequences of your actions. It's a great thing, but also a curse at times because you tend to get stuck. But you crazy people need us thinkers to keep your feet from going to far off the ground. Let me be your rock, lol.  Ok, here's the post:

From my Facebook post (but I'm not posting the comments):
Sermons like today's about outrageous generosity (above being obedient and giving 10% tithe), always give me a guilt trip. As I look down at the $20 pair of jeans and the $10 red velvet jacket I bought this year. I think, I didn't really NEED these, did I? I could have spent that $30 on someone or something else. I did spent what I consider alot on myself this year, with special foods I wanted to try, brand new clothes and shoes (Less than $400 I think on just myself), multiple concert tickets,etc. And I do consider, at least in part, my medical expenses as being extravagant sometimes because I choose to go to an expensive naturopath and I choose to spend $100 a month on essential oils.Generosity isn't always about the money itself, there's time and talent, too, but money IS part of it. Sacrificing a want in order to do something for someone else IS generosity. We didn't participate in several of the charitable opportunities at church this year, and probably could/should have. So, my question always is, how do you balance it all out? I like, maybe even love, my new stuff. I enjoy the foods and the concerts. And I almost always use coupons or deals or go to Goodwill or use sales, or get hand me downs, etc. The $30 I spent on our fall outdoor decor that is reusable gave ME great joy. Wearing a brand new $30 puffer coat brings ME happiness. But what about everyone else? Have I given outrageously on top of what I've spent on myself? Not exactly. I love buying things for my kids or offering to a friend of our kids to go someplace with us. But we reach beyond us? Not really. Sure, we sacrifice in so many other ways and serve God in so many other ways and have for years and years and years because we feel we never extra actual money. We have time and talent to give and we do. But do I sacrifice having a second salary to stay home with my kids for my own comfort level? For their lives? Or does it go beyond that? I struggle with that one. I can't always say I'm raising kids to be God followers and serving him and loving people. My motives are typically self seeking, self approval, selfish. Do I seek out deals for items we need/want because I'm saving money so I can give it away or am I saving money so I can stretch out the pennies to buy more stuff for us? Ugh, it's so hard. I just made another online order to use the "dollars" at Old Navy just last night and spent $100 (50% off retail). What did I buy? Two more sweatshirts just like the previous one I bought because I loved them, $22 a piece with coupon codes, a new "big girl" purse to make me look a little more classy, $20, a quilted vest to go over the shirts I previously bought, and sophisticated beanie to up my winter gear game, $8, an infinity scarf for maybe $10, and I can't remember what else. Did I need all that? Nope. Did I get them all for great prices? Yes. Do I want to take any of them back? Nope. Ugh! The guilt is strong with this lady. Does anyone else feel this way when they buy things for themselves? Am I overreacting? Am I being an Enneagram Type 6 too much, lol? I love my new clothes. They are helping me embrace what I look like now and have looked like for years but didn't want to admit that I do. I don't want to feel guilty about them. Sigh. Feel free to kindly share your thoughts and stories. This is definitely a growth area for us. Outrageous generosity vs. the minimal amount plus a little here and there. Something to ponder.

Wow, after that post, there's been some great discussion with some of my favorite mentors and like minded friends. They keep me on track, let's put it that way, and aren't afraid to share the truth. In the moment, it sometimes hurts when I hear their responses, but they are usually right. Good stuff. You'll have to go to my FB page and search for it. It's too much to post here.

A few hours later......(I don't watch Spongebob but several vloggers have used the clip that has those words in it, so now that's all I can hear in my head when I type it. Ugh!)

The Thanksgiving blogs are done! Everybody's in bed! I'm caught up! Yeah! Now I can focus on other things like IAHE and putting together some gifts to send in the mail and such. Jared took Abishai with him to church when he had nursery tonight, so I had some quiet time.  Abishai is really rambunctious and clingy lately and I have to find him an outlet soon. I'm thinking of just taking him to toddler time at Skyzone or something. We'll see. I think we are in a good position for the rest of the month to get everything done. Just got to keep making lists so I don't forget anything. We bought gas and a few things at Kroger today, so we still don't need to do a full grocery shopping run yet. We have a few appointments this week like the dentist and it's Keturah's last dance class on Wednesday. And there's some new things in the works, so we'll see how that pans out. For now, I think that's it. Onward into the week!

Socks has been wanting to spend time in Keturah's room the last few months at night. He likes the warm vents, but I think he also likes to keep an eye on her.

Saw this on The Royal Family's instagram and watched it. Wow, I love her so much! She has been through so much and seen so many wars and events. She's just a solid character. Lovely, graceful, intelligent, beautiful, godly, family oriented, etc. etc. What a lovely message that is still applicable today! She even read from Pilgrim's Progress!  Here's the link to the YouTube video: The Christmas Broadcast, 1957

Benaiah was busy practicing for tonight's Crave when we got home.  He even got out the metronome! Below are the videos Ava, "the proud girlfriend" as she called herself, took for herself, him, and I. She's such a girl after my own heart, it's crazy!

Aw, Michael shared pictures from Monday night's concert and how his granddaughter Nora was there. Sweet!

Just browsing Instagram. I love both of their bios! I'm think the locked symbol means they are in a locked relationship, or solid relationship. I don't know.

Same here. Locked with Ava. Sounds right!

Abishai loves doing the mouse on the Howell family calendar.  Did you know that Gary and Leah have the same exact calendar? Or we have theirs and I sent the Howell one to Stefanie. I can't remember. Point is, it's fun when they and my parents had the same exact things.

Putting our sticker on our Jesse tree from church. Yesterday's sticker was Abraham and the almost sacrifice of Isaac. How do you explain that to a 4 yr old? And today was Joseph saving the grain in the years of plenty. Again, kind of heard to explain.

My advent calendar. I started a tad early because I don't drink coffee every day. I asked Abishai which one I should try first and he said the chestnut one. It didn't taste any different.  Oh well.

I borrowed more pictures from Instagram because I didn't have the best view of the Kids Choir today. We don't have anyone in it this year, which felt strange, but it was fun to watch.  There was this one little girl in front who was doing hand motions to the songs and there really weren't any hand motions. She was in her own little world.  I imagine Abishai will be that way next year.  They didn't sing before they service. Instead, they sang with us during the first two songs of the regular worship service.  They were Christmas songs, so I'm guessing that the kids knew them from their musical as well. I loved their energy! And Rhett was awesme again, too. And Emily Hostetler sang beautifully. And Chris Graham thoroughly enjoyed his time with the kids (his wife Mary posted that on her Instagram). I saw him high five all the kids as they walked down the aisle to get on stage. Just knowing Chris' story from the past few years, it's a miracle and blessing for him to up there playing his bass guitar again.  And then Scott Isaacs was also up there. And the girl that looks like me, lol. Great stuff!

I can't wait to watch their performance next Saturday! I don't think any of my family is coming with me, but I'm going to go support my favorite kids' choir! And the trees in the background look incredible this year!

Justin had a great time with Elliot and his friend except from when he got kneed in his right eye. Battle wounds! Plus his mustache is getting a bit longer. Crazy guy!

The End