Fall Carnival.....

Each year, our church hosts a fall carnival as an outreach to the community (and also to serve our own children).  It has been prayed and fasted over...that MANY...young and old..would be reached by a smile, a kind word, a hot dog served or a hay ride offered.  Many attended and many connections were made.  Bruce got to work at the hay ride...I worked the toilet paper toss..and Abigail wanted to work this year, using her artistic ability to paint faces.  We were so pleased that she was eager to minister to others, even though she is still learning what this means (but aren't we all??)

She decided to dress up though..and wanted to be a Japanese singer..a very specific one.  When she brought me the photo, I knew we would not be finding this costume ready made anywhere.  But, she and I put our heads together and with some thrift store shopping and creativity....we came up with a pretty close likeness :)

A blessing....

God is SO faithful and kind :)  One blessing in my life recently has been the opportunity to work at LLCA, where Abigail attends school.  She is attending 6th grade there and has adjusted so well....that easy adjustment has truly been a "God-thing" in so many ways.  But, for me, I have had the opportunity to work with students in various capacities as a substitute teacher....children as young as 3 and as old as 18. From the time I arrive until the time I leave, I enjoy myself....am filled with joy and laughter and truly enjoy spending time with every age group/class I go into.  It was my desire to work in a part time capacity.....so that I could be more flexible and available to Abigail as she transitioned to a new school situation. But, it is apparent that she is into the routine now...and I know what I need to do to assist her...so I am ready to be more available if the school needs me in a more 'consistent' role.
I am so excited to see what opportunities the Lord will have for me in the future.  This school has truly been a blessing, and I am SO grateful to be able to spend many days a month with such precious students, co-workers, support staff and administrators :)

Great time with some great ladies!!

Two weekends ago, I had a wonderful opportunity to sit under the teaching of Beth Moore via a local simulcast.  Some other ladies from our church hopped in a van and we headed to a nearby church to soak up the Word and join in worship :)  What a great day it was!  I enjoyed getting to know these ladies better and I truly felt that Beth's message was directed right at my heart.

Summer Camp

One of the FUN things that happened this summer, was that Abigail got to go back to Camp Ponderosa with a few friends from church.  This is a wonderful camp in Mentone, Alabama.  The children left on a Sunday afternoon and returned on a Friday afternoon.  Bruce and I were doubly blessed with a date night during her absence AND by being able to pick up all the boys and girls who attended from our church, take them to lunch and return them to Huntsville.  The children get to do crafts, outdoor activities, swimming, and much more all while having many opportunties to experience worship in various styles and formats.    She is pictured (second from the left) with her cabin mates.  With the exception of the third girl from the left, the first six are from our church.  There were also three boys from our church as well.  They are the 2nd and 3rd from the right on the first row and #11 shirt on the back row.

A few highlights.....

No...life did not STOP at the Aquila household on June 17, but I did not take a lot of photos after that time.  The summer got busy with camp, going to back to school preparations, and then school actually starting.  Since then, we have had a birthday and a few other things thrown in, all while I have been working several days as a substitute teacher and while assisting Abigail in making the transition from homeschooling to traditional schooling.  But, now we have reached September 14....and maybe things are going to balance out just a bit??? Maybe???? 

More posts coming soon...I promise!! 

22 years....really!?!?!?

How can it be??  Twenty-two years ago on June 17.....we said "I DO".  We had a wonderful anniversary...Grandma kept our sweet daughter...and we had the evening to ourselves.  So, we enjoyed dinner at Connor's,  exchanged cards, looked thru our wedding album (and had a few laughs at the hairstyles and clothing of the late 1980's), and enjoyed a bit of tv time (what WE wanted to watch).  Of course Saturday was spent doing housework and yardwork and laundry.....but still...we enjoyed our evening and day together :)  Yep...we are pretty simple people.....but we are very grateful for the years God has given us together...the blessings and even the lessons He has taught us through the trials.  I think we would both honestly say..we love each other more today than we did on that steamy humid June day at Shiloh Baptist Church in LaFayette, Georgia :)  And....we are looking forward to the next 22 years!!!

PS--June 17 is a pretty special day in our family.  We chose to get married on my mom's 46th birthday..and six years later (on our 6th wedding anniversary and mom's 52nd birthday) my brother and sister in law got married :)  Needless to say, mom will never forget her children's wedding anniversaries--LOL!  Every now and then, Father's Day ALSO falls on June 17. 

Mother's Day 2011

Every year, we take a picture of ourselves in front of this door..just to see how much Abigail is growing.  As you can see, she is getting pretty tall...she is now only about 1.5 inches shorter than I am, though it is a bit hard to tell in this photo since I am leaning in and  she is standing extremely tall (and up on her toes just a bit ).  Don't be shocked if she is as tall as I am when I post next year's photo!!

Banana Car!

Each year, we end the AWANA year with a grand prix race.  Each child designs a car...whatever they choose..and with help from Mr. Richard and Mr. Steve..the creation become a reality.  This year, Abigail chose to make a banana!!  Her car won third place in the most creative category :)

putting the car on the track for a race...

Abigail and buddy, MacKenzie with her "scroll" car (it was an honorable mention)....

 part of the TNT group...MacKenzie, Julie, Abigail, Sarah, Andrew, Corey...at the awards ceremony

One Month Ago, Today.....



one street south of us....broken trees...one was on her car I think..but the bulk of it landed just behind her car....and only the smaller branches landed on her vehicle....not ONE scratch..she was giving glory to God for this

one of many trees uprooted on Stovall Rd., just across Wall Triana from us

some of the utter destruction where the tornado touched down on a road about 200 yards from our neighborhood--this WAS a hosue

one street south of us..our back yard-kittycorner neighbor...both of her trees were uprooted like this..but they have re-rooted them

this piece of bark was sucked off a tree and thrown into the street near our house...we were fascinated at how the holes were there...maybe the bark was pulled off after the branches..or pulled off over the branches??   We saw all kinds of things...

another sight on Stovall (where Yarbrough comes in)....the stop sign had been totally upright before the storms...and the house in the background was damaged badly as was the one just west of it

yet in our own yard, we only lost a single branch??  wow!

another one of our neighbor's lost a tree..very common sight in our neighborhood...as well as a lot of flood damage..

huge tree down in the Ford's Chapel UMC cemetary..they also lost a part of their building and steeple

a 'glob' of hail that fell during the 11:30 a.m. storm....when we lost our power (it was not restored for 7 days)

rescue workers keeping order at FCUMC..if you look closely you will see the steeple in the left....the remaining part of the brick building just to the right of that and a 'gap' where the building fell.  The new building is still intact...but the church did have a lot of damage to it.

a truck just outside our neighborhood...a utility pole fell on it during the storm...the ridges in the lower part of the photo are the downed utility lines

the fence at the south entrance of our neighborhood..blown down by the storm..just behind that is the remains of the treeline along our creek

...was a field across the road from the entrance to our subdivision....flooding was pretty bad the day of the storm and a few days after

One month ago today, we had tornadoes come through our area.  These photos were taken the day of and the day after.  They were taken in my neighborhood and on the street just across the road where the tornado touched down.  We are grateful that we were not hurt, though we have just discovered some possible damage to our home as a result of the storm (possible crack in water pipes/cracks in exterior wall) that we are dealing with now.  We survived seven days without power :) and even learned to like it (a little bit!!). 

Proud Mommy!!

As I looked over my daughter's final assignments for the year and graded them, I did so with a bit of sadness and a bit of pride as well.  She has finished FIFTH grade...has demonstrated Christlikness throughout the year (as recognized by others such as coaches, leaders/teachers in other arenas of her life)...has scored above average on her SAT's....has finished the year with a 97 average on her core subjects including Latin.  She has learned a lot, and has the skills to transition into a wonderful school environment next year!  I am very proud of my elementary school graduate....she is now ready for the middle school years.  This photo was taken on her last day at school at Wall Highway Christian Academy, as she participated in the watermelon eating contest.  She did not win..but she surely did have fun :)

What a wonderful man!!

At 83 years of age, he really does not look all the different than he did when I first met him back in the 1970's as a sixth grader.  Yes....my elementary school started band in sixth grade, though some got to start in fifth grade, and I was a very eager learner.  I wanted to play sax, but he needed more clarinets at the time and he said I could easily switch later.  I never did :)  While I learned music theory, music skills and counting under his tenure as a director, more importantly, I learned confidence and I learned that I should never give up and that I should practice until my skills were honed to perfection (or pretty close) .  He had high standards...and pushed us individually and as a group to be our best.  First chair was my goal and I fought to earn it.  I practiced a LOT, attended a lot of festivals and even earned numerous medals for individual and small group performances at competitions in addition to attending all district band a few times.  One of the highest honors I got, was a scholarship to attend a honor band at the University of Georgia one summer to hone my skills along with a few other LHS students.  Mr. Lamborn had chosen ME as a top student.  I was honored and humbled to get to attend.  At one point, I even auditioned for a college scholarship in clarinet....and was offered an opportunity to pursue that, and I am certain that it was because of the love of music and the skills HE taught me.  However, I chose to pursue an academic scholarship and go into early childhood/elementary education instead.....not so far from what he did, but a bit more marketable degree for a single  (at that time) young lady :)  I still found that music worked its way into a LOT of my classroom ventures though!!  And still, to this day, I teach private music lessons.

He had very structured classroom procedures (but with 150+ kids in a class..you HAVE to) and I liked it then (deep down inside--LOL!) and I like it now...so much so, that I use many of the same concepts in my own classroom teaching. 

He had SUCH an impact on so many..such a kind heart...giving to those who needed (but doing so in a way that no one knew..just NOW the stories are pouring out)....giving encouragement to students who except for band probably would not have finished school...giving a place to ALL students...in band it did not matter if you were rich or poor, black or white, straight A's or a struggling student..EVERYONE was important!!  We all worked together :)

This article is a nice one...and long overdue...however.....he did serve 28 years (not 23 as it states)...for a total of about 30 years in public education!  What a difference he made during this time!!!  Teachers, be encouraged!  You CAN and DO make a difference!!!!!

This article  (below) appeared in the Sunday, May 22 Chattanooga, TN paper.  Enjoy!

http://www.timesfreepress.com/news/2011/may/22/lafayette-band-director-has-earned-enduring-respec/

God's Beauty...

Bruce was recently in Canada for a business trip.  After working daily for 1.5 weeks...often until 1 or 2 a.m.....he and his co-workers were able to stop by Niagara Falls on the way back to their hotel after the final day with the clients.  Isn't God's creation beautiful?  Please pray that their hard work will pay off and the contract will be won, as it will really help his company. 

Changes ahead.....

As many of you may know, our family has big changes ahead.  This photo of Abigail, her fifth grade class photo, was taken at Wall Highway Christian Academy in April.  WHCA is a school that serves homeschoolers...we meet together for classes and do things that children normally do in a traditional school setting, but on a less frequent basis.  (Weekly classes vs. daily ones for example).

However, after six years at WHCA and six year of homeschooling, the Lord has made it very clear that we are to move away from homeschooling for now and move ahead to a different type of schooling.  So, beginning next year, Abigail will be a part of a traditional school body as she moves into sixth grade.  We are excited that we have found such a wonderful school...a private school that is focused on good education, building character, building relationships, and having respect for everyone.  She will get opportunities in art, music, pe, writing and many other areas in addition to the basic core subjects.  Since she is fascinated with learning Japanese and possibly with learning electric guitar, we will provide those opportunities outside the school environment (as it does not appear her school will be able to offer them at this time).  We will keep you updated on her progress..but we are sure she will do just great!  We have already met the principal and teachers and we know that she is truly blessed to be going to LLCA!!!

Soccer girl :)

What fun Abigail has had playing UPWARD Soccer this spring!  Though she has done this many seasons before, this has probably been her best season ever.  Coach Kuhn has done a WONDERFUL job of teaching the children some fundamentals...but also being a great encourager and Christian leader.  Abigail's confidence has grown and she has learned to enjoy playing the position of goalie.  She has only one more year of eligibility left.  We will request that she be put on Coach Kuhn's team again next year!!  Her last game will be this Saturday, followed by an awards ceremony...then we will hang up the cleats once again.  Seems like the season just started!! 

Easter Weekend.....

What a blessing it is to serve at West Huntsville Baptist Church!  On Good Friday and Easter Sunday morning, we were able to participate in a very moving drama called "Bow the Knee" for the second year in a row.  Bruce was "Marcus"..a pretty nasty guy.  Abigail was in the crowd scenes and sang along with the choir and I was a crowd extra, sang with the choir and had the honor of singing a solo called Via Dolorosa.  This picture of our family was taken just before the Sunday morning performance.

This very moving photo was taken during the crucifixion scene.  You could not watch this or participate in it and not be moved.

Mom and Dad came over for lunch after the Sunday performance :)  We are so glad to have a visit with them.

This was during the beginning of the Via Dolorosa scene...as Christ is being made to carry his cross..and as he falls.  Our crowd is visibly reacting..and I have to be honest...it was very hard to see and hear what was happening and still sing through it...but what an honor to do so!!

I did it!!!

Yes!  I did it!!  I finally did a camera dump so I have LOTS of photos on the computer :)  And, I am ready to create blog updates.  Why is is that I get lazy and just fail to hook the camera to the computer to show you what's going on in our lives??? 

Well, here is one update....Abigail got NEW glasses.  Her vision has changed a great deal since her last eye exam a little over a year ago.  At that time she was about 20/80, but now she is 20/150.  She is pretty near sighted!!!  So, we got NEW glasses and she can watch tv and play her wii and read street signs without squinting!!!

Wait!?!?!?!

I thought I had posted at least 2-3 times in 2011...only to find the first two months of this year have slipped past me without a post at all :(  Where did the time go?

Well, in January we had snow...and it was nice because we never lost power.  We also managed to plug away at school, so our calendar will still allow us to end at mid May as originally planned.  I also had my annual Crop Til You Drop retreat..getting a lot of pages done in my own albums.  Most of the ladies got a lot done as well.  Each year I learn more about how to put together a retreat that works well for those who are in attendance...and many of the 'repeat' attendees commented that it was the best yet as far as their productivity. 

In February, I turned 44 years old.  The years just keep  ticking away, but God is faithful and I am grateful for that.  Overall I feel that I have good health and a caring family and friends as well.  

During this time period, I also learned that we'd be having a reunion to honor our high school band director.  I am very excited about this, as he was a very influential man in my life on so many levels.  Going back to my hometown to join many former classmates in late April is something I am already looking forward to.

We are praying about schooling choices for Abigail next year as she enters sixth grade..and there is a good possibility that she will attend  'traditional' school after 6 years of being homeschooled.  We are trusting God to open the doors to the right school as well as to part time employment for me to pay for her tuition.  Trusting and waiting is not always an easy thing for me...so your prayers would be appreciated.  There are so many good options out there....but we want HIS best for our family.

So..those are just a few of the things going on right now with us......Happy new year..a few months late!