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!!