Happy Birthday, Dad

Just thinking about Dad today as we make it through all the "firsts" this year. My friend, Sharron, spoke about the misnomer that time heals all wounds, because as time goes on, the wound seems to gape a little more. So thankful for our heavenly Father who continues to wrap His loving arms around this family. God is good -- all the time.

Just what exactly does "CGP" mean??

In addition to our random week, and after 2 or 3 changes in our plans, the girls and I ended up in Nashville on Thursday, on our way home from Kentucky. You see, my dear Daddy was headed to Nashville that same day (or so we thought). I just couldn't abide the thought of breezing through without stopping to at least hug his neck! The plan evolved into staying the night in Nashville with the thoughts of attending an event with Dad and heading out to have a look at the campground where we will gather in a few weeks for the Pilgrim Nazarene Camp. Well, we ended up staying the night, but Dad's flight didn't arrive until 10:45 the next morning. All was well with that. We went to the campground. It is beautiful. We are so excited about camp!! Then we headed back into Nashville to find out all about CGP's!! You see, the Chet Atkins Appreciation Society was having their annual event, and Dad ranks right up there at the top of avid Chet fans! He showed us around, introduced us to many of our favorite "Certified Guitar Pickers" (get it?) In our world of homeschooling, I don't mind if music is played in the background while the girls study--it just has to be music without words that you can't sing along with; therefore, guitar music (Chet Atkins style) is one of our favorite genres. (And piano, and sax...) We got to meet Bobby Gibson who has this synthesizer that makes his guitar sound like a piano! Seriously! It is so cool!! We got to meet Nokie Edwards who was the lead guitarist of the band "The Ventures." Dad has been able to spend some very special time with him, and he has been able to witness to him about the Lord. Nokie really likes my dad. We got to hear Guy Van Dueser, Frank Vignola, and Tommy Emmanuel! We thought we were going to see Doyle Dykes, so Dad got Steve a ticket to fly in to Nashville that evening (some more random!!), and he got to be there for the evening concert. Sadly, Doyle had hurt his arm and wasn't able to make it, but it was a very enjoyable concert anyway! The next morning, we slipped in and heard took in a little more of the event. We got to hear Julian Smith play with a string quartet backing him up. Wow! What a great weekend! This is something Dad really loves, and I'm so glad my family got to get in and experience a little of it with him. Some great Quality Time!!

And sew on and sew forth....

The girls and I had a fun week last week. Full of "random" moments! (My girls are all about "random" these days.) We were invited by our friends, Carmelita and Marie Turner to join them in Kentucky. They were on a marathon of sewing bridesmaids' dresses for Marie's wedding. Well, since I love to sew, and I love Carmelita and Marie, and I love Grandma Jolly, (at whose house we were meeting) we headed out. We had a great time cutting, sewing, laughing and enjoying each other's company. Some of the sewing team headed out to go shoe shopping--such an integral part of being a seamstress!! I was happy to provide the entertainment for the week, but since I'm modest and don't like to call attention to myself, I'll let Carmelita or Marie tell you what was so hilariously funny. :) Let's just say that sewing late at night tends to bring out the worst rather than the best in a person!! Thanks, Grandma Jolly for being such a great hostess! BTW, the dress is deep purple (eggplant) and the jacket is silver. Very pretty. (Oh yes, and the shoes are silver satin.)