Thank you

 Y'all are amazing. 

Thank you for all the support and love that you send us in each way that you send it. The texts, the posts, the calls, the hugs- we are so blessed to have each of you in our tribe. If everyone had a tribe like you guys, the world would be pretty darn near perfect!

I have good news that you all have earned with your love and intercession for me:

One, I have the MRIs scheduled back to back week after next so two, it'll be only one stick (provided veins cooperate, so keep praying about that, haha) and three, one single appointment and four, they've already called in a sedative for me. Can you FEEL that weight fall off my shoulders? Could you hear it as it hit the ground and crumbled? I almost cried. I was so relieved when she told me she had a spot for back to back MRIs that it looked like I was doing Snoopy's suppertime dance. Thank you, Jesus, and everybody who is covering me! 

You guys are amazing. Don't just pray for me- turn your attention and power to Gaza, Ukraine, the Caribbean islands destroyed by Beryl, a local shelter; pick a crisis and send some of your love that way as well. There's never a shortage of need and I think we all underestimate our power to affect change. For starters, you could be praying for safety over kids this summer as they head off to camps or that they have enough to eat without two meals at school, summer boating safety, Fourth of July activities as they generally involve explosives and alcohol, and so on. Adopt a cause and go be a champion. You won't be alone and we are so much stronger together. 

The next step is the surgical consult next week. I'll keep you posted, but I am very much looking forward to upcoming posts about people other than me! 

Thank you for everything! Be safe celebrating July 4th!

Introducing Otto

 This kid couldn't wait to try out an instrument in middle school. After considering his options, he decided to go a route that nobody in the family had taken before. He'd waffled back and forth between brass and woodwind, but upon hearing that his Pap, his Uncle Kelly, and his Uncle Rob had all done the trombone already, this kid decided to play the saxophone. Good luck, buddy- you're on your own. None of us have done anything with instruments requiring reeds, haha!

Here he is, headed into his first public performance, which was aptly named the sixth grade band demonstration.

Incredible kudos to his new-to-our-district teacher for teaching them how to read music, including clefs, rests, all that jazz, assembling their instruments, cleaning said instruments, and how to make recognizable sounds all within the first quarter. There are a lot of jobs I'm glad I don't have, and boy, middle school band teacher ranks right up there. God bless her.

Anyway, I thought the three teachers did a smart thing by dividing the groups of kids up and showcasing what they could do before putting them all together on stage for the songs. I'd imagine some of it was Covid-driven since we couldn't all pile into smaller rooms together, but it was really neat to see where they have class, watch the assemblage of instruments, see the kids interact together musically, and then all return to the auditorium for the rest. 

Here he is on stage, below. I tried to give other kids Snoopy sunglasses as I don't know if their parents are okay with them being featured online. Allow me to introduce Otto, the saxophone in residence at our house. Thankfully, he has enough air or power or control or whatever is required to actually sound musical as opposed to a duck being trod upon. And I was delighted to confirm that the last song of the concert was indeed recognizably the band classic, "Hot Cross Buns."