Our Entrepreneur

It's old news by now, but our Charissa loves to sell things. When she was four years old, she would drag a little play table out our front door and attempt to sell things. First, she opened what she called "Art Ann's". (Alliteration was very important for business names...then and now.) Her business plan was simple: She would draw pictures and people would pay her to do so. In fact, she drew pictures on demand. One day, as she sat at her little table, she was approached by her second customer. (Her first was a UPS man.) This man had stopped to see our neighbor, but our neighbor wasn't home. He wanted to leave our neighbor a note, but didn't have any paper or pens. He noticed Charissa sitting with a stack of paper and a box of crayons and assumed she would let him borrow supplies. What he didn't know is that Charissa is a shrewd businesswoman who was happy to oblige...for a small fee! This of course led to a discussion about having compassion and looking out for the needs of others!!!

I'm happy to say that Charissa's business plan and her heart have grown over the years. She now has a little non-profit business (Delicious Donations) that she has created that raises money for charity. For the past two years, her focus has been on helping orphans in China. These particular orphans have more challenges than the average orphan (no orphan has it easy!). These children have physical problems that need medical attention. Sometimes they have physical deformities. Sometimes they have heart problems. All of them need to be loved. A wonderful organization, The Philip Hayden Foundation, cares for the needs of these little ones with great love and tenderness. They provide surgeries and homes with loving "nannies" in a little village made just for the orphans. As you know, our family has a soft spot for China. Tom and I always imagined that we would be living in China, serving the Lord and His people there. So, it's no wonder that our oldest has grown up with a heart for China.

Charissa held a lemonade stand/bake sale at our neighborhood yard sale this year and was able to earn $128.71 for The Philip Hayden Foundation. In response to her hard work and concern for the children at the orphanage, a new arrival was named, "Charissa" in her honor. We are so touched and Charissa is very much honored. Enjoy the photo of beautiful little "Charissa" in China! And, if the Lord prompts you to help with the tremendous need at this orphage, you can donate here: http://www.chinaorphans.org/donate.htm

Audrey's Locks of Love

It would be difficult to find someone who hasn't felt the pain of cancer in one way or another. Tom lost his father to cancer. I lost my dear girlfriend to cancer. My mother has fought breast cancer...twice. Aunts, Uncles, Cousins, Grandparents, Friends...we've all felt the fear, sadness, anger and more.

Some time ago, I heard about a program called "Locks of Love". This program accepts donations of hair to make wigs for children who have lost their hair due to cancer or other serious illness. Audrey mentioned to me that she would like to cut her hair short and I told her about the Locks of Love program. She immediately wanted to donate. In order to donate however, hair must be in a ponytail that is at least 10" long. This took some time...and patience for a four-year-old. But the day finally came. As I was filling out the form, Audrey asked me to write a note. She asked that I please specify that she would like to give her hair to a little girl like her who "has no hair at all."

The day of the big event, I made an appointment at a fancy children's hair salon. I figured I would pay a little extra to make the memory more special. But, after a small food allergy fiasco at a local bakery, we arrived 5 minutes late for our appointment. The woman at the front desk told us that she would not keep our appointment. We were so sad!

So, we loaded everyone back into the car and began to drive home. As I drove, I thought, "We are not fancy people. We are just your average, hard-working family and we should go to our regular average, hard-working hair dresser to have the cut done." So, we drove to our Great Clips and walked in. I told the front desk that our daughter wanted her hair cut for Locks of Love. The woman told us that the haircut would be FREE, then she knelt down by Audrey and told her how very proud she was of her and told her that she had lost her father to cancer this year. It was such a beautiful moment and I know that Audrey will never forget the feeling she felt looking in her hairdresser's eyes. I immediately thanked God for letting the "fancy" appointment fall through. God had surely allowed us to walk into our hair salon and experience this special time with a very special hair dresser. Here are the photos from the experience. I'm so proud of my baby girl.

Remember 9/11

Our memories of September 11, 2oo1 are probably a little different than most. Our sweet boy, Harrison was born shortly after the twin towers tragedy. I remember looking at my baby and feeling such joy, then looking at the television screen and feeling such heartache. How could we be happy when so many were so sad?

But, that is a theme with Harrison (and each of our children). When life seems too difficult to handle, they always bring laughter and smiles. There is truly never a dull moment with children in the house. They remind us that there's always hope.

This year, Harrison received a sweet little hamster (who he named, "Goldey" - his spelling). Goldey is a lot like Harrison: quiet and gutsy. Goldey has a little ball that he can be locked inside. (There are ventilation holes!) When Goldey is in his plastic ball armor, he is fearless. He chases the cats and pretty much explores every square inch of downstairs in our home. He's a cutie. Of course, we're all getting used to his nocturnal hamster wheel marathons, but he's still cute.

Happy Birthday, Harrison!

Our Ballerinas

No, it's not THE Parthenon. It looks a lot better than the real one. This is Centennial Park here in Nashville; home of the Centennial Youth Ballet at Metro Parks. Charissa is beginning her fifth year of ballet and Audrey is pictured here on her first day of class. Of course, we already pulled out the bun. (They're ALWAYS too tight.)

Charissa was thrilled to learn that she will be dancing in the "Mini-Nutcracker" this year. The Centennial Youth Ballet will present The Mini-Nutcracker in Harpeth Hall School's Davis Auditorium the first weekend in December. (Friday, Saturday & Sunday) Sponsored by Friends of Metro Dance and the Dance Division of the Metro Board of Parks and Recreation, the production has become one of Nashville's most popular holiday traditions for families with young children. To assist young audience members' shorter attention spans, the ballet is condensed and includes narration. It is one of our favorite events of the year. We're so happy that Charissa will be dancing as an angel this year! (We always knew she was an angel!) If any family members want to come to Nashville for the performance, we would LOVE to have you join us! We have air mattresses. :)

Mentos Launch

In case you've ever wondered, mixing mentos candy with a 2-liter of diet soda makes quite an exciting afternoon.

If you have a hobby lobby near you, you can buy the kit that includes the screw-on launching mechanism. You fill the tube with mentos, pull the cord and run. It was actually quite shocking. I wouldn't recommend eating mentos and drinking diet soda. I think the explosion could be impressive.

Needless to say, I've lost my taste for Mentos. Now, they're simply a science experiment.

I'm Thirty-Four Again

Yes, I'm thirty-four again. No, I'm not denying my true age by clinging to last year's age. I simply miscalculated last year. I know it's a sign that life is a little too hectic for me, but at least I didn't miscalculate something more serious. And, imagine my joy when I realized I wasn't thirty-five yet!

To celebrate, our family had lunch at Buca Di Beppo. As a special suprise, Tom and the kids purchased a lovely brown wicker chair to sit on our front porch. The idea is that the chair is my special quiet place to sit and read a book, pray, etc. I tried it out and had to chuckle at the results. I sat down with my book and in a matter of seconds, all of my children were seated next to me. One by one the questions started, "What book are you reading mommy?" "What is that chapter about?" "Do you like the book, Mommy?" They are sweet kids. And I don't suspect life will be quiet around here any time soon. I wouldn't have it any other way.

Rachel's Denver Trip

The Music Playhouse is looking for a new city director for the Denver/Boulder area. I had the opportunity to fly out and begin a search. It was a whirlwind trip since I left on Monday morning and arrived home Tuesday night. But I was able to accomplish a lot while I was there.

As I was driving to a meeting, I pulled off the road and took this photo. I wish I could have spent a little more time taking in the beauty of the mountains. (I missed a few exits as I was distracted by the amazing views!) I hope to visit the area for a vacation one day!