Catching Up

Well, I am finally getting some time to blog. I did a few different slide shows that show some of our fall fun this year. Last month we had a wonderful time having my sister, Sarah, and my nephew, Jonas come for a visit from SC. They had had such warm, dry weather down south for so long, that Sarah was very much looking forward to coming up north for some crisp fall weather. Well, the day I picked her up it was near 90 degrees! We had been having unusually warm weather before she even came, and to her disappointment, it had not changed to our normal fall temps. Our extended family from the Detroit area came up to see Sarah and us. We had planned a nice morning at Papa's Pumpkin Festival in Mt. Pleasant. The kids had some fun, but they were miserable in the heat when they went on the hayride to pick pumpkins. Who knew. . .You can tell by the girls faces in the picture of them watching doughnuts be made that they are quite flushed. You never know what MI weather will hold. Anyway, Sarah was here for 9 days, and toward the end of her visit, we did get some pretty cool windy weather. The day before Sarah and Jonas left, we took a drive up to Cadillac to see our aunt and uncle. We actually were cold that day, and we did get to see some beautiful fall color. Sarah got at least a taste of what she was looking forward to here, and of course, the time together was very special.

Last Day with Jonas and Sarah in MI

Emma's 2nd Gr. Nature Center field trip

Pumpkin Festival in Mt. Pleasant on a 91 degree Fall Day

Are We Okay???

Yes! Some of you may beg to differ, but we are okay. :-) One of you recently mentioned that you have gone to our blog and wondered if things were all right with us. We're just the crazy, busy Stephens is all. Blogging has definitely been put on the backburner for a bit lately. Believe me, much is happening around here. You just haven't heard about it. I have had quite a lot going on with the two groups I sing with from the Center for the Arts. Our Camerata Singers had the opportunity to be a featured group at the MI American Choral Directors Association (ACDA) conference in Grand Rapids. It went great and was a lot of fun. This past weekend was a choral concert featuring the music of Z. Randall Stroope at the center. Chorale and Camerata both sang, so I had two seperate rehearsals last week, and then a dress rehearsal with all of the groups involved in the concert on Sat. morning. Last night our conductor let us go early from Chorale rehearsal. That was quite welcomed by all. Tonight I thankfully had another shortened rehearsal for Camerata. We have a concert in Bay City on Fri. and one in Mt. Pleasant Sun. afternoon. Whew! A lot happened all at once in the scheduling there. Next up is our Christmas concert at the center on Dec. 14. I think it will be a terrific concert, great for families. I have the privilege of singing "O Holy Night" at that concert and thank God for the opportunity to perform a song that means something from my heart. The arrangement is quite powerful.

In addition to the opportunities with the community groups, Kris and I are busy with school and church music. Please pray for us, for strength and endurance, and for these opportunities to reach hearts for Christ through the music we are teaching. Special programs are coming up soon. In the school, I am working with the preschool and elementary children on our Nov. 30 concert called "Christmas Around the World." In the church, children's choir is singing on Dec. 2 in our morning worship service. For the evening service on Dec. 2, we will be having our SS Christmas Program. I am enjoying working with all the different ages of kids during the SS hour each Sunday from now until the program. I pray that these kids will be so amazed at our God's love and sing from their hearts as we celebrate Christmas for it's real meaning.

The girls are doing well. Emma just got her first report card in 2nd grade. She did very well, with all A's, and we thanked the Lord for the abilities He is giving her to learn and retain so much. Olivia is doing quite well in K-4. She is learning blends now with the letters they have worked on this year. All of the vowels have been taught. We have worked on the consonants "B," "L," and are currently on "T" week. Tye-dye day is tomorrow--so exciting! :-) She has a Thanksgiving Feast coming up next week. That's always a K-4 highlight too. Emma's Fall Party is this Fri., and it sounds like that will be lots of fun as well.

Well, I have at least updated you on some things. :-) Our life stays exiciting, and while we are tired often, I love so much of what I am doing and see God working in all of these areas. I know that I have to be careful though because my excitement in wanting to do so much can backfire for me physically. Thank the Lord, He is keeping me strong! I know too that Dec. 16 (church cantata) is not too far away, and then we can relax!!! :-)