All By Myself

It's Friday night, and I am home alone. Not in a Macauly Caulkin kind of way. Tori is in LA at DCLA, a Christian youth conference, and Kat went to Bear Lake with a friend and her family for the weekend. So, here I am, alone in the house. A couple of years ago, I would have been freaking out. Tonight, I am revelling in the quiet. I didn't stay home though. I went on a "date" with Sammee. We went to Old Town Actor's Studio to see "Dr. Faustus." I love Shakespeare, but Christopher Marlow, well.....it was a well acted performed play.

Now it's Saturday. I had a wonderful non mom day. I had what I wanted for lunch, then got to have dinner with my friend Bobi. My non mom time ends tomorrow evening. I'm not sure what time Kat will be home, but she will be home tomorrow, and Tori and the crew will be home from LA on Monday morning. As much as I am enjoying my time without them, I do miss them. The house is unusually quiet right now. And I find myself talking to the dog, the guinea pigs, and even the TV.

Tori is having a blast at the conference. I haven't gotten a lot of information from her, but the bits and pieces i have received have included last night's main assembly called the Big Room. Tori was interviewed on Friday and was on the big screen. She won a water bottle answering trivia questions, and she got the drumstick of the worship band drummer. She even found an orange cover for her cell phone during the week (for those of you who know Tori, orange is very important, and a huge victory). I anticipate listening to her for an entire week, hearing tales of the conference.

And, her love for service has risen up again. When she gets home, we HAVE to put together popcorn boxes for the two families who housed them this week and for the bus driver who did such a good job this week. I forgot to mention that on Thursday, as the crew was leaving Orange County for LA, the brakes went out on the bus. The driver took out a vine, injured no one on the bus or on the street, and did not damage any other vehicles. Tori is a bit grateful. And, the bus driver is from Blackfoot, Idaho. I love my daughter's heart for others. So next week, we will get cards and popcorn to send to all of these people.

I feel honored to have the children God gave me. My kids have the largest hearts for others that I have met. And I am not just saying that because I'm Mom. I have seen Kat in tears because, regardless of her efforts, she is not influencing a friend the way she is trying to. I have seen Tori in tears because she can't help someone like she wants to. I have seen Sammee in tears because she can't please someone. I love their hearts.

I think I have babbled on enough about my amazing kids. Always remember as your kids grow up to look at the positive aspects of your children. Sometimes the positive overruns the negative.

DCLA Freedom!

I shipped Tori off to Los Angeles with 34 other teens and adults to attend a Christian Youth Conference known as DCLA. The group left last night at 6:00, and arrived in LA at 9:00 this morning, Pocatello time. This was a huge undertaking on our parts.

First, when Tori decided that she wanted to go in January, I was working part time at a tax prep company. Not enough money to pay the bills, much less find extra money to pay for a trip to LA. And then there was the spending money issue. I know, God has a very large wallet, and his budget is WAY bigger than mine. But, I am also a realist. I have spent 13 years being a single mom living below the poverty level. However, God has shown up before and blessed my girls financially for ministry opportunities.

Four years ago Sammee and Tori decided they wanted to go on tour with the Continentals. For those of you who haven't heard of the Continentals, it's a Christian singing/dancing group that tours the country. They have groups for ages 12-16, 17-21, an acting troupe, and a group for 25 and older. They tour the US and Europe. The only requirements were that you could sing and dance a bit. The catch? We had to raise over $3,000 each in only 4 months. And that did not include plane tickets or spending money. I was very discouraged, but the girls got rolling. Donations started pouring in from church family, relatives, friends. The girls sold popcorn at church (of course, from the Popcorn Shop), and we had a yard sale. Mom helped out, of course, mostly with airfare and spending money. God showed up, and they raised all the money they needed to. And the girls had an amazing experience! They even mentioned some of the kids who were there because Mom and Dad just wrote a check.

Where am I going with this? Nowhere, really. Just reminding myself that God shows up when you are doing what He tells you to do. Do I think that God told Sam and Tori to go on tour? Yes! Strange as it seems, Continentals was their version of a mission trip. You don't have to go somewhere and build a school for underprivileged children to be on a mission trip. You just have to show Jesus to people who might not know him.

Tori may not be on a mission trip this time, but I know God told her to go to DCLA. At this conference she will learn new things to help her bring her friends to Jesus. She already brings her friends to Youth Group and church. In fact, she dated a boy and he joined the Praise Band. I think God helped us get the money for DCLA to assist Tori in being a leader in youth group next year. As a senior, she has the leadership qualities to do an awful lot for the Kingdom.

Okay, I think I am done for now. As I get updates from Los Angeles, I will post the amazing stuff that happens to the kids from First Baptist Church Pocatello.

Why do I feel boring?

I have been having a hard time blogging recently. I have decided that the main reason I don't blog as often right now is that I think my life is boring now. Well, less exciting, less stuff to talk about. I got a permanent job, so no more ranting about the job hunt, people who won't hire me, etc. No yakking about how God is taking care of me and the girls even though I am making no money. My life is now just "blah."



I do have some news though. I found out yesterday that Sammee will be working all summer at ISU's Summer Reperatory Theatre as the Artistic Director/Producer's personal assistant. She is so excited about that! Also, Tori found out that there is a part that Blair wants her to do in "All Shook Up." I'm not really sure how she will go about auditioning for it, or if she has to. That part of their phone conversation was a bit fuzzy. And, Sammee is doing "Oh, Dad, Poor Dad. Momma's Hung You in the Closet, and I'm Feeling So Sad" (yes, that is the name of a play) at the Westside this summer. I would like to tell her that she is over scheduled, but she is an adult now, and must make her own scheduling decisions.

Well, that's it for now. More boring news as it becomes available.