The Actual Proposal

The thought occurred to me that not everyone has Facebook or has subscribed to our new blog who may wish to watch the video that Benjamin made to propose to me. So....I give it to you here. :-) Enjoy!

The Highland Games

Each year, the Skagit Valley hosts the Highland Games, a festival put on by the Celtic Arts Foundation. Featuring various traditional games (such as stone throwing, hay tossing, etc.), bagpipe competitions, and clan pride, the kilts seem commonplace! If you are of Scottish or Irish heritage, you are likely to find a tent with your clan's name bannered proudly at the front. Vendors selling their wares are scattered throughout, but these aren't your usual fair vendors. Not only will you find curly fries and root beer floats, you'll find haggis and meat pies. Along with "I love Ireland" t-shirts, you'll see kilts, swords, daggers, celtic jewelry, and an array of traditional apparel. Quite intriguing!

Josh and I spent some time wandering around, observing some dancers and musicians, choking down some Haggis for the first time, and cheering on some of the athletes. And after several days of rain and thunderstorms, we were blessed with a beautiful blue sky. :-)  It was definitely a splendid day!

Lavender and Bell

I hoped to have something extraordinary to blog about on my 200th post. Hmm.....I'll just tell you about my Monday. ;-)

Busy as usual, I was able to accomplish quite a few things. I got a good head start on a rather large printing project that's set for this week. With only one minor setback, I'm hoping to finish it in record time! If you're at all familiar with the thickness of "Manuscript Evidence" you may be skeptical.....but I AM determined. :-)

The thought occurred to me yesterday that our lavender may be ready to harvest -- our lavender that we planted several years ago and is finally producing a good size harvest! Last year, since I was in Thailand I missed the harvest so no dried lavender for us. I barely caught it this time! I absolutely LOVE the dark shade of the Hidcote Blue lavender. Definitely my favorite variety.

    

The evening concluded with a FABULOUS concert featuring violinist Joshua Bell. I have been wanting to see Joshua Bell live in concert for years now, so to finally have the opportunity was incredible! It was actually a late birthday present for Christopher, but he confirmed my thoughts.....it was worth the wait. A few months ago I was listening to the classical music station (at a time I wouldn't normally) and I happened to hear them mention that Joshua Bell would be in Bellingham! *Gasp!* He usually only comes to Seattle and the tickets are outrageous. Well.....you can't beat $30 tickets at the Mt. Baker Theatre in Bellingham! I know....I was shocked myself. And of course, the place was sold out. :-)

This is a piece that Joshua Bell performed last night. It was unbelievable! His music nearly brings me to tears, it's so beautiful.

Well, my blog may continue to remain quiet in the coming month or so. I am preparing to go as a counselor to youth camp next week and I am SO looking forward to that!  Then....take a breath......I'll have a weekend to prepare for a lengthy trip to Mexico. More about that later.

Spring '12 Recital

Here are the results of my work this quarter at school. God's been so good to me in so many ways and I've enjoyed learning all these new things!

The Gospel Message

Please take the time to watch this clear presentation of the gospel. It is WORTH your time, trust me. Take ten minutes and consider where you are spiritually. Ten minutes is a grain of sand in the sea of eternity!

Winter Recital '12

Another recital has come and gone. I'll post my solos, but I'll wait to post the duet because Hannah and I are playing it at the Emerging Artist concert next month in La Conner so I don't want to give it ALL away! :-)

**The lighting was horrible the first half of the recital. They finally fixed it during intermission but that explains the funny glow. Yes...I do actually have a face. haha

There is Hope

What a wonderful hope we have to share with people!! I love this song and the truth of its message.

Fall 2011 SVC Recital

Van drives uphill with no engine!

This was a fun experience on our recent trip!

Piano Duet

Spring Recital

Tonight was my Spring Quarter Recital at Skagit Valley College. I have to say that I felt SO much more at ease since I had one recital under my belt. I knew what to expect and that helped. I also felt more confident in my song which made a difference. I absolutely LOVE this song! Not only is it a great song but it's really fun to play. :-)

So school is just about done. I have two classes to attend, but no assignments, no exams. YAY! Now my mind can really get in gear for leaving for Thailand next week. Yup you read that right. NEXT WEEK! 8 days to be exact. Time certainly flies...

100th Post!

So I debated doing some special thing about it being my 100th post. I don't have time to write 100 things about myself and I can't think of anything better. So you just get to hear about my day. :-) Hope that suits.

 Well..ok...so I'll start with yesterday. It was SUCH a great day in the Lord's house! It was busy....oy...VERY busy. But totally worth it. The preaching was phenomenal. Pastor preached that "Vision determines your Venture". Basically, if you don't view the world as a mission field and only as a place to buy food, do business, etc. then you will never win people to the Lord. It has to be an intentional thing. The Lord really opened up my eyes to some areas in my life that I could definitely be more bold and not keep my eyes closed to those I am around every day. The day ended with a great time at Jack in the Box with friends! This morning came early. I had to be at piano lessons at 9:00 and it takes about 45 minutes to get there. Plus other various things before I left. Then I went directly from piano lessons to school back here in Oak Harbor. Then piano practiced for a few hours, worked in the print shop for a few hours, and here in a few minutes we have Bible Training Institute. I am really looking forward to learning more about the Life of Paul! So I am a little indecisive at the moment. I need to choose which song to play for my next recital and I canNOT decide!! I am working on both of these songs (Mendelssohn's Scherzo Op. 16, No.2 and Debussy's Arabesque No.1). So I'm taking votes!! Listen to the songs and let me know which you think I should play.

 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e7lKERM4ULU
 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GWpV7L4YHuU

Oh and other news....I now have my plane ticket for Thailand! Very exciting! Well...until next time.

Victor Borge, The History Of Piano

If any of you have not seen anything by Victor Borge, you are truly missing something in your life. :-) He is great!! I laugh every single time I watch something of his. I hope you enjoy this clip. It's one of my favorites.

Recital Time!

Ok...so I know you've all been sitting on pins and needles waiting to hear about my recital. :-p Just kidding. One thing is for sure, I was riding on wings of prayer and I thank all those that were praying. This was the most nervous I have ever been for a piano performance. I repeat, EVER!!! As I was backstage waiting to go out I was literally shaking but praying. And praying hard. As I sat there I briefly reviewed my starting notes before I began playing. I then realized, "*gasp! I've forgotten what comes after that!!!" Relying on the Lord, I just began. With a few minor blips, He helped me get through and I was even halfway satisfied with the piece. That's way more than what I expected! Playing a piece from memory is sooooo different from playing with music. ahhh! So now the first college recital is over and hopefully it's smooth sailing from here. Enjoy!



The lid was left down from the performance before of me and I didn't even notice till I was already playing. Very frustrating...

A World We Never Touch

This song has SUCH a powerful message! It's very convicting to say the least. I have not been able to find the sheet music to this song (much to my disappointment) so if anyone knows of where I can find it, please let me know!

There Is Hope

This song is very high up on my "favorites list". These girls are not only wonderful singers, but you can tell they mean what they sing! I hope you'll look up the Victorious Valley Girls. They've been a favorite in our house for years. I hope this song is a blessing.

Christopher's Recital

This is Christopher's Recital. It was a couple of weeks ago but it's a long video and youtube kept giving me problems. But here ya go! Enjoy!

Lord, You're All I Need

Brittany and I have been working up a song from opposite sides of the country and this Sunday had the joy of singing together again. So fun! I hope the song's a blessing.

Give Your Heart to God

I don't have time to blog about the Sweetheart's Banquet tonight, but here's a little sneak peak. This is Isaiah and I rehearsing our "Silent Skit". I thought it went so much better during the actual performance but we didn't get a recording of that. More to come....

Student Recital!

Tonight was a big night. It was my very first time putting on a recital! I've played in many, but this was the first time I actually organized one as the teacher. For most of the students, this was their first recital. They all did SUCH a good job! I am so proud of their hard work. I couldn't stop smiling as my students got up to play their pieces. I am SO proud of them all! Not all of the pianists are my students. Three of them play the piano but aren't currently taking lessons. Therefore, they don't have opportunities to play in recitals. So I wanted to give them that opportunity. :-) I was a bit nervous that we would have a small crowd. After all, there were only 9 people playing and that includes myself. BUT the Lord blessed and we had a nice sized crowd. I think that was encouraging for the students. All in all, the night was a huge success, Praise the Lord!

Anna gave me these beautiful flowers! She knows me so well. :-)

Me with my five students.
The whole crew!

My performance of Mozart's Sonata in G, Allegro. Not my BEST time through. A few little blips here and there.