A little Mulan fun!!

this was taken in Sept of 2008. This is Molly with Audrey...who played Mulan in last weekend's production. she loves that this picture exists. I think she held it against all the other little chickadees that were vying for Mulan's attention.

here's my little trooper at last Friday's opening night of Mulan.

and my other trooper (who is caring for #4 and #5 while we are away and from what I hear, they are being punks!!) and her sweet best friend, Cam. Love these girls so much.

All of these pix in this post were taken by Joy B. I guess I should seek permission before posting but she's such a sweetie pie, she'll tell me to go ahead...but I will still check with her before posting. just so ya know.

loved all these little chicks. so sweet.

Molly is back on the upper stage, right side.

The Matchmaker scene. So perfect. so colorful. Loved the Chinese Brides. Audrey did such a fantastic job!!

keep 'em guessing!! 

little snowflakes in the great avalanche, which is posted below.  Magnif!

you can find Molly.

Mulan takes a bow after saving China. 

Posers that I love immensely.

and here is the felt avalanche, sadly out of order but so magnificent. 

I must say that though the tech week and practices leading up to last weekend were tiring and such...the experience was so worth it!! Molly LOVED every moment of it all...even the ones where she pretended not to know me or Mel. Little diva. loved her stage presence and exuberance.

I must also say that Audrey, who played Mulan, did such an amazing job. This was her very first production and man alive, you wouldn't have known that had I not told you...her voice was clear, strong and beautiful. I don't think she faltered once! after a weekend of four shows, she held strong.

Molly totally fan-girl-ed Audrey and A handled it with grace and patience...the top pic above. melt my heart...when we found out that she'd be Mulan, I told Molly about that pic and she reminded me to find it so she could show Audrey at practice. We've been friends with A's fam since 2006 (history club, baby!!) and haven't seen them much in the past few years...so Molly didn't know that we'd spent some quality time with these folks in times past.

All in all, I will probably blog more about Mulan in the days to come, for it left such an impression on our lives....but for tonight, I just wanted to get these pics on the ol' blog.

The opportunity to be a part of Center Grove Fine Arts Academy was well worth every moment!!

Fearfully and wonderfully made, no doubt about it.

Greetings to you, on this rainy Wednesday.

I'm actually sitting in the lobby of a hospital in Cincy, waiting on my hubby, who is consulting on their floors. The old guy in the next section of seats is snoring so loudly that he keeps waking himself up....I'm cracking up!

It's nice because it gives me some time to process the news that we received yesterday morning. Our 13 year old son, Levi Taylor, who just turned 13 on Halloween, has scoliosis, as evidenced in the first picture above.

A few weeks/months ago, I'd noticed how humpy his back was, and chalked it up to the fact that he was growing and changing...but when the right side was predominantly more bulge-y, I knew we needed to get him checked out. On Monday of this week, we got a last minute appt to see my sister's family chiropractor, Dr. Laux...He did some checking and took some x-rays and we went back to view them yesterday.

He popped those bad boys up on his light, stepped away and BAM! Levi's life took a turn down a different road.  A road where he will probably always have to deal with back pain...(how could he not. look at that curve!!), a road that will require no doubt a brace of some sort, exercises, continual and monitored physical activity, possibly surgery, more testing and probably visits to orthopedic specialists at Riley.

This is all an unknown currently. We have another consultation with Dr. Laux next Tuesday. He will be using these next few days to investigate further, consult with peers and gather more info. He thinks there may be more to it (he mentioned Syndrome) which wouldn't surprise any of us, with all the challenges that this tender little guy has faced from birth. I'm so thankful to God for putting us in Dr. L's care though because he is ON IT!! He did tell us that Levi's got a good, large chest. This is good because one of the main concerns with Scoli (my new nickname for it) is how it affects the heart and lungs. Levi has good breathing and his lungs sound very good. Also, the way the vertebrae can twist and turn, which some of his do, is a concern with the spinal cord. Scoli is generally worse for girls but I'm sure I'll be learning so much more about this. It is not a disease. It is genetic. It usually appears at the onset of puberty.
I've received a lot of comforting and encouraging messages from friends on FB. The one that I just got a half an hour ago made me cry in the middle of this crazy lobby.

It said that Levi is fearfully and wonderfully made by his Creator and that he is in His hands, how this isn't a setback for him or for our family. Means so much to read that...it's like...you know these things but sometimes you've got to hear them so thank you, Louanne. It means so much to us.

Please be praying for Levi. He is aware of the situation, maybe even milking it a bit, as he should...and reminds us that we should be so gentle with him and not hit him (he says this mostly to Ethan and Mel), since his spine curves. what a guy.

Thank you for visiting the blog...I'll be back with more updates for sure.

Harvest Party update, Levi turns 13 and other happenings...

Just a small portion of the participants at the 13th Annual Harvest Bash
I need to go find a pic of our winners and will publish them in the next post
1st Prize: Brooks F. as an old man
2nd Prize: The S Family as Capt. Calhoun, Wreck-it Ralph, Fix it Felix and  Vanillope or however you spell it.
3rd Prize: Nicole M. as Cinderella

Molly played her role as Wonder Woman with zest and fierceness...we've come a long way from 1976 and my terry cloth swimsuit, don't ya think?

THIS little guy turned 13 on Oct 31. It's hard to fathom that I only have one non-teen in the house. Well, I guess Will isn't a teen any longer...and Ethan has a few short months left in his teen years....

Levi the Dino with our friend, Jen as Princess Leia. One of my favorite pix of all time. This was taken at our first harvest party!

Just a few pages from Levi's scrapbook

He likes his labeled clothing.

We'd already had a family party for this guy but you can't have your actual day without cake and candles, presents and people singing to you, right? Note: Levi is NOT 58.  but 5 + 8 = 13 so that had to work! 

Another awesome event on Oct 31 was an event with our Calvary Chapel family called "Take Back the Night" and we praised the Lord and worshipped, fellowshipped and ate that evening. Young Band got to lead some worship time.

This pic and the next three were taken by Joylily, friend to Will, Ethan and Mel.  She is pictured above, playing guitar in the Calvary Chapel pic. She snaps the coolest pics.

Had so much fun on 10/17/15 walking the B-Line Trail in Bloomington. Some impromptu pics may just end up being this year's Christmas card. Hope ya don't mind the preview. Thank you, Joy...for such fun memories.

eventually, I'll be the shortest one here...got my fingers crossed that Molly is average height like me.

The excitement is building at Young Manor, as next week begins tech week for Mulan Jr. Pictured here is David, our friend, Jeff and a gaggle of guys setting up the stage for this weekend's performances of Annie Jr. We can't wait to see how this whole process unfolds!

Levi and I had some time just the two of us yesterday afternoon so we visited his little brother.  Such a beautiful first day of November...and below....

I'd told Levi, rather jokingly, that when he turned 13, he could try driving....he didn't forget that so after we visited Jack's spot, I let him give it a try...and he lasted for 7 seconds. Such a fun guy.




I think I know why I tend to ignore my blog...I have so much in my head and so much going on, that I just don't even know which path to follow. So if I seem silent or scattered, it's for good reason.
And besides that, blogger is acting up tonight...is that a sign from the Lord that I should be doing other things this evening? maybe...

A few things currently taking place:

1.) Molly's tech week for Mulan Jr begins next week. I hear it's a long week but so much fun so we are, all of us, gearing up for a memorable time. Honestly, it's such an impressive operation...when those youngsters (8-18) get up to practice their songs, lines, moves whatever....tears just well up in my fool eyes. there is just something about kids singing, performing and the like. I hope this is just the beginning of a long and joyful part of our lives.

2.) We continue to wait and wonder about this current lawsuit. it's sad and it makes my heart hurt every day. In fact, helping David out more and more with the business (and heck, just general running of a home, paying bills and such makes you realize how many incompetent people there are, sadly myself included occasionally, and how much people will "screw" you over. pardon me) When you are married to someone like David, this is glaringly obvious. People are wicked and desperate. I need to lay that at the Lord's feet EVERY single day. 

3.) The Harvest Bash was a little bit more low key this year, which was fantastic, and was so much fun! I hope to have more pictures on here very soon, as listed above. 

4.) I have more things I could post...boy do I but I will close now. 

We covet your prayers on the running of this business. I am continually impressed at David's ability to MOVE FORWARD. We have faced some very stressful situations this year and we are both so glad that OCTOBER IS OVER. Just when I think/hope/believe that things may get easier (and they're not bad, or unmanageable, just hard), we are thrown another curve ball....

Life is challenging and I'm thankful for the struggle. Thankful for the amazing people that I get to be around in the everyday struggle, holding each other accountable, laughing, fighting, hiding and seeking, singing and praising...

There is JOY in the Journey.