I have a little under a week now to prepare all the music for a wedding. I will be playing my first ever wedding on Saturday, August 6. This should be interesting. It's a girl at our church that's getting married, which she just started planning a couple months ago, and she waited until a couple days ago to ask a pianist (me) to play for her wedding. This our church's 1st wedding, our Pastor's 1st wedding to officiate, my 1st wedding to play for, so this should be interesting indeed. I'm nervous, but the way I look at it, I have learned songs in much shorter amounts of time (try a couple hours), so I'm up for it. Just keep me and this wedding in your prayers!!! What's really got me nervous is that fact that I won't know if all the music was approved by the Pastor until tomorrow. (The bride and groom were meeting with him tonight to go over the ceremony.) Here are the songs that are being played (which the order may change). The prelude includes "Amazing Grace", "Everything I Do (I Do It For You)", "Because You Loved Me" (that song by Celine Dion), and then the parents will be escorted in while "Surely the Presence of the Lord Is In This Place" is being played, and then "Canon in D" for the Bridesmaids, Ringbearer, Flowergirl, and then of course "The Wedding March" for the bride, and then during the unity candle, "I Will Be Here" by Steven Curtis Chapman, which I will be accompanying a singer on, and finally whatever the name of that song is that's played when the wedding is over and the bride and groom go back up the aisle. WHAT IS THE NAME OF THAT SONG? It's like, right on the tip of my tongue and I can't get it out! lol Besides the rehearsal and wedding next weekend, I have to put together 3 games for a baby shower that will be taking place next Sunday at church, as well as get the shower cake made!! Then a week after that, school starts!!!! And then a couple weeks after that, football season starts. I'm going to be busy, busy, busy, but I think I'd rather be busy like that, than sitting around the house doing nothing all day in my PJ's. Of course, ask me again in say September or October if I'd rather be sitting around the house doing nothing all day in my PJ's!!!

This past week was indescribable. Sunday was the best day of all, probably. The Spirit really moved in church...the Lord was truly there meeting with us. The Pastor's wife sang "Thank You" by Ray Boltz, and there was not a dry eye in the place. I was at the piano, playing and crying all the while. Sunday night, I was baptized, and Michael's parents came to be there for it, which made it all the more special for me. There were actually 3 other baptisms besides myself. Michael asked the person that does the music schedule if I could sing Sunday night...he likes putting me on the spot like that, lol, and he (the music schedule person) put me in place of himself and his wife singing a duet. I sang a beautiful song called "The Blood Is Still There". I will post the lyrics at the end of this entry. That song will forever have a special meaning to me. I was really nervous about being baptized (I'm kinda freaked out about going completely under water), but by the time it actually came time for it, I wasn't nervous at all. Our Pastor was even nice enough to let me feel of the water before church to make sure it was warm enough for me. :-)

I finished the letter I had been working on writing to my parents (had I even mentioned that before?), which I would post here, but it's really long. Anyway, I got it in the mail yesterday, and they got it today. I was honestly worried that my parents would never talk to me again over it, but my Mom called me today to let me know she received it and that she even thought it was sweet of me to take the time to write the letter. She didn't agree with much I had to say in the letter, but she even went so far as to say she appreciated it. Wow. That was an answered prayer in itself. She had once told me that if I brought up the topic this letter was about, that we couldn't have a relationship, so you can imagine why I would be terrified to even bring it up. I just feel better now knowing that I planted that seed at least, and maybe one day it will grow into something.

Another great, wonderful piece of news and another answered prayer, it looks like it's going to work out for Travis to go to Grace (our church) for school! Michael found out last week he's getting a raise, which would cover tuition, and I am going to be helping out with the K4 & K5 class so that I will only have to make one round trip every day instead of 2, which is such a huge help to us! I have been praying so hard about Travis' school situation, and the Lord really heard my prayer!! Now we have to get his uniform and his school supplies. We got his school shots today, and I must say that Travis was a brave little toaster :-) He had to get 3 shots, and the first 2 he didn't even flinch. The last one though, the nurse warned Travis that it was going to burn a little bit, and Travis said, "Ow! Ow!" and then he frowned and said "I don't like school shots!" But he didn't cry one bit!

I am going to catch a few minutes of "Who's Line", so that's it for now! 'Night!