Life In Pictures

Life has been busy lately.

Prom season, end-of-year church ministries, track meets, etc.

I love it all.

Here are some highlights from the past few weeks…

There were 22 kids here at the house before last week’s prom:

Kids these days look so sophisticated, compared to the 80s when I was a teenager.

Case in point:

(You’re welcome).

I was also the prom photographer and after taking an hour and a half worth of pre-prom photos, my fabulous assistant (my husband Doug) and I drove to the prom venue to begin setting up.

It is difficult to make a ski lodge look pretty, but the class of 2014 pulled it off. The theme was The Great Gatsby.

My son and his date looked incredibly stylish and classic:

The evening was filled with high energy, great music, and good food.

However, today’s dancing had us adults at the prom perplexed.

Apparently, all you need to be able to dance these days is gather many people in a tight circle and jump up and down.

If you are a guy, it is also cool to immediately remove your shirt after dinner and spend the rest of the evening in just your vest.

I also photographed last year’s prom and by the time the prom king was crowned, he looked like this:

(His tux pants were also rolled up to his knees 🙂 ).

Ah, youth.

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Track season at our high school is nearing its end but it’s been a good one for our daughter Julia, who qualified for the state meet in the high jump.

We were just at a meet this past Saturday and I saw a wonderful example of sportsmanship.

A young man from our high school is a true track star. He runs long distances while barely breaking a sweat and is gracious to all of his fellow competitors.

After he handily won the 3200, he turned right around and cheered for all of his fellow runners as they crossed the finish line. He shook several hands, then cheered loudest for the boy who came in last.

That boy promptly collapsed onto the track, in obvious pain.

“Get up!” one of his teammates barked mercilessly.

Rather than yell at him, this young man walked over to help him to his feet until he could get to his coach.

Class act.

It’s fun taking photos at track meets because of all the cool action shots one can capture.

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May also means Memorial Day parades and our little town does it right. Seeing the faces of veterans always brings tears to my eyes.

I am so incredibly grateful for our veterans and it is always heartwarming to see so many people turn out to honor their valor and sacrifice.

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Each year, our church hosts a Mom To Mom group.

It is a place where young moms can come for a couple of hours, drop off their kids with amazing childcare workers, and be ministered to by older moms who serve as mentors. There is some teaching (via video), crafts, helpful hints, enormous support and encouragement, and of course, lots and lots of food.

Mom To Mom was created by Linda Anderson, a mom of three,  many years ago. I joined a Mom To Mom group at our local church when I was a young mom and it was a lifesaver for me.

I am still in touch with one of my mentors, Judy. She is the one who encouraged me to take the time to write because God gave me a gift and to not use that gift was to deny one of the reasons that I am on this earth.

I sent her the first Bible study I wrote many years later and she said she cried tears of joy. 🙂 She continues to inspire me to this day with our own amazing creativity.

She was encouraged to paint many years ago after putting her brushes and paints away. She picked up her brushes and became an award-winning painter. To this day, I wake up every morning and see two of her beautiful, framed watercolors on my wall which serve as visual reminders to create beauty while I am in this world.

This year, Linda Anderson herself came to visit our little church and her visit was wonderful. I am now a mentor to the young moms at our Mom To Mom and it was a thrill for me to meet the woman who has helped so many over the years.

God gave us a beautiful day.

We all found Linda to be warm, funny, wise, and extremely encouraging.

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May was also the month of our son’s last concert with the high school band.

He won the Louis B. Armstrong Jazz Award and he was thrilled

At our school, there is a long-standing tradition of giving the seniors blue blankets that they can take to college with them to remember their years in the band. After our band director personally handed out the blankets one by one, there was a massive group hug.

I may or may not have shed a tear or two.

I am in big trouble when graduation rolls around next month. (wistful smile).

Life is beautiful.