Our Visit to the PA Renaissance Faire

On the Saturday of Labor Day weekend, we surprised Jordan and took him to the PA Renaissance Faire which is about 30 min. from our house. He had seen the commercials on TV, but really didn’t know what to expect. When we entered the gates, you could tell that he had no idea what was going on—especially when people came up to him and started talking in an old English manner. It was children’s weekend at the Faire so he got to participate in a few special activities. We got to help celebrate the Queen’s birthday with a cupcake and participate in a parade for her honor. We enjoyed watching two jousting competitions and a giant chess match. The highlights of our day were the two shows that we watched featuring Barely Balanced. They are a group of acrobats and stilt walkers and they were amazing. There are two guys and a girl in the group and the girl actually bent over backward without touching her hands on the ground and the one guy stood on her hip bones. She must have weighed about 100 pounds and I am not sure how she did it. I think the group could definitely win America’s Got Talent if they entered. We enjoyed our day more than I think we were expecting to. My final thoughts as I left were: I am glad that I did not live during that time period, and there were a lot of very strange people at the Faire-workers and visitors.

The Friends in the Bed

Every since Jordan moved from his crib to a bed, he has been accumulating things that sleep in his bed with him. In his toddler bed he didn’t have as much room as he does now so what used to be about 5-10 things is now about 30 things. I use the word things instead of stuffed animals, because in addition to the numerous stuffed things that live on the bed you will also find a plastic thing that looks like a pink sea anemone (his beloved Squirmy), another plastic ball thing that has soft spikes on it which smells like petroleum (named Squishy), a bendy orange rose pen (that he insisted we get at the dollar store), and two foam sunflowers in pots that say New England Organics (his dad got them for him at a Bio-solids conference).

The most beloved members of the bed are his favorite “friends”: the before mentioned Squirmy, a dog with big eyes named Pal, a small Reese’s Cup guy with arms and legs named Chocolate, a blanket with a teddy bear head in the middle of it named Bear Blankie (thank you Aunt Robbie for buying it when he was born), and the newest edition to the beloved friends-a dog named Bullet. These are the friends who get to actually leave the bed on most days and travel with him to different places when we go away. Three Build-a Bears also occupy the bed. They are Haney-the tan soft bear, the brown sugar puppy which is named Happy, and a cat named Fluffy Stripes Weaver (I had nothing to do with the purchase of this animal. He was with his aunt and Grandma Weaver.) Some other friends worth mentioning are: Ben Franklin Bear (we got him on our trip to Philly last year), Uncle Terry Bear (a care bear that he received from my uncle), a Beanie Baby white angel bear to remember Samuel, and a 1 ½ foot tall snowman named Freddie. Several celebrities also get to reside on the bed: Clifford (the puppy-the normal size Clifford would be way too big), Charlie Brown, Blue from Blue’s Clues, Babe the pig, and Dunkin’ the doughnut from the Doughnut Man videos.

Needless to say, the friends take up half of the bed, and Jordan gets the other half.

Music to my Ears

I LOVE WJTL! I am so thankful that we live in an area with such a great radio station. After a really hard weekend (long story) I was so blessed to get into my car two times today and both times a song that spoke directly to my heart was playing. It is amazing how God can use music to calm our souls. Here are the songs.
Caedmon's Call - There Is A Reason From the album Overdressed
Late at night I wonder why
Sometimes I wonder why
Sometimes I'm so tired I don't even try
Seems everything around me fails
But I hold on to the promise
That there is a reason

Chorus:Late at night, the darkness makes it hard to see
The history of the saints who've gone in front of me
Through famine, plague and disbelief His hand was still upon them
Cause there is a reason There is a reason

He makes all things good
He makes all things good
There's a time to live and a time to die
A time for wonder and to wonder why
Cause there is a reason
There is a reason

I believe in a God who sent His only son
To walk upon this world and give His life for us
With blood and tears on a long, dark night
We know that He believed
That there is a reason
There is a reason

Label: Provident Music Distribution

Third Day - Tunnel From the album Wherever You Are
I won't pretend to know what you're thinking
I can't begin to know what you're going through
I won't deny the pain that you're feeling
But I'm gonna try and give a little hope to you
Just remember what I've told you
There's so much you're living for

Chorus:There's a light at the end of this tunnel
There's a light at the end of this tunnel
For you, for you
There's a light at the end of this tunnel
Shinin' bright at the end of this tunnel
For you, for you
So keep holdin' on

You've got your disappointments and sorrows
You ought to share the weight of that load with me
Then you will find that the light of tomorrow
Brings a new life for your eyes to see
So remember what I've told you
There's so much you're living for

Label: Essential Records