Life in the Bristolwood

I was going to add some pictures from a concert Mark and I attended with the kids at Kingdom Bound, but I forgot! Yikes!

The name of this group is Stellar Kart. They are, I am told, from Canada. When I won the tickets from the radio station , I also won a Stellar Kart CD.  They are quite good, but the volume was *just* a tad bit loud for my old ears!

 Wow! These guys are not only loud, but full of energy, as well! hehehe

As I panned around the crowd, I found this forward-looking couple with their little one protected from the *loud*. Did I mention the music was L-O-U-D?

 Yes, this concert was held right next to the wonderful (no, I did not ride it, nor will I ever!) Superman roller coaster. So, of course, I *needed* to photograph this group on the vertical drop….wheeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!

 The concert was very good, although the temps were soaring into the 80′s, making it too warm for me. I needed to (sulk) trudge off to the Dippin’ Dots stand to take cold refreshment and revitalize my poor hot self!!!!

We also saw a few other concerts that I didn’t photograph, but it sure was a fun, albeit TOO hot,  few days! What a terrific way to spend some family time!!!!

As I soaked away this morning in the hot tub, I was so content, watching as the clouds passed by. There was such a lovely assortment. Although I am not keen on the names of the various types of clouds, they were just so beautiful! They weren’t the *typical* clouds that have shapes hidden in them…..these were more like brush strokes and sponge paintings! Not shapes, but *textures*!  When the pump stopped, after its 20 minute cycle, there was total silence.  But not really!

People love their “white” noise in the background, so to speak. As I listened, I could hear a continuous buzz from an insect. Then I noticed the chirping of a cricket. Off in the distance,  a cardinal was singing. As I turned my head towards the cardinal, I observed a little hummingbird swooping through the air, and landing on a dead maple branch to preen itself.  Does life get better than this? How could the garden of Eden have been more beautiful?

As I sat in the silent hot tub, my eyes closed and I just leaned back, enjoying MY white noise surrounding me. Then I remembered some pictures I had taken yesterday. I hopped out of the tub and scurried upstairs to load the pictures to the laptop. 

 During the afternoon, this little doe wandered up behind the garage to have a nibble on some crown vetch and various other wild things growing there. She was trying to keep in the shade. She was certainly aware that I was snapping her picture, but was not bothered by my presence in the least bit.

Michelle came out the back door, only to find me there with camera in hand.  She asked if I was done….she wanted to go up to the swing-set and swing. I told her to just go ahead. The deer here know they are safe with us!

 Michelle walked very slowly up to the swing and was totally surprised that the doe remained, even after she had positioned herself on the swing. The distance between the two of them was only about 25 feet!

After appraising one another, Michelle began to swing, and the doe peacefully continued to partake of greenery. The doe stayed in the area as Michelle propelled herself on the swing; she left only after getting her fill of goodies.

And, it occurred to me; we have such a wonderful refuge right here in the Bristolwood!

The Newsboys is a group that hails from “Down-under”.  If you have listened to Christian music, you have probably heard them. If you have little children that enjoy the Veggie Tales videos, you might have heard them sing “In the Belly of the Whale”!

This concert, I had already recovered from my “blond” moments and attended with my trusty old Olympus camera in hand. I was so excited that I finally remembered I *could* take pictures!

The Newsboys appeared in concert on Wednesday, the final day of Kingdom Bound. Earlier in the day,  I went to the park with the kids so they could ride some of the rides before the concerts started later.  Just after walking into the park, wondering how I was going to spend 3 hours in the sweltering heat, I ran into a dear friend and past roommate with her son!

Laurie told me that her son had spent money to bring himself and his mom to Kingdom Bound….When we had to leave the park to go back to the campground for dinner, I kept thinking I wished there was some way we could bless Laurie and Nate.  Before leaving, I told Laurie we would be seated way down in the front so please look for us. Well, she did, and as the concert started, she and Nate were given chairs to sit with us!  Nate *loves* the Newsboys, so he was thrilled to be getting such a good view!

Here are some random photos I took of the concert.

Laurie told us after the concert that Nate had wanted to camp, so they were going to see if they might find a place to pitch a tent. Well, back at our campground, there were literally hundreds of tents pitched all over! We told them they could stay on our site, as we had so much room on the grounds.  They followed us back to the campground and decided since it was so late (midnight) they would fold the seats in their van and sleep in there instead.

The next morning, I ran to the store before everyone was up and I was able to make breakfast for everyone. It was such a special time, as Laurie and I had not seen one another in years. We had so much fun!

As I was preparing breakfast, Laurie called for me to look….I had taken my Fuchsia plant along with us. (so silly I know) The plant had nearly no flowers on it, as I had placed it in too shady a spot on the front porch. About a week before we left, I placed the plant in a much brighter spot, and it was overflowing in beautiful flowers! Since it needs more frequent watering than most other plants, I saw no option other than to take it! Well, as I was bustling about, a little hummingbird appeared from nowhere and was visiting the Fuchsia plant!  I was too busy to stop and try to photograph the little hummer, but thought I would surely do it on Friday.

I did sit for a few hours Friday morning at the picnic table, camera in hand. The little hummer never made an appearance! So,  we were able to bless Laurie in several ways with her little visit.

Although I felt a sadness at the close of Kingdom Bound, I also felt so blessed and happy that the day ended with a wonderful concert, and a visit with my friend.

WOW!  That is my first comment…I remember when I was a little girl, I used to go to Camp Findley.  I would have the time of my life, camping with other kids and making new friends. (Believe it or not, I still have a friend I met there when I was about 12 years old!)  When I returned home from camp, (with GREAT reluctance) I wanted to share everything, but when I *tried*, words just didn’t seem able to explain the intensity of the experience. It was always so disappointing….

Well, I guess that is the same now. The Apostle John said there were no words to describe the things that had been revealed to him when he was given heavenly visions. I guess some things are so spiritually potent, there are no words to tell others!

While Kingdom Bound began on Sunday, we had a few things we needed for our camping adventure, so we shopped a little on Sunday evening and grabbed a pizza and wings for dinner. We were only a short distance from Buffalo, so we ventured off to some of the suburbs and relaxed a bit, knowing the next few days would be filled-to-the-brim!

Kingdom Bound is held at Darien Lake Theme Park Resort. It is an amusement park that seems to be located in the middle of “no where”. The park houses a huge tent called the PAC. (Performing Arts Center) During Kingdom Bound, the park has four different stages set up for bands, with the largest names performing at 9:30 pm, in the PAC. This year, the venu was Casting Crowns on Monday night,  Toby Mac on Tuesday night, and The Newsboys on Wednesday night.  We went to all three concerts and totally enjoyed each one.

During the day, there were even more concerts to attend, as well as workshops. There were tents with all sorts of merchandise to explore.  The entire experience was so stimulating, I think I am still processing some of the events!  The radio station we won the tickets from also had a tent set up where they broadcast in the morning and later in the afternoon.

While I absolutely adore my new Nikon camera, I cannot afford *super lenses* that allow me to take really great photos of performances from a distance, especially with the special effects lighting that everyone now does.  So, I decided not to lug my Nikon to the Casting Crowns concert. Regretfully, I chose not to photograph the Toby Mac concert, either. It was *only* on Wednesday that my brain began to function again, that I realized my Olympus COULD photograph the concerts very well.

What a total DOPE I was!!! Because Mark is disabled, we were able to sit in the first rows to see each concert. We could see so very well, and this was too cool, as the “tent” (hehehe) holds a “mere” 20,000 people! (that is nearly as many people as in my hometown) The sound was nearly deafening, but ears would recover after a good night’s sleep! We had soooo much fun!

I have no pictures at all from the Casting Crowns concert, as I just forgot all about the Olympus camera.  On Tuesday, I wised up (only a bit, I fear) and asked Michelle to take some photos with her Olympus camera. She took only a few, but they were nice. I will do another post about this concert to follow….

OK, I know this header is a little unusual and I had planned to comment about our day yesterday, but *something* has pre-empted that entry, and I promise it will come later today!

Let me begin with several days ago…Michelle and Ben are so excited about Kingdom Bound. Kingdom Bound is a *huge* event in this area; it is the premiere gathering in Christian music, drawing many of the hottest groups in the Christian realm. Michelle asked Mark to call together a family meeting so we could decide when we would be able to attend.  Of course, the kids wanted to see the more “rowdy” groups than Mark and I would choose, but being adults, we could compromise some. As it worked out, with the cost of attending being rather high, we decided we would attend Tuesday evening.

All of that changed this morning! And, in one phone call!

Our *local* Christian radio station (Local? This station broadcasts all over New York and Pennsylvania, as well as on the internet!!!) has been having a contest offering 4 full passes to the 3 day Kingdom Bound event.  This morning, as I was dialing, I felt this tremendous surge of excitement that is inexplainable. The first call was busy. Second try, busy. Third try, I heard I was (the ****fortunate***) 7th caller! This is when the “trembling” began and I breathed a prayer, asking God to help me not to suffer “brain freeze”.  The contest involves answering 5 questions correctly in 60 seconds. You may pass if you do not know the answer to any questions.

I cannot remember all five questions, but I do remember answering 7 for the number of years a dog experiences to one of our human years, the toal of 1/2 and 1/8 is 5/8, and the spelling of afghan is “a-f-g-h-a-n-”.  I passed on two questions that I SHOULD have known….Da Vinci painted Mona Lisa, and Peter’s occupation before being a disciple was a fisherman! The two other questions I correctly ansered have evaded my memory….Well, I DID win four passes, and I am STILL shaking and totally amazed.

But, then again, why should I stand amazed?

I made the call from my cell phone, thinking it would take too long to walk to the land line.  I gave all of my pertinent information, then went “live” for the questioning.  Michelle had her radio on in her room, and when she heard my voice, she came running into the bedroom, making me feel even more pressured!  Yikes! After I won the contest, the guys at the station were talking to me, and believe it or not, although my phone said “connected”, I could no longer talk or hear them!Amazing. Simply amazing.

The cost of the evening passes for us to take the kids was going to be over $100. That is a considerable amount of money for a family living on social security. After Mark suffered a spinal cord injury causing him to become paraplegic eight years ago, he has been unable to work. He cannot sit in a chair for long before he needs to lie down and several other issues make it impossible for him to go to a job.  I do have a small soap business, selling supplies to other soap makers, as well as selling some of my own soaps. I don’t say these things for others to have pity on us, but as a testimony of God’s goodness to fullfill the desires of two kids who have been wanting to go to Kingdom Bound for the past two years, but we were unable to work out the details….

And so, this is (yet another) day of praise! Praise that He who owns the cattle on a thousand hills is loving enough to provide such a wonderful luxury to this family!!!!