Today was amazing- a great show and a visit from LOTS of friends and family!
We stayed last night in the town for today's show- Hazard, Ky.
We stayed last night in the town for today's show- Hazard, Ky.
We stayed here because several of our friends and family were coming to visit. We're based out of Cincinnati, Ohio, and this show was the closest we'd be, so this is the one they came to see. It was awesome to have so many visitors!
Here we are, as well as my Mom, Uncle Chuck, Aunt Janie, Cousin Lisa and her husband Greg, and their two kids. We also got a visit from Tim (whom I grew up alongside) and his wife Nicole, as well as their two young 'uns:
We had some family visit during the Michigan and Ohio stops, but that was the last time we saw anyone familiar. This visit was great! We got to go out for lunch and dinner and just catch up on things.
Also, if you're from Cincinnati, you know that we have several things that the city is famous for, such as LaRosa's pizza, Graeter's ice cream, etc. Nicole asked if we'd like anything from home, and Paula mentioned that some Grippo's BBQ chips would be nice. Now, you really don't realize just how much you miss certain things until they're not readily available, and when I tasted those chips for the first time in more than a month... wow.
My Mom also did a wonderful deed by bringing Lydia her teddy bear. Lydia has the largest collection of stuffed animals out of anyone I've ever seen, and she intentionally didn't bring her bear because it's not exactly small, and we weren't sure where it would ride. Well, she has it now, and it's still not exactly small, and we're still not sure where it will ride. She's held it on her lap so far- we'll see how this goes!
So, when show time rolled around, we headed for the church. We arrived at a beautiful place, but... there was a double flight of concrete stairs that led to the sanctuary! Under normal circumstances, we wheel the big cases right into the venue and unload right there at the stage. When there are stairs, we have to unload the cases outside and bring the pieces up one at a time (LOTS of individual parts in this show, takes a long time that way). And of course, today, my rib is still in rough shape and I can't really lift anything! Thankfully, we had plenty of help. We got all the parts up top and were able to set up normally.
The show was great and very well attended. We had EVEN MORE family show up from Casey county, Kentucky!
Also, if you're from Cincinnati, you know that we have several things that the city is famous for, such as LaRosa's pizza, Graeter's ice cream, etc. Nicole asked if we'd like anything from home, and Paula mentioned that some Grippo's BBQ chips would be nice. Now, you really don't realize just how much you miss certain things until they're not readily available, and when I tasted those chips for the first time in more than a month... wow.
My Mom also did a wonderful deed by bringing Lydia her teddy bear. Lydia has the largest collection of stuffed animals out of anyone I've ever seen, and she intentionally didn't bring her bear because it's not exactly small, and we weren't sure where it would ride. Well, she has it now, and it's still not exactly small, and we're still not sure where it will ride. She's held it on her lap so far- we'll see how this goes!
So, when show time rolled around, we headed for the church. We arrived at a beautiful place, but... there was a double flight of concrete stairs that led to the sanctuary! Under normal circumstances, we wheel the big cases right into the venue and unload right there at the stage. When there are stairs, we have to unload the cases outside and bring the pieces up one at a time (LOTS of individual parts in this show, takes a long time that way). And of course, today, my rib is still in rough shape and I can't really lift anything! Thankfully, we had plenty of help. We got all the parts up top and were able to set up normally.
The show was great and very well attended. We had EVEN MORE family show up from Casey county, Kentucky!
Then, to top it off, there was a lady at the show who lives here in Kentucky and attends this church- and it turns out that she was my cousin! She knew my Mom and Uncle, and they shared stories of relatives that they all were familiar with. Truly a small world!
Our volunteers carried the entire show back down the stairs and we loaded everything up. We've packed up the show 30 times in a row, but this time, there was a unique situation. There were seven or eight tiny kittens constantly running around at our feet! Kittens have no fear of anything, so it was difficult not to step on or roll a massive case directly at a kitten (and thereby traumatize my daughter forever). So, we spent a considerable amount of time moving them out of the way (again and again...). I seriously hope we don't have a stowaway in the trailer!
Afterwards, we had dinner and went back to the same hotel as before (no driving tonight- that's a good thing!). Kentucky has been great. Thanks again Pastor Paul for everything! Tomorrow we head to Johnson City, Tennessee, for a show we've really been looking forward to!
Our volunteers carried the entire show back down the stairs and we loaded everything up. We've packed up the show 30 times in a row, but this time, there was a unique situation. There were seven or eight tiny kittens constantly running around at our feet! Kittens have no fear of anything, so it was difficult not to step on or roll a massive case directly at a kitten (and thereby traumatize my daughter forever). So, we spent a considerable amount of time moving them out of the way (again and again...). I seriously hope we don't have a stowaway in the trailer!
Afterwards, we had dinner and went back to the same hotel as before (no driving tonight- that's a good thing!). Kentucky has been great. Thanks again Pastor Paul for everything! Tomorrow we head to Johnson City, Tennessee, for a show we've really been looking forward to!
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