If you've been reading this blog, you've probably heard me say that quite a few venues so far were awesome. Well, awesome doesn't describe the place today.
Federated Church in East Springfield, PA, was AWESOME!!!
This was yet another day that we woke in one state (Ohio, where the show was yesterday), performed in another (Pennsylvania), and we're spending the night in a third (New York, the location of the show tomorrow). We had only a 30 minute drive to the church today but it was an early one- we woke just after 6 A.M. in order to get there with plenty of time to load in and set up.
Upon arriving at the church, we discovered a perfect stage complete with working curtains! This meant a much more professional show. We would be able to do set changes with the curtains closed.
The crowd was amazing, and HUGE! Look at this- there were probably more than 400 people this morning!
We headed on towards Scipio Center, New York, as we had a very generous offer from a family at the New York church. They offered to feed us and open up their home for us to stay tonight! So, that meant a 2 1/2 hour drive which normally wouldn't be an issue, except for the rain today- it rained harder than we've seen the entire tour. That slowed us down a bit. We did, however, see this during a momentary lull in the storm:
For today, though- it's Fathers Day and I can't tell you how blessed I am to be called Dad to my five wonderful young 'uns. It's hard to believe that Faith is 14 (seems like we just brought our first baby home). She's smart, helpful, respectful, and so much more! Clay is our first boy. When he was born, we were happy that he and Faith would have each other to play with. He's VERY sharp and extremely creative. Clay can take a stack of wood scraps and build something you'd never imagine. Next came Silas, who was almost born on the way to the hospital. Silas is our funny guy, the kid who's always smiling, and he's truly never met a stranger in his life. He'll cheer you up just being nearby. Lydia, the youngest until recently, is a kid who's sweet, generous, and just a joy to be around.
Finally- there's Eli! We began planning this tour roughly 15 months ago, long before we knew that Eli was even on the horizon. We had most everything in order when we discovered the news, and when we made the announcement, everyone asked if the tour was still on! I mean, how can you travel to a different state and perform a show for 50 consecutive days with five kids, and with one of them being a 4-month old? Well- I can honestly say that baby Eli is a laid back little guy. He spends his days being held by one sibling after another. He just goes along with whatever and always seems to be smiling.
Our newest baby is a wonderful blessing, as are ALL of our kids that God has entrusted us with. I truly can't imagine life without all of them here with us. As Paula says, traveling this way has been interesting and it sure is an awful lot of togetherness! But, wow, what a blessing. Maybe I'm just saying this because I'm their dad, but I think my kids are absolutely perfect. I love them more than they know.
So, I know that all of that may not seem like it has a lot to do with our tour, but it actually does. This blog is all about recording what happens when a family of seven criss-crosses the nation in 50 days. It's Fathers Day, so what better day to tell you how awesome my kids are!
Tomorrow it's our first show ever in the state of New York. Should be fun!