Children's Christmas Pageant

Last night we had our annual Children's Christmas Pageant at church. This is my third year being in charge of the pageant and this year was by far the sweetest and simplest of any I've directed. There is just something so meaningful about seeing children act out the nativity story. It doesn't take a lot of bells and whistles-- after all, how can you do anything to add to the greatest story ever told? All of the kids did a great job with their parts and I am so proud of them!

Dinner with Charity, Chad and Avery

Last week Ryan's cousin Charity along with her husband Chad and their daughter Avery were in from Arizona. Thursday night we had them over for dinner. It was so good to see them and we had a great visit! Avery just turned two in November and she is quite a pistol. She certainly kept us entertained! We wish they lived closer so we could see them more often, but we're very grateful to have been able to spend an evening together.

On the Count of Three Everyone Say "Jennifer's Pregnant!"

On Sunday, Dec. 7th I broke the news about my pregnancy to the youth. I had Carlinda Todd (one of my youth parents) take a group picture for us. Once everyone was together, she said "okay, on the count of three everyone say 'Jennifer's Pregnant!'" It was a priceless moment! At first there was dead silence... then the whole restaurant (we were at Franco's in Harrisonburg) erupted in squeals and laughter. Within 10 seconds, everyone was on their cellphones calling their family and friends to share the news. I'll never forget this night-- I love these kids!

A 30th Birthday Dinner for Becky

Left to Right: Crystal, Becky, Amanda, Amy and Jennifer. From Fall Dinner Party

Left to Right: Todd, Vic, Davy, Tracy, Becky and Ryan. From Fall Dinner Party

From Fall Dinner Party

Last night Ryan and I hosted a dinner party in honor of my sister Becky's 30th birthday. It was a wonderful evening filled with lots of laughter-- our faces hurt from laughing so much! After dinner Ryan built a fire in our chiminea and we sat outside talking and swapping stories. We were so thankful that the rain cleared off and we were blessed with a beautiful fall evening. I am so glad that Ryan and I could help Becky celebrate this milestone. She always does so much for everyone else and she deserves lots of happiness on her birthday and every day! Happy 30th Becky-- we love you!

Quarter of a Century

Today I celebrated my 25th birthday. My day started with a jolt as I was awakened by Harley pouncing me - I guess her way of wishing me a happy birthday. Jennifer and I got ready and hit the road to spend the day in Richmond with Mom, Dad, Scott, Beth, Grady and Libby. Grady, and Beth also have October birthdays so we took the chance to celebrate all three together.

On the way Jennifer made plans to stop and eat at Cracker Barrel for breakfast. Once in Richmond we spent the day as a family hanging out and catching up. For lunch we had quite the feast thanks to KFC and Captain D's. It was nice to all be around the table together having lunch.

After lunch we opened presents and hung out a little longer before having to get on the road once again to head home. Once home Jennifer presented me with a huge basket full of some of my favorite foods that I'm never allowed to get at the grocery store, which included: Fruity Pebbles, Car's gummies, Reese's Pieces, Martin's BBQ chips, Gibble's cheese doodles, six-pack of Heineken, Cherry Coke, Gatorade and snickerdoodle cookies.

My special day was polished off by ordering Papa John's pizza, enjoying one of my Heineken's while watching several episodes of "Everybody Loves Raymond" on DVD.

With a quarter century of wisdom now under my belt I'm reminded that a birthday is not about the gifts that you receive, but who you're able to share your birthday with - a gift in itself I believe! Thanks to everyone who made my day special!

Road Trip

Jennifer and her sister Becky took a road trip to Asheville, NC to do some antiquing on Oct. 2-3. It was just the two of them, a pick-up truck and the wide open road. On Thursday for lunch they stopped in Mt. Airy, NC-- the home of Andy Griffith. They traveled downtown to Snappy's Lunch where they had the famous porkchop sandwich, then to Oppie's Candy store for some sweet treats. They arrived in Asheville around 4pm and headed straight to the Antique Tobacco Barn (a MUST-SEE), where they spent the rest of the afternoon before checking into their hotel. For dinner they went to the Tupelo Honey Cafe in downtown Asheville-- delicious!

Friday morning they did some more antiquing before hitting the road and heading back home. On the way back they stopped in Cana, VA, where they found LOTS of treasures-- including a farmhouse table for Becky's newly remodeled kitchen! They came home with a truck load of finds and memories that they'll cherish for a lifetime!

Our Fall Harvest

This year Ryan planted pumpkins and gourds in his parents' garden (we didn't have room in ours!) We have never done this before, so we weren't sure how many we'd have. Boy were we in for a surprise! On Monday we harvested our crop and have enjoyed using them to decorate our home for fall (okay, Jennifer has enjoyed this part more than Ryan!) Nonetheless, we are definitely in the fall spirit!

NC Weekend

We spent this weekend in North Carolina for a long overdue visit with Scott, Beth and the kids. We arrived late Friday night just in time for a quick hello before going to bed. Saturday morning started early by going to Grady's soccer game - Grady's team, the Crushers, won 7-0.We spent Saturday afternoon at the Burlington Carousel Festival - a festival/arts & crafts show. Later that day we hung out around the house. Jennifer and Beth decorated and rearranged parts of the house, meanwhile I worked hard playing with the kids. The evening was topped off with a Mint Oreo milkshake from Cookout - a must!Sunday kicked-off early as well as we headed off to church then capped off the weekend at Olive Garden before making the four-hour trek home. A great low-key weekend with family!

Paying Mom a Visit

Today Jennifer and I traveled to the Medical College of Virginia (MCV) in Richmond. We went with mixed emotions not really knowing what to expect and somewhat nervous of the situation with mom's immune system and not wanting to pass any germs or viruses along to her.

Even though I've seen mom in the hospital setting multiple times in the past - it's never something that's easy. However, as we washed our hands just outside of mom's room (just to be extra cautious - I think I scrubbed all the way up to my arm pits) we could hear her and see her as she talked with Len, her nurse - she seemed fine. Other than all of the cords, wires and monitors that she was hooked up to she seemed like her 'ol self.

We spent much of the morning and early afternoon with her talking, making laps around the halls, helping with computer "issues" and packing up mom's things in preperation for yet another move to a different room.

It was a great day - I think sort of a comfort and relief on all sides. From our view point by getting to see mom and know that she's in good hands and doing okay, and from mom's view point I think it boosted her morale by having her mind taken off of the situation for much of the day.

It was amazing how nice, helpful and caring ALL of the nurses and hospital staff on her floor were. They're all so genuine. We didn't want to leave mom by herself, but with folks like these it made it much easier.

All-in-all mom is doing really well (in my lay-man's opinion), hopefully the worst has come and gone - we keep praying that it has and that the donor's bone marrow is working its magic. Like mom says, "we'll just take it one day at a time!"

Trip to NYC

The Big Apple

Our big vacation this summer was to New York, New York - the "Big Apple." This is one huge "apple." Being my first trip I was easily amazed by everything from the subway to the summit of the Empire State Building. Everything is bigger, busier, louder and more crowded than any place I've visited before. Yet, it was beautiful.

We traveled with Jennifer's parents, Dennis and Mary Jane. This made Jennifer's second trip to NYC and as for Jennifer's parents, like me, they too were first-timers.

I'll never forget my first NYC taxi cab experience (actually my first time ever in a taxi) - let's just say I'm somewhat surprised to have survived. "Oh, Ryan you're being dramatic," you might say - well, 0-53 m.p.h. in 2.0 seconds down streets and through openings that I wouldn't try to fit my bike into...you might have to change your drawers too!

A big reason for making this trip was to visit one of Jennifer's best friend's, Leah, who had moved to Manhattan earlier in the summer. Leah was gracious enough to let us stay at her apartment and also served as our NYC tour guide for much of the time. Let me just say, "Thanks Leah!"

To make a long story short, we were able to squeeze all the major "touristy" things in to our schedule, plus with the help of Leah we were able to experience some things that most tourists don't get to do, such as have a picnic dinner in Central Park.

Quick summary of what we did: Chinatown, Little Italy, Mama Mia on Broadway, Time Square, Rockefeller Center, NBC Studio tour (went on Nightly News and Today Show sets), NY Yankees game (vs. LA Angels, Yanks won 14-9), Statue of Liberty, Ellis Island, Financial Distric (ground zero), and Empire State Building.

We had a great time! NYC - a great place to visit, but sure was glad to be home.