A 4th Tale of Two (Very Different) Cities

Wow. Yesterday was a TREMENDOUS 4th of July for us. Tim's cousin plays in a concert band, and they played at the Riverwalk Amphitheater in Montgomery, so we went to see them. From 5 p.m. on we experienced a water skiing show, a picnic on the lawn, beautiful music that stirred our souls, and the MOST BEAUTIFUL AND GINORMOUS fireworks I've ever experienced in my WHOLE LIFE!

The pictures posted below share some of our day.

The other city referred to in this post's title is Cartersville, Georgia. My son drove his fiance, all of her family, and a host of friends many miles to re-visit the town of his childhood for their fireworks show. The town now charges a parking fee to view the fireworks from the city park since it makes for the best viewing. When my son's group arrived, the park officials took their money (the group traveled in several vehicles), city police directed traffic into parking places, and directed them to the best place for viewing the fireworks within the park.

When time came for the fireworks, NOTHING happened. After a few minutes, the crowd finally HEARD the booms, and could see light off in the distance where apparently the fireworks were going off - but they could not be seen by any of the thousands of people who paid to see the show!

The crowd booed and hissed, and then watched as the park personnel and police LEFT THE PARK. Soon, everyone ran for their cars, but traffic was TOTAL CHAOS because police officers didn't stick around to handle crowd control.

A TOTAL mess.

So - Gigantic Kudos to Montgomery, Alabama and a "What's up?" to Cartersville, Georgia.

Enough of my rant. Hope you enjoy my 4th photos - send in some of yours and I'll post them too!

Montgomery Riverwalk Amphitheater

Above - the early crowd

Below - the later crowd

My darling hubby - he sure doesn't like me to take his photo, so I have to sneak it in. He was WAAY across the lawn when I got this one, but he sure knew what I was doing! :-) I got one other shot, and he gave me permission to post one or both of them. I chose this one because, even though he's not smiling, you can see his eyes!

The water skiing demonstration sure made me miss being on skis myself. Of course, I was never this graceful or skilled, but I enjoyed it anyway!

Three photos above - our dear cousin Tom is in the center of the first one, in the middle of the speaker, behind the band member with the red shirt. The others are of the very talented Capitol Sounds Concert Band, and their Director John Jackson.

(Tom, we enjoyed spending time with you. You are such a blessing.)

I was pleased with some of the fireworks pictures I took when they first started, but they truly don't do the show justice. I finally put the camera down so I could experience the beauty firsthand. With the band playing patriotic songs as the fireworks lit the sky - it became a beautiful time of worship and praising the Lord for the beauty of the day, for the freedom we have to worship and to tell others about Jesus, and for His creation of the earth, the weather, the water.

A beautiful, special day.

Come, share yours with us!

Patriotism on the Tarmac

This touching patriotic story comes from one of our own special guest judges, Virginia Smith:

On an American Airlines flight Tuesday from Louisville , Kentucky to Dallas, we were getting settled in our seats and preparing for takeoff. The last of the passengers were still stowing their carry on luggage when the pilot came over the intercom.

“Ladies and Gentlemen, I’d like to introduce you to someone I’ve been chatting with up here. A passenger on this flight, William,is in the Army, and he has been home on a two-week leave visiting his family. He’s returning to Iraq today. I know this will embarrass him, but when I have a serviceman on my plane, I like to express my deep gratitude for their service. Please join me in wishing William a heart-felt thank you for serving this country.”

The entire plane erupted into unanimous applause. The media likes to remind us constantly that the majority of the people in this country are not in favor of the war in Iraq . Even so, it made me proud that every person on that plane was eager to show this young serviceman that they care, and that they appreciate the sacrifice he is making by serving our country.

Patriotism in New Zealand

Regular Pixel Debbie Roome lives in New Zealand, but she sent some BEAUTIFUL patriotic photos taken there throughout the year.

Thanks for sharing these great images, Debbie!

What do you have planned?

Since it's so quiet here on the blog - I'm hoping all of you are going to flood me with entries Saturday morning with photos and essays about your celebrations Friday night - I decided to post our plans for the weekend.

But before I do, a confession. (Yes, we've already determined July must be "Confession Month" because everyone seems to be doing it!) My confession: Each morning, after my Bible study, as I'm trying to wake up and warm up, I visit blogs. It keeps me "in the know" with the publishing industry, and with happenings in the lives of my friends. I am inspired, encouraged, and sometimes tickled so much I have to explain why I'm so hysterical. So today, I'm going to share with you some of this morning's reading:

You must read this thoughtful patriotic post by friend and fellow writer, Virginia Smith. Check it out on FaithChicks!

T. Suzanne Eller's post today - and for the past couple of days - cracked me up.

Over at Mary DeMuth's blog, I'm so enjoying her trip report - she and 12-year-old son Aidan just returned from Ghana. Aidan is working diligently to provide water for one of the villages over there - raising money, making people aware. Their journey - even before they left the U.S. - is tremendous. Inspiring!

There's always fun going on over at Kaye Dacus's blog - and she even has her own resident heckler (waving at Caleb!), so there's great interaction, too!

Boomer Babes Rock is always a happenin' spot, too.

Connie Pombo's blog always transports me somewhere - reading her posts are like a mini-vacation without ever leaving home. I can't explain why - possibly her fresh writing style, or beautiful photography. Or maybe it's her theme - which is my own personal motto - "Living Life Passionately." A treat with every visit.

A couple of weeks ago I attended a writer's conference a couple of hours from home. I got reacquainted with some writers I'd met once before, and made many new friends. One of the conference leaders is Cheryl Wray, and I discovered she has a blog, too.

And you've GOT to check out the giveaways and promotions on Tekeme Studios. They do BEAUTIFUL unique work, and have some GREAT prices for all sorts of graphic design - blogs, Web sites, business products like logos, business cards, postcards, and invitations.

Ok - that's enough blogs for now.

So what are you doing on the 4th?

We're going to see Tim's cousin perform in the Capitol Sounds concert band. They're performing at a river amphitheater, and we'll take in a picnic and watch fireworks after they perform. Since we normally stay home for a quiet celebration, I'm really looking forward to our outing.

As we go through the weekend, do me a favor. Thank a soldier - the freedoms we enjoy - and sometimes take for granted - would not be possible without the sacrifice of so many.

Send in your patriotic thoughts, memories, photos - I'll post them and you'll be registered to win a HUGE box of books at the end of July!

Love Starts with Elle!

This week's CFBA pick is Love Starts with Elle by Rachel Hauck. This book, Rachel's second set in the lowcountry of South Carolina, follows Sweet Caroline. I love both these books, but I think Love Starts with Elle is Rachel's best book yet.

LSwE offers up a few surprises, and provides a very satisfying ending. One thing in particular that I noticed about this book were the names. As a writer, I spend extra time picking out just the right names for my characters, so all my books don't have the same Toms, Dicks, and Harrys each time. Because of that, I am very appreciative that Rachel apparently did the same. The names chosen for her characters reflect the time, the place, the mood, the character, the purpose of the book without being intrusive or distracting. The names she chose gave her book a realness that probably would not have been accomplished with others, and helped create memorable characters who live on in the reader's mind well after the book ends.

Overall - a great read, and well-worth the money spent to buy a copy.

(And it still makes me want to move to Beaufort!)

This week, the

Christian Fiction Blog Alliance

is introducing

Love Starts With Elle

(Thomas Nelson - July 8, 2008)

by

Rachel Hauck

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Rachel Hauck is a forty-something child of the '60's, '70's, '80's, '90's and '00's, who roller skated through the '70's into the '80's with Farrah Fawcet hair and a three-speed orange Camero. She graduated from Ohio State University (Go Buckeyes!) with a degree in Journalism.


After graduation, she hired on at Harris Publishing as a software trainer, destermined to see the world. But, she's traveled to Ireland, Spain, Venezuela, Mexico, Australia, Canada and the U.S. from California to Maine.


Rachel met Tony, her husband, in '87, at church, of all places. They married in '92. They don't have any children of their own, just lots of kids-in-the-Lord and they love them all. However, they do have two very spoiled dogs, and a very demanding cat.


With a little help from her friends, her first novel, Lambert's Pride - a romance - was published in ' 04. Her current release is Sweet Caroline from Thomas Nelson. Romantic Times Book Club gave both books their highest rank of 4.5 stars, with Love Starts With Elle being honored as Top Pick!

Visit Rachel on the Web.




ABOUT THE BOOK:



Elle's living the dream-but is it her dream or his?


Elle loves life in Beaufort, South Carolina-lazy summer days on the sand bar, coastal bonfires, and dinners with friends sharing a lifetime of memories. And she's found her niche as the owner of a successful art gallery too. Life is good.


Then the dynamic pastor of her small town church sweeps her off her feet. She's never known a man like Jeremiah-one who breathes in confidence and exhales all doubt. When he proposes in the setting sunlight, Elle hands him her heart on a silver platter.


But Jeremiah's just accepted a large pastorate in a different state. If she's serious about their relationship, Elle will take "the call," too, leaving behind the people and place she loves so dearly. Elle's friendship with her new tenant, widower Heath McCord, and his young daughter make things even more complicated.


Is love transferrable across the miles? And can you take it with you when you go?


Read the first chapter HERE.