NYC: Such an amazing experience! WITH PICS

I decided to make NYC all one post. So, I have added all the pictures that I have seen so far. There are more, I just haven't been able to get them off of my camera yet. ENJOY!


NYC was cold. Very cold. But OH so amazing. So, here's a brief detailed recap:

Thursday: Woke up at 5:15am, dressed and made sure I had everything. A sweet friend of from choir, Vicki, picked me up for the airport. We arrived, checked in and got through security like a breeze. We got to the gate and took a few photos.


 We boarded and were off. We had a connecting flight in Detroit, and caught that with no problems. The flight from to NYC was not bad, with the exception of the turbulance landing in NYC. Trying to see the city and the Statue of Liberty while landing was not fun. In fact, it was downright nauseating. But, we landed and found our guide and got on the shuttle. We finally made it to the hotel, which was the Sheraton New York. Beautiful hotel.

The front of the Sheraton :)

 We didn't get our rooms right off the bat, so we decided to start our adventures. First stop, the 9/11 Memorial.

The WTC

 

Some of the names on the wall

This is the tree that was saved from Ground Zero.

Some more of the names...you can see the waterfall behind it. It was beginning to freeze.

 

 

 

The Memorial was beautiful. The only thing that could have made it better was if it was warmer. We went through (security is REALLY tight), and it wasn't very crowded. They had the north pool off because the fountain was freezing. The south pool was in the process of freezing over. I took a few pictures, but I don't feel like I was really able to appreciate it because I was frozen.

After we left the Memorial, we headed to St. Pauls church (the church across the street that remained undamaaged after the attacks), but it was closed. Back to the subway, where our group split up. Most of them went to the Empire State Building. I, however, had to go back to the hotel because I left my ticket at the hotel. So, my roommate Velvet and I headed back to the hotel. We got there, got our bags and went to our room. Velvet's friend called and asked us to walk to Time Square with her. I being stupid, left my hat and gloves in the room. It.was.cold. Holy shenanigans. We walked.and walked. We then were invited to a restaurant, called Carmine's. It's very similar to Buca Di Beppo here in Louisville. They had already eaten, but had some left over so Velvet, her friend and I had a bit of lasagna and salad. It was delicious. Very happy with the food. Velvet and I decided to head back to the hotel, and froze on the way back but we stopped in at a few stores. I did not buy anything, although I sure wanted to. When we got back to the hotel, I met up with two other roommies and we went to a little deli next to the hotel. I had a piece of cheesecake. Ahh...it was heaven.We went back to our room and headed to bed, as we had to wake up super early for a meeting.

Friday: Up at 6:30am for a 8am meeting at Calvary Baptist Church. Here, we met David Hamilton (MWS producer), Roy Hayes with True North Productions (the company who organized this amazing event)...and of course, Michael W. Smith and his beautiful sweet wife, Debbie. After the meeting, the "friends" (or guests of the choir members), went back to the hotel with MWS for a Meet and Greet. The choir stayed at the church, were we rehearsed from 9am-4:30pm (with a 1.5 hour lunch in there). After the rehearsal, we had to decide what we were going to do. I had no interest in trying to go back to the Empire State Building, so I headed back to the hotel. Some took a short nap, and I took a shower and checked e-mail. Lorneth (roomie) and I headed to get a pizza and to a drugstore for some medicine. We ended up finding the Late Show with David Letterman's building. We also found the imfamous Ellen's Startdust Diner. We heard from our choir director's wife, Carrie, that it was amazing and the singers were awesome but it was best after 10pm. We were not out that late, so we decided not to go. We bought our pizza from Angelo's Pizza. My portion was burned so it was not good. Back to the hotel we went, after sitting up talking for a bit, we went to bed so that we could go to our Meet and Greet with MWS at Carnegie.

This is MWS at the church, before rehearsal

 

The Calvary Baptist from the back.

*Picture by Major*

 

SECC's amazing choir director, BJ (in the black). He joined us to sing :)

 

 

I have no idea why I am smiling. Ha!

 

My roomie, Lorneth

 

I was pointing at the other row that I was going to stand with at Carnegie...althought it didn't work out that way.

 

 

 

 

Saturday: Up at 8am. Went to Starbucks for my white mocha. Paid $5 for that mocha. We head down the street to Carnegie, and arrive. I drank half of my mocha, and this guy came running out of the office and told me I could not bring my mocha with me, it would need to be put in the trash receptacle. I was a little very upset, but I obliged. We walked into the Carnegie Hall. It was pretty awesome to be in there. I sat down, and then I saw three people walking in with large Starbucks cups with no.lids. Sounds petty, but $5 is a lot of money. I was very upset over that. But, you know what, it is what it is. So, we were then led to the room were Michael W came in to do pictures with each person.

Michael W. and I at the Meet and Greet. He is so down to earth, and sweet. Very humble.

 

Michael W. and my roomie, Heather

 

Michael W. with Lorneth and Brandon.

 

And last, but not least...my roomie Velvet with MWS :)

 

11:30am, we left Carnegie. My roomies and friends and I headed to the Stardust Diner. O.M.Gosh. How amazing it was. The experience, that is. The food...ehhmm...not so much. Overpriced and well, mediocre food. I ordered loaded fries. Still ended up with a $21 bill, but ya know, like I said the experience was great. Watching the waitstaff singing was just awesome.

First waitress, belting it out.

Lorneth and her son, Brandon

Me :)

My overpriced, mediocre fries.

 

The outside of the diner

 

After leaving the diner, we headed back to the hotel to get ready for dress rehearsal at 1:15pm. Sitting on the stage, in Carnegie Hall was incredible. I fell in love with that feeling. I am not very obvious in these pictures, but look for then grey sweater HA!

I am next to the lady in the blue shirt at the bottom in the middle.

 

Rehearsal (no I am not in this one)

 

I am on the bottom right, again, next to the last in the blue shirt.

 

 

 After rehearsal, we rushed to the Subway, where we purchased our subway tickets for Sunday morning church. We then headed to the hotel to dress. It was surreal to be honest.

Me, before the big event. Didn't have anyone to snap a picture, so I did it myself.

The Big Event: We arrived at Carnegie at 6:15. I was placed in a different row, which happened to be the very front row, inbetween percussion. We filed onto the stage, and sat down. The concert began. The Holy spirit filled the room, and it was the most incredible feeling. Watching people in Carnegie Hall, stand up and lift their hands in worship. I fought tears and got choked up many of times. It flew by, and ended so quickly. 6 months of planning, anticipation, and two weeks of quick rehearsal and God took it in His perfect hands and made a beautiful masterpiece of heavenly voices...and I was a part of it. It is truly humbling, that little old me got to sit on the stage of Carnegie Hall, with Michael W. Smith and sing my heart out.

*The following photos were taken by our amazing photographer, Major. We were not allowed to have cameras in Carnegie Hall (though MANY people did)* Thus far, I have no found a photo of me during the actual concert. I was seated in a very bad area from a photographer's POV (between percussion and orchestra). So...here is what I do have.

During the concert.

 

 

MWS, what an amazing man of God he is! So blessed to have met him and sang with him.

After the concert was over, we loaded onto a shuttle and boarded a cruise ship. The dinner cruise was amazing. We ate a delicious dinner of prime rib, salad, rice and veggies, and rolls. Kind of funny, because the buffet table was about a foot too high for me, so it was difficult for me to see what I was getting. HA! I forgot to get a picture of the dinner, as I was STARVING...but it was delish! I sat there, taking in this elegant ship and the people I was surrounded with. I finally met up with our amazing choir director, BJ. We took a group snapshot. When dessert was served, we ate New York cheesecake (YUMMO!), chocolate cake (another YUMMO!) and a mini-ice cream. I simply couldn't eat it all. Michael W. and Debbie made their appearance and we thanked them for the amazing experience...and just like that, it was over. We left, got back on the shuttle and headed back to the hotel, where we packed because as soon as church was over, it was back to the hotel to board a bus to the airport.

Not the best picture, but this is the inside of our cruise ship

Two sweet friends of mine :)

The NYC skyline in the background

My roomie, Heather.

Lorneth, Me, BJ (our choir director) and Velvet

My delicious dessert plate. That was after I got ahold of it. Notice I didn't eat it all. But it was SOOO good!

Heather and her son, Tyler

The Smiths. Debbie and Michael thanking everyone for the incredible experience

Michael leaving the boat.

Here are the professional shots from the boat

This is the outside of our boat

My "travel family". From L to R- Lorneth, Velvet, Me, Brandon (behind me), Kelly, Heather, Rick (behind Heather) and Tyler

 

Lorneth, Me, Michael Daniel, Velvet...and I don't know who the redhead is.

Sunday morning: We rose after I don't know...3 hours of sleep? We got dressed and met in the hotel lobby with our room. Can you imagine? 75-100 people in the hotel lobby, following to mod the streets and subway of Manhattan? :) Fun stuff! We got to the subway...and as our group was waiting for the train, something amazing happened. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o_M-f9hn8xs

 

 

 

 

We made it to the Brooklyn Tabernacle for Sunday morning worship. It was a little out of my element, because they are very different from SECC, and I was exhausted so I had a hard time staying awake. But, all in all, I got a meaningful message out of it. After service, we made a mad dash to the subway to get back to Manhattan, to the hotel. And just like that...within an hour or so, we were boarding a plane and on our way home.

On this trip, I learned to hem (which my sister will love because I won't have to pester her anymore), I learned to turn anything and everything over to God. Waking up at 3AM with stomach issues, and Lorneth praying over me...the pains went away and I slept. It was good. I remember praying that I would be shown what I was supposed to be seeing/taught or why I was there...and I am still not sure why I was chosen. I am not sure why God put me there...but I am truly grateful to be little old me who was able to praise Him in the most incredible way. I sang and praised Him in Carnegie Hall on a stage in front of 3,000 people. Amazing!

I want to say "THANK YOU!!!" to those who made this trip possible. I cannot express my gratitude enough. It was a long six months, but GOD worked through these amazing people, and I am just in awe. So, thank you, thank you, thank you! You know who you are, and I am truly blessed to have you in my life.

**Disclaimer - Most of these images are mine. I took them. The professional images are by our amazing photographer, Major. I have not have all of them yet, and not all of them are posted yet, so there is more to come, I promise.!!**

T-Minus 2 Days...

On Thursday morning, I will be boarding an airplane and heading to NYC. After 6 months of fundraising, planning, organizing...and a week of rehearsals :) We are finally heading out. I will be taking LOTS, and I do mean LOTS of pictures. I am looking forward to the experience, and though it will be COLD..FRIGID there, I will enjoy it. I plan on going to Time Square (such a tourist trap, I know I know...), the 9/11 Memorial (WTC/Ground Zero), Empire State Building (I hope, I think a ticket to this was included, but it's not shown on our master schedule, so who knows), and of course, Carnegie Hall.

I won't lie. I am a freeze tail, and don't anticipate much beyond that...but I guess a part of me is hopeful to get put with someone who is going to other places. I don't want the extra cash for much. In fact, I will probably eat McDonald's every day (with a Starbucks splurge here and there) and maybe splurge on a piece of cheesecake. But, all i care about is serving God, and doing what He wants me to do there. HE put me there. Without Him, this trip would not have even been a possibility.

God Bless.

New Me 2013

I am excited! I have a digital camera now. Which means, you will be getting more pictures of my sweet boys, more often. Yeah! With that being said, I don't have any yet. I do have to announce though that I am about to begin my New Me 2013 "make over". What does that mean? Well, see, I realized over the past two weeks that I truly look pretty gross. Time, pregnancy and life have not been kind to my little body. I am a small lady at 5'2. So my weight is a huge issue. I have been looking for smoothie ideas that may help me detox my body and giving me energy, while keeping the right amount of caffeine so that I may ward off any migraines. I have an addiction to Sunkist and snacking on unhealthy foods. My husband has been mentioning this for quite some time, and I think I have finally gotten to the gross stage.

My problem is that having a c-section after Liam, my stomach muscles sit funny. My goal is to flatten the tummy and get rid of the love handles so that I can be remotely attractive to my husband again. So, I am searching for the right plan that fits into what little life I have, as my life revolves around my kids and my home. Anyway. That being said, I plan on revealing my plan more as I delve into what I am look at.

Anyway, this month will be busy. Schools starts next week, and God willing, the mess that I have to deal with will be resolved and I will be able to get caught up as I won't be able to start on time. NYC is less than three weeks away, and we have not had any rehearsals yet. Yeah. Crunch time, no car, no sitter...this will be fun.

In His Love,
Amy

Hearts Desires

The last month or so has been a whirlwind. I finished the semester for school (3.5 GPA, go me!) We have gotten into the swing of having a new job, and how the dynamics were going to work. My boys are missing their daddy, but it is all working out.

We're on Christmas break right now, and loving every minute. Having my family together just brings me such joy and excitement. This week, we plan on spending as much time as we can together. We finally put up a mini Christmas tree this evening. It was something for us all to enjoy {and say, "No touch!" to Liam. HA!}. Christmas Eve, we will be buying a few last minute gifts for my mom and Grandma...then we'll have dinner and Aidan and I will make Rice Krispie treat treats. Decorating rice krispie treats is something we adore. I am not much on cookies. Since we all love RKTs, I figure that will be a great alternative.

Brian and I are currently researching the possibility of sending Aidan to a private Christian school. It has been on my heart heavy, here lately. It was reallty heavy on the day of the Newtown, CT massacre. I cannot wrap my head around that entire thing, and I just feel like it is time for my boy to get the education he deserves in a safer environment. Yes, I know, private schools are no safer than public schools...but I feel my boy deserves a Christ-centered education. So, if it is God's will, then He will provide the way go to.

NYC is about four weeks away! I can't believe it. It is right around the corner. Mom is going to watch the boys for me since Brian is currently on second shift. I am nervous. My sweet Liam has never been away from me for this long, so I know we'll be going crazy without each other. Aidan, I believe, will be ok. But...I am excited too. I am looking forward to visiting the WTC Memorial Park, and experiencing NYC. No Broadway shows for this Momma. LoL I looked up ticket costs and it is no less than  $150 a ticket. Yeah, so I believe my happy bum will be Skyping with my babies and getting a full-nights sleep for once. Ha!

Here lately, on my heart...is the deep need/desire for a sweet little girl. My husband is not wanting anymore children, but I don't feel at peace with the "we're done" mentality. I don't think we are. I am just not sure whether it would be by adoption or by birth, that I would have this need met. I have been praying about it. Haven't gotten a clear answer yet. :)

Anyway...hope to have tons of pictures up of our Christmas day. So, on that note. I am off to bed.

In His Light,
Amy

Brian has a job!

Whew! So its been a while since I have updated the blog. I don't think I have anybody really reading it, so it's more for me I guess. Anyway. So, Brian finally managed to get a job. To say that it is an adjustment is an understatement! I feel like I am in the middle of a horrible flashback. The hours he worked at his last job were horrid. This one...well, it is just as bad.

Please don't get me wrong. I am truly grateful for this job, I am. I just have to get used to being a single mom again. Last time, it was difficult because I was without a car for such a small time; well, now it is difficult for the same reason. Except I have activities that we're involved in that I am on the verge of losing because I simply don't have transportation. Brian works from 3pm until between 12-2am depending on OT. Aidan has to have a way to school, so it's a daily nerve issue because I am not sure if Brian will be able to get up to take him to school (I can't drive the truck due to physical issues). I just raised $1,500 for my NYC trip, and getting to choir rehearsal is necesary. Aidan is involved in a Bible Bowl activity that we received financial assistance for, so I need to keep him in that. I know the Lord will provide ways for this, I am just trying to adjust to it.

We are hoping to find a car to purchase within the next 6-8 weeks, and a rental house within the next 6-8 months. I think once we manage to get the car issue taken care of, things will fall into place.

In His Love,
Amy

Such an amazing God!

To God be the glory. That's all I can say.

My NYC trip has been paid for. On January 24th, 2013 I will be boarding a plane, and flying to NY. For the first time, I will be going to stay in NYC. I do have mixed emotions about it. Why? Because I.feel.guilty. My husband works hard to provide for us, and I am leaving him and our boys alone for the first time ever. I have left Aidan and Brian for a week at a time, but I knew Brian could handle Aidan by himself. Aidan was not a baby or a toddler. He was four and five. This time, Brian and I have a strong marriage and I am not in the mentality of a "vacation" away from it all. I am love my husband with all my heart, and leaving him and being away from our family for three days, four actually, will be hard.

I have received a lot of criticism from people in regards to this trip. We don't have much income, so I got people telling me that I had no business going. I even heard, "You have no business going on this trip, especially by begging people for money to go". Yeah. I did not beg for one penny. I didn't ask for money. I used fundraisers, which meant not getting 100% of the money...but knowing I had to work that much harder to fund it. I was gifted this money. The Lord provided the money through His children. It stinks that people look at things that way. So that's how I raised $1,500. It was a learning experience, and I learned that when God wants you to do something, by golly, He'll provide for it.

I also had a realization last night. Let's start at the beginning. My husband stopped wearing his wedding band years ago. He said it caused his skin to get irritated, and he didn't like the design. It made me always insecure. I remember always feeling like the carpet was going to be pulled out from under me, because I always feared he was wanting out of our marriage. In the past year, we gave our marriage (and our lives) to Christ. Our marriage grew stronger, but it was still wobbly. I knew he "wasn't going anywhere", but I never felt like I truly made him happy. I am a mediocre housewife {what can I say, I am not a neat freak and it sucks cleaning up after everyone 24/7}, and with two kids, and being a student, I am tired. Brian participated in the "Faces of Christ" retreat during the first weekend of October. That was the beginning of a wonderful new beginning for us. Before he left for the retreat, he asked me if I knew where his wedding ring was. I did, and I got it for him. He put that ring on his left hand ring finger, and he left. When he came home, we talked..and we were getting stronger still. He didn't take it off, like I had expected him to. So, last night, we were watching TV together, and I look over at him. His ring is on his finger...and I felt secure. We have been through hell and back. We love each other. He is my husband...and I am the love of his life. I've never had that before. I have a man who adores me, and loves me. and I feel like I am the luckiest woman in the world.

Brian has been offered a job at a plant here, and while it is contingent on a background check/drug-test and physical, I think we may be seeing the door opening. Still keeping my fingers crossed for a new career direction. I want to work in Christian Worship, but I have no.idea where to start. So for right now, I'll continue working with the medical field which is my major right now, and playing with cupcakes and praying.

Love to all,
Amy