Singing, Typing and Testing, Oh My!

We are officially back in the swing of things in the Gaunch household. It's show choir season and that means practices, fundraisers, costumes and competitions. This is Garrett's 3rd year in the ARTS All-Star Show choir and Hannah's 1st year participating. Instead of a high school show choir, it's a community-based show choir made up of kids from 6 area high schools. They practice all year and compete against high school show choirs.


Last Saturday was the first competition, in Ohio. It was a 3 hour bus ride and an all-day event. Out of 11 choirs, we made the finals, which meant the kids performed a second time for the judges. They placed 6th overall which was great considering they were much smaller than the other choirs. They also won a special award for best theme. Their theme this year is "Colors" and some of the songs they sing are "The Black Parade", "The Color Purple", "Red Dress", "Living In Color" and a medley of a lot of fun songs like "Blue" and "Yellow Submarine" and "Gold Digger". Here are a few pictures from a recent practice.



In addition to the show choir mania, I've been completing two assignments for my seminary class... books and commentaries spread across the table.


Meanwhile, Hannah and Garrett were completing projects for Latin II and Latin III. Covenant School is a classical Christian school and relies heavily on classical teaching methods, language and literature. So, they start teaching Latin in 4th grade. Needless to say, the annual Latin Convention is sort of a big deal. Last year, Hannah and Garrett both won multiple awards- I think it actually embarrassed Hannah. She was calling herself a Latin nerd. So she's been making a model of the Oracle of Appollo that was at Delphi. (aka, an old temple that's now in ruins) Garrett chose to write a modern day adaptation of a the myth of Asclepius (I never heard of him either). Hannah's project is 24x40 inches and is made of Styrofoam, clay, dowels... lots of them. It has like 26 columns, I think. I'm so glad to have my kitchen table back! Becca hasn't had any major projects due lately, but this has been a challenging school year. It seems like 5th grade is a real transition year from little kid work to big kid work. She has a lot of homework and studying that's requiring a lot more personal organization... but we're getting there.



Also, Louie has been walking around shaking his head all day. This morning, our first born son took a college entrance exam! The SAT. Together, we filled out paperwork and chose some colleges we thought should receive his scores. We are in some seriously uncharted territory here.
But it's also exciting.

PS Those of you who are local- the ARTS All-Star Show Choir is having a fundraising dinner/Premiere Show for the community Feb. 2 and 4. We would love, love, love for all of you to come. Louie is heading up the kitchen crew, and the kids will perform their show for you. We have twice the expense this year with both of them participating, so this fundraiser is what we've been looking forward to. Just call or email for the details!

A Snowy New Year

I had the privilege of sitting on the couch with Louie and all three kids as we watched the ball drop in New York's Time's Square on a new decade. 2010. I remember as I kid thinking how weird it would be to write "2000" as the date. Now I'm trying to get used to writing 2010. I could get all sentimental here and tell you how the last decade flashed before my eyes- the good, the bad and the ugly. The blessings and the challenges. But I'm be sitting at this computer all day! Instead, I found a picture I took in January, 8 or 9 years ago on my very first digital camera.

So this New Year, we had two things going on. Garrett sings with several other boys in a band called Torn In Two. They lead worship at a lock-in where there were 86 teens! He'd been struggling with a terrible cough that Hannah and Becca had also. Thankfully, he was well enough to sing that night and I think he did really well. The boys in the band with him are so talented. Here are a few pictures.

Then on January 4th, I left Louie in charge while I spent a week taking a seminary class at our state conference center. I'm enrolled in the Master of Divinity Program through Palmer Theological Seminary at Eastern University. Now don't get images in your head of me standing in the pulpit preaching a sermon... unless you want a good laugh. Nevertheless, I feel very strongly that we all have something to offer the Lord and I'm studying as I seek to find out exactly what that is for me. The class is called Teaching the Faith According to the Apostle Paul. We read Galatians, Romans and 1 and 2 Corinthians. We discussed how Paul communicated the gospel to those churches and the context in which he did it. I turned in a paper the first day of class, I'm writing a second paper on a passage in Romans, I'm writing my very first sermon, and then I have to write a paper on a topic from 1 Corinthians. All these assignments are due in the next 5 weeks! My almost 40- year-old brain is working really, really hard to make it all happen.

I was thoroughly blessed to stay the week with Louie's cousin Jeff, his wife and their twin girls who live down the road from the conference center. They treated me like a queen. But as I drove into town, so did a snowstorm. They live on top of a hill, about 1 1/2 miles out a country road. So... poor Jeff ended up having to drive me to class several days in his 4-wheel drive truck. Every day was a new adventure in the snow. But I have to say, it was absolutely beautiful. Here are a few pictures:

Friday morning, Jeff couldn't even get his 4-wheel drive truck up his driveway(2nd picture). I had left my car in town so I could get out of town when class was over that day. So, Jeff put my suitcase and laptop bag on his girls' sled and down the driveway we went! I will never forget my first seminary class- the snow, Louie's sweet family, getting used to typing my notes on a laptop instead of writing them on a legal pad.

Most of all, I'll remember just looking around at all the pastors and youth workers and wondering how in the world I got here. Ten years ago (even 5 years ago) no one would have thought I'd be enrolled in seminary- especially me! But I know exactly how I got here.

By the grace of God.

12 Memories of December

I cannot believe it's been so long since my last post. This month has absolutely flown by! My heart is so full and I have so much to say... let's see. I'll start by doing what Louie says I do best- I'll make a list. Instead of the 12 days of Christmas, these are 12 memories of our December.

1. Just two days after I put up my last blog post about our Christmas tree tradition, you need to know that we had a near disaster! Hannah woke us up at 5:30 am ands said, "Um, the tree is on the floor". Well, remember the picture of the tree Becca chose that was growing on a hill... the crooked trunk made the tree a bit front-heavy and it crashed to the ground in the middle of the night. (If a Christmas tree falls in the living room and nobody hears it...). Anyway, a few ornaments broke, but no heirlooms. After doing a little geometry in our head and cutting the tree's trunk at a slightly different angle, it sat in the stand better. (But for good measure, we looped fishing line around the trunk and tied it to a very heavy piece of furniture!) Ah, the holidays.

2. I have a new favorite Christmas CD.It's Chris Tomlin's Glory In The Highest. It has a few new songs, but amazingly, it has a lot of traditional Christmas hymns on it that I really like. But it's all sung in a simple, worshipful style that I love.

3. On December 10th, our school Christmas program had to be canceled. We had high winds and power was knocked out to the building. I was bummed. Garrett and Hannah both had solos and Becca was supposed to play hand bells. It's been rescheduled for January. I think that'll be kinda cool, actually. How many years do you get to celebrate Christmas twice?

4.Becca had the opportunity to skate in "The Nutcracker on Ice" at the So. Charleston Ice Arena. She was a Party Guest in the opening scene. We were very proud.

5. Our dog Ebony, a seven year old mutt, had a brush with death. Several weeks ago, I though I'd seem a mouse, so I put out a block of mouse poison, hidden in a very inconspicuous place. I didn't mention it to the kids. When they were off school because of the power being out, they let Ebony in the house. She immediately sniffed out the poison and ate it all when I was at the store. I immediately called the vet who said I needed to induce vomiting- I'll spare you the details. Anyway, after two days of treatments, she's going to be fine but it was scary for a while.

6. I went along with Garrett and some of his biology classmates on a field trip to the Osteopathic Medical School in Lewisburg. It was fascinating. We toured the anatomy lab and saw cadavers. I have such respect for the people who donate their bodies to science. I got to hold a human heart in my hands... and brain and lung and several other organs. Garrett got to do the same and ask questions. I couldn't take pictures (for obvious reasons) but I loved this sign on the lab door.

7. I got an early Christmas gift- a laptop computer. It's a very extravagant gift. We usually don't spend that much on each other. But Louie found a great deal and gave it to me early because I'm using it to write a paper for the seminary class I'm taking next week. I've been trying to get used to being wireless- technology is awesome. And our friend from church, Jake, has spent hours helping us make sure everything is working correctly. Becca messed with me because it took me a week to remove the proctective plastic from the cover of the laptop. What can I say? I don't want it to get scratched!

8.Our church, Pea Ridge Baptist, turned our building into Bethlehem for an evening and welcomed kids to come and experience what it would be like to register for a census, see metal workers, bump into Roman soldiers and see baby Jesus for themselves. We all dresses up to make it a more real experience. It was fun acting it out.

9.SNOW! The Saturday before Christmas, we got a five inch snowfall. Nothing record-breaking, but enough to play in! Becca couldn't wait to get outside. It was a heavy, wet snow, perfect for making "snow furniture"... and snowballs.

10. Christmas Eve we went to visit Louie's family in Charleston. It's like an open house where family and friends come and go all day. There was a LOT of food, neighbors caroled down the street with us and family watched football and told stories. I think Becca's favorite gift was her Snuggie! Then we headed back to church for our Christmas Eve candlelight service. It's one of my favorite services of the year.

11. Christmas Day we opened gifts at home early. Becca is always done first and Hannah is so slow opening her gifts because she stops to watch everyone else. Garrett is pleased to get a new cell phone, Hannah has a desk for her bedroom and Becca... has a pink electric guitar! Yep, Garrett is teaching her how to play. Later, my parents came over to eat and exchange gifts.

12.Yesterday, the kids and I went to Beckley to visit Louie's sister overnight. She, her husband and their kids live at Glade Springs, which is in the mountains, near Winterplace Ski Resort. They had a foot of snow. So this morning after breakfast, they all bundled up and headed out. To them, a foot of snow is nothing. They had 2 feet last week. But to our kids, it was a treat. It was good to spend time with them.

Those are just a FEW of the highlights of our December. One more thing- allow me to ramble for just a minute.

The last week as we experienced Christmas, one word kept coming to mind over and over again- HOPE. I have this cool Bible software and when I looked up the Biblical word for Hope (Greek) is means "to desire with an expectation of obtainment" or "to expect with confidence". Before Christ came, we were far from God and had no hope to reconcile ourselves to Him. But Jesus came to be hope for us- yes, hope of eternal life, a hope we can expect with confidence. But also, a hope for an abundant, satisfying life on this earth as well. Now, I'm already turning my attention to my new calendar. Are you? What are you hoping for this year? Put your hope in the Lord. He will be the same in 2010 as he has always been (Rev 1:8). I don't know about you, but I like knowing there is one thing I can count on to never change- that I can "expect with confidence". God bless you all.

O Christmas Tree

We have a family tradition that every year on the Saturday after Thanksgiving, we drive out to a Christmas Tree farm and cut down our tree. It started out simple enough. When Garrett and Hannah were preschoolers, I told Louie that I'd love to have a real tree. I saw that there was a tree farm about 40 minutes from where we lived- $20 for any tree you want. The kids had a ball running all over that farm. We cut down a lovely tree and a tradition was born. Every year I ask the kids if they still want to go and every year they say yes. This year, we broke with tradition a bit and decided to try out a new tree farm closer to our house.

I thought you might get a kick out of getting a play by play of our Tree Farm Adventure. We gathered up our supplies: a saw, rope, gloves and an old blanket to lay across the top of the car. Then we piled in the car with our Christmas music. Now, at some point when the kids were small we played a certain CD on the way and now it's become a must according to Becca- Alvin and the Chipmunks Christmas. (Let this be a lesson to you. Be careful what you start with your kids because you could be stuck with it for life!) As Alvin sang off key, we headed down the road and easily found the tree farm.

Much to Louie's dismay, it was located up a holler. To those of you who aren't from WV, that means that the farm was in the valley between hills. So guess where all the trees were? Yep. Straight up three different hillsides. But we were eager so we scoured the first hillside. Then we saw it- I swear, the sun was beaming down from heaven on a beautifully shaped Scotch Pine.

(Are you having images of the movie Christmas Vacation?) We were in awe. Except Becca. "Too Fat" she said. Garrett was sure we'd come back to this tree so he left his glove on it to 'mark it' so no one else would take it. We hiked down the hillside and up the second hillside. Nothing impressive. We hiked down that hillside and approached the third. Louie decided that he'd just hang out at the base of the third hill... and apparently Garrett and Hannah decided that he needed some company. So Becca, insistent that there could be a better tree, headed up the third hillside and I trekked after her. When we got to the very top, she said simply "Found it".

Well, ok then. I hollered for the rest of the crew and they hiked up the hill to see the more perfect tree. It was smaller than the first, not as "fat", but nicely shaped. Garrett and Becca took turns sawing it down, then my men carried it back to the car. The tree farm owner's son put it on a tree shaker to knock all the dead needles off and tied it on the car. That's when we remembered that somebody had to go back up that first hillside to retrieve Garrett's glove!

Becca reminded me, because this year she seems to be the protector of all holiday traditions, that we usually stop for a treat on the way home. We found a Dairy Queen nearby and had to stop. We toasted our ice cream cups to our nicely shaped, not too fat Christmas tree before getting it home and into some water.

This is our tree, all decked out, on our living room. A beautiful finish to our Christmas tradition.

Movin' On Up

Last week, Garrett and Hannah were thrilled to be able to do something they're been waiting for since the first day of school. They moved into their new school building.

Back in September, Covenant School moved from their Barboursville location into Christ Temple Church in Huntington. This was a welcome move for our school. It's alleviated some of the financial burden the school has been under as well as give our students an amazing new facility to use. They simply didn't have room to house they 7th through 12th grade, so they built a new building that houses classrooms, a kitchen and a gym. Rebecca started school day one in the new location, but the new building for the older kids wasn't ready. After several delays, the building was finally ready to be occupied last Thursday. Saying goodbye to the old building was actually a bit sad for me. I have so many vivid memories: visiting the school for the first time, Rebecca's 1st day of kindergarten, planning class trips, school plays and Christmas programs. The kids have learned how to diagram sentences and write essays in that building but they've also memorized scripture and learned a great deal about the Bible there. Having said all that, I know that Covenant School is far more than a building. One big benefit to our move into Christ Temple Church is that their church school, The Academy, was absorbed into our school. So our family is even bigger.

Last Thursday, Garrett and Hannah put on old clothes and headed to "Old Covenant" for moving day. They emptied their lockers, packed trucks with desks and boxes and headed downtown to their new location. By the time I picked them up, everyone looked exhausted but happy. Kids were running around from room to room, giggling. The choir teacher gathered students into a room where they sat on the floor and sang. The biology teacher grinned as he hung a huge poster of the chart of elements while the assistant basketball coach "encouraged" everyone to take off their shoes when going new the beautiful new gym floor. Garrett even posed with the newest addition to the biology classroom- Morty, the skeleton. I can't wait for all the new 'firsts' in this building.

Another rite of passage happened this week in the Gaunch household. Hannah Grace got her learner's permit. That's right... we have two student drivers now. She was so proud because she only missed on question on the test. She even 'doesn't hate' her learner's permit photo. And when she stood against the wall to measure her height and it was 5' 2 1/2" (2 1/2" taller than me) she couldn't help but gloat- just a little. Her goal is to be 5 feet 5 inches. All I can say is, good luck. Our family is vertically challenged! So... this weekend, we'll probably venture out for the first time. (Sigh)

Thoughts on Veterean's Day

Today, I attended a Veteran's Day assembly at Covenant School, where all three of my children attend school. Garrett had called and invited my dad, an Air Force veteran, to come. I knew Hannah and Garrett would be singing and that there would be a speaker. As she left for school this morning, Hannah mentioned that she actually would be singing a solo.

I had no idea what I was in for. It was moving. All of it. The choir sang several beautiful songs, but Hannah's was by far the best. The song was based on the poem "In Flanders Fields" which a man wrote during World War I after presiding over the funeral of his 22 year old friend. She boldly sang these words...

In Flanders fields the poppies blow

Between the crosses, row, on row,

That mark our place; and in the sky

The larks, still bravely singing, fly

The younger children had already had time alone with the speaker, so after the singing, they went back to their classes. Then the speaker, Jared Shumate, an Army veteran who was in Iraq and Afghanistan, talked to us about what it means to be a veteran. He spoke about the liberty we enjoy as Americans and how a heavy price was paid in blood. He went on to explain to these 7-12th graders that the liberty we enjoy as Christians - an eternal liberty- also cost a heavy price and was paid for in blood.

He was a good speaker and joked a lot with the kids, too. I went to the assembly this morning mainly out of obligation and not expecting to recieve anything. But as usual, the Holy Spirit met me there, softening my heart and speaking truth to my soul. And reminding me once again of a scripture that I discovered years ago and still dearly love...

"Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom!" 2 Corinthians 3:17

Farewell to October

They say that the holidays are the busiest time of the year, but it always seems that for us, October is even busier! Maybe it's because of the ages of the kids and activities they're involved in, but this month has flown by and I want to take a minute to catch you up and show you a few fun pictures.

October 24th, Louie celebrated his 40th birthday. That just seems hilarious for me to even put in writing. Are we really that old? (Well, not me... yet) We went to dinner with his family and had a great time. His sister baked a cheesecake and we all sang to him- since we were at a Japanese steakhouse, his mom decided to try to sing Happy Birthday in Japanese... I thought Louie was going to crawl under the table. But a good time was had by all.

One thing the kids have always, always loved to do is carve pumpkins. And they're funny about it. Garrett's always has to be kind of humorous. Hannah always picks a really intricate pattern. And Becca was old enough to carve her own this year without (hardly any) help. Becca also really dislikes scraping out the pumpkin. Hannah, however, has no trouble with the nasty 'pumpkin guts'. This year, Becca decided she could handle it-but she didn't have a very good look on her face!

We live in a neighborhood where everyone likes to come to trick-or-treat. And it's understandable... if you live out in the country, it's impossible (and dangerous) to go door to door. So about 30 minutes prior, we start to see cars lining up along the road. Louie and I walked around with Becca while Garrett and Hannah passed out candy. I knew they would run out of candy before trick-or-treaters, but I thought I did pretty well- I bought over 100 pieces. Well, they were out of candy in 30 minutes! Becca always trick or treats with the same buddies from her Sunday school class that she's known since kindergarten (some earlier than that). They were a strange crew this year... they dressed up as Michael Jackson, a WVU football player and my personal favorite- a blind referee. Becca, my sweet little angel, was a cute little ladybug last year. Not this year. Her exact words were "I don't want to look cute". (Sigh) So instead, she was some kind of scary zombie girl.

Garrett and Hannah are in the youth praise band at church and twice this month they were asked to sing at church events. Last weekend, they sang at a conference for teenage girls. There were over 300 in attendance. They did so well! There are some really talented musicians in their group. In a few weeks, they're going to sing at an FCA rally for a large crowd again.

Let's see what else... Hannah's volleyball season wrapped up with a loss (unfortunately). She didn't seem too broken up about the fact the the season is over- actually I think she's tired!

Hannah and Garrett had a costume party last Saturday evening for their friends. It was pretty funny. They ate, listened to music, and played games in the youth room of our church. Hannah was some type of woodland fairy and Garrett dressed up as Edward from the Twilight book series- with a steak through his heart. It wasn't until 2 days before the part that we realized one of the the real reasons for the party was to invite a boy named John who is 'smitten' with Hannah.(John's mother's word)

Then tonight, our school was having a fundraiser. It was Mc Teacher night at Mc Donalds and Becca HAD to go see her teacher bagging french fries. Hannah's journalism teacher took their dinner order and the headmaster delivered our to go order with a smile. Each teacher was being assisted by a Mc Donalds employee. The funniest part was when we got in the car, Becca pulled out a fry and said, 'This takes just like a regular Mc Donalds french fry'. I have no idea what she was expecting!

We are a little more than halfway through the New Testament Challenge and I'm really enjoying it. As we read through the NT, I've only gotten behind once- so far! It's funny- as I'm reading, I'm noticing so much more emotion in the writer's words than I have before. These were real people living out their faith in real life. And I have a lot to learn from their words for my real life.