Dance Family

I am so blessed to be a part of a large family deeply-rooted in love. Even though we are able to get together multiple times a year, they still live hundreds of miles away. God has blessed me with a special family in Raleigh. This dance family is one-of-a-kind. It is true to say that we are family. Spending a few nights a week together, every week, for 18 years - it's hard not to be a family. Christmas is one of my favorite times of the year because even though we all live in different cities now, we all come together for a reunion over the Christmas break. Not only do the family branches reach out from the friends that I danced with, but now my former students. This past spring, we had 19 dancers graduate and go to college. Most of these girls I had the privilege to teach dance to since they were seven years old! It's amazing how time flies! I loved getting to see many of them last weekend and at the annual dance studio Christmas party. It was great to see them and hear all of their college stories!

Today, we had a Christmas lunch with some of the girls that I graduated with. Coming into town from Greenville, Charlotte and Hong Kong these girls are special and we never miss a beat! I'm pretty sure in our four hour long lunch we covered almost everything, solved almost all of the world's problems and had about five conversations going on at the same time!  We always have fun when we are with each other. Even the waiter mentioned that we were having more fun than him. I'm confident he wished he could pull-up a chair and hear all of our stories we were sharing. 

I am beyond thankful for this wonderful group of girls. We share a special bond and are truly a family. 

A Christmas Wedding

Last weekend we had another Pirate wedding! It was a beautiful Christmas wedding full of Christmas lights, poinsettias, Christmas trees, stockings and candlelight glow. Brittany went to ECU with me and she married one of my UNC Dental School friends, James. I am excited to say that I was there when the first met and I am so happy that I get to see them start this new chapter of their lives together. 

This summer Brittany and James asked me to choreograph a dance for their bridal party. With a bridal party of 18 this presented a slight challenge as most of the wedding party does not live in North Carolina. Have no fear - with a huge thanks to technology, I was able to teach the entire wedding party the dance over the internet! The bridal party arrived at the wedding rehearsal after learning the routine through videos and did an amazing performance Saturday night! Check out the link here and let me know what you think. 

Snapshot Sunday!

One of my favorite things about this time of year is Christmas morning at Grandma's house!

Fiddler on the Roof

Last night I made a trip to Greensboro to see Fiddler on the Roof. One of my best friends from the Theatre & Dance Department of ECU, is currently on the national tour of this legendary show. Josh and I shared the stage many times together in college and last night I got to see him perform on the big stage! The tour began in October and will continue through the spring of the year. Check the website and if the show comes to a town near you - make sure you go see it! The show was very entertaining and the talent was exceptional. What a treat that I hope you too will get to experience. If you do get the opportunity - make sure to tell Josh I said "hey!"

Snapshot Sunday!

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas!

Fall is Full

Whew! What a crazy last few months! I've been trying to update this blog on all of the happenings this Fall, but there have been so many activities it has been so hard to keep up! As much as I love the summer time, autumn is a nice, refreshing change. It brings about the days of jeans and long sleeve t-shirts, football, cool nights, bon fires and changing leaves. I wanted to give a quick overview on my life the past few weeks. 


My favorite part of the Fall season is FOOTBALL! I not only got to see my ECU Pirates play twice this year but I also got to go to my first NC State football game and I attended Apex High School's Senior Night football game. Apex High is my alma mater and as much fun as it was to go back, I'm pretty sure the student section was better when I went to school there :) However I did get to see these two Seniors in their last home football game! I used to babysit both of them! Wow, I feel old!

At Apex Senior Night 

My second favorite part of the Fall season is the State Fair. Yes, I love the fair and everything about it! The smell, the sounds, the bright lights, the food and of course the people watching. My students perform at the Folk Festival tent every year and they won the Blue Ribbon once again this year. By going to the fair with my dancers, once with co-workers for a group outing and another night to see the Corey Smith concert - I made 3 trips to the fair this year! And... loved every minute!

My dancers performing at the Fair

Riding the Ferris Wheel with Leanne

Another fun Fall activity was that I went to the Corn Maze with some friends. We made it through the 2 miles of maze in 1 hour 35 minutes. We did pretty well, considering the longest time that it takes to go through the maze was 3 hours. 

At the Corn Maze

Not only did I get to see Corey Smith at the State Fair but I also go to see this Georgia singer perform in Wilmington when I made a trip for Alyssa's wedding. Not only did I get to see him perform on stage, but also got to meet this avid Georgia Bulldog fan!

With Corey Smith in Wilmington

My Wilmington trip not only included a concert and a wedding but a picnic on the beach Saturday afternoon and finding the Purple Haze with pirates at Carolina Beach.

In the middle of all these fun activities, I was able to fill in the missing holes with a trip to Atlanta for the birth of my niece, performing in a tap show with Footnotes, Birthday Parties, "Friendsgivings" (potluck dinners with friends to celebrate an early Thanksgiving) and a night on the town for my friend Brittany's Bachelorette Party.

Brittany's Bachelorette Party

I am reminded by all of these fun experiences that my Fall was FULL. I am reminded in John 10:10 "..I have come that they may have LIFE, and have it to the FULL." 

Alyssa & Mike Tie the Knot

What a beautiful wedding I attended last weekend at Carolina Beach! Alyssa and Mike tied the knot, Sunday November 3rd, 2012 on a beautiful Fall afternoon. Alyssa is not only a dear friend of mine from ECU but she was my PEPI partner our Senior year of high school and my roommate for 4 years. We have too many memories to begin to count. We laughed, cried, cried because we laughed so hard, watched a million episodes of One Tree Hill and The Bachelor, waved towels by the fire alarm while the other tried to take care of the burnt dinner, had the best pillow talk ever and had way too many late night dance parties in our apartment to the High School Musical soundtrack. I was so happy to share this beautiful day with Alyssa and Mike as they start their new chapter of their lives together. 

I just love Pirate weddings!

  

I love these pictures of me and Alyssa our Freshman year in college. Yes, we even dressed the same!

And we had matching chairs, and matching bedspreads in our dorm. 

What a beautiful bride!