Tuesday, December 9, 2008

Sunday, December 7, 2008

Fully Vespered


Sugarpop went to Millikin University in Decatur. She was involved in their choir and in her four years there participated in their long running annual tradition of Holiday Vespers.

On Saturday she took me to the 50th Anniversary of Millikin's Holiday Vespers. To say I was a not looking forward to it was an understatement. This weekend was a busy one with the Oh having three birthday parties to go to, the Santa Train at Monticello, Church, and then Sugarpop and I were to go to
Ain't Misbehavin at Assembly Hall.

It was just too busy a weekend for me so to kick it off with a trip to Decatur, leaving Dewdrop with a new babysitter, just didn't light my fire.

Of course I moaned about going for two weeks, but when the sitter was settled and we were on the road to Soybean Capital of the World I knew I'd enjoy some alone time with Sugarpop.

We arrived in time for the reception and enjoyed the deli tray as well as the cookie tray. Sugarpop ran into several fellow alumni who graduated with her so she had fun catching up with them.

Soon we were off to vespers held at the Kirkland Fine Arts Center on the Millikin campus. Our seats were decent, about midway up and towards the middle. Soon the lights dimmed and the "show" began.

Long story short, Sugarpop wondered if I would be bored with the whole thing when in fact I was enthralled. The staging was magnificent and choir members appeared and disappeared throughout the theater. Up in the balcony, in the aisles, on stage. It was truly a beautiful site and a beautiful evening with my wife. It was an unexpected delight and one I shall want to continue as a holiday tradition.

Monday, December 1, 2008

It's A Beautiful Day


The last few days the Happy Elf has greeted me each morning by saying, "Daddy! Daddy! It's a beautiful day!"

None more true than Sunday when we awoke to a snow covered C-U. I immediately went into "storm warning" mode and was planning out how I was going to shovel the drive and walks, should I use salt?, and I needed to get over to my parents to shovel their drive.

Kudos to Sugarpop, who, with 90 minutes until she and the kids needed to be off to church, had the boys winterized and outside with me. Instead of shoveling the drive Happy Elf, the Oh, and I used our new snow shovels to shovel "roads" in the yard. We built snowmen, tromped around, and knocked snow off the branches of trees.

Did the driveway get shoveled? Eventually, but our time spent in the first snow of the season, true to Happy Elf's statement, made it a beautiful day.