Cow Appreciation Day!

Want to know what my favorite day of the year is at work? Cow Appreciation Day!! I mean, you dress like a Cow and you get free food, does it get any better than that? Am I right??

As a Marketing Director it is our dream... you get to decorate the entire store in black and white and give a lot of food away for FREE.  You see your regular customers coming in to eat decked out looking like our dearly beloved Bovine.  You get to be creative in what you wear to work.  Team Members get excited to decorate shirts and everyone is in a happy mood not wearing their normal uniform.  And, did I mention free food?

This was my first Cow Appreciation Day in Kinston, and it was a blast.  In Raleigh, you would see herds visiting up to 9 Chick-fil-A's a day just getting a TON of free food (I still love and miss you Raleigh and Cameron Village Chick-fil-A) , but in Kinston there is only one option, we are the only option in Lenoir county, we are the only option in 3 surrounding counties.  We are THE Chick-fil-A. So, people are so excited to see THEIR Chick-fil-A on this special day.  To have their favorite Team Member whom they know quite well serve them in their spots.  So, it gives us a fun excuse to go a little above and beyond!

So, tonight I am getting to sit for the first time since waking up this morning....but, I am still smiling thinking of families dressing up their new born baby as a calf or the elderly couple that eats breakfast with us every morning putting their bed sheets around their shoulders with black spots to look like a Cow.  Today is the best day.

Here was my outfit with my prized shoes.  I would like to thank Walmart for the white Keds, Sharpe for my black permanent marker, and some red ribbon for my laces.  These shoes may have been cute, but they HURT.  But, isn't that what they say, "Pain is worth the Bovine."

So, did you visit your Chick-fil-A today?  What did you wear?  And, what was your experience?

Get on the BUS!

There it goes!  The bus from Kinston, NC to Brevard, NC.  Hundreds of cars will pass this bus on the highway today and not realize the excitement behind this bus.  This bus is filled with High School Kid's who have been pursued and prayed for.  And this is the last obstacle to getting them to Young Life camp, you just gotta get them on this bus.

Mornings like this morning give me goose bumps and brings tears to my eyes because of the INCREDIBLE week everyone on this bus is going to have.  These kids are about to hear the complete Gospel story about Jesus and his GREAT love for us.  Would you join me in praying for Lenoir Greene Young Life this week while they are at Carolina Point?

Campers:   Cheley, Macy, Ryan, Carolina, TJ, Lizzie, Colleen, Claire, Carolina, Alia and Alexus, and Marthe 

Leaders: Mary Nell, John and Ashle, and Clint

Pray Everyday

•       For fun, quality, shared experience with risk, adventure, and safety for leaders and kids they’re leading

•       For the club speaker, program, assigned team, property staff, work crew, and summer staff serving us

•       That high schoolers would be honest, vulnerable, and real in Cabin Time

Sunday

Pray for the ‘wow’ factor when pulling into camp and for cabin unity as we go through the obstacle course together that night.

Monday

Pray for more cabin unity during the volleyball tournament that morning and for open eyes to the clear picture of Jesus that is being sat before them.  Pray for the relationships between leaders and kids to be already strengthening, and for fun times in the cabin.

Tuesday

Pray for people to be engaging and that we would be moving towards camp unity doing the pool Olympics that morning. 

Wednesday

Today they hear the message of sin, but then participate in the ‘night that never ends’ which we hope is their first exposure to the alternative, full life with Christ.

Thursday

Pray for safety on the hike, and for conversations about the reality of sin that will be happening.  This night, kids hear about the cross and have 20 minutes alone to think/respond.

Friday

The program has all but ceased so that we can be in conversation all around camp about all they have heard this week.  They have another round of 20 minutes alone after hearing about the resurrection.

Saturday

Pray for all of us as we try to think through bringing all of this back home with us.  Pray that they would be leaders in their schools and our community.  Safe travels home.

We are home!

We made it home to North Carolina!  Some friends in Colorado this summer gave me a hard time because it seemed like I was too excited to come home.  Yes, I LOVED our time in Colorado... but, I think it was a HUGE victory that I was excited to come home to Kinston.  

Frontier Ranch was a blast!  We made great friends who we laughed harder with than we had in a long time.  We stayed up late enjoying the community at camp and we woke up early ready to work hard to set the stage for High School kid's to have a real interaction with Jesus.  So, to say I was ready to leave this little slice of heaven in Colorado and return to Eastern North Carolina was a fun feeling!  Here are a few pictures from our last 2 weeks in Colorado:

Clint and I at the last Western Tableau night 

We hiked a 13,000 mountain.  This was the hardest I have pushed my body physically in a while, it goes in the book with the half marathon I ran.

And then one of the coolest events at Frontier Ranch... Check this picture out... Yep, that is a banquet table to seat 450 campers for a delicious last meal at camp. 

  It is a beautiful image of the banquet table that God has prepared for us in heaven as his sons and daughters who call on his name.  This is what I love about the ministry of Young Life... Everything is intentional.  That in a gravel in field the scripture of Isaiah is being demonstrated, "The Lord of hosts will prepare a lavish BANQUET for all peoples on the mountain!" Isaiah 25:6



And wow, were we welcomed home!  We are SO thankful for our friends in Kinston who welcomed us home!  Decorating our kitchen to remind us of how much we were missed in our town.  I mean, is the Lord faithful to his children or what?

We came home for 1 night to squeeze our little 4-legged boy and headed straight to Beaufort!  Beaufort was so great, we did NOTHING! We slept, ate, and sat.  Clint needed this break after working at camp and was a great time to just catch up.  Biggie and Betty were in Beaufort with Hannah and Charlie, which is always a blast.  It is hard to believe that a 92 and 90 year old still go fishing every morning for Spanish Mackerel at the beach.  I hope I can receive some of their good genes through osmosis.  I can hope right?

After we took this picture Biggie said, "Is that one of those selfies?  I need one of those instant-grams."

I mean, how cute is he?  Pure Joy!

From the Rockies to the Atlantic!

But, before we leave... Let us take a Family Selfie.  Here is the whole crew from the week: Brandt, Hannah, me, Charlie, Clint, Betty, and Biggie.

It is so nice to be home!  It is a fun time in life to remind ourselves what we are thankful for:
Today I am thankful for our home, our town, our marriage, our dog, our family, our friends, our jobs, our church, my bed, bug spray, good conditioner, Home Style Pop Secret pop corn, Peach Tea, The Roastery coffee brought home from Colorado in my coffee mug, new friends in our town, walks in our neighborhood, hitting tennis balls with my husband and dog, ... and that is just to name a few!