August 9 - 16th: WAMS, Deep Creek Vacation, SPP for Kids, + A New Home

I hope everyone is doing well (and by everyone I mean those of you that are taking the time to read this, not everyone in the world, because obviously, they don't read my blog). Well, here we go, this post is way too long, but a lot of exciting things have been going on.

On Sunday, we had the joy of going to the Wilcox's for our 2nd WAMS. It was a great time, filled with good conversation and lots of kids. I'm looking forward to next month! Below is the dessert, fondue!!!

On Monday, Mari and I went to Deep Creek Lake for our vacation. We stayed at the Prestons house. They have known me my entire life. Below are some pics of the food:

On Wednesday, Kate, the Prestons daughter came up. She babysat me the first few years of my life. Both Pat + Kate love knitting:

My Mom tries to get in on the fun while chilin on the dock:

She thought taking a nap on the hammock may be better.

Here is Mari and Lee Preston sitting on the nice new bench:

Sometimes, pictures are better than video, and the following picture would be a good example. Pat and I played violin together a couple of times. She was VERY patient with my playing:

It is always relaxing to be at Deep Creek:

Mari took this pic:

On Tuesday evening, we took a boat ride to go to Pizzeria Uno. I've never taken a boat ride to dinner before. It was fun. Except that while we were eating dinner, it started to rain ... really hard. The nice thing was that on the way back to the house, the lake was calm because there were no other boats. Here is Mari on the way to dinner:

On the way back from Deep Creek, we stopped by Frank Lloyd Wrights, Falling Water.

This is Mari by a waterfall in Ohiopyle:

Moving on ...

On Saturday 8/15, I hosted (at the Linn house) the first annual, "Spitz-O-Matic" Performance Percussion for Kids. Seven young men came to hang out and play trash cans, a ladder, and other junk objects. We recorded our performance and the parents were there to witness the kids trash can playing:

The parents got me a very thoughtful card. I hope we can do it again soon:

Well, next up is the big news. Mari and I bought our first home together. Wes Stoy was our Realtor, and he did a great job:

We have been looking for over a year, but God has provided us a fantastic new home:

This is the living room/ dining room:

Downstairs rec room:

Master bedroom:

Kitchen w/ Mari:

Thanks for reading ... have a great week!

Week of August 2 - 8 : Breakfast, Move, Jam, Camp Arena, + DMB w/ Steve Wagner

Well, it has been a full few days. This entry will break down (with pictures) some of the highlights from the past week.

Last Sunday I decided to cook Mari breakfast:

And then after Church we helped some friends move. They were very organized. One thing I noticed in the picture below is how bald I'm going. That's the way life goes:

There were two dogs to help us:

Now ... switching gears and the day of the week ... on Wednesday I had the privilege to attend the Sovereign Grace Ministries Worship God '09 conference. I also had the opportunity to jam w/ the Roger Hooper Jazz Trio. We had a lot of fun and had a saxophone player sit in:

Here is my set-up:

The four of us in action:

On Wednesday the Na band led worship:

This next picture was taken on Thursday on the campus of Georgetown Visitation. For the last 7 weeks I have been there teaching at Camp Arena Stage. This has been the best summer yet at this camp (this is my 5th time teaching @ CAS). This is me and the buckets:

More buckets:

The Hand Drumming Class' set-up:

Rock Band:

On Saturday after we cleaned up the summer camp, I went to pick up Steve Wagner. Steve was my drum teacher for fifteen years. I started taking lessons with him when I was 9 years old. It is always exciting when I get to see Steve, but Saturday was unique. The reason I picked him up is because Steve's wife, Ernette, bought him 2 tickets to see the Dave Mathew's Band. So, I went to go see one of the best drummer's around today with the person who taught me how to play drums. It was a great night. Here's Steve and I before we go to the concert:

What Christian Hand-Drummer's Kosher Cookbook blog entry would be complete without a picture of my incredible wife. Sometimes it is nice to pause and remember what a gift Mariana is to me. She completes me through her sacrificial love, her companionship, and her sense of humor. She is a keeper! Here's Mari on Sunday after the move.

Well, that's it for now. I am seven posts away from reaching 100, so I may be blogging a lot in the future. Here's a preview of what is to come for the next post: On Sunday WAMS got together; Monday - Thursday we will be at Deep Creek Lake; on Friday we will return and 'possibly' settle on a house that we put an offer on. If you could pray that we get the house and everything goes well with settlement, that would be great. Then, on Saturday I will have the first meeting of my newest adventure: "Spitz-O-Matic" Performance Percussion (For Kids). I will be organizing a few drummers from the Church to put together a small 'junk' routine. I am very excited about this. Next week, I go back to work for PG county on Monday August 17th. Thanks for taking the time to read the blog. Chao.