I must take a moment to brag on my two oldest children. First, Jeremy finished up Boy Scout camp by receiving an award for best behaved boy at camp. He received a string of beads with a *alligator* hide (it's actually cow hide) tied to it that indicates why he received the beads. The string is now tied to his walking stick, which I guess is what these boy scouts do with the beads they receive for different accomplishments. This recognition means so much to me because, as I explained to Jeremy, it means I can trust him to behave and make good choices when his parents are not present and when he is surrounded by boys who do not always make the best decisions.

As for Anna...she auditioned for our church's childrens musical, which required reading lines and singing alone. I asked her a few weeks ago if she'd like to try out since she enjoys the theatre and has a nice voice for someone her age, but at that time she wasn't interested. However, Sunday morning she told me she wanted to audition. The challenge was that auditions were being held that afternoon. So with only about an hour to prepare, she tried out for one of the main girl parts, reading the lines perfectly. The panel was very impressed with her and surprised that she wasn't performing at school or elsewhere. When it came time to sing, the children sang as a group. When they finished, the director asked the panelists if there were any children they would like to hear alone, and they wanted to listen to Anna. I'm not sure she will get a part since many children auditioned, but it was very encouraging for her. Maybe this is the start of something...even though I don't have much time for another activity.

The other exciting aspect of this production is that it is a never-before-seen musical. They will video our kids performing and use it for marketing purposes. We should know this week if we will be spending a lot of time at the church over the next couple of months.