College Prep

On Tuesday we went to tour the campus of the college Briana plans to attend next fall--Carson Newman.  We really enjoyed it, and liked the campus.  CN is about 45 minutes from our house, which is one of the reasons she chose it.  She didn't want to be far from home, so that she can come home on weekends.  We like that, too! 

 

Another reason we like it is because it is small.  Carson Newman has approximately 2100 students, and is a small, compact campus.  The girls' residence halls are right across the street from where Briana will be taking most of her general courses and her drama classes and the library.  The building where her interior design courses are is just behind the residence halls.  Even her "LONG" walk to the cafeteria will take her about 3 minutes!  Average class ratio is 17:1, although many of the interior design courses have as little as 10 students.  It is also located in a VERY small town.  (It does have the necessities---Walgreens, grocery store, pizza delivery, Dollar General (all just literally around the corner), and about 10 min. away is a WalMart.)

 

CN has a very good reputation for it's academics.  It is associated with the Southern Baptist Convention, however it is not as conservative as we would have liked.  We weighed this quite a bit, but the other alternatives were state colleges, which certainly would not be conservative.  Other Christian colleges in a decent range from here do not offer interior design majors.  CN offers many ministry and service opportunities.

 

Now that the tour is done and the decision officially made, the mind-boggling paperwork begins.  She has applied for admissions, and we are in the process of starting on scholarship applications.  As you have guessed, CN is a private college with a large price tag.  Thankfully, Briana is elligible for many scholastic scholarships.  As soon as she is accepted we can send in an application for academic scholarships that are also for early applications.  She can receive as much as $12,000-$15,000 just for getting all of her paperwork in early (and having good GPA and ACT).  As mind boggling as that amount is, if she can get that, that will only get us 1/2 way there!   Her ACT score also qualified her for the Presidential Scholarship weekend, where she will undergo several interviews and paperwork.  We are hoping that will go a lonnnnnng way toward the rest!  : )  We are also currently applying for a state scholastic scholarship for $1,500.   We'll be on the search for more to apply for!! 

 

 Whew.  It is a lot for this Mama's mind to keep up with.  Plus, once she has been accepted, there will be paperwork for residence halls, medical forms, etc.  I suppose this should be a cinch after adoption paperwork, 'cause this is nothing compared to that.  Let's just say that I don't know if I'd be smart enough to adopt again.   I think my brain has aged 20 years in the last 7.  : )   However, it's all good.  We feel at peace about her going to college and going to this college.  She is really excited after her tour---seeing the interior design rooms, hearing about all of the drama productions.....

 

And, yes, my Mama's heart is worried how I will handle her being gone from home, but I believe and have seen the Lord faithfully preparing me for that, so, yes......it's all good!

 

"All thy children shall be taught of the Lord: and great shall be the peace of thy children."   Isaiah 54:13

 

 

Letitia

 

Colonial Dresses, Williamsburg, and Jamestown

We got back last night from our trip to Williamsburg.  We had a really nice time.  The weather was wonderful, the crowds weren't too bad, and it was pretty slow paced.  However, we were exhausted, I guess from walking so much. 
Here is a picture of the dresses my mom and I made for Marissa and Daniella to wear.  They got lots of attention from the cast (and visitors) in them.  Lots of soldiers bowing to them, and bidding them good day.  Of course, they returned it with a polite curtsy.  On our carriage ride, we passed a group of soldiers who spoke to them all, and our driver says, "Sir, if those were my daughters, I wouldn't want those French soldiers speaking to them."  Most of the cast were engaging and friendly like that.  Anyway, back to the picture.

I wish I had a better picture of the back of Marissa's dress.  It has a drape down the back, which is tied up on either side with pink ribbons. 
Here are Ashley and Briana.  Briana is in her colonial dress that Maria's daughter made for her a couple of years ago.


We also happened to hit a weekend with reenactments, so that made it even better.  As soon as we got there Saturday morning, we walked up on a battle scene just starting.
Patriots

British and Loyalists


Daniella was entranced watching this little boy weave.

We enjoyed visiting many craftsmen.  Here are a few.
The Apothecary Shop

The weaver.  This guy was really nice, and went to extra lengths to talk about and demonstrate weaving, spinning, and yarns.  My girls were the only young ones in the shop at the time, and he involved and talked to them.

The Cobbler

Briana playing the harpsichord in the cabinet maker's shop.  He said handmade by them those jewels are $60,000--850 hours of work. 
Others we visited were the milliner, the tailor, saddle maker, blacksmith, sliversmith, wheelwright, and brick maker.  We also visited the magazine.
We took a guided tour of the courthouse, capitol, and Governor's Palace.  For those whose daughters have read the Felicity books, the Governor's Palace is where Felicity goes to the Christmas Ball, and wears her new blue gown. 
Governor's Palace
Behind the palace is a big garden with walkways.  We spent a while there.  It was so comfy and nice, and included a hedge maze. 
As I mentioned above, we made Marissa's day (life?) by taking a carriage ride.  We all enjoyed the ride.

This is not something you expect to see strolling down the street!
We spent 2 days in Williamsburg.  The 2nd day was a little short, so we decided to go back to the room to rest for a while.  Then about 7:00, we went back for a night-time stroll. 
The last day we went to Jamestown settlement.  This is a few minutes from the actual site of Jamestown, and is a recreation of Jamestown and the Powhatan village.  We weren't super impressed.  Maybe it was because it was slow season and a Monday, so there weren't as many craftsmen, etc. going on.  It might have been, too, because we had been walking for 2 days and we were tired. 
Indian Village

Grinding Corn

Digging out a tree to make a canoe

Carrying water

Touring the replicas of the ships was our favorite part.
The Susan Constant

The Godspeed

Looking at these ships will really put things in perspective.  They are SMALL.  I can't even imagine the journey they took in those tiny boats. 
Marissa and Daniella in one of the ship's bunks.

Our last stop was to go to Historic Jamestown.  It was late, so we skipped the museum, but drove the 5 mile loop road.  It is all natural, with occasional pullovers with signs telling about life there.  It was beautiful, but I can't imagine why they built a colony on the swamps.  Maybe they didn't have mosquitos in England!  I think this was our favorite part of the day, because it was just pretty, easy going, restful, and relaxing.  We saw deer, a beautiful sunset, and spent probably 45 min. sitting on the beach of the James River.  We took a short walkway down to the river, and let the girls throw pepples in the water, look at dead crabs (didn't see any live ones!), and play in the sand.  Did I mention how relaxing and peaceful it was?  A few other people came in and out for a few minutes, but otherwise we had the place to ourselves--no people, no cars, no boats, even....just crickets and birds. 





It was a good unrushed time for all of us to spend together.  I'm so thankful for get-aways and my family!
Letitia

On Our Way

We leave tomorrow for Williamsburg.  Marissa is so excited.  The dresses are done----I think----I hope!  I do still have to make Daniella's mob cap today.  Technically, mob caps probably don't go with the style of dresses we made, but they really wanted them.  I have to draw out my own pattern for it, but I hope it won't take me all day.  Most everything possible is already packed, leaving just the things we need tonight and in the morning.  We have someone coming to house and pet sit for us while we're gone.  Please pray for Briana.  She is not feeling well this morning. 
 It looks like our Williamsburg weather is going to be perfect---low to mid 70's and sunny.  We will be spending 2 days in Williamsburg and one day in Jamestown.  That was all we could squeeze in during Briana's fall break from college.  They just get 2 days off.  Actually, here at the last minute, she ended up with an entire week off, but we didn't know that until Monday, so we weren't prepared to leave earlier.  We didn't need to spend any more on hotels anyway.  Due to the housing market (James is a contractor), we're trying to take this trip as frugally as possible.  We're packing in all of our own snacks and bottled water in a backpack.  Lunch will be very expensive in Williamsburg, so for supper we're taking things to eat in the room---turkey sandwiches with raw veggies and fruit one night, hitting the nearby WalMart deli for some rotisseri chicken one night, and....I haven't decided about the 3rd night yet.  Any ideas?

Need A New Camera?

October is National Breast Cancer Awareness Month and Casio is putting on the pink.  5 Minutes for Mom is giving away this  Casio Pink EX-Z75 digital camera .  It's specially bundled with a camera case with pink stitching and a pink ribbon-clad lanyard to show support of the National Breast Cancer Foundation (NBCF). 
They’ve taken their pink EX-Z75, a 7.2 megapixel digital camera which is part of Casio’s highly-regarded zoom line of EXILIM cameras, and are offering it with this special camera case and pink-ribbon lanyard for the month of October.

My grandmother is a breast cancer survivor! 
Go to 5minutesformom, and enter.

Happy 18th Birthday

Today Briana celebrates her 18th birthday!!  She, too, is a wonderful, amazing daughter.  Briana is one of those who always brings such a sparkle to life.  She has a happy, out-going, light-hearted, "child-like" personality.  She's bouncy!!  From a very early age, Briana had a tender and compassionate heart.  Even when she little, if someone was tearful or upset, she was right there, rubbing on their arm, just standing beside them in loving support.  She still is. 
Briana loves the Lord, and is strongly committed to following him, sacrificing things in her life if they are in the way of a life of purity or of following Him.  She loves, loves, loves drama, but if a part is not pure, she won't take it, even though she doesn't get many opportunities. 
In addition to drama, Briana loves ballet and "broadway or musical theatre" type dance, and is also on a praise dance team.  She has been playing the piano since she was five.  She enjoys interior decorating, and is majoring in that in college, with a minor in theatre. 
Happy Birthday Sweet Briana!
9 weeks old

We had to cut her bangs when she was 3 months old.  This next picture was taken at 6 months.  Look at that hair!

Her first ballet recital

Performing as a mouse in the Nutcracker with the Knoxville City Ballet.  (This year she is the Dew Drop Fairy with the Smoky Mountain Ballet, as well as a demi-soloist!!)

Her senior ballet photo

We love you to pieces!!

Stop by and wish her Happy Birthday HERE!

Fall Happenings

I was thinking this morning (I do that occasionally) that you really don't even have to be involved in very many outside activities for life to be full and busy.  I don't know how I kept up when my older girls were little.  Maybe because I only had two then.  We're having an active and good fall, though.
  Middle of this month---can you believe it is October?---we are going to Williamsburg and Jamestown for a few days.  We're very excited about this trip.  All of my girls love history, and Marissa is into the Colonial period for the last year or so.  Well, you can't go to Williamsburg without Colonial dresses, can you?  My girls can't!!  So, my mom and dad are here, and my mom is helping me make two Colonial tea dresses this week.  I sure hope we get close to finished this week before she has to go home.  Otherwise, I'll be on my own!!  Yikes.  I sometimes sew little projects, but it has been about 18 years since I've sewn any kind of outfit.  My mom sews a little.  This pattern is a pain, though.  Yesterday seemed to be a comedy of errors.  After I had basted the bodice together last night, I picked it up to see how it looked, and I had basted one side of it wrong side out.  That was the last straw.  I broke out into hysterical laughter.  My mom got so tickled at me laughing, and neither of us could stop laughing.  The tears were just pouring down my face.  One of our many problems, too, is that we didn't measure the bodice pieces before we cut the material, and it turns out little Daniella is quite long waisted, at least compared to this pattern.  She fit all the other measurements for a size 4, but her bodice length was more like a size 6. 
Saturday we hosted a cookout for Ashley and Briana and some of their friends.  Ashley's birthday was last Thursday, and Briana's is next Thursday, so this was their "party", although they requested no gifts.  It was just a fun time with their friends.  They talked, played some board games, sat by the campfire, roasted marshmallows, and we made homemade ice cream. 
I have some really neat blog friends.  Two, Heidi and Mary, have given me another award.

Thank you ladies, and thank you for the smiles your blogs give me!!  Lots of my friends make me smile, but I'd like to pass this on to Lisa.  She has an adorable family, and some great posts on her thoughts and analogies of seeing God in nature and events. 
Speaking of Lisa, I just won a contest she was having.  I won this cute little pumpkin jar.

Well, I'm off to tuck in the little girls, then hit the sewing machine. 

Letitia