Yeah, so I am basically hooked on Facebook

Tomorrow I return to Life Action.  We are headed for Opp, Alabama.  I am NOT ready for my break to be over yet, but I am ready for finish the year.  I am going to miss mi familia!  It seems strange that I am leaving this house to return to Life Action and when I return home it will probably be to a different house, different city and different state!!!!  It's always an adventure...

So yes, I am hooked on Facebook.  But I shall continue updating this somewhat regularly. 

God is good!!

Currently Listening Christmas Story By Point of Grace see related

Christmas is almost here.  Funny...it doesn't feel like Christmas time at all despite all of the advertisements, shopping, programs, decorations and other preparations, it just doesn't feel like Christmas time.  I remember being little and anxiously counting down the days until Christmas came.  Running around the house, full of energy simply because of the expectation that hung in the air.  But now...now I am old.  I hate how we have changed Christmas from CHRIST'S BIRTH to what it is now.  I don't think that Jesus would want His birthday celebrated like this...things get so hectic, you are constantly running from one place to another, and you buy gifts for people just because it is Christmas and it is the thing to do.

The past week of my life has been spent taking my siblings to various things (concerts, practices, lessons, school, etc), shopping, cleaning and cooking.  Today we made a few different kinds of cookies, but we don't do much baking anymore because of Patrick's allergies.  If we do bake cookies or anything like that, we have to make two batches.  One of our kind and one of his.  But it's hard because all of the ingredients that he needs are very expensive and the recipes have to be altered or the food turns out really, really weird.

On Monday night I got to attend my sisters' Christmas concert for one of their orchestras.  It also happened to be the orchestra that I played in through high school.  It is strange to sit in the audience when you are used to be on-stage performing.  I remembered when alumni would come back to visit (whether at teenworks or orchestra or whatever) and they seemed different.  Now I AM alumni!!!  Weird thought!!!!!!!!  I got to talk with a few old friends and see lots of familiar faces.

Hope you enjoy this picture of Elizabeth, McKenna and I!!  We were all in the kitchen baking and singing (very few things in my family happen without singing or some other kind of noise!!!).  I am trying to learn how to harmonize (its not going very well) and the girls were trying to help me.  Well, at one point I got a little bored with it all so the girls and I all grabbed "microphones" and Mom just happened to have the camera.  We all look horrible in this picture and that is half the fun of it all.  I love my little sisters.

 EDIT:  I just got a facebook (at the suggestion of Joseph Williams).  It is really confusing, but I am trying it out.  So look me up on facebook if you have one. :)

EDIT #2: Okay...I am in the awkward age group at home.  My family is having a Christmas eve party and I don't fit in with the adults, but I don't fit in with the children.  There is no one my age.  In Life Action there is ALWAYS someone my age around!!!!!!!  My mom said this is good for me...a lot of things that people say are good for you are NOT very much fun.

Currently Listening I Loved Her First By Heartland i loved her first see related

I Loved Her First (heartland)

This song is from a father's perspective to his future son-in-law.  (This is for you, Larina! Oh, Ang!! It makes me think of our joke with Christopher about his little girl...hah!)

Look at the two of you dancing that way
Lost in the moment and each others face
So much in love your alone in this place
Like there's nobody else in the world
I was enough for her not long ago
I was her number one
She told me so
And she still means the world to me
Just so you know
So be careful when you hold my girl
Time changes everything
Life must go on
And I'm not gonna stand in your way

But I loved her first and I held her first
And a place in my heart will always be hers
From the first breath she breathed
When she first smiled at me
I knew the love of a father runs deep
And I prayed that she'd find you someday
But it still hard to give her away
I loved her first

How could that beautiful women with you
Be the same freckle face kid that I knew
The one that I read all those fairy tales to
And tucked into bed all those nights
And I knew the first time I saw you with her
It was only a matter of time

But I loved her first and I held her first
And a place in my heart will always be hers
From the first breath she breathed
When she first smiled at me
I knew the love of a father runs deep
And I prayed that she'd find you someday
But its still hard to give her away
I loved her first

From the first breath she breathed
When she first smiled at me
I knew the love of a father runs deep
Someday you might know what I'm going through
When a miracle smiles up at you
I loved her first

Currently Reading Calm My Anxious Heart : A Woman's Guide to Contentment By Linda Dillow see related

Announcement and Pictures

I am home for Christmas break!  It is WONDERFUL to be with my family again.  On Thursday morning at 4:40am Angeline, Larina, Jessica and I left Illinois for Michigan.  We drove to Michigan and stayed with the Brink's house last night.  Today Mom drove Jess and I to Flint to drop her off with her family (who met us there from Canada) and then we came home.

The announcement is that my family is moving to Indianapolis, Indiana.  Dad got a job there so he will be leaving on Sunday to begin working there while the rest of the family stays here until the house sells.  This will be my fourth state to live in (Florida, Ohio, Michigan and now Indiana) and my eighth house!  Since we are moving we are doing work on the house, getting it ready to sell.  We are interviewing realtors this week and the house will probably go on the market next week.  At this point it looks (no promises here!!) like I will return home to live with my family at the end of my commitment with Life Action for this year.  I will attend college somewhere in Indianapolis to become a registered nurse! 

Here are pictures of my team!!!

Angeline and I at the Red Team Christmas party.  It was on Saturday, December 2nd and we had SNOW for it.

Crista Loveing and I were sitting together during one of the games and Angeline took this pictures of us.

Angeline (my best friend), Christopher (my adopted brother with STRAIGHT hair!!!!!) and I at the Christmas party

Sammy Loveing on our hike in Roanoke, Virginia on the Peaks of Otter.  Sammy is the youngest staff child on our team and we all love him to death.

On Monday the whole team when to the Gallo's house for our off-day and while we were there Mark, Angeline and I got a picture together for a memory of Silver team and so that we could show Silver team people a picture of Mark with a goatee!!

After the Christmas party we got back to the church and continued the never-ending task of taking pictures.  This is Angeline, Jini, Jessica and I at the end of a long night!

 On the first Thursday of our summit in Edwardsville we got into our team meeting at 3:30pm and leadership announced that we were expecting a huge snowstorm so...

...we were canceling the service for that night

...we all had to go directly home to our house homes

...we had to stay in our host homes until we heard from leadership the next day!

So we all gathered our stuff as quickly as we could and rushed home.  Most of our host homes lost power for at least a little bit.  My host home lost power, but it came back on at 11:00am Friday so Robbie and Bryce (who were in our carpool) came to our host home to dry their clothes (which had been in the washer the night before when they lost power) and take showers.  Thankfully our host home had a gas stove so we had a wonderful breakfast that morning.  We were called by leadership and ended up having a 2:30pm call time on Friday!!!  Quite the experience!

This is Robbie, Keith, Bryce and Christopher St. Clair.  Anytime you see these guys together you know there is going be to trouble!

This little girl, Hope, was in Happiness club and was Robbie and Bryce's host sister.  She was SO much fun to have in Happiness!!

This is a picture of all the women and girls on Red Team at the Christmas party

I am trying to do better about keeping up with people.  It is SO hard on the road!!!!  As I write this I am in the process of getting an AOL instant messenger account (which was prompted by the fact that SOMEONE lives in Canada where her cell phone doesn't work and I want to keep in touch with her...hmmm...who in the WORLD could that be??? ) So if you want to contact me that way you can at: calliecannata   Oh, and I WILL be checking and responding to e-mail during break.

Currently Reading The Scofield Study Bible: New King James Version (Burgundy Genuine Leather) see related

Our last summit of 2006

This is it!  Our last summit of 2006!  We are in Edwardsville, Illinois doing a follow-up summit at a church where Red Team visited last year.  It is a little strange for those of us who are new to this team, but so far everyone has been VERY welcoming and we have enjoyed our stay here.  In Happiness Club we had 18 children Sunday morning, but our numbers have been dropping as we have gotten into the weeknights.  I am staying with Angeline and Mary Beth (our Dynamite teacher).

This summit we have lots of visitors!!  Amanda Lawson's sister, Jessica, is with us visiting as well as Christoper Gallo's brother, Andrew.  Angeline's sister, Larina, will be driving here tomorrow (woohoo!) to spend the rest of the summit with the team and she will be rooming with us.  Mark Gallo, who traveled with Angeline and I on Silver team, goes to college close by so he has been visiting when he can.  It is good to see someone from Silver team!!!

I am driving home with Angeline and Larina on Thursday (eight days from now) to their home and then my mom will come and pick me up the next day so that I can go home!!  I am thrilled to see my family again.