Orlando Sentinel - Hagerty High Band Marches in St. Patrick’s Day Parade in Dublin

Hagerty High band marches in St. Patrick's Day parade in Dublin (Orlando Sentinel - March 17, 2016

Off to Ireland!

The Hagerty Marching Husky Band has been chosen to participate in the St Patrick Day parade in Dublin, Ireland. This is an extraordinary opportunity for our students to showcase their talents across the globe. It is exciting to have our exceptional high school, our small town of Oviedo,FL, and Seminole County Public School System represented on the European Circuit.   http://www.hagertyhigh.scps.k12.fl.us/
 
I like to say that when a person has a new experience, especially a difficult one, that he or she earns a "badge".  For instance, surviving the 1st day of kindergarten or the first sleepover will earn you a "badge".  It's a silly way to recognize and be positive about things that stretch us emotionally and/or physically. 


My brother-in-law earned a badge when he called the Citrus Bowl to find out if my sister would be able to bring her breast pump through security.  Another sister, who has little boys, is finding that she is earning daily badges.  One of her latest posts described a beautiful day picking strawberries that progressed to her picking goggles out of the toilet that her one year old had thrown in WHILE her three year old was peeing.  Gotta love the early years!


My brother and sister-in-law are working on their "before we have kids" badges, traveling and checking things like "take a hot air balloon ride" off of my brother's bucket list.  My little sister lives in a high-rise building on like the 40th floor, with like floor-to-ceiling windows in her bedroom.  I've never seen it and probably never will.  Definitely badge-worthy living, lol!


Next week will be a badge-earning experience for my family as we send Justin overseas with his band to play in the St. Patrick's Day parade in Dublin, Ireland.  As a Momma that likes to keep her kids close, the thought of a whole week separated by an ocean is at least a little bit terrifying.   God continues to be faithful as we find that the Sheriff's Office is sending 3 officers along as a pilot program with the school system and that a mom we know and trust is his chaperone.  He is able!

In the meantime, I will remember the prayer I used to say nightly with my kids, "Mommy loves you, Daddy loves you, and Jesus loves you, and we're all watching over you!"  When Mom and Dad aren't there, God always is! 

Click below to see the band featured on Fox 35 Orlando.       

http://www.fox35orlando.com/good-day/104782953-video 

 

Unexpected

This week has been really hard and really wonderful all at the same time.  On Monday night, we all found out that my last living grandmother, my Dad's mom, had passed away suddenly and unexpectedly.  I was already dreading the emotions that were sure to come the next day when I attended my friend's memorial service.  At this point, I said, "just forget it....I'm not going.". 


We were all really shocked as Grandma (who lives in a co-op near Minneapolis, MN), though 86, had just spent time with much of the family and was in good health.  She stayed up watching the Vikings game with her friends and apparently got up in the middle of the night and collapsed.  No one was prepared.




My sister called the next morning to make sure that I knew about my friend's passing as we hadn't talked about it.  She encouraged me to go to the memorial service.  I'm glad I did.  I bawled through the whole thing, but it gave me some of the closure I needed and a chance to show support. 


I went to Mom and Dad's afterward and spent the next 10+ hours with them and planning our trip to Minnesota from Florida.  It helped me to talk about things and to have a mission. 


The next day, I spent long hours preparing for our trip among the normal drop off and pick up of the kids.  Again, the busyness was both exhausting and distracting.  It was to be our first trip to this branch of our family since 2004.  Back then, Justin was 4, Rachel a baby, and Hannah not even born.  This would be her first flight.  There would definitely be snow.  Justin didn't want to leave his friends.  A lot of emotion was swirling.  Not much sleep was happening.  The adventure would continue in the morning.