Lights, Camera, and... PERFORM!

I have good news. I can cross off one other item from my bucket list! Chris, Beth, Cyrus, and I had the chance to go see the Trans-Siberian Orchestra in concert yesterday evening. Chris and I wanted to do something special and fun with Cyrus before he gets deployed to Afghanistan. He's going pretty soon, but I can't remember when he is leaving or where he is being deployed to. Chris and I are really going to miss him. We thought this concert would be a fun way to spend time with him before he has to leave.

The concert was held at the AT&T Center (that is the place where most of the major events are held). There was a long line and a lot of security. I was a little surprised at how much security there was (I guess that means the Trans-Siberian Orchestra is a bigger deal than I thought they were. They are celebrities!), but it was pretty cool to watch them do their jobs. We also had assigned seats. We sat in the balcony. It was cool because you had a really good view of the whole stage. It was awesome! Oh, and forgive me for the picture overload (I had to capture every moment while I was there. This felt like one of those "once in a lifetime" opportunities). Also, please forgive the picture quality. There was a lot going on at once while they were performing so my pictures didn't turn out very well. I'm not the best picture taker anyways, but I still think they turned out okay. :) Plus, the lights make it look pretty cool, don't ya think? ;)

The orchestra played a number of familiar Christmas songs. It really put me in the Christmas mood. The few songs that I have heard before were "Wizards in Wniter" and "Christmas Canon Rock". It was awesome. True, there were only those two songs that were familiar to me, but that makes it so much more exciting to watch! :)

Waiting for the show to start!

I thought these two pictures above were my favorite. The lights were shining throughout the entire room as they were playing. It was the ultimate rock concert! ;)

I really liked this picture too! The falling snowflakes reminded me of home in Shelley, Idaho. I miss the snow during the holiday season. Here in Texas, it just gets cold.

This guy introduced the members of the band to the audience! I thought that was pretty cool. :)

They came out on these mobile stages (I'm not sure if that's the real name for them, but that's what I'm going to call them). That was pretty wicked.

After the concert, we went to Olive Garden for dinner. I shared a plate of food with Chris. It was really good.

We came home roughly around midnight which meant that I didn't get to bed until about 3:00 in the morning, but the evening was still so worth it. It was so good to see both Beth and Cyrus. I'm glad they were able to come with us to such a fantastickilicious event. Although, the most meaningful part of it all was getting to hang out with Cyrus one last time before he leaves. I am so thankful to call Cyrus my friend (and Chris's friend) and I hope that our friendship lasts for a very long time! :)

Oh Remember, Remember

Since Christmas is right around the corner, this particular season always makes me stop and think about what is really important in my life like spending time with family, giving service to others, giving gifts to those in need, etc. I firmly believe that giving is so much better than receiving. It is also the most rewarding.

I remember one Christmas I spent with my family. We all drew names for Christmas like we do every year. I can't recall who everyone had, but I do remember that I had my sis, McKayla. A few days before Christmas Day, I recall telling Kay, "I am really excited for you to open your gift!" That feeling stuck with all of my sisters because we were all more ecstatic to see our sisters' faces light up when they open the gifts we gave them. My parents were shocked and very pleased with us that we were selfless and didn't even think about what we wanted for Christmas because we were too busy being happy for one another. I wished I could say that the feeling we had during that specific Christmas stuck with us during every Christmas after that, but it didn't.

Since I am on the topic of service, one major thing comes to mind and that is those serving in the military. I have become a lot more grateful for the military and all those men and women do for our country. I believe it's because I have a number of family members who have served in the military and that I have a wonderful husband who is serving in the Air Force right now. Every time this season comes around, it reminds me of when Chris was in Basic Training. He left a month after we got married, but he did come home for a week for Christmas. It was so nice to have him home for the holidays and I was sure grateful that we could spend our first Christmas together as a married couple.

Becoming a military wife has given me a whole new perspective on how much those men and women serving in the military sacrifice to go out there and serve. They sacrifice being away from their homes, their husbands and wives, their children, their friends, their extended family, etc. They sacrifice to be away from the ones they love for a period of time (and let me tell you, 6 months does NOT fly by. It went so slow for me. But, that's just me. I can't speak for everybody else who has gone through it). They make all these sacrifices for our freedom and I can't begin to describe the gratitude I have for those serving in the military.

Chris found this touching poem about the military and how important they are to each and every one of us. Take a moment and read this, please.

A Soldier’s Christmas

By: Michael Marks

December 7^th, 2000

The embers glowed softly, and in their dim light,

I gazed round the room and I cherished the sight;

My wife was asleep, her head on my chest,

My daughter beside me, angelic in rest.

Outside the snow fell, a blanket of white,

Transforming the yard to a winter delight;

The sparkling lights in the tree, I believe,

Completed the magic that was Christmas Eve.

My eyelids were heavy, my breathing was deep,

Secure and surrounded by love I would sleep

In perfect contentment or so it would seem,

So I slumbered, perhaps I started to dream.

The sound wasn’t loud, and it wasn’t too near,

But I opened my eye when it tickled my ear;

Perhaps just a cough, I didn’t quite know,

Then the sure sound of footsteps outside in the snow.

My soul gave a tremble, I struggled to hear,

And I crept to the door just to see who was near;

Standing out in the cold and the dark of the night,

A lone figure stood, his face weary and tight.

A soldier, I puzzled, some twenty years old,

Perhaps a Marine, huddled here in the cold;

Alone in the dark, he looked up and smiled,

Standing watch over me, and my wife and my child.

“What are you doing?” I asked without fear,

“Come in this moment, it’s freezing out here!

Put down your pack, brush the snow from your sleeve,

You should be at home on a cold Christmas Eve!”

For barely a moment I saw his eyes shift

Away from the cold and the snow blown in drifts

To the window that danced with a war fire’s light,

Then he sighed and he said “It’s really all right,

I’m out here by choice. I’m here every night.

It’s my duty to stand at the front of the line

That separates you from the darkest of times;

No one had to ask or beg or implore me,

I’m proud to stand here like my fathers before me.

My Gramps died at ‘Pearl’ on a day in December,”

Then he sighed, “That’s a Christmas ‘Gram’ always remembers;

My dad stood his watch in the jungles of ‘Nam,

And now it’s my turn and so, here I am.

I’ve not seen my own son in more than a while,

But my wife sends me pictures, he’s sure got her smile;

Then he bent and he carefully pulled from his bag,

The red white and blue … an American flag.

I can live through the cold and the being alone

Away from my family, my house and my home;

I can stand at my post through the rain and the sleet,

I can sleep in a foxhole with little to eat.

I can carry the weight of killing another

Or lay down my life with my sisters and brothers

Who stand at the front against any and all,

To insure for all time that this flag will not fall.

So go back inside, he said, harbor no fright,

Your family is waiting and I’ll be all right.

But isn’t there something I can do, at the least

Give you money,” I asked, “or prepare you a feast?

It seems all too little for all that you’ve done,

For being away from your wife and your son.

Then his eye welled a tear that held no regret.

Just tell us you love us, and never forget

To fight for our rights back at home while we’re gone,

To stand your own watch, no matter how long.

For when we come home, either standing or dead,

To know you remember we fought and we bled

Is payment enough, and with that we will trust

That we mattered to you as you mattered to us.

I hope that we remember what is really important this Christmas season. I hope that we become a little better as the new year creeps around the corner. I pray that we can have a little more gratitude for those who have served and are serving our country. I hope that we can all give a little more this Christmas. We can all share our love and joy with those around us.