Edie Grace has a summer filled with great camps..but so far last weeks No Joe’s Clown Camp has top billing so far.    The camp was held at the Averitt Center for the Arts.  Edie Grace and her classmates spent the week learning all things “clown”.  On Friday evening, they starred in a clown circus on the big stage at the Averitt Center. 

Edie Grace had a blast.  I wanted so bad to take off the week and join her.  DeWayne is always concerned every year when the fair comes to town that I am going to join up.  I LOVE all things carney.

This week, Edie Grace is at Art Camp.  Tomorrow night she will have her first exit show.  I am looking forward to seeing her week of work - her masterpieces hanging in a real art gallery.  She is SEVEN…wow.

Hope each of you are joining Edie Grace in having a GREAT summer!

We have spent the weekend taxiing Edie Grace to birthday parties.  Saturday she traveled to Jesup to a swim party for one of her Pinewood friends, Adley.  Edie Grace was so excited that she was able to dive down to the bottom of the 12′ pool.  She had a blast and enjoyed seeing some of her school friends over the summer. 

Today we went to Monkey Joe’s in Augusta to cousin Mackenzie’s party.  Monkey Joe’s is a cool indoor playground with indoor inflatable’s.  Edie Grace had a blast with her cousin and her friends.  We have had a blast - but we racked up some serious miles in the “TV” car as Edie Grace so appropriately calls it.  There is simply not enough week in this weekend!

The Circus is in town…the circus is in town…AND Edie Grace has joined!!!

Don’t miss the show!  Call 212-ARTS to get your $5 ticket.  There won’t be any lions or tigers or bears (oh my!) but there will be lots of family fun.  Edie Grace has been part of a week long clown camp and she says the circus will be great. 

Come join us Friday nite at the Emma Kelly theater at 7:30.

Hope to see you there!

NoJoe’s Circus

Joey “NoJoe” Thurmond and his traveling circus are on their way to the Averitt! Alongside NoJoe, campers from the NoJoe circus camp will be showing off their circus skills! NoJoe’s Clown Circus is a high energy show with a circus theme. With silly magic, goofy animals, great juggling, amazing balancing, and other CLEAN family entertainment. NoJoe, the “WORLD’S BEST MANNERED CLOWN”, will have your audience saying please and thank you before they know it. The audience will not be able to look away for fear of missing what is coming next! You supply the children and NoJoe will supply the LEARNING, SMILES, LAUGHTER, and FUN!

Time: 7:30pm
Cost: $5.00 per person

If you haven’t checked out Todd and Bob’s brand new space you are totally missing out on the coolest stuff anywhere!  It is so refreshing to walk off of East Main street into a store filled with home decor that would rival anything you may find in Atlanta, New York or LA.  Really!  If you don’t believe me, come take a look for yourself!  One day when I was in their store a lady walked in and said, “Wow, I have just walked into HGTV!”  And that is just how you will feel!

One of Todd’s specialities is silk floral design.  At the new location he has a glass windowed studio so you can watch him create.  Just bring in one of your old pieces that needs updating, pick out some new pieces from his vast array of silks and let him work his magic.  Better yet, come in and pick out a container and the silks and let him create the whole thing!

Whether you need some pieces to update your table for entertaining, patio furniture for outdoor living, water features to bring some Zen to your life or just want to be inspired to tackle the whole house…they can most likely accommodate your every wish.  Todd even offers holiday decorating, but you better call today…his list was full VERY early last year.  If you enjoyed our tree last year…it was a Todd creation!

These images are from their open house and window debut.  (And one from a client’s house.  Todd created the pieces that flank the portrait)  When you go see Todd and Bob…tell them Lori sent you!    

  You never can start out too early getting to know your elected officials.  This weekend we worked in a visit from our United States Congressman John Barrow.  John is a great friend of ours and has been very responsive to all of Edie Grace’s requests.  Unfortunately, he was tied up at some other important function and missed Edie Grace’s seventh birthday.  He made it up to her with a personal visit this weekend.  We are looking forward to visiting him at his office in Washington soon.

In Edie Grace’s slide show that we put together on her birthday some of you may have noticed that Edie Grace has pictures with Governors, Senators and other important elected officials.  One great thing about my job - is having the opportunity to work with and meet many influential leaders.  They have all been very kind to embrace Edie Grace.  How many of you can name your elected representatives - let alone have pictures with all of them?  Yeah…I guess we do take lots of wonderful things for granted.  Of course, DeWayne says it is NEVER to early to start prepping her for her Senate or Gubernatorial campaigns.  However, she and I are focused on completing second grade at this point!

Another year of school and another year of dance.  Edie Grace’s dance school - Statesboro School of Dance held their annual recital Saturday on the “big stage” at the GSU performing arts center.  The capacity crowd enjoyed the incredible show.  Edie Grace had a blast and survived THREE costume changes without mom’s help backstage.  She is such a big girl.  Her dance buddy little Shaye makes dancing so MUCH fun.  Mrs. Shay, the instructor, is due any day with her second child.   She survived both shows without having a baby. Miracles do exist!  Thanks Mrs. Shay and little Shaye for another GREAT year!  Edie Grace wants me to tell you that they all SCREAMED at the end after the curtain closed.

Edie Grace is OUT of SCHOOL for the summer and she is SO EXCITED!  Friday was Pinewood’s last day of school.  Edie Grace is officially a SECOND grader - YIKES!  So where did that year go?  She had a wonderful teacher, Mrs. Teresa Perkins, and teacher’s assistant, Ms. Lisa Oliver.  Edie Grace received a few honors at honors day which you see her and Mrs. Perkins proudly displaying here.  She also wanted one LAST picture in her first grade desk.  But, of course, the best part of the end of school is the SUPER end of school party.   One of Edie Grace’s classmates’ parents were brave enough to host the class to a water party at their home.  The party was a BLAST!  Edie Grace will miss her friends this summer - but is looking forward to staying on top of her AR reading so Mrs. Perkins will be proud. 

Edie Grace has a full slate of fun summer camps she is looking forward to.  Her third year at the recreation dept. camp — which allows her LOTS of trips to Splash in the Boro, several art camps, of course, another year of High School Musical Camp, and to mix things up, a week of Clown Camp.  She needs a personal assistant to keep up with her summer activities.  Edie Grace will keep you posted on her summer fun.

  The farmers market Saturday was lots of fun.  There was ton’s of great produce - direct from the fields.  Since your purchasing directly from the growers - the prices were great also.  Most importantly the market had the best fresh popcorn and home made (well almost) lemonade. Thanks to all of you who stopped by Edie Grace’s popcorn and lemonade stand.  She had a blast!  She helped get everything together and did a great job minding the store most of the morning.  Notice who is Thing One - guess who two and three is?  Special thanks to all the grand parents who got up early to come out and support the families newest entrepreneur.  Our neighbor Cadance and her mom are great encouragers to Edie Grace and we appreciate all they do for us!  Cadance is in the picture with Edie Grace on Edie Grace’s "little" girl bike. We hope you will come out for the next one which will be the first Saturday in June in the Sea Island Bank parking lot - beside the studio.

Edie Grace’s 7th birthday party week has been a blast!  We kicked it off last Saturday with a family party, went to Savannah on her actual birthday on Wednesday, and ended it with a party of friends.  (for the first time we let HER create the guest list)  The friend party was held at “Mommies’ Mommies”(my mom’s) house here in Statesboro.  Her guest list included friends from just about all of her life experiences to date:  daycare to dance…family life center to Pinewood to church — she invited a few from each it seems.

Her party included swimming, fingernail and toenail painting, limbo, banana split making, playhouse playing and swinging and bouncing on the play set the Easter Bunny dropped off in March.

We have had a great week.  On Wednesday, she picked out her new “big girl” bike that she can ride without training wheels.  Of course, she picked the High School Musical with a picture of Troy Bolton on it.  I think all of our parents are trying to make up for all the things they were not able to do for us.  It is tuff to keep Edie Grace grounded in reality.  Thank goodness birthday’s come only once per year!

Seven years ago today- mine and DeWayne’s world turned upside down and inside out.  God gave us the most incredibly precious gift any one could ever ask for - a terrific & beautiful little girl.  After a 12 year journey, with lots of ups and downs - she arrived.  Many of you had told me that there was no way that I could understand love until I experienced parenthood.  Nothing has ever been more true.  Edie Grace has become our world.  She has been my creative rebirth in so many ways.

Most of you know  our story - but after a 12 year struggle to have a child - I learned when she was only 14 months old that I had cervical cancer.  In fact, I had my first surgery on my 33rd birthday.  I breast fed Edie Grace for the last time the night prior to my surgery.

This was an epiphany to me, however.  If I did not make it through the surgery or survive the cancer - I realized that the ONLY way Edie Grace would know me was through pictures.  She would have no cognitive memory other than pictures.

How ironic - the gift I give to parents every day - is the ONLY way my child would know me - had I not survived.  Well God had another plan for me.  He knew that many of you needed to hear my story and to have your story told through the lens of my camera.  Every portrait I create is special - but none are more special than the ones I have created since this spiritual and creative rebirth.  I understand the incredible importance of my job in a way I had never understood before the arrival of Edie Grace and the survivorship of cancer.

When I speak around the country - sharing my story I end my speech with a slide show.  It is our story through pictures and it is set to one of my favorite songs by Tim Mcgraw “Live Like You Were Dying” which is my challenge to each of you.  Life really takes on a whole new meaning when you do this.

Happy Birthday Edie Grace and thanks for adding the value and meaning to my life that it needed.  You have inspired me to work harder and stretch my creative abilities in ways that seemed unimaginable.  All that in just SEVEN years!

I Love you!

Mom

p.s.  You are soooooo beautiful!!!