New promo shots

We have new photos! Today, Brett and I headed to Chambersburg for a duo photoshoot. We'd love to hear your feedback! What are your favorites? What styles would you like to see more of? And how do you like these looks compared with others on http://www.bammagic.com/?
Comment and let us know :)

Thanks to Selena (Pose Photography) for doing such a fabulous job and getting these photos to us so quickly!! http://posephotoco.zenfolio.com/

The army of mooching seagulls

Brett is the best husband in the entire world. Really, he is. Sorry, ladies. Hard news to know the best is already taken I know ;) Anyway, that's not really the point of this blog. That's just what I think of when I remember the romantic picnic Brett and I shared in Corpus Christi this past Sunday. We flew in for an evening event and had time for lunch before arriving at the church.

Side note: If you've never eaten at a Whataburger, try one out! (Thanks, Smitty!) Their takeout can serve as your impromptu picnic meal :D

So Brett found a lovely grassy knoll for us to relax on as we ate our fries and burgers. Honestly, it really was one of the most beautiful scenes I've stared at for a long time. As most of PA is still locked in the dead days of winter, this little overlook by the water seemed even more vivid! The picture honestly doesn't do it justice.

So off to the left was a peninsula of sandbags jutting out into the water. I think there were 5, maybe 6 gulls hanging out there when we arrived. And they were several yards from us. In fact, they kind of added to the tropical atmosphere! But pretty soon, their little group started growing...and moving.

Initially, just 1 or 2 were brave enough to fly over to us. But they weren't really annnoying. Brett and I were amused just watching them see how close they dared to fly. As long as they didn't poop on me, I was good. ...Though that fear never really left my mind.

But pretty soon, they whole flock moved from the sandbags to the grass right beside us. And the group had grown to about 20. There was this one loudmouth gull that kept alerting others of the feast. Why? I have no idea. He certainly had no intention of sharing. But neither did I, so it was all good.

Soon, we finished everything but a few fries, and Brett gets the genius idea to toss one out toward the water. Really, it was genius. Otherwise, I wouldn't have a story to write. I expected the birds to jump up and dive for the fry, and they did. But I didn't expect the whole crew (which had now grown to like 25 or 30) to turn around and hover in mid-air, just staring at us! Eventually, they flew around and over our heads to land in the grass again. But, of course, I had to join the fun, too!

We tossed out food until our fries were gone, and each time the whole clan just faced us and waited, hoping for more. I wish I had been able to get a panoramic shot to capture just how many birds were staring us down. You know, gulls are pretty small birds, but a whole group 5 feet from your face? A little intimidating!

We tried having another romantic moment by laying down, closing our eyes, and basking in the sunshine for a few more minutes. But I just kept imagining a seagull coming up and pecking at my hair. Not sure I ever really did relax.

Either way, I got a fun story. And I guess our picnic turned out to be more of a romantic comedy :)

In my mind, I'm flying...

...But in reality, I'm looking more like a hyperactive, baby monkey than a graceful dove! Today I had my first aerials class at the Philadelphia School of Circus Arts. I loved it!!! My dream is to be able to perform with the aerial silks. I learned today, though, that I have NO upper body strength. Holy cow! I knew the class would be tough, but by the time I left, I had that shaky, wobbly feeling that echoed through my entire body.

Did you know that you have muscles you never knew existed? And did you know that it's really easy to hang upside down on a trapeze but that getting back up is a different story? Or that all those movie scenes where the hero is holding onto a random branch for dear life make it look WAY easier than it actually is?

Yeah, I kinda knew that stuff, too. But today I felt it! However, I am happy to announce that I was able to climb the rope, hang from the trapeze, and get more inspiration to do chin-ups than I've ever had in my life! Honestly, the class was the hardest and most exciting work out I've ever had. And I can't wait for next week!

Ha, hopefully, I'll be able to move when I wake up tomorrow :)

Sundays make me crave Chick-fil-a

This weekend, Brett and I traveled to our first shows as a married couple. *Awww....* Yes, cute. I know. They were a blast! What fabulous hosts! Friday we were in New Jersey; Saturday we were in Chambersburg, PA for a second wedding reception; and Sunday we were in Norfolk, VA for an Upward event.

So, when we're traveling from event to event, we often have to grab food on the go. If I were the awesome wife who is the perfect picture of "healthy" and "smart," I'd be packing nifty lunches all the time...but fast food stops serve us well all too often. That being the case, we've found several places that are fast, affordable, and have really good food! One of our favorites is Chick-fil-a! Actually, I'm hungry as I'm writing this, so now I'm craving their food again!! But that has nothing to do with our Sunday adventure.

As you may know, Chick-fil-a is closed on Sundays. No big deal... Until we have a long travel day to a Sunday night event. Brett honestly forgot this detail and got excited about eating there THREE different times on the drive over. Once, he even got off the exit! We were cracking up.

We never did get Chick-fil-a that day, but we did eat Indian food that night after the event. Wow! It was fabulous. We tried again last night to grab some chicken on the way home from the event. But out of all the locations around, we managed to find the one located in a mall that was closing. So, I still have a Chick-fil-a craving. Haha, oh well. Someday.

I just think it's funny how Sundays can make that craving grow! Maybe it's a great business idea after all...instead of sacrificing sales you drive them up during the week because you created a weekend shortage of glorious breaded chicken sandwiches with two pickle slices a piece. I should study that sometime. :)

Wedding Bells!

Goodness, it's been forever since I've updated here! I seem to have gotten caught up with wedding planning in the past few weeks! But life is grand...especially now since my dear sister and niece are in from Uganda this weekend!

Brett and I are spending a little time apart right now as I am spending time in TN preparing for our big day :) But we just had a run of shows the first week of January and spent last week getting the new apartment where Brett could start staying there. So exciting!! There's just something to cleaning out all the dark corners of cabinets that makes me feel like the place will really be home.

The New Years shows were a blast! I think all of us were struggling to kick back in high gear after the holidays, but really we ended the week with one of the best nights I can remember! We were able to partner with the Antietam Recreation Center for two nights of a full theatre-style show. SO fun!! Not only was the staff amazing, but the events gave us a chance to try out a new illusion for the finale! Honestly, for me one of my highlights from the weekend was getting to know Tim and Kristi (another soon-to-be-married couple who were fabulous to partner with!) But I think Genae and Patrick would also agree that Saturday night especially was a fun show backstage as well. We just had a blast!

We're really hoping that we can work with Antietam Rec again next year! In the meantime, it's no more BAM Magic events for me until after the honeymoon. The spring is looking busy. But now we're focusing on preparing for the wedding and our marriage. Two weeks from today!!

Summer travels

Wow! It's been almost two months since I updated the blog, and SO much has been going on since then. We've had an extensive summer tour during the month of July and are finally having some down time. Basically, Brett and I met up with a girl from TN on our way to TX 3 weeks ago. Brett had an event at a church the day after we left, one more the next morning, and a full stage show plus the first camp session at Highland Lakes camp that night. Four events in 24 hours. Whew!

Our 3rd crew member, Jessica, did a wonderful job relearning a lot of the routines. She's got so much energy on stage! It really shines. So it was exciting to teach and work with someone who is so eager to learn!

We spent 10 days total on the TX tour, and I felt like we were running the whole time! One of the highlights for me was showing up to an event, realizing that we were helping with a VBS family night at a Hispanic church...then realizing we were staying in host homes that night. Oh, happy day! I'm not sure if Jessica enjoyed that night as much as I did, but I got to have some wonderful conversations with the wife of our host family.

The kicker for the TX trip was the drive back...all the way to MD...straight through. It was a 26-hour drive, and, while we did stop to rest on the way, that kind of trip is just draining. We arrived in MD just in time to catch a nap then set up for another full-stage show. The event went really well, and we were able to work with Genae and Patrick since the event was in the Northeast. Brett parents even drove out for the event. But, honestly, I don't remember all the details from that day. I felt a bit foggy for sure. :) I do know that it still felt like TX weather! Over 100 degrees with crazy-high humidity. But thank God for air-conditioning! Seriously, I'm spoiled. But it did feel so good to step inside after being out in the trailer unloading.

After that event, we went out to Dallas, PA, for our 2nd camp of the summer. This was a week-long camp with 6 sessions overall. The kids were great, and we were able to build relationships with some of the staff from Camp Orchard Hill, but one thing that really stands out from that camp was the Wednesday morning service. There were over 50 kids that came forward to either commit or recommit their lives to Christ! Brett claims that it was his first time giving an altar call (though he has presented the gospel countless times). But whether it was or not, I'm so proud of him, and I'm thankful to God for allowing us to serve in a way that fills us with life and makes a difference on an eternal level. What a way to live!

So the summer has been exhausting at times, invigorating at others, and overall quite fulfilling. I really will try to update more frequently so that these posts aren't so long and fact-based. But thanks for reading! Love to all :)

Chambersburg, PA

This weekend we had one of the most unusual events I've ever been a part of. We partnered with several music acts to do a full stage/concert event this past Saturday night. It was put on to support Save the Babeez, an organization to help teen centers across the US. And the event was called Saving a Sinner's Soul Bash. Most of the people that showed up were friends and family of the different artists that were performing. We were just one of seven groups on stage that night, but we kind of acted to transition between the various acts. There were all varieties of music! From contemporary to gospel. Lol, it was definitely unique!

I did enjoy getting to talk with several of the other performers. It made for a fun mix backstage. Unfortunately, I wasn't feeling the most social this weekend due to a cat allergy. Hopefully no one took offense! :) But when you're struggling to function in natural light, avoiding the stage lights as much as possible becomes a goal. Oh well! I made it through one of my recent fears and survived! Thank God!

Also, I LOVED the location of the event. We performed at the Capitol Theatre, a historic theatre in Chambersburg, and it was beautiful! It had a old-theatre feel with a chandelier in the main auditorium, gorgeous detail in the walls and edging, and an antique front curtain that could hang down over the main. Haha, the backstage is always less that glamorous. But the audience view was amazing.

We also got to debut our new opening Saturday! We've added one new illusion to the intro, and it was a lot of fun! Genae did a great job with it, and I'm excited to see how it gets even better with more time.

Now, we're about to head down to TN for some shows in the Southeast. We'll be there for two weeks (just in time to celebrate by b-day with my fam!) then head back up here for a couple shows in OH. The summer frenzy is about to start, and I'm getting SO excited. Here's to lots of sunshine!!