Tuesday, December 18, 2007
NOEL
This past weekend our choir and drama team put on "NOEL - a Celebration of Christmas Moments". This was the first time we had done drama in a while, the first time we did two performances, and the first time we did a costumed nativity (no animals, but a live baby Jesus!). Thanks to ebay for the great costumes! :-) I am on cloud nine about how everything went - the first night we had a few small glitches and a small crowd (maybe 150 or so) but the second night was AMAZING. the Lord was there, the choir sang wonderfully, no one missed a single line in the skits, the tech guys were on the ball, we had around 300 in attendance and it was just a glorious experience. I have never had a performance like that at this church...and what a blessing it was. I've kinda chilled for a day and a half, but tonight we clean up the stage and I move on toward planning the Christmas Eve service! Pictures of NOEL still to come...Merry Christmas, everyone.
Friday, December 7, 2007
Christmas 2007 Staff and Families
Here are the Polings, Zinks and Heckmans lookin' pretty for our 2007 Staff Christmas Photo. The only reason the little boy (AJ) was smiling is that someone is jumping up and down behind the photographer with great zeal. And see, it made us all smile!
what a month
i just worked for almost 13 hours straight. welcome to the week before a christmas production! 3 of those were spent searching for and downloading video backgrounds. such fun (but not for my back, shoulders or eyesight)! anyways, this next week will just be more of the same, but i'm both exhausted and excited thinking about it. NOEL is on it's way...7 days and counting. pray for me, the choirs, nativity cast, soloists, techies - God's blessings are greatly needed! updates as time allows...and hopefully an update on the Heckmans and our various going-ons. life is good, but probably busier than it should be. warm advent and christmas wishes to all! now it's home for pizza and crashing :-)
Saturday, November 17, 2007
Leo, ever watchful
We are in Maryland this weekend and it has been great seeing all the family. As an update, Leo is living down here now and he is all settled in to a new routine. It's better for us and him - but still not sure if it's better for Mom and Dad or Sam. The Jury is still out on that...
:-)
:-)
Thursday, August 30, 2007
in San Diego
we took a trip in June back to the San Diego area. someday we'll move there, i'm sure...
Tuesday, June 26, 2007
Wednesday, June 6, 2007
2 musicals down, 1 VBS to go (oh and a preteen camping trip too)
yes yes, let's applaud for finishing another spring musical! biggest cheers for having almost 70 people participating!! "How Great is Our God" was a huge success, and my hubby thinks the music was incredibly picked, organized and presented. no thanks to me, i just bought the complete package. but kudos to Word Music for another great multimedia presentation. one day i'll have a live band but until then...this works great.
i was especially proud of several newbie singers who joined us for the first time. i think i talked them plus several of their friends into doing it again, too.
this week is 'crazy insane VBS prep week' with a preteen trip on saturday thrown in for some extra spice. i bought 200 feet of sand-colored paper yesterday for the sanctuary walls. fun stuff. i also get to cut out like 30 cactuses...cacti...whatever. you get the point.
we are hoping to run around 120 kids this year...and brandon and martin and i made our video on monday and it was fantastic. props to those guys for helping out so much.
alright too much to do to blab on here. peace.
i was especially proud of several newbie singers who joined us for the first time. i think i talked them plus several of their friends into doing it again, too.
this week is 'crazy insane VBS prep week' with a preteen trip on saturday thrown in for some extra spice. i bought 200 feet of sand-colored paper yesterday for the sanctuary walls. fun stuff. i also get to cut out like 30 cactuses...cacti...whatever. you get the point.
we are hoping to run around 120 kids this year...and brandon and martin and i made our video on monday and it was fantastic. props to those guys for helping out so much.
alright too much to do to blab on here. peace.
Monday, May 21, 2007
Thursday, May 17, 2007
Poor Leo
its been a rough week in the heckman household. our boy dog is now an 'it', as dan put it. and the whole recovery-cone-on-the-head thing just isn't working too well. leo is miserable...and keeping him from running around doesn't work too well. i will post a picture of my sad little puppy soon.
Melinda Doolittle Final 9 I've Got Rhythm
I LOVE this version...and who wouldn't kill to hear her sing "Summertime?"
no, no, no, say it ain't so!
Mindy Doo is gone...proving that America has no ears. Ok either that or the 13 year olds with cell phones who vote religiously just couldn't care less about a 29 year old diva. Let's have a moment of silence for probably the best singer on AI ever...and all this junk about her having no personality - WHAT!? The girl was adorable, funny, sweet and solidly centered. Forget it...I could care so little about Jordin or Blake...they are flash in the pans compared to the immense talent that is Melinda. As I already told Grant -the instant a CD or tickets to a concert of hers goes on sale - I am there.
I just can't help myself...gotta post a video of my gal tearing down the house. Enjoy!
I just can't help myself...gotta post a video of my gal tearing down the house. Enjoy!
Tuesday, May 1, 2007
please, please don't bore a hole in my skull!!
i had a great weekend at home celebrating my 27th birthday. we took leo to the dog park, kept him from impregnating a pug who was apparently in heat, tried to keep him and sam (my parents lab) separate as sam decidedly hates leo, and enjoyed a lot of good family times.
the best part (or scariest, you decide) of the day was our meal at Macaroni Grill, only the best italian chain restaurant known to mankind. we were all together except ken (we missed you ken!) and rachael and i were sitting across from each other. my mom spilled the beans that we were celebrating birthdays (rae's was april 15th) and so we knew a waitress would come and sing happy birthday to us in italian, b/c that's what they do there. so sure enough, here comes a lady at the end of the meal and she says "i would like to sing happy birthday to you in italian, don't worry i'm not that really loud girl you heard before" (which was good b/c that girl was crazy insane loud and 'pitchy' - as randy jackson loves to say). we were relieved. loud girl would have been bad, but soft girl - she looked sweet and this could be nice.
FAMOUS LAST THOUGHTS.
soft girl began to sing...and immediately morphed into 'fiercely intense staring girl' who sang the slowest version of happy birthday i have ever heard (Taaaaannntiii Auguuuuuurrrriiiii Aaaaa Teeeeeee....) while boring holes into our skulls - one phrase she would stare at me, the next phrase, stare at rae. it was like she was trying to read our minds. you couldn't break eye contact it was so intense and really you were just very afraid. the only way i could deal with this overwhelming fear of fiercely intense staring girl was to crack up hysterically - but how could you laugh during her song?!?!?! i think that song went on for about 14 minutes. every time she turned and locked eyes with rachael i almost fell to pieces. my husband tried his best to elbow me into non-laughter, but it wasn't working. in the middle of the song that doesn't end, i decided i wouldn't laugh if i wasn't staring at her. so i tried her forehead. didn't work. next phrase, i tried to study my chocolate cake. again, didn't work.
i have no idea how i didn't just burst out laughing. must have been the holy spirit or something b/c i probably would have ruined her self esteem forever. but the second she walked away rachael and i looked at each other and just lost it. i was crying from laughing so hard. or maybe i was crying b/c my eyes and soul felt violated. either way, it was a memorable experience.
i am never telling them its my birthday again.
the best part (or scariest, you decide) of the day was our meal at Macaroni Grill, only the best italian chain restaurant known to mankind. we were all together except ken (we missed you ken!) and rachael and i were sitting across from each other. my mom spilled the beans that we were celebrating birthdays (rae's was april 15th) and so we knew a waitress would come and sing happy birthday to us in italian, b/c that's what they do there. so sure enough, here comes a lady at the end of the meal and she says "i would like to sing happy birthday to you in italian, don't worry i'm not that really loud girl you heard before" (which was good b/c that girl was crazy insane loud and 'pitchy' - as randy jackson loves to say). we were relieved. loud girl would have been bad, but soft girl - she looked sweet and this could be nice.
FAMOUS LAST THOUGHTS.
soft girl began to sing...and immediately morphed into 'fiercely intense staring girl' who sang the slowest version of happy birthday i have ever heard (Taaaaannntiii Auguuuuuurrrriiiii Aaaaa Teeeeeee....) while boring holes into our skulls - one phrase she would stare at me, the next phrase, stare at rae. it was like she was trying to read our minds. you couldn't break eye contact it was so intense and really you were just very afraid. the only way i could deal with this overwhelming fear of fiercely intense staring girl was to crack up hysterically - but how could you laugh during her song?!?!?! i think that song went on for about 14 minutes. every time she turned and locked eyes with rachael i almost fell to pieces. my husband tried his best to elbow me into non-laughter, but it wasn't working. in the middle of the song that doesn't end, i decided i wouldn't laugh if i wasn't staring at her. so i tried her forehead. didn't work. next phrase, i tried to study my chocolate cake. again, didn't work.
i have no idea how i didn't just burst out laughing. must have been the holy spirit or something b/c i probably would have ruined her self esteem forever. but the second she walked away rachael and i looked at each other and just lost it. i was crying from laughing so hard. or maybe i was crying b/c my eyes and soul felt violated. either way, it was a memorable experience.
i am never telling them its my birthday again.
Thursday, April 26, 2007
The Fight Against Malaria
http://www.malarianomore.org
Watch the video above for information on the fight to prevent and treat malaria. Our YAM group is going to be working with this charity this summer to purchase bed nets. Only $10 will buy a bed net to protect an entire family or buy enough drugs to treat 22 infected children. There's no reason to not be involved.
Watch the video above for information on the fight to prevent and treat malaria. Our YAM group is going to be working with this charity this summer to purchase bed nets. Only $10 will buy a bed net to protect an entire family or buy enough drugs to treat 22 infected children. There's no reason to not be involved.
Tuesday, April 24, 2007
Kids Musical: Complete!
this past weekend was crazy as it was finally time to present the kids musical we've been working on for four months. The prior week we poured hours into painting the set and i spent a lot of time running around town picking up our rentals - microphones, set pieces and a fog machine (which never worked - don't even get me started on the stupid fog machine!). all in all, it was a great show, but there were some really rough moments - like when a costume change didn't work correctly and the kids stayed frozen on stage for what seemed like HOURS waiting for a character to come out. i finally stood up and announced this was a commercial break, trying to break the tension! if you look on my flickr account http://www.flickr.com/photos/amylynnheckman you will see pics from the show - the change was from the park ranger to the superhero...but when our 'Captain Super' finally came out - there was so much applause and laughter...it was great. we had a really rough time with the wireless mics (20 in all) which upset me, but what can you do? the kids had a great time, everyone loved it and that's all that matters. i was so impressed by their professional demeanor as all these rough spots were occuring - they took it all in stride. i was really brought to tears several times just thinking of how proud of these kids i am, how much i love them and just feel so blessed to have known each one of them. i never knew when i moved here that God would allow me the joy of serving with kids but it has been absolutely the most rewarding part of this job. if we ever leave here i know i will miss the kids more than anything!
so i'll put one or two pictures up on here but the rest are on the flickr account.
this week the goals are: clean office, write a bunch of thank you notes, start work on creating a children's ministry council, and cook my hubby some real meals again (too much eating out last week!)
if you read this blog regularly please pray about a very important decision that Grant and I need to make soon - we need God's guidance and your prayers. thanks!
so i'll put one or two pictures up on here but the rest are on the flickr account.
this week the goals are: clean office, write a bunch of thank you notes, start work on creating a children's ministry council, and cook my hubby some real meals again (too much eating out last week!)
if you read this blog regularly please pray about a very important decision that Grant and I need to make soon - we need God's guidance and your prayers. thanks!
Thursday, April 19, 2007
quote of the day
From The Weight of Glory by C. S. Lewis :
“...there are no ordinary people. You have never talked to a mere mortal. Nations, cultures, arts, civilizations—those are mortal and their life is to ours as the life of a gnat. But it is immortals whom we joke with, work with, marry, snub, and exploit—immortal horrors and everlasting splendours…Next to the Blessed Sacrament itself, our neighbor is the holiest object presented to your senses.”
“...there are no ordinary people. You have never talked to a mere mortal. Nations, cultures, arts, civilizations—those are mortal and their life is to ours as the life of a gnat. But it is immortals whom we joke with, work with, marry, snub, and exploit—immortal horrors and everlasting splendours…Next to the Blessed Sacrament itself, our neighbor is the holiest object presented to your senses.”
Tuesday, April 10, 2007
woke up on easter...
and thought it was christmas.
let me be clear here. i hate snow, winter and cold. i think snow is pretty for about 3 days and then i am so over it. i hate cold weather because my body is consistently set at about 60 degrees and i am ALWAYS shivering (as my husband can attest). do not be surprised when you find out i've migrated down south eventually. i will not survive old age with this frigid body :-). all of that to say...yes, it was cold. yes, i wore my white pants and white sandals in defiance of the weather. and yes, it was a glorious day celebrating our Risen Lord.
He is Risen...He is Risen Indeed! One of my favorite phrases of all time.
the crowd was down a bit at church, but we still packed out the sanctuary for our extended service. we worked hard this year to make the service flow well, plan out all transitions, and make sure we stuck to a timed schedule. the choir sang two songs and i thought they were fabulous. then there were two videos taken from www.sermonspice.com (i love this site) to help drive home some points, and two duets (The Glory by Avalon and Redeemer by Nicole C. Mullen - both FABULOUS easter songs) that i had made ppt slides for - and both very effective, I think. the Lord's Spirit was absolutely present and it was great to spend an entire morning upstairs (no kids' rehearsal!). the service concluded with a baptism service where 8 people shared testimonies and got dunked. i can't think of a better day to baptize people than easter - what a beautiful demonstration of the gospel. after the service we shared an easter dinner with friends - i brought the carbs!
so all in all, it was a great day.
this week is all about working towards the kids' musical. that deserves its own post later.
till then, here's an interesting blog i found...nothing like some emergent nazarene controversy!
http://emergentnazarenes.blogspot.com/
let me be clear here. i hate snow, winter and cold. i think snow is pretty for about 3 days and then i am so over it. i hate cold weather because my body is consistently set at about 60 degrees and i am ALWAYS shivering (as my husband can attest). do not be surprised when you find out i've migrated down south eventually. i will not survive old age with this frigid body :-). all of that to say...yes, it was cold. yes, i wore my white pants and white sandals in defiance of the weather. and yes, it was a glorious day celebrating our Risen Lord.
He is Risen...He is Risen Indeed! One of my favorite phrases of all time.
the crowd was down a bit at church, but we still packed out the sanctuary for our extended service. we worked hard this year to make the service flow well, plan out all transitions, and make sure we stuck to a timed schedule. the choir sang two songs and i thought they were fabulous. then there were two videos taken from www.sermonspice.com (i love this site) to help drive home some points, and two duets (The Glory by Avalon and Redeemer by Nicole C. Mullen - both FABULOUS easter songs) that i had made ppt slides for - and both very effective, I think. the Lord's Spirit was absolutely present and it was great to spend an entire morning upstairs (no kids' rehearsal!). the service concluded with a baptism service where 8 people shared testimonies and got dunked. i can't think of a better day to baptize people than easter - what a beautiful demonstration of the gospel. after the service we shared an easter dinner with friends - i brought the carbs!
so all in all, it was a great day.
this week is all about working towards the kids' musical. that deserves its own post later.
till then, here's an interesting blog i found...nothing like some emergent nazarene controversy!
http://emergentnazarenes.blogspot.com/
Friday, March 23, 2007
Sean Michel American Idol Performance
This guy is AMAZING. He has a great story of living faith, doing music and being Christ's hands and feet. check out his myspace page: http://www.myspace.com/seanmichel yeah i know, he's on american idol - but the word on the net is that he got cut b/c he wouldn't cut his hair...more power to ya dude.
Tuesday, March 20, 2007
yam group
this past week we kicked off a new Young Adult Ministry (affectionately titled "yam" or "the sweet potato class"!) for our church. we will be having two Bible studies, one on Sunday and one on Wednesday, and a host of other activities and outreach events. there were 23 attendees to the first meeting, which was very exciting. grant and i are thrilled about the response and looking forward to seeing spiritual and numerical growth among the participants. if you think about it, pray for the 'yam' group and for grant as he works hard to find time to balance work and leading this ministry. thanks!
Wednesday, March 14, 2007
leo
i don't think he would do this anymore - he used to fall asleep so easily - now he would probably bite grant's pants :-)
LEO!
this is our baby, leo. here i am saving him from the big spay and neuter truck about to run us over. just kidding. we took him home exactly one month ago, when we was about 11 weeks old. he was adorable for about a week (he would fall asleep everywhere but especially on us!) and had no issues. now as he's a little older we have some classic puppy issues (biting and jumping while on a leash) to deal with - but he's also very smart and has learned sit, stay, down and go to your bed! i'm quite proud.
my adorable husband
i love my hubby b/c he puts things together like our really nice new sleigh bed, while i annoy him by taking pictures and generally getting in the way. :-)
new life, new blog
welcome to my new home on the web. i start this blog with the understanding that it won't be updated that frequently, and when it is, it probably won't be that exciting. but hopefully it will serve to help keep people connected with new goings-on in the life of the heckmans. i will post some starter musings about married life and ministry soon - but until then i am glad to say that while definitely not a walk through the tulips, marriage is full of deep blessings and fulfillment - AND sanctification sure happens faster when you live with someone day in and out! i love my husband so very much and want to thank God for putting him in my life. life is an adventure, and i will chronicle much of what i experience while on this journey here. until then, peace.
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