hero worship

Yesterday was the day we have been working toward for over six months...PRAISE4GRAY!!!! We started early by running last minute errands and checking the band into their hotel!! When we arrived at the hotel to put their welcome baskets in each of their rooms we were SO EXCITED to see that the hotel had actually hung the event poster that we had asked them if we could advertise inside their hotel? They had told us at the time that they weren't sure if they could hang it but when we showed up on Friday morning the poster was hanging right on the front door window!! I think Rae and I both shrieked with excitement when we saw it!!

After the boys got out of school, Noni brought them up to the church to hang out and see Jason Upton and his team. One of our volunteers, Kaisha, was more then happy to play with the boys and entertain them while we worked. She is SUCH a good babysitter and I only wish she lived closer so that we could use her all the time...

Gray didn't get released from the hospital until the evening and so he basically went home, changed and came straight to the church. He even still had his hospital bracelet on! He was still very swollen in his face and you could just tell he was extremely tired. He was very shy with Jason Upton and his band and just wanted to sit on the step in the choir room. Maddox tried to talk to him and after not getting any response Maddox finally said "Mom! He won't talk to me!" Gray eventually warmed up a bit and played through the church hallways with the other kids but he didn't make it to the end of the concert...he fell asleep just after 9PM and his dad took him home. It was great just to have him show up though. I only wish that the concert hadn't fallen on a day Gray was being released from the hospital because I'm sure he could have had EVEN MORE fun...

Jason Upton and his team began playing at 8PM and the concert was AWESOME!!!! I grew up listening to Jason Upton and so I was so excited to see him in person. It was so surreal. Each time I would close my eyes and listen to them play I could have sworn I was listening to a CD!! They sounded PERFECT and they led us beautifully into worship. It was a great night and I'm not going to deny it...I was extremely star struck!! When Jason Upton first showed up to the church my stomach was turning circles!! I had no idea what I was going to say and couldn't decide if I should just immediately tell him how much his music has meant to me over the years or just "play it cool" and treat him like any normal guy. I kinda combined the two and told him how happy we were to have him and that I'm a "big fan" of his! He was very gracious. He thanked us constantly for our hospitality and organization. He and his team were so laid back and easy to work with. After meeting Jason Upton, I think I love his music even more now then I did before...if that's even possible! It's almost all I listen to as it is...!!!
 

At the very end of the day, after the concert was over and we were cleaning up the church, I finally had the opportunity to ask Jason Upton if I could take a picture with him. He, of course, said yes and so I jumped in for my own personal pic!! By the time this picture was taken it was 11PM...I was exhausted, sweaty and so hungry but I'm glad I still took the pic. As you can see BOTH my dimples are showing (which rarely happens) so I guess I was pretty excited!! Ha!!

Jason Upton also signed several CD's for us and I bought the only two CD's from his table that I didn't already own. I can't wait to listen to every single song on the CD's!! Overall, the day went very smoothly and I couldn't have asked for better volunteers or a better band to work with. Praise4Gray was a success and after I got home last night I fell asleep within minutes!! I think I'll probably sleep most of next week!! Ha!! I would do it all over again, though, if I could and I couldn't have worked for a better cause. During the evening, Jill presented me with roses and a bracelet that she had engraved with the phrase "Color Me Gray". I burst into tears when I saw it. I had told Jill about a month ago that over this past year I've been praying so much for Gray and my motto has become "Color Me Gray" which just simply means that when I grow up, I want to be like Gray! He has taught me so many lessons in the past twelve months and I truly do want to be more like him! I'll wear this bracelet always. My sister was also sweet enough to put me together a goody bag of coffee, a new starbucks coffee cup, a book, lotion, etc. She and many others had also written me sweet notes about the evening and working toward a common goal through Praise4Gray. It was humbling. When it comes down to it I don't feel like I've done that much. Really, over the past year, I've worked a handful of hours each week to raise money for Gray and his family and in the grand scheme of life I wish I could do more. I was happy with Praise4Gray, though, and super excited to meet my worship hero, Jason Upton!! I just can't believe the day went so fast and it's actually over. I'm afraid a week from now I'll be desperately looking for my to-do list convinced that I have work to do on the concert only to realize that there's nothing to do after all. I guess it's back to real life but I can promise you that I'll NEVER forget last night!!