Today is a week past the end of our 12th Annual Ladies Winter Retreat. I didn't realize it had been so long since my last blog but then...it has been like a whirlwind since the 25th!
It never ceases to amaze me how much preparation goes into the Retreat....I forget each year until I am in the midst of it all. There are totes to find...I have used Longaberger for the last 3 years...so they must be found on clearance! Then dvds to be printed and ready to burn of each service. The flyers and packets have long been mailed out in August but now the registrations are pouring in...in the mail...through paypal...email...facebook private message....texts and phone call! I am filling out registration forms as fast as I receive the paypal email.
Oh no...night before we leave I realize I forgot a bookmark! So at 3am Ronnie is patiently designing our bookmark for the tote that we will take to Staples to duplicate...no time to laminate this year! The bookmark is ready...new signs for the product table are ready...a little sleep before we drive out in the morning!
Everything is loaded...tshirts...cds...dvds....door prizes...350 totes...11 handmade wreaths...Christmas dishes for the Welcome Table to be given away as grand prize...decorations...hand sanitizer...peppermints and pretty little dishes to put them in...pink ink pens for the registration table...gifts for the boys and girls coming with Mom...always 10-12 extras for last minute surprises...sound equipment...microphones...my outfits (always more than 4....I have to decide when I get there)...my own quilt and pillow and sandals to wear in the motel! Well, you get where I'm going....never ending list for the week! :)
Now to leave home on Tuesday so we can have a nice leisurely supper in Pigeon Forge and start setting up Wednesday morning. We have friends coming in today to help us with the setup. Wednesday is always a busy day. Room is ready for us to bring our equipment for set up...but then the door prizes, wreaths, dishes, products must all be put in place...dvd recorder set up...registration table ready for my sister who will register women at the door...singers...also my nieces... bringing their equipment...doing sound checks...photographer getting backdrop ready for group photos...new tshirts to be folded in all new colors especially for the Retreat. There are last minute door prizes to pick up from the local businesses....and my sister and niece will arrive this afternoon and we will make our yearly trip to the Old Mill for some corn chowder! Wednesday afternoon Lindy and I will travel to Staples...remember bookmarks....then Dollar Tree for more peppermints and frames for product signs...Lil Dollys for napkins for the Christmas dishes...where I may have bought me a quilt on sale with my birthday money from my Mom! :) Now a cup of coffee from Mcd's and a night to prop up my feet...study some more for tomorrow....good night's sleep and tomorrow we begin again!
Thursday is an exciting day! It is finally here! We have planned for this day since the end of last year's Retreat! Women are checking in...checking our "to do" list for any last minute things we may have forgotten. Bible Church ladies will meet us at 10am to stuff the totes with hand gels from Bath and Body Works, paperback 30 days of Prayer, travel brochures, pkts of kleenex and the famous bookmark. Last minute checks....one more sound check...peppermints are out...awwwww...It's done! Now to my room to hide....prepare myself for tonight! Doors will open at 6pm for the women to sign in and pick up their tote or register at the door! There is a team of girls from my family and our churches that will meet at 6pm while I am in the room. They know what to do....
7:15pm....Ferree family begin playing music....7:30 opening prayer....the singing begins and.....oh yes, I remember! WE WALK WITH THE KING!
The rest is just a memory now of a visitation of His presence...healings taking place....reunions....laughter....tears...worship...sermons of little Much Afraid...meekness...going to Hawaii...a new master switch....well, you would just have to have been there! It was perfect! All I can say is...we have hundreds of pictures from 4 photographers getting every imaginable shot...from all the gifts...the altar service...to Pat with her cell phone open so her daughter in South Carolina can hear the singing! One memory after another....then we have dvds of the services....but what you need is to mark your calendar for November 7-9, 2013 and join us to make new memories!
