"Jubilee Day"

Can "Jubilee Day" be every day? I had a blast going to this event! It was amazing because so many people showed up to support the Jubilee Family Development center. They had a goal to reach $200,000 and they reached it all in one night!

One of the highlights of my night was watching the Rascal Flatts perform. I could not believe that they came to Lynchburg and I only had to pay $20 to see them. I sat close to the stage and took a million pictures. Their performance was wonderful! My friend Sarah kept looking at me and saying,
"I cannot believe they are here! I cannot believe they are here!"

After the band played I enjoyed watching the fireworks. They went on for more than an hour. I went with my boyfriend and another couple and we just had a blast. The food was tasty and it was an overall great atmosphere. We sat back and drank lemonade and ate funnel cakes.

The atmosphere was fun and friendly. The event was run by Thomas Road Baptist Church. There were activities ranging from young kids to grown men and women. Some of the activities included:

• Arts and crafts
• Face painting
• Moon Bounces
• Listening to Rascal Flatts
• Watching Betsy the Clown
• Fireworks

Everyone had something to appeal to them.

I almost forgot to tell everyone that I won the raffle they put on! I never win anything! They were going to give me half of the money they made, but I let them keep the money for Jubilee Center.

I learned a lot about the center and I think it is a great opportunity for young people. I would like to volunteer for the center one of these days and I encourage you to look into volunteering as well.

Anyway, we didn't want to leave after all of the excitement. I have been waiting with anticipation for months and it was now over. The day went just like I had planned and I am grateful for that.

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A Stunning Easter Day

Easter was beautiful in my hometown of Newport News. We had sunshine and warm weather. I am so excited I was able to come home and spend time with my family. Easter was filled with a lot of great memories. First, my sister wakes up bright and early to hunt for Easter eggs in the backyard. It was fun to watch her because it brings back memories when I was really excited to hunt for eggs. I always wanted to find the "golden egg," which was the one with the money in it. After she looks for the eggs for fifteen minutes she then comes inside and opens the eggs and dumps the candy on the floor. She then says,

"Do you think I found all of them?"

She is too cute! She will then make one last round outlining the backyard to see if she collected them all.

After the egg hunt, I went to church. I went with my boyfriend Matt and his grandparents. I love his grandparents! His grandfather has taken me in as his granddaughter because mine died before I was born. I wish I had a chance to meet them, but his grandfather is very nice. It is always good to see them.

When the church service ended, Matt and I rushed over to the Courtyard Marriott hotel to eat breakfast with my family. Going to the hotel is a tradition for us and my family looks forward to going, especially my dad because he loves to eat all of their bacon.

This year my mom, dad, sister, her friend Taylor and Matt went to Busch Gardens. It was such a nice day to go. If anyone has not been before, I recommend it. It is a beautiful park. The tulips were already bloomed and they had every color planted. The lines were short and my family overall had a fun time riding rides and walking around. It was a good time for family bonding.

My family and I were so tired from Busch but we were all hungry again. Every year we also go to my grandmother's house to eat dinner, she cooks a feast. I ate so much!

The evening is winding down now and I am so sleepy from all of the activities from today. I guess time flies when you are having fun. Then morning will come quickly and it will be time for me to go back to the Blue Ridge Mountains, three hours away. I will then be back in the daily grind of classes, homework and waitressing.