The Monkey And the Restless

WHAT?!?! It's time to go back on the road??? REALLY?

That's a great thing. But I really feel like I just blinked and the holidays and this big ole chunk of "time off" was over.

We have gotten SOOOO much done. But there are still many loose ends that haven't gotten tied up just quite yet... i.e. our new trailer... we ordered it a while ago, but with the holidays... they have just now put it into production... so it won't be ready for this first trip. Not a big deal. But that also means there are other things that we can't take out on the road with us because our original trailer is too small for anything extra.

But no matter!

James and I went to Costco today and bought SOOO much stuff for the band retreat this week.

We are excited. The band is heading down to Port Stovall on the Tennessee River. We are locking ourselves in to rehearse the new material for this year.

Since Miguel joined the band 3 years ago... we have not had a full on rehearsal with sound equipment. How crazy is that??? So this is a big deal!!! I remember the days where ALLLLL we did was rehearse... and never gigged. Now we are the opposite. We gig so much, we never have time to rehearse. We learn new songs by running through them acoustically in a hotel room somewhere, run it at soundcheck and hope for the best!! This is going to be such a treat. (And great bonding time with the newbies!)

Cinnamon just found her Christmas hedge hog and is going crazy right now playing with him. He makes an awesome grunting noise, which drives her nuts. The Vet prescribed her an antihistamine today because she has been wheezing and sneezing non stop the last few days. Who knew a dog could take an antihistamine?! So cute!

I don't want to leave her. :( She's the one thing that makes me sad to leave. But that's why we're working so hard. So I can take her on the road WITH us!!!

Peace. Love. Fiddle.
~natalie

Happy Birthday Jenn!

The More I Clean... The Messier It Gets...

I never intend on staying up all night before an early flight, but somehow it always happens :) We're leaving for NY in the morning. It's 3:45am and the shuttle is coming at 5am, so why sleep now, right? Cat nap for a minute or two maybe... we'll see.

We got home this evening LOOKING like Santa with our suitcases and bags-o-goodies :) But I had the strong need to purge before putting things away.

I only got the bathroom done.

But hey! That's at least something. I threw away all the out of date medicines and vitamins... and continued to fill my bag that will eventually go to Goodwill... got rid of any other unnecessary items. Then I cleaned that sucker like no one's business! WHEW that feels good.

But the bedroom only got messier as a result. Ughh. That's for when we return.

We're always coming home for a few days at a time... and I think stuff builds up even more than the average person. We put things down, and it's hard to get the gumption up to REALLY clean when you know you're not gonna be there more than a couple of days. But this is our home... even if it's only a few hours at a time :) So getting a little bit done here and there is better than nothing at all.

Mamma mentioned yesterday that she didn't feel as sad about Christmas being over as most years because there's so much to look forward to this year. I must agree. And THAT in of itself is an incredible feeling!!! To have so much to look forward to that you get giddy with anticipation. Life still happens all around us - the hardships and rough times. But there is so much goodness and excitement. And the good times become even MORE meaningful when things aren't always just fine and dandy.

So I am thankful at the end of this year. For ALL that has happened and all that is to come.

Peace. Love. Fiddle.
~natalie

Port Stovall

I was so excited, I forgot to take pictures today :) So this is from a couple of months ago when there were still leaves on the trees. My parents bought a lake house on the Tennessee River, and today was the first time that James and I got to go see it!


The lake house racked up this Christmas! :) So we had to take all the new goodies down and continue cleaning up.

It's so funny. My parents have pinched pennies my entire life. And I am so thankful because it has taught me a lot about spending money and making responsible financial decisions! And after years and years of not spending and saving... sending 4 kids to college... and finally retiring... they have been able to buy the most beautiful lake house. :) And the whole family will be able to enjoy it for vacations and eh em... of course... band retreats :)

So Merry Day after Christmas, from the Tennessee River!!!

Peace. Love. Fiddle.
~natalie

Christmas 2009 At The Stovall's

4 Generations of the girlies!


Sweet Cinnamon


NO WAY!!!!


Granny REALLY didn't think that picture looked like Mamma :)


John Rachel and sweet Abby's monster slippers


Joe, Tracy, McKinley, and Cameron


What do you think it is!?!?!


Tony and Ansley


Beautiful Bay


Awww Shelby


Mamma, Steph, Granny, and Cinnamon's nose


A Final Thought From Cameron



MERRY CHRISTMAS TO ALL!!!! AND TO ALL A GOOD NIGHT!

Peace. Love. Fiddle.
~natalie

Guy Falls Down into A Hole

This evening I am reminded of an anecdote my pastor has shared with us at every Christmas Eve service the past few years.

It is a story that was on the West Wing and now because of my pastor's Christmas Eve sermon, I always think of it at this time of year. :)

This guy's walking down the street when he falls in a hole. The walls are so steep he can't get out.
A doctor passes by and the guy shouts up, 'Hey you. Can you help me out?' The doctor writes a prescription, throws it down in the hole and moves on.
Then a priest comes along and the guy shouts up, 'Father, I'm down in this hole can you help me out?' The priest writes out a prayer, throws it down in the hole and moves on.
Then a friend walks by, 'Hey, Joe, it's me can you help me out?' And the friend jumps in the hole. Our guy says, 'Are you stupid? Now we're both down here.' The friend says, 'Yeah, but I've been down here before and I know the way out.'"

Christmas time can be a wonderful, joyous occasion. It can be a time of heart ache when we lose those we love. But as a Christian, I believe that God sent his son to this earth to be our Savior. Jesus lived His life on this earth. "He's been down here before... and he knows the way out." He's our guide. In times of good and in times of sorrow.

I hope your prayers to Him or whoever you pray to are prayers of joy right now. But if they are not, know that you are not alone!

Merry Christmas.

Peace. Love. Fiddle.
~natalie

Don't Eat Santa's Beard at the Nut Buffet

Mamma kept talking about a song that was stuck in her head and just HAD to listen to it. She kept saying "You know... the one where the little boy ATE Santa's beard."

"Ummm?? Did you say the little boy EATS Santa's beard? "

"Yes!!! That's what he says in the song!"

SO yeah... I couldn't WAIT to hear this song. It sounded awesome.
The best part was that she said it pretty nonchalantly... kind of like "You know, the one where he saw Mommy kissing Santa Clause"

She played it for me... It's a Beach Boys song called "Santa's Beard" And it really does sound like they say the little boy "ate his beard right on off of his chin" but it's "he yanked the beard right on off of his chin"

With roll dough up to my elbows, and flour on my face, we both stood in the kitchen and laughed and laughed.

My brother was ignoring us because he kept eating nuts in a basket that he said the squirrels would have spit out... but for some crazy reason he kept eating them. Mamma finally took them away from him and brought out every single stash of nuts she had in this house. He sat there and ate at his "nut buffet" all night.

I love Christmas :)

This was the best version of the song I could find on Youtube because it shows the lyrics... I have NO IDEA why it's pictures of the Jonas Brothers. But hey, 'why not' is the REAL question! :) Verse 2 at around 52 seconds is where you can find the lyrics in question :)



Peace. Love. Fiddle.
~natalie

The Stars of Bethlehem

I LOVE this picture!!! Look at Miguel's hair flying from the ROCK he brings. :)
This was in the article that came out in the Columbia paper today about the Blues benefit.



Ruthie and I wrote a great song today! That's always a good feeling :) It comes so easy writing with Ruth. If you haven't before, you should go check her out!
Ruth Collins
If you go to her page, listen to "Lottery"! That's one we wrote together :)

Tonight I went to see my brother, Joe, and his family in the Christmas Pageant going on at my church in Columbia. They all did such a good job!!! My brother was a Roman soldier... and he wasn't very happy about his man-dress. :) Cameron was an angel, McKinley was a shepherd, and Tracy was the Star of Bethlehem. Cameron was directing everyone fervently during "We Wish You a Merry Christmas" even though he was supposed to just stand with everyone else and sing it. It was pretty awesome.

This is my beautiful niece McKinley (the shortie) and her friend Katie who was also in the play!


Peace. Love. Fiddle.
~natalie

That's a Lot of Presents

First of all, I want to say a HUGE thank you to everyone who came and participated in the Have A Blues Christmas Benefit Concert this past weekend. We raised $11,000 for the kids!!! That's a LOT of Christmas presents for children who wouldn't otherwise have them on Christmas morning. So THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU!!!! The event keeps getting bigger and better. :)

Jenn Bostic and I wrote together today. It was so much fun getting to catch up with her and start creating with her. It was our first write... which is in many ways like a first date. It is a sort of getting-to-know-you period. You start to figure out stylistically what the other writer leans towards and where their tendencies are. It helps with the next time, so you have a better idea of what you're getting into! We got a really good start on a song. But of course, Jenn is going on the road until the day that we leave again in January. So we scheduled our next co-write for February. hehe :)

Tonight we watched Vince Vaughn's Wild West Comedy Tour: 30 Days in 30 Nights. I hadn't heard about it, but one of our friends recommended it, and it was awesome. It doesn't just show the comedians performing... it focuses a lot more on the behind the scenes, their stories and backgrounds, and then integrates it their acts. It is a really great look into the world of comedians and how they deal with the same things that bands deal with - audiences that react strangely, personal feelings about performance - it's fun to see the parallels. :)

Peace. Love. Fiddle.
~natalie

Whether On This Earth Or From Heaven Above

What an incredible night.

Tonight we played our annual Christmas benefit in Columbia. I haven't played in my hometown since last year at this same event. That's pretty hard to believe. We have had such a good, hard, crazy year. And being away from home so much was not fun. But it's what we needed to get us where we're going.

There was something different about playing on stage tonight. There was a new confidence. A new maturity. I could feel how far we've come during the show. And I was so proud that we have made it this far.

I cried on stage tonight for the first time in my life. Before I started "Angel" I told the audience how much this holiday season has pointed out what family means. And just mentioned how we need to spend as much time as possible with those we love. And then I introduced Granny and why I wrote the song.

During the last verse... when I came to the lines "Whether on this earth or from heaven above, you're my Angel, my Angel, you're my Angel, my Angel" I couldn't sing. I began to cry and I couldn't control it. I could see Grandpa's face watching over me , and the emotion just overtook me. It was pretty incredible. And even though I lost "the words"... that song has even more meaning now than when I wrote it.... which is saying a lot. I didn't actually think that was possible. But I've sung it for Miguel and his grandparents after they died. And then tonight, for the first time... Grandpa was hearing it from heaven. And I know that he's one of my Angels now.

So Merry Christmas everyone. Tonight I got to see so many wonderful friends and family. And tomorrow I will talk about it some more complete with pictures. :)

Go tell someone you love that you love them.

peace. love. fiddle.
~natalie

Home Is Where The Heart Is

And that's exactly where we've been lately. James and I have so many wonderful homes. We have moved from our home in Iowa back to our home in Tennessee today.

The past week has been a tough one. But getting to spend it surrounded by family and love is what makes it a beautiful thing. I have so many memories that I will take with me forever of this last week and these holidays. Some are very painful. But most of them are filled with joy and laughter.

That's what this time of year is all about.

Merry Christmas.

Peace. Love. Fiddle.
~natalie

5th Annual Blues Benefit Concert!!!

Tomorrow night!!!

Scott Holt and I in association with the Xtreme 4x4 Club in Columbia TN are Playing the "Have a Blues Christmas" Benefit for the 5th year in a row tomorrow night!!!

This year we have moved to a bigger location. Tix have always been sold out by now, but there are still some available cause we can fit so many more people!!!

Location: Sports Page

TIX:
Downstairs "Reserve" are $50

General Admission Upstairs is $25

Call Keith Throneberry @ 931-446-3945 for Tix

All proceeds go to buy Christmas presents for underprivileged children. It has been such a successful event every year, and it just keeps growing!

Doors open at 5:30
Dishwater Blonde 6:00pm - 7:00
Natalie Stovall 7:30 - 8:45
Scott Holt 9:15 - 10:45
11:00 - til Jam!

If you've never seen Scott Holt before, you are in for QUITE a treat. He was on the road for years with Buddy Guy. And he is an incredible artist. He puts on a very high energy show that will NOT disappoint!!! So come rock out with us, do something good for the kids, and celebrate Christmas time!

Peace. Love. Fiddle.
~natalie

Family

Family is so wonderful.

And you know what's awesome? When you get married, your family doubles in size! James and I are so lucky because we both LOVE each other's families. We have spent the last few days in Iowa with his Grandma, Grandpa, Aunts, Uncles, cousins, Mom and Step Dad. His entire family is so wonderful. And from the moment I met them all, they have welcomed me as one of their own.

Every year, his Aunt Carol gets hotel rooms for everyone on the Saturday night after Thanksgiving. The hotel is great because there's a big open area with games, and a pool, and tables. We all just hang out, eat pizza and goodies, and talk all night. The next day, everyone piles into Aunt Carol's house, and has Thanksgiving Dinner. And one of my favorite traditions are the CRAFTS! I never knew how much I would enjoy such a simple thing. It's usually the ladies (surprise, surprise)... but Carol provides all kinds of crafts - you can make Christmas ornaments, bracelets, key chains... all kinds of crafty things :) I feel like I am back at Camp Nickajack :) Although... we didn't have glue dots at Nickajack! GREAT invention.

But everyone sits and works, and catches up on missing one another. I love Thanksgiving with both of my families because when I think back on them, I remember lots and lots of laughing. It's just the best.

Grandma and Grandpa sold the farm to a wonderful couple that is ELATED to have that amazing house and land. And now they have moved closer to town in a beautiful home. James and I are getting to stay with them for the first time tonight. It is beautiful, and we are so happy for them! Their kitchen cabinets have shelves that PULL OUT like drawers! Why have I never seen this before? It's the little things, folks. The little things.

I'm gonna finish watching Erin Brockovich and turn in for the night, y'all.

Peace. Love. Fiddle.
~natalie

Santa Needs a Swimsuit

It's been a LOOOONG day of driving. And I think I drove a stretch of interstate I've never driven before! We drove through Chattanooga and up to Knoxville. When you're coming from Nashville to get somewhere - you either go through one or the other... you never go through BOTH. It was weird.

But we got to stop at our favorite exit of the last 6 months - Hattiesburg Mississippi - for lunch! We have eaten in Hattiesburg way more times than we've eaten lunch at home since the summer!!! And we've never even played a show there! It's so funny how sometimes we get routed in ways where we keep stopping at the same place around the same time of day. McCallister's is usually our restaurant of choice. :) Some of the locations still have chocolate spoon cake!!!! MMMMmmmmm.

You something that's funny?? We were sitting in Red Robin (mmm Red Robin) tonight and Christmas songs were playing. I had this realization that I bet Christmas songs in America sound really funny to Miguel. It's summertime in Chile right now! He said that he always feels sorry for Santa Clause - when he has to make appearances outside... that red suit get HOT.

Snow, sitting by the fire, hot chocolate, bundling up - American Christmas songs all have SO much of that in them! And for Miguel, well... it's going swimming and suntan lotion and short sleeves.

It's all about perspective. :)

Peace. Love. Fiddle.
~natalie

Last Leg Of The Year!

We are getting ready to go out for our last trip of the year!!!

Wait. What?

What happened to this year!?!?! Is it really time to start thinking about purchasing Christmas presents and digging out the yeast roll recipe for Thanksgiving?

Wow. Craziness.

When we get back there will only be 4 days left until Thanksgiving!

I wasn't exactly prepared for this last trip. The time really has gotten away from all of us. NONE of us had packed warmly enough. I had to take my flip flops and short sleeve shirts out of my suitcase tonight and dig into my drawers to find some long sleeves! My show clothes stay the same... but socks and hoodies had to be found!

Tim Denbo is coming back out on the road with us for this final trip. It really is a great way to round out the year. :) We're glad to have him back!

Peace. Love. Fiddle.
~natalie

147 Million Orphans

I just bought my first 2 t-shirts which means I will feed a child for 4 weeks with my purchase! This site was started by my sister's best friend, Suzanne, and another friend of hers. (Rumor has it Katherine Heigel has even started purchasing items from this site!) :)

They have t-shirts, to hoodies, to hats, to bags, to jewelry. The jewelry is all hand made by women in Africa.
The beads are made from recycled magazines. And Amazima Ministries is training the women in the Karamajong tribe to make necklaces for the website. They buy their beads, sell them, & then send a portion of the proceeds back to a feeding program for their children.

What a great way to get some Christmas shopping done! Cute items AND feeding the hungry. Everyone wins.

Visit Now!!!
www.147millionorphans.com


Peace. Love. Fiddle.
~natalie

Ice Cream Truck Madness

An ice cream truck just drove past the studio playing "What Child Is This?"

I know it's exactly six months until Christmas today... And don't get
me wrong, I think I'm as excited about that as anyone can be... But that's pushin it... I mean, it's way too hot for Christmas...

Cinnamon's in My Nook

After being on the road for the better part of the last 5 months...
Here's just some of the things I LOVE about being home:

NOT having to be packed up and checked out by 11am.

Cinnamon (my sweet puppy) in my nook when we sleep

Catching up on "The Office"

JJ's fruit tea!!!!

Holding hands with my husband

Laughing and reminiscing with Granny

Driving my Jeep Cherokee (even though she's barely hanging on - we've passed the 220,000 mile mark together)

Driving WITHOUT the trailer!!!!

Hanging out with my parents

Cinnamon relentlessly licking my face until I have to make her stop (cause I have to be able to breathe!)

NO housekeeping knocking and ignoring the "do not disturb sign"

Taking baths again!!!

NOT having to put a toilet seat cover on to pee (gas station bathrooms... while I feel they have improved... still wouldn't trust em!)

Getting to do laundry (never thought I would LOVE that one so much)

Coming home to honeysuckle and the greenest GREEN I have ever seen!!!

Sleeping on my awesome pillows I got for Christmas

Purity 2% Chocolate milk

Shopping at the grocery store


And that's just after one day :) Who knows what all I'll be thankful for tomorrow!!!
Now... I'm off to dream with Cinnamon in my nook... Let's hope I don't have any crazy "Jurassic Park - style - T-Rex is after me" dreams like I did last night. That REALLY wasn't cool.

Peace. Love. Fiddle. And Hopefully Sweet Dreams.
~natalie