{"id":5712,"date":"2016-12-17T18:02:00","date_gmt":"2016-12-17T18:02:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/stevegrossblog.com\/?p=5712"},"modified":"2026-10-02T01:35:28","modified_gmt":"2026-10-02T01:35:28","slug":"a-christmas-to-believe-in","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/stevegrossblog.com\/?p=5712","title":{"rendered":"&#8220;A CHRISTMAS TO BELIEVE IN&#8221;"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Last night was the fourth Cowman Christmas program my family and I have been a part of and it struck me as the best so far. The junior and senior high students (with a sprinkling of younger classmates) put together a fantastic drama for the night and all the students joined in on singing some special songs. Kudos to our principal Angie Bundy who pulled it all together.As a school, we&#8217;ve gotten too big now for any of the local auditoriums, so this year we went a half hour down the road to Pilatre Christian Centre in Sacanville. Apart from the condition of the road to the church, it turned out to be an ideal location for us.\u00a0It even had fantastic lighting for picture taking!<\/p>\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/stevegrossblog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/12\/20161216_160459-1.jpg\" alt=\"\"\/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">An early arrival, Maxiane is a 9th grader who has been a Cowman student since kindergarten.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/stevegrossblog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/12\/20161216_153557-1.jpg\" alt=\"\"\/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Mister Junior looked sharp in Santa hat and bow tie. He&#039;s been a fantastic new addition to our staff this school year.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/stevegrossblog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/12\/20161216_153621-1.jpg\" alt=\"\"\/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Three of our lovely pre-school teachers, Julianna, Rose Carline, and Kettia.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/stevegrossblog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/12\/20161216_155924-1.jpg\" alt=\"\"\/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">The one and only Ms. Rose!<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/stevegrossblog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/12\/20161216_160321-1.jpg\" alt=\"\"\/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Believe it or not, this is &quot;Baby Sammy&quot;! He&#039;s growing up.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/stevegrossblog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/12\/20161216_160338-1.jpg\" alt=\"\"\/><\/figure>\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/stevegrossblog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/12\/20161216_160639-1.jpg\" alt=\"\"\/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Sarah and Kristina as angels.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/stevegrossblog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/12\/20161216_160423-1.jpg\" alt=\"\"\/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">EVERYBODY gets dressed up for these things.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/stevegrossblog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/12\/20161216_160738-1.jpg\" alt=\"\"\/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Olivier as a shepherd.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/stevegrossblog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/12\/20161216_161129-1.jpg\" alt=\"\"\/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Caleb was less than thrilled with his Roman soldier costume.\u00a0<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/stevegrossblog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/12\/20161216_161614-1.jpg\" alt=\"\"\/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Brandon, our &quot;Joseph&quot;, gave me his cell phone before taking the stage. I guess he didn&#039;t want to be tempted by it during the production.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/stevegrossblog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/12\/20161216_161440-1.jpg\" alt=\"\"\/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">A couple of our new junior high students this year, Gashly and Sephora. Sweet young ladies.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/stevegrossblog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/12\/20161216_160855-1.jpg\" alt=\"\"\/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Patient angels.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/stevegrossblog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/12\/20161216_160806-1.jpg\" alt=\"\"\/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Brianna is ready to go as our &quot;Mary&quot;.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/stevegrossblog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/12\/20161216_161901-1.jpg\" alt=\"\"\/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Helping each other out with costumes.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/stevegrossblog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/12\/20161216_161641-1.jpg\" alt=\"\"\/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Another of our new junior high students, Samuel was a wise man.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/stevegrossblog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/12\/20161216_161918-1.jpg\" alt=\"\"\/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Gabriel (Fabio), Joseph (Brandon) and a wise man (our Samuel) take a selfie as an angel watches on.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/stevegrossblog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/12\/20161216_162133-1.jpg\" alt=\"\"\/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">&quot;Elizabeth&quot; (Joulkania) and an angel (Alanna) helping to bring &quot;peace on earth&quot;.\u00a0<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/stevegrossblog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/12\/20161216_163009-1.jpg\" alt=\"\"\/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Our fearless leader, Angie Bundy, emceeing the program.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/stevegrossblog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/12\/20161216_164359-1.jpg\" alt=\"\"\/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Mr. Johnny with the 3 year olds.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/stevegrossblog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/12\/20161216_171904-1.jpg\" alt=\"\"\/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">The big manger scene with the visit of the magi.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/stevegrossblog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/12\/20161216_164708-1-scaled.jpg\" alt=\"\"\/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Mr. Reggie with the 5 year olds.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/stevegrossblog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/12\/20161216_162745-1.jpg\" alt=\"\"\/><\/figure>\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/stevegrossblog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/12\/20161216_162832-1.jpg\" alt=\"\"\/><\/figure>\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/stevegrossblog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/12\/20161216_162953-1.jpg\" alt=\"\"\/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Samuel with his gift for the King.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/stevegrossblog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/12\/20161216_170325_20161216214830542-1.jpg\" alt=\"\"\/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Maxiane and Hannah did a great job as the narrators.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/stevegrossblog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/12\/20161216_172942-1.jpg\" alt=\"\"\/><\/figure>\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/stevegrossblog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/12\/20161216_180333-1.jpg\" alt=\"\"\/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Cookies and sandwiches and Cokes afterwards.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/stevegrossblog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/12\/20161216_160706-1.jpg\" alt=\"\"\/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Samuel and his new buddy Camden.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/stevegrossblog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/12\/20161216_160707-1.jpg\" alt=\"\"\/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">And a glimpse of Camden&#039;s personality&#8230;<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Now that school is officially out until January, Melissa and I are finishing Christmas cards and packing for a few days away in the Dominican Republic with friends from Emmaus Biblical Seminary. It&#8217;s a wonderful time of year, to be sure. Wishing you and yours a very Merry Christmas!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Last night was the fourth Cowman Christmas program my family and I have been a part of and it struck me as the best so far. The junior and senior high students (with a sprinkling of younger classmates) put together a fantastic drama for the night and all the students joined in on singing some [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":5713,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-5712","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/stevegrossblog.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5712","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/stevegrossblog.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/stevegrossblog.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stevegrossblog.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stevegrossblog.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=5712"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/stevegrossblog.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5712\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":5743,"href":"https:\/\/stevegrossblog.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5712\/revisions\/5743"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stevegrossblog.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/5713"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/stevegrossblog.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=5712"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stevegrossblog.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=5712"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stevegrossblog.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=5712"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}