It's Sunday and church is packed. Pastor Carmelia stands before the congregation, Before she gets started, let's take a look to see who is here.
There is the pastor's husband and her three kids.
On the front row on the opposite side are Camille, Jackie, and the newlyweds Tina and Harrison.
Oh look, it's Darius and Nikki.
Sitting next to them are the Andersons, David and Leslie and their two kids.
Cassandra (daycare owner) and her daughter Christine.
Looks like Dree and daughter Valencia made it this morning.
On the back row are Kendra with baby Cameron, Tori and her mom Karla. Next to Karla is China.
The Howards - Terrance, Racquel, and baby Nichelle.
Next to the Howards are Shantavia, daughter Jada, and fiancee, Bruce. Yep, they too are engaged. Bruce proposed shortly after Tina (Shantavia's mom) and Harrison's wedding.
Seated behind them are the Silvas - Reinaldo and wife, Lauren.
Lisa is there with her two kids.
On the last row are Lena with Alan Jr, Robin with daughter, Courtney and husband, Ron.
"Good morning!" (Pastor)
"Good morning" (Congregation)
"Nice to see everyone this fine Sunday morning." (Pastor)
"I see a couple of new faces this morning. If you are a first time visitor, please stand and tell us who you are." (Pastor)
"Hello. I'm Dree Hill and I'm here with my daughter, Valencia. I'm moving to town and heard about this church from a friend." (Dree)
"Welcome. We are so glad to have you and hope you will come join our church family soon." (Pastor)
"We have another announcement before we get started. Darius. Nikki. The floor is all yours." (Pastor)
"Thank you, Pastor. Nikki and I wanted to extend an open invitation to the congregation to our wedding, December 3rd." (Darius)
The whole congregation erupts in cheers and applause. Most of them are hearing this good news for the first time.
"It's about time." (Terrance)
Nikki stands to talk.
"In lieu of wedding gifts, we will be asking people to donate to one of our favorite charities. Details will be in next week's church bulletin." (Nikki)
"Thank you guys and congratulations, again." (Pastor)
"Well today's sermon is titled, Truth and Consequences." (Pastor)
"Often when we think of consequences, we think of negative things happening. Today we will talk about the positive consequences of telling the truth. Turn to Matthew 22:16 in your bible." (Pastor)
We will leave for now, but we will return once service is over.
What a beautiful church (and congregation!) This story took me back to my childhood a little bit! Such well-behaved children, too. I don't think that I can say the same for me! Congratulations to Nikki and Darius!
ReplyDeleteErin - Thanks and thanks for visiting my blog! The kids in this church know better than to act out. I think there are plans to have a separate children's area soon. They are still in the process of getting the church just the way they want.
DeleteBeautiful photos! It looks so cozy and peaceful in there. :)
ReplyDeleteFarrah - Thanks! Cozy is right. They may need an overflow room soon.
Deletecan you please do a story for the Anderson i miss seeing them thx x) love #1 fan
ReplyDeleteRuby - I will try to incorporate the Andersons in a story soon. Probably best to do something right after church.
DeleteWell, my dear, you did a great job getting everybody to church!!! They all look well dressed and well behaved. Congrats on the stain glass windows and the pews. May the Lord be with all of you!!!
ReplyDeleteapril - Thanks. Whew, I'm just glad they all made it to church. It was touch and go there for a few days. Lol.
DeleteHi Vanessa,
ReplyDeleteI love this charming little church! I was thinking of doing one for Moreville but wasn't sure how I was going to do it. Perhaps that will be my next project. LOL :-)
Cindi - Thanks! My first church was much bigger because it took up most of my dining room table. I finally made space for the church in the basement. It's a little smaller, but church is about heart and spirit, not size.
DeleteIt's so nice to see so many residents. I'm looking forward to Nikki and Darius' wedding. Hopefully Danielle can come with the new baby and then Nikki can get pregnant and have a baby too. :-)
ReplyDeleteJanainah - Yes, it's been awhile since we've seen some of these families. I knew you guys were going to pull me into actually doing a wedding for Nikki and Darius. Initially there were going to have a destination wedding, but Camille convinced them to do a church wedding.
DeleteHi! The photos are very beautiful and I was delighted to read your story. It has been fun to know the names of all the families and see their pictures. I hope that the new arrivals appear in the stories soon and also I'm anxious to see the wedding of Nikki and Darius. Hugs!
ReplyDeleteSonrisa - Thanks! If you take a look at the Character section of my blog, I have quite a few of the family photos there. I need to update it with some of the new families.
DeleteVanessa, this was awesome!! I felt like I was sitting right there on the pew with them. It was nice to get reacquainted with everyone again. Congratulations to Darius and Nikki!!! I was very happy to see them. Does Danielle and her family attend this church? It seems that about covered all of the families in Morristown. Great photo story!!!
ReplyDeleteGeorgia Girl - Thanks! I knew you would enjoy seeing Darius and Nikki. Yes, Danielle and family attend this church.
DeleteIt's official; whenever my Doll'n are in your fine town, they'll always attend your church! I absolutely loved this dio! Not only is it brilliantly crafted but the sense of community is very apparent. Love Love Love!! Yup, you're still one of my Shero Dioramateers!!!
ReplyDeleteBrenova - Thanks! Our church doors are always open. They may have to squeeze in, but we got you.
DeleteYou put a tremendous amount of work into setting up this church diorama and getting the congregants properly seated. I enjoyed the full view and close-ups along with the information about each family, group, or pair. The final photo of the pastor, for some reason, reminds me of my now favorite show, Greenleaf, and the leading character Grace. Having you been watching Greenleaf on OWN?
ReplyDeletedbg
DBG - Thanks! I starting watching Greenleaf last week. I got to see about 5 episodes. Now I need to make sure I DVR it. It's a great show!
DeleteIt really is a great show. I am watching this week's episode as I write this during the commercial break.
Deletedbg
this is just fabulous ~~~
ReplyDeleteAiS Toys - Thanks so much!
DeleteLoved getting acquainted with the congregation. Sweet set-up.
ReplyDeleteThanks, Roville.
DeleteYour dolls blog is the very best.
ReplyDeletePuck - Thanks so much!
DeleteVery nice diorama (as always), and the men's striped shirts (11th photo) on Terrance and Reinaldo are great. Thanks for all your hard work on this blog.
ReplyDeletegretel - Thanks so much! I appreciate you stopping by. I found those shirts on ebay a few years ago.
DeleteI didn't even flinch when I saw Darius. I guess I'm over him. Not sure I'll be at the wedding though. 😾
ReplyDeleteKenya - Not sure you are even invited to the wedding. LOL! Nikki remembers all those nasty comments over the years. She's not really the type to let bygones be bygones. Oh and Halle is not invited either.
DeleteWell then. She can keep her raggedy invitation. LOL!
DeleteKenya - I think you just earned yourself a little spot in the story. We won't see you, but Ms. Nikki may have a little something to say about you.
Delete