It has been a whirlwind last few weeks! I’ve been without my laptop traveling, because it just takes up too much space and adds too much weight in carry-ons, and believe me, airlines are so Nazi about weight and size and blah blah blah. Especially traveling overseas, it gets tricky. Each one has their own rules and you just never know. Anyway, this blog is my attempt to catch up with you! Like old friends, we’re sitting down with coffee and cookies and we’re chatting about way too much time gone by with no bloggy blog from Tricia. Here we go!

My bestest friend in the whole world lives in Seattle, and we don’t get to see each other a lot. She’s quite pregnant and I hadn’t even gotten to see her little baby bump yet, so her sweet hubby flew me out there a couple of weeks back, and I got to spend a few days with them. So exciting! They were putting the finishing touches on the nursery and sifting through piles of gifts from showers. Kory and I are pretty silly together. She can make me laugh like no other person in the world. It was such a special, refreshing time to have with her the last time before she becomes a Momma. Can’t wait to meet Tolin very soon!! Here we are being us together…

Last week we were in Europe. We flew into Vienna first to catch our breath and try to handle jetlag in a beautiful city and before crazy schedule set in. Vienna is lovely. Small enough not to feel threating, sweet people, yummy little cafes, stroooooong coffee. Literally, my eyes popped open a bit more with each sip. It was rainy and cool, and we were all fighting the urge to just sleep for 2 days straight. If you’ve never experienced that kind of jetlag, well, I’d say good for you. It’s brutal. It was 7 hours ahead of Nashville time, and that’s not easy to adjust to. We explored and rested and then headed to a new spot for us, the country of Slovakia. We played in Trnava. Adorable city, great people, amazing crowd that night that filled this little town square. You couldn’t feel much more European than the vibe. People watched from the streets, from the little cafes and pub near the stage, so much fun! Early flight the next day to Sweden…

We played in Uppsala, Sweden. We played at Word of Life church, one of the biggest churches in Europe. The staff and especially the youth pastor and his wife were such welcoming people. We would love to go back, and stay at their retreat even for a bit of a vacation. It was a beautiful part of Sweden and we met such sweet fans that night after the show.

Our friend, Josefine, came to see us. We met her years ago because she is the lady in charge of one of the biggest festivals in Sweden and she’s booked us a couple of times, and we just love her! So good to see friends all the way across the world, and know that with the internet, keeping in touch isn’t so tough. Here’s Josefine with Melissa and I after the show playing in the dressing room:

Next we flew (always bright and early) to Switzerland to play a show we played last year too, and were excited to be asked back to! It was in Frauenfeld and it’s called Springtime Festival. Beautiful part of the country, and such a nice time of year to go! We played with Hawk Nelson and Switchfoot that night to end the Europe tiny tour. Not sure if I’ve ever mentioned here that I love Switchfoot? I can call them friends, but I’m still a fan of their music and their hearts. Their show never gets boring. They were on our first tour with us back in the day. Festival Con Dios. haha, good and awful memories are accompanied with that tour!

The next day we had a day to explore Switzerland with such a sweet guide willing to show us around, so we drove to Lucerne. Considered to be one of the most beautiful cities in Switzerland, and it definitely won my heart! I would love to go back and take my hubby someday. Perfect tourist day to end the trip, and be ready for home.

So, that just about catches me up. We are jumping into summer festivals as we speak. We had one last night in Pennsylvania – it was a huge crowd and so much fun. We played with Building 429 (amazing guys) and Natalie Grant (a new friend, but I instantly like her.) This week we leave Wednesday, drive down to AtlantaFest and then drive up to Kentucky for Ichthus. Little known fact, Ichthus was THE first Christian music festival. I didn’t know that til recently. Lots of history, and lots of good bands play and frolic in the mud there every year. haha!

As of late, when I think of our band, the first thing that comes to mind is “the little engine that could.” That just about sums us up, I think! We just keep chugging along – so as long as all of you keep coming out to shows and buying the albums, we’ll be here. =)

My worship album is underway. We are writing and doing demos of all the songs we write in this phase, and are really excited already about where it’s going. Stay in touch and I’ll keep you posted on how it’s going and release date when it’s announced and all!!

I am going to make a late dinner for myself now, while some random Harrison Ford movie plays in the background (I’m a sucker for him since Indiana Jones). Goodnight all, and here’s to a great week this week!

-T