You Don't See That Every Day

Sometimes something amazing happens once in a great while. Like Halley's Comet. I still remember my 7th grade teacher's excitement over this flying ball of gaseous rocks. The work in progress This past weekend I had amazing idea come to life. That is something that rarely happens. So, it wasn't quite as ethereal as Halley's Comet, or any comet really. But it was cool enough for the Mr and I to look at each other and go, Oh yeah. I'm glad we made this happen.  Back in November I began to anticipate the Christmas break. Two weeks to sleep in a little, and not run around so much. I know my kids like the break from school, but not necessarily the break from friends. As my mind was whirling with to-do lists, I came across a Facebook post from a relative who has a tradition of decorating graham cracker "gingerbread" houses each Thanksgiving break. A lightbulb began to glow in my mind. Why not get my kids and their friends together to do this?!...

I'm getting a crown this month. Unfortunately it isn't gold, it doesn't have diamonds, and there is no title associated with it. No, I got to wade into the swamp of dental work this week. Not something many people look forward to, except for maybe the dentist. My back tooth needs a crown, so earlier this week my first appointment included a number of drills and numbing material and 2 hours in the dentist's chair. And then a week (or maybe more, who knows?) of not being able to chew on one side of my mouth. And not eat hard, crunchy food. (So long beloved cashews.) But there is a positive side to this! I've been much more aware of what I'm eating. I haven't been prone to mindless snacking, -- which has played right into the journey I have been on since summer ... Back in August I went clothes shopping with my teen girls. It was depressing. Nothing fit right, everything looked dumpy on me. And I was not used to this! I was the kid who could eat anything an...

There was a time when having something going on every night of the week made me so excited, and by the weekend I was ready for more fun. That time has passed. We have had something going on every night for the past 11 days straight, along with the daily events and fun things thrown in there to keep my homeschool kids from rising up and firing me. Last weekend we went to Seattle for the day to see my niece married to a great guy. It was fun to show the two younger girls who went with us, the sites of Seattle, even though those sights were found due to a couple of missed turns. Earlier in the week my sisters and I took the two youngsters to a Nativity 'festival'. We visited a place that had a large room/gym (?) full of Nativity scenes. It was like they could read my mind. I love Nativities, and am slowly gathering my own collection of them. But this collection from all over the world was just ... well it made me happy! These pictures are just a few of what we saw. The du...

It's November!!! I am so looking forward to what is in store for us these next couple of months, even though I can't tell the future -  I just feel it's going to be great. I was ready for November about the middle of October. Is it because my daughters have been playing Christmas music since September? (No!) Or maybe it's because the change in the weather and the colors of the leaves, have me enjoying the cycles of life. For Halloween we walked the neighborhood for trick-or-treating with our youngest two, and some neighbor friends. Walking with friends made it even more fun this year. And the weather cooperated wonderfully. The stash wasn't as big as it has been in years past when we had 3, 4, 5 kids collecting, but there is still plenty of sugar and chocolate to go around. Little K dressed as a 50s girl, and was quite excited to get to wear make-up. The other sister went as her Dad (although he doesn't actually have a mustache). That's what she threw toge...

Way back in the middle of summer, The Girl Who Swims, and Runs, mentioned she would not be running on the cross country team this year. Admittedly I was a little sad. I enjoy running, and I enjoy seeing my kids compete in sports. After a short talk together, basically "think about it some more, and "how are you going to stay in shape fro swim?" and "it is your last chance ever" she changed her mind and joined the team once again. This last week was the end of it. Her last high school cross country meet. And it was a fun one. She stayed in the top group most of the way and finished up in 9th place. Which meant she did not qualify for moving up to the State level. I wasn't sure how I would find her at the finish line. With some tears in our eyes, we hugged and she said "I don't have to run anymore!" So now on to her favorite sport: swimming. ((This girl has been a water baby since she was born. Never wanting to get out of the tub, always drawn ...

Have I ever mentioned home much I like my kids? Have I ever mentioned how much I like homeschooling my kids? Sure, there are days when they drive me up a wall. But then there are days like today! The two at home and I went exploring. There are a number of little towns that we often drive through on our way to somewhere else, so I've decided that we are going to take some time to explore these drive-through places. I had them look up some information before we set out so we had some idea about the history of the town - who founded it; what there is to see/do; if there are any historical markers. Our first stop today was in a little town called Amity. And it is little . We found an antique store that looked dusty on the outside, and wasn't open. We found a cool old cemetery with a plethora of "names to use in stories" according to my 13 year old. Next to it was a pretty nice city park, but we didn't take the time to stop in. I knew we would be at another park...

Change is the ones constant in our lives. This week has been full of change, like most people's across our area I would suppose. On Monday we sent our Boy off to another country -- with some wonderful friends, so that helps. And we got him a Return ticket. On Wednesday the two older girls returned to school, one as a sophomore and one as a senior. I'm still trying to figure out how she got to be so grown up. And for the last two days we've only had two girls at home. The older girls' school has an all high school retreat to start the year, so they've not been home at all. It has been quiet around here. On a happy note, I was able to go to bed early and get plenty of sleep one night. What is it with teenagers not wanting to go to bed at night?! A bit more change -- I've been wanting to update the younger girls' room for awhile, hoping it will help stop the cluttered look. So the three of us went shopping for new lamps, new bedding, and new p...

We got to go camping with the Mr this summer at least once. We hadn't been yurting since before Little K born, so I found a yurt that was available (so hard to do in the summer!) and reserved it. In the old days, before my kids went to away school, we used to go camping after Labor Day when others where heading back to school. Of course that changed as we added to the family and to the school's tuition. But we still wanted to go camping and by camping I mean going somewhere that didn't feel like our backyard with neighbors Right Next to us. Our trip to Diamond Lake a few years back was perfect for that -- our family and about five others in a huge campground. So with a few hit and misses we have found that camping a couple of days Before Labor Day weekend is the best time to go. As we are packing to go home on Friday most people are arriving for the long weekend. And that way we also have time to relax at home before we send the kids to school. This year we cam...

This birthday was unlike any other. I usually get to pick where we go for my birthday - and I usually head to the beach.  We did make it to the sand on Friday night. We had dinner at the restaurant, and then got a short time to walk on the beach. Little K was not feeling well, and I didn't want to stay out too late because I had plans for the next morning. Beautiful weather, delicious food, good company. It was a great start to my birthday weekend.    Early Saturday morning I got up to run a 5K to raise money for a pregnancy center. I love babies, and what better way to celebrate MY birth-day than to help others get to their birth-day! I had a great run - coming in under 30 minutes... which I haven't done in a long, long, long time. I even placed first in my age group. A BIG thank you to all of you who sponsored me - you gave the best birthday gifts of all! Right after that I hurried drove home ever so slowly and cautiously, to clean-up and head out with the f...