There is no way our daily activities are what trash this house every. single. day. OK, the socks are ours. I'll own that. But the amount of dirt that finds its way onto the living room floor would normally require a contractor and a liability waiver. Maybe for my birthday I'll ask for a fleet of Roombas.
Z's replacing the soffits and fascia this week. That's a somewhat thankless job, from what I can tell. While it is good, and it needs doing, what will be most obvious when it's complete will be the old roof and the nasty hillbilly porch off the back. He gets serious bonus points for doing things just because they need to be done.
The kids did the first mowing of the season this week. Now that? That's a high-reward job. Fewer ticks, gorgeous view, low resistance job, and instant gratification. Love a freshly mown meadow.
I did... laundry. And swept. Mostly. There was other stuff, but it was about as exciting as that, really.
We did drive up to Tennessee to buy Z another Volvo. This last one had... fatal flaws. After several trips to George, the car whisperer, and three weeks in the shop, it was up and running, and then, in the middle of a normal morning commute, there was metal on metal noise. Even our laid back mechanically-inclined buddy shuddered when thinking about the noise. But the Volvos are a fave, and so off we went. Z seems happy. He can't wait to retrieve his beaded seat cover, and the a/c needs to be charged, but everything else is good. Plus, it doesn't leak in the rain. (He's a trooper, but it gets tiring driving to work with your feet in a puddle of water after every rainstorm. Maybe not such a deal breaker in the desert, but it'll wear on you, here.)
Oh! And our anniversary was last week. We thought about going to the drive-in theater, but decided it would be hard to hear the movie over the tornado sirens (not a euphemism for children - actual tornado sirens). So we opted for a night in with the family. Romantic, flashlights-at-the-ready dinner, nervous dog, anxious weather-following child. (Jacob. He discovered the weather news. And now he joins James in the general uproar over how seldom we go to the basement when the weather guy clearly states that's where we should be rightnow. I'm not sure how best to handle that. I don't want him to think we hold no regard for the weather warnings, because we do - that's why we have the radio on. But if there are no tornadoes on the radar and the winds aren't that strong, I'm just not convinced we need to hunker down with the damp and the basement critters until there are... uh, no tornadoes on the radar. I could be missing something. It happens. Sometimes more often than I'd like.) But all in all, it was actually pretty great. Z and I looked at each other, looked around at the kids, the house, the dog, then back to each other, and felt giddy.
"We're doing it! We're probably even getting good at this!"
w00t:
Thank God for grace and mercy. I've received it in spades.
Kiss those babies!
~Dy
Showing posts with label life in the south. Show all posts
Showing posts with label life in the south. Show all posts
Tuesday, April 16
Monday, April 1
Upending All The Things
So. Here we are, huh?
A while back, Zorak and I talked about whether this is where we want to stay. He's aching to go back out West. I'm pretty good with whatever we do. The biggest thing for me is that we're together, and we're in it together. Because things can get weird if everyone isn't on the same page.
So we began the search, keeping it fairly quiet for the most part. He had an interview back in January, and although it fell through, it cemented our General Plans. If you read back very far on this blog, you'll see we're well-versed in how quickly Plans can change, but as general sort of positioning thing, "We're trying to move back out West" is a pretty good overview. He also outed the plan online, so then the cat was out of the bag. And, now that I can talk about it, blogging should come significantly easier!
We just returned from a trip to New Mexico. This was a nice visit, but the occasion was somewhat dampened by the purpose. Z's Granny passed away earlier this year. This March would have been her 99th birthday. In keeping with her wishes and the way she lived her life, there was no traditional funeral. Instead, the family gathered for a celebration of her life as they laid her to rest in the New Mexico Springtime Wind. Everyone shared stories of playing Scrabble with her (even when she was mostly blind, she could beat the pants off anyone who sat down to play), Granny's open door policy (door's always open, there's a pot of something on the stove), and memories of growing up on a sheep ranch (nobody knew what lamb tasted like, but they sure knew how to make the most of the old ewes). They had a pot luck with people from all over the place, and an Easter egg hunt for the next generation of children to start building their memories of the old homestead. And then, there was a dance. Granny made it clear she wanted a good band to play at the dance, and her heirs did just that. It was a lovely way to remember a lovely woman, and although she is certainly missed by those whose lives she touched, there's a lot of her still milling about in the 70+ grandchildren and great-grandchildren she left behind.
On our trip, we also got to visit the Bob Wills Museum with the kids' Granny (Z's Mom), play in the Brazos river with friends, and stay up way too late visiting and laughing. All things we love, and they remind us that we're just too far away right now.
But we came home to tulips and redbuds in bloom! And rain! So pretty. It was the morning after we returned before I stopped saying, "Oh, look! We got rain!" and realized... we always get rain here. It's still beautiful, though. Everything's coming in green and vibrant.
In the meantime, we're finishing up a few little projects here and there so the house will be ready to list when Z finds the right job. We're plugging along with Scouting and music and trips to museums as we try to keep everything as normal as possible. The kids are good sports about it. James and John remember living elsewhere, and they trust that we aren't going to drag them off to a miserable existence. Different, maybe, but still good. Jacob knows vaguely that he's lived elsewhere, but pretty much relies on his brothers to assure him that it'll be okay. EmBaby and Jase are fairly overwhelmed with the whole idea and keep asking questions to help them make sense of how moving works. "Will we take the dog?" (Yes.) "Will we take our stove?" (Uh, no.) "Will we get to take our clothes?" (Yes. I never thought about that, but yes, you get to take your clothes.) "Will we take the chickens?" (I'm... *phew* I honestly don't know. I've never moved with chickens, and to be honest I'm kind of hoping we can pitch them as part of the pastoral appeal of the property...) "But what about Tame*?" (:squirms uncomfortably: I, uh, gah. I have no idea! Maybe he'll want to go live with Peter and Elizabeth? Or Me-Wa and Me-Tae? We'll, uh, see... :cringe:)
Kiss those babies!
~Dy
*(Tame is our "special" chicken. He survived an early dog encounter, and has since become somewhat human-endeared. He would be a house chicken in a heartbeat if I'd let him. He's very content to spend time with people, and has become a bit of a party prop when we have cookouts. It's like having a weird dog.)
A while back, Zorak and I talked about whether this is where we want to stay. He's aching to go back out West. I'm pretty good with whatever we do. The biggest thing for me is that we're together, and we're in it together. Because things can get weird if everyone isn't on the same page.
So we began the search, keeping it fairly quiet for the most part. He had an interview back in January, and although it fell through, it cemented our General Plans. If you read back very far on this blog, you'll see we're well-versed in how quickly Plans can change, but as general sort of positioning thing, "We're trying to move back out West" is a pretty good overview. He also outed the plan online, so then the cat was out of the bag. And, now that I can talk about it, blogging should come significantly easier!
We just returned from a trip to New Mexico. This was a nice visit, but the occasion was somewhat dampened by the purpose. Z's Granny passed away earlier this year. This March would have been her 99th birthday. In keeping with her wishes and the way she lived her life, there was no traditional funeral. Instead, the family gathered for a celebration of her life as they laid her to rest in the New Mexico Springtime Wind. Everyone shared stories of playing Scrabble with her (even when she was mostly blind, she could beat the pants off anyone who sat down to play), Granny's open door policy (door's always open, there's a pot of something on the stove), and memories of growing up on a sheep ranch (nobody knew what lamb tasted like, but they sure knew how to make the most of the old ewes). They had a pot luck with people from all over the place, and an Easter egg hunt for the next generation of children to start building their memories of the old homestead. And then, there was a dance. Granny made it clear she wanted a good band to play at the dance, and her heirs did just that. It was a lovely way to remember a lovely woman, and although she is certainly missed by those whose lives she touched, there's a lot of her still milling about in the 70+ grandchildren and great-grandchildren she left behind.
On our trip, we also got to visit the Bob Wills Museum with the kids' Granny (Z's Mom), play in the Brazos river with friends, and stay up way too late visiting and laughing. All things we love, and they remind us that we're just too far away right now.
But we came home to tulips and redbuds in bloom! And rain! So pretty. It was the morning after we returned before I stopped saying, "Oh, look! We got rain!" and realized... we always get rain here. It's still beautiful, though. Everything's coming in green and vibrant.
In the meantime, we're finishing up a few little projects here and there so the house will be ready to list when Z finds the right job. We're plugging along with Scouting and music and trips to museums as we try to keep everything as normal as possible. The kids are good sports about it. James and John remember living elsewhere, and they trust that we aren't going to drag them off to a miserable existence. Different, maybe, but still good. Jacob knows vaguely that he's lived elsewhere, but pretty much relies on his brothers to assure him that it'll be okay. EmBaby and Jase are fairly overwhelmed with the whole idea and keep asking questions to help them make sense of how moving works. "Will we take the dog?" (Yes.) "Will we take our stove?" (Uh, no.) "Will we get to take our clothes?" (Yes. I never thought about that, but yes, you get to take your clothes.) "Will we take the chickens?" (I'm... *phew* I honestly don't know. I've never moved with chickens, and to be honest I'm kind of hoping we can pitch them as part of the pastoral appeal of the property...) "But what about Tame*?" (:squirms uncomfortably: I, uh, gah. I have no idea! Maybe he'll want to go live with Peter and Elizabeth? Or Me-Wa and Me-Tae? We'll, uh, see... :cringe:)
Kiss those babies!
~Dy
*(Tame is our "special" chicken. He survived an early dog encounter, and has since become somewhat human-endeared. He would be a house chicken in a heartbeat if I'd let him. He's very content to spend time with people, and has become a bit of a party prop when we have cookouts. It's like having a weird dog.)
Saturday, December 1
Eggs!
The hens aren't using the nesting boxes for anything other than naps, so these were a pleasant surprise.
James came back from putting up the chickens and announced, "We have 18 chickens, and FIVE EGGS!" It took us all a second for it to sink in, but then we were excited.
Unfortunately, the roosters are all pretty into doing their jobs, and we have no clue how long those eggs have been there... so we'll have to crack them outside, in case they're bad. Still, it's exciting to have some progress.
(This was last night. Jacob found another one today. We don't know who is laying, but they're all in the same place so far, so that makes it easier. How exciting!)
Kiss those babies!
~Dy
James came back from putting up the chickens and announced, "We have 18 chickens, and FIVE EGGS!" It took us all a second for it to sink in, but then we were excited.
Unfortunately, the roosters are all pretty into doing their jobs, and we have no clue how long those eggs have been there... so we'll have to crack them outside, in case they're bad. Still, it's exciting to have some progress.
(This was last night. Jacob found another one today. We don't know who is laying, but they're all in the same place so far, so that makes it easier. How exciting!)
Kiss those babies!
~Dy
Sunday, November 18
How Many Days Until...
Halloween? Christmas? My Birthday? Thanksgiving? My eleventy-first birthday? Sunday? Christmas?
It's so much fun when they start to realize time has some kind of continuity. It's even more fun when they learn to take it for granted. Right now, however, I can safely say there are four days until Thanksgiving, and 37 days until Christmas. You'll have to figure out your own birthday if you want to know that one badly enough, and you can ask James to figure out how long until your eleventy-first birthday because, frankly, he enjoys things like that and I don't.
37 days until Christmas? That doesn't seem right. But I've been using weeks, because weeks leaves them just confused enough that I can slip off to refill my coffee before they think up another question.
Em's already making Christmas presents. Paper owls and paper dolls seem to be this week's themes. I'm pretty sure the EMT will find our bodies beneath the composting piles of cardstock one day, but as long as we can breathe, we will enjoy the pretty little creations she brings us. (There are. so. many. Thank goodness nobody here suffers from Pulpuslaceratapohobia*.)
Deer season has begun. The guys were out cutting wood when one trotted right past them. Fortune, however, favors the prepared, and it didn't seem wise to lob a maul at it, so we had ham tonight, instead. Perhaps this week, at some point, we'll have time to go hunting. After the kitchen window is in. We're working on that this week!
The boys hosted an airsoft gathering at the house on Friday. Good turnout. Lovely women. Naturally, EmBaby got wide-eyed and whispered, "Upstairs?!" when I told her she and Jase could watch a movie while the boys played. What was I just saying about how we don't just shove them into the cellar? In front of new company, too. Kids are good for that - keeping you humble and on your toes. At any rate, the boys all had a really good time, and I hope I didn't do anything too weird.
Kiss those babies!
~Dy
*Fear of paper cuts. Learned something new today!
It's so much fun when they start to realize time has some kind of continuity. It's even more fun when they learn to take it for granted. Right now, however, I can safely say there are four days until Thanksgiving, and 37 days until Christmas. You'll have to figure out your own birthday if you want to know that one badly enough, and you can ask James to figure out how long until your eleventy-first birthday because, frankly, he enjoys things like that and I don't.
37 days until Christmas? That doesn't seem right. But I've been using weeks, because weeks leaves them just confused enough that I can slip off to refill my coffee before they think up another question.
Em's already making Christmas presents. Paper owls and paper dolls seem to be this week's themes. I'm pretty sure the EMT will find our bodies beneath the composting piles of cardstock one day, but as long as we can breathe, we will enjoy the pretty little creations she brings us. (There are. so. many. Thank goodness nobody here suffers from Pulpuslaceratapohobia*.)
Deer season has begun. The guys were out cutting wood when one trotted right past them. Fortune, however, favors the prepared, and it didn't seem wise to lob a maul at it, so we had ham tonight, instead. Perhaps this week, at some point, we'll have time to go hunting. After the kitchen window is in. We're working on that this week!
The boys hosted an airsoft gathering at the house on Friday. Good turnout. Lovely women. Naturally, EmBaby got wide-eyed and whispered, "Upstairs?!" when I told her she and Jase could watch a movie while the boys played. What was I just saying about how we don't just shove them into the cellar? In front of new company, too. Kids are good for that - keeping you humble and on your toes. At any rate, the boys all had a really good time, and I hope I didn't do anything too weird.
Kiss those babies!
~Dy
*Fear of paper cuts. Learned something new today!
Thursday, November 8
A New Plan, A Better Plan
If I only post every four weeks, I can re-tread that Hair Day post and get a lot of miles out of it, can't I? But that defeats the point of blogging, and I doubt very much the children would appreciate the digital version of their family album being a list of Mom's weird appointments.
OK. Fine.
I was busy wallowing in October. Every blessed under-80-degree-but-not-below-40 moment of it. It was spectacular. Coffee on the balcony in the mornings (until the acorns began falling - then I had to bring it back in because the welts were unseemly, and so was the swearing), windows wide open and that delicious combination of sweatshirts, shorts, and flip flops that I just can't convince myself to try any other time of year.
The boys Scout Troop finally went backpacking in October. I got to go, since Zorak isn't much on the backpacking thing. It's hard to feel like you're taking one for the team when you're as giddy over going as your spouse is over not having to go. We spent two nights in the Sipsey Wilderness, camped creekside, slept under the magnificent pine and hardwood canopy... didn't loose anybody or have to build a travois! You just can't ask for a better backpacking trip than that.
We built the stairs to the balcony in October. They are exquisite. And now, they're partially stained, to match the partially stained balcony. As soon as the treads weather up a bit, it will look like it was all intentional. (One might suggest we just stain the decking and treads, but we missed the window and there are leaves... so many leaves. We'll have three days in March where the leaves aren't falling and the pollen hasn't descended on everything yet. Maybe then.)
The Volvo died in October, and we spent most of the month with only one car. That part? Not such a great time. But it could have been worse. There was never any need to call in reinforcements for a trip to the ER. Zorak took it to the auto hobby shop, where George The Car Magician pulled a rabbit out from under the hood and *poof*, it started again. (Not an actual rabbit, but it might as well have been. We still have no idea how he fixed it.)
We felled a gigantic tree that died this year. Nature makes some impressive noises. We gave thanks, split the wood, saved a stump to use for knife throwing, and gave a target stump to Pastor's boys. I'm sure Pastor's wife was thrilled. (She's so patient with us.) The boys dug it, though.
We took the steel wool and stove black to the wood stove. If you've never cleaned up a cast iron stove using that stuff, you've got to try it. I felt like a cross between Ma Ingalls and Ron Popeil.
Then we careened wildly into November, voted, prepped for the kitchen window project, started rehabbing my old pickup, and tonight enjoyed the first fire of the year.
Not bad. Not bad, at all.
Kiss those babies!
~Dy
OK. Fine.
I was busy wallowing in October. Every blessed under-80-degree-but-not-below-40 moment of it. It was spectacular. Coffee on the balcony in the mornings (until the acorns began falling - then I had to bring it back in because the welts were unseemly, and so was the swearing), windows wide open and that delicious combination of sweatshirts, shorts, and flip flops that I just can't convince myself to try any other time of year.
The boys Scout Troop finally went backpacking in October. I got to go, since Zorak isn't much on the backpacking thing. It's hard to feel like you're taking one for the team when you're as giddy over going as your spouse is over not having to go. We spent two nights in the Sipsey Wilderness, camped creekside, slept under the magnificent pine and hardwood canopy... didn't loose anybody or have to build a travois! You just can't ask for a better backpacking trip than that.
We built the stairs to the balcony in October. They are exquisite. And now, they're partially stained, to match the partially stained balcony. As soon as the treads weather up a bit, it will look like it was all intentional. (One might suggest we just stain the decking and treads, but we missed the window and there are leaves... so many leaves. We'll have three days in March where the leaves aren't falling and the pollen hasn't descended on everything yet. Maybe then.)
The Volvo died in October, and we spent most of the month with only one car. That part? Not such a great time. But it could have been worse. There was never any need to call in reinforcements for a trip to the ER. Zorak took it to the auto hobby shop, where George The Car Magician pulled a rabbit out from under the hood and *poof*, it started again. (Not an actual rabbit, but it might as well have been. We still have no idea how he fixed it.)
We felled a gigantic tree that died this year. Nature makes some impressive noises. We gave thanks, split the wood, saved a stump to use for knife throwing, and gave a target stump to Pastor's boys. I'm sure Pastor's wife was thrilled. (She's so patient with us.) The boys dug it, though.
We took the steel wool and stove black to the wood stove. If you've never cleaned up a cast iron stove using that stuff, you've got to try it. I felt like a cross between Ma Ingalls and Ron Popeil.
Then we careened wildly into November, voted, prepped for the kitchen window project, started rehabbing my old pickup, and tonight enjoyed the first fire of the year.
Not bad. Not bad, at all.
Kiss those babies!
~Dy
Sunday, September 23
A Busy Day, and a Night with the Moon
We had a crazy, lazy, busy day. Yes, really -- all of it at once. The kids were up and at it early this morning, in anticipation of playing video games with friends for the morning. Zorak and I slept in, in anticipation of... not moving much until we had to.
Friends came - we talked, worked, played, and generally had a lovely morning.
Then more friends came - we talked, watched the children play, relaxed, and generally had a lovely afternoon. Our friend, Larry, helped James with his computer project, which absolutely made James' day. (Although right now there's a second computer piggybacked onto my monitor, hogging up the leg room under the computer desk. James and I don't seem to use the same ranking process to determine what makes for a great set up. He says it's temporary. I'm hoping our definitions of "temporary" are not equally askew.)
Before we knew it, it was time to eat and head out for International Observe the Moon Night up at the NASA Educational Building in Huntsville. That's one of the things we love about living here: this place is a full-up cornucopia of fantastic opportunities. Science, art, history, music - you name it, Huntsville has it, and usually it's hosted by a group of civic organizations so odds are the event will be full of knowledgeable people with a passion for the topic at hand and an interest in sharing with those who are interested.
Tonight's event was no exception. We were treated to face time with some fascinating people who shared with us about robotic design, imagery technology, colonization research and programs, geology, astronomy, and more. We wished we'd had time to go earlier the event. An hour and a half just wasn't time enough to see and hear all there was available. But we're all really glad we went and enjoyed the time we had.
Kiss those babies!
~Dy
Friends came - we talked, worked, played, and generally had a lovely morning.
Then more friends came - we talked, watched the children play, relaxed, and generally had a lovely afternoon. Our friend, Larry, helped James with his computer project, which absolutely made James' day. (Although right now there's a second computer piggybacked onto my monitor, hogging up the leg room under the computer desk. James and I don't seem to use the same ranking process to determine what makes for a great set up. He says it's temporary. I'm hoping our definitions of "temporary" are not equally askew.)
Before we knew it, it was time to eat and head out for International Observe the Moon Night up at the NASA Educational Building in Huntsville. That's one of the things we love about living here: this place is a full-up cornucopia of fantastic opportunities. Science, art, history, music - you name it, Huntsville has it, and usually it's hosted by a group of civic organizations so odds are the event will be full of knowledgeable people with a passion for the topic at hand and an interest in sharing with those who are interested.
Tonight's event was no exception. We were treated to face time with some fascinating people who shared with us about robotic design, imagery technology, colonization research and programs, geology, astronomy, and more. We wished we'd had time to go earlier the event. An hour and a half just wasn't time enough to see and hear all there was available. But we're all really glad we went and enjoyed the time we had.
Kiss those babies!
~Dy
Friday, September 21
Too Pretty To Stay Inside!
This is it. This is the good stuff. This is windows-wide-open, feet-up-on-the-porch-rail, run-until-you-drop-just-because-you-can weather. This is the weather where you can drink coffee and not feel the need to justify it, or face the wiggly eyebrows of others as they glance between your steaming mug and the thermometer outside. This is the weather that makes me want to read interesting books, write thoughtful letters, and spend idle days in the woods with good company. This. is. good.
The boys went hiking last weekend with their Troop. Awesome boys. Awesome Scout leaders. Everything you could want in Scouting. They had a great time. We saw some of the most beautiful flora, and... interesting fauna.
Could have done with a little less of the latter, to be honest. But you take Nature as she is, and, well, sometimes she's a little creepy. We've all been there. I don't judge.
I won't regale you with the tick story. Just trust me when I say I was thisclose to agreeing to up and move in the middle of the night. I hear the Arctic is nice this time of year... Also, two thousand mg of garlic daily is *not* enough to keep seed ticks off of you. Nor is DEET. Nor is any possible combination of the two. And those bastards can *bite*. Wow. (I'm sorry. That sounded judgey. OK, maybe I will judge. You bite my kids, you get no love. That's just how it goes.)
We haven't ridden or hiked much this week, what with the open wounds on our feet and ankles. (The toes! Every toe is covered! Ew!) Mostly we've just hobbled about in flip-flops with our pants rolled up, a cotton ball in one hand and a bottle of Calahist in the other. Got a lot of reading done, though, which was great. Again with the balcony love. (Seriously, if you have the opportunity to have a balcony, grab it, folks. If I'd known how much we would use ours, we might have put it in before we did the kitchen cabinets. Love!)
But today, the call of "highs in the 70's" lured us back out onto the trail...
It really is just too pretty to stay inside.
Kiss those babies!
~Dy
The boys went hiking last weekend with their Troop. Awesome boys. Awesome Scout leaders. Everything you could want in Scouting. They had a great time. We saw some of the most beautiful flora, and... interesting fauna.
Could have done with a little less of the latter, to be honest. But you take Nature as she is, and, well, sometimes she's a little creepy. We've all been there. I don't judge.
I won't regale you with the tick story. Just trust me when I say I was thisclose to agreeing to up and move in the middle of the night. I hear the Arctic is nice this time of year... Also, two thousand mg of garlic daily is *not* enough to keep seed ticks off of you. Nor is DEET. Nor is any possible combination of the two. And those bastards can *bite*. Wow. (I'm sorry. That sounded judgey. OK, maybe I will judge. You bite my kids, you get no love. That's just how it goes.)
We haven't ridden or hiked much this week, what with the open wounds on our feet and ankles. (The toes! Every toe is covered! Ew!) Mostly we've just hobbled about in flip-flops with our pants rolled up, a cotton ball in one hand and a bottle of Calahist in the other. Got a lot of reading done, though, which was great. Again with the balcony love. (Seriously, if you have the opportunity to have a balcony, grab it, folks. If I'd known how much we would use ours, we might have put it in before we did the kitchen cabinets. Love!)
But today, the call of "highs in the 70's" lured us back out onto the trail...
Kiss those babies!
~Dy
Sunday, September 2
Doing.
Doing things.
The boys' Troop rode last Monday. The plan was 3.5 miles, but they were nowhere ready to stop at that point, so what do you do? You point down the trail and say, "Go for it." And they did. They'd have happily ridden farther and longer, but this was a test run, to see how their bikes were after their repair/maintenance meeting. One boy's bike still necessitated getting off to change gears manually. (Um, obviously, we'll work on that.) John's bike dorked up right after the start and he rode the whole thing in seventh gear. He wasn't thrilled about that, but he muscled through and got it done. All things considered, it went amazingly well, and the boys were fantastic! We'd hoped to ride again tomorrow, but the general consensus is that "severe thunderstorms" aren't conducive to safe riding. So. I don't know. We'll see when they can go again. They're building up to a big ride later in the year, and if this crew can keep their great attitudes, keep improving the condition of their bikes, and keep learning as they go, I think it's going to be One Fantastic Adventure.
We hit the annual Civil War re-enactment on Saturday. Two years running. I'd like to say we're getting the hang of staying abreast of things, but it was actually a lady from the homeschool support group who posted the dates. Bless her, and the many other people who take the time to say, "Hey! There's something going on this weekend!" If it weren't for them, we'd be hermits. Not intentionally, but that's how it would pan out. Anyway, we went with friends, the weather was significantly better than last year, and EmBaby got her pickled eggs. (She was hoping for pickled quail eggs, but settled happily for regular old eggs when no quail eggs were to be found.)
Meanwhile, Zorak and I rode this morning. We figured we'd get out and put four or five miles behind us. We ended up going 13 miles, roughly broken down to three small hills, two huge hills, six tiny dogs, four big dogs, almost an hour of gorgeous scenery and hard work, and one wipeout there at the end (that would be me, Grace - I'm keeping the title, thank you - and the Dermaplast). It was great! Except for the dogs. I could do without being faced down by brazen growlers who take their stand in the middle of the trail when there is no other avenue available to me. :-\ On the upside, I'm pretty sure my cardio levels ramped up a time or two!
Today we also worked on the Shack a bit -- window trim and cleaning. Not so much for the exciting words, there. Wood putty, delightful as it may be, doesn't lend itself to poetic interpretation without a good deal of hyperbole.
And now, we have rain. What a beautiful way to end the day!
Kiss those babies!
~Dy
The boys' Troop rode last Monday. The plan was 3.5 miles, but they were nowhere ready to stop at that point, so what do you do? You point down the trail and say, "Go for it." And they did. They'd have happily ridden farther and longer, but this was a test run, to see how their bikes were after their repair/maintenance meeting. One boy's bike still necessitated getting off to change gears manually. (Um, obviously, we'll work on that.) John's bike dorked up right after the start and he rode the whole thing in seventh gear. He wasn't thrilled about that, but he muscled through and got it done. All things considered, it went amazingly well, and the boys were fantastic! We'd hoped to ride again tomorrow, but the general consensus is that "severe thunderstorms" aren't conducive to safe riding. So. I don't know. We'll see when they can go again. They're building up to a big ride later in the year, and if this crew can keep their great attitudes, keep improving the condition of their bikes, and keep learning as they go, I think it's going to be One Fantastic Adventure.
We hit the annual Civil War re-enactment on Saturday. Two years running. I'd like to say we're getting the hang of staying abreast of things, but it was actually a lady from the homeschool support group who posted the dates. Bless her, and the many other people who take the time to say, "Hey! There's something going on this weekend!" If it weren't for them, we'd be hermits. Not intentionally, but that's how it would pan out. Anyway, we went with friends, the weather was significantly better than last year, and EmBaby got her pickled eggs. (She was hoping for pickled quail eggs, but settled happily for regular old eggs when no quail eggs were to be found.)
Meanwhile, Zorak and I rode this morning. We figured we'd get out and put four or five miles behind us. We ended up going 13 miles, roughly broken down to three small hills, two huge hills, six tiny dogs, four big dogs, almost an hour of gorgeous scenery and hard work, and one wipeout there at the end (that would be me, Grace - I'm keeping the title, thank you - and the Dermaplast). It was great! Except for the dogs. I could do without being faced down by brazen growlers who take their stand in the middle of the trail when there is no other avenue available to me. :-\ On the upside, I'm pretty sure my cardio levels ramped up a time or two!
Today we also worked on the Shack a bit -- window trim and cleaning. Not so much for the exciting words, there. Wood putty, delightful as it may be, doesn't lend itself to poetic interpretation without a good deal of hyperbole.
And now, we have rain. What a beautiful way to end the day!
Kiss those babies!
~Dy
Monday, August 20
Not Like Any August, Ever
I hesitate to say anything, but this August has *rocked* in Northern Alabama. Temps have remained in the nearly-reasonable 90's, the humidity hasn't gone over 100% more than maybe twice*, and so far nothing has landed on the house or the car! Someone's been Very Good, I suspect. Wow.
So we've been braving the out-of-doors more this year -- going to the river, on hikes, to the park, canoeing. We didn't spend nearly as much time at the water park this Summer as I'd hoped to, but some of that was because we weren't sweltering and desperate for relief the whole time. (June. June was awful. But after that, Mother Nature backed off the ire and we recovered.) We did get some good use out of it, though. I only lost one child, one time (which is pretty darned good, all things considered), and nobody got burnt at all this summer! No, I take that back. Zorak and the boys all got sunburned shins on a canoe trip with the Scouts a couple of weeks back. But that wasn't on my watch, so I don't have to claim it. BOOYAH! First time, ever!
We're in Week 5 at school, and so far, we're... pretty darned slow. Wow. We seem busy. We feel busy. But we're not laying tracks like we'd thought. So today, the kids brainstormed a new schedule, to be implemented tomorrow morning. No clue how it's going to go, but finding out is half the adventure, right? (That face you just made? Same one they made when I used that phrase this morning.) In all, though, it's going really well. EmBaby's reading more fluidly - her accent is killing us in the phonics, but she's starting to clear those hurdles. (I've never had one with an accent before. This is a whole new ballgame!) Jacob's just rolling through it to get to the books. I can't keep him in books. (Yeah, I know. Third child this age, you'd think he'd be inundated. I guess not.) John finally got a good callous from playing guitar. He feels legit, now, and it's given him a renewed vigor in many areas. And James is kicking into high gear is so many areas. Mostly after 11:30 or so in the morning, but once he's caught a gear, he can *go*.
For me, the big excitement so far was hearing John announce that he *likes* Latin. One day, Dwane Thomas at Visual Latin, and the good folks at Memoria Press (thank you for First Form!) will receive cookies, or brownies, or a copy of someone's NLE results with a thank you note. That's some crazy joy, there.
And the rest of Summer? Well, things don't always go as planned. We did get the sand - uh, this past Saturday. The windows we'd been putting in, one at a time, all went on clearance (not to be re-stocked - ACK!) so we snagged all we needed in one size, and we now have new windows along the whole front of the house. We'll be eating beans and rice for the next three months, but the marked improvement in insulation is worth it already.
Oh, and okra! Our mad gardening skills have once again yielded insane amounts of okra. Not much else - maybe one cucumber, a handful of squash, two and a half tomatoes... we'll spend the Autumn pickling okra and giving thanks that we do not have to rely solely on what we grew for Winter sustenance. Again. Amen.
Kiss those babies!
~Dy
* Tongue in cheek. Mostly.
So we've been braving the out-of-doors more this year -- going to the river, on hikes, to the park, canoeing. We didn't spend nearly as much time at the water park this Summer as I'd hoped to, but some of that was because we weren't sweltering and desperate for relief the whole time. (June. June was awful. But after that, Mother Nature backed off the ire and we recovered.) We did get some good use out of it, though. I only lost one child, one time (which is pretty darned good, all things considered), and nobody got burnt at all this summer! No, I take that back. Zorak and the boys all got sunburned shins on a canoe trip with the Scouts a couple of weeks back. But that wasn't on my watch, so I don't have to claim it. BOOYAH! First time, ever!
We're in Week 5 at school, and so far, we're... pretty darned slow. Wow. We seem busy. We feel busy. But we're not laying tracks like we'd thought. So today, the kids brainstormed a new schedule, to be implemented tomorrow morning. No clue how it's going to go, but finding out is half the adventure, right? (That face you just made? Same one they made when I used that phrase this morning.) In all, though, it's going really well. EmBaby's reading more fluidly - her accent is killing us in the phonics, but she's starting to clear those hurdles. (I've never had one with an accent before. This is a whole new ballgame!) Jacob's just rolling through it to get to the books. I can't keep him in books. (Yeah, I know. Third child this age, you'd think he'd be inundated. I guess not.) John finally got a good callous from playing guitar. He feels legit, now, and it's given him a renewed vigor in many areas. And James is kicking into high gear is so many areas. Mostly after 11:30 or so in the morning, but once he's caught a gear, he can *go*.
For me, the big excitement so far was hearing John announce that he *likes* Latin. One day, Dwane Thomas at Visual Latin, and the good folks at Memoria Press (thank you for First Form!) will receive cookies, or brownies, or a copy of someone's NLE results with a thank you note. That's some crazy joy, there.
And the rest of Summer? Well, things don't always go as planned. We did get the sand - uh, this past Saturday. The windows we'd been putting in, one at a time, all went on clearance (not to be re-stocked - ACK!) so we snagged all we needed in one size, and we now have new windows along the whole front of the house. We'll be eating beans and rice for the next three months, but the marked improvement in insulation is worth it already.
Oh, and okra! Our mad gardening skills have once again yielded insane amounts of okra. Not much else - maybe one cucumber, a handful of squash, two and a half tomatoes... we'll spend the Autumn pickling okra and giving thanks that we do not have to rely solely on what we grew for Winter sustenance. Again. Amen.
Kiss those babies!
~Dy
* Tongue in cheek. Mostly.
Wednesday, June 27
The Push Continues
We're still pushing hard to get our affairs in order. The house-cleaning project will probably continue for another couple of months, as we freshen paint and finish the details on projects that stagnated once they hit "functional". (Our Family Motto seems to be: It Doesn't Have to Be Pretty to Be Functional ~or, more accurately, If It's Functional, That's As Good As It's Gonna Get. I need to see about getting that changed before we get to the point of ordering engraved items.)
After James' last physical, his doctor had suggested some strength training to help combat the growing pains he's experiencing. So he and I have been working out regularly, using You Are Your Own Gym. He is an absolutely hilarious workout partner, with a very positive attitude and a willingness to slog through new things with flair. Although I can't say this is "fun", it's getting done. And we laugh. A lot. Mostly at me. But it's good stuff.
This is our last week of break before heading into the next term of the year. We didn't intend to take off all of June (instead of just the first two weeks, for camps), but the weather was too beautiful to spend indoors. It's... not, now. And I have a suspicion that we'll more than make up for it when the heat that's now moved in stays through September, so it's all good. We need something to do in the afternoons other than watching Eureka, right?
The kids were invited to VBS with some friends this week. Jacob was reluctant to go, but agreed to an extension of our "One Honest Bite" approach to life (that started with food, but anything that applies to food can be applied to any element of life, so it gets wide use around here). EmBaby got wind that there would be crafts, and she was IN. Oh, yeah! Jase wanted to want to go, but he wasn't so sure. It was loud. And... well, loud. (We don't go to a loud church, and this was all very new to him.) He said it was scary, so I told him he didn't have to stay and we headed out. The ladies at registration were gracious and kind, and utterly accomodating, but you know, he's four. There's not a single thing he would get from a few hours at VBS that he won't pick up elsewhere in his life over the next umpteen years. (And if there is, then we're doing something wrong. Which we may be, but not with this.) We got back to pick up Jacob and Em a bit early, so we sat in the back to listen to the closing announcements and songs. That's when I realized he was not convinced this was a Good Place To Be, and that he viewed the whole retrieval less as a routine pick up, and more as a SpecOps extraction. We navigated the fine line of Awkward Situations for a bit (thankfully, it was loud, so I don't think anybody overheard our exchange), and escaped without causing a scene.
(Jacob and Em both had a blast, and were thrilled to learn they could go back each evening this week. After hearing that, Jase decided he'd give it One Honest Bite, too, and he stayed tonight, tentative and anxious, holding Em's hand. He says he loved it. Zorak said he was dancing and singing when Z arrived to pick them up. I'm proud of him for giving it a shot, but was also proud of him for knowing it's safe to say, "no, thank you", as well.)
Now, to reconfigure the menu for being in and out all week! :-s
Kiss those babies!
~Dy
After James' last physical, his doctor had suggested some strength training to help combat the growing pains he's experiencing. So he and I have been working out regularly, using You Are Your Own Gym. He is an absolutely hilarious workout partner, with a very positive attitude and a willingness to slog through new things with flair. Although I can't say this is "fun", it's getting done. And we laugh. A lot. Mostly at me. But it's good stuff.
This is our last week of break before heading into the next term of the year. We didn't intend to take off all of June (instead of just the first two weeks, for camps), but the weather was too beautiful to spend indoors. It's... not, now. And I have a suspicion that we'll more than make up for it when the heat that's now moved in stays through September, so it's all good. We need something to do in the afternoons other than watching Eureka, right?
The kids were invited to VBS with some friends this week. Jacob was reluctant to go, but agreed to an extension of our "One Honest Bite" approach to life (that started with food, but anything that applies to food can be applied to any element of life, so it gets wide use around here). EmBaby got wind that there would be crafts, and she was IN. Oh, yeah! Jase wanted to want to go, but he wasn't so sure. It was loud. And... well, loud. (We don't go to a loud church, and this was all very new to him.) He said it was scary, so I told him he didn't have to stay and we headed out. The ladies at registration were gracious and kind, and utterly accomodating, but you know, he's four. There's not a single thing he would get from a few hours at VBS that he won't pick up elsewhere in his life over the next umpteen years. (And if there is, then we're doing something wrong. Which we may be, but not with this.) We got back to pick up Jacob and Em a bit early, so we sat in the back to listen to the closing announcements and songs. That's when I realized he was not convinced this was a Good Place To Be, and that he viewed the whole retrieval less as a routine pick up, and more as a SpecOps extraction. We navigated the fine line of Awkward Situations for a bit (thankfully, it was loud, so I don't think anybody overheard our exchange), and escaped without causing a scene.
(Jacob and Em both had a blast, and were thrilled to learn they could go back each evening this week. After hearing that, Jase decided he'd give it One Honest Bite, too, and he stayed tonight, tentative and anxious, holding Em's hand. He says he loved it. Zorak said he was dancing and singing when Z arrived to pick them up. I'm proud of him for giving it a shot, but was also proud of him for knowing it's safe to say, "no, thank you", as well.)
Now, to reconfigure the menu for being in and out all week! :-s
Kiss those babies!
~Dy
Monday, June 18
Hot 'n Sticky Holiday
Zorak worked on the project with his co-worker most of the day, Saturday. I don't
think they got it finished, as he needs a torch. I wish I'd known that
before Father's Day. Someday, we will manage to figure out what he needs
and get it for him before he runs down to Home Depot or the Welding
Shop and buys it for himself. Not that he minds. Gifts don't say I love you to him - time, thoughtfulness, naps, kind words, affection - those things wrap him in a big hug and whisper, "You mean so much to us." And humor - a family that laughs together is happy and solid. We're fortunate, and we've got it good.
Father's Day was spent working in the garden. Sort of. I like to think we'd be better at it if our lives depended on it. I may be wrong, though. It's pretty miserable down there in the afternoons, and we haven't disciplined ourselves enough to get down there and get it over with in the cool of the mornings. (Of course, there will be no cool, ever, in another two weeks, so maybe it's just a pre-emptive adjustment on our part?) Thankfully, okra will grow with pretty much no input from anyone.
We graduated a couple more chicks from the basement to the barn. I cannot tell you how glad I will be when I no longer have livestock living in my home.
The kids and I made lunch for Zorak (shredded BBQ brisket sandwiches, tomato/cuke/sweet pepper salad, green salad, pintos, and cheesecake). We enjoyed lunch and then laid down -- and stopped moving. Z got a Father's Day nap. (Best Gift, Ever!) The rest of us watched MacGuyver and lolled about, with our limbs dangling off the ends of the furniture.
If I haven't done so already, I need to go on record now as saying I am SO wholly on board with the implementation of siestas in the South. Nobody wants to work during the hottest part of the day, and in the summer it's light late enough that you can get more done after a refreshing nap, anyway. When you add in the humidity and the lunch... Oy! Siesta is the only thing that makes any sense. But it's never caught on here in the South, for whatever reason. A shame, really - it's a lovely way to get through the hot'n'sticky part of the day.
This week? This week we don't have to be up at 5:45, so we're not going to be. That's about as far as we've made it on the planning end. And we're okay with that. :-)
Kiss those babies!
~Dy
Father's Day was spent working in the garden. Sort of. I like to think we'd be better at it if our lives depended on it. I may be wrong, though. It's pretty miserable down there in the afternoons, and we haven't disciplined ourselves enough to get down there and get it over with in the cool of the mornings. (Of course, there will be no cool, ever, in another two weeks, so maybe it's just a pre-emptive adjustment on our part?) Thankfully, okra will grow with pretty much no input from anyone.
We graduated a couple more chicks from the basement to the barn. I cannot tell you how glad I will be when I no longer have livestock living in my home.
The kids and I made lunch for Zorak (shredded BBQ brisket sandwiches, tomato/cuke/sweet pepper salad, green salad, pintos, and cheesecake). We enjoyed lunch and then laid down -- and stopped moving. Z got a Father's Day nap. (Best Gift, Ever!) The rest of us watched MacGuyver and lolled about, with our limbs dangling off the ends of the furniture.
If I haven't done so already, I need to go on record now as saying I am SO wholly on board with the implementation of siestas in the South. Nobody wants to work during the hottest part of the day, and in the summer it's light late enough that you can get more done after a refreshing nap, anyway. When you add in the humidity and the lunch... Oy! Siesta is the only thing that makes any sense. But it's never caught on here in the South, for whatever reason. A shame, really - it's a lovely way to get through the hot'n'sticky part of the day.
This week? This week we don't have to be up at 5:45, so we're not going to be. That's about as far as we've made it on the planning end. And we're okay with that. :-)
Kiss those babies!
~Dy
Saturday, June 16
Things Are Changing!
Mostly, my email spam. I used to get offers for Sexy Asian Singles and lots of Viagra. Today, I got my first "hip implant recall" solicitation. *sniff* I feel so grown up.
A co-worker of Zorak's is coming down today so Z can do some welding for him. He'll probably bring his wife, and that's always a treat. She's one of those beautiful, deeply rooted ladies who are kind and gracious. She doesn't mind the chaos of the house, as it reminds her of her years raising their children. (I'm still going to clean up, here in a bit, though. No sense in triggering any Maternal PTSD that may be lurking. We all have it. We should try to be aware.)
The kids are sleeping in this morning, except for John, who bounded out of bed at seven, made his bed, let out the chickens, fed and watered everything that needs us to feed or water it... without me having to ask. That makes me so ridiculously happy! So I let him play some video games while his siblings sleep. (I like to think of it as positive reinforcement.) Of course, Em awoke not long after he started and stumbled sleepily over to me to inquire why, exactly, John gets video games. I could see in her eyes there was a "not fair" skulking about back there. When I explained what he'd done, and how it was on his own motivation, and I felt that merited game time, she was pensive for a moment. Then she perked up, said, "Oh. OK!" She grabbed an apple and plunked down on the couch to watch him. I guess she weighed the options and decided a little game time wasn't worth getting dressed and started on chores just yet. Fair enough.
In other news, a cousin and his family were able to return to their home in New Mexico today. So many homes have been destroyed in the Little Bear fire. Theirs survived, and so they are home. Now the community begins the process of mourning, healing, and rebuilding. As far as I know, all of the family is safe. Over in Ruidoso, the folks at Ski Apache used some ingenuity and turned the snow makers on to help keep the fire at bay by spraying the area with Hail Mary shots. Meanwhile, there are floods in the southern part of our state. I find myself nudging the boys to consider some kind of engineering study that would allow them to devise a feasible means of diverting water from one place to another, cross country - eliminate damaging floods, and quell the raging fires, all in one awesome project.
Kiss those babies!
~Dy
A co-worker of Zorak's is coming down today so Z can do some welding for him. He'll probably bring his wife, and that's always a treat. She's one of those beautiful, deeply rooted ladies who are kind and gracious. She doesn't mind the chaos of the house, as it reminds her of her years raising their children. (I'm still going to clean up, here in a bit, though. No sense in triggering any Maternal PTSD that may be lurking. We all have it. We should try to be aware.)
The kids are sleeping in this morning, except for John, who bounded out of bed at seven, made his bed, let out the chickens, fed and watered everything that needs us to feed or water it... without me having to ask. That makes me so ridiculously happy! So I let him play some video games while his siblings sleep. (I like to think of it as positive reinforcement.) Of course, Em awoke not long after he started and stumbled sleepily over to me to inquire why, exactly, John gets video games. I could see in her eyes there was a "not fair" skulking about back there. When I explained what he'd done, and how it was on his own motivation, and I felt that merited game time, she was pensive for a moment. Then she perked up, said, "Oh. OK!" She grabbed an apple and plunked down on the couch to watch him. I guess she weighed the options and decided a little game time wasn't worth getting dressed and started on chores just yet. Fair enough.
In other news, a cousin and his family were able to return to their home in New Mexico today. So many homes have been destroyed in the Little Bear fire. Theirs survived, and so they are home. Now the community begins the process of mourning, healing, and rebuilding. As far as I know, all of the family is safe. Over in Ruidoso, the folks at Ski Apache used some ingenuity and turned the snow makers on to help keep the fire at bay by spraying the area with Hail Mary shots. Meanwhile, there are floods in the southern part of our state. I find myself nudging the boys to consider some kind of engineering study that would allow them to devise a feasible means of diverting water from one place to another, cross country - eliminate damaging floods, and quell the raging fires, all in one awesome project.
Kiss those babies!
~Dy
Thursday, June 14
Project Gear-Up
I have to confess, that title sounds more enthusiastic than I feel about it.
Tomorrow, we'll have the Volvo (for emergencies only - it doesn't have air, and tomorrow's going to be Southern Summer Hot). Zorak will take the Suburban and the trailer. He'll return with a load of sand, dump it in the lower drive, and then I'll try to keep smaller children from infesting the pile while he sets up the batting boards and directs the larger children on prepping for a cement pour. I really don't like doing the batting boards, but I'm not terribly vested in keeping the children out of the sand pile, either. (It's all going to end up in the house, anyway, why not have fun with it?) So this may not be our most stellar plan. But it's what we've got, and we'll run with it. At some unspecified point in the fairly near-ish future, we will have stairs for the balcony. The fun part is seeing how, and when, we get there.
Also, he texted me yesterday to say that Lowe's has all the window sizes we need *in stock*. I kind of thought he was flirting with me and would come home with more windows. But no. He came home with the sand plan. We need to flirt more, because we've obviously gotten bad at it.
The kids and I were late to camp this morning. I felt awful. We've done so well recently. (I've been working on timeliness for 20 years, with various setbacks every time we added a child to the entourage, so a full week on time is pretty big news around here.) But James - who'd sprouted a bloody nose out of *nowhere* two blocks from home - said, "It'th okay, Bob. Wud dime out of de week ithnt bath." Sweet boy. Currently my favorite, if he'd just clot up, already. (When I pulled away from the drop-off lane, he was on his way to the medic station for ice and some kind of whatever helpful something or other we didn't have in the car. Had that been me, I'd have been all about copping out and staying home for the day. But he was determined it would stop any minute now and he'd be fine.. I'm glad he didn't get my work ethic. Good kid.)
And now, I suppose I should get cracking on the various glamorous aspects of the day before it does get hot and we punt for a few episodes of My Little Pony in the afternoon heat. (Because we all know I'm going to say yes. The kids know it, and I know it. What little work gets done before then is probably all that gets done today. I've got to save up my strategic moves for the sand pile!)
Kiss those babies!
~Dy
Tomorrow, we'll have the Volvo (for emergencies only - it doesn't have air, and tomorrow's going to be Southern Summer Hot). Zorak will take the Suburban and the trailer. He'll return with a load of sand, dump it in the lower drive, and then I'll try to keep smaller children from infesting the pile while he sets up the batting boards and directs the larger children on prepping for a cement pour. I really don't like doing the batting boards, but I'm not terribly vested in keeping the children out of the sand pile, either. (It's all going to end up in the house, anyway, why not have fun with it?) So this may not be our most stellar plan. But it's what we've got, and we'll run with it. At some unspecified point in the fairly near-ish future, we will have stairs for the balcony. The fun part is seeing how, and when, we get there.
Also, he texted me yesterday to say that Lowe's has all the window sizes we need *in stock*. I kind of thought he was flirting with me and would come home with more windows. But no. He came home with the sand plan. We need to flirt more, because we've obviously gotten bad at it.
The kids and I were late to camp this morning. I felt awful. We've done so well recently. (I've been working on timeliness for 20 years, with various setbacks every time we added a child to the entourage, so a full week on time is pretty big news around here.) But James - who'd sprouted a bloody nose out of *nowhere* two blocks from home - said, "It'th okay, Bob. Wud dime out of de week ithnt bath." Sweet boy. Currently my favorite, if he'd just clot up, already. (When I pulled away from the drop-off lane, he was on his way to the medic station for ice and some kind of whatever helpful something or other we didn't have in the car. Had that been me, I'd have been all about copping out and staying home for the day. But he was determined it would stop any minute now and he'd be fine.. I'm glad he didn't get my work ethic. Good kid.)
And now, I suppose I should get cracking on the various glamorous aspects of the day before it does get hot and we punt for a few episodes of My Little Pony in the afternoon heat. (Because we all know I'm going to say yes. The kids know it, and I know it. What little work gets done before then is probably all that gets done today. I've got to save up my strategic moves for the sand pile!)
Kiss those babies!
~Dy
Tuesday, June 12
Almost Halfway Done
Wow, June is shaping up to be the longest month of the year so far. It's crazy, but I think I've been awake and productive more hours so far this month than I was all of January.
I kind of miss January...
Today, we were productive and engaged. (Also, it wasn't terribly hot. That helps.) EmBaby and Jase helped me clean out the craft closet. They were amazed and awed by all the wonderful things we have! I was floored at how junked up one closet can get in a year's time. It's safe to say that, overall, it was a morning of wonder. We got it squared away and took our happy selves out to the balcony with some materials to enjoy the weather, and the goodies, and the knowledge that -- at least in one tiny corner of the house -- all was in order.
Then, it was so nice out that we stayed there for lunch, and for a story after lunch, and before we knew it, it was time to pick up the boys! Ha! That was a fun and easy day.
Em's enjoying The Best Christmas Pageant Ever. I get such a kick out of her expressions (she wears her heart right there on her sleeve, so everything is up front and obvious), her giggles and gasps. She is at such a magical age for a romping good story.
Jase is... well, he's four. I have no idea if he's enjoying it or just toying with me in the way four-year-olds have an instinctive genius for doing. He enjoys the heck out of the *idea* of it. He brings me the book several times a day and requests a chapter. He's processing all the things (mainly the Herdmans - I don't think he can quite wrap his mind around anyone like them, and it's a troubling idea to him, to think there are people that ornery in the world.) But when it comes time to read, he can think of a million things to say, a thousand things to do (half of them are very loud), and a hundred different positions to try (most of which involve feet in, on, or near someone's face). So... I'm glad he's... listening? It's very tempting to wait until he falls asleep before I try to read, but then he asks a question or makes a comment, or kisses my cheek and whispers, "I'm glad you're not mean like the Herdmans." And all I can do is kiss him back and be thankful I didn't wait for him to fall asleep.
Kiss those babies!
~Dy
I kind of miss January...
Today, we were productive and engaged. (Also, it wasn't terribly hot. That helps.) EmBaby and Jase helped me clean out the craft closet. They were amazed and awed by all the wonderful things we have! I was floored at how junked up one closet can get in a year's time. It's safe to say that, overall, it was a morning of wonder. We got it squared away and took our happy selves out to the balcony with some materials to enjoy the weather, and the goodies, and the knowledge that -- at least in one tiny corner of the house -- all was in order.
Then, it was so nice out that we stayed there for lunch, and for a story after lunch, and before we knew it, it was time to pick up the boys! Ha! That was a fun and easy day.
Em's enjoying The Best Christmas Pageant Ever. I get such a kick out of her expressions (she wears her heart right there on her sleeve, so everything is up front and obvious), her giggles and gasps. She is at such a magical age for a romping good story.
Jase is... well, he's four. I have no idea if he's enjoying it or just toying with me in the way four-year-olds have an instinctive genius for doing. He enjoys the heck out of the *idea* of it. He brings me the book several times a day and requests a chapter. He's processing all the things (mainly the Herdmans - I don't think he can quite wrap his mind around anyone like them, and it's a troubling idea to him, to think there are people that ornery in the world.) But when it comes time to read, he can think of a million things to say, a thousand things to do (half of them are very loud), and a hundred different positions to try (most of which involve feet in, on, or near someone's face). So... I'm glad he's... listening? It's very tempting to wait until he falls asleep before I try to read, but then he asks a question or makes a comment, or kisses my cheek and whispers, "I'm glad you're not mean like the Herdmans." And all I can do is kiss him back and be thankful I didn't wait for him to fall asleep.
Kiss those babies!
~Dy
Monday, June 4
It was!
It was absolutely crazy. And magnificent.
Friday's airsoft gathering went well. We had about nine boys, all properly attired with safety gear and low-end guns. (Minor Injuries Only, for the win!) We moms stayed on the balcony, figuring the 16' height would keep us out of firing range. It did. That's where we kept the food, too. It was a blessedly normal, witty, engaged group of women. I'm fairly sure I was the loose peg in the wall, and that's okay. Gives me an opportunity to work on my Don't Be Weird Around The Nice People routine. We'll see if it worked. The boys, at least, I know had fun, because they only came inside when thirst drove them in, and there were small, polite, but clear protestations when it was time to go. They all agreed they'd like to do more things together. Mission accomplished. (I told Zorak that night that I really loved all the boys - they were just the right kind of weird - sweet, quirky, fun kids.)
That evening, our friend, Daniel, arrived with his wife and son. He's been stateside, studying Chemistry, for several years. His wife and son joined him in the fall, so this was the first time we were fortunate enough to meet them. And she's pregnant with Baby #2!! I didn't know (Zorak may have known, and thought he told me, but there's a lot he thinks he's told me and didn't) -- so there was a lot of happy squealing. And I cannot tell you how hard it was for me not to just fondle her and swaddle her up and wallow in her adorable, beautiful pregnantness. But *aherm* I restrained. Also, watching her stand up from the table, I realized she may look "just adorable" to me, but she's probably larger than she's ever been, hot, off-balance, uncomfortable, and none of the joints are connected properly at this point. It really does look better than it feels. James made her sage water, and we kept her fed, and tried to pamper her as much as possible (she's quick, though - like lighting - up and helping any chance she gets!) Their son disappeared with the littles, the tiny herd making random appearances to dance, sing, or just make a lap around the living area.
We had a little cookout for them Saturday. It started out as a little cookout. We ended up with 30-some-odd people, and I'm not particularly clear where the line goes from a small gathering to a large crowd. It was a delightful outcome, regardless! The weather cooperated nicely, and we were able to spread out onto the balcony, the upper meadow, and the front yard. Naturally, we didn't get a single photo. However, I didn't fret about the cleanliness of the house, or about putting people to work when they arrived. So this was probably the most enjoyable gathering we've had - internally, at any rate. No stress, no worries, just a really great time with some really fantastic people. More than once, I found myself standing at the edge of a cluster of people, just smiling and giving quiet thanks for having these folks in our lives. We are so rich.
The Bigs left for Scout Camp early Sunday morning. They'd packed at some point over the weekend. (Mostly at The Last Minute, and I've already got a list of things to bring to them on Family Day.) We got them headed off and then the rest of us went to church. From church, we hit Sam's for dry goods and travel food (because it's one glamorous outing after another when you have pantry locusts!), then took a lovely stroll along the river before heading home. Daniel and his family pulled out around five, and that felt too soon for them to leave. We hope they'll return again and again. Our door is always open.
And then, it was quiet. SO quiet. Jase promptly passed out. Zorak played video games with Jacob. EmBaby worked in her little MineCraft world James had set up for her before he left. I sat down with a few books and drifted in and out of sleep.
Kiss those babies!
~Dy
Friday's airsoft gathering went well. We had about nine boys, all properly attired with safety gear and low-end guns. (Minor Injuries Only, for the win!) We moms stayed on the balcony, figuring the 16' height would keep us out of firing range. It did. That's where we kept the food, too. It was a blessedly normal, witty, engaged group of women. I'm fairly sure I was the loose peg in the wall, and that's okay. Gives me an opportunity to work on my Don't Be Weird Around The Nice People routine. We'll see if it worked. The boys, at least, I know had fun, because they only came inside when thirst drove them in, and there were small, polite, but clear protestations when it was time to go. They all agreed they'd like to do more things together. Mission accomplished. (I told Zorak that night that I really loved all the boys - they were just the right kind of weird - sweet, quirky, fun kids.)
That evening, our friend, Daniel, arrived with his wife and son. He's been stateside, studying Chemistry, for several years. His wife and son joined him in the fall, so this was the first time we were fortunate enough to meet them. And she's pregnant with Baby #2!! I didn't know (Zorak may have known, and thought he told me, but there's a lot he thinks he's told me and didn't) -- so there was a lot of happy squealing. And I cannot tell you how hard it was for me not to just fondle her and swaddle her up and wallow in her adorable, beautiful pregnantness. But *aherm* I restrained. Also, watching her stand up from the table, I realized she may look "just adorable" to me, but she's probably larger than she's ever been, hot, off-balance, uncomfortable, and none of the joints are connected properly at this point. It really does look better than it feels. James made her sage water, and we kept her fed, and tried to pamper her as much as possible (she's quick, though - like lighting - up and helping any chance she gets!) Their son disappeared with the littles, the tiny herd making random appearances to dance, sing, or just make a lap around the living area.
We had a little cookout for them Saturday. It started out as a little cookout. We ended up with 30-some-odd people, and I'm not particularly clear where the line goes from a small gathering to a large crowd. It was a delightful outcome, regardless! The weather cooperated nicely, and we were able to spread out onto the balcony, the upper meadow, and the front yard. Naturally, we didn't get a single photo. However, I didn't fret about the cleanliness of the house, or about putting people to work when they arrived. So this was probably the most enjoyable gathering we've had - internally, at any rate. No stress, no worries, just a really great time with some really fantastic people. More than once, I found myself standing at the edge of a cluster of people, just smiling and giving quiet thanks for having these folks in our lives. We are so rich.
The Bigs left for Scout Camp early Sunday morning. They'd packed at some point over the weekend. (Mostly at The Last Minute, and I've already got a list of things to bring to them on Family Day.) We got them headed off and then the rest of us went to church. From church, we hit Sam's for dry goods and travel food (because it's one glamorous outing after another when you have pantry locusts!), then took a lovely stroll along the river before heading home. Daniel and his family pulled out around five, and that felt too soon for them to leave. We hope they'll return again and again. Our door is always open.
And then, it was quiet. SO quiet. Jase promptly passed out. Zorak played video games with Jacob. EmBaby worked in her little MineCraft world James had set up for her before he left. I sat down with a few books and drifted in and out of sleep.
Kiss those babies!
~Dy
Monday, May 28
Hot!
The HOT has started. Yesterday was 95 (officially - our thermometers registered higher, but if I'm going to complain, and I am, then I'll at least try to keep it to the official numbers). It wasn't the heat so much as the air - the air was thick, tangible, suffocatingly present. It never moved, other than to wrap itself around us. An in-your-face air, from which there was nowhere to turn for a break. Wow! And it's only May! Thankfully, the water park opened this weekend.
The last two weeks have been great. We got to meet a long-time invisible friend and two of her awesome kids. The visit wasn't nearly long enough (but the beach beckoned, and we can't beat the beach - if we could have pulled it off, we'd have stowed away and gone with them). At the end of the visit, though, we all felt as though we'd gained new Friends. Real ones - the kind you can feed, and who will feed you - the kind you're comfortable stopping in to visit, the kind who will be in your life for years to come. I'm so glad she came!
We've been busy with projects and repairs - coops, trailers, windows, and culling. We got some semblance of a garden in. It's late, as usual. Last year, we let it go and didn't have one. By September, we sure missed the okra and cucumbers. (That's all we seem able to grow successfully.) So this year, we figured it's better to be late than to blow it off entirely. We'll see if we still agree, come August.
The boys are prepped, stoked, and ready for Scout Camp. They had their physicals last week, coming away with admonitions to wear the ankle brace at camp (or it's useless), keep your epi pen ON you (or it's useless), and many other things it's nice to have reinforced from someone who isn't just saying that because she's your Mom.
Jacob bridged up into Webelos. He's looking forward eagerly to Day Camp and Webelos Resident Camp. Today he finishes his course of antibiotics. Three weeks, and he never missed a dose. I'm proud of him. (And us. This was a definite team effort, and even if he or I had forgotten ever, the day was filled with, "Did you take your medicine" reminders from all angles. He felt loved. Probably a little annoyed after three weeks of it, but still, loved.) He took cookies to the doc when the boys went in for their physicals.
We've only lost two chickens from this last batch. One was operator error. There were many tears and reminders that these are unpredictable little critters and that's why we have to be super cautious in how we handle them. One was random - who knows what happened. The difference in a healthy brood is fantastic - they're so flappy and active! It even catches Zorak and I off guard to see them alighting atop the boxes, or doing the Benny Hill races when a fly or a moth gets into the box. (This one, below, Jacob told me, "I call him Jasper Fforde. I don't know why.")
The first batch of chickens (all four of them) are now feathered out and living in the barn coop. They're a bit runty, so James built them a little shetland-sized roost. So far, though, they seem content. It's nice to hear quiet burbling noises coming from the coop while we tend the garden. We've returned the silky chickens we were sitting - the chicken tractor
Zorak built works like a charm, and the chickens settled right in for
the two weeks that we had them. The kids already miss the daily egg
finds!
Mokka is still here - Buddy's buddy - she's a sweet, dainty little thing, and Buddy loves having someone to wrestle with. (Especially since the kids don't seem to appreciate the fine art of dog wrestling with a 70# dog.) I'd have taken a picture from inside the yard, but neither of them cares to pose when they could PLAY (think of the Rottweiler from Over the Hedge), and there's no taking pictures when you're in the yard to PLAY!
Kiss those babies!
~Dy
The last two weeks have been great. We got to meet a long-time invisible friend and two of her awesome kids. The visit wasn't nearly long enough (but the beach beckoned, and we can't beat the beach - if we could have pulled it off, we'd have stowed away and gone with them). At the end of the visit, though, we all felt as though we'd gained new Friends. Real ones - the kind you can feed, and who will feed you - the kind you're comfortable stopping in to visit, the kind who will be in your life for years to come. I'm so glad she came!
The boys are prepped, stoked, and ready for Scout Camp. They had their physicals last week, coming away with admonitions to wear the ankle brace at camp (or it's useless), keep your epi pen ON you (or it's useless), and many other things it's nice to have reinforced from someone who isn't just saying that because she's your Mom.
Jacob bridged up into Webelos. He's looking forward eagerly to Day Camp and Webelos Resident Camp. Today he finishes his course of antibiotics. Three weeks, and he never missed a dose. I'm proud of him. (And us. This was a definite team effort, and even if he or I had forgotten ever, the day was filled with, "Did you take your medicine" reminders from all angles. He felt loved. Probably a little annoyed after three weeks of it, but still, loved.) He took cookies to the doc when the boys went in for their physicals.
We've only lost two chickens from this last batch. One was operator error. There were many tears and reminders that these are unpredictable little critters and that's why we have to be super cautious in how we handle them. One was random - who knows what happened. The difference in a healthy brood is fantastic - they're so flappy and active! It even catches Zorak and I off guard to see them alighting atop the boxes, or doing the Benny Hill races when a fly or a moth gets into the box. (This one, below, Jacob told me, "I call him Jasper Fforde. I don't know why.")
Kiss those babies!
~Dy
Friday, May 11
Oh, wow.
There were farmers at the market! We scored collards and onions, berries and jam. The kids were oh, so happy. One of the farmers asked John if he's still cooking, and John told him he's planning on making a French Onion Soup with these onions. The farmer threw in extras. *love* He made it last night - we made ten cups of French Onion Soup, and there wasn't anything left! Em ate three servings. It was so good.
Jacob's new hair is much easier to pick through. He likes it, and said his head feels pounds lighter. He's been very good about remembering his probiotics, which is nice. Unfortunately, he's also having weird reactions to other things. He had a rash the size of a silver dollar pop up on his neck Wednesday, at the site of a sting or bite or something he'd gotten Sunday. I freaked out a little, but a friend reminded me that strong or unusual reactions to things are typical, and to mark the boundaries and watch it. It's shrinking. Just a rash. Kids get rashes. They're fine. Mommies get Irish cream in their coffee at the end of the day. They're fine. It's all good.
The Pack had its planning meeting Tuesday night, and it looks like we'll have a great year ahead. The Troop needs to have a planning meeting sometime soon. The boys went over to help their SPL clean out and organize the trailer yesterday. All the boys worked hard and brought some great ideas to the table. It was an encouraging day.
Today, however, we're being kicked outside to work. It's a day without rain in the forecast, and that means we have to beat back the foliage while we can.
So, to work!
Kiss those babies!
~Dy
Jacob's new hair is much easier to pick through. He likes it, and said his head feels pounds lighter. He's been very good about remembering his probiotics, which is nice. Unfortunately, he's also having weird reactions to other things. He had a rash the size of a silver dollar pop up on his neck Wednesday, at the site of a sting or bite or something he'd gotten Sunday. I freaked out a little, but a friend reminded me that strong or unusual reactions to things are typical, and to mark the boundaries and watch it. It's shrinking. Just a rash. Kids get rashes. They're fine. Mommies get Irish cream in their coffee at the end of the day. They're fine. It's all good.
The Pack had its planning meeting Tuesday night, and it looks like we'll have a great year ahead. The Troop needs to have a planning meeting sometime soon. The boys went over to help their SPL clean out and organize the trailer yesterday. All the boys worked hard and brought some great ideas to the table. It was an encouraging day.
Today, however, we're being kicked outside to work. It's a day without rain in the forecast, and that means we have to beat back the foliage while we can.
So, to work!
Kiss those babies!
~Dy
Thursday, May 3
How is it Thursday?
I'm exhausted! We awoke this morning to the dim light and soft murmurings that mean rain. I was ridiculously refreshed by six, so I jumped out of bed, made coffee, and sat on the porch swing, reading and sipping until I got damp and felt chilly. Those days are numbered. I plan to wallow in every delicious one of them.
The wide-awake-rush wore off by ten, though, and I found myself fighting off a coma on the couch. Not sure if it was the adrenaline wearing off, or the general pace of Things, or if I didn't eat enough breakfast. (We had chorizo and eggs with green chiles, colored sweet peppers, and provolone cheese. It was so good. I made a ton. John sliced apples, and we had fresh milk to go with. Still, there was absolutely nothing left. The pantry locusts are getting larger.) Nobody seemed terribly motivated today, though, so we read and talked, read some more, napped. Jase is coming off a short virus. Em's fighting it off. It seemed like a good day to rest.
I went down before the children got up this morning and dealt with the chicks that didn't make it through the night. Five chicks survived the ordeal. They are tough, perky, and on the ball. We're pretty sure we have The Avengers of chickens assembled down there, now. One is obviously a runt (compared to the total badasses that are left), but she's a trooper and has already stolen James' heart, so I'm sure she'll be looked after well. Now we get to enjoy the fun part. They've already begun chasing stray bugs that veer into the box, and two of them have a weird love/poke-in-the-eye relationship going that's a total riot to watch. They're pretty evenly matched, and it's definitely a two-way street between them as they figure out the pecking order. Chickens are like Benny Hill sketches, without the innuendo.
Zorak's been on the road all week. He left Sunday and is due in tonight -- hopefully within the hour. I miss him any time he's gone, but tonight I'm particularly anxious to curl up with him and let him keep the Bogeyman at bay.
Tomorrow, we get to go play airsoft with some boys from our homeschool group! John and Jacob are stoked. Absolutely, thoroughly amped up and ready to GO! James isn't so much interested, but tomorrow is also skate day, and he loves that, so he'll get to have some fun and he's got a stack of projects to take with him to the airsoft gathering. (When did he get that organized? I love it!) I have no clue what this event is going to look like, or whether I got the right gear, or how this works, or... but I am excited for the boys to have a day of fun, and it will be nice to get to know another Mom from the group. (We have a very welcoming group, but everyone is So Very Busy at the functions that if you don't already know people, you aren't likely to get to know them there. It's odd, but that's how it pans out. So, from an Isolated Mom perspective, this is kind of exciting, too.) And I imagine Zorak will appreciate having us out of the house during the day, so he can recover from the 11.5 hour drive in peace.
After the kids wake him up and beg for waffles, that is.
Kiss those babies!
~Dy
The wide-awake-rush wore off by ten, though, and I found myself fighting off a coma on the couch. Not sure if it was the adrenaline wearing off, or the general pace of Things, or if I didn't eat enough breakfast. (We had chorizo and eggs with green chiles, colored sweet peppers, and provolone cheese. It was so good. I made a ton. John sliced apples, and we had fresh milk to go with. Still, there was absolutely nothing left. The pantry locusts are getting larger.) Nobody seemed terribly motivated today, though, so we read and talked, read some more, napped. Jase is coming off a short virus. Em's fighting it off. It seemed like a good day to rest.
I went down before the children got up this morning and dealt with the chicks that didn't make it through the night. Five chicks survived the ordeal. They are tough, perky, and on the ball. We're pretty sure we have The Avengers of chickens assembled down there, now. One is obviously a runt (compared to the total badasses that are left), but she's a trooper and has already stolen James' heart, so I'm sure she'll be looked after well. Now we get to enjoy the fun part. They've already begun chasing stray bugs that veer into the box, and two of them have a weird love/poke-in-the-eye relationship going that's a total riot to watch. They're pretty evenly matched, and it's definitely a two-way street between them as they figure out the pecking order. Chickens are like Benny Hill sketches, without the innuendo.
Zorak's been on the road all week. He left Sunday and is due in tonight -- hopefully within the hour. I miss him any time he's gone, but tonight I'm particularly anxious to curl up with him and let him keep the Bogeyman at bay.
Tomorrow, we get to go play airsoft with some boys from our homeschool group! John and Jacob are stoked. Absolutely, thoroughly amped up and ready to GO! James isn't so much interested, but tomorrow is also skate day, and he loves that, so he'll get to have some fun and he's got a stack of projects to take with him to the airsoft gathering. (When did he get that organized? I love it!) I have no clue what this event is going to look like, or whether I got the right gear, or how this works, or... but I am excited for the boys to have a day of fun, and it will be nice to get to know another Mom from the group. (We have a very welcoming group, but everyone is So Very Busy at the functions that if you don't already know people, you aren't likely to get to know them there. It's odd, but that's how it pans out. So, from an Isolated Mom perspective, this is kind of exciting, too.) And I imagine Zorak will appreciate having us out of the house during the day, so he can recover from the 11.5 hour drive in peace.
After the kids wake him up and beg for waffles, that is.
Kiss those babies!
~Dy
Friday, April 27
Back to work again!
And this fun pile in the drive!
We've used some of it to finish the drainage work that's been looming. The rest will go toward pouring a pad for the balcony stairs, and prepping the lower drive for the next project. (Of course there's a next project! *pfft*)
And, of course, we had a Day of Birth to celebrate.
And it was nice that we made it back before the tulips that James and Em had planted were finished blooming. They weren't in their full glory, but the kids beamed to know they'd done the job well.
~Dy
Wednesday, April 25
And then...
We spent three days at Zorak's Mom's house. For him, it was three days of doing nice things for his Mom. (Electrical wiring, plumbing repairs, pouring concrete, etc.) For the kids, it was three days of pure, unadulterated kid-fun.
She made them pancakes and chocolate fudge brownies. (Jase cried for a week after we got home, "When are we going BACK TO GRANNY'S???")
They played with Legos indoors when the wind kicked up the sand.
They rode their bikes to the corner store when the wind died down.
They identified plants and critters and read some of Granny's book stash.
I served as the parts gopher, and washed a lot of laundry. Bless my mother-in-law, she understands how nice it is to get home with clean clothes instead of bags of dirty laundry, so she gave me free rein of the laundry room and let me get it done. That's some happy stuff, right there.
And then, to Texas - to the middle-of-nowhere to see KathyJo and her punkins (we missed Ernie, much to both of the guys' chagrin) - to Austin to see some dear, dear friends, there. Meredith and Jami and ALL the children in between.
And then, homeward. With a passion. We had a beautiful trip, but it was a full two weeks on the road, and the children were beginning to unravel. Zorak and I were beginning to grow road weary. It was time. We pushed on that first evening, then made the last dash home in a 17-hour drive the next day, pulling it at one in the morning.
We could have stayed another night along the road, but I couldn't quite muster the umpf to rally everyone up and out early one. more. morning. (The kids were fantastic! It was me. I was done with the mustering and the rallying.) So we plugged along.
Home again. The South had sprung up in buntings of white and orange, dotted with flowery ribbons of orange and yellow. Springtime in the South is one of the most beautiful, amazing things I've ever seen. (And quite a contrast to the sandblasting we'd received during a New Mexico Spring.) That blunted the sting of being away from loved ones, and warmed the welcome upon our return. Oh, how I love it here in the Springtime.
Kiss those babies!
~Dy
She made them pancakes and chocolate fudge brownies. (Jase cried for a week after we got home, "When are we going BACK TO GRANNY'S???")
They played with Legos indoors when the wind kicked up the sand.
They rode their bikes to the corner store when the wind died down.
They identified plants and critters and read some of Granny's book stash.
I served as the parts gopher, and washed a lot of laundry. Bless my mother-in-law, she understands how nice it is to get home with clean clothes instead of bags of dirty laundry, so she gave me free rein of the laundry room and let me get it done. That's some happy stuff, right there.
And then, to Texas - to the middle-of-nowhere to see KathyJo and her punkins (we missed Ernie, much to both of the guys' chagrin) - to Austin to see some dear, dear friends, there. Meredith and Jami and ALL the children in between.
And then, homeward. With a passion. We had a beautiful trip, but it was a full two weeks on the road, and the children were beginning to unravel. Zorak and I were beginning to grow road weary. It was time. We pushed on that first evening, then made the last dash home in a 17-hour drive the next day, pulling it at one in the morning.
We could have stayed another night along the road, but I couldn't quite muster the umpf to rally everyone up and out early one. more. morning. (The kids were fantastic! It was me. I was done with the mustering and the rallying.) So we plugged along.
Home again. The South had sprung up in buntings of white and orange, dotted with flowery ribbons of orange and yellow. Springtime in the South is one of the most beautiful, amazing things I've ever seen. (And quite a contrast to the sandblasting we'd received during a New Mexico Spring.) That blunted the sting of being away from loved ones, and warmed the welcome upon our return. Oh, how I love it here in the Springtime.
~Dy
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