Starting to Feel It...

The heat, that is. It's been a wet, wet Spring, and that means 85 degrees feels significantly less do-able than 70 did. Stepping outside feels like a sort of sauna-meets-obstacle-course. Which is fine if you have athletic ability and... gills. For mere mortals, however, it's a little tricky.

Not stopping us, though!

This weekend was the annual Howard Hill Southern Traditional Archery Tournament. (This is commonly shortened to the "Howard Hill Shoot", and for the purposes of this post will be, "the shoot".) This shoot has been a dream of Z's for years. Back when we lived in the desert Southwest, it was one of those Someday things - too far away to be plausible for two broke kids, but cool enough to merit a standing spot on the list anyway. But now? Now we're less than two hours away from it!

And we all have bows again! So, of course we had to go! Ward came, and some other friends came. It was hot. It was humid. The sun shone, and the atmosphere was fun. The boys shot,

and shot...

Em and Jase hung in there for the whole trail (thank you, hiking group!),

...and I have clearly not lost the ability to laugh at myself.

Z was in his happy spot. It was a good day in our little world.

Oh! We got to see Byron Ferguson in action! AND we got to meet G. Fred Asbell! (If you're into traditional archery at all, you know why this is cool. If you're not, it's the equivalent of Classical homeschoolers getting to watch Andrew Kern lead a socratic discussion *and* visit with Martin Cothran. Very cool.) And, just like every time I get to see Kern and Cothran, I walked off yesterday in a happy haze without getting any pictures. But it happened. And it was awesome. Everyone's got next year's shoot penciled in.

Because of the rain, we didn't go down Friday, and had a spare day on our hands. The Huntsville and Madison Anime Convention (HAMACON) opened, so I took those who like it enough to spend their own money on admission, and we spent a surprisingly fun day at the convention center. Parent Passes are free, too! That was a pleasant bonus.

There was some incredible art, neat activities, special panels and discussions. There were also regular showings of interesting (either new, or particularly noteworthy, or unique) anime. The gentleman running the projector took the time to give introductions, insights, and some Q&A for the audience. We had fun. Nerdy, nerdy fun.

And, we got a cat. His name is Homer, in honor of the Homer Ball. He came home with the boys after a hike on Z's birthday.  (Z has never wanted a cat. Hence, the name.)

I think he's comfortable here.

Kiss those babies!
~Dy

Waterlogged

I had to go through my pictures to see what we've been up to this week, but after I looked at the pictures it all made sense: my brain is waterlogged. This has been a week of water, water, milkshakes, and water. We were invited to share Memorial Day with some special friends. We sat on the deck and visited while the children roasted themselves to a gentle crisp in the pool.

Immediately after that, we had to get a few bodies squared away on camp physicals and vaccinations. Milkshakes all around! We had one visit a day, all week. It was a long, long week. The boys are all quite philosophical about getting a shot. Jase is... not. Well, he may be, but he has a very different philosophy than the rest of them. If my mother were here, this would be the part where she'd smirk and whisper, "One just. like. you." But, we survived! And on we went...

Swimming with our homeschool group. The weather threatened mightily, and it scared off many of the people who'd planned to come, but those who came had a BLAST. We had an hour of clear weather on either side of a slight squall. When the rain did come, the rule was that as long as there's no lightning, they could stay in the water. And they did. We had to lure them out with food and previous obligations ticking away on the clock or they might have stayed until dark. It was a fantastic outing!

And Saturday, we got to join some friends and the Friends of the Locust Fork for their annual hike to Cornelius Falls. It's a fairly challenging hike, but entirely do-able. (Although the Littles stayed home with Dad, and that was a good call.) The payoff at the end of the trail is magnificent! We swam and played in the falls for an hour or so before heading back up the banks to go home. It was hard to leave. This is a seriously gorgeous little spot.

We've got our bags re-packed, our on-the-go food prepped, and we're ready to go back for more! For the first time in a long time, I can actually say I'm looking forward to Summer - good friends, beautiful country, and a willingness to explore - what more could we ask for?

Kiss those babies!
~Dy

A Little Service

The boys and I drove down to Cullman yesterday to help the VFW place flags on the graves of veterans for the coming Memorial Day observation. They had a lovely turn out of people from all seasons of life, and everyone was very thoughtful and respectful.

Cemeteries are a big thing here in the South. They have decoration days and walking tours. People make a point to visit them when driving to other places. It's definitely A Thing. I love the idea of it, but after two hours of reading each and every headstone in this cemetery (so that we did not miss any of the veterans, we read each one carefully), I don't know that I could do it as a past time or a hobby. The endless litany of the lost -- infant children, toddlers, mothers, fathers, siblings, soldiers... every headstone representing an entire home, sometimes an entire community, mourning and filled with sorrow... it's a crushing weight when focused.

And people get attached to their cemeteries, here. One kind lady we spoke with was telling us about the cemetery where her parents are buried, and how there are many unmarked graves from when workers would follow the saw mills for work. If someone in the family died while they were stationed here, they would, understandably, bury the person there locally. I thought it was the lack of marker identification that bothered her, but she wrapped up her story with, "And then, when the work moved on, they just up and went! And left 'em there!" As if that were the more incomprehensible option. Well, I guess to her, it was. I don't know if the boys caught that, but I had to suppress a smile.

But I do get it. The cemetery my father is buried in is behind one of the high schools I went to, and I would often wander over during my lunch hour to sit in the solitude to think and pray. There is a sense of connection in the individual. And we need to strive for a sense of connection to the whole, to every soul who shares this earth with us. But for me, the weight of loss in finding that connection at the cemetery is too much. I'll seek out connections among those who share the earth with us now, and try to make our involvement one that makes the story a person will have a better one. It won't show on a headstone, but it will show where it matters most, and that's okay.

Kiss those babies!
Dy

A Soggy Adventure With Good Company

That was pretty much the gist of our weekend. Since last year, when I first found out about it, I've been anxiously awaiting the return of the Chickamauga & Chattanooga Battlefield's once-a-month bike tour. Normally, you have to walk these tours. I don't mind walking. We hike every week. But I do have a little bit of a mental block about walking civil war battlefields. in the South. in the Summer. We did one once. It was horrific. The whole experience was just one of those things that'll be funny in ten years. (It hasn't been ten years yet, so I can't properly tell the story yet. Someday, it'll be hilarious, though.) And while I was certain it would be a completely different experience with a completely different group of people, well, it left a mark.

So I was anxious (really anxious) to rally up a new experience to wipe the RAM and re-set the whole memory bank. (Been talking with James a lot today.) I asked a friend if she thought her family would like to go, too. They said yes! WooHoo! (I love them.)

So, last weekend was the first one of the year, and we were ready to go! The kids and I got all the things squared away: tents, food, chairs, first aid kit... Z modified the trailer to haul a billion bikes plus a cooler and the plow disc.

Reservations made, dates and times confirmed. (Ohhh, yes, I felt like such a grown up! No more showing up in New Orleans two days into Mardis Gras and no clue it was happening. Not this girl. At least, not when I have children depending on me. I could unravel completely after Jase leaves home.) But this time? I had this.

Except, the weather. The rain came, and it stayed. The weather app just showed clips from The Neverending Story as The Nothing swept across northern Georgia. We broke camp in the morning, just in case. (The lady at the campground couldn't believe we were checking out early and was rather insistent that the folks giving the weather report were from Atlanta, and they have no idea what they're talking about.) We smiled at each other as the rain drops began hitting the windshield as we pulled out of the visitors center.

Then we raced over to the Battlefield to see if they were still having the tour, or if it would be postponed. Yep, still on. They knew it was going to rain, but didn't really mind. So we dismantled the Rube Goldberg machine that has become our trailer, checked the bikes, and saddled up. Off they went!

I stayed behind. EmilyGirl still hasn't quite mastered bike riding. (Comes of living on a damn steep hill with a gravel drive and a terrifying drop into the creek if you don't stop in time. Since we've moved here, the kids have been learning to ride later and later.) So she and I trundled about in the grass, in the rain. We made it about half a mile in two hours, going one half a pedal push at a time. She never quite got the hang of it, but she never did give up. She did, however, fall quite a bit, and that was her biggest fear going into it, so... yay? I think. (I'm not glad my child wrecked. But at least now she knows falling off your bike isn't the most horrible thing that could happen. Conquering fear is good. Conquering fear on grass is even better.) I didn't make her cry, and she's been back on since we got home. I'm going to call that a win.

The boys returned wet, tired, and happy. The park ranger was amazingly knowledgeable and enthusiastic. The group they rode with was a great group. Jase had his inaugural ride on the Trail-A-Bike, and he was walking ten feet tall by the end of it.

And that's when the skies opened up and let loose the fury of a thousand shipwrecks. Holy cow, that was some amazing rain! We smiled at each other again, glad we didn't have to go back to break camp in the storm, and we all headed back home with a stop at Jefferson's for some oysters and burgers, and the necessary stop at Unclaimed Baggage to see what we could see.

And you know, it was a totally different experience. We just had to go with the right people. Our people. And it was fantastic!

¡Hablamos Español!

Ooo! It worked! (I had to look up how to type the punctuation and the tilde.)

Anyway, Em and Jacob took a fun mini-class the last two weeks that introduced them to Spanish vocabulary.

The class was wonderful, Miss Pam is a delightful instructor, and now we're all wishing we could either take her home with us or take a longer course with her. Such fun!

And the kids? Ah, I love these kids. They're so delightful, and so funny. We're pretty spoiled.

James is nearing his first progress review with the orthodontist. This week, he got rid of the bite plate, and he's one happy camper!

And while the Middles were at Spanish, the Bigs enjoyed some volunteer time at the Native Plants Garden in Cullman, then an Edible and Medicinal Plants session. I was on Small One Duty (for a child who doesn't particularly care for New Things, this has been a rough Spring) on the other side of the park, so this is the only picture I got from that. We don't think it's edible or medicinal. But it's pretty, and it made us smile.

Kiss those babies!
~Dy

Happy Mother's Day

I'd have posted this yesterday, but to be honest, I slept through it. We got up, dressed, and out the door for Sunday School and church, and I was awake. I was right there, on the ball, no stressing or worrying. Not even feeling particularly focused, to be truthful.

About ten minutes before the end of the service (which was a great service - this isn't a reflection on the pastor, at all), I realized I was dangerously close to going into full-on hibernation. I sat up. That didn't help.

I ate a mint. That didn't help.

I leaned forward. Boy, that really didn't help.

I sat back up and tried to stretch without shoving my arms into anyone's face.

Still no improvement.

So I got up and went to the hall, got a drink, stretched where only the little 11-month-old toddler and her mother could see me (they came around a corner mid-stretch - there was no way to pull out of it gracefully, so I just smiled and went with it).

I thought I was okay, so I slipped back in for communion. All was right with the world.

Until we got in the car. I fell asleep. Repeatedly and without warning.

And when we got home, I changed out of my church clothes and laid down for "just a bit". Kind of figured a little Mother's Day Nap was within the rules, right?

Five and a half hours later...

I got up then only because Z was starting to fret that I hadn't eaten enough, so he insisted I at least sit up and have a little something, even if I went straight back to bed afterword. Which, I didn't. I did stay up for the evening, for a nice visit with my mother in law and her sister, for hanging out with the kids and reading aloud. So, the day started nicely and ended beautifully, but I'm just going to have to trust everyone else on how the middle bit went.

I hope your Mother's Day brought you opportunities to make people feel appreciated, and opportunities for others to do the same for you.

Kiss those babies!
~Dy

Hands On Life

The older three had an incredible opportunity this past week to take a course through the Alabama Water Watch. This day and a half course taught them the processes and importance of water monitoring and testing.

The first day, we learned how to do the basic chemical panel: taking ambient air and water temperatures, testing for pH, alkalinity, hardness, oxygen dissolution, turbidity, and more.

We learned the importance of understanding these indicators of overall waterway health, and what information to gather when you want to know what's going on in your water.

Sergio and Mona were fantastic instructors. They clearly love what they do, and the kids felt that enthusiasm.

That night, there was a camp fire, music, star gazing, and romping about in the woods until the wee hours of the morning.

(It did eventually get so dark that our hosts called the kids in from the woods before someone fell in a hole.) They reluctantly returned to their tents and passed. out. cold. It was a good time for all.

The second day, we focused primarily on bacteriological testing: how to sample and culture for e.coli and other choliforms.

After class ended, we broke camp and hit the river. Unfortunately, we didn't have the results of our bacterial cultures. Fortunately, we're all fine. ;-) (Our hosts live on this river and swim in it regularly, so we were relatively certain it was OK. Although the kids are excited to get the final culture, just to see what they can see.)

Until they're 16, they'll have to do all the testing under the supervision of a certified adult (this was my excuse for taking the class - score!)

But they'll be involved, and active, and know why they're doing what they're doing. And really, that's a big part of growing up - know why you do what you do, and do it well.

Kiss those babies!
~Dy

So Long Farewell

Tonight, I had a serenade before bed. The Little were so tickled with this "new song" they'd found. So they sang it, in their tiny, sweet voices. Imagine their surprise when I joined in! "How'd YOU know this song?"

They haven't seen The Sound of Music, so I was a little surprised that THEY knew it. They explained that they set up a Disney station on Pandora, and it plays this song.



This has opened a whole new world of possibilities. Turns out, the key for them to enjoying a good musical is knowing the music first, and then seeing the movie. (In other words, I've been doing it wrong.)



But now I know! They always have something to teach me.



Kiss those babies!
~Dy

Small Town Fun

Steak sandwiches made with real ribeye steaks, grilled there on the courthouse square, live music (fantastic Fleetwood Mac covers - wow!), local vendors, good friends, and, as a final touch, some of the most spectacular fireworks you could ever wish to see...

That was the game plan at the annual town celebration today. That doesn't even count the antique car show, the 1 mile fun run and the 5K. 

It doesn't include the beautiful skies and friendly local personalities, the charitable groups doing good things for people in the community, and the community itself.

Sometimes, it's just awesome to live here.

Kiss those babies!
~Dy

The End of the Year

Well, not our year, but the year-in-general. Co-ops are wrapping up, SAT tests are everywhere, and just about everyone I know has that weathered, exhausted look in their eyes that says, "Is it time to play yet?"

The weather was perfect for our hike today. The teens covered about 4.5 miles, and you could hear them laughing from a quarter mile away. Jase and I ambled about in the back, holding hands and looking for interesting things. He was in a bit of a mood at the start, but seeing turtles and snakes and dragonflies up close does wonders for the soul. On one log, we saw a snapping turtle and a red-eared slider. Jase wondered what they eat, and I said we should find out. He smiled up and me and said, "You should ask Google." So I did. Turns out, they eat everything. And now we know! Thanks, Google!

Sadly, by the time we got to Skate Day, he was tired and hot and just plain out of energy. It's hard to learn many things at once.

Our local homeschool social group breaks from official meetings and regularly scheduled events for the Summer. Today was the last of the Skate Days until the Autumn. Of course, we're all going swimming later in the month, and there are still field trips on the docket, so the kids didn't have that End of Year feeling that I remember from the last days of school. Mostly, they were stoked about the glo-skate. (30 minutes in the dark with black lights and fog! On wheels! I usually just stay in the snack area, not looking, and assume if someone gets hurt, they'll let me know. Otherwise, I'd probably cause a wreck with all my gasping and yelling, "Watch out!" It's better this way.)

Glow sticks are always fun! (For Jacob, everything's fun. Although when he saw this photo, he asked when I'd taken it, and what on earth he'd been doing. "Ohhhhh! Yeah, I was showing you my glow sticks!" Admittedly, I should have turned off the flash.)

Our little town Celebration is coming up, and we're ready to enjoy some local food and fireworks! What are you up to this weekend? I hope it's a great adventure.

Kiss those babies!
~Dy

Big Fun on the Catwalk, and a Good Turn

The children were invited to participate in the Aveda Insitute's annual Catwalk for Water this last week. This is the organization's annual scholarship competition and fundraiser for their clean water programs and initiatives, and is comprised of designs, created by the students and staff at the Institute, made entirely of recycled materials (trash, leftovers, re-purposed goods, thrift store finds, etc). They then bring in the make up and hair teams to finish the look, and the happy volunteers take a turn on the catwalk.

Good fun for a good cause. What's not to love? We went with a group of homeschooled teens we've been very fortunate to get to know - doing this with friends made it even better. We arrived at noon, and the process began - matching outfits to models and tweaking this and that along the way. The kids all pitched in and helped each other out. They helped with adjustments to outfits, prep for the walk, went through rehearsals and blocking, then back for more prep. During downtime, they kept busy keeping our space squared away (it seemed huge when we got there, but after four hours or so, it felt awfully small, and hot), encouraging each other, or helping to keep nerves at bay and the Littles occupied.

They were a team, the entire time. (Well, except for one DS face-off. But even that was pretty high on the camaraderie scale.)

We didn't leave until ten o'clock, and while I honestly expected to be absolutely ready. to. go. by that time, I could have gone for a quick power nap and done another round. (Says the lady who didn't have to sit through hair and makeup, of course.)

The theme this year was Hunger Games, so each model was assigned a District. 

We had Livestock (as actual animals - there were three goats and one white reindeer)

Masonry (depicted as tar birds)

and Rebels from District 13.

The whole group of students depicted a wide array of Districts and creatures. They were such great sports about it, and had a really fantastic time.

John got mobbed by a gang of beautiful blonde models. It wasn't quite what most men have in mind when they think of that, but we told him he can check it off his bucket list, anyway. Close enough, right?

Jacob was the largest of the Rebel children. It went to his head just a wee bit, and he reveled in having chipper minions. (Didn't help that he had a star on his chest and fern leaves on his shoulders - that just oozes power and forest dominion, doesn't it?)

Em *hated* getting the eye make up applied. She was a trooper, though. The staff was wonderful and gentle and kind with her. But she *loved* the hair, and the dress, and the excitement of the whole thing. The three little girls looked like fairies scampering about in their woodland garb.

James was wonderful in character, although he said he felt a bit silly with all that hair up top. 

John did a double-take when he heard he'd be wearing actual hair horns. I do wish I'd captured that on camera. But when the time came, he rocked the persona and gave it his best Blue Steel look. (This only makes sense if you've seen Zoolander.)

I loved this opportunity for so many reasons. The kids got to see some out-of-the-box thinking in terms of The Real World. They got to participate in an active and interesting way with big projects and big ideas. Several of them stepped way outside of their comfort zones for this project, and that is commendable. Even better? Everyone, and I do mean every. single. one. of them, was supportive and encouraging and uplifting to the others. They were there for hours, and not a deprecating or negative word was spoken. These are kids who get it, and they're doing good things. Together. Wow.

Not every volunteer project will be this glamorous (quite literally - I think the next one involves... horse stalls...) but I imagine they'll have just as much fun at the next one. They're like that. It's one of the things I appreciate about these kids. I can't wait to see what they do next!

Kiss those babies!
~Dy

OHHH! I'm so excited!

James just helped me figure out my ongoing photo upload-hosting-where-did-I-put-that issues! I'm so happy about this! Yes, it's a first world problem, but my ability to do interesting things now that I'm not avoiding tech issues just ramped way the heck up. 

w00t:

I love/appreciate having a techy child who is willing to back off from the things *he* wants to do, to help me set things up to do them in a way that works for me. (Because let's face it, my days of getting excited over what I "can" do vs. what I have time to do, and want to do, and am willing to do, are pretty clearly behind me. At least for now.)

Let the Doing Of Other Things commence!

Kiss those babies (even if you have to ask them to bend down a little so you can reach their cheeks)!

~Dy

Busy Days!

The kids asked for a day at home, since we've had one in the last ten days, but that was for re-packing gear and doing laundry. Not quite the same.

After the storms that ripped through here last night, I think they'll get their wish today. We weathered it just fine, but not everyone did, so as the reports come in, we're looking for opportunities to help and pay forward all the generous care we've received in the past. If you don't mind saying a prayer for the Southeastern US this morning, that would be much appreciated.

James spent a fantastic week in New Mexico, eating, learning, experiencing, and doing.  He ate a lot of new food (mostly Vietnamese and Indian, I think), which thrilled his food-curious heart no end. He Skyped with us on Easter Sunday so Em could show him her dress, and Z and I could put eyes on him in real time. It was a chance to see the tangible benefits of hard work and self-discipline, and to walk away with more knowledge and insight than he arrived with. That's hard to pass up. His team won an award for Creativity and Innovation in Design: they each received a plaque and $50.  We picked up a very happy camper the following week.

Meanwhile, we had a quietly busy week while James was gone. (I spent a lot of time standing in parking lots, waiting for him to come around the back of the Suburban, then realizing he wasn't actually in the parking lot with us. The kids thought that was hilarious.) We went to the annual Earth Day movie (it was Bears this year, and absolutely fantastic) with friends, then shuttled over to the Teen Game Day for a visit and some fun.

The rest of the weekend was taken up with projects - for me, mainly the quarterly changing of the seasonal clothing and updating of the sizes. I realized I have a lot of things in the basement we can pass along, now. They're too small for Em or Jase. Some of them were rather large sizes, to my way of thinking, for me not to have a child wearing them. Things are about to get weird, I suspect. Easter was a lovely day of joyful celebration with church family and local friends. Then I took the kids camping.

We slipped out to DeSoto State Park to enjoy a little camping and exploring. We scampered around Cherokee Rock Village in the fog (fantastic for kids, a wee bit terrifying for mothers), hiked and hiked all over the place, and played at DeSoto Falls (something I've been dying to do for the last five years! It was worth the wait!)

John and Jacob absolutely rock the camp set up action. Em and Jase have found their groove, and they're more help than not at this stage. It could not have gone more smoothly, or been more fun. Even John mentioned that the loading and setting up seemed "freakishly easy". He was worried we'd forgotten something, or left someone. I told him I know the feeling. We did a head count and called it good.

James flew back in on Wednesday as we headed out from DeSoto, and everyone arrived home covered in road grime, exhausted, and happy.

We had Thursday to re-pack, wash clothes, catch up, and rest, for Friday we headed out to the Camporee. That was a truly amazing experience. I sat in with the Rocking Chair Patrol (the adult leaders). Seldom saw the kids except when we ambled over to take pictures. The boys' Troop hosted the Camporee, and these boys were on fire. They were busy and engaged the whole time. They handled everything from administration to direction. They were gracious and encouraging. I think my favorite tidbit of feedback came from one Scout who came panting up to the check-in desk after the Orienteering course and exhaled, "That was hilariously awesome!" Well, that's hard to beat, isn't it?

We slipped out after the camp fire on Saturday night so we could be ready for Sunday's adventure... which requires a post all its own.

Kiss those babies!
~Dy

New Adventures!

Thursday morning, James and I headed out at four in the morning. It was dark and chilly and awesome!

We drove to Chattanooga, and from there, he flew to Albuquerque to participate in a computer competition he's been working on since September. He had to tidy up his hair a bit, for presentation's sake, and get a suit, and then he was off. (He loves the suit, but was sad about the hair. I told him if he knocks it out of the ballpark this year, he can probably show up in house slippers and long hair next year, and as long as he brings the best game, nobody will bat an eye -- he hasn't seen Real Genius yet, and he wasn't really nurtured into adolescence on John Hughes movies, so he probably just thinks I'm in early onset dementia). It didn't cheer him up, any, about the hair, but flying and traveling in relative comfort (meaning, without your siblings' feet in your face, or drool on your shoulder) are compensation enough for a re-set on the hair of your 15yo dreams.

(I have pictures, but there are some changes to Dropbox and I haven't quite figured them out, yet.)

So far, he's having a great time! He enjoyed the flight. His terribly awesome Uncle took him shopping at the Asian market, where he got to stock up on all manner of goodies and interesting things. (He does love interesting foods!) He's been working on things I don't understand, and taking on projects I didn't expect, and in general, just spreading his wings and giving them a good stretch and a couple of flaps.

I miss him terribly.

But this is so good, and such a neat part of growing up. I can't feel anything but excitement for him.

Kiss those babies ~ even when they aren't babies, anymore! They're still so amazing!

~Dy