Summer Vacation Fun!

  

 I absolutely love spending time with my family.  One of the best things about teaching is that I get extended time with my girls in the summer to relax and do fun activities with them.  Some days we may just go swimming, or head to Baskin & Robbins for dollar scoop night.  We absolutely treasure our evenings outside with our neighbors (the best ever - if you're looking for some new ones, let me know - there's a house for sale on our street), and occasionally we even get to go on vacation!

This summer we headed for the mountains.  It was somewhat cooler than Texas, thank goodness!  Our first stop after flying into Denver and spending the night with the grandparents was the cabin.  It's located near Eagle, Colorado, and is pretty remote.  It backs up to Bureau of Land Management land, so it feels like miles and miles of open space.  We hiked through the hay field, relaxed, and took a day trip to Redstone and Glenwood Springs.

A hike through the field

On the bridge over the pond and stream

Just across from the front door

At night it was in the 50s!  Heaven for Texans who have been suffering the majority of the summer with 100+ temps.  (Yes, I brought antlers home to show my students)

Mid-week we headed back to the airport in Denver to pick up Aaron.  We stayed another night at Grandma and Grandpa's house, then headed to Custer, South Dakota.  What's in Custer, South Dakota, you ask?  Well, a cute little town, but nearby is Mount Rushmore.  It's been a long time since I was there, and things have really changed.  I remember the monument and the cafeteria area, but the flags were new to me.  It was impressive!  Also impressive was Crazy Horse.  I had never been there either, and it was quite a gem.  We learned a lot about the development of the monument, and they have quite an extensive Native American artifact collection, as well as artisans at the monument to share in their heritage and the development of the monument.

After spending the majority of the day at the two monuments, we headed back for Custer, taking the scenic route on the Needle Highway.  This is a geologic wonder, to say the least.  Driving through the National Forest, and some of a State Park, you are surrounded by massive pillars that look like needles.  There is a lot of wildlife (we saw Antelope right by the side of the road), and you have to drive through some very narrow tunnels (only one lane).  I love to see God's creations, and am always in awe of Him when I do!  The pictures do not do it justice, you simply must see it for yourself.

Also in Custer, SD is Flinstone Bedrock City.  It's basically a park with all the homes and buildings from the Flinstones show.  The girls literally ran and played for an hour and a half, checking out all the buildings, them playing at the park.  It was a wonderful way to end the day for sure!

We ate at many great places in Custer, but the family favorite was the Purple Pie Place.  They serve lunch and dinner, but we just went for dessert.  Elissa is on a pie kick right now, so we just had to try it.  I'm not sure what we liked more, the pie or the store!

After South Dakota, we headed back to Denver by way of Nebraska, stopping at the Agate Fossil Beds National Monument.  This place was also amazing.  It is a very large discovery of fossils of extinct animals, though not as old as dinosaurs.  Because the rancher who owned the land was curious about the animal bones he happened to come across, this huge fossil bed was discovered.  It makes me wonder how many more fossil beds are around our county that haven't been discovered just because someone wasn't curious, or didn't stay curious. 

Now we're home, enjoying the Texas heat.  Seriously, even though it's hot, we're still having fun together!

Making Music

Today was the first Sunday in about three months that I sang on the Worship Team at church.  Boy, have I missed it!  A complicated schedule of three school-age daughters has kept me busy during Thursday night rehearsals, but it seems the madness has ended!  As I spent the last week or so preparing for services, I have been thinking a lot about the worship experience.  I love that we live in a country where we can worship wherever and whenever we want.  What a blessing that is! 

The fact is, I love to worship!  Our day to day lives keep our minds focused on things that are not important, and worship is a way to refocus on the one thing that matters most - our Heavenly Father's love for us.  Worship, to me, is my direct connection to God, where I can show Him how much I love Him.  It's a complete time of engagement, and it focuses my mind and heart on Him.  Matt Redman writes about worship in his book The Unquenchable Worshipper - "The Bible is full of unquenchable worshippers - people who refused to be dampened, discouraged, or distracted in their quest to glorify God."  I want to be an unquenchable worshipper- no matter what's going on in my day to day life, I want to be a focused and passionate about my praise!  Worshipping is not about the notes we sing or the technical details about the music, but about our connection with God.  I can't imagine a life without Him!  Thank you God, for being in my life, and giving me the opportunity to glorify you!

Still Living

It's been a while, so I thought I'd post just to confirm that I'm still living.  Yep. Still alive!

What a busy spring we've had!  Here's what's been going on.....

Grace was in a play, called "Give and Take" at school.  She played the part of a leprechaun.  She was terrific!  It's not every middle schooler that can pull that off, you know!

My school had it's annual carnival last weekend.  The girls and I went while Aaron worked on fixing the fence (just in time for our really big storm).  I got really sunburned - not peeling yet - and then got sunburned some more when we took apart our playscape in the backyard in preparation for bulk pickup.  I pulled muscles I didn't even know I had hauling all that stuff to the curb!

On Sunday, the girls and I participated in the Girl Scout Amazing Race in our Service Unit last weekend.  We had a blast!  None of us had ever done it before this year.  I went along with Grace's troop as the adult in charge of keeping the driver company, while Elissa and Kaity went with their troops.  We didn't win (none of us did), but we had a great time, and I even learned something about Plano!  I wore sunscreen for this event, in hopes of not burning more!  It seemed to work.

What else is new?  I've been working really hard, Aaron's schedule has been insane (read - we barely see each other during the week), and the girls are really busy too! 

I have to admit, I'm looking forward to summer break just so we can slow down a bit!

Dirt, Sweat, and Smiles

Dirt, sweat, and smiles.  That just about sums up my Saturday!

It started early with the dirt part.  Before Grace was even fully out of bed, I was off to Lowe's to acquire more plants for my front flower beds.  While cleaning out my wallet earlier this week, I realized I had a merchandise credit for Lowe's that I had yet to use.  Woohoo for me!  $43 worth of plants for $3 - that's my kind of shopping.  I purchased coleus, phlox, and several other perrenials that are meant for shady gardens.  My once sunny or partly sunny front flower beds have become quite shady over time as the trees in the front have gotten quite large.  It's amazing to think that when we bought our house eight years ago (almost nine!), the trees in front were basically twigs, but now they are huge!

After finishing my gardening, I continued the pursuit of dirtiness by finishing my sprinkler repair job.  My dad and I had repaired a leak in the sprinkler line last month, but we had waited to fill on the hole over the pipes just to make sure it was working properly.  Well, it is, at least at that spot, so I went ahead and filled it in.  Another item checked off my list.  The remaining sprinkler repair will have to wait for another weekend, I'm afraid!

After lunch, the girls and I headed back to Lowe's to purchase more plants for their mini-gardens (large pots on our back patio).  This is probably the best part of gardening - doing it with the kids!  They picked the annuals they wanted (Grace chose a veggie and an herb), and of course we had to plant them when we got home.  More dirt.

As if that wasn't enough activity for one day, we then headed to the park at the end of our street for more outdoor fun.  Grace and Elissa are pros at riding two wheelers, but Kaity hadn't quite got the hang of it yet.  However, when she realized they were both going to ride, she decided she'd rather bike than scooter down there.  So, being the daring mom I am, I decided to throw caution into the wind and let her try.  Keep in mind, that the sight of blood for an eight year old causes serious screaming, crocodile tears, and Mom having to carry the bike and maybe the child home as well.  Luckily, things worked out well, and she managed to ride it down there, then figure out how to start on her own without me giving her a push.  Probably the funniest part was her screaming while riding because it was "scary."  We only had one little wipe out, but there wasn't really any blood so she was able to cope.  The bike's a bit small for her, so I'll have to garage sale for a new one.  Hey, if you have one you'd like to get rid of, please let me know - I'll come and check it out!  So - biking - sweat and smiles.

When I reflect about the gardening and activity with the kids today, I can't help but think about how things change.  When we first moved to Murphy, Grace was starting Kindergarten and Kaitlin was only four and a half months old.  Now Grace is almost finished with seventh grade and Kaitlin is eight!  Elissa was a feisty two year old when we first got here, and now she's this amazing fourth grader with a totally different personality.  Just as the trees have grown from twigs to huge shade trees, my girls have grown from babies into amazing people.  Those trees will continue to grow and shade my house even more, and the girls will continue to grow and change in their lives as well.  Sometimes I'm sad that they are not babies anymore, but only for a fleeting moment.  Now they are these unbelievable people with whom I can share the things I love to do, like gardening. The best part is that I will have many more days to share moments with my girls.  Like Dr. Seuss said, "Don't cry because it's over, smile because it happened."  Today I'm definitely smiling!

Eight is great!

This past Thursday Kaitlin turned eight, and being that she's my youngest child, I first had to take a deep breath, swallow down the shock that in ten years she'll be a grown up, and begin celebrating!  Is it just me, or can you never really do all your birthday celebrating in one day when you're a kid?  The real celebration took place this weekend when we went out to dinner at Red Robin with her bff who also spent the night.  I believe the highlight of the evening was either watching Barbie Fashion Fairytale, or playing with every Build-a-Bear in the house.  Either way, she enjoyed her birthday, and I enjoyed seeing her have fun.

You know, it's really amazing being a mom.  It's such a delighful journey - a complete blessing to be a caretaker of God's children.  Sometimes I worry I might screw up, but most of the time I am in awe of how God uses them to bless me, teach me, and comfort me.  I would never in a million years trade in the blessings I've been given, especially my three girls! 

Spring Breakin' It

Although it feels like summer today in Murphy, TX with highs in the 80s, it has been Spring Break for us this week.  After school Friday, we hurried home to finish packing and get the house in order for our departure.  We left fairly early Saturday and made it to Denver just in time for lunch.  We are always so fortunate to be able to visit my parents, but this time we had an extra special opportunity to visit with my Aunt Chelsea.  Sunday morning we woke up to winter, which was not what I had expected at all!  I did not pack winter clothes, so thankfully it didn't stick around.  The girls did get the opportunity to sled down the hill, but to my relief the snow was gone by the afternoon.

I won't bore you with all the details of our trip, but here are the highlights:

Sunday - ARGO Gold Mine.  We toured the mine, wandered through the mill (I'd never done that before, and it was really interesting), then panned for gold. 

Monday - Air and Space Museum at Buckley AF Base.  This is a gem of a museum!  The girls got to fly a Wright Flyer Simulator, sat in different training pods for United Airlines, and got up close to many airplanes.  They also had the weapons (including nuclear) with the planes, which is not something I've seen before.  The girls got the flying bug for sure!

Yes, that is R2D2 in the background!

Tuesday - Cheyenne Mountain Zoo.  This zoo was incredible!  We were so close to the giraffes that we could pet and feed them right out of our hands.  An orangutan kissed us through the glass, we were close enough to pet the mountain lions, the turtles, and many other animals.  The added plus - it was in the mountains, and they took advantage of it in all their landscaping.  Pretty cool.

Wednesday - The movies.  What is spring break without heading to the movies?  We saw "Gnomeo and Juliet."  It was really cute, and the girls enjoyed it.  They'd been begging to see it, so I'm glad we did!

Sadly, our trip ended Thursday.  I'd love for it to last forever, but then it wouldn't be vacation!

Springtime in Texas

Well, spring has arrived in Texas, and you know what that means.  Seventy degrees one day, followed by forty the next.  Having lived here for twenty years, you'd think I'd be used to it.  But I'm not!  Today is one of the chillier days, but being a Texan, I know that summer comes all too quick and now is the time to get out doors and enjoy it!  So, that's what we've been doing the last few weekends.  Last weekend we took a trip to Bonham state park.  I took about 100 pictures, but I thought I'd share just a few.

Three beautiful girls on the trails.

Enjoying the day together.

A sleepy girl being carried by her daddy.

This week has been really busy at school as well.  I admit, I could have worked until 6pm every day and still not get finished.  But, that would not be fair to the girls!  On Thursday Elissa went to the symphony for a program.  Here are a few pics of her in a dress - I know, rare!

Isn't she a beautiful girl?

I'm so excited to go to the symphony!

I mean, really excited!

Kaitlin had a program Thursday night in conjunction with Multi-cultural night at her school.  She marched in the parade of nations and represented Scotland.  So cute!  I made the skirt from our family's tartan.

Grace, my super busy teenager, has found time to create a blog for her small group.  Check it out! http://www.christfollowingteens.blogspot.com/

Do you feel caught up yet? 

Just looking at the pictures (as well as all the ones I did not post), I am reminded of my blessings.  What an amazing family I have!

Blessings to you all,

Wendy