Pics of Anna

Since I posted the pictures of Emily at camp, I thought I would also post a few of Anna. She had her first opportunity to go to camp at Cowtown this summer. Like her sister, she absolutely loved dressing and acting as a girl from the 1870's. It is a great learning experience, and lots of fun, too. In the first picture, she is rolling out dough for homemade biscuits (we also churned the butter to put on them!)


In the next one, she just finished making a flower wreath for her hair.


This last one has nothing to do with Girl Scouts. It was taken at LTC, where she was in the event for signing for the deaf. She does a really good job with it.

Blog title

I'm thinking of changing the name of my blog. While Exasperated is a fairly accurate description at times (I do have 2 kids, after all), it doesn't really convey a positive attitude. So, I am trying to think of a catchy new title. Any suggestions?

Bits and pieces

Our church had its annual "Shopping Free" last week. I have helped with it for several years and last year found myself in charge of it. It is a great outreach into the community. Many people donate clothes, which we sort and arrange. We try to keep only clean, good quality clothes. Then we notify several community organizations, including an elementary school that the church has "adopted." Anyway, to make a long story short, we helped 55 families with free clothing. That number is down from years past, but it still feels good to see people walk out with some needed items. It was a lot of work--I was exhausted afterwards--but so worth it.

The girls and I spent most of the day having our "last hurrah" of summer. We had lunch with my friend, Holly, and her two daughters, then went to a local water park for some fun in the sun. It was horribly hot, but the kids loved it. Soon it is back to school and all the activities that go with that.

Speaking of heat, I sure hope we have a cool spell soon. It has been over 100 degrees for several days, with no relief in sight. Ugh! I shouldn't complain, because this summer has mostly been cooler than most. But, I am ready for fall.

Emily took a cool trip to Michigan. It was a Girl Scout camp with lots of cool stuff for her to do. The girls spent 3 days on a schooner, doing marine biology experiments. Emily's group had a research project where they noted the levels of zooplankton in the lake. They also got to learn how to operate the schooner. Emily's favorite part was raising the sails. Here is a picture taken on the boat.



And here is another one (I love this picture!):






And finally, a picture of her climbing a 40-ft. (!) tower at the camp:











After she got to the top, she took a zip line across the field! It's great to be a Girl Scout!

Ramblings

I'm back from the reunion and it was actually more fun than I had anticipated. There were quite a few people there, including all of my first cousins. Two of them, my favorite aunt's sons, came from Mississippi and I had not seen them for a very long time, so that was fun. There were lots of extended family--cousins of my dad, mostly--I didn't know a lot of them. But my dad had a really good time visiting with them. Lots of kids, so Anna had some playmates. She especially had a good time with my brother's kids. We drove around Coffeyville and saw some of the damage from the recent flooding. It is almost incomprehensible that the water could have gotten so high, but the proof was in the oily water lines you could see on many of the buildings. The only downer to the weekend was when someone stole the girls' portable DVD player out of our van (my niece forgot to shut the door!) They only took that and a Pirates DVD. Kind of a bummer, but they can be replaced. Anna was pretty sad, but I have got to say she is an amazing kid! She prayed for the people who stole it!

Emily is back from Colorado and will leave on Saturday for her big trip to Michigan. She had a great experience in the mountains. It sounds like the youth group really grew close to each other and closer to God. She said there were times when they could feel God's presence in the room. Awesome!!!

Family reunion

I'm leaving later today to attend a family reunion. Many relatives from my dad's side of the family will gather for food and fellowship. It should be interesting and fun, I guess. I say that because I find that I have little in common with many of these people. I have one uncle who is still living, but he is a quiet sort, not given to much conversation. My dad will be there, of course, and it really is for him that I am going. I will get to spend time with my cousins, but most of them are much older than me, so much so that I didn't interact with them much when I was a kid. They were already grown and with kids of their own. Also, very few of them share my faith and values. They just have a different mind-set than I do. Still, it will be a chance to reconnect with some. Plus, my brother is coming....and I'm really excited about that! Til later...

Still alive

I know, I know. It's been ages since I last posted. It's not that I haven't thought about posting. It's just that, most of the time I either have nothing to say, or too much to say. So, I just let the blog sit there.

Since so much time has passed, there really is no way to catch you up on our happenings. It has been a busy time, with both ups and downs. No big trips to report this time around. We have spent the summer at home. The girls sold lots of Girl Scout cookies, so they have been busy at summer camps, both Girl Scout and church varieties. My dear hubby has had a rough summer. In April he was diagnosed with lymphoma, so he's been taking chemo. All is well and the latest tests show no signs of cancer. He still has to undergo radiation, but should finish up with that by the first of September. It has been tough, but God is good and has seen us through.

As I always, promise, I will try to do better to post more often. It is hard though, because my family takes priority. The girls keep me incredibly busy, with homeschooling, Girl Scouts, church, etc. I want and need to be there for them, so this blog often takes a backseat. Plus, sometimes my brain is just too tired to put any thoughts together.

Thanks for stopping by...