Albuquerque Flashback

In April, 2003, Hubby and M flew from Kentucky to Albuquerque to find a home for us.  They chose well in a new neighborhood on the west side - Ventana Hills.  Our goal was to be some place new in order to meet new people and invite them to church.  You can see in the second picture that we didn't even have across the street neighbors yet.  The backyard pictures are to show what we did first thing - Hubby put in sprinklers!  We were doing this on our first weekend there - and we even invited people we met for the first time at Rio Vista Church to come help.  Of course, anyone willing to come into the mess inside and out were obviously going to be great friends!  And the Hendrixsons were - from day one to Jen being one of the last ones in our house to clean when we moved - a large part of Albuquerque memories are of them.

All that sod had to go in too!  We hauled it in the blue van (because we didn't have a truck) and that's where the "sod knife" came from.  Hubby used one of the knives from our kitchen set to cut the grass.  The knife is in our kitchen drawer right now and has been used on sod at every house we've lived since!

Right outside the back door Hubby and the boys built a deck (that's where he first let them use power tools!).  We left the part on the side dirt/sand for the boys to play in.  The swing you see int he picture went on the deck along with the grill and eventually a better patio table was there too.  We had many snacks and played many games there.  From the swing looking north you could see the Sango De Christo Mts.

We spent a lot of time outside at this home in both the front and back, walking in the neighborhood (Hubby taking Jazzy out in the undeveloped area to chase rabbits), and at the nearby parks.  Another great reason in choosing this spot was that it was down the street from the new elementary school.  I was even part of the neighborhood meeting that chose the school mascot  - the Roadrunners!

How is it possible that so much fun and playing went into two short years?  We had a small plastic square table at the end of the kitchen counter.  It was perfect because when you were at it you were in the kitchen, dining room and living room - we had a "Great Room"- the fireplace was at the center.  Although M, didn't actually have formal preschool, I made sure he went to school with a good foundation.  Well, except knowing what a needle and thread was and thinking ice cream was a nutritious snack (those were two things he missed on a kindergarten testing situation)!

In this picture you can get a better glimpse of the table the boys used constantly and can almost see the beginning of the fireplace (to the right of what was our bedroom door).  It was in front of this fireplace where we would act out Bible stories.  One of M's favorites to do was Samuel.  He would lay down and I would call his name.  After doing this a few times he would say "Speak, Lord, for your servant is listening."

Weren't the boys lovely bandits?  (Nice transition from Samuel, hu?  Their pretending ran the gamut!) They have cowboy hats from Grandy.  Oh, M & L were the best of friends!  They spent countless hours pretending and playing together.  I hope they remember that and forge a friendship one day as adults. (The pictures of the boys are actually from May 2004 - almost a year after coming to ABQ and a few months before M started Kindergarten. L was 3.)

More ABQ flashbacks to come.  We were finally digital!

What I Learned in July (and a Few Days in August)

1.  Slowing Down is a Really Nice Thing to Do

I bought Hubby rocking chairs for the back porch for his birthday.  Does this mean we're old?  He mentioned he wanted some more patio furniture and I noticed he had been sitting in the porch swing with some regularity so I suggested it and we shopped together for something we both liked.  We've enjoyed them some together in the evenings, but I've really used the rocker in the mornings!  We were home quite a bit in July and we had some beautiful weather - especially mornings.  We even had rain to watch and enjoy.  A normal time on the porch went like this:  Sit and watch the going-ons around me, just be, and ponder; let the dog back in and then let her back out less than a minute later to sit on the porch near me or lay in a flower bed; check the weather for the day; read something in Proverbs, Psalms, and the New Testament - pray while I'm reading it; pray for pressing situations; check Facebook and make a response or two; pray for friends on FB; sit and be a few minutes more and then go inside to face the day.

This morning I was thinking about this slowing down thing.  I watched bees for a while.  Many of them flew around the crepe myrtle and then the huge-est one I've ever seen flew around the grass and then the porch.  I was really thankful that I wasn't a flower!  Today was my last day of slowing down - Monday I "report for duty".  Once we I was telling Hubby how much I've been enjoying the porch I asked him how I could keep doing it once school started.  He suggested getting up earlier.  Eeeewwwww.


2.  I can snorkel!!

I cannot swim.  Well for any substantial length of time and I absolutely do not like getting my face wet!  I'm not sure exactly what I was thinking (except I knew he'd enjoy it), but I booked a kayak, snorkel, beach time excursion for Hubby and I when we went on our just the two of us cruise.

I made it completely clear to guide that I was a non-swimmer (maybe I was thinking he'd let me out of this part).  The guide said that wasn't a problem - he brought a ring and I held on the whole time!!  I only had a little bit of panic when I saw how far away from shore we were getting and my life vest wasn't blown up.  Hubby quickly fixed that.  As soon as learned how to blow the salt water out of my mouth through the snorkel life was good.  I saw all kinds of fish and they swam right under me!  We saw a conch, some stick looking crab, coral and the opening of caves.  My favorite part was watching Hubby dive down to take a closer look!  I'm so thankful I didn't let fear get in the way - of this or the kayaking.  We also enjoyed some time on the beach and eating the best mango ever!

Cozumel

3.  No two summers look the same.

I guess I'm feeling this summer ended more quickly than I remember last doing.  And I didn't complete as many items on the summer bucket list (though Aunt told me I should include the do kind of items like cleaning out the closet).

But here goes, this is what I DID complete:  read Captivating, complete extra work (two projects), tour the new apartments in town, run again (just a bit), pick blueberries, Parade of Homes (just two houses), clean out the game closet, and read 10 books.  I did drive some with M. and give the dog more attention (we took her to the dog wash each time we picked her up at the kennel too), but not nearly enough to count.

If you'd like to see the actual list, click here.  Mentioned in that post were a mission trip and football conditioning and Hubby's new position.  Trip went great and L. made it to conditioning (except when he was gone or I forgot and slept in).  Actual practice starts Monday.  Hubby has made the transition - his work replacement is here now with his family and settling in the job.  Hubby has participated in some recruitment and conferences for his new job and is gearing up for the fall semester.  It's been a welcome transition for me to - to have him around the house some in the mornings!

We got to see my niece and nephew a couple of times (quickly) in Texas.

The boys saw their Albuquerque grandparents and went to Durango.

One Thousand Gifts

Really - I'm just going to have to deal with the fact that 100 of these aren't digital.  If I wait to "catch up" I won't put any online.

I continue to count gifts and be thankful...

1722  Wiggly clean almost two year old

1723  The love and hospitality of family

1724  The hope of doing it again

1725  Figuring out the right direction

1726 Rain – so many places in need (gifts in water)

1727  J’s expression of adoration for and pleasure in vacationing with is family (words)

1728  Fluffy clouds – something to look at when we drive and I could look at clouds for hours (white)

1729  Five days in the Black Hills

1730  The sound of the water from the back porch fountain

1731  Bug spray

1732  A second way inside the house when the inexperienced in flying birds are flying in the front

1733  Watching them have a flying lesson last Sunday

1734  Starting book number ten for the summer

1735  Teenagers having dinner

1736  Teenagers upstairs

1737  Throwing a tomahawk

1738  New rockers

1739  Knowledge and love (I Cor.)

1740  A kindle for several years and an IPAD now

1741  Sharing family times with true friends

1742  M. going to Inner City Chicago (Gifts in Challenge)

1743  Reading before watching TV (Conflict)

1744  Hubby is in the midst of his job transition (Change)

Not everyone is looking, but I like the close-up.  I can't believe how much they've grown up!

Things I Learned in June

1.  I learned even more about phonics and some new strategies to help readers.  I had the privilege to attend a week long workshop for Structured Language Basics.  I'm looking forward to using it in my classroom and am going to take further training with it over the school year.

Before having dinner, Aunt and I visited a doll museum at a local library.

Although I had to be away from home a week (the one that was being offered in my hometown was going to be while we were away on vacation), Hubby came to visit me one night and Aunt came another for her birthday.  Plus I got 2 books read AND I made a very quick trip to Texas one night to see my niece and nephew.

2.  I learned I can conquer fears and still have a lot of fear.  I did an aerial park with Hubby and the boys.  The obstacles I did were about 25 feet up in the trees (they went on to do higher and more difficult ones without me) and we were tethered the whole time and I survived!  We did things like walk across hanging logs and ropes and grab on to this triangle wood thing and swing to the next platform.  I must say, I was so nervous that I was nauseous, but like I said, I survived.  However, I gave my last hour to my sister in law and took her zipline ride.

M has a cousin, M!  He's 8 - and he finally got tired of waiting for me!

This was after Hubby came across on the wood triangle swing.

Not too much later, I found myself taking the chairlift up the mountain with my nephew and riding an alpine slide down.  We could see Mt. Rushmore from the chairlift!  Here's where the fear comes in: before starting the slide they cautioned us that if we didn't brake around corners, we could flip the sled. So, what did I do? No, not flip, but I used the brake entirely too much!  Next time though, I'll cruise fast and furious down the mountain.  It got me thinking how I use the "brake" in my life when I'm scared. Hmmmm.......

That's it, just two things - after all, I am on summer vacation!

(Normally, when I do these particular posts I link them up at Chatting at the Sky.  However, Emily is on a bloggy break this summer.  Check out her writing though. Emily and Anne at  A Holy Experience are two blogs I try to read somewhat regularly.)

Summer Bucket List 2014

Last year, I made a summer bucket list and wanted to do the same this year.  Last year was one of the best summers in a long time (not necessarily because of the list).  We had much cooler than normal temperatures (a welcome relief!) and I felt like I had a lot of time at home just "being".

This summer we have lots of away time scheduled and I have some work scheduled, but I'm looking forward to another great time of break from our normal routine.  M. is going to be going on a within the States mission trip and L. will start football conditioning and has already been finding mowing jobs.  Hubby will transition to a new position at work (one he is really looking forward to).  I'm so proud of his success and how much his current position has grown in the almost five years he's been at it.

So here's the list - it's a bit shorter than last.  I didn't include vacation things on it, but I'm looking forward to our plans for that!

1.  Read Captivating and use the journal
2.  Complete some extra work
3.  Take a tour of the new apartments in town (just because M wants to see them)
4.  Visit our town's museum
5.  Run again
6.  Pick blueberries
7.  Go to the Parade of Homes
8.  Clean out the game closet
9.  Read 10 books
10.  Make carpet squares for the Magic Triad (school)
11.  Eat at the cafe in the church down the road
12.  Drive more with M.
13.  Go back to WW
14.  Make contacts for fall college Homecoming
15.  Give J. the dog more attention

Mother's Day

One Thousand Gifts - Vacation and End of Summer

1596  Family trusting us with their son, my nephew, for a week of vacation
1597  The taste of salt
1598  A beach to go with the humidity
1599  A complete night's sleep
1600  Running and screeching from little ones as the waves roll in
1601  A breeze
1602  Discoveries
1603  Little hands
1604  Nephew saying something was wrong with the crabs because they were walking sideways
1605  Entertaining dinner conversation from the cousins
1606  L and J driving on the beach
1607  Watching the pelicans fly just off shore
1608  My teenage son holding my hand walking from the boardwalk to the van
1609  Watching the lightning bolts striking just beyond the Sound
1610  Family to help guide our boys
1611 Transportation down the coast
1612  Photographs
1613  Being well enough to sleep
1614  Ice cream truck stopping RIGHT in front of the beach house
1615  History and learning new things - the person who took the famous photo of Orville and Wilbur Wright's first flight was a surfman at the life saving station we visited.
1616  A less stressful start to the school year
1617  90% of summer bucket list complete
1618  Everyone pitching in to have the house ready to be shown
1619  Both boys having friends to do something with on a Friday evening
1620 Hubby's help with beginning of the year craziness
1621  Perspective
1622  God's hand
1623  Watching the sailboats framed by the trees at the lake

Summer Bucket List Wrap-up

Although the calendar doesn't say it yet, summer is over....the picture above even shows it.  I decided since I made a summer bucket list, that I would give the update.  The ones in italics are done!

1.  Sleep in...a lot!
2.  Go to a drive-in
3.  Read a book with paper pages
4.  Flint Creek with friends from school
5.  A conference or two
6.  Sell our house
7.  Pick blueberries and blackberries
8.  Pick other fruit too
9.  Fly a kite on the beach
10.  See the wild horses
11.  Snuggle with my niece
12.  Go to a museum (or two)
13.  Eat breakfast at the donut shop
14.  Connect/Catch up with friends
15.  Do something with my blog
16.  Restart my gratitude journal
17.  See fireworks
18.  Make something homemade
19.  Finally go to the Flying Pig
20.  Celebrate our wedding anniversary

Some were a little different than I envisioned.  Different good:  I thought I'd end up running over to a local museum to catch number twelve, but we were able to stop at Nauticus in Norfolk on the way home from the beach and saw the Wild Horse Museum when we were in Corolla.  Also good: We saw fireworks more than once.  The ones we saw from a rooftop downtown with friends were especially enjoyable. Different not so good:  Flying kites on the beach wasn't what I remembered!  I had to run more than what I cared to while on vacation and the sand was hot!

Mermaid outside of Nauticus.  You can see the Battleship Wisconsin int he background if you look closely.  I have a picture of one of the boys behind a mermaid cutout (the kind you put your face in) and the other boy buried in the sand at the beach and maid to look like a mermaid.  I will spare both of them from having those pics posted!

We celebrated on 18th anniversary by going to dinner and looking through our wedding albums.  We still plan to go to Eureka in the fall.

Our house is still on the market.  When we put it there, our family was three "list it" to one "love it".  Now that months have passed we are two to two and there's a little indifference even there!

So summer. is. over. It has been one of the most enjoyable summers that I remember.  This is largely in part to our cool temperatures.  It made just normal every day life wonderful.  Usually, we have multiple days (20+) over 100 degrees (and of late, pushing 110). This summer we had maybe two days over 100.

I'm thinking I should be making a fall/winter bucket list!

Things I Learned in July

1.  I learned that I shouldn't take notes for this kind of thing as I go along because I'll lose them.

2.  I am at the age where I can't remember all the log ins and passwords to everything.  In my defense, I think it must be because there are waaaay too many things requiring such things. I have started a collection (all in one spot - not lots of pieces of scrap paper!) of log in information.

3.  Half of July was spent on vacation where I learned many things.  Some are:

• Sand crabs that come out on the beach at night are about five times larger than the ones that are out during the day!



Smaller "day" crab - look in the very middle

• There is a charter school meeting in the old Corolla School House (circ. 1800s - 1950s).  The school is Water's Edge Village School.

• It is no fun for almost everyone on vacation to get a stomach bug (I knew this without having to experience it first hand.)

4.  The blog where I had been finding links to free books just wasn't delivering much any more, but I learned of a new one - eReaderGirl.  I love how she separates fiction, non-fiction and kids!  I just followed her on Pinterest too and she has so many fun reading pins!

5.  I learned about Sidetracked Sarah!  I am not a homeschooler or do I have a large family, but I tend to enjoy those blogs most.  Since school will be starting soon (by the way it's 1st grade this year for me) I was looking for freezer recipes and Sarah's got several menu plans for freezer to slow cooker meals.  They all seem like "real" food (not funny things I've never heard of or that no one in our home would dream of eating) and more like things I normally cook.

6. I learned the hard way that when you don't link your blog post in time that Mr. Linky does in fact close.  So this time I will link with Emily at Chatting at the Sky as soon as I'm done!

Dreams in Bloom

This is beach post, but how could I resist this title or face??

On our beach vacation, some or all of us went to the beach every day.  We went several times a day at all different times of the day.  I'm not much of a beach person, but I must say, I enjoyed it the most this time out of any times ever!

When the kids weren't playing in the surf, they were burying each other in the sand making characters - a skeleton, hockey player, body builder, even a mermaid!  For the adults - it was easy to entertain the kids, it was done for us.  So we relaxed and read.  Not all on the beach, but I finished four books on vacation.  I also enjoyed collecting shells and watching hundreds of giant sand crabs on the beach at night with Hubby.

Since we went to the beach often, I got to experience high tide and low tide for the first time.  At low tide, I collected shells.  At high tide, my sis-in-law and I kept moving our chairs back until we were sitting in water anyway!!

It was a wonderful time away and with family.  I especially enjoyed watching my sons, niece and nephews enjoy themselves so much!

7 Things I Learned in June

Develop a passion for learning. If you do, you will never cease to grow.   

Anthony J. D'Angelo 

Emily, at Chatting at the Sky, has invited us to share what we have learned during the month of June.  So here goes (I just love random ramblings!!)

7 Things I Learned In June

1.  I love summer!  I rarely say this.  I've never been that fond of summer - I'm more of a fan of fall.  This summer though, it hasn't really been that hot (yet).  We've gone places, but we've been home a lot too and I've enjoyed the ordinariness of doing things around the house.  I've enjoyed doing a lot of nothing and only what I want.  I've also enjoyed cooking (some).  PT (Prior to Teaching) I spent a lot of time menu planning, preparing and cooking.  During the school year, that just doesn't fly!

One of my family's favorites is this sausage and broccoli bake.  It's a Weight Watcher recipe, but I un-WW it because I don't use turkey sausage.  I think when I figured out the points it wasn't that different and I really can't stand food that tries to act like other food (i.e turkey acting like sausage or worse, beef!)

2.  My kids really are too old for some things.  I've seen this coming for a while now.  It became more apparent when I took my oldest, M (age 14) and a friend to a creek with friends to swim, jump off the falls and picnic.  The falls weren't as high as fourteen year old boys (at least mine) would like.  I had a lot of fun anyway! And no, I never jumped. Said boys did accompany me to the Dayspring Outlet in Siloam Springs right after the creek time.  So THAT is impressive!

3.  There is something (good) to be said of children getting older.  I learned that dead animals of any kind make me squeal (I already knew I would jump on the couch for live mice, etc.).  When the dog brought a bunny in (I'm sure she found the bunny unresponsive and after unsuccessfully attempting mouth to mouth was bringing it to see if we could help.) it was really nice insisting my fourteen year old son handle it (his Dad was gone at Scout camp) since it was after all, his duty.

4.  I learned that I stay up waaaay too late when Hubby is gone.  I already knew I slept with the bathroom light on if he's not home, but 2 am is way too late for me to stay up (I'm one who requires sufficient beauty rest!) reading.  Once I do turn the light off I sleep horribly too.

5.  June was conference time!  I went to a four day one and an afternoon one so I learned many new classroom ideas - way too many to write about.  I'll just mention a couple - I learned that Dr. Seuss books contain a high amount of Dolch words.  So having a student read a book to you is way more exciting than reading a list of words!!  I also learned to take existing games (Twister, Jenga, Candyland) and make them in to sight word (or letters for early years) practice games.

I can't wait to figure out which grade I'm teaching so I can start working on some games!!

6.  I finally found a study at church that works for me to attend!  I've been going to Beth Moore's lecture series "The Law of Love".  It's so beautiful to see the fulfillment of the law in Christ (I love to see the fulfillment of Jewish customs in Christ too).  Our Promised Land is Christ Himself.  Every part of my listening guide is covered in my writing and each time I reread it to try to write something down I've learned, I just get overwhelmed that I couldn't possibly write everything down!!

7.  I also learned every time L. and I get a chance to go eat together we usually choose barbecue!  He doesn't like Chic-fil-a and I don't like sushi, so that's what we agree on.  Also, M. doesn't usually choose it because he doesn't like to SMELL like barbecue when we leave!  L. and I were in "the city" doing errands a couple of weeks ago and we ended up at an old favorite and last night when it was just the two of us for dinner, a different BBQ place was our choice.

Thanks, Emily, for the encouragement to write.

I'm looking ahead to July - Beach vacation and to August - I will kick getting ready for school into high gear!

Our Backyard

When I was looking for pictures for "Flashback", I found one of our Butterfly Bush in Albuquerque.  I was so excited a couple of summers ago to plant one in our backyard.  I was even more excited to see how nicely it had grown this year!

I went out to take take pictures of the bush and took a few more.  While photographing I had some deep contemplative thoughts to blog - but now I can't remember what I wanted to say!

I thought it would be nice to share the pictures anyway.  And since J. the dog made some of the pictures I might as well tell her excitement from a few nights ago,

A bit of trauma in our home tonight...I opened the door to let the dog in, but I could see she was carrying something. I jumped on the couch and maintained my position when M. said it was a mouse. However when he said it was a bunny I ran to my room where I shouted directions and demanded he take care of it. I bet M's friend spending the night thinks I should be committed! Nothing like this has happened since L's soccer coach's wife  rescued me from the bird that flew in the house.

Ok, I guess that was my excitement and not hers! (I just used what I put on Facebook and changed the name I had tagged.)

Anyway, I'm so very thankful for my backyard!

Summer Bucket List

In two days we will have been out of school for exactly a month.  So better late than never?  I've been talking about this list for a while now, the boys ask "Where is this list?" and I tell them it's all in my brain...

1.  Sleep in...a lot!
2.  Go to a drive-in
3.  Read a book with paper pages
4.  Flint Creek with friends from school
5.  A conference or two
6.  Sell our house
7.  Pick blueberries and blackberries
8.  Pick other fruit too
9.  Fly a kite on the beach
10.  See the wild horses
11.  Snuggle with my niece
12.  Go to a museum (or two)
13.  Eat breakfast at the donut shop
14.  Connect/Catch up with friends
15.  Do something with my blog
16.  Restart my gratitude journal
17.  See fireworks
18.  Make something homemade
19.  Finally go to the Flying Pig
20.  Celebrate our wedding anniversary

I decided this was my list, that the boys are old enough to do their own if they want.  However, I was happy to have L. with me at the berry farm today.  Then M - has become our leader in getting the house "show ready".  The other day he wouldn't even let me leave my socks in living room floor when we left the house for some errands.

Which ones are done?  The ones in italics.  Wow, I thought I had done more than that.  Never fear, as soon as we return from vacation a large portion will be accomplished.  Actually, the best part of summer so far has been no pressure to accomplish anything!

By the way, I'm not late at all on this list.  Today is the first day of summer.  Happy Summer!

Happy Anniversary

On Labor Day

Hubby grilled...

M and Aunt visited and played Kindle games...

L played air soft guns in the back yard with a friend...

I made fruit salad and used Mom's bowl..

I also had a low grade fever and started the week battling a sinus infection (even lost my voice).  But, unpleasantries aside, Labor Day marked the three year anniversary of being in our new home in Oklahoma.  Happy Anniversary to us!  I'm so glad we're here...

On the Home Front - Last Before School Starts

A peek through my window…. Very brown and dry – some of the flowers are hanging in there. It really looks like fall many places because of the drought.

What’s going on this week… the start of school!!!  Enough said.

What “the boys” are doing… L is spending the night with a friend.  He has a “pool filling up” job that I took him over for last night and will need to do again tomorrow.  M. was quite the trooper and helped me in my classroom and then with groceries today.  We got his school supplies.

On my mind… Aunt.  Have not had any time to update (and don’t really now), but she was diagnosed with leukemia two weeks ago.  It is the most curable type (APL) and she’s finished 7 days (24 hrs ea) of chemo.  We’re waiting to hear if she’s in remission and when she can go home.  Trying to make plans for that – cleaning, getting rid of plants, and taking care of her.

On my bedside table… I had better get busy reading something!  I posted “What Mrs. ________ is reading…” in my classroom so I need something to put there.

I am richly blessed… Hubby has helped with so much and been so patient lately, friends have offered help with the boys, a friend brought dinner last night and one is cutting lamination and doing other classroom things for me.  Beyond that, Aunt is extremely well cared for and many of her friends (old and new!) are visiting her in the hospital (tomorrow will be day 15).

I am immeasurably blessed to have been married to my best friend and the love of my life for 17 years tomorrow.  We went to breakfast this morning and visited a local Route 66 tourist spot.

I’m praying for… Aunt and the new school year.

Our home…  the dining room looks like a classroom exploded there, but everything else is not bad thanks to Hubby and the boys and the little that I did in the kitchen this afternoon.

Menu planning… Monday – sandwiches, Tuesday – something in the crock-pot and Wed – breakfast.  Much to everyone’s dismay, it may stay that way for a while!

A photo or two…

Flashback Friday - Watermelon

To those who know my picky eating habits, I know it won't surprise you that I didn't eat watermelon until after we lived in Sedona (I was in my late twenties!).  Now, I absolutely love watermelon!  There are two things I don't like about watermelon though 1) Getting one home and it being "bad" - like the one Hubby got last week, it was pink. and 2) How expensive the seedless ones are now.  They are almost four dollars each and I remember buying them at Sprouts in Texas for 99 cents!

Last evening we had had a wonderful dark red juicy watermelon with house guests we had known during our Beeson year (and who we saw some when we lived in Texas).  It was absolutely wonderful to see their children 10 years later.  We looked through our pictures from the Beeson year (2002 - 2003) and of course one of Hubby and my all time favorite pictures of the boys was in there.  It's what we've always called "The Watermelon Picture"...

Look closely at what's on L's watermelon he is eating!  Yum Yum

One of first Beeson gatherings was on the lawn in front of our townhouses.  I think it was for the fourth of July.  I also found the second "Watermelon Picture" that was taken in our back yard in Albuquerque the following year.  Our friend (who also has my name!) and her family were visiting.  We met when she came to our garage sale and before our neighborhood was built up, we could see each other's houses even though she lived on another street.  Her family always called if we left the garage door up at night.  Her husband called one morning when he saw the tent you can see in the picture blow out of our yard and get picked up and carted away by construction workers. (Hubby went and retrieved it).

Isn't that beautiful GREEN grass for Albuquerque?

I just noticed in both pictures M is eating watermelon from the rind.  I usually cut it all off and in pieces because that's how I like it (and never with seeds - seeds make it not worth eating), but last night M asked for some on the rind because "It tastes better that way.".  I guess that started at an early age!

We. Have. Been. Gone.

We. Have. Been. Gone.



We cruised to Alaska with friends.



Visited Colombia River Gorge, Multnomah Falls (this picture isn't it!), and Mt. St. Helens (did not see because of fog/snow).  The boys and I spent time in Portland a few days after Hubby left.

M went to church camp and L went to Scout camp.

My nephew visited (before the camps).  We took a tour of Downtown, had pizza out twice, swam, went to the library, and watched Thunder games.

I started arranging my new classroom.

Went to Albuquerque for the 4th of July/Hubby's b-day. 

I'd love one of these for my classroom!

Piloting balloon simulation

We left the boys in ABQ. M for an extra week and a half and L for one.

I went to a four day workshop and stayed with my (Hubby's) Great Aunt.

Aunt (the boys') and I took L. to a church convention.  He also got to meet his pen pal!  Finished the trip with a visit to a stop on the Underground Railroad (and it was awesome!)

As of last night we are all home.  We have one quick weekend trip planned (conference for Hubby - indoor water park for the rest of us) and one visit from friends (ones we lived near in Kentucky!).  We need school to start so we can rest!!

Really, it's been crazy.  I even left out two trips to Dallas (one at Father's Day - golf, waterpark and a Roughriders game and one to pick up L).  Even more than crazy though, it has been amazing!  I don't think that I'd ever like to have another one this busy, but I have been so thankful for seeing family, meeting new people, learning a multitude of skill/info. and the experiences for the boys.  Even more than needing rest, I need to journal some to process each travel and write down at least one "take away".

We have had a wonderful summer!