bsmiles and sunny days

This trip may not have happened if I hadn't been on the phone with this pretty lady who convinced me that we needed to come. I mean, basically she told me that every one's lives would amiss if they didn't have the opportunity to squeeze us and see our smiling faces in real life. In reality, it was a cooperative effort on the parts of all of our hosts, our generous parents and the net of love drawing us that made this trip possible so thank you to all of you!!! I don't know if you've ever been to my mom's house; it's a very warm and welcoming place for people of all ages. I love going there. Quite a few years ago, my dad built this little replica of their house for the kids to play with. It's stocked with a full kitchen including a table and chairs. It's a lovely retreat from the blazing summer sun. My mom and dad are DE BESSST!!! Sometimes I feel guilty talking to people about my childhood because it was so good. We're talking Ward and June had ...

OK , so actually our first stop was in Utah and I didn't take any pictures, but it was relatively uneventful. We stayed in a nice hotel with an outdoor pool. It was walking distance from a little plaza where we ate pizza and drank lemonade. Bedtime came early, and the next morning we ate make-your-own waffles from the breakfast buffet, and then hit the road at about 6:30am. **Let me tell you one of the benefits of home schooling. My children get all the sleep their little bodies need. During the school year, we start our work when they are up and ready. Sometimes it's early, sometimes it's late. They are growing and changing, and I am fanatical about sleep. I fight for it when they're babies, and I encourage it as much as possible when they're bigger. It's something I've read a lot about, which is why I believe one of the major contributors to the dysfunction in our society is sleep deprivation. My kids sleep. On the flip side of that, when I need the kids ...

I never wanted to have a TV. I proudly announced to my husband-to-be that I didn't want one in our house, instead I wanted a nice stereo system that occupied the place of a television and filled the house with music instead of mind-numbing chatter. He was on-board and for the first few months of our new life together, we didn't have one. We never bought one, never received one as a hand-me-down, never looked for one, the TV was a non-issue. Thirteen years later, I am happy to announce that we have not fallen into the flat-screen, high-def era; instead of buying a new fandangled giant flat screen that hangs on the wall and connects to surround sound, we paid off our debts with our tax return last year. It was magical. I have to admit that I have fallen into the TV-Nanny shenanigan and done everything I swore I would never do in starting my children's days off with Dora and closing the day out with Spongebob. BOO on me! But on our trip, my sweet husband and I have come full c...

While I was unpacking and sorting and cleaning and making meals, the kids were running the neighborhood with their friends. The doorbell rang seemingly continuously from about 10AM to 7:30PM. When Dale got home came home for lunch, I was chatting in the kitchen with my neighbor and he said, "Did you know there's a little boy watching TV in here?" I had completely forgotten that Hunter was in the house and Tre went outside to play. It got pretty crazy, but the busyness and activity was just what we needed to distract us from all that we left behind. It's 70 degrees here, which feels strangely like the fall after being in a 110 degree heat index for a week. There are mountains and beautiful wild flowers everywhere. Our neighborhood has embraced us as their own. We have a reason for being here. Last night I went out to pull the truck into the driveway. When I got out Jasmine was standing in the yard and said, "I like living here." I had to laugh to m...

We arrived home yesterday at 3:30 and when we walked in the door, everything looked white, sterile even. Dale had the place sparkling clean, and the cabinets were bare, and the shelves were empty and the shower showed little sign of inhabitants. It was strange. The kids talked about how small it felt. The water tasted good. Max was leery of us at first; and honestly, I think he's a little bummed that we moved back in. At 4:00 the doorbell rang and on the other side of the door stood a bearded stranger with a full head of hair that vaguely reminded me of my husband. Leila and Deisha stared and backed away from him. Everything has changed. I don't even remember what channel Spongebob is on. My house is a disaster area from the front step of the porch to the sliding glass doors to the backyard. I'm living out of a suitcase and this morning, it occurred to me that I could actually put my hairspray in the bathroom closet. I've gotten so accustomed to gathering al...

For the last three days, I have woken up like a hungry mama bear; mean, crabby, and bossy. Some days I just don't want to do this anymore. You know what I mean? I wake up to a fussy baby, usually have to spank one kid before nine o'clock, spend the next four hours juggling teaching, prodding, cleaning, entertaining, and disciplining all at the same time. It's hard. It takes all my energy and all my emotional fortitude to get through it. Fortunately, I usually have the option to take a nap, which is like a prize awaiting me in the middle of the day. I have a few support people in education that are quick to tell me that my discontent is called spring fever, and it's brimming in the heart of every school-aged child. The end of the school year is in sight, the sun is shining and begging us to come out and play, and we just don't want to finish. It's a battle of wills to finish the race, but in spite of the dragging of my heavy feet, we manage to get through each da...

I have this really great mom. As a kid I don't think I ever acknowledged how wonderful she was. I certainly didn't make it easy for her by any stretch, I only gave her severe guilt when I felt that my argument was stronger than her silence. God has this funny way of bringing things back around, and now that I've managed to take ownership of her shoes and found myself journeying on her path, there is no denying it. She is really great. Amazing, actually. And I really love her. I married this really dreamy guy. One of the things about him that made my heart flutter was listening to him talk about his mom; the dude loved his mom and made no bones about it. Now that she's a part of my family I get it. She's lovey; you can't not love her. And I really love her too. On my first mothers day I stood up on the stage at First Assembly of God Life Centre in Emporia as a newly wed just a few months pregnant. I had a chance to ask some of the older, more experien...