new pics

Pics added back thru july 5th from my phone pics

Twin Fun

I had lunch yesterday with my very dear friend Virginia and her identical twin sister. I've never had a close friend with an identical twin before, so it was a huge novelty for me. They not only look alike, but they use the same mannerisms, the same speech patterns, even the same little catch-phrases. I was like a little kid, all excited about it, and they tolerantly validated my excited revelations, "Yes, it's something, isn't it?" and then changed the subject as soon as they could do so politely! I'm sure they have dealt with that reaction incessantly their whole lives...

I guess I expected the physical similarities, but, honestly, I felt like I knew her sister already (and she seemed very sweet). I suppose, though, that there is probably something to be said for their upbringing, too. I've often found it easy to converse with natal family members of my dearest friends. Also, my sister and mother and I have all been confused for each other at various times on the phone, so it makes sense that Virginia and her sister would sound alike (beyond the fact that, as Virginia reminded me at one of my outbursts, "we do have identical vocal cords").

There are an amazing number of similarities in their life patterns, as well, and they seem to have a very strong intuitive connection to each other, as evidenced by some of the stories Virginia has shared with me.

Okay...I suppose that's about it! For this person who looks for coincidences everywhere and gets excited at making connections, this was a bit like free rein at a candy store! How fun!

Alexander the Great conquered Ancient Egypt

Of course Alex likes to call himself by that title!

I just thought I'd post another obscenely nauseating preening mama tidbit about him...

Alex surprised me yesterday by asking me to arm wrestle and giving me a serious run for my money! Whoa...he's only 11 years old! Yes, I secretly think he has those Caddell genes goin' on there (my mama's mama's mama's side). My 80-somethin' year old grandmama used to carry two full 5-gallon buckets of water out to the garden at the same time! She had more muscles in her 80's than I did...ever!

Yes, I am a little sheepish to admit that I cherished the belief growing up that few girls besides family members could beat me in arm-wrestling (probably a vestige of having a big brother), though I have wimpy wrists now and don't make the same secret claims! Of course, I didn't run around challenging other girls to arm wrestle very often, but I was secretly proud of that 'tomboy' trait! My brother definitely has those strength genes...he joined wrestling in high school and broke another boy's leg with his bare hands during practice one day early in the season. He felt so awful that he quit the team and never wanted to wrestle again! Now, Alex is running around challenging everyone to arm wrestle, and I see why after experiencing his might :). He's going to be one strong young man!

Anyhow, I was honestly surprised, though I guess it's an inevitable step for most moms of pre/adolescent boys. I will have to rely solely on his respect to keep him in rein before long. Not that he physically challenges me, but I have pinned him down a few times...in a sort of 'understanding' that he knew I could when he was letting himself get out of hand to 'act out'. I think it makes him feel secure on that rare occasion when I grab him and set him down, but he's gonna soon have to be careful with his delicate mama! Crazy!

On the brainy front, I was a bit dismayed at Fort Discovery when we entered an area with a bunch of 3-D mathematical puzzles to solve. I only managed to get 2 of about 5, whereas Alex solved them easily. Michael did, too, for that matter. Even Fiona put together a pyramid that I couldn't manage to create! I feel like a 3-D idiot! (I did manage to untangle a rope mess more easily than them, though, so I hold onto that saving point! Must be all the tangled shoelaces and necklaces over the years!)

It is really amazing to watch your children surpass you. How gratifying, really!

Oh, speaking of pyramids...on our way to Augusta, we were listening to The Red Pyramid and passed the town of Egypt, which included a pyramid-shaped business. We also passed at least 2 obelisks in different towns along the way. I've never really noticed them before, so it felt a bit eye-opening to see the vestiges of Egyptian culture that still influence us...which I've apparently been rather blind to!

We are obtaining familiarity with the myths and even a bit of the history of Ancient Egypt (such as Alexander the Great conquering the original line of pharoahs and establishing the late era, weaker Ptolemaic line of pharoahs), and Riordan brings these alive for us. Kudos to him for another job well done! We're still supplementing with the library books, but, while simple enough and beautifully illustrated, they're still dry and would be hard to remember without Riordan's fabulous fiction!

Annual 'Recital' done

Time to mellow out, finally...after another quick trip. We just returned from my folks' place in SC. Church was essentially monopolized by my family! A couple of other children performed Jesus Loves Me, and another man in the church made some announcements and readings, but my Dad gave the sermon, Alex played the prelude on the piano, Nick and Liz (Ard-Brady) played guitar and sang the anthem, Fiona provided special violin music and sang a song, and my mother and I provided the hymn music! Afterwards, Stephenie's and my children provided the music during the potluck dinner.

Michael graciously videotaped everything, and I actually have a couple short enough to post. Dad's sermon, unfortunately, is too long, but I'm so glad we have it for future memories! I always regretted not having a video or recording of my charismatic grandaddy's preaching!

The kids' playing went alright, though it could have been better....too much busy running around over the last week, though, I suppose, to have prepared adequately. We even spent Saturday at Fort Discovery Science Center in Augusta!

So glad to be home and ready to burrow down for a while...

List of what we did in Orlando this time!

I'm exhausted. My feet hurt, my knees hurt...ugh! Okay, maybe participation is overrated! Sitting down with a book and a nice mocha sounds infinitely better than playing with kids!


My sis is of the moderate-to-relaxed constant state camp. After a fun but tiring day at the water park (we loved Teamboat Springs, a long family tube ride!), she opted to stay at the resort and play in the pool there with her kids and Fiona (who wanted to stay with her cousins) while Alex and I had a Disney park-hopping day. Yes, we blasted through Disney's Hollywood Studios (formerly MGM), then Epcot, and finally the Magic Kingdom in just one day. The last two we only touched on, but we traversed the entire parks as fast as we could go to hit those favorite rides! I had fun with Alex, but at least in this moment it seems as though I've had my fill of Disneyworld to last forever! The heat, the long lines, and the crowds are just too much!


Yesterday, we went to the Orlando Science Center for the afternoon before heading home. We saw a fantastic science show called 'Ka-Boom!' that focused more on different colors in exploding salts and actually reviewed some foundational characteristics of the states of matter in a very fun presentation with sound effects and all. We then watched a presentation on the planets of our solar system, which were projected onto a huge sphere in front of us. That show was not so funny but was again quite interesting.

There was a huge room full of full-size dinosaur skeleton casts, of which Alex gave us a tour and the girls dug in an excavational pit for little kids. Yes, Alex is quite my little fount of information. Michael stayed home, but I counted on my little guy for all sorts of errands and random information (seriously, he quite often answers my very real questions, especially anything to do with wildlife or mythology). He's helpful and smart and enthusiastic...he's just a great little chap :).


The best part of the Orlando Science Center? I was utterly impressed to find out that they have a preschool in the building. We followed the group in to see the Ka-Boom show, and I at first mistook them for the 'pretty children' preschool, as they were all completely adorable. When I realized that this preschool was housed and conducted by the Science Center, I admit that I was struck with excited chills! Isn't that funny? What a fantastic experience for the kids...oh, I forgot to mention the very best room, where I'm sure they spend a lot of time. It's a huge room with a lot of independent stations, such as a hurricane booth (fun!) and prism refraction of light and on and on!


As I said, though...I'm pooped! The kids all had a great time, but I wasn't inclined to buy a single thing at the gift shop afterwards (rather unusual for me at any place like that) and just wanted to head home.


Oh, if you're wondering why the 'shift' from art museums to science museums, it has to do with my scheming frugality, of sorts. In January, we went to Atlanta for a High Museum exhibit, using our near-to-expiring existing annual membership to get in there. Then, we went to the Fernbank Museum, which had been recommended for Alex, and we bought the Family Advantage annual membership, which includes admission to a bunch of other science centers...so, this trip and our Daytona trip next month are planned around science centers. It's a great experience for this year, and then we probably will switch to an art museum again when there's a great exhibit going on (like the Louvre ones!). Same, even, with the Disney trips. We've been using these no-expiration-date 7-day park-hopper passes that I bought when Fiona was only two years old! They came with 4 extra water park days, and we're finally nearing the end of the pass days.

That brings up an interesting conversation I had with a friend just last week about how we end up doing things with so little planning, based on 'deals' and advertisements. Like the bowling...not really something I would have 'picked' if I hadn't seen the advertisement. Now, I do feel better about the science centers and art museums, because we did 'pick' them on our own first, before the deal. No, I wouldn't normally make these trips, but it's a great opportunity to do something we wouldn't otherwise have done.

I am actually pretty secluded from advertisements, as I rarely watch TV or listen to radio, but I know I am 'handed' ideas from the media constantly, and that's true to a much greater extent for the general populace. We are so busy listening and reacting, that I wonder how many people actually pause to contemplate just what is most important to them. Our priorities can get naturally mixed up and jumbled, and outside influences can really compound the problem. Just a thought, as I return from another exhausting Disney trip and contemplate bowling today!

MOSH and curious adult natures!

Static electricity from Van der Graaf

Monday was day 1 of our trip, and we took advantage of our science museum membership to go to Jacksonville's MOSH (museum of science and natural history). It's a very kid-friendly museum, with primarily hands-on exhibits, though the Chronicles of Narnia travelling exhibit had a lot of hands-off original stuff from the movie--including the wardrobe itself and an original wardrobe that actually belonged to C.S. Lewis (the author)! The costumes for the movie were my favorite, as they were the most beautiful 'costumes' I've ever seen! How fun it must be to design them, then see them in the movie, and then on tour in a museum!
Honestly, though, I enjoyed the planetarium and science show more, though. I appreciated getting introduced to the night sky and feeling momentarily acquainted. It can be so easy to 'spot' constellations when you're looking for them (Orion's belt is everywhere!), and I never know if I have it right. I still wouldn't know, I'm sure, but it's easier when someone directs a pointer at them for you.
The science show demonstrated the participatory nature of Montessori to me! My kids took literally that the demonstrator wanted an answer to any question that he asked. Fiona and Alex came up with ideas and guesses and were gung-ho about the whole thing. Elizabeth and Nicholas were right with them in volunteering, too. The demonstrator referred to our group as the 'loud' bunch, though it was all participatory loudness!
You know, adults are curious creatures, really. I like the natural participation of the kids, and I actually was the only adult to volunteer, too! I'm really quite shy, but I knew I'd feel like I'd lost out if I didn't get to experience what the kids were reacting to. Of course, I only volunteered for 'group' experiences, but that's still pretty good for me with an audience around.
What I have trouble fathoming is why most adults, especially those not stricken with self-conscious nerves, don't want to participate. I do admit that I occasionally am not quite as enthusiastic about participating as the kids on a few things, but, generally speaking, I always have personal interest in their activities, unless it's something I never have had interest in (like baseball, which I'd have skipped participating in as a kid, too.)
A couple of weeks ago, we went bowling with another family. I rented shoes and got one lane for adults and one for kids, as we arrived five minutes or so before the other family. When the other mother arrived and saw that I was expecting to bowl, she was clearly disappointed and said that she wasn't planning on bowling, but that she would since I'd gone to the trouble already. Abashed, I figured out that I could let her son exchange my shoes for himself, and I was relieved to figure it out so she wouldn't have to bowl. It's funny, but I felt embarrassed about my expectation to bowl. Everyone knows that the moms sit and watch! Much as I love my kids, though...it's just boring to sit and watch them have fun without me!
Perhaps I'm just not enough a grown-up! No kid in his or her right mind would enjoy going to sit and watch other kids have fun. I deal with it a bit, for their sakes, and I can often really enjoy the conversation with other adults or perhaps a distracting book or some such, but I'm like the kid who doesn't get to participate, half the time!
Oh, of course I enjoy an occasional presentation of their skills! Ballet recitals, taekwondo testing, etc. are all of great interest, but I surely have no desire to watch complacently through all of their practicing. That's bad enough, but I just want to keel over when I'm at an activity where I can't even see them practice! Then I can't even live vicariously! I watch with amazement at dance class or (formerly) at Kindermusik or gymnastics at how the other moms calmly and happily wait in the hallway for their kids to finish, as if it doesn't matter a whit to them whether they can see or not. Rather like a hired chauffeur, it seems...
Anyhow, I'm glad I pulled past my self-consciousness and got literally shocked with the kids at the science show yesterday! Likewise, I love doing the art class with Fiona. I'm fascinated by the books we read. I used to adore taekwondo (until my body insisted that I'm not a kid and refused to allow it!). It's just fun sharing in all these things with the kids, and, while I wholeheartedly admire how selfless these parents seem to be who are willing to sacrifice all their time completely for the kids' sakes...I just don't get it! Why not join in? The kids like our participation, too!
Again...the down side to my self-centered world view... Alex doesn't get to do as many sports-type things and their activities are more skewed towards my own interests. But, then again, parents generally do choose the activities with their own preferences in mind, and I always try to consider their strongest wishes (hence Alex playing soccer and going to baseball camp).
I've also never been a mom to stand outside to supervise her kids playing very much, and I allowed them to play outside without me much earlier than many conscientious moms. I always felt riddled with...hmm, not guilt...more worry about the other mothers judging me as they stood outside sweating and dutifully watching their own children play! I truly wasn't very concerned about my kids' safety, as we were in a quiet cul-de-sac and it seemed fine--and they were always good about staying within the set boundaries. If they got hurt, I knew they'd be inside in a heartbeat to tell me! Okay, and there is a big upside, too...my kids got much more time outside than those other kids whose moms could only take so much sun and sweat! I'm not criticizing those amazing moms, but it's just that I wasn't made to be absolutely miserable while the kids played and so could bear for them to play longer! (No, the mothers were NOT participating, of course!). Oh, and maybe it's not even that, as those selfless mothers may have stood outside longer, if they weren't needing to go inside to cook a dinner and clean the house! (Meanwhile, I'm sitting in my clutter blogging or reading a book and sipping coffee!)
Kind of funny, this entry, as I never saw myself as a terribly participatory kind of person. I have definite recluse tendencies. I was the quiet bookworm even as a kid, but perhaps that still had more to do with my taste and preferences than in not joining in on fun (which I did, if it actually seemed fun and I felt welcome!). Hmm...perhaps that's true for the adults, too, but then I'm not sure what real adults are interested in! (Maybe it's when the homemaking ideas are brewing! Maybe my focus is just off! Cleaning and organizing have yet to captivate my fancies!)
Anyhow (quickly changing the subject), participation in mind, today is a water park day! Blizzard Beach, here we come... :)
　

Summer activities continued

Note the Goth mermaid on the right!

Well, this morning was supposed to be project #3 for Fiona and me with the oil pastels. I'm a bit bummed, though, that Fiona decided that she didn't want to do the project after a little while. It was rather tedious, I suppose, with all the shading and such. She just sort of drew the clementines in a couple of minutes and then said, "I'm done...they're not very good!" I was unable to talk her into giving it much of a go after that, and she said she'd rather make her paper doll mermaids, so she did those by drawing them with a pencil and then coloring with markers.

Clearly, we won't be going on to complete the other 3 projects, as I was hoping. Instead, I think perhaps we'll do project #1 in each of the other art books of this series for watercolor, acrylic paints, and color pencils. Too bad, as I rather like the oil pastels!

Where's project #2? Hmm...think I'll throw them back onto the old post with project #1, maybe. They're cliffs at a beach, and I'm not overly tickled with them, though it was definitely educational to do them. Thing is that I wasn't overly fond of the finished cliff in the book, either, so I'm not feeling too badly about how ours turned out.

Alex is at his final day at the Sand Gnats baseball camp. He liked it alright. He never generally likes day #1 of anything new, due to adjustment issues, but day #2 was definitely better for him. Day #3 (today) includes attending a Sand Gnats game tonight, which Michael is taking him to. Whew! Just not my thing at all. I might as well be sitting in an airport, for all that I follow team games. I'll try for a moment, and then sink back into contemplations and be totally lost! It's easier to follow a 2-person game like tennis or such. Not so many pieces to keep in mind at once!

That's all the updates on summer activities for now...big trip next week to science museums and water park with my sister and her children. We'll listen to The Red Pyramid on the drive to Orlando. Oh...I've discovered a really wonderful new (to me) author. Shannon Hale writes fantastic children's fantasy books. Just loved reading Princess Academy and now listening to Goose Girl, which Fiona already gave the thumbs-up. Shannon Hale's main characters are very serious, conscientious, and realistic, not silly at all, but I find they speak to the heart. I'm a brand new fan!

Baseball Camp for Mr. Big Head!

Alex is off to baseball camp with the Sand Gnats today! Gosh, the summer is flying by!

He was so cute with all his gear. We had quite the trouble last night finding a baseball helmet to fit him, with his huge head. Then, this morning, his Sand Gnats cap was too small :(. Nope, not a new issue, and, actually, it's not generally an issue any more.

Our good friend called him a 'BC' from the get-go, for 'big cranium'. When Alex was a baby, it was killer trying to squeeze his head through to pull on shirts and tops! I got where I'd only buy shirts with snaps at the shoulders...I couldn't understand why they'd make tops with such small openings until I had Fiona, with her little 'pea-head'!

Alex was so top-heavy as a kid that it literally caused him to fall down a lot more... I'm glad he was first, because Fiona was never bruised up like him, and I'd have been more concerned about others' opinions if I'd had her first. I just assumed all kids fell down all the time. I did entertain the thought, after 3 days in a row of his head getting bashed in the same place in random falls, of keeping him in a football helmet, though! Luckily for him, the falling finally let up!

Personally, I have zero, or possibly negative, interest in baseball, so I was surprised that I felt enthused this morning. I think it's because he's begged for so long to get to play baseball, and I felt excited for him. I hope he's having fun! Further reports to follow...

Farewell to Chloe

(Disclaimer: You may want to skip this sad, meandering, depressing post...I'm in a 'valley' moment.)

Our last remaining Salmon Faverolle, Chloe, passed away this weekend. We believe it was due to heat stroke, perhaps, though it's hard to be certain. She was in the nesting box, which does get very hot, and it happened midday, when the thermometer in there read over 104 degrees. I truly have worried about the heat and whether we should get an AC for the coop, but we let them out during the day to wander the yard, with access to water and shade. She seemed fine that morning.

You know, American settlers have had chickens always...and I've never known anyone, including both sets of my grandparents, to provide AC for their chickens. Faverolles are very heavily feathered, though...

We started with five baby chicks, three Faverolles and two Australorps. We still have only the Australorps, and I don't think it's random chance. The Australorps are sweet, smart, and hearty, it seems, and I hope they continue to survive. Bach is still crazy broody and wants to stay and stay in that horribly hot nesting box, and we're wondering if she'd get over it if we ordered some baby chicks for her to mother...though I feel a bit like we'd be experimenting dangerously to leave vulnerable chicks in her untrained/untested care.

Our poor rabbit Lizzie passed away last year when trapped in the heat (she'd escaped our yard and was caught in a cage in a neighbor's yard for the day, not discovered until early evening). The summer heat is horrendous... You know, we did put a heater out in the coop for the winter, and Michael installed a light-duty fan that runs continually to help ventilate the coop. I don't know...maybe we just need to be more careful not to order chickens who are touted as good 'over-wintering' birds. Maybe that automatically means they won't be good 'over-summering' birds.

I wonder...personally, I feel like withdrawing from the whole pet thing. It's so sad to lose them, and I feel so responsible. I freak out enough about my own children, though they're thankfully past the most worrisome ages (hmm, those teen years are approaching soon...).

Michael brought home a new rabbit (Zoe) after Lizzie passed away, despite my discouragement, and now we're already talking about baby chicks. Is it a question of embracing the cycle of life? And it's not like we're going to stop eating eggs any time soon...but, then again, it seems a bit like signing up for even more inevitable grief...though any relationship at all has that risk, doesn't it? Life is just too sad, sometimes...but perhaps that's just part of the cycle.

Maybe it's back to life being a balancing act...I don't think we can completely avoid grief and sadness. It's selfish to do so, even, at times. However, walling ourselves off from sad realities may help us not to deal with them, which may at times seem the best option. Likewise, throwing ourselves into the thick of them can be too much...I have no real desire to experience the life of Mother Theresa, as much as I admired her.

A certain degree of callousness does provide strength. People who don't question, who accept their limited version of life, can often get along quite well for themselves. Tunnel-vision is how atrocities are allowed to happen, however, and to keep happening... but a certain amount of it keeps some of us sane, though.

We have an ongoing 'joke' between the kids and myself. When Alex was small, he would often get overwhelmed and would literally throw himself face-first onto the floor, crying "I can't do it!" (Ironically, until he was school age, it came out, "I can do it!") Anyhow, the joke is that whenever we're going over something that they find overwhelming and they start up with "I can't do it!", I tease that they need to go ahead and throw themselves face-down on the floor and kick and scream while shouting that. They always laugh, and it's a good reminder to them that they've always mastered whatever it is that they kicked and screamed about before.

So, maybe, even though I often feel that "I can't do it!" when I face the grief and sadness inherent in experiencing life...perhaps "I can do it." I always have before, and the cycle keeps spinning. I can kick and scream, but perhaps that's just wasted energy, like the kids have realized from our joke...

Chin up, then, right? Pretending to feel confident, happy, and vibrant not only makes others happier, it can actually induce that state to a certain degree, all on its own. This is important for this habitual wallower to remember! And things always do get better eventually!

Closet expansion

We rarely change our house at all. I mean, we've been living here for six years and have only really changed Fiona's and Alex's bedrooms in decor. Fiona's already ready for another change, but her two-plus-year-old decor still seems brand new in my mind! Of course I have many, many remodeling changes that I'd like to make, but the combo of money and motivation and time need to coalesce...
Anyhow, though we've not made too many changes, I'm tickled that Michael has 'expanded' our closet by adding some new hanging rods and shelves into an area I hadn't really considered usable, though it turns out it is. Somehow, I've already filled all the space, but it's fun to see what you have more clearly and to reorganize it all. I tease him that now that I have a bit of room to add more clothes, I have new shopping urges...

Summer Activites and Lessons

• Project #2 Cliffs at the sea in oil pastel
  
  
  

  

  
  
  
  

  
  

  
  
  

  
  
  
  

  The window of time has hit... I see summer breaks as my 'opportunity' to get in learning opportunities for the kids. However, they see it as time to take a break! They want to lounge and relax and recuperate and play, but I have a host of trips and lessons for them. Actually, they like the trips part, and some of the learning is fun for them, too, but they just aren't feeling, well, diligent. I know they're right, as I'm sure anyone would agree, but they just seem too busy all school year, and this is finally our "chance". So, I'm trying to find that balance. They deserve their "break", but I'm honestly thinking of making up schedules for us! I would, if I were a bit more diligent myself!
  

  
  
  

  One of my priority 'lessons' is a typing course, believe it or not. Yes, I know they seem far too young, but, actually, I think it's important. Alex took the same typing course and didn't quite finish it a couple of summers ago, and it helped him tremendously. Problem is, the school throws them on the computers all the time. Not only will the typing help facilitate that, but having them go through the course now will prevent them from developing incorrect habits.

  
  
  

  
  I very reluctantly took a typing course in high school. I thought it was a terrible waste of my time beforehand, and I scoffed when I heard teachers and such recommend it as the #1 most important class to take. I only took it because nothing else fit in my schedule (which I always crammed as full as possible!). It didn't take long for me to join the ranks of the typing class fans.

  
  
  

  
  
  So, the kids have a Disney CD-Rom of The Lion King's Timon & Pumba Typing Course, and I am tickled to see them learning to type so quickly. Of course, it's Alex's second go-round, and I'm hoping he'll get to the numbers this time, which I'm sure he will. I am firmly convinced that the 'time' spent on this quick typing course will save vast amounts of time in the future--even the near future. Alex, in fact, bragged to me this past school year about typing 600 words when his other smart classmates only had 60--of course, I get NO credit for coordinating it all for him and having him do the course...but that's beside the point (sigh). Fiona's already expressed frustration with having to type out stuff at school for presentations and reports (in 2nd grade...ridiculous!). I think failing to give the kids a typing course first is a huge oversight by the school, but at least my own kids will be on their game there. Given that they, especially Fiona, seem to be rather slow, methodical workers, they need every time advantage they can get!

  
  
  

  
  
  

  We do have some trips planned, and the makeshift 'recital' during my mother's church's potluck at the end of the month (for which they need to practice, but are resisting!).

  
  
  

  
  
  

  Oh, here's a weird one...I don't know why, but I feel this pressure to go BOWLING this summer. Truly, it's this sort of weird combination of the fact that Alex had expressed an interest in this expensive summer camp for bowling, and my profound love of a good deal. The bowling alley has a 'kids' bowl free' summer deal, and I signed them up along with Michael and myself, for a small fee. After realizing how expensive shoe rentals are (when bowling frequently it adds up), we ordered some bowling shoes. Now, I feel this sense of commitment to go bowling frequently to justify the shoe purchase! It is fun, but I'm not sure, sometimes, where my prioritization processes get their logic. I don't see bowling a important to their well-being in any way, even as exercise! I guess I'll just chalk it up as a 'good opportunity'! I'm sure if it stops being fun, we'll stop going (and we've actually only gone a couple of times so far).

  
  
  

  
  So...there is a lot more! I've been delinquent on pool trips, but I do try always to spend a good bit of time in the pool during the summer. Important for exercise and water safety skills--and just an important summertime activity for kids. We've been a bit, and I'd like to make it much more regular.

  
  
  

  
  
  

  
  
  

  Fiona and I have just started an 'art course' of sorts. I bought several books in a series with various projects. We began the 'pastel' book, using our oil pastels. I'm thrilled with our first project, a sunset. It was so easy and turned out so great (in my opinion, at least!), though I thought a little more blending would be nice in the sky colors. Alex is not so interested in art, but Fiona loves it, and I've felt as though I haven't given her the opportunities with visual arts as I have with music and dance. I've looked at expensive visual art camps for kids, but they tend to be more crafts-oriented than I would like. This course not only saves a lot of money (as compared to camps), but it's an educational opportunity for me, too, as I've never done visual art at all even though I've always wanted to. There are six pastel projects in the book, and the sunset was the easiest. I'm totally intimidated starting at project #3, but we'll see how it goes!

  
  
  

  
  
  

  Alex has a baseball camp coming up, and Fiona and I'll probably focus on the art projects a lot while he's there. I did wrack my brain about him, though, as I thought I should also do some special project more to his taste, so I think we're going to go through a series of enviro-friendly energy experiments on a 'Green Power House' that he received for Christmas. We started yesterday, but it flopped a bit. Will resume this week...

  
  
  

  
  
  

  So, yes, I know I sound a bit crazy, but my head is just chock full of all these projects and ideas and trips I haven't even mentioned yet...meanwhile there are a ton of household projects and cleaning that needs a bit of attention (and possibly should supercede in prioritization all other thoughts mentioned here!)

  
  
  

  
  Well, that's where we are right now. Oh, those Egyptian myths have not yet 'grabbed' us, but I hope they 'take' soon. Obviously, there is no novel-writing going on at all. It's hard to even get on the computer! Novel-writing must wait for the fall, and then I hope to blast out another 30-day 'masterpiece', right? :) Truly, though, I am a bit trepidatious about it...I hope I can do it!

  
  
  

  
  
  
  

  
  
  

  
  
  

  
  
  
  

  
  
  

  
  
  

  
  

Baloo does well!

Quick update... Alex did a great job as Baloo in the play on Friday. What a wonderful annual experience, though it seems that only now, in July, is their 'summer' starting for real! Alex had more lines than I'd realized, and it went well. Too bad not much real dancing for him, but he did great! Fiona happily danced and sang with the other villagers, but she was distracted by her audience guests...we need to talk about that! Otherwise, she was great!

Family and friends kept us busy all weekend. We went all the way down to Jekyll last night for the fireworks, which were nice...I'm just not much of a fireworks fan. Alex and my mother are quite enthusiastic about them, though. I enjoyed the water and beach a bit more, but the fireworks were pleasant, too.

On Saturday, Mom and I went for my first ever shopping excursion at the Christian bookstore, where I bought a Bible trivia game, which my folks stomped me at, to my chagrine! I thought Dad would easily beat Mom, as he's quite the student of the Bible, but my mom has a mind like a steel trap...wow! She would say something like, "I'm just guessing...does it mean 'skull'?" about some weird name, and she'd be right...then call it luck. She made other 'guesses' that were purely based on logic...ones I'd have completely failed at. I'm convinced she's smarter than me now, and I haven't truly thought that for a while! Dad was more clearly the Bible scholar, though, but I'm not sure he has her memory or deductive skills!

For the fireworks expedition, we just put on The Red Pyramid, finally. The kids and I were tickled to hear a bit about a staff being turned to a snake in the story, much like Moses did to his staff in Egypt when facing the pharoah! More snakes and staffs... I'm at the library trying to pick up some Egyptian mythology books as I type (they're in a pile next to me...I should go check them out! Love this portable netbook!).