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Is She the One?
Growing up on a dairy farm with pesky cows whose bodies demanded a milking twice every day lest they implode (or so I believed), our family was not able to take very many vacations. (That, and the fact that milking cows is not a consistently lucrative lifestyle.) The family outings we did take, however, were memorable and exciting even though the location was a simple one – camping on the Bull Pasture River in Virginia’s beautiful Shenandoah Valley. We always stashed our watermelon in the creek, always took a photo by the swinging bridge, always brought inner tubes for floating, always ate pancakes cooked on a propane-powered camp stove.…
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See Ya’ Later
Camp is over. We’ve said goodbye to summer staffers. Now it’s time to say goodbye to you guys. But don’t worry. It’s not forever. Just for a week. We’re headed to the beach and we’re leaving behind the computer and we’re not checking facebook or updating blogs or checking e-mail. Instead, we’ll be checking out each other. We plan to swim and to splash and to explore. To sleep late. To eat crazy prepackaged foods like Pop-tarts and Spaghettio-‘s. We’ll let the kid watch extra movies and we’ll eat out at restaurants like Moon River and the Crab Shack. I hope we see dolphins and turtles and a big lighthouse.…
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Should I Stop Homeschooling?
Mand Labs Lit: A Timberdoodle Review
parenting blues
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14
Happy Anniversary to us!
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You’ve Got Mail
Every day when we check the little black mail box at our home, the kids ask, “Who got mail?” (Disregard the poor grammar.) And when the answer is usually someone other than themselves, their little faces turn downcast and they wonder aloud why only mommy and daddy get letters every day. These guys already know the significance of a Real Letter. I have about three friends with whom I (almost) regularly exchange genuine letters. And it is a highlight of my week to receive one of those beautifully hand written envelopes in the mail. I get almost giddy. And I never rip it open right away while I am still…
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Fix You
It was an offer we couldn’t refuse. Free tickets to see Coldplay. Kevin had to work so Riley was the lucky benefactor of Ticket Number Two. (Naturally, I had already claimed Ticket Number One.) We had a great time at the concert. (This is an understatement, of course.) Getting to the concert was an entirely different matter. One mile to the venue parking lot took us 48 minutes to traverse. I had to take Fox because of the whole nursing thing that he’s into right now. Besides, he’s a pretty big Chris Martin fan. Before you join the ranks of the thousands of strangers who judged me that evening, let…
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Multi-Task Madness
Women are Queen Multi-Taskers. And we have this whole network of women out there who are doing simple things better and faster. So we should collaborate a little more often – quit reinventing the wheel all the time – right? What I am saying is – what do you do that cuts down a few of your chores every day? How do you save time or money or energy or effort in some way that you think maybe everyone else is doing, but we really aren’t? I’ll go first. It’s a little one. And you may already do this. Or do this better. That’s good. But here it is anyway.…
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Some Things
This is just a photo. Of the cutest tiny baby I have seen today. We have been busy. A lovely visit from Papaw and Uncle John. A butterfly class at a children’s museum for London and Mosely – worth the money to hear Mosely talk about a chrysalis. Teaching Riley how to play Risk – and dominating her in the process. Getting a hair cut and highlights – a first time experience for me. Chauffeuring Riley back and forth to tutoring. Chauffeuring Kevin back and forth to Look Up on days the rain has been too hard or the hour too late to be riding his bike on a highway.…
Keep Reading . . .
weekend ramble (fishing, manicures and Noonday)
A Heart’s Home: Lost Valley Ranch
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Travelers Rest
It’s August. And that means something around here. Summer camp season is almost complete. As I have said before, if summers in Virginia always ended when the Wickstrum’s suburban pulled out of the driveway, then summers here end when the summer staffers load up their belongings and leave the camp. What a privilege it has been to be a part of all that is Look Up Lodge – two summers now. We love this collection of people, travelers, if you will. All of us at different stages in our journeys, but headed for the same ultimate direction – to live forever. How prophetic really. To live in Travelers Rest. Travelers…
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Normal
Yesterday was just a normal day at the Keigley household. If you consider this normal: 7 something a.m. – In the shower. Riley enters the bathroom. I don’t recall any sound of someone knocking. She’s on the phone with her tutor and wants to know if we can change that morning’s tutoring session to an hour later. I think an hour later is a great idea. 7 something a.m. – I am exiting the shower. Towel wrapped around my body. London sheepishly enters the room holding a used diaper. I smell poop. Naturally, I am suspicious. Apparently London tried to “help” the family cause and attempted to change Finn’s diaper…
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Enough
Have I ever really believed that God is enough? I mean, I’ve probably said He was. I might have even thought that I believed it. But your beliefs are pretty much revealed through your actions. So. Have I acted like God is enough? Or has my life thus far been mostly a study of how God is not enough? Don’t I really expect God plus? You know, God plus personal fulfillment. God plus healthy children. God plus financial security. God plus physical safety. God plus a happy marriage. That’s the lie I find myself believing, and living, so often. The truth is God is enough. No plus. Just God. Enough.…
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The Wise Finnian
This little girl may be a genius. Or not. But I probably owe her a positive post since the last time that I wrote about her I think I may have mentioned the word “terrible” and dwelt heavily upon her tiny child misbehavior. At any rate, I think we all know there are many sides to every person. So why would a two foot tall person be any different? We think she is learning the ropes awfully fast. Of all the Keigley children, perhaps even including Riley, Piper Finn is the only one not at all afraid of Magnus. (The dog that is beginning to make me question my judgement.)…
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Lunch
I found myself staring at my plate during lunch today. The sight of my meal triggered some memory in me. It wasn’t an exciting meal, but it was a very familiar one. I had a scoop of this macaroni-tuna-egg-salad-type-thing and two slices of banana bread spread with cream cheese. Don’t worry, it doesn’t offend me if that sounds unappetizing to you. I know. It’s kind of a weird meal. I have no name for the type-thing I was eating. I just know it was this concoction that my mom brought out frequently during the summer growing up on our family’s dairy farm. I think maybe she made it up. She…
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Why Do I Write This Blog?
One word. Perspective. That’s the one word reason. (And if I had self-control I would end this blog post right here.) But I don’t. Have self-control, that is. I write this blog because I find that when I am keeping it up to date, I like my entire life better. I know that seems like a ridiculous amount of importance to place on a silly computer-generated journal-esque type thingy. But it’s true. When Piper pulls off her diaper and poops on the living room floor I get less angry and instead wonder how I can spin that occurrence to make you guys laugh. When spit up spews out of Fox’s…
