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Cross Country Cousins
We were blessed by a wonderful summer treat last weekend – a visit from our Wyoming cousins. You know, it is not often when West meets East and it had been far too long since our family has had the pleasure of being in the company of these two sweet girls. The kids had a fabulous day together – playing games and dressing dolls. Carlee joined in London’s scone-baking business and the girls baked together. What a pleasant event to witness! We tried out the zip line and the slack line, posed for a series of endlessly silly pictures, colored together, made friendship bracelets and enjoyed general happy togetherness! Harmony…
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A Slew of July Fourth Memories.
Oh you guys. You know July Fourth is my favorite holiday. And I’m not home writing now and typing this post – I’m embracing internet-less good times at The Farm in Virginia. And I’m sure I will return with photos too many and stories too much. But – right now I’m just giving you a little weekend reading. I’m linking up as many July Fourth posts as I can find and more than you probably want to see. Here you go ….. The one with London in a red cowboy hat and Piper making pouty toddler faces. The one with a picture when we tried to create a Camp Fourth…
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When a Sport Inspires a Song.
It’s everywhere. In every pub and the subject of every person’s social media status. It’s in our living room. World Cup Soccer. We aren’t exactly sports fans. Kevin doesn’t own an orange jersey and I cannot name more than two current football players. I get ridiculed for not more thoroughly embracing the Olympics and this house boasts no favorite sports team of any variety. But World Cup. It’s different somehow. Kevin played soccer in both high school and college. This is the first time soccer has been available on our home screen, thanks to Apple TV. It’s been fun. We’ve all jumped on board and cheered on this game over the last…
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It’s winner time!
I confess. My track record here is poor. I think I was late on announcing an earlier giveaway. Can you guys ever forgive me? I sure hope so. I was busy today – taking the kids on an early morning guided bird walk with an expert ornithologist. Watching World Cup Soccer. Watching my friend teach the kids how to make those fun old school friendship bracelets. You know – stuff. (Sounds like I spent my day mostly watching other people do cool stuff. That’s probably accurate.) At any rate. There IS a lucky winner of Jo’s fabulous giveaway. And that person is ……. Angel! Angel – you are the winner! Congratulations!…
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The Slack Line.
Last Christmas (Wait. Was that seriously six months ago already?) our kids’ main Christmas present was a zip line. It’s been jolly good fun. That gift was part of a concentrated effort to make our yard Fun. We want our kids to play outside. And we want our kids’ friends to want to be out there too. With those thoughts driving us, Kevin also purchased a slack line. A slack line is just basically a nylon strap that you cinch between two trees and then you try to walk across the nylon strap – tight rope style. Wild and crazy people string them very high and even attempt stunts from the slack line.…
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what I actually hope for my children …
“I just want my children to be happy.” “Follow your heart.” “What’s your passion?” There’s a lot of advice we give and we get – as parents and as humans – that is actually really bad advice. Really bad advice. I think following your heart and finding your passion and pursuing personal happiness rank right up there with the worst. (Even though it sounds so good.) I tell our children, “I’m not hoping for your happiness. I’m not staking my hope in that. Follow Jesus. Not yourself. Follow truth. And sometimes you might find that it makes you happy. And sometimes you will find that it does not.” Happiness is…
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Phoebeflock: A Giveaway!
You guys. I have this plethora of talented friends and family members and framily members. I’m so lucky! And you all are about to be so lucky too. Let’s talk about my friend Jo. Jo makes things. She sews. She sews beautiful things. Quilts. Napkins. Banners. Fabric art. Headbands. She created some curtains for our house. London “hired” her to craft a cloak – Lord of the Rings style. We use Jo-crafted cloth napkins at our meals. I wear headbands made by Jo. You can tell – I’m a big fan. Jo art hangs in the living room. And in the dining room. Our kids wear precious crowns crafted…
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Sunday Morning In The Seats
The first few weeks of summer our Sunday mornings run a little differently. Our church takes a break in their children’s programming at both the beginning and the ending of summer. I think it’s great for the faithful in-the-trenches-every-week kind of volunteers our church is blessed with. They need a bit of breathing room as the school year finishes. The timing is wise and thought out and I am glad it’s there. This break from KidStuff requires us to change our family morning worship time. Which we probably needed the kick in the pants to do anyway. Normally we head to church together, ride in the car together, walk in…
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I know, son.
Whilst in a store with my nine year old son …. “Bergen, can you please settle down? Maybe stop leaping down the aisle?” His blonde head pauses briefly in its movement. “Okay, Mom. I can try. But it isn’t in my nature.”
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The Summer Screen Blues
It is full on summer now – right? I mean, I think summer really begins according to the calendar this weekend. But – seriously – the temperatures are in the nineties this week and we haven’t seen school in days upon days. So – it’s summer. For the past few days – when we’ve been home – I’ve found myself wiling away an hour or two here and there sitting in front of this blasted little screen. And I’ve been growing increasingly disgusted with myself. The kids will be upstairs – engulfed in full blown Lego world oblivion. My chores are mostly caught up and so – like the proverbial moth to a flame…
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being affectionate. naturally.
I am not, by nature, wildly affectionate. I’m not a hand patter. I don’t walk up behind you and give you a shoulder massage. (Unless you are my husband.) I’m not likely to hug you when I first meet you. I am not like my mother in this respect. (She hugged everyone she met. Every friend I ever brought home could expect a hug upon entrance to her home.) I fell into my dad’s pattern – more physically reserved. But something is changing my non-affectionate ways. It’s called mothering. It has been both intentional and non-intentional. Becoming a mother certainly expanded my heart to degrees of which I have not…
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now available for you ….
I’ve watched Kevin’s hands with pencil in place for decades. Just over two of them now, in fact. I love his art. His style has really grown and morphed during these years. I’ve witnessed him engage in the struggle of The War of Art or The War with Art. And he has come out on another side and he’s a better artist for the battle and his art is better for the struggle. He’s often experimenting with how the art gets from his mind and his fingers to anyone else in real life. So – a bit of Kevin’s work is right now available at Society 6 – a website marketplace…
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Summer Days
Ah. Sweet summer days. These are good ones. Days to sleep in. Days to discover that the blackberries growing wild in the pasture are sun-ready and ripened to deliciousness. Days to take those delicious blackberries and create an afternoon reading time snack of berries and cream. (We all decided it was practically health food from the earth. Berries wild from the field. Cream whipped from whole milk sweetened slightly with maple syrup tapped from a tree for goodness sake.) Days to be overwhelmed with surprise when your Daddy comes home from a meeting bearing good gifts – personal watermelons for every kid. A literal dream come true. (Right. My kids…
