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Second Time ‘Round
Last year was our first ever Tybee visit. And we fell in love. So this summer we steered the Suburban (or “suh-burr-ven” as Piper calls it) southeast to see if, in fact, our family and Tybee were still a great fit. This year’s house was actually not that far from last year’s house. We stopped for ice cream at last summer’s favorite spot, Tradewinds, the first night – before our toes even touched the sea. Well. That was a little disappointing. Riley and Kevin’s favorite flavor – Savannah Mud – was sold out and the teenagers running the counter were bored, uninterested and seemed a bit burdened by our desire…
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Noonday Trunk Show
These Is My Words: A Book Review
she’s right, he knows her name.
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And we have now returned . . .
Last week we were at Tybee Island. This week we are not. (Although the eight pounds of sand piled on the laundry room floor makes me think perhaps we are.) Please allow me to list a few things I learned while on vacation. Last week I learned that limited internet access can be a good thing. It can be a very good thing. I learned that you can eat too much divinity from the Savannah Candy Factory. I was reminded (for the second time) that a protective UV lens filter on your camera can literally save the life of your lens when said camera is accidentally dropped on a tile…
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I Just Love This Story
There are a lot of things I love about where we live. You know. Pisgah’s beautiful forest. My sort-of-because-my-cousin-Sherry-once-explained-it-to-me relative Carl Sandburg’s house. Hendersonville. (What can I say? Its streets likes my feets!) Downtown Greenville. The vast and varied assortment of fellow homeschoolers. Incredible local theatre in every direction. Target is so much closer here than it was from our former home. All of those things are cool. But that’s not why I really love where I live. I love where I live because our family gets to regularly interact with an ever-changing group of God-fearing, God-loving college students known at our home as simply “summer staffers”. I’ve written about…
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hi.
this little moment.
Plus Plus (A Thanksgiving Version): A Timberdoodle Review
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goodbye
Goodbye Beth. Drive safely back to Kentucky. I will miss chatting with you this week, flopping on the sofa after the kids were finally in bed and watching DC Cupcakes and some show about Gene Simmons that was surprisingly entertaining, scooting around town seeing cool stuff and swimming (or standing) in the lake with our many many children. (Yeah, my many many children and your two. I know.) Goodbye Raven. London will miss talking late into the night with you, reading books with you, coloring mounds of papers covered in self-portraits and rainbows and dogs and horses, riding in cars together and just generally enjoying one another’s company. Mosely will miss…
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continued . . .
Today. Not everything on our list was accomplished. Tears were shed when someone’s head was sat upon and when someone’s neck was poked too hard by a plastic dragon and when someone felt sad that someone’s sister’s neck was injured by someone’s prized dragon and when bedtime arrived earlier than it seemed it should have. But, mostly, it was a fun-filled day with adventure and chaos, laughing and making memories. (And isn’t mostly just about as good as any of us can hope for? Particularly when you are talking about eight kids and two adults.) This morning we took in a Dino Trax show over at camp. This afternoon we…
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summer.
The summer season seems to be crashing to an end around here. Oh – the calendar still says August. The days are still sticky and hot. But the summer schedule is winding down. Camp ends this week. The School of Keigley will be back in session shortly. A beach trip is calling to us. (The countdown of days is written on the chalkboard.) I always have liked to cram things in at the last minute. I used to study for major college exams the night before. Too many papers were written hours before turning them in to the professor. Birthday cakes are often baked very late on the birthday eve.…
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a good way to spend a day
It’s a long walk (especially if your legs are only about two feet tall). And carrying your baby brother only adds to the heavy load. But the hike is always worth the effort when we reach the top and stand in front of one my favorite local spots. Connemara. The home of poet and writer Carl Sandburg. I just love this place. I like the rooms that are teeming with books that Sandburg touched, read and studied. I love the view from this house and smile just thinking about the poet sitting in his chair on the rocks being inspired by the same image. I love remembering that I actually…
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what do you think?
Do you think when e.e. cummings penned the word mudluscious he was thinking about something a little like this? Could there be a day more puddle-wonderful Mr. Cummings?
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More Kids Than Adults: Lessons Learned
I haven’t been home for a full week. Seven days. Seven nights. It’s July. And in our framily July means one thing. The annual July Fourth party. A tradition at least twenty years in the making. And – oh boy – will I have a lot of things to say about this past week. Here’s the first . . . Lots of us slept at the farm house. The grand total was something like this – 5 adults. 9 kids. (And some days held more children drifting in and out.) The point is – the adults were outnumbered. The kids could have thrown a coup and forced us to feed…
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Revisiting the River
And while I’m talking about the river. (DuPont State Forest – in the mountains of North Carolina. Worth the drive.) Here’s what we like about rivers, streams, creeks and flowing water in general. Wilder’s first ever experience walking in a stream. He liked it. He showed no fear. And he showed no concept of slick rocks and quick moving water, either. (That’s my boy! Here we go, son. Round Two for the Keigleys I guess.) Sticking the Nalgene bottle in the stream to keep it cool. Country refrigeration. (And this bottle glows in the dark. Which makes it even cooler. Bergen believes that having the bottle sit in…
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Location, Location, Location
They are right. Those cliche writers are right. Those real estate gurus know what they are talking about. It’s all about location, location, location. Today I served my kids a hodge podge, mostly boring though basically nutritious, type of lunch. But here’s the thing. They loved it. They devoured it. They thanked me for my offerings, meager though they were. They said everything was delicious. They asked for more. Literally, among six children, there was not even one complaint. And listen . . . . here’s what was on the menu. Peanut butter crackers. Raisins. Bananas. Applesauce. Grape juice. That is it. No fancy cups. We didn’t even have plates.…
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there & back
It is always late when I write this blog. And I am usually sleepy. But I might be even more sleepy than usual. Because I’ve been adventuring – you know? Against all odds, my pal and former college roomie Beth and I met together in the mountains of North Carolina for some Girl Adventures. I feel confident that I will revisit this experience in future posts, when I am less sleepy and it is less late. I happened to arrive at our rustic-chic resort before Beth and I found myself with some things I am not very familiar with. Alone time. Silence. Freedom of choice. (I know I will delve…
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a little bit of this
Honestly, I am just a little bit too busy right now to complete a full post tonight. What with a little bit of this in the morning and some of this in the afternoon and maybe a game or two of this in the evening. But don’t worry. This adventure ends soon and I will be back with all the details of said adventure. So until then hold your horses.
