Yeah, Yeah.....I know.......

Making some big changes on the old homeschool front around here, so I've been up to my eyeballs in schedules and curricula. Race is gone, so all the baseball stuff has still got me on the run as well.

It's busy, man........REAL busy.

SO busy, in fact that today at 2:15.........our scheduled departure time......found me opening up the running dishwasher to retrieve the washing, crock- pot innards. With my purse slung over my arm and my big sunglasses aready on my face, I was ripping the skin off of the chicken thighs like some sort of deranged Food Network wannabe. It was really disturbing. And gross.

But, on the bright side, within 4 minutes I had de-skinned a pack of chicken thighs, dumped them into the crockpot and then dumped in tomatoes, jalapenos, black beans,mushrooms, onions , salt, pepper and red wine. I even remembered to turn it on!! Back in the door at 6:00 and wa-lah! I added brown rice, steamed broccoli, and baked multi-grain rolls. So.......ya know....all craziness aside............Yay Me. Super mom slammin the good food on the table.

Now......onto stranger things.

O.K.- On this message board that I frequent, there were some posts about modest swimwear. Now, typically this is a pretty well balanced board. The topic of modesty ran on for awhile and several people thought that they.....the mothers as well as their daughters.....should wear modest swimwear so as not to cause the male population to falter. Here are the swim suits in question:

First of all....I say.......... NO WORRIES. Mission Accomplished.


Secondly, Someone please keep a life preserver within reach in case either of these gals accidently falls off that diving board. Seriously.........HOW could you SWIM in that????

HOW??? You'd sink like a rock. Or be tangled like some poor dolphin in a fishermans net.

Save your $$ and swim in your clothes. You'll attract less attention and it'd be cheaper.

Hey, how about this one?



What the hell is that??? What's that you see out there Sylvia?


I think I'm gonna go with something from Athleta. Different strokes, I guess.

And at almost 39, if I can make men think of anything other than gouging their eyes out......... Well then, good on me.

Cheers!

Well...that was quick!

Crabtree Falls Virginia

I can't believe that it's Sunday already!!

Well, we had a super busy week, but the weekend made it all worth-while. We went camping again. We had such an amazing time! We went to a spot that Race and I have been going to since we first began dating in college. And it is still just as great as it was back then!

It always amazes me how the term "camping" means so many different things to so many different people. I thought that I would show you how we camp. We've been camping this way since before Austin was born and the only thing that's really changed is the quality of our gear and how much food we bring with us!!

This is a really special place for us up at Crabtree Falls. Isn't it beautiful? And the river is teeming with trout!

This is how we camp:

The first thing that we do is choose a place to camp. This is always scary. We don't do campgrounds much, so we do the off-road camping thing. Race always picks out the spot and then eases my precious-life-sustaining suburban down steep ravines and over gigantic river rocks that make me constantly spew helpful comments like, "Are you sure that we can get back in here?" and "Do you think that we can get back outta here?" and the even lesser appreciated, "Oh CRAP! what are you doing? You're going to kill us all!!"

But after this little excercise, we arrive safely to our campsite. Time to unload and set up. Now, one of the best things that Race ever did was to buy each of the kids their own, private, one-man tents and show them how to put them up, take them down, and care for them. It makes camp set up a snap!

Here, you can see Jack heading to the river with his net to scoop up bountiful treasures. He is walking past Austin and Savannah's tents already set up...off to themselves, mind you...so that they can blast the ipod over A's speakers. (Ahhhhhhhhhhh.......camping with TEENS) Luckily we all share pretty much the same tastes in music.....so....ROCK On!Here you see Austin running away from his embarrassing, camera-slinging mother. The indignity of it all.

Anyway this also shows what camp looks like after it's set up. The wood has been gathered by the slave children, ready for burning in the fire pit to your left. The ginormous appetites of the slave children that we bring along force us to use the fire pit and the little grill simultaneously, for cooking. The orange tent belongs to Race and myself. We LOVE this tent!! But more on that later.

Jack set his tent up right beside us for safety and crowd control reasons. Then Savannah and Jackson headed to the river for a swim, while Austin got the fire started in the pit.And can you blame them? How fun does that look? Wading out through the rapids like that!

A shot of boyhood bliss. (sigh)Isn't this just a beautiful spot?? We really LOVE it up here.

Tune in tomorrow for more of the hot topics and how-to's of tent camping.....including " What's a Cat Hole?" and "Why does my mate keep crawling on me?"

Cheers!

Melissa

Camping and Kayaking

SO, we've been trying to fit in a little outdoorsy stuff. Don't get me wrong- what with school, baseball, martial arts, art class and the upcoming vocal instruction....we've still got a lot going on. But if you've been reading here for any time at all, you'll know that this family CRAVES to be outside. Race and Austin went kayaking the other day. Jack had ball practice that morning, so while Race had Jack at practice Austin got the kayaks loaded, strapped down and all the pfd's and paddles in the suburban. When race and Jack got back, we headed out. And as I was kayak taxi, I got the opportunity to snap a few pictures of the "put in" and "take out".

Below, Race and Austin get their kayaks ready to hit the water.



The water was high from all the rain that we've had lately.That, coupled with the small water fall just above where they put in, made the water foamy that day.The skies were threatening rain, but the guys decided to take their cell phones and head out anyway. After seeing the guys off, Savannah and Jack and I ran a few errands and then headed back home. late in the afternoon, Race called to tell me what the ETA was for them at the pick-up point. So we headed out to pick em' up. It is really a beautiful area, teeming with water birds of all types as well as the occasional muskrat. We love just hanging out here waiting for the kayakers to come around the bend.Eventually, we saw them coming around the corner. The rain had started, but not much more than a drizzle. From put in to take out it's about 15 miles. There are a few rapids, but nothing huge. With the water level up, they made it in a few hours. Right up onto land!And of course, this presents a perfect opportunity for the little brother in the group to try out his own kayaking skills.
We've also been camping. Minus Austin, however. He was at a "MODGNIK" retreat with the church youth group. Have you ever heard of "MODGNIK"? It's "KINGDOM" spelled backwards.And as far as I can tell it's a bunch of church youthgroups that get together and they participate in things like rock climbing, tackeling a huge ropes course, swimmimg, and of course the obligatory singing at times. Austin could do without that last part.....but he had an awesome time none the less. So the rest of us went camping. We had a blast, but unfortunately Jack had my camera the whole time. When Jack has the camera, he takes pictures of Savannah mostly. That's because she HATES it. I mean she HATES to have Jack take her picture. So most of the pictures look like this: This was right before she knocked Jack in the head and the camera fell out of his hand.He also likes to take a lot of pictures of Scout:
He also, looks less than thrilled to have his photo taken.



Here, he has captured his mother, showing the more "serious" side of camping. But still managing to capture both dogs and his own tent in the background.

And the fire. He always takes pictures of the fire.
So, that's what's been going on here.

Cheers!

Melissa

hairy monkey arms.......

Remember when I told you about my gaw-ge-ous dress that I got for the wedding? Beautiful, right? I LOVE it. I would wear this dress everyday if I could.

But you know, a special occasion like this wedding doesn't come along every day, so it requires a gal to do a little more "polishing" than usual, ya know? The nails and the pedicure are really just the begining.

Let's talk hair removal, gals.

Forgive me for being candid for a moment, but lets face it ladies, I am dangerously close to 40 years old and hair removal has become of paramount importance. I do it like it was a full time job. The waxing, tweezing, shaving... at various times,I hit it all. I log in some serious hours.I have a schedule. (Incidently, all you just-turned-30's.....write it down. You heard it here first.)

So here's the thing:
The dress is arm-bearing.
Now, I think that we can all agree that nothing says, "I'm a freak-hermit with no life", like hairy, monkey arms protruding from a lovely silk dress. Nevermind that the hair is blonde (thank-you Lord)...it still looks like a boy I sat next to in 5th grade. I used to stare disgustingly at his bushy, blonde haired arms during reading group. Ew.

I digress.

I was running short on time. We were frantically cleaning up from Easter,unpacking the kids from Mom and dads, unpacking Race from his trip, and PACKING for Florida the next day. So I figured I'd take a short cut on the arm hair. Just before I got into the shower I spread my arms with Neet. Nice and thick. 3 minutes go by.
Ouch......is it supposed to be painful???
Oh well, many hair removal methods are painful, so....no biggie.
I step into the shower.
OUCH! Damn it. That HURTS! I don't think it's supposed to hurt like that.

When I get out of the shower, I gingerly dry my arms and as I examine them I see that they are indeed, hair free. Unfortunately, they are also completely covered from shoulder-to-wrist in painful blisters and large red splotches!

Race looks at me incredulously. He's speechless.

I dress myself, trying hard not to cry out as the sleeves of my shirt rest on my raw, red appendages.

The Wedding is day after tomorrow.
Ah..yes....nothing says "I'm a strung out, needle-using drug addict" like blistered, raw, splotchy arms protruding from a lovely,silk dress.

I wimper to myself while slathering on aloe and hoping for the best.

While driving my 1/2 the next day, I had to hold my arms in a certain position on the steering wheel and keep the air on full blast, blowing on my arms in order to keep them from bursting into flames. Jack, of course wanted to know, "MOM! WHat HAPPENED to your ARMS!!?" The answer probably didn't move me very far up the intellectual ladder for him.

That night, in the hotel,I examined the damage again. Well, the blistering looked better, but unfortunately the rest of my arm looked as if I had been in a really bad skateboarding accident. That's right: Road Rash. I slathered the aloe on, once again. It was on so thick that my arms were green and slimy.

So there I was, in some nameless hotel room with my slimy, green arms laying motionlessly on the outside of the covers for the entire night.......I must not be touched. My wings of flame could not bear it.

The next morning Race got us up early to get on the road. I was less than sunny in my disposition that morning, and I let him know about it on several occasions. As I sat in the passengers seat, he returned from checking us out. He opened my door and handed me some coffee as he tried to divert his eyes from my hideous stumps. "Thank-you for the coffee" I said coldly. "What do you want me to do?" I asked. "Nothing, babe. You don't have to do anything" He said speaking in a voice like you would use for the mentally deranged. "You don't have to do anything, just sit there and look hot like you always do", he cooed. He stepped back and grabbed the edge of the door to close it and added, "And don't speak for the rest of the trip". And he closed the door. *grin*

The Wonderful Magical Aloe Vera saved my life.

By the time of the wedding, the pain was completely gone, and the road rash not very noticable. Of course had anyone stroked my arm, it would have felt like heavy grade sandpaper, but....you know....no one did. And after a few drinks I didn't even remember about my awful monkey arms.

So I don't know what the moral of this story is. Can you think of one?
Don't rush hair removal?.......... Is that a moral?

Do you ever wonder if he's just hideously ugly??

CHEERS!!!

Melissa

Weddings and Gators........

Congratulations Ronnie and Katie! After the wedding and all the visiting, it was on the road heading north.



We took the kids to the Okefenokee Swamp. Here one can get up close and personal with the snakes and gators. Being from Virginia, gators have always been just the coolest thing for us.







My dad was from Georgia and he and my mom took me and my sisters to the swamp eons ago, when we were just kids. We rented a jon boat and went into the swamp. (A brave man to take my mom and 3 little girls deep into gator country...) My sisters and I were simultaneously mesmerized and terrified as my dad slapped the top of the water with a paddle to make the gators come up. And up they came. Ahhhhh!!!! That boat got small really fast.




So, naturally, I wanted to give my children the same terrifying experience.







I must say that the gators were actually BIGGER than I remembered. It seems that the jon boats are no longer available. You have a choice: Take the guided 30 min motor boat tour or rent canoes and go it alone. So what's it gonna be? Wimpy boat tour for babies and blue hairs........or will you find out what you're made of?







We paid $$ and were given a hastily sketched map of the swamp.



We made our way down a small dock, where we came to a sort of make shift office with all sorts of pictures taped up on it. Pictures of gators...........lots and lots of gators. As we grabbed our life jackets and canoes, the old guy helping us kept saying, "Naw, naw, you'll do jest fine.....you ain't gotta worry about no gators........and you cain't get lost..............jest stay in the water and you'll do jest fine". And just as we were stepping into our canoe at the dock........we saw this guy. Swimming up right by our inlet. (gulp)The only other people in the park were all waiting for the tour on the other side of the river. They were all just watching us . I tried to look brave. "heh, heh....do it all the time, folks."We got our paddles and we were off. The last thing that the old guy called out to us was, "Try and be back by 4:30!!!"



Ummm......it's 12:00..........AHHHHHHHHHHHHhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!!!!
Savannah and Austin were in front of us. We were off.

We never saw another soul the entire time we were out. It was so incredibly quiet. And take a look at that water. It literally plays tricks on your eyes. The water is so dark that it is a perfect mirror, and unless your paddle..........or something else........is going through it...it is perfectly still.It was just as beautiful as I remembered it when I was a kid. I was so busy taking it all in that I almost didn't spot this big mama. She was laying out on the bank sunning herself. She had a few babies that were nearby. Now. I was super excited to see this big gator . ANd I thought that we were going to have to strap Jack down into the boat with the straps from our life vests. Jackson has grand visions of becoming the next Steve Irwin and I have NO DOUBT that if we had let him, he would have been out of that canoe in one heartbeat.I was so busy taking it all in that I almost didn't spot this big mama. She was laying out on the bank sunning herself. She had a few babies that were nearby. Now. I was super excited to see this big gator . ANd I thought that we were going to have to strap Jack down into the boat with the straps from our life vests. Jackson has grand visions of becoming the next Steve Irwin and I have NO DOUBT that if we had let him, he would have been out of that canoe in one heartbeat. You can see here that we have eased up on her. I am the one taking the pictures, and I didn't zoom in here. You can see her eye already on us.
This was plenty close enough for me. But Ohhhhh....Noooooo.......we have to paddle CLOSER. I swear if that thing had ONE move, I'd have walked on top of the water to get away. I kept pleading with Race, "O.k, O.k, I don't wanna go any closer"...followed by my hoarse whisper, "STOP!" All the while, Jack is saying "Why can't we get closer?", Can I get out of the canoe?", Can we just paddle over there (pointing to a nearby bank) so that I can get out and try to get closer to her?"

Before we were out of there, we saw this big fella. He didn't mind us at all. He was only concerned about soaking up the sun. But just look how BIG he is!
When we got back we turned in our canoes to the same old guy, and took a look around the park. I asked about the old gator "Oscar". He had been a fixture around there forever and he was already old when my sisters and I had visited. Imagine my surprise to learn that "Oscar" had just passed away last year! But you know what? As it was related to me:
" They wanted $40,000 to mount him....and we said nuh-uh. NO WAY. So, we took him out back and skinned him and let the bugs and things clean the bones.......and now we're boilin' em and puttin' em' back together in a nice disply over in the museum."

And sure enough. I went to the museum, and there was PART of "Oscar's" skeleton.....the other bones were still being boiled and cleaned.

I can tell you in all honesty that the tiny, one room museum that was there has the EXACT same exhibits that it did when my sisters and I were there as children. No, I mean it. It's like it had been sealed off for all those years. I felt like I was the first person to enter it since that time. EVERYTHING was the same..........only older..........and dustier. I loved it!!!!!! It was a great trip. I can't wait to tell you a few of our stories from the road.

And now I leave you with this:

Only in the state of Georgia can a boy get a picture taken of himself like this: For Jack....this made it all worth it. Great stuff!

Easter pics

I have none.

O.k, I do have a few. But they're nothing.......compared to these that my sister took SO just go over there and look at those. Then come back here and tell me what a beautiful job I did with the whole Easter dinner thing. Not kidding. Come back here and tell me how pretty it all is, o.k.?

Seriously, I LOVE to have my family here. It is a magical time when I get to hear things like,
Mom: "Melissa, I hope that you don't mind me sweeping your floor...I'm just trying to keep busy."

*Silence*

Me: "BWAHAHAHAHA!!! "(Seriously...how long can you stay???)

And my trash is magically taken out to the can outside(By my dad). And Y'all KNOW what a big huge deal the whole trash thing is for me.

One of my sisters not only takes amazing photographs of every event, but also really appreciates all the food.


My other sister always comes in her with her whole brood and then the party really gets started.

I LOVE having everyone here. ANd with race being gone so much, times like this are really special to myself and the kids. So go take a look at our wonderful Easter celebration.

Cheers!
Melissa

Race's Family

I am working on a few pictures to post from our "happening's" lately, but it's slow going.

I always post all about my own wonderful family. They are such an incredible blessing in our lives.
But today, I thought that I'd take a minute to post about some of Race's family that we got together with. We only get to visit these folks every 5+ years or so. Regretably, the annual photo Christmas card is about as much contact as we manage in between these visits.
We drove out to the "Middle- of- Nowhere- Central- Florida", which if you've ever been to Central Florida is hard to find, unless you know where to look. The entire area is packed with urban sprawl, with only bits of it marked off for some beautiful national treasures and large horse farms. We drove out far, beyond all this, to a land of dry, dusty, paths and vast networks of interconnecting railroads.
Even though we haven't communicated with this part of Race's family for so long, it was beautifully striking how much it seemed as if we had all just spoken yesterday. These people welcomed us into their homes with so much open generosity that it really warmed our hearts. These families are no strangers to tough times and they're proud of what they have worked for. They shared it with us in true hospitality.
As Race and I thought back on the visit it was as if God was thumping us in the head, trying to teach us something. These folks love us unconditionally. They pray for us. They pray for Race. They doted on our "beautiful" children. They are content with what they have and happy to share that with us. But what meant the most, was to have the men pull Race aside before we left and tell him how proud they were of him. They thanked him for the work that he does for our country. They told him how proud they were to have him carry on the family name. They made an impression that will not be forgotten. Race was overwhelmed.
This was all such a blessing. It awakened us to the responsibilities that we have neglected in keeping in touch with this part of the family. Race is very fortunate to have roots like this and we intend to do much more to connect our own children with these people so that they too can reap the benefits of such wonderful folks.

Cheers!
Melissa

Family, family, family.......

We had an awesome Easter with my family. I haven't been home long enough to download my pictures, yet. But I can't wait to show them to you.

A couple of days later, I got to pick up Race at the airport. (Excited squeal!!!) ANd THEN.....1 day later, we were in the suburban headed to Florida. We were on our way down to celebrate the wedding of a really special nephew to really special girl. That nephew, Ronnie, is probably one of the very few things that could have pulled Race away from home again so soon. They have always had a really special bond. When Race was in highschool and football was his life, he would haul Ronnie everywhere with him. It wasn't unusual to see this little guy in his baby carrier, down at the gym, while Race was working out. They were inseperable, from early on.

When Race and I were married, Ronnie was our Jr. Groomsman. So it was no surprise that Race got all teary-eyed as he watched Ronnie say his own wedding vows. He was so proud of that kid!

The wedding was beautiful, and the reception was a blast. We all laughed, danced, and visited long into the night.

Today, we got to visit with lots of Race's family. Some very special people who welcomed us so warmly into their homes. And that's a whole other post that I am looking forward to writing.

And we're still here!! We are headed back home tomorrow.....But not before we take the kids out to the Okeefenoke Swamp. A reptile lovers mecca. So after we've had our fill of gators and snakes..................we're headed back home.

Cheers!!
Melissa

AWWWWWWwww.....

He's HERE!

Congratulations to Dy, Zorak, James, John, Jacob and Emily...............And "Welcome" Jason Thomas!

Oh, who can blog?

What with poor Dy laboring away at home, WHO CAN BLOG????? Are you constantly checking her blog for an update? I was always so completely impatient with my deliveries, but she handles it all in stride. When I talked to her the other night, it reminded me how long I've been reading her blog. It was through her blog that I met her. Our families got together. She and Zorak know my mom and dad. My sisters. Everyone. I am really and truly excited to watch this family grow. Dy and Zorak are like the perfect couple in that they are comfortable in their own skin and it makes them and their children a joy to be around. Dy, we love you and we're thinking about you. Sending lots of prayers your way.

Melissa

Homeschool Yuppie Mommie

I have taken time out from planning my own funeral to use the only voice that I have left.

You see, the anonymous comment below got me to thinking. Could it be?

Could the stigma that has so long plagued the poor homeschool mom be lifting??

The homeschool mom has long been associated with a certain......."look". You know the one I of which I speak. She is content to don one of a handful of long jumpers that reach to her shins. She has one of 2 different hairstyles: either a tight perm, or the loooonnng, untouched down to "there" hair. I could go on....it's all been very well defined and I'm afraid well documented.

So, I'm just saying........maybe we're turning a corner here girls!!! Maybe the NEW homeschool mom will drive a suburban..(you still gotta haul all those kids around)...maybe she will be dressed in a more "Gap-ish" way. Maybe she'll have an AWESOME, big, leather tote and a fresh haircut. I dunno.....it's possible...right?

I mean I couldn't be the poster girl or anything, because I also still have to haul my own garbage and drive the Scalded Dog each week:



Still.......I'm just sayin'......


(shrug)I dunno, it could all just be my fevered brain. You see, my sister has put a curse on me. She has cursed me with illness because I didn't like the baby name she picked. I know, I know.......I should know better......and I do. But still, shouldn't she use her power for good?? Shouldn't she?

Cheers!
Melissa

*cough*, *cough*, *hack*, *hack*.......

O.K. I admit it. I AM SICK.

I rarely get ill, but I am really sick. BLECH.

The minute I felt it coming on, I made myself a huge pot of chicken noodle soup and that's all that I've eaten for the last couple of days. ANd tonight, I can honestly say that I'm no worse. So......I must be getting better.

This is a REALLY bad week for me to be sick. Race is gone and there are ball practices, ball games, art classes and martial arts.

Oh- and did I mention Easter? I LOVE Easter because the whole family comes to my house to celebrate it. But as I look around me I am struck by just how....UN- CELEBRATORY the house looks at this moment. The cushions are all off the sofa(started washing the covers the other day...not sure where they are at the moment), the floors haven't been swept. And on my dining table...the would be heavenly mecca of all things spring-like and Easter,.. I see a coat hanger, a can of compressed air, an unfinished art project, several school books, various cd's, and a rock. (sigh) But I'm still ultra excited about Easter and I think that i still have time to pull it all together.

Oh- and did I mention that THE DAY that Race flies in we are all driving to the Sunshine State for a wedding. WAIT. FLorida IS the sunshine state, isn't it?? Is it? Or does it have something to do with oranges??? O.K., anyway we're driving to Florida for a wedding that we are SUPER excited about!!!

But the suburban.....she wants new tires and an oil change and new brake pads. And y'all know how I am with the whole mechanic/garage thing. It freaks me out.It's like a world that I am not allowed to understand. An alien planet.( Every garage I attend (attend?) has a token moped-driving, trash-picker-upper, who is JUST.NOT.RIGHT. And this trash-picker-upper always really takes a fancy to me.I'm like a magnet.(shudder)) And why do they keep the mechanics behind that window? And they just keep sort of passing by and peering out. It's all very zoo-like. I just sit there clutching my handbag really close to me and bouncing my knee up and down. Frightening. And I've gotta do that tomorrow.

But more importantly....THE WEDDING. This is a really nice wedding, and we could not be more thrilled for the bride and groom. The groom is our nephew and he is marrying a really beautiful, sweet girl, whom we love. So we're excited........and I need a perfect dress.......and did I mention I'm sick???

I dragged us all to the orthodontist and to the magical, suburban-dvd-player-fixer guy. Then after dropping the boys at martial arts ,Savannah and I went to the J Crew Clearance store. I hacked and coughed as I gathered dresses to try on. Amazingly, the other ladies parted as I headed to the dressing room. After dress #6, I lost Savannah and she went to the car to wait. My worn-out cowboy boots and jeans lay on the floor while I pulled on dress after dress, all the while sniffling and coughing. The dressing room was a mess with hangers and piles of silks and cottons.

But it was oh-so worth it! I emerged from that dressing room, clutching VICTORY in my hands as I stumbled to the register with my plastic already out of my wallet and held high.

In the immortal words of the Beatles: "Here comes the sun!" (doodle,do-do) We watched A.I tonight.

I got THIS dress!!!!!!!! OH YEAH!!!! A beautiful medium weight silk, fully lined and beautifully tailored. Oh-and this dress is $195 in the catalog right now.............my price????

50 BUCKS!!!!!!! Wa-hooooooo!!!!!!!!!!!

Now. Could someone please direct me to some stunning T-strap shoes to wear with this dress? I've gotta go find the couch covers before the family comes.

Cheers!

Melissa

A few photos.....

I have a few photos for you tonight. The first,is for L.B. It is Savannah's first acrylic painting. She did it in about 2 hours from a photograph that was given to her in class. She is really looking forward to the next class. She really loves anything to do with art and she also finds it totally cool hanging out with her Aunt Thom. (For the record, if I had been given the same photo at the beginning of a class I would have collapsed on the desk and cried.) This next shot is from a photo that she took in England. Now, when she took it, it looked nothing like that.

We had come upon a sheep carcass and Jack had to examine it thoroughly. He asked Savannah to take a picture of it. She took the original photo and turned it into this:

How cool!


These next photos are from dinner tonight. (No, you get no segway. Just sheep skull-to-dinner.)

I fixed a huge pile of steamed mussels. SO EASY. I sauteed onions and lots of garlic. Then added about 1/4 cup of chardonnay and as soon as it was boiling, I added the mussels. After about 4 minutes....dinner is served. We had toasted Italian bread w/ bruschetta to round it out. YUM!




Now, I haven't been feeling so hot today, so I am taking proactive measures against any sickness that may be trying to manifest itself. We went to church and as soon as we got home, I fed everyone lunch and then went to lay down!(Totally wierd for me.) I have a sneaking suspicion that it has more to do w/ my lack of sleep than anything else. Sometimes I just worry, in spite of myself ,about Race. So, I am going to try to catch up on some zzzzz's tonight.

Thanks for stopping by!
Cheers!
Melissa

Spring flowers

Isn't this pretty?

Every time I have been to England, I am struck by the varieties of flowers that they pair together.It is so different than what you typically see in the U.S. I tried to copy some of that here using plants that do well in my area. The planters are the dark grey "stone look" kind. They are planted with purple violas, yellow tulips and ivy. I really like the way that they turned out. I have 2 of these so I set them on either side of the steps leading up the front porch. I set these out a week ago, and they've done just fine in the cold nights.

I can't get the blogger picture upload to cooperate tonight, so this is the only picture that I could get to post.

Today I picked up two different shades of a variegated evergreen for a backdrop against our deck. I plan to fill the entire area in front of the evergreens with loads of perennials. I also picked up a pretty good sized Carolina Jasmine vine for another spot in front of the deck. The flowers smell wonderful and I am hoping to have it climb along the deck. ANd again, I will plant loads of perennials in front of it.
Anniesue, I have no imagination at all myself, so I look at gardens that I like, and I try to copy them. I don't always achieve what I want the first time out, but I am finding that I am learning a lot along the way! Anything that I can't figure out, I always call Janelle or my mom and they have an answer.
What sort of spring planting or planning have you been doing?

Cheers!
Melissa

Just a recap......

My Lil' Sis has some very exciting news, so be sure to go over and check that all out. The whole family is so excited!!!

I didn't do too badly on my new schedule today. I hit the treadmill early before everyone was up. Then it was breakfast and schooling till lunch.I got my lifting in while the kids ate lunch. I ran Savannah out to meet Thom for an acrylics art class. I ate lunch when I got back home and everyone worked on finishing up school work till 2. Austin had a baseball game 1 hr away. We didn't get back home till 8:45 pm. A special thanks to Thom for letting Savannah hang out with her today while we were at the game. You wouldn't BELIEVE the painting and photographs that Savannah came home with. Her natural artistic talent never ceases to absolutely STUN me. Thanks Thom!

To round out the day, we also got an email from Race to let us know that everything was O.K with him.

So all in all it was a great day. The kids are all in the bed, and I'm about to check out what's on TIVO and then hit the sack myself.

G'night!
Melissa

Outdoors!

I can't believe that it is Wednesday already! It's been a busy week. Austin has started baseball and Jack will have his first practice sometime this week. Race is gone, but it should be a kind of short trip, so we are thankful for that and we're already counting the days till he returns.

With baseball season upon us, and the oldest not quite through "behind the wheel" in drivers ed, my days to work outside are limited.But today was so gorgeous outside that we just had to get out in it for awhile. We had picked up some new rakes at Lowes awhile back, so the kids EACH had a rake, and we got the yard and drive cleaned in no time at all. Jackson had taken as much "junk" as he could find from behind our shed and had piled it up "just so",covered it with a giant tarp, and made it a new fort. This made our side yard look like "Sanford &Son". I lived with it as long as I could, but today Lamont had work to do and we got it all back in order. Honestly!

Then it was on to the vegetable garden. I got half of it tilled and I feel pretty good about the way that it's looking. The dirt looks richer every year and it will be ready for planting after I add in some more compost.

Now don't even get me started on the flower beds. After that trip to England my mind is positively REELING with ideas. Ivy, people! NEED. MORE. IVY!!!!! But anyway, all my perenials are coming up and I think that what I DO have should look pretty this year.

Tonight my goal is to sit down and figure out a new schedule for myself. My work-outs have been sporadic at best, and that just ain't gonna cut it. So tonight I sit down with the calendar and try to figure it all out. Weeeeeeee!

Thanks for checking in,
Cheers!
Melissa

Oh,My....

Can I blog about dinner?Can I? Cause we had an amazing dinner tonight. You see, we are a family of seafood lovers. We LOVE it. Fixed every way imaginable. WE LOVE SEAFOOD.

Tonight, I fried oysters. A LOT of oysters. I only have one of those little Fry Daddy's so it took forever. BUT....it was SO worth it. I ended up setting the table with 2 large platters of golden fried oysters, a spinach salad, a loaf of warm artisan bread and a bottle of organic reisling.

They're gone people. ALL GONE.

Well,actually there's a little salad and wine left.

When I fry oysters I always use the "select" size and I bread them using House Autry's seafood breader.(Because that's what mom and dad use.) I bread them carefully, using the "one hand wet, one hand dry" method that my dad taught me back when I was growing up in the resturaunt business and I had to bread hundreds of onion rings. It works. No mess.

The dinner was scarfed down in no time with compliments for mom all the way around. And for the record, the organic reisling was absolutely DE-LISH and perfect with the mild taste of the oysters. (deep, satisfied sigh)

Race and I are going to settle in for a bit of 'Beowulf' on DVD. (I already saw it in the theatre in 3-D, so this will no doubt be a let down!)

I was going to blog about celebrating my mom's birthday, but Thom already did. ANd she's got better pictures. SO please go and read about our awesome family celebration. We Love that kinda stuff!!

G'night,
Melissa

The last of the England photos....

O.K. I thought that the slideshow might be easier to wrap up the whole trip. Looking at the photos makes me want to go back. Right NOW. Immediately.

So enjoy the photos. The trip was absolutely amazing and we are so thankful to have been able to go.

Hiking the Fells in England

The full screen version!

Keswick ..........

When we awoke the next morning, the wind was blowing rain in wild torrid sheets across the fells. The wind was in seemingly never ending huge gusts and it brought the rain against you like a wall. If you intend to travel in England, you have to be prepared for the weather. ANd we were.

We had a quick breakfast and coffee and headed into the small town of Keswick just 2 miles down the road. We went through many shops and loads of outdoor stores. There were dogs out with their owners everywhere and of course Jack would ask each person if it was ok if he pet their dog. These folks love their dogs and it shows in the animals. (I do believe one of the favorites was a British bulldog named "Clive". Jack just couldn't get enough of him!)The dogs are all well-behaved, on leashes and travel in and out of the stores and the tea rooms and pubs with their owners. We ate lunch at the "Strawberry tearoom". It is a lovely little shop that over looks the town center of Keswick.

On Saturdays there is a wonderful open-air market, so we went around to the white tents and stocked up on all fresh local groceries. Cheeses, fish,meats, poultry, eggs, a wide selection of fesh fruits, jams, and loads of baked goods. We made sure to include a dozen scones, fresh jam and a tub of clotted cream. Everything was out in the open and there wasn't a bit of shrinkwrap anywhere in the town! By the time we were finished in town we had also acquired a bottle of wine, fresh baked bread, Yorkshire tea. By this time the rain had stopped and the wind was dying down a bit, so we headed home to try and get in some hiking before dark.

We went out the back door and hiked Brackenrigg Fells. It was a lovely hike and it really excited us for the next days adventure. The sheep roam all over these fells. You can see them way up on stony craggs as well as dotting the landscape in all directions. Jack found a sheep carcass, so of course it had to examined thoroughly. It was mostly bones at this point, but interesting to a 10 yr old boy nonetheless.

When we got back down off the fells, it was dark. I whipped up some dinner for us with fresh beef,sauteed onions, English peas and corn,and freshly baked bread. It was quick and still tasty!

The end of the night found us all in a high stakes poker game. High stakes if you count using matches as chips!! I was out in like.......3 hands. And after way too many hands to count Austin ended up winning. ANd still LATER a Jiu Jitsu match ensued between Race and Austin.......and Austin won that too.

It was a great day and a great evening. We all went to be to the muffled sounds of the wind and rain howling once again. Those stone walls are amazing for a good night's sleep!



Below is Race's NEW favorite outdoor store. (And I actually love it too, because there's a tea room upstairs. Brilliant!)