From Preschool to Middle School

Kiara has one week left of elementary school. I can't believe she is about to become a middle-schooler!! Seems like yesterday I was taking her to preschool. She is certainly picking up all those preteen traits. I've dealt with children up through age 11 all through my teaching career, foster parenting, and helping w/ friends' kids... but this is a whole new territory for me. Pimples 'n boys 'n hormones 'n girl feuds 'n texting 'n drama 'n eye-rollin'. What's a mom to do? No, really... I mean it... what's a mom to do????

Kiara at age 3- sweetly and innocently holding a kitty.

Now at age 11 torturing our cat, Bo... at least it's a reprieve from torturing me!

Tractors

Tractors are a big deal in our small town. Last year we had a tractor parade that went down Main Street...


A few weekends ago, our Antique Shop hosted an Antique Tractor Show...

We don't have any fancy restaurants, theatres, or even a Walmart... but we do have us some mighty fine tractors!

Two Times in 2010

2010 isn't even half way over, and we've had the opportunity to go to the beach twice already! Is this a sign of a great summer ahead? I hope so! This last trip was over Spring Break where we stayed in my sister/brother-in-law's Myrtle Beach condo. Thanks, Eileen and Phil for lending us your vacation rental! You guys are awesome! Here are some picture highlights from our trip...

We were amazed at how many campers there were next door. This is one view from our window.

Kiara watched the fish and turtles in a pond on the complex of Myrtle Beach Resort.


Kiara and Paul look for treasures on the beach.


Paul relaxes after a good meal. (Just kidding! This was a baboon we saw at a local zoo. I loved the expression on his face. The back side of him made an interesting picture, too!!)

Beach Pictures

The girls focus intently on their DS game which refletcts onto their faces.

We see who's really in charge...

View from our balcony.

Friends forever.

The gang's all here at VA Beach.

Favorite family shot.

A Quick Hello

At my mom's now and thought I'd change the background on my blog. Tired of seeing those snowflake and opted for spring-like pastel polka-dots. I'm so ready for spring! Went to the beach last weekend with friends and hope she posts pictures on her blog so I can link to her site. My friend, Kim, just started her own blog so go on over and check it out sometime! (Just click on her name in the last sentence and it will bring you directly to her blog.)

Getting ready to watch a chick-flick with mom now. Gotta treasure those girl times whenever I can. Every moment is precious...

Pictures, Finally!

I don't know what I did to make my "add image" button finally work, but it did... so here are some pictures to post while I can. Who knows what will happen next time I try. Would add more but I have to leave for work now...

Snow Pics

My brother is helping me figure out why I can't post pictures from Blogger on my computer. It works fine from his laptop (see 2 pics below of my mom and him). He seems to think I might have a virus or maybe one of my settings is off. I'm hoping it's just a setting problem. We're still working on it. Technology is wonderful when it works!

February Snow

I know, I know... it has been a long time since my last post. I must admit I just lost the motivation for a while- but I'm back now! February has been a month of snow. Kiara has missed most of the last two weeks of school. Today (yes, Saturday) was supposed to be a make up day, but we got the call early this morning... closed again because of snow. Kiara is loving it. I wanted to post a picture of her sledding with her friends, but Blogger won't let me add images. It won't do anything when I click on the icons. I 'll have to try to figure it out later.

My sister-in-law, Joan, just headed back to New Jersey. We went down to Georgia last weekend for my brother-in-law's ordination as a deacon in the Catholic church. Paul stayed in Keysville to keep watch over the B&B and the store. It was a little strange going down without him, but, hey, they're my family too! Kiara likes hanging out with all her cousins, and she often brags about having 17 of them!

My brother has been staying with us lately as well. He is in town waiting to hear back from a job for which he interviewed. He may be moving from Florida back here... we'll see!

Time to start the day... finishing up my hot tea now and ready for a nice warm jacuzzi bath, then coziness by the fire. Snow days really aren't all that bad.

A White Christmas ???

The falling snow inspired me to try changing my background again. I managed to get something in with a little manipulating, but the blog edit buttons still aren't acting right. Good enough for now.

We are expected to get about a foot of snow tonight and tomorrow... and it MIGHT even stay around for Christmas! I can only remember one other white Christmas since I've been married, and it was the our very first one together back in 1989.

So, Kiara is off of school for two whole weeks. Yay!

We had a function (dinner for 18) scheduled for Monday night that is now cancelled b/c of the snow. This might be a relaxing holiday after all! I do have to work the part time job M, T, and W though... but they should be easy days.

Background Trouble

I've been trying to update my blog background to a winter theme, but everytime I go to edit I just get a beeping sound and it won't let me in. Anyone know what's going on? Until I figure it out, I will just have to keep it in the Fall decor.

Only 4 more days until Kiara's Holiday break begins. I'm not quite ready for Christmas yet. Have some shopping to do. Shouldn't take long, though, because we are on a tight budget this year.

The B&B has one function coming up... this Monday. 12-15 for a holiday dinner. Friends are coming this weekend. My brother leaves to go back to FL tomorrow.

Got my car stuck in mud yesterday-- and I mean really stuck. Paul had to pull me out w/ a tow line. It has been raining so much here that every bit of ground is a mud pit.

Hmmm, what else is new?? When I asked Kiara what I should post, she suggested I tell everyone that "the goats are doing fine". So... the goats are doing fine. LOL

Back on Land

We got back from our 9 day cruise on Monday! Can you believe we couldn't find our camera, so the only pictures I have are on my cell phone?? I need to get a cord to download them to my computer. We had a great time, although the weather wasn't always on our side. We had to miss one islad because the seas were too rough. Luckily, we had been to that one before on a previous cruise, so we already had that experience. This was the first time we'd sailed with Celebrity, and the one thing we noticed was that it was an older crowd. It was a quieter and slower paced cruise that we were used to, but we enjoyed the "down" time. The music on board was exceptional, and the shows were great, too. So now here we are-- back in reality.

Thanks to my mom, Kim, and Uncle Donald for taking care of our precious daughter while we were away!

My brother is in town for a while, and I'm looking forward to spending time with him during the holiday season.

How Times Have Changed

I haven't taken any pictures in a while and decided to go through old ones to see what I could post. I came across this one that my cousin sent me recently. It is of me holding her in a car when I was about 12 and she was just a toddler. Not only are neither of us buckled, but she isn't in a car seat. Remember the days when it wasn't a big deal to ride like this? In today's society, this would warrant a call to CPS!

Paul told me that once he and his 7 siblings were riding in their station wagon when the youngest (who was just a baby then) actually ROLLED out of the car while his dad was driving! Can you imagine? They turned the car around and picked him up unharmed, thanks to the tight bundling of clothing. I wonder what our kids will be critiquing when they get older and look back on how we parent today. Only time will tell...

November Already?

Looks like I didn't do too well posting in October. It was a busy month with B&B guests every weekend and a week-long training out of town for my new position, which BTW, started TODAY! I am now working part time as a Family Resource Specialist. I will be the one to screen first time moms in our 7 county area to determine what their needs are and to offer community referrals- one being home visitation services (if they qualify) which is what I was providing until today. I will also connect the community with our program participants through things such as church donations and Angel Tree at Christmas. So if you want to "adopt" a family this holiday season, let me know and I can hook you up!!

While in Richmond for training, I got to visit with some special friends and co-workers from my past "city life". If you were one of those who went out of your way to meet with me, thanks a bunch. I had a great time catching up!

The Antique Mall is slowing down a bit at the weather gets cooler. I have been spending most of my time there working on the upstairs where we will eventually move when Roselawn sells. Kiara's room is almost ready and we are getting our plumber in there soon to see what we can do about adding a kitchen.

Haven't taken any pics lately, so just boring ole' words for this post...

Happy November!

New Hues

A fellow blogger, Kimmie, saw my last post and felt led to e-mail me a doctored version of the photo. She said this is what "God may have allowed my dad to see". What she didn't know was that the day before he died, my dad mentioned how the colors he was seeing were different. I just figured the morphine was affecting his vision. I was so touched that someone I don't really even know would take the time to speak to my heart like this. Here is the picture she sent:

A Change of Seasons

This season is bittersweet for me. It was 3 years ago this month that I lost my father to cancer. As the mornings turn cool and the leaves begin to change colors, I am reminded of the change of season in my life when my dad was here one day and gone the next. It happened so quickly that I still sometimes still find it hard to believe. It's like when autumn is at its peak and you want so badly for it to stay that way for longer so you can enjoy the fireworks of colors God splatters on the landscape... and before you really get a chance to take it all in, the leaves turn brown and fall off the trees. That's how it was for me in October of 2006. My parents had just moved into a house they built after sacrificing for so many years. My dad was getting ready to enjoy his retirement. I was finally able to give him the granddaughter he grew to love so much. We had just opened the B&B and everything was going great. It was a colorful life. Then it all changed and suddenly everything felt brown and barren. But I keep pressing on knowing that my dad would want me to enjoy this season of my life. Each day is such a gift from God. So I take time this autumn to reflect on my dad and how he helped me enjoy the seasons of life here on earth and to not be afraid of moving into the next life in heaven. I'll never forget his words "It's beautiful there", spoken with such conviction just the day before he died. I truly believe he got a glimpse of a place even more beautiful than the most perfect autumn day with those spashes of many colors dotting the landscape in a way that only God could paint.

This is what my parents' front yard looked like the week before my dad passed away. I had taken the picture and brought it to his hospital room so he could have a piece of his home with him there.

20 Years Together

Paul and I celebrated our 20th anniversary yesterday! We booked a CRUISE as our official gift to each other and will be leaving November 21st for a 9 night get-away to the Caribbean! We are sooo excited, and it's a line we haven't been on before so we are anxious to see how it is different from Royal Caribbean and Carnival. Here's a picture of the ship (It once serviced Alaska, which explains the background).

Roselawn for Sale

It's official... we signed the papers to put Roselawn on the market today. I am excited, sad and nervous all at the same time. We put a lot of ourselves into making our home and business what it is today. I hate to let go of it... but we are excited about making the space above the Anique Mall into a cool urban loft! We plan to keep as much of the structural integrity as possible, but we will need to upgrade the bathroom and add a kitchen. The goal is to be able to focus all of our energy into that business. It should be much easier living right above it and not having the responsibilities of keep up a 5,000 sq foot house and 2 acre lawn. I also plan to start working part time (for the same agency) beginning in November. Sooo... we have a lot of changes coming our way. Those of you out there who have been meaning to come visit the B&B over the last 3 years but haven't better do it soon! Roselawn, we will miss you...

Happy September!

I love the cool, crisp mornings and the change of seasons! I was helping Kiara study for her test on the regions of Virginia last night and thought to myself, "We do live in a pretty awesome state." We get all four distinct seasons (although sometimes winter lasts just a little longer than I'd like). We have the mountains to one side and the ocean to the other. There's urban and rural and everything in between. Virginia is a nice place to live. (Although, I've never lived anywhere else so maybe I'm just being narrow-minded.) Where would I choose to live if Virginia wasn't an option? Well, in all of my travels I'd have to say the hills of Tuscany in Italy were pretty awesome. I wouldn't mind a Caribbean island either... But until I learn how to make wine or weave seagrass hats, I'll enjoy living in good ole' Virginny!

Watermelon Smoothies

Melissa and I made a refreshing and filling summertime drink that's so easy. You should give it a try:

Mix the following in a blender and pour:

2 tbsp lime juice

1 - 2 cups ice

1 cup raspberry sherbert

1 cup fresh watermelon

*You can add mini chocolate chips to the top to make it look like watermelon seeds, if you want.

Past Two Weeks

We have been busy the past two weeks trying to squeeze in a few final days of summer fun before beginning the new school year.

Kiara, my mom and I went to a "Cowboy Day" and got a taste of the pioneer days. Couldn't believe how tall this corn grew...

Getting together with friends after school makes the transition a little easier. Here's what it looks like when your daughter figures out how to get V-Cast t.v. show clips on your cell phone (hope it's something covered on our plan. Guess we'll find out when our next bill comes in!)

Kiara entertains company with her "granny" skit.

Roselawn hosted a tea party/baby shower last weekend. Turns out the guest of honor was Kiara's 4th grade math teacher! Didn't realize it until half way through the event!

This past weekend we had two of our closest friends visit from Richmond. They have come to Roselawn often and somehow missed the honor of being presented on my blog in the past... So this time I want be sure to introduce to you... Kevin and Melissa...

(Previous photo courtesy of Kiara, which is why our bellies are the focal point!)

It was so much fun hanging out with them, and I'm sooooo glad we've managed to keep in touch despite the distance! I really do believe that "friends are friends forever if the Lord's the Lord of them". This is truly a friendship blessed by God!

Now on to a full work week and possibly a trip to NJ to see some family this weekend. Still working on the plans.