New Photo Blog

I started a new PhotoBlog to archive some of Royce’s nicer photographs. I’ve only blogged one photo so far, but I hope - over time - to fill it up with some of my favorite photos that he’s taken over the years of the children, places, things, weddings, other events, etc.

And….WordPress released a nice new photogblogging template and I thought what a wonderful reason to start yet another project!!!

Here’s the link:

LensAngle Photography

Enjoy!

 

Homeschoolers! Come Forth!

Warning: Not so polite post coming up….

I heard through the grapevine (source: a cps worker that has been out in San Angelo helping with the FLDS issue) that the State of Texas is at a loss as to what to do with the FLDS children as they (speaking collectively) do not want the FLDS children placed in the public school system since it would be too traumatic for them considering the situation (these children have never been out of their compound before) however…they simply aren’t sure what exactly to do with all these children.

So I thought - how about if all the home schoolers offered to take in one or more of these children, provide temporary foster care AND education in a sheltered Christian home. I bet we could even find some Mormons who would welcome the children to their homes. Why not?  The home schoolers are always talking about how they want to be a light to the world - here’s your chance!

I challenge you!

(Of course, that’s easy for me to say - all my kids are ‘government school children’! HAHAHAHA!!)

But seriously. Think about it! What would the secular world say if the Christians would stop arguing amongst themselves about Constitutional Rights and Freedom of Religion and just open their arms and homes to these children who need US so….

Just a thought…

 

But…but…but…

…it still had $40 worth of GAS IN IT!! And $400 worth of brand new tires!!

*sigh*

At least Royce wasn’t injured - a little shaken up - but not injured. Thankfully, I took his car to Austin today and he drove my van. If he had been in his little Saturn, I’m not sure we’d be so blessed.

Not sure what will happen next. Royce was not at fault. Hopefully the “at fault” insurance co. will call soon…

At least he didn’t end up here…

Or here… where the “at fault” driver landed after all was said and done!

 

Ean’s Self Portrait

Ean drew this tonight on a Post-It Note. I confiscated it so I could scan it in and put it on the blog. I think it’s ADORABLE! It’s his self-portrait! Isn’t it so cute!?! I love it. He’s listening to his mp3 player!!

Ean: Age 8

 

Retiring: 12:24am

Ok I finally got through all the photos from the 2008_0421 file on my computer.

Now I just have to get caught up on the other 5 files that contain 587 photos for me to sort through, crop down, upload and blog about!! TOMORROW IS GOING TO BE FUN!!

I didn’t spend all day today blogging. I actually also cleaned the kitchen, cooked dinner, went out and bought Ean new shoes, went to the grocery store, went to the mall, cleaned the boys room (that was a huge project), dropped off 7 bags of clutter at Goodwill this morning … the product of yesterday’s dual closet decluttering process in my bedroom… so, I did a lot more than just blog today! But it’s time for bed.

I wouldn’t have stayed up this late except that I know I am not going to be able to go to church tomorrow because Hannah is still recovering from pneumonia and I don’t want her exposed to a bunch of children/people - and since I’m a single parent on Sunday mornings, that means I have to stay home too. Yes, sure, they have church online - but it’s not the same. I know. It’s only for a season - one day my children will be grown and gone and I will have all the uninterrupted Sundays I can imagine for church going…but that’s not the season I’m in so I don’t really care about THAT one RIGHT NOW.

So. I stayed up late, blogging, and now I’m going to bed. I sure wish there was something on TV to watch though. Because, honestly, after all this mind-jogging - writing about past events (yes, even though they were only a week ago!!) - I’m really kind of wired!!!!

Where’d I put that Xanax …. LOL!!

 

Field Trip: Mill Springs Cabin!

Redate: 4/18/08

Adri’s wonderful teacher made arrangements for the children to get to go to Mill Springs Cabin! And since it is right here in San Antonio - literally right down the street from our house - Claire and I were able to join them on the field trip. We weren’t able to stay all day because of Claire’s attention span - but I was super impressed with this field trip. First, the authenticity of this place is REMARKABLE. It is amazing!! I was so impressed. What a wonderful resource for San Antonio to have. I told the man in charge that I wished we had been able to tour Mill Springs Cabin when the children and I were reading through the Little House on the Prairie books!

AND - this was even more impressive!! Do you want to know who actually taught the 4th graders about pioneer living? Not teachers. But 7th grade students! And they were WONDERFUL!! For a few hours my fears about junior high were assuaged! The 7th graders were so mature and they were absolutely wonderful with the 4th graders. They handled the classes very well. I was impressed! And … the 4th graders were FANTASTIC! Delightful! So well behaved and respectful towards the 7th graders, the other chaperones, the teachers - the property - and even so sweet with Claire! Not a single one of Adri’s classmates made fun of him for having his baby sister tag along. I could tell Adri was kind of uncomfortable with the idea - like it wasn’t cool - until one little girl said, “Oh Adri - she’s so cute!!” And then he relaxed. And we had a great time.

Honestly now…I can’t remember when I went on a field trip that was this enjoyable! You, dear reader who knows how active I was as a home schooler and how many home school group field trips I participated in, can read into that sentence as much as you want. But this field trip - it really was absolutely, in all ways, the best field trip I’ve ever been on!

Moving on now. Time for photos!!

Adri’s group trying on the clothes that a cowboy would wear - after going through an actual chuck wagon and seeing all the provisions that a cowboy would likely cart along on the range with his posse!

After each lesson, there was a game for the children to play that the cowboys or Indians or settlers might have played to pass the time away. I had to laugh at this one. I remember when my sister-in-law graduated from college…we went to Denton to celebrate with her - and Royce’s brother Shelby spent a good hour at the bar playing this same game. There’s a ring on the end of a chain and you have to toss the ring towards a hook that is sticking out of the side of the wall and try to “catch” the ring. I was giggling at the thought of all these 4th graders playing a drinking game…or all the drunks playing a kids’ game… LOL!!

The kids had to make their own adobe bricks! So, naturally, here is Adri - making everyone laugh, by pretending to eat the adobe. They actually did make a brick using an authentic brick form and laid it out to dry in the sun.

Claire and Adri sitting on the benches waiting to learn about Indian life! I am so sorry, Claire, that I forgot to pull your hair back for you! BAD MOMMY!!

An actual LIFE SIZED Indian Tee-Pee. It was really cool to walk inside of it and see what one looks like FOR REAL. This really is such a neat place!! The students taught us so much about Indian life in just the 15 minutes we spent with them.

Claire got to play the drums and the rain stick! She had a blast! The 7th graders were thrilled to have Claire be a part of the field trip!

TRICK ROPING!! Yes, Adri actually “caught it” with out any help!! He thought this was the coolest!

We gave Claire a little help though - but she didn’t mind. She thought she did a great job anyway - and she’s been going around the house “catching things with her cowboy rope” now for the past week!! So funny! (Her cowboy rope is a string of any kind.)

After this point, Claire and I left. Her interest had waned and we needed to get home for naps. Adri stayed and got to see a log cabin - much like what Laura Ingalls Wilder would have grown up in. I want to say that the cabin came from Kentucky, but I’m not sure… And his group visited another site and did rock paintings which he really thought was great. It was really a fantastic field trip all around.

Now there’s one more part! The school is in the process of completing The General Store. In the General Store you will not find ONE THING that was not available in 1902! It is 100% historically accurate. It is AMAZING. It is impeccable. The attention to detail is overwhelming! You could stay in there for hours looking at things!! Here are a few photos of the store - the children were not allowed in the store because it was not open “for business” yet. But the chaperones and teachers were allowed a preview!!

I took more photos but these were the most interesting! There’s also a little museum attached to the general store that is so wonderful. Bradley Middle School has made such a contribution to San Antonio and to the State of Texas.

 

Let’s Go Fly a Kite!

Redate: 4/12/08

Saturday morning Royce and I laid in bed talking until 11:45am. At which point we decided we should probably join the children for the rest of the day. So we got up and got going - and I realized what a gorgeous day it was outside, and decided - we were going to go kite flying. We didn’t have anything else to do - so, why not? It was perfectly sunny, perfectly windy, perfectly warm, perfectly cool and perfectly delightful - a perfect day for flying kites.

And I actually remembered to bring the camera along! Will wonders never cease!!

Claire found the flower that is in her hair and gave it to me, and I convinced her that SHE needed to wear it since SHE was the princess. She giggled and willingly obliged.

Ean with his kite in the air! He was one of the first kids to get his kite up and it really stayed up the entire time. In the other photos below of me and Royce - we are actually flying Ean’s kite - he just passed us the kite string! LOL!

A little farther back - he really had the kite pretty high - this was while it was “on the way up” - I like that Ean’s kneeling in the grass. Mr. McCool.

Um….Adri….you really need to be aiming in the other direction, entirely!! (Just kidding, he was waiting on one of us to help him throw his kite up in the air!)

Claire Bug (trying to) fly her kite and having fun anyway. Notice the placement of the hairclips and flower compared to the first photo in this post….

Hannah Banana just rollin’ with it. She was a natural kite flyer. Even if she only lasted about 15 minutes and then corralled Claire and ran off into the long-jump sandbox for some real fun. (We were at the local high school track.)

Here I am, in the full lay back. Flying the kite, laying down on the football field. This is so much fun to do. I was thinking if I had had my swimsuit on, I could have really had accomplished some useless, but fun, multitasking.

When Royce saw how much fun I was having, he insisted on trying it! No. Not really. I made him try it. He was quite content with just living vicariously through my laziness.

The day was fun. We stayed out there for about an hour and then went to get lunch. I really want to go to the kite store and buy a really cool kite. I think that would be fun to do with the boys. Maybe a box kite. I’ve always wanted to fly one!

 

Modest Swimsuits

Redate 4/5/08

I love the girls new swimsuits!! I found them at Kohl’s. I was pleasantly surprised to have found them at Kohl’s! I am thinking about ordering another set of them one size up for next year because they fit the girls so well and I just love them!! They are sporty, cute, modern - but the girls are still covered. Tummy’s are hidden, bottoms are hidden, and the backs even come up right underneath the shoulder blades. I love them! The skirt really makes them cute and girly but still fun and sporty. The girls love their “twirly skirts” too.

If I hadn’t found these I would have been content to just let them wear regular one piece swimsuits without a skirt or shorts attached. Really - it’s not a big deal to me. But finding them with a skirt was just icing on the cake! And this skirt is not attached - so they can take it off if they want to.

 

What?? I’m Mary Poppins!!

Redate As 4/10/2008

Ok. She hasn’t even SEEN Mary Poppins. At least not that I’m aware of…oh wait….yes she has…way back in December!!!

Claire came strolling in the kitchen today and I said, “OH! Claire!!” To which she casually and cheerfully replied, “What?? I’m Mary Poppins!!” Notice the rosy red cheeks…and collar bone…and the powder on her dress…

I tried to remain stone-faced so that I could get onto her … again … about getting into my makeup. (Even though I purposefully keep a set of powder and blush that she knows I keep only so I have something that she can “play dress up” in.) But the point is that she isn’t SUPPOSED to get into the makeup without me by her side!!!

Naturally we headed straight for the bathroom for an immediate cleanup - except that this beauty queen needed a whole makeover. Here’s my little sweetie pie after her shower looking oh so sweet and innocent! She said this was her “Rose Hat” and that she looked like a “Beautiful Rose Flower”. She has quite an imagination!!

And finally - after the towel came off…. here’s what kind of mayhem is lying beneath the surface!!! BUYER BEWARE!!! Moral of the story - even the most beautiful rose has thorns. HAHAHAHA Just kidding, Claire. You know I love you and your crazy hair. When she saw this photo she said she looked like a tornado. NO JOKE! She’s a mess!

 

Dr. Alice von Hildebrand

I just read briefly about this woman on Wikipedia. Which I know is not a reliable source - or rather, the Professional Community At Large does not consider it a reliable source of accurate information. But they didn’t seem to have anything inflammatory or outrageous to say about Dr. von Hildebrand, just the facts, ma’am.

There is one book from her I think I will check out and read, titled: The Privilege of Being a Woman (Veritas Press, 2002). My only concern is the publisher - Veritas Press. I don’t care for many of the other authors I know to be connected to their publishing house. But if I can give ol’ Sue Monk Crazy a shot, I can give Dr. von Hildebrand, no??

Here is an interview with Dr. von Hildebrand that is pretty interesting. I’ll leave it at that. I’m not a catholic, nor am I in anyway inclined to have any more sentimentality for their religion than I am for the lutherans or latter-day saints or jehovah’s witnesses or the baptists or the methodists or the whateverists. I realize that sentence there could inflame some readers but, you know, I try to be at least consistent in that I think ALL religions are fallible. Faith in Christ, however, is not.

Anyway. I have a ton of stuff to do today and I realized, I have blogged A LOT in April. Almost to the point of appearing to have a compulsive disorder. And yet, I still have no photos of my family up here on this family-integrated blog (having since effectively shut down the Walston Family site). Shame shame shame. I know there are family members patiently waiting for me to stop ranting about social issues and start sharing about family fun!  I will make a point to do that!