A funny thing happened along the way

Once upon a time there was a young boy who was taken, along with his brother and sister, to Friendly's for some dinner and an ice cream sundae. At this dinner, their parents informed them that they had decided that their family needed more children and that someday, somewhere in China would be a baby girl who would become their little sister.

This young boy thought that such a drastic change to the family wasn't really necessary and he didn't see the need for a baby sister. Things were fine just as they were.

Well somewhere along the way, after first little sister came home and second little sister followed, this young boy, who is now a fine young man, changed his tune. Not only are little sisters necessary, they are to be much cherished and adored.

I submit to you the proof of this change of heart:

Clone and his Minions

One of my favorite hymns

God moves in a mysterious way
His wonders to perform;
He plants His footsteps in the sea
And rides upon the storm.

Deep in unfathomable mines
Of never failing skill
He treasures up His bright designs
And works His sovereign will.

Ye fearful saints, fresh courage take;
The clouds ye so much dread
Are big with mercy and shall break
In blessings on your head.

Judge not the Lord by feeble sense,
But trust Him for His grace;
Behind a frowning providence
He hides a smiling face.

His purposes will ripen fast,
Unfolding every hour;
The bud may have a bitter taste,
But sweet will be the flower.

Blind unbelief is sure to err
And scan His work in vain;
God is His own interpreter,
And He will make it plain.


by William Cowper

Ah, the irony

or would that be insanity??

We spent the morning in the dentist office taking care of cavities.
and the afternoon beating a pinata to get to the candy.


I was very proud of my girls both times. In the morning, I had to refuse laughing gas for them because this dentist uses it as standard practice. I could tell by the looks on the assistants' faces they were a little concerned but no one tried to dissuade me from my refusal. Little had pulpectomy (kids root canal) and a crown put in and Littlest had one filling. Neither girl had a single tear or complaint. They each earned 4 toys from the prize box for their most excellent behavior.

this afternoon after they loaded up their bags on candy, they compliantly accepted our answer that candy was a special treat and our explanation of tooth decay. They both came home and gave portions of their bags to Swan and Frog who were more than happy to help out with the anti-tooth decay campaign.

We're officially gardeners now!

Well we waited, and waited, and waited, and waited some more and we finally got to eat our very first tomato from our garden. The vine is full of large, plump tomatoes and they are still all green. Guess we'll wait, and wait, and wait some more.

Here we go again...

Its hard to believe but I started homeschooling 14 years ago and with the exception of my 18 month sabbatical when we brought Little home, I've been doing it ever since. Even harder to believe is if I continue all the way through with the littles, I've got another 13 or 14 to go! ai-yi-yi!

We officially began year #13 of homeschooling on Monday.

And being the mean teacher/mom that I am, I am not opposed to a little summer school. Swan went to Mom-mom's recently to learn how to make some relish and do some canning.

Definitely an A+ job!!

Happy Belated Birthday to Me

I recently had the pleasure of an outing with Swan. We did a little shopping and she took me out to lunch. This place serves all types of noodles from macaroni and cheese to Italian pastas to pad thai - which we both had. Yummy!!

She also gave me a CD she made of some of my favorite pieces that she plays. She recorded them with her keyboard and Mac. I should get her to autograph it officially. It'll be worth something one day when she's a famous pianist. Just think, I can say "I knew her when!"

Some of my favorite sounds of summer

Raindrops falling
Frog's croaking

Volleyball games

Happy Birthday to You!

Kids splashing

A River Runs Through It

This is our yard during a recent thunderstorm. Situated at the bottom of a hill, all the rain from our neighborhood hits our yard. I called a friend and invited her to come tubing. She turned me down though. No sense of adventure I suppose.






















Thankfully, an elaborate drainage system exists to keep the water out of our house.

Happy Birthday Little!

Happy First Birthday

Happy 7th Birthday!

The will of God is never exactly what you expect it to be. It may seem to be much worse, but in the end it's going to be a lot better and a lot bigger. Elisabeth Elliot

Time really does fly

Today I held a 1 month old baby girl. I didn't believe it when I held my own 1 month old baby girl over 17 years ago that she'd be grown up before I knew it. How many times did I hear "they'll be gone before you know it" and "time flies" when my kids were little? How many times have I heard myself say it lately?

Last week, that baby boy I just held a short while ago, climbed into his car and drove 1000 miles on his own to return to college. Today, the baby girl I just held a few days ago, got into her father's car and drove the baby boy I held yesterday over 80 miles to their grandparents.

I still have 2 littles at home and when I think ahead to 12 more years of full-time parenting, it sometimes seems daunting. (hey, I am a little older and a lot more tired this time around). However, I know that "tomorrow" they will driving off as well so I am determined to savor these moments (spilled milk, tattling, bickering and all!)

"Parents are often so busy with the physical raising of children that they miss the glory of parenthood , just as the grandeur of the trees is lost when raking leaves." Marcelene Cox

Happy Little Day

6 years ago yesterday a precious baby girl was placed into my arms to be forever ours.

Thank you Lord for this precious daughter!

Bitter Sweet-Sweet Day

Bitter - Saying good-bye to Clone who headed back to college

Sweet - Saying good-bye to Clone who headed back to college knowing he has become an independent, responsible young man who is ready to be making his own way in life.

Sweet - seeing Frog graduate from his JROTC Leadership Training week and having him come home again.

Clone has to head back to college

NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!

although I'm not so sure Clone's isn't an Hallelujah!!!

God calls us to serve Him, not because He needs us, but because we need Him.

~~Jerry Bridges, The Fruitful Life

There ought to be a law

against ice cream

that stains your face


your lips, your fingers

and your teeth when you eat it!

So much for Mom's apple pie....

Clone's summer break is coming to an end so being the loving, doting mother that I am, asked him what he'd like to have for his last home-cooked meal before returning to the institutionalized cuisine he loves, NOT, so much at college.

And his answer..........


he didn't even want homemade ice cream but asked to go to Maggie Moo's instead.



I have obviously failed in instilling decent tastebuds into this young man. Hanging my head in shame. (although the ice cream does give me a smidgeon of hope he's not totally devoid of tastebuds)

Edited to add: He didn't even eat anything at Maggie Moo's!!! harumph.

Cannonball!!!!

Take your Daughters to Work Day

Learning the important things in life: It takes a long time to get ahead and you must be patient. While MWC and Frog waited for our food the girls went off to learn other important lessons of work.

Always look your best and make a good impression


Proper placement of items in the appropriate receptacles brings rewards

It can be a jungle out there.

"I am convinced that the first step towards attaining a higher standard of holiness is to realize more fully the amazing sinfulness of sin." ~ J.C. Ryle

In honor of Mrs. B

Last night Clone and Frog and a few others got haircuts to show their support for their friend, M, and his mother who is undergoing chemotherapy.

I'm proud of my boys, and their friends, for their compassion. :)

Little and Littlest are now official Marylanders

Maryland is for CrabsMWC gave Little and Littlest their all important crab picking lesson (with the leftover crabs from my perfect pampering day)
Littlest declared she was too sleepy (we'd brought them in from their camping expedition in the backyard to eat them) and they were too spicy (guess she's not a fan of Old Bay Seasoning) and took herself to the sofa to lie down. Little on the other hand LOVED them. True Marylander in that one. Takes after her mommy. yum!

More Big Brother Bomb-i-ness

Adding to the evidence that all little girls need really cool big brothers, Frog and the littles camped out in the backyard. I was not here for the beginning of the adventure but there were sure tell signs that according to all campout rules and regulations, marshmallows were indeed roasted, thus making it a legitimate camping out experience.

Nighty-night sleep tight.

Good-night Mommy!

Good morning little sunshines! They stayed out all night AND the rain stayed away too!

Spoiled

My mama likes to tell me I'm spoiled. She ought to know...for 2 reasons. First being it takes one to know one - she is the Queen of Everything after all you know. (Mary Engelbreicht) Therefore by virtue of being her daughter and recipient of her extremely generous nature, I am the Princess of Quite a Lot. Secondly, she ought to know because she and dad spoiled me! They'd probably deny it but I submit to you the evidence and will let you arrive at your own verdict.

Yesterday we "celebrated" my birthday. A day of pampering began at a day spa with a full one hour sports massage. Followed by a spa pedicure.

After a lovely, relaxing afternoon spent at home, we went out for some good, old Maryland steamed crabs with Old Bay Seasoning.


Followed by some yummy ice cream at a local candy store/ice cream shoppe. Very flattering shot Mrs. Photographer! ugh!

We ended our perfect day with a walk along the river. Had to burn off at least a few of those calories!

Thanks for a perfect day/birthday gift Mom and Dad. I love you!