Sadie's 17th birthday...

We celebrated Sadie's 17th birthday in August with a few friends and a pool party.
She is such a lovely young lady.  I have special memories of each of her 17 birthday parties, over the years.

Fall recap....

So many good things going on the last few months; school starting, church activities, and even a glimpse into heaven...

Halloween 2013

It has been a super-busy fall season; so much going on.   So, I really enjoyed the opportunity to kick back and get sewing.  It has been a while since Sadie needed a costume; I had so much fun making this Indian costume for her.  She found the headband at a Halloween store, but the dress is my creation.  High school students are dressing in Halloween costumes today, and she and her theatre group are also collecting canned goods for the local food bank tonight instead of collecting candy.

 Maggie wanted to be a hippie , and it was fun creating her costume as well.  I had most of the materials needed; only had to purchase the fabric for the dress and headband.

Picture from Camp...



Maggie's Turn for Camp...

Maggie is spending this week at the Bridgeport Methodist Camp.  It is a camp for kids entering grades 4-6.
She is staying in the Lakeside cabin, and she will be swimming, hiking, playing games, and going to Bible study each day.

There are about 16 girls in her cabin. 
Can't wait to hear all about her adventures at camp.

Maggie's book review...

Maggie gave a book review this month

at a local community library.  She reviewed all of the books in "The Doll People" series.

She gave her program twice, speaking to two groups of students.   Her love for the books really came through.

Les Miserables

Sadie and I saw a community theatre performance of Les Miserables in Ardmore, Oklahoma last night. 
It was beyond words good. 

Sadie and friends...

Sadie has two wonderful friends that have been with her since Kindergarten. 
They are going into 11th grade this fall; she has really been blessed to have loyal friends in her life.
Sadie is the one with the glasses in the top photo; she's in the middle in the lower photo.

Painting for Fun in the Summertime

The unusually comfortable temperatures we have had this summer have encouraged outdoor time in the afternoons, such as painting.
These memories are priceless.

Purple Potato Harvest

Here's our purple potato crop for this summer.
Delicious! 
I roasted a few in the oven today in olive oil.  Excellent taste. 
As a side note, it is 69 degrees in our part of Texas today, and raining.
Unbelievable summer!

TV Free Day...

One day a week each summer, we have TV-Free days.  This means that no one watches TV from 8:00 am to 4:00 pm.
Today was TV Free.  The girls played a game, read books, cleaned out a bookshelf, and had great quality time together.  They are such good sports about it, and don't seem to mind at all giving up television in pursuit of other interests.

Sadie is Back from Theatre Camp!!!

Sadie had some professional headshots taken at theatre camp this last 2 weeks.
She has had a great time there.
We are glad she is home!

Riding her new, big bike....

Maggie got this big girl bike for her birthday.  She is really coming along in handling it. 
Awesome job, Maggie Ann!

Getting Ready for Vacation Bible School

Tonight, we helped prepare the backdrops for this month's
Vacation Bible School.  The theme is a country fair.   It was a great time together, doing something constructive and fun.

Easter Lillies in memory of Keith

These Easter lilies were given to us last year in memory of Keith.  I planted them after they finished blooming last year, really not expecting much success.  I don't see many blooming Easter lilies here in Texas.
Anyway, they have been blooming so beautifully the last week or so.   At last count, 10 blooms were open and stunning, with several more unopened buds.
We miss Keith as much today as ever, if not more.  It is so frustrating to want to talk with him about everything and anything, and not be able to have those wonderful, hours long conversations we used to have.
It's all part of this roller-coaster ride called grief, for which I never wanted a ticket.

Tug of War Winners!

This is my class this year;  we were the victorious winners of the annual school tug-of-war.   I have never had a class to win at this fierce competition.
It's a tradition carried on here for many years; I told them to be sure to never give up, and they beat out the other 5 classes in 4th grade to be the champs! 
Way to go, kids.

Snake of the Day...

Yet another snake making his way through my yard.
This one is around 5 feet long.    He was definitely unwelcomed by the mockingbird who was trying to scare him away.
He turned around and slithered into the cedar tree;  Maggie and I watched the whole process.

Family Art

Maggie created this family art work.  So creative; I love it.

Sadie, lovely then and now...

Sadie:  age 4, and age 16

What good memories and fun times we have had.    You were so much fun as a little kid; you are still fun now.
I love you!

They are together, again.

This is a picture of my husband, Keith, in the middle of the photo, with his parents.  I selfishly still want him here with us; but it is a comfort to know that he is with them again.   This picture is comforting, while it makes me cry, too.

Snakes......

These little gray snakes really like my yard.   This is the second one I have seen so far this spring.
They don't hurt a thing, and aren't that scared of people.
This one was hiding in my garden, and went under a stepping stone when I saw him. 

My early days as a mother...

This family portrait was taken in the year 2000.  Little Sadie was, and is, such a joy to us.
Happy memories....

Our own Peter Cottontail...

We have always had little wild rabbits at our house; our yard and surrounding yards are a good habitat for them.  This little rabbit, though, has one torn ear, and so we can tell him apart from others.  He (or she) has been hanging around for a few years now.  He also is not very afraid of us; he will usually just sit still as we are working in the yard.  I am sure he feels that we don't see him.
Just one of the many little things that makes our home so special to us.

Roses, and more Roses

I am sure when you think of Texas, you think of beautiful roses, right?  Well, probably not.  But this spring has been exceptional for gorgeous roses in our little town.   Rose bushes all around town have been loaded down with tons of beautiful roses.  I planted a Knockout Rose this year; they are very fast-growing and don't need a lot of attention.     I also planted more wild roses that only bloom for a few weeks each March to April, but are so carefree they are worth it.    I think my love affair with rose bushes has begun this spring.  

Raised Bed Gardening

This is my first year to try using raised garden beds.  I purchased these Garden Blocks by Evolve to use in making my beds.   The front round bed is for my Knockout Rose bush and flowers.  The others are dedicated to vegetables.  I also have irises planted around the round beds.  I hope this method will make weed control easier.  I also added my mother-in-law's old laundry wash tubs to hold a few more squash plants.  The bed in the background is blackberry bushes.  They need to grow this year and next; we hopefully will get berries again next year.    They were stressed and damaged by the old house being torn down.
Seeds are planted; more pictures to come. 
I planted butternut squash in addition to yellow; I have never tried butternut squash before.  Hopefully it won't be fussy.

Tornado Ready

Since we live in Tornado Alley, we recently had a storm shelter installed in our backyard.  It's a little added peace of mind for those of us in the path of potential tornados.  It  was amazingly quick to install.  The folks who installed it were here for only part of a recent, sunny afternoon.

Maggie's 9th Birthday Party

We celebrated Maggie's 9th birthday with a super-fun outdoor party. 

  Beautiful doll cakes made by her aunt Lisa.

                                               My two girls!   They make me laugh every day.

                                          Surprise!   A new bike.

     We had so much fun flying this kite, a gift from aunt Angela.