Today I discuss Kenny’s writing, most specifically, how it flourished when he began his daily illustrate and write pages. If you have a beginning writer in your household, you’ll enjoy deciphering his earlier attempts at writing - and recognize immediately the natural progression of phonics.

It also means my kids get to share parts of their lives grandparents wouldn’t typically be exposed to - like playing Blazing Angels 2 - Secret Missions of WWII on the Xbox 360.

Honestly, I don’t know what is more funny. Watching a 6 year old, who has never seen a war, much less flown any aircraft, teach his Poppa Ken how to fly…

…or my Dad (Poppa Ken), who is quite familiar with what war is all about, AND HAS PILOTED many a plane, engage in an electronic bombing mission at the hands of his grandson.

This is the stuff of memories.

I flew into San Diego to stay with Bethany Actually; Brenda (a.k.a Secret Agent Josephine) came up to stay too - it is a regular “girl” party.

Per my request, the first trip out of the house was to paint pottery. Not because it’s a San Diego thing, but because it’s a universal “girl” thing - paying a lot of money to make things you don’t need.

Photo taken by Secret Agent Josephine

After painting with Bethany and Brenda I had to ask myself why I love painting pottery so much - it certainly isn’t because I have a knack for it…I don’t. I’m not an artist like li’l Ms. Brenda-pants.

She grabs a moleskine and sketches out a drawing in 10 minutes while I spend the same 10 minutes selecting one color.

Do you SEE the mug Brenda sketched out and painted for me? I cannot wait for it to be fired and shipped back home for me to use. I’ll be able to forever remember the three of us together in San Diego. How cool is that?

Check out Bethany’s tongue; she is uber-focused on the mug she was “dotting” for her “honey bunches of oats”, Troy. I might should mention I’ve never actually heard her call him that. But Troy really is a guy you could call “sugar booger” or “muffin” or any number of sweet names like that - and believe me, I KNOW; I listened to him talk to his daughter Annalie on Skype for an hour this morning. SUGARY SWEET, that one.

Once Brenda finished with the mug she added little illos to my organizer thing-a-ma-bob I painted. I know, I know…of all things I could have painted, I had to paint something to ORGANIZE ME FURTHER. It is a sickness.

No, I’m not taking meds for it.

Photo taken by Secret Agent Josephine

And then, here we all are. Brenda’s arms apparently can stretch to the moon because she was able to get my big ol’ head in this photo. And before you say, “You don’t have a big head!” LOOK AGAIN. Seriously, first look at Bethany, then look at Brenda, then look at the basketball on the right. That’s me. My head is huge.

Bethany informed me tonight that I actually don’t have a big head, but just big hair. When I questioned the whole “big hair” statement, she said, “Okay fine, your hair isn’t big, it just has a lot of personality.”

Brenda adds, “Your hair lights up a room!”

Um…THAT is supposed to make me feel better?
I think maybe “big hair” is my best bet at this point.
All I could think of was, “Oh yeah, you’ll love my friend HEATHER, she has a GREAT PERSONALITY!”

Go, look, create!

What is the catalyst for this toss-up of my daily reality? I couldn’t finger it exactly, but it appears to be a combination of discussions with Jeff, daily interaction with the kids, homeschooling approaches, scripture, prayer, friends, the balance of work, books, and the seemingly random (though I don’t tend to believe anything is truly random) exposure to “like” concepts from different venues.

Am I talking in riddles?
Are you confused?
Guess what?
SO. AM. I.

BUT there is a light emerging from the darkness of my confusion.
It is within reach (I think), which gives me heart, but at the same time it is still distant enough that I’m not entirely sure if it is a beacon or a train headed straight for me in an uncompromisingly steady fashion.

Any paradigm shifts on your end? Hand’em over in the comments; I’m ready to hear others’ stories of when the world turned itself upside down and life changes occurred as a result.

Thanks for letting me be broad and sweeping…I’ll narrow things down after I chew on’em a little while longer.

My Dad would pull the small 14″ black and white television from its shelf in the hall closet, prop it up on a bar stool in front of the living room couch, and adjust the aluminum foil on the bunny ear antennas so it would pick-up my favorite cartoons. My Mom would pour “just the right amount” of milk in a glass Pyrex measuring cup and place it in the refrigerator so I could fix my own cereal (the large milk jug being too cumbersome for me at that age) in the morning.

I cannot express enough how much I LOVED SATURDAY MORNINGS. The only two rules I remember on those early Saturday mornings was - first, I could not come out of my room if it was still dark (my poor, poor parents) and two, I could not to go outside for any reason while they were still asleep. I would often wake up and play Legos, work puzzles, look at (and soon after, read) books in my room until it was allowable to come out - and I never was too hurried since cartoons didn’t typically start until 8:00 anyway.

When I look back I realize I took my first true steps toward independence on those mornings. I made my OWN cereal, ate and looked through magazines or my Highlights at the kitchen table, and cuddled-up with a favorite family blanket on the couch to watch the cartoons of MY choice.

I was in heaven.

As much as this was a special time for me, it was a needed time for my parents - and while they rarely slept past 9:30 or 10:00, I’m sure those extra couple of hours made a difference. By the time they scuffled in to make the coffee, my favorite cartoons were over and I was ready to get dressed and start the day.

I watched Smurfs, Bugs Bunny, Road Runner, The Flintstones, Richie Rich, Mighty Mouse, Captain Caveman, Scooby Doo, Shirt Tales, Tom and Jerry, and The Littles (my favorite because they always taught me how to make something with things I could find around the house) .

It has been about 6 years since Jeff and I decided cable wasn’t a wise choice for our family, but we do still have a television for movies. And so, on any given Saturday morning our kids will rise, eat, and then gather in front of the television to watch whatever Netflix they chose to rent earlier in the week. Many of those mornings Jeff and I are still dozing in bed.

A few of their recent rentals - Inkheart, Nanny McPhee, Doctor Dolittle (the 1967 version), That Darn Cat (another oldie), Bionicle, The Princess Diaries, and The Shaggy Dog.

Watching my kids snuggle-in together on the couch, ottoman or bean bags makes me think perhaps the only thing I truly missed…all those Saturday mornings ago, was a sibling or two. Granted, I had no idea there was anything to be missed and enjoyed (for the most part) my “only-child-ness”, seeing my kiddos together NOW has shown me there is much to be said for sibling relationships.

I’m very happy they can love, learn, and yes, even share Saturday morning movies together.
And on this particular Saturday morning?
I joined them.
Except this time?
I could pour my own milk from the jug.

I stand in awe of the blessing of being their Momma.

As my 12 year old stands on the brink of her 13th birthday I have seen a blossoming of body, mind and soul. She has eased into a self-confidence that ignites all the unique qualities that make her “Emelie”.

It is strange to look back just two years ago and remember an awkward timidity - the long discussions as we laid across her bed after prayers and hammered out each insecurity, one by one. She grappled over what it meant to be content with the person she was created to be.

I dreaded our shopping days when nothing fit “right”, looked “right”, or felt “right”; when everything was simply “wrong” and we returned home, empty-handed with her eyes swollen from crying in dressing room after dressing room.

And now? Shopping is a joy - a creative adventure of random style and bold color choices.

And I smile to myself when she walks out of her room and the traditional mother/daughter conversation ensues:

Me: “You do realize you don’t match, right?”

Em: “Yep!”

Me: “Okay then, let’s head out.”

I can’t help but remember a similar conversation 25 years or so ago…

After all, she just might be “her mother’s daughter”.

When I’m with her it’s impossible not to smile, laugh, and dream of how she will use the very person she is to serve her Savior and be “salt” to the earth.

My prayer is she will run from darkness and embrace the light of Truth…

…that she will live in peace and understand the difference between unity and uniformity.

And while I dream for her happiness, I pray she’ll understand joy and contentment are more important than fleeting happiness, and a life of joy and contentment is a choice, not a result of “how” her life may pan-out from day to day.

So when the fire rages through her life (and it will) she’ll walk in peace and confidence, knowing fires don’t blaze forever and are often a refining element in our lives.

But for now…
in the next few years I just hope…
and pray…
I can be all she needs in a Momma.

And maybe a little more than that.

I take full responsibility for our local Fair on the Square getting rained out. Each year I take my camera it rains. When I don’t, it is hot, sticky and dry. The conclusion is not terribly difficult to draw, albeit rather egocentric.

Next year I’ll take the camera AND an umbrella or two.

Because of my inherent selfishness (which requires me to bring my camera anyway), we weren’t able to stay there long, but we did manage to make two very important stops.

First, the balloon man - what’s a fair without a balloon man?

Meredith will wait a long time for the balloon man.

This shot above is Mer in 2007 with her heart hat??? What do you call that thing? I’m thinking I prefer the alien from this year much better.

Kenny and his buddy decided they both needed balloon guns. Cuz in Texas? We like to pretend to shoot our friends. We’re “backwoods” like that.

I don’t think he’ll grow out of it soon - 2 years ago? Same game…

…different gun.

I know you’re probably wondering what kind of balloon Emelie picked, right?

Waaaaaaa!
None!
She’s too OLD for balloons.
Seriously - after she said she wasn’t getting one I had to tuck away my dream for a dragonfly. Do we HAVE to mature with our kids?

*sigh*

“Umm…skies aren’t looking so great Momma!”

But see, there was one last stop we HAD to make.

KETTLE CORN!
What is a fair without a sticky bag of kettle corn.
It is nothing.
ABSOLUTELY NOTHING.

And then?
The sky exploded into bullets of pelting rain and we took off running to the truck parked several blocks away.

Thankfully a friend of mine saw my camera and passed me an umbrella (and that man was TRULY SOAKED TO THE BONE when he arrived at his car). So my head and camera stayed dry, but the rest of me and my kids were soaked.

Of course that didn’t stop us from going straight to Schlotzsky’s to meet up with friends for a post-fair lunch.

I love Saturdays.

I worked and homeschooled and all was good with the world.

Then I hurt my back…
and was laid out on the couch or bed for 3 weeks with a bulging disc.
Then I got better.
Then I was behind in my work.
And then the stress levels went absolutely through the roof trying to catch-up.

So, yesterday’s Hiatus post was work-related, but I still have this fabulous “blog” venue! Whoohoo! I was very excited to get on today and let you know I am back to “dig in” again and see what’s going on in the blogging world - and maybe even toss in a WordPress post or two.

It shouldn’t have surprised me to get a nasty gram right at the time I was grinning inside and out - ready to come back after my projected year off. As nasty grams tend to do, it dug at my heart and made me realize people aren’t always nice; that they don’t want to “give” you anything.

I sat and thought about writing back and explaining myself; I have worked 60 hour weeks AND homeschooled my kiddos - I just needed the work hiatus, but nah…this person didn’t/doesn’t care. If they did, they would have signed their email.

I call those kind of people armchair soldiers; firing painful statements with ease and anonymity.

I am EXCITED to dust off my camera and start detailing more of our lives here again. Don’t forget! I’m also still posting homeschooling posts over at Pioneer Woman’s Homeschooling blog.

OH! And there’s another writer over there I LOVE to read - Mrs. G. Check out some of her posts. You don’t even have to be a homeschooling parent to enjoy them!

I’m taking a hiatus, but before I do, I want to share with you everything I didn’t learn in Kindergarten, but HAVE learned in the past few years as a web designer (though not particularly pertaining to web design…like, not at all):

• I enjoy reading random information, like Moleskine: The Guide; it is just one more reason why I think Nick Cernis of todoodlist fame needs to write MORE and OFTEN.
• I can entertain myself for hours designing my own customized Chuck Taylor’s; be warned…if your teenager sees this site it will cost you - and how!
• There are exactly 109 Random Facts You Should Know - like “Stewardesses is the longest word typed with only the left hand.” How could I have lived so long without knowing that? I’m so relieved.
• Googling “Why Do People Pick Their Noses in the Car” returns entirely too many search results.
• Ever seen Robots? For the first time ever you can Adopt-a-Bot - robots are just hanging out - waiting for new homes.
• Teach a kid to read and his brain is stimulated. Give a child a Wii, PS2, Nintendo DS or any other electronic gadget and his brain will slowly ooze out his ears until he’s a drooling, lump of flesh, hanging upside down off the couch.
• I still have the Right to Bear Arms - which is no small thing under this country’s current administration.
• If I’m in a particularly foul state all I have to do is watch Tuts My Barreh and I will laugh until I cry wonderfully cleansing tears.

I’m working through the last of my design before I take my “break or interruption in the continuity of…[my] work, series, [or] action”. As my designs roll out , I’ll update the portfolio.

Hasta la vista, baby!

*Special thanks to Dictionary.com for being a DEFINING element in my life.