Birthdays, Stitches, and a Wedding~

Rosie and Leighton celebrated their birthdays four days apart, and we had a ball at Leighton's Magical Unicorn Waterslide 4 YO party~

It was at our church pavilion, and having a waterslide sure kept the kids cool and having fun. There were cupcakes and crafts and streamers~

The happiest girl alive~

They wore themselves out~

Happy birthday to our sweet, beautiful four year old~

The Dove boys started to school, and they are in 7th and 4th grade this year~

Hope and happy on the first day~

Sweet babies~

We adore having the grands here, and THEY are happy when Papa comes home for lunch~

Poor Ford had his boy surgery and had a very hard time recuperating. EC slept in the laundry room the first night~

And by the second day, we knew he needed to be seen~

After a trip to the vet, we headed to Athens, GA, to the UGA Vet Hospital. He was admitted to the ICU with internal bleeding which they helped and he came home the following evening~

We arrived home to a beautiful rainbow over our house~

The next day, SAME thing, and back we went for another overnight stay and the threat that he would need surgery. After more observations, meds, and fluids, he was able to come for good~

Calla wore her cute T-shirt from Matthew and Savannah, taking the boys to school~

Another successful art class for CA with Ms Debra~

We finally got her art framed and hung in her room~

Spirit Day and ready for the football game so Scottie could cheer with her team~

The grands doing all kinds of fun things~

Pound cakes for all the special people~

Big smiles all around because Mimi retired and is a full-time mama!!! Nothing sweeter for this crowd~

Most adorable visitors for the afternoon, and the sweetest dog, Ford~

Guess what happens when you are scheduled to fly to Idaho in the morning? The boys brought home groceries, and as usual, everyone went out to help unload. Sadly, when HM opened the back, a jar of marinara fell and burst, causing her to step back. Her foot stepped on a big piece of glass, cutting a gash. Rosie was here and calmly told me to take her to the ER. She was a trooper and got 3 stitches. Scott decided he needed to stay home and just let me go. It was hard for everyone, but they made the best of it~

Next morning, Mimi and I flew to Boise and met Nan there where we stayed together for the weekend~

Our hotel was gorgeous, and we had a rooftop bar with the most spectacular view ~

Thursday night, we met at a cute spot near their house for a get-together dinner. I got to spend the whole weekend with my sister too!!!~

Naomi and Sam came too, and we loved getting to know her since they will get married in May~

Friday evening, we went to Jessie and Steve's house for dinner under the trees. Delightful! They have a beautiful home, and we enjoyed being there with them and three children~

Perfect weather~

Lots of people to meet and chat with~

On Saturday, we all went to a Dry Bar and got blowouts and curls for the wedding~

Meanwhile, Josh and the boys were Waldos and joined a bike parade in Ft Collins~

Shopped and a while and got ready for the wedding~

A beautiful venue and a beautiful couple. Jessie has had a very hard few years, but finding Steve has brought peace, joy, and love to her and her kids. We could NOT be more thankful to be here to see them make their vows forever~

Everyone was so happy to be together and looked perfect~

Fun, fun, fun~

Let the party begin~

Cousins~

Sweet girl pained another masterpiece~

My little love Hudson~

The saddest part of going to Idaho, other than leaving my children, was NOT being home on Scott's 65th birthday. He got this cute shirt from the big girls, and the kids here sang to him, and they went out to lunch. At least I landed and got home by nightfall. I love you honey and wish many, many more~

How is that for an end to August? 

Bring on the 'BERS'!!! ❤️

My FAVORITE TIME OF THE YEAR!!!!!

All About School: 8th/High School and College~

8th and High School Girls~

Even before August arrived, there was a need for some structure, so we had a soft start with a few 'Beauty Loop' days starting with Art. I chose floral watercolor books for them this year, so we read from an art book, watched a tutorial, and painted~

We will paint every Wednesday as we close our school morning~

In the past, we have had a Nature Day. I read a book while they chose something to sketch and write about~

I am not completely sure we will continue. I think they have kind of outgrown it, and we already do science so we are still deciding~

I bought all the girls soft-cover bags for the supplies we will need this year. I loved the garden theme since we are taking a Year with Anne of Green Gables. We are reading all Anne books this year as we enjoy being home again, gathered around our kitchen table. All of materials live on this cart in the kitchen~

They all have their own set of the books and have started with Anne of Green Gables. It has been such a sweet way to strengthen sister bonds. Just this week EC said, "Mom, I can't believe you bought us all our own set. They were so expensive, BUT I will keep them for my kids because I love Anne." I would say that's THE WIN of trusting your heart, intuition, and the Lord's leading ~

I can remember sitting on the front porch with my morning coffee, doing my devotion and praying about our school year. I really wanted it to be a healing year as well as one where we fell back in love with learning and being together. I prayed that God would lead, and He did! I planned, then saw something else and wondered about it, then went back to the original plan. The more I gave in to the idea of A Year with Anne, the more I had peace and confidence. 

But even with the best-laid plans, there are bumps and twists with the people involved. We began our Anne study, but the girls were not as into it as I had hoped. The temptation to bail weighed heavily on my heart. I knew there was a show and decided that if we read each day, we would watch it during lunch. The plan worked! Even though the show was hardly at all like the book, the girls enjoyed it mostly because when we read, they liked the book better. Thus began the deep love, and every day instead of 1-2 chapters, they have wanted 3-4. I could not be happier with our decision and the payoff we are experiencing! 

I also bought a puzzle for them to work on that has become our map for the story~

We are committing to all 8 books. We are listening to the story, following along in our own book, looking for vocabulary words in each chapter, highlighting, writing definitions, and copying beautiful passages from the book. They each have a garden journal to write in. After each chapter, we narrate the story and write a short essay on the topic that comes up. It's amazing what happens when you offer a big box of washi tape, highlighters, and their creative imaginations~

I had NOTHING to do with this gorgeous work, but EC is so proud of it and I couldn't love it more~

Each of us have a binder with all the things we need for a week~

The first thing we do each day is Bible. They all have new Bibles this year that are amazing for dyslexic/ADHD thinkers. They have a scripture to copy each day, then we are using Rooted for our Bible study~

The next part of our day is book work. We are using Denison for math, and BOY has it been a game changer!!! They ALL love it! Fix It Grammar is a staple for us, and they all love the simplicity~

We are hitting the midpoint of the morning and in need of movement, so we leash the dogs and take the 1/4 mile driveway hike, which brings life to everyone~

The next part of the day is history or science, alternating one each day Mon-Thurs. I love this American History, which we are adding old favorites to, and for Science, I wanted to give them a foundation for taking care of themselves from a biblical perspective. We have learned about Earthing and Sunshine so far~

There is always a basket full of books to pull from that I gather for special occasions~

The last part of our morning is the Beauty Loop: French, Music, Poetry, Art, and Nature. Looping means doing one a day in a loop on a weekly basis~

They also LOVE to read from their own poetry books, and I am using a little notebook for a checklist this year~

Art: Floral Watercolor with BaileyRae~

Nature Basket~

Senior Boys!!!

The boys are pretty much on their own with assignments and due dates. (the only pic I could find of them)

I check in with them each day, and they take their work very seriously. WP is studying with the books below, plus Teaching Textbooks for math, and Literature study and writing essays for ELA. He also spends the afternoon at HCHS in JROTC and Raiders (he made the team)! PC is also studying Astronomy and Literature, including essays, and is dual-enrolled at North Georgia Tech, taking Humanities: Social Studies and World History. In his spare time, he works with Scott at the office and on job sites, shooting drone footage and photos for the website and social media. They work nearby, in our office, or at Scott's office~

College Girls: Junior and Freshman~

Shaylee was the first to move to college for Freshman Orientation. We actually loaded 4 cars and moved her things as well as Ella and Ilana's. I don't think I know anyone who was as ready to tackle this new adventure as SJ~

She and her roommate, Autumn, met each other through Ella and Ilana (cousin), and they have become instant friends and her family SO sweet~

It didn't take long at all to get SJ in and settled. EC was a huge help!!! SJ's a bit of a minimalist and made it just like she wanted it. Beautiful~

Happy girls ready for their first year of college~

Meanwhile, Ella was on a planning retreat for her club HSA with a wonderufl group of friends~

They were in Cleveland near the mountains~

Then it was time to move Ella into her on-campus house. SO much room and lots of friends to help~

SJ had a great entry into college life and is a part of the biggest freshman class in UTC history~

As I finish this post, it is amazing that God would allow me the privilege to be with my children every day, learning and living a beautiful life together. Nothing is wasted! Time in the morning doing schoolwork, afternoons making meals as a family, paint classes, tennis lessons, voice lessons, JROTC, working with Scott, taking care of pets, loving on our grands, learning to drive, gaming, running, walking, baking, cleaning the house, etc. It ALL counts in raising a well-rounded human, ready to step into the world with the light of Christ shining brightly for everyone! 

That is our mantra... 

Love Jesus, love each other, love it forward!!! Amen.  ❤️❤️❤️