Category Archives: My beautiful child

Best Friends, More Doggy and River Rats…

“Dirty hands, iced tea, garden fragrances thick in the air and a blanket of color before me, who could ask for more?”
— Bev Adams

It has been HOT.† Boiling, sweating, drenched-as-soon-as-you- walk-out-the-door, hot.† Complaints of how cold our Alabama winter was seems a long lost memory.

Liv spent the night with Kei and they had a blast.† They spent hours playing in the “creek” behind our house.† Or our ‘river’ as G calls it.† They were soaked, the dog was soaked, they all smelled like wet dog and creek….good times.

Creek Fun
Silly, Giggly Girls

When they finally got cleaned up they baked a cake.† They each decorated 1/2 of it.

Yummy Goodness

After dinner we took Nomad for a walk. I have walked, ridden, ran and skipped over the ‘concrete bridge’ a million times.† We used to ride our bikes over it BEFORE there was a fence.† I would KILL Kei if she ever tried anything like that.

Bestest Friends

After the walk they needed ice cream.

Yummy Ice Cream

Of course, after sticky ice cream, they needed a night time swim.

Who Needs a Bath???

I had 2 little girls that slept very soundly that night!

We got up early to go to some garage sales.† Liv had never been to a yard sale!!!† We had to remedy that quickly!

Bargains Galore!

We went to a yard sale out in Trinity and on the way back passed hay bales.† Liv had never climbed on a hay bale so I quickly made an illegal turn and parked the car!

HEY! It's HAY!

I enjoyed having Livvy here so much.

Saturday morning Kei and I went to Cullman to meander around.† We ate breakfast at Cracker Barrel and tried to find Southern Accents to no avail!† We went to the Cullman Farmer’s Market which we love.† On the way home we stopped at a nursery/antique shop.† Kei went head to head with a rooster.

Cock-a-doodle THIS!

She was also very angry that they had a statue of David with a GAP Tshirt on.† I told her we were in the country and maybe they were offended by his nakedness.† She thought that was the dumbest thing she ever heard.

We also saw a place where old school buses go to die.

Lonely Buses...

When we got home I relaxed in the hammock and Kei played with Nomad.

AHHHHHhhhhhhhhhhhhhh
Grrrrrrr

Sunday we went to church and afterward went to Eddie’s house for Nomad’s 1st River Run.† Nomad was NOT happy on the ride out there.† First he was in his little crate and he was having none of it.† Then we let him out and he still barked so loudly he about made me deaf!† We decided he wasn’t a traveling dog which made† us sad.† At Eddie’s we got in his car and Nomad laid on the floorboard and didn’t utter a peep!† Maybe he just doesn’t like Suzuki’s!

We had a wonderful day with Eddie and Nomad loved the river. Kei promptly dubbed him a river rat <of course that is what Johnny Depp was called in Chocolat and if you know Kei you will understand THAT> 🙂

Kei and Nomad the River Rat
My girl and my doggie...

We also ran by Hollywood Video which is going out of business and bought a few things.† One was “Marley and Me” which we have seen before.† However, we saw it before we got and fell in love with a yellow lab.† It was so much funnier because we have been there this time around.† Also so much more heart breaking.† Kei, who has never really cried at a movie, just went outside after it was over and hugged and hugged Nomad and cried her heart out. Poor baby girl.† She does love her doggie.

All in all a great weekend and now it is Monday….

The start of a new week, filled with possibilities!

Be Blessed,

Dog Paddling, Free Movies and Apples…

As June moves into the 2nd week we are having a wonderful summer so far.† There have been a few bumps in the road but things are mostly smooth.

Nomad is getting so big.† He is still not potty trained, but doing better.† Kei has been so good with him.† She has him trained to sit and also to remain in his crate† until she gets his lease on him.

He has swam with her too.† He didn’t completely love it but I think it is because he didn’t feel safe without a way to get out.† I mean how much would you like to be thrown in a water filled container over your head with smooth sides and no way to climb out?† Even with Kei right there he was like, “Rut ro, I am not really sure about this water thing!”

Nomad the Water Dog

When he started swimming she said, “Wow he is really dog paddling” and I was like, “well duh”. 🙂

Dog Paddling

We have both been reading “The Evolution of Calpurnia Tate” that came highly recommended by Esther.† We are loving all the nature aspects of it.

Kei reading about Callie Vee

We went to the free movie at Monaco Pictures.† It is so awesome that they do that all summer for the kids in the area.† We saw “Hotel for Dogs” which we have seen before and loved.† We met some of our bestest friends there.† Here are a few pictures from outside the theatre at the fountain.

Roamschool Kids
Kids at Bridge Street

Silly Moms
Mommy Bags

Constance always paints faces before the show and she let Kei borrow her Fairy Wings.† Beautiful!

My Little Fairy
Kei

After the movie we took my laptop to the Apple Store. Wow!† I love that store.† We have always been “PC” girls but I am seriously thinking about changing to Mac’s.† My laptop will be $310 to fix and my great boss said to “put it on the card”.† He is the best!

After lunch at Steak and Shake <yummy> we went back to the Apple Store for me to actually drop off my laptop.† Afterward we went to Kei’s favorite candy store, “The Chocolate Crocodile” She spent 10 minutes searching for the perfect truffles.

French Mint Truffle

Last night we had a huge lightning storm.† Our power went out about 2:00 AM and was out until 3:15 AM.† Complete silence and dark are very scary things.

Summer days…

A perfect summer day is when the sun is shining, the breeze is blowing, the birds are singing, and the lawn mower is broken.† ~James Dent

Have Happy Days,


Lazy days, Bento and T-Shirt Painting…

Ahhhh June…full of possibilities and adventures waiting to happen.† I love June 1st.† It is the ‘start of the summer’, a time when anything can happen.† The days are longer, the nights are warmer, lightening bugs roam at night, pools glisten in the sunlight, laughter rings out in back yards.

Of course reality is: the lawn mower is broken, the pool has a leak, the dog is pooping in the yard every 2 feet, there are more flies and mosquitoes than lightening bugs.† But still…the possibilities are there.

We met some friends for lunch in Huntsville.† We went to a place called Bento Box. Kei and I discovered Bento boxes when she was in K.† I would send her creative, healthy lunches in her cute little Bento Box most days.

Kids @ Bento Box

My nephew spent the night with us.† He is 14 and I have a horrible habit of finding a million things for a big, strong dude to do when he is here.† He is great at moving heavy things!† He and Kei found some time to swim.

Kei and Seth

Kei put on a play with Nomad.† She was Minnie Mouse and he was her doggie.† She was going to name him Pluto but decided it would confuse him for her to call him a different name.† God love her.

Minnie and her dog
Final Bow Wow

She also found some time to play Barbies. She puts on plays with her Barbies <go figure>.† I remember Summer days playing Barbies on this very patio.† I love that life has come full circle.

Barbie Girl

On Wednesday we headed to Esther’s to make RoamSchool T shirts.† We did this 2 summers ago.† I can’t find the actual picture but this is right after it.† Esther what were you thinking having this many kids at your house!!!?????

Kids TShirts 2008

It is amazing how much they have changed.

Kids TShirts 2010

Kei hard at work.

Kei TShirt

I am sad to report, that at the ripe old age of 9 weeks, Nomad has a Monkey on his back.† We are working with him to fix this problem.† There are probably support groups out there.

:/

All in all, a wonderful start to our “Days of Summer”.† Hopefully there will be much more to come.

Happy Summer Days…

Gardening, Pooch Plays & Hobbits….

Eddie, Seth, Katherine and Heather came over yesterday to help us in our yard. Eddie had bought us some plants and herbs. He showed me how to clean out a bed and plant. I am constantly amazed with my pleasure in digging in dirt. Eddie said it is because we come from a long line of farmers!

We first planted some herbs; parsley, thyme, rosemary and oregano. Kei planted most of the herbs after Eddie showed her how.

Herbs
Vinca
Coleus

We also planted 20 Glads.† I can’t wait for them to start coming up.† After all that work, Eddie and Heather left.† Since it was their anniversary the kids stayed for the rest of the day.† Seth helped my clean out a flower bed that was in yucky shape.† He worked his butt off digging up a dead rose bush.† At one point he came up to me and pointed to his “Hobbit Feet”.

There and Back Again..

We spent the afternoon outside.† The kids swam for a bit, I read in the rose garden, and Nomad frolicked!† Late in the afternoon Kei and Nomad put on another play.† She was the sun and Nomad was a flower.† I sure hope he loves having crazy costumes put on him.

We woke up today to rain.† We took Nomad outside, he put his little puppy paw on the grass, turned around and peed on the patio!† We have a Diva Dog I guess.† After church Kei introduced him to the wonders of Disney Channel.

Important Stuff

I can’t believe tomorrow is Monday once again.† The middle of May.† How quickly time goes by.

Happy week,

Missing, Dog’s Life & Happiness….

The 2nd anniversary of my Mother’s death came and went. I laid in bed on the eve of her anniversary in the same room she died in. I thought it would really upset me to be in there and while I didn’t sleep much, it wasn’t a ‘freaking out’ restlessness.

I remember that night. My brother and I spent the night here. We knew Mother didn’t have long. It was a horribly long night. They had hooked her up to a breathing machine and I spent most of the night on her floor listening to her struggle to breath. My 2 aunts stayed late. When they left it was just my Daddy, my brother and I. I finally got on the couch and spent all night back and forth from the den to her room. I talked to her and held her hand and touched her face. I remember looking at the clock at one point and it was 3:00 AM. That is such a lonely time. I remember thinking “I don’t know if I can exist in a 3 am that doesn’t have my Mother in it”.

We woke the next morning early, around 6:00. Eddie and I knew that she was almost gone. I called my aunts to ask them to come. They got here around 7:30. We all sat around her bed talking to her. All of us except my Daddy. He couldn’t handle it. It made me think of the line from “Steel Magnolias”, “I find it amusing. Men are supposed to be made out of steel or something. I just sat there. I just held Shelby’s hand. There was no noise, no tremble, just peace. Oh god. I realize as a woman how lucky I am.” My Mother breathed her final breath at 8:03 AM on May 10th. I walked outside and was surprised to see the world moving on. The sun was out, birds were singing, flowers blooming and my Mother was dead. It was one of the most surreal moments of my life.

But time marches on. We are living in her house. We are loving living here and I have discovered I actually like yard work. I have never done it. I grew up with 2 brothers who did the yard work. When I was married my husband did the yard work. Since then I have lived in apartments. But I enjoy it. I am learning, slowly about flowers and shrubs and just yard stuff.

Nomad is adorable. We are loving having him in our family. I never thought I would ever be a ‘dog person’ but I love him. Kei is wonderful with him and we don’t even mind the 3:00 AM potty breaks. He is the cutest thing.

A girl and her dog

Isn’t he just beautiful??

Awwwww

We had Brit and Cody here for a few days and had a blast.† Kei and Brit gave Nomad his first bath.† The girls loved it, Nomad not so much.

They played games, sang, talked and gave Nomad tons of attention.

Rub a Dub Dog..

Kei and I put up a Stage Curtain for outdoor plays.† Her and Nomad put on their 1st of what I am sure is many plays.† Nomad had 3 roles, a lion, an alligator and a bunny.† I was cracking up.

Hippity Hop Bark
Finale

I love living here.† I love our yard.† I love sitting in the rose garden and reading in the swing.† I love waking up early in the morning and walking outside and everything is crisp and lovely.† I love watching the birds and squirrels and bunnies and chipmunks.† I love the feel of the cool clovers on my bare feet.† I love watching my sweet girl running with her dog.† Life is good.

Blessings,

Pools, Puppies and Poop…

We got Nomad yesterday.† Nomad is the dog Kei has wanted since she was old enough to ask for a puppy.† We have never been able to get a dog because of where we lived.† Now we can.

We have looked at many, many dogs.† None was “Nomad”.† My brother’s friend has some Lab mixed puppies.† We love Labs so we told him we would be interested in a male.† He said he would save us one but didn’t send a picture.† It was ‘assumed’ we would take him, but Kei really wanted to see him first.† He sent a picture last week.† Kei opened the email and promptly said, “That is Nomad”.

We have been busy getting ready since then, toys and food and treats and information.† I know nothing of dogs.† Yesterday was the day.† We had plans of going to Wal-Mart to finish up buying a couple of things for him.† Kei wanted a WELCOME HOME banner.† Well my brother called early and said “I have the dog, come meet me”.† Kei was beside herself with excitement.† Imagine Christmas, birthday, and Halloween all rolled up into one.† She quickly made† a sign and put on the front door and we were off.† On the ride over she sang a little song.

Well I got lost <imagine that> but finally we arrived at our rendezvous spot.† Kei bounded out of the car to see her “Nomad”† It was puppy love at first sight.

Our 1st Look at Nomad

When we got home she told him all about his new home.† He loved his Welcome Home sign.

Welcome Home

We brought him in where his bowl was ready.† He promptly had to drink and eat.

Yum Yum

It was a great day full of Nomad love.† He seems to be a very sweet puppy.† He was good and pretty much slept most of the day.† He would be running around in the yard with Kei and just lay down and fall asleep.† It was so cute.

Grrrrrrrrr

Kei had an online Science class in the afternoon.† She and Nomad learned all about Einstein and relativity.† Nomad wasn’t so interested.

E=mc snoozed

Kei found time to spend a couple of hours in her pool.† I am so glad we were able to put it up this year.† It was a beautiful day for swimming.

Water Water

After swimming for Kei and playing and sleeping for Nomad they were both tired puppies. It was time for a nap.

Nap Time

I dewormed Nomad.† No biggie.† But did you know after deworming they poop WORMS!† Lots of worms.† But Kei and I persevered…. barely.

Nomad’s first night was pretty good.† He slept in a basket by Kei’s side of the bed.† She and I got up and took him outside 3 times.† Which was not so bad.† At least it wasn’t January, in the snow.

So on May 5th our little family of two became 3.† Life is good.

“Dogs are our link to paradise. They don’t know evil or jealousy or discontent. To sit with a dog on a hillside on a glorious afternoon is to be back in Eden, where doing nothing was not boring–it was peace.” – Milan Kundera

Oz, Birthdays and Bathing Suits…

Yesterday was my birthday.† My birthday excites Kei much more than it excites me.† I woke up and she had put balloons in the bathtub and written a Happy Birthday note on the mirror.† She is such a blessing to me.† She got me my favorite candle and plants for the yard.† She also drew me sidewalk art.

The Best Card Ever

We spent the day outside.† It was so beautiful and I read in the sun and she played.† Our roses are so gorgeous.

Beauty

I got many Facebook Happy Birthday wishes, phone calls and visits.† My sister in law brought over the most awesome present.† I had an old bathing suit that was my Mother’s that I wanted to ‘frame’ somehow.† My sister in law owns a frame shop and she framed it and it looks amazing.† I just cried when I saw it.

Momma's Bathing Suit

My awesome, amazing boss sent me a G4 PowerBook.† I have wanted a laptop forever!† I was so excited and jumping up and down.

Last night we went to see the play, “The Wizard Of Oz”. Our friends Matt, Jake and Chandler were making their acting debut.† We rode with Gina and kids and had a great time blabbing catching up.† I think I was doing most of the blabbing, sorry Gina. ;)† We met The Amoses, The Woods and some of the Crawfords at the theater.† The play was awesome!† We loved it and were very impressed with all our friends skills especially the amazing Winged Monkey King!

Kei and Chan
Kei and Jake
Kei and Matt The Winged Monkey King

Afterward we went to Moes to eat.† It was so yummy but I got so full!† They give so much food! It was an amazing birthday!

Our girls

What homeschoolers do after they are finished eating.

USA Chips

A lovely day.

On a different note, WE HAVE FOUND NOMAD.† But more about that later. 😉

Happy weekend,

Wildflowers, Roses, Homemade Candy and 100th Post…

100 Posts.† I started this blog when my Mother died.† It helped me so much in the first few days/weeks/months.† I don’t keep† it like I should.† I write sporadically at best.† This is my 100th post and I wish I had something earth shattering to share, some wisdom to impart to the 2 people who read this.

But I don’t.

Life goes on, soon it will be 2 years that my sweet Mamma died.† 2 years, it seems impossible that it has been that long.† Things change, my Daddy has remarried to a wonderful woman who I love.† I still miss my Mother every day of my life.† Kei still tells me at times I call for her when I am falling asleep.† We are living in her house.† She would be tickled pink that we are here.† I wish she lived here with us, but that wasn’t God’s plan.

Kei bought a candy making kit on clearance after Easter.† It looked like something that would be a huge mess to me.† She was outside playing and decided she had to make candy NOW.†† I warned her that it probably wouldn’t look like the candy on the box.

Getting Ready

She did it all by herself and I was amazed how it turned out!† It was beautiful!

Yummy!

The roses are blooming here.† It is so strange how I lived here when I was younger and visited here every day of my life almost, but I have never really noticed how beautiful the roses and flowers are.† I guess ownership <however loosely> makes you more aware.

Beautiful Rose

There are about 15 rose bushes scattered everywhere.† Mother always loved roses.† They are amazing.

Rose with Ladybug

We celebrated Earth Day by going on a Wildflower walk.† I love this place but this year there wasn’t much water and the kids didn’t get to splash around much.† We then went to a nearby park and ate lunch at Taziki’s Greek Restaurant.† It was YUMMY!

EArth Day Hike

There is the coolest house made of twigs and limbs.† We wondered who built it?

House Made of Twigs

All in all a good week.† We were invited to go camping next week and are so hoping we will be able to go!

Happy week all,

Red Pawns, Wonderland and Field Days…

Last week was play week. It was a magical, hilarious, stressed, crazy time.

The play went great. The kids did awesome. They worked so hard and you could tell it by watching the play.

Red Pawn
Cluck Cluck!
Alice and her Red Pawn
Dixie Chicken

We had some of our bestest friends who came to watch Keilee. Thank you all.

Brit came to dress rehearsal because they were going to Florida the next day.

Kei, Brit, Sophia

Esther, Heather and kids came to the school show.

Roamschoolers In Wonderland

Suzette, Dave, Emily and Zachery came to the Saturday night show and took us out for dinner afterwards!† Thanks Amoses.

Amos's and Red Pawn

In the middle of all of this we had our NACHO Field Day. It was a perfect day for it and we had so much fun.

Field Day
YAY Nacho
Kei's 1st Goal!
Soccer Team For the Win!

Hopefully this week is a little bit slower paced!

Homeschooling just rocks!

Chickens, Puppies and Horses…

It has been beautiful here the last several days.† Kei and I have both loved being outside.† We threw a rope over a tree and she made a swing, which promptly became a horse visiting mystical lands.† I love listening to her play.

Ride "em Cowgirl

A few days ago 2 dogs wandered up.† At first I was very leery of them, strange dogs and such, but they were so sweet.† Kei played with them for over an hour.† I got their name and number off of their tags and called their owners.† They came to pick them up but Kei still had time to get some Puppy Love.† We are still planning on getting a dog as soon as her play is over.

Loving the doggies

Speaking typing of the play, it is week after next.† Kei is loving every minute of it as usual.† She has several roles in this one and one is a Dixie Chicken.† She is one of Humpty Dumpty’s backup singers! †† It is going to be a great play.† We also have been helping on the scenery.† The irony of not painting MY OWN HOUSE and then painting scenery doesn’t escape me. :p

Cluck Cluck
Humpty Dumpty's Wall

She also got to try on dresses.† They have TONS of dresses at DreamWeavers and she was in heaven.

Red Curtsey

So far April has been lovely.

Enjoy nature,