Tempus Fugit...Time Flies!!!

As some of you know, I am no longer a homeschool Mom...

My children are both in public school this year.  Yes, it's a long story and I can imagine some of you shaking your heads at me...but that is not what this post is about...

What I find amazing is, though I am not a day older, my kiddos are quickly growing up and soon will be all on their own...

It wasn't that long ago, they were just starting school...

They were just little'uns back then...

 

Now they are my height and taller...and rapidly approaching the day when they'll fly the coop...

 

I'm proud of them both and am excited what God's going to do in their lives...

Love you Kelton and Kyri!!!

And for the record....

I miss this critter too...

Love ya, Shal!

Why The Silence???

As many of you know, my precious mama went to Papua New Guinea at the beginning of this year.

I thought I'd be strong and brave...and I was

...except my heart went with her.  I left a piece of me in PNG as a child and it was hard to not crawl into her bags and go with her.  But don't get me wrong, she went with my fullest blessing.  I wasn't prepared for the turmoil it would put me in.

Not only did I miss her, achingly so, those first few months, I also lost my own life as well...let me explain.  I discovered the joy had gone out of everything around me.  It seemed so trivial to live in our western culture with its blessings and frivolity, when my mom was sacrificing so much.  My creativity was dead, the meaning in my life felt like a farce.  Although there is truth in everything I've said, I also had to remember that God didn't call me there.  He called me to be married to this man...

...which means sharing his life and his world.  An Arkansas country world...

and this blog is apart of that in a way.  So, with all that said, I've come back to bloggerville and am here to let the creative juices flow.  The next few posts will be catch up time and maybe a bit random and jumbly...

Anyway, 'nough said...until later.

Holly

Fall Has Finally Fallen On Our Farm...

 

             I'm enjoying the feeling of Fall.

           

         And its beauty...it looks like we                 are going to have a nice long one as well.

  I always did love the changing seasons;)

Growing Up and Growing Old...

Well, he finally graduated...

...Shallen,that is.   It was great to see him graduate with high honors and receive his partial scholarship to the U of A!

It was also great to have some of my family here at different times to help us celebrate.  It's hard to believe I'm old enough to have a college age kid.  I wish you the best, Shal!!!!  

Spider Lamp!!! Huh?

A long time ago...

...back when Shawn and I used to look like this.  I worked for a very special lady named...

Glenna Haney.  She was like my mom away from home.  She often had me dust a monstrous lamp.  She grumbled about it's out of controlled limbs, etc.  All this to say, this year I had floor lamps on my Christmas list.   You guessed it,  Shawn instructed me to close my eyes and this is what I opened them to... 

...a spider lamp!!! ARRRRRR.....  No, it's staying, Shawn loves it and I will adjust, I promise.  Though I might be like Mrs. Haney and grumble about it's unwieldy limbs!

Happy New Year!!!

Hot, Hot, HOT!!

This is what our farm looks like right now...Not Really!!!...but it has been so hot and dry, we might just be headed for this.  Hence, no new photos have been taken.  We are mostly just hunkered down waiting for the heat to abate.  That's what northern peoples do in hot climes...More posts perhaps in the fall.

Until we cool off...

Spring Update!

Spring is here!!!

  Baxter's impromptu pose in front of my new flower bed.

'The Gang' (in order...Nick, Shal, Spencer,& Cedar) on their way for a hike/campout. 

I tried to remind them that what goes out must come back(except...well, never mind).

They were pretty loaded down. LOL

This was Shawn's idea of breakfast in bed.  I opened my bedroom door and this was what was waiting for me.  It reminds me of my sister's 'Twinkies in Bed' senario.

Anyway, it's the thought that counts.

Happy Spring, Ya'll!!!

I Collect...

Some of you know that I collect Nativity Scenes.  Don't ask me how that got started...I really don't know, but here are just a few I found on my camera from Christmas.

My first nativity...collected from the shores of Moberly Lake, British Columbia

There are funny ones...

...and ones from foreign countries.

Then again, some are small like this one my sister brought to me from Alaska.

This one is my latest one...a lot of work, but a lot of fun.

I try to add one every year, not just any 'ole one, but something that has a memory or some meaning behind it.  I like for things to tell me stories when I look at them...

Until later...

How Can You Resist?

Some things are just irresistible...

...especially little kitty feet!

Welcome, Spring!!

Late Breaking News...

Okay, I know everybody gets snow(almost everybody)

...but here in AR, we don't see it in this quantity very often...almost never, maybe.

So, don't mock me, IT IS blog worthy. What is even more amazing is that this pic was taken about 8:00 in the morning and it didn't stop snowing until around 3:PM. You get the picture...

We made great snow cream--

Took the kids truck sledding while delivering hay to the mares--

Drank a lot of hot tea--

Didn't do school--

Need I go on???

Snow Day!!!

My Point Of View!!!

Okay, I know I'm terribly behind in bloggy world...

so...instead of excuses of how and why, I thought I'd sweet'n you up...

with a few beautiful shots of what greeted me this morning after...

a hair-raising adventure last night trying to get home from town.

God did a good'un when He did this one, don't ya think?

Snow? Again?

We were totally amazed at the 8+ inches of snow...

...in March, no less. At first the kids weren't very enthused,

but they got over it. They even got inspired to build a snowman.

Kelton dug out the old snowman kit we've never been able to use.

Frosty turned out looking quite nice!

It was gone in two days, I guess we can honestly say it was fun while it lasted:)

Holly Is Not Dead, Nor Doth She Sleep...

I'm back after a long sabbatical...

Here is a look at our year in pics.

Merry Christmas To All!!!

Brrr...Here Comes The Cold Days...

I want Fall leaves like this, but alas, I don't live in Vermont...