Manipulatives

I bought this set a while back from Oriental Trading Company. They have some really cool stuff. (They have a bunch of junky stuff, too.) Princess loves playing with this because she gets to hammer 'real nails'. She also gets to create fun pictures.

Meme Time Again!

I got this one from Zayna's Garden. I just love her blog! She didn't actually tag me, but encouraged me to do this one.

1. What bill do you hate paying the most? Hmmm...that's a tough one. I'd have to say rent. I would rather be paying off my mortgage.

2. Where was the last place you had a romantic dinner? Azteca (Mexican Restaurant)

3. What do you really want to be doing right now? Hanging out with my husband and daughter. (I've got half of it.)

4. How many colleges did you attend? one, but I never finished.

5. Why did you choose the shirt that you have on right now? It was comfortable.

6. What are your thoughts on gas prices? Better than when it hit $4. I'd like to find alternate fuel.

7. First thought when the alarm went off this morning? Alarm? Are you kidding me? We're homeschoolers!


8. Last thought before going to sleep last night? I wish my husband was here.

9. Do you miss being a child? No. My childhood sucked.

10. What errand/chore do you despise? Cleaning the house. Yes, I despise anything having to do with cleaning.

11. Get up early or sleep in? I think that's kinda relative. I get up when my eyes open, which is usually around 7 or 8. Some people call that sleeping in and some people call that getting up early. I'll let you decide.

12. Have you found real love yet? Absolutely. The Lizard King is the love of my life.


13. Favorite lunch meat sandwich topping? Mayo (Best Foods/Hellman's)...I so wish it wasn't made with soy. :(

14. What do you get every time you go into Wal-Mart? I don't go to Walmart.

15. Beach or lake? beach

16. Do you think marriage is an outdated ritual? No

17. Sopranos or Desperate Housewives? No, thank you.

18.What famous person would you like to have dinner with? Jodie Foster

19. Have you ever crashed your vehicle? Oh yeah...more than once. I was a crazy kid.

20. Ever had to use a fire extinguisher for its intended purpose? I think so.

21. Ring tone? My main ring tone is the theme to Xena. Then I have special rings for some people (LK, my two best friends, my sister, the library...).

22. Strangest place you have ever brushed your teeth? at work

23. Somewhere in Canada you’ve never been and would like to go? Anywhere in Canada since I've never been there.

23. Do you go to church? No. (I know. You're shocked, right?)

24. At this point in your life would you rather start a new career or a new relationship? Again, no thank you.

25. How old are you? I will be 45 on January 13th at 5:02pm Eastern time.

26. Do you have a “go to” person? Lizard King

27. Are you where you want to be in life? Mostly

28. Growing up what was your favourite cartoon? Scooby Doo

29. What about you do you think has changed the most? my hair (your wanted the important stuff, right?)

30. Looking back at high school, were they the best years of your life? no way

32. Did you ever own troll dolls? no

33. Did you have a pager? yes (and a bag phone for my car)

34. Where was the hang out spot when you were a teenager? Don's apartment in Croydon, PA

35. Were you the type of kid you would want your children to hang out with? Hell no!

36.Who do you think impacted your life the most? My husband, the Lizard King

37. Was there a teacher or authority figure that stood out for you? The professor who threw me out of his class in college? He was an ass.

38. Do you tell stories that start with “when I was your age…” ? nope

I'm not going to tag anyone, however, if you’d like to do this copy/paste it and post your answers on your own blog (and let me know) or leave your answers in the comments.

A Good Book

Who can resist a good book? Yesterday, Princess read three books and one chapter from a chapter book. I do admit that this is more than normal, but it was really cool to see her love of reading begin to blossom.

As for me, I have discovered a love for the Twilight series by Stephenie Meyer. I found the hardcover set at Costco for $46! Currently, I am reading book three. You just have to look past the high school setting (which is pretty easy to do) and an interest in vampires doesn't hurt. I happen to love vampire stories, especially ones like this.

Monday Gardening Club

It's been a while since I've posted for Gardening Monday and a lot has happened in the garden. Thanks to Aliceson at Feet Off The Table for starting this whole gardening extravaganza!

Before leaving for South Carolina, the Lizard King did all he could to make my life a little easier while he was gone. This is a self winding hose. I'm not exactly sure how it works, but it used water power from the water in the hose. I simply pull it out when I'm ready to water the garden and slide that yellow lever back when I am done. It is so awesome!!




My garden that was this has grown to this:

I love eating the food from my garden and I am still amazed that I actually grew food. I was certain this was going to be a gardening disaster. One of my favorite things is walking out to the garden in the morning and cutting chard for my breakfast.

That's the chard, to the left of the lettuce.

I saute' the chard in coconut oil (expeller pressed)...

and good butter.

Then plate it and top it with some Celtic sea salt and more good butter.

I scramble up some eggs with diced, roasted red pepper and shred some cheese on top...
so yummy!

What's happening in your garden?

Park Day

Every Wednesday, all summer long, you can find us at Cook Park in Tigard at the homeschool park day. It's a place for us unsocialized homeschoolers. ;)

We got there before the others, so Princess did some sand play on her own. Pay no attention to the ugly fence in the background. They are doing some park renovations.

On a hot sunny day, the kids found some shade and some privacy. Freckle grabbed my camera for these shots.

She then hid behind a tree and snapped some very rare photos of me, the Shady Lady.

We hang out, talk and knit. It's one of the few times we get almost uninterrupted knitting time. Fun times!

By the end of the day the kids were filthy. They must have had a good time. I know I did. =)

Wardrobe Wednesday

Don't you just love this ensemble?

Be sure to head over to Heathen Family Revival and check out the one who started it all.

A Month of Family Time

I have been putting off posting an update. I wanted to share all the things that we have done over the last month. It was amazing to have so much family time. There is one problem. I took so many photos and I want to share them all. So, I will tell you all the things we did and offer you a link to view all the photos at Picasa online.

We spent a lot of time hanging out and playing in our back yard (and took lots of pictures). I got a new camera. It is awesome! and I took lots of photos. I love the settings on this camera. You've got to see the pictures.

The garden is growing like crazy.

LK sold his Jeep and his Harley.

We went to the Enchanted Forest.

LK and Princess made burgers for the July 4th party.

Of course, a little dress up always happens.

We had a fun-filled week with LK's sister and brother-in-law. We went to Multnomah Falls (so beautiful), the Beaverton Farmers Market and Saturday Market. LK took them (Princess and I stayed home) to Cannon Beach.

We went to swimming lessons (and soccer).

Princess used her allowance to buy a tub toy. It's Barbie Mermaid. Fun!

After LK left we got back to school work...and we talk to him everyday using Skype online so we get to see each other.

Whew! I'm glad that's done. Hopefully, I hope I don't get so far behind again. Enjoy the photos here!

Departure

At 3:15am I felt the Lizard King get out of bed. I knew this time was coming, but it didn't make it any easier. I couldn't fall back to sleep and I lay in bed waiting for him to come out of the bathroom so we could say our goodbyes. The night before, Princess had fallen asleep snuggling LK’s arm, crying off and on. They had already said their goodbyes then because we didn’t want to wake her.

LK left the bathroom, came over and hugged and kissed me, then went downstairs. I couldn't fall back to sleep. I climbed out of bed and went downstairs to hug and kiss him one more time. Back up in bed I lay there, listening for the sound of the shuttle service vehicle and the wheels of his suitcase rolling down the walkway and finally the sound of the vehicle pulling away.

At some point I drifted off to sleep and woke again around 7:30. Princess woke up about 15 minutes later. When we got downstairs we saw this.

After reading the note (herself) she opened the box and found this.

He really is the best dad and husband, isn't he?

This was harder than I thought it would be and I am feeling so very sad today. I'm sure it will pass.

Riding the Roller Coaster, Shady Style

Lizard King's sister and brother-in-law left today, after a fun-filled week. We went to Multnomah Falls, Beaverton Farmers Market, Saturday Market and Cannon Beach. I will post more about the visit and some pictures later. We had so much fun spending time with them. Princess really loved her time with them and was so sad when they left.

I thought you all might enjoy riding the roller coaster with us. That job that we were waiting on did not come through. However, LK got a call yesterday from the company that offered him the Afghanistan job. He had sent a very professional letter, informing them that he would not be going to Afghanistan. He also told them that if anything came up stateside, he would be very interested. We never expected to hear from them.

They must be extremely impressed with his resume, because it looks like they pulled some strings. LK will be working for the same company BUT in South Carolina, specifically Greenville. The money isn't quite as good, but it is still very good. He will come home once a month and Princess and I will also fly down to see him.

I always say that everything happens for a reason. I know that if Afghanistan had not happened, this would be so much harder for us. LK is leaving Sunday morning. We are trying to get as much time together as possible, so it will be a few more days before I'm back to the bloggy world on a regular basis. I hope you all understand. We also have some last minute shopping to do. He and I feel so much better about this job. I know it will still be hard, but nothing like it could have been.

I hope you have enjoyed today's ride.

The Eleventh Hour

I've been far away from the bloggy world for a long time. Things are about to change...big time.

On Monday, the Lizard King had an interview for a job...here. Wednesday, pulling into the parking garage at the airport to pick up his sister and brother-in-law, LK got the call. The job was a no. I looked at him and said the words that had been going through my mind for the last few days. "Please stay. We'll figure it out. We always do." He told me that he had been thinking the same thing. The possibility of this local job had both of us rethinking things.

Later that night LK and I talked. He then revealed to me the things he had learned when his airline details arrived. It included things like:

Back Pack to carry two days of clothes

Flashlight - Red, Green or Blue lens (Blackout camp rules)

Breakfast/power bars (possible travel delays with no foodavailability)

Pillow, Flat Sheet, Extra Blanket, Wash Clothes, Towels (2-3 Bath. 4-6 Hand)

and comments from the field:

Bedding for cot style sleeping. I have an air mattress from Amazon & use a twin fitted sheet.Put an air mattress on the cot -Tolerable comfort. Pillow really helps. Amazon does deliver to the FOBS 4-7 days for most items.

Be prepared to take pictures from the back of a Chinook between BAF & Shank - Rear door stays open. Ask for tail gunner Roberts - She is my favorite.

DO NOT bring conventional luggage. You will have to pull over rocks for long distances.Recommend Duffle bag style, great for mill air travel.

Headphones (Small portable) for watching movies on your computer. That's all the entertainment your allowed.

We made the decision for him to stay. I am so totally thrilled and relieved. The thought of him leaving was breaking my heart. I told him that the next year might suck, but we'll get through it. If he went to Afghanistan it would suck. If he stayed, financially it could suck. Either way it might suck, but I'd rather it suck with you than suck without you.

Then we got the call from the head hunter. They said that they are still in negotiations with the company he interviewed with, so that job may come through after all. Keep your fingers crossed!