October 2011 in Pictures

Bre decided it was time to donate 3 feet of hair to Locks of Love. =)

Family Photoshoot

Our lovely daughter  Cassie(the photographer) took our pictures last weekend. We were wet and cold but had a great time. Tomorrow she is taking pictures of Matt and I at the place where he proposed over 2 decades ago. =) I can't wait until we can get the whole family together for pictures...just have to get everyone in the same place at the same time. ;)

My thoughts on year round schooling

I have done the research and wanted year round schooling to work for us. I love the face that schooling this way allows for the month of December off as well as a week break every 5 weeks. I tried it and put everything I had into it. The problem is that we are just way too busy during the summer months. We are on the go almost every day. Now you could argue the fact that much of what we do could be considered educational. But, as far as lesson plans, book work and written work goes... Nada. Maybe because my kids are older it is more difficult. Ty works, has summer plans with friends as well as our family adventures. We have CAP activities, camping, rifle courses, Archery, weekly hikes,reunions, picnics, daycations ect... How do busy families make this work?

Breanna is always doing something creative, does that count? Ty meets new and interesting people at work as well as working the cash register, does that count? Open to ideas and suggestions because I really would love to school year round. =)

I feel bad...

for neglecting my blog. Facebook is just so much easier. It is also a time waster. No matter how much of a limit I give myself, I find  that I am on FB way too much. There are so many things I wanted to blog about over the summer. I am thinking of signing off of FB for good. Only problem with that is, I won't be able to see all my grand baby's beautiful pictures that Cassie post and I will also feel out of the loop. Such a dilemma. lol   How do you deal with FB? What to do, what to do? I think I am going to stay off for a few days and see how much of a  withdrawal I get and see how much more I can get done without the pull of FB. =) My goal is to blog weekly, like I did in the past. We shall see...

20th Anniversary Trip

Ellie's Dedication

Happiness is a choice!

I overheard a conversation the other day that has been replaying over and over in my head. I know, I know I shouldn't have been listening, but I just couldn't help myself. A young mom was talking to another young mom about how unhappy she is. She was giving a long list of why she is so unhappy, such as not having enough money to go out, kids always mis-behaving, husband working too much to help out around the house... The typical trials of mommy-hood. While she is venting her beautiful toddler was sitting next to her eating his snack listening to his mommy complain, basically about him.Her ending words, were why can't I just be happy like everyone else? That got me thinking how many other moms feel the same way? Happiness is a verb. It takes action. You must decide to be happy. The more you dwell on the little inconveniences of everyday life, the unhappier you will feel.

I wanted to point out that yes, her husband is working long hours, but not for nothing. She was able to sit in a park with her girlfriend while her children played on a weekday. He was contributing much, if not in finances, at the very least the well being of his children. I remember some of those feelings when we were first married. I do not remember who told me, but I remember these words spoken to me very clearly: Happiness is a choice! YOU decide if you are going to be happy or not. As I grew as a christian I knew his to be very true. I start my day with thanks to the Lord and with a ready for anything attitude. Once I stopped focusing so much on my wants and desires and put my focus on the Lord and pleasing my husband and kids, it was EASY to feel happy. Watching the smiles of my children, the contentment of my husband and the joy in our household is worth so much more than my silly desires. What evidently happens is that those things BECOME your desires.
These are some of the things I would have liked to have said to this  mom. Have you ever overheard a conversation that you wanted to "crash"? How did you handle it? Is it ever appropriate to intrude on a private conversation?  Probably not, and unfortunately I have never been able to intrude gracefully. Until then I will just blog my two sense.