Confessions of a Wayward Blogger

I confess.  I have not made time for this blog since last summer.  Our lives have changed quite a bit, and at the time seemed really hard to blog about.  Now it doesn't feel so painful. 

We closed our business at the end of June.  It just couldn't financially recover from the recession.  It is a hard thing to tell your employees, your family, and your friends.  It meant a lot of inevitable changes for our family. 

I am now teaching PreK in a charter school.  It was hard to give up homeschooling our youngest and enroll him in public school.  Very.  But I am grateful for God's provision, and the transition went as well as it could have. We have all survived. :)

Steve has been doing some business consulting and contract work.  His new schedule has allowed us to keep our sanity. lol.  He has picked up the slack from me being back in education and all the extra hours that entails; as well as making sure football, racing, and life schedules were manageable and remained as intact as possible.

God is so good.  He has provided for us each step of the way.  And even though I know we still have more transitions ahead of us (new career for Steve; a possible move for our family), I know we are in God's hands; HE is our source, and it will all work out for our good.  I trust Him. Completely.

So, these "snow" days we've have allowed for some down time and opportunities to catch up here and there.

I am back.  Sort of. :)

Last Week in Pictures

I've been posting "recent happenings' for awhile now, and several family members have expressed their interest in them, so I am going to try to make these kinds of posts a regular feature of my blog.  Here are some more recent happenings: 

C and I took a trip to the Tulsa Rose Gardens. 

The roses were plentiful and gorgeous.

And then we perused the Teaching Gardens.

We both enjoyed exploring all the gardens, but I think C's favorite was the water garden with the gold fish..

Thought you might like one last look at C's mohawk....because I think a haircut is coming soon.

Tulsa's roses aren't the only ones in bloom right now....OURS are too! 

I love the color of these hybrid roses.  They are blooming more this year than last year I think.

These are C's favorites.

We've opened the pool for the summer. YAY!  C's really the only one that doesn't think the water is still too cold. lol. 

This is the celebration dance (C and friend) when Matt won his heat race this past Friday night.

This is Matt's "It's about that time" look when getting ready for his feature race.

I must say we had a very scary moment during Matt's feature race and clear evidence that the Lord continues to protect Matt.  He was in the lead (lead for ten laps) when his steering column came off completely while he was still at a speed of  90+ mph.  He had no steering so the only thing he could do was hit the brakes.  His car then slid into the infield and came to a stop.  Seriously, folks.  He didn't hit any cars or the light pole in front of him on the infield, and he didn't get a single scratch on him or have any major damage to his car.  We are very thankful for his safe stop.  Upon investigation, the two bolts that hold the steering column had been jarred loose - at least that is my understanding.  So, he didn't get to finish the race, and the guy in 2nd eventually won.  Matt is SO CLOSE to a feature win!  I'm proud for him and continuing in constant prayer for his safety out there.

Kyle's Saturday tournament was not his best...

...but he still earned 4th place.  Not bad for an off day.

And last, but not least...we had a wonderfully fun Mother's Day cookout at our place on Sunday.  This impromptu picture shows 3 generations on both sides.

Left to Right: Art and Elsie (Steve's parents), Grandma Mary Renfro (Steve's maternal grandmother), Tim and Barb (my parents), Mike (my dad's brother), Matt, Steve and K.  And in front: Grandma Mamie Carroll (my paternal grandmother) and C.

It was a wonderful day for me.  I truly enjoyed having our much-loved family present for Mother's Day!

Aprons and Time with my Mom~

When my mom and I get together, we like to do occasional projects.  Our last couple of projects have been sewing aprons.  My sewing is a little rusty, and my mom is a great seamstress...so it has been both fun and beneficial for me to learn from my mom. :)

We used the Butterick Pattern B4945, and fabric from both Hancock's and Hobby Lobby.

Mine is strawberry covered and just in time for summer. :)

My mom's is covered in cowboy hats to match her rustic kitchen. :)

More Recent Happenings...

Life is in full-swing this spring.  It's a busy, but good time of year.  Here are a few highlights of the last couple of weeks: 

My parents came to Matt's races!  They came early and squeaky clean,  then left l-a-t-e and with chunks of mud in their pockets. Ha.  The races can last until midnight, and the exceptionally wet day made for a lot of thrown mud.

Didn't get a lot of great car shots at this race...but I did get this one of Matt and Steve just after Matt won his first heat race ever.  Yay, Matt!!  He's happy and so is his dad. :)

Kyle has been spending every Saturday afternoon in a 9 hole golf-tournament for the last 4 weeks or so.  Though golf can get expensive, I love that there are so many affordable opportunities out there for kids that want to play.  So far, he has placed 3rd in two tournaments, and 1st in two.  He has two more and then his other league starts and he'll be playing 18 hole and two-day tourneys for the rest of the summer.  Most will be here in OK, but some will be in Texas.  Roadtrip, anyone?!

Here's one of Kyle's first place tournament trophies!  Go Kyle!

C recently wrote a letter to John R Erickson, the author of the Hank the Cowdog book series.  He told him how much he enjoys reading about Hank and laughing about all the trouble he creates on the ranch.

Much to C's delight, John R Erickson wrote back!  The envelope was hand addressed, as was the card inside.  C was over-the-top excited that he had responded.  Isn't this cool?

You can bet that C will read EVERY one of those 55 books (don't think he has many to go), and will be a fan for life. ;)

Happy Boy, C.  He is hamming it up at the race track. ;)

The Many Faces of Steve

This post is from my original blog back in '05.   It's pretty funny so it bears repeating.  This is something NOT to do while driving.  Um, yes....he took these of himself while driving to work one morning. lol.

Bird Shots

These were all taken on the golf course during my son's tournament last week. :)

Scissortail Flycatcher

Meadowlark....loved that I caught him singing!

Green Heron

Ice Cold Tea and Mason Jars

This is a "keeper" idea from Suburban Homesteading that had me thinking, "Why didn't I think of that?!" 

Although it's great to keep a pitcher of ice cold water or tea in the fridge for easy access, what about those days when you are running errands, out working in the garden, or just busy with family extracurricular activities?  Enter the mason jar idea.  It's pretty simple to fill these little babies (or big ones for the guys) with tea or lemonade and store them in the fridge (or ice them down in a cooler). 

The inspirational blogger at SH says, "I make several of these and stash them in the fridge so I’m never out of a refreshing drink. Instead of grabbing a can of soda, I grab a cold jar of real lemonade in a reusable container, which not only tastes amazing, but feels more authentic than any processed beverage."

Suburban Homesteading's recipe for "Masonade" is to fill a jar halfway with warm water (to aid in the dissolving of the sweetener), add the juice of one lemon, stir in some sweetener (sugar, honey...or any sweetener of choice), fill it to the top with ice, add your lid, and then shake, shake, shake to mix well.

To assemble the tea--just fill from the tea pitcher or you can steep a tea bag right in the mason jar, add sweetener if desired, add ice, screw on the lid and there you go--portable drinks. 

Why I love this idea:

1.  We always pack meals for my son's dirt-modified races, and iced down mason jars are downright satisfyingly ICE COLD and delicious.

2.  Since I finally kicked my soda habit this year (Yay, me!  Thank you LORD!), these are sooo helpful.  I personally like to fix caffeine-free, herbal raspberry iced tea with a little honey and I can grab one and go any time!

3.  They are frugal.  Making tea or lemonade in reusable mason jars saves us a lot of money on race days or other times when portable drinks are helpful.

4.  They bring great satisfaction to the farmgirl in me.  There's nothing like a mason jar to give you the down-home, farm fresh goodness of a homestead...be it a rural or a suburban one!

A Recent Hike at Redbud Valley Trail

A delightful morning of hiking with my son...no further words necessary!

Spinach and Avocado Salad

This delightful recipe I'm sharing is from ALL YOU magazine (Feb 2006) and it is fantastic.  The dressing has a slight Mexican flair to it, and being a BIG fan of avocados and spinach, this simple, especially yummy salad is something I crave.  And any recipe that has me craving vegetables is a good thing!

Ingredients:
3 tablespoons fresh lime juice
3 tablespoons olive oil
1 tablespoon chopped fresh cilantro
1 teaspoon sugar
1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1/8 teaspoon black pepper
1 Hass avocado, peeled, pitted and thinly sliced
1 small red onion, thinly sliced
11 ounces baby spinach (I actually use less spinach in mine)

Preparation:

Whisk lime juice, oil, cilantro, sugar, cumin, salt and pepper in a large serving bowl. Stir in avocado and red onion. Lay spinach on top. (Salad can be prepared and refrigerated up to 2 hours ahead.) Toss just before serving

Who IS this chick??

Look what I found.

This was me back in 2005. *sigh*

Yep, that was before 3 moves, selling two businesses, and a thyroid conditon tripped me up a little bit. Oh, and I was running 2 or 3 miles a day too.

Will I ever see this person again?

Oh, I don't mind my additional wrinkles or the onslaught of many more gray hairs so much (ahem..not TOO much anyway-lol), but I do mind the extra poundage I've acquired!

Hmmmm....suddenly I feel motivated to put down this bowl of ice cream (well, maybe just one more bite...)and go set my alarm for an hour earlier. LOL.  I'll let ya know how that works out for me. ;)

Pictures of Recent Happenings In Our Neck of the Woods...

Matt, next to his reserved sign at the racetrack. 

 K and I at the racetrack.  Do you see how my soon-to-be-fourteen-year-old is bending down slightly to have his photo taken?  I can't believe how tall he's getting!

  Matt racing his 360 modified on a Saturday night.

 Be still my heart...

 Oh my.  Can he look any cooler??

 Being sixteen doesn't mean you can't hunt for easter eggs at my parents' farm with the best of 'em.

A boy and his daddy-caddy...

...and a 3rd place finish at the weekend tournament.  Go Golf-Master!