April 6, 2016

*Woke up

*Did my First Five Devotion

*Got ready, and My Prince drove me to work

*It was a pretty good, normal day at school

*After school the Youngest Princess and I caught a ride home with a good looking man (My Prince)

*I studied for my Wed. night class

*My Prince made tacos for dinner - He's awesome!

*We went to church early for a VBS meeting

*My Wednesday night group went well - We talked about sacrifices and priests, and how that applies to our lives today.

*We came home, and I finished up my surprise for my students

*Now I am ready to call it a night

* Until tomorrow...

April 5, 2016

Well, you know, some days are just really normal.  And really nothing out of the ordinary happens at all. Today was one of those days.  It was a perfectly normal day.  The kind of day that makes you happy to be alive, and thankful for every single ounce of "normalness". Because we did not have to go to the doctor, or to the hospital.  Although the Young Prince did go to the dentist to get a cavity filled.  We did not have to talk to a policeman or make a report of any kind.  We went about our daily routine, living life with no major interruptions.  Days like today are my favorites.  It is the stuff life is made of.  Most days are like today.  Simple.  Quiet.  Unassuming. Normal.  Nothing better than that right there. Thanking the Lord today for normal days.

Until tomorrow...

April 4, 2016

Whew!  I think I have about caught up on all the days that I didn't blog.  So today, I will just tell you about, well, today.

*Woke up and did my First Five devotion

*Got ready for work

*Got the Youngest Princess ready for school

*My prince took me to work - we are having car troubles

*Had a surprise from my secret pal - a cool homemade soap, and a scented candle

*One of my students went on a cruise over spring break and brought me some vanilla, and a beautiful bracelet

*Our first day back went fairly smoothly - not too much "spring break brain" going on

*After school we had our faculty meeting

*The Oldest Princess came and picked up the Young Prince, the Youngest Princess and I

*We got home and I realized I had left my cup and my keys at school

*The Oldest Princess went back and got them for me

*All three kids and I went to a local plant nursery to see their wisteria - my sweet friend that works there had texted me earlier and told me I should drop by and see it if I could because it was in full bloom and beautiful.

*The Young Prince took some pictures of it for me - it truly was beautiful

*We came home and I worked on something special that I try to do for my students about this time every year.

*The Young Prince went to do a job for a lady at our church - she had "purchased" him to do yard work for her at our church auction

*My Prince and The Oldest Princess made spaghetti for dinner

*The Young Prince came home

*We ate dinner and watched the newest episode of When Calls the Heart

*My Prince went to a special prayer meeting at the church

*I continued working on my surprise for my students

* My Prince got home

*We are going to do our family devotions now that we are all home and then I think I will corral the Youngest Princess and head to bed.

*Until tomorrow...

April 3, 2016 (With a Little Throwback to March 31 and April 1)

This is the Young Prince dressed up in the Gilly suit, ready to go out and pull a prank on the Youngest Princess.

Thursday morning, we got up and started packing to get ready to go home.  Unka told the Youngest Princess that he needed to go and check his game cameras.  She of course jumped at the chance to go with him.  He told her that they would have to wait until they got back to the house to check it (because he wanted us to be able to see her reaction).  They got back to the house, and she immediately started clicking through the pictures.  There were a couple of raccoons, and one of a doe.   Then there were...

These two pictures

I wish you all could have seen the look on her face.  She was absolutely amazed!  She really believed it for a little while.  Until her brother put the Gilly suit back on and walked by the window, and then she realized, that maybe she had had the wool pulled over her eyes.  I think after we left Unka got one of our cousins with the pictures.  It was a pretty good April Fool's joke.

On the way home, we decided to stop by Willie's Diner (of Duck Dynasty Fame).  The fried pickle appetizer was absolutely wonderful (and yes, I do happen to be a fine connoisseur of fried pickles).  As for the rest of the food, well, I probably would not go back for anything but the fried pickles.

After lunch, we swung by the Duck Commander warehouse for our annual picture in front of the sign, (and of course a hopeful sighting of a Duck Dynasty cast member).  We got one of the things we hoped for...

After that, from that point on (about 6 hours of driving), this was our view.  And we are not talking light rain either.  We were on the front edge of a mass of rain that  stayed with us the entire way.  At one point we stopped at a Sonic just to get out of the rain for a few minutes and let some of it pass over us.  As we got back on the road, we prayed for the rain to stop and for safe travels (about an hour) the rest of the way home.  From that point on, it pretty much just barely sprinkled on us, although there was lightning all around us.

We had many sweet friends and family members praying for us as well.   Thankfully God answered all the prayers, and we made it safely home about midnight.  Friday, we slept in and recouped from our trip home.  The Youngest Princess left to go on a weekend trip with a friend and her grandparents.    The Oldest Princess went on a date with the Gray Ghost.  The Young Prince and a friend and My Prince went to see a movie.  I stayed home and watched a couple of movies by myself.

When My Prince and the Young Prince got home, the Young Prince turned around and left to go and spend the night with his friend.  The Oldest Princess wanted to go see God's Not Dead 2, and it was already late.  We figured we could just make it to the 10:00 p.m. showing, if we left immediately.  So we did.  We loved the movie.  After that we stopped at the only restaurant around that was still open that late and got a midnight snack.  Then we came home and went to bed.  And speaking of bed, I think I will head there now.

Until tomorrow...

#AlwaysAnAdventure

Okay, so I was sitting here blogging, minding my own business, when I received this text that started it all...

It was a screen shot of a beautiful old bridge draped in wisteria vine in full bloom.  The picture identified the bridge as being in a town very near us.  Under the picture was a message from the Oldest Princess that said, "Look at this!"

I, of course, text her  right back, "Aaaaaahhhhhh!!!!! We need to go take pictures!!!"

To which she replied, "Yes we do."

She grabbed her brother and her camera and sweet talked her daddy into going too.  Then she did a presto chango from a couch potato on a Saturday evening to a beautiful young lady in a few minutes like only a teen can do.

I ran upstairs and tried to wipe the chocolate off of my shirt where I dripped it while eating chocolate covered strawberries.  (A HUGE thank you to our friends who gave us the strawberries yesterday! They are delicious!)

We loaded in the car to find a bridge covered in wisteria, in a town near us that spanned a certain creak.  That was really all we knew.  I figured it would take us several back roads to find it.  But My Prince is awesome, and after turning down only one wrong road, we found it!  I was so excited.  But then, I was disappointed.  Because there was no way to gain access to the bridge, other than private property.  The Oldest Princess was ready to give up and go home.

We pulled into a long driveway, and debated asking for permission to go down to the bridge and take pictures.  When I noticed the next door neighbor getting out of his truck.  My Prince got out of the car and walked over to talk to him and see if he would mind if we crossed his land to get our pictures.  He was very kind and told us that we could.  We backed up and pulled into his driveway instead.  He even got out some little hand clippers and clipped away some briars for us.  This should have been our first clue.  He cleared the way, told us to be careful, and that it had been several years since anyone had asked to get to the bridge to take pictures.  I told him someone had posted a picture on Facebook, and that is how we knew about it.  In small talk, we learned that we have a mutual friend. We told him thank you for his help, and he left us to take our pictures.

By this time, I am really feeling like I am not going to get any pictures.  Except by the Young Prince, who was already on the bridge, with his phone.  I was holding the good camera and seriously doubting the wisdom of this outing.  The Oldest Princess is standing behind me saying, "There is NO WAY I can get up there in THESE shoes!"

I know when that nice little man got back inside his house, he grabbed his binoculars, and his wife saying, "Come here, honey!  You have got to watch these crazy people in our back yard!", and settled in for a show.

I handed My Prince the good camera, because at this point I'm still not sure that I am going to attempt it, and I had tennis shoes on! Here is a picture of the Young Prince (in the light blue shirt toward the top center of the picture) already on the bridge (which according to the nice little man was condemned years ago - we had been aptly warned).  My Prince had started the treacherous climb up as well.

I could not be this close and not go up.  So I followed suit.

Leaving the Oldest Princess by herself of the bank with the suggestion, "You could ditch your shoes and come up too."  My girl, who is no tenderfoot, did just that and followed me.  When I found semi "solid footing", I turned around to check on her.  This is what I saw.  I think her face sums up what at least My Prince and I were also feeling.  I laughed out loud, almost to the point of tears several times when we made it back to the safety of the car and I found this priceless picture.

We decided if this were a meme it would say, "When your Unka tells you he needs your help to clean out the gutters."

We all made it safely up on to the bridge, and we managed to get some pretty good pictures.  But this one will have to do for now, because the pictures are loading very slowly tonight, and My Prince needs his computer back.

We all carefully made our way down, but My Prince was still trying to get one more shot from underneath the bridge, because he knows I love wisteria, and would love it, and because he loves me. One minute he is carefully making his way down the bank, and the next he was sliding, and grabbing for something to hold.  The kids and I were on the bank and there was nothing we could do but watch.  I instinctively called out to Jesus to help him.  He finally stopped sliding.  And did not even get wet!  His finger and his shin did not fare as well though.  But we think he will live.  Isn't he an awesome husband?  To risk life and limb to get a picture that he knew I would love, of a flower I love?

When he got back up the bank to us, we walked about ten feet around some of the brush and had a beautiful view.  I took this shot with my phone, but we got several with the good camera also.

We had quite the adventure finding and photographing this little bridge.  I would love to hear the other stories that it could tell, and I hope the nice little man and his wife did not think we had completely lost our minds.

We all got back in the car and had a good laugh (especially after finding that prize of a picture of the Oldest Princess on my phone), and then went to eat Mexican food, at the Young Princes's request...despite being covered with dirt and leaves (and probably chiggers) from our little adventure. 

I bet the Oldest Princess thinks twice before she sends me another picture of a wisteria draped bridge in the future.

#AlwaysAnAdventure

Until tomorrow...

April 2, 2016 (Throwback to March 29-30)

 I forgot to post this picture on yesterday's blog.  When we got there, Aunt T had these huge treats waiting on the kids.  Thank you Aunt T! They have thoroughly enjoyed them. for. days. on. end.

The second morning we were there (Tuesday), the Young Prince and Unka once again got up early and went tramping through the woods in search of a turkey.  Either of them could have just looked in the mirror and found one, but I digress.  The rest of us slept in a little longer and got up and visited for a while.  The hunters came home empty handed.  We fixed breakfast.  Some of us learned how to fry eggs.  Some of us ate a fried egg for the first time.  Some of us did both.  Some of us did neither.

A couple of my Aunts came to visit.  We always enjoy our time with them.  Aunt T, the Young Prince and I helped one of them pick a few greens.  After picking greens, Unka and the Youngest Princess joined us for a ride through the woods.  Unka and the Youngest Princess were on the four wheeler, and Unka kept on hitting the breaks to make the Youngest Princess's head bump his back and her feet fly in the air.  He took great glee in doing that.  Just like a kid!  We found a very unusual tree that even my Aunt did not know.  We took pictures of it in hopes that some of our friends might know the name of it.  My Aunt pointed out a sweet gum tree and told us how they used to chop into the bark of them and then chew the sap that ran from the tree like gum.  So, we got an axe, and chopped into it a little.  Not realizing that it takes several days before the sap runs out.  So, we did not get to see that one through to completion.

It was just sort of a misty rainy day, so for the most part, we stayed in and visited.  Some of us took naps.  The whole time we were there, The Youngest Princess really enjoyed going with Unka to check his game camera.  She loved looking at it to see what new animals it had captured.  There were raccoons, a red fox and a doe, usually.

There was great confusion over what trash went in what can.  Some was to be burned, some to be taken out to the big trash cans.  No food in the burn pile, because we didn't want the dogs to be attracted to the fire by the smell of food.  I almost broke into hives each time I threw something away, hoping that I was throwing it away in the right place and not doing something wrong!  In the end, there was an extra big can, that we did not realize we still had, and a cousin offered us the use of her extra can, so all the stress was for naught!  I was greatly relieved to know all would be okay.

Tuesday night, the men grilled steaks for us.  They were wonderful!  Steaks, salad, stewed potatoes, peas, and bread.  It was all delicious.  We were finishing up the dinner dishes, when my cousin L and her husband dropped by to visit. It was good to have time to visit with them.  They were asking the Oldest Princess about her friend the Gray Ghost.  Somehow, they decided to face time him.  He was wrapping up a Bible study, so we had to wait a few minutes and let him finish, and then we tried him again.  He was a good sport about being "interrogated" a little.  Unka was able to "meet" him for the first time.

Unka meeting the Gray Ghost via face time.

L and her husband left, with L promising to come back the next evening if possible to play some Dutch Blitz with us.  

Unka wrote a letter to the Youngest Princess while we were straightening up a little and getting ready for bed.  She wrote him back.

The next morning, the hunters took off again.  This time leaving us a note.  I guess Unka was finally in the mood to write.  Usually we get a note every morning.  But so far, we had none this trip, so it was nice to finally wake up to one.

But, again, they returned home minus a "thunder chicken".  I was sad for the Young Prince, because this was his last chance to get one this year.  They were disappointed, but a little warmth, a shower, some dry clothes and some food in their bellies seemed to cheer them up a little.

My sister had brought a container of old pictures from when she and my brother were little, I was not even thought of yet, and they lived on the family land.  I enjoyed walking down memory lane while looking at them.  There was one of my tall, lanky, daddy playing a ukulele, and if we put the Young Prince's face over my daddy's, it could have been him.  There was another of daddy on a porch and one of daddy in a swing, and again, they look just like the Young Prince sitting there, only with my daddy's face.  It amazes me how he really doesn't remember daddy at all, but he still has some of daddy's mannerisms and personality traits.  There were some of my momma "all dolled up" to go to a Mardi Gras ball (to the best of my sister's memory).  And some of her cleaning house (which should surprise no one who knew her).  I miss them so much!  And I always miss them even more when we are there.  There were pictures of my Fat Momo, and the Youngest Princess was excited to see those. She is always amazed when we talk about her, that we affectionally called her Fat Momo.  To me it was a term of endearment and the only name I ever called her.  To my brother and sister, who had two "Momos" when they were younger, it was a term of distinction.  They would get confused over which Momo was being referred to, so my daddy's mother said, "Just call me Fat Momo," as she WAS considerably more "fluffy" than my momma's mother.

Aunt T took the kids out back and got a few pictures of them while the rain had stopped.  My Aunt Y and Uncle H came by to visit for a little while.  Of course they looked at some of my sister's pictures and laughed about old times.  I love to hear my uncle tell stories of when they were young.  He used to give my momma fits.  He loved to get her riled up.  Eventually, they had to leave, and my sister decided it was time for her to leave, too.  She was going to stop and visit with one of my aunts, and she didn't know if she would go on home, or spend the night there.

Aunt T fried some chicken for lunch, and the Oldest Princess helped her by frying the french fries. They fixed enough so that we could heat it up again for dinner if we wanted to.  We ate, and then cleaned up the dishes, and played a game out on the porch.  The Youngest Princess was getting pretty cranky, so Aunt T talked her into laying down for a 30 minute power nap with her.  While they napped, I made some buffalo chicken dip.  B came to clean the pool, and of course we invited her in to visit with us.  She finished cleaning the pool and came in right about the time the chicken dip came out of the oven, and Aunt T and the Youngest Princess got up from their nap.  We ate some dip, and my cousin L and Uncle H came in.  That meant it was time to play some Dutch Blitz!  Aunt T's table is just the perfect height to stand up and play, so that is what we did.  Uncle H didn't play, but he watched, and laughed at us, and gave me a hard time.  I think by the time we were done playing, that we had all been able to yell "Blitz" at least once.  It was fun.

Us playing Dutch Blitz, with Uncle H taking it all in.

After L and Uncle H left, My Prince and the Oldest Princess started trying to get some pictures from Aunt T's computer to our computer.  My Prince went to a local store to buy a thumb drive to put them on, but her computer would not recognize the thumb drive.  So, thus began about a two hour struggle to outsmart the computers and move the pictures.  B was a big help.  They googled what to do every time they ran into a new problem, and worked around problem after problem to get the job done.  

Meanwhile, Unka and the Young Prince decided that they would pull a trick on the Youngest Princess.  The Young Prince and the Youngest Princess have been on a kick of watching the television show Finding Bigfoot.  There had been talk off and on of a Sasquatch or Sasquooch as the Young Prince and some of his friends call it, since we had been in the country, and the Youngest Princess listened intently to every word said.  So, when she went to take her shower and get ready for bed, even though it was pouring down rain, Unka and the Young Prince snuck off.  Remember the game camera that the Youngest Princess loved to check with Unka each day?  Well, with the help of a Gilly suit and and ornery Unka and big brother, that game camera caught  pictures of a Sasquatch that night.  And the Youngest Princess went to sleep in peace, never the wiser.

Meanwhile, the pictures finally got successfully transferred from one computer to the other about midnight.  B said her goodbyes, and headed home, and the rest of us went to bed.

And that is a good place for me to stop.  I've got a wisteria covered bridge to hunt down and some pictures to take. 

Until tomorrow...

April 1, 2016 (But really a Throwback to March 27 and 28)

Hello everybody!  I have to tell you all that the Youngest Princess was very upset when she found out that I was taking a break from my blogs.  The little turkey is a "rule follower", and she did not think I should ruin my so far perfect record of a blog a day.  I explained that I didn't want to miss out on family time, and she told me I could blog every night after everyone went to sleep.  Oh, that would be a great idea, if only I could keep my eyes open that long! But, no.  I told her the world would not stop spinning if I missed a few days.  And she was pretty quick to get over it.

Last Sunday was Easter Sunday.  It was a good day, even if it was rainy and the weekend starting spring break.  We enjoyed going to church together as a family and worshipping the RISEN Lord with our church family.  The choir did a wonderful job on their cantata, and My Prince ended the service with a short, clear, salvation message.  We were glad to spend Easter with our church members, some of their extended families, some old friends, and some new friends.  It was a great morning serving our Lord.

After church, a sweet friend snapped a few family pictures for us, and then we ran home to change clothes and get on the road.  We loaded the car and headed for the country.  It was a pretty uneventful trip (just the way we like them).  We made it to the country about 10:00 p.m.  It was wonderful to be there and out of the car, and to see people we love dearly.

My big sister was there.  She stayed two nights, it has been a while since we were able to spend that much time together. It was fun to be together again.

When we got there, my awesome sister-in-law had snacks waiting for us.  We snacked and caught up for a couple of hours.  And then we all decided it was time to call it a day.

The next morning, Unka and the Young Prince got up early to go turkey hunting. They had a "secret weapon" with them, and they just knew they were going to come home with a turkey.  But their secret weapon's wife had a medical emergency, and they had to come home a little earlier than planned. And without a turkey.  Thankfully, as far as I know, the wife is okay, and all is well.

Monday, according to the forecast, was our best bet at getting some sun.  So, after a delicious breakfast of bacon, eggs and biscuits, we wasted no pool time.  The Youngest Princess was in the water almost before the breakfast dishes were cleared.  The Oldest Princess, my sister and I chose to refrain from actually getting in the water, but we got some sun and enjoyed watching everyone else swim.  Everyone that is except Unka.  He was busy doing the 'harrowing' job of planting peas.  He told the oldest two that he would pay them if they would do it for him, but the pull of the pool was just too strong.  We had to call him in when it was lunch time.  He grilled some delicious hamburgers for us.  He was telling us how easy it was to plant peas, and giving the oldest kids a terrible time for not wanting to do it.  Things like "It would have been the easiest money you ever made."  "Too bad you didn't want to do it."  "I only have four rows left."  The oldest princess said she would take him up on his offer and do the last four rows.  The Young Prince told him he would do the job for a cheaper rate.  As it ended up, we all went out, except for the Youngest Princess who did not want to get out of the pool and My Prince who volunteered to watch her.  There were four rows left, so the Oldest Princess planted two, and the Young Prince planted two.  And they did it in style.  Because who doesn't plant peas in their bathing suits?

The Oldest Princess - planting

            peas in style!

The Young Prince - planting peas, barefoot

of course!

Unka told them (several times) to be sure to plant straight rows, because he did not want "snaky" rows.  This is a picture of one he had already planted.  It looks like a case of "Do as I say, not as I do." if I have ever seen one!

We went back and hung out at the pool for a little while longer.  This time Unka stayed with us, since the peas were planted and all.  Before we knew it, it was time to get ready for the Youngest Princess's "family birthday party".  Aunt T and the Oldest Princess went to get a few things from the store and to pick up dinner.  30lbs of boiled crawfish.  The rest of us stayed and did what we could do to get things ready before they got home.

The Youngest Princess - doing what she 

did ALL DAY LONG.

The Young Prince catching a nap in one of the best places to do just that.

My sister and I walked around out in what used to be my grandmother's yard and reminisced about days when we were younger and memories we had of being there.  I remember hunting Easter eggs around all of her many, many plants and bushes.  My sister remembered playing under the grapevine. We talked about the different plants and trees, much as my mother and my aunt used to do.  They could name just about any plant or tree in the world, or at least it seemed so to me.  I took a few pictures of my favorite flower in the world that just happened to be blooming.  My sister found a piece of rich lighter pine from the pile that she wanted to take home with her and use as a decoration, and Unka and the Youngest Princess came along just in time to dig it out for her and take it back to the house on the golf cart.

And when they did get home, it was on.  There were crawfish flying every direction.  I'm slow, so mine get cold before I can eat them all.  Unka was on his third or fourth helping by the time I asked for my second.  Aunt T was peeling and eating for herself and tossing a few peeled ones to the kids every once in a while.  My Prince even ate a few more this time than he did last time.  I think Aunt P out did us all, and she even has the sore thumbs to prove it.  It is a fun, delicious cultural experience, and I'm glad my kids are willing to try them and enjoy it.

Unka eating crawfish faster than a speeding bullet.

Aunt P enjoying her crawfish.

Then of course there was cake and ice cream complete with sparkler candles.  Then the Youngest Princess opened her presents from Unka and Aunt T.  One was a little silver flute charm, and the other was her very own tumbling mat.  She was very excited to have her very own mat.

                          10 years old!!

Sparkler candles.  The picture does not do them justice.

Her flute charm

Her tumbling mat

We all worked together and got everything cleaned up, and then went in to play games.  I think we all

won something.  Aunt T is always good to have fun prizes.  The Youngest Princess and the Oldest Princess made a prize swap and the Oldest Princess has since put her prize to use by journaling Bible verses.  We played until we were all too tired to keep our eyes open, and we called it a night.

And that seems like a good place to call it the end of this post.  To be continued...

Until tomorrow...

                                                                                                

A few selfies cause we were having so much fun!