3 years old

Happy birthday, Lizzie Beth.

Reaching Goals

I've always been the type to set goals. My husband says that when I do, I put blinders on and forget everything else. One of my recent goals was to get back into running. I've ran off and on since college-but I would NEVER classify myself as an athlete. At the end of January, I decided to start running 3 days a week. It wasn't as hard to get back into as I had envisioned. (not to say that I didn't have days when I had to drag myself out the door) One of my friends told me about a running book. I checked it out of the library and started following his workout guide. My friend and I ran together one day a week. The other 5 days a week you could find me hitting the pavement with one of my girls following close by on a bike. My friend and I set a goal to run a local 10K race. Even though I had ran races like this in the past, I was a bit apprehensive the morning of the race.

My family was there to cheer me on and my friend was at the starting line with me. I would like to say the race was fun, but actually my favorite part was when I crossed the finish line! LOL!

My proudest moment was not me reaching my goal, but watching my 10 year old, Grace complete her first 2 mile fun run.

She's learning to conquer her fears and work hard to reach her goals. I had tears in my eyes as I watched her cross the finish line. Now we're off to train for our next race. Who knows, maybe one day we'll run a marathon together.

Our Classroom

Don't you love my office??? Nice and airy...great views.

I'd love to do school here everyday! I know the girls would agree.
Do you see the goose egg? There were lots more in the middle of the trees.

Some of our classmates. I'm partial to Canada's! Glad they made the long trip to join us.These two seemed to enjoy observing us. Aren't they beautiful?
Thank you sweet Mary for being the photographer (everyone likes Mom's new camera! LOL!)

Puppy Love

" Dogs are a man's (and woman's) best friend." In my book they are the perfect best friend. They don't say mean things, they don't hurt your feelings and they always look forward to seeing you. I love my 4-legged babies. The other night I took the time to sit on the porch in the rocking chair and just hold and love my fella and the princess. I was showered with kisses and affection. I need to do this every day!

A rainy day

Rainy days aren't exactly strangers here on the coast. In fact in the summer they're daily. It's been a while since we last got any rain. It's been pretty dry. Still, rain is not something I always look forward too. One of my friends and her daughter stayed in all day (actually in bed till 10!). Honestly, I thought about it. Unfortunately I like to stick to a schedule. The girls and I were up early and at co-op. Then we had dance this afternoon. Emma was left with me while the big girls danced. She feel asleep in the car during the drive over. That left me with my thoughts...and the camera. I drove down to the bay and admired the beauty...even in a rainy day. God continues to amaze and bless me daily.

Time to renew and refresh

Life seems to always be moving so fast. It's easy to get overwhelmed. When I feel like I'm being pulled in all directions I like to take a step back and stand still. Nature has a way of cleansing my mind and my soul. What a magnificent pallet God has put before us. How many times have I looked right past it in my busy-ness?

So far this month, I've failed to visit a friend with her new baby, I missed another friend's birthday, I don't have the 3rd school term schedule completed...the list goes on and on. Instead of trying to get caught up, the girls and I took an hour and went to the beach (on the bay). The weather was perfect-upper 70's with a gently breeze. The promise of not just spring, but summer was in the air. We took our shoes off and dug our toes into the sand. We watched a guy flying a huge kite. Grace and Emma practiced their recital dances right there in the sand with the waves for an audience.

It was a blessed, peaceful hour. It was like God had used the wind and waves to just wash away all the stress of my life. I left a new person. Who would have thought something as simple as a trip to the beach could actually be so meaningful. I think we need more beach days.

Spring...almost

(Emma admiring a cutting from the Bottle Brush Tree-Callistemon rigidus)
One of the funny things about living in the deep south is that Mother Nature loves to tease us-especially this time of the year.
(these are camellias from my father in law's bush)
For example, for several days the weather was gorgeous-blue skies, light breeze and temps in the upper 70's. Flowers are blooming everywhere and you can just smell spring in the air.
We even planted some seeds in pots outside (thankfully I've learned to keep them covered with plastic for a while). Then we wake up the next morning and it's 30! I realize some of my friends have a lot colder weather right now so 30 doesn't seem so bad. For us, I think it's the 40 degree drop in about 12 hrs that makes it so hard to handle. Regardless of the temperature, the promise of spring is everywhere. That makes the little drop in temp tolerable for a while longer.

(Emma picked these azaleas. I love the vase-it reminds me of an old milk bottle. )