Getting Caught Up!

I'm still trying to play the catch up game. I haven't kept up my blog like I need to. For some reason, I've not really felt an urge to blog, and that makes me sad. Because this blog is sort of like my journal. It's just a place for me, really, more than for readers or followers. I use this place to chronicle my family's life, the big moments yes, but mostly just the little day to day moments that make up our lives.

Winter Storm in the South

We certainly don't get much in the way of winter storms down here in the deep south, but when we do, we tend to get a little excited. We didn't get any snow (of course). It rained during the night, but the temperature here at my house hovered just above the freezing point. So when we awoke this morning, there was nothing to be excited about.

Until about an hour later. Around 7:30 am, the temperature began to drop and it was still raining a little, and the wet trees began to freeze. But that was all. Apparently the ground was too warm to freeze and the rain stopped. I thought at one point there appeared to be some tiny little snowflakes fluttering around. But if so, that didn't last long at all.

The tops of pine trees don't handle frozen water very well. Some of them were bent over from the weight of the ice. I wonder if some of those tree tops popped off and fell on some power lines near my house because our power went out around 9:30 this morning, and stayed out until around 2:00 pm. I have a heat pump, so needless to say, it became a little chilly in my house.

We did school all bundled up in our fuzzy pajamas! We closed the bedroom doors and lit lots of candles in the living room, kitchen and bathrooms. The candles did put off a little heat and helped a little, but it was still cold. I put Lizzie's little coat on her and she took turns snuggling with us as we read and did our lessons.

So we made memories today. I love it when out-of-the-ordinary days happen along and we have a chance to learn to make the most of whatever comes our way.

More Snow Pictures

SNOW!

Can you believe the weather forecast for the South???? We knew it's been cold down here longer than usual! DH came home from work yesterday and told us to pack up...we were driving north. Not too far, just to our hometown in Alabama! Because the weather advisory predicts 4-6 inches of snow for them. So...pack up we did and drove home. We arrived around midnight. Got up around 6...no snow. We're patiently waiting. My kids are wondering if it will really happen. They've not seen much snow. We occasionally get a few flurries and we have driven home before so they could see the snow. We're watching the weather channel and see where there is already 2 inches in Montgomery, but our hometown is about 2 hours drive north of Montgomery...so nothing here yet. But wait...now they are coming in with cries of "It's snowing! It's really snowing!" So now the snow is here! It's really coming down...beautiful! I just hope we get a few inches so they can play in it.

Now I know my northern blogosphere friends are probably laughing at my post, but this is really big for us! We never get snow. So we don't even have the necessary items needed for dealing with snowy weather...like really warm clothes, or boots, or even an ice scraper for the car windshield...lol!!!

Well...I suppose I should venture out and take a few photos to share!

More to come later...

Icicles

Just a few photos from the "cold snap" we had down here in the south for about two weeks in January. Every few years we get a few snow flurries, but not this year. So we have adopted an idea from one of my dear IRL friends...leave the water hose on overnight and have some neat icicles the next day...lol.

The Calendar Says it is Fall...

The calendar says it is fall here, but the weather doesn't seem to agree. But then again it rarely does in south Georgia.

We spent the latter part of September putting in a swimming pool. The above ground type. We did all the work ourselves and it has taken us quite awhile. But it has been a worthwhile project for our family to undertake. It has been so good for us to work together! We're still not completely finished. The pool is up and it is filled; the deck is built, except for the rails around it and the steps to get up onto it. But the children have managed to improvise (lol). And they are enjoying it despite the fact that even though it still feels very warm outside, the temperature of the water is only about 78 degrees F. Sounds warm enough, but although 78 degrees is warm in air, it is not so warm in water.

So, I've only had a dip in our new pool twice. And I think that is going to be it for me this season.

But I imagine the children will probably continue to enjoy a few more afternoons in it!

Daughter and Son taking a turn using the tiller to prepare the ground for leveling

Father and Son, "shooting measurements"

Working together

Life

To quote my irl friend, "When did life move from fast to FAST?" That's definitely what it feels like around our house right now. Seems like everything happens all at once! I'm ready for summer now so we can slow down a little (sort of...daughter plays softball during summer, so we are on the go, but not as much as now).

FIL continues to improve (praise Jesus!). He is doing quite well with his therapy sessions. My dh teases him, saying they'll have him running steps before they're done!

Older son's baseball season is over now; we made it to the second round of state play-offs! However, he is in that "let-down" mode, kind of moping around the house because he has played his last "high school" game ever. I can tell he's in that transition mode; he's ready (sort of) to graduate and move on to a bit more independence, yet he's not sure if he's quite ready. Understandable...I'm not quite ready yet, either! Here are some pictures of the baseball games:

He plays 3rd base.

Younger son and mom

And yes, he did catch this pop fly; I just snapped the picture too soon! Timing is everything!

Here we are stopped at a Bass Pro Shop on the way home from the games. LOL, other people are there shopping and I'm taking pictures!

There were tadpoles in this water, and I was afraid I was going to have to fish my kids out (lol)!

Life is certainly moving forward. We've been having the best time watching the birds around here. Funny how last year we studied Apologia's Flying Creatures of the Fifth Day and we didn't seem nearly as interested in the birds then as we are now! We've also had fun watching the metamorphosis of the tadpoles we collected. I've enjoyed seeing the colors appear in my yard, how everything has turned from the dull browns of winter to the vibrant hues of summer! And I say summer instead of spring because around here we experience maybe about a week of two of spring-time, then we charge right into summer! I really do enjoy this time of year! Except for the mosquitoes!

Recently, we met with some others from our home school group and learned about composting, and we were able to make our own smaller version of a compost bin to take home. Afterwards, the kids just played together and had a great time. We moms enjoyed the time of fellowship as well.

By the way, we finished reading The Bronze Bow by Elizabeth George Spear today. If you haven't read it, I highly recommend that you do. It is a very good book!

Back to Normal ?

Life here is back to normal, I suppose. Granddaddy and Billy have gone back home, back to their normal daily routines. But what exactly is normal? I suppose that depends upon whom you ask. I guess we are definitely not normal, not by the world's standards at least. Anyway...

We tried to get back into our regular weekday routine, but I have been far too groggy to accomplish much in the way of routine work around here. I love the spring weather we are having here in south Georgia, but I declare, the pollen is wreaking havoc upon my sinuses. Hence, the grogginess from the medication I have taken today. However, I am very thankful that aggravated sinuses are my only medical ailments. Far too many around here have suffered from the flu and other viral infections, and have not fared nearly as well. Hopefully, the pollen index will be somewhat lower in the next couple of weeks! It is beautiful weather right now, though.