Vacation Videos

Come, have a seat on the couch while I set up the slide projector (cue evil laughter...)

Seriously, though, I still haven't gotten through all the pics, but did want to share these couple videos. Sorry about the wind noise on them - nothing I could do about that.

The first one was shot at the campground just outside Red Lodge, MT. Our daughter had gone to the bathroom, and was there a long time. I went to check on her, and thankfully had the camera in my pocket. Obviously she liked the acoustics of the facilities - and doesn't it make for great background music for the majestic scenery?!



This second one is when we were at Old Faithful. The kids were both excited to see the "big" one - and their reactions (fast forward to the end) are hysterical. And yes, that's our son yelling, "It's gonna blow!" at the beginning. Classic.



Later!

Spreading the Magazine Love :)

Clearly, this is why I NEED so many bloomin' magazines. How funny is that?! Can't imagine it's exactly safe (those glossy covers slide way too easily) but a fun thought nevertheless.

In the meantime, though, I *am* planning to renew my Cooking Light subscription - and today I received a "2 for 1" offer.... So, who out there would like to receive a monthly burst of food inspiration? Leave me a comment, and I'll draw a winner next Monday!

Helloooooo!

I have good intentions, and even several partially written posts. But the days seem to be passing quickly - the kids start school soon, and we've been quite busy (doctor's appointments, church events, family water fights, arguments in the aisle at Target over colors of school supplies, etc.) I still have hundreds of pictures from our month-long jaunt to weed through, but realistically probably won't be getting around to posting anything until the kids are in school... I keep telling myself that I'll somehow have more *time* once that happens. Realistically, I already have a planned project list that could probably keep me occupied through 2013.

A few random blurbs:

• We ran errands this morning, and were gone over 5 hours. Ridiculous!
• On the way home, my car thermometer read 109. Also ridiculous!!!
• I'm really trying hard to savor these next two weeks, but frankly I'm quite ready to hand my children off to the school for a few hours a day.
• I know that many families are very passionate about homeschooling. We are not one of them.
• I really missed good tortillas while we were away.
• I think we finally have a church home. Not perfect (obviously) but it's so wonderful to be establishing connections within a church family once again.
• I tend to over-think things. More action needed!
• I'm glad that White Collar is back on.
• I really need to mop my kitchen floor.

Now that I've gotten all that out of the way, it's time to spring into action and get a few more things accomplished. Later! ;)

Home.

Ahhhh. I cannot convey the true depth of my appreciation for home.

Our mattress. The kitchen (where I'm already familiar with all its quirks). My high-capacity washing machine. Cable TV and good internet service :)

Seriously, I had a wonderful time in Montana, and we made some wonderful memories as a family... but there's something sublime about coming HOME.

A ton to catch up on (indcluding over 2000 posts in Google Reader - sorry if I happened to miss a gem that you posted) but I hope to get to pics later this week. Lots of fun to share!

Proud to Be An American

Hello from Montana!

I'm currently sitting in a coffee shop in Billings, checking up on the "outside" world. (My parents are on dial-up, and none of their neighbors have unsecured networks... bummer!) In case you haven't heard, Hurrican Alex hit Mexico/South Texas, and our home was definitely affected. I'm up in Montana with the kids visiting my parents, and my hubby will be flying up in 2 weeks - I'm thankful that he was there to prepare our house, but it was hard not being able to physically assist. Lots of prayers went up, though! There was lots of rain and wind (and continues to be) but it seems that all is OK. Huuuuuge sigh of relief.

We are definitely enjoying the cooler temps here. I've done a bit of shopping and strolling down Memory Lane :) We're planning to celebrate the 4th by going to a parade, then watching fireworks. My kiddos will be thrilled! Then we're pulling out on Monday afternoon for 2 days of camping - should be fun!

Don't know when I'll be posting again, but I promise to share some pics from Big Sky Country soon...

Getting back to "normal"

...whatever that is!

It's officially summertime at the D House. Memorial Day weekend was spent with family, playing tourist in Port Isabel, swimming, and even a bit of fishing. (I have pics, but haven't tackled the photo uploading/editing process on this new computer. Soon, soon!) We're settling back into a bit of a routine - a challenge since I no longer get to turn our son over to the elementary school for a chunk o' the day ;) Seriously, though, I think I'm nearly caught up and "recovered." The kids definitely sensed my emotional state as they've both been very well-behaved these past couple days and providing lots of hugs for me. Nothing better than impromptu kid squeezes & exclamations of, "You're the best mom in the whole world!" to cheer a person up. (On a side note, who knew spending $10 at Burger King was all it took to earn the Top Mommy crown?!?)

Still a lot more projects I'm hoping to tackle this month. I did manage to paint both the dining area & kitchen in May, and already have paint for two more rooms. Realistically, though, I don't think I'll be doing that until September; I want to work on general organization this summer so that things are running more smoothly when school starts back up in the fall. Now that we've been here for 10 months (how on earth did that happen?!) I have a pretty good idea of what's working & what isn't and am ready to switch around storage areas and such. And yes, still more decluttering.... there's still too much stuff in this household!!

The next two weeks include VBS for the kiddos at 2 different churches (I have been known to mock parents who "use" these programs this way. No more!), I have a couple of follow-up doctor & dentist appointments, and yes - more company arrives :)

And just a forewarning - I've been thinking a lot about hospitality these past couple weeks. Imagine that! You'll probably be seeing a post about that sometime next week.