A Happy Mother's Day

Over the past several years, we have camped with friends for Mother's Day weekend. There have been a couple of exceptions, but we try to go when we can. Usually it's not too hot yet and it's peaceful and relaxing. This year, Mr. TD remembered a past trip where the Hershey's Kisses my kids gave me, melted waiting for Mother's Day, so he had the kids give them to me early. I think they just really wanted to have chocolate just before bed!

We had an adventure this year! We had talked about camping, but just didn't decide on where, or with who. We tried to get some other friends to go, but they had other things (like a wedding...the nerve!) going on this weekend, so we thought about going on our own. Well, it seems Mr. TD was leaving it up to me to make the reservation, and I didn't. So we didn't have a place to go for sure. On Tuesday night I was visiting with our trailer camping friends, and they suggested we go with them to Cagle Recreational Area in New Waverly. Mrs. F said that her dad, Mr. R, was going up early, and he could keep an eye out for a walk up site for us. Mr. TD said let's do it!

I started organizing and preparing to camp. We have everything down that we need, and our "kitchen" is always packed and stocked after each trip. So on Wednesday night, we pulled everything from the attic. Thursday I did the grocery shopping and packed all of the clothes, bedding and toiletries we needed. I was pretty much packed and ready to go, and then called Mr. R. There were NO sites available! When they went on Wednesday morning, there were only 2 walk-ups left and they were taken by them and someone who followed them in. Man...I should have prepared better! Mr. TD and I had planned to pack the van so that I could leave on Friday morning to set up camp and get us a site. Well, since there were none available...we just went to bed.

Early on Friday morning, Mrs. F called and said that her dad had just called and that there was a site open. We had just finished getting dressed for the day, so we piled a few things into the van, and headed up to the campground. We got there in about an hour. They wouldn't let us have the site until 2 pm...check-in time. GRRRRR! The walk-up sites are first come, first serve, so we wanted to be there EARLY! There were 2 sites open. They wouldn't let us get the site, but told us it would go fast....yeah...that's why I was there when I was there! So we drove back to the house to get the rest of the gear. I packed up the van, stopped for ice, and headed back to the campground. I got there at 12:01 pm. The ranger, Herman (what does that say that we know the park ranger by name???), said that I was right on time to check in. What???? I was just planning to ask if we could park and sit in the shade to do school and have lunch while waiting until 2 pm to check in. Well, we did check in! We picked site 20, and it was great! No sooner than we had the tent pad cleared of sticks and pine cones and unfolded the tent to begin to set it up, the second site was gone!

This was the first time I had gone by myself to set up camp. It really wasn't too bad. The kids played, or helped while I set up the tent. They helped with getting the bedding out and prepared. We even had time for school. There is a lot to be said for having school outside around a picnic table. I think we'll have to do that more often!

The weekend was a lot of fun. It was hot, but there was a breeze most of the time. On Saturday for lunch, we ventured to New Waverly to eat at the "pink donkey" as our friends called it (I think it was actually called Burro Express) for some excellent Mexican food. If you are ever in the area, I would recommend it! We enjoyed visiting with our friends! We have planned another trip with them in October. It will be a blast I am sure!

A Proud Mommy Moment

On the way home from church yesterday we were discussing with the little TD's what they learned in their Sunday school classes. Little TD shared that he learned that Jesus is alive, which is the focus of his class this month. He also talked about singing songs in the children's worship. Princess TD is learning about conviction this month. She talks about how she needs to do the right thing even when others don't. (Isn't this really a struggle that we all have?) She was then trying to remember her memory verse and she asked me for help. I wasn't sure which one she was trying to remember. Last week in school was a "review" week for Bible Study, so we covered five memory verses. I couldn't remember her verse from her class at church, so I told her I didn't remember. So she takes out her Bible. She thinks the verse is in Acts, so she says to herself "Where is Acts?" Then she says "Matthew, Mark, Luke, John, Acts." Turns to Acts chapter 3 and begins reading! She stopped around halfway through the first verse and with a big smile on her face says, "I am reading my Bible! Mommy, I am reading my Bible all by myself and I don't need your help!"

This is why I homeschool! I couldn't bear to let someone else witness the complete joy my children have when they figure something out!

Oh, and we never did figure out what verse she was looking for, we were too busy celebrating her achievement.

My Mom Will be Proud

...maybe?!

Like most everyone else I know, we had ham for Easter lunch. In past years, I would just pick the bone as clean as I could and toss it. I have never used it to make ham and bean soup.

Here's why: My mom LOVES bean soup (as we called it) and we ate it very frequently when I was growing up. Well, one of the things that my late father and I have in common, is that he hated and I try to avoid eating any type of bean (except green beans). (Which to me proves there is a genetic connection to food preferences since the last time I saw him, I was 15 months old!) Of course, like any good parent, my mom would make me eat the foods I disliked. I can remember sitting at the table for hours trying to eat the bean soup. I decided that when I grew up, I wouldn't cook the things that I didn't like.

Well, it seems I forgot to give the complete food quiz to Mr. TD before we got married. (You would have thought in the 8 years before we married, we would have covered the "bean" topic, but I just don't remember it coming up...) Wouldn't you know it, but he likes beans...all kinds of them (and okra too, but that's a whole 'nother topic)! The last time I threw out the ham bone, he requested that I make ham and bean soup.

This time, after cleaning the ham from the bone, I decided to save it to make soup for Mr. TD. Today was the day. It was rainy, stormy really, and I thought it would be a good night for soup. I simmered the hock for about an hour in chicken stock with onions and bay leaves. I removed the hock, added the chopped ham I had cleaned from the bone, matchstick carrots, northern beans and white corn (I just had a can in the pantry, so I thought I would use it), seasoned it with garlic pepper and let it simmer for another hour or two. It smelled wonderful!

The little TD's really don't like soup and Little TD doesn't like beans (hmmm...I wonder where he gets that!), so we gave them the option of eating the soup or something else. They chose something else. This is not something that we usually do, but I was having to work up the nerve to eat it, so I didn't have the heart to make them eat it if I wasn't totally thrilled. Mr. TD said it was good. He said it was more "hammy" than what you get in the can...go figure, but he liked it. I fixed me a bowl. It was too hot to eat at first, so I let it cool a bit, and then took a bite.

It WAS good! It tasted waaayy better than what my mom made (Sorry mom. But hey, I DID eat bean soup!) I had a bowl and a few crackers and I even had milk left over at the end of the meal. (You know, that old trick of drowning what you don't like in your drink and swallowing it whole...I didn't have to do that!)

Now that I am "older" (no age comments necessary), I am doing so many of the things my mom made me learn/do/eat when I was a kid that I absolutely despised: sewing, eating beans (ok, veggies in general)...I wonder what is next! It does give me hope that what I am saying to my kids might sink in someday...it just might take a really LONG time!!!

Thoughts for Thursday

This has been a crazy week in the TD Family. Which week isn't right? So I thought I would update you with a few of the happenings.

• We had a great Easter with our little family. We went to church, came home to the smell of lunch cooking and had a wonderful, quiet meal together. After lunch, we ventured out into the pouring rain to go to a friends house for dessert. By the time we reached their house, the sun was shining and it was cool. So we had dessert outside, around the pool, watching our kids play. It was a great day to celebrate our Savior.

• Monday morning, I was cleaning up the Easter decorations in the attic when I heard a strange truck on our street. I looked out the front window just in time to see the fire truck go by. I then saw the ambulance and the EMT supervisor parked next door. I went out the door to find the neighbors 3 year old daughter in their front yard with the paramedics running from the ambulance to the house. I asked the little girl to come to our house to play with my kids and left a note for her dad, letting him know where she was. Apparently my neighbor had collapsed and wasn't able to get herself help. Her daughter saw the neighbor across the street come home briefly and went to ask him to help her mommy. We don't know what caused her to lose consciousness, but what a blessing that the little girl knew to ask for help.

• School is progressing right along. Princess TD is reading so well. She still doesn't like handwriting or copy work, but she loves to write letters to Little TD, Mommy and Daddy. So, I guess as long as she is writing, that will do for now. She is still loving math and doing quite well with all of the concepts. We are moving right along through the 1st grade books. I do notice that the concepts are getting a little tougher and right now she's catching on quickly, but I do see the day when it will become a challenge and we'll need to slow down a bit. Little TD is still coming along for the ride most days. He seems to have lost interest in doing his own school. But, that's OK, he's only 3!

• Mr. TD is back into his traveling groove, and so are we! He has had a couple of trips last month and this month and will have a few next month and in June as well. He is loving his new truck, when he gets to drive it, and it fits him well! He's reached the point that it is safe to tow the boat. Now if it would just stay nice on the weekends....

• It may seem that we have dropped off the face of the earth for many folks. We have been concentrating on school and trying to make connections and build relationships with other homeschoolers. I haven't been back to my Tuesday Bible Study for a while because it is just not a good fit for us right now. I do miss seeing those sweet ladies. I am finding that it is difficult to move outside of your comfort zone and move forward. Sometimes that is what needs to be done. So the quest is on to find some other homeschoolers with little girls about the age of Princess TD that can meet for play time. I know they are out there...I just haven't uncovered the right stone.