Friday's Flashback: Saying Good-bye

We spent such a lovely morning at Jane Austen's house, several hours enjoying and taking pictures, but around lunch time we decided it was time to make our adieus.

We had definitely been lost in Austen all morning.

Thankfully, we really didn't have to leave Austen country.

Our next stop was Steventon and the church Jane grew up attending.

We walked out through the gift shop and made our final purchases.  Of course I could have taken it all home with me, but we decided on a Jane Austen paper doll set for Ella, a book of piano music for me, and a bag for my mom.  Farewell, dear house.

Sweet time

Good-bye, sweet tea rooms.

I just noticed they had Jersey ice cream.  Straight from a Jersey cow?

I wish I had gotten some.

We walked back to the car park beside the playground, where the smell of freshly-mown grass and the sound of children playing in the distance made us set off through the field.  At the end of a lane we saw a big group of school-children playing rugby at recess.  I really, really, really wanted to sit down and stay there forever.

These are my feet, not wanting to leave.

This was the first day of our spending time in the countryside, and I discovered that the grass that grows on the other side of the pond is far superior to any other grass I've ever seen.  Maybe it's the sheep, or all that rain?

An Important Anniversary

One year ago today the UPS man brought me a wonderful gift...and it's hardly been out of my hands since then.  Happy anniversary Canon Rebel T2i!!  I'm looking forward to many more.

The first picture taken with my new camera

I'm a fan of looking back over past days and seasons of my life.  Back in the day when I kept a diary I liked to look back and see what I was doing and feeling and thinking on that same day the previous year.  In fact, I was kind of in a nostalgic mood all day yesterday.

I was reading some of Ella's books to James and remembering reading them to Ella's two-year-old self...I saw the full moon on the way to Wal-Mart and remembered the first full moon I spent with KJ...I saw Keifer Sutherland on the cover of TV Guide and felt nostalgic for the days when 24 came on television...which made me remember when Hillary used to come in after class on Monday nights, and we'd eat dinner and spend an hour with Jack...which then made me remember planning a LOST finale party with Hillary when I was 4 months pregnant with James, and how he's now 2 1/2, and where did the time go?  Yes, it was definitely a nostalgic day.  

So in the spirit of looking back, and celebrating my months with such a faithful companion, here's a picture taken on the 8th of every month since 3.28.2011.  There were only a couple of months I had to use a picture from the 7th or 9th day of the month.  I told you me and Canon have been pretty inseparable this year.  

April

This picture makes me happy because the grass is thick and green, and I'm only a month away from my backyard looking like that again.  It makes me sad because look at baby James!  Look at those curls, and that belly, and those baby legs.  Also, he's still drooling.

May

This was Mother's Day, and I stayed home from church with James who was sick.

I think this is a precious picture, and the only thing I would do differently is take a little yellow out of that grass...it is hurting my eyes.

June

Polished fingernails

July

I took some pictures of David to send to Hillary in Nashville.

August

I looked up and noticed James' little toes, and my heart melted.  It's a mom thing.

September

I love this picture.  Look how beautiful the sun's rays are coming through the tree!  I also love Ella's expression.

October

Granny and one of her great-grandchildren at a cousin's wedding

November

I absolutely love this picture, too.  I'm so glad we went out that morning...even if he did get a runny nose afterwards from playing in the leaves.

December

I love the Christmas lights shining through their goblets and how those two love each other.

January

Precious girls

February

First of all, how is it possible that it's already been one month since I took this picture?

The weeks go by too quickly.  I'm excited that next week is Spring Break, and I'll have the whole week with those two kids.

Babies + Scrapbooking

Both of my sisters-in-law on the Pugh side are expecting babies this year.  I was browsing through some digital scrapbooking supplies online when I came across a "Vintage Nursery" collection, and in view of the coming bundles of joy, I had to purchase it.  I fell in love with these old alphabet cards.  Aren't they cute?

It also came with a few scrapbooking layouts, which I sampled with my current resident baby-model.

And it's pretty obvious that's cute.

Bring on the 2012 babies!

A Few Things We Did this Weekend

We enjoyed the unseasonably warm weather on Friday, though we knew it was bringing storms with it.  I was excited to see that our iris had bulbs that weren't there the day before.  Spring is in the air...literally.  I have a wee bit of gunk I'm dealing with, and poor James has started his yearly bout with a snotty nose.  

I'm not sure what kind of bushes are in our front bed, but they're blooming.

I took Ella out to take a few pictures of her before we sought shelter from the coming storms.  Since she's been in school I don't get the opportunity very often.  She's growing so fast.  She's also really enjoying her camera she got for Christmas.

I loved her smile in this one, so I made it big for you.

Saturday was a sufficiently windy day for Ella and KJ to fly kites.

I believe they sang a song from Mary Poppins at this point.

And I think those were the highlights of our weekend.

Monday's Memories: The Garden and the Bakehouse

I had several pictures ready for posting on Friday, but the threat of severe weather and tornadoes kept me running to and fro, readying the children and gathering all of our stuff so we would be ready to go to KJ's parents' house if a storm formed nearby.  Thankfully, we experienced nothing more here than a little wind and rain this time, but we always have to take the threat seriously.


Without further ado...in case you were unaware, the UK doesn't have yards, they have gardens.

You must have a hedge, of course, and benches where you can enjoy afternoon tea.

surveying the landscape

home remedies

a little greenhouse directly underneath Jane's room

KJ outside the bakehouse, located behind the house

what they did in the bakehouse

I thought the bakehouse was a lovely old building, but I'm so glad I don't have to skin a slaughtered pig in preparation for eating it.  We're so spoiled in the west these days.

Now this I found very cool.

They had the Austen's donkey carriage!

I stood still and imagined Jane perched on the donkey carriage for a trip to Alton with Cassandra.  As happened so many times on this trip, it was surreal to take in that we were standing so close to objects once so familiar to historical figures we've read so much about.

I was also excited when I saw a cornerstone from Steventon rectory, the home where Jane grew up and lived until her father's retirement.  It is no longer standing today, and it made me glad there was at least a little bit remaining.

the well

KJ got some close-ups of the flowers while I used the facilities.

I'm so glad he did because we were there for so long, and we needed to be on our way,

but I didn't make it around the garden for flower shots.

Everything was beautiful and blooming.

Don't you love that tree?

I suppose we'll say farewell to Chawton on Friday.  I hated to leave.  We had such a beautiful morning there.  

Thankfulness

It's 6:50 on a Sunday morning, and I've already been up for an hour.  Sometimes I just wake up early.  I've been spending some time giving thanks.  Here's a list for March if you'd like to join along.  I needed to catch up on the last week of February.  I realized again last night that without consciously choosing to give thanks, I slip into complaining at every little thing that inconveniences my plans and desires.  Today's category is "3 things hard to give thanks for."  Sundays can be hard, but I hope there won't be anything too hard.  :)  I can already think of one...it makes me feel foolish, but when I got asked to fill in as Sunday School teacher for the 2-year-old class I must admit thankfulness wasn't the first feeling I had.  


It was really funny, but the last time I filled in there it was my birthday, and I was told they usually had 2 or 3 kids.  There were 7 two-year-olds that I had by myself, and it definitely produced thankfulness that I only had one at home.  Don't get me wrong, they're a joy and fun, but it was chaotic trying to keep them away from the toys while I taught the lesson, keep them from banging toys on chairs, wiping snotty noses, and one little stinker kept coloring on the table every time I turned my back.  Today should be interesting.  But that was one reason I wanted to start the day with thankfulness.  I've found that being thankful really does produce joy in my heart, no matter the number of two-year-olds, and I may or may not be needed to help.  We'll see what happens.

My 2-year-old, checking out our new television

I am so ready for those diapers to be gone,

but you really do have to forget about doing anything 

else to get the potty-training done.

We're working on it.

Me and my girl headed to the grocery store yesterday

We're hosting members of our Mission Community for dinner tonight,

so busy day all around, but it will be good.

I'm thankful.

Vintage Ella

KJ had the laptop out last night and pulled up some old video clips of Ella.  They made my heart melt.  She's about the same age as James is now.  It was such a sweet time.  Me and my girl.  I'm having sweet time with James now, and I'm reminded of how I need to turn on that video camera more often and how quickly this season goes. 

This clip was on a Sunday night after church.  Everything she tells me in the video she told me of her own accord a few minutes earlier, and I made KJ get out the camera.  I was astounded by what she was learning in Sunday School and how she remembered it.  For those of you who teach children, they remember it.  God's Word does not return to Him void.  It will be used in their lives forever.

I might add that we did not tell Ella she would die if she disobeyed us.  The video kind of sounds like that, but she's just telling us the spiritual truth she was apparently taught that day:

"...but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat,

for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die."

- Genesis 2:17 -

Why is my girl old enough to have vintage video??