Father's Day

Father's Day began with church, of course, and then we picked up KJ and Big Daddy's favorite things from CiCi's Pizza.  Mainly, Barbecue Chicken Pizza and cinnamon rolls.  

 Barbecue Chicken Pizza is the substance of things 

hoped for, you know.

 James made KJ a Father's Day card in Sunday School.

Look at that big boy.

 Fathers and Children

After everyone had a little rest time we drove to McDonald's to meet my father for the aforementioned milkshakes.  I'm so glad I got to see my daddy on Father's Day.  And the kids really enjoyed their milkshakes.

 

We spent the rest of the evening pretty quietly at home, eating leftover pizza, reading, and KJ and Ella having some intense competition on the Wii.  I really need to film their next match-up.

Father's Day Weekend Kick-Off

The kids and I kicked off Father's Day weekend with a trip to T and Big Daddy's pool while KJ cut the grass.  Does that sound fair?  I like to think this was helping KJ out since usually James likes to play outside when KJ is working in the yard, and it's sometimes hard for him to watch James and work at the same time.  This was really a gift to KJ!  (Does it sound like I'm searching for justification?)

Stick 'em up.

Before Saturday James was really nervous about the pool.  He wasn't sure what to make of so much water.  Earlier in the week he sat with Big Daddy on the float and got his feet wet, so I got in with him and let him sit with me to start out the morning.  When Big Daddy got in the pool I sat him down to walk to Big Daddy's float, and once he realized he could stand and walk around, it was all over.  He was so proud of himself.  "I swim!  I swim!"

 Ella practiced her sitting on the bottom of the pool skills.

Once James was happily situated I got out and took a guided tour of T's summer garden paradise.  T sported her new garden party hat.  So lovely.

When we got home I took a nap because my body has decided 5:30 a.m. is a good wake-up time for me, and by afternoon I need a recharge.  I think I'm growing older.  When I woke up I made dinner for KJ and went to take some six-month baby pictures.  I'm glad my sisters-in-law are adding babies to our family this year, because the sweetness is just too much.

I came home to find my husband and children having a jumping contest, seeing who could jump over the longest line of pillows.  Ella really should be on a track team.  That girl can leap.  We put the kids to bed and settled in for a nice night of Netflix, KJ's choice, in honor of Father's Day.  Not a bad day.

One Photo

It's been a really good, yet really long day.  Something about being away from home all day makes me really tired.  

We had a really lovely Father's Day weekend.  KJ really enjoyed himself and appreciated all my efforts to make it special.  I don't think we've ever celebrated him this much before, because two years in a row I think he was out of the country on Father's Day, and last year I went to see my dad.  He loved having all of his favorite things all weekend.  

My dad was passing through town on Sunday, so we met him at McDonald's for milkshakes.  It was a lot of fun, and I got this super-cute picture of my boy.

I'm lovin' it.

Monday's Memories: The Kilns, part 3

Before we left The Kilns we walked behind the house to visit what is now the C.S. Lewis Nature Reserve.  It was formerly just part of his property and one of the reasons he bought The Kilns.  In his day it was far outside the Oxford city limits and surrounded by countryside.  Lewis loved that.

We were told how much Lewis loved this pond, how he used to row about in it with friends, including J.R.R. Tolkien.  This brick bench where they used to sit talking was covered up with dirt and clay for many years when it was found and uncovered.

I loved being here and seeing this, but I really loved my husband getting to sit there and think about the conversations that took place on that bench between the men who gave us Aslan, Aragorn, hobbits, and Middle Earth.

 What a special day.

the back of The Kilns

And then there was Lewis' punt, another item once lost and then found.  Apparently it had sunk in the pond where it was discovered.  When KJ saw it he said, "It's a wooden box.  Of course it sunk."  It kept Lewis afloat for many years, though.

It was late in the afternoon by this time, and though I wanted to go visit the cemetery where Tolkien was buried, it was on the other side of Oxford, and we weren't sure how easily we'd be able to find his grave once we got there.  We also had a little drive ahead of us to the pub/inn where we were staying that night.  So we contented ourselves with driving around the corner to the church Lewis and his brother attended.  We'll visit there Friday.

Saturday This and That

• Change on the blog again  I just couldn't handle using a template not powered by Blogger at this point in my life.  Since I know next to nothing about html code it takes me hours to figure out how to make changes that may not even work anyway, and I just don't have time for that.  My children get antsy.
• Summer has been fabulous.  I can't say enough how good it is to have Ella home.  Having her all the time reiterates how little time I had with her during the school year.  She's such a great girl.  I love teaching her and being with her.  James would second that.

• Ella and I are participating in the public library's summer reading program.  We signed up last Thursday.  Ella pledged to read 63 books by the end of July.  She's 17 books into her goal.  I, on the other hand, let Ella talk me into pledging to read 15 books.  This is a puny goal compared to my 15-year-old self, but a seemingly overwhelming one with my present responsibilities.  IT'S A GOOD THING THEY LET ADULTS COUNT AUDIOBOOKS AND MOVIES!  So, I'm one movie into my goal.  Ha!  To my credit, I'm in the middle of The Three Musketeers, and it's a hefty-sized book.

• I got my car back.  After four weeks without it, this has been the first full week of having a car at my beck and call.  It is definitely a luxury, and we left the house every morning this week except for yesterday.  It's 8-9 hours before Daddy comes home.  That's a long time to stay within the confines of our home.  Freedom of movement is bliss.
• James has slept without bars the past two nights.  He didn't get out of bed.  He's been great.  
• I put James in underwear for the majority of the day yesterday.  We had one successful period of him keeping a pair dry and going in the potty.  The rest of the time was spent having accidents on my carpet.  Why do the accidents always happen on the carpet as soon as he steps off the hard floor?
• Speaking of James, he ran a mystery fever Wednesday night-through lunch yesterday.  He had no other symptoms.  
• I get to take pictures of two babies this weekend.  I'm excited about the preciousness of that.  A 6-month old baby boy and a 10-day old little girl.  
• We're celebrating KJ all weekend with his favorite things.  I came back from the store last night with fresh salsa, ice cream sandwiches, pigs in a blanket, Poppyseed Chicken fixin's, and Wal-Mart brand Root Beer.  I promise that's his favorite.  I also plan on picking up a Barbecue Chicken Pizza from Cici's on Father's Day.   He's a dad worth celebrating.

• We're anticipating a visit with cousins next week!  But please pray for the dear Kizziahs.  Claire-bear got a stomach bug, so we're praying for the germs to stop with her.  Poor sweet girl.

 

And I think that's about it for us.  Enjoy your weekend!

Friday's Flashback

Our tour of The Kilns ended in the dining room with some complimentary Turkish Delight.  I had some in college that I didn't care for (no chewy, fruity desserts for me!), so I let KJ have my portion as well.  He seemed to like it.

Our guide said that Americans were always disappointed in Turkish Delight.  "They always expect something chocolate...".  

 I would love windows like that.

Walking out the door, up a step, and through this arbor led to the garden.  It was a very peaceful sort of place.

 And Chuck Colson is with the Lord now.

That's an amazing thought.

 Looking to the left from the arbor

 to the right

This bench is at the far end of the garden, and there is another entrance to the garden in front of it.  I made sure KJ took several pictures of me here, too, since I was the one holding on to the camera most of the time.  

 Lewis' Private Entrance

This was another little separate area separated by a hedge.  I walked around the house with the video turned on and got some very shaky, very crunchy-sounding feet in gravel rocks-footage that perhaps I will show anyway, despite its fine quality.

Addendum:  I am having a hard time getting this template to let me increase the width of my blog, so the right edge of all these pictures is cut off.  

Projects

I thought I might share a couple of projects I worked on in the past couple of months. 

The first one was for my mom on Mother's Day.  She loves pictures of old doors, and I took several in England with her in mind.  She requested a print similar to prints like this.  Here's what I put together for her.  I'm happy to say she loved it.

I kind of love it, too.  I loved being at those places.  And I found Jane Austen's handwriting as a font online to use on the bottom.  Ta-da!

I also put together birthday invitations to my nephew's amazing Lord of the Rings birthday party.  I wish I could have been there.

His creative daddy came up with the tagline for the invite.

(Click to make larger.)
 

Let me know if you'd like a custom-designed birthday party invite!  They're pretty fun to put together.  :)