Playing Catchup

Wow. It's been a long time. I had such great hopes for the things I was going to do this year. It seems school and family kept me busier than I anticipated. Hey, that's ok!

Above are a few photos to give a little synopsis of our last few weeks. Mike continues to play every chance he gets (which, as a professional musician is a lot!). I don't go to very many gigs because, frankly, they start too late for this early bird. The photos of him above are from two special shows, one with a friend Dan who put out an amazing CD and another was with a friend from High School celebrating the 20th anniversary of a CD he recorded for his 30th birthday. Fun times. 

The boys have been busy too. Nolan finished up his Junior year with the prom. Aren't they are beautiful couple? (only friends, though!) He has been accepted into the Culinary program for his Senior year at the Lancaster County Career and Technology Center. Way to go, Nolan! He's very excited.

Nathan graduated from high school and the Career and Technology Center Baking and Pastry Program. He also received a senior award, the Stanley Lipman Memorial Award. This was in honor of a special education teacher. We are so proud of Nathan and his accomplishments. He's searching for a full time job which is somewhat discouraging but we're persistent. 

We also celebrated the first Mass of Thanksgiving with our friend Father Don (it's still strange to say that!) who was ordained just this past Saturday. It's been a long journey for him and a new chapter is just starting. We're thrilled to know this amazing man and new priest!

As for me, (no, there are never photos of me) I've finished school and teaching the Catechesis of the Good Shepherd at church and am glad for some down time. We are heading out towards Pittsburgh this weekend to celebrate my oldest nephew's wedding. I finally finished their quilt (with a few days to spare) so now I'm ready to tackle some of my other projects.

More on those in another post. 

The weather has been glorious and I'm working on losing the 30 pounds I've gained in the last two years. So I'm walking and biking and trying to find some tasty but healthy recipes. Speaking of that....time for my morning constitutional with the hubby. Have a wonderful day everyone.

Summer Slow Down

It's been quite a year. Busy but energizing. I am much less of a blogger than I used to be. I notice that throughout the web. I think there are so many other ways to share (facebook, pinterest, twitter, etc.) that many bloggers have slowed down on posting. 

I am thankful for these slow summer days. I have so many things that I hope to accomplish this summer that I have to remind myself there is no rush. I have time. Time to breathe, to sit and to relax. 

So here I am in the middle of June already. School ended at the end of May and I immediately spent the next 6 days in an intensive training to complete my Catechesis of the Good Shepherd certification. Of course finishing the training is only the beginning! Now I have to continue making the materials we will need for the upcoming atrium year!

In addition I have lots of planning and material making for my Montessori classroom. I'm planning to study zoology and the full 7 continents this year. I do so love to lesson plan and make materials that the time goes quickly.

I'm also taking time for me this summer. The garden is growing nicely (we've harvested lettuce, green onions, spinach, broccoli and snap peas) and my hubby is busy weeding and mulching the flower beds. 

The boys are both working a lot this summer and since neither has their drivers license, I am doing a LOT of chauffeuring. Fortunately the drive to work (they both work at the same place) is pretty quick and easy. It does make me glad we have flexible schedules. I am thankful they have so much work in this economy, too.

I've been taking guitar lessons and have a stack of books by my bedside that I am plowing through. As with everything, I am trying to slow down. I am enjoying the silence of the house (especially when the boys are working). It is a time to recharge my batteries for the next school year!

Check back for more posts (I hope!) this summer. I certainly hope everyone has the time to just sit back and enjoy their time this summer, be it alone, with family or with friends.

Slow Day at Home

It was a nice, slow, day here at home. The days are getting shorter and the crickets and cicada are singing almost all day long. The garden continues to ripen and the flowers to bloom. There was a rhythm to the day that was soothing and calm. 

More end of summer doldrums

I'm still lamenting the end of the summer. My garden is starting to die off, especially the squash vines. I've harvested onions and potatoes and just today cut off the first of the butternut squash. I always plant it a little early but it seems to be no worse for it. 

My dahlia's have been blooming all summer. This was my first experience with them. I was appalled when I saw the price of one plant. I had no idea it bloomed so proficiently for so long. Now it seems it was quite a bargain. I'll definitely have to buy a few more next year. 

Band camp has started and the cicada are singing. These are sure signs that the end of summer is approaching and the school year will begin. It's funny, I'm usually really ready for school to start but for some reason I wish it were a few more weeks off this year. I'm just not ready. 

Yet time waits for no man. So I guess we'll start looking for the binders and the backpacks and making sure the uniforms are clean and pressed and ready for another adventure. Nathan will be attending a half day culinary program and Nolan will be competing in his first marching band competitions. Good stuff.

I'm going to enjoy this one last weekend and pretend we've got all the time in the world. Which, I guess, we do depending on how we spend that time. 

Here's hoping you have a peaceful weekend as well.

July already?

It's hard to believe one month of summer is already gone. We have a few things on the burner this summer but also lots of time for relaxation. The boys and I spent a few hours in the front yard yesterday weeding and planting flowers. Our yard is full shade and encumbered with the roots of VERY old, VERY large trees. When we moved in there was a not so great looking bit of landscaping out front that has needed work. What I'd like to do will cost a bit of scratch so I had to content myself with a less expensive fix. So trips to Ollies and the Basket warehouse, as well as to a local greenhouse and we've got pots and flowers and color. I am amazed that there are flowers that prefer shade. Aaaahhh....the Glory of God's Creation.

I've also done something I haven't done in years. Many people would be surprised to know that I don't sew clothing. Ok, not that I don't do it, I just haven't enjoyed it for years. I've made lots of costumes and I certainly know HOW to sew clothing, it just wasn't enjoyable for some reason. Recently, however, I had the hankering to make myself a dress. I'm still not sure what came over me. So, off I went to the fabric store and came home with a pattern and material. Of course, I sewed over a heat and humidity wave with no air conditioning. I find the sizing of patterns to be difficult to determine so I feel fortunate that the dress actually fits. It is a little lower cut than I thought (that darn model is much more flat chested than yours truly) but it will work for a nice dinner out sometime. The pattern came with a little jacket so I'll work on that next.

One other thing I take a secret pleasure in over my summer holidays is reading through curriculum for the next school year. My own education was somewhat lacking in several areas so I feel the need to preview the boys books for several reasons. FIrst, of course, to make sure the books and work are a good fit. Secondly, so that I can have intelligent conversation with them as they are studying. So, I'm reading through Church history. Next up, the Greeks and the Romans.

Laundry detergent, ivy and stag beetles.

We continue to be busy around here. The boys have been helping me eliminate the English Ivy on our property. You can see how excited they are about starting. I took them to see Night at the Museum 2 after all that hard work. I think I know that summer is winding down and I'm trying to get all the projects finished around the house.
Mike finished painting our bedroom and since I just can't bring myself to spend $80 on cellular blinds I went to JAF and bought some fabric today. I want to do something like this. I also need to figure out what to put on the walls. Decisions, decisions. I still can't decide what to put up in the kitchen. I did find this little number today for a nook in the kitchen. I'm not even sure why I like it so much. My mom had a ton of these type of flower vases that I used to look through when I was a kid. Most of them were baby-theme related though.In other news....I finally cooked up some laundry detergent. I'll let you know if it actually works. Nolan wanted to know if I was having fun while making it. I informed him that I found the process enjoyable but not exactly what I'd call fun.
And finally, Nolan informed me that this little gal is a female stag beetle. You can tell by the shorter pinchers. Of course you can.