backyard archery!

So, I'm doing two posts in the same day but I figure it's two different subjects! My husband John LOVES archery! He's trained with the scouts to qualify as a range master or something so he can teach archery to others. If he has time and it's a nice day he finds a place to set up his archery and shoot. If anyone even indicates a mild interest in archery, he invites them shooting. Today our friend Holly is in town. She insisted that she wanted to learn archery and the next thing I knew he set up a miniature archery range in our backyard. Sarah invited her friend Symphony over to shoot and so it all turned into a little archery party. John's very serious about the safety rules in archery even (or should I say especially) when it's in our backyard. He doesn't appreciate any horseplay or goofing off, especially if you have an arrow in your hand. He's adorable in his intensity.

Giggly Girls Day Camp or Bust!!

I am in the very fortunate position of being able to participate as a leader in the Activity Day Girl's program in our church. I added it up the other day and I have been in this program for more than 4 1/2 years. These darling girls I have the blessing of being able to teach are between the ages of 8-11. Needless to say I am very attached to all of my girls. From the very beginning of the time my friend Melissa and I were called to lead this group the girls asked for a day camp. They wanted something outdoorsy and not terribly girly. They wanted a similar experience to what their scouting brothers did. We did not have the budget, or leadership to be able to pull off a camp for many years but last year we finally did. We had our first Giggly Girl's Day Camp! (the girl's named it...isn't it darling?) We did archery and a nature walk and lots of crafts and of course silver foil dinners. It was a blast. As the girls were leaving they asked "Can we do this next year??" (They hadn't even left yet!!!). So, we have planned another....but, it takes money. So, this year our ward is doing a fundraiser to raise money for all of the different youth organization's camps and we joined the fundraising efforts. We're going to have a little booth @ the fundraiser filled with things our girl's made to sell (@ outrageous prices for the product!). On Friday evening we had our little crafting & pizza party. The girl's made bead bracelets, and ribbon covered baretts and all sorts of different brownies in hearts shapes and bear shapes. Soooo...... CUTE! I'm so proud of them. They are so enthusiastic and smiley and for lack of a better word, shiny! I love working with them. I work with some fantastic women who I believe feel just as strongly what special people we've had the honor to serve. I just hope we make lots of $$$$. The only real bummer to the evening is looking around and realizing that by the next day camp in 2010, 5 of my girls will have moved out of the program into the Yount Women's program. It's going to break my heart just a little bit.

I should be used to this by now

I have a crazy, hectic life. I should be used to it by now. I keep feeling like my life shouldn't be as busy as it is. I look around at my friends who have 2,3,4 or 5 kids (or more) and see how nuts their life is and think to myself. Well, with only one child my life shouldn't be nearly as hectic and yet I prove myself wrong all of the time. The last two days are perfect examples of this life of mine that I keep insisting should not be too busy. On Wednesday morning I went on a walk with my good friend Melissa. WE walked for about 2 miles and then I went home and had breakfast and threw Sarah in the car and drove to Portland to sign some papers for my husband. Then, it's back in the car to go home. Once home Sarah and I dive into homeschool. Math, Writing, Ancient History and Geography. We finish that at 2:10 but Sarah has to be on a school bus to go to a track meet @ 2:30, so I goad her to get ready on time (teenage girls think that getting dressed should take an hour or more but sometimes there's just not enough time!!). We get to the bus late but fortunately the bus IS late (more on that later!). Whew!! She's on the bus! She's going to McMinnville and I had promised her that when she ran in track meets in Newberg and McMinnville I would be there to cheer her on. So, I have an hour before I need to leave to go watch her track meet. You'd think that would be plenty of time, but I have to run to the store for food and then run home and get as much of dinner ready as possible and by that time I'm late!!! Jump in my car to go the 25 minutes to Mac and get stuck in traffic in Dundee.........(Dundee is always a traffic jam because the state still has not built the promised bypass after 50+ years!!!, I thought I'd miss traffic by going early but.....STUPID). So, I inch my way to Mac and then get lost because the track field is not where I thought it would be. Finally get myself settled and I cannot find a single child from Newberg. Ten minutes go by and I decide to call my husband and ask him to look on the CPRD website and see if I got it wrong. He chides me and tells me I should have had my phone on (I was charging it). Turns out that the Newberg coach got the date wrong. Sarah very wisely called her dad to let him know that I needed to know that the were going BACK! So, back in the car I jump (this time to drive the back roads) all the way to Newberg to pick my daughter back up at Newberg High School.

Yesterday was similar. School...get Sarah ready for track and on the bus...run a few errands (drop off DVD's at friends), make phone calls, jump in the car and drive the McMinnville (the back roads). Watch 2 1/2 hours of track IN THE POURING RAIN!! Hug my daughter and friend Symphony and tell them how proud I am of them and then jump back in the car to drive to the McMinnville Stake Center for a meeting about my church calling of Activity Day Girls leader. Good women, good intention, no content for me.... John's at the church too for a corresponding meeting so I wait an hour for his meeting to end so we can drive home together!!! By this time it's 9:30 @ night. The whole day is GONE!!!

So, there's my life. I know others have got crazier lifes I just sometimes can't believe that a life with only 3 people in it can be this full.

sleep disruptions

I want to share a funny story. At least I think it's funny. We have a cat named Cordelia (yes, a nod to 'Anne of Green Gables' "Call me Cordelia). Cordi is my baby, I love her, but last fall we had to kick her out of the house because she was peeing in my house (I know.... GROSS!!). So, we kicked her out and I thought that she would immediately want back in. Instead she turned herself into a totally outside cat. We rarely ever see her and mostly just from a distance. Several days ago my husband heard this weird thumping noise coming from one of our back doors (yes, multiple back doors:) ). He went to check and found that Cordelia had climbed in through a hole in our broken screen (actually, i think she made the hole) and was trying to 'play' with our other cat Samantha (who is an indoor cat still.). She was climbing up and down in between the doors trying to get Sammy's attention. As soon as she saw John she freaked and scrambled back out of the hole, but she's been back at various times of the early morning ever since. It's like she wants back in but doesn't quite know how to go about it.

I have to start somewhere

This first post is dedicated to my Sister Christy (who you will hear me refer to as T from now on). She is my blog hero! She's inspired me that a Blog can be fun!!

I decided to start a blog for multiple reasons. One of the reasons is to help to better promote my businesses as a Heritage Maker Consultant and personal scanner. A way for me to better communicate my feelings on what I'm doing.

The other reason I choose to start a blog is for the one billion and one other things I always seem to be involved in. Whether it be homeschooling or Activity Girls, I always seem to be doing something creative. I don't have much now, it being my maiden voyage, but I'll share later.