Amazing Grace

Mama’s Camellias

Wed, 4 Jan 2012 16:16:38 -0600

I have a bunch of Christmas pictures to go through. So many, that I am putting off a Christmas post for a few days. These pictures are from Mama’s garden. I love her camellias. The weather was so temperate in south Alabama this Christmas. I had a great time taking pictures.

The statuary above is my favorite. I think it has the sweetest face. I took a bunch of her and can’t decide which one I like best. I haven’t edited the pictures at all. The differences are from playing around with settings.

Disney

Mon, 12 Dec 2011 22:17:36 -0600

We took the kids to Orlando. I wish I had time to do a full recap but the Christmas season has me swamped.
We spent a day at each park...Hollywood Studios, Magic Kingdom, and Epcot. Sophie’s expressions in these pictures with the characters doesn’t adequately portray her excitement. She was so thrilled! Her new ambition is to be a Disney princess. I think she would make the perfect Snow White. Don’t you?
You’ll see her picture with Eric from the Little Mermaid......she asked for that kiss.
The biggest thrill of the trip was seeing Justin Bieber perform in front of the castle, but only because it meant that we could ride all the rides with no lines! Thank you, Justin!

Treats

Tue, 1 Nov 2011 08:14:27 -0500

Hey

Sun, 30 Oct 2011 21:04:42 -0500

It feels so fruitless to post anything. Soon, our blog will go the way of the cassette tape and VCR. Apple is not continuing with this service. I imagine that the busyness of my life will not allow me to start from scratch in Wordpress or some other format. But, until then I’ll share a few things.

Jim and Gwen came to visit. Oh how we have missed them! They were able to come along on Sophie’s pumpkin patch field trip. Sophie felt so special. I love seeing her snuggle into her grandparents and feel that security. Is it not amazing that God can provide grandparents to an orphan?! She does not take it for granted either. I can see her literally soak them up. Jim and Gwen were here during the “work week.” They got to observe the everyday chores and joys of our weekdays. We loved having them near us. There are no words to express the blessing of supportive parents. It’s like a salve to a wound. When life is hard and stressful, they are there to tell you that it’s going to be alright.

It’s been such a beautiful autumn weekend.....football, caramel apples and pumpkin carving. One of my dear friends just had a beautiful baby boy. I held him yesterday. I was reminded of how big my kids are. Time passes so quickly. I want to do the things that make memories.

Twilight Kayak ride

Wed, 10 Aug 2011 09:55:22 -0500

A few months back I spontaneously bought two vouchers for a twilight kayak tour. There is a very laid back little operation just 15 minutes away that organizes floats down the Flint River. We arrived at 6:30 p.m. and were shuttled down to a launch. The kids were excited but also a little apprehensive. We had two tandem kayaks, Sophie with Scott and me with Noah. Two minutes down the river, Noah declared himself an expert. I’m sure it’s hard for anyone to imagine but Noah said, “I’m pretty good at this.”
Sophie sat in the front of Scott’s kayak with no paddle like Cleopatra and said, “Good job, Noah!”

It was such a leisurely ride. The weather was beautiful. It was about 78 degrees on the river with a slight breeze. We floated down at our own pace. Although we navigated several little rapids and squeezed ourselves through tight spots around fallen trees, the ride was mostly very calm. Noah and I got our boat caught under a fallen tree at one point, causing a ten boat pile up. But there was no danger. The water was hardly ever above our heads and not fast enough to cause anyone harm. I took my old camera (as you can tell by the pictures) and snapped a few shots along the way.

We passed under railroad bridges and beside the remains of old bridges. There was a heron that flew ahead of us for a long time, intermittently stopping to light on a branch and waiting for us to catch up. About an hour into the ride, the moon came out. It was not quite full but very pretty. Soon after that, the sun was completely down and we glided through the moonlit darkness, like Native Americans must have done almost 200 years ago. It was magical.

We arrived back at home about ten. Bedtime didn’t come quickly though, because there was shopping to do. After all, Amazon sells kayaks.

The Beach

Tue, 9 Aug 2011 09:33:57 -0500

Our summer is coming to an end. This past week at the beach we gave it a good send off. We went to Cape San Blas this year instead of our usual destination. It was fun to try somewhere new but I found myself home sick for St. George.

I didn’t take many pictures this year. Mama and I both had a terrible time trying to keep the humidity out of our cameras. The minute we walked out of the house and into the sea air our lens would fog up. It took 20 minutes sometimes for the condensation to dissipate inside the lens. I got a few good shots but somehow I failed to get any pictures of my parents and my grandmother. It was a different trip because Daddy has started a new job and couldn’t stay with us the entire time. We missed him.

Scott and I got a lot of time to read. It was such a treat. I read The Scarlet Pimpernel, Rebecca, and The Good Earth. My imagination traveled to France, England, Monte Carlo, and China. I loved it!

The kids played in the water nonstop. It was fun to see them enjoying the ocean so fearlessly. Sophie could not get enough of the water.

I am so grateful for our week of rest. I loved seeing Scott’s shoulders relaxed and his face unstrained. Now we are ready to tackle the year!

Look at my baby!

Sun, 7 Aug 2011 17:42:59 -0500

Ice cream tonight! I might even share one of my Haagan Dazs bars.