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Star Wars Call Me Maybe. Jon, this is for you.

The books or the music in which we thought the beauty was located will betray us if we trust to them; it was not in them, it only came through them, and what came through them was longing. These things- the beauty, the memory of our own past- are good images of what we really desire; but if they are mistaken for the thing itself they turn into dumb idols, breaking the hearts of their worshippers. For they are not the thing itself; they are only the scent of a flower we have not found, the echo of a tune we have not heard, news from a country we have not visited.

C.S. Lewis, "The Weight of Glory".

School Days

Our school year has begun with a whimper.  There is a bad cold circulating among our family so the well ones are having to take care of those of us who are limping along...

This week we are picking up steam, though. We are enjoying time on the porch, both for the lovely weather and for the sunshine that will hopefully help us kick this cold.

Strange that it feels that fall is coming- about a month ahead of usual. The sun feels like early fall, the shadows are lengthening. Brian said he read that they are expecting an early and especially cold winter. Last year was very cold and snowy.  It will be interesting if this year is even more so. Good thing we have a snowblower and winter boots for everyone!

One of the best commercials ever :)

End of Summer

We celebrated Hope's 11th Birthday this past week.

Her biggest gift yet- a new desk and chair for her room.  The desk is here, but the little hutch and chair should arrive this next week.

All the rest of her gifts were "desk related"- a waste basket, ruler, stapler, desk lamp, etc.

Grandma Jo has been asking me each week at church if I have a new project for her to help me with.  So, finally, I went to the fabric store for my supplies. The pink flowered (or flowerdie as Grandma Jackson would say) is for a pillow for Hope's new desk chair. That just jumped into the cart because it was too fun not to take home...

My Boy

So, did you hear the one about the boy who recently discovered that he enjoys running fast and was running in the church parking lot and tripped?

And scraped off a few layers of skin on his palms (and elbow and knees) and his mom is so glad that she's had a few years of wound care under her belt before seeing this?

I'm thinking guitar lessons will be cancelled today!

Fun at the Celtic Festival

A friend gave Hannah tickets to the Celtic festival, so we walked around for a couple of hours to get in touch with our inner Celt.

Yes, that is a woman in a butterfly costume. 

We looked for Glenbogle, but couldn't find it, sadly. (Monarch of the Glen, for those who are unaware of this wonderful Scottish show...)

It was hot and the characters were colorful.

I would wear this...but where? The grocery store?

We spent most of our time watching this troupe have their fighting contest. The man above was the winner.

If you look closely, you'll see that this man is fighting with a cast iron skillet. The audience was able to pick the weapons that the actors would dual with.  One man in the audience wanted them to fight with herrings, but unfortunately, there were none to be found. 

After the show, the man in the sunglasses chatted with us for awhile. He is a chef (in real life :)) and used to be a professional wrestler. He missed performing, so he got involved with this.

A picture with Nessie.

Lots of bagpipes playing.

But don't worry. We didn't go in here.

Day 2

The teams have to hurry to sort through the rubble because the bulldozers are starting to clear the area for rebuilding. They are not finding much, but this morning someone found a jewelry box and its contents, hopefully able to be repaired.

Waldo Canyon Fire Clean Up

Houses burned to the ground

 Sifting through the rubble

Dinner afterwards with Marty and Brenda, out from California for this project.

Good Quote

19^thcentury British pastor J. C. Ryle: “Kindness, gentleness, long-suffering, forbearance, patience, sympathy, a willingness to enter into childish troubles, a readiness to take part in childish joys, these are the cords by which a child may be led most easily, these are the clues you must follow if you would find the way to his heart.”


Found through thatmom.com

:)

Downtown Denver (Downton Denver Anyone?)

Art festival on Memorial Day.

At the capital. They just *had* to do this...

Monday

 Changes. Growing up.

Watching the solar eclipse using binoculars since we don't, you know, want to go blind afterwards...

Saying good-bye to our long-time neighbor this weekend. Gathering with her friends to share memories and to know that she will be missed by many.

Friday

Crown molding is up in the girls' room.  It takes awhile to put up since it is a build up of 5 different trim pieces. Brian has some more trim work to do, hopefully this weekend.  But realistically, over the next few weekends...

We have never had so many wildflowers as we have this year. They are so beautiful!  Funny how we are the only property in the entire neighborhood that has them. All the other neighbors have sprayed their fields for so many years that all they have is grass. We spot spray or dig out thistle and our fields are gorgeous. Wish the neighbors would follow our lead...

Can you relate to this?

We're in the last two weeks of school for this semester. This cartoon is really making sense right about now. Thanks, Jenny, for posting this on Facebook :).

This Week's Project

Brian is home this week working on things around the house. First up, the trim in the girls' room. It's Tuesday and he's only been to Lowe's twice so far...

And Then There Were Two

We rearranged the family room this past month when our sofa #2 arrived. The first one is a year and a half old and it was time to give it a buddy.  We are all enjoying the new arrangement and it is nice to have a seat for *everyone* in our family (before Jacob usually sat on the floor!).  

You do realize, however, that this room only looks this way for about 5 minutes before company comes?  The rest of the time there are schoolbooks, beading projects, empty dishes, and shoes lying around!

Jacob's Newest Adventure

He's excited to learn how to play his favorite songs and to fill our home with soothing music (at least I hope it will be soothing!).

A Change of Direction

When Hannah started with her college program almost a year and a half ago, she wanted to continue studying writing and art, areas that have interested her since she was a toddler. Although she is still interested in those subjects, she has a new focus- one that will involve graduate school.  She feels that she wants to pursue certification to be a sign language interpreter. So, she is currently focused on completing her bachelor's degree, hopefully this year if finances permit, then she will take some time off to work and save for a car.  Then, on to the certification classes (not sure where yet).  It will be interesting to see where this new desire leads...