I Just Love the Biltmore House!

Each year Brookley, Clifton and I go to the Biltmore House for home school day. Not only do you see the house and gardens there are plenty of crafts to get involved with. Clifton loves working with his hands and was able to make tin plates, candles and pottery. We hiked out to the barn where we petted all kinds of farm animals. We had a wonderful lunch at the Stable Café then had ice cream in the park. This is a yearly trip for us, and one I would not want to miss. Brookley graduated this year from high school but Clifton has six more years to go. I know these six years will fly by so I hope to spend as much time with him as possible. Brookley plans to stay home for a couple more years to go to the local college. She doesn’t want to give up our trips either so she is going with us on our home school trips. I am glad for I will truly miss my children when they grow up and move on in life. I am completely blessed to be the mother of two beautiful children. They are beyond doubt a blessing to me.

A Day In Mt. Mitchell

We spent the day at Mt. Mitchell in September 2010. It was around 40 degrees. It even started to drizzle some. We were all shivering but it was fun. The views over the mountains were breathtaking. I love spending time in the clean air. When I am stressed, the mountains are where I want to be. There is just something calming about fresh air, trees, mountains, and the hot chocolate they sell there. It has been about a year since we took this trip so I think it is time to go back. Hmmm, think I will plan it for September 2011. : }

Los Angeles November 2010

My life just keeps getting better! This week Bob, Brookley and I have spent the week in California. We arrived on Sunday about 11am (3 hour time difference). We rented a zippy little red Ford Focus and went to the Holiday Inn Express. Randy's Donuts was on our list of first things to do in LA. After dinner at a local buffet, we rested for the evening.

On Monday we toured Hollywood, LA, and the homes of the stars. We also toured The Grove where we met Mario Lopez and had lunch at Johnny Rockets. On Tuesday, Brookley sang for a group. She did very well. After this Bob got pizza and brought it to the room for dinner.

Wednesday we traveled to Long Beach and saw the Queen Elizabeth. We had lunch at a great Mexican restaurant then traveled to Santa Monica beach. I absolutely loved Santa Monica beach! Brookley and I rode the Farris Wheel that looked out over the ocean. It was so hot and Brookley and I wore jeans so we bought dresses from a lady selling them on the pier. It was so neat and they were very pretty. The water was very cold and it was neat to see the ocean touch the mountains. Later we had a lovely dinner at Jino's Pars which served authentic Persian and New American cuisine.

Today we have toured more of Hollywood and met George Lopez. We are going to have dinner out and rest for the evening. We must leave in the morning. :( We will be on the plane for eight hours then home to rest.

I love my life and feel very blessed!

Date Night!

A couple of weeks ago, my husband and I went to Charlotte NC for a "date night." He took me to Ruth's Chris and it was delicious! The service was grand. I felt like I was one of the "rich and famous!" LOL. After dinner we walked around in the park and danced through the spitting fish fountain. The weather was in the 70's and very nice.

Date nights are important to marriages! Did I say that clearly enough? Date night are important to reconnect with your spouse. Children, work, church, life in general gets busy and time slips away, and before you know it, you look over at the guy next to you and say, do I know him? Ladies, this isn't the time to give up! It is the time to wake up!

Over 19 years of marriage I have never seen the need for date nights because we were always a close family. But now I do and I can tell you, it is fun to date your husband! So go for it and have fun! You both deserve it.

2010 Beach Trip

We left out for a 10-day beach trip on August 5^th. We went to Kure beach in Wilmington NC. There are about 20 of us in our family and it is great to get together at the beach every year. Bob and I got time alone to go out and eat together, walk and talk about life. These times are important for building our relationship. I enjoy our time together.

Brookley and I went shopping in Wilmington and we ate at a water front café. The food was delicious and the café had interesting paintings on the walls. While we walked through the stores at the Cotton Exchange, Bob took the younger kids to the Battle Ship. They toured the entire ship and got some great pictures. They said it was very hot on the ship. Can you imagine how the sailors felt?

This is the first year in many that I didn’t get to read a novel while laying by the pool. I had too much schoolwork this year. Maybe next year I can plan ahead and get my schoolwork finished before the trip. We will see.

Clifton loves to fish so his dad took him out to the pier a few times. He caught some small fish and had fun. He is like his dad....they love fishing.

We went to Southport for a day. We traveled by ferry and then drove to water front downtown Southport. While there we toured the old jail where Bob placed a police patch from one of his old uniforms on the wall with other patches from around the world. It was neat. We also toured the old graveyard looking for the oldest stone. We ate pizza in a little house that was set up as a cafe. It was good and a neat experience.

We had ice cream every day! Hey it is our vacation!!! Brookley and Clifton ate a whole bucket of ice cream at one sitting. They actually finished it. LOL

Our family has come closer during this 10-day trip and we have pictures and memories that will last forever.

Foster Parenting

Being a parent to other people’s children is difficult sometimes. There are days when everything goes well and other days were all you see are fits and tantrums. These are the days when you question your very existence.

There are days where you spend hours picking lice out of little girls hair and days where you sit and hold a crying child because he or she misses his or her mother.

There are days when you buckle up shoes, brush little girl’s hair, read stories and are called “Mom.” Everyday is a day of tucking in children at night, saying prayers and giving big hugs.

Then there are days when the birth mom calls you and tells you how much she appreciates what you are doing for her child. When a mother calls to thank you for taking care of her child, saying she had prayed for someone to come into their lives to help them. Saying she didn’t know there were people in the world that was willing to take in children and care for them just because they loved them. What an honor to be chosen by a mom to be a mom to her child.

Foster parenting is hard but I believe the benefits far outweigh the pressures of life that is brought on by the decision to nurture and love other people’s children. I am glad I have been chosen for this awesome responsibility.

Weekend in the Mountains

Memorial Day weekend has been a blast! I spent time with friends in the mountains at a friends condo. A beautiful golf course, a beach in the mountains, tennis, swimming and hiking! What else could a person ask for. It is so good to have friends. I love to spend time with my friends and family and just relax. My friend Lhen is from the Philippines and she cooked us a meal that I cannot spell, but just know it was delicious! While there, I rested and was thankful to be where there was no stressors of life. No worries about anything. I don't consider myself a worrier but sometimes life gets stressful. That is when it is important to detach and rest for a while.

On Monday I spent time with more friends at my camper in the mountains. The kids played and we sat a talked and laughed a lot. I took my kids and three more along with my friends kids. They all played in the creek and some of them swam in the swimming hole and fished. I think everyone had fun there. Friends are such a blessing and I sure do love mine!