Last week I had the privilege of presenting a workshop at the Texas Life Connections conference called Life Saving 201 in Dallas, TX. For more information about this event please visit the Act of Life blog.
Hope you are enjoying your Friday afternoon! Yes, oh YES - it is the weekend!
Blessings to you and yours,
Julie
Friday, July 24, 2009
Monday, July 13, 2009
Stobbe Wildlife Preserve
The pendulum has swung and it has done so with great velocity.
We recently relocated from the arid Tall City of Midland, TX to the tropical forest of The Woodlands just north of Houston. I am not sure we could have chosen a more opposite climate or a more drastic difference in scenery.
Let me make one thing clear: I like Midland. Too many people sigh or roll their eyes when they think of West TX. They only think of enormous and plentiful tumbleweeds or dust storms that can be like blackouts. While those things are an ever present reality, that is not all that makes up West Texas. I have never seen such beautiful sunsets and sunrises as when I lived there. And by 10:30 p.m. vast shimmering skies emerge sporting sparkling stars as far as your eye can see. I encourage you to see first hand the rugged beauty of this part of our great state.
The first picture shows what our back yard looked like: wide open West TX desert. It was a never-ending playground and fort constructing paradise. Our children loved digging, collecting some of the coolest and largest bugs I've ever seen, and playing out wild adventures.
Then the change and an embracing of a new adventure....
Now we are cataloguing birds of a different feather, so to speak. Birds a plenty! Our back yard is home to all sorts of feathered friends. Blue jays, robins, finches, sparrows, cardinals and owls! We have thoroughly enjoyed watching two sets of cardinals build their nests, lay their eggs, feed their young and teach flying lessons. All this viewed from our back porch! 
We've also found a friendly turtle, a long (and I mean long) garter snake and insects of all sorts that keep us marveling and reaching for empty jars. National Geographic could do a special on our nature preserve with little effort.
Just yesterday we made a great discovery. You know that color in your 64 Crayola pack named "robin's egg blue"? Well, guess what? It is aptly named - we found a recently vacated egg shell and made the comparison. Crayola is spot on!
The squirrels are as big as wallabies - oh, I forgot, we are in Texas where everything is big - and quick on the draw.
And any wildlife preserve worth its weight will have reliable park patrol. Our family dog fills this important role nicely. She is forever on alert, tracking newcomers or giving the squirrels and possums a run for their money.
If you call and get the answering machine, chances are I'm out in the back with my camera at the ready looking to capture the next species on film. Want to come 'sit a spell'?
Lemonade or iced tea - the choice is yours.
Julie
Friday, July 10, 2009
I Feel the Pain.....
Remember the show called "Kids Say the Darnedest Things"? I felt like I walked onto the set of one of those moments this week in my own home.
We recently hosted a family of five and had a ball together. Every moment was jammed and packed with fun times and memorable moments. After waving good-bye as they pulled out of our driveway my two kids went to work to clean the house. Each of us had our assignments and the children were looking forward to marking those all-important check marks on their chore chart.
As I was washing laundry I looked over and saw my son scrubbing a sink in his bathroom. Wanting to be an encouraging mother I went over to pay him a compliment. Upon entering the bathroom the rag came to a halt and he wiped his brow. As if on cue he said, "Now I understand. I feel the pain of all the mothers of messy kids."
Isn't that the best?! I mean, isn't this what we live for as parents? To know our kids are learning responsibility? He had never seen such a dirty sink. Multiple toothpaste spits piled upon themselves creating a cement like effect. He simply couldn't believe it!
Not long thereafter his sink was standing at attention and was at the ready once again for our next guest. I watched as he stood a little taller marking his chore complete. Well earned mark, Sir Connor! Glad you appreciate mothers' duties more deeply. Hopefully this will make you a sensitive husband when your number is called. Just remember to roll and not squeeze the tube - that will get you a long way in life.
We recently hosted a family of five and had a ball together. Every moment was jammed and packed with fun times and memorable moments. After waving good-bye as they pulled out of our driveway my two kids went to work to clean the house. Each of us had our assignments and the children were looking forward to marking those all-important check marks on their chore chart.
As I was washing laundry I looked over and saw my son scrubbing a sink in his bathroom. Wanting to be an encouraging mother I went over to pay him a compliment. Upon entering the bathroom the rag came to a halt and he wiped his brow. As if on cue he said, "Now I understand. I feel the pain of all the mothers of messy kids."
Isn't that the best?! I mean, isn't this what we live for as parents? To know our kids are learning responsibility? He had never seen such a dirty sink. Multiple toothpaste spits piled upon themselves creating a cement like effect. He simply couldn't believe it!
Not long thereafter his sink was standing at attention and was at the ready once again for our next guest. I watched as he stood a little taller marking his chore complete. Well earned mark, Sir Connor! Glad you appreciate mothers' duties more deeply. Hopefully this will make you a sensitive husband when your number is called. Just remember to roll and not squeeze the tube - that will get you a long way in life.
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