New 'do's

I finally took the kids to get haircuts yesterday...aren't they cute? I have some beautiful children, if I do say so myself! Kathryn still wanted to go shorter, but this is the shortest I am willing to go at this point! And Julian picked his style on his own from the haircut book. I think he did a great job choosing.

A new recipe...

I recently went through all my loose recipes - things I had gotten out of magazines and off food containers, that kind of thing. I found this recipe for dinner rolls from an old Homelife magazine. You know Baptists - all about food you can bring to the next covered dish meal! I LOVE these rolls. They are so easy to prepare and take less than 30 minutes to make. Of course, I wanted to share...

Hot Rolls
1/4 oz. active dry yeast (one packet)
2 cups lukewarm water
4 cups self-rising flour (if using all purpose, add 6 tsp baking powder and 2 tsp. salt)
1/4 cup sugar
3/4 cup butter (or margarine), melted
1 large egg, lightly beaten

Preheat oven to 400.
Combine yeast and water, let stand for 5 minutes
Stir in flour and other ingredients until blended.
Spoon into well-greased muffin pans (2/3 full).
Bake 20 minutes or until golden brown.
Makes about 18 rolls.

I use Smart Balance margarine when I make them, and I normally have to cook them at a lower temp. for a little longer to have them ready at the same time as whatever else I'm making. 350 for 30 minutes or so has also worked well for me. Hope you enjoy!

Deck again....we're getting closer

Jason and Robert had a few free minutes at work yesterday, so they went to the rock quarry and got a couple of loads of gravel, which the kids and I helped unload and spread. Jason and I really didn't think they would have time so soon, but we wanted to have the ground ready just in case - I'm glad we did! I think we need one more load of rock before we start building, but so far so good.

On a side note - poor Lucy is pretty freaked about about our project. She will NOT step on the gravel and tries to just avoid the whole area. Actually, yesterday we could hardly get her to go outside! Our scaredy-dog. Too funny.

New deck project - Day 2 . . .

We're making progress...now time for gravel for drainage.

And YES! We're putting our kids to work....kind of

More teeth...gone!

Kathryn is losing teeth left and right this summer! She is now missing 3 across the top and one on the bottom. Here she is with her most recent lost tooth:

Groundbreaking

We broke ground last night on our new deck project!!! It was so hot this weekend, we actually waited until 7:30 or so last night to start, but it is moving pretty quickly. We are in the very beginning stages right now - digging and leveling the ground on which the deck will sit. It will be ground level, so we need to guard against standing water. We will need to add a couple of inches of gravel before we start any actual building, but since Jason has planned everything out for the design, we should be done within a couple of weekends! He is just amazing with his ability to think these things out - something I definitely couldn't have done.

I have good memories of my Dad and I working on projects like this, so we decided to make this a family project. I was a bit older than my kids are when I helped my Dad, but I know we can make it work. Jason will be a great foreman! They were a great help last night with the digging and clearing away the patches of grass. Their neighbor friend Jada even came over to help for a few minutes. Who knows why things like that are so much fun when you're 6 or 8 or 10?!

Anyway, I have only 3 classes left (2 weeks) in summer classes, so I'm looking forward to getting some yard projects and house projects finished before classes start again in August...and project one: new deck!!!!

Wait a minute!!!

Ok, so the vinegar may work...there is a patch of clover in front of the steps into the backyard that is dying. I'm assuming some vinegar spray got on the clover. So it does kill some plants; apparently just not all plants. I'm sad to lose the clover, though...that is Lucy's favorite place to lay and cool off (and did you know clover is a nitrogen producer and actually fertilizes your soil as it grows??). My hope is restored! I will try again tomorrow and see if it will work on shorter/smaller weeds.

A no go for vinegar...

Doggonit! The vinegar did not work at all. Well, the edges of the leaves of the weeds are just the slightest bit brown, as if they have not gotten enough water lately. Definitely not dying.

The hot water did work. The weeds in the cracks of the driveway are definitely dead.

I think I will go back and try a stronger concentration of vinegar before searching for the next option. Some sites did say vinegar does not work well on weeds over 5 inches tall, and I don't think I have any less than 5 inches, so maybe that was a contributing factor. Oh well. We'll keep looking!

An experiment in weed control.

A few semesters ago, I took an ecology class, and since that time I have decided not to spray chemicals in my yard for bugs or weeds.

What I learned in this class is when I spray chemicals to control weeds in my yard, excess chemicals are washed straight into the storm drain when we get rain. We don’t have actual storm drains at our house; we have a small creek which collects all rainwater from the drainage ditches in my yard and my neighbors’ yards. Whatever the rainwater collection system is at your house, the effect is the same. The water rushing out of your yard (into the storm drain, creek, pond, etc.) is carrying the chemicals you sprayed in your yard. In my case, the storm water is carried directly to the Dan River.

Those chemicals go directly into the drinking water source for all of my city (and many other cities and counties in the river’s path).

Did you know drinking water is not treated for chemicals such as this? Storm water is rarely treated in any way (I know it is not treated in my city). It flows directly from the storm drain to the river. Waste water and gray water are only treated for bacteria and viruses. There is no system to remove chemicals added from household chemicals. (These chemicals often chemically bond to the water molecules, so they are not removed naturally through soil filtration, so even well water can be affected.)

The bottom line is: we drink the chemicals I spray on my lawn.

So I asked myself: how important is a weed free lawn to me? How important is it to remove any insect I may encounter?

It has become less important. However, because of this no spray policy and a lack of care for my ornamental areas because of being too busy to pull weeds, we are overrun. I decided to do some research into natural, homemade weed control options.

Here are 2 that I found that I tried tonight:

1) Boiling hot water. I know, seems too simple doesn’t it? Apparently, if you pour boiling water onto a plant, it immediately starts dying. It is supposed to be great for weeds growing in cracks on sidewalks and driveways, although it can also be used in flowerbeds, etc. if it's applied carefully. I tried it tonight on our driveway. The weeds did not immediately change in appearance, so I will have to look again tomorrow to see if there is any difference.

2) Vinegar, soap and water. There was some disagreement on this method on sites that I visited as to the amount of vinegar to use and whether to add salt. I did not add salt. Adding salt to soil seems pretty stupid to me. Of course it will kill the weed, but it will also salinate the soil, preventing any plant from growing anytime soon. No thank you. I sprayed several areas in my yard with a mixture of 200 ml vinegar, a few squirts of dish soap, and enough water to fill my sprayer. Again, there was no immediate change, so I’ll have to keep checking to see what happens.

Here's hoping it works!! Otherwise we've got a lot of weed pulling in our future.

Here I used boiling water:

Here, I used vinegar:

Let's see what happens, shall we??

Our new Friday routine

Since the kids and I are home every day together, we have to come up with fun little things to do here at home. For the last 2 weeks on Friday, we have filled the pool up in the morning, gone on a long walk together, and then come home to "swimming" in our kiddie pool. It helps break the monotony of video games, computer time and TV. This week we had some tension because of a dispute over who would carry the water, but it only affected the first mile or so of our walk. (!)

There was also a little tension when we got home when I realized Kathryn had NOT turned the water off to the hose when I asked her to (and she said she had). So water had been running freely from the hose for about 4 hours before we realized it. I'm going to try very hard not to think about what my water bill will be next month. It is outrageous in a normal month, so there is really no telling what this will cost us! Oh well - lesson learned. Kathryn is not quite ready for independence in that respect, and I would benefit from a little bit of checking behind her.

Anyhoo - here a few pics I took Friday. Nothing fancy this summer, I'm afraid, but they don't look like they're suffering!

Overload...melancholy

I'm feeling a bit melancholy tonight.

Do you ever get overloaded with causes? There are hungry children, children without parents, persecuted Christians, homeless citizens, abused animals, endangered animals, animals dying in the oily muck in the waters of the Gulf Coast. There are untold numbers of organizations founded upon research for a myriad of just awful diseases, affecting young and old. There are men (and women) on street corners with signs asking for money to live. There are companies taking advantage of citizens and giving them substandard, even dangerous, food and water, and citizens asking citizens to stand up! Fight for better!

It all gets to be a bit overwhelming. I feel sympathy for all included in these issues and so many others I just can't list, but, if I allow myself to get involved in all of them, where will that leave me? Will it make any difference in any of the causes? Because I am sure it would devastate my soul to not be able to affect any change. Some amount of filtering must take place, I guess, for us to function in this world. It could be like when you go outside, you don't notice every little thing you see. You notice only things that seem different or unusual. The things that break through the filter. If we tried to take everything in at one time, it would, I don't know, overload our minds or something.

Most recently I was asked how I can eat meat knowing how animals are mistreated in the production of said meat. Honestly, that is the very least of the concerns in my over-concerned brain. If I were to go "all in" for any cause, it would be to put food in the mouths of babies dying of malnutrition or providing clean water for so many who have none. Of course I will do neither of those, other than in prayer. The truth is, I am only able to live my life, to the best of my ability, helping those I can help and praying for those I can't physically help. I just don't know that there is anything else one woman can do. I do know my heart often hurts for a world that is hurting in so many ways.

Like Mother, Like....Son?

Just in case you didn't notice on your own, Julian now has his own blog:
The Life of Julian .

Be sure to visit him and leave him lots of comments! You will need a log in, so email one of us to let us know if you didn't get an invite.

A nice walk in the woods

The kids and I took a nice walk through the woods on the trail at my school. I packed a picnic lunch, and although it was a little early when we got to the halfway point, we enjoyed our lunch just the same. We played "I spy" and laughed and talked. It was a really good morning. Before we left the house this morning, I filled the kiddie pool, hoping the water would heat in the sun while we hiked, so it is now time to go splash and play!

Jason is 34!

On Tuesday, Jason turned 34 years old. We celebrated at home with a nice dinner, some thunderstorms and homemade coconut cake (complete with 34 candles and one to "grow on"!). Happy birthday Jason!

Summer school and more summer school

Tonight I finished my "pedagogy of social studies" class. While I am not happy that I have to be in school during the summer, I knew I would have to take at least 2 summer classes to finish the program within 2 years. I will begin "educational psychology" in a couple of weeks and then my summer begins. At least my 3 weeks break begins! After that short break, the fall semester begins, and it looks like I'll have more than a full course load again - 16 hours! Maybe 12 hours, but I am still waiting to hear from my advisor about which classes I definitely need to finish my degree. That will be my last semester, after all and I don't want any surprises when it comes time to start student teaching in January!

Since I have stopped working, I have had a lot of free time on my hands, and I have spent some of this time reflecting on things in my life. I have been spending more time in the Bible and have been talking to God more than I have in years. It feels incredible!

One of the things I have been giving thought to is my online/computer time. Since Julian was born, I have spent that majority of my day in front of a computer. I have spent hours working and "taking breaks" on things I like doing - like Facebook, reading news, reading other blogs, etc. While I don't see that there is anything wrong with Facebook or online time in general, I do see that I have gotten carried away with it. I have made a habit of spending my free time on useless things when I could be spending time with my precious family. So I quit playing all of the dumb farming games that have taken so much of my time, and I am limiting myself to checking in on status updates to once in the morning and once in the evening. It is a struggle though! Who knew it would have that kind of hold over me?! I'm writing this blog to add some accountability (even though I know hardly anyone actually reads my blog) for my benefit. I've said it "out loud" which should help keep me on my plan.

I've also started a healthy lifestyle program again. I am not on a diet. I would not go on a diet. But, I have gained a lot of weight since starting at Greensboro College. With school and work and kids and other commitments, I just had no free time to exercise. But, I have nothing but time now, so it's time to do something about it! I walked 3.5 miles Monday, and 3.5 miles today. The kids and I are going hiking Friday morning, and I want to keep this schedule as closely as I can. None of my clothes fit, and I don't have money to buy new clothes, so, that is that. Time for change.

I trying to learn again how normal people behave. What do normal people do when they have free time? I am not so stressed and overburdened with stuff that has to be done that I can't think. So this is a question I am working on figuring out. I am really liking getting to know me again - but it's hard!

Waiting in line (and other reminders that the world does not revolve around Robyn)

I just read a friend's status update that talked about the frustration of being stuck behind someone with a large order at the grocery store. While I share her frustration, I have also been trying a new strategy for dealing with this kind of stressor. Instead of letting myself get mad, I remind myself how truly blessed I am to be able to hop in my family vehicle and drive less than 10 minutes to get to a grocery store. And within this grocery store are shelves and shelves of clean, neatly packaged, affordable food - food enough for everyone in my city. It has helped me humble myself in a sense, and works to help me avoid anger at least half the time (which is definitely an improvement!). I must constantly remind myself that I don't deserve to be first and my every want does not have to be fulfilled immediately. That is not God's purpose for my life. What may be God's purpose for my life is starting a friendly conversation with the person in front of me, sharing Jesus' love with him or her. Because I don't think Jesus would get as mad as I do. I think he may even help my new-grocery-check-out friend bag his or her groceries.

Field day for Kathryn

Today, Julian and Jason went to the beach for Julian's final field trip of 4th grade. While they were gone, I visited the school to be with Kathryn for her field day. It was VERY hot, but lots of fun! I was able to spend the whole morning with her, and was able to take her home a little earlier than normal. We went shopping together (just Walmart shopping this time...), went out to dinner together, did our nails together, and watched a couple of movies together. A real "girl day". I loved it and hope we can do it again sometime soon...I can't wait to hear how Julian's trip was (I am waiting for them to get home as I type this!).

I realized again today how blessed I am to be able to spend time with my children almost whenever I want to. I am so glad today that I made the choice years ago to be a Mom first and everything else second. I won't lie - it's been a struggle - financially, emotionally, even spiritually. But it was the right decision. No doubts.

Our first hiking trip of the year

We visited Hanging Rock state park. We realized we need to get back in shape after a hard day of hiking! We did find a new trail, which we will definitely re-visit. It is much less crowded/more private than the other trails there - right up my alley!

Building a porch, a dream come true!

As our monthly get-together, we helped Ronda repair water damage to her porch a couple of months ago. Honestly, Dad did most of the work, but we were there for moral support! and as always the little ones had a good time together...

Awana Grand Prix

They worked hard on their cars, and both ran well in the race. Julian won 1st place in design for his car.

To be 17 again....

My beautiful niece, Emileigh, had her junior prom last night, and my family and I were lucky enough to be there to see her off. I hijacked these pictures from Jason's folder, since I didn't take any pictures of my own..

Tornadoes!!!

Just a quick photo of how we spent the evening last night, with the kids in the tub, and Jason and I nervously watching the radar to see if a spotted funnel cloud would come our way. We have no basement, so our hall bath is our "safe place", since it is our most interior room with no windows. We were under a tornado warning for about an hour, but never did see any severe weather. We did get a lot of rain, and when the "super cell" was passing by our house we heard a lot of wind and sheets of rain. But, we were perfectly OK, with no damage at all to our property. I did see a tree across the road fall over as I sat on the porch sanding an Awana car this morning, but it was in a wooded area, not close to structures. Although Julian said he was really scared, I think both kids liked being in the tub!

(By the way, when they saw the camera, they posed like this. Most of the time they were sitting up laughing and playing (and of course bickering!))

Easter 2010

Easter dinner at Grandma Knight's house has become a tradition for our family. This year Julian's birthday fell on Easter weekend, so we did his birthday party with Jason's family at Easter dinner. The kids played outside, riding on the golf cart (their FAVORITE thing to do at Grandma Knight's house!), blew some bubbles given by Grandma, and then we squeezed in Julian's birthday party before dinner. Jason's cousins, Kaitlyn and Samuel, spent a lot of time with the little ones too. It made for great fun for the little ones (and I hope Kaitlyn and Samuel too).

Oy! My baby is 10. Happy Birthday, Julian!

For his 10th birthday, Julian had a sleepover with Evan and his BFF from school, Chris. They stayed up pretty late Friday night and had a good time playing around outside and in Julian's room. The PS3 was also a big hit. I was nervous about the sleep over (boys will be boys and all), but it went well, with only one incident involving internet videos the boys decided they would watch (they had gotten pretty quiet with only a giggle here and there). When I checked on them, they closed the window so I couldn't see what was on it, so who knows what it was. It was pretty uneventful after that...

It was a nice family party on Saturday. Julian picked all his own decorations and party favors, and I made the cake. Definitely not my best looking creation, but it tasted great!

Julian helping me decorate Friday afternoon:

The party Saturday with my family:

The boys:

And! Kathryn spent the night with Ronda. Kathryn loved staying over since it was all girls there. On Saturday morning, Ronda and Kathryn went for a manicure (Kathryn's first). She got fancy flowers on her thumbs. It was an experience for her, and she thought it was interesting that a boy did her nails. So she didn't mind too much that she had been kicked out because of Julian's sleep over!

Spring is Here!

It has not snowed in quite a while now (thank goodness!), so it's time for my last post to disappear. This winter was unlike any I've seen since we moved to North Carolina in 1987! I remember when I was very pregnant with Julian, we got 3 snow-storms within a few weeks and had measurable accumulation. BUT from what I remember, it was short lived, and soon the snow melted, and we were back to typical fairly warm winter weather. Not this time! It was cold and then colder, and I am glad to see it is over for this year.

Spring this year will probably be different than years past because I am not working this spring. The mystery shopping company I have contracted for since Julian was born, and worked in-office for a couple of years before that has been sold. I remain blissfully ignorant of how all that business-transaction-type-stuff works. All I know is all assets were sold, and my job disappeared. This is sad for me, because it had been such a perfect job for my situation. My priority has always been to stay home with my kids. Life is short. I learned this at a young age, and I wanted my kids to know they are the most important thing to someone. I wanted to show them that people will make sacrifices for them because they are important. I think Jason and I have succeeded in this, mostly because I have been home with them. I don't think we would have been able to do this without my pitiful extra income. It wasn't much, but it was enough.

For 2 years now I have had to balance home, work, school, and so many other little things that don't fit neatly into one of those categories. It is sad to lose the job I've depended on for so long, but at the same time, it is a blessing! I have prayed for God to relieve the stress I have constantly been under since starting school. I asked and asked, but at the end of the day, I wasn't doing anything to change the situation.. I can't give up school, I would never quit my job! And my kids, well, they're here to stay. So God answered my prayer by removing one of my stressors! Praise Him, He always does what is right for me, so I am thankful. All that to say, I have some free time that I didn't have a couple of weeks ago. Today was my first day with no work. No emails, nothing to read and edit. It was a bit strange, to be honest.

So, we've had a wonderful Easter weekend, seeing my family on Saturday for Julian's birthday and then Jason's family on Sunday for another birthday party and Easter dinner. Today, I took cupcakes for Julian and his class, and we had our small family dinner with leftover cake from Saturday and cupcakes from today.

I wanted to post these pictures from a couple of weeks ago. I visited the Natural Science Center with Kathryn and her class. I was chaperone for her and her friend, Grace. We had a great time. There were lots of pictures, but these were my faves!