Scenes from the road...

Rodanthe, North Carolina

For those of you who are fans of Nicholas Sparks, you may recognize this house as the house that was used in the movie, Nights in Rodanthe. It was more dressed up with nice shutters and such for the movie, but it is still recognizable as the Inn where Richard Gere stayed in the movie.

As we were driving down the Outer Banks toward Ocracoke, we passed the house. It was empty and there were other people milling around taking photos and others that were walking along the beach enjoying the water. It is a very nice location and the sand and surf were nice also. It can be rented if your interested, however, I am sure it is a bit price-y.

I read somewhere that it was about $5400.00 a week in the peak season. But in 2008, it was hit by a storm and sustained damage which was evident in some of the photo's I took. So I am not sure that it is still available as a rental.

Let the record state; I am NOT a Richard Gere fan. I am however a fan of Nicholas Sparks, I have read all of his books, except for the last one, The Lucky One, which came out last year. I actually didn't realize that he had a new one out. Today I read about this one and a new one coming out in September called The Last Song. Looks like I have some reading to do...

UPDATE:
Since this post, the house has been moved to a new location. You can read and watch it here.

Home again, Home again, juggidy jug...

Well we made it home from our trip. We had a good time, although we had a change of plans while gone. We didn't make it up to NYC after all. We went to DC and did the usual sightseeing things; (ie., lots of walking). While we were there one of the Metro trains crashed, I am sure you heard about it, anyway, we decided we had enough of the city. We all wanted to go to the beach anyway, so we drove down to the Outer Banks and ended our vacation there.



When we got into the hotel near DC, Lauren, Andrew and Noah went for a swim while Megan and I went to a grocery store to get some supplies and back to Pizza Hut to pick up a pizza for supper. While out, Lauren called and said for us to come quick that Noah had fallen by the pool and hit his face and head and we were going to have to take him to the emergency room!

What a way to start a vacation. By the time we got back to the hotel, he had calmed down and we realized that he was okay except for a busted lip and a little bump over his eye...Thank God it wasn't anything more.

I use to think I would love to live in a large city. In fact, years ago, before I married, I had the chance to go to DC and work, but I chose to get married instead. And at the time Andrew was in the military and couldn't go anywhere, so I didn't go to DC to work...

Now, I don't like big cities...to many people, to much traffic...I prefer the slower, easier path. It is enough of a challenge for me to drive a few miles in afternoon traffic to get to Wal-Mart or Food Lion, I am not interested in long commutes and long traffic delays. I think that people who fight that traffic day after day probably age quicker than the rest of us do. That is just a theory of mine, I don't have research to back it up, but just country folk observation...

So when we decided to change our destination after DC, I found us a room on the beach. As we made our way south from the DC area, once we reached Newport News, Virginia, I could feel the difference in the air. I could smell the salt water. After going through the Hampton Bay Bridge tunnel, and arriving in Virginia Beach, the stress of the city was all but gone. I felt so relaxed. Driving onto the Outer Banks, where the living is easy and slow...I felt totally at ease and felt right at home...

After getting settled in at the hotel, we headed to the beach, only to find rough waters and we found out that someone had drown earlier that day, and they had not recovered the body...

While everyone else enjoyed the pool, Noah and I played in the sand and I just listened and watched the waves crashing onto the shore. Such a wonderful relaxing sound...

Megan and I rose fairly early and looked for shells along the beach and we took late evening walks after the tide came in. We came home with a bag of ocean treasures...

I was again reminded that I would love to live where I could get up every morning and walk along the shore searching for shells. I didn't take many pictures while there, I was hesitant about taking my camera out in the sand, so I only have a few to share. I did take some in DC and will be posting some of those later.

Now that we are back to the daily hum of life, I need to get up and go to the grocery store, so I will stop this post here. I will post photo's and more bout the trip another time.

Free Falling...

We live near a jump zone. This weekend is a big jump weekend, so yesterday we hopped into the jeep, drove over a few miles and parked up across from the open field where the parachuters land. It was so much fun watching them jump out of the planes and then circle over our heads and come in right over us to land in the landing zone.

I took a few quick shots, but there is something on my lens that is causing a smudge on all of the photo's. I will have to find a camera shop and have them cleaned.

Victoria Magazine love...

Have you seen the new Victoria magazine? I use to subscribe to the magazine years ago, but they went out of business. I have kept all of my old magazines and still enjoy looking back through them at times.

Well last year I got a card in the mail; how they found me after all these years and different addresses I have had I will never know; but they were inviting me to come back for their all new Victoria Magazine. I didn't, however, I look at them on the newsstand and I am so tempted to buy one, just to see if it is as good as before.

Today while standing in the check-out line at Food Lion, I saw the July/August issue and I had to have it. So I bought it, and I am only one quarter of the way into it and I am in love...

Of course I am a sucker for anything beach-y and coastal related. This issue grabbed me with the beautiful blues, greens and sand colors on the front...

Oh, I do wish we were going to the beach for our vacation. Those long lazy days playing in the sand and surf...showering at the end of the day in the cool spray of water as you feel the burn of the sun on your shoulders...Dressing in a gauzy cotton dress that swishes around your legs and then going to a restaurant with an outdoor eating area while a local band plays, and enjoying the freshest of seafood for supper...

I want to retire by the beach...in a little cottage along the shore. I want to wake early before sun rise and walk along the beach. I want to search for daily treasures to bring back to the cottage and decorate in an authentically beach decor...I want to dine on seafood everyday...I want to play in the sand and feel the rush of the tide swirl about my feet. I want to walk out of my door and feel and smell the salty spray of water off of the ocean...This is my dream!

Thank you Victoria magazine for reminding me of the incredible wonders of being at the beach...

Tuesday's Tidbits

Not a whole lot to blog about, or at least not a lot I feel like blogging about. I think I am in a writing slump...just haven't been moved on to write anything lately.

Trying to get ready for Lauren's arrival on Saturday. Doing a little house cleaning and rearranging so she will have a place to put her stuff.

Also planning our vacation. I am trying to find hotels and make our itinerary. We are doing a two cities tour. We are going to DC for a few days and then on up to NYC for a couple of days. Since our time is limited to only a week, we are choosing just the things that we really want to see while in both places. We aren't going to try to take it all in. So I am working our list down to a manageable amount of sightseeing.

Last week I went to the farmer's market and bought some veggies. Last night I made a wonderful tasting asparagus dish. Although it wasn't exactly the healthiest of recipes, it tasted good. I don't have any photo's but I put four pieces of bacon on the bottom of a skillet, put the washed and trimmed asparagus on top with some garlic, pepper, and sea salt on top. I drizzled some olive oil over the asparagus and covered it. I let it cook down until the asparagus was soft, ( I like it better that way). When it was finished I placed the asparagus in a casserole dish and chopped the bacon in small pieces and sprinkled across the top, added a little salt and pepper and enjoyed.

I had also purchased some leeks from the market and I made Potato and Leek soup with those. I was so good and nourishing. The only thing I will do differently next time is to puree the whole thing and eat it as a cream soup. It had such a soothing taste to it. I will definitely be having that again.

Today I am cooking some Banana Walnut Bread. I had some bananas going bad and hated to throw them away, (that is my excuse anyway!). So I found a recipe that includes crushed pineapples. I can smell it in the oven now. I am going to enjoy a little and freeze the rest until Saturday when Lauren gets here. She loves banana nut bread. That way, I don't trash my diet by eating the whole loaf today!

It is a rainy, lazy day today. I don't feel much like doing anything. I haven't done much all day.

I am still loving Curves. I injured my ankle and knee on my right side last week, and didn't go Thursday or Friday. I went back Saturday and they are closed Sunday. I didn't go yesterday because my ankle was swollen some and hurting. I guess I won't go this week, because I need my foot and knee to be okay by the weekend because we will be doing a lot of walking on our trip. Although I hate to miss this week I would rather be safe than sorry. I don't want to go to DC and NYC and not be able to enjoy the trip.

Well that is about all that is happening in my little world today. There are a few other odds and ends but nothing I want to write about anyway.

Thought For Today

A vacation is like love - anticipated with pleasure,

experienced with discomfort

and remembered with nostalgia

~unknown~

A vacation trip is one-third pleasure, fondly remembered, and two-thirds aggravation, entirely forgotten.

~Robert Brault~

Vacation: a period of travel and relaxation when you take twice the

clothes and half the money you need.

~Unknown~

It is good to have an end to journey toward, but it is the journey that matters in the end

~Ursula K. LeGuin~

Travel makes one modest, you see what a tiny place you

occupy in the world.

~Gustave Flaubert~

A Little About Homeschooling

I guess that homeschooling has just been such a large part of my life for so long that I don't really think about it. Until I meet new people who aren't as into the homeschooling issues as I am and they begin to ask questions. Usually the questions tend to be mostly about curriculum or socialization issues.

When in fact, those are secondary in the whole scope of homeschooling issues.

I know there are varying views regarding homeschooling...and homeschoolers have very different reasons for homeschooling...

My reasons were different in the beginning when I took Lauren out of public school after she finished third grade. Moving around became the main reason for homeschooling though the years. I didn't want to have to move my children in and out of different schools systems across the country. But there are other reasons that went along with that...

There were many times I questioned whether I was doing the right thing or not, but so often had no real choice. It was better than the alternative. Now that Lauren is almost 20 and Megan is 14 I can look at them and know that I did do the right thing...

That even on a bad day with homeschooling it was better than most of the school systems I had experience with. Not just the educational aspects of it, but everything taken together...

I was in public school all of my life, and I knew that my kids were getting better than I got, without what I call, the side effects of public school. Don't get me wrong, I am not condemning anyone for sending their kids to public schools. Maybe it works well for you...I am not one of those people that thinks my way is the only way, or the best way. Everyone is different, every situation is different...I can only speak from my experiences, and my understanding.

Yes, there are areas that they could have done better than I was able to do for them...Algebra for instance...I hate algebra, and I can't really teach it...But I took it in public school and in college, so goes to show you it doesn't matter who teaches or where you learn it, somethings just aren't your area of expertise...we can't all be great at everything...but I managed to get through it and I have a college degree to prove it...whatever that is good for.

When I started homeschooling, I ordered the "school in a box" thing. Lauren was enrolled in Calvert homeschool. It is one of the oldest traditional homeschool programs out there. It was more expensive but I felt it would be worth it. You see, I kept thinking homeschool would be just like school only at home. And that worked well for Lauren, because she was geared that way. She had been trained from K-3rd in public school, so she knew the drill, and was good at it. She loved to read, did great in writing and Calvert required lots of both. She always hate math, just wasn't her thing.

As we went along, I begin to see the fallacy of thinking homeschool should be like school only at home. So I begin to expand. With Megan she had only gone to Kindergarten in public school, so she had not been trained in the ways of traditional school. Because we all know Kindergarten is not at all like traditional school. She started out with Calvert, but I soon discovered that she wasn't a traditional learner. She like to learn by doing. She didn't like to sit for hours and do book work. She liked to read by not so much. She loved to make up stories and has from the time she was a very young child, but she hated to sit down and write them out on paper. She wanted someone else to write for her. When she did write, she was a perfectionist about it. If she messed up one thing, she wanted to throw away the whole paper and start over...do you know how trying that can be when you have a long paper to write?

We tried several different curriculums through the years...my favorite has been unschooling... (If you haven't heard of it, click on the unschooling link.)

One thing I hope that I taught my children is a life-long love of learning. I know that they have to have certain skills in order to pass the tests that are required to get into college. But beyond that I hope that they have just enjoyed learning. I know that I have enjoyed having my children home with me, sharing our days, and our experiences together. I can't imagine having to send them off everyday for 7-8 hours and not knowing what they were doing or what they were learning. I know that for many people they feel they have no other choice, I am not judging. Just speaking of my own experience.

I love being able to go upstairs and see Megan sitting in her room reading or watching Noah playing and pretending to be this or that. I always enjoyed having my kids with me when I did the grocery shopping or when I had to run errands. We have spent many hours in the car exploring new places and finding interesting things to do. I enjoyed having them come into the kitchen in the middle of the day and our having lunch together.

I believe that kids will learn what they need to learn when they are ready. I don't believe that all kids learn the same way and at the same point in development. Putting them in a setting that requires that or considers them a failure if they don't, isn't what I consider a good learning environment. Homeschooling offers the freedom to learn at each child's own pace and level, without being compared to others. These are just a few of the reasons why homeschooling is our choice. Homeschooling is a lifestyle choice, it isn't just about education, but it is all inclusive lifestyle...
Homeschooling touches all aspects of our lives. At our house, school is always in session...

Happy Birthday Megan!

Happy Birthday my sweet Megan! I can't believe you are already 14. They years have flown and you have gone from that quiet, shy little girl into a beautiful young lady. I am so very proud of you.

We celebrated on Friday with a Baskin Robbins ice cream cake. Chocolate cake with chocolate chip ice cream! I had a small sliver of it, that is all I would allow myself...

Of course, Little Miss had to open her presents on Friday instead of waiting until Sat. She was especially happy with this one.

Saturday for her actually birthday we went bowling and had a great time.

Noah finally relented and allowed Megan to have a birthday by herself. He had been saying that it was his birthday too. But he finally agreed that it was just Megan's birthday and he would celebrate his birthday in September.

Here is the bowling king himself! He started out just rolling the ball down the lane, but after seeing Andrew bowl, he decided he needed to kick his leg back when he threw the ball...

Here he is hamming it up for the camera while waiting his turn. Wonder where he gets his silliness from????

Surely not from Daddy!

We ended the evening by filling our bellies with seafood! We went to Shucker's Oyster Bar and enjoyed some raw and steamed oysters along with steamed crab, shrimp, clams, potatoes, corn on the cob, and andouille sausage. Megan had the fried catfish and Noah had the usual, chicken tenders and fries. We were extremely full and ready to head home to relax for the rest of the evening...

All in all it was a great birthday for Megan. We just wish Lauren had been here with us to help celebrate. Fortunately she will be here in two weeks...I wrapped the cake good and have it in the freezer, so we can pull it out when she gets here and enjoy it again...I don't know how good it will be by then, but we can try...

Yin and Yang

You know it is funny how the Yin and Yang of life works. Last week I had a really bad day. I won't even being to explain, but this week, well this week has been the yang to last weeks yin. It is as though God is balancing out things. Even though I know that isn't the way things go...But I am thankful for the yang of this week...and I give Him the glory for it.



Curves is still great...I have been tired this week. I haven't been sleeping well, staying up to late and getting up to early. But the workouts have been great. I didn't go yesterday, I felt I needed a day to let my body rest. But this morning I hit it early. I found my old Billy Blanks Tae Bo tape and worked out with it. However, I was doing more marching in place than I use to have to do, but it felt good to do the workout. Then this evening when Andrew got home I ran to Curves for a workout. I do have to say I am tired, but feel good.



Went into town today and did a little mall shopping. I really don't like the mall, but there are times when you just can't get some things anywhere else. It wasn't to bad; the kids are still in school here and working people were, well, working...so there weren't to many people running around. That is the best time to go. I don't even attempt to go on a weekend or in the evening. It is just way to crowded and crazy.



Saturday is Megan's birthday. I can't believe that she will be fourteen! Wow! Time sure flies. I remember so well when I was pregnant with her and how she decided she wasn't ready to be born and I had to go home and come back a week later to be induced for the second time. Finally she made her entrance into the world. Now she is 14! And taller than I am!!



In two weeks Lauren will be coming for a visit. I can't wait to see her. It has been way to long!

She flies in one day and we are leaving the next to go on vacation. We want to go to the Outer Banks, and Andrew wants to go to DC. So we are going to DC then back down to the Outer Banks for a few days.



Well that's all I have for today. I have a couple of books waiting on me upstairs; French Women Don't Get Fat by Mireille Guiliano, and A Weekend to Change Your Life: Find Your Authentic Self After a Lifetime of Being All Things to All People by Joan Anderson. If you haven't read her books, I suggest you do. Here is her web site that list all of her books in this series of books for women. I am still trying to get her newest one; The Second Journey. I guess I will have to order it. I got a 15% off coupon from Barnes and Noble today, so maybe I will use it for that.

Oh and I have a new obsession: Nova Scotia...I told Andrew the other day, Nova Scotia is our next "just the two of us" destination...
Have you seen the place? Wow! The beauty is amazing. And haven't you always wanted to go to the Bay of Fundy ever since 5th grade when you learned that there was actually such a place?
Check out their web site, and see if you don't fall in love... I suppose I have some Acadian roots there, and maybe some Scottish ancestry came through there as well...maybe that ancient familial connection is drawing me there...Nah, probably just the beauty of the place...
Goodnight to all...

Today's Thoughts

All of life is a journey which paths we take, what we look back on, and what we look forward to is up to us. We determine our destination, what kind of road we will take to get there, and how happy we are when we get there

~unknown~

There is no better time than right now to be happy.Happiness is a journey, not a destination.So work like you don't need money. Love like you've never been hurt, and, Dance like no one's watching

~unknown~

A person is just about as happy as they make up their minds to be...

~unknown~