Snapshots of Summer

Well, here we are...full swing into a new school year and I am still behind in all the things I've been wanting to share...

...so I decided that I'd let the pictures do some of the talking...

Way back near the end of May, we celebrated Sophia's 7th birthday and Gracia's 1st birthday.

Happy 1st Birthday!

Happy 7th Birthday!

We enjoyed a visit to the Dallas Zoo while my brother was visiting the birthday girls :)

They LOVE hanging out with Uncle Chris!

Feeding the lorikeets was a hit!

My parents came out to help us celebrate too :)

Oma and Opa with their grandgirls :)

While they were here, my mom, Chris, Steve, and the big girls went to Six Flags Over Texas.  It was the girls' first trip to a big amusement park...and they had a blast!  My brother is a roller coaster dare devil...and discovered that he has a thrill-seeking-adrenaline-junkie partner in Bella.  She did the BIG coasters with no hesitation...wow!  Here they are on the Texas Giant in the first car, second seat!  

Chris and Bella...daredevil duo!

 

Oma and Bella enjoying a milder coaster!

Sophia after a water ride!

 We enjoyed parks before the heat really set in.

Weeeeeee!

We had fun at the pool...here in our neighborhood and at the Frisco Athletic Center.  The one at the athletic center has two big slides, a fun kiddie pool, and a lazy river...big fun!

We also enjoyed visiting a couple of spraygrounds, also called splashparks...another source of cool, watery fun!

We enjoyed live music in Frisco Square...but I do have to say that we very much missed the outdoor concert series at Rose Tree Park in Media and at the Community Arts Center in Wallingford.

Monkey in a tree listening to music!

And then it got HOT!  And we retreated indoors.  Seriously, I wasn't prepared for the intensity of the heat...it's not usually very humid, so the temps are manageable until you start getting near 100 and above.  But the sun is so intense that it hurts...and you just can't be out in it for long periods...so we spent lots of time inside.  The girls borrowed lots of movies from the library and had more TV time this summer than they probably have the past year or two combined.  I don't like kids sitting in front of the TV...we'll have to figure out a different strategy for next summer.  It got to where even the pool wasn't refreshing...it was like bath water in the afternoons, so we started swimming in the mornings.  We also did puzzles and a few crafts...but next summer I'll be ready for those long, hot afternoons.

Decoupaging canisters to use as piggy banks~

Sophia painting her jewelry box~

We enjoyed a neighborhood block party.

The girls decorated their bikes for the parade~

Live music :)

And we had fun at a 4th of July party at out church.

Happy 4th of July!

Our dear Bella turned 10 in July!  She wanted dinner at Fuddruckers and dessert at Dairy Queen...it was a great celebration!

The birthday girl ate the whole sundae by herself!

We thoroughly enjoyed a visit from Karen, a long-time friend from our days in Raleigh.  She visited us when we lived in Colorado, but we hadn't seen each other in over 10 years.  She had a conference in Ft. Worth and stayed through the weekend to come hang out with us...what a treat!  Karen, thanks for visiting...it was so good to see you!

All the ladies!

My parents and brother came for another visit in August...another fun time with family :)  Gracia impressed them with her walking ability.  She had taken her first steps when they were here in May...to my brother.  Would she walk to me...no...would she walk for Chris...yes!  And when he walked through the door in August, she practically ran to him!  Here she is with Oma :)

We actually got an antenna so we could watch the Olympics...many of you know that we just say NO to TV programming in our home.  Yes, we have a TV...yes, we watch movies...but we choose not to have programming.  Anyway, the girls really loved watching the Olympics and were very inspired by the rhythmic gymnasts...we watched many, many, many, many, many routines :)

Rhythmic Gymnastics~

Sophia spent an afternoon at the ER.  She was swimming and swallowed a bunch of water and kept throwing up and just wasn't quite herself...so we ended up at the hospital.  Thankfully, she was fine and released that evening...thank you, sweet Lord~

After she began feeling better...

The big girls got pretty big hair cuts near the end of August...sent it to Locks of Love :)

New hair cuts~

We went to our first Frisco Rough Riders game (with our church)...our local minor league baseball team...and had big fun!  When we told the girls we were going to see the Rough Riders, Bella asked if it was Mr. Roosevelt's Rough Riders...that's my girl :)

Such fun...family, friends, food...and baseball!

I think that about wraps it up...hope you had a great summer!

Here's to a fun fall...God bless~

Rach 

Another School Year

Yep, summer is winding down...

...thoughts of school are fast approaching...

...curricula and books have been arriving in the mail...

...and we prepare for another year of home schooling.

Yep, summer is winding down...fall is approaching.  There is something special about the changing of the seasons.  I'm looking forward to the cooler temps and crisp nights...

...oops, nevermind, I just remembered that I now live in Texas...where it's common to still be swimming in October :)

Have I mentioned that I love home schooling...

...well, usually...I mean, there are days...every now and then, when I sometimes wonder, just a tiny little bit...

...what boarding school would be like ;-) 

Well anyhoo, school will look a bit different this year...for one, it will be more focused.  We do not expect to have any cross country moves during the middle of our school year this year.  But I am expecting a full year, a very full year, and we may even be doing a little "catching up"...again, that move kinda threw us for a loop :)  

We are still using Tapestry of Grace as our main curriculum, MUS for math, Noeo for science (chemistry this year...I think I'll leave most of the science teaching to the chemistry PhD in the family), but I am changing up Language Arts for Bella.  She is not strong in these areas (we are researching some possible learning issues and changing to curriculum that will hopefully give her more support and be a better fit for her learning style).  Sophia will continue with our Phonics Road program...she has taken to reading like a champ...but her handwriting...yes, I'll be working with her on that :)

Tapestry, our history program, has us back at the beginning...creation and the ancients...we are all so excited to study this part of history again!  It has been a full four years since we studied this segment of history...I wonder how much the girls will remember from last time we journeyed through this time period? 

I love the start of a school year...evaluating the previous year and planning for the new one.  What did we learn...where/when did we not do enough...what did we do well.  And even last year when I sometimes wonder if I can even count it as a full "school year" I have to remember that it's not all about the academic schedule or what "level" my kids are on.  Don't get me wrong, academics are important to us, and we have some areas that need more focused attention.  But sometimes, we measure learning in different ways...the school of life...learning that is hard to measure on a standardized test.

Here are some school pictures to enjoy...

Learning some Geography courtesy of our trip from PA to TX~

Love this...love them!

Mmmm...letters are tasty!

Not the typical book you might find your child snuggled up with...but it works...seriously, this is how I found her~

Biker girl~

Two monkeys in a tree~

Bella reviewing some phonics for Sophia~

Artist in action!

Ukelele ladies~

And just in case you think that everything is always rosy around here...and we just all love school...all the time...and every moment of learning is pure bliss...

...yes, just in case you think that is what it's like...then, I want to share this picture Bella drew for me last year...and set the record straight~

Freedom~

This is a self-portrait Bella drew of her thoughts on Math and Reading...don't you love the chains?  And the keys to unlock the chains are apparently held by Yours Truly :)  And I guess she thinks she's an angel :)  She gave it to me one afternoon near the end of last school year...and I decided to not make too much of it...everyone needs a good laugh sometime, right? 

So, here we go...another school year getting underway...I hope this year's self portrait will have less chains :)

I pray you are enjoying the start of your school year~

Rach

Patch

It has been seven months since we left Pennsylvania...seven months today.

Seven months...

...of missing our sweet friends...

...of missing our dear church...

...of God growing new friendships...

...of being patched into this beautiful local church here in Frisco.

It has been a journey, to be sure...a journey of our Lord's design.  A journey that has been painful and precious, sometimes bitter...yet beautiful too.  

It was very hard to leave PA...to leave the people who saw us through so much during our time in graduate school.  These friends have seen us at our worst and walked through it with us.  And they have celebrated with us in times of joy.  It was so hard to leave the church that God had grown us in...had changed us in.  

And even though I did not want to leave, I could hear Him...

Trust me, Rachel, trust me.

It was a tearing...and it hurt...it hurt deeply.  

But there is blessing in the pain.  Feeling that hurt meant that God had knit us in very closely with His people...feeling that pain meant that He had grown precious friendships.  It is good that we were sad to go...it is evidence of His goodness and kindness that we felt the pain of the tearing.

Trust me, Rachel, trust me.

And there has been such grace on this side of the journey.   

Trust me, Rachel, trust me.

Connecting with our new church here in Frisco has been wonderful.  We have been warmly welcomed and God has been kind to quickly begin growing new friendships.  Some of them don't even feel that "new"...I praise Him for His goodness. 


But parts of the journey have been hard...simply because we love and miss so much and so many in PA.  There are times I feel the piercing as He adds us to this new home, this new church.  I still feel the tattered edges...they are a reminder of what we left... the remains of the tearing.

But I also feel Him binding those raw edges...lovingly healing my heart.


Trust me, Rachel, trust me.

I know He is working.  I feel the cutting, the piecing, the smoothing, the placing...I feel the patching.

And I am thankful that I can feel it...that I can feel Him.

Trust me, Rachel, trust me. 

I am thankful to know He is working. I am thankful that He causes me to reflect on His care, His kindness...His love.  I am thankful that He causes me to consider His plan and how He is tender when my heart hurts.


Trust me, Rachel, trust me.

I am thankful for the tugs and pulls I feel as He works.  I am thankful for the chords of love He is using...even though it is painful at times.  

And I want to be secure...I want to be exactly where He intends.  I am thankful, for I know I am safe with Him...so, yes, I am thankful for the process.


Trust me, Rachel, trust me.

And while I don't know all His plans or His ways, sometimes He allows me to catch a glimpse of some of His design...and I am overwhelmed by His love.


He is my beautiful Savior...He is my Redeemer.

"If the Lord had not been my help, my soul would soon have lived in the land of silence. When I thought, 'My foot slips,' your steadfast love, O Lord, held me up.  When the cares of my heart are many your consolations cheer my soul."               Psalm 94: 17-19


Trust me, Rachel, trust me.

Yes, Lord, I will trust You~

Praying to follow Him well~
Rach
 

 

Frisco Heritage Museum~

We did a whole lot of nothing when my friend Liz was here in May.  We chilled out and relaxed...I think that's called "chillaxin" :)

But one afternoon, we did spend a few hours at a local museum here in Frisco...the Frisco Heritage Museum.  It is small, but nicely done and we enjoyed ourselves.  It does help that we're both into history...and the kids too.

Cool to see a real covered wagon~

I liked learning about Frisco...100 years ago it was barely a dot on the map...even 30 years ago it was barely much...a rural, agricultural town.  It's history is quite a contrast to our last little town of Media with history dating back to the 1600's when the Taylor's bought land directly from William Penn himself.  Most of Frisco's history is much more modern.

Even most of its "old history" is new compared to our PA standards...but it is nice here and we are enjoying the benefits of living in a community that could be described as "planned suburbia".  Yes, I feel like some interest is lost with almost everything being so new, but I also appreciate a lot of the planning and design...like great parks, wide streets, and sidewalks...and modern construction homes :)

Anyway, back to the museum.  Here are some pics... 

A bank safe~

One of Frisco's "main drags" is Preston Road...which used to be Preston Trail...an old cattle trail...the oldest trail from North Texas to Dallas~

Two parlors...the top one from the Victorian era and this one from the 60's...quite a change~

Liz pointed out that this old gas pump does NOT have room for a gas purchase going over $9.99...no one was spending very much to fill up their tanks...can you imagine? :)

Cotton is a big part of Frisco's history~

There was a really interesting Native American exhibit about Quanah Parker who was the last Comanche chief.  His mom, Cynthia Ann Parker, was a white woman who was kidnapped by Native American's as a girl.  She grew up with them, married the chief, and they had a family.  Later, she was captured by Texas Rangers and returned to her family, but she never readjusted to living with her "white" family...fascinating story.

I loved seeing real wedding clothes and mementos from some of the families in Frisco's history.

It really is remarkable that this used to be the main part of the kitchen...Sophia's "play" kitchen is almost this big.

Christening gowns...lovely~

Wow...the things women used to do for curly hair...looks like a torture device :)

These next pictures are of homes and buildings located on the grounds of the museum.  They were all moved here from other parts of the Frisco area...very cool.  I'm thankful they're being preserved.

Crozier-Sickles House, 1895~

Lebanon Baptist Church, 1904~

One room schoolhouse~

Homesteaders cabin~