I have been a bit busy since 2010. No postings on this blog since then.  Wow....that was a surprise when I logged onto it tonight.
Keeping up with a teenager will keep anyone busy.  We only have one in the house, but then we are grandparents of this one.
Being a parent at this age is a challenge.  In so many ways, it has kept me thinking younger and made me keep up with the things that are important to these kids.
I have been able to keep my mind busy and hopefully ward off the disease that took my Mom away from our family.  When I get tired, I remind myself that I need to keep the gray matter active.  Believe me, a teenager will do just that.

Chris is a senior this year and it will be a year that goes way to fast.  Kindergarten was just a few years ago.  I remember his graduation from that so well and now we will be having another graduation on the other end of the cycle.  It is hard for me to fathom where the years went.
I know I need to take each day as the gift it is.  Slow down and savor each and every experience with him.  He has grown up to be quite a wonderful guy.  I know he is going to have a great year.

Five Authors in One Week

I finished my last graduate class I plan on ever taking.
When you get my age (I can get a senior discount in most places) you would think going to school would not be on your to do list.
I had taken 5 hours over my Masters about five years ago, decided I did not want to finish that program and those five hours just drove me crazy. The school district does not pay for hours over Masters until you reach +15 . I needed ten more. The opportunity to do a program called Lit Lab at Harding University last summer was made available and I was able to pick up 3 graduate hours. Now I had 8 hours. 7 more needed. In the Fall I took a program called The Young Author Series. I had to go to Harding University in Searcy, AR four weekends to listen to four authors. No paper to write, no test to take. Sign me up! It was a wonderful experience. 11 hours, four more to go. I have to go to year two of Lit Lab this summer. I will get three more hours, that only added up to 14. One stinkin' hour short! I checked on classes several places, but decided to go back to Harding one more time for a program called Teachers as Writers. One week in June, one author per day, it sounded great! I just got back home last night and I was so glad to be home. The week was amazing. Candace Fleming, NEAL SHUSTERMAN, Bruce Lansky, Susan Campbell-Bartoletti, and Alexandria LaFaye. They taught lessons on writing and we practiced what they taught. I did have to turn in our writing and read some of my writing aloud in class at night. It stretched my comfort zone, but it was good for me. I usually do things well with minimum effort, but I had to really work at the writing. Writing was very tiring, but very rewarding. Like everything else, I will only get better with practice. Stay tuned.

Going through boxes.

My husband needed to clear out some space in the bookshelf in our computer room. I had some magazine boxes with craft patterns, idea books, etc. that I told him I would go through. Clearing out "stuff" brings so many memories back. It felt like I was looking at things from another lifetime. I kept some things and then threw away things I wondered why I kept in the first place! I have learned not to be really sentimental about "things". I had to clean out my mom and dad's house, and then my aunt and grandmother's house when they died. They had lived through the Great Depression and did not through away anything. I said I would get rid of everything I had not used in three years. It took me all last summer, but it was so freeing. You learn you bought stuff you really did not "need" and it really opens your eyes to what the difference between "need" and "want". Good lessons to learn!

Time is flying!

This is the last month of school. In many ways it feels as if we have been going to school forever this year, but when I look back over the year, it has really flown by. My grandson is entering high school next year and I am really excited about having him and his friends there with me. I remember vividly enrolling him in kindergarten and we just recently had his CAPS conference to choose his classes for high school. How did that happen? These last three years need to slow down!

So many things going around in my head. With older children and then raising a grandchild I am torn between mothering in two entirely different parts of my life. The older ones have such different needs than the one we have at home. Sometimes I can only concentrate on just one and the other just has to slide. That is why I am in awe of young mothers I know with 3+ children and I know several. I do have the advantage of knowing what is out there concerning kids and what they will encounter. Stay on your knees. Prayer is the only thing, my faith, friends and family are what keep me sane. Never, never, never give up on your kids......no matter what!

The Mom job never stops

I dreaded the empty nest thing. As my guys got closer and closer to graduation of high school, I just wanted to put on the brakes and make time stand still. Little did I know that the mom thing really never ends.
My thirty three year old called today with really painful news and he really needed someone to listen. I was thankful he could call and just vent. We are close and he just needed mom to listen. Not tell him what to do, just listen and interject the affirmations or what about this at the right times. He will work it out. Just needed a bit of mom. Thank goodness!
Empty nest will not happen for me for a while longer.....Our grandson lives with us and the next three years will fly by. I am going to do everything I can to help them slow down, but I have been through this twice before and time does fly by way too soon. Stop to listen, watch that caterpillar with them. The dusting can wait. Just make sure everyone has clean clothes for the next day and all will be good.

A new adventure

I am in awe of the wonderful stay at home moms I know through my church. It has been a long time since I have had that privilege and I would not have traded those days for anything. There is nothing like being a mom and having the time to spend and mold those little minds. The memories you can make doing simple things like taking the time to make mudpies, go to the park and walk in the creek. Simple things are really the best when it comes to children. They really do not need all that we think they do. They just need us.