Showing posts with label family. Show all posts
Showing posts with label family. Show all posts

Thursday, June 19, 2014

News of a Romantic Nature ...

This is going on, guys:


Yep. After two years of being an official couple, Daniel asked Abigail to be his wife. Get that? My best older brother is marrying my best friend, probably by October. Furthermore, I got to be in NoVa when he proposed which meant that instead of waiting a week or two to celebrate, I was bludgeoning the car window for them to open the door probably two hours after the initial proposal when I pulled up to his apartment. We had an impromptu ice-cream party and toasted the happy couple with some Martinelli's and Abigail informed me as we sat side by side on the couch an hour or two later,
"You're doing your happy-wiggle."
Yeah, apparently that's a thing. Anyway, I'm so terribly TERRIBLY excited about this, and I want everyone who reads this to leave a big old fat comment if you can. I mean, it's an ENGAGEMENT, people! <3

Sunday, September 2, 2012

Summer-it's a wrap!

Labor Day weekend is the official end of summer, I suppose. Oh, and what a summer it's been! It began with a wedding that led to a courtship that has led to a certain member of our family moving into a different Time Zone. (Not nationally recognized, but philosophically termed "Lovers' Time") This makes coordinating the simplest events rather difficult because this certain member doesn't need food or drink when he has the conversation of his "belovedid," to quote Ernest T. Bass. I am half-jesting. It has been such a blessing to see Daniel and Abigail's courtship flourishing. :)


The summer continued with a visit to the harbor to see a fleet of tall-ships and an unexpected departure to Georgia which took up five weeks! I turned 20 while down in Georgia and came back just in time to see baby saying his first words and celebrating his first birthday, and Sarah and Leah to turn 18 and 15, respectively. Life waltzed along in a at a comparatively slow pace to that I'd learned to cope with during the campaign.
Levi took his first official steps, and the girls were introduced to Smash-booking. We attended a surprise party for a dear friend, and we lived through many a day of rain for--contrary to the rest of the nation--it's been an exceptionally wet summer.


We planted berry  bushes and played volleyball. I worked on my books and lived the Cossack Uprising vicariously through With Fire and Sword. We made matches and discussed hopes and dreams. There's been laughter and joy and heartache all mingled together into the goblet of this summertime. Old ways we were fond of have gradually been effaced by a new regime of blessings that will prove to be sweeter than we'd ever have dreamed. At present they may rub now and again like a new pair of boots, but we'd never trade them back.
We've sent letters and received letters, we've sung songs and watched movies. We've danced to Ella Fitzgerald and memorized songs from Wicked and Les Miserables. We've even gained a taste for country music!


We've fallen in love with Sherlock and reminded ourselves that our tastes have grown much more refined since the days of Spy Kids and Inspector Gadget. We've made birthday cakes and eaten them, we've walked in the historic towns nearby and had a picnic or two to boot.


It's been a long, full, summer, and one I can truly say I'll never forget. So many memories, so many lessons learned...so much life. I can only look forward with breathless, eager anticipation to see what the fall will bring.
Autumn! Fire of my heart and love of my being...I come alive when the trees kindle and the breeze carries that gypsy-chill on its breath. When the blood rushes with spices and the very leaves are blushing with pure exhilaration...


I can see some of the adventures that might be lurking around the corner, and I know there will be some that take me by surprise. Graduations, dances, birthdays, camp, visiting missionaries and plots for Romania. Campaigns and bonfires and more!


 I don't know which things will come to pass and which will be replaced by something better. But I can say with full assurance that it will not be a dull autumn by any stretch of the imagination!

Tuesday, June 19, 2012

the beauty of the could-be.


If you ever weary of your own grown-up life...

...if you ever feel that you know all there is to know...

...if you ever feel like you've seen all there is to be seen...

...if you ever feel like there's not a single new thought under the sun...

then just sit ye down beside a five-year-old for a moment or two and you'll be proven wrong. I jest not. Kids' minds are places full of ingenuity and imagination and sparkles and glitter and beacoup d'elegance. Children haven't "learned" yet that certain things are impossible. They aren't limited by stuffy scientific facts or theories, or too much Reality. Their imaginations are free and beautiful and winged.

Gracie reminded me of this beautiful gift only this afternoon. I had just finished reading Mama a letter from my friend in New Zealand, and Gracie left her post at the piano bench with a very thoughtful expression on her face.
"Rachel...does F'licity have a car?"

"...yes..."

"No, Rachel. I mean, does F'licity live in the old-fashioned days?"

And then I remembered. Grace spoke of her most recent theory. In short, she believes that if we could just walk far enough around the world, we would reach The Old Days. Isn't that the most brilliant, beautiful, gorgeous thought ever? An adult would never have come up with it. I still think there's a certain allure in the idea that the world is flat. Sure I know it's not true, but it's such a beautiful idea that I can't help feeling a bit sad that the world is round after all.

The mind of a child is something to be treasured and taught and cultivated. I have a special fondness for  bright-minded children such as Gracie who are always coming up with something wise beyond their years. Not everything they say is correct--not by any means. 
But they do have a valuable lesson for us: 

we are never too old to dream.

Let's take some time today to visit with some of these small wisdom-carriers--you won't regret it.

Wednesday, May 23, 2012

Family Facts: Guess Who?


Today's Family Facts post will require some follower help. ;) Here's the deal:

Below is a picture of every person in our family and a list of all of our names. Your job is to match them up as best as you can. :) i.e. #1 is Susy, #2 is Peter, etc. Leave a comment with your guesses, and let's see who does the best!

The People

#1

#2

#3

#4


#5

#6

Not the best pic of this person...:P
#7
(The person on the right.)
#8

#9

#10

#11

The names:
 Levi
Sarah
Dad
Benjamin
Rachel
Abby
Anna
Daniel
Grace
Mom
Leah

Alright! Start guessing! :)
-Sarah

Thursday, May 3, 2012

Levi's 9 months old....


Yep. It's official.
 This baby is finally crawling!

p.s. I apologize for the lack of our own pictures on this blog. Our computer's hard-drive is entirely full and can't take one more picture.[besides the fact that my battery charger isn't working, making it impossible to shoot any..:(]

Wednesday, May 2, 2012

May I introduce you to...


So, this is a month long blog event designed to let all of us find out some fun trivia about your families. All you've gotta do is to answer these questions in your own blog post and link up at the bottom of this post. :) It will be fun to hear all the different family facts! We will be scattering family-themed posts from now til June 2, and it would be fabulous if any of you wanted to join us. :)
  1. What are some of your family's favorite phrases, exclamations, or sayings?
  2. What's the number of boys to girls in your family?
  3. What is your favorite tradition your family has?
  4. What do you call the midday meal at your house?
  5. Is the majority of your family morning people or night owls?
  6. What is your favorite vacation location? :P
  7. Are your family's weekends usually full of activities such as sports, parties, and outings, or are they more of around the house, fix-it-uppers?
  8. What is the nationality/ies your family comes from? (i.e. Scotch, Russian, etc)
  9. Do you go away for holidays, or celebrate at home?
  10. How did your parents meet?

Thursday, February 9, 2012

Humor Snobs?

"Well now what's so funny?"
"You are, Max. Expensive but really funny."
        -The Sound of Music 

Sometimes I think our family is comprised of a group of humor snobs. We are a funny family. We laugh far too much when we get together. There are several lead humorists, several wits, and a whole group of other people to laugh at our jokes and witticisms. But Sarah and I have noticed a startling trend...
We don't laugh at things everyone else is laughing at...
Take the latest example: That Messy Mondays "7 Lies About Homeschoolers" video that has been circulating...I had no interest in watching it. Sarah watched it and laughed once. Everyone else in our circles and even not in our circles was dying of laughter. We smiled...mildly. Sometimes even Tim Hawkins over does it and we find ourselves tolerating the howls of laughter rising from the crowd....so what is up with that? We're starting to feel bad for our reluctance. You might say, "Well then, perhaps you don't have a sense of humor!"
But I would have to correct you. "Oh no, we just have an expensive sense of humor." We laugh often, but we laugh at what's really funny. When a person has real wit or real humor we are a pile of giggles. When it's original wit it's even better. And when it's original wit compiled with the knowledge of how to present the funny comment well, we die.
Not to slight anyone who liked the Messy Mondays fellow, but his video was based off of jokes and jibes I've heard since I was 4 years old. "Homeschoolers stay in their pajamas..." "Homeschoolers can't stand in lines..." we've heard it before, and it's just used up now. It's been touted among the masses of public-school neighborhood kids till you are just annoyed at their ignorance...and the fact that they think it's funny.
But it's not that we intentionally stick up our noses over "the common hoard." ;) Sarah and I actually feel bad that we don't find those sorts of things funny. It's a strange strange thing. :D
So what do we laugh at?
Randomness
Jostie Flicks
Uncle Billy's jokes in the Mitford Series
Dickens' characters
Accents (and good impressions of accents)
Wit. Real wit.
Bill Cosby
Each-other
Awkward moments
Characters (You know, those unforgettable people you meet in a store?)
Baby-laughter
Broadway songs
Misshaps
Comebacks
Witty Banter
And much much more. :)

What sorts of things do you laugh at? :)


Friday, February 3, 2012

Cue the "Awww!"s ;)

So, I figured it was high time I gave you all an update on the handsome young fellas around here. ;)


Ain't he a happy baby?

See his little "teddy bear" ears! :)

Silly boy!
I love his expression in this one. :D

AWWW!!! <3

 
LOVE the ears!!!

 
He's such a sweetie!

Saturday, December 3, 2011

Where In the World Have We Been?


Hello Guys! Sorry our posts have been few and far between. I cannot believe it's already December 3rd! Anyhow, I thought I'd show you a cool thing I did recently. I really love this verse, Romans 8:38-39, so I decided to take an artsy twist on it. ;) It was real fun to try to figure out different fonts that corresponded to the words, and all the colors and stuff. :) 




How'd you like 'em? :)  
Oh, and for all of you who have been wondering why in the world there haven't been any "normal life" posts. I though I'd let you know what's been going on over here real quick:
Both Rachel and I have become busy starting into this holiday season, with baking for Coastal. 
Last week we started selling candy (think peppermint bark, norweigian crunch, etc) along with some pies, holiday-ish cookies, and the like. It's been fun to have some more variety in our baking days. ;) 
Also, school's been keeping me busy. I'm in the midst of Latin II, Biology, Algebra 2, etc. Fun stuff, eh? :D And we've also been kept busy making/preparing Christmas presents! (Yes. It really is time to start thinking about those things, isn't it?;)
We went out as a family and picked a nice, big tree yesterday, and today was spent decking the halls with boughs of holly. (and other greenery, decor, wreaths, candles...:) **sigh** Don't you absolutely love this season?! 

Till Next Time!
~Sarah

Monday, November 21, 2011

My Thanksgiving Day 1

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Thanksgiving is coming on us, and it's too important to pass this holiday by without making sure I recognize the real reason for it. So, from now to Thursday I'll be posting one thing I'm thankful for each day. :) 

#1. My Family

(not everyone was here....)
-Sarah