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I Have Exciting News!

So, school starts in about two weeks.  And usually, this would incite the blues around here.

But, we’re actually looking forward to it this year.

Normally, we all have this sense of urgency and dread.

Urgently trying to rush around squeezing every last drop of goodness out of our summer.

And the never ending schedules and being tethered to home cause us much dread.  We experience a tightening of the noose kind of feeling.

For my spontaneous little family, it’s like doing nine months of hard time.

The ratio of days we look forward to-to days we dread seem way out of balance.

But, we’ve decided to step off of the hamster wheel.  We’re very bad at keeping it going anyway.  And we certainly don’t enjoy it. And, seriously, who said it mattered in the first place?

I’ve enrolled the fellows in online school this year. It’s still public school.  We just won’t be so encumbered.

I must say, I’ve got no problems with their schools.  They’ve had wonderful teachers.  I’ve loved and trusted them all.

There are wonderful kids there.  This has nothing to do with me sheltering them from the unwashed masses.

But, I’m just comfortable enough to think that learning can take place somewhere else.  And for us, it may be a good solution.

I’m not doing this to narrow their world view, I’m hoping to expand it.

We’re planning on doing a lot of traveling this year.   And to me, there’s so much to be learned from being on the road.

Our plans are still kind of loose.  And that is just how I like it.  The hard schedules are the thing I liked least about school.

And so, we’re giving it a go.  And if it doesn’t work, there’s a great school with wonderful teachers that I’ll send them back to, quick as lightning.

My husband and I have their best interests at heart above all else.   And so, instead of complaining and living with a lifestyle that we really detest, we’re hoping this shows them that it’s okay to make changes.

So, the first lesson from this adventure, I hope, is if you’re not satisfied, you have options. Being discontent and harping on it all the time is just weird.  Complaining for complaining’s sake is just….annoying.  Especially if you aren’t willing to do what it takes to change things up.

It’s okay to do things differently.

And just because it’s the norm, doesn’t mean it’s right for you.

Maybe that’ll be lesson number two.

I’ll let you know how it goes!

Lula Lola bird signature

 

 

 

 

 

****Just wanted to give some credit where it’s due.  For over a year, I’ve followed Lori’s Lolz as she writes about educational options.  She and her family online school using the K12 curriculum that we’ll be using.  At the end of last summer, I felt a little tug and pull to give it a try.  But, didn’t have any problems at our regular schools and so I thought I couldn’t justify it.  This year, I realized that we didn’t have to have a problem to want another option.   Something doesn’t have to be wrong for it not to be right.

It took me long enough to figure that out!  I’ve got high hopes that this will be the option that works for us.

*****Oh, and the kids are thrilled!  They were very much a part of this decision.  They, like their Mama, are a freedom loving crowd and are hoping this will be a good fit.  We shall see.

Be sure and follow along!  It should be interesting!

Summer Doesn’t Last Forever!

I’ve not appreciated summer very much this week.  It’s been really hot.  Not really fit for man nor beast.  But, I remembered this post and needed the reminder. I thought I’d rerun it today.

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“Rest is not idleness, and to lie sometimes on the grass under the trees on a summer’s day, listening to the murmur of water, or watching the clouds float across the sky, is by no means a waste of time.” John Lubbock

 

People are always in such a hurry.  There are items on lists waiting to be scratched off.  There are things to do, people to see, bills to pay, errands to run, laundry to fold, dishes to wash, dinners to cook, diapers to change, calls to return, emails to compose, lawns to mow, practices to attend, carpools to drive, assignments to complete.

hydrangea, summer, flower, purple, blue

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But, summer is here.

Slow down.

Let the grass grow.

Order take out.

Blow off practice.

Enjoy a sunset or sunrise.

Realize that the laundry and the dishes and the errands aren’t going anywhere.

beach house pool sign, Dive Inn, handpainted sign on driftwood

In fact, throw that list away.

It’s summertime.  And it doesn’t come around but once a year.  Enjoy it.

Swim, play in the sprinkler, grill, catch lightning bugs, pick flowers and tomatoes and berries, look for arrowheads or seashells, sit on porches laughing and visiting, shell beans or shuck corn while you’re sitting there, listen to your favorite music over a cold drink with friends, stretch out in a hammock and take a nap, do cannonballs, blow bubbles.  Spend time in rocking chairs and porch swings.

Enjoy.

The phone won’t stop ringing, but you can turn it off.

The world won’t fall apart if all the laundry isn’t put away(trust me on this one).

buoys, green and white, hanging on fence, pool,

Taking a walk isn’t a bad way to spend an evening.

Turn the TV off.

Summer is here and you want to remember the sweetness of it, don’t you?

Slow down.

Eat a Popsicle, churn some ice cream.

Boil some shrimp.

Enjoy every second of it.

It won’t last forever!

This is the season for laziness, the season for adventure. My favorite time of year.  And friends, I don’t want you to miss a second of it!

A Post About How Cute My Little Guys Are Surfing

The little boys had surf camp one day this week with Village Surf Shoppe in Garden City, SC.

This post is really just to show off how cute my kids are.

Sam, six year old surfing, Garden City Beach SC, South Carolina Coast

Sam catching a wave at surf camp.

Kid surfing, penguin stance, Surfer boy, Six year old surfer, surfing, Garden City SC, Surf Camp

I’m the King of the World

Surfing, Mack, surfer, eight year old surfer, Garden City Beach South Carolina, South Carolina surfing, coastal SC

The Mack man catching a wave!

surfing, Mack, surfer, eight year old surfer, Garden City Beach Surf camp, SC, South Carolina Beach

Mack will ride all day.  He’s thinking it’s time to get his own board.  I’m thinking I agree with him.

Surfing, six year old surfer, Sam, Garden City Beach South Carolina, SC beaches, SC surfingThis is my six year old, Sam attempting to do a little shredding.

Cue the music, Wipe Out….

Wipe out, falling off surfboard, Sam, six year old falls off surfboard

Mack unveils his Water Bending Super Powers!

Mack, water bending, nose diving, surfing, wipe out, Garden City beach, SC

And not to be upstaged, here’s a couple of Adam.

Surfside Beach surfing, Adam, surfing,

Surfside Beach SC, South Carolina Beach, surfing in SC, Adam, surfer

I’ve got about a bajillion pictures that I haven’t even had time to look at yet.  Maybe I’ll find some cute ones to share soon.

And yesterday, we spent the most amazing day at Huntington Beach State Park.  The boys and I hiked every trail, went surf seining and did our fair share of wildlife watching.    Pictures and stories soon!

Happy Friday everyone!

Surfside Beach Blow Up

Recipe for Disaster.

One Very crowded Beach.

Fourth of July Crowds on the beach, crowds for fireworks, Surfside Beach, SC, Coastal SC

High tide coming in.

  {The beach will be even more narrow by dark.  Perhaps half this size.}

More narrow and more crowded.

People will really start to fill the beach at dusk.

Less beach, more people.

About 1/3 of these people will light fireworks illegally.

It’s against the law here to discharge fireworks on the beach.  But, I’m not sure I’ve ever seen that rule enforced.

We have a fireworks show from our porch five nights out of seven.   I’m not complaining, just stating a fact.

A good portion of the illegal pyrotechnics will be lit by this family.

Who as far as I can tell have no children.  I look for them.  It would explain so much.

I mean, sometimes, we spend ridiculous amounts of money doing weird things for our kids.  Sometimes raising kids can feel like burning money.

I want to be able to justify the rough tote that is only partially unpacked as I happen by.

Sadly, I cannot.

Fireworks, family setting up fireworks display, Surfside Beach, SC

I’m pretty sure they deserve their own WTF Wednesday post.

fireworks on the ground, display set up fireworks, Surfside Beach, Fourth of July

I keep glancing back and they never seem to reach the bottom of the box.

Okay, to recount!

We’ve got a crowded beach that’s getting more crowded as the sun goes down.

A high tide that’s coming and we’ll easily cut the space to put all of those folks in half.

And a family equipped with an arsenal and it seems, the intention of blowing the whole place up.

Pair these conditions with wind.  Lots of wind.

And somebody’s losing an eye.

Won’t be one of mine though.  I make the executive decision to keep all of our eyes safe, at least for another night.

We will watch from the porch.

And ponder how much fireworks related traffic that the local ER will get tonight.

I hate not being in the mix, but it seems like all of Surfside Beach has collectively decided to practice poor judgement and I just like to go against the grain.

I’ll save my poor judgement for another day, thank you very much.

Link up over at Funny or Snot , with the very funny Poppy, if you’ve got one of those moments that leaves you…..wondering, WTF?

What I Learned On Your Family Vacation

Well, not really yours.  But, someone’s.

It’s pretty well documented that I spend a lot of my time on the front porch.  And here at the beach, the houses are really close together.  How that came to happen is another story entirely.   But, they are really close.

Each summer week brings new renters.   And since the house has five bedrooms, usually more than one family is staying together.  Often big extended families.

If my porch weren’t screened, I could spit a watermelon seed and land it in the middle of their porch with very little effort.  Because of this, I’m spending time with them too.  Whether I want to or not.

I’m not a very observant person.  I’m also not nosy as a rule.  But, I can’t seem to tune them out.

Here’s what I’ve learned from Stalking Watching.

  • Eye rolling and knowing looks are passed when certain members of the family leave the porch.  The family pariah, perhaps?
  • Excited laughs on Saturday can turn into huffy breaths by the next Saturday.
  • Old people don’t seem to think much of late sleeping family members.  I heard a phrase I’d never heard the other morning concerning this very thing.  “Well, they always have been the cow’s tail.”  {I’m saving that one to use at a later date.}
  • A week may be too long in one house with more than your immediate family.
  • The in-laws are easy to pick out.
  • Bedroom porches are used more often towards the end of the week.
  • Unpacking is exciting and everyone pitches in.
  • Packing leads to arguing.  Apparently, no one can do it right.
  • Folks on cell phones talk louder than necessary.
  • Topping the list of common conversations is “What’s for breakfast? Lunch? Dinner?”
  • Families that have obvious distaste for each other still vacation together.  Not sure I’ll ever get to the bottom of why that is.
  • Food causes lots of dissatisfaction.  Especially among the little family members.
  • Vacations are a good idea.
  • The jury is still out on vacations with the extended family.

All that said, this week’s family is a delight.  I’d like to walk over and ask to be adopted.  They gather on the porch later in the morning.  (I appreciate this because my quiet time is important to me.)  And they laugh and talk and are friendly with each other.  They speak kindly and with respect.

When the kids are outside, they are starring in their own little shows.  They are  perfect and everyone there adores them.  You can almost feel the love radiating from everyone on that porch.  It would be good to be a kid in that family.

When they swim in the pool in the afternoon, I can hear them over the fence cheering for the kids as they swim or race or have contests.  Lots of laughter. It’s the best family vacation I’ve ever seen.

I have high hopes that by Saturday they won’t be huffy.  I’m actually hanging a lot of hope on this family.  This family that doesn’t know I’ve even observed them.   I want to think that some families have fun together even after the kids are grown and have families of their own.  I want us to be one of those families.  Of all the families that I see coming and going, I don’t see it a lot.   So, I’ve really got my heart set on the family next door having a good week.

Crazy, huh?

Well, I am a stalker.

 

 

 

 

 

***Note.  It is Wednesday morning.  They are on the porch now.  Listening delightedly to a little girl prattle on.  Pushing their trash can back in promptly after pickup.  And I’ve seen a couple of them hug each other.  So far, so good.  They’re restoring my faith in the extended family vacay!  Yay for anonymous strangers!

I’m hosting a giveaway this week for a free canvas print.

Click here for your chance to win.

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