Hot Air Balloon Festival

We went to the Plano Hot Air Balloon Festival, but we didn't! We really couldn't afford to pay to go to the festival and pay for parking, so we found a great place to park and thankfully they flew right overhead! I've been to the granddaddy of them all in Albuquerque, NM and went up in a balloon. Back then (15 years ago) it only cost $80 - Now it costs $250! But we had a great time! Hopefully we'll make it an annual tradition.

Meeting New Friends

We went to our first homeschool activity today. It was in Terrell, Texas, about 30 minutes away. On our drive, Micah and I commented that the area reminded us of Crossville. When we got out of the truck, Micah said, "WOW, they have a lot of leaves." Something you all know we had tons of in Crossville, but we don't have a single leaf in our yard now. We have one, small tree, a Live Oak, in the front yard.

As you all know me, I got right in there and introduced myself to people and started helping where I could. The day was planned with lots of games and crafts. Many people came up to introduce themselves.
The kids started out receiving some rules about where they could go in the area and what they would be doing for the day.

Then the games begun!!! First on the list was the Raw Egg Spoon Race. Micah, Caleb and Sarah had a great time playing this game. And for the record, Micah's team won!

Then, back to the barn for some crafting. My kids started at the family craft table where we made a turkey break basket. They made their own feathers and turkey body. We still have some coloring to do, but here is the picture.

It was great fun!

Then another game, Fox and Rabbit - two blind folded people had to find each other with a boundary of quiet spectators. No hints were allowed to be given!

We took a break for a picnic lunch - sandwiches, chips, grapes, juice boxes and yummy mini-milky way bars! We had a few visiting children at our blanket. A real family affair.

After a long play break and getting to know all the ladies and children, we were back to the barn where we made gourd families

and the cutest turkey napking ring holders.
We made 12 in hopes of having lots of visitors for Thanksgiving.
Sarah and I made a frame for a famil picture.

It was a great day! The only thing that could have made it better was if my pals in TN were there. But, I made some great acquaintances that will hopefully develop into friendships. The kids met a lot of friends too!

The Walls Family Farm really did remind us of our home in Tennessee. And we only saw a small part of the almost 300 acres.

It was a great homeschool day!

Cotton in Toothpaste?

I took my children to the Free Family Day at the Audie Murphy Cotton Museum in Greenville, Texas and it was a lot of fun. We had a good time and met some wonderful people who shared a lot of history with us. We played "bite the hanging donut". A very hard game.

And my two older boys really enjoyed learning all the rules for playing real marbles.

They also made covered wagons that turned out great.

Sarah made a clothespin doll and a corn husk doll. Well, actually mommy did most of the work. But she loves them!

Times were much simpler back then -- no toys with batteries.

And, of course, we learned tons about cotton and the many uses it has other than making clothing. And learning all about Audie Murphy was very interesting. I am always moved to read about the heroes of our past and the sacrifices they made for the freedoms I often take for granted. Did you know that he was only 47 when he died?

And what about cotton in toothpaste? Well, I'm going to leave that for a home project for each of you!

Tee Hee :o)

Blue Angels! WOW!

We haven't wasted any time getting out to see some of the sites in the Dallas area. With boxes stacked very high in our garage and many not unpacked in individual rooms, I still wanted to get out a see the air show. I LOVE air shows! I have since the first time I saw one years and years ago. I even got to meet one of the Blue Angels a long time ago. So, we packed up the kids and off to the Fort Worth area we went.

Micah and Caleb went bungee harness jumping (I'm not sure what it was really called) and Sarah and I went down the world's largest inflatable slide. It scared me to death! I had no idea how high it went up and the "stairs" if you can call them that were inflatable and you had to hang on tight to the "rail" to even get to the top. I screamed the whole way down! But it was fun.

Gram and Grandpa always wanted to go see the air show, so they came with us and made it a family affair. It's one of the reasons we came out here, and it was great to do something with them. Grandmother and Granddad didn't go with us, but they weren't left out. After the show, we all went out to dinner.

Talk about a full day of homeschooling! WOW, there were so many different planes and so many soldiers willing to answer all of your questions.

What a fun day with family!

Much Laughter, Many Tears - Our Going Away Week!

We have packed in as much as we can possibly pack in this week since we know, in some cases, we won't see some of our friends again. We left Florida on Friday, October 5th and returned to Crossville to wrap up our close. We will be leaving on Monday, October 15th. So these 10 days were jam packed. Daddy didn't come home with us. He left Florida and went to Texas to wrap up the close on our new home. What did we do these last 10 days?

A better question might be - what didn't we do? :o)

Sleepovers, sleepovers and more sleepovers! Thankfully, the public schools were out this week, so Dominic basically lived with us the entire 10 days. We also had Alex spend the night.

We went Autumn Acres for what might be our last corn maze.

We won't see many fields like this where we're going.

We had to make one last trip to Chuckles and use those last few coins and tickets we've kept.

We went to the fun night that the Cornwell's host.

And Renee and family hosted a meal for us there. Janine and kiddos came for our last visit together.

And how could we forget one last trip to storytime with Miss Patty.

We will miss her very much!

We went to Chess class for the last time. Thank you Dr. Brindisi for all of your hard work and dedication to the homeschool families of Crossville. Our family really appreciated your time and effort!

And then there were the many lunchs that we shared with friends like Miss Elsa.

It was a really fun week.

And it was filled with much laughter and many tears!

We hope to see as many of you that can come to see us as soon as you can possibly come!

A Good Time was had by all

Our family had a wonderful time celebrating the Feast of Tabernacles in Fort Walton Beach, Florida. We saw some old friends and met some new ones. We had a bump in the trip when John's mom, Brenda, fell in the parking lot on the first day. While she did not break any bones (a miracle in itself), she was badly injured and had to be in a wheel chair for the entire trip. Thankfully, family was around to help her. I helped with the Junior Sabbath school where Micah attended, Caleb and Sarah attended their own classes, and John attended a few seminars in addition to all of us attending the sermons.

The guys went on a fishing trip. And Micah and Caleb were both able to go for the first time. While, they didn't catch any fish to keep, they had a great time being on the boat.

It is so beautiful at the ocean. I would live there if it weren't for hurricanes. You really do see the awesome beauty of God's creation. How the tide comes and goes, the incredible sunrises and sunsets, the smells, and the amazing animals.

And when you're laying on the sand, it really gives new and incredible meaning to the scripture in Genesis 22:17 "That in blessing I will bless thee, and in multiplying I will multiply thy seed as

the stars of the heaven, and as the sand which is upon the sea shore; and thy seed shall possess the gate of his enemies;." I hope you enjoyed these pictures.

TN Aquarium Fieldtrip

We had a great day at the aquarium. It's the last time we'll visit this aquarium. The favorites are always the salt water life - sharks, jellyfish, and puffer fish. We love the penguins too. We even saw a few divers feeding the fresh water fish. We ate at our favorite restaurant, the Big River Grille. Then, we took a dip in the stream that runs through the sidewalks of the Aquarium grounds. It was such a beautiful, sunny day! And the cherry on top was we were able to see and visit with a few of our friends that we will be leaving when we move.