I WAS FEATURED!!!!

I'm still on a happy high over being picked for my yoga photo!!

They don't need to know I've been doing this particular pose since I was little....

Instagram Challenge

I have been doing a daily Instagram challenge to help me stay accountable to doing yoga. It's been fun. Some of the ladies doing it are incredible and inspiring. Not only with their poses but with the photos they are taking! So here's my feeble attempt.

Yoga......kinda

I have been experiencing some back and neck pain a lot lately. Back pain I'm use to. I've been a chiropractic believer since jr high. I have to go for adjustment here and there. The neck pain is kinda new. It STINKS! I go as needed for it. I use my neck massager,ice, and pain relievers a lot.

About two weeks ago I got fed up. Fed up needing to take meds. Fed up not being able to lift my leg to put on pants without low back pain/strain. Fed up feeling altogether crummy. I knew I needed to be proactive.

I've tried to run, and have even done races. But the truth is I hate it. I like how I feel after, but for that 30-45 min I'm on the pavement it feels like a form of punishment. I think it roots back to running track all through school, so it feels like a chore. I needed something else.

Then I was reading NieNies (please refer to my link on the side til I figure out how to add one from my phone) blog and she was talking about her body moving and the blessings of it even in pain and how she was so grateful for yoga. And it hit me, YOGA! I've dabbled in it here and there over the years but now I've decided to find a few programs and really stick with it for a long enough period of time to see if it helps.

Now I've always been a bendy person. Some use to call it double jointed. Really I'm just flexible. So a lot of the moves just come natural for me. Some of the sitting positions I've done forever cause I find it comfortable to sit that way. The bending isn't as easy as it once was but I know that will come with time and my muscles finally releasing. My strength needs some help to hold the positions longer. But I'm hoping I have found my "thing" and that it gives me relief. Also my two older kids are doing it with me to loosen there tight muscles from soccer. Keegan is a habitual toe walker so it is helping him to stretch out those back leg muscles and avoid being cast.

Now here's my one thing I want to say. I was surfing the web about Christian yoga and found a lot of strong opinions about how a Christian should not be doing it. Not the poses, not the stretches, nothing. Here is my view point on it. When they say calm your mind and think positive thoughts, I am clearing out the crazy thoughts of the day and praising The Lord for all of my blessings. I am using the deep breathing times to talk with Him. I know there is only one God and I know who He is. So I am a Christian doing yoga poses and using that time for quiet talks with God. I'm happy with that.

Sunsets At Soccer

Living on the coast gives us some incredible sunsets.

Gotta Love Her

My constant companion.  She follows me everywhere and stares at me often.

How can you not love that black nose?!

Happy Campers

A fun little weekend.  The rain Saturday and today wasn't ideal.  Sunday was beautiful.  My kids had a blast.  The family time was needed.

Spent Friday getting her all shinny.

All set up.

             

 I was walking back from the bath house and this site of my tiny Lemondrop next to all these beasts made me giggle.

 My kids are awesome kayakers.

 Even the smallest guy was skilled!

 I mean it's pretty hard to beat this view.

 Bain and Piper enjoying the water too.

 Friends came for a little visit.

 A found string, bobber, hook, worm and patience payed off.

All closed up and ready to leave.  Our truck is bigger than the trailer.

Camping Movies

So our family loves to watch movies.  It's our thing.  Well really its my Mr's thing, so we happily go along with it.  Anything to promote family time is good for me.  So with the upcoming camping trip I am on a hunt for some fun fall-ish movies.  The real problem is watching something my kids haven't seen before or very little (when I drive home it is close to 6.5 hours in the car, they watch movies to pass the time).  

Besides being on here from time to time, I also instagram.  I follow a handful of people on there.  Well one of the girls posted a photo of the movie The Adventures of Ichabod and Mr Toad.  Apparently a Disney classic, none of us has ever seen!  SCORE!  Sadly it won't get here in time, but it did give us the suggestion of Hocus Pocus, which we have seen very little.  So off to Target I go to pick up a copy.

So are there any other movies out there that are family friendly I should know about?!  Suggestions are always welcome.

A Camping We Will Go......

After a busy morning/afternoon of soccer.  We are heading out for a two night camping trip.  The Lemondrop has not been used enough this year.  I hope to remedy that over the next month or so.  Homeschooling should allow us the flexibility right?!

And just so you know how serious we are about soccer here are some shots of them in action.

 Keegan making his opponent work.

Avery leaping over the boy 3 years older than her to stay on the ball.

And Tripp (#1).......he adds chaos and confusion to the players....hehehe I love that boy.

.....and just so you know, I jest about the seriousness of our soccer playing.  I just insist that they do something.  I think a being part of team is an awesome life lesson.

What We Have Been Up To

Since I last posted summer has finished up.  It flew by this year I swear!!  I have some photos to upload of some of the things we did this summer, I am going to share the start of our school year instead.  I have brought the kids back home for the beginning of this year.  I had thought I would homeschool them all year long, but after some more thought on the matter I am only keeping them home until the start of the new year. 

 Why go to that trouble you may wonder?  Because I am going to my hometown for an extended stay during the holidays.  My kids would have needed to miss 7 weeks of school, which if you have kids in the school system you know doesn't fly.  So besides using this opportunity to help my girl get some math facts mastered and letting my boys be boys we are just enjoying this little break.  

Tripp (K)

Keegan(3)

Avery(5)

I love the idea of homeschooling.  I KNOW it works.  In my head it is awesome.  In my reality it just really doesn't fit.  My husband has a job that requires him to work away, a lot. I am left to hold down the fort.  Some can do it with ease it seems but when I try I feel like I lose a little of myself.  Then I spend sleepless nights beating myself up over my lack of abilities.  Which I know are lies, but things my brain tells itself none the less.  

So here's to hoping the next 4 months go by with ease and as little complications as necessary!

Back to PA

We are currently back in PA. We are busy doing a lot of nothing. Which I find perfect. However some of us are turning into butterfly hunters.

He is super serious and does it for hours.

We are meeting new cousins.  This is my new nephew Owen.  I got to meet him a few minutes after he was born.  But we left the next morning for home.  So this is the first quality time we have spent with him.

My girl is in heaven!!!!

I am minus a kid cause he is off on a traditional bow festival adventure with his Pappy.  I envision him running through the northern mountains of Pennsylvania with mud streaks on his face and bare chested.

The Lemondrop has AC

My parents came for a week long visit over the 4th.  It was a treat!  While here my dad tackled my need for an AC unit in the Lil' Lemondrop.  

 (4th of July photo)

This is what we came up with.  It is totally removable so it doesn't mess with the integrity of my vintage camper.  The box, stand, and AC unit will come off when traveling or if it is cool enough in the year to not need it.  Once at the site all quickly and easily goes up.   

The results were that of a walk in freezer once on.  I am going to spice up the inside of the box when I get a chance.  My dad and I are a great team!  Now there is no weather that scares us when we take the tiny trailer out!

Pool Time

Boys being boys in the pool.

Avery was away at a birthday party.  The boys went a little noodle crazy!

Fishin'

Keegan has been determined to catch every fish in the pond across from our house.  So far he hasn't done too bad.  For a boy that the teacher kept saying had a "focus" problem, he sure can focus on something he loves!!

 Um after looking at the above photos I realized how badly he needed a hair cut.

 And then just messing around in the drive through line.  The fam minus the man!!

The kids have been at VBS all week.  They have had an awesome time.  Tripp had to miss today cause that boy has had me up every night with the croup.  His ear now has an infection and we might need to discuss tubes again. Booooo

Blessings

Last week was a crazy week.  On Tuesday evening while watching TV with my Mr our power went out.  Or so we thought.  It was just like what happens when lightning strikes a tower and you hear that pop and then the lights are gone.  Only ours were only kinda out.  They stayed lit very dim.  They did shut off for a second or two a few times.  We hoped up and I checked to see if the neighbors had lost their lights too, but oddly their homes were all bright.  My husband went out to the garage and checked the breakers but nothing was really amiss.  The fuses to the kids bedrooms were flipped.  Odd....  Anyways, I couldn't find the emergency number to the electric company so I called my girlfriend whose husband works for it in the hopes of getting the number.  My husband hoped on the phone to talk to her husband and while relaying what was happening he asked me if I smelled that.  I didn't really smell anything, but I stood up from the couch and when I did I smelled the smoke.  He quickly hung up and headed toward the hall behind the garage.  When he got to the laundry room he opened the door and a big cloud of black stinky smoke rolled out.  We had no idea where it was coming from and feared it was an electric fire in the walls.  I quickly got the kids out and then ran and put the dogs out back.  My Mr called 911.  I took the kids two doors down to my friends and asked if they could stay there that I was sure the house was on fire.  Her husband reacted quickly and brought a fire extinguisher.  When he got to the house and they went to the laundry room again they  realized it was coming from the washing machine.  They extinguished the fire and got the machine out and made sure nothing else was on fire.  The fire trucks got there as the boys were taking the washer out.  Upon inspection we found out that we had had a power surge due to the fact that we had no ground coming into our house.  Scary stuff.  

The blessing in all of this is that my Mr was to have been gone on a trip that day.  It had been delayed.  When my Mr isn't home I go to bed when the kids go to bed.  I read to the light of my Kindle.  I would not have known what was happening until it caught the blankets that I had just put in front of the washer to be washed the next day on fire.  The end of the house would have gone up quick cause I keep my sewing stuff in the laundry room.  What a blessing that his trip had been delayed.  We had to have serve pro come and clean the walls and clean all the flame retardant up and get all new appliances cause it zapped all of them.  My fridge caught fire too.  That we were able to have repaired.  

 Washer

 fridge

My new front loaders!!!

I know it could have been a lot worse.  I thanked and praised God all night for his mercy.  Things are getting back to normal.  My house is still a little upside down, but praise God we are all OK and it was only appliances that we lost.