In the Past Week

ALOT has happened in the past week!

Wednesday morning we were up bright & early moving Jon into his new dorm at Liberty University.

Almost all the kiddos.....Alli had just recently gotten up & didn't want to be in the picture.

Poor Rocky....he always knows when something's up & he gets really sad.

Jon's room.....he got the loft bed which give him the space underneath for his dresser & desk.

Jon & one of his new room-mates, Nick.

It wasn't 'planned' this way, but Ashley, Jon & Brendan are all right together....each next door to the other. How convenient!

Ashley moved in on Friday. At least I had a day in between to recouperate.

And thank goodness Jon was there & willing to lend a helping hand.... helping us carry all those boxes UP two flights of stairs. Silly as ever. 

I love these two & am so happy they have the opportunity to go to school together. Praying God blesses them with a wonderful year!!

Brendan & his folks came down on Saturday. Maw was gracious enough to have Brendan's folks stay the night with her. And we decided to do a cook-out together Saturday evening.

Daniel & Michael decided they were going to eat inside.

The rest of us enjoyed the cool evening out on Maw's carport. Dan, Judy, Brenda & Ashley.

Alli, Anna & David. As you can see, the girls didn't want me taking their picture. Was so glad that Clay was off Sunday & got to come to church with us & meet Brendan's dad. He had worked late Saturday evening & wasn't able to join us at Maw's.

Brendan & Ashley.....together again....ready to start a new school year!

 

*********

 

'And all thy children shall be taught of the Lord; and great shall be the peace of thy children.'  --Isaiah 54:13

 

*************

 

Counting my blessings over the past week:

*making some of Jon's favorite meals....per his request...on the nights before he left for shcool * Knowing I have friends & family praying for me * God gave us a GORGEOUS day for moving Jon to school * Again, sweet prayers of friends & family lifting me up * Student Leadership that I encountered on Wed.  was amazing---what a great testimony those kids are! * Lunch with Maw * Not too long of a line getting books * Meeting Ella for sweet tea & hugs after I said good-bye to my Jon-Boy!! *New season of Duck Dynasty---Happy, Happy, Happy * a day to stay home & rest on Thursday * Leisurely start to our day Friday.....Ashley's check-in time was 1pm *Lunch at Panera with my girl * Jon was there to help carry stuff up TWO flights of stairs * Clay 'cooked' Vitos pizza for supper*Safe travels for Brendan & his folks *Cook-out at Maw's* Listening to the kids 'concert' Sat. night......Alli on guitar with Anna accompanying on violin & singing 'Our Song'....Anna playing Star Wars on the piano & Brendan on the piano....Wow....that boy's got talent! *Everyone being in church together on Sunday * Good first day of classes for everyone *clean kitchen floor * ice cream for dessert * Lots of snacks/goodies from the company store for our college kids & their friends.

 

Our UNschool learning.....

With the guys going to the Sportsman's Show over the weekend....Clay & Michael have really been studying the different scoring systems that are used for the deer. They said they've both really learned alot! They are going to another show at the end of September & they use a different scoring system....Virginia's Deer Scoring System which you can read more about HERE.

Then this morning....I was reading another Unschooling blog, 'Our School at Home' ....& Michael saw the pictures on their blog of the alpacas & he got off saying how he wanted a pet camel. A two-humped camel, to be exact.....so he could ride it. Only Michael. I LOVE how this kid learns! It's SO much fun, really! We began googling, of course & found out that Dromedaries--with 1 hump-- are mainly from the middle East & the Horn of Africa. 

And the Bactrian camels, with 2 humps, are from Asia.

We quickly learned that the alpacas are from South America--Peru, Bolivia, etc & they are bred mainly for their fiber.

Aren't they just the cutest little things!

Second Place!

Awards were givin out yesterday evening at the Outdoor Sportsman's Show....

....and Michael's deer came in second in his age group. We are SO tickled for him. Way to go, Michael!!

Michael with Pat & Nicole from 'Driven TV'....how cool.

***************

Counting my blessings--

*watching 'Breakfast at Tiffany' with my Ashley-girl* home-made pizza for supper* the sound of happy chickens * Got our van fixed--BIG...no, a HUGE praise * had lunch with Ella & Melanie * coffee on sale at Target this week * barefoot in the grass * clean jammies * my bed & a good book after a long day in town * Clay & boys to Sportsman's show in Richmond to show Michael's big ole buck * pictures & texts from my guys during the day * Michael's deer won 2nd place--WooHoo! * 'Pride & Prejudice' with my girls * 'When I call on Jesus, ALL things are possible......'

Back-to-School Shopping & The VA Sportsman Show

Well, we FINALLY figured out what was wrong with our van & got it fixed! There were two sensors that were going bad. I'm just SO thankful to have our transportation problems solved for now. Such a blessing that we take for granted until something goes wrong. I was able to take my TWO college kiddos for some Back-to-school shopping on Thursday. Nothing like waiting til the last minute. No matter. We had a really fun time....actually got some school supplies that were needed....PLUS the bonding time with my kids. Even dinner out at La Carreta.

Oh how I'm gonna miss this one when he goes to school!!

Today, Clay, Jon & Michael went to the VA Outdoor Sportsman Show in Richmond to show Michael's big ole buck that he shot last year. That's his buck in the picture above....third from the left.

Michael's buck

I think it's safe to say that they've been having a fun day!

I'm so thankful for this goofy, fun-loving guy & for the time he spends with his kiddos! Such a priceless investment.

Don't ask me why this turned out so small.....it was giving me fits! Clay sent this to me specifically......Willie & Phil Robertson.....The Duck Commanders. Love those guys!

My Weekend Adventure

I tell ya.....my days are NEVER boring! I'm so behind.....I've had a sort of stressful week this week & just really haven't felt like blogging much at all. I just decided tonight that these pictures have been sitting here long enough. I need to get them posted.
 

 

Last Friday, I met Maw,Sarah & her kids for lunch at CFA along with some high school  friends of mine....Scott & Jay.

Last Saturday was our family reunion. We held it early this year....not really sure why....but anyway. I prefer it in Sept. when the days aren't so HOT. But, Alli is following in her sister's footsteps with wanting to bake something HOME MADE. She says (& she's right) no one brings home made stuff anymore. It's always from a deli somewhere & it's just not the same. So, she decided she was going to bake an apple pie. AND she wanted to do the whole thing from scratch. She even used Memaw's pastry recipe for the crust. I told her this was her 'Summer School' project & I do believe that she got an 'A' on this one! ;-)

Aunt Linda's handiwork.....her yummy pound cake featuring Memaw & Papaw Purvis.

We had a fun day despite the POURING rain! We were sitting on the front porch eating lunch....watching all the others huddle under the carport. Close fellowship. LOL!

L.O.N.G. story here.......I just HAD to shake things up for the afternoon. I left to go pick Jon up from work & for some reason (still unknown to us....the van is at the shop) my van conked out on me. I was able to get it somewhat off the road, but I was still kind of freaking out. On the phone with Clay...who was in Lynchburg at work.....trying to get Jon & tell him we'd be late.....& trying to get ANYONE else to answer their cell. It was POURING rain remember....besides the fact we live out in the boonies....so the two together meant really crappy phone service. About the time we got Chris & told him to come.....a state trooper had passed by & came back up behind me. When Chris got there & went to pull over.....the ground was SO saturated from all the rain we'd been having, that he slid right off into the ditch & couldn't get out. All this happened while I'm on the phone with Clay. I was just like, 'You are NOT gonna believe this....things just kept getting worse.' But it's funny how God works all things together for good. Come to find out in our conversation with the trooper that he knew/was good friends with Uncle Dale....& that Dale was at this family reunion just down the road a bit. So the tropper gets on his cell & tells Dale literally to get his butt out there NOW with a 4- wheel drive & a chain & come help his niece out!! How 'bout that. Dale & David P. came & were able to pull Chris out....with NO damage to his car. PTL! The tropper sent Chris on to pick up Jon & told me to baby the van back home....he thought I'd be fine. And Praise Jesus, we made it back ok. Although, Like I said before.....the van is still down at the shop. Praying they can figure out the problem this week!

Back to the reunion. The rain had stopped by this point & it really wasn't hot at all. Another praise! Above, Chris, Ashley C., Jon, Danielle & Dillon. That was yet another blessing of the day......Ashley C. got to come up AND Ella & her kids were able to come. Made for an extra fun day.

Best friends.....Cori & Alli. And Jon...........creeping in the background.

Such a goof ball!

AShley C. & Maw

When everyone started leaving.....Ella & her kids loaded up & came on over to our house for the rest of the evening. Ella was having fun checking out the little tree frogs out by the pool & one just jumped right on her!

Oh, Ashley.....I thought you had already found your handsome prince.

 Last Sunday, since we were stuck home with no transportation.....I spent the day crocheting. I found some really nifty dish cloth patterns. This one was really cool & worked up in a hurry! Definitely gonna be making some more of these. So, there ya have it....LAST WEEKEND.
************

Now for some Blessings from the past week:
Thankful Clay was off this past Tues. * little robin sitting in the tree singing for me * guys got to play golf * hooky time--making dish cloths *squash & salad from our garden * blue skies * dew on the grass * Clay & I got to go eat supper at La Carreta on Fri. ngiht * God's blessing of working out the work schedules with one vehicle!