My First Driving Lesson

I've mentioned before that I grew up in a small country town in Northeast Texas. Our home was on the outskirts of town and my parents had their own little parcel of country heaven. Five acres to be exact. This little patch of property gave me a lot of freedom as a child and in my early teen years. I'd run all over the place and would get lost in my own little world for the day. My parents never really worried about where I was or what I was doing, even though I'd be gone for hours at a stretch. That is so unlike the world Violet is growing up in, but I'll cover that on another day.

Because we had our own little piece of country heaven, my Daddy had the brilliant idea of teaching me how to drive his truck one day. A standard truck, no less. I was at the tender age of 12 and had been begging him for some time to teach me how to drive. "Just on our property Daddy. Please!" I don't recall what brand of truck it was but I seem to remember it was a little one, not unlike the Ford Ranger.

I'll never forget sitting behind the wheel of my Daddy's truck and feeling so grown up. My feet barely reached the pedals, and I couldn't sit with my back to the seat and reach the steering wheel and shift, so I was sitting all the way to the edge of my seat. I listened to Daddy's instructions on how to slowly release the clutch with the left foot while gently adding gas with the right. When he felt that I had figured out how to do everything he gave me control of his little truck. A decision I'm sure haunts him to this very day.

The truck was in neutral and my feet were on the brakes when I started Daddy's truck. Doing good so far, but it didn't take long for all hell to break loose. I looked at Daddy with a big smile on my face and he told me I was doing good. Then came the tricky part, the part where the truck actually moves! I put my foot on the clutch, released the brake, and gunned the gas. The truck took off so fast that it began to do circles in our front yard. I was slammed to the back of the seat and couldn't reach anything while that little truck spun wildly out of control. Daddy was yelling at me to hit the brakes and I couldn't even reach them. Somehow he managed to get on the floorboard of the truck and use his hands to slam on the brakes. The truck came to an abrupt stop when it met up-close-and-personal with a pine tree sapling.

In a matter of a few minutes I managed to put ruts in our front yard, hit a small tree and give Daddy his first gray hairs. I think that is about the time he started to lose his hair too. I never took a driving lesson from Daddy again. That job fell to my Mom, and then later to my boyfriend who wisely took me to an empty cow pasture to teach me how to drive. I finally learned how to drive a standard vehicle but that poor pine sapling never did stand straight again.

Trick Or Treat

We had a lovely time trick-or-treating this year. The weather was perfect at an amazing 64 degrees and hardly any humidity at all. Down here in the south, humidity can make or break a person. The air is usually very heavy but tonight it was heavenly. Thank you Lord for an amazing night!


Violet went as a Monarch Butterfly this year. I must admit, she was pretty darned cute! It's amazing what a year's difference can make. Last year Violet pushed me in front of the door so she could hide behind me, making sure that if the boogy man jumped out from somewhere he would get me, and so she could make a break for it. This year, well this year she braved the doors all by herself. With a spring in her step and a heart filled with bravery she proudly rang each doorbell by herself and then did the required, "Trick or Treat!", all while her proud Mommy and Daddy watched from the safe distance of the sidewalk. And with each treat she received, Violet was very quick to tell her treaters "Thank you!" and "Happy Halloween" waving at them as she made her way back to us. I am so proud of her.


Each house we stopped at the host/hostess would exclaim "What a beautiful butterfly you make!" and Violet was quick to declare, "I'm a Monarch Butterfly and they fly to Mexico during the winter months so they can be warm!" I don't think these people were expecting to get a science lesson tonight but that's what they got.


Gosh, I love this kid. She had an amazing time, as did Gregg and I. Violet's bucket was filled to capacity. I don't think we could fit any more candy in there even if we tried. Since we live in an apartment we drove to one neighborhood that is a nice circle shape. We walked the neighborhood for thirty minutes and then we were heading home. We LOVE that neighborhood and we have dreams of hopefully buying a home there sometime soon. Lord, please let it be! The homes are all different styles of arts and crafts homes. They all look different and the neighbors know one another. It's very kid friendly. All things that we are looking for and praying to find when we buy a home.

Sleep, Why Hast Thou Forsaken Me?

Sleep, why hast thou forsaken me? I miss you dearly and would love for you to return to me. Where have you gone? Why won't you come back? Please sleep, please return to me.


It seems that I'm the only person in my family that you have issues with. I've been limiting my caffeine intake. I'm learning to settle down and relax as bedtime draws near. I'm even taking long hot soaks in the tub with just candles lighting the room in hopes that they will lull you to my exhausted self. Please sleep, please return to me. I miss you so so very much.

You visited Violet this weekend in the form of a nap. She came into the hallway with her pillow and blanket and just fell asleep right there. Violet gave up her naps when she turned three. I was so jealous. It's not a cool thing to be envious of your daughter. Do you see what you're doing to me sleep? I need you to visit me soon for the sake of my sanity. Also, I'm pretty sure that a decent amount of sleep would help me with the killer headaches I've been having. So, are listening sleep? I'd be willing to do or give just about anything just for you to pay me a nice visit.

Back In The Day

Back in the days when I was in High School I was a majorette. Some of my most memorable moments from those days were of being on the line. I loved to twirl. I was twirling even when I didn't have to. Always trying new tricks or working on perfecting my kicks and points.

I'm the one on the far right back row with the short bob haircut. I was sixteen when this photo was taken and had the whole world ahead of me.

I grew up in a small town in Northeast Texas. Also known as Football Country. The whole town would shut down each Friday night for the football games. The only exceptions were the local Dairy Queen and the gas station. While every boy dreamt of playing on the team every little girl had visions of being either a cheerleader or a majorette. My dream was to be a majorette.

My Dad was a pastor and had been hired by a little church out in the middle of nowhere. The only problem was, it was out of my school's district. I moved an hour away from the school I had gone to for all my educational years. Somehow, my parents managed to keep me in the same school district and I didn't have to give up my spot on the majorette line. I never knew how they worked that out for me but I was very grateful. I had worked too hard to get on that majorette line and was not about to give it up for anything!

So, thank you Mom and Dad! You helped me to accomplish my dreams and to see them come to reality. Thank you for all you've sacrificed and given to me. I may not have been grateful at the time, for we all know that a teenager's life revolves around themselves and can be totally clueless at times. But I realize everything you did for me then, and now, and I cannot thank you enough. I love you and am beyond blessed to be your daughter. God knew what He was doing when He put us together as a family and I thank Him daily for making that decision.

Oh, and one last thing! GO L-K TIGERS!!!

PROUD!!!

One of the greatest things about home school is that you get to work at your child's pace. If your child is having trouble with a certain task/subject then you can take your time working on it, making sure they fully understand before moving on to something else. On the flip side of that ~ if your kid does particularly well on something then you can move on to the next subject at a faster rate.

Yesterday was a hard day for Violet(and me). She just wasn't grasping what her task was for the day. Today though was a completely different story. Today, we not only worked on yesterday's topic again but she breezed through today's work as well! She was incredibly focused and I am beyond proud of her. We have several pages for her Daddy to look at once he gets home (something we do each day). He makes a fuss over what she's accomplished each day and she beams with pride in his praise. And I must admit, my heart swells with pride in his praise of her work too.

Earning Her Keep

Do you remember the sweet little doll I bought recently for when Violet loses her first tooth? Miss. Ima Tooth Fairy ~


Well, Miss. Ima is going to start earning her keep tonight! Violet lost her first tooth this morning...


She is quite pleased with herself. Can ya' tell?

Whew!

Whew, I'm tired. Our home school experience has been a wonderful thing but I sure am worn out by the end of the day. Violet has been doing so well and is one eager beaver when it comes to her schoolwork. Our phonics program works around fine art, which gives the lessons a nice extra touch to them. Today's lesson was centered around The Toreador Fresco from the palace complex, Knossos. (c. 1500 B.C.) (We also cover a bit of history with these lessons.)

[photo courtesy of msn.encarta]

I love being Violet's teacher. Getting to watch my child learn new things is an amazing experience. Sure, she gets frustrated at times. Sure, we can butt heads sometimes. But overall, this has been a wonderful thing and is worth every second of effort it takes to do it. Today Violet told me, "Mommy, I'm glad I get to stay home and you get to teach me." Goodness, my heart melted when she said that!

As far as the loose tooth goes, it's still there but is getting looser with each passing day. I don't expect it to be there by the time the weekend arrives. Violet has seen her Tooth Fairy doll and cannot wait to use it. To say she is excited about losing her first tooth is an understatement. While for me, I keep thinking of her cutting that first tooth and the amazing snaggled-tooth grin she had as a baby.