Dad

Difficult to see, but it is a poster I made for the family day we had in his honor. The pictures are of some of his airplanes and cars. I especially love the black and white of him in his suit and tie. The little red plane was his racing plane, named "Miss Carol".

Dad lived a very full and adventurous life. No one could ever say he did not live life to it's fullest. He found much joy in the natural world that surrounded him and wrote often of his little critter friends that paid visits to his feeders. There are so many wonderful memories that I will cherish forever and I may post some later.

For now it is enough to say that he is missed terribly and I am forever grateful that he was my dad.

Beka is 19

A late post about some of the things that have been happening around here over the summer.

Kids went to camp, we celebrated birthdays, Sarah broke her leg playing soccer, and I flew out to Washington just in time to say farewell to my dear Dad.

So, here are a few pictures to go along with what has been happening in our lives.

The Broken Leg

Happy 13th Birthday Susannah

Susannah was treated to a special lunch by the Westfall Grandparents on her birthday, September 1st. Tim, Abby, and I tagged along to celebrate.

The wait staff serenaded her and brought her a hot fudge sundae with candle aflame on top.

How hard it is to believe that she is 13 already!

Happy Birthday Susannah!

Grandma's Attic

Out of all the sights we saw in Tallahassee this was the kid's favorite. This was part of the Florida History Museum, which was a wonderful place to visit so we could tie up all of those Florida history loose ends we had dangling. This room was filled with antiques and vintage clothes to dress up in. Just the place to let off steam and have fun pretending to live back in the days of switchboards and wash boards.

Tallahassee

The old capital building in front of the new capital building. It is hard to imagine that people had to protest the tearing down of this lovely old building as the "powers that be" had intended on making it a giant courtyard in front of that ugly tower in the background.

The kids called it the candy cane building because of the red and white striped awnings. So cheerful, clean, and welcoming.

Wakulla Springs

Earlier this month we dropped Hannah off for S.E.E.K. at this picturesque lodge in Wakulla Springs State Park. It was built in the twenties and was filled with antiques and decorated with old pictures. The ceiling was carved wood with beautiful paintings on the panels. Hannah said each room was uniquely decorated and were very large. Not at all like bunking down in the dorms at the University of Florida last summer.

The middle kids and I spent 4 days exploring Tallahassee and studying Florida history together. We were blessed in so many ways by the lovely people we encountered. From the visitor center to the Mission San Luis, we were treated like royalty. The people took their time to teach us everything they could and were so patient with the less than enthusiastic one when they got no response to their inquiries. At the Museum of Florida History the director loaded us down with books, c.d.s, maps, and many educational items when he found out we were homeschoolers. I have never learned so much or met such lovely people on a field trip as we met during our visit.

We enjoyed driving around the city and learned our way around by getting lost numerous times. This is my way of finding all the treasured spots and it is a fun adventure, although it is a bit stressful at times. The old brick buildings and meticulous landscaping kept my head turning and my camera clicking. We walked until our feet hurt and then walked some more. One child begged to take elevators just to get a break from all the steps we walked up and down.

The simple candle inside a friar's cell at Mission San Luis.

Although this is a reproduction of what the Mission looked like, the people who worked here made history come alive. They were in character the whole time and we felt we were a part of the life they lived so long ago.

The bell would be rung for prayer. There was chanting in the church and many reproductions of religious art. An altar, crucifix, candles, and baptistery made you feel you were walking on holy ground. The fact that Florida had it's own Camino Real, just like California's, made me go back to my youth when I studied the missions. So many fond memories of the holy moments in my childhood.

I will post more when I've had a chance to go through the multitude of pictures.