"Not-Back-To-School" Celebration

What better way to celebrate NOT going back to school than to go to
DISNEYLAND!!!!
What a blast! A & B are both tall enough now to go on all the rides!

We had just gone to DisneyWorld about 2 years ago and poor B was still too small to do much of anything. She's also a little speed-demon, so "It's a Small World" was not cuttin' it!
Amazing what a couple years will do! Space Mountain, Big Thunder, Splash Mountain...even the Haunted Mansion. She covered her eyes through much of it, but at least she conquered her fear!!!

My "new" Uncle Jim (birth-family) works there. He does a show and we started the day by seeing that. He even got A & B to go up on stage and be part of the show! We took pictures with Mickey and Cinderella afterwards. It was really a special moment to see the kids on stage at Disney, where I used to work! WITH MY BIRTH-UNCLE!!! It almost brought me to tears.

It's been strange, but in a good way, how things are coming full circle. This has been quite the "trip" so far:)

HomeSchool Update: Yesterday we read a chapter in a Childcraft book, Places to Know.
We also watched the movie, National Treasure. What a great movie!!! It's totally sparked an interest in American History! I see a unit study in our future.

"California, here I come..."

Friday, Aug. 22nd.
We decided to try and get to the parents house by tonight. We left the hotel at 9am and arrived in Upland, CA at 9:45pm. YEAH, we did it!!! Happy to be home.

Oh, and on the road, A worked on map skills, did math-fact cards, wrote in his journal, did some workbook pages that included synonymns, nouns, math review & place values. We played UNO and Pairs.

Whoever said learning can only take place in a classroom is crazy!!!

"0 Miles to E"

Just a quick public service announcement. When driving through Texas in the middle of the night, remember that Texas is REALLY big and things are REALLY spread out. Make sure you have enough gas to get to the next BIG town!!!
As we came round the bend, the very last possible bend before "E", a Chevron magically appeared!!!
Thank you GOD:)

The Alamo & the Riverwalk

Today we went to the Alamo. We saw cannons, cannonballs, bowie knives, a letter written by Davie Crockett and a buck skin vest that he wore.
After strolling around the beautiful gardens and looking at all the artifacts we went to the Riverwalk for lunch. We took a boat tour around the River and learned alot. The architecture is amazing. The river also has a very complex flood-gate system so as not to flood the entire downtown area! It happened before, 1928 the river rose 8 feet above street level! They really don't want that to happen again.
The 1968 World's Fair was here in San Antonio so we learned about the World's Fair tower and the hotels that were built specifically for the Fair. The Palacio del Rio was finished 2 days before the opening of the Fair and it was built 8 miles from downtown and transported, piece by piece and assembled where it stands today.
A & B loved seeing all the ducks in the river. And to top it off, we actually saw someone fall in the river!!! It was very funny, and she was a good sport about it!LOL

TEXAS

We made it to Texas!!! We slammed through NC, SC, Georgia, Alabama, Mississippi and Louisiana in 2 days!!! We hooked up with our friend Marcus in Austin TX, ate, drank, and listened to some great music! Austin is such a cool city!
Now we're in San Antonio. Meeting up with another friend tomorrow. He has an art gallery on the River Walk. So maybe we'll even come home with a beautiful painting!

As far as the family reunion goes, it keeps getting more interesting by the hour. Long story short, a guy I did a show with in college ended up being my birth-step-uncle!!! Is that confusing?Didn't know it at the time, of course. But we did Evita together and my birth-mom came to see him (her step-brother) in the show. Little did she know, she was also seeing her daughter in the same show!!! I know, crazy, huh?
Well he's having a party for me and he's invited some other college friends!! I haven't seen these people in like 20 years. It's going to be a total trip.

We're STILL here!

We decided to stay in town one more day to tie up loose ends. It's been raining so much lately, so we really have to mow the lawn. If we don't, by the time we get back it's going to be a jungle!

Oh, and the fact that I haven't started packing!! Spent most of yesterday in town with the kids, running errands and then a get-together with our HS group friends.

I've been talking with M (birth-mom in CA) and it looks like 2 parties are already in the works. They were pre-exsisting gatherings, but now our "meeting" has been incorporated!!! It's pretty incredible to think about. All the pieces of the puzzle have started to fit together. 39 years of questions, searching for my heritage, wonderinging where I come from. The door has finally opened and I'm about to walk in! WOW!

So I better get my butt in gear and start packin'!!! LOL

I finally took pics of the latest projects. The vintage tea-towel purse. You can't see the shoulder strap that well, but it's black. And then there's the Indian pillow cover purse. I love that one.

I LOVE A RAINY NIGHT...

It rained all night and has continued all day! Man I love it! I don't think it's been this cool since early last spring. I have all the windows open and we're airing out all the rooms.Ah, Fresh air!!!

It's also forced us to be indoors getting stuff done for our trip. I actually finished a couple sewing projects that have been sitting around for weeks! I finished a purse. It turned out really cute. It's made from vintage tea-towels that my Aunt gave me. One has a butler serving drinks, the other has a maid drying a dish. I sewed them together, attached a strap, put on a button and loop for a closure and -Voila! A one of a kind creation.

I also made a cool purse out of pillow covers from India. Tassles and all. I was on a shopping bag making kick for a long time too. Using only repurposed fabrics such as old clothes, tablecloths, anything I could get my hands on. Actually successful enough to sell at some local craft fairs.
I get very gung-ho about my projects. Then my motivation wanes and I'm on to something else. I'm never lacking enthusiasm, only hours in the day!

Tick, tick, tick...

OK, I told myself I was not going to start freaking out. But the clock is ticking and I feel like I'm never going to get everything done. Of course, I know that I WILL get everything done. This is just something I do with every trip. I want to be totally prepared for anything. Which really is ridiculous. It's not like we're going to a deserted island. If I forget anything or if someone needs something, all we have to do is go buy it, right?

I remember a road trip we took when I was about 7. From California to Michigan! The parents and 3 kids in the back of a station wagon. Talk about lack of comfort!!! We all survived and I have a lot of great memories from that trip.

We didn't have a dvd player in the car or a laptop computer. We didn't stop for kid's meals with toys. We didn't stay in fancy hotels. For our entertainment on the road, we had hang-man, tic-tac-toe and cross-word puzzles. Mom packed a cooler and we had picnics at rest-stops or even the side of a country road. And most nights we pulled into a little motor-lodge. Sometimes we were lucky enough to stay at one that had a pool!!!

As of this post, I'm officially done freaking out! Our kids got it pretty good these days! LOL
The suitcases and cooler will get packed. Who cares if we forget something. The point is to have a have a great time, see some cool stuff, spend some much needed time with family, and create memories that we'll have forever.

Lovely way to start the day.

I love mornings like this. Putting my coffee on, opening all the curtains, seeing that it's not 90degrees out!!! - Yeah, I can have my coffee out on the patio!!!
I'm trying to make this a morning ritual. I have a tendency to go straight to the computer, answer emails and read some news. Sometimes not alway the most positive way to begin the day.

On the other hand, getting some fresh air, admiring my garden, watching the squirrels and the birds, oh and sipping my freshly brewed coffee, now that's a very positive way to begin the day!

Then little B joined me and we chatted about the woodpeckers and the clouds. She informed me that when the clouds are sad and they cry that's when it rains. When the clouds are happy, that's when a rainbow appears! What a beautiful idea. Thanks B.

Countdown to the Family Road Trip '08

In one week we are off on a month long trip, cross-country to California!!! We did it back in 2005 and I vowed that I would NEVER do it again!!! Never say never, right?!!! Somehow, my brave husband talked me into it. "The kids are older", "We'll take our time", "It'll be educational"...

I was born and raised in CA and all of my family still lives there. My parents are at that age where traveling is much more difficult. So if we're going to spend any amount of time with them, we're the ones who are gonna have to get there. Although Rick is not from there, he spent SO much time in CA that we're both surprised we never ran into eachother. We had to wait till I moved to FL to fall in love! He really enjoys the west coast, so any opportunity to go, he's all for it.

There's actually a lot to accomplish on this trip. First and foremost, see my parents. But there's a little twist to the situation. I'm adopted and I found my birth-family about 2 years ago! My birth-mom lives only 20 minutes from the house I grew up in! She has been dying for me to come out and meet the rest of the "family". Looks like there may be a big reunion, of sorts, to look forward too while there. Could get interesting. Ya think?

So besides the packing, I'm going to try and prepare myself mentally to meet my relatives for the very first time, in person! WOW.

Here goes nothin'! OR maybe somethin'!

So we figured since we do actually have a pretty cool life (well, we think so) that it'd be fun to write about it. We travel a lot, we're musicians and our kids are totally wonderful.

We're trying to live by example and not buy into the whole consumeristic mentality that has such a strangle-hold on so many families. We grow much of our own food. We recycle everything possible. We compost everything else. We dream (well at least I do-haha) of one day having our own little homestead with chickens, some goats and a pig! Our goal is to be totally off-the-grid. Complete with geo-thermal, solar and wind power. Oh, and an electric car! I know, those of you who know us think we must be totally nutso, but hey, we've evolved. We're not the same people we used to be. I don't think it's possible for any of us to be the same.

We homeschool, because frankly, we think we can do a better job and have a heck of a lot more fun doing it. Our son A is 9 and our daughter B is 4. We have a blast and we all learn, together.

So, this is the beginning of what we hope is a fun, surprising, not-too-exhausting adventure!