All Else Aside, How ‘Bout Twenty-Three Photos From The Past Thirty Days Taken With Kelly’s Old iPhone 4S, As I Need To Order A “Micro-Switch” Off Ebay For My Kodak EasyShare Z981 Which Is On The Blink Again But Really Is A Great Little Camera When It Actually Works.

This past Saturday and Sunday our awesome gymnastics club hosted a meet for 575 athletes.

It rocked!

And I got to do iPad score entry for all 5 sessions!!!

For our “Wizard of Oz” theme I designed and painted that 7′ x 7′ 5″ mural. Started it Monday and finished Friday, painting sometimes long into the night, mostly because I had no idea what I was doing 🙂 but I think it ended up fine!

Part of me wants to now cover the hills completely in poppies.

But most of me just wants a long long nap. 🙂

A late night Toe Selfie — my right big toe tapped the button.

(Yes, my left hand was covered in green paint. Parts of me still are. And may be for a long time.) 🙂

Sponged on and swirled the sky first.

Many awesome parents, coaches and gymnasts lend their time and talents to pull off this annual event.

(Sorry about the yellow brick road tape residue. My partial bad. Never again tape on the floor, I super-promise.)

Other artistes helped decorate too…

In Other Gym News… a couple weeks ago Kelly made major progress on the uneven bars!

Took that through the left gym door window at the end of practice. She was beaming.

Yay, Kelly! So proud of you for trusting yourself and your coach to fly away, perchance to land on your feet each time!!

In More Other News… I’ve begun home-schooling her in French.

I told you I am a certified French teacher, right?! I actually taught kids Kelly’s age 25 years ago in Nova Scotia!

Bought a good used curriculum for pennies on the dollar, off eBay and Amazon.com.

We will probably home-school Kelly entirely starting next year, so she can focus even more on gymnastics while allowing her a continued schoolin’ / sleep / Instagram / family / friend time balance.

This year “we” do homework 30 minutes daily before gym.

Luckily we have a PE waiver, which allows her to leave school at 2:40 instead of 4:00.

On the Home-Improvement and Organizing front of my life…

I turned a Goodwill pile into this…

And with simple denim panels and a rod (yard sale finds totaling $10…)

I transformed my eBay storage nook into this…

Notice the cat on the shelf 2 photos above?

Here he is again…

“Ceviche” likes to sleep on the Medium Flat Rate boxes.

AND FINALLY…

In Other Big News, someone in our house recently turned 13!

THIRTEEN!

It was a sleep-over party on a rainy Saturday night where they painted each others’ nails and laughed a lot.

Bought that custom banner off eBay for $20 for her 6th birthday.

On her actual birth day Thursday morning I snapped the following a nano-second before she turned to notice the banner on her way to the school bus stop…

I guess most everybody on the bus saw it and cheered for her, and the driver announced her birthday over the PA.

Pretty awesome.

xooxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxooxoxoxoxo

P.S. You ALL rock!
P.P.S. I have not visited any blogs in 5 or 6 weeks, sorry. Hopefully soon I will!
P.P.P.S. You rock even more than the last time I told you so.
P.P.P.P.S. I am going to sleep now.

What Do These 5 Summer Vacation Photos All Have In Common?

(my feet at my parents’ cottage.)

If you’re thinking “Hey… Jannie is in every one of those,” you’re absolutely right! And you win a prize!!

The prize is… I’ll write you a short poem on any topic you want in a comment below.

So give me a word or short phrase, and I’ll totally write you a poem. Totally, totally!

And even if you weren’t thinking “Hey, Jannie’s in all those” you still get a poem if you want!

🙂

xoxooxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo from Jannie, who recently had the privilege of going HOME with Kelly and Jim!!

Off To Canada…

Just a few random pix from since last we met.

And we’re off to The Home(and native)land tomorrow, eh?

i’ll think of you there
on all of the shores

but i probably won’t be found
eating any ‘smores.

for i have been dreaming
for manys a moon

of the Extra Special Treat
i shall savor, and soon.

MR. BIG BARS!!!!!!!!

Best Chocolate Bar Treat Known To The Planet!!!

You have a favorite candy bar?

Thanks for popping in. See you when we get back!

oxoxoxxoxoxooxxooxoxoxoxoxoxoxo

P.S. The red shoes. She’s a size 3, but the smallest available is a 5. (TG!!) Heels can so wait, like, when she’s 18.

We Return To The Yoga Pyramid

we return to
The Yoga Pyramid
Easter Sunday

when Texan frogs
are about to light
jasmine candles

and

Australian frogs
are doing morning
sit-ups in bed.

some of us
have never
met, yet

we have all
known each
other since
God Googled

“how to build
beings who know
love is always
the way to go.”

55 words for “Mama Z’s” poetry blog.  (Please scroll to her Monday April 21st post.)

I really really like the photos at her “Zen of Motherhood” blog too!  Check them out!!

Now  back to Texas…

In the log cabin before we head down the path to the Om ceremony.

Some of us meet for the first time.

That’s Walter Suhr closest to the blue cup.

Tracy going into The Pyramid.

Husband exiting The Pyramid.

Chillin’ on the cabin’s back deck later.

And a seventh Big Photo because I adore sevens.

xooxoxoxoxooxoxooxxooxo

Scenes From A Texas Hill Country Spring Break Vacation

Enjoyed a few glorious days with friends who are nearing completion of their all-cedar yoga pyramid.

25 squares comprise the newly-finished floor, with the center one being extra-special.

Here I am in my lucky blue hat…

Once the basement cave is finished, guests will remove their shoes there, wash their feet in a stream pumped from one of the koi ponds, and ascend to the sanctuary.

Quite the place!

(That scaffolding will be removed eventually.)

Here’s a view of the pyramid from a mile or 2 away…

See it?

Wait…

I managed to get a lucky (because my glasses were in the truck) zoom shot of it…

Near the pyramid is their log cabin home,

which often doubles as a hair salon,

and pillow fight parlor.

A log cabin with WiFi and all the modern creature comforts — not bad!

Wood is gathered for the fireplace.

Chickens are raised.

One hen is actually named Kelly and one is named Jannie! And Kelly just laid her first egg!!

Veggies are planted.

And the bread — OMG, the bread!!

The lady of the cabin bakes it from her own recipe.

BEST.

BREAD.

EVER.

Her pancakes are from scratch, of course!

And her soup from those organic chickens she raises.

Even Jannie, the hen will end up a feast one day.

(Hey, it’s a farm.)

A farm with a hot tub on the sunset side of the house.

From that deck you can see the stretch of road where I took the long-distance pyramid shots from!

That was my wine!

3 parting tidbits about our stay in the hill country…

I fell in love with that 8″ tall cactus,

those blossoms,

and am ever more in wonderment that the Universe could grace me with such an incredibly wonderful friend, who for some strange reason…. seems to like me too. 🙂

What’d I ever do to deserve so much awesome??!

~~ Posted by Jannie, who hopes to see you at the pyramid one day.

xoxooxoxooxoxoxoxoxoo