Happy Mothers Day

Everybody slept in at SBR this morning. I shared coffee and conversation with Dad while Mom fixed breakfast and the girls worked on a special banner.



They also drew several pictures for me.






Dad & I went out to the new 78 to move the bulldozer and take out a gate, replacing it with barbed wire. Bryan and the guys have strung wire with Dad before, but this was the first time I helped alone. The hardest part was pounding the metal stakes into the dry, hard ground. When we started it was very nice outside -overcast and not terribly hot, although the dust gets into everything. In your nose, mouth, coats your skin & clothes. We were coated with dust and sweat before we finished and the sun burned off the clouds letting the sun beat down.









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Location:Silver Mine Road Harwood,Harwood,United States

Getting ready for Santa

It's been a very full and busy day in the kitchen this Christmas Eve. The girls baked cookies, made fudge (which didn't set and got tossed out), baked pizza muffins for lunch, and helped Bryan as he made four batches of peanut brittle. Meanwhile I made Paleo apple muffins for breakfast, a Paleo breakfast casserole, and three pies for tomorrow.

We attended the 8:30 p.m. Christmas Eve Mass and Cameron altar served. The combined adult choirs performed for about thirty minutes before Mass and overwhelmed all of us with a beautiful Hallelujah Chorus after Communion. Surprisingly it wasn't crowded at all; there were plenty of seats available. The downpour and lightening outside may have discouraged some from attending. After Mass, the girls were excited to get things ready for Santa's arrival. Brenna placed a cookie and peanut brittle piece, alongside the milk. Cameron created a cross as a gift for Santa.

Bryan opened up the fireplace and set out towels for Santa's wet feet....

Merry Christmas Eve. Sweet dreams to all!

Slump It Fuse It

The WAVE program at Westbrook includes creative mini-courses that rotate every 9 weeks. Cameron gets to request certain classes, though there is no guarantee she'll be assigned to her first choice.

The first 9 weeks she did KWIS news, a short television news program. For that class she worked on-screen doing the weather and behind the camera (literally) as cameraman.

She started this 9 weeks with a 4.5 week "Creativity" course (her 7th choice) and is ending with her first pick, a course called "Slump It Fuse It."

She had to put together a box with gloves, goggles, and apron because they were working with glass. Today she brought home her first project (of two) and I'm super impressed!

I don't know whether you can see the details of this pretty glass, but she cut clear glass and colored glass, added frit (green dots), and full fused it in a kiln. How cool is this!

Brenna's Love Note

Brenna set up this little love note for me using the magnetic poetry set I received years ago from Dove. Can you read it? "mom has unique beauty love daughters". She shaped the rest of the words into a heart.

Parker Grace

Congratulations to Amanda & Brad as they welcome their daughter, Parker Grace. Cameron and Brenna are thrilled to have their first Kelly cousin, born Wednesday, November 24,at 4:23 pm. weighing 8 lbs. 5.3 oz., and measuring 20.5 inches.

Even Bryan was very moved when he received the news. He commented that it was a little different for him since this is his first niece on his side of the family, his brother's child.

When Brad called last night, I could hear the emotion in Bryan's voice and it reminded me of vividly of when he called his mother after Cameron was born.

We both spent a lot time thinking and talking about Donna and how much this new granddaughter would mean to her. We'll all make sure that Parker knows something about her Grandma Donna.

Welcome little Parker! We can't wait to meet you and for a moment be one big Kelly family.

Pumpkin patch

Another year at the pumpkin patch, but this year they don't look like little girls anymore at all.

Chess Club

I've been meaning to post that shortly after school started, Brenna brought home several notices about school clubs she could join. Several of these meet after school (3-4 p.m.)which makes it pretty difficult for a working mom to allow her to participate since the daycare van only picks up right after school.

One club meets in the morning, before school, though they select their members by seniority (returning members) and then by a lottery (draw names.) Brenna expressed an interest, and I signed the permission form. She came home a few days later thrilled beyond belief because her name was chosen for the .... chess club!

Every Tuesday and Thursday she arrives at school before 7:30 in order to play chess with other members for thirty minutes. Apparently there is a "chess master" (volunteer) who goes around watching them play games, teaches them moves, and sometimes plays against a student. She's learned quite a bit and loves showing off her new strategies and skills.