36th year in education

Monday, August 24, marks my 36th one to begin as an educator - hard to believe. It seems like at least half of the parents that come in to register students were also students of mine before.

Josey, Laney, and I went to B/CS yesterday to the annual horsemen's market & to shop. Josey has 2 new top teeth. It was a fun day.

Readers' Digest

Laney called this morning to give me bad news - that Readers' Digest is filing bankruptcy. I was so glad she realized the importance. My Uncle Fred started giving me a subscription to Readers' Digest before I was 10, so I've been enjoying the magazine for almost 50 years now, and I'm thrilled that Laney too enjoys it immensely. Like I have before her, she uses it at school often. Hopefully it can hang in there so Josey too can read and enjoy it. I have so many plans for Josey to read things. Hopefully she'll be the 4th generation of our family to enjoy the Lonesome Dove trilogy, and other McMurtry books. That's jumping ahead quite a bit, but I believe in planning ahead!

Josey in new hat!

Josey looks like she's about to say, "I can ride him - open the gate!" She gets more fun daily.

Sunday I put Josey in the pool for a while, and she really was fascinated by the hose - I think she's learned how good water tastes right out of a hydrant or hose! Her little earrings are so cute - she had her ears pierced July 31. Sunday we went to B/CS for a bit and I really like her black and white dress you see in the 2nd photo. YOu can tell I really adore her no matter what she's wearing!

my summer over

Technically my summer has been over since Tuesday, when I came back to work at school. I worked in Abilene all last week, doing public relations for the Texas State 4-H Horse Show. It was almost dark Saturday when I got home. Sunday we had lunch at Lana's to celebrate Mother's 80th birthday, and I kept Josey on Monday while Laney had a workshop. Josey and I had great fun. I bought her a palm leaf hat in Abilene, and she seems to like wearing it. I can't wait to post photos, but so far haven't gotten any.

Like Abra says on her blog, I'm a book lover. It's hard to decideon favorite books, I love so many. For kids, my favorites are Jennifer, Hecate, McBeth, Willliam McKinley, and Me, Elizabeth, and also A Wrinkle in Time. It'll be a long time until Josey will be ready fo rthose. Some of my favorite adult books have been Gone With The Wind, Lonesome Dove, The Streets of Laredo, Comanche Moon, Fried Green Tomatoes, amd Water For Elephants. I really enjoy anything Dick Francis writes, but his books aren't what you call great books. For a while I really liked Patricia Cornwell and James Patterson, but I don't enjoy them as much any more. I read to escape, I think. I've lots of ideas for writing, and hope one day to sit down and write a book.

There are so many things I wish I could do. I'd love to know how to :
1. make pottery
2. paint and/or draw artistically
3. weld
4. cut and lay ceramic tile
5. upholster furniture
6. take better quality of photographs
7. Do wood working and build furniture and things

Summer is waning fast. Day after tomorrow I go to Abilene for the State Horse Show, leaving here July 26 and returning August 1. Then I go back to work pretty quickly. This summer has been great. I'd hated that we didn't vacation anywhere, and I told Laney I'd call this Ice Cream Summer, and try to make a freezer of homemade ice cream weekly. I've fallen down on that some, only making 4 freezers, but that was better than ever befroe. The season has been best because I've spent lots of time with Josey and Laney. Laney's such a good mother that I sit and marvel at it. Josey has such a little personality of her own already, and I think she knows me and recognizes me now. You can be emy heart melts when she reaches for me!

rain

The community at which I live is called Laceola - once about 80 years ago there was a post office on the corner. This morning we received 2.2 inches of rain! It fell nice and slow, over about 3 hours time, and as of noon the sun had not shone on it yet, so maybe it won't just bake right back out. Thank God.