What's Up?

Oh, just the usual busyness, you know? Dashing about the countryside on errands, homeschooling two teenagers, taking Jack to a new art class in Oxford with other home-educated teens.

This particular one will lead to an IGCSE qualification in Art and Design next summer.

Lots of kayaking. Grace and Jack's skills have both improved a lot! We're hoping they can get some sea kayaking experience in Wales when we go on holiday later this year. I feel more comfortable about that now after seeing how much stronger paddlers they are this year.


Windy came to visit with baby Noah. In this pic, it looks as though I am looking forward to grandmotherhood. Which I am. Windy, lucky for you, the picture of you came out very dark. Or, should I say, lucky for me, because I think you might have hit me with my camera if I'd put it up here.

Babies always like Grace because she lets them play with her necklaces.

I've also had a bit more time for cooking. Not that there's much cooking involved with tacos. But there is usually a lot of fun to be had in watching my family try to eat them.

Above pictured lettuce is from my garden!

Tessie found time in her busy schedule to fit in a nap. On the hammock, no less.

I took the following picture because it is the only corner of my home not currently in a state of complete uproar.

And I really like that little jug.

It was my hurumphty-first birthday and THIS is the card my Beloved sent me.

On the morning of my birthday, after spending 2 hours trying to delete my name from Facebook (and not quite understanding how I'd managed to get signed up, unbeknownst to myself), I decided to spend the rest of the day repainting the dining room. I really know how to celebrate, don't I?

Which necessitated the moving of about 156,893 books.

And then of course, I had to go buy more paint and then strip old wallpaper and then treat mould and then do the kitchen ceiling and then....I'll be at this small project for the next 3 weeks AT LEAST.
And it's all a displacement activity because a) we had to leave our church and have not yet found another one suitable and b) I have a skin biopsy today and I'm scared to death about what horrible things my body might be doing to itself now that I'm hurumphty-one years old.

So many of you dear friends are praying for us right now, I know, and we do appreciate it. This too shall pass.

Though the redecoration project might run and run.