Fun at the Park

For Real Thursdays - Modern Technology, Worth It?

Sometimes I wonder if we're really better off with all this technology. I mean, really, did we stress so much before as we do now? The computer doesn't load pages fast enough, our phones don't have range when we need it most, shut downs happen at the most inopportune times.

The reason I mention this is because yesterday when I went to sync my phone with my computer in order to load a picture that I wanted for my Wordless Wednesday post, my phone decided for no apparent reason to go into recovery mode. Now we could have easily restored my phone but I didn't want to lose all the information (like calendar reminders, contacts and said photo) and have to restore back to before all my new information was added. My precious husband worked for over two hours trying to recover my phone without having to restore it, all the while our computers were not loading pages and freezing up on us throughout the whole process making a stressful situation even more stressful. He finally ended up having to restore my phone because nothing we tried worked. Fortunately, (I believe because I was praying very hard) all my contacts, calendar info and said photo were still there. But really, it made me wonder how much easier things were before all these modern "conveniences" came about. Don't get me wrong, I love my phone and computer, I just wish they always worked when you needed them.

How about you? What do you think? Were things easier and less stressful before it all or do you think it's all worth it?

Tuesday's Tip - A Little Bit of Down Time

Now that school is starting back up and things are a little more hectic than they were before, make sure you are getting a little down time in each day. With homeschooling many kids of various ages, I do have my kids take a little time each day to themselves, usually while the little ones are napping. It also gives me a while to rest and take care of things I need to do, like take a nap myself sometimes. It helps me to have a better attitude as well.

My tip for today is to make sure you stop for just a few moments each day. It helps so much in making your day run smoothly.

Maggie Moo's

Each time one of our kids has a birthday we (Mom and/or Dad) take them out for ice cream. Last year it was Baskin Robbins, this year it's Maggie Moo's. This past weekend I took the girls out for their birthday ice cream. Now those of you who keep up with my posts know that the girl's birthdays were in January. So why am I just now taking them out for their birthday? Because we were doing a churchwide fast in January and time has completely slipped away and we are just now getting around to taking them out for their birthday ice cream. I suppose it's better late than never. The girls didn't mind.

Do you have a special place you take your kids for their birthday? Does the whole family join or do you take the birthday kid out alone? I love input, so share your special celebrations. Maybe you'll inspire someone else to do the same :)

Maggie Moo's!

Yummy!

Mmmm Mmmm Good!

For Real Thursdays - Time Flies

Took the kids out today for a picnic at the park. It's a beautiful day here in TN and where it may be hot in the sun, the cool breeze makes the shade a perfect place to be. I cannot believe that this summer is already practically over. Seems like just last week we finished school and summer break began. Now the temperatures are beginning to SLOWLY drop and today my husband texted me a picture of some colors changing on some trees he passed while driving to his jobs. Amazing how times flies. I always have so many things planned in my head of what we will do each summer. Then before you know it, summer is over and it's time for school again.

I must admit that I do LOVE the fact that we homeschool and all those trips to the park and hiking, etc. can still be part of our plans, besides I enjoy those activities more in the fall anyway :)

It does truly seem that time is traveling faster than I can keep up with. Kyle is now 7 months old and it seems like just a couple of months ago we had Christmas. Before I know it Christmas will be here again, unbelievable.

I guess what I need to remember to do is to make the most of every day. Not to take things for granted and to remember that life is not all about me. If life is going to continue to fly by, I will just have to make it one great ride.

Wordless Wednesday - Pawpaw's Chair

Everybody LOVES Pawpaw's comfy recliner.

Tuesday's Tip - Packing

Since we've headed to NC three times this summer, I decided to try different packing methods each time to see what worked best. The first time I packed normally, the second time I packed each persons clothes in separate individual, labeled (Walmart) bags, the last time I packed a number of individuals clothes for a day in a (Walmart) bag and labeled them.

I think I liked the last method best. Our second trip in which we put everyone's clothes in separate labeled bags left us with what felt like a hundred bags all over the place. Our last trip we placed all the boys pants for one day in a bag together and their shirts in another bag, etc. This left us with less bags everywhere and the same accomplishment of being organized.

I do have to admit that this idea was not my own. I borrowed it from the Duggar's and it works. So the next time you're heading out on a trip try it and see what you think.