Riverbend Ramblings

Labels: Daily Life, Outdoor Life, This N That

Labels: Daily Life, Favorite Things, Fun Stuff, Outdoor Life

Dusk is approaching.

Curly Girl, Lil Nut, and Mickey feed the fish.

What is she looking at?

Baby frogs!

Labels: Daily Life, Fun Stuff, Outdoor Life, The Kiddos

Lemon poppyseed muffins



New leaves springing forth



Azaleas in bloom



Food for the birds



Smells like spring

Labels: In the Garden, Keeping the Home, Outdoor Life

Last week we took a day trip to North Florida. We ate lunch with my dad and his wife at a delightful little restaurant. My oldest sister, her husband, and my niece joined us. After lunch my sister invited the kids to go to her house for a little while. My sister and her husband own one of the largest and most successful Thoroughbred breeding and training farms in the state. Almost every Triple Crown race has at least one horse in it that was broken at their farm. They have a gorgeous 300 acre training facility. Their house is located on the back of the property. The girls were thrilled to spend some time with their 12 year old cousin. Bookworm loves to ride horses, and my niece has several of her own. They had so much fun riding together. I'm looking forward to taking the kids back for another visit soon. It's so peaceful there! Here are a few pictures I snapped as we drove around the farm. Next time I'll take some pictures of the horses.

Labels: Family Life, Fun Stuff, Outdoor Life

This is what we do to our plants in Florida when it freezes. This is what happens to your plants when you don't bundle them up before you go to bed. Don't worry; the orange trees are fine. ;)

Labels: Outdoor Life

Lengthening shadows... Bright pink sunsets... A slight breeze blowing through the trees... Windows open while we sleep... Autumn has arrived.

Labels: Daily Life, Favorite Things, Outdoor Life

Oh, what a beautiful day! And it's Saturday, too. I'm Looking forward to enjoying the day with my family. Have a great weekend!

Labels: Daily Life, Family Life, Outdoor Life

Labels: Daily Life, Outdoor Life

A few days ago Steven spotted this cute little green frog on top of my truck. I, of course, wanted to take a picture of the little guy (or gal). I opened the passenger door, climbed up, stretched my arm out as far as it would go, and snapped a picture. Steven tossed his baseball cap up on the hood in an attempt to gently nudge the frog a tiny bit closer to the camera. Well, the frog decided to take a two feet leap from the center of the hood and landed on my neck! I could feel one leg on my face and the rest of him attached to my neck. I let out a blood-curdling scream, the frog released its death grip, landed with a soft thud on the driveway, and quickly hopped into the nearby bushes. Needless to say, my husband laughed so hard he cried. He probably wouldn't have found the scene quite so funny if I would have toppled from my precarious perch. After I recovered from my fright, I had a good laugh, too. Next time I'll think twice before going in for a close-up. That's what Photoshop is for.

Labels: Fun Stuff, Outdoor Life

Labels: Outdoor Life

I spent most of the weekend in bed with a cold. Curl Girl wasn't feeling very good herself this morning, so we've both been taking it easy today. We ate our lunch out at the picnic table and enjoyed the sunshine. Guess what we found in the backyard? Lettuce from last year's seeds! I wish everything in the garden would spring up with so little effort from me. I think we'll plan on salads for lunch tomorrow.These next two pictures are for my Northern friends. Flowers are beginning to bloom here. It's supposed to get cold again in the next couple of days. I hope these blossoms don't die. I felt good enough this afternoon to tackle my messy laundry room. It took me two hours to get it super clean. I have a tendency to let the clean clothes pile up on top of the counter, and the pile grows bigger and bigger. I'm determined to keep that counter cleared off!This little fur-baby makes me smile. He needs a haircut, but he's still adorable.Lord-willing our household will be sniffle-free tomorrow and I'll be able to go into the office for a few hours. I hope you have a wonderful week!

Labels: Daily Life, Keeping the Home, Outdoor Life, Pets

It's early Saturday morning, and we're on the lookout for snow as I type. I'm still doubtful, but you never know. It's 33 degrees and raining. I've never seen it snow in Florida in my entire life. I'll keep you posted. ***UPDATE*** No snow here, just a light rain. It's supposed to clear up later today and be frigid tonight and tomorrow with a low of 25 and high of 43. I'm sure that will hurt our church attendance some. I've got socks on my feet and plan to spend the day indoors. Stay warm, wherever you are, and have a blessed weekend! :)

Labels: Fun Stuff, Outdoor Life

Last week my hubby and I had a chance to get away together for a few days. The grandmas were kind enough to take the kids for us, and Toby spent his vacation at the kennel. Poor doggy! I really needed this time away, but I didn't realize how exhausted I was until the third day of our trip. It has been a real adjustment going back to work after being home full-time for the last nine years. And my job, although it has some wonderful, fulfilling moments, is not the easiest one out there. Students love their principal; parents are sometimes another story. It's a huge responsibility knowing that children, parents, teachers, and staff are counting on me to make right decisions and lead the school down the path God has for us. I have to admit, at times I feel overwhelmed. This trip could not have come at a better time. I was ready for a break, and this year I've really been missing the atmosphere that autumn in the mountains brings. Remember, in Florida there are only two seasons: hot and hotter! :) We were able to fellowship with friends on this trip and just take our time doing what we wanted to do. We had so much fun in the mountains and spent one afternoon hiking up Amicalola Falls. It was truly breathtaking! Here a few pictures we snapped along the way. We had some bitter-sweet moments on our trip, too. One of the men from our church in Georgia, Bro. Cameron, was in a horrible accident the week of our trip. An electrical transformer he was working on exploded in a fireball. Bro. Cameron received 3rd degree burns all over his upper body. He is still in a coma and in critical condition in the burn unit in Atlanta. He turned 80 last week. He and his wife Fay are two of the godliest people I've ever met. Bro. Cameron is a man who has truly walked with God and has served him faithfully for many, many years. For those of you familiar with Bro. Lester Roloff and the Roloff homes in Texas, Bro. Cameron worked there for many years and was the pastor of the church there after Bro. Roloff went to heaven. Please pray for Bro. Cameron and his family during this difficult time. They are still taking things hour by hour. We were able to visit the hospital a couple of times and share some sweet moments with Mrs. Cameron and the family and some of our Georgia church family as well. Our hearts are just aching for all of them, but we know that God's grace is sufficient even when we don't understand.

Labels: Family Life, Outdoor Life, Special Days

Steven and I are in the mountains...ALONE...and loving every minute spent together admiring God's beautiful creation! :)

Labels: Family Life, Outdoor Life

Today was a wonderful, relaxing day for our family. Well, most of the day was relaxing; I spent the first half of it scaling Mt. Washmore. Six loads later, I was ready for some fun. We went over to Grandma and Papa's house for the afternoon. All the kids took turns riding on the four-wheeler. There are no pictures of Lil' Nut because she was riding with the photographer (me). The lake was very calm, so we took the boat out for a ride. Mickey took this picture. Lil' Nut took this one. I love this one! A penny for her thoughts... After such an enjoyable day I feel ready to head back to school tomorrow and tackle the pile of papers waiting on my desk. :) ETA: I want to thank all of you who lifted my friends up in prayer during their time of sorrow and left such sweet comments on my post. There was a private burial yesterday with just the immediate family in attendance. One of my favorite things about blogging is how we can unite in prayer for people we've never met, and the Lord knows all the details.

Labels: Family Life, Fun Stuff, Outdoor Life, The Kiddos

It's hard to believe that August will be here in just a few more days. It's been hot here in Central Florida this summer, but we've had enough rain to keep things looking green. The garden planted in the spring has helped stretch my food budget this summer. We've eaten countless salads from it. I'm going to plant some more tomatoes in the next couple of weeks and perhaps some more lettuce, too. All of the Crepe Myrtles in our yard are in full bloom. We have both pink and white varieties. Eventually it would be nice to add some purple and red varieties as well. We've mixed in a lot of fun this summer. Last weekend my hubby and I spent an evening with with one of the couples' Sunday school classes from our church. We ate supper at a Japanese steakhouse and then played glow-in-the-dark miniature golf. That was a first for me. The putt-putt place was inside a mall, and all of the props glowed in the dark. It was definitely challenging, but I think I prefer the regular kind of putt-putt on a course where I can actually see the hole I'm aiming for. :)After we finished golfing we stopped by a restaurant for dessert. I've been staying away from sugar lately but decided to splurge on our date night. Hubby and I each ordered a brownie sundae. Talk about a huge dessert! We could have split one, but where's the fun in that? :) We really enjoyed the fellowship with good Christian friends. Bookworm spent two weeks visiting my dad. All of the kids missed her, but I think Lil' Nut missed her the most. She hasn't let Bookworm out of her sight since she came home. Hopefully we'll get away for a mini-vacation later this week. I'm ready for some R & R. :) I hope you all have a wonderful week!

Labels: Family Life, Fun Stuff, Outdoor Life