Day 31: After the Rain

It rained last night--one of the few times we've been rained on since a very wet December. The clouds split this afternoon over the meadow just outside our gate, the storm breaking apart as sunshine reclaimed its rightful place in sunny Southern California....

Day 30: Stopping Time

Keith is attempting to repair my mother's Sessions mantel clock (which belonged to her grandmother) which gets gummed up by the ocean humidity in their beach house. Every few years he takes the whole thing apart, cleans all the cogs and whirlygigs, and puts it back together. It's being more stubborn than usual this go-around though; it keeps stopping for no apparent reason. So it has become an addition to our kitchen table where Keith can keep a steady eye on it as he tries to restore time to its regular flow.

Day 29: "C" is for "Cookie"

We bought my dad this Cookie Monster t-shirt last June for Father's Day as we were continually catching him in the cookie jar. ;) Well, Jonathan wanted one too, so he bought his with his Christmas money. When Mom and Dad stopped by to drop off Elizabeth's stuff on their way to their cabin, we managed to snap a photo of our two Cookie Monsters.

Day 28: The Mission Cemetery

This entrance leads to the oldest part of the Mission San Luis Rey Cemetery which nestles up to the eastern side of the church itself. Our dear friends, C and J, buried their daughter C here in the new section, so we now call The Mission San Luis Rey "C's Mission."

Day 27: The Mission Fountain

This photo courtesy of Guest Photographer Timothy (age 15)

This fountain at the Mission San Luis Rey in Oceanside was where the Native American women came for the water they needed in their small houses which surrounded the Mission proper. It was also used by the friars who lived in the Mission. I can just imagine women gathering here for an early afternoon chat before returning to their homes to cook the evening meal....

Day 26: Still at the Mission....

The old mission arch at Mission San Luis Rey. Behind the arch are the rose gardens and the very first pepper tree in California. Apparently sailors who stayed at the Mission were charged "admission" in the form of a seedling from their travels around the world which were planted in the extensive gardens surrounding the Mission.

Day 25: Back to the Mission

I've been so consumed with getting the prayer book finished that I didn't take many photos this week. So I hope you don't mind a few photos from earlier in the month....

At the Mission San Luis Rey are many artifacts of the Native Americans who lives at and around the mission. These are metates in which women ground acorns into a flour-like meal for making thick tortilla-like bread.

Day 24: J and Dash

Jonathan plays with Dash, our dachshund (instead of doing school).... :)

Day 23: At the Aquarium, Part II

Timothy's photo at the Sea Life Aquarium...not bad for a 15-year-old photographer!

Day 22: At the Aquarium

Timothy (age 15) took this photo at the Sea Life Aquarium. I think he did a wonderful job!

Day 20: Reminder

In last Sunday's sermon at Alpine Anglican Church of the Blessed Trinity (which I receive via e-mail), Father Acker reminded us of this Collect and asked us to copy it down and put it somewhere we would see it regularly. So I copied it and taped it to my desk lamp...a much-needed reminder that God leads and guides us in what is right and true in our relationships with Him and with others.

(And don't ya love my little bust of Shakespeare? I bought it last fall at San Diego's Old Globe Theatre gift shop....)

Day 19: Big Plans

I bought this yarn with big plans to crochet Elizabeth a scarf. But with editing the prayer book, teaching online or co-op classes, homeschooling three boys, and real life, I haven't had time to get it started. She loves her purple, and this acrylic yarn is soooooo soft and squooshy....

In front of the skein of yarn are my Scripture memory cards that I downloaded from A Holy Experience where many of us are attempting to memorize the entire book of Colossians over 2011, two verses a week.

Day 18: Final Edits

I apologize for the boring, home-bound photos of the last few days. But I've been utterly wrapped up in editing this huge baby: a 2011 Book of Common Prayer for the Reformed Episcopal Church. We hope it will be ready to go to the printer this week, so my every non-homeschooling moment today and tomorrow will be consumed with proofing this clean new copy, hot off the press....

Only 358 pages...not too bad. (Yikes!) I'll let you know when I come up for air....

Day 17: Monday, Monday

Monday means school planning. I used to plan our school week on Sunday evenings, but after 13 years of doing so, I've been getting up earlier on Monday mornings and scrambling to get it all done before we start school. Not the wisest of plans, but it's so darn time-consuming....

Day 16: My Kingdom for a Kindle....

I am loving my new Kindle, a Christmas gift from the family. It's so lightweight, a wonderful break for my arthritic hands.

Here I've uploaded the Oedipus Trilogy for Timothy's SMARR World Lit course. He uses the Read Aloud function to listen to the plays (Oedipus Rex and Antigone) while he reads along which really helps him to understand the plays better.

Day 15: B's Snack

Benjamin made himself a snack this afternoon, a favorite in our household: peanut butter on brown rice cakes....

Day 14: At Lunch Today

My lunch caught the light this afternoon, and the whispering sound the tangerines made as I separated them into sections drew my attention even more....

Day 13: California History Mission Report

Benjamin had to write a Mission Report for his California History Class at Class Day. He chose to report on the Mission San Luis Rey de Francia in Oceanside where our friend C. is buried in the most beautiful place.

Benjamin copied the front of the mission from a brochure; he spent nearly six hours on this drawing which is part of the overall mission report. I hope he gets a good grade on this required report for the only class required by the state of California.

Day 12: Exercise

I pedal away on this recumbent stationary bicycle in our screened patio almost every day. I love looking out on the blue skies and the nearby Jeffrey pines whose vanilla scent tickles my nose.

This week has been unseasonably warm--I opened all the windows this afternoon--so it's been very pleasant using the bike. But even rain doesn't necessarily stop me from biking.

My new Kindle is wonderful to use while biking as well. I can read several chapters and lose track of how far and long I've biked...which is a very good thing.

Day 10: Back to School

Timothy studying world history....

Today marked our first day back to home schooling after a month off; our last school day was December 10. So here we are on January 10, with Timothy hitting the world history book, his school schedule laid out before him, in front of the wood burning stove, the warmest place in the house on a very cold morning....

Day 9: A Girl and Her Pup

This afternoon after church we dropped Elizabeth back on campus at Point Loma Nazarene University as her second semester starts tomorrow. I'm gonna miss my girl something awful, but I think that Dash, who sleeps with her, may miss her as much, if not more, than I will....

Day 8: El Capitan



El Capitan

As Keith and I drove back up the mountain after seeing our chiropractor, I snapped this one through the windshield. Often El Capitan, a stone-faced mountain, is hazed with smog. But this morning it was clear, and I couldn't resist....

Day 7: At the Mission



Mission San Luis Rey in Oceanside, CA



On the face of the Mission front....

Our family met our good friends the Cox family at the Mission San Luis Rey in Oceanside so that B can do his mission report for his California History course at Class Day. This mission, about an hour and fifteen minutes from our home, is the largest of the 21 California Missions and is nicknamed "the King of the Missions."

I posted my two favorite photos here, one a side view of the mission, including the door to the old cemetery next door to the mission, and one of the statue on the outside face of the front of the mission. We had a lovely time with some lovely people!

Day 6: Bye Bye, Christmas

Today is Epiphany, the day following Twelfth Night, the last night of Christmastide. So today we packed away our Christmas decorations....

Bye bye, Christmas. See you in eleven months....

Day 5: All in One....

I was daring enough (or foolish enough, take your pick) to take all four kids (three teens and one "tween") clothes shopping. All day.

We stopped for lunch at nearly three at a Pizza Hut where J, our middle son (and newfound fashionista who spent his money on some great wardrobe basics) proceeded to stuff an entire slice of pizza into his mouth at once. I snapped photos and E took video while the Pizza Hut employees laughed their behinds off...they didn't believe he actually could do it.

We did.

Day 4: Stained Glass

Keith just finished this small window for a friend in Japan, so tonight it's all packed up and ready to go. He's my Guest Photographer today since he took these photos with his good camera. I knew that my little point-and-shoot couldn't do it justice, especially in the lovely morning light....

Day 3: Tenth Day of Christmas

Today is the Tenth Day of Christmas. And the sparkling lights are just as gorgeous and dreamy as the First Day....

At Taco Bell

While running errands after church today, we stopped by Taco Bell for lunch. The restaurant was very busy, so we waited a long time for our food. And Benjamin decided to make his own Taco Bell version of a "house of cards" while waiting....

Starting 365 Again....

Now that there's a new Facebook page with all my former 365 friends plus a bunch of new friends-to-be, I decided to restart Project 365, posting a photo a day. I am far from a professional photographer, but I hope to learn more about photography. I will occasionally post photos by family members, too, since my husband is semi-professional (a former high school photography teacher who attended Brooks way back when) and my daughter and eldest son are both avid photographers.

So here's my first contribution: a sunset scene taken in our yard. I'm glad to be back!!!