Being in Guatemala with my family for the holidays ahs been such a blessing. I was not expecting to get to be with them and I ended up being albe to see both my sister and my brother-in-law in Denver as well as the family in Guatemala with both the older boys down here! Traveling down here was quite a mess as we flew stand-by. But even in that was a hidden blessing. Two days were able to be spent with my cousins in Dallas as my brothers and I waited for a flight into Guate. So many unexpected and wonderful visits! I have been amazed at how much my siblings have grown, David into a little man, Katie into a lady, and Lydia is most definitely no longer a baby! When I last left her she was struggling with her letters and simple words, tonight I was happily surprise with the progress she has made. After dinner my family was sitting around the table working on our separate homeworks and I was helping Lydia. We first read together for the required 15 min (Barbie at the Fair was the book of choice) and she was excellent! After completing that as well as her math homework it was time for me to do my Spanish homework. (I am taking Spanish classes for the week in Antigua.) My assignment was to write a story in Spanish and Lyders decided to write a story of her own! It is quite a lovely story, that she thought up all herself, complete with a title and illustrations. Here are some photos I took of my little princess.
I never cease to be amazing by how rapidly time moves. At the end of every year and the beginning of a new one I love to look back on the past year and see where I have been and where I have come. I guess it makes me feel more excited about the journey ahead of me when I see the progress made so far. Another semester is almost over (2 more finals to go) and another part of my life. I will be moving back to Tulsa for next semester, but not after a month away, partly in Denver and partly seeing the rest of my family in Guatemala! I have not seen them in 10 months and that is way to long for me. I am excited to be going, starting a new and different adventure once again. But its weird that it is over. It seems like I just moved into my dorm and was so nervous about the first week of school. Now I am moving again. Movement has not been a stranger to me this year. In two short years I have managed to live in 5 different places, three this year alone. With those three places came challenges, adventures and blessings of their own. I started the year helping move my family down to Guatemala. So many funny memories were made as we traipsed around trying to by beds, furniture, pots and pans, etc. with my newly learned Spanish and my mothers aggressive bartering. When they were settled in I moved back to Tulsa to work at a Bakery. I had a lot of fun and frustrating experiences then as well, but overall me getting to be around baking is a plus. All of a sudden it was time to start college. OU was beautiful and exciting. And now that too is passed and another adventure is before me! I am ready for Christmas and the new year.
I have been taking an expo class this semester, Violence & the Sacred to be precise, and if I was not a bad writer before I am now. We have being reading a book by John Trimble called, "Writing with Style." Basically he wants our prose to throw out every rule and absolute you have ever learned in writing to make it "fresh, interesting a new!" This all sounds good and simple, but really is a monster. It seems everything I did that made me a fairly proficient writer before, now is incorrect and must be thrown out. While this book is an excellent read,which is highly unusual for grammar books,I am completely overwhelmed by the amount of renovation my writing style requires. For today I wish I could "sell the house as is" and try my luck with a new one. Unfortunately personal writing habits are not as easy to be rid of as a house or pet. So, instead of practicing good writing here, I am continuing in the crappy form of the usual and writing a blog.
Most little girls think their dad is the greatest dad in the world, the most brave, and the smartest. I certainly did. I always thought that when I got older, I would see someone different, not quite as brave and smart as a thought. Quite the opposite. Now more than ever I am amazed at my father. I am always amazed by is courage, wisdom, and unfailing love. I have been away from my family for 9 long months and yesterday I got to spend 10 hours with Papi Lepu. It was wonderful to be with him and my brother, to do simple things like eat dinner, drink tea and talk around the bar in the kitchen. I did not feel ashamed when I cried as he left- why should I not cry? He is my papi, my hero. Though I do not like being apart from my family, I can appreciate it. The moments together are made all the more special because of the distant.
During the long and seemingly endless time I spent in Tulsa working this past summer whilst most of my friends were off at camp, I embarked upon the journey of making my first quilt. Under the guidance of a dear friend I was brought into the joyous world of quilting. My first quilt was for my nephew, Isaac, and was a cowboy motif and quite small. After the successful completion of that one, and a laps of about 3 months, I decided I wanted to make myself a quilt. The problem is I could not find a design that I wanted. Oh I found plenty that I like but not one that really inspired me. The following is a quote that I really love and would somehow like to incorporate into the design for my quilt.
["Take my silver," the moon said, 'I have paid
into the ocean's pocket too long
without return.'
The silver fell in the wind, and the wind picked it up briefly
then dropped it. The poppies picked up the silver and promised
the moon a harvest of dreams.] ~ wendy battin
This images in this are magnificent, silvery moonshine, yellow-orange poppies, and the golden wheat ripe for harvest being blown in the wind. The problem is that most quilts that include images end up looking extremely cheese and would ruin beautiful image panted in this poem.
While continuing my search for a pattern at Jo-Ann's Fabric I ran across a quilt patter I loved- not for me though. I decided since it was close to Christmas I could still use this pattern and make a quilt for a gift (while continuing the search for my own pattern of course). So I have attached a picture of the materials I picked out for this new quilt, if anyone wants a quilt you may start getting on my good side now. Unfortunately I can not post a picture of the quilt pattern itself because it is still coming to me from good old amazon.com, never the less here are the fabrics ...
