Birthday Season Is Here Again

at 02/28/10 11:34PM

It's that time of year again. We have birthdays every 2 or 3 weeks for months it seems like. We're going to be keeping it pretty low key this year. Benjamin turned 7 on the 13th (Feb). Timothy will turn 14 on the 2nd(March). Andrew will turn 17 on the 20th(March). Then Jonathan will turn 9 on the 11th (April). During this time there are so many activities going on I don't even want to think about them, so I won't.

Except for tomorrow's activities. After school and orchestra, I'll be leading the discussion in Ladies' class. This year we're using Jane McWhorter's Let This Cup Pass. Tomorrow's lesson is on loneliness. I volunteered for the lesson and then looked to what it was about. Hmmm....loneliness at the Dow house? Yes, it's possible to be lonely even in a crowd.

We're looking forward to James coming home for Spring Break. We get to see him at San Jac Friday night (FC chorus concert). Then, Tuesday we'll pick him up at the airport for a few days before he goes back the following Saturday.

We've had 2 big snows this month. That's really amazing for East Texas. It just doesn't snow here. Here are some pictures that a friend took last Tuesday at co-op.

A great big, all-inclusive, Happy Birthday! I love the snow pics and shot of your sons, especially Timothy.

San Jac. Haven't heard it called that in a long time. I went to San Jac Elementary there in Deer Park. And attended San Jac college where this will be held.

by aleta at 03/01/10 7:25AM
Great snow pics!!

It's supposed to snow here again tonight. I can't remember ever having as much as we've had this year.

by desi at 03/01/10 8:24AM
Don't forget April 12!

by the_dow_dad at 03/01/10 9:16AM
I love your pictures.

by wise at 03/01/10 9:40AM
Busy times for the Dows but a good busy!

by be_with_me_lord at 03/01/10 10:05AM
GREAT PICS! I love seeing pictures of the guys. I hope you guys have a fun Birthday "season" :)

by dawsonlover10 at 03/01/10 8:41PM
The pictures are so cute! They really capture the excitement.

by joc at 03/03/10 5:57AM
I love the pics. The one of Timothy is especially good. I realised, reading this, just how close our littlest children are. Jillian turned seven at the end of September. Stephen turns nine tomorrow.

by jennybeth at 03/04/10 9:37AM
That first picture needs to be on a magazine cover. Wonderful feeling of joy in that picture!

by herb_lady43 at 03/04/10 1:21PM
nice snow pics. LoL. that is so funny. But, ashley and I had fun in the snow, too. It's funny though how everyone's birthdays are close together. Like, my bday is april 21, ashley's is july 4, but kaylee's is october 16.

by lilfroggie at 03/08/10 8:04PM
Yes we do have wonderful inspiring ladies here. Their comments and ideas help me so much.

by wise at 03/12/10 1:21PM
Love the pictures of the kids in the snow. And, I totally relate with your comment in the first paragraph about being so busy and just not wanting to think about it :)

by joes_wife at 03/16/10 9:08PM

Feeling A Little Melancholy

at 01/31/10 10:16PM

I was feeling a little melancholy tonight and was looking at some pictures family posted on Facebook. I thought I would share one of my favorites. This is Danny's mom (Mema) and Matthew, Alex and Emily. They were all born the same year. They all loved their Mema very much. As you can see, she loved them too.

Here they are all growed up.

Sweet picture. Mema was a very sweet lady.

by joc at 01/31/10 10:28PM
Awww, so sweet.

by aleta at 01/31/10 11:21PM
Happy pictures :)

by desi at 02/01/10 9:02AM
Such happy memories.

by anne at 02/01/10 9:14AM
Sorry you're feeling a little blue. I find that I have to pick my days to look at old pictures VERY carefully.

by anne at 02/01/10 9:16AM
The absence of my M & M's has left a GINORMOUS hole in my life. I miss them both.

by the_dow_dad at 02/01/10 9:28AM
That top pictures is very special

by be_with_me_lord at 02/01/10 9:36AM
Thanks, Mrs. Dow.

by vaudeville at 02/01/10 10:14AM
That 2nd picture is pretty old too. That was a while ago. Alex had highlights.

by tiny_tim at 02/01/10 10:50AM
Very cool...my mom is a "Mema" too...:)

by momster at 02/01/10 11:54AM
I can so tell which one is Matthew! :) he looks just like Andrew :). James too for that matter. I really love the pictures!

by dawsonlover10 at 02/01/10 6:31PM
What a nice memory!

by alp1926 at 02/01/10 9:09PM
No green thumb, here. That bush just sits there and grows according to what the weather provides for it, It was
here when we moved here years ago and all I do is enjoy it and take pictures. I give God all the glory for it's beauty.

by joc at 02/02/10 5:39PM
I remember that picture!! That was the year we went to Six Flags with several of us from church!!! GREAT times!!!

by meagan_d at 02/03/10 11:26AM
Those are awesome pics. I loved that woman!!!

by lauriw1030 at 02/03/10 11:16PM
She would be proud of them I'm sure.

by joes_wife at 02/06/10 7:24AM
Great pictures! Aren't you glad that one of the many wonderful things about heaven is "no more death, mourning, crying, or pain." No more separations! :)

by bandmom at 02/14/10 2:29PM

Spring Is Just Around The Corner

at 01/22/10 8:45PM

This picture came to me in an email. I got a chuckle out of it and thought you might as well.

Spring's just around the corner ... we can now see the deer moving around. Yep, it won't be long now.

HAHA, that's really funny. :)

by cyber_space_cadet at 01/22/10 8:47PM
Lol!

by aleta at 01/22/10 8:48PM
Cute.

by anne at 01/22/10 9:14PM
It's hard for this southern girl to imagine that much snow.

by wise at 01/22/10 11:43PM
:)

by momster at 01/23/10 8:16AM
Funny!

by alp1926 at 01/23/10 9:29AM
:)

by be_with_me_lord at 01/23/10 12:04PM
We saw Steve he taught class but his wife was sick.

by wise at 01/23/10 12:42PM
I hope Fran sees this. She loves posting pics of spring around the corner!

by iloveponds at 01/23/10 8:37PM
Our deer would freak if we had snow like that! I'm impressed you're doing two Latin classes--one is enough for me! :)

by bandmom at 01/25/10 10:15AM
Cute :)

by joes_wife at 01/25/10 9:25PM
Elizabeth Goudge doesn't compare with Austin or Dickens, but her books are lovely, and take you into peaceful English countryside and family joy. She has remarkable insight into personalities, and you'll see evidence she read both C.S. Lewis and George McDonald. I have seven of her books now. I may have mentioned this already, but her personal favorite was The Little White Pony, which I just finished and loved. There are some real gems in children's literature, don't you think?

Re: the above picture. Sure isn't Texas!

by herb_lady43 at 01/26/10 11:13AM
nice

by utfan at 01/31/10 6:55PM

Second Week Of January

at 01/16/10 10:35PM *

So, the second week of January has come and gone. The year is going by way too fast. :)

You may be asking yourself what I did with myself this week. Let me tell you about it. It was about like all the other weeks so far this year except, James was not here. He has been gone half of the year. Or I could say that he got to be home for half of the year.

Saturday: We took James to Hobby Airport to catch his plane to FC on Saturday. I found a neat store while we were there -- Skechers Outlet store -- where I bought some sneakers.

Sunday: Taught Bible class, worshiped with my brothers and sisters

Monday: Light school day followed by heavy orchestra day. We had the evening off (no Ladies' class) so Danny took me to Olive Garden with James' gift card he gave us for Christmas.

Tuesday: School in the morning, first day back to co-op in the afternoon. Whew! That was exhausting but it was good day. Classes I am teaching -- Latin for older kids, Latin for younger kids, drawing, Craft (we're making books using Valerie Bendt's book, violin class.

Wednesday: School in the morning. Pack everyone up and head to SFA for the afternoon. Andrew took his College Math CLEP test (passed) and Timothy had a cello lesson. Beginning to think that I was so exhausted on Tuesday because I'm sick. Bible class that night.

Thursday: School in the morning. Violin lessons in the afternoon. Visiting with a couple of friends in the evening. Pretty sure I'm sick.

Friday: School in the morning. We all head to AC to see a play of Runaway Bunny/Goodnight Moon. It was excellent. Feeling a little better. Do some shopping and get some exercising in. Finished reading Pride and Prejudice.

Saturday: That would be today. A few chores, meet Anita and visit over lunch, crochet a little, read to the boys a little, sort out a mountain of paperwork, Create a new entry on Pleonast.

How did your 2nd week of January go?

I have a lunch date with Anita on Tuesday! That girl gets around! Let's see, this week I've been very busy, doing this and that and that and this and concluded it by making an ephod and breastplate for the children which I'm using for the lesson in class tomorrow.

by aleta at 01/16/10 11:01PM
It was full work days during the day, and full work days at night until bedtime :)

by be_with_me_lord at 01/16/10 11:18PM
it was great. it's been very busy, but still a great week.

by dawsonlover10 at 01/17/10 8:44PM
Artie and I met Anita for lunch today. What a delightful lady!

by joc at 01/18/10 7:58PM
Sweets for the sweet!!

by the_dow_dad at 01/19/10 10:15AM
:)

by didow at 01/19/10 6:28PM
Can I have a piece?

by the_dow_dad at 01/20/10 12:46AM
It was VERY nice reading about someone's ordinary busy week with their family. Enjoyed it!

by granny at 01/20/10 6:58AM
I just had a squiz of the Huntington site you have listed. Thank you!

by granny at 01/20/10 7:05AM
I'm tired just READING about your week! You are amazing!

by mladyman at 01/21/10 5:25AM

And The Winner Is -- Facebook?

at 01/05/10 9:56PM

I figured I would update even though I don't have much to say. I have no profound words of wisdom, no funny quips or quotes, no juicy bits of news.

I've gotten attached to Facebook over the holidays. I had told myself I wouldn't let it interfere with Pleonast but I've gotten in contact with so many people from my past that I'm hooked. People from high school that I never thought I'd hear from again (we moved away as soon as I graduated), long lost family that I never thought I'd see again, friends of my kids that I feel I have to keep an eye on :) and so on. The easy status updates and the little "like" button are just way too easy. I also like the way you can tag people in pictures. Pictures are great but if you know who the people are, they're even better.

Lest anyone feel left out (if you don't keep up with me on Facebook), here is a copy of my past few updates:

Jan 5, 2010: So, Danny is finally on facebook and has a growing friends' list. The cool thing is that 39 of his 40 friends are also on my friends' list. So I got to wondering. Who is the one person on his friends' list that is not on mine. I looked and there wasn't anyone that wasn't on my list. Then I realized that it was me.

Jan 4, 2010 (PM):The first Monday of the year is over. Whew! What a relief.

Jan 4, 2010 (AM): I'll be leading the discussion at our ladies' Bible class tonight. Anyone that would like to come, I'd love for you to be there -- 6:30 at Susie's house. If you can't come, I put my lesson plan on my blog: Diary of a Bible Class Teacher .

Jan 3, 2010: The start of a new year and a new quarter in my Bible class. We'll be studying the New Testament this year. Check out my blog if you want to keep up with my studies: Diary of a Bible Class Teacher .

Jan 2, 2010: My dear sweet hubby, Daniel Dow. finally opened a Facebook account. Go make him feel welcome!

Jan 1, 2010: In case you're wondering, I've run the dishwasher 3 times today. At this rate, I will have washed dishes 1095 in 2010.

If nothing else, that gave me some practice in typing 2010.

There was a funny I heard today. It was on our news -- a frequent source of funnies. A man was arrested for taking advantage of the tornado victims in the area. His response was that opinions of him were being swayed by his 24 previous arrests. You think?

Like.

by aleta at 01/05/10 10:02PM
Yeah, I'm pretty hooked on FB, too. Just easier.

by rockymtnslover at 01/05/10 10:05PM
I do like FB. In a completely different way than I like pleo.
I knew it was going to be you (the missing friend), but it was way funny to read. :)

by cyber_space_cadet at 01/05/10 11:44PM
Like

by mladyman at 01/06/10 5:52AM
:) I am with you....have reconnected with so many from the past on Facebook that I am spending "most" of my time over there....LOL

by momster at 01/06/10 8:07AM
:)

by laurie at 01/06/10 10:07AM
I've gotten a little hooked on it as well.

by sharon at 01/06/10 10:20AM
It all started when the piggy posts were taken away and now I just can't stop!

by sharon at 01/06/10 10:20AM
I'm more addicted to FB, too. It has been weeks since I've been on Pleo, and I have over 360 new posts to read!!!

by lauriw1030 at 01/06/10 12:35PM
I like FB for the fact that you can update in one sentence, but when I really want to write something, there's no place like Pleonast. Some people use the note feature of FB, but to me it isn't the same. I also have some friends who refuse to get on FB. FB is going out into the world....finding old friends and reconnecting. Pleonast is coming back to the closer friends and staying in touch. To me Pleonast is beyond the cursory "hi" conversation.

by theaunt at 01/06/10 2:32PM
Hmmmm.... I agree with ^^ her. I think I like the two communication avenues for the same variances.

by herb_lady43 at 01/06/10 4:15PM
It's a toss-up. I love the color and variety, aesthetically. To me it's easier to find out who has put something out new on Pleo....maybe cause I don't have 400+ friends on here! ha I also get tired of all the "so and so is now friends with so and so" and all of the "so and so just joined the "so and so list". I get REAL tired of that.
I'm thinking I still prefer Pleo, but I really like FB! They're completely different and I use them in completely different ways.

I agree with th em!!

by phyllisophical_mom at 01/07/10 1:15PM
So, I'm not alone. I agree that they both have their merits. I do love getting to use whatever color I want and to add pictures on my posts. I value highly the friends I have made on Pleonast. I don't think that would be possible on Facebook.

by didow at 01/07/10 7:37PM
My son played it badly today and passed to the next level. You may have a point there! The bad players feel good, but the good players feel frustrated!

by theaunt at 01/09/10 5:27PM
Have I told you lately....

by the_dow_dad at 01/14/10 8:22PM
Wow! Virtual flowers! Don't let my husband know that's possible....

by herb_lady43 at 01/15/10 8:59AM
I haven't been on here since Thanksgiving! I hate that. I really want to be here, but Facebook has swallowed me whole :( I'm putting up a new post today.... I hope.

by joes_wife at 01/16/10 6:45AM
Virtual flowers -- the flowers that never fade, or need watering, or drop petals all over the table -- I like them. Thank you Danny.

by didow at 01/16/10 9:10AM
Thanks for the advice Mrs. Dow. I appreciate it. I need to be told that sometimes, but I know I'm never alone. and if i am, i have to remember that God is always around me.

by dawsonlover10 at 01/16/10 7:02PM