Conference Weekend

We had a full and fun weekend at the conference (hosted by the hospitable M. family).  It was encouraging to hear words of understanding from the men and ladies...and to catch up with all our friends who live so far away!

Evening of arrival:

A Mr. S., a Mr. S., and a...Mr. S.

Mingling

Meeting Liam and Lise!

Isn't that perfect wall decor?

Leera

Leah

That's such a darling dress, Adeline!

Next Morning:

"Need.  Coffee."

Only those with the best eyesight are permitted to prepare the morning viands (Note the handy eye chart...everybody should have one of these in their kitchen! :-). 

Smoothy, anyone?

You should be able to smell this picture.  Those were some good grits.

"That's enough, please...all right, no boxin' in the house!  No boxin' outta the house!  No boxin' - period!"

(a little quote insert for all Cinderella Man fans)

"Frrrutta!!!"

Coffee and tea central.  (By the way, M family, thanks for the endless supply of hot beverages!  It was so good!)

Mid-morning, the ladies gathered in the barn to hear some mothers share on godly womanhood.

Mrs. Jenine

Mrs. Christine


 Mrs. Laura

Two sisters in Christ

Washing up (by the way, this jovial fellow and his sister were such helpful clean-up partners!)

Denae and Madi

 (I apologize if I misspelled your names, girls!)

The girls and Mrs. Laura, prepping for their talks.

Martha, Adeline, Amanda, Abby, and Angela leading us in song before speaking.

"What I did last Monday morning" talks were so entertaining!

The littles

Mr. Mark, one of the speakers on the last night of the conference.

We enjoyed seeing everybody!  God bless!

Yours, Callie

October Babies

Our baby sister's eighteen!

Maura and Daddy's birthday arrived while Daddy was still on the road, but we made the most of the day by singing to Daddy over the phone and having a girly b'day party while it mizzled outside.

That night we had ice cream and a movie.

We love you, Daddy and Maura!  Happy birthdays!

Yours affectionately,

Callie

Weekdays Worth the Wait

Okay, afraid this post will have no pictures.  And no, I'm not purposefully leaving out any visual proof of our existance...just forgot to get a picture! :- (

But a simply delightful and refreshing visit with our aunt and grandparents must not go by undocumented.  

So...

...leaving Emori, Katie, and Daddy to care for the farm, Mama, Maura, and I went to see our relatives in H.  It was great to see our Aunt Nancy Jean, (the "Jean" sets her apart from our other Aunt Nancy, who was in the earlier post), and to see Grandmama and Grandpapa again.  We had a quiet visit (which still included fundamental components like shopping and taking walks), and just enjoyed being together.  We also got to meet up with a few old friends.  I got to show Grandmama my blog, and she shared with me a diary she had written.  Thanks, Grandpapa, Grandmama, and Aunt Nancy!  I hope y'all had as good a time as I did.

Thanks for stopping in.
Yours, Callie

Inspiration on the Road

Is it weird to take a camera on a walk?  Okay, well, we don't usually do it, but the afternoon was so perfect that my two younger sisters and I had to document our walk.

   

Ahh, nothing like a long dirt road and two of your favorite companions by your side (I mean Katie and Maura, not the dogs you see in the distance)!

 

We stopped to smell the roses...and the horses.

You know how dramatic the late day sun is!  We had fun photo shooting in it.

I especially liked this picture of Katie and Maura.

I was inspired to try my hand at a double portrait later on.  Here's how it went:

            

Prelim sketch...took forever to get a decent likeness.  Still learning, folks.

   

First I did a pale wash of yellow-tinted skin color.

Then I painted the pupils black and the irises yellow.  I know the bright yellow looks a little freaky, but it makes the best undertones for their eye color.

Okay, I painted a little more color into their skin, then darkened the eyes.   I kept Katie's skin more olive tinted; and to Maura I gave more pink undertones.  Katie has rich brown eyes, but with Maura I used a little more green to depict her hazel color.

I used a rake brush for the hair.

Katie's hair has more gold in it, while Maura's is more red-brown.

I gave their faces more color, then made the background just a wash of green and gold.

So, here's the finished product.  Afraid this portrait doesn't do them justice, but it reminds me of a wonderful afternoon spent with two wonderful girls.

Maybe I can talk them into another walk today.  That'd be fun.

Okay, well, thanks for stopping by!

Yours, Callie

Moving In

The house that our aunt and uncle have been building is finally close to being completed!  Mama and us girls answered the summons to help them move some stuff from the trailer to the house...and to do what women do best - arrange furniture.  

Dissembling an antique table.

The four-legged members of the family, eager to help.

Wow, what a beautiful living room.  Makes me want to, well, live in it.

The "RR" sign is so cute.

"Humm... should this sofa be on the other side of the room?"

A painting done by our great-grandmother.

A view of the kitchen.

Cozy bedroom corner.

Isn't this is the most beautiful bedspread ever?  Makes me want to learn more about quilting.  Someday.

Hi, Mama!

Callie: "I can't feel my fingers!"

Aunt Nancy: "Just hold it up a little longer..."

 

Mama's "Vanna White" pose.

                                              

Uncle Gene brought sandwiches.

First dinner on the new table.

"That look level to you?"

Uncle Gene is a really gifted painter.  I got to help him move some of his supplies to his new artist loft.  

Oh yeah, he hunts too.  And the rattle snake is stuffed.

Looking at paintings with Uncle Gene, and gleaning some great tips.  He's such a sweet uncle.

This elk head is enormous!  It will be stunning once it's on the wall. But right now, the whole "sprouting from the ground" thing might be a little creepy.

I want this lamp:-)

Thanks for the visit, Aunt Nancy and Uncle Gene!  We had a blast, and we're so excited about your new home.

And thanks for viewing, everybody!

Yours,

Callie