the "junk man"

finally, we understand the special connection between ace (my dad) and taylor... they are both "junk men"!! you know the type... never want to toss anything. convinced they can come up with something "creative" with spare parts and "found treasures"... (and sometimes they do).


but, unlike my father, taylor has been looking for things to sell in order to make money... because he's in debt to us and needs to pay us back. so, he's been scouring our house for things we'll let him sell and then stacked those items in our hallway. (i think he wasn't sure what to do next.) anyway, a few weeks ago, ed & i were with the other boys running back & forth between soccer and baseball games and taylor was headed to a friend's. taylor calls and says his friend's neighborhood is having a yard sale and can he take his "for sale" items down. yeah! we're thrilled to get them out of the hallway and tell him to sell away!!


it never occurred to us what a mess we'd walked into... later that afternoon (at our 3rd and final game of the day), taylor leaves a message on my cell phone saying "i LOVE yard sales! i have exciting news for you when you get home!" (still, we're clueless and thought it was great that he'd had some success.)


we come home to discover that taylor did sell a few things and made some money. and then he found this:

yep, he bought himself a mini-motorcycle with his earnings (plus a book on someone's pet squirrel (?!?!) and opera glasses... which he's surely needed for some time!).

what were we thinking when we set him to a yard sale - unattended?!

so, that's his new love. not the bike, mind you, but yard sales!!! (to be honest, he's planning to sell the bike because having his debt to pay off is finally starting to concern him, as it affects his social life and purchasing power... good lesson to learn at this age!)

weekend family getaway

columbus day weekend found us looking for a chance to get away and since the boys were off school and ed had the day off from work, i took a vacation day and we headed north. we were hoping to see some beautifully colored leaves on our road trip, but that didn't happen. we did still have a great time! we went to niagara falls - american and canadian sides (the boys were very excited to cross the border and WALK into another country). :)

we took bikes and roller blades, so when we arrived, we did a little sight-seeing on the American side (including riding the "maid of the mist") before enjoying a relaxing picnic lunch and biking & blading. then, we headed across the border and loved the beautiful gardens in canada (MUCH prettier than the american side!!) and explored the "touristy" city of niagara falls, ontario, canada. the boys loved the lights and activity. after dinner, we headed back to the states and went to find our "sweet suite" hotel room that my brother hooked us up with. that was great too! on our way home, we stopped at a park about an hour away for more biking and blading. overall, it was really fun and relaxing. it was a great getaway for our family!!

here are some pics of the trip...

ahh, junior high

its been another crazy week for us, but thankfully, we're coming to the tail end. lots more baseball & soccer games this weekend, as well as the open house at ev's school (tonight is the right night... i double checked) and small group tonight too. then, on friday we'll get to see drew and taylor play with the school band at the high school football game "pre-show". that should be fun!

i'm reliving my junior high days as i listen to the boys share about their lives, especially drew. just yesterday, we talked about my first boyfriend (dudley: 6th-7th grade), who didn't acknowledge my existence after we broke-up in 7th grade. then, we were forced to sit next to each other in 8th grade and somehow became friends again. i think this is quite normal (and was explaining the "normalcy" of it to drew). i must say, it is far better to be where i am (many years separated from those events) and only experiencing (slanted or rose-colored?) memories than to be in the "anguish of the moment" in middle school... everything seems to be heightened at that age. somehow, like when i volunteered with middle school girls years ago, i always seem to relate really well to teens & pre-teens. wonder why that is??

anyway, i'm so thankful that the boys are comfortable and willing to share things with me. we talk very easily and can be open and honest. this is such a blessing to me and i hope it is for them as well. i also hope that we continue to be able to communicate like this! :)