I WASN'T MURDERED

This past weekend was my big Orlando getaway. The last time I blogged was from the Denver airport on my way out of dodge. Any of you who know me personally, know that I have been sharing this excitement for months now. Most people who are not bloggers have just been skeptical that somehow, someway I was going to be murdered. Better yet, some of you have even thought that I'd be taken to some far off land where my kidneys would be extracted and sold at market value. I'm here to tell you that I survived Orlando 2011 and I am already marking my calendar for Orlando 2012.

I can not even begin to tell you how great it is to be in a room full of other women who really "get" it. With women who do not say dumb things like "she's really great for me" or better yet "we are SO bonded, he really opens up and talks to me"..... WHATEVER!! The insight and camaraderie of the 68 women bonded us instantly. No one cared if you were short or tall, thin or fat, gay or straight, single parenting or co-parenting, rich or poor, had adopted locally or internationally, had 1 or 14 children, home schooled or public or private schooled, are vegan or vegetarian or a carnivore, are a working mom or stay at home mom, blog or not, are atheist or a pastors wife, old or young, or any other combination you can think of. NO. ONE. CARED! It was enough to know that we are all fighting for the same outcome; to raise happy healthy humans. That alone was enough to bring us together like soul sisters.

We ended up with 7 different villas with an average of 10 women in each house. In my villa alone we had close to 50 kids from all over the world. China, Haiti, Ethiopia, United States and Russia to name a few. With 6 kids I looked like child's play compared to the women who are raising 10 or more children. I am now aware that I am not the only women who drives a giant pimped out van for her everyday ride. We laughed so hard we cried and cried so hard we laughed. We shared our innermost thoughts (none of which you'd really like to know) and our everyday struggles. We let down our guards, kicked off our shoes (and suits), ate until our bellies were full, and let each other into our private worlds. It was amazing, it was refreshing, it was a welcomed unforgettable time. I am not speaking for everyone, but for me, this is one of the things that I will forever remember as a "game changer", another item checked off my bucket list. No, I don't have "Travel across the country and meet up with 67 women you don't know" on my list, but I did have "Let my guard down, open up and meet people who don't fit in the worldly box", and I did just that. I will forever be bonded to these women who are fighting my same fight, who will tell me to "get up" when I fall down.

Here's a peek at how much fun I had:

Now, obviously, this is NOT real. This is henna. But......................................

This one, on the other hand, is real. It was my first tattoo and I am loving it. I am planning on adding a different little item to her representing each run I run from now on. It is on my lower back.

So, I'm back. A little more colorful and a lot more fueled for these six kids who wear me out!!

Slacker

OK, so I know I have been a total slacker when it comes to my blog. I really have had some good intentions too BUT every time I've sat down to blog I get all caught up in some one else's blog and then don't have time for my own! Now, I am finally going to dive in to my life.

We had Jordan and Megan visit for a week. I had a lot of fun, and not really sure what the week would bring before it all started I must admit (for me personally) it turned out to be amazing! Although Josh worked most days Jordan, Megan and I did a lot of exploring. I finally got to check out Boone Hall and it was really fascinating actually. If you're planning on having a little visit out to the "Hunt's new reality" anytime soon, which I am encouraging y'all (I'm embracing the accent, just announced it a few weeks ago to the kids) to do, be ready to go see Boone Hall. It cracks me up a little bit because in all the fliers and brochures they describe Boone Halls claim to fames as the place North and South was filmed, the notebook and........Wheel of Fortune! hahaha! Megan and I had a good laugh over that one. Anyway, we not only saw Boone Hall but drove endlessly exploring, found some great places to eat, walked King street, visited the Old Market, took the trolley by the battery, saw the beautiful houses on Broad street, and had some lazy time at the beach. It was a great visit.

I had to add this picture of this guy. One afternoon while driving down the road, we came upon this guy who was (before we creeped him out by snapping photos) headed down the middle of the highway! Emma announced "That had to be a dare!", I rolled my window down, Jordan hung his camera out and we got this perfect shot of this hot rod adorned with ski goggles and all! It so reminded me of the scene in Dumb and Dumber when they are headed to Vail, Co on a scooter!

Now, I'm single momming it this week. Thursday Josh left for Denver and stayed until early Sunday morning. While there he did get to see this guy:

Yes, I am jealous but thank goodness for Ichat because we all got to see and talk to the little man and he got to see us too. He wasn't quite sure how he could all of a sudden interact with the T.V. but he stayed engaged the whole time we chatted. Josh took him for another haircut and out to eat. He gave him a sucker and some ice cream. Josh told me he felt like a grandparent who gets to have all the fun, sugar them up and hand them back off. I guess we are trying to make the best out of the worst case scenario of adoption!

After leaving Denver Josh headed to Austin for business until Thursday. He tries to spend time with Gary and Angela (Josh's good friend from way back when) each time he goes and again although I am jealous I'm glad he got this time. I am hoping he invited them out to spend some time with us. Our families are both big and fun and love each other so I know it would be nothing but non-stop chaotic laughs! A bonus this trip was that Josh's other good friend, Joel, from long ago was there visiting Gary and Angela so he spent time with him too. Did I mention how I am jealous?

Well, next big adventure? Graysie's birth mom and her family are coming for a visit on Saturday! We can't wait. I'm sure we are going to have a great visit and do lots of exploring. They are joining us on Sunday for Josh's birthday and the Boone Hall Strawberry festival! A couple summers ago Amanda and I bought all the girls matching strawberry outfits. She bought Sophie's in a 2t even though she was an infant and guess what? Just so happens that Sophie can now wear it and the Strawberry festival is happening. It's like we planned it.....except we didn't so it's even better!

That's all the new news from this blog slacker!

Car Art

We noticed right away when we moved here that people use bumper stickers to distinguish their hunk-a-junk from every other car on the road. I don't just mean a bumper sticker here or there either...I mean they decorate their cars with these things! It's a little over the top if you ask me, but I like it!

I'm not sure of the real reason behind the bumper stickers. I have a few ideas of my own, consisting of irritating the neighbors with political views and in-laws to name a few. While driving down the road I can tell who's children go to what school, what activities they enjoy, where they go to church and who they voted for in the last presidential election. Like in any aspect of life, some people go further than others as far as what they are willing to share with any innocent passer by. What church do you go to? There's a bumper sticker! What beach do you prefer? There's a bumper sticker! Is the president doing a good job? There's a bumper sticker! What city do you live in? There's a bumper sticker! Do you prefer Piggly Wiggly over Harris Teeter? There's a bumper sticker! Did your child get beat up last week? There's a bumper sticker! Is your house going into foreclosure? go ahead, get the bumper sticker! Lost five pounds, gained ten more? Here's a bumper sticker for you!

Here are some examples:

Knowing that I have six very different children I was thinking of what their future cars will look like and here's what I've come up with:

Emma: She will have a great looking car on the outside and yet when she opens the doors things will come piling out. As she tries to sit in her seat she will have to move all the junk, including but not limited to, all her clothes that she's "misplaced" in the last month and any "important" documents she needs. Her bumper stickers will be falling off. Although I am sure they will be important women's rights issues, no one will be able to read them because she didn't want to take the time while putting them on to clean the surface of the car first.

Kaidon: His car will be a rough and tough boy toy! It will be perfectly spotless on the inside even though at any given point you could probably fall through the rusted floor. He will want something he can find adventure in, because as we all know, adventures out there! He will have very few bumper stickers, but the ones he is willing to share he will die by.

Mihya: Mihya's car will be whatever has the highest safety ratings at the time she purchases it. She won't care how it looks as long as she knows she could drive off a cliff and walk out alive. Her car will be tattered with bumper stickers protecting the environment and protecting animals. She will have them perfectly placed so that none of them obstruct her view while she's driving.

Graysie: She will not have a car unless it sparkles and shines. Her interior will probably be hidden under fuzzy pink seat covers. Her steering wheel will be bedazzled along with anything else she thinks isn't sparkling enough. Her bumper stickers will be to accessorize the color of her car, she wont even care what they actually say. I'm sure she will have a custom paint job so that she can stand out amongst all the other cars on the road.

Mikael: He will have a car that is the most practical. His oil will be changed and tires rotated at the precise mile the dealer recommends. He probably wont subject his car to the infantile bumper sticker for fear his views may change and he'd possibly have to explain "why" to someone. He may look in every gas station, visitors center, or anywhere else bumper stickers are sold but he would never actually commit and buy one.

Kayela: Kayela will probably not have a car because she'd prefer to hitch a ride with a friend or ride the light rail so she could have someone to talk to. If she did go ahead and purchase a car it would just have a big custom window art covering the entire back window that simply read: Call me at 123-4567 I NEED TO TALK!!

And....In our attempts to fit in, here is the start of my collection. Can you "uncover" anything about us?

Foto Friday #3

Downtown Charleston last weekend when one of the cruise ships was ported. The kids are now begging to go on a cruise. Josh and I kept laughing and saying "can you believe we live in a place that cruise ships port?"

Kids at Fort Moultrie. Yes ALL of my kids, even the one in the back doing bunny ears! Sorry SC if you're in love with Fort Moultrie, we have seen it once and I think that's enough for this Colorado brood.

I wanted to take this time to show off how loved we are back in Colorado. Postcards came in like crazy with some of the nicest messages! Thank you all, and we're missing you too....come visit!!!

P.D. disappeared in the neighbors yard yesterday and this is how he came back. Clearly, he has not read "How to Win Friends and Influence People".

My sassy..uh..I mean ...sweet girls this beautiful Friday morning before catching the bus! Hooray for the weekend!

and last...but not least...

This one is for you Nanette! My nasty hair is hidden under this embellishment NEVER to be revealed! As bad as this looks, it is much better than the "real deal" let me promise you that!

Foto Friday #2

So, I haven't mastered photos on the blog with my new mac so forgive the fact that they are not in the correct order. We started with Angel Oak then Folly beach then Visitor center and downtown Charleston and ended with Middleton. Although My pictures are opposite. If you're really not liking it, start at the bottom and scroll up! I hope you enjoy.

A tomb at Middleton plantation and gardens. The top ornamental piece was taken from the mother's headstone and added to the tomb, when the family was brought together.

This is the old front porch of the first Middleton home before it was looted and burned in the war.

Picture of the kids although in the background you can see the rice mill where the slaves would work. Many slaves stayed and worked even after they were freed. In one of the slaves homes they have a sign with all the slaves throughout the many years who worked on the plantation, what they did and how much they were bought for. Even the women are listed with how many children they had.

Again, in the background of this picture is the flooded rice fields. Rice is considered "Carolina Gold!" thanks to the slaves this created a very wealthy lifestyle for many plantation owners.

After the war this statue of a Nymph was the only statue in the gardens without any destruction.

The old gentleman's quarters that the Middletons used after the home had been burned.

The Middletons had 6,500 acres that were surrounded with beautiful landscaped gardens. Gardens show both formal French and English influence.

This is a brick covered bench. I love this picture with the bamboo in the background.

Outside the Charleston visitor center, said to be the best in the country! It is really an amazing place. Be ready to see this when you come visit us. A 45 minute film gives a really fascinating historical overview of Charleston.

This is the Angel Oak. Said to be the oldest living thing this side of the Mississippi. One of the branches is longer than a football field and it is more than 25 feet around!

A picture of Folly beach. It was only about 70 degrees this particular day but we were close so we had to see the ocean. We've been told that this is the beach to go to if the kids want to boogie board. It looks like we are the only ones here although it was scattered with sad vacationers who thought the weather would be warmer.

Foto Fridays

So, I've been doing my blog for quite some time now. Often, I get people emailing, facebooking, or posting here on my blog about wanting to see more pictures. I ran across a blog the other day that gave me the brilliant idea to do a post full of pictures one day a week. I am taking up this practice starting today! Every week I am going to do "foto Fridays" where I will be posting my favorite pictures I've taken during the week. It's going to be fun to share pieces of our new surroundings with all of you. I hope you enjoy this new addition to our blog.

Sweetgrass basket stands line hwy 17 here in South Carolina. My mom and I stopped and talked to two of the basket makers on Thursday. Wow, what an amazing craft that has been passed down through many generations.

My mom with her sweetgrass basket.

This is one of the nicer stands I am in front of. Many of them are just a few boards nailed together with tarps for shade and shelter. One lady told us they are going to widen the hwy. and this would give them no place to sell. The lively hoods of many will be destroyed if they do not come up with a plan. These little stands are as close as 5-10 ft away from each other all the way down a good stretch of hwy.

Although I don't quilt, my mom does and insisted we explore some local quilt shops. Luckily for me, this was the only one!