Kelly Swayne

A new season for me. School started on Aug. 22nd. Our oldest, Tanner, moved to his college dorm after 12 years of home schooling. Our youngest is going to public school this year, he is a freshman. Actually, he was to be a sophomore but Texas, which I forgot, is a bit tougher on home schoolers entering the system and would not accept his freshman homeschool credits. I contacted HSLD, (Home School Legal Defense) to be informed, they can do that. I know all the questions going through your head, if you are a die hard home schooler, I have ask myself all the same questions however, still choosing for him to attend our public school. Note: he is happy there. Everyone seems to be in their element. Well, except me. What to do. I recently went from urban girl to country girl. It has taken a lot of adjusting for me. We have lived in the country before but not like this! After living in Houston and Loveland, CO. I discovered, I am a city girl through and through. I love animals but would be r...

The Swayne family has landed back in their boots! We are back in Texas after four and a half fantastic years in Loveland CO. It is as hot as I remember, the bugs and flying things are still here. It’s Texas, it’s home, hasn’t changed. This time we moved out in the sticks and I truly mean OUT! We have been here two weeks and life is better than I expected. Our two young men are settled and working for some friends on their nearby ranch. Our oldest has the challenge of training a two year old filly, something he has never attempted. I think he is going to call her Rookie, a perfect name considering she is new at this and so is he. He only has about six weeks with us and will be moving to his college dorm, which is also a new chapter for all of us. Lots of changes for our family are taking place. I am having the hardest time adjusting to my new surroundings. I miss the excitement of living in a vibrant urban community, my over the fence neighbors, walking out my front door and seeing peo...

Our dog, Benelli, is spoiled badly! She eats organic food, goes shopping with us (allowed in most stores in Colorado) , she has full access to the furniture, and she sleeps in the bed with one of our boys and if he is not home she finds someone else’s bed. She is rarely alone. A couple of years ago I got her an all natural cow bone straight from the meat market. If I were a dog I would have loved it! This bone looked deliciously gross. I just knew she would be so excited to get it. Well, she was not, as a matter of fact it worried her a lot. You could see the worry on her face and hear it, loudly I might add, as she carried this huge gross thing around the back yard trying to decide what on earth to do with such a prize. Well she hid it and it was forgotten about. Last summer I saw the end of it sticking up in the rocks in our backyard, just the tip was showing. It looked like a decomposed.. well it was scary looking and I quickly realized what it was. She had never touched it again. ...

A life long friend of mine, Tracy, sent this to me in an e-mail. I had to share it! It all began to make sense the blank stares, the lack of response, the way one of the kids will walk into the room while I'm on the phone and ask to be taken to the store. Inside I'm thinking, 'Can't you see I'm on the phone?' Obviously not; no one can see if I'm on the phone, or cooking, or sweeping the floor, or even standing on my head in the corner, because no one can see me at all. I'm invisible. The invisible Mom. Some days I am only a pair of hands, nothing more! Can you fix this? Can you tie this? Can you open this?? Some days I'm not a pair of hands; I'm not even a human being. I'm a clock to ask, 'What time is it?' I'm a satellite guide to answer, 'What number is the Disney Channel?' I'm a car to order, 'Right around 5:30, please Some days I'm a crystal ball; 'Where's my other sock? Where's my phone? What...

Our son, Garrett, recently caught "Horse Fever". I get it ever now and then and sometimes it is hard to shake! When we lived in Texas and our boys were fairly young, we had a few horses off and on. We have not had any in a long time. This all came about when he started working at a horse boarding stable as of a few weeks ago. It has been the perfect fit for him and fell in his lap. He has talked about working somewhere like this all summer. I am proud to say he recognizes the hand of God in his life and gave Christ the credit for his new fortune. For the last two weeks he has talked about a horse as if we had already given in to his pleading. Early yesterday morning I ask my husband, who was leaving the state for business, what I was to tell him when he ask again today. ”In about seventeen months he is going to need a truck not a horse, tell him to pray about it”, was his answer. I relayed the message to our son. After his school work was completed he went to work. He calle...

It is time for school! I love a fresh sharpen pencil , clean paper and new school books. Our boys have been homeschooled most of their lives. I say most, our oldest attended four classes at our public high school for his sophomore year and last year he took a couple of college classes at our local community college. He is also on the varsity golf team at our public high schools, this is his fourth year counting this season. Our youngest wanted to attend school , so he went to middle school , in our neighborhood for seventh and eighth grade. I gave them several choices for high school this year; a local charter school with strict guidelines and challenging curriculum, a private school that they are familiar with or back to homeschooling, I did give our oldest one the option to finish his senior year at the public school where he plays golf. Surprisingly, they chose home. We will start school in a week. I have one senior and one freshman. I had to purchase a math text book for me! It i...