Hail and Welcome to All of the Fine Family and Friends of the 'Shire

I'm so happy you have come by to see us!

Blogging is brand new to me. In other words I am asking for your patience! LOL! I am hoping that this will be a way to keep all of you up to date with us (and us with you) since I am obviously horrible at letter writing and phone calls. My mission (which I have taken) is to keep you up to date with our goings on complete with pictures! And that's quite an undertaking considering I've never posted pictures or been very tech savvy before. So, note to me...learn to post pictures!

I just thought I would mention that our blog's title was inspired by the shire that is home to the Hobbits in The Lord of the Rings trilogy. It reminds me of the simple and beautiful life I wish we could all have in these busy and chaotic times in which we now live. I'd live in a hobbit hole for sure if given the opportunity!

Speaking of the simple life, I am rereading the Tightwad Gazette. I haven't read it in years and it's one of those books that are a compilation of articles and ideas that jump out or appeal to you at different times and stages of life. Lots of great ideas for saving money. I highly recommend this book!

The kids are working hard and doing well with their homeschool lessons. It's hard to believe they are getting so much older. I will have another teen in the house next month as James will be 13! In a few short years they will all be teens. LOL! I hope we survive.

Wow!. I can't believe how much rain we've had over the weekend. I read it was 10 inches this morning and it didn't let up until late afternoon. I don't know what we ended up with. I heard the many roads in the county were closed and certain areas were evacuated. Fortunately all we had to deal with was some water in the basement! That was annoying but definitely better than evacuation.

I hope everyone is well and doing fine!