Well, I’ll tell you what this means, and how this can be…  We had just a little too much fun this school year.  It means that we will be doing school through the summer.  It means that while we don’t get a 3 month break from school, we do get a lot of little breaks throughout the year!  The way I see it, life is merely a brief journey, a foray, a blink of an eye and I refuse to waste it doing the mundane, the boring.  School, for our kids, is exciting and new everyday.  This year alone, our kids have learned not only the basics of Reading, Writing and Arithmetic, but also how this knowledge is implemented in REAL LIFE.  They have learned how to lay down wood floors, how to measure and cut the trim boards with a table saw, how to calculate the amount of flooring for a given area.  The kids have learned how to seed a yard and how to add a sprinkler system.  They all can calculate the approximate cost of any trip given the mileage and the exorbitant price of gas. The are blogging, they are writing, they are being interviewed, & they are reading.  In fact, 4 of the kids were given an assignment by their current kayaking coach, to read The Psychology of Winning.  They have learned that life isn’t a cookie cutter neighborhood, where everyone is expected to be the same.  Life is as individual as each beholder!  There is no HOA where you are told how you can and cannot color your life.  It can be as wonderful or as miserable as you make it.   All our kids know this.  The winners in life, the truly successful are those whose attitude screams positivity, screams risk taker, screams against the grain.

You know, we have a no complaining rule in our household.  If you don’t like something, change it.  If something isn’t working for you, fix it.  Complaining breeds whiners, which in turn breeds losers in the game of life.  Complaining sets the mentality that you expect others to do for you; when in fact, you ought to be doing for others.  In this journey of life, there are always people who have more and there are always people who have less.  Our goals are not to increase our possessions, to hoard material things, to have the nicest house or the newest cars; on the contrary, our goals are loftier.  Our goals are to be happy with what we have, to be thankful and to be exponentially more generous than we even believe we can be to those who are less fortunate.  One of the greatest lessons in life for our kids is to be doers.  Doers get out, they make a difference in the world, they are not single minded, they are open minded, they do for themselves and for others!  Doers don’t complain, they fix, they change, they adapt.  And they learn from all experiences.

So,in actuality, in reality, what this means is that we’ve done exactly what we set out to do … and that is to continue our children’s education in life.  And, here is where I might stray from friend to traitor, but straight A’s and book smarts only get you so far.  To succeed in life you must have zeal, you must have dreams, you must have knowledge, you must have street smarts, you must have a positive attitude, you must be willing to fall on your face in epic failure, you must be able to control the mind game that is strife and trouble.   And, most importantly, you have to accept happiness.  Sounds weird, eh?  Sounds silly to say you have to accept happiness, but it’s the God’s honest truth.  Happiness is not a lazy state.  Happiness is an outlook.  Happiness comes from the deep recesses of your psyche.  It’s not popping pills and it’s not skating through life.  Happiness is taking the good with the bad and rolling with it.  If’s self-confidence & self-love. It’s actual, true self-esteem, not the kind you get for winning awards for attending., but rather the kind that you achieve after working hard for success.  In short, happiness is a choice and a reflection of strength!

“Adventure is a path. Real adventure – self-determined, self-motivated, often risky – forces you to have firsthand encounters with the world. The world the way it is, not the way you imagine it. Your body will collide with the earth and you will bear witness. In this way you will be compelled to grapple with the limitless kindness and bottomless cruelty of humankind – and perhaps realize that you yourself are capable of both. This will change you. Nothing will ever again be black and white.” – Mark Jenkins

The above quote made me think. It made me think really hard. There is so much wonderful happening in our lives right now that it is hard to imagine not having taken this leap of faith, this calculated, yet, life-altering, heavy on the risks, journey. Yet, I do, however seldom, question our decision in the dark recesses of my mind, late at night while listening to the even breathing of the people I love more than I could ever express, more than life itself. Perhaps occasionally I allow my mind to wander to the criticisms of others. Perhaps, occasionally, I let the hooks of indoctrination pull me back into the societal norms, the empty promises echoed by the “real world”. I do this, of course, because I am a mom. My children have been entrusted into the care of Dan and myself by God Himself. There is no more important facet of my life than to raise the most amazing, giving, kind, loving, productive and happy people the world has ever seen. My desire isn’t to raise lawyers and doctors. My goal is not to have wealthy children, who have all the luxuries the world can offer. Not even close. My deepest desire, my whole reason for being is to raise 12 children who will grow to be individuals who change the world.  Literally change the world.

And this knowledge is what reinforces my participation, my determination to embrace our decision to show our children a new way of life, a new lens, so to speak, with which to view the world … via travel.   Travel first, in this country. And then embark globally. Let’s face it, this country, heck the world, needs more people that are globally aware.  Look at our leaders.  Look at our countrymen.  Far, far from being a reason not to travel and seek adventure, our children are, undoubtedly, the most compelling reason to do both!

Prior to embarking on this journey, our kids were under the impression that everyone was either white or hispanic, everyone went to church, people were close-minded and not terribly friendly, certainly not hospitable and that money, as much as one could possibly hoarde, is the only way to survive. How, Why??? Because we lived in a small Colorado town, nestled between Vail and Aspen with little to no ethnicity outside Hispanics and Whites. The price of everything was through the roof – real estate, food, clothes, household goods, vehicles … the cost of living was not that which anyone could afford. People aspired to work for work’s sake. Since we’ve been out on the road we’ve met so many different people from different walks of life, experienced real Southern Hospitality, and it’s been proven, time and time again, that money has zero effect on one’s happiness. The happiest person we’ve met, one of our absolute favorite people, is of little means; yet, he’s also one of the happiest.  He lives his life, minute by minute and is genuinely totally, extremely happy!

Prior to this adventure, our kids fought like banshees over everything. It’s every parents biggest complaint. Dan swears it drove his mom to the brinks of insanity.  And so it was with us.  Just for fun, imagine your home with 10 more kids – all fighting at different intervals throughout the day.  Not that they each fought 24/7, but rather, a different two every few minutes.  There was no peace! The excesses of our 3,000+ sq foot home did nothing to alleviate this fact, and in all actuality probably contributed to the “it’s mine” mentality that despite our greatest efforts could not thwart. In the process of learning, not a fast or easy process, to co-exist in a 300 sq ft home, we are learning patience, as much for our own sanity as for the world around us.  Patience and charity – we are a work in progress, but getting better everyday!

Pre-trip the only independent readers were Kerry, Kady and Maddy. Anytime I handed them a book or merely suggested sitting down to read they would invariably say, and I quote, “I hate to read”. Now, with the elimination of TV, Playstation, and all electronics really, except computers (and Dan will not share his pricey wifi with them) and Kindles, they’ve all learned to love books. From Fight Club to Tuck Everlasting, from In the Call of the Wild to The Giver to Hatchet the boys are reading and they love it. And just as remarkable, Grady has finished 11th grade and is now studying Android App development. He has an idea for a game and finished school early in order to pursue this – he’s learning Java … now that’s some real world value if I’ve ever heard it! It seems that given the alternative of staring at each other as we travel, or reading they have chosen reading and individual based learning. I’m more astonished than anyone, trust me!!

Even I have evolved. Our homeschooling philosophy has advanced as well. In the past, I’ve found myself teaching during the school hours and then that was it. The learning stopped as soon as the clock struck twelve or as soon as the kids were done with lessons. I’ve long felt a push from God to possibly explore the wonders of unschooling – perhaps not to abandon all structured learning, but to incorporate it in and produce a much more exciting and interesting learning environment. I’ve pushed back, but a week or so ago I had a revelation. Learning is an everyday all day thing. Kids are learning every second of every day and they don’t even know it. This realization led to probably the most profound thought I’ve had in a while. Learning to kayak is all play. Learning to snowboard and to climb and to ride a bike … all play, all fun and kids soak it up. I am schooling 9 kids – all who thrive in different educational settings, none who don’t thrive by visual means, none who don’t thrive when participating in hands on activities. Now learning is more of an all day affair, I’ve revived the teacher in me, the double major/minor college graduate. I have a BA in English and a BA in Political Science, I have a Humanities Minor – I got this!

Reading is the means to all knowledge. If you can read you can learn…anything. No more do you go to the library and use the card catalog – we have the Internet. No longer must you diagram sentences or learn cursive – the keyboard is the new age ink. Even analog clocks are outdated … digital is everywhere. We are going back to the basics when everyone learned and learning was fun. The three R’s. Reading (tons of it), Riting (more than they care to do) and Rithmetic (via SOS). They write blogs for Jackson Kayak, they will write KelloggShow blogs, they write creative essays, technical essays, opinionated essays, product reviews, movie reviews, book reports, they journal, the list is endless. In today’s world, one must complete Algebra II and Geometry, huge focus there. This is Dan’s domain. He owns it. He’s patient, knowledgable, and awesome! He somehow gets the kids to want to do more math, and they have his genes, not one of them struggles in this arena!! Their creativity, their awareness, their eagerness to learn, it’s so encouraging.

The biggest thrill to Dan and I in all of this is that we are living it with our kids.   We are ensuring that they will have wings that are eager to fly when their time comes to change the world. We are not merely telling them they can do whatever they desire most. We’re not sitting behind a desk or working a dead-end job, living a completely unfulfilling life telling our kids that they have to follow their dreams. We are living proof that reality is what you make it.  Reality is fully negotiable.  World changers must have this mindset.  They cannot become ensnared by their circumstances, they must fly, they must soar.

“A traveler without observation is a bird without wings.” – Moslih Eddin Saadi

Our children will never be bird’s without wings!

“All men and women are born, live suffer and die; what distinguishes us one from another is our dreams, whether they be dreams about worldly or unworldly things, and what we do to make them come about… We do not choose to be born. We do not choose our parents. We do not choose our historical epoch, the country of our birth, or the immediate circumstances of our upbringing. We do not, most of us, choose to die; nor do we choose the time and conditions of our death. But within this realm of choicelessness, we do choose how we live.” – Joseph Epstein

Dan and I have evolving dreams, as I’m sure most of you do too. The day we got married we never even had an inkling that this is where our lives would turn. When we first got married, my dream for myself was to get a high powered job as a copywriter in a Viguerie owned Direct Mail company. Immediately after securing the “dream”, complete with an office and a window, Kerry was born, and after leaving her with Dan for the first time, my dream was to be a stay-at-home mom and Dan, being the amazing husband, abandoned his small business and sought a job that would provide a paycheck and insurance. I haven’t looked back since. He was on the fast track, moving from company to company, getting huge pay increases because he’s an intelligent man, but mostly because he’s a very hard worker. Our dream then became to own our own home. Then 3 years after buying said house, our dream was to move across the country to ski. Then we dreamt of owning a home in CO, etc., etc. Dreams are the fruits of our lives. They continue to evolve, to grow and to encourage.

My absolute favorite quote is one by T.E. Lawrence, it’s on our website, it’s ingrained in my head, my heart.

“All men dream, but not equally. Those who dream by night in the dusty recesses of their minds, wake in the day to find that it was vanity: but the dreamers of the day are dangerous men, for they may act on their dreams with open eyes, to make them possible.”

And so today, for the here and now, our dream is to show our children a new way of life. They’ve seen the private school education, they’ve seen the public school education, now they are experiencing home schooling. They’ve lived in an apt, a townhouse, a house with neighbors on all sides and a mtn home with privacy, now they are living in an RV. Our oldest know the option of college is out there for them whenever they so choose. But, for now, while they are young and without responsibility (for the most part) they have chosen to hone their entrepreneurial skills, Kerry as a graphic artist, Grady as a videographer and the whole lot of them planning a business, writing their business plan, creating logos, researching marketing and advertising, etc.

Reality has a way of creeping in whether you try to block it or not. Of course, Dan has to continue to work in order to provide food, clothing, shelter, opportunity and adventure for our family. Of course, the kids have to buckle down and work hard at their schoolwork in order to pass their quizzes and tests. Of course, Kerry has to bust her tail to make deadlines and bring in some cash. But this doesn’t have to be the essence of who we are. It simply affords us the freedom to be who we are. My philosophy mimics that of Tupac Shakur … “Reality is wrong … Dreams are for real.”

Our kids have experienced the life society as a whole has embraced, complete with excess, and now they are living an alternate life of simplicity and purity. Surely, when it’s all said and done we will all choose a life that is somewhere in the middle. When will that be? How long can this last? Who knows. The sky’s the limit. It could be next week, next month, next year, or the next decade. I don’t know, but when we do park our RV for longer periods of time and live within the walls of a stationary home, our children will do so with the knowledge of possibility. They will have a new perspective on wealth, religion, nature, love, charity, adventure … basically, they will have a whole new perspective on life. They will know that there is a whole world out there waiting for them. That is priceless.

The world speaks to us all and what we do, not what we talk about, but what we actually do, has a ripple affect that transcends all boundaries, race, religion, etc. We have to take great care that what ripples from each of us is good;  worthy of judgment. We all must learn to be self-sufficient, we all must learn to provide for others and we all must learn what makes us truly happy … that’s a reality I embrace and am intent on teaching our children. I know that when it’s all said and done, our children will have learned that dreams are not to be shelved, but to be pursued with vigor. They will have learned that because you dream you live.

It’s been forever since I wrote a blog, and so much has happened that would appear to demand a blog! First, and best of all, Coby was born! What an incredible and amazing birth his was. Now I can truly say I’ve delivered every way possible … and SURVIVED! But even more amazing is who he is. He is the sweetest, cutest, chubbiest, most adorable baby in the world! Seriously, he’s not even 3 months old and he’s pushing 15 lbs!! Adored and cherished by all, he is nothing short of a miracle.

Then, of course, we went to TX for two weeks and The Today Show flew in to San Marcos to film us traveling and kayaking. They then came up to Colorado to film us as we finished packing up our house and drive on out! That last day, the day we were supposed to leave by noon, according to Dan, everything that could go wrong did go wrong. We had about 15 visitors, 100 million fixer projects before our tenants moved in, a visit from the tenants with bank issues, and our Suburban died and had to be towed to the storage facility! We finally left around 5 or so, the Producer had to leave an hour or so earlier to catch a flight home, and the camera and sound guys hung out and waited for us to get our act together. They were crazy patient and when we finally left it was too dark for them to get much outta the departure! But such is our life. You roll with the punches and face the trials head on with a “Bring It” type attitude, right? Cuz, if you can’t and/or don’t, what are you left with?  

Now we’ve been on the road for 15 days and I gotta say it’s been the best 15 days! We stopped in at Rock Island, having had hope that we could put in an order for a gazillion boats, but that won’t happen until after tax refunds grace our accounts. The traveling lifestyle hits home when you are scraping pennies for gas!! However, as expected, we did have an epic day surfing at Rock Island. Both generators were running and the water was perfect!! We didn’t stay the night, instead opting to beeline for Alabama and hook up with fellow Jackson Paddler, Jeremy Adkins, for a week of creeking, surfing and all around amazing fun.

There is something truly amazing about AL, or at least the part of AL we’ve been blessed to see and play in. I don’t know if it’s Jeremy, if it’s where he lives, if it’s the people we’ve met, if it’s the weather, the water, the rivers or what, but I don’t think we’ve ever been so relaxed and stress-free. I can’t tell you how sure we are of the decisions we’ve made thus far. Renting and leaving our home, was tough, but as we travel as a family and meet new people and see new places, we can’t help but feel a sense of renewed patriotism and strengthened faith in God. The water we paddle, the mountains we snowboard, the cliffs we climb, the trails we bike … all are so full of beauty, it’s breathtaking, exhilarating and humbling. All these places have been here forever and will be here long after we have passed. It makes you realize how short our time here really is. Which makes us want to make the most of every second, every minute.

And then there is something extraordinary about all of us being together. It feels so right. It’s exactly what we are supposed to be doing right now, right here. Being off the grid, out of the societal system enables us to make our own schedules, live our own lives and be absolutely true to ourselves, our true, pure selves. We’ve always enjoyed spending time together, but it was always an hour here or a half hour there. We were stretched so thin between school and sports and work and errands that we might meet at dinner and then scatter immediately after to do what we needed to do. We thought this was what was best for our family, our kids. Socialization, every sport imaginable, every extra-curricular activity. Rush rush rush was the name of the game.

I’m so thankful that God spoke to our hearts and we were always in search of something better. Now better is exactly what we are doing. We are living our version of the American Dream. And in our version we are all together experiencing the same things; what’s more is that we get to see it through so many different lenses. And this is what I love about kayaking, climbing, snowboarding and biking. Dan and I get to experience it all with them. We are living out a second childhood. Instead of living vicariously through our kids, we are living alongside our kids! That’s the best life ever!!

Obviously, socialization is not something you must seek out. It naturally happens, unless you live in a bubble. Our kids encourage each other, they coach each other, they police each other and they love each other. They have built-in BFF’s and they are meeting new people in every new stop – both kids and adults.

Brody ran into a “kid” a few years older than him yesterday on the Mulberry River. This “kid” recognized him as one of the KelloggShowKids and was really psyched to be paddling at the same wave. He asked Brody all sorts of questions about the different wave moves and Brody had him clean spinning in 2 surfs. Dally met an older guy on the same river the same day who, again, recognized him as one of the Kellogg kids and introduced Dally to his daughter, a 10 year old who was just learning to boat. He let her jump into his boat and paddle around in the eddy because her dad had heard Jackson boats were the best … she loved everything about it, except the color!! LOL!

This lifestyle also allows our kids to remain kids for as long as they wish. They run, climb trees, build fires, play pranks, wrestle, yell, scream, holler and laugh all day everyday. Dally summed up the enticement of RV life in one simple sentence: “I like having my house on wheels because I can go anywhere I want without having to pack and plan.” Yes! Freedom. Freedom to do whatever we want, whenever we want! We don’t play well by other people’s rules. We don’t like to be told what we can and cannot do. This nomad life is exactly what we were born to do!

And it doesn’t hurt that sometimes we are treated like rock stars by people who recognize us from YouTube or our blog! I wouldn’t trade my life for anything in the world.  

But, for some of us, and I’m not naming names (Grady), the calm surf days all but made him sleepy. The kid needs extreme sports, he needs an adrenaline rush, in one word, he needs kayaking. He wants nothing more than to hit Class V runs on a daily basis! Class IV is fun for him, Class V gives him the edge he needs. Kayaking has ruined him for normal life. He spent hours in the surf playing around in his kayak, only to get frustrated because it wasn’t extreme enough, it wasn’t crazy enough, it wasn’t … life threatening enough. And then, to add insult to injury, he had to wait for the “good waves”. He doesn’t understand the word “chill”. He certainly can’t do it!

But, just as I was getting annoyed, I had another thought. He has a passion, he has drive and he has a goal. Grady has been kayaking for a mere 3 years, only last year and this year has he been freestyle kayaking and he’s never ever been more passionate about anything and he’s participated in every single sport and excelled. Soccer, Ice Hockey, Football, Skiing, Snowboarding — he’s done them all, continues to snowboard and out of all of them, kayaking is something he literally lives for. He’s completely self taught, he watches other boaters, EJ, Dane Jackson, Nick Troutmn, Clay Wright, Jud Kaiser, Stephen Wright … yeah, the TOP boaters in the WORLD and he learns. Grady and Brody both want nothing more than to train all winter long in hopes of making the US Freestyle Team. This would be a dream come true, they have the drive, they have the desire and the natural skills to be top contenders … they are lacking only in experience — but that counts for a lot! It’s something they hope to overcome, which is why we are heading to the World Cup Series. The more competitions against experienced boaters, the more experience they gain. After that it’s Gauley Fest and then … who knows.

As a mom, it’s amazing to see your children develop a passion. I’m asked 100 times if 10 if I would rather they enjoyed snorkeling or soccer or any other “safe” sport. I’d be lying if I said NO! but that’s just not us. As I’m finding out, we need adrenaline, we need extreme, and if we don’t have it, we make it! Of course, we are not reckless. Kady, Kenny and Dally won’t be running Class V anytime soon … the what-if’s for their young age are just entirely too great and one or two of them have absolutely no fear of anything … so trusting their instincts is out!! Plus, they have a lifetime to hone their skills and become somewhat mature!

As a mom, it’s equally amazing to have my entire family under one mobile roof … less than 300 sq feet doesn’t phase us. This is home for now — and for the forseeable future. We, Dan & I, feel very blessed that we are able to provide such an amazing life for our kids, that they have found a passion, that each of them is developing their own self and doing so without outside influences!!

This is something the 99% will tell you isn’t possible, it’s not feasible.  If you try to tell them otherwise, they’ll shake their heads exasperatingly.

“When you live in the real world, you’ll understand,” they insist.

“When are you and Dan going to grow up?” they ask.

“When is all this going to end?” parental units inquire

“What about socialization?” the unenlightened will prod.

“Are you done having kids?” family seeths.

Our response is and always has been the same.  We enthusiastically explain that happiness is not our goal, it is our way of life.  We flat out deny the “real world” from ever infiltrating our lives.  People have thought we were crazy from the get-go.  Dan and I were married uber young, Kerry was born when I was 20 and we were well below the poverty level, believe me — Dan was barely making a double digit salary and I was a stay-at-home mom.  Most people we knew, if not all, were certain we’d never see our first anniversary.  We gave people a lot of reasons to gossip, that’s for sure.  We kept having babies, we took giant leaps of faith without really thinking, Dan quit his stable job and started a consulting business, we up and moved across the country in a 30 day span, we bought a house we really couldn’t afford, we were living a dream life and to our family and friends, we were crazy immature!  And when we finally made that proverbial leap and decided to homeschool, in most people’s minds, we lost the last bit of what kept us semi-normal.  We were lost, no way to get into our kids heads, our heads, we were gone!

What has always puzzled me about the way the 99% live is that they are content to be unhappy, at least that’s the impression when you read people’s facebook pages!  But that’s the “real world” guys.  That’s following the road fully travelled, the road everyone ventures down, it’s tried and true.  You know where it leads and what you’re getting.

The real world consists of 40/hr work weeks, day care, educational systems, political bureacracy, peer pressure, shuffling the kids in all different directions, stress, anxiety — in a phrase — the ultimate breakdown of the family.  As young kids we are told our path. Go to school, go to college, get a job, get married, buy a house, have a child or two, work some more, take a vacation once per year, retire and maybe, if you’re lucky, you might have a few free years to enjoy your life.  No wonder they are miserable!

Our society has somehow bought into the idea that every person must go to college if they are to be successful. At Freshman orientation students are told, college graduates, on average, make 1 million dollars more than those who don’t.  What they fail to tell you is those kids would probably make 1 million more anyway.  They are the hard workers, the good students, the driven kids with goals and ambitions.  What they also fail to tell you is that life isn’t about how much money you make, or about how big your house is, or how nice your car is, or how many Easter Dresses your daughter had, or how many cloth diapers you can buy, or dressing “to the nines” or any of the other myriad of lies we are fed. Life is about love and family and relationships and personal growth and God!

We’ve always told our kids, when the subject arises, that we think college is a waste of time and money.  I’m a college graduate, the proud owner of an English and Poli Sci Major.  I wasted $40,000 of my own money that could have been used to start my own business or travel or something other than earn two completely worthless degrees.    Dan’s a self made man.  He learned everything he knows himself.  Spent money on books, not on college.  Unless you are going to be a doctor or a lawyer or something like that, a professional, you don’t need to spend what now equates to $100,000 on an education that will nine times out of ten lead to more education and more education.  Life is the best education, living outside the box is THE BEST education you can ever give yourself.

We’ve done pretty well for ourselves, really, when you look at our life as an entire story.  Together, we’re raising 11 of the most diverse, amazing, talented, kind, smart, generous, loving, children ever.  They understand the meaning of life, their goals don’t consist of all things monetary.  Their goals are more simple.  They actually enjoy and want to spend time with their siblings and their parents and they want to kayak … every day.  In fact, we spend every waking breathing minute together.  We are each others best friends, confidants, teachers, and cheerleaders.   We are fully dependent on each other for everything, we answer to no-one but each other.  Our youngest kids will never spend one minute in a formal classroom … the world is their classroom!   Our kids have discovered the art of making videos and they rock at it.  Grady has 1 video with 2 MILLION views, many in the hundreds of thousands.  They are really really good at this.  Grady has an eye for directing, Kerry’s an amazing actress, Brody is funny and loveable … they are discovering their talents long before any of their peers.

Our days are spent looking for the next adrenaline rush and typically it’s found in the river, in a kayak, on a wave.  We aren’t spectators in our children’s lives, we are participants.  We experience the same challenges, the same fears, the same emotions, the same exhilaration and we experience it together.  We push each other and challenge each other in everyday life to be better people, stronger people.   We rely on each other in the water as on land.  I’ve been rescued a number of times by Dan, Grady and Brody.  I can’t wait for the day when Kady, Kenny & Dally and the rest of the gang rescue me too!!  In the water the dynamics are different.  I’m the liability!   On land I’m competant, but in the water, I rely on my kids — it’s bizarre and amazing!   I couldn’t ask for a better life, better husband, better kids!

And now, God has blessed us with the realization of a dream!  In the last few days we finalized the last piece of the puzzle in our quest to become nomads, travelling gypsies.  We purchased an RV!  It’s our first big purchase since buying our house in 2001.   It’s something we’ve been dreaming about for years and finally all the stars aligned and made it possible.  It’s huge, a 36′ Georgie Boy, Diesel Pusher and big enough to cart our rather large family from one river to another.  We’ll be nomads this summer, just travelling from one kayaking spot to the next.  It will be an unbelievable summer filled with family bonding, and extreme fun!  Who knows, maybe it’s the beginning of something life altering?  The thing about the road untravelled is that you don’t know where it’s going to take you, it’s exciting and new every single day.  Sure, there are lots of bumps along the way, probably, possibly bigger bumps than those encountered by the droves of people on the other paths, but those bumps define you, they make you who you are.  Personally, I don’t want the cake if I can’t eat it, and you shouldn’t settle for any less either!

“Indeed, man wishes to be happy even when he so lives as to make happiness impossible.”  ~St. Augustine

For us, it wasn’t an all-at-once realization, it came in waves and with each decision came a welcome easing of our lifestyle and each time we shed a modicum of normalcy, it made it that much easier to do the same with the next opportunity. By far, the hardest and the one decision holding us back from ultimate freedom was the decision to homeschool. Dan knew and had basically made the decision that we were going to embark on this whole new lifestyle that would bring us closer than ever before; however, I was still holding onto a few ideologies that were holding me back. What about socialization? What about friends? School sports? Surprisingly, I wasn’t worried about my ability to teach my kids, I’m their mom, it’s what mom’s do 24/7. Surprisingly, I wasn’t worried about curriculum and scheduling and all that real life stuff. Thankfully, the things I was worried about were complete non-issues, that I realized as such on the 2nd or 3rd day. After making the decision and committing to it for the long haul, regardless of how hard it was on any given day; after making this commitment everything fell into place. We were free. For us, homeschooling is a multi-faceted blessing. Yes, we do it to stay close and connected. Yes, we do it to teach our Faith. Yes, we do it because we can teach them and they can learn more, better, and faster at home than at any private or public school. And, we do it because it offers us a lifestyle so drastically different than the one 99%  of the population subscribes to.

Surprisingly, many large families share many of our values. I wonder if somehow it’s not the lifestyle persay, but more a calling, a conviction to follow Christ. As Catholics, we are called to educate our children. “Parents are the first and the most important educators of their own children, and they also possess a fundamental competence in this area; they are educators because they are parents.” Pope John Paul II. It took us awhile to fully undertake all the educating, but better late than never (one of my favorite sayings, btw). Life is difficult, even for, or maybe especially for, non-conformists like us. Oftentimes, life gets in the way of living, however, it is my goal everyday to remember that Christ doesn’t simply understand our pain and suffering — he lived it. As we enter this Easter season — a celebration of the promise and hope of resurrection for all of us – I am particularly mindful of the suffering and sacrifice that led the way to the resurrection. If we, as Christians, can understand the meaning and purpose of His Passion, we might better be able to live despite our own struggles. I can’t say I’m always able to stop myself in the middle of a particularly large pity party and say, “Hey, Susie, get a grip. Jesus suffered 1,000 times worse and never once took pity on Himself.” Though I can say, when I do, the suffering usually ends rapidly. It’s the times when I allow myself to go down a dark road that somehow I find myself in dire straights and I’m praying simply to get to where I started. It’s funny how thankful you are for the little things you were only hours ago disregarding, when you are fearful you may lose them! The knowledge that it can (and very likely will) get worse unless I buck up is very motivating!!

I can tell you, I’m incredibly thankful for the husband who is my light, my soul mate, my provider and my protector, the children who have made my life have unequivicoble value, the lifestyle we are so blessed to live, our home, our beautiful mountains and rivers, our quest for never-ending adrenaline rushes and for the undying flame inside every one of us to live a life completely and thoroughly devoted to God. I’m thankful we don’t have to keep up with the Jones’ because we are Kellogg’s. That crazy, adranaline charged, never content with the status-quo family that goes with the flow, tries to duck the punches and live life to the fullest. Life is not easy when you take a different road than most, but it sure is a lot more exciting!!

God Bless All of You this Easter Season, May the Grace of our Lord, Jesus Christ, be with you always.  xoxoxoxo

One baby?  One baby?  You cry, in the wake of all that Planned Parenthood does, you hope for the safekeeping of one baby?  Let me refer you to a letter that was in our local paper (i’ll post the link later in the blog) written by a PP fan, Becky Penn.  She scoffed at our Community Activist, the female, conservative counterpart to President Obama, she scoffed at Betty because she had a sign that read “65 Babies Saved in 7 Days”.  Becky Penn laughed and proudly announced all the good that Planned Parenthood does in each locality – she said it far outweighs the pathetic 65 babies saved.  I was horrified, yes, horrified, when I read her letter.  What an ugly human being to have written such a disgusting letter.  I don’t care how pro-choice you are, you ought not be rejoicing over abortion.  You ought not be thinking, that’s 65 babies we could’ve killed.

Another letter appeared in the paper by a Ryan Bosco, to this one I sent a response. He doesn’t approve of my choice of locality, he doesn’t approve of my decision to bring my children, yet he proudly announced his support for liberty and independence of everyone, even pregnant women who want to kill their babies, yet Dan & I are not deserving of this same liberty and independence to choose to teach our children our faith by doing instead of preaching? REally? What is is with you liberals? You tout tolerance and exceptance as long as it’s in line with what you believe, but the tolerance and acceptance ends at the foot of faith.

6 very large “women” and I do use that term sparingly, showed up with signs last Friday, unfortunately we missed them, because the stories and photos I’ve heard and seen are very interesting, to say the least. Their signs read, “Get Your Bible Outta My Vagina” — to which the obvious response is, “As soon as you remove my wallet.” “Ovaries Open for Business” … gross! They munched on “Vagina Cookies”, smoked their cigarettes, and carried on like floosies, cropping their already short mini-skirts to cars passing by, etc. You PP supporters can have this group of hookers, they can join Sandra Fluke as your woman of the year…

What is it about PP that has these women gushing? That draws support from all walks of life?Planned Parenthood has a history of distorting the truth.  First they claim to be the unyielding force for choice, yet they tirelessly fight against informed consent laws, they don’t want women to see what they are discarding, because if they did, it would be an entirely different ballgame.  Planned Parenthood isn’t about choice, Planned Parenthood is about the bottom line and abortion is where they make their millions.  Planned Parenthood applauded President Obama’s HHS Mandate, thereby taking away the Catholic’s Church’s ability to choose it’s own HealthCare policies.  Planned Parenthood stands strong against Parental Consent — again taking away the parents’ authoritative rights over minor children.  Their Choice moniker is hypocrisy at it’s most blatant … choice comes when it suits them and what suits Planned Parenthood is money lining their pockets.

I would find it laughable were it not such a grievous horror that corporations are reviled in this country, yet American taxpayers support this corporation, Planned Parenthood, to the tune of more than $400 million annually!  Can you imagine taxpayers contributing that much cash to Shell or to Microsoft?  There would be an outcry of mass proportions, yet we sit idly by while our hard-earned money is given to an abortion mill.  When the hell did healthcare become welfare? When did viagra and contraception and botox and abortions become part and parcel of the package? Insurance is specifically for unexpected catastrophes…

My question for you parents is what in the world are you raising that it’s ok for college students to stand up at a Mitt Romney rally and say “You know what would make me happy? Free contraception.” UGH! The horror of having any of my children be this girl is unimagineable. To have one of my children grow up expecting you and your neighbors to foot the bill for anything they want is beyond my comprehension. But that’s exactly what these parents are doing, creating bottom feeders. You are supposed to raise adults who will go out into the world and make a difference, not become part of the problem. They are supposed to be able to pull themselves up and be productive. Instead we have lazy parents raising even lazier kids. So lazy that our President’s wife felt the need to start Play 60 … ya’ll can’t even get your kids out playing. Disgraceful!

The first was in Oct 2004, we were preparing for a camping trip in TX. We were going to meet up with my biological sister and her husband & kids. In our infinite wisdom we decided to leave in the middle of the night. At about midnight we were gathering the kids from their slumber and placing them in our truck. Dan had retrieved Kenny and placed him, sleepily on the seat and was fiddling with the DVD players we had just installed. Next thing he knew he heard a loud crash and Kenny was moaning … it’s a sound that still makes Dan shudder and cringe. To make a long story short, Kenny was diagnosed with a brain bleed and we were ambulanced down to a hospital that had a pediatric neurosurgeon on staff. He wasn’t unconscious but deeply asleep, he had vomited a few times and I was terrified, my sweet happy, otherwise perfectly happy 4 year old had a brain bleed that might require surgery. The guilt, the agony, the fear, it was so overwhelming. All I could do was pray unceasing and unyielding. I invoked every Saint, our Blessed Mother, the Holy Spirit, and had every single person we knew was praying. He was placed in ICU. We were asked if we’d like a pastor to come pray over him. Without hesitation, I said yes. A kind middle aged man came in, introduced himself and placed his hands on Kenny and encouraged me to do the same. He prayed over Kenny and at the end he said, “And when he is healed, his parents will go forth and tell their story of your mercy and miracles.” I felt God at the moment. Kenny was wheeled down to get another CT Scan and on our way, the nurse said to me, “Don’t pray that it’s gotten better, these things don’t heal that quickly, pray it hasn’t gotten worse.” Anyone who knows me knows I pray BIG and this was no exception. The CT Scan showed no brain bleed. None. The perplexed and clearly shocked doctors reviewing his scan called our hospital and requested they resend KENNY’s scan. LOL, it was a great moment. Upon returning back to Kenny’s room I saw a picture of an Iris with the name KENNY below it. I was shocked, pointed it out to the nurse who said he’d never seen it!! God brought me to the edge of the cliffs, but through prayer, faith and hope, brought me back again.

The next time I encountered unwavering horror was in 2007. The rivers were raging from the spring runoff and we were pushing the limits in our raft. When we left the house, Kenny and Dally were thoroughly disappointed because we decided, at the last minute, that we wanted to see how the river looked prior to taking them out that day. We promised we’d come back and get them and they could go on the 2nd run of the day. It was just me, Dan, Grady and Brody (11, 10). Long story short, again, we hit a 14 foot wave and the boat flipped. The water was freezing cold,literally 43 degrees, and only Brody had on a wetsuit. When we hit the water, we couldn’t breathe, I thought I’d taken in water, but in reality it was the sheer temperature that made communication impossible. Prior to any raft trip we run through safety. What do you do if you fall int? What do you do if the raft flips, etc. This day was no different. In theory we all knew what to do, the real test is when it happens. Brody did exactly what we told him to do, which was get the hell out of the water, ASAP. Only, we didn’t see him get out because he was faster than any of us could have imagined! Dan and Grady tried like hell to get the raft to the side, but with the river as high as it was, eddy’s were few and far between. I searched for Brody, running downstream, literally looking for a body. 20 minutes past, I finally caught up with Dan he didn’t have Brody. I threw up right then and there. But within 2 minutes 2 kayakers appeared and they said that Brody had caught a ride with their raft. I was hyperventilating, horrified, sick to my stomach, bawling my eyes out scared. In my panic, I didn’t stop to think Brody had gotten out like he was supposed to, I only thought there was no way he could have gotten out, the water was running fast and it was near impossible to climb out. But he did it. He was the level headed one in this scenario. I was beaming with pride, relief, thankfulness, but the relief was flooding out of me so hard and fast that I dropped to my knees and cried and cried.

Now today was the third most terrifying day of my life. I awoke last night from a dream in which my hands were covered in blood and in my newfound wakefulness I immediately knew I was bleeding and rushed to the bathroom, fearful for my unborn child. I was bleeding, bright red, I googled miscarriage and intermittently prayed for the next 2.5 hours before I finally fell asleep in front of my computer. Emmy had been sick the night before and I was awoken by her tiny little voice asking for water. We snuggled in on the couch in my bedroom and I tried to engage in some contemplative prayer, but instead dozed. In the am I called everyone in and we started the rosary, I couldn’t help it I was crying, I couldn’t maintain. Kady, my sweet, darling, caring Kady was so concerned, she was holding me and hugging me and asking what was so wrong. I stupidly, irresponsibly, childishly, pathetically said I thought our baby was “going to heaven.” Those are the type of words when spoken you immediately want to take back. In my unconscious, yet selfish desire to relieve myself of some of this tremendous grief I place it square on the shoulders of my beloved children. The tears, the fear, the sadness, the grief, oh what I would do to take it all back and not have them suffer. (And some want to tell me a 9 week old “fetus” is not a baby, save it, this baby of ours is truly loved and cherished). A truly beautiful discussion ensued about heaven and how wonderful it is and how in all the accounts of people who have been medically dead, seen heaven and returned, not one of them ever reported being happy about coming back to earth! It was a truthful discussion, yet one begun to mask pain and find a way to make the concept easier on us all. It’s a well known fact that if I die, and I say “if” because I’m quite certain Jesus will return prior to my demise, I want a party thrown, not a wake or a funeral. I want my children to be able to rejoice in the fact that I’m in heaven, I couldn’t enjoy heaven if I thought for one second they were grieving. I know, I’ve been told this is so weird, but it’s truly how I feel. At any rate, Dan and I went to get labs done, then we stopped in at Church to worship in front of the Blessed Sacrament and then went to my new doctor, (my regular doctor wanted me to go to the ER, I knew it was time for a change after Elly’s birth). We prayed quietly while waiting, we each prayed silently while talking with the nurse and the kids were at home praying as were my Aunt Sue and Aunt Kath (my prayer warriors). I promised my typical promises, “God I don’t care if we live in a cardboard box, I will gladly trade everything we have for the safety and protection of our little baby.” Again, to make a crazy long story as short as humanly possible, suffice it to say, our little baby’s heart is beating at a rate of 173 beats per minute, my Hcg levels are high, 163,000 (I’m 9 weeks) but we’re going to test again on Saturday and go from there. Right now, at this moment, our precious child is safe and protected in my womb. Right now, at this moment, I am giving thanks to God for His never ending love for us, I’m thanking God for my 12 miracles, for my husband and for my life. I am in a state of thankfulness even for these trials that serve as reminders to always take time to thank God for what you do have and to forget about what you don’t. I am also thanking God for knowing I’m a weak human being and for never pushing me past my ability to cope. Most of all I am thankful that despite all of our faults and failings, God loves us all unconditionally.

As always, we are just beginning a new endeavor & for anyone who knows us, this is no surprise.  We are always ALWAYS starting some new project/career/philanthropic adventure and, well, we are full on dedicated to ensuring Obama does not reside in the White House for the next 4 years!  We have joined forces with the American Patriots of the Roaring Fork Valley and are launching Western Patriots.  We are the West … Colorado, the United States … it’s all West.  We don’t think small.  When we started our family, we didn’t think small & look at us today.  When we started KelloggShow, we didn’t think small & have made so many great friends across the globe.  When we started SubSavvy, we didn’t think small and it exploded so quickly that we had to get a new server within 1 month of launching.  So of course we didn’t think small launching Western Patriots.  Our future and the future of our children depend on the success of this wonderful Republic and we will stop at nothing when it comes to our children.

Our site, Western Patriots,  is a non-partisan, grassroots organization of individuals united by our core values derived from the Constitution of the United States of America, the Bill of Rights, and the Declaration of Independence.

While the website is new, American Patriots of the Roaring Fork Valley is not.  We have simply revamped our name, to reach a much more National Audience and we are as solid as ever.  We welcome any and all feedback you may have and as always, if you would like to become an active participant there are many many ways in which you can help.  For example:

1. Activism – Coordinate rallies, protests, and events to activate Western Patriot members to promote our principles.

2. Community Events – Participate in a wide variety of  community events throughout the year where you could have a booth or table to share with people more about our vision for the future. We would provide you with literature to hand out, merchandise to sell, forms for interested people to sign up to volunteer, etc.

3. Community Outreach – Proactively reach out to college students, minorities, young & elderly voters and other members of the community to share with them the core Western Patriots principles of limited government, fiscal responsibility, Constitutional adherence, &  free markets.  This gives you an opportunity to squash any propaganda and false ideas they may have about the movement.

4. Education – Develop education programs for adults, college and high school students on the Constitution, history of our Founders, economics, current public policy issues, etc. 

5. Fundraising – Responsible for raising the needed funds to promote our five core principles, advocate Tea Party legislation, conduct voter registration drives, offer education courses,purchase merchandise such as T-Shirts and bumper stickers, & in the future to provide bus trips to DC, etc. We are 100% volunteer, so all funds go directly to advancing the Western Patriots cause.

6. Legislative – Propose and advocate  legislation at is consistent with our core principles of limited government, fiscal restraint, Constitutional adherence, free markets, and virtue and accountability.

7. Marketing/Media – Focus on pro-actively defining the Tea Party movement, our core principles and our 2012 agenda through the use of traditional and social media and use of marketing tools.

8. Membership – First person of contact for people wanting to be more involved in Western Patriots. This committee responds to emails and phone calls and contacs those who sign up to be on our email list or express interest in joining a committee.

9. Research – Research how politicians are voting on federal and state legislation, keepsWestern Patriots supporters informed on public policy initiatives, and provide research for candidate voter guides during elections.

10. Small Business – Provides forum for small business community to network with other patriots businesses, partner on advocating legislation, and assist in building the brand equity of the Western Patriots.

11. Writing – Using Western Patriots blog, Facebook and Twitter accounts, and email blasts, we communicate truth about and perspective on current events related to Western Patriots core principles. We also keep our supporters informed of any activities they may want to participate in.

Come check us out at Western Patriots and on facebook and twitter and every other social media site ever invented!  :)  Give us a holler if you’d like to become involved or have comments or suggestions.

Thanks a ton … good night, sleep tight!