Fink Family Blog

Family Pics

2011-05-16T18:53:00.001-04:00

Because we took the kids to the park the other day and Jess just started snapping pics - with his CELL PHONE. I can't believe some of the shots he got. Crazy good!! CLICK TO ENLARGE THEM!

Yep. Took every single one with this crappy beat up cell phone. Everything the man touches turns to gold. =)

Kindergarten Grad

2011-05-13T14:34:00.000-04:00

More later. But does Jesse take great pictures, or what?? With his cell phone, no less...

Mini Photo Shoot

2011-01-30T17:45:00.001-05:00

So, I took about 100 pictures of the girls. And I told myself as I went thru them I was only going to post A FEW...just my VERY FAVORITES.

Half an hour later I had it narrowed down...to about 80. =) What can I say, I think these 3 little girls are the most beautiful things I've ever seen.

So, here I go, posting waaaaaaaaaaay too many pictures of the girls, because I couldn't decide on just 5. Please to enjoy.

The little stinkers just melt my heart. Lilah is 8 months now and growing growing growing. I am trying to do this more often, b/c I am the worst about taking pictures...and then I turn around and she will be starting Kindergarten...and I will have no baby pictures.

Besides, we have some vacancies in the family picture frames on the wall going upstairs that I purposefully left open for a certain tiny face. So, gotta go fill in those blanks with our new addition.

Karaoke

2011-01-08T01:06:00.000-05:00

♪♪♪Doooon't stop...belieeeeeeevin♪♪♪

Hi, I'm Lilah

2010-12-31T10:24:00.001-05:00

I am the world's sweetest 7 month old.

I love to eat my fingers.

I adore my big sisters.

I love my fishy teether.

I say "Hiiiiiii!!!" when Mommy comes to get me after nap.

I suck my thumb when I am sleepy.

I am Miss Perpetually Mellow.

I love to scoot around in my Jeep (just like my Mama.)

I love to give slobbery kisses.

I grab everything.

If you give me my blanket, I grab it and go right to sleep.

And sleep for 10 hours. =)

I have the most gorgeous hazel eyes (just like my Daddy.)

I am ALWAYS ready with a smile.

And if you come to visit me, you will fall in love. ♥

Back in business

2010-12-27T23:59:00.000-05:00

Unreal. What has it been, 2 months?! Blogger is still having issues. So I loaded the photo in the HTML tab beeeeaaaaaaatch!!!! Stay tuned for some recent pictures, I know you guys are dying for a baby fix!!

Dear Blogger....

2010-11-24T11:24:00.001-05:00

DIE!!

DIE!!

DIE!!

DIE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Still can't upload pictures......

2010-10-24T11:17:00.002-04:00

......still getting a 'server error' message. Not sure what the problem is. Anyone?

Hmmmm....

2010-10-19T23:02:00.000-04:00

Well, I keep trying to upload photos and I'm getting a "server error" message. Is anyone else having issues with blogger? I'll keep trying, I have a landslide of LaLa pictures that are just burning a hole in my hard drive!!

Stay tuned....

Family Day

2010-08-28T17:48:00.000-04:00

Jesse suggested a family walk and a swim in the lake this morning and boy am I glad we went! Absolutely lovely 4.5 mile loop trail called the Iron Hill Trail. Totally in the shade the whole way, slathered with moss on all sides, and around the lake a lot of the way so you can see the water, which was perfectly clear and emerald green.

Now I wish I had taken a few shots of the trail on the way because it was really a treat to walk on.

The girls are basically fearless when it comes to the water, which could be a bad thing, but I don't worry when Jesse is so close by.

Silly and sweet, sweet and silly. They take turns. :)

And the very best part of the day...Daddy had to take Lilah for her very first dip in the lake. With him as her Daddy, it will be the very first of many. But I think it is supercool that we got the moment "on film." The older girls were both about 2 their first time on the boat, so it won't be long before she is joining them on their fishing excursions.

We all had a great time and by the time we got back to the Jeep the girls were completely pooped. They are sacked out watching a movie and eating popcorn right now, I wouldn't be surprised if they weren't both sound asleep in the next half hour.

On the drive home Jesse said, "We should make this a Saturday morning tradition." ♥♥♥ He's the best.

The summer is winding down, school has started, and in the mornings there is the teeny-tiniest breath of Fall. We all look forward to the weather breaking in the deep South, but after today, I do wish we had another month of Summer to enjoy a new found Saturday morning tradition. Maybe we can squeeze it in again a couple more times before it gets chilly.

Hope your Saturday's been full of family and fun!

Recent pics

2010-08-24T22:59:00.000-04:00

Some recent pics of my little sweet cheeks. She will be 3 months old on 8-27. Would you just look at those fat little cheeks? It is from all the smooches we plant on them, I believe.

Smiley, relaxed, alert, happy child. She sleeps like a rock and loves to babble and talk to her sisters. She is an absolute pleasure to be around. It is amazing how quickly one's family is forever altered - I can't imagine life without her now. We are all madly in love. (And you are too, I know. It's okay. She's awesome like that. ♥)

Natalie's little friend Brynna came over Saturday for a playdate. The girls slid down the stairs on a blanket, built a blanket fort, and otherwise partied hard for 2 hours. When it was time for Brynna to leave, Natalie said, "But you JUST got here!!!"

These two have been in the same class together since Kindergarten, but Brynna's family is moving to NOVA and as soon as their house sells, they are on their way. We will be sad to see them go.

The girls are loving school and I could not be more proud of them. Pretty sure I am the most blessed woman on earth because I get to be their mom. :)

Madeline's first day of Kindergarten

2010-08-14T09:23:00.000-04:00

Yes indeed, it has happened. Another of our daughters has started school.

No one ever told me how emotional this would be. I was completely unprepared to feel the lump in my throat rise up, again!! Didn't I get this out of my system when Natalie started Kindergarten?

Watching her give her folder to Mrs. Lena and hang up her back pack, I was doing fine. Proud of her, excited for her, blessed that we have the privilege of having her in such a fantastic school, with the same teacher Natalie had for Kindergarten.

This means the world to my sweet little Mini-Me. She is cautious in her approach to new situations and it takes her a while to check out anything new and feel comfortable with it.

But since Natalie had Mrs. Lena, Madeline was with me every day to pick her up, and every single day, she saw Lena and said hello.

And Mrs. Lena would smile and say, "Hi Madeline!"

You might think that is small, but it was huge to Madeline. And me. :)

So on her first day of Kindergarten, she looked comfortable, relaxed, and excited as if she was walking into her own birthday party. Seeing her sitting at her desk, bright-eyed and smiling in anticipation, made it so much easier for me to walk out that door.

And then it happened.

Lena said to me, "No tears."

I smiled and said, "Oh, I'm fine!"

You shouldn't lie to your child's teacher.

Walking out to the car, I was fighting aforementioned lump in throat. My middle child is in school.

Jesse, on the other hand, hopped in the Jeep with his characteristic excitement and positivity, ready to do the "FREEEEEEEEEEE-DOM!!!!!!" shout from Braveheart.

Obviously no lump there. :) Then from the backseat, he was reminded by the coo of a tiny cherub that we aren't home free just yet. :)

Her first day was Tuesday, and she has come home every day with a huge smile on her face, stories to tell and projects to show.

And I have finally whooped the lump. :)

Baby love

2010-07-18T10:12:00.000-04:00

Strawberry Chub-cake

2010-07-11T10:21:00.000-04:00

"Who wants Brussels Sprouts????"

Bug & Lala

2010-07-04T12:46:00.000-04:00

Baby Bug got to give Lala a bottle!

When the (older) girls were born, they told us to wait 6 weeks before trying to give them a bottle, to make sure breastfeeding was well established and to avoid "nipple confusion."

Well, the end result was that "nipple confusion" was the least of our worries. There was no opportunity for confusion - they wanted nothing to do with any nipple except mine.

This time I got hold of a great book: Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child. The author suggests giving baby one bottle each day so that they will take breast OR bottle, to give mom a break.

Natalie couldn't wait to volunteer. :) And not only did the baby take the whole bottle, she will even take a bottle from ME. Nipple confusion my eye.

Girly pics

2010-06-24T16:56:00.001-04:00

Well, I'm going to skip the usual groveling about how long it has been since I've put pictures up...you guys must be used to it by now. :) Here are some cute pictures of the girlies, from our mini photo-shoot this morning, with some random others thrown in.

I know they are small - if you want one a little larger just email me or leave a comment and tell me which one you want, I'll email you the file. :)

Summer is here!

2010-06-06T11:46:00.000-04:00

And no one celebrates Summer like Dad. The girls spent the WHOLE DAY at the lake yesterday...they swam, they fished, they explored the shoreline, and they came home with a Critter Keeper full of tiny frogs. They were out until after dark and had an absolute blast. Awesome summer memories thanks to their amazing dad. ♥ And I got the whole day to myself with La La. This picture was taken with Jesse's cell phone, how cool is that?

I *love* being off work. The house is clean, the laundry is caught up, the to-do list is dwindling. I am actually reading a book and getting things done the same day I realize they need to be done. Oh what a feeling. I am soaking up the break and enjoying it - and I'm not thinking about how I'm going to pull off balancing the business and an 8 week old. Not yet.

Hope your Summer is heating up! :)

Miss Lilah

2010-06-05T19:47:00.000-04:00

Mama is typing with one hand, so I will be a woman of few words today. Bottom line: Sweetest. Baby. Ever.

Meet Lilah!

2010-05-29T20:55:00.000-04:00

Here she is! Lilah Daphne Fink joined us on 5/27 at 7:45am. She was 8 lbs 12 oz and exactly a week early! If she had gone to 42 weeks like both her sisters, she would have been a 10 pounder, easily.

We're home now and doing great! She is precious and has the sweetest, most low key personality. More pictures to follow when I'm feeling a little stronger. Love you guys!

35 weeks along

2010-04-30T13:22:00.002-04:00

Here are some new belly shots, by popular demand. :)

And a sneak peak at what the Bambino looks like this week in utero, thanks to BabyCenter. The girls have LOVED seeing these pictures each week - it has really helped them understand that there is, in fact, a baby growing in there and not just a big ol' belly!

Less than 4 weeks to go! Nursery is almost completely done, we just need some odds and ends like a diaper pail and a changing pad. They had a baby shower for us at church the other night and I will be getting those things soon thanks to a bunch of gift cards from our sweet, generous small group. It really feels real, and also not real at the same time. At this point, with the nursery done, the baby shower behind us, and me smuggling a watermelon everywhere I go, you would think it would have sunk in that we are adding a new daughter to our family in less than a month - but it hasn't!! I don't think it's really going to sink in until she is in my arms. :) And after that, I can say that a few days of 3am feedings will *definitely* hammer the point home!! I can't wait to meet her. We are still settling on a name so please pray for us - hearing from God and having some peace about it would help! But it might be that we have to see her little face in the hospital before we make the final call!

Nursery pics!!

2010-04-27T12:11:00.003-04:00

Okay, this has been a real work-in-progress for quite a while now. But it was a nice rainy day on Saturday and I was all caught up on cakes, so I spent the whole day in the former guest room getting the crib put together and hanging up the cute little stuff we got to go on the walls. I really love how it turned out. ♥♥♥

First, the BEFORE shot:

this was what our guest room looked like before we knew that the baby was on the way:

My Superhero hubby offered to do a total room makeover for me, because he is the BEST. And he followed thru right away!! This is the result!!

I think it is TOO CUTE for words. Jesse hung the chair rail so we could paint it 2 different colors, and we chose a really light green and pink from the bedding set. He even painted the whole thing because the paint warned that pregnant women should stay away from it (!!) So lucky me, I got to sit back and watch the magic unfold. (All I did was run some painters tape for him.)

We got a different kind of crib - the last one had a side rail that went up and down. I noticed that a lot of the time I would wake up the sleeping baby by putting the side rail up...so this one doesn't move. Isn't it pretty?

And here is the dresser which will double as a changing table when I get a changing pad to put on it. I'm hoping this furniture will hold her until she is well into grade school.

Here's a close-up of the quilt, because I think it is so stinkin' adorable. I even used the same clips that held up the comforter in the girls room (which, by the way, I saved for some reason?) I was wondering this week why I held on to it, probably the same reason I love this one so much - it just reminds me of the girls when they were babies now and I hated to get rid of it. But it turned out to be great because those little star-shaped comforter clips matched the previous quilt perfectly, and what do you know, they are perfect for this one too. :)

And finally we have the wall art above the dresser. These were a challenge to hang because the picture holders on the back of them were not at the same level on each side! So I had to make my holes in the wall correspondingly crooked, which made smoke come out of my ears. But I love the way they go with the Princess & Frog / Fairy Tale themed bedding.

Now I just want to go sit in there and soak up the cuteness!! It is by far the girliest room I've ever put together, and I love that Jesse loves it too. It is really only missing one important thing now:

A BABY!!

And she will be here in less than 5 weeks. Can you believe it? I certainly can't. She definitely has an adorable room waiting for her. :)

Resident Superhero

2010-04-25T13:03:00.000-04:00

Did you guys know I married a superhero? He really, really is. Easily the most capable and talented man I have ever met, and always willing to tackle the meanest, hairyest villian on the block. ♥

Our story begins with your typical disaster in need of a Superman. The washing machine started pouring water out the bottom every time we started it. Jesse lifted it up and looked under it - but couldn't find the leak. We were saying it would be silly to spend $150 on a visit from the repair man when we could just go buy a new washing machine for a little more. Since we had basically decided we were going to just get a new one, Jesse said, "I may as well take it apart and see if I can fix it."

And he did. Took it completely apart. At this point I thought he was mostly just exploring how the thing was put together and it was going to end up at the dump. But then he ripped open his shirt revealing the blue and red emblem...

Just kidding. But then he found the leaking part. And it was 4:30 in the afternoon, but he went to the computer, Googled 'Whirlpool parts', found a dealer IN OUR TOWN (who was still open for an hour!!), drove down there and got the part for $40.

And then he replaced the part. Pretty amazing in and of itself, because if we had called a repair guy we would have had to order the part, paid twice as much for it and then waited a week or two for it to come in. (With no clothes washing going on in the meantime, I might add.) This is when it gets handy to have a super hero in the house. Not only did he get the new part installed and working...he put the whole machine back together. The SAME DAY he took it apart. Perfectly, exactly the way it was, but with one exception - it doesn't pour water on the floor every time you turn it on anymore.

We've been using it for a week, and it is perfect. I am so impressed that he was able to tackle this task (something he'd never done before) and totally nail it. He saved us a huge repair bill, (and a long wait with no washer) or a huge bill for a new machine. My hero. ♥

One little detail I forgot to mention - see the brown ring around the top of the wash basin? That is DOG HAIR. Shows you how much I wash the dog's bedding - but G-R-O-S-S!!!! Jesse was also able to clean all that out, so it is like he cleaned and serviced the machine while he was at it. He cleaned out some kind of weird build up in the hot water line too. It is like having a brand new washing machine.

So go ahead and comment on what a lucky girl I am to be married to the most capable and super guy around. Because I know you're thinking it. :)

Recent pics - and not so recent

2010-03-27T12:55:00.000-04:00

Jesse and I a couple of months after we started attending Liberty Church, around February of 2008, I think.

My friend Tanya and I a week or so ago. Our due dates are only about 2 weeks apart. She's having a boy.

Speaking of due dates, mine is only about 8 weeks away. Much to do before then!! Better get on it.

General Sherman

2010-03-07T12:52:00.002-05:00

"Went by the name of Jesse. Seven feet tall he was, with arms like tree trunks. His eyes were like steel: cold, hard. Had a shock of hair, black, like the fires of Hell."

My man caught a freakishly HUGE catfish in the Coosa River! It was 53 pounds, I believe.

Just for reference, looking at the shot below you can see that it was almost as big as Madeline!

(Speaking of whom, she was still in her jammies from the night before.)

Crazy, crazy huge fish. Jesse brought him home in a cooler and I was joking that it was like being married to a mafia hit man who is always bringing home dead bodies! Looking at that fish in the cooler all I could think about was a dead guy stuffed in someone's trunk!

I have no doubt that Jesse Fink is going to become a household name down at the GON office. :)

6 months - and an FYI

2010-02-20T19:49:00.004-05:00

I am 6 months!!

==> 6!! MONTHS!! <==

She will be here in 3 months!!

I know I sound like a broken record, but I can't believe how fast this pregnancy is going by. I was looking at our little ultrasound pics today - sweet little chubby cheeks, just like her sisters. I can't wait to hold her and kiss those little cheeks. ♥

On an unrelated note.

I enjoy being pregnant. I really do. I feel cute. Bulgy, but cute.

Pregnancy is the ONE TIME in my life that I actually DON'T feel self-conscious about my weight. I like the cute little belly and I like the cute little clothes. I *adore* the enormous ta-tas. :) I don't obsess over the number on the scale and I don't feel guilty about eating.

HOWEVER. I have noticed a disturbing trend. For some reason, it seems that people feel it is okay to say things to me (I assume because I am obviously pregnant) that NO ONE in their right mind would say to a woman who is NOT pregnant.

Comments like, "You must be due any day," and "Feeling big?" and my favorite, "ONLY 6 MONTHS?! Is it TWINS??" just roll off their tongues. Worse, it is WOMEN who are guilty of this!! Now come on ladies. Would you tell another non-pregnant woman at the grocery store she seems a bit hefty to you for her height?

Of course not. Can you imagine? "Wow, you are big for a woman who is only 5' 4"! You must feel miserable!"

***SMACK!!***

That's about how that conversation would go, no?

So, just an FYI ladies. No pregnant woman wants to be told she is huge - just like the *not* pregnant girl next to her in line who is carrying an extra 30 lbs - she knows. And there is a good chance she is NOT standing there thinking how much better she would feel about herself if someone would just acknowledge her plight.

The old adage is true - think of something NICE to say. Ask her if she is excited. Ask her if she knows the baby's gender. Tell her she looks cute. And if she retorts with a negative remark about her appearance, don't be fazed.

The last 3 women she stood next to in line probably asked if she was carrying twins.

Thanks for listening. I feel better. :) Once we get the crib put together I'll be putting up some before-and-after pics of the nursery and the girls' room, both of which have recently received a fresh coat of paint in super girly colors. Have a great weekend!

WE GOT SNOW!!

2010-02-14T11:22:00.004-05:00

Real snow!! 4 INCHES!! I know that isn't much, but for us it is a HUGE amount and the girls LOVED it! There was a snowman in every yard in town, no one missed the opportunity to get outside and play in it. It fell on Friday night and I should have taken more pictures of the yard, it was just beautiful. By the next morning at 11 o'clock, it was almost completely melted.

Now our snow man looks more like a snow zombie:

It was wonderful while it lasted - I heard we might get another inch or two tonight.

If that happens I will take some pics of the yard covered in snow this time.

Hope you are having a lovely Valentines Day!!

Happy hump day!

2010-01-20T12:43:00.000-05:00

I resisted the temptation to name this post "Hump Week." I can see the raised eyebrows now.

I am 21 weeks, officially "over the hump!" We are both doing great - mom is feeling not too shabby and little miss is practicing for the US Olympic gymnastics team on a daily basis. Still amazed at how quickly the pregnancy is zipping along. Baby Bean will be here before we know it. And from the feel of things, she will be able to do a perfect ariel at birth.

Here's a BabyCenter drawing of a 21-week bambino:

And here's a snapshot of the real thing:

Adorable maternity digs courtesy of my Dad. ♥

More belly pics as the oven continues to expand, I promise. Up until now there hasn't been much to see.

If only that trend were destined to continue...sigh. Had an OB check today and evidently no one ever told the scale there "If you can't say anything nice, don't say anything at all."

But it goes with the territory. :) I'm grateful for the blessing of another pregnancy and especially, the blessing of another daughter. We can't wait to meet her.

Hope your Hump Day's HAPPY!

Treed

2010-01-15T10:36:00.000-05:00

Jesse treed a Baby Bug!!

Apparently these creatures like to climb trees when encouraged by their Daddies.

They are a little brazen and fearless as well.

And once they are in the tree, they tend not to want to come down.

IT'S A GIRL!!

2010-01-01T13:35:00.000-05:00

Hooray! We get to keep the designation "the girlies" when referring to our little ones. We will be welcoming another daughter at the end of May. Jesse is seriously outnumbered at this point. :)

I cannot BELIEVE how fast this pregnancy is FLYING by. Another week and I will be at the HALFWAY point!! We need to get on the nursery and start thinking about names while I am in my second trimester and feeling relatively good. I am thinking a whole lot about getting back in some yoga classes 3 times a week too, but we will see if I can pull it off time wise. It made a world of difference in eliminating pregnancy aches and pains with Madeline. (Plus I just miss the gym, and Dr. said forget about doing anything but yoga or walking until after the baby is born, so yoga it is.)

Wishing everyone a healthy and happy new year!! Here are some of the girlies' Christmas pictures that didn't make it into the Christmas cards. I had a very hard time narrowing it down to 3. Enjoy, and New Years' Blessings!!!!!!!!!!!!

Jenga Night with the Girlies

2009-12-21T19:36:00.001-05:00

In the surreal-ness of having so few cakes to do in the glorious, glorious month of December, I am able to do fun things with the girlies that I don't usually have time for. It struck me that we used to play Jenga in Bible college, and I set out to find the game locally for the girls. I couldn't stand to wait and give it to the them for Christmas. :)

Sure enough, Target had just, one, left! Yay! And I think it was $10!! Even better. I feared that the girls might be a little young for it, but I should have known better - they loved it. And so, for your viewing pleasure, here is my Jenga Photo Journal from the other night. :)

This last shot is a gem. Baby was pulling out a block that I knew was going to doom the tower, so instead of rescuing her, I just sat there with my camera at the ready. I wish I had waited about another half second to push the button, but the look on her face is awesome.

I think this was Friday night. On Saturday morning I awoke to the loud sound of a Jenga tower crashing down on the dining room table, along with one little voice giggling and another saying, "Aw, maaaaan." I'm so glad that Baby is home from school for two whole weeks. They are such little treasures. :)

Natalie's Christmas Concert

2009-12-18T14:58:00.001-05:00

I know it has been over a month since I've blogged!! Bad blogger! BAD!!

I just haven't had much to take pictures of...

Day to day stuff is all we've had going on, just the busy-ness of making cakes, running errands, and dropping adorable little girls off at school.

Jesse is working in North Carolina, but he has been home on and off and we've been soaking up the time together when we have it.

I promise I think about our sadly neglected blog almost every day...

And today I'm glad to report that I have some pictures to post! Yay!

BUT, please bear with me - Blogger has changed their format and so I am learning all over again.

Natalie had her Christmas Concert at school yesterday and because December is blessedly slow for cakes...

I got to go and take Rooney too. :)

I'm afraid that most of the pictures I got were terrible quality...

It wouldn't hurt me to sit down and read the manual for my camera some time, I'm sure that would help.

Also, I showed up 30 MINUTES early for the concert and still got a seat like 6 rows back...

I think most people must have dropped their kids off for school at 8:15 and then gone straight to the sanctuary to reserve their seats...but the concert didn't start until 9:30!!

So of course I did the logical thing...

Go get Starbucks to kill time and then come back. :)

Notice anything different about Bug than the other children?

Well, she goes to a Methodist school...

We go to a Pentecostal church....

THE DAY BEFORE the concert they sent a note home...

"Please have children wear their SUNDAY BEST."

No problem. :)

It's just that our definition of Sunday Best is,

evidently,

a little different than everyone elses. :)

Even without a frilly Christmas dress (sorry, she doesn't own one)

she was pretty as a picture the whole time.

She even had her own speaking part.

She was the 'M' in C-H-R-I-S-T-M-A-S.

'M' is for the Many blessings He has given us.

Amen. :)

They turned the lights down for the last song and gave all the children these candles.

I'm afraid this was the best of about 50 blurry and psychedelic pictures I took. :)

After the concert we headed back to Baby's classroom for her Christmas party.
The children exchanged gifts (books) and Christmas cards...
and there was an unholy amount of cookie-eating that took place.

Madeline jumped right in with Baby just like one of the gang.

They are growing up before our eyes.
I love that they are best friends.

The bun (and the oven) are doing great. :)
I'm starting to show and
with the exception of the lingering morning sickness,
I'm really enjoying being pregnant again.

Just 2 more weeks until we find out the baby's gender!!
YAY!!

WHEW!! That was a long one. :)

Merry Christmas to all and to all a good night. :)

Second OB Check...

2009-11-14T14:30:00.005-05:00

Saw the Baby Doc on Thursday and everything looks great. Lost some weight since the last check but Dr. didn't even mention it, it's just what happens sometimes when you have morning sickness. I really like our Dr. - Jesse and I joke about the number of times she says "kick ass" or "big ass" in one appt. She said "big ass" in the first 10 seconds after she walked into the exam room this time. She's hilarious. She is pregnant too but she's due in just a couple of weeks. I wouldn't be surprised if her baby's first words were "kick ass!"

8 more weeks (2 more visits) and we get to find out the baby's gender. :)

Photography Contest

2009-10-31T12:10:00.003-04:00

A friend of mine is a budding and talented professional photog. She often posts her pictures on her blog and Facebook and it is obvious that she loves what she does - her passion for family and children shows thru in every shot. She wants to win this contest over at SOULOGRAPHER, and the prize is a photography workshop in workbook format.

I thought it might be nice to give her a little support...and an extra entry or two. :) So I entered as well. Michelle, if I win, the workbook is yours. Love you and love what you do. :)

First OB check today

2009-10-15T18:16:00.001-04:00

Everything looks great! Saw the baby, heard the heartbeat, chatted with the doctor. Using the same OB/GYN who took the ovarian cyst out. She is also pregnant, but will deliver in less than 6 weeks so she will be back to deliver our baby at the end of May. :) Yay!

How to...

2009-09-28T11:40:00.003-04:00

...find out for sure who *REALLY* reads your blog.....

We are expecting #3 early next summer!! We did not expect this AT ALL but of course we are thrilled. Getting to tell the girls was a lot of fun too, because they are old enough to understand (5 & 7) and they were SO excited. So are we! ;)

Duck house

2009-09-28T10:48:00.009-04:00

This morning when we walked out the door to take Baby to school we were greeted by a surprise...

Two freshly-laid ducky eggs resting in two different spots in the grass. This meant we could wait no longer...the little critters needed a place to build a nest.

Since we are lucky enough to have a farm supply yard just 3 miles from our house, I just popped in there on the way home from dropping Baby Bug off. We came home with a bale of mulch hay lashed to the Jeep (I love my Jeep) and this:

Isn't it perfect?! I think our little feathered friends will be very cozy in there. It was also HEAVY!!
This is the male (you can tell by the curly feather sticking up from his bum.) He has been positioning himself between us and the female, who has been keeping her distance lately. (You can see her behind him under the Japanese Maple.) They are both very sweet but the male will walk right up to me and let me rub his belly sometimes.
I love my Jeep. :)
It only took like 1/10 of the hay I bought, so we got way too much. Maybe we'll spread some grass seed and thatch it. (No way, the ducks would eat it.) I picked up the eggs and snuggled them down in the dry, sweet-smelling hay. From what I have read, the female will lay 1-2 eggs per day but she won't sit on them until she is done laying. That way, they will all hatch at the same time. Who knows, we might have ducklings in about 6 weeks. All we need now is a heifer tied to the front porch and maybe an old car on blocks in the grass. :)

I will keep you posted and take lots of pictures. Hope your day is full of sweet little surprises! :)

LOL courtesy of BabyBug

2009-09-16T11:19:00.003-04:00

Jim was in town to help Jesse with a work project, and on the day before he left they took the girls fishing. Jesse recounted this story to me the next day. :)

After several hours out on the boat, they decided to head home. Once the boat was back on the trailer at the launch, BabyBug said she had to go potty. They pulled the truck into the "No Parking" zone in front of the launch to free up the launch. Jesse was tying down fishing poles in the boat while Baby went around the side of the truck out of the line of sight of any approaching traffic to tinkle in the woods. GrandPap stood nearby with his back turned. :) After just a few seconds, Baby came running back from behind the truck and said, "GrandPap, I can't go potty here! The sign says NO PEE!!"

Baby's 1st day of 1st grade!!

2009-08-05T10:04:00.007-04:00

Brace yourselves people, I know this might upset the very fabric of time and space, but I am posting about something ON THE ACTUAL DAY IT HAPPENED!!!!!!!!!

Today is Baby Bug's first day of school! She is a First Grader! Let's all take a moment to have a mini panic attack that almost 7 years seem to have flown by in less time than it takes a gallon of milk to spoil. :)
Oooooooh she has grown so much. She will be turning 7 on October 1st. Doesn't she look gorgeous in her cute little school uniform?! I'm so proud of my little sweetie pie. :)

Mini photo shoot

2009-08-03T20:24:00.019-04:00

I got the girlies these cute little matching sundresses from Target the other day...and they are so gorgeous in them that I had to take a thousand photos. They were only too happy to ham it up for the camera...please to enjoy:

This one is my absolute favorite...Rooney is just a riot.

Are they gorgeous? I love my little beauties. Hope your day is as full of tiny little beauties as mine!

The 4th of July

2009-07-10T11:11:00.011-04:00

As is my habit, I took the girlies to see the Fireworks display that Cartersville puts on every year. Usually, we park waaaaaaaaaay far away in a church parking lot where you can juuuuuuuuust see the fireworks over the trees in the distance. Then, when the show is over, there is a lot less traffic to fight. This year, however, I decided to go right into the Belly of the Beast - and we parked right across the street from Dellinger Park, where they set off the display. With just a few thousand of our closest friends. Thank you Jesus for my wonderful Jeep, which has been nothing but a blessing since day 1. It took a little bit of 4-low to get into (and out of) that spot in the pasture. :) I opened up the back of the Jeep and the girls and I sat in the back, blowing bubbles and waiting for the show to start.

This is the ever-darkening skyline beforehand:

And as if you've never seen fireworks before, I will now post gratuitous, poor-quality shots of every single blast that we saw, because hey, I'm cool like that. I was fiddling with my camera the WHOLE time and trying to get the setting that produced the best shots. Finally I just put it away and enjoyed the show though.
ooooooooooohhhhh......
aaaaaaaaahhhhhh...

I love these sparkly ones that trail down like a willow tree.

Big Finale!

And thank God for the Jeep again, because the *instant* the show was over it was GRIDLOCK in a pasture. The Jeep is consistent, steady, and never gives me a moment of fright. Other drivers, on the other hand....but we made it out. The girls had a great time. And I'm asking myself right now why I didn't take any pics of THEM? Duh. I won't make that mistake again, they are, after all, the stars of the show. :) Love you guys, hope everyone had a wonderful 4th of July!!

A day at the lake

2009-06-30T18:43:00.016-04:00

Jesse is forever taking the girls out on the boat, but it is unusual that I get to join them. Well, these are a couple of weeks old but it was a slow week in the store, so I got to go out on the lake with them and it was great - I even pouted until Jesse said it was okay to bring Blackbeard (as Jesse calls him when he's on the boat. I bet that dog has no idea his name is Ben.)

Baby Bug still has the same sweet little chubby cheeks that she had when she was a baby. This picture reminds me of her when she was about 2.

She's going to hate me for this one. Especially when I sneak it into the slideshow at her wedding.

It was a *gorgeous* sunset!

For some reason the girls were extra silly and sticking their tongues out in every shot.

Dad, watching the rods for a bite!

Sun-kissed sweetie.
Baby in the wind....

....and Ben in the wind.

What a great day. On the way home, my Jeep turned over to a hundred thousand miles. We bought the Cherokee brand new just a few weeks after 9/11, when interest rates took a giant tumble. It is paid for and has been the most wonderful vehicle I have ever owned. Lord willing, I always want to drive a Jeep. It was a sappy moment for me - I really love it.

Baby's First Graduation

2009-06-26T20:25:00.028-04:00

Okay, there is an angry mob coming down the driveway with torches and a lynch rope.

[Locks door. Draws blinds.]

Ahem. So I was thinking, maybe I should post the pics of Baby's Graduation from Kindergarten?!

They are in order as the day progressed. :) First, we have getting ready in the classroom, putting on caps and gowns and hamming around with buddies.

This is Baby's teacher, Mrs. Lena. She was positive, gracious, encouraging, loving, and wonderful. Baby was very lucky to have her as her first teacher.

Lined up and ready to walk down to the auditorium.

And here they all are. Only the Kindergarten class wore caps and gowns, because the Preschool only goes up thru K. Baby will be going to a different school next year.

The kids were ALL fascinated by their tassels and played with them non-stop.

They did lots of little songs for us, and wore all sorts of cute little get-ups.

First, they hummed us a song on their kazoos.

We were sitting diagonally across the (very large) room from Baby, and of course, there was a mic stand directly in the path of my camera. Sigh. So I did lots of leaning over the person next to me to get good shots of Baby. This is the first moment she found us in the crowd.

Next they sang "The 12 days of school", and baby was the fourth day. "On the fourth day of school, my teacher gave to me, ...."

Between songs, it was back to the tassels.

Getting her diploma! So sweet.

And another song. Why we didn't video tape this is beyond me.

After the ceremony, lots of celebration!

Jesse takes the best pictures ever.

Baby and her best buddy, Kaytlyn.

Mmmm, cake!!

Jesse had a tradition each morning on the way in to school, that he would carry Baby on his shoulders so she could touch the leaves of the big oak tree beside the Kindergarten bldg. So, one last time, she rode out on his shoulders, this time as a Grad!

I can't believe she is 6. One third of our time with her at home is past. Before we know it, she will be graduating from High School. We could not possibly be more proud of her. She is just such a pleasant, fun, intelligent, all-around awesome little girl. :)

And now that Summer is officially here, we have been hitting the Lake!! We want to get as much fun stuff in while school is out as we possibly can.

[Brick crashes through window.]

Okay people!! Call off your henchmen!! I promise never to withhold pictures again!!

Record Trout

2009-06-24T19:27:00.002-04:00

Jesse caught a Lake Record fish! It's a Rainbow Trout, and it's the biggest ever caught in Carters Lake. They are going to post pictures and a citation of some sort in the GON (GA Outdoor News.) I wouldn't be surprised if he ended up with several more lake records over the years to come. I'll post a link to the GON when the article comes out. :)

Dan the Animal Man

2009-06-20T01:22:00.008-04:00

Back in April this gentleman came to Baby's school and brought all sorts of critters with him. He is a Christian and had a lot of great things to say about evidence for a Creator that we can see in His Creation! The kids loved this. I'm sorry for the poor picture quality, but he was *really* far away and I had the camera on 1billionX zoom. :)

The first critter was a porcupine!! Dan wore leather gloves up to his armpits to handle the beastie, but I got such a kick out of the way he talked to her. ("Come heeeeeere, she's a goooood girl, yes she iiiiiiiiiis") Not the kind of creature I picture as cuddly, but hey, he raised her from a baby!

Between critters, he would go out to his truck and put the previous critter away, then bring in the next critter. It took a few minutes, so I thought I'd try to snap some family portraits while we waited.
Jesse lost patience with this quickly.

Next was an enormous owl, I'm afraid I don't remember what kind. (Dad?) Dan said the bird has such sensitive hearing that they can't listen to the radio in the truck, because the owl can't handle the noise.

I think this is a lemur. It was all I could do not to reach out and try to pet this one as he walked by (despite his stern warnings not to.) He climbed all over Dan and his little face was just so expressive and I was dying to play with his little toes!! He looked like a lot of fun to play with. Rats!

And of course, there was the obligatory CROCODILE!!! Look at that tail, it is as long as his body!!
His mouth was taped shut, but the girls took about a nanosecond to say "No, thanks" when asked if they wanted their picture taken with him.

And to round out the Wild Kingdom experience, I leave you with our Great Dane, snuggling with his own butt. Didn't know he could do that.

I cracked up at the respones you guys left on the last post! Thanks for bearing with me while I wade through 3 months of pictures! I will find the graduation pics, I promise. :) Knowing you're out there makes all the difference. XXXOOO

Waaaay behind!

2009-06-18T18:18:00.010-04:00

Okay, I have lots of pictures to share, and I'm getting ~~death threats~~ gentle persuasion from my loyal fans in the blog-o-sphere, so I'm going to start chipping away at posting some bloggy documentation of recent events in the lives of the girlies. Let's start with a mini photo-shoot I did in the late Spring when the duckies were just a few days old (new duckies. More on them later...)

Okay Peeps, sound off!! Who wants to see Baby's graduation pics?!

In case you were wondering...

2009-05-07T15:48:00.006-04:00

...how I feel about PayPal, who processes all my payments on the website...(Click to magnify)

From the mouths of babes....

2009-05-01T11:59:00.002-04:00

Yesterday I went to the dentist to get my temporary crown removed and the permanent crown put in. No novocaine, no pain, in and out in 30 minutes. Okay, actually there was pain, when the receptionist said "$635 please." Yeah. And that was the least expensive of the three visits.

Anyway, Jesse had the girls at work with him so I went to pick them up and we stopped for ice cream on the way home because we went right past Udder Delights, which is an *amazing* hand-dipped ice cream place out that way and they have lemon-custard ice cream that is a pure taste of what heaven will be like. The girls got chocolate soft-serve cones and we were all diving in as we continued the drive home. From the back seat I hear:

Natalie: "How's your ice cream, Rooney?"

Madeline: "Mmmmm."

Natalie: "Don't eat it too fast sweetie. You'll get freezer burn."

Fish Stories

2009-04-21T11:27:00.010-04:00

A big 'ole bass that Jesse caught:

The catch of crappie from the same day:

The striper that Madeline caught all by herself:

It's almost as big as she is!

This was a Daddy and Madeline trip while Baby Bug was at school for the day. Madeline LOVED fishing for crappie because she could cast and reel, cast and reel, cast and reel. My little Eaglette. Just look at that face. Somebody loves hanging out with her Dad. :)

GA hail storm

2009-04-10T19:05:00.001-04:00

Gueth vwhere I spebt de abdernoon?

2009-03-31T18:19:00.003-04:00

Yep. Hanging upside down in a chair with a hairdryer, a caulking gun, and 2 pairs of hands in my mouth. The entire left half of my face is currently numb. Jesse says I look like I just had Botox.

4 hour root canal last week, 2 hour temporary crown this week, and a 1 hour permanent crown next month. Not my idea of a good time! But it really wasn't that big of a deal -- root canals have gotten a bad rap. I was expecting it to be as painful as having those four teeth pulled [by Satan] when I was a teenager. Not even close. The most painful part was the price tag! :)

Finally!

2009-03-21T14:23:00.017-04:00

My dad and Shelia were here in December for a visit and we took the girlies to visit the GA Aquarium. It is the largest in the world and absolutely fascinating. I was unprepared for how much I was going to enjoy it - not to mention the girls! We had a blast and I have had these pictures on CD for 3 months!! So without further ado, here are some of the highlights of our day at the aquarium. :)
Me and my Dad, who took most of the incredible pictures you are about to see!

I love the way the light in this picture makes us look like we're underwater. This tunnel had a conveyor belt that we stood on and it just rolled us along the corridor while we oohed and aahed at the creatures swimming over us.

This was one of my favorite tanks - the glass was floor-to-ceiling and wall-to-wall, and it had to have been at least 20 feet high and probably 50 feet wide. It was like being on the ocean floor and there were HUNDREDS of different kinds of fish, sharks, and whales swimming by constantly. This is the room where they allow adult sleep-overs - you can actually rent the room for a night and your group can bring in sleeping bags and sleep on the floor by the glass. I though that sounded a little silly until I was actually in the room, and it was so peaceful and tranquil just sitting there watching the fish swim by. I can totally understand how amazing it would be to sleep there.

We got to actually reach in and touch these little critters. The girls *loved* this. I expected them to be slimy, but they were actually sticky. Very cool.

This was in the River exhibit. The baby alligators were just as interested in looking at us as we were in looking at them.

Takin' a break. :)

Another awesome tank, filled with jellyfish. They are so incredible and complex up close.

This was the first fish tank as we walked in, and it was hard to tear ourselves away to go see the rest of the exhibits. It reminded me of the coral reef where Nemo lived with his dad in the beginning of the movie! SO bright and colorful.

This ENORMOUS sea otter stole the show. He was TOO adorable. I had no idea these critters were so big. He was about the size of a seal.

I couldn't believe the huge diversity of fish they had on display. Thousands of species, and they were all so different. God is an incredible Creator.

Piranha!!!

Yeah. I'm gorgeous.

Hammerhead shark, obviously. I wish you could get an idea of how massive that thing really was. Definitely not something you want to see this close-up in the wild.

On the way out, we stopped in the gift shop. As Shelia and I and the girls were checking out, Dad started chatting with a security guard.

Dad: "So, is it usually this crowded?"
Guard: "Oh no. This is our busiest week of the year."

Nice. We had no idea that we were battling RECORD crowds for the week! We will definitely have to go back some time on a random weekday when the place is deserted. Baby Bug can skip school. :) What a great trip it was. If you have a chance to visit Atlanta, don't miss it!

BTW...

2009-02-20T19:21:00.005-05:00

Happy Belated Valentines Day! ;)

Lots of love.....

...and kisses!!!

Another First!

2009-02-20T18:27:00.002-05:00

Just when I thought the "firsts" were over - a new round of milestones is hitting...first day of Kindergarten, first loose tooth, and now, first lost tooth and first visit from the Tooth Fairy. *Sigh.* Next thing I know it will be first day of High School. It's going faster than I ever imagined possible.

Unicorn ride

2009-02-18T23:39:00.008-05:00

Okay people!!! I have a lot to catch up on, to say the very least! So we are going to take this one day and one backlogged folder of adorable pictures at a time, mm-kay?

Jesse *might* have fibbed and told the girls that he knew where the Last Unicorn was living out her days in retirement...without her horn, of course. Not sure they bought it or not, but here they are, at Kevin and Mandy's stable, riding Merlin, the sweetest of all sweet retired show horses. (Kevin and Mandy are world-class champions and you should have seen their trophy room.) They were practicing that morning and were kind enough to let the girls go for a ride.

They were absolutely thrilled to be riding that horse. Not since the rodeo have I seen such pure joy on their little faces, and they would have stayed there and ridden Merlin ALL DAY.

We had to think of something to tear them away, and so Jesse promised more unicorn rides later that evening. And that isn't the kind of promise they were about to let him forget!
You have never heard such a cacophony of laughter, thumps, bumps, and giddy-yups as they chased Big Ben through the upstairs (he played the Red Bull.) Thanks to this man (er, noble steed) there is never a dull moment around here. His creativity amazes me and our girls are very lucky to have him for a dad.

Here we go...

2009-01-19T00:13:00.006-05:00

This is how defenders are used to seeing #86 too - backwards, upside down, and every which way, because he just knocked them on their heiny...and caught the ball with the *other* hand.

This is not Jim. This is Jesse in 20 years.

I love my crazy in-laws!! Black and Gold runs in the family. I am so proud of the Steelers, and extra, extra proud of my #43 jersey. See you in Tampa guys!!

Blast from the Past

2009-01-02T11:08:00.023-05:00

The arrival of a new year always makes me reflect on the past 12 months. Where have I been, what have I done, how have I been spending my time. Do the activities that filled my calendar over the past year line up with the values and the principles that I believe in? Have I drawn closer to God this year, or have I allowed circumstances to create distance between us?

2008 was a hard year for a lot of people, us included. But I know I pressed hard toward God this year. And even though it was painful in a lot of ways, it was also one of the most fruitful seasons of personal change I can remember. So, I say that 2008 was a GREAT year, despite its hardships, because I am closer to God than I was this time last year, by far. And that is what matters to me more than anything else. If I can say the same thing next year, then 2009 will be a GREAT year as well!

And so, in keeping with my reflective attitude, how about a little trip down Memory Lane? I thought you might enjoy some old pictures of the girls, in no particular order. I have been looking at old pictures all morning, and here are some of my favorites. I labeled them since they looked so much alike when they were babies. Please to enjoy:

Madeline, circa 1 year

Me, Madeline, and my Grandmother, Madeline circa 3 months

Madeline c. 11 months

Natalie 22 months, Madeline 2 weeks

Natalie c. age 2

Madeline c. 3 months

Natalie c. age 2

Baby Sisters.
(Natalie just turned 2, Madeline is 2 months.)

Love at First Sight.
(Natalie is 21 months, Madeline is 1 day.)

These two are the most precious little gifts any parent could ever have the honor and privilege of receiving. They radiate love and joy and expect it in return. I understand the heart of God toward me better than ever because they are in my life. I want to know Him even more so that they will know Him more as well. I love being their mom.

My prayer is that you will fill your 2009 with people and activities that draw you closer to Jesus!!

Grandpap's Visit

2009-01-01T12:13:00.013-05:00

Jim came to town for a few days to celebrate Christmas with us! Here are some highlights. :)

Jesse, randomly harassing Big Ben.

Rooney Doodle and Grandpap, gettin' cozy.

Not to be left out, Big Ben moves in for some lovin' too. You know what they say...

...give and thou shalt receive.

The Dance of the Four-Legged Ballerina!

Big Ben, sitting on the sofa and watching TV like one of the gang.

And finally, here are the girls modeling some of their new Christmas presents. We had a great visit with Grandpap and I wish someone would invent a real teleporter so we could see all our far away family much more often. :)

Twas the night before Christmas...

2008-12-24T22:53:00.002-05:00

...and all thru the house,
the presents need wrapping
because I'm a louse!

Two little girls are upstairs pretending to be in bed, but I can hear their little feet thumping across their bedroom floor. They are way too excited to sleep.

We drove them thru the Christmas light display at Petit Creek Farms and let them unbuckle their seat belts and sit up front with us. I wish I'd had my camera. Drat.

I should go wrap the last of the presents! Merry Christmas to all and to all a good night!

Rocket Man

2008-12-23T13:11:00.002-05:00

My husband tells me the Piano Man is actually Billy Joel. Oops! So much for thinking I'd be great on Jeopardy. :)

Before and After

2008-12-18T02:46:00.004-05:00

This is the "after" shot. I will get to why I felt the need to crop it in a minute.

In the meantime, my Mom sent a box of Halloween costumes and puzzles. The girls disappeared into their rooms and emerged a little while later, looking cute as buttons in these adorable little get ups. The picture is for you Mom, with a thank-you for all the cute little puzzles as well.

And in case you are curious, I have posted the "before" shot below. I just think that, perhaps, there are some things you would rather not have to look at.
Big Ben, however, disagrees, and wouldn't get out of the picture. PhotoShop to the rescue. You're welcome.

Build-A-Bear Birthday Party

2008-12-12T16:24:00.011-05:00

Natalie went to Kaytlyn's 6th birthday party at the Build A Bear workshop at the mall. We had never been there so this was a new experience for both girls and they had a ball.
Here they are waiting in line with their as-yet-unstuffed teddy bear bodies.

Miss Madeline watching as the Party Leader stuffs her bear. Look at that hand on hip. I can't imagine who she learned that from. (My mom and dad are rolling their eyes big time.) :)

Natalie told the Party Leader her life story while she stuffed her bear. That girl loves a captive audience.

And here is everybody with their brand new teddy bear buddies, and the birthday girl.

Natalie named her bear Glimmer, and Maddy named her bear Tinkerbell.

Kaytlyn blowing out her candles. She is such a sweet little girl and I love that she and Natalie are buddies. The girls and I spent the rest of the day shopping at the mall. Not a very cheerful experience when you've just had surgery, but once I gave up trying on pants shopping was much more enjoyable. The girls were ready to die of boredom by the second store. The next time I brave the mall it will be after the holidays, and I will leave Thing 1 and Thing 2 with their Dad! :)

My new favorite website...

2008-12-05T15:49:00.013-05:00

...brought to you by my new favorite vegetable. Celery.My eating habits are largely vegetarian. Not because I believe meat is murder, or any other silly, irrelevant nonsense like that (although I do take issue with things like high saturated fat, low digestibility, parasites, chemical and hormone additives, and meat processing cleanliness.) I just don't think meat is a very healthy food and not a smart choice if one desires to keep the number on the scale from creeping north, or is generally squeamish with regard to, oh, say... worms in your brain.

Ahem. But I digress. I am a fruit and veges kind of girl, although I will occasionally make an exception for chicken (one of the less risky meats in all the areas of concern I mention above) and love seafood. Hypocritically, I also love sushi and have been know to consume large amounts of it. Comparatively speaking, it is a billion times safer than pork. If you don't believe me, see the article above.

Last night I came home from WalMart with a Jeep full of veges, my favorite Italian mineral water, a bottle of wine, and the intention to make one of my favorite dinners - a huge vegetable platter. As I shopped, I had been trying to choose at least one vege that I don't customarily consume. (Usually it is broccoli, red bell peppers, baby carrots, and ranch dip.) Variety in one's diet is important - so I chose a big bag of celery.I've always thought of celery as being essentially devoid of flavor, and basically consisting of water and cellulose. As I washed and chopped the stalks and laid them out on the platter, I was aiming for bulk more than nutritional density. Big Ben, who loves carrots and broccoli as much as I do, stood close by eyeing the platter and me, hoping for a handout. I obliged him first with a leafy stalk of celery - which he mouthed once, placed on the kitchen floor, sniffed with apathy, and returned to looking at me, buttressing my basic belief that celery is better used for science projects and dressing up Bloody Marys. I handed him a carrot instead, and he pranced off to the office area rug with his booty, where I heard him chomping with glee.

Once the platter was prepared, I joined my husband on the sofa and dug in. There were only carrots and celery on the platter, and after a few bites, I found myself going for the celery nearly every time - and noticed Jesse wasn't doing much by comparison to diminish the pile of carrots either. "I may have to eat my words," I thought. "This celery is *amazing.*"

This new revelation led me to wonder about the nutritional value of this tasty new occupant of my crisper. Was I really consuming only water and cellulose, or might there be phytonutrients to boot that I was unaware of? I made a quick trip to my laptop (knowing Ben wasn't interested in stealing the celery) and Googled "nutrients in celery." And that is how I discovered NutritionData.com.

Eating right is a challenge, to say the least, in our culture of fast food, microwaves, and ignorance. Please don't take offense - you are excused from that designation if you can tell me what ingredient makes up 40 - 50% (by weight) of many popular breakfast cereals. I'll give you a hint - it ain't whole grains.NutritionData.com blew my mind. It offers data far more rich than the usual black and white Nutrition Facts table that we have all grown accustomed to seeing on the reverse of our food packages (if you don't know what I'm talking about, see the ignorance comment above.)

My query was answered with colorful charts rating the nutritional value, fullness factor, caloric ratio, nutrient balance, and protein quality of the item in question (raw celery.) I also found tables outlining vitamin and mineral content, fat and protein content, as well as an overall rating (in the opinion of Nutrition Data) as to the weight loss and optimum health value of the food I was investigating. Turns out, celery is full of Vitamins A and K, and is a good source of folate, potassium, dietary fiber, and manganese. It is even useful for lowering blood pressure. Who knew?

I will be taking frequent advantage of the wealth of information available at Nutrition Data, especially the Nutrition Target Map. If you are one of those who has been unhappy with the reading on the bathroom scale of late, write down everything you eat during an average 3 days - then type those choices into NutritionData.com and examine the Nutrition Target Map, along with the accompanying assessment of that particular food's value for optimum health. Enlightening, practical, and significantly more reliable than the Great Dane test.

Catching Up!

2008-11-28T14:53:00.012-05:00

I found some cute pictures of Natalie's actual birthday that I never posted!
Opening the "Clothespin Cuties." We had a blast with these.

A Barbie computer! A huge hit because they love Barbie and they see me sit at my laptop everyday - they have almost worn this one out playing with it.

I just love this picture of Natalie. Isn't she gorgeous? Where did she get that strawberry hair? I love it.

And then they opened their new Ballerina outfits. You know your gift is a hit when...

...the recipient strips naked on the spot to try it on! :)

SPINNIN!!

They still wear these nearly everyday, especially Miss Madeline, who *LOVES* to dress up.

Crowded around the Barbie laptop. This thing really was fun to play with and very much like a real laptop.

And I found the cutest little Tinkerbell birthday cake, which was the perfect size since I knew there was going to be a sheet cake a couple of days later at her party, and I didn't want cake in the house for two weeks straight, because I would have eaten it for two weeks straight! :)

Hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving and no one got trampled by crowds during the Black Friday sales!

Hop on Pop

2008-11-16T16:41:00.003-05:00

My Man Caught A(nother) Monster

2008-11-12T17:57:00.005-05:00

Yup. That, folks, is one HUGE striper. 34" long. We have decided that that is Jesse's lucky fishing shirt. I am married to one very versatile outdoorsman - he has brought home deer this season as well (but I deemed the pics a bit too graphic for our family-friendly blog), as well as a large black tip shark last year. I think Jesse would tell you that on almost any given day, his body might be in Georgia but his heart is fishing 50 miles from shore in the ocean.

All this and he cooks too. We have had fresh fish and 20 lbs. of deer jerky in the last month. I heart my hunky hubby. :)

The Pumpkin Patch

2008-11-10T09:03:00.001-05:00

We went on a field trip with Natalie's class to the Pumpkin Patch in Adairsville. This was Oct. 20th, but I am SO behind on posting all the cute little things the girls have been up to. I took about 100 pictures, and I tried to whittle it down to just the best for you guys, but it was hard!

On the way into the petting zoo. Kids were instructed to only pet with "these two fingers" and then not to put those fingers in their mouths until their hands were washed.
Billy goats!! These little guys were too cute. I wished Ben were with us, he would have loved playing with these critters, and they would have loved jumping all over him.
The fattest bunny I have ever seen. Poor picture, but they said he weighed 16lbs!
When I saw these guys, all I could think was, "Gee, Ben really is like having a pony in the house."Ducks with mohawks. The kids thought these were hi-larious. Our guide told them they were still wearing their Halloween costumes.

This pen was full of baby duckies....
....and chubby bunnies....
Look at the walk-way they have built for the billy goats to play on! We had a hard time explaining to the kids that they couldn't go in and climb on it too. It did look like fun!
The picture just doesn't capture how enormous this steer was.
A hand washing station - thank heaven!
Next it was Hayrides. I was impressed by all the activities they had planned for us and how they kept us moving from one to the next. The kids were having a blast.

The hayride was basically a tour through the back half of the farm, where they grow all the crops. They had almost a HUNDRED scare crows dressed up in every out fit you can imagine.

Playing hot potato (with a cold pumpkin) to kill time while we waited our turn for the hay maze.

Sweet sisters. They are growing up so fast.

I love the look on Madeline's face. "Is this thing safe?"
She never took her eyes off that dummy. I think she expected him to get up.

They ran thru the maze over and over, laughing their butts off the whole time. They loved it.
This is Natalie and her best buddy, Kaytlyn.
Blinded by the light! Natalie's class, and her teacher, Mrs. Lena.

Natalie and Kaytlyn. These two are inseparable.
Chasing a cricket!

They probably spent 20 minutes inspecting all the pumpkins, until they found the perfect ones.

We stopped at Home Depot on the way home and I got two huge pots of mums. We now have a beautiful Fall display of flowers and pumpkins of all different sizes on our porch, which the girls love because they remind them of their big day at the Pumpkin Patch, and they love to tell visitors that they chose them all by themselves. I'm so proud of my little sweetie pies.

Natalie's Birthday Party!

2008-10-31T21:20:00.000-04:00

I know, I know, it's been nearly a month. Better late than never people!!!

Here, we have set the stage and the kids were starting to trickle in. It took a couple of hours for everyone to arrive, during which time the moms chatted comfortably under the welcome shade of the tent my wonderful husband set up. Jesse planned the party, decorated the outside, set *everything* up, got the cake and the party plates, and even invited a very special guest....

...who showed up about halfway thru the party....
...and a dozen *terrified* children piled into the bounce house in abject, giddy disbelief...
...as Greg tried to coax the youngsters out by demonstration that Shrek was, in fact, not going to eat them, but only arrived to play.
Once they warmed up to him, Shrek was lots of fun!
He led everybody on a hunt for candy...
...and bravely held the Donkey pinata while everybody took a swing (or five).
A beautiful cake, fit for a beautiful Princess' 6th birthday!

Shrek couldn't stay for cake! But Natalie got a goodbye hug and so did a few other brave souls!

Too bad that Jesse was inside wrapping presents while Shrek was here and missed the whole thing!!! ;)

Opening presents - I love the freshly-flung tissue paper, still hanging in mid-air while Natalie goes for the goods.And of course, it isn't a real party until someone passes out....

We all had a blast, thanks to Jesse who orchestrated the entire affair, booked Shrek :), entertained a dozen little tykes for 2 hours straight, and was the reason Natalie had a very special day of memories to celebrate her 6th birthday! My husband is the shizzle-finizzle.

Yardwork

2008-10-26T16:53:00.001-04:00

My wonderful hubby has been hitting it hard. Ripped out all the overgrown bushes behind the Japanese maples, and pulled weeds, spread fresh pine straw and weed mats, and repaired the border in the backyard. Everything looks amazing. We can't decide what to put behind the Japanese maples now. I got some fountain grass but it wasn't the variety I really wanted, and we aren't sure we like it. We'll see what happens.

So Long Stinky!!

2008-09-25T10:29:00.001-04:00

Once you let a smelly Great Dane lie on your sofa, there is no saving the sofa. It was a toss up for me on sending the dog or the sofa to the dump. I decided, at least we can wash the dog.

Big Ben howling

2008-09-04T16:01:00.000-04:00

For some reason, Big Ben has a thing about sirens. Any time an ambulance or a firetruck goes by anywhere near our house, even if it is very faint and in the distance, he howls like a wolf under the harvest moon. Well, with all the storms moving through the country right now, I guess they decided yesterday would be a good time to test the (very loud) tornado sirens in our neighborhood. This was the result....

Random Acts of Cuteness

2008-09-01T17:18:00.001-04:00

Asleep like a pile of puppies on the sofa.Rooney posing while Natalie draws her portrait.

Natalie made a dress for Rooney out of tape and wrapping paper! How creative is this?

They put on a little show for us, made the "curtain" and the stage themselves, and sang us the Baby Bumblebee song, which Natalie learned in Kindergarten and has taught to Rooney.

Are they cute or what? Always up to something. I never know what to expect next. :)

Camping at Lake Hartwell

2008-09-01T02:50:00.000-04:00

Jesse and Jim took the girls camping at Lake Hartwell, which is on the border of Georgia and South Carolina. I think. This was a trip they took several weeks ago, and I forgot about the pictures until just now. Doh! They slept in a tent, spent their days on the boat and swimming, came home filthy, and had a BALL. Here are some highlights from the last day when I drove up just for the afternoon.

The lake was l-o-w. That made for miles of extra shoreline that the girls could explore.

The DNR did a reptile show and brought all kinds of snakes and lizards for the kids to hold. This is an albino bearded dragon, enjoying the warm hand on his tummy. Very cute little guy.
I forget what kind of snake this was, but he isn't the poisonous kind, although he was too fast moving to hold. And even non-venomous snakes will bite you.

Me holding a big red-tailed boa. They said he was around 9 feet (um, more like 6) and around 30 pounds (felt like twice that!!)

This was the view from the campsite down to the water where Jesse had the boat docked. I wish I'd gotten a shot of their tent and campsite. There were ducks walking around down there, so we had to go see them and watch the sunset.

You can see the stairway back up to the campsite. Where the girls are standing is usually underwater, but we are still suffering from the effects of a very prolonged drought. The girls had a great trip and Jesse and Jim got to spend some guy time together too, after I took the girlies home with me. They were asleep before we even got to the highway, mouths hanging open. All tuckered out from their big adventure with Daddy and GrandPap.

GO STEELERS!!

2008-08-23T21:53:00.000-04:00

What's Happening?!?

2008-08-12T19:31:00.000-04:00

This morning I woke up in an alternate universe. It is an unsettling feeling, to be sure. I went to bed last night the mother of two small children...and this morning I rose to discover that in this strange and terrifying new realm...I have a daughter in Kindergarten. Someone, please, pinch me. Where is the fat little baby who was here what seems like MOMENTS ago?! Surely this is not her, showing off her adorable little "First Day of School" outfit?
I had to RUN to keep up with her. We had been to Open House the night before and she knew exactly where she was going.

This is her teacher, Ms. Lena.

It turns out that Baby knows two of the other kids in her class (from the childcare at the gym.) This little guy is Jarrett, who is only one month older than Natalie, and they have been playing together at the gym since they were babies.
She had an absolute blast and told me all about it all the way home (class is from 8:30am to 12:30pm.)
And this is what happens to a little girl who has had a very, very big day. We are so proud of our little Baby Bug.

The first thing she asked when she woke up was, "Mom, was it dark?" Meaning, did I sleep all night? Is it time for school again?

Madeline's Bday, Reprise

2008-08-03T14:45:00.001-04:00

More pictures from Madeline's 4th Birthday! I uploaded these from the camera that day, but once you do that, unless you edit them and save them in a new folder right away, you can't find them again until the next time you upload pics from your camera. It's a complicated story, but let me sum it up in two words: VISTA SUCKS.

So here's the birthday girl herself, opening presents:

....trying on her new Fairy Princess outfit...
....and blowing out the candles on her cake, all of which she carefully placed herself.

I'm amazed that my baby is 4. And I was thinking, if Baby starts kindergarden this year, Rooney will turn 5 next summer, so they will only be one year apart in school. One more year and both my kids will be in school. Crazy.

Madeline's Birthday

2008-07-30T11:46:00.001-04:00

Miss Madeline turned 4 on July 23rd!! We celebrated with some friends who have a little girl (Khila) who has the same birthday, but is one year older. Look at this gorgeous cake!! Khila's mom, Christi, even got Madeline's nickname right.

Beautiful Birthday Girls!!

Is there anything cuter than a 2-yr-old eating birthday cake? We were at Leia Taylor's house, and this is her little girl, whose name is also Natalie.

Man, that cake was GOOD. I had like 3 pieces. MMmmmmm.

Frosting on your nose. That's how you know the cake was amazing!!

2008-07-23T21:37:00.001-04:00

Duck Tales

2008-07-21T02:55:00.001-04:00

Look how big our feathered friends have gotten!! They are going to be full-grown in less than 2 weeks. Their wings are starting to develop and soon they will be able to fly. They are sweet little things and I hate to see them go, I really do. Plus heaven knows what Jesse will bring home next, when Baby starts feeling sad and wishing she had a pet again. I don't want to pull down the driveway and see an Alpaca tied to a tree.

Well, folks, it has been a wonderful break, but as of this weekend, I have re-opened the store. Ye Olde Weblog may suffer some neglect in the weeks to come. If I don't post for a while, it is because I am making cakes around the clock again, so I may have to go back to the occasional post when something more exciting than a day that ends in 'y' takes place around here, which is about all the reason I've needed to post lately.

The Big Guy

2008-07-19T12:42:00.000-04:00

Isn't he pretty? Despite his being a colossal pain in the heiny *most* of the time, I do love the dog. Except when he wakes me up by barfing in a corner of my bedroom, barks at the UPS driver so adamantly that he moves the entire rug, desk, and my laptop, tears through the office and catches my laptop cord, pulling it off the desk, walks through the house with an entire sofa cushion in his mouth, pulls the railing off the deck because his leader caught on it while he was after a bunny, poops on the driveway because the grass was just a little high for his taste (hey, who likes to be tickled while they poop?), insists on using the sink as his own personal drinking fountain while I'm trying to brush my teeth, and leaves what can only be described as "egg white slime" by the gallon on my kitchen floor when he drinks from his water bowl.

Prepare to be cultured....

2008-07-16T09:49:00.000-04:00

Yesterday was Jesse's birthday, and I got him an Espresso machine. We both have rather a lot of energy this morning! >:} So, speaking of high energy, here you go - this is just for fun - turn up your speakers and get ready to smile. A lot.

Yeeeeeee-haaaaaaaaw!

2008-07-15T17:55:00.000-04:00

We attended a local rodeo a couple of nights ago and it was so much fun! They had a petting zoo, pony rides, giant inflatable slides, and of course....ice cream. The girls were in heaven. The Saddle Club puts on the rodeo every year, but this is the first year they were really old enough to enjoy it. We definitely won't ever miss it again. It was about 137 degrees out and it had just rained a few hours earlier. Ew.

I think the pony rides were the highlight of the evening, for sure. The girls could not stop smiling. Jesse was awesome trying to distract the guy running the ride with conversation so the girls could ride for a few extra minutes.

The actual rodeo was under a pavilion and it was very dark under there - I couldn't get my camera to get a very good shot of the shows, but there were cowboys riding bulls (for a second at least, until they got thrown to kingdom come,) cowboys roping and hog-tying calves, and all the usual goofy rodeo clowns telling jokes that weren't funny between shows. The shot below is of the 'kid rodeo.' They got ALL the kids out in the pen (like 150 of them), and then tied a flag to two little cows tails. Then it was, "On your mark, get set, GO!" and all 150 kids chased the cows all over the rodeo pen trying to get the flags off their tails. It was pretty funny. If you look carefully at this picture, you can see kids falling all over each other chasing one of the cows.
Daddy and Rooney watching the bull rides, or at least Daddy is watching the bull rides, and Rooney is engrossed in an ice cream sandwich.
The same people who brought the ponies brought a camel! We skipped the camel ride though. Maybe next year.
The girls did the giant slides over and over. I was so proud of Miss Madeline, who climbed all the way to the top of this 20 foot slide all by herself.
You know you are in the South when this is what you see by the sign at the slide entrance that says, "Please take off your shoes."

La-Z-Ben

2008-07-09T16:12:00.000-04:00

Some things start off innocently enough. Who turns down a little belly scratchin'?
And then again, sometimes you pay the price for letting your guard down.

On an adorable side note, here are the girls with their makeshift microphones, singing along with Todd Agnew's "Grace Like Rain." Play the song below to get the full effect. :)

2008-07-04T10:17:00.000-04:00

Sometime during the night both girls ended up in bed with me. I became aware of the occasional [frequent] knee, elbow, or foot in my back, and when I got up, I saw why. There they were, sleeping like a pile of puppies, with Rooney sideways and all snuggled up with Baby, who didn't appear to mind [be conscious.] Hence my sore back.

We went to Lake Acworth Beach yesterday for a playdate with some kids from church. Jesse takes the girls to that lake all the time, but on the boat. I had no idea that they had a wonderful little white sand beach, where the water was shallow and the kids could play within arm's reach while the moms sat in lawn chairs with our feet in the water and chatted (and there was no charge, not even for parking!) We had a great time and the girls did not want to come home. However, I forgot the camera. I grimaced as I was walking down the beach and realized my mistake, because I know I promised pictures!! In my defense, I took lots with my cell phone - then I couldn't find the USB cable for the phone to load them to the computer. BUT, there is hope, Leia Taylor had her camera and told me she would email me any pics she got with the girls. In the meantime, we will definitely do that again, so stay tuned, eventually, there will be pictures!

And finally, I know this country isn't perfect, but I am so grateful that I live here. My life is so easy - I live in luxury compared to MOST of the people in the WORLD. My house is HUGE, safe, clean, and comfortable. I have clean, cheap food and water abundantly available and my children are safe and well-fed. We have state-of-the-art medical care available 24 hours a day if we need it. I don't have to worry about watching my girls die from a common and preventable illness like pneumonia. If I want to work hard to change my life for the better, I have EVERY opportunity because I live here. I HAVE IT GOOD. I'm grateful to God, because I should be!! I have TONS to be grateful for, and the list goes on, it would take me hours to mention everything. And I'm grateful to the men and women who are overseas fighting to protect me and my family and keep America safe and free. God bless them, and God Bless America.

HAPPY 4TH OF JULY!!!

Empty Nest Syndrome

2008-06-30T23:15:00.000-04:00

Well, I woke this morning to find that the babies have all left the nest. Here is the most recent picture I took a couple of days ago...I couldn't believe how fast they went from newly-hatched and completely helpless to fully-feathered and ready to go.

The proud parents have been behaving strangely the last day or two - they stayed much closer to the nest than normal and we were able to get very close to them without them taking off. I wondered a couple of times if they were going to launch into the air and start pecking me to protect their nest. Maybe they are just feeling a little perkier now that they don't have 4 infants waking them up at night for feedings? Who knows. But I got some good pictures.

Okay Dad, how's THAT for a freakin' close up? This is actually one of the babies, just starting to explore her ability to jump ship. I snapped this one yesterday, and had hoped that I might be present to witness the little bugger's first attempt at flight today. But, alas, all 4 babies followed Mom and Dad into the wild blue yonder before I got up this morning. *Sigh.*

Guess I will have to go back to blogging about my obnoxious dog and adorable daughters. We have a playdate Thursday at the Lake - I will take the camera!

Electric Slide

2008-06-26T14:53:00.001-04:00

We have been going to a local elementary school park in the evenings so that I can walk and the girls can play. It is less than 5 minutes from the house and always deserted. Sometimes Jesse comes with us and I am hoping we can bring Biggie Smalls along one of these days so he can walk with me way over in the grass behind the parking lot.

The slides were like those Eye-of-the-Storm balls - the instant they touched them their hair would stand straight up.
My battery was dying, so this was the last picture I could get! Phooey.
And finally, it never ceases to amaze me how a 140 lb. dog can curl himself into a 12 inch ball like a centipede. He's such a sofa rat.

The babies are here!

2008-06-21T21:05:00.001-04:00

How's this for a face that only a mother could love?!

Speaking of Mama, she is never far away, and neither is the Daddy bird, who is red. I don't know what species they are, and they always take off the moment they see me coming, so it isn't easy to get a good look. Dad? Care to take a stab at a little GA bird ID?

These little guys are turning out to be great pets. They cheep when they are hungry or thirsty (which is often,) so Baby has to run down to the garage every couple of hours to feed them and change their water. I love that, because they are so gentle and sweet that she can take care of them by herself, and she is learning a lot about the responsibility that goes with a pet. They love to swim in the pond and follow Baby thru the yard as she walks. If she gets out of sight they stand together, stretch their necks, and start cheeping for her. As soon as she comes back, they waddle right over to her. She loves them, and I think they are rather smitten with her as well.

And finally, the highlight of my day...Rooney discovered my underwear drawer and decided to create another of her famous Mermaid ensembles. She came running into my office wearing a pair of my panties this time as "seashells."

I cracked up, of course, and had to snap some pics. Then I picked her up to kiss her and tell her how cute she was, and as I did, her skirt started to fall off. She said, "MOM!! You're ruining my fin!!" She's 3. When did my baby learn to think abstractly?!

Look up, look down, all around, hey.....

2008-06-13T23:59:00.000-04:00

Satellite!

Poor guy. Said goodbye to the twins and the tail on the same day. He looks great with a short tail, but he was so uncomfortable that first night. We both did some crying. It has been about a week now and he is starting to adjust, and seems to be in less pain. That ridiculous collar DOES NOT keep him from licking his tail, and I'm a little concerned that once we remove it he isn't going to leave it alone. But at least he isn't chewing it anymore (it's too short) and hopefully once it's healed that will be the end of the Frankentail.

We rented "Mama's Boy" tonight, which starred the kid from Napoleon Dynamite. Hilarious. Worth two hours. Charlie Wilson's War is still up there, will let you know how that one turns out.

Wild Kingdom

2008-06-05T17:31:00.000-04:00

Okay, the last couple of weeks our lives have been very full....of critters. It has been like Noah's Ark around here, and the girls are just loving it.

First, Jesse found a baby cotton-tail bunny in the grass at the rental house. Baby fell instantly in love (the little furball *was* adorable.)

Bunny only stayed with us a couple of days, before making a run for it the first time we put him down on the grass to eat some clover. He was like a tiny furry blur. Baby was DEVASTATED. She cried and cried. :`( Our saving grace has been that there are lots of wild bunnies around here, and when we see one in the backyard we tell her that is the baby bunny's Mommy and he wanted to go home. That has made her feel much better.

Next, since Jesse has installed the Second Coming Spotlight on the frontporch, we have had bugs galore, especially moths, which the girls think are butterflies and love to catch. Check this guy out - he has been coming and going the last few days and always lands in the same spot. The girls call him the Big Green Butterfly and love to look at him through the other side of the bathroom window. Ew.Also on the porch, some birds have decided to build their nest in the wreath on the security door. This picture is about a week old, there are 5 eggs in there now. We are going to have baby birds and the girls can't wait. Every time we come or go they ask if the babies are here yet.

And finally, Jesse brought home two little baby duckies today. Basically, they are about the most adorable things I have ever seen, and this time, we are *all* in love. They follow you around when you walk and love to climb up in your lap to snuggle up and get warm. They are SO soft and OH SO CUTE!! They are quick little buggers too, you have to be careful holding them. They are just a week old, and the guy at the farm supply place said they can go in the pond when they are a month old.
We just have to name them! I think Baby has been calling them Amber and Daniel (I have no idea.) What do you guys think? Romulus and Remus? Bonnie and Clyde? Peking and A La Orange? Rubber and Lame?

Take my dog...please

2008-05-24T15:49:00.000-04:00

It's been a while since you-know-who went to the Vet, and it was time to update his shots before we take him in week after next (dun-dun-DUN!!) to have the Blackberries removed.

He is still about 135lbs.

He dragged me all over the Vet office. There was very little I could do. I had him in a fancy Cesar Milan dog collar, and it was useless. I should have kept him in his slider/chain link collar. TOMORROW on the way to church, I am stopping at PetSmart for a PINCH collar. And while we're there, we're asking about obedience training (you know, since I have all this extra time on my hands), because this is ridiculous. We won't ever be able to have him out in public, around new people or other dogs. He's totally out of control and I practically had to WRESTLE him to the ground, where he would stay for about 9/10 of a second and then it was back at the other dog/vet tech/whoever was close by. Ugh.

What. A crummy. Day.

2008-05-06T00:18:00.000-04:00

I basically did everything but stand on my head today to get work done before my UPS pickup, and still didn't make it. Had to drive a dozen boxes half an hour across town. Stopped for diapers on the way home - and they forgot to order them this week. They had *2 cases.* So I will have to go back tomorrow, and doubt I have even enough to make all the orders that need to go out tomorrow. Stopped for Burt's Bees at another store - and they haven't ordered them.

I just stood there with my mouth open. I must have asked them to place that order half a dozen times in the last 3 weeks. I am out of those now and will have to buy them retail to hold me over until my regular order comes in. If they manage to place it, that is.

Got home to see that someone wants an order overnighted, but wants it with a larger size diaper than I usually use. I'd love to tell her no, but don't want her to cancel her order. After taking care of a couple of things around the house (feeding the girls, unloading & reloading dishwasher, etc.) it is now about 10:30pm, but I really have no choice (not true, I'm just making more problems for myself at this point.) So I load the girls into the Jeep thinking I will just make a quick run to Ingles for 2 packs of size 2 diapers....

...and get pulled over ****AT THE INGLES STOPLIGHT!!!!**** For expired tags. They are 5 days past their expiration. Did he write me a ticket? What do you think. Did I try to explain that I work 16 hour days and that this just BARELY slipped through the cracks? Do I try to explain that I still have to work until 4 or 5am when I get home and that an $80 ticket is going to completely cancel out this late-night supply run AND probably the whole night's work??!!

No. I don't. Because he didn't ask. He just took his sweet time writing me a ticket, and said, "Sign here." And then, "Drive safe." I found that very irritating, but then, I can't imagine there is anything a policeman could possibly say after writing me a ticket that would sound even remotely sincere. And hey, at least I'm already in the Ingles parking lot, so I may as well finish my errand.

It is now 12:30 and the girls are in bed. I have at least 6 hours worth of work that needs to be done, which will be for nothing. And a very sick feeling in my stomach that things need very much to change.

The Great Pain

2008-04-07T00:14:00.000-04:00

I am rushing around tonight trying to get through a checklist of things and out the door for church by 5pm. It is 4:30, and I decide I have time to wash the stinky D-O-G. I had him on the rope in the backyard, which I looped around the boat, then only tied to his collar with a single knot. Well, as I was spraying him with the hose, he kept trying to get away, and the knot came undone.

The instant he realized he was free (and soaking wet) he took off like a Greyhound chasing a bunny - a bunny covered in BBQ sauce.

So I go inside looking for something to tempt him into coming back to me and decide that his usual carrot won't do, because I am pressed for time. So I get a hot dog. And off I go down the street after him. Well, wouldn't you know it, our queer Great Dane is not interested AT ALL. He won't even SNIFF IT. Not organic enough for him, I suppose.

In the meantime I am just falling all over myself trying to grab his collar and waving this hot dog around while he jukes me. I can just HEAR people driving by on the street asking each other, "Did you just see a barefoot lady chasing a wet Great Dane with a hot dog?!"

I finally cornered him and got hold of his collar, and dragged him back home, past one Mom out walking with her one-year-old baby. She saw me, smiled, saw the dog, her eyes got as big as flying saucers and she picked up her baby, AND CROSSED THE STREET!! Good grief. I actually managed to get a shower and get to church on time.

Speaking of church. I. Love. Our. Church. Pastor John can preach circles around anyone else I've ever heard. If you really want to be knocked off your horse, click the link at the right that says "Liberty Church." Toward the bottom left, you can click to Listen to Pastor John's sermons. Choose Audio, then Topical. PICK ANY TOPIC THAT INTERESTS YOU. Throw a dart. You will want to hear more, I promise. They are like Pringles, you can't stop at just one. Come visit us at the first opportunity so you can hear him in person. Move here if that is what it takes!! I love this church - churches like this don't come along every day. I want to be a member for many, many years.

Out, damn carpet, out!

2008-03-23T19:54:00.000-04:00

Here's the smell of BEN still! All the steam cleaners of GA cannot sweeten this foul floor!!

You would think a relatively short-haired dog wouldn't shed that much, right? Okay, well, *I* thought that a relatively short-haired dog wouldn't shed that much. I have never seen anything like it. It is like he stumbled into some kind of toxic waste, except, somehow, there is still fur all over his body. It is blowing my mind. His crate has been in the corner of the living room all this time, and I have to pull it out about twice a week and vacuum behind it, and you WOULD NOT believe the hair. Well, I'm sure you know that if there is one thing that is purely impossible to keep clean, it is a carpet. From the moment you first set foot on it, it is never *really* clean again. Ben is very dander-y and well, and dang it, I like a clean house (stop making that face!! I try!!)

Anyway, since we moved into this place I have been dreaming about ripping out the carpet in the living room and office, and blending new hardwood into the existing hardwood entryway. Well, Jesse offered to make it a reality, and I jumped at the chance! So here are some pics of the installation of our new floors, which look great.

The view from the kitchen into the office.

The remnants of the old hardwood (which was glued down with enough adhesive to keep tiles on the space shuttle) on its way out!

Jesse also pulled down the old fireplace facade, which was, in my opinion, an extremely unattractive combination of painted white wood and pinkish tile. Ewww. I *love* the stacked stone, and I have to say, I think he did a pretty incredible job, it looks so beautiful and professional.

Hooray! The new wood making it's way toward the other side of the first floor. He also fixed those loose tiles between the kitchen and the living room.

The Notorious B-I-G, keeping a watchful eye. His pterodactyl talons are already doing a number on the floors, we need to get him a puppy pedicure.

And finally, the NEW view from the kitchen to the office. This was before I mopped for the first time. I couldn't have imagined, and it is difficult to describe, the immense satisfaction of running a sweet-smelling orange oil soaked Swiffer over newly installed hardwood floors, and watching every. last. dog hair. disappear, leaving nothing but the welcome scent of orange hanging in the air, and a slightly timid Great Dane to negotiate the veritable ice-skating rink that he now has to contend with on a daily basis. Every see a dog in a cartoon run in one place for about 10 seconds before he gets traction and moves forward? It's even funnier in real life.

The Little Mermaids

2008-03-14T18:38:00.000-04:00

So I'm sitting at my desk, editing some new pictures for the website, and this little voice from around the corner says, "Hey Mom, I'm ARIEL!!" And I look up, and I see this:

My 5 year old in my upside-down bra, and a makeshift tail, which she has constructed from a Christmas skirt and a Steeler dress for the "fin" over her feet. Of course, Rooney then had to jump on the bandwagon too, and it was moments before they had torn paper "flowers" in their hair, and a blue blanket "lagoon" to swim in.
Then they brought me another bra and insisted I join the party, so I am walking around with a bra on top of my shirt. But I will spare you a picture of that. You're welcome.

Catch of the Day

2008-02-28T20:38:00.001-05:00

Jesse caught a GI-NORMOUS striper in the lake!! I only had 3 pics left on my camera, so this was all I could take. He weighed the thing, it was about 30 pounds. This is by far the biggest fish he's caught in the lake so far. Scroll back through the previous posts and look at the other fish compared to the soda can - this one's a monster.

Run run run as fast as you can!

2008-01-19T12:58:00.001-05:00

I got this Gingerbread cookie decorating kit on clearance and I knew these two would have a ball. Sure enough, they decorated into the night, all 10 cookies, and notice their little black lips from eating icing!

James and the Giant Fish

2008-01-19T12:52:00.000-05:00

Jim was here and he and Jesse spent all night on the boat. They came home a little sleep deprived, but it was worth it! Check out the giant fish Jim caught, on that tiny little rod he's holding. Big ol' catfish too.

Catch Up, Reprise

2007-12-29T01:01:00.002-05:00

A while back, Grandmother sent the girls a box full of goodies, including costumes, puzzles, popcorn, and 3 pairs of these adorable striped tights for dress-up. They spent all afternoon "skating" on the hardwood in the tights, and working the puzzle, over and over, playing and sharing like angels. Some things just don't happen everyday, so I had to snap some pics! ;)

Aunt Joey sent the girls (among other things) a *huge* jar of art supplies for Christmas. Natalie followed me around the house for days holding the jar and saying, "Mom, can we do art supplies? PLEEEEEEEEASE?!" So I finally let them dig in and they had a ball. Natalie usurped both giant fluff balls (which reminded me of Warm Fuzzies when I was in Kindergarten) right from the start, but Madeline didn't seem to mind. Notice her lower lip, puckered in deep concentration, as she tries to squeeze glitter glue onto a button above.
Natalie positioned the glider in front of the TV to watch a movie, and fell fast asleep in this pose. I had to take a picture - but looking at it makes my head hurt! Can you imagine sleeping upside down?! My brain cells are screaming just thinking about it.

Jesse and I saw "I Am Legend" tonight - not bad. We were a little miffed though, that the movie was listed by the theater as having a run-time of 2:10, but 30 of that was commercials and previews. The movie started at 7:00, but the MOVIE didn't start until 7:30, and we were back in the truck on the way home by 9:00. We liked the movie but we wished they'd developed it a little more, maybe done something more with the ending. I mean, Pirates of the Caribbean was 3 hours long, for Pete's sake! Overall though, it was a good movie, if somewhat disturbing. I used to love End-of-the-World thrillers before I had children. Now my stomach does herkies during them, because all I can think about is our girls in a scenario like that. Makes me wish for World Peace. Or want to learn my way around an assault rifle.

The Great Cupcake

2007-12-24T15:22:00.000-05:00

Jesse took Big Ben out on his fishing boat the other day. Before they left, Jesse put Ben in one of his long-sleeve thermal shirts, and then a Steeler jersey on top of that. The big weenie was still cold, so by the time they got home, he had him bundled up in his work jacket. Jesse said he was shivering, but then when he put him in the jacket he stopped and started trotting around the boat woofing at birds onshore. Hilarious. He really seemed to enjoy the coat, which is *super* soft and warm. Perfect for a Giant Cupcake.

Miami on my mind

2007-12-09T12:08:00.001-05:00

Looks like Jesse is really starting to prepare himself mentally for living in Miami.

Jesse's Fishing Trip

2007-12-01T19:01:00.001-05:00

Jesse spent the day on the lake fishing with a guy who grew up around here. This is his catch! That big guy was about 7 pounds. We kept trying to get the girls to stand next to him for scale, but Madeline was a little scared of him - he was huge!