Firetrucks and Beach Balls! In that order!

Friday afternoon, the girls and I ran our errands...perhaps too many, for it was a hot day, and half of the cold things that we bought were sure to melt on the way home! After just running into Wally World "for a second," we ran into a friend of ours in the parking lot...I tell you that parking lot was so hot! It was so hot that I just couldn't stand there and visit...couldn't leave the car running with the girls in it...couldn't leave the girls in the car without the A/C running...what's a gal to do! The heat coming up off of the black pavement was torture enough!

So with very poor manners, I shouted to LeighAnn..."Gotta run...popsicles are melting...run by our house, have a popsicle, and we'll talk there!" Yes, very poor manners...but sometimes the best visits are impromptu visits! So LeighAnn and her girls ran by since their daddy and brother were out of town. And wow...I really recommend to anyone to have friends drop by when you're trying to get the groceries out of a hot car and into your cool house! What a treat!

Having too much fun just hanging out talking, we talked them into staying for supper, and Eric set up the DVD projector for the girls to watch a movie while we just sat there eating popcorn and still chatting! As the evening grew longer and the movie ended, they packed up and started to head home. As we were outside saying our goodbyes, we could hear nothing but sirens going up the street. Jokingly, I said, "Let me know if it's something Gladys Kravitz needs to know about!" Before I knew it, she was back in my driveway, saying, "Quickly, get in the car!" She drove me up the street to see our little local grocery store on fire! Yes, it's a small town, and this was huge! I called Eric, who then came with the girls in our car! After just a few minutes, the crowds began to grow just as quickly as the fire grew...situated right next to our gas station. Everyone was standing in awe...mind you that it's almost midnight...and people were standing there taking videos and photos with their cell phones held high in the air as if we were standing there at a concert.

Photo by Jonathan Payne

As the intensity of the heat grew, I stood there shielding my face, looking at the blazing fire with all of the other onlookers. It was becoming more and more obvious that this was a gas-leak that had exploded. And as I stood there, I had to think of those watching the Twin Towers on 9/11. If they had known that they had a couple of extra minutes, would they have been standing there with their children...uh, no! So I took LeighAnn's kids and mine back home. And after she left with her crew, Macy and I sat on the front porch talking to my mom, sister and brother-in-law, neighbors, etc. while Eric went back up there. Yes, it was 'something to write [call] home about'! Again, remember it was now getting close to 1AM...and people were walking up and down the road as if it was their usual 4:00 neighborhood stroll! So after Eric came home, Macy and I drove back up there...but first we drove by and picked up Kendall...it wasn't the first time she and I have run around the mountain in our jammies, and I'm sure it won't be the last! We went back up there to hang with the crowd that was starting to die down as the firemen were beginning to get the blazes under control. We parked our car and sat there watching, giving our own commentary...there's never a dull moment with Kendall's comedic commentary and my laughter. We made a memory...I'm sure that Macy won't forget that evening...ever...sitting on a grassy knoll at two in the morning with Mama and Miss Kendall, watching history being made. Our town is small, and nothing ever changes...which is what I love the most! But this evening, the entire mountain changed before our eyes.

The next morning we awoke and quickly donned our bathing attire (some more or less than others!), for it was Carter-Man's first birthday! And a yummy cookout and pool party were definitely in order!


Happy Birthday, Carter!

Giggles and grins

A freshly bathed girl, a tummy full of supper, a pleasant, a gentle rain falling outside, and a comforting daddy's voice reading our family devotions proved to be just too much!

Lots of popsicles, plenty 'o sunshine, fun day at the pool, two wonderful girlfriends that took our girls today so that momma and daddy could go to a drs. appointment...

Can we tell who made the most of the opportunity?!?

Stephy's Restaurant Review - Shenanigan's in Sewanee, TN

Shenanigan's in Sewanee, TN
"Atmosphere is laid-back...waaay laid back, as in the front porch or door isn't even standing straight!
Table and room decorations are at a minimum, as in you must have a minimum of sticky spots on your dining surface, a minimum of "lovelies" in the window sill...even THEY had apparently died from their experience there!
Food is surprisingly really palatable and even quite tasty.
Service is just barely (e'hem) "below" average, with little to no interest for the customer (or the sake of their health) who is peer-pressured with morbid curiosity of how to "bus their own table."
The only way that I would return as a happy customer is if they met me as I was getting out of my car with a nice, tall pitcher of whatever they have on tap (those selections did look good!) with a large, sippy straw. And I'd have to have enough "spirits" in me to not be able to notice the crooked, splintered entrance.
My recommendation for one that's considering visiting Shenanigan's is to be sure to BYOP (Bring Your Own Plate), stock up at Sam's or Costco with an abundant supply of Purell wipes for your hands, Clorox wipes for the tables, and stop by a local doctor for an updated tetanus shot!

With all of this said, I do highly recommend Jump Off Fall's Pizzeria, locally owned and operated by our one and only J and E! "Atmosphere, food, and service is impeccable! And I have to strongly suggest that one tries the Puttanesca and wide selection of organic juice boxes! When one's there, they feel as if they're family! Pets welcome."

Happy Birthday, Ricci!

It's Ricci's birthday! (And Dan's and AJ's!) Happy Birthday, fellas!

After seeing a great ad (see MY review in next post!) for an ecclectic restaurant and art gallery, Shenanigan's, which is located in Sewanee, TN, we took the scenic drive up to Monteagle for a relaxing afternoon and birthday lunch with J & E!

Aside from a terrible but hilarious lunch experience (I'd like to see their restaurant report card!), we had a wonderful time just being together. And we also had a great time touring the University of the South in Sewanee, Tennessee, which was actually founded atop Lookout Mountain in 1857! It is so unbelievably beautiful that it reminds me of stepping back in time in a european setting! And it didn't help my euphoric feeling any, when we saw an adorable fawn bounding across the open lawn right in front of us!

Then we headed back to their house, and spent the rest of the day and evening just having fun and spending time together! Even Brody and Buddy had a good time playing Frisbee! After our traditional home-made pizza throwing contest, movie, and dessert, we jammied the girls and kissed J & E goodbye and made our trek back home!

We love our daddy and husband, and I hope that he knows we all wish that he had a wonderful birthday!

Merry Patriarch's Eve!

Honour thy father and mother; which is the first commandment with promise; That it may be well with thee, and thou mayest live long on the earth. —Ephesians 6:1-3

Encouraging our husbands, fathers, and sons as future husbands and fathers, we gals have a important task at hand. During my first marriage (ha!) counseling session, I was told that one of the greatest needs of a husband is significance, while one of a wife's greatest need is security. Over the years, I have witnessed this is true. What an honor and what a task it is to be called to be a husband and a father, i.e. family shepherd and patriarch!

I am ever-so-thankful to have grown up in a home witnessing first hand the blessings of these needs being met by my parents. My father served our family by providing for us spiritually, physically and emotionally.

Thank you, Daddy, for being such a wonderful father to me!

Happy Father's Day!

I pray now for the husbands (and their families!) of my daughters and fathers of their children. May they be wonderful, godly men who wish to serve the Lord with all of the hearts as well as provide for our future generations!

For a really wonderful poem, check out The Patriarch, which can be found at Poems for Patriarchs: The Verse and Prose of Christian Manhood, compiled and edited by Doug Phillips.

May's out; June's in!

I absolutely can not believe it, but Celeste ('07) and Jonathan ('04) have both graduated and moved on! I only hope that we get to continue to see them! What an honor it's been to get to know the Stoddard family...feel free to come back, Amy!

We did get to see everyone (thankfully, Jonathan was able to return home from deployment for Celeste's graduation!) at Celeste's senior recital...what an amazing voice she has! Our love and prayers go with you all! And, Jonathan, don't be surprised if you open your door one day to find that the Chandlers have taken you up on your offer to come and visit you in Hawaii!

Later that weekend, we had the Bowers and the Dorizas' over for cinco de mayo! What a great evening it was to get together with friends and good food! Once again, this year, I made Alal's spinach-chicken enchiladas (amazing!) in honor of her, for May 5th is the first anniversary of her death. She is still so greatly missed, and I can weep for her at the drop of a hat; however, I have to just think about what she would do or say if she were standing next to me...she would shrug off my sadness (I'm the emotional one in the family!) and then she'd quickly change the subject...which I'll do right now!

Brownie's Birthday! Every, single day we hear,"Today is a special day....it's Brownie's birthday!"

So one rainy Saturday, the girls planned a birthday party which we were all invited to attend! Macy made him a beautiful, three-layer birthday cake our using her easy bake oven while Tressie and Annie set the table and took care of the decorations. We all assembled, sang "Happy Birthday" to him, took some photos and definitely wrote it on the calendar...surprisingly, we haven't heard mention of his birthday...we all know now that his birthday is May 12th! What fun days these are to be able to celebrate the love that a child has for a floppy-eared, brown "magical" dog! Oh, to be loved like that!
Surprise... Happy 3rd birthday, Brownie!

Talk about surprises...we got a call early one Saturday morning to learn that K-ren was going to be passing through our area...well, we said, "Come'on! You must!" What a wonderful surprise it was, and what a great time we had! Please come back again, soon!

The next week was quite a busy one...not only are we trying to wrap up our school year, but we also had several "social" engagements....our church had a going away party for Andy and Moriah, Lindsey's bridal shower (such a sweet girl...I can't wait until she marries and moves here so that I can get to know her better!), Kellie's high school graduation party, and a farewell party at our house for the Bonds. So all week long, the girls and I made some progress toward our completions of 3rd grade, 1st grade, and Kindergarten; tidied up the house; a little gardening; and party planning! After several trips to party stores and Sam's with Lorrie for Kellie's party as well as our party, Friday came. And what a fun evening we had getting to catch up with friends that we haven't seen in a while at Kellie's party, and then we rushed home to set up our "drive-in" movie party for the Bonds. Eric and Rob R. set up the movie and popcorn machine while Nicky, the gals and I set up the tables...and once night fell, we relaxed and were able to visit with our friends before we had to say farewell....for a little while at least...y'all are coming back; right?!?!?

That Sunday, we ran into our good friends Scott and Kathy at church...so we insisted that they come home with us for lunch and to catch up! What sweet friends they are...Kathy spent most of the day snuggled on the sofa while Macy read to her, and Scott spent most of the day helping Annie find/count her and Brownie's 800 invisible puppies! We were able to talk to Jen and Mom, and we went and fed the reindeer. It was really great...and surprising to see them! I thought all week long...K-ren visited last weekend; Scott and Kathy visited this weekend; who will we get to see next weekend?!?

Well, after a month-long time of such fun, it was bound to happen...we wore ourselves out! One by one, we began to drop like flies! We've all sweetly shared a lovely allergy/cold virus which is unrelenting! And of course, we get a call saying that a good friend of mine is coming to town...Eric Hathaway! I haven't seen him in over 10 years! I just hope that we can all get better!

Although I don't have a voice, I do want to wish Brite and Elaine..."Happy birthday!"

A most memorable Mother's Day!

The Friday afternoon before Mother's Day, I answered the phone to hear a lady asking to speak to.... Macy, so I gave Macy the phone and watched her slowly walk into the other room...as if for privacy. I overheard her say, "Yes, ma'am! Oh! Thank you! Yes, ma'am! Wow! Thank you! May I have my daddy call you back? Thank you! Bye!"

It was then obvious that she was successfully scheming...after all, she had been looking at her calendar for the past month and then letting me know 'how many more days it was until Mother's Day'!

She then asked for permission to call her daddy, and then she once more walked into another room...again, as if for privacy. She spoke to him and then hung up the phone.

The phone rang again a little later, and it was daddy telling her to get ready, for he would come home and pick her up...they had a little errand.

All the while, Macy was fully gleaming with pride and excitement. She later left with her daddy and then returned with an even bigger grin...perhaps she'd tell me now...I couldn't wait until Sunday morning...and she certainly couldn't either!

I watched her hop out of the back of her daddy's car, as she gleefully ran up to me saying, "I was a runner up! I won a contest, Mommy! I won a gift bag for you from the Mtn. Escape Spa!"

She then handed me the gift bag along with the sweetest essay that has ever been written...

Why My Mother is So Special
By Macy C.

age 8

My mommy is special because she makes my life special. She loves me very much.

She is my teacher, she is my best friend. She teaches me my school lessons, but also teaches me how to sew, how to cook, how to take care of a family, and what the best kind of chocolate is.

She has taught me how to love other people, especially those who may not feel loved all the time.

My mommy tries to make each day as fun and interesting as it can be. She makes sure our birthdays are extra special, and even celebrates my half birthday because mine is so close to Christmas.

She tries to be the best mother she can, but I think she already is.

She makes me want to be a mother just like she is.

Grace, Peace, Strength and Confidence

Back in March, I read a wonderful speech by Anna Sofia Botkin, and I just thought I would blog some of my thoughts that I sent to some of my dearest friends. This speech was written for younger ladies, but I think that we can all apply it to our lives, in whatever stage of life we are...high school, college, post-college and awaiting God's calling on your life, mothering children, grand-children, or perhaps even great-grandchildren! We are still all Christian daughters that desperately need each other's encouragement! She reminds this generation of women to be good, faithful daughters of the King by yielding our hearts to Him.

I think everyone that knows us knows that I/we often wish that we could just live in our "little house on the prairie" and not look evil in the eye. Yet our lifestyles today do not allow us to hide...everywhere we go, evil and sin are blatantly in our faces. This is such an evil generation that we are in! I appreciated Anna's statement, "This generation is arrogant; it has no respect for its parents, for its heritage, for authority. They are blinded by their pride." Yes, we are! And she was also so right when she said that we are tempted to get used to such blatant and open sin...the more we see of it...the more desensitized to it we become! What great encouragement this article was to me...she reminds us that when we do see this blatant and open sin (or feel tempted to become desensitized by it), we have to see it with the Lord’s eyes... and that every time we see it, it should be even more despicable to us.

One of my favorite recent sermons was our Pastor Kevin's sermon that he preached on a Christian's life being viewed as a moving picture and not just a snapshot! In other words, we can not form a picture in our minds of one another as we are; yet we are to view each other as a work in progress. And that is also so encouraging to me, for I know that I am definitely a "work in progress"! And yet tomorrow I should be closer to God and more aware of my tasks at hand than I am today!

I so greatly admire Anna Sofia's ability to speak graciously and with such strength and confidence. Consistently articulate, I am not; however, I am here if any of you need anything. I can listen, pray for you and walk with you by your side as we together pray for a better relationship with God as well as a thankful heart for His putting us in this generation, for there is so much for us to do! I am thankful that He made me a woman, born into a family of believers, given to a man of God, and has been given the honor to give life to three additional women of God! What an honor...and also what a task at hand!

So may we continue to encourage one another by prayer and friendship as well as encouragement to stay rooted in His word! I love you all, my sweet sisters! And as I've told you, Ruth and Ivey, we must remember "to stand firmly...with confidence"!! He will bless those who are obedient to Him! If you know that you are walking in the Lord's ways, trust and have faith that in His timing He will bless you with the desires of your hearts!

To read The Thirteenth Year by Anna Sofia Botkin, click here.

Busy but fun weekend!

It's that time of year again....the last weekend in April...one of our family's favorite times...a drive up to South Pittsburg for the National Cornbread Festival!

This year, we were able to coordinate meeting Aunt Jan and Uncle Eddie in South Pittsburg for the festival! It was great to see them and meet some of Uncle Eddie's family. We had lots of great food, fun shopping the local vendors, fun "spinning the wheel" to see if we won anything (which we did!), and had fun watching some of the Cook-Off! The weather again this year was more than pleasant...it was wonderful! We are already looking forward to next year's!

Then we had a little birthday gift exchange...they gave the girls' little gifts (thank you, again, for it was too sweet of y'all to also give Macy and Tressie little gifts too!) and Annie [April 1st] her birthday gift. And we gave Aunt Jan [April 15th] her birthday gift.

Then Eric, the girls, and I did some of our shopping for a few annuals and perennials at the Lowe's there in Jasper. And then we headed home to plant and play outside and get ready for the rest of our weekend!

The next day we had Celeste Stoddard and her suite-mate Jenny Johns over for lunch after church...it was great to see them, but we are so sad to be seeing Celeste graduate from college...it seems like it was just a month or so ago that her older brother Jonathan came! We love them so much!

Then that afternoon, our supper club had a surprise birthday party for Cici over at Rob and Laura's house...I thought Cici would know about the party, for sure; but she was definitely surprised!

Tour de Georgia

Now for the second year in a row, we've had the pleasure of watching an amazing bike race pass right by our house! On Wednesday, April 18th, the third stage of Tour de Georgia had the bicylists travel from Rome, GA to Chattanooga, TN (118 miles), and what a thrill it was to watch the pelaton buzz right past us! We could tell that the bicycles were nearing us when we saw the helicopter that was following them hovering over us...and before we knew it, the pelaton had already gone by us...it was a whirlwind!

Then the next day, stage four of Tour de Georgia traveled from Chickamauga, GA to Lookout Mountain (18.9 miles) as one of their time trials! And once again, it was amazing! Not only is it fun to get into the spirit of cheering on the bicyclists as they individually pass the finish line (which was directly in front of us), it's also fun to see all of your friends and neighbors out and about!

Plain, 'Ole Momma!

One morning after we had finished some house and schoolwork, the girls and I went to the mall to exchange/return a few things, and while we were in Belk I saw a door that led into a small room (rather a large closet!) that had nothing but racks of shoes (only for the left foot) heavily discounted. So as I began to shop in my size, the girls naturally began to pick up shoes that "they" thought were their size. [I can clearly remember wearing Alal's high heel shoes and thinking that they were the right fit, so I thought there was no harm in allowing them to shop as well...you have to understand that this room was not in the best order...nothing was in its place, so one needed to have some time sorting anyway to find an appropriate shoe!] And besides...it was fun to watch what shoes each girl picked out...it revealed a lot about their personalities! It was also fun to hear the girls' critiquing one another's selections! There were not too many other people in the room/closet with us, so I enjoyed watching the girls while we continued to try on right shoe after right shoe. Then Annie shouted, "Momma, those shoes aren't for you...you're just a plain, 'ole momma!" So of course, everyone that was in the room/closet turned around to see what I was wearing....she was right, they didn't look good on me. Thankfully, I did find the perfect pair...my Aigners which were originally $89 were discounted to $16! Woohoo!

AJ's 1st communion!

What a wonderful Easter!

Well, we were successful at finding a good home for our baby chicks (it was so amazing to watch them grow so quickly! I wonder how they're doing!?!?!), so we were onto our next project...getting ready for our trip to Louisiana to see some of my family. And what a wonderful trip it was!

Eric rode on to work with Charley, and the girls and I packed the last few things in the car, dropped Brody off at the kennel (his least favorite place!), picked up Miss Craig, ran to the bank, and then picked up Eric at his office around 10AM, and hit the road! We all just had to laugh at poor Eric when he saw the car that he was getting into...and his traveling across-country with five women...and all the things that we just HAD to have on a trip (hat boxes and all)! Our car was packed to the max!

We arrived in Monroe right at dinner time, and we made a quick detour to see Miss Craig's family's pecan groves, which is right beside the Children's Home that has the miniature horses that Macy and I met back in October. Since we had told Annie and Tressie all about the horses, and since we had been given an invitation to come by and visit, we did! The horses were in the cutest, little stable...which the girls think daddy is going to quickly build them a replica! Then we went to met my Aunt Lil, my cousin Amy, and her daughter, Melanie and Miranda (who our girls just adore!), and Miss Craig's grand-daughter Elizabeth at a restaurant for a quick dinner. After saying goodbye to all, Eric and the girls and I went on to our hotel for the night, and then on the next morning to see Mamaw.

We arrived a little early for the Easter egg hunt, so we were able to visit with Mamaw, my great-uncle Ralph and his lady-friend, Uncle Ray and Aunt Virginia, Aunt Losi, and once again Amy, Lil, Melanie and Miranda. What a great day it was getting to see Mamaw and some of her friends...and not to mention the Easter egg hunt (Tressie found one of the prize eggs...woohoo!) and getting to play BINGO! Although it was a little chillier than the last couple of Easters that we've spent in LA, it was wonderful weather. Then that afternoon, Miss Craig rejoined us, and we all drove on to Shreveport, where we met her brother Paul. After saying goodbye to them, we drove on to Pawpaw's house and then on to our hotel. After sweet Pawpaw and Eric got all of our luggage inside (that was a huge task, for it was bitterly cold!), we said goodnight to Pawpaw and had a great night's sleep.

We awoke the next morning, and Pawpaw drove over and had breakfast with us at the hotel. Then we drove over to his house and art studio and visited for a while. After a wonderful lunch at our favorite place in Shreveport, Imperial Cathay, we drove over to Jimmie's house...Auntie Uh-Oh! We had a wonderful visit with her, and then left to go and see some of Pawpaw's artwork on exhibit and then on to the boardwalk along the Red River...let me just say....it was soooo cold! After a quick dinner at our other favorite place to eat in Shreveport, The Real Pickle, we drove back to Pawpaw's and visited with him some more before we had to oh-so-sadly say goodbye....I hate goodbye's! Then back to our hotel....again, it was bitterly cold! I think back and wonder...did that groundhog see his shadow or not?!?!?!

Early the next morning, we got back on the road and drove back to Ruston to see Mamaw and Aunt Losi before she drove back to Dallas. We had Sunday School with Mamaw and visited with her for most of the day before beginning our drive back! Again, I hate goodbye's! We did drive back as far as Birmingham and stopped once we just couldn't drive any further.

The next morning, we ever-so-slowly got up, and Eric did a little work on his laptop there in the hotel, then in the colder-than-normal temperatures "we" packed up once again ("Way to go, Ricci!), and then had a great time having lunch with K-ren, also called "Aunt Ique!" Then we made a mad rush to get home to get Brody from the kennel...thanks again, Kendall!

What a truly, wonderful trip it was...I wouldn't have changed a single thing! Well, it was cold, but it made that trip all the more memorable!

Our dearest Mother Simpson is now with the Lord!

A little more than a week ago we got a phone call that my dearest, great-grandmother had fallen and broken her hip. So we spent several days praying for her as well as our dear Uncle Charles, for he's been the one caring for her, and he hasn't been feeling well either. After the doctors put several pins in Mother Simpson's hip, she just wasn't able to recover, and she passed away on Tuesday, March 20, 2007.

This coming July, she would have been 102, and up until the day she fell, she still lived alone. She was a wonderful servant of our Lord, and I'm sure that the heavenly host of angels are now enjoying having her cook 'em up a mess of food....friend chicken, friend okra, and yummy greens! We miss and love her very much!

In many ways, I'm thankful that she is now with the Lord...even though at times this will be a difficult transition for our family. She lived almost 102 full, happy, blessed years and now has the full rewards of the covenant. She was loved by so many people, and she will most certainly be missed; however, her legacy will continue...she has set the bar quite high for all of us to follow in her lead! She graciously and generously served our Lord and her friends and family with such joy, and she was such a gentle, lovely, genuine woman. We've all learned so much from her, and we will always cherish our memories with her! Our family will forever be proud to have called her mother, friend, sister, grandmother, great-grandmother, and great-great grandmother!

That weekend, we traveled down to Graceville, Florida to be there with family for her funeral. We met Mom and Dad, Aunt Jan and Uncle Eddie, Will and Aimee, and Uncle Chuck, and all stayed in a hotel in Dothan, Alabama. Her funeral services were so nice, and I know that she was so loved by so many! After the funeral, we spent some time at her house visiting with friends and family, and then we drove back to Dothan, and Eric and the girls and I stayed an extra night there at the hotel with Mimi and Pawpaw.

We all got up the next morning and drove back as far as Troy, Alabama to visit a wonderful pioneer village and museum! It was so much fun! There were many pioneer artifacts, an authentic 1881 wood burning locomotive, a covered bridge, a one-room schoolhouse, an old log church, several log cabins, a working smokehouse, a working grist mill and beautiful nature trails! The owner's wife was there and even gave the girls lessons on spinning and weaving (beginning with showing them how to pick cotton!), and Annie was amazingly good at it! She cleanly picked every seed out of every piece of cotton that she was given! One of the girls' favorite memories that they made was feeding the chickens...now, these were not ordinary chickens, y'all! The owners suggested that we take the girls to see them, and when we began walking toward their enclosure, those chickens ran to greet us like happy puppies! It was amazing! What a great day that was, and we sadly said goodbye to Mimi and Pawpaw until we would see them...in four more days!

On our way home, we did make our traditional stop at the Peach Park in Clanton, AL. And what a great way to end our short trip...wonderful BBQ, home-ade peach cobbler and icecream, a little shopping in their giftshops, and a stroll through their little gardens, which were fully in bloom!

Chicks, Chicks, and more Chicks!

Well, if someone didn't know me...they'd think that I had gone grainy! (is that even spelled correctly?) My "formal" dining room has lots of flower, herb and vegetable seeds growing pretty tall; two bunny rabbits; 5 chickens... well, small chicks at least; three children (nicknamed the DixieChirps by our dear K-ren); one husband; and one highly tolerant, well-balanced puppy dog! Actually, the vegetable seeds will be moving outside once the weather proves to cooperate; the bunny rabbits will be going back to my friend Christine's house (wahhh! they're so much fun and sooo sweet!); the DixieChirps and wonderful husband (he's my manly farmhand...I need him!) and the adoring puppy will be staying here! And "what-in-heaven-and-earth" (as Annie would say!) am I going to do with these sweet chicks!?!?!? Please, Lord, send a good foster family! Eric knew that he was in trouble when he came home and he saw that the girls had named them! Sunshine, Jenny, Waterbottle (?), Betty Stewart, and Rosey!

Signs too great to forget!

Over time I've seen signs that have just been too great to forget....and I've decided to set up a place to put them as well as share a few with you. My latest one is located on Monteagle Mountain, and it reads, "4 Seasons Restaurant: Closed Til Spring"!

Although my favorite sign (of which we weren't able to stop to take a photo!) will always be the sign that Dad, Mom, Eric and I passed somewhere in the Shenandoah Mountains on our way to Washington D.C. The sign read "Antiques Made Daily!"

Happy Birthday, Annie!

Well, this past Saturday could not have been any more beautiful! All of our flowers are blooming with our pink and white azaelas at their peak in this blooming season, the grass is becoming so green, and everything was just wonderful for a special day to celebrate Annie's turning SIX!

To celebrate we had an Easter egg hunt (complete with live chicks and bunnies hopping around the yard!), a "horse" piñata, and a little tea party. But as a proud and happy mom, I was the happiest when Annie stood up and said, "I have an announcement! I just wanted to tell everyone thank you for coming to my party, and thank you for all of your hard work for it, and I just love you all!" My heart melted!

Annie, we are just so proud of you....for the little lady that you are becoming! Mommy and Daddy love you soooooooo much!

A start to a fun weekend!

Last Wednesday night, Mimi and Pawpaw arrived to spend Annie's birthday with her and us too! On Thursday, we met daddy for lunch downtown, and then Macy, Tressie, Mimi and I did a little birthday shopping while Pawpaw kept Annie at bay. Then we went to the TN Valley Railroad Museum and had a fun time walking around all of the trains and the historic depot...even though it was closed for the day! It was such a gorgeous day!

Then we ran to Sam's to get some things for the birthday party...thanks again, Pawpaw for picking up the tab!!! Then we all went home and found that daddy was already home from work...grilling out for us! The girls (i.e. Daddy!) and Pawpaw set up tents in the yard, and Mimi and I set a beautiful Tuscan tablesetting on the front porch...dinner was so much fun! I wish that I had a photo! That evening after a great deal of giggling, the girls slept peacefully while Pawpaw read fairytales to them and stayed out there in the tent with them....sweet fella...I know that he didn't sleep too well! I know that I didn't either...for it was pretty chilly, and I kept getting up every so often to check on them all!

Friday, Mimi and I spent a great deal of the day preparing foods for Annie's birthday party! And dad had a chance to get some much needed rest, then he and Macy went to Rock City for breakfst (a tradition they began years ago!), and then dad went to spend some time out on their property. That evening, Eric and I had a wonderful invitation to go to Bethany Christian Services annual fundraiser dinner....thanks again, Charley and Laura! We had a lot of fun! Although I didn't get the baby doorprize that I was eagerly anticipating, we had a great time...it was so wonderful to hear of the successful adoptions and lives saved via adoption versus abortion. And it was also really great to see old friends that we haven't seen in some time! And that evening, Eric stayed up with me and helped me put the finishing touches on Annie's birthday cake to prepare for her 6th birthday party the next morning!

Eager for Spring!

Eager for Spring to arrive, we went ahead and planted some seeds... impatiens, vinca, candy tuft, basil, rosemary, cilantro, mint, several different types of zinnias, watermelon, squash, peas, and two different types of tomatoes!

Great for the girls to take responsibility and enjoyment in watching them grow! And as always, if we're anywhere...so is our little fido Brody! Sweet family times!

"Spit like a lady!"

In a rush to get everyone showered, teeth brushed, jammied, and tucked sweetly in their beds before daddy got home, the girls had the suggestion to brush their teeth "while" in the shower...come'on, who hasn't once thought that would be a time-saving trick?

So I gave them permission to try it...just this once!

However, I guess I didn't give explicit instructions, so as I watched toothpaste dribbling down faces and necks it was becoming obvious that my level of frustration was beginning to rise, and I had to burst out laughing when I heard myself say in a parental tone, "Come'on! Spit like a lady!"

Can my Hypothyroidism allow me to remember where January and February went?

As many of you know, I've been not feeling well lately, and I'm happy to say that I'm feeling much better now! And looking back...I really felt awful!!! I was beginning to think that was how it was going to be from now on....thankfully, Spring is now here, and I'm just as thankful as the yellow daffodils are to be coming back to life! And we even have a few double-blooming daffodils in our yard! Wow! They are beautiful!

In mid November, I went for my routine lab work to check the levels of my thyroid, and I knew that I wasn't feeling great; however, I just thought that it was because we're all very busy at this time of year! A few days after my blood work was done, my endocrinologist herself called to say that my labwork looked really terrible. My levels had gone from being too high to too low! My TSH was 0.01 (normal is .35 - 5.3), and my T3 and T4 were both too high. So after a few extra tests (ultrasounds and uptakes, which showed multiple nodules and complete non-function), the doctor decided to completely take me off of my thyroid medication altogether for six weeks...uhhh....in other words, through the end of the holidays!

So as soon as our last set of company left on January 1st, I went straight to bed! I really was having difficulty functioning! My extreme fatigue, my achiness, my lack of memory, my lack of ability to concentrate, and not to mention my weight gain! Long lasting headaches, at times just freezing, and breast pain. And throughout all of this, I've developed several food allergies/sensitivities...still trying to determine what they are! Aghhh! Thankfully, it was a good time of year (if there is one!) to be housebound....we watched lots of Little House on the Prairie, I Love Lucy, Andy Griffith, etc.! My sister (in Europe) kept me entertained with her frequent (almost hourly) phone calls on the updates with Britney Spears and Anna Nicole Smith, helped teach Macy her math, and actually taught me how to cross-stitch over the phone...which I thoroughly enjoyed!

So in the second week of January, Eric and I went back to the endocrinologist, and I had more blood work done. This time (after not having taken any thyroid medication at all for 6-7 weeks!) my levels were at the complete opposite range...my TSH level was 12.01! At least, it validated the way that I had felt! So my doctor decided to restart my thyroid medication...this time at half of the dosage that I had previously been taking! So slowly but surely, I began to come back to the land of the living! And by the middle of February, Eric came home one evening and I was madly cleaning out things deep inside cabinets, closets, etc. He said, "Well, I can see that you're beginning to feel more like yourself!" And I thankfully I was!

By the time that Valentine's Day rolled around, I was feeling so much better! So much better that the Lord felt that we needed some more excitement! So Eric and I went and enjoyed an evening out alone....only to wake up the next morning to hearing the sound that only a mom knows that something is most definitely wrong! The girls had been sweet enough to play quietly in their rooms while we slept in (7:30!), and while they were playing "bridesmaids" Annie tripped and fell on Tressie's way-too-big-for-her crinolin and split the back of her ear open. So sweet Suzy Crouch came over to get Macy and Tressie while Eric and I rushed Annie to the hospital. On the way downtown, sweet Annie asked me, "Momma, do you think that we can make a rule?" which is her way of asking for something. I of course said, "Yes, darlin'!" because I knew that I'd give her anything in the world that she wanted...as any parent would when their child is hurt! And with the bandana wrapped around her head by her daddy, she said, "When this is all over, can we have a get-well party?" Well, once again, I said, "Of course, we can!"

Annie was such a wonderful patient! She had to have 5 stitches, and she never even flinched! She is a tough, little trooper! We were so proud of her! She just held on tightly to Brownie and kept asking, "Is it almost over?!?" And when it was, she even thanked Dr. Meredith! Again, we were soooo proud of her!

A week later, we went and got her stitches taken out, and of course, we had our "Get Well Party"!

"Getting to know me"

My girlfriend Rachel sent this to me, and here are my answers...that was fun!
___________
1. What is your occupation? Wife, Momma, Executive Household Management
2. What color are your socks right now? not wearing socks
3. What are you listening to right now? washing machine rinse cycle; Macy's pencil and eraser; Annie and Tressie's stomping around playing upstairs
4. What was the last thing that you ate? Macy and I each just secretly (not a secret now!)thoroughly enjoyed a Dove mini dark-chocolate
5. Can you drive a stick shift? Absolutely! Daddy wouldn't allow me out of the driveway any other way!
6. If you were a crayon, what color would you be? cornflower blue
7. Last person you spoke to on the phone? my mom
8. How old are you today? 33
9. Favorite drink? slightly-sweet tea or good 'ole Coca-Cola
10. What is your favorite sport to watch? whatever makes hubby happy...then I really get under his skin when I flirtingly root for the opposing team! Other than that I don't really pay attention to it!
11. Have you ever dyed your hair? Only once.... when my friend Auburn dyed it twice in one day...all I have to say is that it really straightened it, and that was nice! Then Eric made her call L'Oreal before she did it a third time....we never did reach the color that we were wishing!!!
12. Pets? Brody...best dog in the world!
13. Favorite food? Dark chocolate no doubt! A little peanut butter on the side never hurt anyone!
14. What was the last movie you watched? Pride and Prejudice
15. Favorite day of the year? Any day Eric is off from work and can spend it with us!
16. What do you do to vent anger? cry; clean/straighten up around me
17. What was your favorite toy as a child? I think it would be riding my bike up and down our neighbor's long, flat driveway...pretending it was a road, and I was goin' places! And my treehouse...and my tire swing...my wooden doll house....and...
18. What is your favorite season? Absolutely each one...I'm always ready for the next...but I really love Fall and Spring, and Summer and Winter are so great too!
19. Hugs or kisses? Kisses from my children, hubby, parents, and close friends and relatives...a nice hug from everyone else will do!
20. Pool or hot tub? Pool
21. Living arrangements? Married with three children and one dog; Older home with lots of character; 3 or 4 bedrooms/4 bath
22. When did you cry or tear up last? ohh, a few minutes ago...no reason, just tired!
23. Favorite smells? paperwhites, my children's skin, a clean house, rain
24. What inspires you? Being organized; Watching my children learn new things; Putting myself in someone else's shoes and realizing how blessed I am (Is that bragging? If so, I didn't mean it!)
25. What are you afraid of? not doing something to the best of my ability...like taking care of my husband or teaching/training my children
26. Favorite dog breed? ONLY a rescued/shelter dog...they always seem to show their appreciation!
27. Number of keys on your key ring? 3
28. Number of years at your current job? 10
29. Favorite day of the week? It's always been Friday!
30. How many states have you lived in? 4
31. Favorite Holidays? Easter, Thanksgiving, Christmas
32. What time did you get up this morning? 7:30...not early enough! Stayed up too late last night...I like to be the first one downstairs in the morning...to hear the quiet and greet everyone coming down!
33. Diamonds or Pearls? Why... both; of course!
34. What is your favorite TV show? All time favorite...I Love Lucy, and the girls and I are hooked on the purity and simple times of Little House on the Prairie; otherwise...Jericho, Lost, King of Queens (not so pure and simple!)...other than classics, I don't care to watch repeats! HGTV, bring back Living With Ed!!!
35. What did you have for breakfast? two pieces of whole-wheat bread, toasted....thanks, honey!36. Your favorite potato chip? don't really care for chips
37. What is your favorite CD at the moment? have too many favorites...in the car right now I have Josh Groban's newest CD; Gavin Degraw; Andrew Peterson; Disney's A Bug's Life; and the soundtrack to Sweet Home Alabama!
38. What kind of car do you drive? Toyota Sienna
39. What characteristics do you despise? self-centeredness; someone that isn't genuine...oh yeah...those who don't bother to RSVP!
40. What are your favorite clothes? for at home...anything comfortable; for going out...something a little preppy
41. If you could go anywhere in the world on vacation, where would you go? to Australia to see one of my dearest friends (but she's coming here this summer!); back to Europe with my sister and brother-in-law (who can speak enough languages to get us out of any sticky situation...like staying in 1st class even though our tickets don't show that we really did purchase 1st class!)
42. What color are your eyes? hazel or green, depending on what I'm wearing
43. Where would you want to retire? close to family
44. Favorite part of the day? either early morning or evening...not sure anymore if I'm a night owl or an early riser!
45. Pedicure or Manicure? Mani...not a pedi...didn't you see Dateline or 20/20?!?!?
46. What did you want to be when you were little? My mom says that I told my HS advisor that I wanted to be a wife and a momma...it's pretty great!
47. What is your best childhood memory? not sure, for there were so many...probably the week that I spent pampered and spoiled at Alal's in 3rd grade
48. What are the different jobs you have had? advertising (loved it!); assistant to a realtor/builder (loved it!); babysitter (loved it...especially when I would leave and try to secretly see in the dark how much $$ I had been given!); personal assistant to a manager in a large co. (loved the people in my office, but hated how other women were catty with one another!); now is my best job ever (I just love these days)!
49. Been in a car accident? only one that I can think of...and don't ask my sister about it!
50. Favorite ice cream? Ice cream's not really my thing...except when the family gets together and makes our "recipe"... WHAT isn't good with Kahlua or Irish Cream?
51. Favorite fast food restaurant? maybe Taco Bell or Krystal...used to HATE it, but living in Chattanooga, you have to love it!
52. From whom did you get your last email? let me go check...sister, showing me something that I "really needed"!
53. Which store would you choose to max out your credit card? can't think of one...I'd be too anxious for when I'd get the bill!
54. Last person you went to dinner with? Dinner...Jad and Tiffany/ Coffee and Dessert...my cousin, Jenna!
55. What characteristics do you love most? a servant's heart, someone who is genuine, hard working, thoughtfulness (Eric and I have been praying for the following for each other, our children, and their future spouses: strength, endurance, and diligence)
56. What color is your bathroom? off white/white
57. What is your shoe size? 8
58. Your favorite candy? Jr.Mints!
59. Do you have any phobias? snakes; spiders; and my friend Rachel has now added...careening off a bridge...thanks, Rachel!

Inquiring Minds Want to Know!

After hearing lots of shrieking coming from the bedroom upstairs, I ran upstairs to see what was going on! After I assessed the situation and saw that there was no eminent danger, I calmly opened the window to let out a dirt dauber that had mistakenly found himself trapped inside a room with three, huge giants with soft, little voices...freakin' out, shrieking and swinging at him!

Macy, holding a wooden spoon in the air: "He's ready to get spanked!"
Me, empty-handed: "Isn't that one of God's creatures?"
Macy: "Yes, but I am too!"
Annie, holding a baseball bat: "Yes, but you don't get squashed!"
Macy: "Well, but I don't like bugs in my house!"

Thankfully, I helped him to escape unharmed....but as typical homeschoolers, it did leave us wondering, "Why did God create dirt daubers anyway?"

The holidays were wonderful!

I know that I'm one of the few that thinks that the holidays could actually last longer, but I do think I could have enjoyed a couple of more days of November and December!

Thanksgiving was wonderful...we had a great day with our dear friends, the Rodriguez'...a wonderful meal, then fun and games while we drank some amazing Cuban coffee! Then the next day we drove to spend the day with Eric's family in Athens, GA. It was wonderful to see them as well as my sister-in-law's husband's family, whom we've enjoyed getting to know. And Eric's brother had big news...he's getting married! So hopefully, we'll all get together again soon!

Then we quickly began our Christmas season...off to a wonderful start!

So as soon as we could after Thanksgiving, we went with the Dorizas' to the Bosshardt's Christmas Tree farm to pick out our lovely Christmas trees...then we laughed our heads off when Eric couldn't even get the tall tree that Tiffy and I picked out...it really didn't look that tall outside! (Let's just say that we had to trim a little off of the top and the bottom to get it to fit inside our living room...which does have taller than normal ceilings!) And I do have to say that it was the prettiest tree that we've ever had! Eric and I are completely sold on Leland Cypress' from now on! It was a shame to take it down...for it still was gorgeous AND barely shed!!!

Macy and I enjoyed going to our friend's annual Mother-Daughter Luncheon and Cookie Party! Tiffy and I did quite a bit of Christmas baking in the first two weekends, which is a tradition which I hope to continue...it's so much more fun to bake and talk to a great girlfriend at the same time! I had my annual two-day Christmas Open House for Timeless Treasures (totally shameless plug... the beautiful engraved/monogrammed, silver jewelry and embroidery that I sell!) We enjoyed our new church's Christmas Banquet, which was a dinner and then Tressie's Sunday School class "banged" in the Christmas season...all of those 3 and 4 year olds banging and tooting their instruments was too cute!

Then we did make it to our good friends, the Bonds' Christmas party, then our holiday celebrating came to a screechin' halt when we began to fall like flies around here with the flu!Poor Tressie had it the worst, perhaps because she's so small, but we did thoroughly enjoy that sweet, quiet time as our little family...all snuggled up together safe and warm in our home with so many wonderful blessings, taking that opportunity to share with the girls that there are others that haven't been blessed so. After spending a couple of days visiting the ER and doctor's appts., I think that the girls truly understood how blessed they were to be at home, and it was sweet to hear them pray for the children specifically at our local children's hospital and the families at the Ronald McDonald House.

And a side note....In addition to our celebrating Christmas, planning a couple of birthday parties, taking care of sick children, and praying that we were able to recover in time for family to visit, I had to have a couple of tests done on my thyroid (multiple blood tests, an ultrasound, and a thyroid uptake), which did explain a lot, but while awaiting more conclusive tests, my endocrinologist took me off of my thyroid medicine....as if I needed something else!

So on the day of Tressie's birthday, we all felt better and ventured back out into the holiday madness around town and celebrated Tressie's 4th birthday...woohoo! (Although I can't believe that she's FOUR!) Then the next day, my parents were able to come for a visit! It was so good to see them! Although it was obvious at times that I wasn't up to my usual-self with high energy for entertaining, we had a wonderful time just being with them! The guys went out and did their thing (walking on my parent's property on the back of the mountain, visiting book stores, telling us that they would gladly run an errand for us...and run to "try out" a new pub...yeah, we're onto you two!) The girls did our thing by catching up with one another, doing some last-minute shopping, and preparing for holiday celebrations.

We had a wonderful Christmas Eve...I just LOVED Christmas Eve's falling on the Lord's Day! It just seemed to make it all the more special! So after morning worship, we came home and had a wonderful Christmas Eve dinner with the Rodriguez' (convinced them to bring the Cuban coffee again!), and then went back to church later that night for a Christmas Eve service. Of course, I'm afraid that my only memory of that was the painfully-hot dripping candle wax from the candle-lit part of the service! The girls just couldn't hold onto theirs anymore, so they kept handing them to Eric and I...we had the hardest time stifling our laughter...poor Eric had it dripping all over his pants to keep it from dripping onto the floor, and I finally had to bow to the pressure of making the room darker by blowing out several of our candles, but I just had to! And of course, I'm an adult now, and though the room was dark, I could still see my father's eyes looking at me warning me to try to contain my laughter!

This year we truly enjoyed the Advent season...especially with the beautiful Advent wreath that Eric made for us, and the girls loved lighting a new candle every week, so that evening when we came home from the Christmas Eve service, we all sat by the fire and Eric read the Bible readings for that night, and Tressie was allowed to light the center candle, which she had waited so patiently all season to light! Then we traditionally had our little party with eggnog and snacks and opened our Christmas stockings....fu---un! Let me just say that my Daddy introduced me to my new favorite four words...A Ma Ru La!

The next morning we awoke to a white Christmas...although it wasn't snow, it was so foggy that it looked like snow! We had such a wonderful, relaxing morning...had a leisurely breakfast and and then opened some wonderful Christmas gifts...I think my personal favorite one was the gift that Macy was given by my parents....evidentally, weeks prior to Christmas my mom starting asking the girls what they would like to have for Christmas, and when she asked Macy what she would like to have, Macy told her, "Well, what I'd like to have is too expensive, so I'm not going to say anything about it." Then she told my mom of a couple of additional, little things, and mom gently convinced her to tell her what it was that she wanted but hadn't told anyone. So it was definitely a surprise to Macy when she opened up her gift and saw what she thought was unobtainable...a beautiful, white American Girl nightgown with a matching gown for her doll Samantha! And what a gift it was to me to know that she had been so sweet to not concern anyone with what she really wanted...and that my mom and dad kept her secret but surprised her with it! How beautiful she and Samantha looked!

Then we sat around talking, checking out our new gifts, and apparently took our time getting ready for the day, then someone looked at the clock and realized that we had company arriving in less than an hour! I've never seen such a panic state...mom and I had been so diligent to accomplish all of the cooking (except for the white rice, the asparagus casserole, and our appetizer) prior to that day! Then all of a sudden we had to accomplish more than time would allow! Mom and I literally threw ourselves into high gear...all the while laughing hysterically just to keep from crying! We knew that we couldn't accomplish all that needed to be done in the small amount of time that we had been given! So when Dad came out all fresh and ready and fully-dressed, Mom quickly put him to work too! I'll never forget seeing my dad moving furniture in our foyer as he "did a quick vacuum"! It was hysterical how we went from one extreme of sitting around enjoying talking and looking at our new gifts to shoving those gifts into the arms of the next person heading upstairs! And yes, we probably had flour on our faces when they arrived, something hanging out of a drawer or two that we quickly shoved closed, but somehow we actually pulled it off! And we were able to greet Aunt Jan and Uncle Eddie, and Will and his new girlfriend Aimee (whom we really like!) as if our home had been that peaceful all day long! So it was truly a wonderful Christmas day spent with the Chandlers, Stoers, and Routons!

The next day, we spent another wonderfully-relaxing morning at home and then drove up to Monteagle to celebrate Boxing Day! Not really! But we've traditionally spent the day after Christmas up at Monteagle, and it was a lot of fun! Then we returned home to get ready for the next day....we had multiple birthdays, retirements, anniversaries, etc. to celebrate! Mom and Dad's 38th wedding anniversary, dad's birthday AND retirement, Jonathan and Ivey's birthdays, Jad's birthday, and Macy and Tressie's birthdays! Whew! So we all got together to celebrate by a fun walk through Rock City to see the Christmas lights, cake and such and a bonfire at our house. It was so cold but a lot of fun!

Then the next morning was Mae-Mae's birthday, and what a treat it was to have Mimi and PawPaw here to celebrate it with us. We begged them to stay longer, but they had to get back home to finish up a few things before the new year, but they stayed for breakfast and gift-opening, then Dad offered to take us all out to eat at the restaurant of Macy's choice. So after a wonderful lunch with Mimi and PawPaw, they sadly had to leave!

A couple of days resting and running an errand or two here and there, we celebrated a quiet New Year's Eve, and then had our Christmas with the Chandlers here at our house on New Year's Day. My "Southern By The Grace of God" husband prepared a wonderful ham and asked me to prepare some greens, Macy begged for black-eyed peas, Tressie begged for cornbread (in a perfect world, I think that's all Tressie would ever want!), Annie wanted white rice (such a sweet, simple child!), and I made some cornbread dressin' to go along with it for our last 2006 holiday meal! Here's hoping that meal gives us some of that good'ole luck, I mean, providence for the new year!

The holidays are over?!?!?

I can' t believe that the holidays are already over and gone! And perhaps we're fringing on the days when it's inappropriate to even say, "Happy New Year!" I briefly remember Thanksgiving, and I'm fairly certain that I took some photos at Christmas time....

What happened?!?!?

I blinked and the neighbors were no longer bringing out new holiday decorations, but they've already put their decorations away until next year! I can still see through the trees that one neighbor is still unashamedly plugging in some small and tasteful beautiful white-lit trees in her yard...and she is an extravagant florist with magnificent taste, yet I only wish that I could be so brazen! With multiple December birthdays in our family, we naturally come by it...we love Christmas time!

Again, where did the holidays go?!?!?

It seems like it was yesterday that my girls and I were strolling through a shopping area, and I was getting looks from strangers with gleems in their eyes as they heard us pass them by while the children were singing (ever so loudly) Christmas songs. Well, yesterday, we were getting glares! I would just sweetly tell the strangers, "I'm sorry, these poor children don't know that Christmas is over, and I just don't have the heart to tell them! You try!"

It's over?!?! Hasn't anyone ever heard of "After Christmas Sales"?

Did you see any? I certainly didn't! One of my most memorable childhood experiences is shopping with my mom, sister, aunts, or anyone who had the guts to join my mom and I as we tackled our way through the craziness of Dillard's After-Christmas sales! If I'm not mistaken, Scrooge forced all CFO's of every company to mark holiday prices...back in October! I KNOW that I saw 50% sales of all "holiday" merchandise...before Thanksgiving, perhaps even before Halloween!

So now it's just me and the tired 'ole sales-people (not even pretending to be jolly anymore!) selling me items at 90% off! And deep in my heart, I know that I'm probably buying junk that I'll never use...then I rationalize it and tell myself that I'm getting such a great deal that I can either just let the children play with it, draw on it, paint/glitter it, and pass it off to someone that really loves them and will be proud of it, then I second-guess that and decide that I know "deep down in my heart" that I won't allow the children to bring out the colors, paint, or glitter next holiday season, so I'll just keep it until I come up with a really ingenious way to use it...it was such a steal of a price!

I haven't lost my holiday spirit yet, so I know that I'll have it even earlier next year....to truly bask in the glow of the lights of Christmas! In my perfect world (in my head) I'll not have to ask, "What happened?"

Thank the Lord that we are on our way to recovery!

Thank the Lord that we are on our way to recovery! As many of you know, we've had a difficult bought with the flu...the worst was seeing our sweet, little Tressie not faring well...and once her fever reached a scary 105, Eric rushed her to the ER where they took such wonderful care of her, and I was told that she didn't even cry when given an IV! I stayed at home with our other two that were also fighting fevers, and we kept in very close contact that evening/morning! Once I knew that they had made it there safely and that Tressie was enjoying being the center of attention down there, I was able to rest a little more easily; however, it was one of the worst nights...I'm so thankful for our God-given health and our educated doctors, medicines, etc.

So now that we are doing much better, I'm thankful for all of that snuggle time that we all had together! For a while we had our little infirmary going in the family room with the sleeper sofa pulled out to sleep three, and Annie claimed the two wing-back chairs that we had pushed together to sleep one...that left one person to stand watch! Yes, looking back, it was a sweet time to pray, love and take care of one another; nap whenever one wanted to do so; wake up whenever one wanted to do so; answer the door unashamedly in our jammies; enjoy a pharmacy that delivers; watch TV Land until "paid programming"; watch the sunrise and then go to bed; receive such love from dear friends who called, sent lots of warm and comforting soup, popsicles, well-wishes, etc.; watch Christmas specials together...at least whoever was awake at the moment! I awoke on the sleeper sofa one afternoon to learn that I had missed a whole tractor-pulling competition that Eric and Annie had enjoyed watching with one another! Man...I would have like that too! (For those of you who REALLY know me, know that I'm not kidding; for those of you who don't know me that well, I know...it's shocking! But it still wouldn't have beat a Monster Truck Show! Still...shocking to some of you, I know!)

And now getting back to "normal" requires our hitting the re-set button on our home...it looks like a bomb has gone off! Is there such a thing as a laundry bomb? Throughout this bought with illness not only has our laundry room sprawled outside of the laundry room, but I had to have a thyroid ultrasound and later another test requiring my taking a radioactive pill...and once I returned, Eric anxiously asked if there was anything that I needed to avoid, and I told him that the only thing that the doctors said was that I was to stay clear of anything that contained laundry detergents!

So now that we're all getting back to "normal," we've all been SO anxious to be healthy in time for Christmas!!! So every night Eric has been lining us up to take our temps, and poor Eric has been worked like a dog, but he hasn't truly been taken down with the flu (maybe worn out from being so tired, but that's been it)! And every single night he's been registering a fever of 99.4 every time...as well as the rest of us! Well, tonight he had it, and he got out our really old thermometer, slapped thermo. covers and made us all line up again....and this time we were all barely reading a 98, so I think that we're officially safe to be around... Woohoo!!!!! And that it's safe to say that we wore that thermometer out!! We went through 93 thermometer covers, two bottles of children's Tylenol, two and a half bottles of children's Motrin, 2 bottles of coughing medicine, 20 oz. of rubbing alcohol, 2 huge cans of Lysol, 1 canister of Clorox wipes, three extra-large boxes of Kleenex, two antibiotics, and one great thermometer!

For those that kept checking on us...thank you SO much for your notes, phone calls, yummy food, and most of all your love and prayers! Our prayer is for everyone else's health as well!

Hawiien Coctal

I know it's been a while since I've posted anything, and yes...I need to catch up! However, on my desk I just came across a small piece of paper that's been torn out of a spiral bound notebook, and it took me a while to be able to read it (some of us are still working on our penmanship and spelling!), but I just had to share... it's a recipe for a Hawaiian Cocktail!

Hawiien Coctal
1 cup pinapple
1/2 cup wine with 1 tsp limon jice
Blind til smooth; surv and say Yum!

Now I just can't wait until morning when I can ask what's this cocktail recipe and who's makin' it for Momma?!? Yes, we've had a busy last few weeks, and yes, momma could use a cocktail...and yes, perhaps the girls have been watching a little too much Food Network!

One man's trash is another man's treasure!

After a few cancellations of having a yard sale with some of my girlfriends, my good friend Moriah would not allow me to back out of the latest suggested date! She can attest that I called her about six times/hour on one day, and I tried to convince her that the 20% chance of rain was just too high! Well, thank the Lord that she's a tough cookie...she did not back down, and we did have our yard sale! After a bitterly cold start, I actually got a sunburn along with a very successful yard sale story! Woohoo! Our newspaper ad said that the sale was from 8-2, but we had customers for a steady 11 hours...from 7-6! We had customers' stopping by the house before the sun came up and asking if they could shop before we finished setting up! We are so thankful to be rid of some things that were clutter to us but a blessing to another!
Again, woohoo!

Trying to get back into the "normal" swing of things!

As wonderful as it is to be back at home, it's even more exhilarating to think of the possibility of getting back into a regular routine (dare I use the word "schedule"?), but then again...that was my plan not God's!

The girls were super excited about starting their new PE classes on the second day that we were back in town. Thankfully, we managed to make it there and then even a few errands to get stocked back up with groceries, etc. Then that evening, I think of my favorite line from a movie, "And the sky opened up, and God said, 'I hate you, Alfalfa!'" I became very ill! I can only assume that it was a result of our complete exhaustion, lack of sleep, taking care of others' not feeling well, as well as missing a couple of vitamins! So after a week of the girls' running the house themselves, Eric's coming home every day at lunchtime, and some wonderful meals prepared by a few friends, Momma's back in full swing!

On the road again!

So after a week of being back at home and trying to get caught up on rest, school and housework, it was time for us to return to Louisiana with the guys to load up the moving trucks. So Mom and Dad flew up there from Florida, and Aunt Jan and Uncle Eddie flew there from Nashville, so that we wouldn't have but the trucks and our car to drive back home. So we began to get ready to return to Louisiana, and wouldn't you know it...as soon as we finish packing up our things for the trip, Annie and Tressie began to show the same symptoms that Macy had earlier in the week! Our dear doctor was expecting our call for this, so he placed them also on antibiotics (surprisingly, it was their first antibiotic in their life!). And after much anxiety of not knowing what to do, Eric decided that we would go ahead and travel on to Louisiana and just keep the girls away from anyone until they had been on their antibiotic for at least 24 hours.

So we left later the next day on Wednesday and traveled into the night and just stayed at a hotel there in Shreveport! You know it was late at night when we arrived when I was talking on my cell phone with my sister to tell her good morning (she's in Europe and six hours ahead of us!), and we went inside to rest for a few hours before getting up to head over to Alal's house to begin loading up the moving trucks.

So the next morning, knowing that the girls and I were in the way, we dropped off Eric and then drove over to visit with my good girlfriend Rachel G. and to allow the girls to play with her kids! So after spending most of the day with them, we returned to Alal's house to find everyone working hard...very hard...especially Eric, who I found neatly packing everything into the back of a HUGE moving truck...and he didn't seem too tired after not having had much sleep the night before! Evidently, everyone kept making sure that he was drinking lots of liquids...so they kept taking him cold bottles of Mountain Dew, and he was good to go! (And I'm afraid that sweet Pawpaw took a liking to the taste of mountain Dew as well! Oops!) And sweet Aunt Jan had electric cords running out the mail slot to a fan in the back of the truck, so Eric just kept on working like a work-horse! Later that evening...knowing that everyone needed a break, everyone quickly cleaned up, and we all had a really nice time laughing and eating dinner back at The Real Pickle. So that evening, when we returned to the house it was obvious that there was so much more work left to be done... so we decided that everyone would get back to work for a couple of more hours. Eric and I set up the girls in a corner (now I didn't say that they actually stayed in that corner) to watch a movie on his laptop, and we continued taking boxes and furniture into the driveway to determine which moving truck the items would go onto! If there were ever anything that Aunt Jan and I wished to bring back to TN, we would just ask Eric and Uncle Eddie, "Do you think this will fit?" And they'd very assuredly and manly say, "Of course it will!" And Pawpaw kind of just kept walking around in a fog, wondering from where everyone was getting all of their optimism...we were all thinking it wouldn't all fit; however, with great optimism and persuasion, we were all amazed at what we were getting to fit into those trucks! We worked for quite some time, and then Eric and the girls and I headed back to the hotel to get a few more hours of sleep.

The next morning, we grabbed a quick breakfast at the hotel, packed up the van, and headed back to continue packing. Of course, our plan had been to leave Shreveport early Friday morning to drive back as far as Chattanooga/Sewanee; however, there was still just too much to do!

So after another long day of loading up the trucks on Friday, Mom and the girls and I went ahead and said our goodbyes to Pawpaw and began driving back as far as Ruston to have some time to visit with Mamaw. It was nice to just have to "walk away" and not be one of the last ones to leave; however, it was still difficult.

We did enjoy our visit with Mamaw, and to see her healthy and back at her nursing home, for the previous week she had been hospitalized. She enjoyed having the girls push her around the nursing home in her wheel chair, and we were able to pass out a few goodie-bags to some of her friends at the nursing home. The girls and I had brought some "Chattanooga favorites" for her to share with her friends. Then the guys and Aunt Jan called and said that they were finished packing and were driving on toward us. So we went outside and sat on the porch while we waited for the trucks to make it as far as Ruston. And after a while, Eric and Dad pulled up in the first moving truck and got out to give Mamaw a quick hug hello and a kiss goodbye for us to get back on the road. So Mom, the girls and I traveled on in the van, and Eric and Dad in the "FL" moving truck, and Aunt Jan and Uncle Eddie in the "TN" moving truck. And with our radios and nicknames, we traveled on as far as Monroe where we stopped for dinner at a Cracker Barrel...yes, that's not too far down the road, and we weren't traveling very fast! And we had to arrange where and when we would pull those trucks off of the interstate! Uncle Eddie and Eric just said that they had to laugh every time a yellow school bus passed them! We had a quick dinner at Cracker Barrel and got back onto the road. Once Eric and Dad found us a "hotel," we pulled off of the interstate in Vicksburg to rest for the night. Thankfully, we had pre-arranged packing/unloading the luggage, and we were able to easily roll out of the cars and into the beds at the hotel (with Annie and Tressie already peacefully sleeping.) Macy slept in Mimi and Pawpaw's room; Annie slept with Eric and I; and Tressie ended up in Uncle Eddie and Aunt Jan's room...for a while! She later awoke and wanted to get up and have a party while they were going to sleep, so she came on to our room and watched Animal Planet to who knows when...and what did she learn? We'll never know, for we were asleep!

The next morning, we all joined each other downstairs for breakfast and then once again got on the road headed for TN and FL, after quite a few laughs and our parking lot photo shoots! So Mom and Dad got into their truck for FL; Eric and Eddie got in the truck for TN; and Jan got in the car with the girls and I. After saying farewell to Mimi and Pawpaw, we drove on as far as Birmingham where we all had a wonderful time having lunch with K-ren (who gave us her hysterical opinion on everything!). Then back on the road again!

Once we neared the bottom of mountain, we stopped for gas/diesel and made our plan of attack...how were we going to get that truck up the mountain with the least amount of hassle. Well, my husband chose the most difficult route, so with lumps in our throat Jan and I followed the truck up the steepest road that goes up the mountain. And now that we know that there are WAY MORE curves coming up that direction, thank the Lord we made it to our street! And as we drove down our road (by now it was dark!) we noticed many cars lining our road and men hanging out by them. Thinking our neighbors were having a party, we slowly drove past them and recognized them as wonderful men from our church! They were there waiting for us...to help us unload the truck! So in less than an hour, they had unloaded what had taken us two days to load! We were so thankful for their help, for I know that we were physically spent! What an honor to be in a church that truly operates as a church family! We felt so loved by their acts of kindness, and it allowed Uncle Eddie and Aunt Jan to stop and catch their breath before heading on toward Sewanee. So after they convinced us that they weren't going to unpack anything up at their house that evening, we showed them off on their way. And trust me...we all slept very soundly that evening...back at home in our own beds!
The next day we attended morning worship, kidnapped Brody from the kennel, called and made sure that Aunt Jan and Uncle Eddie were still alive, and prepared to begin the next week!

A week at home!

Well, it was SO good to be home, but sadly we had brought home a sweet, sick little Macy. After a few days of her not recovering, we called the doctor, and he definitely wanted to see her....he had to put her on an antibiotic for strep throat, and after a few days she did begin to feel better!

October 1st came, and we celebrate Annie's 5 1/2 birthday...I can't believe it! (Most of you know that we celebrate 1/2 birthdays....two of our three children have December birthdays, so we just celebrate them all!) So for her special day, my sweet sister had arranged for her to have a horse-back riding lesson. So the girls and I picked up our sweet friend Miss Craig and then met Daddy downtown, and he drove us up to Cleveland to the horse stables. What a fun time we all had! The owner had such a loving, sweet horse name Prince to use to teach Annie (and the other girls) so many new things! At the end of the visit, she actually had Annie riding the horse and even controlling him on her own. Annie seems to be a natural rider!

Then for a fun dinner, we all went to a restaurant that we had never been to...Texas Roadhouse....how appropriate it was for us to eat there after leaving the stables! The girls had each earned a gift certificate to eat there from the library's summer reading program, and the table next to us gave us a free certificate for an appetizer, so we hit it big! Annie and her cowboy boots were quite the hit, and the hostess of the restaurant even had her sit up on a huge horse saddle to hear the entire restaurant shout a big, "Yeehaw!" for her 1/2 birthday! I'm not sure what was more fun... seeing Miss Craig having such a good time in an atmosphere like that or seeing Annie having the time of her life! She was so cute, and I'm sure that it's something that she won't forget!