An Alley Bammy Family

Kitty Mansion

2011-02-18T13:51:00.003-06:00

Every since we made the decision last summer to keep the cats in the house they've been angry. Really angry. They scratch up the furniture, knock things off the counters, chase each other up and down the curtains...it's not been any fun for any of us. So what was our solution? We went online to kittymansions.com and placed an order.

I came home from yoga this afternoon to this on the front porch. 73lbs of kitty mansion goodness!

I dragged it through the house with cats and dogs following right behind me. LOC didn't waste any time investigating the emptied box.

THESE were the ONLY instructions. Seriously.

Surrounded by bits and pieces.

Did I mention these were the ONLY instructions?

I was a little worried...

Thank GOD I didn't have to do it alone :)

Just hold it still...

It was a balancing act...

It didn't take long to get it together. Even though these were the ONLY instructions.

My darling Korduroy was the first visitor.

And with a little help the others joined him. Top to bottom for those of you who may not know these bad kittys... LOC, Mittens, Korduroy and Five.

I know I've been horrible updating the blog lately. I do have some pictures from Christmas, my dad's visit, A's basketball tournament, A's induction into the Jr Beta Club at HHES...tons of pics really. I promise to get some of them on here soon.

Birthday Cupcakes

2010-12-23T08:11:00.002-06:00

Cupcakes Y'all is one of EG's favorite places so it was no surprise when she wanted to have her birthday party there.

It really is a cool place. Oh and they have the BEST coffee in the wiregrass!

There she is!

She traded the headband for a bakers hat and apron.

Surrounded by friends.

Getting decorating instructions.

Paying close attention.

Let the decorating begin!

She may have sampled the frosting. Maybe.

Maddie takes the most frosting used award. The most Ever.

The cupcake tree. Happy Birthday to youuuuuuuuu!

And then there were gifts.

This one's for you, Aunt Kathy.

I can't believe she's 6. Happy Birthday sweet EG!

Eglin AFB FamCamp

2010-12-03T10:32:00.003-06:00

We made a trip to Eglin AFB last weekend and camped at the FamCamp. The campground wasn't nearly as nice as the one at Uchee Lake. There were nasty little weeds with pokey burrs that attached themselves to everything. Taking them out was quite the adventure too. Painful little things are covered in stabby spikes. That and the ticks...yeah, not my favorite camp ground.

We hiked through the burrs and ticks to the water where we found a TON of hermit crabs.

Brian showing EG a bunch of them. Shelby was interested too.

EG decided to gather up a few and get a better look.

"See mom"

Abigail thought this one was cool.

One the hunt.

The next morning we decided to head over to Destin to play on the "real beach"

I'm not sure if A is hugging EG or trying to keep her from jumping in the water :)

You've gotta love standing barefoot in the water in November.

Uchee Creek Lodge

2010-11-23T07:38:00.004-06:00

The Class C motor home we bought showed up just in time for us to take a short overnight trip this past weekend. We loaded it with all of our "must haves" Friday night. The girls were up bright and early Saturday morning...ready to go! Lake Eufaula had been our destination but reservations, 2 night minimums, 4 days notice put a halt to that. Back up plan, Uchee Creek just outside of Ft. Benning, Georgia.

On the road! (the dogs were a little weirded out by the moving house)

The girls loved sitting at the table. Arts, crafts, books, and games.

EG decided she'd rather lay down on the couch.

After a 3ish hour drive (we stopped and made lunch) we arrived at the lake.

It's deer hunting season so all the deer were in the campground. Everywhere.

Sunday morning walk.

The leaves on the trees were Beautiful!

We see helicopters of different sizes and shapes everywhere back home. But a C17...wow! These things are huge! EG took off running..."look moooooooommmma"

She stood there until that monster plane was out of sight.

Poor Abigail hasn't been fishing in about 3 years. So we rented a boat and took the girls fishing. EG's first time :)

Out on the boat here comes a C130. Dropping airborne trainees.

The Chattahoochee River

Heading out.

Abigail LOVES to fish.

See! Look at that face.

Turns out EG likes it too.

Brian isn't much of a fishing fan but he IS a fan of hangin with his girls.

EG found her favorite boating activity :)

After a fun filled camping experience we headed home. Abigail retreated to the bedroom to work on her independent study. I turned around to check on her and found this.

I'm glad we didn't go to Lake Eufaula. Uchee Creek is an awesome place! We may even head back this weekend.....

Science!

2010-11-18T19:10:00.003-06:00

Today was Abigail's Science Fair (book fair/parent visitation)at school. Beginning in the 5th grade they begin to take this whole science thing seriously...and it's awesome. There were tons of kids and parents walking through the 5th grade classrooms looking at the awesome projects these kids had on display.

This is Katie.

And Kayla (you may recognize this doll face from A's bday party)

And here's our little darling telling a parent all about her project. So confident :)

Anna! She took 3rd place overall....YAY ANNA!

After the Science Fair we visited the book fair where we bought some pretty cool books. Then we checked A out and ran off to lunch. After lunch we (me and A) headed to EEEC to visit/volunteer in EG's class. I was thrilled when Mrs Curry (EG's teacher) asked A to do an art lesson for the class.

Drawing a turkey.

She's got their full attention :)

"OK now you draw..."

Back to their seats to color. A offers a little more instruction. This kid may grow up to be a teacher.

During A's visit Mrs Curry asked if she would mind doing some reading with the students who leave a little later than others after school. A was thrilled to help. Looks like we've found her community service project for the Jr Beta National Club....

Buzzzzzzzz

2010-11-13T16:51:00.003-06:00

Look at me...two in one day! But I couldn't resist sharing this. Brian has NEVER buzzed the house. (mostly because he doesn't fly anywhere near our house) This weekend he is flying with his Guard unit, destination...Enterprise airport via right over our house. I got a text "5 min" so outside we went.

The girls jumped on the tire swings.

I took pictures of my Thai basil. Just look at it! So pretty this November 13th hehe

A took a break from the tire swing to play with Tory.

EG pushed her imaginary friend for a bit.

Tory was worn out.

Then off in the distance there came a familiar sound....

There he is!

Right over the house!! We danced we waved we laughed :)

The best part came after they flew away. The text message that said "I saw you"

Finally...I know

2010-11-13T13:58:00.013-06:00

I can't believe I haven't taken the time to sit down and post an Alley Bammy Family update since the girls went back to school. We have been getting used to our new routines and the excitement and challenges that come with them...and of course having a little fun too.

EG has made friends with our neighbors son, Cole. He is a big football fan so when EG asked if she could play ball with him, he was more than happy to show her how to throw a football.

Here he is showing her how to hold the ball.

Bring your arm back....

And now forward....

Turns out she has a pretty good arm ;-)

Fall is a busy, busy time around here. Festivals, pumpkin patch, birthdays, Halloween. First stop, Aplin Farms.

We love this place. We've gone every year since we moved to Enterprise. This year they added a number of new attractions. They have a petting zoo, train ride, hay ride, bouncers, corn maze, farmers market and more.

I love these hay animals. The kids aren't half bad either.

My favorite this year...

Duck race

And they were serious...

With hay animals, bouncers, petting zoo and duck races behind us we went for pumpkins.

And sunflowers

Love this

With the pumpkin patch behind us, we begin the birthday celebrations. Brian had his birthday and managed to escape my camera. Happy Birthday, Honey. :)

Abigail was up next. She turned 11 this year. Brian took her and her 3 best friends on post to fly the Blackhawk simulators. He was kind enough to take these pics and send them to me :)

After flying over each of their houses and crashing a few times he brought them home for dinner and some cake.

"Happy Birthday to youuuuuuu"

Ah yes, and the gifts. She got the DSI she's been beggggggging for.

The Enterprise Fall Festival was the same weekend as Abigail's bday party. We kept Anna and headed downtown. I was too busy having fun to get many pictures but I did manage to get a few of this event....

Anna Loading up

A loading up

Anna thought the leaf blower filling the balls with air was tooooo loud.

But well worth it.

They had a blast!

EG came down from the bouncer long enough for one picture.

The Enterprise Fall Festival wasn't the only festival we went to this year. Halloween day we headed to Dothan for the Peanut Festival.

With tickets in hand we went straight for the "Fun Slide"

Weeeeeeeee!

Who knew EG wouldn't think it was fun and dad would have to come to the rescue. He really had to do some talking to get her to slide.

She does NOT look happy.

Poor thing was traumatized.

But only for a second!

Much better.

The daredevil rides were reserved for Abigail.

Eeeeeek!

They did find one ride they both enjoyed.

A LOT

But I think the highlight of their day was dad playing the balloon/dart game and winning his girls the prizes they just couldn't leave without.

Just look at them :)

EG and Dad while A was on some crazy dangerous ride.

"Dad take a picture with me and Mom"

And our last stop, Halloween. Trick-or-treat!

Abigail and once tiny Timmy relaxing before we headed out.

Here he is learning what this whole Halloween, trick-or-treating thing is all about.

Whew! There you have it. An Alley Bammy Family update.

Let the school year begin!

2010-08-23T19:06:00.003-05:00

What a day! Our 5th grader announced that today was "The best school day ever" and EG has decided she loves kindergarten.

We were up early and ready for the day to begin.

The girls were very chatty at the breakfast table this morning. I did manage to get them to look my way for a moment...

Ready to head out the door.

"Kindercat"

You'd think I matched their clothes intentionally. Nope...I didn't even get to pick the first day outfits.

Abigail begged me not to take any pictures around her classmates. She did let me get one shot of the classroom though but only because it was empty.

EG on the other hand didn't mind me and my crazy camera pointing :)

Mrs. Curry

The kid has a locker.

A neat reading area.

I had to stop taking pictures at that point. Once EG understood that we were leaving she became a little upset. Brian was thrilled when he picked her up this afternoon. He bent down beside her and asked her how her day was...she looked up and said "Daddy I loved it"...whew!

Time flies

2010-08-22T12:17:00.014-05:00

I can't believe the last time I posted was when EG graduated preschool. Now here we are...the last day of Summer vacation. Tomorrow our girls start back to school. Abigail is going into the 5th grade and EG starts kindergarten. Wow, I don't feel that old! Abigail is looking forward to dissecting a cow eyeball this year. EG tells me she's a little nervous about having to follow the rules, she's pretty sure she can't and is going to end up in the principals office. I'm hoping she's wrong.

We started the Summer off with a visit from my seeeester. We actually started Summer a day early, skipping the last day of school to drive to Montgomery to pick her up.

It was a nice quiet visit. We did a lot of long overdue hanging out.

You know, sister stuff.

Oh but I didn't let her out of here without taking her picture at the beautiful historic Rawls Restaurant/Hotel

And the Boll Weevil Monument. Hehe

It was a nice visit. Too short, but nice. We sent her home after a only 7 days....she did promise to come back though :)

When it came to the day to day we spent most of our time here...

EG started out afraid of the pool but by the end of the summer she was flying down these. Laughing and announcing "I love these slides" every time she came down.

Fearless.

Abigail mastered the art of the rock wall.

And the diving board.

GranMom and PaPaw joined the fun when they came to visit.

Abigail and Dad spent some time at the POW Range this summer working on their shooting skills.

Up goes the flag. "The range is hot"

Out go the targets.

Pile o ammo

Beautiful in her pink shooting gear

Letting range control know they're ready to shoot

Bang!

25 yards

She's a pretty good shot!

While GranMom and PaPaw were here we took a trip to the Florida Caverns in Marianna, Florida.

EG was a little concerned about going underground. There was a lot of carrying in the beginning.

The "pokey things" didn't help

There, that's better

The "Christmas trees" were a favorite

Ahhhhh, and the water

Finally, the ONE you were allowed to touch

Oh and I can't forget the bat!

Not THAT one...

This one :)

He was very tolerant while I took picture after picture. Poor little guy.

Climbing our way out of the caverns

Another wonderful event took place while GranMom and PaPaw were here. Miss Bevin (A's art teacher) and Clay (the love of her life) got married.

Miss Bevin putting the final touch on Abigail's hair.

Ready.

All dressed up and ready for the wedding. Abigail in her flower girl dress. She looks so grown up.

Mr. and Mrs. Clay Bright

After the wedding GranMom and PaPaw drove back to Arizona and Brian headed for Mobile, Alabama. He spent a week there with his National Guard unit (or part of it anyway) spotting oil in the gulf.

Doors off over water. I love this shot!

The rest of our summer was spent

playing at friends houses

rescuing Rhino Beetles from the pool (a total of 7 I think)

They're big

Gardening

Enjoying our new grass

And saying goodbye to friends who moved back home to Florida. We will miss you Dean family!

We had an awesome Summer. We're ready for the school year. Well most of us anyway....

"Do I go to kindergarten tomorrow"?

2010-05-27T20:19:00.002-05:00

EG's preschool career came to an end today. Poor girl was sick this morning and missed her last day. With lots of rest and fluids she was ready to go to the graduation ceremony this evening. I'm so glad she did, they put on a really cute show for us.

Saying goodbye to Miss PokYon

The Deans came out to see EG and Layla graduate

The proud sister

Miss Stacia introducing the graduating class of 2010

Here they come

There she is!

Putting on a show

Say a little prayer

Good stuff

Diploma time

One last hug

Graduated. She's already begging to start kindergarten :)

The Grass IS Greener

2010-05-26T09:01:00.003-05:00

Brian and I have been trying to get grass to grow in our backyard for a couple of years now...with zero luck. We would put grass seed out, it would sprout sweet little blades of grass and then it would rain, or rather "gully wash" and send it all down stream to the corner of the yard leaving us with this...

Don't get me wrong sand is nice...when you're at the beach! But look at this...

And this

And this

It was awful

So we gave up. This year we broke down and decided sod was our only hope. We hired Brian McCrory owner/operator of McCrory Lawn Care. "You grow it we mow it" If you're local and need sod or someone to mow your lawn, we HIGHLY recommend Brian.

First things first. He got rid of the existing "grass"

Then he called in some help. This is Matt.

Matt helped smooth everything out.

It was a late night but they got everything prepped and ready for grass.

Dirt.

The next morning he came by with this on his way to pick up our sod.

"It's better than a wheelbarrow"

There it is! (That's DJ, more help)

Here we go!

"What's gonna work? Teamwork"

One.....

They even let EG help. Never mind that she had showered for the day and was in her pj's...this was grass!

It went a lot faster than I thought it would.

Even with Five's help

And Korduroy's....

Done for the night.

The dogs exploring phase I

Let the watering begin!

Poor girl has never had grass in her backyard before now.

Before I knew it they were done.

And it was beautiful!

We love it!

8th Continent Soy Milk Drawing Contest

2010-05-19T09:02:00.003-05:00

My awesome dad sent Abigail some postcards a while back. The postcards were for a drawing contest for 8th Continent Soy Milk. Abigail drew a couple of suns and sent them in. Well this morning she received email notification that her drawings were approved and posted on their contest site. The 50 drawings with the highest rating will win $1000 for their schools art program. She was sooooo excited! Take a look at her drawings (there are 2) and rate them. (find them by searching for her by name, Abigail Wilkins, in the search field in the lower right corner)You can rate them daily and help her win!!! Voting goes through July 11th.....

Here is the link to the site http://8thcontinent.com/sun/

Wordless Wednesday

2010-05-12T20:20:00.000-05:00

Gardening Wiregrass Style

2010-05-07T17:09:00.002-05:00

I have planted a garden every year since we've been in this house. And every year we get a little of this and a little of that. Well this year I had a long chat with the owner/operator of a local farm. Oh boy, the things I learned. Gardening in South Alabama is NOTHING like gardening in Oregon. But...I may be getting this whole "wiregrass gardening" thing figured out.

This was the plan.

Fill these containers with plants that would produce food.

We even added a garden bed this year.

We planted....and so far things are looking good :) (we even "had" to put in a second bed)

Behind me...those are tomatoes.

Yes, they are taller than me :)

Blueberries have gone from this

To this

Abigail grabbing a green bean snack

Mmmmmm

EG heard there were more green beans ready for "harvest"

The potted herb garden is doing really well.

We also have several different kinds of herbs stashed all over the yard. We've mixed them in with the azaleas, roses, and iris along with cantaloupe, watermelon, and more tomatoes.

Cantaloupe :)

Onions

Squash

And my tomatoes....well some of them

Ahhh and you may not be able to eat it but my hummingbirds can. The best it's looked since we planted it.

Muffins with Mom

2010-05-06T19:47:00.004-05:00

I woke up a little early this morning. I had a special date and I needed to be dressed and ready to go by 730. Last week a darling little 5 year old brought me....

This...

Personalized and everything!

We were a bit early for the festivities so sassy pants and I sat in the car and read a little of "Swimming with the Dolphins".

Just look at her :)

She was thrilled when we finally got to go in :)

We headed back to her classroom where I was shown this.

Hmmmm that explains the favorite food/flower questions last night :)

Getting ready to recite a poem. Not really sure what was goin on here....

A quick smile for me

Then it was Muffin Time!

Another surprise at the table

We had a really good time!

And just a little bonus. We "kidnapped" TF and brought him home with us so Miss Megan and L could have some "mommy daughter time". This is his first time being in the exersaucer (and liking it). He was looking up at EG.

McClellands Critters...what a blast!

2010-04-21T20:18:00.001-05:00

Nine of us packed up today and headed to McClellands Critters in Banks, Alabama. I had heard of this place before but for some reason had never made the trip. It's only a little over an hour from the house and after today we WILL be going back!

Here we are...

Paid for our tickets, $8 for me and $6 for each of the girls. It was bright and sunny so we also picked up a couple of visors for the girls.

Orange for Miss Abigail

And pink for EG

Located on 70 wooded acres, this place has all kinds of critters!

This guy was a character

I'm not really sure what the deal was here...somebody doesn't look happy

These guys were too busy sleeping to entertain us...I thought they were sweet

Mr Mike hand feeds the big cats

And they like it

One noisy cat

Layla didn't care for the roaring

But all in all fascinating to watch

One of the best parts of the day was the reptiles...yup, the reptiles.

It all started off with this little guy

Hands on

and on

and on

Somebody decided reptiles were cool and grabbed a couple of them

After talking EG out of the gators Mr Mike brought out a ball python

Where's it's head?

See mom!

Next came the corn snakes. EG LOVED them!

Gimmie, gimmie!

Soooo happy :)

She did share with her sister...eventually

Somehow Miss April got talked into holding this guy

Which led to me holding him

And of course Miss Megan wasn't getting off the hook!

Abigail held him too

And who looks most comfortable and at ease with a big snake around her neck? Um, yeah, EG.

Ash thought we were all nuts

Oh but they got bigger....and who was there wanting first hold? Yeah, EG.

Look at her

Then it was Abigail's turn. Seems EG was concerned it was going to land on her...

Brave girl

At the end of the tour Mr Mike asked the girls if they'd like to give Oreo, the calf, a bottle.

Of course they did!

Uhhh, this calf is strong

Really strong

Stronger than I expected

Hungry baby

You would think we'd had a full day. We had seen, held and fed several animals. Then we looked up and here come the McClellands with "BooBoo"

EG sprinted for them

I really wanted to hold this little guy

He nuzzled Abigail

I think EG would have preferred another reptile

Layla even gave him a hug

OK, OK...enough of that!

EG and L hanging out at the end of the day

Preston did not want me to get this picture. Thank you, April for the help :)

What a great day with some pretty terrific friends. Thanks guys!

Jammin'

2010-04-15T21:36:00.006-05:00

It's strawberry season here in Alabama...I've been to the Country Best Farm twice in the last two days taking absolute advantage of it. We froze our picks from yesterday, but today...well that's a different story.

I grew up with a gardening, pickling, canning kind of mom. You would think that would make me a natural for following in her footsteps. I have to admit that I have never canned or pickled anything in my life...before today. I decided (with the help of the Pioneer Woman) to make strawberry jam with the girls. It was more fun than I could have imagined!

EG and I ventured out after she got out of school and picked these...

Of course removing the caps was all me :/

It seemed to take forever but I finally achieved this

We took a strawberry break and ran to pick Abigail up from school. It didn't take long before the girls were in full speed! They mashed...

And mashed

And mashed some more

Ahhh, done.

All measured out

Add a bit of lemon juice (please forgive the strawberry stained fingernails...I've been at this for two days :p)

EG helped squeeze

And pour it in

A bit of pectin

And 1/2 a pat of butter. The Pioneer Woman says it helps reduce the foam...

With all of the ingredients in the dutch oven Abigail ran off to make labels :)

Then it was time for homework

EG pinned on her cat tail and put on her ears and headed for the hammock

I manned the berries

Finally it was time! Out with the jars, one by one.

Beautiful

There it is!

Don't ask....

9 jars of wonderful yummyness

On toast

Mmmmmmm

The symphony of popping jars was wonderful! We can't wait for the peach and blueberry seasons!

Hangin with my boy

2010-04-09T21:04:00.005-05:00

I had the absolute honor of being TF's first babysitter today. His mom and sister went to family day to see dad fly...way too noisy for such a little baby boy. Lucky me!

He did a lot of this....

Five discovered him after a couple of hours.

Moving in for a closer look.

Toes! Five likes toes!

Five woke him up for me.

So I fed him. And EG loved him.

Then we loaded him into the stroller for a walk around the neighborhood.

He liked the stroller.

We took him to meet Miss Charlotte. They liked each other :)

EG took a break to look at the lake.

We got him home and he passed out in the bassinet I put up months ago...

Thank you, Megan, for trusting me with this precious little boy. Love him, love him!

Easter Weekend

2010-04-05T19:29:00.009-05:00

Was busy! Brian made it home from his drive back from Oregon in time to color eggs and enjoy an Easter feast.

Coloring eggs was too much fun!

Serious business

Very serious business

OK, not that serious

Getting creative

Daddy, handling with care

Easter morning came quickly. The girls couldn't wait for the hunt....

There was a lot of treasure brought back from Oregon. I think this was a favorite for the girls. They kept sneaking out to the garage and getting in...and honking the horn.

A 1959 MGA roadster. It has been in the Wilkins' family for over 45 years. What a beauty.

The girls insisted on being taken to school in it.

First up...Abigail

Then it was EG's turn.

Crazy excited.

This beautiful handmade sweater that belonged to GranMom when she was EG's age (or thereabouts)was sent as well.

Ahhhh, yes. And the other family favorite treasure from Oregon. Seen being enjoyed by Five in this picture....

The hammock :)

Daddy sick

2010-04-02T19:55:00.004-05:00

Brian headed west last week to help move GranMom and PaPaw from Oregon to Green Valley, Az. The girls, being the Daddy's girls that they are, have missed him terribly. Counting the days until he'd be home. Well tonight was the night. After dinner they were bouncing off the walls, so we went outside to wait.

Abigail writing "Welcome Home Daddy" on the back sidewalk.

EG adding her creative touch.

That got old so Abigail was off to "keep watch"

Tory helped

"He's here! It's him! C'mon EG!!!"

Two very excited, Daddy sick girls, waiting "patiently" for him to get the truck parked.

They nearly took his feet out from under him :)

Now a tour of Dad's "home" for the last 5 days.

"Ohhhhhh, what's that"

Feeling defeated (it was locked) they posed for me

They hauled half his stuff in the house.

And unpacked this....thanks honey :)

Home Sweet Home

A very special thanks goes out to my wonderful friend in Houston. Thank you, Shannon, for taking my hubby in last night and packing a wonderful lunch for him. Love you!!!

On the hunt

2010-04-01T15:13:00.014-05:00

Today was an Easter party having, egg hunting kind of day. First party on the schedule was EG's....

The kids sang songs. Sorry, I don't have any pictures I was filming for Meggo...maybe she'll share later.

They also recited John 3:16

"For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life."

A beautiful table was set for the "feast"

And, yes, there were eggs

Some really cute eggs

And when you hide eggs...you have to have someone who is willing to find them

Quick lil thang

The hunt

EG and L stopped smack dab in the middle of the hunt to show each other what they'd found

Visiting when they were done

And making a surprise visit....

Meggo and Lil T

Off to A's party....

These beautiful young ladies are Miss Allison and Miss Carole. They are the two class mom's who are always there when we have events at the school. Wonderful ladies!

And Miss Allison was kind enough to snap a shot of me. Thank you Miss Allison :)

Here they come...

Having a little lunch before the big hunt.

Getting the hunting instructions

And they're off

EG even got to hunt

Golden egg :)

Hanging out after the hunt.

More hanging out...

The rest of these pictures are random shots I took around the yard today. The hummingbird flew up while I was watering. I was afraid to move too much and scare him away so I only had one hand available to take the picture and couldn't zoom in. But I got him!

Silly Tory.

Sunning Shelby.

Playing catch up

2010-03-16T15:20:00.035-05:00

The past few weeks have been very, very busy around our house. I have been taking pictures...just no time to post them.

First things first...please allow me to introduce to you Timothy Frederick Wade.

Such a handsome little boy.

Lil T, Timmy Fred, or TF as he is known, was born 6 weeks early. He and mom have been back and forth to UAB these past weeks. Each time they leave, we are lucky enough to have his big sister Layla stay with us. (first attempt to prove we've been really busy)

We've kept the girls busy....

Abigail painted this one for Megan's mom, Mrs Julie. She loves owls.

The close up.

EG and L have been to a couple of birthday parties. The first one was for Lacie. We celebrated with her and her family just days before they moved to Alaska. That was a tough good-bye to a great family!

The party was at Mellow Mushroom...the kids got to make their own pizzas.

Layla waiting for further instruction....

Caught her a little off guard :)

Smart gal, she waited to throw the dough until the little people had sauce and cheese on theirs.

Lacie LOVED her gift from the girls.

I will miss my little Alek.

And Melissa and Ben.....

The two Melissa's. Ugh, I miss her.

The other party was for their classmate, Ali Grace. This time it was cupcakes instead of pizza.

EG and L with their party headgear :)

Each party goer got a hat and an apron.

And cupcakes.

They each got to decorate a plate of cupcakes.

It wasn't as messy as you might think...

And the cupcakes were beautiful (and tasty)

A collection of cupcakes makes up the "cupcake tree" for the birthday girl.

Happy Birthday Ali Grace!

New babies, art projects, birthday parties, and.....rotten houses. Yup, rotten. It seems when a previous owner put siding on the house they didn't have the chimney cap extended to prevent water from leaking alllll the way down the chimney and rotting it from top to bottom.

Soooo we had it torn out.

From top to bottom.

EG supervised.

Little cutie.

We took a little break from our supervisory work to pick A up from school.

I was a bit camera happy...

She was only slightly amused.

These guys made short work of this project...nearly done.

That was fast! Only 2 days total. Whew! Now I can have a rug on the porch and not worry about the rain leaking out from the chimney.

With spring in the air I decided to get ahead of the gardening this year (for the first time since we moved here)

We started by adding some rocks to the landscape to help minimize the sand floods each time it rains.

I really like it.

We took all the "unhappy" plants from all over the yard and moved them in.

We even had enough rocks left over to shore up the mudslide on the side of the shop.

There are tons and tons and tons of wildflower seeds in there. I can't wait to see it once it fills in!

Blueberry buds.

We've added a 12x5 bed to the cattle troughs and containers this year.

All prepped and ready for plants.

In fact, I would have planted today but I went to Family Fun Day instead!

Layla waiting to head to the activities. Not sure what she was doing but I thought it was cute :)

They had a TON of stuff set up for the kids. EG found the slide right away!

Up she goes....

Down she comes...

Layla preferred the bouncer.

They got tattoos.

They went fishing for prizes.

Loooooooook Mrs. Melissa.

They had a snack.

The best preschool director ever, Mrs. Stacia.

EG headed back to the slide while L and I went in to play some of the games.

She got all 3 rings. Mrs. Karen enjoyed watching her. (so did I)

A real celebration when she got the horseshoes on the ring.

We finished up the Family Fun Day with one last snack.

Busy times lie ahead....hopefully not so busy that I wait another month to share!

Parker's Pie

2010-02-19T15:40:00.002-06:00

Mrs Parker took a pie in the face when her 4th grade class earned over $6000 for their school during the Boosterthon Fun Run.

Before

After :)

Fun Run!

2010-02-19T12:36:00.017-06:00

I went to the most awesome fundraising event today! The Boosterthon Fun Run was this morning. I would like to thank all our friends and family who sponsored Abigail on her run....she ran the maximum 35 laps and kept going! Mrs. Parkers 4th grade class raised the most money for the school at over $200 per lap! Goooo Parker's Pride!!!

All painted and ready to run!

It's wonderful to be able to be there to support her.

Two of my favorites :)

Lining up. Each class was announced as they ran through.

Waiting their turn

Here they come!!

Getting everyone excited and ready to run!

And before any real sporting event....our National Anthem

Following the flag....getting them all lined up

And they're off!

The end of the first lap. Everyone is getting their shirts marked for each lap.

There was A LOT of this.

The guys who were in charge of the run were incredible! They kept the kids motivated with music...they talked to them throughout the race.

They danced...

They jumped...

I even caught the principal doin a little dancing of her own :)

And a little more...

The teachers were out there too!

These kids ran

And ran

And ran some more

They even had a nifty conga line!

Smiling the whole time!

And then it was over...35+ laps complete!

The victory lap.

These kids are awesome! They did an amazing job!!!

Snow Day!

2010-02-12T11:27:00.003-06:00

I have to admit that when they made the decision yesterday to close schools today because of a "good chance" of snow I was skeptical. Then we woke up to this....

We woke the kids up and didn't even bother to dress them before we turned them loose.

This was all the snowman we could build with the snow we had...

And then the sky opened up and dumped a ton more snow!

Wow Mom LOOK!! (this is EG's first "real" snow)

Poor Layla didn't know what to think of having a snowball fight...here she is bracing for impact.

It didn't take her long to figure it out though :)

Then she ran!

And together putting the final touches on a snowman

Burrrrrrrr!

Shelby making a run for the house. She is NOT a fan of the snow.

Tory on the other hand...

Catch the snowball is her new favorite game :)

It's only 11:45 and they're saying there is more on the way! Yay for snow days!!!

Anna Catherine

2010-01-23T12:55:00.004-06:00

Remember a few months back when Abigail painted this for a neighbors grand baby....

Well little Anna Catherine came to visit her Grandma and Grandma brought her to meet us.

Little Anna Catherine, 4 months old.

Abigail came out to meet her.

And just because I couldn't resist....

"When I grow up I want to be an Iron Chef"

2010-01-21T12:43:00.007-06:00

That's what EG is telling me these days. A while back we saw deep dish Chicago Style pizza on the food network. Then this happened....

Look at the concentration

The dough has to knead for 7 minutes. I think she stood there the entire time.

After a night in the refrigerator we had this.

The girls wanted "regular" and deep dish pizza.

They built their own.

More cheese please!

Brian got to build the deep dish :)

Starting with the cheese...lots of cheese

MmmmMmmmMmmm Pepperoni

Sausage, peppers, onions, and mushrooms. All precooked so our pizza wasn't too soggy.

Topped with sauce.

And baked to perfection!

Good looking pizza!

A bit tricky to get out of the pan...maybe we should have let it cool a bit more but we were hungry!

Look at that!

Our future Iron Chef was proud of herself. :)

What's with this cat?

2010-01-21T12:17:00.003-06:00

No photoshop here....really! Evidently Mittens likes to stick her tongue out at me.

This is the most recent picture. She was sitting in the kitchen watching me cook. I pulled out the camera and she did this....

This was shortly after we got her. She was eating my lemongrass plant when I got this one...

Abigail's latest acrylic

2010-01-10T19:04:00.002-06:00

Her last winter picture this season. Too cute!

She's diggin basketball....

2010-01-09T11:51:00.003-06:00

Second only to tennis....she is really having a good time playing basketball. She has a great coach, and great teammates.

Pregame practice

A little prayer

Then it was ON!

She really gets in there

A short break

Back to it!

Great job!

Bolognese with the big girl

2010-01-06T19:53:00.005-06:00

Christmas break has come to an end for Abigail...EG, however, doesn't go back to school until next week. So when it was time to get the bolognese sauce together for tonight's dinner EG was ALL OVER IT! Brian and I love to cook with the girls...it can make things take a bit longer and can sometimes be unnerving to sit by while they chop with big knives but it is sooooo worth it!

She chopped

And chopped

Took a break to "sample" her work

And chopped some more

Whew!

With everything chopped we were ready to saute

Getting it all in there...

Beautiful :)

A little tomato paste

mmmmmm

Milk, white wine, and water

We added some rib roast cubes that we had in the freezer from Christmas dinner and with everything in the pot, simmering beautifully, EG was off to play for the day...

Hours later....

Back in the kitchen to put on the finishing touches. EG adds the pasta to the boiling water.

We prepared one of our favorite salads. Roma tomatoes, sweet onion, iceberg lettuce, and bleu cheese dressing.

Magnificent!

It really was...

We sat down to a wonderful meal

That made Abigail a bit nutty

Was it good EG?

A work in progress

2009-12-31T09:54:00.023-06:00

One of the reasons we bought a house with a bit of property was so hubby could have a shop where he would be able to build his airplane. After a lot of discussion and some negotiating we decided to put the shop here...

So we hired some guys to come in and clear the way. This is what Chuck did for us in just a couple of hours.

It was amazing to watch.

EG loved the machine from a distance...up close, not so much. (note the death grip on my jacket)

Abigail Loved it! Chuck even let her drive it.

Ok this pic is for me....just couldn't resist :)

Plumbed and ready for concrete.

These things are like 18" long and 2" in diameter....

This is Moses...the best concrete guy in the wiregrass :)

With the concrete poured we were ready for the building. Hard to believe this truck was carrying a 30x40x25' building.

Offloading

There she is.

25' in the air on a wooden pallet = unhappy wife

Insulation and siding
.

The roof.

All closed in to include is 17' roll up door...he likes the 17' roll up door :)

THEN the work began....Framing in for the inlaws quarters.

Insulation

Drywall

Mud, tape...and sanding :(

Paint

Flooring and lighting

Kitchen cabinets

Oh yeah...and more concrete

Finally! "My side" is done

"His side" well....that's still a work in progress.

It sure looks like this went up over night in a neat little blog entry. Actual time elapsed was more than 2 years.

Wordless Wednesday

2009-12-30T08:48:00.000-06:00

One WHOLE hand

2009-12-29T19:40:00.016-06:00

That's what a friend said today. She's really getting old when it takes the whole hand to show how old she is....

Abigail made this for her :)

Brian and I cook with our girls and they Love it! EG wanted to make her own cake this year from start to finish.

See how excited she was :)

From Start

With a bit of help from sis

And mom

To Finish

Ahhh yes, and she wanted to decorate it too

"Taste Abigail"

Done frosting :)

Tired or mesmerized?

One final touch

Done

EG didn't want a party. All she asked for was her best buddy Layla to stay the night. She also asked if Anna, her sisters best buddy, could stay too so Abigail would have someone to play with too. Awwwwwww :)

Happy Birthday to you.....

Making a wish

Mmmmm cake

The fun stuff

Big old box of fairy dress up stuff from Layla

GranMom and PaPaw sent this...

Wait for it...

It's a xylophone!!

Look at the joy!

Mom and Dad get to play too :)

Then a little dress up

Happy Birthday EG!

Christmas Day

2009-12-27T16:05:00.004-06:00

Santa was good to our girls this year...so were their friends and family. Thank you to everyone who sent a little something special to the girls. Christmas morning was full of gasps, smiles, and flying Christmas wrap.

Who knew an electric pencil sharpener could bring so much joy

EG has been asking for flippers ForEver!

From Aunt Kathy :)

Ahhhh yes! The wonderful gift of Cactus Syrup from GranMom and PaPaw. She was soooo happy to see that the empty bottle in the refrigerator could be replaced with a brand new bottle.

EG Loves Barbie and the Three Musketeers.

I mean LOVES

G-Pa sent the girls Oregon sweatshirts and the cuuuuuteeest hats.

EG loved the hat so much it didn't leave her head for most of the day.

Did I mention how cute the hats were?

This was a big one for EG. GranMom and PaPaw sent her an American Girl doll. She has named her Lola Elizabeth Wilkins and doesn't go anywhere without her.

What's this, she wonders.....

Abigail's American Girl doll got a new bed. A sweet new bed with a bedside table and little lamp. Very nice. Once set up in her room her cat Mittens took it over. Oh well...

It was a great and very Merry Christmas!

A Merry Christmas

2009-12-27T15:58:00.003-06:00

Gramma Smith sent us a Christmas box with instructions to open upon arrival...it was a box full of fun! Christmas blankets, toys for the girls and these...

It was fun to watch the girls create their tasty art each with their own kind of flare.

EG painted.

Everywhere.

Abigail preferred the "squeeze method"

Careful and precise.

The end result was beautiful and tasty!

Snow Day!

2009-12-18T15:28:00.006-06:00

EG and I were invited to come play at the snow day/Christmas celebration Abigail's class had today. What fun!

The classroom was decorated and ready for the party.

Mrs Parker made each student a santa hat/stocking.

Including EG :)

And the students brought gifts for Mrs Parker.

Everyone was having a great time.

But this was supposed to be a snow day. Since we're in Alabama, we had to cheat.

Cup of snow :)

Chilly to the touch.

Put a couple of scoops of "snow" in a cup and add water...

Like this.

Ohhhh it's growing!

WooHoo! It's overflowing!!!

Each of the students got to make a cup of snow....

Anna Catherine's mom, Miss Allison joined in the fun

And who was all up in the middle of it....

Then EG got to make her very own cup of snow...

And of course sweet Jaycee got in there too!

But that wasn't the only snow in the class....Shaving Cream!!!

But what would a Christmas party be without Santa....

The kids were excited to see him.

Merry Christmas!!!

A Christmas Performance

2009-12-15T16:50:00.002-06:00

EG's preschool put on a Christmas performance for the parents today. EG told me they practiced A Lot and it showed because they did a Great job!

The show started with the 4 year olds.

She spotted us :)

Then group by group they brought the rest of the school in. What a wonderful group!

Little Angels

EG was really proud of herself. She loved that Dad was able to be there.

mmmmmmwa

Busy, busy, busy....

2009-12-14T10:24:00.005-06:00

I can't believe it's been a month since my last post....We had a wonderful Thanksgiving with a house full of friends and family. It was perfect. We, just like everyone else, have been busy this holiday season. This weekend was no exception...we started off the weekend activities Saturday afternoon when we went over to the Dean's to decorate Christmas cookies.

Our hostess, Miss April and the lovely Ashlyn.

Our host, Mr Pete.

And the handsome Preston. He was all sugared out :)

Abigail and I were on "Santa Chef Hat" duty.

Once the hats were done, Abigail was off to help mix up the frosting for the cookies.

Three of the chefs :)

Let the decorating begin!

A sassy Miss Megan supervising

Look mom!

The finished product.

EG had to sample...had to be sure they were tasty.

Thank you Dean Family, we had a blast!

Sunday morning we hit the road at 730. We were headed to Montgomery for the National Guard family day/Christmas celebration. Mrs Parker (Abigail's teacher) and her two little girls rode with us. It was a fun ride listening to the girls chatting and getting to know each other.

This is Miss Jaycee. Soooo sassy!

This is Miss Rhylee. Not so sassy.

The girls hit the arts and crafts table right away. I took pictures and let Mrs Parker help them with the glitter gluey projects :)

Tree

Another tree

Arts and crafts were fun but the girls really enjoyed climbing all over the Blackhawks.

EG was all over it!

So was Miss Abigail!

The three of them ready for take off.

Little Miss Sassy Pants was sure she was gonna get that thing started and take off. She actually had pilots briefing her on the equipment...and she WAS listening! I'm certain she would have fired it up if she could have found a key!

We can't forget about Santa.

EG wasn't too sure so Abigail carried her over.

Then she was talking Non-stop!

And Abigail turned into the kid who didn't want her picture taken.

Merry Christmas!

November hike

2009-11-14T18:53:00.010-06:00

The girls and I were going stir crazy this afternoon so we decided to head out for an afternoon hike.

We chose Beaver Lake. (Sweet Abigail blocking the sun from getting in EG's eyes)

All smiles and ready to go!

They were examining everything...and showing it to me.

This little guy would not sit still long enough for us to get a picture. Abigail had to lift his branch up, and then down, several times for me to get one blurry shot.

Look more berries!

And flowers.

This bridge marked the 1/2 way point.

Tadpoles and guppies.

Ahhhh finally, the lake.

Oh, and the playground!

YeeHaw!

Oooooh, almost there....

Ahhhh, sisters.

Wordless Wednesday

2009-11-03T20:31:00.002-06:00

Witches and Vampires

2009-10-31T20:56:00.004-05:00

What a fun Halloween! We got up early this morning so we could eat breakfast and get the girls in costume in time to be at the mall by 9am for trick or treating.

All dressed up.

A vampire without fangs...

Ahh that's better!

And our candy corn witch.

She stole her sisters fangs :)

Off they go.

EG and L

Abigail was kind of shy about going into businesses to trick or treat.

The little ones were not!

Still hanging back...

She did manage to get a few pieces of candy though :)

After trick or treating at the mall we ran home for an early lunch...then it was back to the mall for a free showing of Monsters vs Aliens. Very cute movie btw.

The reason for the a.m. trick or treating was the rainy forecast. Come 5:00pm (the beginning hour for trick or treating in Enterprise) it wasn't raining. So...off we went again!

Wooo Hooo! Let's go that way!!!

Much more "scary" going door to door. (this kid was so nice to the girls)

Nothing phased them. They were on a mission!

45 minutes later with buckets full of candy (for the second time today) the girls were done.

Halloween Party - Take II

2009-10-30T15:51:00.005-05:00

OK, after getting all sugared up at EG's party we packed up and headed to Abigail's classroom. Miss Allison and I baked chocolate cupcakes and brought whipped topping, m&m's, and sprinkles for the kids to decorate them with. To add a bit more sugar to the mix we brought a gallon of apple cider to wash it down with.

We planned ahead and made individual cups for each child.

Then we carted everything to the classroom.

We got everything all passed out and the decorating began.

Look how calm they are.

Decorating away.

awww look what they made.

Then they started eating....

For those of you who have never seen it, this is what a classroom full of sugared up 4th graders looks like.

Close up.

Giggle, giggle.

mmmmm sugar.

Anna Catherine, Mrs. Parker, and Abigail

Halloween Party - Take I

2009-10-30T12:33:00.003-05:00

EG got to dress up in a costume for school today. She was really excited.

She borrowed this one from her sisters stash of past costumes.

This is her big sister wearing the same costume Halloween 2005.

Daddy with his youngest princess getting ready to head to school.

She was happy to see me when I showed up for the party. She's blowing me a kiss :)

They sang us a song.

This is the first time little Wesley smiled when I pointed a camera at him.

Then he quickly put on his mask.

Layla looking like such a big girl.

They ate a small feast.

I really wanted to get a nice picture of EG with Mrs Pokyon. Balloon strings got in the way here...

And Mr Thomas got in the way here :P

Double Digits

2009-10-27T19:19:00.006-05:00

Abigail entered into the world of double digits today. What a great day!

She got to open a couple of her gifts before school.

EG and I watched.

We got really lucky with the weather today. It rained, and rained, and rained, and as a result Daddy got to come home early.

He made milkshakes to go with the cake :)

Abigail came to me last week with a drawing of what she wanted her cake to look like. Complete with a grocery list.

Each of us pitched in and this is what we ended up with.

And it was GOOD!

EG "eating his nose"

Gifts :)

From GranMom and PaPaw. $1 for each year and one to grow on.

And these to help create new works of art.

And let's not forget the American Girl skateboarding outfit.

She's been begging for the Wii Sports Resort game...

She got it

And ran off to play it with Dad.

Look at them :)

Having a blast!

Happy Birthday doll face!

Happy Halloween!

2009-10-26T12:57:00.002-05:00

Abigail, my October baby, loves Halloween. She told me she wanted to contribute something to the holiday decorations. She and Miss Bevin spent hours and multiple lessons painting this work of art, and I LOVE IT!

We will hang it year after year. :)

Wordless Wednesday

2009-10-21T07:18:00.000-05:00

New Activities

2009-10-16T08:14:00.004-05:00

Time got away from me this year and I missed the cut off for soccer...it's actually turned out to be a good thing. There were a TON of different activities the girls could have signed up for. This time around Abigail is rockin the tennis court and EG is loving gymnastics.

Happy girl.

Waiting for things to get started.

She loves it!

Who is excited about gymnastics...

Stretch it out.

Loves the balance beam.

a lot.

Then there was free time.

Pumpkin Patch at Aplin Farms

2009-10-15T13:10:00.003-05:00

This past weekend the whole family loaded up and headed for the pumpkin patch for the petting zoo, corn maze and hay rides.

We started with the corn maze...

Off they go!

EG thought we were lost...just look at that face!

Dad came in and saved the day. She felt much better with dad near by.

Then it was off to the hay ride.

Off they go again....that's right, EG is barefoot.

The perfect pumpkin.

Load it up.

???

I love that they have the sunflower field too. We took home a huge bunch!

With pumpkins and sunflowers in tow we headed back.

Deep in thought...or hot and tired?

We enjoyed a picnic lunch.

I don't think honey wanted his picture taken.

Nope. He didn't. :-)

We stopped by the petting zoo after lunch.

These were the "lickinest" goats I've ever seen. EG thought it was great!

One last stop at the farmers market before heading home.

Autumn Leaves

2009-10-04T17:01:00.007-05:00

This painting is the first in a series of four paintings that Abigail wants to do. She is going to paint leaves from all four seasons. I love fall...I'm not sure she's going to be able to "beat" this one.

Getting started.

I know it's tough to see but it won't be for long.

Here comes the color...

We had to move this little project out to the porch. Oil painting projects can be stinky.

I took this picture at the end of the third hour.

(-:

I love it when EG comes to watch.

She was really into this one.

I think Abigail was enjoying having her sister watch.

Putting on the final touches.

Done.

Signed and hung.

Bio Poem

2009-09-24T15:27:00.002-05:00

The self portrait.

The poem.

Abigail

Artistic, flexible, knowledgeable, kind

Sister of Elizabeth

Lover of animals, friends, and card games

Who feels happy outside, nice swimming, and uneasy around snakes

Who needs to be active, to stay cool, and time outside

Who gives my mom help, my sister presents, and my friends treats

Who fears spiders, snakes, and strangers

Who would like a computer, a scooter, and more friends

Resident of Enterprise

Wilkins

Field Trip

2009-09-22T15:54:00.002-05:00

Today we had the first field trip of the school year. EG's school took us to the petting zoo in New Brockton. This is the second visit for us and we've enjoyed it both times.

Sitting for a little snack and drink before we got started. Look at them, like mother like daughter! I love the expressions...

EG liked the sheep.

The cow milking was interesting....

Layla liked the goat but got a little frustrated when it wouldn't eat.

They also had horses, peacocks, pigs, and roosters...but none of that mattered when EG saw these.

We spent the rest of our visit with the chicks.

Ohhhhh the excitement!

Ahhh finally!

Sweet chick.

Look mom!

Daddy even got to come for a while. This was the saying good bye part...

We had a lot of fun.

Wordless Wednesday

2009-09-16T07:27:00.001-05:00

The Perfect Gift

2009-09-13T15:30:00.002-05:00

Today the girls and I went to Alek's 2nd birthday party. Staying with the pirate theme, red and black were the colors of the day.

Melissa did a great job with the cake. Her husband usually makes them but she was on her own for this one.

Fabulous job!

Alek was sleeping when the party started. Mom got him up...before he was ready.

It wasn't long before he was up and about enjoying the party.

Melissa's husband, Ben, has been in Iraq for the last 8 months. Today is a special celebration, not just for little Alek, but Ben is supposed to make it home in time for the birthday party.

Melissa had signage for both her boys.

The party was in full swing when she got the call to head out and pick Ben up.

She and Megan crept out the back door to pick him up so Lacie and Alek wouldn't know what was going on.

Really sneaky.

Mom "letting the kids answer the door"

No need for words....

They were sooooo happy to have daddy home. Look at that smile on Lacies face.

:-)

Cake.

Gifts.

"Here honey, hold this string and stand on this chair"....

A wonderful celebration....thanks MW! We had a blast! And welcome home Ben!

Wordless Wednesday

2009-09-02T16:04:00.000-05:00

First Homework Assignment

2009-08-30T10:06:00.002-05:00

EG had her first homework assignment this weekend. It was a lot of fun to listen to her talk about her "homework". "Mom, I don't know how to do homework", cute, just plain cute.
The assignment was to choose some family pictures and glue them to a piece of construction paper. Each picture was to have a caption. Dad helped EG navigate her way through some family photos. I helped EG cut and paste.

The final product.

I thought she chose some really sweet pictures. Sharing chocolate with Dad, they've sat like that and shared chocolate since she was only 3 months old. The one of her and Abigail is one of my favorites. The waterslide is priceless. And I really like that she chose one of her and Layla. That picture was taken last year when they first met. Add to that me, the dogs and Kord and you have a pretty clear picture of EG and her family life. Good job on the homework kid.

Wordless Wednesday

2009-08-26T12:16:00.002-05:00

Small Steps

2009-08-24T15:55:00.004-05:00

EG started her new preschool this morning. Ever since the open house last Thursday school is all she's talked about. She was pretty exited when she went to bed last night...so much so that she was up a little later than usual. But this morning when I went in to wake her up, she popped out of bed ready to go.

She ate breakfast, brushed her teeth and was dressed in record time.

We got to the school a bit early. She was the only one in the class with her teacher...a real treat for her. They met for the first time Thursday, now....

the best of friends.

This is her classroom.

These are her classmates. Note that her bestest buddy Layla is there with her.

They are little felt letters, each one cut out by hand by her teacher. They were "mixing up" EG's name and putting it back together before class.

I'm feeling pretty good about this school year. Great school, great teacher off to a great start.

It's mornings like this

2009-08-22T08:58:00.002-05:00

I have always enjoyed wildlife. Living in Portland the daily sightings were limited to crows, robins, and squirrels. So when I can look out my bedroom window and see this it really makes me like living in Alabama.

These were some BIG birds.

There were 5 total but they wouldn't cooperate with me...only 4 would pose for the shot.

I like Alabama. :-)

Wordless Wednesday

2009-08-19T11:49:00.001-05:00

So Long Summer.....

2009-08-13T09:52:00.002-05:00

It's hard to believe it's over and Abigail has started the 4th grade. EG starts her last year of preschool in under 2 weeks. With school supplies and new clothes purchased the last thing we needed to do was get the "school is starting" hair cuts.

OK, we may have let things go a bit....

This was brushed, it really was.

Ahhhh so much better.

She loves the new do. (me too)

And here she was the first day of school.

So EG has been going to see Mrs. Kim with me and her sister for months. She sits and watches us get our hair cut.

Not this time....

Look at that face.

She was so excited.

She loved the "snap, snaps" in her hair.

"My sister got her hair CUT, I only needed a TRIM"

Introducing Stephanie Glen-Gallegos

2009-07-31T12:27:00.002-05:00

From over 3000 miles away I managed to pirate some pictures from my brothers wedding. That's right, Otto got married! But this post is to welcome my new sister-in-law to the family. Welcome Stephanie!

Serious business.

I love the cake guys...

I picked this picture because Stephanie was looking at the camera and because Jet was in the background. I don't know...it made me smile.

Cake!

The happy couple.

Congratulations Otto and Stephanie!

Brad in Iraq

2009-07-30T10:28:00.002-05:00

Brad Stoller is a dear friend of ours, he and his mother introduced me and Brian. He and Brian were in the same Guard Unit in Salem, Oregon. When Brad comes to Ft. Rucker for training it's like having a college kid return home. We have him over, feed him, he does laundry, the boys play video games, and so on. We love Brad.

Here are a few pictures he sent us from Iraq.

This is Brad.

This makes the temperature in Alabama seem mild. You may not be able to read it...."The temp picture was taken about 5 minutes after the picture of me. I've seen the temperature gauges in the aircraft get to 48 C." Yes he said 48 C...that's 118.4 degrees Fahrenheit folks.

The flight line.

"The Duststorm picture was taken from the same spot as the "normal day flight line" and yes the stadium lights are on. That was actually not the worst it has been since I got here. There was one night where you could only see about 2 street lights. It is similar to being in a very dense fog."

"We have been busy with everything except flying, which is a good thing. We have one building (the size of a double wide trailer) that is our coffee shop. It has a projector so we can watch movies and quite a few board games. The people that work behind the counter volunteer and the drinks are by donation. Several of the guys have become very good with make smoothes. I'm building a deck just outside for people to hang out and relax on."

Be safe Brad. See you soon.

Now that's hot!

2009-07-25T08:41:00.002-05:00

I never get tired of watching Abigail draw, paint, pastel or even color. She amazes me.

Here she goes.

This is the face she makes when I take too many pictures of her when she's drawing.

The outline.

Pastels are her thing...

Look at her go

Hot, hot, hot!

And it looks great on the kitchen wall!

I'm on my waaaayyyyyy!

2009-07-21T20:41:00.002-05:00

I sure am going to miss her calling that out as she goes running through the house following the faint calls from a four year old begging her to build her a tent....again. Mary has only been here for a few weeks, helping out with the kids during summer vacation, but it feels like so much longer. We sure have had a blast with her!

We visited the Ft. Rucker Aviation Museum.

Inside of a Chinook ch-47

I love EG's hands (Mary was holding her up)

Mary pretending to fly

Mary really flying. Mr. Brian took her up one morning. She even took the controls...for a minute!

Games with Abigail

She taught EG the art of dancing while wearing an ipod.

She smiled a lot.

She went to play groups with us every Tuesday. The kids all loved "Miss Mary". So when the time came to enjoy the last dinner Mary would share with us this visit she asked if we could invite the whole gang...so of course we did.

Look at her wrangle them.

OK everyone...say cheeeeese

She's definitely one of a kind

Mary you are a beautiful girl, inside and out. Thank you for the time you spent with us this summer. We are all looking forward to seeing you again in November.

Wordless Wednesday (I know it's Tuesday)

2009-07-21T14:55:00.001-05:00

Rain Dancing

2009-07-15T19:26:00.004-05:00

It's been a while since we've had a good rain. On the drive home from Miss Megan and Layla's house there were smiles when the rain drops started hitting the windshield.

And when we got home there was....

Dancing!

and more dancing!

OC update.

She came to us with the name OC, short for "outside cat". She's been with us for a few weeks now and we can't get her to go outside for anything! So we've decided OC now stands for "our cat".

She seems to be pretty happy here.

Tearing up rugs is hard work!

On a completely unrelated note...this "little" bugger took up residence in the den this afternoon...but only for as long as it took me and Megan to freak out, measure, take pictures, and toss him back into the great outdoors.

ick

Tamale Heaven

2009-07-12T21:17:00.009-05:00

One of the things I miss most about Portland is cooking with my baby sister Jet. She and Mr. Chris would come over and spend the entire day putting together a crazy wonderful meal. Well Jet and I would cook while Mr. Chris would play video games with Abigail. (EG was too young to help) At the end of the day we would stuff ourselves with the feast we had created. Well today, thanks to "the other Melissa", I got a tiny taste of Portland.

On the menu....

She and her youngins came over around 1:00. The kids scattered and she and I got to work.

Gathered some of our ingredients.

Got the husks soaking.

What would tamales be without...

Let's get this party started.

Add some fresh corn.

Sometimes this is the only way.

Then the real work began.

We did this for a while.

It was so worth it.

Not so long that I wasn't able to talk her into this.

Her forte not mine ;0)

Her tortillas were the hit of the meal.

Add some avocado, rice and beans and let the feast begin!

Today was so much fun. A full house and a wonderful meal...I couldn't have asked for more. Thank you Melissa!

Mark Curtis Hill, may you rest in peace

2009-07-07T21:33:00.002-05:00

Mark Curtis Hill, 21, passed away Saturday at Pitt County Memorial Hospital.

Graveside services will be Wednesday at 10 a.m. at Evergreen Memorial Cemetery in Princeton.

He is survived by his mother, Janet Tyndall May and husband, Harry, of Wilson; his father, Hubert Curtis Hill and wife, Linda, of Bunn; three sisters, Donna Bonnell and husband, Patrick, of Pikeville, Ginger Dail and husband, Jr., of Goldsboro and Emily Hill of Goldsboro; his grandmother, Nettie May of Roanoke Rapids; aunts, Janice Jones and husband, Johnny, of Goldsboro, Faye Keeling of Portland, Or., Cathy Bizzell and husband, Jimmy, of Goldsboro, and Sandy Faircloth and husband, Ricky, of Mount Olive; and five nieces and nephews, Kristen, Peyton and Jana Bonnell and Morgan and Charlee Dail.

The family will receive friends tonight from 6 to 8 at Shackleford-Howell Funeral Home in Fremont.

Although flowers are welcome, memorial contributions in memory of Mark may be directed to the American Cancer Society, 930 B Wellness Drive, Greenville, NC 27834.

The family is being served by Shackleford-Howell Funeral Home, 102 N. Pine St. in Fremont, where condolences may be posted at www.shacklefordhowell.com.

Just keep swimming, swimming, swimming.....

2009-07-07T12:09:00.002-05:00

The girls took their first set of swim lessons since we moved to Enterprise. Abigail really enjoyed the lessons she took back in Portland and was really looking forward to taking them here. EG had never taken lessons and was a bit shy at first but in the end she really, really liked the water.

In the water with her buddy, Maddie.

Eg really liked her instructor.

Preparing for the diving board.

Not happening.

Just lower me in....

Now take me to safety...

A bunch of Abigail's friends were in her swim class with her.

I'm not sure how the instructor was able to teach them anything. Silly girls.

Blub, blub.

Blub.

We did it, we did it, oh yeah, yeah, yeah....

Wordless Wednesday

2009-06-24T12:15:00.000-05:00

Earning College Money

2009-06-22T16:51:00.002-05:00

This piece was done at the request of our neighbor, Miss Charlotte. It's a shower gift for her daughter who is expecting a baby girl. Miss Charlotte brought us baby Anna Catherine's bedding and a paint sample from her nursery. She wanted a large canvas bordered with a painting of her bedding, the wall color in the center, and little Anna Catherine's name in the middle.

The bedding.

The result.

This is the first piece of art work 9 year old Abigail was paid to do. She was thrilled! And as her parents, Brian and I are too...whew! On her way to paying her way through college! Great job Abbygirl! You should be soooo proud!

Wonderful Memories

2009-06-22T12:18:00.004-05:00

Abigail really enjoyed her trip with GranMom to the barrier islands off the Georgia coast.

She is my co-author today. We are taking excerpts from the journal she wrote in daily while on her trip.

"We got to the island today, it took us 6 hours to get here. It was exhausting. When got checked in, we unpacked and went swimming. Then we went to dinner and when we came back I actually found out that one of my friends was in the room next door. It was an exciting day."

Here she is upon arrival.

This picture was taken at site of the town of Frederica, built by General Oglethorpe as an outpost against the Spaniards in Florida. She was proud to announce that the wall was not made of concrete, it was made of Tabby. Tabby is a mixture of water, lime, sand, and oyster shells.

The entire town was destroyed with the exception of the building seen behind her in this picture.

They spent a day at the Sea Turtle Center where they take care of injured sea turtles.

"There were a few sea turtles with cracks in their shells. There was one that has lost a leg, but she was still able to swim around. Three turtles were being let go the day after our trip ended."

"We went on a shrimp boat. We caught fish of all kinds, crab, eels, puffer fish, jelly fish, shrimp, and if you can believe it at least 5 sharks at once!"

Pretty bird.

Oh and they also caught stingrays....

They visited the St. Simmons Lighthouse. This one...

It was haunted by a ghost named Frederick. There were lots of ghost stories....

The last morning of the trip they had a group come in and show some reptiles. There were a couple of snakes, a couple of turtles, and an alligator.

Who wants to hold a snake....

I think she really enjoyed this part.

GranMom and Abigail

A couple of picture from the morning GranMom and PaPaw left to return to Oregon.

EG really enjoyed her alone time with PaPaw.

Three generations.

Action, Lights, Camera

2009-06-21T15:01:00.006-05:00

There is nothing like having a good friend, who knows you really well, come for a visit and light a fire under the projects that have gone ignored for far too long. Shannon got here Friday afternoon, we enjoyed a nice dinner and quiet evening here at the house. Saturday morning she and I ventured out on our own while Brian stayed behind with the girls. We did a little shopping and were headed home when we spotted an interesting thrift store...flea market...junk store that looked like it needed to be explored. So we did, and we found this.

and this

There was some other things too but that's going to be another post...the pieces we brought home helped me finally focus in on what color/style lights I wanted to buy to replace the ever so lovely brass originals from 1988. And their crazy ugly ceiling decoration thingy.

This stuff.

We found this on the back of the big one. All original...

So we brought the stuff home and ran off to Lowes to get the new lights. Replacing them was a great deal of fun, cough, cough. But the end result was well worth it.

Look April...pineapples!

Both of them!

This is the last one up for immediate replacement. It's 20' up in the air so once I figure out how to balance the ladder on the stairs and fight the thing off the ceiling it's outta here!

Cannonball!

2009-06-09T17:38:00.002-05:00

This past Sunday when Dad, PaPaw, GranMom and Abigail took off for the Georgia coast to drop Abigail and GranMom off for their Barrier Island adventure I had to do something super fun for EG to cheer her up. Miss Lisa invited us over for a swim. (Thank you Miss Lisa)

We had a little lunch before we swam. (Breaking all the rules set forth by my mom when I was a kid)

With a full belly and a smile on her face she was ready.

She was a bit water shy at first.

So we took a popsicle break.

Updated our look with a new swimsuit.

Invited our bestest buddy to join us.

And we were in!

Quack!

After a HUGE water fight Wes was worn out.

Wyatt too.

So we headed a couple of houses down to Miss Monica's house to pick up our new family member.

Meet OC.

OC meet Korduroy.

It was a great day. EG hasn't stopped talking about her swimming adventure. She has said many times since Sunday that the only thing that would have made it more fun for her is if her sister would have been there too. Awwwww.

3rd grade...history

2009-06-07T09:36:00.002-05:00

The 3rd grade was a lot of fun for Abigail. It was her first year in the ABC (adventures beyond the classroom) program. They studied everything from Greek Mythology to the Circus. The last day of ABC the kids got to dress up...

Like clowns.

The last day of ABC was all fun, food and games. Abigail loved it.

The following week was the last week of school. At the awards ceremony Abigail was presented an award for being on the A honor roll all year. Yay Abigail!

Abigail and Anna celebrate the end of the school year....

St. Simons Lighthouse

2009-05-14T17:19:00.004-05:00

This summer Abigail and GranMom are taking off for about a week to St. Simons Island, Georgia for an adventure on Three Barrier Islands: St. Simons, Jekyll, and Sapelo. Abigail has been studying in preparation for the trip. She is sooooo excited. Part of the trip includes visiting the St. Simons Lighthouse.

Can you tell where this is going?

This was the end of day one.

Day two. Please excuse the hair...field day at school today and it was a million degrees with 300% humidity.

Penciling it in...gotta be "just right"

Outlining is her least favorite. I love the way she's practically lying down.

Whew.

Bigger paintbrush = happy Abigail.

Ta-da!

Country Best Farm Strawberry Adventure

2009-05-02T08:29:00.005-05:00

What a great place this is! We've stopped in a time or two over the last couple of years but I had no idea how big this place really is. Thanks to a strawberry picking field trip with EG's school I came out of there with a new favorite place for produce.

Several acres of fresh fruits and veggies. They grow peaches, satsumas, squash, onions, potatoes, and of course strawberries just to name a few. They also do cakes, pies, chicken salad and homemade ice cream...chocolate, vanilla, peach, strawberry and blueberry...and it is GOOD!

I love this...the honor system. Ahhhh a wonderful place. We will be getting all our fresh produce here from now on...well all the stuff we don't grow in our garden that is.

The girls were ready to get started!

Filling those buckets. Well Layla was anyway. Get a look at the expression on EG's face. She makes me smile.

Layla really liked this particular strawberry....it was a funny shape.

EG did some picking for the bucket....and a little for herself. (pesticide free folks)

A few more for herself...

Mmmmmm, juicy.

With full buckets in tow we headed back to the main building to pay for our haul...and get some of that wonderful homemade ice cream. EG was tired.

This is Wes.

And his twin brother, Wyatt.

A really great group of kids. :)

For those of you who live locally you can (and should) visit this place. Country Best Farm is located at 1711 Moates Rd. Enterprise, AL 36330 (334) 393-7224. It's just a couple miles off the circle headed toward New Brockton on hwy 84.

I love it when she paints

2009-05-01T13:53:00.002-05:00

Several months ago I made a request. I asked Abigail to paint me a sunflower, a big sunflower. I wanted it to hang in the water closet under the stairs.

I missed the sketching of the flower and came on this.

She used the rug from the room to get the color "just right"

This part took her a looooong time

A Really Long Time

She let it dry between classes and came back to it yesterday. Another coat of blue....

And now that it's finished EG has decided it would look better in her room. She's probably right. So much for MY sunflower....but I do love it when she paints.

Wordless Wednesday

2009-04-29T20:33:00.001-05:00

Splishy Splashy

2009-04-28T19:26:00.004-05:00

Today was one of those near perfect days. The weather was fantastic! EG and I set out with Megan and Layla over to Miss Melissa's house for a water play date.

EG and Lacie were the first ones in.

Splishy Splashy.

Miss Layla getting ready to dive in. She is so cute.

Marvin showed up with his Incredible Hulk to defend himself against the wild girls.

Lacie taking a little break.

Things were getting a little crazy so we thought we'd add some sugar into the mix.

Savy. Big blue eyed Savy.....

Little Luna and mom Trish.

Luna was turned loose to make a big ole mess in the grass...not on mom's lap!

On a completely unrelated note....GranMom the clothes you sent Abigail were a perfect fit. Thank you!

Treasure from Merida, Mexico

2009-04-21T19:51:00.003-05:00

"When we went to Merida, Mexico, from Mexico City for Spring break in 1964, I bought baby size guayabera shirts and huiple dresses in the Merida market. Some we gave as presents to friends and family with children. I kept a selection of both. The little dresses [huiple pronounced he-peel] remained in my trunk until Brian brought the girls for a visit on a warm day and I got them out -- just in time because Elizabeth was almost too big for them." Caroline Wilkins aka GranMom

That was about 3 years ago. Here is a picture of EG wearing the huiple about 6 months after GranMom gave it to her.

Yeah, it was a bit short...but I really, really liked it.

In fact I like them (there are two) so much that I have left them hanging in EG's closet all this time. Until this morning when I thought....why not.

I WILL get another summer out of these treasures. When it's all over I will put them away in a trunk and wait for my girls to come by with their girls (if we're lucky) on a warm day so I can get them out again.

Is it a Bluebird? Is it a Blue Tanager? No it's a....

2009-04-18T15:07:00.003-05:00

By now it shouldn't be any surprise that I am obsessed with the birds in the backyard. Since we moved here we have made over 30 different identifications...and I'm actually proud of it. Last week something on the feeders caught my eye. Little, blue...make that bright blue, not a bluebird feasting on the seeds in the yard. Dozens of them. It has taken over a week to capture an image cause these things are super shy and seem to know when you are armed with a camera. This afternoon the girls and I were playing in the yard when they showed up again. I ran in the house and grabbed Abigail's camera (chasing them all off). I planted myself on the sidewalk beside the shop and waited. And waited. And waited.

Finally!

Right about the time I was loading the pics to the computer Megan, who must have been reading my mind since she is as bird obsessed as I am, sent over a suggestion...blue finch?

Nope try again.

Indigo Bunting. I dismissed the idea that they were Indigo Buntings when they first showed up...I couldn't even tell you why. Side by side pics from the yard and pics online...yep, Indigo Bunting.

"I want a Easter egg! I want a Easter egg..."

2009-04-11T20:23:00.006-05:00

The girls have been sooooo ready to color Easter eggs...every day "Can we color eggs today, pleeeeeaaaassseeee"? Boy were they happy when they finally got that "Yes" today.

Wait for it.....

So happy!

Giving a little sisterly advice. Look at EG listening intently.

Getting creative.

Note the hands. They still looked like that at bedtime.

Yay eggs!

We also attended an Easter egg hunt hosted by Brian's battalion. They always do such a nice job putting on events for families. The BC's wife stuffed 1600 eggs...she wanted to make sure everyone walked away with something.

Ready, set, GO!

They gathered 47 eggs total!

A quick look...

I even got them to sit still long enough to get a picture with me!

Abigail continued taking inventory.

EG and dad took off....EG HAD to bounce.

I scampered off to watch a Killdeer put on a show. She flopped and squaked...she made quite the ruckus.

It took me a minute to find it...I knew it was nearby.

True to form she lay her eggs in a high traffic area. My darling hubby put a circle of pinecones around them to keep them safe. I love that he appreciates my sometimes crazy love of nature.

Happy Easter!

Soccer Update

2009-04-09T20:25:00.002-05:00

I can't believe soccer season is almost over. We are off for Spring Break then they only have one more game before it's over. Abigail will go on to the playoffs and try to get that second trophy....EG on the other hand gets a trophy just for playing (bonus for being 4).

Anyway here are a few pictures of the first game of the season...a little late I know, sorry!

Abigail was so glad when the season started. Look at her go...

She's turning out to be a great goalie.

Go EG!

They don't quite have the shake at the end of the game concept down....

Ahhhh what a game!

Forcast Update

2009-03-31T12:51:00.005-05:00

The news this morning gave us the rain totals for the 3 day period....9.45" with more on the way. We are expecting another 1-2" today, more rain again tomorrow and Thursday with a small break before it rolls in again on Sunday. Ugh.

Abigail took this picture out her window during our travel on Sunday.

Forcast Tomorrow...Rain

2009-03-30T21:07:00.003-05:00

We have been having some crazy weather lately. Thursday, Friday and Saturday our days were filled with tornado sirens, weather radio alerts, sleepless nights, and lots and lots of rain. Sunday was beautiful (today too) we had a dobie to transport to Marianna, Florida so he could move on to his forever home. We took Alabama hwy167 to Florida hwy79 and this is what we saw.

Yeah, that's the river...

This is us driving through it.

This was kind of sad. Its a horrible picture but I was trying to get the little girl who was standing at the playground just staring. I missed the little girl but this is what she was staring at.

This was what both sides of the highway looked like most of the way to I10.

Lots and lots of water.

This is a peanut/cotton field.

We were moving too fast for me to get the cars, trucks, and houses that were mostly submerged in water....oh and the mudslides. And the forecast tomorrow calls for 1-2 more inches of rain.....

Wordless Wednesday

2009-03-25T09:03:00.001-05:00

Doberman Pinscher Rescue

2009-03-18T20:39:00.002-05:00

We adopted our dobie girls Shelby and Tory from Doberman Pinscher Rescue at North Florida . I was so moved by the efforts made by Judy (she runs the rescue) that I began to volunteer. I have seen some amazing things since then. Some wonderful dobies come through rescue on their way to their new forever homes. Some wonderful dobies come to rescue to live out their last days, abandoned by their owners in their golden years. And then there are the wonderful dobies who come to rescue who really need to be rescued. This blog post is about two of those dobies who have recently come to rescue.

This is Bruce2. A sweet dobie boy who is less than two years old.

He came to us out of the animal shelter in Dothan, Alabama. As you can see he is really, really thin.

What you may not be able to tell is that he also has an infection in his skin that will take weeks to clear up. Then it will be several more weeks before his coat comes back in.

He is also high heartworm positive and will need immiticide treatment once he has gained enough weight to withstand the treatment.

And then there is this little guy.

He also comes to us from the shelter in Dothan, Alabama. He too is only about two years old. He was brought to the shelter by his owners with a severely injured leg. I don't know too much about this little guy just yet as he is brand new to us but what I can see just by looking at his picture is that he really needs rescue.
Not all of the stories are like this. Doberman Pinscher Rescue at North Florida has rescued over 150 Dobermans so far as you can see on the Alumni page of the rescue site. Each and every one of them have been placed in wonderful forever homes with people who love them. Rescue does not receive any United Way or Federal funding. Rescue exists with volunteers, private funding and adoption donations. If you would like to support rescue you can make a donation on their site using paypal. I know the funds are put to good use and are very appreciated.

Gardening Enterprise

2009-03-15T13:46:00.005-05:00

Growing up in the Northwest I'm not used to planting a garden before mid May. When gardening in Enterprise if you don't have plants in the ground by the third week of March you are way behind. I was determined to get it right this year. We started the process weeks ago.

My concrete garden before....

That's right. I'm not planting in the ground here anymore...too many deer, squirrels, cats, dogs and kids to interfere with the fruit we MAY be able to grow. Our solution....cattle troughs!

Layla likes it...

EG too!

Got them in place.

Bring on the dirt!

Korduroy doesn't look happy.

But that didn't stop him from playing in it.

EG played in it too...and helped me and her dad fill the troughs.

How long do you suppose it would have taken at that rate?

Filled with dirt and fertilizer....ready to go!

EG and I spent Friday afternoon planting tomatoes, cucumbers, lettuce, arugula, yellow squash, basil, and cilantro. We had a blast!

The Friday gardening inspired us to put pine straw out in the yard this weekend. When we first moved here I thought it was insane to intentionally put pine needles in your yard...here we are 2.5 years later doing exactly that. And I like it!

A couple of before shots.

Here we are after.

Ear Infection 2 EG Won!

2009-03-09T19:49:00.002-05:00

It took nearly a month but we've finally got this thing beat! Poor thing has been sick since the 12th of February...A couple of trips to the doctor, allergy meds, and a ton of antibiotics later she's good as new. Poor thing is allergic to the bubblegum goodness of amoxicillin and got stuck with this...

Not amoxicillin and definitely not bubblegum goodness!

Thank goodness she's a champ. She had to take this stuff twice a day for 10 days. It wasn't until the last day that I somehow got some of it on my finger and it ended up in my mouth....ugh this is some of the worst stuff I have EVER tasted!

Likely the reason she was soooo happy to do this with the leftovers...

See how happy!

Ugh just look at it in it's thick little pile. Poor EG.

A few more days of the ear drops and we're done!

She has been a real trooper. I am so glad it's almost over!

Soccer season has started.....

2009-03-06T12:59:00.004-06:00

Abigail has had a blast playing soccer the past two seasons. Poor EG has sat by watching in agony. She wanted to play sooooo bad but she had to wait until she turned 4 before she could. Well it finally happened...the 4th birthday arrived. I was amazed when she announced "Now I can play soccer like Abigail!" That was the end of December and here we are weeks later and both girls are celebrating a new soccer season.

Look how happy....and this was after 2.5 hours at the soccer field in the freezing cold.

The first practice and she's all about the action.

It makes me smile.

This makes me smile too. The warm up before practice. They did all kinds of stretching...too cute!

All warmed up and waiting her turn to dribble.

Then all of the sudden she was too shy. EG too shy!...amazing! The coach was so nice and so patient with her. He got down on her level, helped her to feel more confident, took her hand and walked with her while she dribbled. It's going to be a great season!

National Geographic Little Kids

2009-02-27T13:08:00.002-06:00

Granmom and PaPaw have been gifting the National Geographic magazine to our family for years. This year they added something special, National Geographic Little Kids. The first magazine arrived just in time to help me out with Elizabeth's second doctor visit for her bilateral ear infection. It was great. She really enjoyed reading it with me.

It's only about 1/3 the size of the other magazine...just the right size for the little ones.

Elizabeth was looking through it again yesterday and discovered this.

She and Abigail made the jello together yesterday afternoon. (with a little help from mom) And with a Wilkins twist the little girls had jello with lunch today. (Don't worry there's plenty left for Abigail.)

Hearts are nice but dinosaurs are coooooool.

First we cut....

Then we decorate...

MMMMMMM sprinkles

It's part of a nutritious lunch.

Carrot and Leek Soup with Sour Cream and Cumin

2009-02-26T17:32:00.002-06:00

This is one of those left over posts from when Granmom and PaPaw were here in November. Granmom brought this recipe, along with most of the ingredients to make it, with her from the local paper in Corvallis. She and Abigail made the soup together...and it was really, really good.

The pictures come to you courtesy of Abigail....

Let's get started.

The next afternoon...

We had ours with cheese toast. It really was wonderful. If my memory serves me, we had it two days in a row...yummy!

2T olive oil
2lbs good quality carrots (make sure they’re sweet and flavorful)
2 large leeks, white and pale portions only, chopped
1T chopped fresh garlic
2-3t ground cumin
1t ground coriander
1t dried crushed red pepper flakes
6c chicken or vegetable broth
1c sour cream
1-3t honey, if necessary
Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
2T fresh lime juice
2t grated lime zest
2T minced fresh cilantro

Heat the olive oil in a large, heavy-bottomed pot over medium-high heat. Add carrots and leeks and sauté for 5 to 7 minutes, until the leeks are softened but not browned. Stir in the garlic and continue cooking for about 1 to 2 more minutes. Stir in the cumin, coriander and red pepper flakes, and then pour in the broth. Bring the mix to a boil, stirring constantly, then reduce heat to a simmer, cover and cook until the carrots are very tender, about 40 to 40 minutes.
Remove the pot from the heat and let cool slightly. Puree the soup with a hand blender or in a food processor or blender (you’ll have to work in batches if you don’t have a hand blender). Let the soup cool and then whisk in the sour cream, 2 teaspoons of the honey, salt and pepper. Cover and refrigerate at least 4 hours, or up to 24.
When ready to serve, stir in the lime juice and lime zest. Adjust seasonings, adding additional salt and pepper if desired, then gently reheat and garnish with cilantro.

(This recipe came from the local paper in Corvallis, Oregon by Jan Roberts-Dominguez. Jan is a Corvallis, Oregon food writer, cookbook author and artist. Readers can contact her through the Gazette-Times at PO Box 368 Corvallis, Oregon 97339, by e-mail at janrd@proaxis.com or find more recipes and food tips on her blog at www.janrd.com )

Wordless Wednesday

2009-02-25T19:25:00.000-06:00

Spring has sprung...

2009-02-24T19:36:00.003-06:00

Ask me how I know...really go ahead. Last night I was relaxing in front of the TV after getting the girls off to bed. I hear the cat door open, it was my darling Korduroy.

Isn't he handsome.

He has, on several occasions, brought me "gifts" now and then. Lizards, chipmunks, moles, and more birds than I should probably admit. But last night my darling Kord brought me this...

So you can get his size in perspective...

It was like a game of hot potato in our kitchen. Brian came in (because I was screaming "He's got something!") Brian identified the "gift", picked it up and handed it to me. I dropped it in the sink. Brian plugged the sink to keep it from falling down the disposal. All the while Master Korduroy was bouncing off the walls trying to share in all the "fun".

We got the poor guy settled down in a Styrofoam cooler with some towels, cotton balls and a cut up paper towel tube to hide in. I love my cat...but ugh, enough is enough. I wish my mighty hunter would lose interest in this whole "gifting" project of his. I sat back down, big mistake.

And then there were two.

My wonderful husband ran off to the "Wal-Marts" to get some puppy milk replacement for the little guys.

And they ate.

Milk moustache.

So cute!

Then they slept.

For those of you who didn't know, there is a squirrel, bunny, and perhaps other small wildlife rescue right here in Enterprise. If you have a "bad cat" like I do, when they "gift" you these little guys you can call Jennifer at 334-894-5305.

Wordless Wednesday

2009-02-18T10:02:00.001-06:00

Fort Rucker Polar Bear

2009-02-16T19:08:00.003-06:00

OK, I know Valentines was a couple of days ago but I couldn't resist. The Ft. Rucker polar bear has been around for years. He was originally located near the Military Police headquarters. They would take care of his seasonal paint jobs...then they moved and he was left behind. He stayed in the same location for years and his paint jobs were done by the Warrant Officer Candidates. Well last year someone got in in their head to move him into a field where he has his own sign board and gets his own tree at Christmas. I don't have any idea who is in charge of his paint jobs anymore but I drove by on Valentines Day and had to snap a pic of this....

Happy Valentines Day!

2009-02-14T08:25:00.002-06:00

Our girls love the holidays that come with morning surprises. Except for when there is a tree involved we put gifts around the dining room table. They come down all giddy to see what mom and dad have done this time.....

Ahhhh the happiness.

She woke with the same fever she had yesterday...but you wouldn't know it.

I was gonna hide these...but I just couldn't do it to my chocolate obsessed family. Thanks Grammy, they are WONDERFUL!

After all the excitement of the morning treats I made oven pancakes, or German Pancakes as I know them from Farm Wife Recipes They were wonderful!

Add strawberries and powdered sugar and it was Valentine heaven....

Rosie Marianna Stella

2009-02-13T10:28:00.004-06:00

We adopted our wonderful Shelby from the Doberman Pinscher Rescue at North Florida in November 2007. I was so moved by the efforts of Judy Davis (she runs the rescue) that I wanted to help. I began volunteering. Our first foster dog came to us in March 2008. She came to us as "Rosie" because of her wonderful disposition in spite of the circumstances she'd left behind. We picked her up in Marianna, Florida. The girls thought Marianna would be a great name for her...so we gave her a new name. After five months and quite the battle in rescue, Marianna was adopted. Her new forever home was in Mount Dora, Florida. Her new mom added one more name to the list and Rosie Marianna Stella was born.

I got a call last week. It was bad news. Rosie Marianna Stella had passed away. This post is in her memory. I am including her story as written by her mom in Mount Dora Florida.