Christmas in Charleston

Here are some pictures of our time in Charleston for Christmas. Unfortunately my camera battery died on the second day, so this is all I got, but there are some funny ones! enjoy!

Christmas

Well, Christmas is finally over! No more shopping, no more wrapping, no more traveling! We had a great time at all of our destinations and would have more pictures had somebody (me) remembered the charging cable for the camera...oops. But here are some of the pictures that were takin at moms house. The others will come later as I still can't find that charging cable to get the pictures off of my camera.

Fire Wood holder for our fire pit
Sewing Machine!!!!
Little bit cold outside
Seth's birthday present from Mom & Wayne
Seth & Wayne being silly in their matching coats
Double Trouble is the name of the figure, I'll try to get a better picture later, but its two lab puppies laying together, and one of them has a duck between its front feet, too cute!
Chad and Carlie

Weekend Project

I have had SO much fun this weekend!!! S and I built a dog house together!

We made up our own plans and just jumped right in and it turned out really well. Take a look and see for yourself:

We were going to paint it yellow to match the house, but decided against that b/c it would show too much dirt and would be hard to match. The dark trim color is called "Labrador" appropriate, don't ya think?

The lighter color is also a good one..."milk chocolate" Yummy!

There are a few touch ups we need to do, including more coats of paint, but other than that it is done!! Next phase is to put it in the backyard!

It's Here!!!

S's Birthday present is FINALLY here!!!!


He has been banned all week from checking the mail in anticipation of it coming, so when it was in the mailbox today, I was thrilled! I immediately brought it in and wrapped it up so I don't have to worry about hiding it, lol!

Now, if any of you know what it is, DO NOT say anything about it in the comments....or anywhere else! I just sent him an invite to read this today.

I don't know if I can wait until his birthday to give it to him!! I love surprises, but I hate waiting to tell people what they are or wait to be given them, lol!

Pray for strength and patience for me!

44 Odd Things about Me

SO MUCH FUN! Consider yourself tagged!

1. Do you like blue cheese? No

2. Have you ever smoked cigarettes? Yes

3. Do you own a gun? Several

4. What flavor of Kool-Aid was your favorite? Red or Grape

5. Do you get nervous before a doctor appointment? yes, even if it is nothing important

6. What do you think of hot dogs? I like them, add a little ketchup and a little mustard and I'm good to go!

7. Favorite Christmas movie? Not sure, hopefully going to watch a few in the next few weeks

8. What do you prefer to drink in the morning? either milk, orange juice or Hot Chocolate from the Coffee Bean

9. Can you do push ups? Yup, I demonstrated this at Thanksgiving when is somehow came up and they didn't believe I could.

10. What's your favorite piece of jewelry? My wedding rings

11. Favorite hobby? I have no idea! 4 wheeling, playing with the dogs

12. Do you have A.D.D.? Don't think so, but on occasion I'm sure I have tendencies

13. What's one personality trait you hate about yourself: I can be too giggly

14. Middle name? Jensen

15. Name 3 thoughts at this exact moment. I wish I could turn this radio off and get away with it, I don't want to do anymore work, I wonder what everyone else is up to...

16. Name 3 drinks you regularly have: water, milk and orange juice

17. Have you ever met the person you thought was your true love? Yes

18. Current hate right now? My bank account balance

19. Favorite place to be? At the lake

20. How did you bring in the New Year? Last year-I have no idea! I think we were in Charleston and I stayed up just long enough to watch the clock change while watching tv. This year- Hopefully at a fun party!

21. Where would you like to go? Everywhere

22. Name three people who will complete this. SLJ already did, G&J, and....CS when she gets back in town

23. Do you own slippers? Yes, and I love them! They are like boot slippers, so comfy!

24. What shirt are you wearing? White long sleeve with my short sleeve red, colored WWP shirt over it-I think it looks really cute :)

25. Do you like sleeping on satin? not really, too static-y
26 Can you whistle? Yes, S can't

27. Would you be a pirate? Hmmm, maybe

28. What songs do you sing in the shower? I don't sing too often, but when I do, its whatever is in my head at the time

29. Favorite girl's name? Sarah

30. Favorite boy's name? A have a lot! Practically every traditional name, plus a few current ones

31. What's in your pocket right now? lint and a Christmas notepad

32. Last thing that made you laugh? Hearing my friends daughters' letter to Santa

33. Best bed sheets as a child? either flannel or this really old cotton set

34. Worst injury you've ever had? Broke my wrist playing Tarzan on my bunk beds

35. Do you love where you live? For the most part

36. How many TVs do you have in your house? One

37. Who is your loudest friend? Timmie

38. How many dogs do you have? 2

39. Does someone have a crush on you? Yes, lol

40. What is your favorite book? The only one I can think of is The Scarlett Thread by Francis Rivers. OH! or the Shack!

41. What is your favorite candy? not really a candy person but I L-O-V-E ice cream!!

42. Favorite Sports Team? I watch college sports mostly and NC State is my team

43. What song do you want played at your funeral? That Dolly Parton & Brad Paisley song "Don't cry for me" or something like that, and then some happy-ish songs. I want it to be more a celebration of life.


Your Turn!!

A....C....Phlem....

A while back my friend SLJ sent me a clip of a comedy routine. Let me just say, that S and I laughed so hard we both cried the first time we saw it, and then continued to watch it about 3 more times before we had to stop. So I thought I would share that clip today:




And let you know that if you like it, the comedian, Jeff Dunham, is coming to the RBC center in May. We are definitely planning on going! Wanna come??

She's NOT Ready

Yup, regret was the right word......

Someone very smart and wise pointed out earlier a key flaw in my grand plan of leaving both dogs in the bedroom for the day.

She simply asked "Did you take them for a nice long, tiring walk before you left??", and with my answer of "no..." I should have known that all hell was breaking loose at KT's House while I was working.

Here is what greeted me when I got home:

Sorry for the crappy picture, but I just did this quick snap before I dashed off to get it all cleaned up before S got home. I'm so glad we drove separate today!!!

Please notice (if you can see with this crappy picture) that the bed is exactly how I left it this morning...I think she did it out of spite.

Overall we lost one complete basket (that held books under our bed side table), the baby gate, a cat perch that was hiding under a decorative blanket on top of our tall dresser and some flowers from a vase that were on top of the short dresser. So not too bad I guess. I luckily got it all cleaned up and vacuumed before S got home and had just enough time to sit down and open the book I had been "reading" before he walked in the door.

However! My plan was spoiled when he looked in the garage trash can and saw the baby gate and cat perch, only after reading this will he know and see the true destruction that I was trying to save him from. I would take an after picture, but that can wait, Im tired after all of that work!

Moral of this story? She's not ready and will back in the crate tomorrow :)

Here we go again.....

This morning I made an executive decision...and probably will regret it later, lol.

I decided that today was the day to try leaving Shelby out of her crate and in the bedroom again. The last time I tried this it really didn't go all that bad. Yes, there were clothes from the laundry basket all over the room, yes the bed was not still neatly made and yes, there was even a tear in the comforter which promted massive playing in the stuffing that came out b/c of the tear, but nothing else was destroyed, broken or eaten. I think that was a good start!

So, today I put the laundry hamper in the closet and tucked the blanket sides under the mattress as best and tight as I could in hopes that the comforter underneath of it would be spaired. (with the first go-round there was no blanket on top to protect the comforter). So let's all cross our fingers and think happy thoughts of sleeping, peaceful puppies that don't eat anything :) Our first attempt at this was 2-3 weeks ago I think....

I'm trying to find pictures from Ford's first attempts open in the house, but I'm not having much luck. Ford also had a slow transition from being in the crate to being left out in the house, but we started a little younger with him...I think he was about 8-9 months old when we first started, and Shelby will be 1 year old on New Year's. It was before we got married, but after the bridal shower that we decided he was ready to be left out in the house on his own, and not just closed in the bedroom.

The first day he unwrapped all of our gifts for us, and only destroyed one very ugly set of champagne glasses that had been hand decorated (the glass was still in tact, but all the decoration had been carefully pulled off-good dog!).

The second day I think is where he ate 3 pillows off of the couch. It looked like it had snowed feathers all over our living room!!! It took so long to get all of them up, it was crazy!

The third day was when I had-had enough and decided we need to take it a little slower. The third day he ate about 6 pairs of shoes. Yes, it was bad. If I remember correctly it was my favorite pair of black boots, 3 pairs of flip flops, my sneakers and just a little bit of a pair of S's sneakers. I may have cried over the boots.....I'm not sure, that memory is a little fuzzy, don't tell anyone.

Moral of this story.....pray for my house today, lol!

Christmas Quiz

Ok, it is officially Christmas season now!!! This is a Christmas quiz and if you are reading this, consider yourself tagged. (If you don't have a blog, feel free to email me your answers!)

1. Wrapping paper or gift bags? Wrapping paper

2. Real tree or Artificial? Real

3. When do you put up the tree? We haven't gotten a tree of our own yet, but probably the 2nd week in December so it wouldn't die.

4. When do you take the tree down? See #3, but probably around New Years

5. Do you like eggnog? Yup, especially spiked egg nog ;)

6. Favorite gift received as a child? I don't remember....

7. Hardest person to buy for? This year, its my mother-in-law, thankfully she/we just decided we won't exchange this year, so that cuts out that dilema. Second hardest would be my step-mother-in-law b/c she still has not given me her list.

8. Easiest person to buy for? S b/c we aren't exchanging

9. Do you have a nativity scene? Yes, it probably won't see light again this year...

10. Mail or email Christmas cards? Mail

11.Worst Christmas gift you ever received? I have no idea

12. Favorite Christmas Movie? Wow, geez, I don't know, there are so many

13. When do you start shopping for Christmas? I started shopping for gifts for this Christmas at Christmas time last year.

14. Have you ever recycled a Christmas present? probably

15. Favorite thing to eat at Christmas? Food ;) My aunts wedding cookies were the best, and the only time I got her cookies was around Christmas b/c that's when we would go to visit her, so probably wedding cookies

16. Lights on the tree? Yes

17. Favorite Christmas song? Hmmm, again with the picking, I don't think I have one favorite

18. Travel at Christmas or stay home? I dont think I've ever had a Christmas at home, so probably traveling to see family

19. Can you name all of Santa's reindeer's? Dasher, Dancer, Donner, Blitzen, Comet, Cupid, Viren, Vixen, and Rudolph....right?

20. Angel on the tree top or a star? I think growing up we mostly had a angel, but I do remember us switching it up a few times with a star or big ribbon

21. Open the presents Christmas Eve or morning? Christmas Eve

22. Most annoying thing about this time of the year? The rude shoppers and over commercialization of Christmas

23. Favorite ornament theme or color? I like a lot of ornaments that we have even though we don't have that many.

24. Favorite for Christmas dinner? Wayne's roast, i think its pork...It's amazing!

25. What do you want for Christmas this year? To be with family and friends

Merry Christmas!!! Happy Holidays!!

Goble, Goble, Gulp!

Yummy, Yummy, Yummy, I've got TURKEY in my tummy! ;)

I hope everyones Thanksgiving was as good as mine! What all did you eat?

We had:
Oven cooked Turkey
Fried Turkey
Stuffing/dressing from inside the turkey
Pan stuffing/dressing

*side note:what's the difference between dressing and stuffing? Is there a difference? Why do some people call it one and others call it the other?

cranberry sauce
mashed potatoes
sweet potato casserole
candied yams
some sort of corn salad
green bean casserole
fruit
deviled eggs
rolls
2 chocolate chess pies
2 lemon chess pies
pecan pie
Kentucky Derby pie
I think I'm still missing some food.....

Lots and lots of food!!! and lots of good company too! Maybe a picture or two to follow, but I didn't take any (bad me!), so I'll have to wait for others to upload there's.

Interesting Thanksgiving Facts

$1 is the average cost per pound of a frozen whole turkey.

3 is the number of places nationwide named after the holiday's tasty gobbler. Turkey, Texas, is the most populous, with 496 residents; followed by Turkey Creek, La. (357); and Turkey, N.C. (267). There also are 16 townships around the country named "Turkey," three of them in Kansas.

8 is the number of places and townships in the U.S. of A. that are named "Cranberry" or some variation of the name (e.g., Cranbury, New Jersey)

20 is the number of places in the United States named Plymouth, as in "Plymouth Rock," legendary location of the first Thanksgiving.

• Plymouth, Minnesota is the most populous, with 65,894 residents in 2000.
• Plymouth, Massachusetts had 51,701.

13.7 pounds is the amount of turkey consumed by the typical American -- no doubt a good bit of it at Thanksgiving time. Per capita turkey consumption was virtually the same as in 1990 (13.8 pounds), but 68 percent higher than in 1980 (8.1 pounds).

256 million is the preliminary estimate of turkeys raised in the United States in 2005. That’s down 3 percent from 2004. The turkeys produced in 2004 weighed 7.3 billion pounds altogether and were valued at $3.1 billion. And that's a lot of turkey.

44.5 million is the estimate of the number of turkeys Minnesota expects to raise in 2005. The Gopher State is tops in turkey production. It is followed by North Carolina (36.0 million), Arkansas (29.0 million), Virginia (21.0 million), Missouri (20.5 million) and California (15.1 million). These six states together will probably account for about 65 percent of U. S. turkeys produced in 2005.

649 million pounds is the forecast for U.S. cranberry production in 2005, up 5 percent from 2004. Wisconsin is expected to lead all states in the production of cranberries, with 367 million pounds, followed by Massachusetts (170 million). Oregon, New Jersey and Washington are also expected to have substantial production, ranging from 18 million to 52 million pounds.

1.6 billion pounds is the total weight of sweet potatoes — another popular Thanksgiving side dish — produced in the United States in 2004. North Carolina (688 million pounds) produced more sweet potatoes than any other state. It was followed by California (339 million pounds). Mississippi and Louisiana also produced large amounts: at least 200 million pounds each.

457 million pounds is the record held by Illinois for total U.S. pumpkin production — followed by California, Ohio, Michigan, Pennsylvania and New York which produced at least 70 million pounds worth.

$5.2 million is the value of U.S. imports of live turkeys during the first half of 2005 -- all from Canada. Our northern neighbors also accounted for all of the cranberries the United States imported ($2.2 million).


Go here and see how cute these placecards are!! There are other fun crafts to do too...

Earings for the windows

Well, we finally got the curtains up. I took some before and after photos and changed the balance a little. Let me know what you think. So far the score is 1-don't like em and 1-not really sure.

Before:

During:

After:

If you need to see them in person, I totally understand, stop on by anytime ;)

Our New Toy

Well, we got a 4-wheeler!

Ours is the black one, and the red one is S's BFF, Red's.












We took them for a little spin today, but tomorrow we'll seriously break em in :) Can't wait!!

Mountain Man

S had a blast this past week and weekend on the mens retreat. They went up to the Pisgah National Forest and spent Thursday through Sunday hiking and camping over 40 miles.

Here are some pictures of my mountain man on his journey:

Cool suspension bridges







Goofing around while taping up a blister.

Catching a nap after lunch one day.





Home Sweet Home

I made him take a picture before he got a shower after returning.

I'm so glad he's home!

The End!

My Kids...for now...

I would like to introduce you to my babies. My oldest, Ford, is just over 2 years old and the baby, Shelby, is 10 months old.

Say Hi guys!

Guys!? It's time for your photo shoot! GET! UP!

Ok, fine, take your time and I'll start with the baby pictures...

This was Ford's first night in his new home, he was about 6 weeks old. Look how small he was compared to my shoe! (I wear a 7 1/2)

And this was Shelby's first night home! She was also about 6 weeks old, we got them both a little young...(Ford was about 17-18 months in this picture)

You guys ready yet? Ok, lets get some pictures: (Warning: some of these are going to be a bit blurry-bare with me, I've got a treat in one hand and I'm trying to coach both of them verbally while taking pictures with the other hand while looking down at the camera so its hopefully level with them b/c if I get on their level they wont stay where I want them. Enjoy!)

Thats a meter stick behind Ford's right ear, just for an idea of how tall they are...

That's all I got out of them tonight (these are just the decent ones out of all the ones I took)

Thanks guys! You can go back to sleep now!

Hey! That's not what I had in mind! Shelby your on my side, scootch! Please? Oh, fine, you can stay. Sweet dreams!

P.S. The last time we weighed them, which was mid-October I think, Ford weighed 93 lbs and Shelby weighed 82 lbs. They were both 9 lbs when they had their first vet appointment about 2 days after being home. They've grown a lot!