knit3purl1

things i love- post #4

2012-02-14T20:52:00.000-05:00

surely you didn't think i'd forget to post about my valentine on valentine's day? of course not. i just happen to be working. sshhh...

this is my favorite picture from our honeymoon. we had a sudden change of plans and ended up in the mountains instead of at the beach. but it didn't matter. we were together.

if i love my husband then i also have to love his love for land cruisers. we were dating when he bought his first one in 2004 and we have not lacked one since.

i love that he doesn't always take things seriously. sometimes i forget to have fun and he helps me with this. this year marks our 8th valentine's day together. although, today, i worked all day and he had classes part of the day. but he cleaned up a mess the dogs made and vacuumed and that's gift enough for me! last year we received some devastating news on valentine's day that forever changed our lives- jay's dad was not expected to live and we would have to wait 2 more days beyond the 14th after some testing to assure he had no more brain function. he and i were just getting over a terrible stomach virus and were not able to travel until february 16th. so now valentine's day will always mark the years since his dad passed away. tomorrow we will get to see our baby on ultrasound and learn who is in there- a boy or a girl. it is a bittersweet week for us and i love that we have each other for all of life's ups and downs.

20 weeks. halfway!

2012-02-11T23:07:00.000-05:00

Pregnancy Highlights:

How Far Along: 20 Weeks

Size of baby: Little one is around 10 1/2 ounces and 10 inches from head to heel... About the size of a banana.

Total Weight Gain/Loss: Gained 9 pounds- I am currently right on target with the 1 lb/week weight gain.

Maternity Clothes: Maternity pants are still a bit big but are definitely more comfortable at this point. I can still wear some/most of my sweaters and shirts but the maternity ones are more comfortable, too.

Gender: Don't know- we'll hopefully find out February 15th.

Movement: I feel flutters every day and can feel little one rolling and moving. Every now and then I'll get a hard kick or poke. I'm sure they will become more frequent as little one grows. Today I felt them "on the outside" for the first time when I was waking up this morning! So sweet!

Sleep: I am more used to sleeping on my side now.

What I miss: Ibuprofen! And sleeping on my back.

Cravings: Fresh oranges- I'm glad it's citrus season!

Symptoms: Nothing major right now- yay! My allergies have been acting up the last few days but seem to already be getting better. That's why there's no picture this week so far- not feeling super great. But never fear, I'll post one Wednesday to let you know if we're team pink or blue!

things i love- post #3

2012-02-07T20:09:00.000-05:00

i love my iPhone4. we're trying to hold out on the 4S and just wait for the 5 to come out... we're also hoping we're eligible for our upgrade around the same time, too. anyway, i digress. we are a mac/apple family. our desktop is a mac. laptops are macs. we have iPhones and iPods- although now that the phone is so fancy it really doesn't make sense to have the iPod and the phone. oh well.

i have lots of apps on my phone but one of my favorites, by far, is the Cuptakes app. "it's a wallpaper app for girly girls." it's 0.99 cents and it updates monthly! there are so many wallpapers to choose from. i love it!

they already make and sell matching iPhone cases and soon will have iPad wallpapers and desktop wallpapers. everything can match! i'm sure jay would love a girly wallpaper on his desktop instead of his motorcycle pic that's on it now. haha! maybe for april fool's day!

seriously, if you have an iPhone and you don't have this app- spend the 0.99 cents and get it! you'll love it!

19 weeks

2012-02-04T21:09:00.000-05:00

Pregnancy Highlights:

How Far Along: 19 Weeks

Size of baby: Little one is around 8 1/2 ounces and 6 inches crown to rump... About the size of a large mango.

Total Weight Gain/Loss: Gained 9 pounds- I am currently right on target with the 1 lb/week weight gain.

Gender: Don't know- we'll hopefully find out February 15th.

Sleep: I am more used to sleeping on my side now and can sometimes make it through the night without needing a potty break.

What I miss: Ibuprofen! And sleeping on my back.

Cravings: Nothing in particular right now. Early on it was Cherry Icees but that has passed. I love iced water with lemon and orange juice.

Symptoms: Nothing major right now- yay! I still have the stuffy/runny nose but it seems a little bit better. I am still having some heartburn but not on a regular basis. I really cannot complain after hearing what some women go through. I am very blessed!

things i love- post #2

2012-02-03T17:43:00.000-05:00

i love my sweet dog barley. she just celebrated her 5th birthday in january. she does tend to get into trouble and has a new bad habit of surfing the counter for bread (really?) but she's still a great dog. she's lazy to a fault. she can't fetch reliably to save her life. she is smarter than she lets on. she loves a good belly rub. and she's a great companion for an afternoon nap. she loves stuffed animals that squeak and is always ready for her next meal. she hates the hair dryer and the vacuum but could care less about fireworks and thunderstorms. she loves the water- especially if it's out of the hose- and every time she swims she seems to forget how- it's quite ungraceful! but she's my barley and even when i'm mad at her, it never lasts for long.

things i love- post #1

2012-02-01T19:53:00.000-05:00

hello friends!

i am still trying to get back into blogging mode and posting at least once a week has been a good start. let's face it- i was in a serious blogging slump and it may take a little while to get back into it again. so this month, being february and valentine's day coming along, i thought i would blog about things i love- i am sure i won't post something every day but i have plenty of things i love and can post about so hopefully that will get the creative juices flowing again! i plan to post about all things- people, pets, products, foods, tv shows, etc. yay! i am actually getting excited just thinking about it.

so the first in my series will be a website i love: Pinterest. whoever thought this concept up is just genius in my book. if you don't know what Pinterest is, you can click here to check it out. essentially, it's a website for you to bookmark ideas about anything and everything but instead of a list of website names, it is posted as a picture with a link to the site. confused? check out the link. if you want an invite, put your email address in the comments and i will invite you to Pinterest and you can check it out for yourself. you can also find friends from facebook and other social media sites on there as well. i have things posted from recipes to photography ideas to craft projects to, well, you name it- it is probably on there somewhere. and if it's not, you can certainly find it! you can find your own awesome ideas and "pin" them or "repin" someone else's find. i repeat again- genius. check it out! i dare you to not love it.

if you love pinterest, what are some of your favorite finds? have you tried any recipes and fallen in love? share! if you are on there and we aren't following each other- find me! happy pinning!

18 weeks

2012-01-28T14:56:00.000-05:00

Pregnancy Highlights:

How Far Along: 18 Weeks

Size of baby: Little one is around 6 3/4 ounces and 5 1/2 inches... About the size of a sweet potato.

Total Weight Gain/Loss: Gained 4 pounds (I will update this with doctor appointments- their scale and my scale are very different. I finally have a little bump!

Maternity Clothes: I can still wear my regular clothes but am starting to transition into maternity shirts and the maternity pants are still a little bit but they are definitely more comfortable."

Gender: Don't know- we'll hopefully find out February 15th.

Movement: I feel flutters every day and can feel little one rolling and moving. Every now and then I'll get a hard kick or poke. I'm sure they will become more frequent as little one grows.

Sleep: I am more used to sleeping on my side now and still get up usually once a night. My joints are loosening up a bit and are now a little sore, especially after staying in one position for too long.

What I miss: Ibuprofen! And sleeping on my back.

Cravings: Nothing in particular right now. Early on it was Cherry Icees but that has passed. I love iced water with lemon and am really enjoying root beer right now, too.

17 weeks

2012-01-22T10:40:00.000-05:00

Pregnancy Highlights:

How Far Along: 17 Weeks

Size of baby: Little one is around 5 ounces and 5 inches... About the size of an onion.

Total Weight Gain/Loss: Gained 4 pounds

Maternity Clothes: I can still wear my regular clothes but they are starting to get tight after meals... I am loving my "belly bands."

Gender: Don't know- we'll hopefully find out February 15th.

Movement: I feel flutters from daily now and every now and then a good hard poke/kick.

Sleep: Still getting up at least once a night to pee. Still trying to get used to sleeping on my side.

What I miss: Ibuprofen! And sleeping on my back.

Cravings: Nothing in particular right now. Early on it was Cherry Icees but that has passed. I love iced water with lemon now...And I still love Mexican food!

Symptoms: I had some mild to moderate nausea and heartburn with the first trimester but that passed after about week 12. Knock on wood, I didn't throw up! Now I have "rhinitis of pregnancy." Lots of nasal stuffiness. I am less tired than the first trimester but still as tired as I was before. I am just starting to look like I'm pregnant- I still mostly look like I ate a big meal!

big news!

2012-01-14T17:32:00.000-05:00

a baby is on the way to our house! i am now 16 weeks pregnant and the little one's due date is june 30th. we will find out how everything is developing on february 15th, and if there is cooperation, we'll find out if it is a boy or a girl. i don't really have a "bump" yet but i promise to post pictures once i do. i will do my best to document what i can. you can check out the "ticker" on the right to see how the development continues.

m & m party pretzels.

2012-01-14T17:29:00.000-05:00

these are super yummy and very easy to make. they are great for any occasion or just as a tasty sweet & salty snack to have at home. (just ask jay!)

here is what you'll need to make them:

*jelly roll pan (or any baking sheet with sides

*square pretzels

*chocolate candy melts (I use Wilton's)

*m & m's (I use the solid colors for baby showers and the holiday mixes for those events)

*room in your freezer for your pan

preheat oven to 200 degrees. place pretzels on cookie sheet until full.

next, place the chocolate melts in the center of each pretzel.

place the cookie sheet in the oven for 5-7 minutes and chocolate begins to melt. (you can test this by trying to place an m & m in the center of the chocolate on one pretzel- if it places easily, they're done!

then place your m & m's in the center of each piece of melted chocolate.

once complete, place the pan in the freezer for 5-10 minutes, or until chocolate rehardens.

store in an air-tight container and enjoy!

happy new year!

2012-01-07T09:57:00.000-05:00

i have been a blogging slacker for the past bit. life's been busy and i've been uninspired. how many times can you all read a post about my dogs or us moving?

but beginning very soon, and as a resolution of sorts for 2012, i promise to blog more! (and as soon as i can locate the memory card,) i will have a post about how to make some yummy, easy party treats- great for holidays, baby/wedding showers, or just to have as a snack.

so happy new year, if you are still checking in and reading my sorry posts. there is much more to come this year. pinky swear!

dave matthews.

2011-12-02T19:35:00.000-05:00

the cat. not the man. or the band. although the cat was named after the man.

anyway...

dave moved to his new home over Thanksgiving break. he now lives (back) in nashville and it has been reported to me that he is quite content and happy with his new furry friends and owners. i'm happy that he's happy. i do miss him and miss having him in my lap (especially now that it's cold) but i wouldn't be able to type this most evenings as he would be taking up my lap instead of my laptop! here's one last picture of sweet dave...

fall foliage, part two

2011-10-16T19:40:00.000-04:00

there were a few spots of beauty that weren't near any overlooks and we seemed to always be on the wrong side of the road where the "pull-over" spots were for pictures yesterday. so today i headed back up on the north side of the parkway and got some beautiful pictures. i didn't enhance any of them. (and i shot them in the "auto" setting.) only God could provide such a gorgeous landscape! the colors of nature today were stunning. i hope you enjoy them as much as i did.

these looked pink to me in person. never thought of pink as one of the fall colors- maybe it's dressed up for breast cancer awareness!

i love seeing the leaves as they are changing...

the view out my living room window (that's the chapel past the tree.)

fall foliage, part one

2011-10-16T19:22:00.001-04:00

i think we're about a week from "peak" season but it's a beautiful time of year in the mountains. yesterday was the annual drive on the Blue Ridge Parkway for Upstate Cruisers. we had a small group meet at the pisgah inn for brunch and then we rode from mt. pisgah to mt. mitchell. aside from some blustery wind, the weather was perfect and the scenery did not disappoint. the pictures speak for themselves.

at the inn

just north of mt. pisgah

the view of craggy pinnacle from the visitor's center- look at that flag whipping in the wind

one of the many tunnels on the brp. can you see it?!

the view from the visitor's center

the view from mt. mitchell

it was a chilly 47 degrees at 2pm that high up- i'd hate to know what the wind chill was as it was gusting 20-30mph yesterday. brrr!

reserves training

i never get tired of these views!

nothing exciting.

2011-09-18T12:48:00.000-04:00

well, as i sit here thinking i have nothing exciting to post and no new pictures, i completely forgot that mom sent me pictures she took from her visit in august. we are still slowly getting settled into our new place. we still have lots of boxes hanging around but we're getting there. goodwill is a lucky place, too. in fact, i may make a trip there tomorrow. the animals are doing well. dave is still with us but he'll be making a trip with us to nashville soon and he will stay there with our friend barry. she said she'll gladly take him. cotton is doing well and has adjusted well to the move. barley has had some male "stranger" anxiety but seems to be getting better. she's been sick this week after (we think) eating the filling out of an old bone. she has doggy colitis and is on a bland diet (for dogs, this is chicken, white rice, and canned pumpkin) for the weekend and on an antibiotic. she definitely was back to her old self today but her body was telling other stories... you don't want to know. let's just say "bless her heart."

but yes, i did report that i have pictures to share. mom took some when she came to visit our "new" place at school. now, it is only new to us as this building we live in was built in 1938. it has a lot of character. we are still in the process of getting unpacked and settled in, so pictures of our actual "home" will have to wait. but here are some of the outside and areas around campus.

the dining hall- where we eat most of our meals.

the football field; student center is the building on the left. a dorm is what you see on the other end of the football field (in front of the mountains)

tennis courts (these sit below and behind the dorm at the end of the football field)

the track with the upper soccer/lacrosse field in its center

the "lower" soccer field

the hill that kicks our tails when we take our walks

our front steps on the wellness center (home)

the "right side" of the WC- the two window units are in our nurses' office and the nurses' bedroom. the end is one of the "sick rooms"

the left side of the WC- the far left with 5 windows is our living room and the windows next to it is our laundry room. the others are part of the med room of the WC.

our guest room. Cotton and Barley love the low window sills...

...because they are nosy!

our old doorknobs. they all have a "skeleton" key but we discovered it's for locking the deadbolt they all have.

so that's a bit of our new place and landscape. we're slowly getting settled in here and hope to continue to make it feel like home.

WW- week 3.

2011-08-27T23:30:00.000-04:00

we are still getting settled around here and school started back this week so life has definitely been busy! i am not complaining by any means but we're still trying to get into what our new routine will be. i am definitely enjoying my first whole weekend off this month. mom came and visited and helped us a lot from helping with registration at school and she even did some laundry. (okay. a lot of laundry.)

but yes, it's been 3 full weeks of weight watchers. ww "yelled" at me this week for losing too much weight. little do they know i am not even exercising like i should be. so here's the latest weigh in results...

starting weight: 168 lbs.
previous weight: 163 lbs.
week 3 weight: 160.8 lbs

Difference: -2.2 lbs

3 week total: -7.2 lbs!!!

i wish i had pictures of anything- but i don't. i'll try to get pics of anything soon!

WW- week 2.

2011-08-20T22:44:00.000-04:00

This will be a quick update. It's been a busy week at work getting ready for registration and welcoming our boys back to school! It's been crazy!

Week 1 weight: 164.8
Week 2 weight: 163

Difference: -1.2 lbs

2 week total: 5 lbs!

Yeah for progress!!!

WW- week 1.

2011-08-13T09:39:00.001-04:00

it's time for the first update on my latest trial with weight watchers. i definitely noticed that i was hungry this week. i think i wrote a post about that! eventually the hunger goes away. on weight watchers, you are given a daily allotment of points and then you are given weekly points to "dip into" if you have to/need to. they encourage you to use them, however, if you start to plateau in your weight loss, they suggest you not use any until you catch back up. anyway...

i get 29 points to use daily. everyone's daily points differ depending on their starting weight, gender, bmi, etc. food & beverages are totaled up depending on how many fat grams, carbohydrates, grams of fiber, and grams of protein they have. you don't have to eat strictly "diet food." you can splurge when you want and use those extra points- everyone is given 49 each week.

okay. onto the weigh in.

starting weight: 168 lbs.
week 1 weight: 164.2 lbs.
weight loss total: -3.8 lbs.

that's great motivation to keep up the hard work!!!

day four.

2011-08-10T16:53:00.001-04:00

i'm not gonna lie. i'm hungry. maybe that means weight watchers is already working. i really don't feel like i am eating more or less than i was before- at least for breakfast and lunch. i guess i was snacking a lot more than i am now. with ww points plus- (almost) all fruits and veggies are 0 points so when you want a snack between meals, a piece of fruit or some raw veggies is a great place to start without ruining your day. that'll help to form some good habits for sure! i'll let you know how it keeps going and i will definitely keep updating at least weekly with weigh-ins. and i still never took a before picture from saturday but here's one of jay and myself in june.

my lips are in love.

2011-08-07T22:15:00.002-04:00

it's true. they are so in love with a new (to me) lip balm that i am not allergic to! that makes me so happy. the catch is that i don't know (because i haven't looked it up yet) if they sell it here in the states. my sweet and dear friend, ashley, sent it to me for my birthday from south africa.

before i met my new love, my current favorite was aveeno. i have only found it at target and usually buy 3-4 at a time. at least now i have 2 lip balms to choose from. it's nice to have options again. and my lips are in love. (if you have seen labello here in the states, comment and let me know where!)

weight watchers. for real this time.

2011-08-06T10:43:00.000-04:00

so i fell off the wagon back in february. yep. it's been that long. jay and i both started weight watchers back towards the end of january. and then the stomach virus that could only have been a gift from satan himself attacked us. and while we were recovering from that- jay's dad died. and then it was pretty much all down hill from there. i was eating worse while working day shift than i did on nights. i found every excuse i could to not exercise- however, working two jobs will make it tricky. (see, there's one!) we ate poorly. i blame whoever introduced me to thai food- in particular, the pineapple, chicken thai fried rice. (there's another one!) i signed a contract to be the head nurse at school in april- and couldn't say anything to anyone here until i put in my notice in june. i turned it in early because i was tired of telling little white lies. and then as we started packing up, i packed up a lot of the kitchen and then i couldn't cook as much. and i am telling you- as soon as i start going back to the Y and getting back into exercise- i get sick. really.

i have never gained weight as quickly as i have this summer. i don't know if it's my age or a change in my metabolism plus the added stress over the last six months. i have no idea. i am apparently "healthy" according to my doctor (with a slight increase in my total cholesterol, which he is not concerned about). i am tired of feeling tired and crappy and having clothes that don't fit.

so it's time to make a change and stick to it! no more excuses. and, really, how could i not exercise when i live on a 500 acre campus? it's not like i don't have a place to take a walk! once i finish typing this i plan to take the dogs on a long walk around campus. they are antsy and i am too (and it'll help me procrastinate in the unpacking process).

so, i am putting it out there for those of you who know me and those of you who don't. (there sure are a lot of people who end up on my blog who NEVER leave comments. please comment if you want to!)

Week 1. Weigh in day. Starting weight: 168 lbs.
I am supposed to take a starting picture. I'll have to do that later. Maybe I'll post it. That would be great motivation! Wish me luck! Are any of you out there on the weight loss journey or starting your own?

unpacking something new.

2011-08-05T19:54:00.002-04:00

packing up to move is definitely no where nearly as fun as packing for vacation... i said this earlier this week and meant it 100%.

unpacking after moving is definitely more fun than unpacking after vacation. i mean this, too.

there is so much anticipation when you pack for vacation. it's usually some place fun. you are going to escape life's worries and troubles and hopefully you get to relax. maybe sit in the ocean and soak in some vitamin D where "the only worry is the tide gonna reach my chair."

and while i may not see the beach before the end of 2011, there won't be that dread of having to unpack at the end of a relaxing week. instead...

this is my new view as i am unpacking to begin a new adventure. we moved into our provided housing at Christ School and i am embarking on a new point in my career as a nurse, a new sense of community living on campus at a boarding school (and i never lived on-campus at college), and a time to simplify some areas of life and have a fresh, new start.

memories.

2011-08-03T01:18:00.001-04:00

it's amazing what you come across while you are packing up a house. i found a card from a friend/coworker of mine from williamson medical center that she gave me before we moved from tennessee to north carolina. i loved what it says and find it still fits our lives now.

Listen to your heart...

follow your own star

and dream your own dream.

There wouldn't be a sky

full with shimmering stars

if we were all meant to wish on the same one.

There has never been

and there will never be

a dream exactly like your own,

because you are so wonderfully unique.

As you follow your dream,

always do your best-

there are no shortcuts

on the path to true happiness-

so give all that you have

in all that you do.

And above all things,

believe in yourself,

for you are as amazing

as the stars themselves.

-Linda Staten

stream of consciousness.

2011-08-01T19:08:00.001-04:00

movers come on thursday! i am in the "if it's not in a box yet, it's gonna be in one soon" mode. i don't care if it came from the bathroom or the kitchen. okay. i do care. i will not mix those items! but if it's laying around it's gonna end up in some cardboard. or the garbage can. or the recycle bin. and wow, pat sajak's hair is super fake blonde/beige. yep. wheel of fortune is on. i am getting hungry. the dogs, i'm sure, are hungry. they are always hungry. and bored. i have a couple of new bones stashed away for them to keep them occupied later and they are going to sparky's wednesday through thursday. dave goes to his new home tomorrow. sounds like he's gonna be an indoor/outdoor cat. we'll see how that goes... he's a bit spoiled. haha! i'm sure he'll let them know where he wants to be. :) i am less of a pack rat than i used to be, but good Lord, between jay and myself (and our furballs), we have accumulated a lot of stuff in the last 3 years. at least moving helps to purge some of the junk. it's hard to believe we were the first people to live in this house and we've only been here 3 years. it's great to start fresh in a fresh place. we are so lucky that they renovated our apartment for us at school. fresh paint, a new kitchen and guest bath await us there. there is so much to do and i guess i should get up and keep moving. make some dinner. feed the dogs. fill up some more boxes. take some more stuff over to our new place. watch the bachelorette and see who ashley chooses! (i love cheesy tv reality drama!) that's what's on my agenda. one day at a time, too.

a new home for dave.

2011-07-30T14:34:00.002-04:00

dave has a new home! a former patient, now friend, of mine convinced her mother-in-law that she needs my sweet dave. i am so grateful that she did! i'll be loving on him this weekend and then he'll be off to his new place. it'll be strange without my little furry companion. he's been with me for 10 years, making move after move with his crazy "mama." he has moved 5 times with me in 10 years. he has lived with 5 other cats and with 3 dogs. oh, and 2 fish. he has been a constant in my ever-changing life. but now i'm at a crossroads where our space is a little smaller and our life is changing and he definitely isn't getting as much attention as he should. i'll be sad to send him off to a new family but i'm hopeful that he'll get more love and attention than i could give him as he gets older. he was a great little rescue 10 years ago and i am so thankful that he has a new home to go to. i will have him a couple of more days and i'll savor my moments with him. here are some of my favorite pictures (yes, there are a lot of them) of my little furball...

Help me to "Save the Dave!"

2011-07-23T09:05:00.002-04:00

We're moving! Very soon! We are allowed 2 four-legged pets and we currently have 3. We cannot split the dogs up so I am trying to find Dave a new home. He gets along well with other dogs and cats but would be just as content to be an only cat with a lap or a blanket to lay in. I rescued him from an animal shelter 10 years ago, which makes him now about 11-12 years old. He's still pretty frisky! He is declawed (front paws) and neutered. If you want him or know someone who does, please let me know!!! Help me save Dave!

He loves to lounge in the sun!

tan in a can.

2011-07-16T11:26:00.002-04:00

this summer i have had little time to relax by the pool in our neighborhood. (not that it would probably be very relaxing with all the kids running around- but still...) anytime i've been off it's either rained or been cloudy or i just haven't had the time. i am working on a decent farmer's tan but i really can't stand to be pale in the summer time.

i've found a new solution to my problem this year that is cost-effective and safe. banana boat's spray tan- it isn't streaky and doesn't turn your skin orange either. it's inexpensive and long-lasting. check it out if you're feeling pasty and pale! it's been my favorite product of the summer.

transitions.

2011-07-06T23:26:00.001-04:00

july is turning out to be a busy month for jay and myself. we are moving. again. and that's only a small part of our transition...

i have signed a contract and have taken the Head Nurse position at Christ School, a local boarding school here in town. part of my salary includes our housing. we will be living in a 3 bed/2 bath apartment off the Wellness Center, which is where i will work. we can take 2 four-legged animals with us. so the dogs will be going. sweet dave needs a new home. know anyone who wants a sweet kitty? (declawed, neutered.)

we put our house up for rent- it went on the rental website on a saturday, had an interested renter by monday, she saw it on tuesday, and a contract was signed the end of that week. i had no idea it would happen so quickly, but i am so relieved that it did.

so if the blog is slow-going for awhile it's because i'm busy with work at the hospital (7 more shifts!) and school, packing up my house, and getting ready to move to a new home, new job, and new community at an all-male boarding school. going from new moms & babies to teenage boys will be a transition enough!

This is the chapel at school.

Entrance

Campus map... click the picture to enlarge and find the Wellness Center (our new home!). (All those trees exist, too, as they are in this picture, only more beautiful in real life!)

here & there.

2011-06-14T18:55:00.002-04:00

jay and i have done a bit of traveling over the last two weekends. we went to nashville for a wedding- our friend angie got married june 5th. she was in our wedding and jay was an usher in hers. it was a quick but good trip back "home."

angie is on the far right. (couldn't resist posting one of our pics!)

this past weekend we went to kingsport. it was time for reunions on both sides of the family. it was a busy weekend but without the long drive.

we did not take a lot of pictures at either event, but i'll post what i have...

nashville

fancied up for angie's wedding (i did have on make-up... i think i sweat most of it off... outside wedding at 6pm. it was only 96 degrees F!)

must be blurry because it can't handle the "hunka hunka burnin' love" (what the chalkboard says)

the flash darkened the view of the happy couple cutting into their cupcakes... check out the icing!

kingsport

aunt pam took this for me... and didn't tell anyone she was taking it.

cousin couples- gurnee & amber with me & jay

and just because you love them...

sweet pets

dave enjoying his bed

cotton gazing out the window

barley knocked out for a nap

it's been a busy june and summer is just beginning!

"her majesty's shoe hammer"

2011-06-08T22:50:00.001-04:00

"Got a picture to hang? Got a nail to bang? What's a princess to do when she's only got a shoe? Her Hammer to the rescue. It works and looks good too. A shoe that's strong and sensible. A tool that's indispensable!"

That is their actual slogan... And it really works, too. I was finally hanging our mirror over our mantle, three years later, ahem... and I couldn't find our hammer. But Mom had gotten me this handy little shoe hammer for Christmas. Well, it works like a charm! No woman should be without one.

precious baby girls.

2011-05-23T11:03:00.002-04:00

so last year our visits back home revolved around baby showers. so you know what that means, right? this year our visit included spending time with the sweet, precious baby girls! my darling bestest friends, rachel and rebecca (who happen to be sisters), each had a baby girl last year. rachel had maggie and rebecca (becca) had hannah grace. it was wonderful getting to spend time with their mamas and it was just as great to love on my sweet "nieces."

hannah grace is on the left and maggie is chillin' on the right

i love these sweet, yummy little babies just as much as i love their mommies!

happy mother's day

2011-05-08T11:09:00.001-04:00

just wanted to wish a happy mother's day to my mama and all the other *mamas out there in the world. *you don't have to be a mama to a 2 legged baby in order to be a mama. you can be a mama to a furry 4 legged baby too.

me and my mama

clockwise from left: my grandmama, me, my mama, my aunt regina, cousins lindsey, and haley: the dennis ladies

me and my sweet girls, barley and cotton. one last picture in front of the ocean last summer.

HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY!

a nice visit with my niece

2011-05-06T21:33:00.001-04:00

we had a short but good visit with our nashville friends and family this past march. i really enjoyed spending lots of time with my niece courtney. she has grown up so much in the last 4 years and unfortunately we don't get to see her very often. we had fun playing and coloring and visiting with her and my brother phil.

laughing with mimi

i love her big brown eyes and sweet curls

miss me?

2011-04-27T22:38:00.001-04:00

i originally delayed posting for awhile because i had a few things to post about and i wanted to space them out... and now it's the end of april. i began my delay in mid-march. oops. but i've been busy working and catching up on sleep and trying to keep up with laundry and cleaning (and if we're being honest the keeping up with all of that part is enough work in itself) and so the blog got put on the back burner. i am sure the world, well the maybe 10 of you who read it, are just dying to know what is going on here...

currently, it's raining and we're expecting storms overnight. cotton has been medicated since the first thunder boomed outside and life is good. jay and i still work completely opposite shifts. we're hoping that changes soon. more to come on work in a few posts from now- so, you know, in a few months or something. haha we went to nashville in march and visited with family and friends and had a great time. gas was still "cheap" then at $3.20ish/gallon. we are headed back in june for a wedding.

dave matthews (the cat, not the man with the band) may want a new home. i don't know if i am ready for him to move on, as it's been a good 10 year relationship, but most of the family is allergic to him and always have to get hotels when they visit and he gets less attention than he needs. he's sweet and loving and loves a lap to lay in. if you know anyone wanting a sweet, declawed, and neutered kitty, let me know.

we still haven't forgotten the misery of the stomach virus we had 2 months ago. but, of course, we're all recovered from that and now just suffering from allergies. i have meniere's disease but it has been a year since diagnosis and it is well-controlled with a diuretic. so i pee a lot but i am not as dizzy. well, it's not really dizziness as much as just being off-balance. but it's a lot easier to say dizzy. and i actually prefer the British term "roomspin" so get used to it. :) get used to the word, not roomspin itself. i don't wish that on anyone. but if you have suffered it, i know you feel me on this one, and i graciously will allow you to also use the term roomspin. in fact, i borrowed it from the gentlemen on top gear.

i think that about sums it up. i wonder if i can find a picture to liven up this post even more (i.e. a picture i'm not planning to post later). oh yes, here's one. cotton loving her new toys from her mimi and pops. two of which she promptly broke within the first 24 hours. she's a chewer (of toys only, thankfully). what can i say?

be our guest.

2011-03-01T21:45:00.001-05:00

i re-arranged and re-decorated our guest room many many months ago. and believe it or not, i never took pictures of it. and then Christmas came and went and i finally got the boxes out of the guest room and cleaned it up. i even got the cat fur off the bed by washing all the linens. and then i dusted and vacuumed and took some pictures. sounds exhausting doesn't it? it really wasn't. but i love the way it all turned out and wanted to share it.

welcome to your room!

the bed used to be on the opposite wall and it just seems so much bigger set up this way.

don't you love these birds and branches? i thought they were sweet as a "headboard."

i found this at the Biltmore in one of the gift shops. i ♥ it. it is a definition of "the South." it reads: the sau'th, noun. The place where... 1. Tea is sweet and the accents are sweeter. 2. Summer starts in April. 3. Macaroni & Cheese is a vegetable. 4. Front porches are wide and words are long. 5. Pecan pie is a staple. 6. Y'all is the only proper noun. 7. Chicken is fried and biscuits come with gravy. 8. Everything is Darlin'. 9. Someone's heart is always being blessed.

love my yarn cubby.

we hope you'll come and stay with us!

happy birthday cotton!

2011-02-25T19:33:00.001-05:00

our sweet cotton is 5 today. she has officially passed us in age as she is now 35 in human years. not that you could tell, though. she's still spunky and sassy and as smart as ever. she has lots of energy but knows when to calm it all down. she still loves to "kiss" everyone and thinks she is the boss of the house. i am so thankful we picked her out of the litter. we love you cotton!

the day we picked out our sweet, chubby puppy

such an itty bitty baby

she loves the water...

and she loves the snow...

and she loves playing outside.

and if you really know cotton, you know she loves laying like this.

love this.

2011-02-22T19:11:00.001-05:00

love all of the art from this etsy site. check it out if you love it, too. the wheatfield

"Laughter through tears is my favorite emotion."

2011-02-16T23:25:00.001-05:00

that is a quote from truvy in "steel magnolias." love that movie.

we've been crying and laughing this week here. jay's father, larry, died today from a heart attack. he had the attack on saturday. he was driving. people saw him veer into a ditch and got him out of the car, called 911, and started cpr. the ems workers had a heart rhythm by the time he got to the hospital. they treated him with a new hypothermia protocol. but as they re-warmed him and began the tests that determine brain function. but his responses were negative.

larry was a giving man. he was always willing to give of his time and talents to help others. even to the extent of being an organ donor. those tests were being performed today and we will know soon if he is a candidate for donation and what, if anything, that they can harvest. how great would it be for him to save more lives just by making a simple decision at the dmv?

so we've been reminiscing with family. he wouldn't want us to be sad and mopey. that wasn't larry. he lived his life to the fullest. he travelled often and lived a life most people dream of (well, if they love to travel). he has a family who loves him and so many friends it is overwhelming.

we will truly truly miss him. he was 56 years old. much too young to call this life over. but what a great life it was.

birthday princess.

2011-02-12T20:24:00.001-05:00

my mom sent some pictures of my niece's birthday "party" with my family. she turned 4 on january 30th. i cannot believe how big she is getting. i hope to see her this spring whenever we get to visit back in nashville. anyway, here are some pictures of my sweet little niece.

playing with legos with her mimi (my mom)

her cute flower cake and the satisfaction of blowing out her candles

showing off her new (Easter) dress from her (great) "Grandma" (who is behind my brother)

she got a new leapfrog

sweet creations.

2011-02-12T20:14:00.001-05:00

well, it's pictures of the same hat, but i think it's adorable. if i say so myself.

weight watchers- weeks 1 & 2

2011-02-12T20:09:00.001-05:00

no, i didn't mean to skip either of these. i have been afflicted with the worst stomach virus ever. okay. probably not really, but it's been pretty horrific. oh, and jay's had it too. happy valentine's day, honey. we get to disinfect our house together. lovely.

anyway...

i have lost a total of 5.2 lbs in two weeks. yeah! now, most of what i lost the last week was not by any plans of mine. and at the end of week one i sprained/strained one of my knees. nice. so i actually expect to gain weight next week. maybe. it wouldn't be a bad thing. i am definitely going to have to eat what i can tolerate for the next few days.

anyway...

that's where we stand on the weight loss. i hope it can continue and that it isn't by the same means as this last week.

for the love of dave

2011-02-11T17:39:00.001-05:00

february 6th marked dave's 10th "adoption" birthday. it doesn't seem like it's been that long. dave has lived in 4 apartments, 1 condo, and now a house. he's seen 2 other cats come and go and 1 dog come and go and well, he's stuck with these last two. (he loves cotton and barley- as evidenced by two of the pics below.) he's lost a tiny tiny bit of his spunk, but for the most part, he still has lots of energy. he still loves lounging in the sun and meowing when the water bowl is getting empty. (he won't drink from a small one. he has to drink from the 7.5 qt bowl the dogs drink out of.) he's still sweet and loving and an all around frisky little furball.

(yes, in the two pics with the dogs, he had been recently shaved.)

GO RED!

2011-02-04T07:56:00.001-05:00

today is national wear red day.

why?

heart disease is the #1 killer of women- greater than all of the cancers combined.

women are less likely to go to the doctor when experiencing chest pain.

women's symptoms of heart disease and heart attacks often manifest themselves differently than men's symptoms.

help spread the word and awareness. change your clothes and wear RED today.

a very merry birthday.

2011-01-30T12:17:00.002-05:00

HAPPY BIRTHDAY COURTNEY!

today is our niece's 4th birthday. it seems hard to believe she's already 4. we don't see her often and i hate that, but i am glad we get to keep up with her in pictures.

haley, courtney, and lindsey (haley and lindsey are sisters and my first cousins)

resolution revolution.

2011-01-29T16:36:00.001-05:00

i really hate making new years resolutions. i always end up breaking them at some point in some form or fashion over the winter months. i find it hard to keep resolutions when it's so cold and dreary outside. (well, except for today. it's sunny and 60. yes. 60 degrees!) now, where was i?

oh, right. resolutions. i think sometimes we set ourselves up for failure. even when trying to make the goal easily attainable it is sometimes still a bit unrealistic. for example, "i will only eat healthy foods." okay? who doesn't love a piece of chocolate cake every now and then? or a plateful of cheese enchiladas. mmm... mouth-watering isn't it? you can't deny yourself of all your cravings. not all of the time, anyway.

i have again been watching The Biggest Loser on NBC. i have again been saying to myself, "if these grossly obese people can work out and eat right then why can't i?" as i sit and snack on unhealthy foods and tell myself that i'll workout tomorrow. and when i put on my favorite pants, which are usually my "fat pants" and they fit... well, it made me want to be on the biggest loser ranch with bob and jillian. well, maybe for just a day. and certainly to get a cooking lesson from curtis stone. he's just as yummy as the food he makes.

my problem? i love food. i love my favorite foods- most anything mexican, pizza, macaroni and cheese... and you know what? i don't have to give them up. i just have to learn newer, healthier ways to make them.

i am re-joining Weight Watchers. actually, i rejoined yesterday. jay has rejoined, too. i am gathering friends on facebook, and in my town, who are also doing WW or just trying to get fit and we plan to form an "encouragement" group. it's hard to lose weight alone. my problem is maintaining my healthy weight once i've lost it.

my new weight loss journey isn't just a resolution. it's a revolution. i plan to make healthy changes and stick with them. not for a few months this time. but for good. and i know that isn't something i can accomplish in a month. it's going to take awhile. and i know i can't do it alone. i want to know i have support from my friends who are also doing the same thing. and i want to support my friends in their journeys too. my weekly weigh-in day is friday. friday is the only day i have off every week. so, every friday i will post my weigh-in results. hopefully they will be all negatives, but we'll see. i also measured my waist, arms, legs, hips, etc so i can also watch the changes in these as well. i may post the changes every 2-4 weeks of those, too. :)

are any of you out there doing the same? feeling the same? need some encouraging words? don't be shy. leave a comment!!!

praying for joanne.

2011-01-19T21:33:00.001-05:00

joanne heim is a 38-year-old wife, mother of 2 daughters, a writer, a friend.

on january 11th she had a stroke. she was found by her school-age daughters. unfortunately she has had serious complications. she has suffered severe swelling in her brain. she is ventilated and sedated to the point of having little to no brain activity. this is how her doctors want it, though they are going to try to start waking her soon.

if you click the "button" (aka her picture on the right) it will take you to her blog and you can read updates her husband, toben, is writing.

(no, i do not know her. in fact, i had not heard of her until i was reading another blog asking for prayers for her. please join me in praying for joanne.)

♥ barley. ♥

2011-01-17T14:43:00.001-05:00

it's that time of year again. doggie birthdays!

barley's comes around first. she was born on january 15th 2007. she is now 4.

the girls actually spent the weekend at At Play with Sparky. they love "sparky's." their ears perk up with the mention of the name.

today they are still thoroughly worn out. and they are clean after having baths before coming home. tired + clean dogs = a great combination.

yes, i still make the dogs wear a party hat every year. they seem to be getting a bit used to it by this point. i think barley partied too hard this weekend, though...

HAPPY BIRTHDAY SWEET BARLEY!

we ♥ you!

the post where i talk about more snow.

2011-01-17T14:35:00.001-05:00

yes. more snow. although, i think a lot of you also had snow this time around. and despite the warmer temperatures and sunshine over the weekend, we still have snow on the ground.

and i do hate the old wives' tale. you know the one... "snow that remains on the ground is just waiting for the next snow." have you ever heard it? it seems, most unfortunately, to be true around here. i am ready for more sunshine but it seems that may not happen until the weekend. when i work. so i will get to enjoy it through the windows. sort of like the way i enjoyed the snow last monday.

i pulled out the camera and cotton thought she needed her picture taken too. we enjoyed the warm fire as we watched the snow fall. all. day.

(p.s. barley says it's almost her birthday!)

we, of course, had to measure the snow. jay tried to get an area that wasn't so vulnerable to the wind to measure the amount so he chose the grill. we pulled out the handy "buy the foot" macy*s ruler from my high school days. (we sold these to raise money for our trips to NYC when we were in the macy*s thanksgiving day parade.)

so at that point it measured about 6 inches. we had about 7 inches by the end of the day. yep. we did take the dogs out to play but we didn't get any pictures of them playing. hope you enjoyed your snow. well, if you got any. ☺

let it snow! let it snow! let it snow!

2010-12-26T20:24:00.000-05:00

(*the caption is to quote my dad last night. don't ask what i said in response! or do. i might tell you.)

all of those who wanted a white Christmas got their wish alright. i think the snow may have finally stopped- for now.

i worked on Christmas (and Jay worked a few hours at his job, too) and was happy that the snow didn't start until after i drove in (Jay wasn't so lucky). however, they activated our severe winter storm policy and those of us at work that were also scheduled today had to stay overnight. those who weren't there yet and were scheduled to work today also had to come in last night if they didn't think they could make it this morning. did you follow that? but we did get paid to sleep overnight and we did get real beds to sleep in and a couple of free meals so the only complaint is that i/we didn't sleep well at all and it was Christmas. and we didn't get to enjoy the snow except what it looked like through the windows (which i must admit is beautiful). but we were able to send almost all of our Christmas Eve babies, and some a day or two older, home today and extra staff were allowed to leave too so after 34 hours i was able to come home. just in time for sunset...

yes i took them from inside. it's much too cold to stand outside for long! and i didn't have any plans to go outside but the animals decided they needed to, ahem, "go" so we switched gears and went to the front of the house and they decided it was time to play so i quickly bundled up and snapped a few pictures of our blowing snow. (yeah, who needs a snow blower when the winds are forecast to blow with gusts up to 50-60mph?)

dashing

through

the

snow

cotton decided she needed to eat some snow!

jay and i had our Christmas on Christmas Eve. he totally had me fooled about my gift. i have been wanting a pandora bracelet and he had me going that no one had them in town and all the jewelry stores were sold out and made me make a new list just a few days ago of things that i might like. little did i know my present was hiding in the Christmas tree! jay got some things on his list he wanted and some things that weren't on his list that he also liked just as well. cotton, barley, and dave each got a new stuffed and squeaky (or chirping!) toy and are quite pleased. i have pictures of the pets and toys but our internet is running quite slowly so they will have to wait for later. (the snow pics took an hour to upload.)

we hope you and yours had a lovely and white Christmas. you know, if you like snow and all.

a Christmas story.

2010-12-24T13:38:00.001-05:00

Luke 2:8-20 (New International Version, ©2010)

⁸ And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night. ⁹ An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. ¹⁰ But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people. ¹¹ Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord. ¹² This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.”
¹³ Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising God and saying,
¹⁴ “Glory to God in the highest heaven,
and on earth peace to those on whom his favor rests.”
¹⁵ When the angels had left them and gone into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, “Let’s go to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has told us about.”
¹⁶ So they hurried off and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby, who was lying in the manger. ¹⁷ When they had seen him, they spread the word concerning what had been told them about this child, ¹⁸ and all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds said to them. ¹⁹ But Mary treasured up all these things and pondered them in her heart.²⁰ The shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things they had heard and seen, which were just as they had been told.

wordless wednesday.

2010-12-22T19:30:00.000-05:00

evergreen.

2010-12-22T19:21:00.003-05:00

it's a girl!

2010-12-16T20:09:00.001-05:00

Maggie Danielle Stooksbury

Born December 4th @ 8:12pm

7 lbs 8.4 oz 18 inches

Proud Parents: Mark and Rachel

Please keep them in your prayers. Rachel was re-hospitalized with a uterine infection and just got back home yesterday (Wednesday) and Maggie is allergic to lactose and Rachel is having to cut all dairy out of her diet. (Thanks for the prayers in advance.) I can't wait to meet this little sweetie!

it's coming on Christmas...

2010-12-10T16:59:00.000-05:00

jay and i had a great time this year picking out our tree. we have enjoyed a live tree every Christmas since being in our house. this year we went to Boyd Mountain Tree Farm to pick out our tree. we went last sunday on a lovely (freezing cold) snowy day. when we got there Santa himself* informed us of the way it all works: should you be super adventurous, you can take a saw with you and find and chop down your own tree. um, no thank you. next option- you still venture up the hill to and find your "perfect" tree and then someone will come and cut it down for you. then they take it down the hill/mountain for you and bundle it up. you then head back down the hill/mountain and enjoy some hot chocolate or hot apple cider (while you pay) and some sweets and warm up under the heaters in the tent. then,when you are ready, they will tie it onto your car. it was muddy and cold but it was really fun to find our tree where it had been growing for the last few years.

they also have cabins on the farm that you can rent. this is one we passed on our way.

jay up ahead...

if this is the view to the main house, imagine their view from it.

our "perfect" tree

we posed with the chain saw- we did not get to use it.

our tree being cut down... stay tuned to see it in our house.

ta-da!

2010-11-30T20:11:00.000-05:00

after some malfunctions with the ~~garland~~ hanging of the garland, it finally is secured and up. it still needs some finishing "fluffing" but our entry way is mostly completed. (i added a little bit more hot glue to the C on our wreath. you can never have too much hot glue when it comes to crafts!)

getting in the spirit

2010-11-27T20:41:00.002-05:00

i thought the blog could use a little holly and jolly. and i thought the picture was a delightful blast from the past. (that is from the first Christmas we lived in NC.) barley was only 10 months old! enjoy!

planning the perfect picture.

2010-11-24T23:56:00.002-05:00

you can very rarely get the perfect picture for your Christmas card without planning it. i mean, really, how often does that happen? i have a picture in mind for this year's card but i am planning to try to stage one as well. and then i know i'll at least have a back up. we have been sending out photo cards since we got married and especially since we moved. i love the personalization of photo cards. i love getting photo cards, too. i love watching families grow and change year after year.

shutterfly has some great choices for holiday cards this year. i really love all the Christmas card choices and i am having a hard time choosing what sort of card i want this year.

we could do something fun and cute...

...or something a little more formal...

...or even something a bit more classic, with room for more than one perfectly planned picture.

there are so many options! there are plenty to match everyone's personal style. they even have great ideas for gifts, too, like these wall calendars.

i don't know about you, but i plan to hop back over to shutterfly and start trying to decide on what our Christmas cards will be this year. if you are a blogger too, check out how you can win 50 free cards this season. http://bit.ly/sfly2010 they have "holiday" cards and cards to wish joy to those in the new year. so if Christmas isn't quite your thing, follow the holiday card link above to see if there's something out there to fit your needs. i can almost guarantee there is. happy shopping!

breaking my own rule.

2010-11-24T23:27:00.000-05:00

i hate when people decorate for Christmas before Thanksgiving. usually. growing up, we would decorate Thanksgiving night or the days after but never before. i have tried to do the same... i even complained earlier this month when i was driving home and passed a house with full lights and decor out. it was the 3rd. houses were still decorated for halloween. seriously?

but this year my work schedule prevents me from having much time available for decorating this weekend. we're taking a one day trip to knoxville for Thanksgiving and then i work the entire weekend. i would rather be decorating. or napping. or, you know, not working!

so i started a little early this year. just a day, really. i made a new wreath today as last year's cute yarn wreath fell apart after the wind from one of our blizzards shook it all to pieces. i knew there was no way to get it back together so i decided to start fresh. i have also started getting the mantle decorated and even hung the stockings. but there's still a lot of work to be done.

i did get this year's (and hopefully more to come) wreath idea from another blog. you can see their picture here.
but here is what i came up with. i even made the bow- i did not get any bow-making skills from my mother. (it's most unfortunate.)

showering Maggie.

2010-11-24T17:16:00.000-05:00

part of our most recent visit to franklin involved me helping to host a baby shower for my best friend, rachel. rachel is the "original" best friend, though, i like to call 3 of my closest friends my bests. i met rachel the summer before kindergarten. 26 years later, here we are, waiting to welcome her first baby, maggie, into this world.

we had a lovely turn out for maggie's shower and it also happened to be a beautiful, sunny fall day. my cousin, angel, helped us again by providing us with pictures from our afternoon. we enjoyed meeting sweet baby vince (who is also in another post from recent with his knitted hats on). we enjoyed good food, fun games, good friends, and great gifts for maggie, rachel, and mark, to help make her arrival a little bit easier and a little bit sweeter.

diaper cake made by becca (rachel's sister, another best, and hannah grace's mama)

sweet petit fours

all the hostesses with the honorees

fun guessing games- how big is the belly? and how many qtips fit in the jar?

sweet gifts- i knitted the blanket in the above picture for sweet maggie

one sweet family

maggie danielle stooksbury is due november 28th. she's seems to be happy where she is for now but i know everyone is ready for her arrival. i'll be sure to let you know when this little bundle of joy makes her entrance into the world.

you are my sunshine.

2010-11-11T12:45:00.000-05:00

these fur babies love them some sunshine. barley and dave, especially, have been so glad the seasons have changed because it means the sunlight filters in the windows again. most afternoons you can find them soaking up the rays. every now and then cotton will join in, but she mostly keeps herself to the shady parts of the room. here, you can see for yourselves...

can you see dave's head by cotton's back foot?

enjoying some non-sunny relaxation.

dave loves his sunny corner of the living room.

barley will start here by the door and end up in the middle of the room as the sun moves today.

oh, this blog is about knitting...

2010-11-07T20:36:00.000-05:00

so who knew life would get in the way of my knitting? i have been knitting a lot this summer but i must say that i forget to take pictures of what i make. so now when i give gifts i make sure that they send/post pictures of them in use.

my friend mandy recently had her 3rd baby boy. i thought she might want a blanket, but she said she has more than enough blankets. so she requested cute/crazy baby hats instead. i made sweet baby vince 3 hats. one is still too big for him (which was the plan since winter is on its way) but the other 2 fit. i stole pictures from her facebook (with her permission, of course) so you could see super cute vince in his hats i made for him.

the baby jester hat

sweet little pumpkin

not loving the pumpkin patch. i ♥ this picture!

fall beauty and land cruisers

2010-10-17T14:05:00.000-04:00

yesterday was the annual Blue Ridge Parkway Cruise. members of the upstate cruisers meet at mt. pisgah at the pisgah inn and then we drive/cruise from mt. pisgah to mt. mitchell on the brp and enjoy all of the fall colors. saturday was a beautiful day and i am so glad i didn't sleep the day away (which still would have been fantastic) and joined jay and the others up on the parkway for the lovely day and drive. the dogs came along, too, and we made it a "family" affair. we couldn't have asked for better fall weather. in fact, all we could have asked for were less people and traffic up on the parkway. (we blame the local news channel for telling everyone to go to the parkway on saturday. because they listened.) anyway, here are some pictures, a little something for everyone- views and trucks- from our day.)

at Pisgah (pre-crowds)

all the trucks together in one pic

the view from mt. mitchell

the view of mt. mitchell

see the white dot in the center in the sky? it's the moon.

sweet babies. both looking at the camera, thanks to jay and a bribe.

sweet sleep!

2010-10-11T16:13:00.000-04:00

I’ve shared with you before about Sweet Sleep, a nonprofit ministry based in Nashville which provides beds, bedding and Bibles to orphaned and abandoned children around the world (www.sweetsleep.org) . Thanks to you, Sweet Sleep has done amazing work in northern Uganda. And, with your support RIGHT NOW, we can do it again.

Here’s the situation:

Sweet Sleep and their partner, American Refugee Committee (ARC), is working with hundreds of thousands of children living in child-headed households in the IDP (Internally Displaced Persons) camps in northern Uganda. 20 years ago, the government of Uganda placed every person in every tribe into these camps to protect them from rebels which were attacking the North over two decades. A few years ago this area finally began to experience peace, however today, more than a million people are still living in these camps. An estimated 750,000 of these people are children who are orphans with no place to go. ARC is working to trace each child by their family name back to their home tribe. They then work with village leaders to determine what land their family owned and reclaim it for them. As part of the process, each resettled child receives a new hut from ARC.

Being resettled gives a child hope and a chance for a new life. There’s just one problem: the children have been afraid to leave. Until now.

Even though the Ugandan Government has closed these camps, it is very difficult to get all of the children to leave. The children in these child-headed households were born in these camps – it’s simply all they’ve ever known.

In January of this year, as Sweet Sleep’s partnerships began in northern Uganda, ARC hoped to resettle 600 children. This was more than the number of children they resettled in 2009, but they were hoping the children would have a good response to the opportunity of being provided with a bed, net and Bible.

By the end of this June, Sweet Sleep had already provided ARC with the full amount of beds, nets and Bibles they’d requested for the entire year! Much to the amazement of ARC leadership, the children are now lining up to leave the camps to be resettled into their home villages. The children are sharing with ARC and Sweet Sleep that they never imagined they could have such a thing as a bed, mosquito net or a Bible of their own. Many other organizations in northern Uganda have come to ARC to ask how they’ve been able to get so many children to resettle. Who would have known something as simple as a bed, mosquito net and Bible could be so completely profound on a child’s life? Amazing. Simply amazing!

So, my friends, here’s where you come in. ARC recently asked Sweet Sleep to provide 700 more beds to the additional children they’ll be able to resettle this November -- in just 25 days! But we can’t resettle these children without you. A resettlement kit with a straw mat, new mattress, blanket, mosquito net and Bible is just $50!
$50 to help a child find hope, peace and comfort in their new home. And thanks to some wonderful friends of Sweet Sleep’s, any gifts given to help resettle these children in October will be matched 100%! We need just 350 friends to give $50 or 175 people to give $100 – we can do this, right? So take a moment and think – how many beds can I provide? I know you’ll sleep sweeter knowing a child has come home and will sleep sweetly because of your gift. Just go to www.sweetsleep.org to donate any amount and be sure to write “Gulu” in the comment box.

One more thing….read this letter from a child Sweet Sleep resettled in June. Let’s work together to help more sweet orphans like David finally come home.

Dear Sweet Sleep,

My name is David. I am 14 years old and am in primary four. I would like to thank you, Sweet Sleep for giving me the mattresses and mostly the Bible.

Now days I know more about God than I did before because I read my Bible and after I go for a sleep on my soft mattress. Am very happy this days because I start sleep right when I got on to my bed till morning without feeling any pain.

So I again thank God for that special gift which I was not even expecting in my life and not forgetting to pray for you and also the organization called Sweet Sleep.

Thank you so much from David.

God Bless You.

sweetness. sweet-niece.

2010-09-12T00:33:00.000-04:00

my niece, courtney, is getting so big. i must say that one of the things i dislike about living in asheville is not getting to see my niece grow up except mostly through pictures. here are a few of her doing what she loves- swimming.

end of the rainbow.

2010-09-09T22:00:00.000-04:00

alternately titled: i do.

alternately titled: happy 4th anniversary.

where to start? 4 years ago today jay and i walked down the aisle in front of family, friends, and God and became husband and wife. what better way to spend an anniversary than on vacation? it wasn't intentionally planned that way, but we lucked out for sure. (last year, i believe, we both worked.) so today's been a good day. low-key. relaxed. who can complain? not us for sure. or the dogs for that matter. the video below is from this evening.

i am usually on top of things when it comes to hallmark and having a card for all occasions. well, maybe not all occasions. but birthdays and anniversaries of those close to me, for sure. but i did not get one to bring along. so i made one.

i finished making my "card" and sat down to relax in my chair. we'd probably been on the beach about 15 minutes. and then the rain started. and the sun was still shining brightly. and then it started raining harder. well, there was a beach house that had a large deck and had been unoccupied all week, so we ventured underneath the deck to wait it out. i'm so glad we did. i have never seen the end of a rainbow until today. and now you can, too.

it ended right in the middle of the ocean. beautiful.

and just for a little nostalgia and looking at jay and i in our fancy clothes (as my little second cousin calls them), here are some of my faves from our wedding day.

seeing each other for the first time that day.

officially married!

relieved and ready for the reception.

yep. he did that.

unleashed.

2010-09-09T21:40:00.002-04:00

Photo and video editing at www.OneTrueMedia.com

so we cheated and let the dogs off leash this evening so they could freely romp and run through the waves. as you can see, they loved every second of every minute.

highs and lows.

2010-09-09T21:36:00.000-04:00

Q: what leaves as soon as it comes in? A: the tide

and that's no joke here. when it's high, there is no beach left to walk on. and when it's low, there is almost an entire football field's length of room to choose your spot. now that the long holiday weekend is over, there aren't many people on the beach. i am not complaining either. :) i'll let you see for yourself.

high tide + sunset

mid-afternoon low tide, looking in the same (hazy) direction

looking straight down to the water (yes, that's jay)

same vantage point for all three pictures. just different days. ebb and flow.

dogs meet the ocean.

2010-09-08T13:02:00.000-04:00

Make video montages at www.OneTrueMedia.com

the girls weren't sure the first day when we took them to the beach but quickly decided they did, in fact, like the ocean. after all, it's water and labs love them some water. but the second morning (when we filmed this snippet) we took them back, and they knew that putting on their collars meant we were going back to that "place" we took them the day before. they were so excited.

they have rules down here, though. they aren't supposed to be off their leashes at all and can only be on the beach before 10am and after 6pm. makes sense, really, as it is still quite hot during the day and the beach is usually crowded during the summer months. (the time limits are only from may 1- sept. 30. the rest of the year they can be on the beach all day long, but still have to be on-leash.)

now that the long weekend has passed, it isn't really that crowded down here. one of these remaining mornings we plan to cheat and let them run off leash. just for a few minutes, anyway. :) we'll try to get some more pictures, but honestly, it's not easy staying dry and keeping their leashes untangled while trying to take pictures. hopefully this video will keep you satisfied for now. enjoy! they did.

(mom, you may not want to enlarge it. it may make you a little dizzy!)

(and i'll get around to uploading pics and video of the first outing to the beach. it's on a different camera and has a little bit more of barley in it. this video is courtesy of jay's iPhone 4.)

morris island lighthouse.

2010-09-08T11:14:00.001-04:00

we took a short walk after dinner tonight to the edge of folly island to see the morris island lighthouse. it happened to also be high tide, and when i say high tide, i'm not kidding. there literally is about 3-5 feet of walking space on the beach during high tide, where as during low tide there is about 50-60 yards. big difference. we've been enjoying the sun and sand and the dogs have too. they enjoyed it a little too much on monday so they had a rest day today. we do have video, which i'll get on here one day. when i figure out how. anyway, here's a few pics from our evening walk.

picturesque, yes? (i also love iPhoto and i think i would absolutely go crazy if i had photoshop.) anyway, it was beautiful, as you can see in the pictures.

finally...

2010-09-05T21:25:00.000-04:00

Ready to spend my days here. All week. Will post better pictures later. And a video of the dogs. :)

happy birthday to you!

2010-09-04T01:27:00.001-04:00

(yes, it's a day late. technically just an hour-ish. it would have been done on his birthday but he beckoned me to run errands while the picture was slowly uploading. so, i guess the title should be happy belated birthday!)

5 days, 2 hurricanes & 1 tropical storm, 32 hours of work

2010-08-30T16:54:00.000-04:00

that's what's left in the countdown.

i am less concerned that our vacation is only 5 days away and i have packed not-one-little-thing or the fact that i work tuesday and wednesday night and then will be heading to my new part-time job only after 5 hours (if i'm lucky!) of sleep on thursday. (more about this later).

i am definitely most concerned about the hurricanes in the atlantic. yep. hurricane danielle seems a small threat now and most likely just stirred up the waters near folly beach. hurricane earl seems the biggest threat right now, but they say should make land fall on the north carolina coast thursday, so we'll at least know what we're dealing with before we leave on saturday. and now fiona is a tropical storm. and who knows where she might go. let's hope she goes elsewhere, too. don't these storms know i/we need a vacation? can't they wait a week? but these are the risks one takes when planning a beach vacation in september, in the midst of hurricane season.

fiona is the little read circled area behind earl. maybe she'll fizzle out. one can hope. :)

back to the aforementioned part-time job... i have taken a part-time job at Christ School, which is a all-boys grades 7-12 boarding school, about 10 miles down the road from our house. my job is in the wellness center as one of the nurses. i will be working every thursday from 2-10pm and then take call from 10-7am. i can do this from home because i live so closely unless we have a sick student or students, in which case i would have to stay there over night. i would love for it to develop into more there and less at the hospital, but we'll see. i will be going to work day shift at the hospital. most of you know i am not a morning person (super huge understatement!) so we'll see how that works out. no one seems to be able to give me an answer as to when that will happen so now you know as much as i do.

and that's about it for changes around here. not much going on. ready for vacation. come hell or high water or hurricanes, we will make it to the beach!

24 days and counting.

2010-08-11T11:31:00.001-04:00

that's right, friends. 24 days. or 3 weeks and 3 days as the counter to the right lists. until what? VACATION. yes. i have not typed such lovely words in the last few months. i cannot wait until my toes are in the sand. even better? we will have sweet doggy toes in the sand, too. cotton and barley also get to go to the beach for the first time ever. we cannot wait to see that- we are placing bets on which one, if not both, bark and run away from the crashing waves. we hope to have a little video recorder by then so we can share with everyone.

the timing worked out perfectly that we will be leaving the day after jay's birthday and will be there on our 4th anniversary. and, of course, on the way we'll be stopping at the annual meeting for the upstate cruisers at aunt sue's. (i.e. we'll have a good meal before getting on the road, however, it only takes 3 1/2 - 4 hours to get to the beach from here.)

yes. we are going to folly beach, sc. we spent a morning there during last year's beach trip and enjoyed the seclusion that day. of course, we realize that the beginning of our trip does include labor day weekend, but kids will be back in school after that and that was what we enjoyed last year- the beach was almost empty until school let out. dogs are not allowed on the beach from 10am-6pm so the girls will get to enjoy morning and evening walks and play time. we found a house to rent that is across the street from the beach and just a short walk to the beach access. the back yard doesn't back up to anything so we won't have anyone immediately behind us, just perhaps to the sides and across the road (which are the beachfront houses). can you smell the ocean breeze yet? i almost can.

here's where we'll be staying...

cannot. wait. but i think i said that already. ☺

summer memories.

2010-08-01T13:36:00.002-04:00

smile.

2010-07-13T23:52:00.000-04:00

summer tourism at its best.

2010-07-11T18:14:00.001-04:00

jay's little sister erin

came to visit us this past week. she's 19, just finished her first year of college at UTC, and didn't have much on her agenda this summer. i needed a super good reason to reorganize and clean our guest room so i asked her to come visit us. (that's not the only reason i wanted her to come and visit.) she obliged. (i'll post pictures of the "new" guest room soon.)

we joined the rest of the tourists on wednesday at the biltmore estate. erin had never been and i haven't been in almost 2 years, so we spent most of the day there. it was hot. very hot. i can't imagine living in that house, well, that's a statement in itself. i also can't imagine having to wear the clothing of that time period without air conditioning. velvet dresses just for sitting and reading or sewing. no thanks.

the view from the front lawn

the ponds in the italian garden

all the water lilies needed were some frogs

shade! the wisteria covered walkway to/through the shrub gardens

George Vanderbilt picked the perfect spot on his land (totaling 25,000 acres at one time) with perfect views

the side of the house

we had just passed through the shrub garden and took in the above 2 views before heading down to the walled gardens and conservatory. the gardens are mostly filled with summer wild flowers at this time. a few of the roses were still in bloom, well, enough so that when you walked into the rose garden you could smell them without having to actually "stop and smell the roses." the air was fragrantly pleasing and the roses were still quite lovely. we then headed down to the conservatory and enjoyed viewing the plants and flowers there.

grapes aren't just in the vineyards

inside the walls of the gardens

pretty black-eyed susans

pretty, fragrant roses

the conservatory

i loved this creative wine barrel fountain. look around the bottom for the corks.

and this one, too, with the water coming from the bottles in the wine rack.

loved this shot on the way back from the gardens. if you click on the picture to enlarge it you can see the flag on the roof, too.

it was hot. but it was also a beautiful day and i'm so glad i got to spend it with erin.

zip-a-dee-doo-dah.

2010-07-10T18:27:00.000-04:00

sweet little bluebird looking for food for it's babies on my roof. their nest is in the eave of our neighbors' house.

frozen pupsicles.

2010-07-08T12:29:00.000-04:00

yep. you read right. not popsicles. but pupsicles. why can't our four-legged furry friends enjoy a frozen treat every now and then? these are dog tested and dog approved. they are healthy, too. i found the recipe in my dog treat recipe book. cotton and barley are happy to share the delectable deliciousness with your fur-babies too.

what you need:

Frozen Pupsicles

32 ounces low-fat or non-fat yogurt

2 mashed bananas

1/2 cup natural peanut butter

2 tablespoons honey

Combine all ingredients in a bowl. Blend well. Fill small paper cups (like 3-ounce bathroom size Dixie cups) with the mixture. Freeze at least two hours. To serve, let thaw slightly and pop pupsicle out of the cup and into a bowl by pressing onto the bottom of the cup. (The recipe says it makes about 10 cups worth... it actually made 16 cups. The dogs aren't complaining! They eat theirs outside. In the yard. No bowl.)

(Make sure you have room in your freezer!)

i love flip flops.

2010-06-29T22:02:00.000-04:00

who doesn't love flip-flops in the summer time? if you just answered "me" as in "i don't" then maybe we shouldn't be friends. just kidding. seriously, though, they're easy, usually fairly inexpensive, and a fabulous excuse for getting pampering pedicures. and it's a fashionable way to be almost barefoot while still meeting the "must wear shoes" requirement of almost every existing establishment.

don't even ask me to count how many pairs i have. and while sandals are not the same as flip-flops, between the two, i have way more than i need, i'm sure. i have a few cheap pairs from old navy, a few old, yet comfy teva flip-flops, my favorite chaco flips (and a pair of sandals), a bejeweled pair of havianas from my travels to brazil that i purchased from one of our portuguese interpreters, dressy flips/sandals... and my newest pair that i love already:

could they be any cuter? can you tell what's on the ribbon? why, yellow labs, of course. i love that they are neutral in color and the soles are a dark barley brown with sweet yellow cottons on the ribbons. my friend shirin was kind enough to order them for me when she placed her last order at l.l. bean as she gets free shipping and sales tax. (and free monogramming, but as i have my own personal monogrammer, i.e. mom!, i don't really see a need for that.) want to check out these flip-flops for yourself? these aren't the only patterns/colors, either. just click super cute flip-flops and see them for yourselves.

do you have a favorite brand or style of flip-flop? i'd love to hear. happy summer!

blue ridge parkway

2010-06-18T14:00:00.000-04:00

we took a short trip up on the parkway yesterday in the fj40. there was a rockslide on the southbound side so it was closed 6 miles up from our starting point, but it was still a nice drive. (for those of you who know, that's the side that goes towards mt. pisgah. they say one lane will be open by july. i guess we'll see.) it was a little bit cooler up there, but we really didn't get high enough to notice a difference. the laurel and rhododendron is blooming, too. we're hoping to get up to craggy pinnacle soon and hike and see all the flowers. maybe next week. can't complain, though. yesterday was a beautiful day.

fetch.

2010-06-18T13:45:00.000-04:00

fetch (v.)- to go or come after and bring or take back

barley's not the best at fetching. i mean, she is a labrador retriever, you'd think retrieving/fetching would be something she'd be good at. well, she will often go and stop. or she will go and bring halfway back. she's finally starting to get better at the going and bringing all the way back. for most of her life she hasn't had a choice because cotton is always the (dominant) one who controls the fetching. although now cotton seems to be distracted (by eating grass and smelling every single smell in our yard) and so barley gets her chance. and she's so cute when she fetches.

off she goes

(doesn't our cypress look good this year?)

and we made it halfway back. let's try again.

yeah barley! here she comes!

let's try again...

and guess who fetched this one? yep. i did.

i ♥ her sweet face!

go barley!

Marshall family reunion.

2010-06-18T13:19:00.000-04:00

last weekend we headed to kingsport (tn) for a reunion. we always joke it doesn't matter what weekend is chosen but it is always the "hottest weekend of the year so far." always. this year it was humid and rained off and on all day so it was muggy and miserable outside. but we survived. jay's mamaw stella turned 80 in may and they planned a surprise party tied in with the reunion. she definitely was surprised. lots of family came in that usually doesn't come so everyone had a good time catching up and visiting.

getting things ready

kids, young and old, catching crawfish

here comes mamaw!

stella catching up with her cousins

the day began with the "old farts/young bucks" golf tournament. the young bucks made a comeback this year and won! the plaque is running out of room.

cousins: scotty, amber, christopher and nathan (scotty's oldest)

we always finish up the weekend with breakfast at the golden corral. they don't do much well, but they can do breakfast. well, it's decent, anyway. stella and kyle (her brother) love it so we always go with their choice. it's one last chance to get everyone together to visit and catch up before everyone heads back to their homes. we had a great visit this year (and jay and i ate way too much pal's) and maybe next year it'll be cooler. much much cooler outside.

this and that.

2010-06-15T19:39:00.000-04:00

so i guess it's less than obvious that i have been neglecting the blog a bit. well, it isn't intentional. it just happens to be that not much is going on around here lately. and you know, that's not necessarily a bad thing. it's been hot. we've had rain/thunderstorms most afternoons over the last month. of course, when there is rain there are often rainbows.

we work. jay is finishing up his spring quarter of school. (actually right now as i type this.) and he has been working part-time in retail and is getting back on an ambulance most recently. i am working weekends at the hospital (yes, more pay, too) and my longest stretch off of work is now only 3 days. i have had a major knitting project (hannah grace's blanket) and some small ones (sweet baby hats) so my fingers have been busy with those instead of typing out blog posts. i know. excuses, excuses.

jay has also been busy (and our garage has been full) restoring a 1975 FJ40 land cruiser. we've had it about 7 months and it has gone from this

to this

to the finished product. Are you ready?

yes, he totally "posed" it in the front yard. looks good though, right? he's also determined to teach me how to drive a manual transmission vehicle. let's just say i'm a slow learner. i blame it on sleep deprivation and being a girl who's used to easy automatic driving. 3 pedals and a shifter is just too much to coordinate. maybe one day.

and with the car work comes other new skills for jay. he's learning how to weld a bit, too. ready to see what he did for practice? i call it modern art... ha! i am a proud wife.

my new skills have been in making sweet flowers to adorn sweet baby hats. i love how this one turned out for baby ava. she got a newborn size, while sweet hannah grace got herself a preemie size. ava's doesn't quite fit yet, and hannah's is still a bit big, too, but she looks awfully cute, don't you think?

if you aren't able to tell, sweet hannah grace is home with her mom, dad, and sweet labrador "big sisters" aiko and aggie. want to see how they're doing? head to becca's blog for updates!

and what post wouldn't be complete without a picture of sweet cotton and barley? cotton gets distracted easily now during our fetching games so after 3 years, barley has finally learned how to play fetch. she is so cute trotting (or racing) back with the tennis ball in her mouth. maybe if we can have a rainless morning and/or afternoon, i can capture a picture. until then you can just enjoy a picture of the sweet sisters sharing some sleepy afternoon nap love.

i know, i know...

2010-06-08T22:23:00.001-04:00

i have been totally MIA. sorry. just been in a blogging slump, well, most of this year. i promise pictures of the dogs and updates on us soon. thanks for stopping by!

babies and showers

2010-05-12T18:18:00.000-04:00

so, remember when i mentioned we had a great baby shower for becca and hannah grace? remember sweet hannah grace? how could you forget this sweet face...

look how chubby she's getting. hannah grace is up to 3 1/2 lbs- probably more by now. well, back to the baby shower... remember also how i said my cousin angel was our photographer? she did an awesome job and i wanted to share some of her photos. if you live in the middle tennessee area and are looking for a great photographer, check her out. she's amazing! www.angelparduephoto.com

it was great for angel to be there taking the pictures so that we had one less thing to worry about as hostesses.

becca's mom, margaret, and sister, rachel

thanks again, angel! we all ready appreciate you.

relief.

2010-05-06T14:59:00.001-04:00

waters are receding in nashville. they are experiencing lots of sunshine, thankfully, and only have a little bit of rain in their upcoming forecasts so this is a huge blessing as they continue to clean up. for those of you who read mckmama's blog, she recently sponsored a fund raiser (and a giveaway) and raised enough money to fill an entire semi truck full of food for "feed the children." she could choose to send this truck anywhere in the united states. where did she decide to send it you ask?

to nashville. (you can read about it if you click here.)

here's another video that has been created. it's not from the news. it's put together with words from a nashvilian. thanks for caring, everyone!

epic flooding in nashville

2010-05-04T09:55:00.000-04:00

i think most of you, my dear blog readers, know that i grew up in and around nashville, tn for 27 years of my life. it is just recently that i have become a resident of asheville, nc. i am proud to be a nashville native.

many of you may or may not know that nashville and surrounding areas were inundated with anywhere from 13-24 inches of rain within a 24-36 hour period. no area can handle this much rain. there are many rivers around the area, the largest being the cumberland river which runs through downtown nashville. this much rain in such a short time caused serious flash flooding that has claimed homes, businesses, nashville landmarks including the opryland hotel, country music hall of fame, the grand ole opry house, and, of course, the worst loss is of life. 10 lives in nashville have been lost, 17 total in tennessee, and up to 29 total within 3 states. people left their homes with the shirts on their backs and that is all they have left.

unfortunately with the oil spill in the gulf and the car bomb in nyc, nashville seems to have been forgotten. lost in the shuffle. i am saddened by the lack of national news coverage. people are hurting and the city is suffering and they need help.

the following video is a 1 minute snippet of news on msnbc.com. this doesn't even begin to describe the devastation that is in and around nashville.

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

nashville isn't the only area devasted by the rain and the storms. it is spread over the southeast. nashville and the surrounding areas have been hit the worst and is obviously near and dear to my heart. if you would like to donate, please visit the middle tennessee red cross website and donate whatever you can. if you can do nothing else, just pray for safety and healing for nashville and the southeast.

a beautiful day in the neighborhood

2010-04-23T13:43:00.003-04:00

it is a gorgeous day in asheville today. lovely for spending time outside, waiting to catch a glimpse of the presidential plane. that's right. the obama's are vacationing in asheville this weekend. we knew around what time they would be arriving and the dogs and i sat outside hoping the flight pattern might bring them over our house. it did. now, i may not be a huge fan of the president, but that doesn't mean i wish him any ill will. how often does the president come to any city, especially one you live in, right? the dogs could care less, though, that's for sure!

fighting over the ball

mischievous cotton

beautiful barley

aftermath

2010-04-20T13:42:00.004-04:00

we love at play with sparky for many reasons. the dogs love it. they provide crateless boarding, including providing them with beds to sleep on. the staff is wonderful. but the #1 reason why we love sparky's is the day after.

she's too tired to care that dave is laying on her.

she hasn't moved, except for breathing, in the last hour.

so sweet and sleepy.

from showers to birthdays...

2010-04-19T21:49:00.005-04:00

we had traditional sunday night dinner with my grandparents. sunday was my uncle steve's birthday and we celebrated in the usual style- dinner (sonic) followed with cake. steve chose a strawberry ice cream cake from maggie moo's. it was delicious. (yes, jay and i ate horribly this weekend. and it was worth every calorie!)

we had a great visit with everyone. my "little" cousins are growing up- lindsey is 16 and driving and haley will be 13 in one month. it was wonderful getting to talk and catch up with everyone besides doing so on facebook or on the phone. i must say, though, with these teens, facebook is a great way to stay up to date on the current events!

of course we got some great pictures sunday night, too.

before the cake was devoured

haley, lindsey, regina and steve (steve is my dad's younger brother)

the lovely ladies

on our way out of town, and back home, this morning (monday) we stopped to visit with my paw paw (my mom's dad). he's been in a "nursing" home for a few months now, which isn't bad considering he just turned 90. his memory isn't quite what it used to be, but he seems to be enjoying himself and winning the hearts of those who care for him. (don't mind my closing eyes- mom only took one picture.)

baby shower, take two

2010-04-19T21:32:00.005-04:00

this trip to tn was filled with baby showers. we had another one on sunday for some dear family friends, chris and his fiance´ ashley. this was my first time to meet her, and i must say i ♥ her already. she's fabulous. good job, christopher! she will be a welcome addition to our friend-ly family. they are expecting a little boy in june that they plan to name joey, a very special name. want the (shortened version of the) back story?

chris' dad, joe, was my dad's best friend from high school. in fact, joe introduced my mom and dad to each other. joe suffered a major heart attack in april 2006 and passed away. now his name will live on in his grandson, joey.

i won't bore you with all the photos (i'll save that for facebook), but here are a few...

ashley and chris

everyone filled out a notecard with baby advice and/or words of encouragement. ashley was reading the card from her best friend, lauren, who is in the white sweater. chris' sister, shannon's daughters, brooke and lindsey miller, are with her in the picture.

all of joey's goodies...

a baby blanket

2010-04-18T11:58:00.004-04:00

i have been working on hannah grace's blanket for months now. i finally finished it the morning of her baby shower.

most of you usual readers know that hannah grace is already here. she turned 3 weeks old the day of her shower. i actually got to meet sweet hannah grace in person yesterday evening. she's beautiful! so tiny and perfect. she is feeding and growing. she has just a little bit of oxygen per nasal cannula and her feeding tube. no iv's. she is a few ounces above her birth weight and has a couple of pounds to gain before she can go home. becca is doing great, too. she is healing well and had a great check-up with her doctor yesterday. (brad is doing great, too. i hope you all don't mind me borrowing a picture of you all.)

we had a great baby shower. i didn't get too many pictures because my sweet cousin angel was our photographer. she has a photography business and i am sure she did a great job on our pictures. i did get her to take a picture of me, becca, rachel (becca's big sister and my best friend from kindergarten), and mandy (one of our other dear friends for the last 20 years).

wordless wednesday

2010-04-07T16:19:00.003-04:00

(mostly wordless. this is proof that at least once in my life i have put on snow skis and successfully skied a very short distance, including turning and stopping. it was when our friend, barry, came to visit in february. i didn't hate it. i didn't love it.)

update on Becca and Hannah Grace

2010-04-06T23:30:00.002-04:00

... actually, you can just hop on over to Brad and Becca's blog and read Becca's update, complete with pictures of their little sweetheart, Hannah. :) happy reading!

update on Becca

2010-04-01T11:09:00.007-04:00

Saturday, April 3: Becca has been moved into a regular room and out of ICU! She is up and mobile again. Praise the Lord! She is able to visit and spend time with her sweet Hannah Grace and with her family. Hannah Grace is still doing well and is tolerating her feedings. Happy Easter indeed.

GREAT NEWS! Becca is off the ventilator and seems to be doing well. (1:50pm EST)

becca's husband, brad, just sent me my morning update. i love her sweet husband. (becca, job well done on this one.) today's update was filled with good news. i am smiling and so thankful for all the prayer warriors out there lifting up this precious family. i know, i know... onto the update:

becca: becca is still on a ventilator (and in the ICU), but they have turned the settings down (weaned her) so that she is doing most of the breathing on her own. there is very little that the vent is actually doing for her. she is still sedated but they are going to wean her off her medications too, and are hopeful to successfully have her off the ventilator today.

hannah: hannah is still doing well. she is being weaned off of her ventilator as well and they are planning to start feeds for her. (former nicu nurse's note: feedings for her will consist of tube feedings and usually start at 0.5-1ml each feeding, which may be every 3 or 6 hours to start with. they begin feedings slowly to make sure their immature guts can handle the process of digestion. at any sign of intolerance, feedings stop and the gut gets a day or so of rest.) she has been on phototherapy for jaundice and brad says they plan to turn that off tomorrow. she did have some bleeding in one of her lungs a few days ago and that appears to have stopped as well. she also had a routine ultrasound of her brain to check for bleeding and it was clear! (nurse's note: brain bleeds are common in very small preemies and those born before 32 weeks. so it's a huge praise that hannah's brain is clear and healthy!)

lots of good news today. keep praying for strong lungs for both girls and decreased anxiety for becca. they appreciate all your prayers.

♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥

(i would love to know who is praying and where you are from, especially if you are lurking and not commenting! i will be seeing becca and brad in a few weeks and would love to tell them where their prayers were coming from, and possibly put them on a map for hannah to see one day, too. will you please comment and share your name and where you live? thanks, stacie)

(also, if you like the picture/print, you can order one. check out The Wheatfield. she has lots of choices and reasonable prices. i can't make up my mind. i love lots of them.)

wordless wednesday

2010-03-30T20:18:00.003-04:00

please pray

2010-03-28T16:42:00.005-04:00

SECOND UPDATE: becca's husband brad said that becca should be getting off her ventilator today and is doing much better. little hannah had a minor set back when they tried to remove her ventilator so she is back on one, but is quickly recovering. i will let you all know more soon. all you lurkers out there... keep praying and say hello!

UPDATE: becca's dad stated this morning in his update that becca is stable and they expect a full recovery/turn around in 24-48 hours. daddy brad reports that little hannah is currently on a ventilator (which is completely normal for a 28 week baby) and they hope to move her off of it in a couple of days. both of these girls are getting better. thanks for the prayers. keep them going up!

hey everyone! please pray for my friend, becca. she is currently in the hospital (in ICU) with complications from pre-eclampsia. her baby, hannah grace, was delivered at 28 weeks. she is 2 lbs. 3 oz. and 14 inches long. hannah grace is doing great in the NICU. daddy/husband, brad, is obviously sleep-deprived and stressed. i am sure the grandparents and aunt and uncle are stressed and worried, too. please keep them in your prayers. i will post updates as i receive them. thank you!

wordless wednesday

2010-03-24T09:34:00.001-04:00

i win!

2010-03-23T20:20:00.004-04:00

there are many blogs that i follow and many of the blog authors/blog friends host giveaways. there is a very sweet girl in london, england, named rebecca, who recently hosted a giveaway for some very cute bracelets at one of her favorite shops. she randomly picked two winners and i am one of them! i have never won a giveaway that i have entered and i am so excited. here is a preview of what is coming my way. i get to choose my colors and it includes one bracelet with the pearls on organza ribbon and one beaded pearl bracelet. i think they're adorable.

puppy play days

2010-03-05T14:56:00.002-05:00

jay was working on his truck the other day with his friends and one friend brought his chocolate lab over who happens to be cotton and barley's friend... whew! they had a blast having an impromptu play date with ramsey. after some romping around inside and outside, they all finally settled down and i was able to take a few pictures. sweet girls!