Livin' Mi Vida Loca

New Blog Site

2007-12-10T11:42:00.001-08:00

So I got a new blog site. I like it way better. Check it out. It's still under construction...
And change your links. I'm moving up to the majors.

livinmividaloca.wordpress.com

We saw Santa.

2007-11-25T17:01:00.000-08:00

And we weren't too fond of him.

But a "Stone Mountain Christmas" was tons of fun.

T-giving (and a haircut...)

2007-11-24T11:07:00.000-08:00

It has been tons of fun to have a few days off and hang with James and Harris pretty much all day long...

We started the break by playing "Guitar Hero" with our LIFE Group on Wednesday night. It was so much fun, in fact, that Jay went out and bought the game himself so we could all play again on Thursday night. It totally makes my hand hurt. But at least I didn't get booed off the stage...James did, though. Twice.

Anyway, Thursday we spent the day at my Aunt Connie's house. Great food, good company, and lots of fun. Here are some pictures.

Getting ready to head out and meet Dad...

In the "woods" at Aunt Connie's...

Check out those molars! We had no idea they were there!!!

Good food...

Cody was really pumped about the fried turkey.

Ummm...after dinner?!?!?

Thursday night we went to the lighting of the tree in and then back to Mom's for more turkey and Guitar Hero. Again, fun. I even cooked some...macaroni and cheese, squash casserole, and M&M cookies. The three things I know how to make.

Harris and Raven in Santa's sleigh

Lights!!!

Santa needs practice with babies...

MMMMMMM.....TURKEY!!!!

Friday we spent the afternoon with James' family, eating again.

And today we took Harris to get a haircut. And that's been our break so far. Too bad we can't make money living like this...

Before...

During...

After...

Harris was most thankful for his good friend, Woody.

ABQ

2007-11-18T17:08:00.000-08:00

Okay. I'm going to attempt to write about our trip to Albuquerque. It was awesome. It was a really quick weekend, but it was so much fun to hang out with Tyler and watch him play in person...and his team even won the game (due in large part, of course, to his QB sack late in the fourth quarter that led to the winning field goal...)!!! Now don't get me wrong, it was a lot of work to travel with a seventeen-month-old, but for the most part Harris behaved beautifully. I had been so worried about the plane ride and the time change and sleeping in a little hotel room with him, but it worked. All of it. He slept when he was tired...no matter where we were. He never does that at home. He slept on the plane, he slept at restaurants, he slept at the football game (while the band marched right beside him), he slept in his car seat...he slept everywhere. And he still slept at night (for the most part). He was great.

James and Harris riding the train to our gate...probably around 5:00 am...

Mom was already in Albuquerque when we arrived (and remember, our plane left Atlanta at 6:15 am!!!!), so she picked us up from the airport in her awesome gangsta Dodge Magnum rental car. James and I got in a quick nap while she took Harry to campus to wait for Tyler to get out of class...they came back with Harris wearing his very own Lobo cap and clutching a stuffed horse (who we've named Paint), that he now clings to in his crib...crazy. He's never had a "lovey" before...never even acted like he was interested in one...and now he's got this little stuffed horse that sleeps right up under his armpit every night. I'm not really sure why the campus bookstore was selling stuffed horses, since their mascot is a Lobo, but that's another story. Mom swears he picked out all by himself and carried it around the store until he suckered her into buying it for him. That's my baby. We spent the rest of Friday eating, hanging with Tyler, napping, and eating again. Dad was also in town for the weekend, so we totally scored in the free meal department.

The gangsta Magnum. Don't ask me what Mom's doing. Or James.

Saturday was the big game. The tailgate scene was awesome. The school is big enough to attract a lot of attention and vendors and stuff like that, but not so big that the crowds are overwhelming. They had moonwalks and a live band and free t-shirts and all kinds of restaurants serving food out of tents in the parking lot...it was really neat. And they sell burritos at the concession stand. The pretty much sell burritos everywhere. Harris did great at the game...he slept for the first half...and that was pretty much our day. We did, of course, go out for some dinner, but then collapsed into our super comfy beds (not really) for the night.

Harris and Pop getting a Lobo tattoo.

Watching Tyler warm up.

Passed out for the first half.

Meeting the Lobos...Larry and Lucy, maybe? Or Lenny?

After the game.

Our plane didn't leave on Sunday until late in the afternoon, so we went to the zoo in the morning. Again, big enough to have all kinds of animals, but not super crowded. Harris loved the zoo. So did Mom...I thought we'd never get the two of them to move to the next exhibit. And usually Tyler is the slow one. Or James. Never me. Anyway, the zoo was great...spending the morning with Tyler was great...eating lunch at Kelly's, this cool sports bar across from campus, was great...almost missing our plane was not.

Checking out the zebras.

Ice cream with Dad.

I'm pretty sure this is a Lobo statue. They're all over the place.

Again, the airport is not really all that big. One terminal. Walk to everything. Except the rental car return. We totally almost missed the check-in deadline. Tyler followed us over to the rental car return and then sped James, Harris, me, and all the luggage over to the check-in counter as quickly as possible while Mom did all the paperwork stuff and then caught the bus. Sounded like a good plan at first, until we actually begin to carry it out...and realized that #1, we didn't have enough room in Emma (Tyler's Altima) for all the luggage and Harris' car seat, and #2, we didn't have enough time to put the car seat in the car anyway. Long story short, I totally pulled a Britney Spears in the back seat...and that's pretty much all I'll say on that. Think Britney Spears and Sean Preston, not Britney Spears and no underwear.

Anyway, we made it home. Harris can't wait to see his Uncle Tyler again. Go Lobos!!!

Something to Hold You Over...

2007-11-14T17:15:00.000-08:00

So sorry, Kim, but I'm still sorting through the 8,000 pictures I took during our trip to Albuquerque (which was awesome!). Here's a little something to hold you over until I get them posted...

My kid loves spaghetti. Enough to lick the plate clean. And I promise the plate licking was completely spontaneous. Good thing spaghetti is something I can make (thanks, Prego!).

He also likes potato chips. Evidently this is how he and James spend their afternoons while they wait for me to get home. They're probably watching Jerry Springer.

I love my boys.

Update

2007-11-08T16:55:00.000-08:00

First off, thanks to all of you who called to let me know you were praying for us. Your calls truly made my heart happy. And I promise I will call you back...my cell phone battery actually died as we were leaving the specialist's office this morning, and I had a meeting off campus today, so I didn't even have access to my office phone. Welcome to my life.

Anyway, we did want to say a huge thanks to those of you who have prayed for us over the last week. We have truly felt God's perfect peace in our hearts, and we are extremely grateful. Today's visit to the specialist went really well. The Level II ultrasound was really clear, and it actually lasted about an hour, which was kinda neat. The tech did a super thorough check of all her organs, bones, hands, feet, etc., and even though the cysts are still present in her brain, everything else looks good. They drew some blood from me today, and we'll get those results in about a week, and we'll also head back in two weeks to re-check the cysts. Between the ultrasounds and the bloodwork, we're hoping to lower her risk of any chromosomal abnormalities to that of a baby without the cysts present.

Another huge praise is that we won't need to have an amniocentisis now, which I was really dreading having to make that decision. The doctor was awesome, and basically told us that the only reason we would need to have that particular test now is if we were considering terminating the pregnancy, which we're not...the only way to be 100% sure that she doesn't have anything crazy going on is to perform the amnio, but we're at peace with our decision not to pursue that at this time.

Anyway, I'll keep you posted...James and I are continuing to pray for the cysts to resolve on their own, and would love to have you join us. Thanks so much!

Hi Ho, Halloween's here!

2007-11-02T17:57:00.000-07:00

I've decided I like Halloween. I mean, it's awesome when you're a kid and you get to dress up and eat candy (that you didn't have to pay for) until you puke, but it gets a little lame sometime during middle school, when you ring the doorbell to a home and the guy who answers gives you one piece of candy while the three-year-old in front of you gets a whole heaping handful. Seriously, who does that guy think will eat more candy? Or maybe it became lame simply because I was (and could still be considered) a dork, and didn't get invited (or don't remember, at least) to too many Halloween shindigs. Whatever. What I'm trying to say is that Halloween has turned out to be a lot of fun the last couple of years.

After our awesome experience picking pumpkins, we let Harry paint his own little guy, while James carved the big one himself. It was messy, but a lot of fun. The look Harris gave me when I told him it was okay to put his fingers in that big blob of messy paint was absolutely priceless. It's one of the same looks James gives me that simply reads, "You must be crazy, woman." Made me laugh.

To celebrate Halloween, we headed over to our church for the "3rd Annual Halloween Festival." This is the first year we've actually had it at our own place (rather than the school where we used to meet), and it was tons of fun. Harris had a great time jumping in the moonwalk, hanging with his friends Quinn and Raven, and sweating to death in his super hot, super cute monkey costume. We gave away our entire bucket of candy, and James even handed out a few single Ritz crackers to a couple of kids...I am in no way responsible for his actions. Here are a few pics documenting the evening:

A snapshot on our porch before leaving for the festival. This might be the same look I got regarding the finger paints. Notice the dogs getting in on the action.

Having a great time at the festival...

Cody competing in the "cake walk..."which he somehow managed to win.

Harris and Raven getting ready to "trunk or treat."

Harry and Quinn hanging out...still contemplating the craziness of the situation...

Monkey man.

And what might possibly be my favorite pic of the whole night...Quinn's cumbersome costume caused her be in the "I've fallen and I can't get up" position, but she continued consuming her Cheetos as if all was right with the world. And her mother let her.

Chillin.

A really, really fun evening.

Our Baby Girl...

2007-11-01T07:24:00.000-07:00

So Baby Teague is definitely a girl. Go figure.

In addition to sharing our excitement over this news, we'd really like to ask you guys to join us in prayer as well.

During the ultrasound yesterday, they noticed a couple of cysts in her brain. Evidently, brain cysts are fairly common in fetuses between 16 and 24 weeks of age, and most of them disappear on their own. However, brain cysts, if paired with abnormalities in other organs, can also indicate trisomy 18, which is fatal shortly after birth. The doctor seemed pretty upbeat about our situation, but he has referred us to a specialist where we'll be receiving a Level II ultrasound that will look for abnormalities in those other organs, as well as check out the cysts more in depth. It's going to be a loooooong few weeks as we wait for the appointment and results.

James and I know without a shadow of a doubt that God is knitting this baby in my womb. We're praying that the cysts will resolve on their own and that further tests (amniocentisis, etc.) would not be needed, but mostly we're asking that God would show His glory through our family and this situation. We'd love to have you join us in prayer.

Thanks for being our friends. We'll definitely keep you posted.

8 Random Cooking Things

2007-10-28T16:54:00.000-07:00

Did anyone have any idea that a tag-type game exists in the blogging world? Because one does. I was reading my friend Deanna's blog, simply to see what's going on in her world, and there, at the bottom of her post, is my name...with the directions that I am now being "tagged" and must write about 8 random cooking things...are you kidding me????!!!??? But because I am a good friend, I will not let her down. So here goes...

8 Random Cooking Things

1. Ummm, I don't cook. Ever. Unless you count heating up a DiGorno pizza, or a Stouffer's lasagna (that stuff is dang good...especially the veggie kind), or a Gerber Graduates box meal, or something else of the sort. I can, however, brown some ground beef and pour a little Prego over it...I can even cook the noodles myself. I'm a genius with boiling water.

2. The kitchen is officially closed on Tuesday nights. That's when my family eats at Chickfila. No questions asked. We've been there every Tuesday night for the past 9 years. Only they recently stopped the cheap kids meals, which is why we started going in the first place. We could each get two kids meals at a cheaper price than a value meal, and it was the same amount of food!! Now we just go for the combos.

3. Whenever it's our turn to bring dinner to LIFE group, we order pizza. Papa John's has a mean Italian Meats Trio pizza. Or at least, they used to. I called last week and they told me they were no longer selling it. So I didn't order anything. But always, always, always make sure you order your pies with extra sauce when you do decide to get something. Trust me, it's so much better that way.

4. If you have a baby and I volunteer to bring you a meal, you're getting the Publix chicken deal. Because honestly, it's good, it's easy, and it's cheap. I mean, you can get a whole rotissere chicken (or 8 pieces of the fried stuff), two hot sides (not the potato salad junk), 4 rolls, and a 1/2 gallon of sweet tea for $9.99. You just can't beat it. And they've got some great rotissere flavors...

5. Most of the time spent in the kitchen is spent washing Harris' dishes. Since we don't cook all that often, we don't run the dishwasher a whole lot. At the end of the day, it's just easier to hand wash his sippy cups and spoons and forks and stuff...it takes about 5 minutes, and James and I alternate nights. One of us puts the little guy to bed, the other washes...and then we switch.

6. I do make a mean sweet tea. It's the one thing I make sure to have in my fridge when my brother or sister babysit. Four tea bags, some boiling water (again, I'm a genius with this stuff), two heaping cups of sugar, and a little cold water can go a long way...I totally put the sweet in tea.

7. My dogs love my kitchen floor. In ths summer, they use it quite frequently to cool themselves down...I think it must feel good against their skin. I haven't tried the technique myself, but there are times during the summer when I'm hot enough to think about it. I've seen Harry give it a shot before. And it's so much easier to clean up their drool off the kitchen floor than it is off the carpet.

8. The kitchen floor makes an awesome race track. Harris absolutely loves to hop on one of his many ride-on toys and take off throughout the foyer and kitchen/breakfast area...it's so much fun to watch him. He pumps his legs really fast and then lifts his feet off the ground. He loves those things. And I love to watch him go. It might be my favorite part of the kitchen.

And so now, for the tagging...I think you're supposed to tag three people. I'll definitely go with Kim, Catherine, and Kelly. Many of you are off the hook this time (for example, if you just had a baby)...but know that if I ever get tagged again, I'm coming your way...

Christmas in October

2007-10-27T17:01:00.000-07:00

So this morning we headed out to the pumpkin farm...and I'll totally promote the heck out of Washington Farms in Watkinsville, GA. Awesome.

James and Harris rode the "cow train" and the hayride, as well as visited the petting zoo. James got to shoot a corn cob gun and a pumpkin slingshot, and Harry got to ride in a wheelbarrow while we picked the perfect (super cheap) pumpkins.

Harris also got to have his picture taken with the Great Pumpkin and Santa Claus all at once!! (Just kidding, it's only Pop...)

All in all, a pretty good day. Minus the fact that I didn't think about the effect of the sun on Harris' crazy rash. We ended up with a pizza face baby for the rest of the afternoon. And we were supposed to get to meet baby Bella tonight, so it really stunk. Check out these pics of my absolutely adorable crater-faced kid.

At least the Dawgs won.

Hunka Hunka Burnin' Love at the Auburn Festival

2007-10-20T11:33:00.001-07:00

So I highly recommend the Auburn Festival. Here's why:

#1: Elvis. With chest hair. Enough to blow in the wind. And I honestly can't say what was better: the fact that there was an Elvis impersonator at the festival, or the fact that he had fans. Real fans...the kind that stand as close as they can to the stage and sing along. The kind that turn their cheeks up to meet The King when he bends down to kiss them. The kind that want his scarf to get close enough to brush their fingertips. It was great. Especially when he sang the wrong words to "Love Me Tender." It was almost as good as the girl who sang the wrong words to the National Anthem and didn't even know it.

#2: The Kiddie Train. At an extremely reasonable price.

#3: A horse-drawn carriage. Again, reasonably priced. And Harry and I got to ride with a true Auburn resident; a lady who lives just past the tracks and was able to walk to the festival. She can also walk to the new Auburn library (they've upgraded their old 600 sq. foot building) and is allergic to bee stings. But not to worry...her son is, too, and since an epipen costs $300, she just plans to use his allergy medicine if she ever gets stung. It's amazing what you can learn about someone while riding a horse-drawn carriage.

#4: Auburn City BBQ. Which is way better than Cluckin' Pig. And kids under 3 eat for free...always.

#5: A great view of the Auburn water tower, which has just been "renovated" with a fresh coat of paint.

#6: Completely free admission. Cheap food. Good entertainment. I can't wait until next year. Neither can Harry.

the Elisha Winn Fair

2007-10-11T16:36:00.000-07:00

So, we've got a little bit of history right in our own backyard. Well, pretty close to our own backyard. Last weekend, we went to the Eisha Winn Fair in Dacula with some friends. As I am typing this and thinking about what I might say that is of historical interest, I realize that I have no idea who Elisha Winn is or what he may have done. I am fairly certain that he is one of the "founding fathers" of the Methodist campground in Lawrenceville, but that's about all I know. That and the fact that his family lived in a big white house that sits on Dacula Road next to the Apalachee Farms neighborhoods.
Here are Harry and Quinnie at the fair...

The fair was fun, I guess. We toured the big white house, saw some men dressed up like Confederate soliders, toured a one-room schoolhouse, had our pictures taken with a "jailbird," and set the kids in front of a large teepee. I don't know much about history, but I'm not sure there would have been a teepee in Mr. Winn's backyard. Just a hunch. Oh yeah--we also got to hear the "Little Miss Dacula" contestants sing their favorite country songs. Nice. If this baby turns out to be a girl, please slap me if I ever enter her in the "Little Miss Dacula" pageant. What am I going to do with a girl?!?!? I can't brush my own hair, let alone someone else's!

E, balloon, Harris, baby, Quinn, and the teepee

Anyway, the fair was pretty much our most recent form of excitement. I think there's something happening in downtown Auburn in the next couple of weeks, so we'll try to hit that up, too. Until then, know that posts may be few and far between. James is serving on a federal jury in Atlanta, so Harry and I are on our own for most of the evening. We're having a lot of fun, but I'm wiped out by the time he's in the bed. I love that little guy.
(I think this why Woody is obese.)

My friend Katie

2007-10-11T11:53:00.000-07:00

is having a baby! Like, today. Check out her story (as told by her hubby) on their blog...

www.greenfamily.blogsome.com

and join in the fun of welcoming baby Bella Reese!

If you read my Mom's blog...

2007-10-07T17:01:00.000-07:00

...do so with caution. It's strange, but she is trying hard. I love you, Mom.

Careful of the Carnies...

2007-09-28T18:24:00.000-07:00

...they'll steal your soul. At least, that's what James says. But the Gwinnett County Fair is totally worth the risk. We visited the petting zoo (they had a three-hour-old baby donkey which had been born in front of a live studio audience...talk about getting your dollar's worth), ate some roast corn, rode the merry-go-round (well, James and Harris rode the merry-go-round), saw the first place squash, and watched the goat show. All in all, a pretty quality afternoon. And it only cost us half of our monthly earnings.

Here's Harry petting the calf...as we all know, the cow says "BOOOO..."

And here are my boys at the beginning of the $3.00 per person ride...

And more toward the end...

He was smiling when they got off. I promise.

And, of course, the random pic of the week. Cassidy (the LIFE group baby sitter) in Harry's new tent.

Shout Out #2

2007-09-28T11:00:00.000-07:00

Here's a new shout out to Big T...he's got 22 tackles, 4.5 tackles for loss, and 6 QB hurries so far this year! This week's game is televised on CSTV...the Lobos take on BYU for Homecoming at 8:30 Eastern time. They've actually started the season at 3-1, probably for the first time ever, so we're super pumped. Check him out if you get a chance!

And don't worry, I'll post my fair pics soon...I've got a great one of Harry crying on the merry go round.

Peace out.

These Boots Were Made for Walking...

2007-09-21T17:47:00.000-07:00

And that's just what they'll do...finally! My baby can walk!!! Now, in all honesty, he's only taking about six steps before falling, but they are an awesome six steps! He's even learned how to get into the standing position all by himself (without pulling up on anything around him). I wish I could say I taught him how to walk, but if I'm going to tell the truth, then the following is pretty much what happened during those first precious steps:

Harris is in his playroom (think dining room with no furniture), I'm in the kitchen chowing down on some Bagel Bites after a long day at work, James is upstairs in the shower...Harry comes over to the gate and starts whining because he wants a Bagel Bite. I pretend not to hear him because I don't want to share. He stops whining, I look over, and he's walking across the floor. And that, folks, is how it happened. I get in the playroom with him and get him to walk to me a few more times, and then I take off upstairs to get James out of the shower. I'm so excited, and I'm trying to move quickly because I don't want James to miss any of it...I make it very close to the top of the stairs before tripping over something (I think my own foot) and landing pretty hard on my hands and knees. The entire upstairs shakes. I jump up, run into the bathroom, say James' name, and hear "What just happened?" I respond, "Harris can walk!" He responds, "But what just happened up here?" I respond, "Um, that was me. I fell. But Harris can walk. Hurry up." And I head back to downstairs to laugh and smile and love on my walking baby.

These pics are all from Tuesday evening...obviously one day of walking is not enough practice.

And yeah, my grass is pretty much dead. We're just pretending it's winter. Or that we're doing our part for the environment by not wasting our most precious natural resource.

And here's the fun extra pic for the week...he loves the park. Nothing beats cheap (or free) fun.

You Dropped a Bomb on Me, Baby

2007-09-15T18:02:00.001-07:00

So it's come to my attention that I have yet to officially post anything whatsoever about this new baby taking up residence in my womb. I have no idea why...unless it's the fact that the little booger is sucking every ounce of energy I have managed to somehow store away from Harris, thus rendering me very, very close to comatose. Poor James. As my energy is depleted, so is all sense of courtesy and respect. I'm trying...I really am.

Anyway, we're excited (and nervous, crazy, anxious, and finally over our initial shock) to be welcoming a new baby in mid-March. My due date is actually March 20, but because I ended up having a C-section with Harris, I now get to choose how I'd like to bring this new baby into the world...and I was seriously leaning toward a VBAC until I learned that a scheduled C-section would take place 7-10 days before the due date. Sweet!! That might seriously influence my decision...that and the fact that a C-section means having a catheter for 24 hours. I'm not kidding. The catheter was the best part of my previous birth experience...after all those months of having to pee every hour on the hour (at least), it was GREAT to be able to drink as much as I wanted and never have to leave the bed. Definitely worth the twenty-something staples in my uterus. There is a lot to consider in the decision, though, and it's not one we'll take lightly. I'll keep you posted.

And now back to Harry. Here are some great pics of his adventures this week. I love this little guy. Please keep the following in mind when viewing the next couple of pictures: his teeth are still growing. The current snaggle-tooth stage he's experiencing is most likely not related in any way whatsover to my childhood dental predicament best known as the "Shredder" years. Yes, I had some funky teeth. Yes, they made my mouth look like a can opener. Yes, I am reminded of that time period every time I go to Mom's and see big family pic hanging on her wall. No, that is not happening to my little baby. And yes, he's always this happy when he eats. He's part Donaldson.

He's also generally happy during bath time. And he's got a ton of hair. And he pees in the bath every night. Without fail.

Thursday was a particulary energy-draining day for me. I'm not sure why; I was just beat by the time I got home. James and I decided to try out Harry's Baby Einstein video, "Neighborhood Animals," and all I can say is "On what planet have I been living on that I have not ever done this before?!?!?!?!?!" This was awesome. He actually sat still for 20 minutes. TWENTY MINUTES!!! Thank You, God, for Baby Einstein!!

And here's the final pic of the post...I had to work today (yuck!), so James took Harris to the snake and lizard show (don't ask, I don't know any details) here in Dacula. This will never live as a pet (or in any other form, for that matter) in my house. I wonder what he's thinking...

Waycross=Way Cool!

2007-09-05T17:29:00.000-07:00

So, this past weekend we were off to Waycross (which is in South Georgia). My Mema's family lives in Waycross, and my great aunt and uncle were celebrating their 60th wedding anniversary with a shindig on Saturday night, so me, James, Harris, Mom, Cassidy, and Cody loaded up in Prof Plum (that's the name of my van) and headed down. It was a long trip.

We had a good time, though. We got to see a lot of family we haven't seen in years. Saturday afternoon we went to my Uncle Ray's (Mema's brother) for lunch. He lives in this super cool house that is 101 years old and is huge...it could totally be a bed and breakfast. I wish I had taken more pictures of the architecture, but the following were all I got.

This is Harris and his cousin, Quinn. Quinn lives in Decatur, so we see her a little more often, but unfortunately not much. I love Quinn. When she was leaving her preschool class one day last year, her dad (my uncle) told her to tell the kids "bye," and she looked at them all, waved her arm in the air, and said, "so long, suckers." It doesn't get much better than that. On Saturday night we were watching the Georgia game on a big screen at the party, and she wanted to know when The Simpsons were coming on. Too bad she's only four and not twenty four, or James might have married her. He loves The Simpsons.

And so here's another excellent picture to document the trip. This, actually, pretty much sums up the whole weekend. These are the only two pics I have of the interior of the place.

Uncle Ray also had a pretty neat garden, in which he grows figs and melons and many other types of horticulture crap. Here's the fam trying some muscadines from his vine...I guess Cody's laughing at how his relatives look because he has yet to see the previous pic.

The only other point of interest from Uncle Ray's is that James and Cody both got invited to be members of the "Hurricane Viagra Club." They were given little business cards and everything. When James first showed it to me, I laughed, and then I laughed even harder when I realized the cards were serious. They really have a "Hurricane Viagra Club." It meets every Wednesday from 11 until 2. Don't ask. Anyway, here's a picture of the boys flashing their membership cards before leaving for the anniversary party on Saturday night. They could also be a couple.

On Sunday morning, we went over to my Uncle Roy's farm. Uncle Roy is my Mema's other brother. We ate a huge breakfast, looked at some old pictures, and let Harris sit on his tractor. Here's a picture of Aunt Marlene (Mema's sister), Cody, and Mema. Talk about Hurricane Viagra.

And here are some pics of Harry on the tractor. He's so cute. And, I guess, a lil' bit country. He makes his Daddy proud.

And even though this pic is far away, it's of Harry, me, Mom, and Mema...four generations of my family. On a tractor.

And then here's your random pic of the week...on Monday, Harris found James' dog tags. Somebody, somewhere, has taught this kid what a neckalce is and and how to put it on. He put these on himself and would not let anyone take them off or put them on correctly. He was so proud.

God Bless America!

Go, Lobos, Go!

2007-08-31T18:08:00.000-07:00

Alright, Lobo fans!! If you get the AJC, check out the huge pic of my brother in today's Gwinnett section...#55, you can't miss him. If not, check him out on Saturday when the Lobos kick off the season against UTEP...it's coming on CSTV (ch. 610 on Directv) at like 10:00 p.m. Saturday night. Sweet.

Anyway, good luck Teeler! Know that we love you and we'll be cheering for you, and maybe even doing that little Lobo sign with our hand!

Movin' On Up...

2007-08-25T17:37:00.000-07:00

Okay...I don't even know where to start.

Harris got new shoes last Sunday. Not that he can walk yet, but at least his little feet will be protected as soon as he takes his first steps. Mom and I took him to Stride Rite because they have that sign out front that says they "custom fit" babies' feet and all that jazz...yeah, they just stuck his little foot on one of those foot-measuring things (the same thing they used on my foot last time I got sized for shoes, which was like a decade ag0) and declared him a 4 1/2 wide (although his foot is a lot more fat than it is wide), and that was it. And then I almost had a heart attack when I picked up a cute shoe and saw the $48 price tag on the heel...seriously, even if Mom's buying, that's a little pricey for a shoe he'll outgrow in four months. So, we left. And went to JC Penny. And bought two pairs for the price of one at Stride Rite...and one of them is a Stride Rite brand shoe. The others are Nikes. And they're both really cute. Unfortunately, we put a pair on him the other day and after about 10 minutes, the poor kid looked like he'd taken a bath. He obviously got his sweat genes from me.

So then on Monday, Pop (aka Dad, aka Ronnie) came and took me, James, Harris, Cassidy, Jay, and Cody to Macaroni Grill for a birthday celebration. Now, this would be perfectly reasonable considering my birthday was Thursday, except for the fact that we were celebrating not only my birthday, but also Cassidy's (which was in February), Cody's (which, of course, was in July), and I guess Jay's,too (which is also in July, but I don't think Dad knows that). Anyway, it was a very nice meal, minus the fact that Dad told the waitress her breath didn't smell so great. I didn't exactly hear what was said, but I know that when I turned to face them, Dad was whispering and she was popping a mint in her mouth. Now, this may be my Dad's way of flirting...or maybe he really is socially inept...but it was at this point when James made sure to clarify that the rest of us didn't notice her breath at all, so she needed to make sure she knew which entree was Dad's before she spit. I unfortunately left my camera at home, so all pictures of the fam in front of Macaroni Grill were taken on Cassidy's.

But the best outing of all was tonight. James and I were bored, so we decided to take Harris to Chuck E. Cheese. Have you been to that place lately? We were there for about ten minutes and I think Harris left with ADD. Seriously, it was crazy. And all Harry could do was stare. At everything. The good news is that they had a very small toddler area with some rides geared toward little kids...and all rides/games/etc. only cost one token, so for a buck Harris got to ride four things. Actually, he rode the Barney truck twice. I'm not sure he knew what was going on. I don't think he knows who Barney is, either, because he was not taking his eyes off that dinosaur. We bathed him in Purell upon leaving. That place is insanity.

And so there are the highlights of my week.

Harris' Balls: Fun for Everyone

2007-08-16T17:07:00.001-07:00

I've spent the past couple of days thinking up that title. Your tax dollars at work, folks...what else can I say? I've realized that since I've gone back to work, I haven't taken nearly as many pictures of Harry as I did all summer long. I probably took ten of him every day while I was at home (he's just so stinkin' cute); and I probably have ten total pics for the whole month of August. Oh well. The incessant picture taking had to end sometime. Maybe now that he's not constantly blinded by a flash he'll be able to see and enjoy the world around him. I love that little guy.

Here are some of the most recent pics I have. These were taken last weekend, when Harris' good friend Quinn came over to play for a little bit. Grantee bought Harris some of his very own Chuck-E-Cheese balls (I would have killed for my own Chuck-E-Cheese balls when I was a kid), and he absolutely loves them! "Ball" is one of the few words he actually knows how to say (it sounds like "bah"), so that makes them even better. His friend Raven gave him this awesome little play area that actually houses all the balls for his birthday, but James and I have been too lazy to blow it up, so we just threw all of them in the pack and play for now. One of these days we'll get that thing full of hot air and then Chuck-E-Cheese better watch its back! Our dog Woody is almost big enough to pass for Chuck E. himself. We could totally pull that off.

And here's your bonus pic of the week: Harris and Quinn playing on Harry's super favorite slide. And just in case you're wondering, she is not pregnant with his child, even though it looks as if she is wearing a maternity dress. Love ya, Quinnie! And oh yeah...we're still kickin' the builder finish in this part of Harris' playroom (a.k.a. the formal living room). It's on tap to be painted "Iron Gray" or something like that.

Research

2007-08-12T17:52:00.000-07:00

I've been doing some research this weekend. I thought I'd share a little of what I discovered with the world. Now, let me first and foremost mention that my primary (and only) source for this research was copyrighted in 2004, so the material may not be the most up-to-date, but it is intriguing just the same. So as not to overwhelm my audience, I think the best course of action might be to share a little tidbit every now and then; perhaps when I feel the need to post and have absolutely nothing interesting to write about.

So, here's the first installment of "research..."

In French folklore, dreaming about poop is an omen that good fortune is on the way (Bathroom Readers' Institute, 2004).

Was anyone aware of that? Has anyone, in fact, ever had a dream about poop? I've dreamed many, many crazy things in my life (most recently that I was having a "restaurant affair" with my boss from college, in which we would eat out for every single meal, go back to the office, relieve ourselves, and then make out...hey, I guess that does involve poop!), but I don't particularly recall dreams in which poop is the explicit focus. Poop does play quite a large role during my waking hours...I change Harris' diaper (and see colors and textures I had no idea could be produced by the human body), pick up poop belonging to Norm and/or Woody while walking, and even spend a fair amount of time on the porcelain king myself, but the good fortune of having poop in my dreams always seems to escape me. Maybe I'll get lucky tonight.

And just in case you're wondering, Uncle John's Slightly Irregular Bathroom Reader is a great source not only for research, but also for pure entertainment.

No Complaints

2007-08-07T16:50:00.000-07:00

Who knew work could be so draining? I love my job (really, I do)...but lately it's been tough. And by "lately," I mean the last two days, because of course I've only been at work for two days. I just didn't want to sound like a huge whiner by writing "two days." "Lately" makes this post seem so much more reasonable. Anyway, enough with the rhetoric. Bottom line is I'm tired.

Today I was given a purple Live Strong-type bracelet with the words "A Complaint Free World" imprinted on the band. Evidently some dude is pushing this no complaining crap on Oprah and The Today Show and other shows of the like, and people all over the place are flocking to this idea. The basic premise is this: You put the bracelet on the wrist of your choice. If you complain, the bracelet is moved to the opposite wrist. The goal is to have the bracelet stay on the same wrist for 21 days (or to not complain for three straight weeks). Sounds pretty good in theory. Too bad sarcasm counts as complaining.

It's actually a neat idea. I will work to choose a positive attitude and be selective of the words I put into the world (I really do need to work on my vocabulary for Harris' sake), but my anal retentive personality just doesn't work with the bracelet idea. All it would take is one little slip of a complaint and I would say to myself, "Well, today's ruined...mine as well as make the most of it and start fresh tomorrow." I just don't think that's what the Complaint Free World guy envisoned.

And besides, this little guy is really all the inspiration I need. Whoa; I just filled my sap quota for the entire year.

Harris loves his Nemo hat. He's wearing it indoors because I don't let him wear it in public.

What up Tyler D!

2007-08-04T12:08:00.001-07:00

Here's a little blurb about my baby brother from the University of New Mexico website. You can totally link to his profile if you want to. It's cool. Just wanted to give him a shout out. This is why he never returns my comments on MySpace anymore...he's just too stinkin' busy playing football. We love you, Tyler!

"Senior end Tyler Donaldson (Lawrenceville, Ga.) established himself as one of the quickest and most active linemen in the Mountain West en route to second team all-conference honors in his first year as a starter in 2006. A bit undersized at 6-4, 226, Donaldson nevertheless wreaked havoc at the line of scrimmage with 5.0 sacks, 9.0 tackles for loss, a safety, five quarterback hurries and three pass break-ups to go along with his 49 tackles."

Who needs a babysitter...and Happy Birthday CoCo!

2007-08-02T17:45:00.000-07:00

Who needs a babysitter...when you've got an old dog kennel? Totally kidding...I should probably write that in huge letters before I get turned over to DFACS. If you'd like their number, I unfortunately know it by heart...that's one of the things being a counselor will get ya. Harris just crawled in last night and played for quite a while before his LIFE group friends showed up...and to think you people are willing to leave your kids at my place. Just thought the pic was funny.

On another note...

Happy Birthday CoCo! Tonight we celebrated Cody's twentieth birthday by going to dinner at Longhorn's. Don't be confused by the fact that Cody was actually born on July 2. We're a little bit behind...but who cares, as long as there's a free meal involved. I live for the free meal, remember? And could it get much better than a free meal at Longhorn, where I ordered the Flo's Filet/Salmon combo and justified it by saying I was sharing with Harry? I don't think so. Especially when Harris ended up eating more of James' chicken fingers than anything off of my plate. Thanks for dinner, Mom.

I really don't know why we're taking pictures outside of Longhorn. We see each other almost every day. It's not even like it's a Longhorn in another state, or even county for that matter. It's just the old school Longhorn by the movie theater. I can't explain or justify the pics in any way. It's not even Cody's real birthday. I also have no idea why James insisted on taking these pictures rather than being a part of them. Like he didn't want to claim us as family or something. But then, he redeemed himself and guaranteed us another free meal sometime in the near future by allowing me to snap a shot including him.

And this one below is just thrown in for fun. Poor Cassidy was so worried about the pony that lives on Fence Road. Evidently, she was planning on throwing him some carrots out her car window today, but he wasn't in his pasture (otherwise known as his owner's front yard). She was worried. But don't fear, good ol' Freddie Mercury (as she named earlier in the week) is alive and kickin'. James and I saw him tonight. So have your carrots ready next time you're out his way.

H2O

2007-07-27T17:36:00.000-07:00

Okay, the title of this is totally H2O, the symbol for water. Not that really crazy Halloween movie they had out a while ago...I think that was called H20, like the number. I saw it but can't really remember if it was any good. In fact, all I really remember about the movie is that Jamie Lee Curtis was is in it, and I only remember that because she is (or was) a hermaphrodite. At least that's what my siblings told me.

The real point of this post is simply to show off some pics of Sweet Baby Harris playing in the fountain today at Suwanee Station. He loved it!!! And he totally sported his sleeveless, redneck, airbrushed t-shirt from Pop. I thought about letting him go without sunscreen so that he could really build up his farmer's tan, but decided against it. Not worth the cancer risk. Seriously, we really did have a good time. He sat by this one spout (is that what you call it?) for about an hour. He stuck his feet in it, his hands in it, his face in it...it was great. And free. You can't get much better than that.

Shout out to James

2007-07-23T10:09:00.000-07:00

So this is a shout out to James. For those of you who know us, and know us well, it should come as absolutely no surprise that for over two years, the interior walls of our house have been decorated in what we have come to know and love as "builder finish." Absolutely no pictures hanging on the walls, no towel racks or toilet paper holders in the bathrooms (even though we did purchase new towel racks and toilet paper holders when we first moved in), no cute decorations (or color) anywhere. Well, except for Harris' room. His was painted and decorated before he was born. But the rest of (and by the rest of us, I mean James and me) were simply draping our towels over the bathtub every day until my Mema stayed with us after Harry's birth and realized the squalor we were living in and bought us a towel rack we can hang over the door in our bathroom. Which we have done. Hanging something over a door is a task we can totally handle. She also bought us these really nice knives because evidently ours were not up to par. Each knife cuts a specific food item (veggies, fruits, raw meats, etc.), and they're super nice. The only probelm is that James and I have to keep the wrappers on the knives so we'll know what type of food to cut with which knife. Why is cooking so complicated? So anyway, since I don't randomly take pictures of my walls, I'm posting a picture of Harris (of course). Notice the lovely color behind his high chair, and imagine it stretching across your entire house...all 2700 square feet of it. It's depressing.

But here's the good news, and the point I've been trying to make throughout my rambling. We've started to paint!!! James has painted our den a lovely color known as "dover beige," or dark brown, and our kitchen is now "linden green." It looks so much better. Now I've got to be honest and say that our framed pictures and family portraits and Southern Living pieces are still sitting in boxes upstairs in the bonus room, but I do not care. Maybe we'll get something other than paint on the walls in the next two years. For now, I'm happy with the little bit of color. Keep checking in for updates on how the rest of the house is coming along...and check out the green behind Harris in the following pic. Thanks, James!!

And just in case you're wondering...I have tried to help with the painting, but am evidently not very good at it. James let me paint behind the refrigerator. I just read the rest of the time.

Sweet Baby Harris

2007-07-20T10:14:00.000-07:00

So this is why I'm going to start blogging: to share sweet pictures of my baby. And to share a funny story or two about my family every now and then. Actually, I'm addicted to the Internet and anything that will allow me to talk about myself. That's the real reason I've started a blog.