Movies

Well, we watched a couple of the movies that just came out on video and I am very unimpressed. First of all, Mama Mia was stupid. I didn't like the story, the songs, the acting...none of it. Secondly, Burn After Reading was too weird! The casting was terrible. John Malkovich is a great actor and he did fine, but the woman who played his wife was not good casting...Brad Pitt looked like an idiot...George Clooney's character was pathetic...I just didn't care for the casting. The movie itself was ok, I guess...just weird. I haven't yet watched The Women, but I heard it wasn't good either...should I bother? Does anyone know of a good new release movie??

Merry Christmas

The Grainger Family wishes everyone
a Very Merry Christmas!
"For unto you is born this day in the city of David a savior which is Christ the Lord." Luke 2:11

I'm ready!

I am ready for Christmas...oh, I still have to go to the grocery store for one last time, but I am physically and mentally ready for a day of peace and quiet with my loved ones close by. I was tired and cranky today. My darling husband asked me to run some errands for him today. I can honestly say that none of you...none of you!...had to do the errands asked of me today. First I had to go to the Strawberry Palace in Plant City to pick up 8 flats of berries. Then I had to run to the meat market and pick up 5 whole hogs...yes, I said hogs. Well, I drive a big Ford F250 Power Stroke Diesel...it's big, and the entire bed of my truck was wall-to-wall pig! They were frozen, de-haired and gutted... 4 of them were in boxes...but the 5th one's box ripped and so they wrapped it in plastic and laid it in the truck bed (I have a lid on the bed of the truck). I may be a farmers wife, but the whole "truck full of dead pigs" thing is just not my style!! My hubby really is sweet and his motives are completely selfless and good-hearted...but I did not share his feelings today...especially when I had to pay for the hogs! They were over $200 a piece! Well, the migrant camp will eat good this Christmas!! Can you imagine..."what would you like for Christmas?"..."oh, we'd really love a big hog to roast this year" It's so foreign to me that I can't seem to wrap my brain around it! Anyway, I am going to go to bed in a minute and hopefully not dream of fat roasted piglets with apples in their mouths. Nighty night!

3 More shopping days left!!

I am pretty much done with my shopping, but I can still feel the pressure of only having 3 days left! Do I have enough wrapping paper? What about tape...there's never enough tape! What about batteries? Did I buy anything that needs batteries? There's nothing worse than opening a gift that requires batteries and there are none. Food! I'll need food for the day. My mom and dad are driving down on Christmas Day and will need to eat when they get here. Christmas breakfast...that's a biggy, what am I gonna make? You see? Pressure! Oh, I'll get it all done, but the whole 3 day thing has me buzzing.

I made some lemon cookies with Dilly today. She enjoyed licking the beaters and the spoonula. She sucked on the lemon shells after I juiced them...and loved them! She had batter all over her face...it was precious, just like everything else she does. She even poops precious. Ahhh, I love that girl. She has a pretty pink fuzzy blanket with dots on it and pink satin trim...it's called Dottie McGee. Why? Glad you asked! At nap time, Dilly and I go to her crib and get her blanket and then head into the upstairs den recliner (the cuddle chair) to rock. On the way in there I tell her "Lets go! You and Me and Dottie McGee!" It's one of those things you say once and it sticks. My kids think I crazy for naming everything...but I think it makes it easier. I told Betsy the other day, "if I ask you to go get Dottie what will you bring me?" She got it right! That's alot easier than asking her to go get the pink fuzzy blanket with the dots and satin trim!! Anyway, I'm right...I'm normal.

Well, I've got to get the cookies out of the oven and slip in another batch. Ho Ho Ho!

Sick, sick, sick

I have never been this sick. Me and my entire household have the stomach flu. Dilly started with it on Tuesday, then Katie on Wednesday and the the rest of us started with it yesterday morning. In 25 years of marriage we have never all been sick at the same time. Whew! I am somewhat better today...I am able to eat toast. I made a nice pot of coffee this morning, but I couldn't drink it. Robert and Wes went to work, but not because they felt like it. They are in the middle of harvest and they must be there. I am going to take some tylenol for my headache and try to take a little nap. We are supposed to do a little more Christmas shopping tonight, but I don't know if we will be up to it. Nighty night everybody!

Grainger Family Dancers

Send your own ElfYourself eCards

Merry Christmas from Dylann!

A new week

What a busy weekend we had. My hubby took our oldest and youngest up to Atlanta for the SEC Championship...we are diehard Gator fans as well as season ticket holders. The flew out on Saturday morning and Katie, Dylann and Billy (Katie's man of the hour) drove over to Disney for the weekend. It was chilly in Orlando and so we just decided to hang out at the resort instead of going into a park...I was especially glad we did. Taking a 9 mo. old into a crowded amusement park is not my idea of a good time. There aren't many rides that she would be able to lap-ride on, so it wouldn't have been fun. For those of you that are not FL residents or experienced Disney visitors, let me explain: First of all we only live 40 minutes from Disney and we go there 3 or 4 times a year. Disney has 4 major parks: Magic Kingdom, Epcot, Animal Kingdom and Hollywood Stuios (Old MGM). There are a few water parks as well. There are several Disney resorts where you can stay on the grounds and take the free Disney transportation wherever you want to go inside of Disney. There 4 or 5 luxury resorts and then some mid priced and economy priced resorts as well. We stayed at the Boardwalk Villas (I would not do that again). It's creatd after a turn-of-the-century Atlantic City beach theme and I chose this because it is like a small city surrounding a pretty lake...ie things to do if you aren't going in a park! It was nice and clean, but we had to walk a mile of hallways to get to and from our room because there were a limited number of elevators. Whatever... Disney has a wonderful place called Downtown Disney with great restaurants, entertianment and shopping...this is where we enjoy going in the evenings. So, we all ate dinner together on the boardwalk and then Dilly and I went back to our room while Katie and Billy hopped a bus over to Downtown Disney. I watched the Gators pummel Alabama and then I put Dilly down, then I read for a couple of hours and then went to sleep... Kate and Billy came crawling in around 1 am. We slept in and then headed out for breakfast. It was nice, relaxing and a change of scenery for us. Now we're home and back to the routine, but I feel refreshed.

Christmas shopping is almost done...only a few more things to get. Lights are strung outside...I'll take a pic and post it soon. Come on Christmas!! You all have a wonderful week!!

Dilly went to see Santa today.

This is not Dylann on Santa's lap. Why? Because we were not allowed to take our own pictures... we had to buy theirs...to the tune of $48.00. I was planning on buying a couple of pictures from them, but I needed 3 5x7's for some special "Santa and Me" frames I bought. So, I bought their pictures and now I have to wait until I go in to the office on Friday to scan them. Here is a sweet picture I took of Dilly outside the Santa house...It's even cuter than their pic. She started standing while holding on to something this week...perfect timing for this pose.

"It's Beginning to Look Alot Like Christmas"...on my blog!

I love Christmastime!! And I love The Cutest Blog on the Block backgrounds! What talent!

I have so many things to do to get ready this year. I usually have our family Christmas card pictures done by now, I have one more tree to put up and I have not baked any cookies...well, that's not true, I've baked some, but they have all been eaten. I need to bake more and freeze some to save for Christmas Eve and neighbor gifts. We also have to take Dylann to get her Christmas pics made with Santa. I hope she likes him...not all of my kids were too thrilled with Santa.

Dilly is pulling up now! I can't believe how big she's getting. I was fixing my coffee this morning and I turned around and there she was...standing up in her playpen. I asked everyone if they stood her up and everyone said no...the big girl did it all by herself!! She's been doing it all day now! She will be 9 months old this week. She thinks she is pretty big stuff! She's pretty cute stuff I'll tell you that!! Well, enough for now...I have so much to do today and I'm fighting a headache. Merry Christmas!!

A day at the farm

We took Dylann out to the farm for the first time this weekend. She got to meet her horse for the first time. Robert (grandaddy) bought her a horse while she was still in her mama's tummy...not an unusual thing for him. She loved Wrangler and kept trying to put her finger in his nose. He didn't seem to mind at all. It was very sweet, as if Wrangler had been waiting to meet her. She is going to be a little farm girl...it's in her blood. She couldn't tear her eyes off of the cows and the horses.

The Light of my Life!

This is pure joy. The best part of my day is feeding and cuddling Dilly. She loves for me to kiss her feet while she's having a bottle and usually sticks it right up to my face. Precious.

I guess I'm a Superior Scribbler...Thanks Kelly

My blogger friend Kelly has awarded me the Superior Scribbler Award. I'm very honored even though I'm not quite sure why she picked me! Thank you Kelly! I am also going to pass this award on to a few of the blogs that I follow. If you have been chosen, then you will need to do the following:

1.Post the award on your blog.

2.Link back to that sweet Country Girl that gave it to you.

3.Link back to the originating post.

4.Pass it on to 5 deserving folks.

5.Post the rules for the recipients.

The Barba Family - This is my cousin Amy's blog. Amy just got married this summer and is expecting her first baby. It's so exciting to watch her baby bump grow. Amy is quite a bit younger than me, but she and I look the most alike in our family.

The Story of All My E's - I love following this blog even though I have never commented and Nicole probably doesn't even know that I'm following her blog! This sweet family adopted a little baby girl from China and this blog is all about their journey.

A Year of Crock Potting - Stephanie has a very ambitious blog about 365 days of crockpotting. It is very informative and even exciting to see what she comes up with to make in her crockpot every day! I have made several of her recipes and to tell you the truth...I don't know if I could keep it up, but she has just about done it! She's on day 319 today!

2807 Sunflower Lane - I love this woman! She is so festive and creative. She is a self-proclaimed Martha wanna be...and she posts pictures of everything! I love it. I think you should check her blog out...you won't be bored!

Crumbs in My Butter - "A good friend will see the crumbs in your butter and love you anyways, or love you even more because of them." That quote was taken directly from her blog. It's an adorable blog about a precious pastor's wife with a couple of adorable kids. She's funny and cute and just a joy to follow.

Love lives...

I have yet to talk about the love lives of my children in my new blog. My Farmer's Wife blog was riddled with goo goo eyes and broken hearts. I have 3 adult children...2 are in relationships.

Wes is in looooooooooooove. He has been dating Liz for 2 years and they talk about "when" they are married, but it looks as though it's still a ways off. Liz is a senior in college, but is planning on grad school and maybe medical school. Wes is already in his career. He is a farmer...on the family farm. He lives at home and spends all his money on gas to go see Liz, taking her out on dates and buying her gifts. He is consummed by her...totally in looooooove.

Katie is...I don't even know where to begin. She is a mom. She had a very short relationship with a loser during a rebellious weekend...no joke. She is the type that must try everything at least once...no matter what it is. And so, she is a mom. Anyway, she is dating a nice guy that we all like alot. Wes and Liz used to hang out with a couple (Mike & Kit) and now they are splitsville and a brokenhearted Mike started hanging around here alot and bada bing...he falls for Katie. Then Katie fell for Mike. Now they are a cute couple. He lives an hour away, so he comes over on Friday after work and stays the whole weekend. He sleeps downstairs on the couch... I do check, regardless, I made Katie get on birth control, just in case.

Betsy...no love life at all. It's not pathetic, she's just not interested in anyone. She's pretty and funny and single! I'm sure she will find someone...Lord help him.

Another New Blog

I have been hesitant to post all of the pictures I take of my precious Dylann in this blog, so to remedy that I have created a new blog just for pictures of her. It's called "Every Day with Dylann; a Photo Journal". Stop by and see how big she's getting!

I'm ready to talk about it

OK, I'm now ready to talk. My man lost. I'm over the shock and awe. After two days of reflection I am ready to give a statement. God has given us clear instructions for a nation that needs healing, and I do believe that our nation is in need of healing in many ways.

2 Chronicles 7:14 If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land.

It's up to us, God's people...christians! "My people" are the ones that He is telling to humble themselves ... pray ... seek his face ... and here's the biggy ... turn from their wicked ways. Do you think it will happen? I personally don't think that the modern-day christians care enough about the direction that our country is heading in to turn from their wicked ways. What wicked ways you might ask? Greed, pride, anger, hatred, sins of omission, not loving your neighbor as yourself...just to name a few. Christianity has become a feel good religion. 90% of christians today have no real spiritual depth. Many christians don't know why they believe what they believe and have very little knowledge of the Bible. I am amazed at the lack of biblical knowledge that many of the active members in my own church have! I'm not trying to be a doomsdayer...truly I'm not, but I honestly believe that this is the beginning of the end. Prosperity and selfishness have caused us to set Jesus on a shelf and dust him off every now and then when we have a little problem. Deep faith is only acheived when we are left with no choice but to rely on God and until we reach that place, we won't know how much faith the christians of our nation have. I am a true believer that God is in control and that nothing happens without his allowing it. I firmly believe that Obama has been put into this position for a reason. Is this our last chance for revival in America, the country that was built on a biblical foundation? Is God giving us one more chance to turn from our wicked ways? Will we? Will christians pray for the healing of our nation? Will we turn from our wicked ways? Now is the time people. This could be our wake-up call.

Sign-waving granny!

Here we are! We are at one of the major intersections in small town America! Dilly did great. 2 hours of horn honking and exhaust fumes without shedding a single tear. She actually enjoyed herself. I on the other hand got a migraine. About 5 minutes after this picture was taken. I'm not joking. After about 20 minutes of arriving, the first migraine I've had in 2 years started. I was really bummed because I had NO pain meds with me...not even an aspirin. I really wanted to go home, but I wouldn't have been able to drive because I'm partially blind for the first 20 minutes of a migraine. My girls were having a ball on the other side of the street and the baby was content, so I just prayed and decided to suck it up. I can honestly say that although it was a migraine, it was nowhere near as bad as it could have been. Thankfully I was in the shade of a tall building! The honking brought tears to my eyes, but I was able to stay out there for an hour and a half after the headache started. I'm glad I did...it was worth it. Now if only McCain can pull it off! My hubby and Wes got out early this morning and voted. They said the line was long at our little precinct...Willow Oak Baptist Church in tiny little Mulberry, FL. He said he could feel the tension in the air...alot of minorities and rednecks mixed together...he's a drama queen. I'm waiting for the girls to get up and ready and we are going to run down to vote at about 10:00 am. GO VOTE PEOPLE! Have a good day! Bye.

Campaigning tomorrow!

Tomorrow afternoon the girls and I are going to campaign for McCain/Palin on the street corner with several others from my church. We will be bringing Dilly in her stroller too. I'm very excited and although I don't think that my sign-waving will change anyone's mind about voting for McCain over Obama, I still feel as though a good turnout will boost McCain momentum in our small town. Plant City is a very small town in central Florida. It is famous for it's multitude of strawberry farms and it's annual Strawberry Festival. We have a church on every corner ... even a Scientology Center! Our towns folk are mostly hard working, God-fearing, conservatives... of which I consider myself to be one. I am concerned about the rest of my state, not to mention my country, but all in all, no matter the outcome on Tuesday, I have come to one conclusion: God will still be God, He will still be on His throne, I will still be the daughter of the King of Kings and Lord of Lords...what more could I ask for. I encourage you all as americans to get out and vote...but most importantly, be sure that God is on the throne of your life...be sure that He is your King of Kings and Lord of Lords, and then your future will be safe and secure in Him. God bless you all!

It's Dylann's first Halloween! Isn't she the sweetest little penguin you've ever seen!! She wasn't very happy about the costume, but she did sit still for a few pics. We took her to 3 of our neighbors houses and that was about all she could handle. She is already in bed! We're just about out of candy, so we'll be turning the light out shortly. We have a scary movie to watch...I won't make it, I hate scary movies! That's ok, I'm exhausted and I think I'm gonna go to bed early!

Cold again!

It's even colder this morning than it was yesterday! I broke down and got out my winter coat and a few sweaters. I don't know what it is about Floridians, but we try to go as long as possible without dragging out the winter clothes. Maybe we think that cold snaps are too short to go to the trouble...remember, the winter clothes have been put away for about 6 months now...it's a pain in the neck to dig them out! Whatever the reason, I had to dig way into the back of my closet, contorting my body to find the rubbermaid tub and pull out whatever was on top. We have a small space heater that we keep under the bathroom sink...well it's on top of the sink now warming up that bathroom! Oh and that leads me to another Floridian quirk...we never turn on the central heat...never. Give it a few hours and it will warm up on it's own. Funny. Well, I am going out to brave the cold and get my big diesel truck cranked up and get the heat blowing on high for about 15 minutes before I get in! Have a good day! Keep warm!

It's cold!

Wow, what a shocker when I woke up this morning! It's in the 40's...bbrrrrr. I'm a Florida girl through and through and I can't stand to be cold! I had to put on slippers and a sweater over my jammies this morning. Dilly woke me up coughing this morning. I laid there waiting to see if her mama would get up and get her, but after about 15 minutes of it I figured she was probably ignoring her...she couldn't have not heard her. Last night at dinner Katie said that Dylann is exhausting!! My hubby and I looked at each other wide-eyed. Katie gets ticked off pretty easily so instead of making a snide comment I just said, "yeah, can you imagine if you lived alone and didn't have me to help!" ...it still ticked her off. Oh well, the truth hurts baby!

So, today I have no plans. Before I quit work I would have loved a day like today. Now that I'm home everyday, I feel as though I must clean the house on days like this. It needs it...so I will feel guilty if I don't do it! Then again...there's always tomorrow! ...and therein lies the problem! I'm not used to being home everyday...I worked for 24 years of my life and now I don't know how to be a housewife! I can manage an office like nobody's business, but I can't manage a house! It doesn't make sence. Does anyone out there have any house-management advise for me? I need a schedule...a mission for each day. Unfortunately I don't really care that much. I guess I'll go turn on Judge Judy.

Roseola

We just got home from the pediatrician...Dilly has roseola. It's symptoms are a high fever for 3 days and then when the fever goes away a rash develops on their torso, neck and shoulders. All 3 of my kids had it but it wasn't until this morning when I saw the rash that it occured to me that it could be roseola. So, she will be fine! She is already 99% better. She is very sleepy and cranky, but no more fever. The rash doesn't itch or bother her at all. So hopefully I will not have any more sick baby posts...yeah!!

Baby is doing better today.

We had another long night, but at least Katie was home and she and I took turns sleeping with Dylann. She was scorching hot again all night long, but is only slightly warm right now. She's been cranky and fussy all day, but I can deal with that as long as the fever is gone. Katie being a new mom started to panic when she felt how hot she was in the middle of the night. I remember those days and so I know that there isn't much more we can do. We have her on antibiotics and baby fever reducer. We are also trying to keep her drinking the pedialyte and wiping her down with cool rags. If she isn't better by tomorrow morning we will be taking her back to the doctor. She and Katie are both napping right now...I might join them!

Plans were made to be broken

Well, so much for the game. I was up all night with a sick baby and she is still running a fever. Her mama was out of town for a friends 21st birthday party...I don't even want to know... Poor Dilly has been trying to get sick again and by the time I got home yesterday afternoon her fever was up to 100. By 9:00 it was 102. She finished her antibiotic for her last bout a week ago and had some left over, so I started giving her that plus infant motrin and it seems to work for a little while. After I put her to bed, however, she started to throw up...let me rephrase that: after I put her into MY bed! Then the "comedy of errors" began...it wasn't funny then, but now that everything turned out ok I can chuckle about it. Here's the play-by-play: I lay her down on my bed and then I begin to take off my jeans so I can climb in with her. I have one leg out of my jeans when she starts to throw up. I quickly reach for her and pick her up so I can make my way to the bathroom...one leg on and one leg off. As I'm quickly hobbling to the bathroom I am trying to shake the pant leg off, but it just turns inside-out and won't come off! I have double doors leading into the bathroom and one side of the doors stays latched up at the top. My pants became stuck up under the latched door. As I tried to make my way toward the garden tub with Dylann vomiting the whole way, my pants refused to come with me and caused me to trip and fall while holding the puking baby. I did a great job of cradling her and she didn't get hurt, but I landed on my knees and elbows. FINALLY, I dragged my leg out of the pants and made it to the tub and held her over it as she continued to throw up. My bed is covered in it...I am covered in it...she is covered in it...there is a trail from the bed to the bathroom...the bathroom floor where we fell has a puddle...and now the bath tub is splattered. Unbelieveable! She finally stopped and I got her cleaned up with a fresh bottle of pedialyte on a blanket and boppy in front of the TV. I change myself and the sheets...grab her and climb back into the bed. She was pretty hot most of the night and I mopped her brow with a cool rag throughout the night. Hubby was home, but he has a bad sore throat and he was asleep in the recliner through it all. I am exhausted, but she is feeling a little better this morning. Her mama will be home this evening and I'm going to take a bubble bath (in the no longer pukey tub) and hide out in my room. Well, I hope I made somebody laugh today...or smile at least! I hope you all have a great day!

Rainy Day

It's a yucky rainy day, but I shouldn't complain because we really could use the rain. We are about to go into the Florida dry season and we haven't had much rain in the past couple of months. Dylann is at home with a fever. She was a little warm yesterday, but last night she was getting hot and this morning she was hot again. Her mama is staying home with her today. I work at my old job on Friday's to help out. I worked as an administrative assistant at my church for several years and when I quit this past June they didn't know if they would replace me with a full time person or a part time person. So, I've kind of helped out on Friday's since then and it's working pretty well. I am getting tired of it, but it's only for a few hours once a week and they are paying me, soooooo.......

Tomorrow I am going to the Gator game. We are Bull Gators and have really good seats with access to the clubhouse and a large buffet for free...it's very nice. It's about a 2 hour drive and although I love it once I get there, I'm not usually excited about it. I love my Saturday's... they're mine! So when I have to share them I get a little testy. Now that I'm not working it's harder for me to complain...isn't everyday mine? Yeah well.... tomorrow is the big Mt. Dora craft fair and I'd rather go there. I will have a great day...if Dilly is better it will be her first Gator game...a right of passage in our family. I'll take pictures, of course!

Dylann goes to the Pumpkin Patch!

Babble...babble

Well, another day. I stress-ate a little yesterday. I think today will be better...less stress since the puppies are gone. It's 7:30 am...so far, so good.

The girls and I are taking Dilly Bug to the pumpkin patch this morning. I plan to bring my camera, so I'll have a great slideshow to add this afternoon. We bought her a cute outfit to wear, but it has long sleeves...hopefully it won't be too hot! You never know in Florida. This Saturday is the Fall Festival at our church. I'll bring my camera for that too, I don't want to miss Dylann's first pony ride! Robert bought her a horse right after she was born, so she needs to practice! Common sence doesn't exist in his world, he's putting a big wooden playground in our backyard for her for Christmas! Who cares that she'll only be 9 months old! She'll grow into it!

Well, I've babbled on long enough. It's time to get some work done around here.

They're Gone!!

Well, I got up a 5:30 this morning to help my hubby load the puppies up into the truck to head on down to their new home at the farm. They have a brand-new, shiny pen (thanks to me!) and a big beautiful 3,000 acre farm with other hunting dogs there waiting to play with them. Praise the Lord!! Happy Day!! Now let me get busy scrubbing the floors and vaccuuming rugs and putting the lanai back together. By the way...read my lips...NO MORE PUPPIES!

Puppies WILL be gone in the morning!

I made an executive decision! I went to Tractor Supply and bought a 10 x 10 chain link dog pen! I called Robert and told him to swing by the store and pick it up in his truck on the way home...and he did! It's tied to the bed of his truck and tomorrow morning I am going to help him load these little pain in the neck dogs into the backseat!! It has been 2 days of pure hell at this house! One of my neighbors came by the house this evening (while I was out buying the pen) and told poor Besty (who was doing her best to keep the puppies entertained) that he was having a hard time relaxing on his back porch with all the howling and barking. I wish he had said something to me! I guess all my neighbors will be happy tomorrow, but not as happy as me!!

Puppies are still here!!

It's tomorrow...... finally! I got up early to help Robert load these obnoxious puppies into his truck...I tried to look sad to see them go. HA! Was I ever surprised when he said he had to leave them home one more day...he has to build them a pen. One more day? A pen? A pen in one day? Kelli, I think I'm gonna do what you said you'd do...cry. They start "picking" (hubby is a tomato farmer) today...there will be no time for pen building. I am on my last nerve right now...at 7:35 am. (Here is a picture from yesterday when we introduced Macie and Dixie to our yorkie Squirt. Look how happy he is to see them, he's smiling!) On top of all that I slithered up onto the scale this morning for a sneak peak...I've lost 2 ounces in 8 days. I've been doing good on this diet! I've stuck pretty close to the 1000 calories per day and I've exercised almost every day! I've had to ice my knee every day!!! What the heck is going on. I'm not gonna quit...I want to look and feel better...I want a tummy tuck and a boob lift in the spring. Heeheehee.

Wake up call

Tuesday's are my "not-a-thing-to-do-all-day" day. I love Tuesdays! So, this morning I was happily snoozing at about 7:00 am with Dilly Bug in bed with me. She woke up at about 5am, but I brought her in bed with me and she went right back to sleep. I wake up to the sound of my Nextel (downstairs in my purse) being alerted. Beep beep beep...beep beep beep...beep beep beep. Are you kidding me! My husband and son are the only ones who "two-way" me, so it had to be one of them. Why can't they call the house phone? It's sitting on the night stand! So, I pick up the house phone and call my son. Here is the jist of the "alert": Dad and I found 2 blue tick hound puppies on the bulletin board at the gas station and we need you to go get them. WHAT? Like I need 2 more dogs. So, he gives me the sellers phone number and I hang up and immediately call my husband. Yes, he confirms that I am to go get $300 out of the bank and run over to this guys house and pick up 2 puppies. What are we going to do with them? I live in a subdivision...and I have a mini-yorkie! He plans to take them to the farm.........tomorrow. Tomorrow is a day away from today. A whole day...with 2 hound dog puppies and a yorkie. As I type I can hear a duet of puppy howling coming from my beautiful screened lanai. I feel like going outside and shouting at the top of my lungs "They'll be gone first thing in the morning!!!!.....sorry!!" Oh boy, how are we going to get through the night? Tomorrow can't come soon enough, but when it does, I'll let you know how we made out. Help!

Diet update

Ok, so we started the diet last Tuesday. We, oh forget it, I'm gonna write about me...just me. I did great for the first 4 days, then the weekend hit and I did pretty good over the weekend. Not too many bad choices and I did do my exercise every day. Then Monday I had jury duty and I was at the courthouse from 7:45 am to 5:00 pm and I had to eat lunch at a diner. I had a sandwhich and ate it like a salad tossing the bread out...I did have a teeny tiny bag of chips, but other than that I did fine. By the time I got home I was ready to eat the dog, so I grabbed a quick bowl of fiber cereal to sooth the beast and then later I had a shrimp kabob and some southern cooked yellow squash made with bacon and onions and I licked the bowl clean. I didn't pig out, just a small bowl, but I enjoyed every bite. I didn't exercise at all that day, but I don't hate myself for it...it's ok to miss a day. Today I have done well and I feel like I'm back on track...except I haven't done the exercise video because I've had to ice my knee every night since starting the darn videos due to all the lunges! My poor knees can't handle lunging anymore. I guess I'll have to modify that portion of the videos too. Before long I'll have modified them so much that I could sell my own video series for those with bad knees and heavy breathing! I have 3 more days till the 10 day challenge is up and I can weigh...I'll let you all know how it goes!!

My latest decorating project

Leslie at 2807 Sunflower Lane blog has inspired me to post about my latest home decorating project. She did a "quickie" in her bathroom and it's great! I got a wild hair up my butt to redecorate my family room...I can't really call mine a quickie although it started out that way...with the "wild hair" and all. Our old family room layout just wasn't working...it was too closed in and there wasn't any room. So, we ditched most of the large furniture...kept the couch and love seat and rearranged them to open the family room up to breakfast area. Taking out our old 9 ft long entertainment center left the largest wall in the room empty...what do you do with a 16 ft long wall? Well, the picture above is what I did. I ordered the gallery shelves from Pottery Barn and went through lots of family photos to find just the right ones. I bought all new picture frames in dark wood and silver and put it together in an afternoon...it was great fun. Thanks to my dad who helped to hang the shelves...drilling into concrete walls is a real pain in the arse! Anyway, it's done and I love it. Here's the room!

Fabulous Day!

What a wonderful day I had with my old college friend Sandra. We had a blast talking and laughing about our days in the dorm and double dating. We all decided that none of us have really changed a bit! Robert was having a big "dove shoot" out at the farm and Rodney and their son Brooks went out there and had a great time eating and hunting. We have made plans to get together again in November...can't wait! There's nothing like old friends!

So excited!!!

I am sitting here waiting for my friend Sandra and her husband Rod to to get here! I haven't seen them in 25 years! We all went to college together...Sandra went on a double date (not with her current husband) with Robert and I on our very first date. They should be here any minute...I've been cleaning and freshening my house up all morning. I will post some pics after our day together!

Update on Dilly Bug

Sweet little Dilly is gonna be fine. She has a cold, but because she is so croupy they put her on a short course of steroids. She'll be on them for about 5 days. She has never taken any medicine before and she HATES it! We are only giving her 1/2 teasp, but you'd think we were trying to pump kerosine into her! She gags and shudders...it's precious (of course I think everything she does is precious!) She was doing better this morning and her cough was less congested, so she is on the mend! I hate when they are sick, but I do enjoy the extra cuddle time they let you have! She's only 7 months old, but she is already trying to get down when you hold her too long...get down? Where the heck does she think she's gonna go? She can't even crawl yet! She hasn't even perfected sitting up! OOOooo we're gonna be in trouble when she walks!

Dylann is sick...honey love.

Here's a picture of my sweet baby girl...Dilly Bug. I took it this morning while she was watching BabyTV. She's not feeling well today. Her mommy has taken her to the doctor because she has had a croupy cough for several days now. I just thought it would be a good idea to go ahead and have her checked out before the doctor's office closes for the weekend. I don't know why, but it seems like my kids always got sick on the weekends. They haven't gotten home yet, but I'll be sure to post how she's doing later on.

I hope everyone likes alot of pictures, because I am the picture-taking-queen! I bought myself a Nikon D50 for Christmas 2 years ago. We were spending Christmas in Vermont and I wanted to document our trip with the best camera I could afford and it has been a.m.a.z.i.n.g.! So, I plan to put lots of pictures of Dylann on here...like it or not!

My Diet

Ok, so my daughter Katie and I started a diet. I wasn't sure if I was ready to put it out there, but, well here it is. I guess once you've admitted it publically, then it's real. We are doing the... (yikes, do I dare say it?) ...Beachbody Ten Minute Trainer. There, I whispered it. I'm a little embarrassed that I am doing an infomercial diet, but it had me at "10 minute". We are on day 3 and doing rather well I must say. We decided to kick off the diet with the "Lean Jean Plan" for the first 10 days for quicker results. Aside from the fact that I cannot move a single muscle in my body without pain, I think it's gonna be great. If I live through the first 10 days, I'll have it licked. The hardest part is the exercising...yeah, the 10 minute part (Isn't it funny that starving to death isn't the hardest part?). They intend to get a 30 minute workout done in 10 minutes. On day one I thought I would die on minute 2. I kept going doing my own version of some of the moves that I just could not possible manuever, but I was proud that I made it for 10 minutes. The kicker is, on the "Lean Jean Plan" you have to do (2) 10 minute videos a day. Cardio plus another ie: lower body, full body, abs or flex yoga. Let me just say, the lower body is awful...the full body is awfuler and the abs...well, I filled in with alot of crunches. Tomorrow I have to do the awful lower body again...when can I do the stinkin yoga!...Sunday, how appropriate...thank you Lord.

I'll be keeping you all abreast of our progress...my little 125 pound daughter can knock out 2 videos without a break...not to mention keep up with them. Did I mention that I hate her? Until tomorrow....

An old friend

I am very excited today. I found an old friend...well it wasn't really lost, but I'd kinda pushed it to the back-burner of my busy life and today I resurrected it...my AOL Journal. I kept a journal for a couple of years and then as my life got busier, I just quit posting. I got an email from an old J-lander friend the other day and she gave me the directions to turn my AOL journal into a google blogspot and "wallah" (I made up the spelling for that!) it's here. It goes way back and I'm telling you, I'm having a ball catching up with my old life...soooo many changes!!!! It's crazy to see how funny I used to be...well, I probably still am, but haven't found my inner funny person in google-land yet. Well, if any old J-landers find me...hello again! I promise to be better at posting often...at least weekly!

When is the cool weather coming??

I live in the Sunshine State so I don't know why I am surprised that it's still hot...in mid October! After living here for over 20 years, it still amazes me when the temp is 90+ well into October and even later most years. My mind and body are screaming for cooooool. My poor little pumpkins are sitting so proudly on my front porch with beads of sweat dripping from their brows as the afternoon sun beats down on them. Just the sight of a pumpkin on my porch gives me a false sense of coolness. My parents are in the Carolinas, bragging about their cool morning walks...you almost need a light jacket. My brother-in-law in Minnasota has sent pictures of his kids in a pile of leaves wearing warm jackets and I just can't bear to look. Please Lord...just a little bit of coolness...I sound like the Rich Man in Hell asking the Lord for just a drop of water to cool his tongue...it's not that bad...really.

A new appreciation for my crock-pot!

I am following a blog about crock-pot cooking and I have been inspired to get mine out and dust them off (yes, them, I have 4). Last night I put 2 of them into action and it was a yummy night! I roasted a pork loin (which was wonderful by the way) and to go with it I made crock-pot mac & cheese... Mac & cheese is my all time favorite food. In the other crock I made dessert...yes, dessert! Crock pot brownies-in-a-mug topped with Edy's French Silk ice cream...my heavens! It all came out perfect and I even had pork loin and mac & cheese for lunch today too...too bad there weren't any brownies left, but I did have a little French Silk hehehe. I LOVE food, but I do pretty well with refraining from too many helpings. I really love to cook too and I swear, I spend 1/2 my day planning, shopping for and preparing dinner. Tonight we're having Mahi Mahi Tacos...awesome! I've made them a few times before and they are a big hit here with the fam. Well, I promise to keep my crock-pots a little busier...thanks for the inspiration!

Blogs of Note

I am a true Wallflower. I have been searching for some interesting blogs to follow and I have found a few, but when it asks if I want to follow publically or anonymously, I panic and click anonymously!! I am happier watching the fun than having the fun...always have been. I mean I really panic...sweaty palms and all. I'm sure I'll settle down and find a few blogger friends, but jeesh! not today.

It's about time

Well, I guess it's about time that I post...after all this is a blog...and I have had it for several months now. I had a journal on AOL for years and just found out that AOL is getting rid of their journals...wow, that's a big step! There are millions of journals on there. I had quite a little following for a while, but as I got busier and busier I posted less and less and eventually I lost contact with everyone. I was pretty obsessed with my journal for awhile and was contantly being made fun of by my family for spilling our "family guts" to total strangers...well, if the shoe fits! I have been inspired recently by my cousin Amy http://www.thebarbafamily.blogspot.com/ . She has the sweetest blog and it's followed by many in our extended family. My mom is always asking me if I've read Amy's blog lately. I'm sure she will be reading mine as well. Amy is a newlywed and began posting alot of recipes until she became pregnant and now we get to see her pregnancy progress. I am very interested in keeping up with her progress as I am a brand new grandmother and I documented every little detail of my Katie's progress...mostly in pictures...which I have since made into a book on http://www.picaboo.com/ It was VERY easy and I came out perfect. Well, as I'm sure I'm only talking to myself right now, I'm going to get going...lot's of dishes and laundry...yuck.