Thanksgiving 2008

Thank you for the pretty dress, Stringers! We love you all the way in Oregon!






Happiness to all this Thanksgiving time! I truly feel blessed and am so very thankful for all that surrounds and is me. This Thanksgiving we feasted on a 21 lb. bird with giblet gravy, mashed potatoes, corn flake sweet potato casserole, broccoli casserole (my favorite!), corn casserole, orange/cranberry salad, green beans, and a Turducken, which was a Turkey stuffed with a Chicken, stuffed with a duck, which was all stuffed with seafood jambalaya! My sister-in-law's boyfriend ordered that sucker from New Orleans. Our desserts included cranberry white chocolate tart, cheesecake with a layer of chocolate chips and a layer of pumpkin pie, and a pumpkin pie that the dog ate before we could even cut it! Oh, well, at least everyone was happy, including the dogs! Happy Thanksgiving to you!

My little Illustrator

Sam with his drawing


Mrs. Dale (art teacher), Sam, and Mrs. Morehouse (his teacher)


Sam and the Superintendent


Tonight was Sam's little bit of fame and glory. His Iron Man drawing won the Young Illustrators Contest in all of Cabell County Schools (5th grade). First, his teacher, Mrs. Dale, chose his artwork to represent Southside Elementary. Then Sam's drawing competed against all of the other 5th grade winners in the county. Sam's won! He was honored at the Board of Education. They presented him with his drawing, which was framed, and gave him a little art set. The Superintendent shook his hand and every board member congratulated him. Way to go Sam! We are so very proud indeed.

snuggle bugs

If there's one thing that I know, it's that Sam and Celia are crazy about each other. The other day Sam looked at me and said, "Mommy, she's so pretty." He is such a proud big brother. Celia feels the same, I'm certain, because she sneaks into Sam's room any time she can and this time she crawled in bed with him to watch Sponge Bob. I think I nearly broke my neck trying to run downstairs to get the camera. And, what do you know? One of them is blurry. It never fails. Anyway, here's the moment that I thought was so adorable.

Love, Friends, new and old....

Laura, Jenny, Rhonda, Dee Dee, Me, Mandy, and Angie Congratulations Dee Dee!


Andrea, me, Iris, and Amanda...Congratulations Iris and Kevin!



This past Saturday was a busy, busy day. Johnny and I went to the wedding of my co-worker and friend, Iris, who married Sam's math teacher! Then, I headed off to Ashland to see some gals that I haven't seen in a long time! I graduated with these gals, and I'm happy to say that nearly 15 years later we all still keep in touch. It might be only for weddings and babies, but at least we touch base every year or so. This occasion was for Dee Dee's upcoming wedding. Congrats Dee Dee. Love you all! Oh, we missed you, Nance!

Welcome Friends and Family!

I don't know if this spinning world landed just right, or what, but my dearest friend, Mary, finally met Meg! Wisconsin had a little extended weekend, so Meg and Emily made the 10 hour drive and stayed a couple of days with us. Mary drove in from D.C. for little Celia's birthday and it all happened at the same time. We're still turning pages in that great, big, book!

Happy 1st Birthday, Celia!

The time has come and passed. Celia is ONE! As it happened, her birthday fell on Election Day, so we were all out of school to help her celebrate. Even Daddy took off the day. Celia visited her pediatrician's office where she got two shots. *Yuk* I loathe shot times! Then we had lunch in Ashland where sneaky big brother Sam had the restaurant sing the Happy Birthday song to his sister and made Johnny and me cry! It was so endearing.
Celia questioned the whole birthday cake tradition! She was pretty apprehensive about "digging in" and getting chocolate everywhere, but really liked the whole house singing to her! She also loved her new Radio Flyer tricycle, even if she did fall off of it twice and landed a nice little pink egg on her forehead!

Happy Halloween!

Most of the time Trick-or-Treat sneaks up on me and I have to run around at the last minute making Sam's costume. Not this year! This time, I was ready. We wanted to make sure that Sam's murderous clown costume and Celia's little flower costume were just perfect. I sewed my fingers to the bones and Johnny made the huge sledge hammer, which had glittery "blood" on one end. Celia really didn't know what was happening as we passed spooks, princesses, warriors, and pillow case bandits on All Hallows Eve! All we know is that Sam's mask terrified her. The shot of them on the swing was a brief happy moment, that's for sure!

Varoom!

Celia gets her first Volkswagen! It's a family tradition-Volkswagen, that is. This one has been passed down through four grandchildren. It's only ailment is one missing tail light, at least for now!