New Year's Eve 2010

No parting words of wisdom this New Year's Eve.

May 2011 bring you joy, peace, and love.

White Christmas

Wanted to share the white Christmas we had in Alabama yesterday. Mother was all aflutter when she talked to William in Huntsville and they had 2 inches already and we had NONE. I called her later when I looked out our window and saw that we were getting some flakes. She was SOOO excited and hoping for a lot more than we got.

Lisa and I went to Mother's yesterday where Lisa soundly beat us at Scrabble. It was amazing! She started out getting tiny scores then starting hitting the double letters, the triple scores, and just generally giving us a HARD TIME trying it keep up.

After we came home we had snacks and a nap then Buck, Lisa and I went for a ride out to the lake and around town to see what, if anything, was open. Later, she went to a friend's house and Buck and I just vegged in front of the TV. It was a good Christmas Day.

The P2 held more snow

because of its shape

Thank goodness Lisa didn't

have to go to work

(Santa should've brought her a window scraper)

Buck's truck had the least of all

the vehicles
The dog pen and beyond
Buck saw a deer running into
the woods behind here yesterday
The front yard
look CLOSELY and
you can see the snow ;-)

The overgrowth across the road

at the nursery looks pretty

good with a dusting of snow

Merry Christmas!

Things I learned this Christmas: Lisa can sleep through most any noise (except her text message alert), Buck can sleep though almost anything (except the night), NEVER let Teresa snap pictures without her glasses on (things are blurry), and green velvet cake WILL make you poo green!!!!

Lisa did not know I snapped this photo.
Our tree

Dessert

green velvet, pumpkin, and pecan

I cooked

Teresa liked her blanket

Teresa and Jimmy

Me, Mother, and Teresa

(striking the "Mother" pose)

I think it is time for me to get

a new "Christmas shirt"

I believe I've worn this one for

like 3 years!!!!

Lisa and Mother

(who looks a lot like my Mamaw Brown)

Now I'm waiting "patiently"

for photos to load

We had a good Christmas Eve with family. Today I think Lisa and I are going to visit Mother. It seems this year is harder on her than last year. We will eat too much, watch too much TV, and talk to friends and family far away.

Christmas Kisses !!!!!! Muah!

And they're off....

Kim, Skoot, Jakob, and Christopher flew to Colorado today. They picked me up at 5:30 a.m. for the drive to Birmingham airport. We stopped at Jack's drive through for a breakfast biscuit then were off....

You can see who was watching the

camera and who was concerned with

mundane things like checking their luggage

Skoot and Kim posed for a quick one
and the boys got in a family shot

This was as close as I could get

to being in line with them at

security

Jakob stuck with Dad

Topher went through ahead of Kim

Then, there I was, standing at the top of the concourse watching them go through security all atwitter with excitement while the German shepherd made his rounds. It was bitter sweet when they all turned to wave at me one last time. I made my way back to the EX and headed back to Jasper. Buck called and asked if I wanted to meet him for breakfast at MickeyD's. Well of course! I enjoyed a second nosh with him then on to my day. Did an errand or two and came home to clean. Mother and Teresa are eating with us on Christmas Eve and they both have SPOTLESS houses....no pressure!

Love you all and Happy first day of winter!!

Christmas with the Wilsons

Oh Christmas tree....Oh Christmas tree....how long will you be standing?? We went to Kim and Skoot's for Christmas last Friday. Since they are traveling this holiday we wanted to get in OUR Christmas before they left. Their tree is decorated with handmade ornaments that the boys have made over the years. It may be standing after the New Year since they are going to be busy most of their school break.

I like to see the boys loving each other

even though it didn't last very long :-(

Kim prepared some yummy spaghetti with garlic bread and lots of sweet goodies for dessert. Ever had a red velvet ball?? They are unusual ~ it was a first for me.

Buck's usual "grown up" snapshot

and Lisa was concentrating on

running a remote control car

Jakob got these stuffed animals at the Christmas parade and I just thought it was a cute picture that makes him look.....five?? I mean, look at that face...

Topher showed off his horns

Jakob showed off his "skills"?

After we ate we opened gifts. Everyone seemed pleased with what they got. Buck got a cool display case with fishing lures mounted inside (no photo available) which I thought would look great on the wall beside his duck and jack-a-lope but HE thought would look greater in his office.

The boys got caps to take

with them to Colorado

And then the Scrabble game began. You have to remember that we play a lot of Scrabble in our family ~ Jennifer has the score pad from games she and I played on different visits I've made to her house over the years. Buck likes to get in on a game from time to time but we adjust the rules and play "SPELL IT LIKE IT SOUNDS"

Topher whispering a word to

team mate Kim

They should have won but graciously allowed everyone one more turn after using all of their letters which enabled Lisa to use all of her letters and she ended up the victor.

"Buck" Scrabble is a totally different take on the game. We play the way a word sounds which is not necessarily the correct spelling. It is harder than it sounds and we laugh alot as people try to justify their word ~ use it in a sentence ~ what does it mean ~ that sort of thing.

two of my words?

vittailc (vital with a silent c)

which earned me not only triple score

but also 50 extra for using all of my letters!

and codhivers (cadavers)

And through it all

Skoot remained calm and relaxed.

Merry Christmas!

Good morning!

Good morning cyber space!

We woke up to sleet and school delays. Lisa and Buck left for work and I have a day of laundry ahead of me. I told Buck I will hitch the dogs to a sled and drive to WalMart if I need bread and milk. ;-) Kim and the boys have three more days of school then they will be heading to Colorado next week for Christmas with Jennifer and her family. Sarah goes until next Wednesday and they have many activities planned before the break. Claire will get a break from at home pre school, as well (sounds fair)

Wanda and Dennis are trying to move to Alabama. The plan is "in the works" but no concrete information on date of arrival. They have a house to sell in New Mexico ~ anyone interested??

We have a tree up but the presents are sparse. Buck wants a new GPS and he wants to pick it out ~ he found one online that I will order tomorrow. He is going to buy me a PS3. We may wait for after Christmas sales. And of course since Lisa is a "grown up" she won't be getting a lot from Santa (Barbies and such). But those of us who can will be together and that is a good thing.

Time to play Cricklers. . . .helps my brain stay in shape. Kisses!!

Most unusual

I have to say "Thanks" to my friend Tom in Gillette, Wyoming for a most unusual gift. Along with a CD of Leon Redbone, he sent me some Buffalo Chips ~ yum?? Tom and I have an interesting friendship. Haven't seen him since Lisa was in third grade at Wagonwheel Elementary (and she is 22 now folks) but we still exchange cards and gifts and an occasional email. Tom will never leave Wyoming until his toes turn upward. He told me once that he doesn't like the South because we have too many trees!!!!! Said he can't breathe down here. I really liked him ~ sort of an off beat sense of humor (he dressed a skeleton for Halloween). So, thank you Tom for the "chips" and for being my long distance friend.

Home again ~ Home again

What to do when a "grown up" child calls and says "I need to come home". Well, you fire up the EX and head over to her apartment, load up her things and bring her home. I say "grown up" because all of our girls are legally adults but to us they will always be our little girls who we need to take care of and watch over. Lisa is home again for a while this time, I hope. We have her packing down to an art ~ we can pack her things in just over an hour and be on the road. True, I may not be able to SEE out the rear view mirror but I'm a whiz at using the side mirrors ~ even in Birmingham rush hour traffic! If you have children ~ love them ~ always have a place for them to come to ~ a safe haven, if you will.

New Ink

I got my ninth tattoo on Monday. It is a butterfly to represent Mother. It is placed over the pocketknife that I have for Daddy because in his last months she was always "fluttering" around him.

The colors of the butterfly compliment

the color of the pocketknife, yes?

In case you haven't seen Jakob lately, he is sporting braces now. Two thirds of our children wore braces. He was sooooo excited to get them. Now they are just part of his daily dental routine (make sure there's nothing stuck in there)

The day he got them.
His second visit
can you see the difference?
(orange and black bands for Halloween)
His latest visit
(red and white bands for Christmas)

Braces are an great invention ~ by a woman, I'm sure. What's up with grown ups getting braces, I mean, REALLY?

Random act of kindness....

A week ago we went out to dinner to celebrate our anniversary. As we were waiting to be called to our table Buck observed a young soldier and his family ~ a Sergeant. He overheard them talking about how he would be shipping out for Afghanistan soon. After we were seated at our table and had placed our order Buck asked our waitress to find that young man and bring his ticket to us. What a wonderful random act of kindness! As we were leaving the young man caught up to Buck and thanked him. This will be his third tour in Afghanistan. Buck, a Vietnam veteran could relate to him and we thank him for his service to our country.

Thanksgiving

Tis the day after Thanksgiving

Black Friday they call it

also the day of THE BIG GAME

Alabama vs. Auburn

Do we eat ourselves into oblivion with the leftovers?

Do we shop 'til we drop with the unwashed masses

who have been standing in line for a good deal since midnight?

OR do we settle in for a football game?

Hmmmmmmmm..... how about none of the above??Lisa decided she would make veg all

casserole for her friends.

(check the recipe

it got too close to a hot stove eye)
Setting the oven

Mix well and. . . .
Viola veg all!!

This is a red velvet cake in disguise

(Lisa took it home with her)

We went to Mother's for supper. She planned the menu and gave me and Kim things to cook. Lisa provided cranberry sauce and Teresa brought drinks.

Mother baked the turkey

and made veg all and dressing

not pictured is mac and cheese made by

Jakob and Christopher and mashed potatoes by me

Skoot was like "are you going to eat that??"

Caught Teresa with her mouth full!

Jakob, Skoot, Topher, and Kim

Buck and me

(not our most flattering)

and of course Mother had a story

I made a banana pudding

Kim made red velvet

(the way it is supposed to look)

The End