January 2012

These pictures aren't the best because I hijacked them from my facebook but I didn't want to put another post on here without pictures!  The one below is hilarious!  My favorite boys.  And for the record, my boys decorated their own faces and studmuffins mama did his   :)   Again, I wanna squeeze him! 

and the picture below is Lizard Lick Towing.......Wyatt said "You ain't taking my truck!"

p.s. they didn't drive around with him in there   :)

This was taken on a very cold nite (we've not had many of those at all this year) and the girls were up visiting on the back porch while we were grilling (chicken nonetheless) and they stayed a little too late and had to roost on the baker's rack.  Funny girls!

One Saturday, the boys (map, Jake and Ben) decided to go fishing with Mitchell (map's dad).

I was a little bored so I decided to make a german chocolate cake (from scratch) and get my dad to help me tear out a part of the laundry room so I could add some shelving for storage........halfway through, this is what happened   :(  yeah, I felt like a dog!  He pushed a board AND his finger into a table SAW! Shatterd the bone on the tip and just messed it up pretty bad. Went to the e.r. but there was nothing they could do....just wait.....and let it heal.....Saturday will be 4 weeks and it's still healing.... 

One of the best things about living in the country is that you learn to do really cool stuff at a young age......like learning to drive pa's new tractor    :)

and here's Ben with pa......the beginner   :)

here we have a picture that makes me smile everytime I look at it   :)   I booked my and Map's flight to Texas to go see Christy.  OMG! I can't believe I am FLYING to TEXAS!!!  In March......only 34 days away!  I am SOOOOOO excited...we all are! I have never been on a large plane (but always wanted to), I have never been any further west than the Alabama line, I have never been away from my kids for four days..........my goodness!  This is gonna be another busy and AWESOME year!!!  Did I mention how excited I am!?

also, I'm havin another craving for some homemade cinnamon rolls........

AND SWEET TEA with lemon?

and I forgot to mention how crazy the weather is! I saw a picture on facebook where Calhoun's strawberries are ALREADY being picked!!! They're usually not ready until mid to late March!!!  What's up with that!?

HaPpY nEw YeAr!!!

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!

Boy am I ever happy for December to be outta here!  Now things can get back to normal....if there is such a thing around here.

December was a whirlwind. We finished up our homeschool group for the year by makin ginger bread houses. That nite my mother in law was admitted into the hospital in Ocilla and then later that nite she was taken to Albany to Phoebe Putney. She had become septic and was in and out of it....she couldn't really respond too much and was fightin a tough battle....Michael went to be with her everyday after work for two straight weeks and I tried to go most of those days....she passed away on December 17th...the last people that were with her before she went were her son, daughter and ex husband.....she wouldn't have wanted it any other way.....I truely believe she was waiting on Mitchell (her ex-husband) to come see her.  Their life story is long and bittersweet. Ms. Sue was laid to rest on December 20th and I never thought we were anywhere close to having to say goodbye to any of our parents...so many things about life are so unexpected.

They only sure and expected thing is that she has no more problems that she suffered with (but never complained about) here on earth  :) Ms. Sue had a very strong faith in God and she knew her day was comin and it did :)

In between all of that, we had Ben's 8th!!! birthday and then many of our Christmas gatherings.

Then two days before New Year's Eve, Ben got sick.....and has been sick ever since!!! He has thrown up more the last week than he has his whole life and has gotten dehydrated. We've been doin everything possible to not have to put him in the hospital! It's been aweful and I feel so bad for him but I think maybe we are turning around today  :)  keep your fingers crossed! 

Anyway, Happy New Year!

Confirmed our BEACH reservations for May and July on this COLD BLISTERING day!!!

Now that makes us happy!!! 

Full Speed Ahead!

 Again I say, I can't believe it's been almost two months since my last post!  Guess you can see we've been busy. Just as Thanksgiving rolls around, so does the hustle and bustle for us.  We get our house decorated for Christmas, finish off our homeschool group for the year, then it's time for Ben's birthday and all the family gatherings....next thing you know, BAM! it's January 1st! Where does the time go?

MAP and I have a 13 year anni comin up and I am so proud of us for what we have done in those 13 years.  In those 13 years, we had 3 kids, celebrated 48 birthdays in our little family, taken some 5 dozen or so trips, called for an ambulance 3 times, buried 1 dog and numerous cats....anyway, you get the picture.....we've survived! This picture was taken at my best friends wedding.....the absolute BEST picture we have EVER taken!!!!! I LOVE IT!!! 

Here are the babes wrapping up the summer with a little competetive hay bale jumping  ; )

This is a fall festival that we went to at the park in Sylvester. It was hosted by my aunt and uncle's church. There were all sorts of games and bouncy things for the kids to have fun with.

Uncle Robert cookin up some meats...sausage and deer, dogs and burgers.

The babes are in the middle here at the cake/cupcake walk. Almost everyone had a chance to get something b/c they were handing out single cupcakes...and they were good! A lot of them were homemade.

Don't these look so pretty? I think they were strawberry.

This is a funny picture b/c little does he know but the one in the green there is about to get the crap beat out of him by that pretty little blue eyed sweetie......

See? told ya! Out of six tries, he knocked her down once......what can I say, I taught her right! And she was quiet happy about it as you can see.

I found this here little pretty at wal-mart. I actually went to Lowes and bought a variety of colors. These really help me get through the winter when I look out and everything else is dead. I just can't understand how these delicate little beauties can survive even the harshest winters...including being covered by SNOW!!!

Even bigger selection of colors......so pretty

We even got a call one morning from my sister in law that got a call from my brother sayin the Barnum and Bailey circus train was comin through Cordele headed our way.  I told the kids and we jumped in the car and headed off to an old dirt road not far from home......and within 30 minutes, the train was barreling down the tracks headed our way!!!

Hopefully it won't be two more months before another post rolls in!

Number 4 :)

Yeah yeah, I know this was taken on our campin' trip to the lake a week ago and I really like it so I decided I'd save it and use it for my 4th week photo. ONE WHOLE MONTH OF MY GOAL!!! YAY!!

I know it's crazy but even after all of these family photos, I still have trouble getting the self timer right! and Jake almost got cut out of this shot! Ben and I had the craziest looks on our faces but we were havin' FUN!

Family Photo number 3!!!

This is my second favorite. Ben and Rivers always race to the camera after it snaps to see if we got a good picture and she got a little snap happy this time. She beat the bell and took off before it snapped completely! I love it because she is so excited and she knows that she beat Ben to it...this time   :)

Fall Campin' at the Lake

Well, I thought I was gonna get to post a few more times before now but even while we were at the lake, there was a lot goin on......well, actually the kids were here and there and everywhere! Even at the lake I'm that "paranoid freak of a mom". Unless they were on their bikes all three together ridin' the loop, either Michael or I were right on their trails   :)  and let me tell you, they didn't slow down!!!

Of all the campgrounds I've been to, this is the prettiest to me....the others we go to are at the beach and they don't have to be pretty cause you don't stay at the campground whilst you are at the beach!!! Anywho, all you want to do at this one is just sit around the campfire...unless of course if you are a kid and then all you wanna do is run around everywhere and make your mama crazy wonderin where you are!

but of course ridin bikes really fast around the curve we stayed on is really fun too!!!

even the little miss got in on the fast action!

and the fact that they make them wear helmets makes me feel a little better...especially when they are racin around with all the other 100's of kids that are there.....and especially since we had just taken a trip tp the e.r. the nite before because one of the seats in my car locked down on Ben's fingers and almost chopped them off!!! The only thing he was worried about while we were tryin to free his fingers was that he may not get to go camping and fishing at the lake!!! I promised him right then that even if they were broken we would still go!!! Luckily and by the grace of God they were fine and we ended up leaving the hospital before we were even seen!!!

This was our lunch after MAP got there on Friday. The kids were excited b/c he took off 1/2 a day from work. So we picnicked even though it said DON'T.....cause that's how we roll   :)

As you can easily see, Ben's fingers were fine! And it happened to be his right "reeling in" hand/fingers that got smashed.  

and just FYI, this is the BEST SALSA I HAVE AND WILL EVER HAVE EATEN IN MY WHOLE LIFE (yeah, it is worth alllll caps!!!) so go get you some!!! look for it on the mexican food isle. SO GOOD!!!

little miss "camera hog"

and just so you all don't think I really just overlook all the rules (like picnicking where it says DON'T), this is what the other side of that sign read   :)  that picnicking spot was just for us campers   :)

They even moved the playground at the campground, and added a few new things like this twirly bird of a thingamajig? You could make it spin all by yourself but after Rivs got off, MAP and I gave Jake a little spin   :) he was beggin for mercy!!! hahaha!



HAHA! Here it is! Family Photo number TWO!!!

You never know where you'll see us next! I had a great idea for this week but I couldn't find anyone to cooperate! Man, I don't realize just how big my hair is til I see it in pictures......higher the hair, the closer to God, I like to say! There will be another post or two before next weeks photo.......we are goin' campin'!!!