Playing Catch-Up

Alternately titled: A really long post with all the news and pictures I've been neglecting.

I really am going to revive my blog. Maybe not today, maybe not tomorrow, but I'm here and I haven't forgotten about it.

Given my lack of posts since Thanksgiving, I should probably catch all 3 of you up on our business.

We survived another semester and *hopefully* have gotten to the bottom of Joe's behavior problems. Undiagnosed severe ADHD can lead a Mother to crazytown. WE are all MUCH better now though.

I made the President's list with my 4.0 for the fall semester. This one however, I'm hoping just to survive! 19 hours....geez!

We had a wonderful, amazing Christmas:

These are my favorite types of family photos!


Joe got a Terrance Cody jersey from Aunt Micki and he was SO happy! He is wearing it at school as we speak. He also slept in it last night!


We got him this big Cody photo which he freaked out over!


These are all the cousins/grandchildren on my Mama's side of the family. When we were taking the picture, they said "tall ones in the back." We just looked at each other and laughed!


This might be the only photo of all 3 of us from Christmas day.


All of us but my Dad who had to work. Mom, thanks for making me look pale! Tall, but pale.

Which is quite the opposite of my friends Rachel Red and Allie:

Who make me look rather tan, but short!

Now let me tell you what my dear, sweet husband has been up to:

Oh, not much, just killing the first deer of his life! 9 point buck, 178 lbs! We will be eating deer meat for at least a year and I couldn't be more excited!


Jason and Adam were in the shooting house together when he got it. He used Adam's gun because the scope is better. Adam has also killed a doe this year!

Jason has also been flooring our attic:

Callie tried to help!

Also, there was this little thing called ALABAMA GOING UNDEFEATED AND WINNING THE NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP!!!!!!! ROLL TIDE!!!!!!!!!!!!

Well folks, I promise to do better. If you're still reading this and still care about our lives, I'll keep it going. Maybe 2010 will be more interesting!

Thankful!

Well hey there! It's been a while huh? In the spirit of Thanksgiving, I'd like to share some things I am thankful for.

I am thankful for my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Period. It doesn't get any better than that.

I am thankful for my husband. I still wonder every day what in the world he saw in me, a 20 something single mother, college dropout, bartender, bitter young girl. He has turned my life around. He has become a wonderful father and role model to Joe. He supports us while I finish school. He works very hard and never complains or asks why he pays for health insurance for a child with whom he shares no DNA. He is a wonderful, godly man and a selfless provider. As I have seen at least 4 marriages of friends dissolve in the past year, I have never felt better and more stable in my life. He is the epitome of a good husband and (thankfully) has the patience of a saint!

I am thankful for Joe. He tests me every SINGLE DAY, but I am thankful that he is healthy, relatively happy and that he loves Jesus. During a time when I should have absolutely no patience, I have learned through him, that I am capable of being patient and handling situations as they come.

I am thankful for all the wonderful things I have in my life. I have every single thing in the world I could ever NEED.

I am thankful for all the wonderful Thanksgivings I spent at my family's cabin in North Carolina. Nothing will ever replace those wonderful memories. I love my family so much and it makes me sad to think of how much has changed since we last went there 10 years ago.

This year I will be making Apple cider glazed pumpkin cake, roasted green beans with garlic, mashed potatoes, and rolls. I will do my best to post recipes in the coming days.

Who Knew?

Who knew Joe was so wildly talented?

Case in point: He can hold 5 cars using only his toes!

Who knew I'd look so rough after 5 and a half hours in the car?

(...raises hand....I did!)

Who knew a temporary Alabama tattoo could be so stylish?


Okay, maybe not

Anybody order a glittery old lady with a side of back rolls? No?

Who knew my children could be so sweet?

Okay...I did.

Who knew my heart would melt at the sight of a smile and an ear flop?

Lord help me! This might be too much!

Who knew my cat was Linda Blair?

Everyone.


Who knew 2 little boys could wear a total of 5 pieces of Alabama apparel at one time?

We aren't even counting the 2 I had on!

Who knew my boy is about to be 7?

Sigh...

Who knew?

I guess I did.

A Plastic Paradox

On Saturday, Joe bought some action figure men at a yard sale. He named them Astro and Acai (yep, like the berry). These men have seen some interesting action over the past few days, I'm sure. They have fought to high heaven, laid on top of the dog and cats, slid down many stairs, and undoubtedly wound up naked under the bed.

Joe brought Astro downstairs naked around dinner time. This is what transpired:



Me: Joe, you can't have a naked man at the table!

Joe: Why, cause it's disgusting?

Me: Well, no...it's just not proper to have his private parts out on display.

Joe: But he doesn't have any private parts!

Touche Joe. Too-shay.

Random Updates

Lately, between writing horrendous poetry, reading Faulkner, classroom observations, and keeping my head on straight, I haven't had a whole lot of time to do much of anything. In recompense, I offer a numbered list of our most recent accomplishments and musings.

1. First grade does not seem to be agreeing with Joe. I'm not sure if this is the result of a conflict between he and the teacher or not, but it's getting rough. He is in trouble literally every day. He gets notes home for things like "sliding his book around on the table" or "kicking the water fountain." I know he is not a bad child, but he has a lot of trouble focusing. As of right now, I'm not pleased with the way the teacher is handling the situation(s). She has 25 years of experience, but at this point, I feel like her expectations are extremely rigid. We are going to request an intervention from the counselor to see if someone can sit in and observe and maybe give us (or the teacher) some suggestions.

2. On a lighter note- Fall is here! I LOVE fall! I spent the afternoon putting out my Halloween decorations.

3. Jason is honing his new-found carpentry skills by building cabinets and shelves in the garage. I can't wait to see the finished product. So far, the only occupational incident has been a single splinter which I removed this morning.

4. There are 3 things I would like for Christmas. 2 of them are book related. I am such a nerd!

5. Wednesday just might be the best day of my life. I'm getting contacts and seeing an old friend from high school.

6. I read another Faulkner novel, Absalom, Absalom! and I really liked it. I know, I'm surprised myself.

7. Joe has a new dance called "The Charlie Brown" which cracks me up.

8. We have a family game of UNO every night now.

9. In addition to my wonderful friends Tabatha and Lauren, I've made some new friends at school. (Allie, Rachel, and Holly) We spend all day Tuesday together. Allie quilts and Rachel smocks. I feel like a combo of Mean Girls and Golden Girls.

10. ROLL TIDE!!!!!

Amazing Deals!

You might already know that I'm an extremely thrifty person. If I ever become rich, I'll be the world's worst rich person. I probably don't have that to worry about for a while. Since I'm NOT rich, I get really creative with saving money. I LOVE shopping yard sales, the thrift store, Publix sales and using coupons. I came across this coupon recently and was very successful in using it.

How successful?



I was able to buy 3 dresses and 1 pair of underwear for NINE DOLLARS!

Yep, 9 dollars even.

My intention was to find one thing for $10 and just pay the tax but I printed out 2 coupons just in case and I got so lucky!



Clearance price $7.49 Bought in transaction with:

Clearance price $9.99. After I used the $10 coupon, total transaction price: $8.15

The dresses were labeled $19.99 so when I found out they were $9.99 I went back to get another one and used my second coupon.


Clearance price $9.99. I had to find something to make the transaction at least $10 so I found a pair of clearance cute undies for $.79
Total transaction price after coupon: $.85

Total out of pocket: $9.00

Not bad for 3 dresses!

I got a JCPenny coupon in the mail today for $10 off of purchase of $10 or more so chance are, I'll have some more great bargains!

Jessica's Baby Shower

Well hello there! It's been a while! I started this blog for a few reasons, the most important being to keep our family and friends (who wish to be updated) updated on what we're up to. Then I dreamt up all these aspirations and goals for my writing. As it turns out, I just don't have time to be a good, witty writer. That being said, I do have time to do what I set out to do in the beginning, tell my family (who are all far away) just what the heck is going on here. So, what's up you ask? Well, this past weekend, Jason and I headed up to Huntsville for our friend Jessica's baby shower.


There were a lot of sweet girls there and Jessica got some great gifts for baby Hayden.


I learned that diaper cakes are in no way edible, they are however, adorable.

We played some fun games

like sniffing diapers




But I didn't forget that Alabama was playing on Saturday.

I at least wore crimson!

But then I changed and headed to watch the game with the boys.

I LOVE ALABAMA FOOTBALL!!


Jason and Chad coordinated outfits. Actually, about half of the state coordinated outfits most likely.


I promise not to neglect y'all anymore....just don't expect greatness!