Houston, we have a problem...

These tulips never had a chance...

These shrubs were under attack.

I knew we had a problem...

I just didn't know how "big" the problem was!

Things that make you want to sneeze...

This one doesn't make me sneeze - it just gives me a bad headache.

The Cement Pond - Centennial Beach

This is where the girls will be swimming this summer. Centennial Beach (otherwise referred to as "The Beach") is an old limestone quarry that was bought by some citizens in the 1930's. Of course this is it with all of the water drained out. I'll keep you posted on it's progress throughout the weeks ahead.

In order to swim in the "drop off" area - kids have to have completed the eighth grade or pass a deep water swimming test - two laps across the pool (100 meters) using the front crawl stroke.

Koolickles - It's a "Delta" thing

And this is what you get when you pour a packet of Tropical Punch Kool Aid and a cup of sugar into a jar of Kosher dill pickle spears to soak for three days. After a week, the pickle will be red throughout.

You'll need to drain the pickle juice, add the sugar and Kool Aid to the juice. Then pour it back into the jar. You will have juice left over.

I like to mix up a batch when I know we're going to be at a "gathering". It's something fun for everyone to try.

Photography

It's raining today. It's SUPPOSED to warm up alot by Friday. I can't believe that I took these pictures a few weeks ago!

Eight years ago at this very moment , I brought this into the world...

Luckily, it turned into this...

This is what she's doing right now. She got the stomach virus for her birthday.

I found some Spring...

Photography

One of my favorites...

I took this picture in the Spring of 2006 in Mississippi. This was the view at the beginning of the street that we lived on. Lucky me!

My PSA (Public Service Anouncement)

Don't forget about

your local library!!!!!

(I'm going to name this GA original piece - "Waiting for Spring")

I popped into the library yesterday to return some books and decided to peruse the movies. It was my lucky day!!! Two of the movies on our "want to watch" list were were there!!! It only cost me $2 to borrow the two "new release" movies! Yahoo! Don't you just love it when that happens? And to think I was planning on renting them from the video store!

I'm so bad about assuming that the library won't have the "latest" in whatever I want. Love it when I'm proved wrong! Our library also has a gigantic collection of music CD's available too. I haven't taken advantage of this service nearly as much as I should.

Fried Turkey

We were in a "frying frenzy" this weekend...

We try to have a "turkey fry" at least once a year. It's just something kind of fun to do - especially because many people have never tasted one. We usually inject (with a big fat syringe) only one side of the turkey with spices and leave the other without. It's interesting to compare the difference in flavor that the spices can make. This turkey was about 13 pounds. - Any bigger and it takes longer to cook AND it's a little more work to cram it into that pot. Once the oil was heated up, it took about 45 minutes to cook.

"Naked" Wingless Turkey

Hot Pot of Peanut Oil

Waiting for it to finish cooking...

Tan Turkey

Dinner

Butter Lamb

To celebrate Easter, I carved this lamb out of butter.

Just kidding... I bought it at the grocery store.

More Eggs

Didn't want anyone to think that I would deprive my children of the whole food coloring and vinegar experience. We had a few casualties but they were taken in stride. GA immediately came to the conclusion that - "if you just turn them over, no one will know they're cracked". - She is definitely my child.

Natural Egg Dying

I saw this posted online last year and had to try it...the rusty/brownish eggs were soaked in water that I had boiled yellow onion skins in and the blue eggs were soaked in water that I had boiled red cabbage in. You can find plenty of info online if you want to try. A little warning for the impatient...not a good project for kids that want instant color results.

My Favorite Things - See's Candy

"Life is like a box of chocolates - you never know what you're gonna get." - Forest Gump

My annual "birthday" box of chocolate came yesterday.

- Love ya Man!

I got my first box of See's Candy as a "thank you" gift from our realtor when we bought a house in California. See's headquarters is in San Francisco. It's the only box of candy that I've ever had that I liked EVERY piece!!!

Why "A Little Happy"?

Back when I lived in the Mississippi Delta, a group of us got together for little impromptu birthday lunch celebration at a local catfish joint. Some of us staked our claim at a table while someone else ran over to the grocery for some cupcakes and VOILA!!! A party created! Anywho, one person had a little foresight to grab a "little something" for the guest of honor as she headed out earlier. As she made her presentation to the birthday girl, she proclaimed...

"It's just a little happy."

That phrase has been imbedded in my mind ever since! A "happy" is any little "something" given "just because". Nothing really extravagant just a way of letting someone know that you are thinking about them.

photography

This is my desperate attempt to keep from wanting Photoshop. I'm trying to learn how to "use what I've got".

This first picture is the one that I actually shot. The second one, I "tweaked" on the computer just using the standard features that came with the camera (sharpen/brighten/contrast...). So nice to know that you're not necessarily stuck with the original.

In the beginning...

OK - Here it goes...my first attempt at "blogging"! I think I'm going to be addicted. Especially once I figure out all the formatting stuff. My biggest challenge right now, is finding a template that I like. I can't seem to make the changes that I want to make. AGH!!!!! I see a class in web design in my future...