Merry Christmas!!

Wishing everyone a wonderful Christmas and a Happy New Year!!

Lou's Birthday!

I know, I know...I'm sooooo far behind on some of my posts!! I did however, want to post this slideshow from my girls 6th birthday. All she wanted was to go horseback riding & her Aunt Jamie made that wish come true! We had such a good time! Jamie's friend, Bonnie, was the best, most awesome hostess/horse whisperer!! I cannot thank either of them enough!






The Weepies ~ Gotta Have You ~
The Weepies ~ Simple Life ~

Ho! Ho! Ho!

We had the best time last night! Some friends invited us over for dinner & guess who showed up?? That's right, the Jolly Old Fellow himself!! What a surprise!! He was so kind & intuitive! As soon as he saw my girl he knew exactly what she wanted for Christmas!! ;-)










~ Bruce Springsteen ~ Santa Claus is Coming to Town ~

The Office

My girl has taken to perching herself right up on my desk while I work..I kinda like it!

Feminist

Yesterday, my boy asked me if something was "handmade" or "man made" and I asked him to give me an example and he said "like a lake".

I replied "that's man made".

To which he said "well, that isn't fair, what if a girl helped build that lake? it should be called "People Made".

I love that boy!!

My sleeping beauties!

They're so precious when they are sleeping!! Both of my babies are getting so big! I can hardly stand it! Although, I will say that recently I was thinking about my boy & the struggles of growing up and I got so excited thinking about the man that he will turn out to be! Kind, generous, smart and funny are all the things I wish for him! Oh and of course...tall & handsome!!

2011 Lantern Walk

One of my favorite events at the kid's school!

~Yo-Yo Ma ~ Dona Nobis Pacem ~

Armed!

This is what happen when good kids go bad...with caulk guns!

Sweet Potatoes

My boy's 2nd grade class had a field trip to the Atlanta Food Bank's Tapestry WIC Garden - led by the magnificent Fred Conrad (father to Ivie). The task given to Grade 2...digging up sweet potatoes. Let me tell you...these weren't your ordinary, buy at Publix, bake in the oven, add a little brown sugar sweet potatoes...these things were MONSTERS! I've never seen anything like this! I asked Fred why they were so big and he looked at me and said "Luck!"

Chopped!

Our fall break was spent at my parents house this year. One of the many treats when visiting Granna & Daddy Jim is being able to watch TV. We try to be conscious of what the kids watch while visiting - but some things are just too irresistible. Like the Food Network show Chopped... Perhaps you are familiar with this program? Four chefs compete with each other and must use several chosen ingredients when preparing their 3 courses. One by one they are "chopped" from the show until there is only one remaining chef.



Not long after we returned home, I woke up one a.m. to my children preparing their own Chopped event. The ingredients they had to use were: soy nut butter, jelly, frozen bread, granola & kiwi. I was chosen to be the judge, which also meant I had to taste the dishes...all before I'd had my coffee....

At the end of the tasting, I was to place the "chopped" dish under a large pot lid and then ceremoniously uncover which dish had been "chopped" (just like in the show). It was an easy choice for me - once it had been revealed that Chef A had soaked his bread in coconut water...yes water... Chef Lou-Lou was the clear winner! Plus, there was no denying her presentation & the fact that she prepared three separate dishes...

Michaelmas

Yesterday, our school had their annual Michaelmas celebration & as usual...it was fabulous! My boy was so excited because this was his 1st year to be chased by the dragon. He really hoped to be the last one tagged - luckily there's always next year... I was at Michaelmas in a professional capacity...school photographer, but that didn't stop me from capturing images of my muses...

Lou in a cape that she made in honor of Michaelmas.

Check out the video I made last year for Michaelmas!

Dragon*Con 2011

Seriously...this is why you live in a city! You can't make this s#*t up! This past weekend Dragon*Con was held in our fair city and we decided to take the family to see the parade held on Saturday morning. I mean, people not only get dressed up like this...they do it early in the morning!! Thank goodness because we had the best time perusing their wackiness!! Here are a few of my favorite images!



Folks couldn't have been friendlier!! I'm serious, everyone would turn and give great big smiles or break into their characters stance without a second thought!

Or lend little girls their machine gun...


The Elf guy - looked JUST like Will Farrell...I think maybe that was the point...


It's really hard for me to choose...but I think the balloon image is my favorite!!


Although, I LOVED Chewbacca here - favorite costume...so sexy!!! You know I have a thing for tall guys...

This guy wasn't part of the parade, well, I guess technically he was because he came behind everyone & cleaned up. We joked that his machine was futuristic enough to be a character in the parade...sch-wooped up all the garbage! If you've gotten this far and you are interested...you can watch the slide show I put together of our fun, fun morning! Seriously, we'll be back next year!

Snake

Yep, that was me...driving around town last week with a snake in my purse, willingly I might add! The lengths I go to for my kids - I really hope they appreciate my motherly dedication!

Redundant

There are days where I wish I could completely envelop these kids! I just want to wrap my arms around both of them and hold them as tightly as I can!

tooth

UGH!! My girl had another terrible fall from her bike today & BUSTED up her mouth good! One tooth is precariously hanging in there, but its fate looks pretty sealed...needless to say she had a rough day! As a matter of fact, it took it's toll on all of us - honestly, I just don't handle blood very well!! However, I'm quick to realize that we are so blessed with our health that a lost tooth is minor in comparison to the potential...

Tonight as I was putting her to bed I lingered a little longer than normal, tickling her back and staying with her until she fell asleep. Right before she dozed off she murmured this..."I think I have the greatest Mommy of all..." I'm not sure if my heart could have been any fuller! This must be what they mean when they say it's all worth it!

SuperCat!

"Skyper thinks he is a 'super-cat' and that he can fly. Hmph...he can't...I try to help him...I hold him up and then drop him...and he can't fly!"

***for the life of us...we can't figure out why he keeps scratching her...

Eye Exam

Although it's a given that I love my children with all of my heart, all of the time...there are times when they do or say something that makes me fall in love with them all over again! Today was one of those days, as soon as I saw this, my heart dove a little deeper!

My boy was scheduled for an eye appointment, nothing serious, just an eye appointment. But, boy was he nervous - so nervous that he and his sister studied for the eye exam - complete with an eye chart and all - here they are with his sister administering the test. Although he passed, she concluded that he cheated since he was the one who developed the eye chart...she has a good point!

Edisto Sea Monsters

This past week we had an opportunity to see 1st hand a couple of infamous Edisto Sea Monsters...I wouldn't be surprised if we hear from the National Enquirer or World News soon...

We were actually able to witness a portion of their metamorphosis - a rare occurrence in itself!

Two Edisto Sea Monsters emerging from the sea...

Terribly vicious!

But very cute!

An even rarer event...spotting of a baby Edisto Sea Monster...

Story time

We were able to spend a few days with my Mom a week or so ago, and as always thoroughly enjoyed our time with her! Lots of good food, shopping, swimming and of course books in bed with Granna! My kids are Cuckoo-Koo for Granna!

My Girl

I can't believe this image was taken nearly a year ago...where does the time go? I loved that cute haircut of hers, but she insists on letting it grow out! I miss those baby teeth too...

Love

Love me some of this boy!

Folo the Eros

This is what greeted my baby-daddy last night after work. I wish I could fully express how much I love this image & why, but you will just have to trust me when I say it's a lot!!!

Bad Son!

This video was made especially for the Dad in our lives...

Paris!!

I think I'm gonna win a trip to Paris!! I'm so sure I will win, I'm not even worried about telling you about the contest...check it out, heck you can even enter if you'd like! I'll be sure to bring you back a fancy souvenir from the City of Lights...