Halloween

For the first time, the girls did not go to town for trick or treating with us.  They had volleyball practice at school and decided to just go to Grammie's house and snack on the goodies she had for her "trick or treaters" (which consists of only us). 

 

Life was so busy this October with all the football games and volleyball games, plus everything else in between, that we didn't even carve pumpkins.  I did buy them, just no time for carving.  I'll turn them into pumpkin pie or bread or something yummy anyway.

 

Trick or treating for country kids like ours takes a little more planning.  First of all, we had to dive into the costume box for past costumes.  Walmart (both Clovis and Portales) had next to nothing for costumes this year.  By the time I realized this, it was too late to order something.  Drew really wanted to be Thor.  But settled for Megatron instead.  Chance was a little easier.  He did the same thing this year as last year: wore his football uniform and pads.  The helmet got too hot though, so halfway through Jeff had to carry it. 

 

Next we have to find a neighborhood.  Because where we are there is no door-to-door.  Jeff's parents live "next door", but that's still a mile and a half down the road.  Luckily, we have some awesome friends in town that don't mind if we invade their neighborhood.  They have the good chocolate, too!

 

One house we went to had alot of fun with the holiday.  These two stormtroopers looked like the real thing.  They stood so still, we thought they were fakes, then we got right up close to them and they would move.  Scared the crap out of us!  Awesome!  They were Chance's favorite, since he's on the Dark Side anyway.  haha!

 

Chance and Drew with members of the Empire

 

After three streets, Drew kept complaining "Are we done yet?".  He was give out.  So it was back to the car and drove to Grammie and Grandaddy's for popcorn balls. 

Wedding pictures--stuff

The previous post was people at the wedding.  But I wanted to post about the non-people items, too.

 The head table/buffet area

Buffet

Head table

 The wedding cake, complete with little Somi!

The Wedding dinner menu

 Photos of the Bride and Groom and families, from their childhood to courtship, hung above a table.

Among the photos was a tribute to mine and Brian's Gram, along with picture of her and Granddaddy.  We were both very close to her.

 Sign welcoming the guests to the wedding.

Guests didn't leave empty handed with this bags of muffins.  Bad picture, but the mason jars

held sparklers for the bride and grooms send-off (instead of bird seed or rice).

My Grandaddy's old shoeshine box allowed the guests to place well wishes to the couple.  The box will be opened on their one year anniversary and they can read all the messages then.

One of the many bouquets that adorned the tables.  Hydrangeas tied with twine and fastened with a brooch.

Wedding-people

Of course my brother had to get married on the hottest day in Atlanta history.  Records were broke as the temperature rose to 106F that day.  And of course it had to be an outdoor wedding!  LOL!  But that's ok, because everything was so beautiful and fun, we hardly noticed the heat.  Especially with the endless supply of Sangria served in mason jars!

The wedding was held at a little restaurant called Wahoo! Grill in Decatur.  The outdoor garden was perfect for the wedding's vintage theme.

Like the rehearsal dinner the night before, the food was awesome!  Fried Calamari and Bruschetta along with salad for starters.  Then the main meal of Shrimp and Grits, Parmesan Chicken, Penne Pasta.  Of course wedding cake and other goodies were on dessert table. 

Aunt Jan, my mother Judy, me, and my step-sister-in-law Holly (and her bun in the oven!)

Shelby, Ch'ree, Juliet, Judy, Aunt Jan, Holly and me.

My stepbrothers, Jonathan and Jessie

Mom and Wayne (and Drew)

Me and my baby brother Brian, the groom.

Brian's baby girl, little Somi Isabella!

Nancy and Brian pose for some pictures

 Enjoying their meal at the head table

 Me and my new sister!

The bride and groom left amid lit sparklers and loaded into the get-a-way car, a 1947 Chevy

Wedding Rehearsal

This summer our vacation was driving 1,300 miles to see my family in Georgia.  The main event was my little brother's wedding!  We were so excited to meet his daughter Somi and to spend a week with our family and friends there.

First on our agenda was the wedding rehearsal.  The dinner was held at Mary Mac's Tea Room in downtown Atlanta on Ponce le Leon Ave, just down the street from the historic Fox Theater.  Known for it's southern cooking and hospitality, we were in for a treat!  There was so much food!  Served family style, the waitresses brought plates and plates piled high with food, set them on the table family style, and we helped ourselves.  We started off with Fried Green Tomatoes with ranch and buns and cinnamon rolls.  The main course was Fried Chicken, BBQ pulled pork, turkey and dressing, fried okra, mac and cheese, and green beans.  And of course endless pitchers of sweet tea.  To finish it all off, there was peach cobbler for dessert.  There were tons of leftovers, which we boxed up and took home to help feed all of us for days to come.

Ch'ree and her cousin, Juliet.

Just one of the three trays of fried chicken

Everyone is chowing down the delicious food!

Shelby and Aunt Jan

My mother and her husband, Wayne, welcome the guests

and talk about when he first met my brother Brian, with his dreadlocks.

LOL!

The bride and groom listening to Wayne give his speech

Planting, sans rain

For the second year in a row, we have received next to nothing for rain.  Since April, we have gotten .3".  Yup.  Less than half an inch of rain all summer.  There has been a bit of rain AROUND us, but we watch the radar or the sky and see our neighbors getting it.  Us, zilch. 

But, we have to plant.  Time is running out, so for the first time ever, Jeff is dry planting.  This song really seems to fit our life right now.



"Amarillo Sky"
by Jason Aldean

He gets up before the dawn;
Packs a lunch an' a thermos full of coffee.
It's another day in the dusty haze;
Those burnin' rays are wearin' down his body.
The diesels worth the price of gold;
It's the cheapest grain he's ever sold,
But he's still holdin' on.

He just takes the tractor another round,
An' pulls the plow across the ground,
And sends up another prayer.
He says: "Lord, I never complain, I never ask: 'Why?'
"Please don't let my dreams run dry,
"Underneath, underneath this Amarillo Sky."

That hail storm back in '83,
Sure did take a toll on his family.
But he stayed strong and carried on,
Just like his Dad and Granddad did before him.
On his knees every night,
He prays: "Please let my crops and children grow,"
'Cause that's all he's ever known.

He just takes the tractor another round,
An' pulls the plow across the ground,
And sends up another prayer.
He says: "Lord, I never complain, I never ask: 'Why?'
"Please don't let my dreams run dry,
"Underneath, underneath this Amarillo Sky."

An' he takes the tractor another round. (Another round.)
Another round. (Another round.)
Another round.
An' he takes the tractor another round, another round.
He says: "I never complain, I never ask: 'Why?'
"Please don't let my dreams run dry,
"Underneath, underneath this Amarillo Sky.
"Underneath this Amarillo Sky."

Driveby, April 2012

Oh my!  My lack of posting is horrible!  But there is so much going on, I seldom get to turn on my computer at home.  I've literally gone weeks without starting it up.  There is just no time!

So, here's what's been going on.

• Puppies   In January, our golden retriever, Scarlett, surprised us with a litter of puppies.  Unknown who the daddy is, but judging by the pups, something large and black.  She had NINE of the little darlings.  5 girls, 4 boys (or was it the other way around?), and two were black, two very light tan, the rest a bit darker.  Some had slick fur, some very fuzzy fur.  When they were old enough we (the kids and I) loaded them up and sat for three days in front of the local Walmarts (that's plural, not redneck.  The one in Pville and the one in Clovis).  And managed to get rid of all but three.  Of these, we are keeping two (a boy and girl that we fell in love with).  And still have one that needs a good home.  She's black and fuzzy and so sweet!  Hit me up if you would like her!
• Sports     My last post showed that basketball was just getting started (or should have been anyway).  Well, it's come and gone.  We are at the end of track season for the girls, district meet is tomorrow, Shelby hopes to qualify for State.  And this week the boys have had their first baseball games.  State cheer was fun, although we didn't place.  I was very proud of the girls for not dropping any stunts or making any huge mistakes.  We know what to work on for next year.  My Mom, Wayne and Aunt Jan got to come out for it and spend a few short days with us at home.
• School   We are quickly approaching the end of the school year!  May is promising to be a CRAZY month with baseball games, end of the year awards and banquets for the kids, etc.  I've got to finish up the yearbook, work on three different slideshows, bug seniors to get their pictures to me ASAP!  It's literally so crazy, I would just love an entire day to work at school with none of the kids (mine or other peoples) to disturb me, with the school's high speed internet.  Because what we have here at the house won't let me do squat.  But then I can't stand a day away from the family, so it goes.
• weather   It's been dry.  And hot for spring.  The wheat headed out sooner than expected, the grass is already up in most parts of my yard.  I'm working on putting in a few plants and more trees this year.  We didn't have a very wet winter, although we had more than last year (which isn't saying much).  A couple inches of rain would do wonders for so many farmers here.
• Poop   Ah, yes.  There is always poop.  Jeff is in the works of getting a manure trailer and will be in the poop hauling business.  And it looks like there is alot of it.  He's also breaking out some CRP land that wasn't renewed this year, so he'll be farming more, too.  Good, he needs something to stay out of trouble, right?  LOL!
• A new driver    Well, almost.  In exactly two weeks from today, Shelby will head down to the DMV and get her learners permit.  Jeff got her a truck this winter.  A 1979 Ford Supercab pickup.  It's just two wheel drive, but she loves it already.  I can't believe my baby will be 15.
• the other kids   they are all fine.  Shelby is about 5'10" tall now.  She used to hate it when people said, wow, you're tall!  Now I think she enjoys it, especially when she is standing next to my 5'7" frame.  Chance's foot is the same size as mine, which saved me some money this year when I didn't have to buy him baseball cleats.  He can just wear mine!  LOL!  Ch'ree is fixing to hit a growth spurt as well.  And Drew, well, he's just as cute as a button!
• Cancer   Cancer sucks.  No, no one in our immediate family has it.  But we lost two teachers within 10 days of each other to it.  When your school only has 50 or less total staff members, and just 229 kids, it takes a toll.  Mrs. Lang was our music teacher who also taught history and creative writing, and was also Shelby's class sponsor.  And Mrs. Ashley was our reading specialist.  Last fall our football coach also lost his wife.  so it's been a rough year for our school family.

There tons more going on.  Like, I want to start exercising but can't find the time or energy for it.  Yes, I realize I could have gotten in part of a workout instead of typing this post.  But then it would have been another 6 months before I posted here.  Or I could be cleaning the house which is in disarray.  I still haven't found the balance to keeping the house clean with four children and a full time job.  School will be out soon enough (4 week!  Or 16 days!), and maybe then I can get the house and exercise done.  But until then, I'm lucky to keep my head above water.  Or the mountain of laundry.  :o)

So, until summer, have a wonderful spring!  Maybe soon I can post some pictures!

Hunting widow

When our marriage was young and we had one very young child, deer hunting meant a good house cleaning. It was amazing how much I could accomplish around the house without it being undone right behind me. Counters were not only cleaned off, but scrubbed with a toothbrush and bleach in every crack and crevice, around all faucets, and polished til everything shone.

Today, I still have the anticipation and want to get it all clean like that. But the children out number me x4. I have a huge list of things to get accomplished, but doubt shadows my mind of when I will have time to get it done.

For example, today is nearly shot and it's not 9am. A run to Wal-mart to get the latest and last Harry Potter movie that goes on sale today, use a credit at same store for a brand new set of dishes (since Thanksgiving is here this year, I want all my dishes to match and be in one piece in my new home). The girls both have eye appointments at 10am, followed by 3 hours of cheer practice from noon to 3. Chance has invited a friend to spend the night. They THINK they are going to sneak up at 3am and watch a rated R movie (Zombieland). They have another thing coming. But the evening will be spent making pizza, caramel popcorn, and other goodies and watching our movies; things that come from it being deer hunting and no daddy.

I hope to accomplish something tomorrow. I have pansies to plant and horses that are neglected after sitting unridden for many months. But of course, the wind is supposed to blow all weekend. Not to mention yet another trip to town, this time for Chance's football team's end of the season pizza party. Sunday is back to town for church, Monday and Tuesday work. The latter two, however, won't have the usual 6am basketball practice for Ch'ree. Instead, it has basketball games for their first tourney in Melrose.

But hopefully by Tuesday night, I will have accomplished SOMETHING. Maybe the house will be cleaner than usual. Maybe not. But in the meantime, I hope to make some special memories with the kiddos, as we are all widowed and orphaned for a few days.