Merry, Merry

Happy Birthday Mom!

Hannah's first Leon High football game!

An afternoon hospital visit

Photo is totally unrelated photo, but hate to post without one.

Spent the afternoon in the ER yesterday. Lots of waiting and a few tests later resulted in an "I think" diagnosis. I'm never sick, with the exception of an occassional cold. Only times I've been in the hospital are as follows: my birth, Hannah's birth, Jacob's birth, and yesterday.

Rewind to 11:30am Wednesday morning...
I was at work and I started having severe, sharp pain in my lower abdomen. Sat there, no change. Walked around, no change. As I was walking back to my office, I had a wave of nausea and overwhelming feeling of passing out. Never felt like that before. I sat down in a co-worker's area and all I could think was...Please don't pass out at work, please don't pass out at work. I didn't. Co-worker put a cold cloth on my neck and forehead. Nausea went away slowly and I was able to walk back to my desk.
Meanwhile, I called Michael. Getting a phone call that starts out, "I need you to take me to the doctor or hospital" is never a good call. He jumped into action and called my doctor, which told him to call urgent care, which told him to take me to the ER.

Fast forward to 6pm Wednesday evening...
I felt fine, absolutely no pain at all. Doctor told me he thinks it was a ruptured ovarian cyst and that my body did the 'flight or fight' reaction.

So, this morning I am thankful for many things - some big, some small, some trivial. Here are a few, in no particular order. I'm thankful that Michael has a cell phone and that I could reach him immediately, even if it does quack or bark when I ring. I'm thankful that my co-worker jumped into action with cold cloths and the offering to complete the task I was doing. I'm thankful Michael has a job that allowed him to leave at a moments notice and also a job that has great health benefits so that the thought of having to pay for the hospital visit didn't have to be considered. I'm thankful that God chose for me to live in a time where there are so many modern technologies and conveniences that are available, most of which I take for granted each and every day. I'm thankful that I have a talented hairdresser because while washing my hands at one point in the day I looked at myself in the mirrror and thought, "Great hair day!" I'm thankful for friends that called to check on me. I'm thankful that my husband sat in a cold hard chair yesterday and only complained a few times. I'm thankful that my kids went on with their daily routine. And most importantly, I'm thankful that Jesus is my Savior and that I need not fear a thing because my Lord is in control, regardless of the circumstance, regardless of the outcome.

Couldn't resist sharing.....

Graduation Outfit and Tigger

Hannah is graduating from 8th grade this week. It is extremely hard for me to believe that she will be going to high school next year. She wanted a new dress for graduation. We found the dress at Kohl's, and were afraid we weren't going to find a sweater to match. First we tried to find a white sweater...no luck. Then I thought maybe we could find a black sweater and accessorize with black jewelry and shoes, but no luck. Today we ran into Old Navy and found the blue sweater in the sale section. A quick stop at Payless and the outfit was complete...we already had the necklace....Perfection!

My mom wanted to see a photo of Hannah's outfit and while we were outside taking a few photos, Tigger joined us. Here are a few of the photos I thought were great. Betsie is a scardy cat and is not as adventurous, so she didn't really join the fun.

- Click on each photo to see larger image -

Resurrection Sunday

Today we went to church, to my parent's for lunch, back home to do a little yard work and house straightening and then watched the Tallahassee edition of Extreme Makeover Home Edition. It was an absolute beautiful Resurrection Sunday. Thank you God for sending your Son to live on earth as a man, who ultimately sacrificed his life for my life. He's alive, hallelujah.

A shout out to my foodies....
For an appetizer, I made the Blue Cheese Shrimp Dip that was in the latest edition of Southern Living. Absolutely devine....5 stars!

Row Boats

Well, we almost needed a row boat Thursday. It rained and rained and then rained some more. Our ditch looked more like a creek. Water rushed at a steady stream until it was knocking on our garage door. Last year, Michael and Greg bulldozed a path for the water to drain from our driveway to the ditch. It has worked really well...but with 3 days of rain, it was just too much. Michael, Jacob and Jacob's friend went out and swept the rain off the driveway. Jacob lugged 40 lb. sand bags from the backyard to the front to put in front of the garage door. It worked....

Tomorrow Hannah turns 14 years old. How does that happen? 14 years....gone....in the blink of an eye. She and the other girls in her dance class will be performing at a church in the morning, during their worship service. After that, we'll meet Dee Dee and PaPa at On The Border for Hannah's birthday lunch. I think I'll go charge my camera batteries so I can take some pictures tomorrow.

Move That Bus!!!

Guess what famous ABC tv show invaded Tallahassee this week? Yep, you guessed correct....Extreme Makeover Home Edition. I think we might be considered groupies...this is the 2nd show we have been spectators for.

On Wednesday night we parked about 1 mile away, rode the spectator bus over to the neighborhood and watched the choreographed spectacular! Men and women in blue shirts and white hardhats moving around the yard and surrounding area with great procession. Men were running front end loaders, installing garage doors, pouring a cement driveway, installing a metal roof - just to name a few. No sign of Ty (we heard he was in AL starting another house)...but we did get a quick glimpse of Michael.

Thursday night Hannah and I went back. We were supposed to be selling Girl Scout cookies at Publix...but decided to ditch that and head across town to ride the spectator bus again. This time we arrived just in time to see furniture being moved in. 4 truck loads of furniture were unloaded as the crowd cheered. We caught a quick glimpse of Ty as he ran up to the VIP tent area...probably to eat dinner. Johnny came and signed numerous autographs as Michael worked hard inside the house arranging furniture. Paige gave the crowd a quick wave as she exited the house and went up the hill towards the VIP tent. Michael and Jacob showed up after soccer practice and stayed long enough to see Michael come out to the crowd to sign autographs.

Today, as I was at work, I received a call from Michael. He said, "I'm on the bus!". He took his lunch break a little late and arrived about 15 minutes before the family arrived home. He found a milk crate in the neighbor's yard and stood on that - he had a great view! He was there for MOVE THAT BUS!

I've been tagged....

I've been tagged by my friend over at Dance Mommy's Odyssey . This one looks pretty easy. Hopefully not too embarassing.

Here's how it works.
1. Go to the 4th picture folder on your computer.
2.Post the 4th picture in that folder.
3. Explain the picture.
4. Tag 4 more bloggers.

This photo of Jacob was taken in July, 2007. I really do not have an explanation. I guess Jacob fell asleep on the couch and I decided he looked too cute and had to take a photo. I'm pretty sure he was exhausted from many hours of baseball practice.

I tag...Melissa, Emily, Mom and Karen. Can't wait to see your photos, girls!

25 Things

1. What is your occupation right now? Project Manager for an Engineering firm.
2. What color are your socks right now? Brown and cream…probably with cat hair.
3. What was the last thing that you ate? Leftovers – Curry Beef.
4. Can you drive a stick shift? Yes. Jason had to teach me because when my mom did, she kept starting me out in 3rd. You can imagine how that went…..
5. Last person you spoke to on the phone? BFF - Melissa
6. Do you like the person who sent this to you? That would be Melissa…and yes, I guess I like her.
7. How old are you today? 34
8. What is your favorite sport to watch on TV? Ice Skating…that is a sport, right?
9. What is your favorite drink? I don’t think I have a favorite…water…is that too boring?
10. Have you ever dyed your hair? Nope, never. The closest I have ever come is spraying Sun-In and then laying out at the beach.
11. Favorite food? Seafood
12. What is the last movie you watched? Paul Bart: Mall Cop
13. Favorite day of the year? Honestly, I can’t say I like any one day over the other.
14. How do you vent anger? Scream, slam doors…eat chocolate.
15. What was your favorite toy as a child? Barbies.
16. What is your favorite season? Spring. I love the newness of everything….plus it just smells good outside in the Spring.
17. Cherries or Blueberries? Love blueberries…so much so that we bought 2 blueberry bushes last summer…they are now dead….we never planted them.
18. Do you want your friends to e-mail you back? Since I’m posting this on my blog, instead of emailing it out….I guess this really doesn’t apply, now does it?
19. Who is the most likely to respond? I’ll take all the comments I can get….
20. Who is least likely to respond? ? I NEVER respond to things like this…only did because Melissa mentioned me in her list about 10 times….including this one….so I had to respond!
21. Living arrangements: Ok…that is really weird. First of all, it really isn’t a question. Second of all…well, I don’t really have a second of all. Anyway….I live with my husband, daughter and son – plus 2 crazy cats.
22. When was the last time you cried? Um…I'm not really a crier. However, every time I laugh my eyes water…maybe because I don’t really cry…..Hmmm….never thought about that before.
23. What is on the floor of your closet? Um, shoes and junk….yeah, that pretty much sums it up.
24. Who is the friend you have had the longest that you are sending to? Well, since I’m not sending this to anyone…this doesn’t apply. However, per Melissa, we have been friends for 25 years….so we should celebrate!
25. What did you do last night? Went on a date with my husband.
26. What are you most afraid of? Probably something bad happening to my family.
27. Plain, cheese, or spicy hamburgers? Cheese….who eats plain burgers?
28. Favorite dog breed? NONE….don’t like dogs.
29. Favorite day of the week? Saturday.
30. How many states have you lived in? 3 - Massachusetts, Maine, Florida
31. Diamonds or pearls? Diamonds.
32. What is your favorite flower? Roses.
33. Secret vice: I wish I had a secret vice…..I don’t….plus if I did, I wouldn’t tell. It wouldn’t be a secret, now would it?

Butter Bell and Travel Journal

For Christmas I received a Butter Bell, among other goodies, from my sister-in-law, Christy. Last fall, I saw my first butter bell. It was at book club, at one of the member's homes. I had never heard of a butter bell. She made homemade bread, that really didn't need butter at all. However, when Laura asked, is this a butter bell, as she pulled the bell up, I got excited! Aaaa, a butter bell. No more hard butter. No more melting butter in the microwave, leaving a puddle of butter behind. That night I immediately came home and googled, BUTTER BELL. I almost purchased one that night, but then thought better of it. Did I really need a butter bell? No, I decided. However, when I was coming up with my Christmas list for our family gift exchange, I added it at the top of my list. See the Food Network video here.

I was blog surfing this afternoon and came across this blog. I didn't get very far when I read this post about a travel journal. LOVE, LOVE, LOVE the idea. I will most definitely be purchasing one for me, Hannah and Jacob for our next trip. This isn't really Michael's type of thing...but I may have to purchase him one as well!

I'm still a fat blogger....so, I'm going back to Weight Watchers tomorrow night. Want to hold me accountable? I would love it....and desperately need it. When you see me next, ask me how much weight I've lost.

Milk Glass

My Mom, Hannah, Jacob and I all went antiquing a few weekends ago. We hit the Goodwills, with no luck - so decided we would drive south and check out a few of the junk/antique shops. I found a Milk Glass Compote. Michael gave me flowers for my birthday. I immediately thought of my new compote and went in the garage in search of wet floral foam.

Here is the end result.

Now at all junk stores, antique shops and garage sales I will be on the lookout for Milk Glass.

Christmas and Shrimp Ceviche

I haven't blogged, not for lack of adventures - just lack of inspiration to type.

We celebrated Christmas Eve here in Tallahassee with DeeDee and PaPa. Christmas morning we drove down to Michael's dad's and spent the long weekend there. Melissa and I met in Orlando to do some shopping the Saturday after Christmas - we spent almost 3 hours in IKEA and spent $20 between the two of us.

New Year's Eve the kids spent the night at my parents - which is a tradition. Michael and I went out for dinner and did some shopping. The Botley's came for a visit. I wanted to get a photo of us together, like last year, but we never got around to it.

On Christmas Eve I made appetizers again this year. I made Shrimp Ceviche Cocktail, which was my favorite appy this year.

1 lb. shelled, deveined, large cooked shrimp

1/2 medium seedless cucumber, diced

2 plum tomatoes, seeded and diced

1/4 c. green pepper, chopped

1/4 c. red onion, diced

1/4 c. snipped fresh cilantro

1/4 c. lime juice

1/2 t. salt

Combine, cover and refrigerate up to 1 hour before serving. For best texture, do not prepare this recipe more than 1 hour in advance. Once combined with the acidic lime juice, the shrimp will begin to firm up and eventually become tough and rubbery.