Sentimental Saturdays

So, when Sis was a baby, I took lots of pictures. I mean, LOTS! And when Bub came along, everyone told me, "Oh, you'll never take as many pictures of him." Um, WRONG! I mean, I DID forget to put stuff in his baby book, and sometimes comb his hair, but forget to take pictures of him? Nuh-uh.

This is a picture I took of Sis when she was 3 months old. Isn't she adorable? I thought the picture was so cute, I framed a copy of it.

This pose and picture must have been in my mind one day when I had Bub in the exact same sleeper. So guess what I did? I posed him in the same place and in the same way. But I never looked at the pictures right next to each other until today. They were both right around 3 months old. Cute, eh?

I hope you're enjoying these Sentimental Saturdays. I sure am!!! I am enjoying looking through old photos, and sharing them with you!

It's not the Cha Cha, yo!

So, I do what I can to be a fun aunt. You know the "fun aunt:" the one who lets you put on her makeup when you're 8, and THEN lets you go out in public with it on (McDonalds, even). Or the one that lets you and all your cousins spend the night at your house the day she gets home from her honeymoon. Or the one that lets you spend EVERY. SINGLE. WEEKEND. at her house when you're a teenager. Or the one who wouldn't DREAM of watching Little House on the Prairie without you.

Oh wait... I haven't done any of those things. Those were MY fun aunts!!

*me with one of my "fun aunts" last weekend*

So, back to me. I inherited one niece when Don and I got married. T was 5 when we got married, and she was so excited to get to call me "Aunt Darla." She would come visit us when we lived out-of-state, and we'd let her hog the bed sleep with us when no one else would. I would stay up SUPER late with her and tell her funny stories about when I was a kid. One time we emptied out ALL of her hair accessories, and fixed each other's hair using EVERY single accessory at once. Lots o' fun!!!

Then I had kids. I became, while still fun (right???), more of a teacher and, well, PARENT than a fun adult to hang out with... although my kids are surrounded with fun aunts themselves. Lots o' fun!!!

Then my sister had kids. And while I was still a mom, I got to revert back to the fun aunt sometimes, too! When Big Sissy (8 mos. old at the time) went on a trip with my sisters, my kids and me, I taught her to bang her high chair tray when she was hungry (while I chanted: We want food! We want food!)... My sister was thrilled!!! I created a "club" for Big Sissy, Little Sissy, Sis and Bub, me and any other family adult that cares to join... they just have to be willing to sit under my parents' dining room table, because THAT'S where the clubhouse is. We have a secret handshake, secret rules, and some other secrets (that is, you don't know them unless you ask... if you ask, we'll be glad to tell you...). Lots o' fun!!!

Now, there's Little Buddy. Now that he's getting a little older, he's decided that he likes his "fun aunts," too. ALL the kids already LOVE my youngest sister. She's a fun aunt without even trying. They're just drawn to her. But FINALLY Little Buddy has decided to have fun with me, too (once he's scoped out the room and has determined that his mom is NOT planning on leaving him with me!). We went to a family wedding out of town last weekend (see pics that my sis posted here), and Little Buddy was, well, my little buddy all day! I sat by him and he patted my leg, rubbed my arm, fed me, let me "borrow" his sippy cup while he "borrowed" my cell phone... you know flirting 1-year-old style! Lots o' fun!

He started doing a funny thing with his arm, tucking his hand into the crook of his neck... and I thought it looked like he was doing the Sprinkler. You know, the dance? Not to be confused with the Lawnmower... or Feeding the Chickens. So, I taught the "dance" to Little Buddy.

(Um, if you care to view it, just crane your neck as far over to the right as you possibly can, then you'll have a great view... sorry about that!)

So cute!!! And LOTS O' FUN!

Sentimental Saturdays

So, last Saturday I started a new "series," Sentimental Saturdays, with the intent of posting "old" pictures to reminisce on and get all sappy and sentimental. Yeah, I didn't think it would last past last week, either. But guess what? Last Sunday, I bought a used scanner... so this might actually WORK! In honor of my sister's 10th wedding anniversary this weekend, I thought I would post a picture from her wedding day. Here you have all 4 siblings together... we don't all pose together much, do we?



I am (obviously) pregnant here with Sis, so this picture represents all kinds of changes going on for us! I was thinking about it... I also think this might have been the weekend that Don and I decided on our way back "home" to Kentucky that we both were ready to move back to our "real home."



You can go here to read a beautiful tribute that my sister made regarding her marriage. HAPPY ANNIVERSARY C & K!!!

Just pure silliness

So, I was thinking... do you think if these 2 coach purses fell in love and got married, they would have cute little coach wallets??

A story in pictures... Baking Cookies

Once upon a time, Don and Kevin were having a lazy afternoon after cooking their wives brunch (for Mother's Day). All of a sudden, Don gets an idea.

So, I wonder what would happen if I take this raw cookie dough I'm eating, and cooked it right on the spoon?

Here's the lighter I just used to light the candle... let's find out.

WAIT!!! Let me go get my camera! (that was me!)

This is gonna be fun!

This might actually work!

That's hilarious! It looks like you're freebasing cookie dough (you know, from seeing it in movies)!

Yo, yo, yo, YO!

Hey, Kristin, aren't we funny??? Kristin??? Are you READING??? *crickets chirping*

It's actually cooking, but I think it needs to be flipped over.

Here... I'll use this fork handle to flip it over.

I think it's almost ready.

See it smoking? It's almost cooked through.

I'm going to try it now... I'm ready!

I hope it's good!

Oh. Oh, dude. You totally should have tried this!

That was PERFECT!!!

And the cookie eater lived happily ever after.

THE END.

You say it's your birthday? Well, it's her birthday, too! And hers!

So, today is both my sisters' birthdays! But they're not twins! They are six years apart. And one of them is 30 today! And the other one is either 6 years older, or 6 years younger. And our brother is the only still in his 20's. I'll let you figure that one out! ;)

So, I thought I'd throw a few pictures of my sisters in here. You can go to Elissa's blog here or Christy's blog here to wish them a Happy Birthday! Love you both!

*The sisters a few summers ago*

*At Christy's Master's Degree graduation last year*

*Christy at my cousin's bridal shower with her homemade veil*

*Elissa and Christy*

*Elissa swordfighting with Bub at Christmas... she looks a little scared, doesn't she?*

*Beautiful Elissa*

*Beautiful Christy (and Little Buddy)*

Sentimental Saturdays - Part 1

I've decided to start something new. Because, you know, I'm GREAT at starting stuff... But let's just admit right now that this will soon go the way of the Thankful Thursdays that I no longer do have taken a little break from.

So, my idea is to post some pictures from the past. Because nothing makes me more sentimental than looking at how far things have changed from THEN til NOW. And I'll be honest... I don't own a scanner, so it may be hit-or-miss (well, I guess if we're going to be REALLY honest, we'd all admit that it would be hit-or-miss whether I had a scanner or NOT!).

I'm not sure of the exact date of these, but I think Sis was 3 and Bub was 2, which would put this at 6 years ago. Don got his MBA, and the kids (well, at least Sis) was THRILLED to be in pictures with someone so important! :)

Check out the chubby cheeks. And Bub's blankie (a constant companion!). And Sis's long, long hair. *sniff* And my cute graduate!

What sorts of things make you sentimental?

You say tomato, I say tomahto

Yesterday at lunch, some co-workers and I did an informal, fun personality analysis of ourselves. It was funny to see how different (in writing) we were from each other, and how we had similarities that we never noticed before.

I've talked with friends before about how we can be so different, yet get along so well... For example, a LOT of my friends REALLY love to scrapbook. I'd rather poke my eyes out with a fork, personally. I can't imagine spending an entire day (much less an entire weekend, as some of them love to do) cutting things out and gluing. But I enjoy looking at the final product. Maybe that's a bond we have, then. They like to do... I like to see.

Last weekend when I was shopping with Kristin, we both lay some items on the counter so we could shop a little more. When we returned to the counter, I couldn't help laughing.

Here's Kristin's pile:


And here's mine:


Here they are side-by-side. Note that we are similar enough to buy 2 of the same items for our boys, yet look at the differences.

Do you think you have more SIMILARITIES or more DIFFERENCES than your close friends? How about your family?

Nature Hike

Yesterday, I went on the spring field trip with Bub. We went on a nature-ish field trip, where we went on a hike, "got" to get creatures out of the pond with a net to look at in a microscope, do a craft, and then do some "field day" sort of games.

I, being one who prides myself on taking pictures, FORGOT MY CAMERA. So, all these lovely photos are from my camera on my phone. High quality??? Nope.

Bub is right in front of me... notice how EVERYONE is looking on the ground. We're looking for some kind of critters/leaves/anything that helps us mark stuff off our scavenger hunt list.


Like this lovely creature. I have NO idea what it is... but I know we were told not to touch it or it would sting us... that was enough information for me!

If only Bub's hair wasn't in his eyes, you could see his fascination with whatever they're looking at.

They're looking at some kind of leaves. Or critters. Or something. I was paying SUCH close attention, can't you tell?

Their class photo overlooking the river. Bub is in the front middle (all in rock-and-roll black).

Here's one of the "field day" games they were playing. Bub's class was against the other 2nd grade class with us. They were supposed to sit on each other's laps for as long as possible. THAT didn't last very long! Bub is about the 6th one from the left in the closest classroom line.

So, nature's not really my thing, and I was prepared to be completely bored. But I was pleasantly surprised on how fun the day actually was. And Bub LOVED that I came along. And really... isn't that all that really matters???

Happy Thursday!

I hit the mother-load!

I hope you all had a wonderful Mother's Day weekend! For the first time (probably) EVER, I didn't see my mother on Mother's Day this year because Don, the kids and I were out of town for the weekend with friends. And while I hated to not see MY mom, what a great weekend! It was filled with shopping, food, fun, and lots of laughter. What more could you ask for (except maybe a handbag... and I got that too!!!)?

Some highlights of the weekend:

• Did I already mention shopping? How about sales at an outlet mall?
• Too much coffee too late at night... HYPER!!!
• Watching the kids fish on the dock
• Staying in my pajamas until 2:00 pm on Mother's Day, WHILE the guys fixed us mamas an AWESOME brunch and served it to us on the screened-in porch overlooking the lake
• I don't believe I've mentioned SHOPPING yet. That was fun.
• Getting our friends as addicted to the game Rummikub as Don and I are becoming.
• Hearing about how fun the kids had swimming while the moms went... wait for it... SHOPPING.
• ICE CREAM.
• Don and I climbing in bed with Bub (he climbs in bed with us almost every morning), and waking him up like he usually does us. He loved it!
• Making the kids tell me Happy Mother's Day every time they talked to me. (I'd say "Happy" and they'd have to finish it)
• Oh. And guess what? I went shopping!

Bright Spots and Randomness

So, as you can tell from my last post, I was a mess for a while. Sick, hurt, sad, and mad... all rolled into one fever-blister-covered ball. LOVELY!!!

But now that I'm out of my drug medicine-induced fog, I would like to highlight some bright spots in the last few weeks.

• My family... they were all so sweet taking care of me. The kids, especially, cracked me up, even in my pain. Bub would rub my face (you know, to help my back), and Sis would not let me EVER walk by myself if she was around. She insisted that I keep my arm around her shoulders for support. And Don rocked.
• My family... the extended version, too! Everyone called, texted, emailed, FB-messaged... to make sure I was doing okay.
• Friends... see above.
• My Dad specifically... oh my goodness. That poor man!!! He got to take care of me on my MOST pitiful day, when I was a WRECK! The day I woke up with a high fever, then I had to go get an MRI. He's the one who took me to get my valium, took me to get my MRI, and was patiently waiting in the waiting room. That is, until the tech came and got him because I couldn't stop crying (claustrophobic much?). He literally stuck his head into the machine with me (it was an open MRI... and yes, I was still claustrophobic), and talked to me the entire time, so I wouldn't be scared. I guess the job of a parent is never over!
• The Michael W Smith/Stephen Curtis Chapman concert... my mom, sisters and I had had tickets for our "girls night out" for months, and I didn't let a little thing like a herniated disc stop me (just slow me down a bit). What a great night! You can see a picture from our night here.

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So, I'm doing much better now, so I'm going to quit focusing on "what ails me." But I didn't want to completely move on until I could point out these bright spots.

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Baseball practice started last night for Bub (and for Don, since he's coaching)... I'm so excited!

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I'm addicted to my fruit salad I made of cantaloupe, red grapes, and strawberries. YUM!!!

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We're going out of town for the weekend... and will be REALLY close to an outlet mall. Can't you just FEEL how the Coach Outlet and Mother's Day weekend seem to flow together so well???