Internet Woes

Sorry I have not been able to add any new posts lately. I have several ideas on my mind, but my internet service has been mediocre at best :-( I'm going to try to run by the office one day next week and publish some new stuff. There has been a lot going on around here for me to blog about: Thanksgiving, deer hunting, gardening, and cute babies! Don't give up on me, please! Can't wait to show you my new pictures, so keep checking.

Thanksgiving

This was the first time for us to host Thanksgiving dinner. Daddy, Mama, Jude and Shelley joined our family for a delicious lunch. We had fried turkey and dressing, butter beans, corn, dirty rice, and sweet potato casserole. Shelley also made a rich, chocolate candy bar cake. Jude especially liked snacking on Tim's homemade summer sauasage. Ty spent the day before Thanksgiving drawing pictures for all of our guests. Mostly he drew everyone a picture of themselves sitting at the table eating lunch. He was so proud of his pictures. After lunch we were all so sleepy. Lucy made herself a nest on top of Papa and they both went to sleep. Ty was itching to start decorating for Christmas immediately after lunch. He was so excited about putting his little tree in his room. I can't blame him. I love Christmas too.

Wedding Bells

Whew! I'm glad that the wedding is over. I really didn't have that much to do...just the cake, but I was so tired by the time it was all over. Speaking of the cake, it turned out great I think. It hurt to see it get cut and eaten, but that's what is was made for, right? I think I slightly overestimated how big to make it. There was probably 85% of it left over. And all of that chocolately goodness had to come home with me. Talk about temptation! I could smell chocolate every time I walked by that cake. I finally got the nerve to throw it all away today. What a waste. We were able to take a few pictures before and after the wedding. I've been having a little trouble with my camera focusing properly, but here are a few of the best pics.

My poor cake!

Goofy Groom...I think Jude was a little nervous.
His hands were so cold and clammy after the wedding.

Ty took the liberty of signing his own name in the guest book.
I especially like the way he underlined it.

The Trouble with Ty

I mentioned earlier that butterflies were easier to photograph than children. That's no joke. I tried to take some pictures of Ty this weekend, and it makes me tired just thinking about it. All I wanted him to do was peek through a crape myrtle and smile pretty. Ha. First there were creepy bugs on the trees, all 12 of the trees. Then a locust shell distracted him. Of course he wanted to try to climb each of the trees to the very top. Then he was hot. Then he was tired. Then he wanted to rake a pile of leaves and jump in. Then he wanted to take off his clothes. And instead of that pretty smile I wanted, he grinned like a jack-o-lantern. Oh brother! When will I ever learn? Just take a look at some of these shots...

He's just recently started giving me the peace sign when I try to take his picture.

Finally!

Lucy - 4 months

I didn't forget Lucy's pictures this month. Which is a real accomplishment considering how busy things have been lately. This was the first time Lucy paid much attention to her doll. Once she got it in her hands it went straight to her mouth. That's been happening a lot lately. She has really started reaching and grabbing at things.

Hey good looking what's cooking?

I've been baking for Jude's and Shelley's wedding this weekend. I'm making his groom's cake - LSU theme of course. The cake is a moist, rich chocolate concoction filled with chunky-chocolate-coffee icing. All of that chocolate-y goodness will be covered in chocolate fondant. Let's just say if you don't like chocolate, you won't like this cake! Ty's been helping me with the clean-up. With him around to lick the bowls, there aren't nearly as many dishes for me to wash. Just kiddin'.

He looks like he's got a mustache in this picture.

That cake must be some kind of good!

Garden Visitors

We were outside this morning enjoying the warm sun when Ty noticed a bunch of butterflies in our garden. Ty quickly explained that these were monarch butterflies, and as far as I can tell he's right. I thought I might be able to get some good pictures of them, and I quickly discovered that butterflies are a whole lot easier to photograph than unwitting children. Ha! The butterflies, the flowers, the warm weather...made me think of spring this morning rather than fall. I hate to think that the colorful flowers and leaves will soon be giving way to bare branches, but "to everything there is a season."

Lucy, Roll Over...Again!

Lucy's at it again. This time she rolled from back to front. She's been turning onto her side from her back for a couple of weeks now, but last night she made it all the way over. Daddy was there to capture the whole thing on film. Now I've got to be extra careful about where I lay her down. Don't want her to go rolling off the bed or anything! I can't get over how much she has changed in the past 3 or 4 weeks. I told Tim it is like she just "woke up." She is noticing so much more, and now she can be entertained with toys. She has discovered her hands and is quickly learning how to use them. You can see by her expressions that she is trying to figure out how to grab things with those fingers. Lucy has also discovered her voice. I love it when she coos and "talks." She gets such a serious look on her face sometimes, like she is trying to tell you something so important. And she has started making this laughing sound. It sounds like a cross between a laugh and a cough really. It's like she gets so excited sometimes that she can't contain it, and this sound just comes out. So cute!

She stayed in this position for while. Her arm was in the way of her rolling all the way over. It took her a minute or two to figure out how to move it out of the way.

At last! She made it.

Too Cute to Spook

I don't know about ya'll, but when I was a kid all I got for Halloween was some some hard candy and gum. This year my kiddos ended up with all sorts of toys, clothes, candy (some homemade), and money! My, how things have changed. Ty had so much fun trick-or-treating, even at Aunt Michelle's haunted house. He never wanted to stay long at one place though, because he was itching to move on to the next stop. Then there was the fall festival at church last night. Ty was so dirty by the end of the evening. At one point I saw him walking around that muddy, gravel parking lot with no shoes or socks. Ouch and Yuck! I think he spent most of the night jumping and playing in the blow-up bounce houses. He looks forward to those all year. I have to say I'm glad the festival is over now. One more thing crossed off my ever-increasing to-do list.