A Girl Needs a Daddy

A little girl needs a Daddy

For many, many things:

Like holding her high off the ground

Where the sunlight sings!

Like being the deep music

That tells her all is right

When she awakens frantic with

The terrors of the night.

Like being the great mountain

That rises in her heart

And shows her how she might get home

When all else falls apart.

Like giving her the love

That is her sea and air,

So diving deep or soaring high

She'll always find him there.

--Author Unknown

A sappy tribute to my Dad, who never ceases to amaze me with his love and understanding and generosity. I know he visits my blog every now and then, so I'm hoping he'll happen upon this and, instead of laughing at the sap factor, understand that this is my very little way of saying THANK YOU, for everything. For a time when, yet again, "thank you" doesn't seem like enough. I love you, Dad!!!

You know you're a mom when...

Date night is "Family Night" at the local health department!

LOL

Really... I mean, how pathetic is THAT???

Tonight, we're all going to this "Family Night" deal... they're having a seminar on Kids and Nutrition. AND, they're feeding us dinner and providing free childcare during the seminar/Q&A session.

WOWEEEE!

Is it sad that I'm looking forward to this outing???

I'm thinking "YES." :)

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

Of course, Erin Go Braugh has always been MY personal favorite St. Patty's saying... for pretty obvious reasons! :)

Two More Weeks!!

Two weeks from today, I will be packing my bags!!!

I'm heading to a weekend scrapbook retreat with a group of wonderful ladies that I chat with daily on the Internet... many of them I had the pleasure of meeting last fall at a scrapbook weekend... but there will be a few "new" faces there this time, and to say I'm so excited to meet them just doesn't even begin to describe it!

Plus, just getting away from home... from the kids, from the house, all responsibilities... just sounds HEAVENLY right now! Three full days of nothing but my favorite hobby---what could be better than that?? I'll get to stay up late and sleep in late, not being awakened by cries of "Mommy!!!" in the wee hours of the night or the early hours of morning! aaahhhhhhh!

I'm such a lucky girl to have a husband who supports these "mini-vacations" of mine. He'll be here, picking up the slack while I'm gone, and I'm eternally grateful for that sacrifice, too. I know that after three days away, I'll be excited to return home and see all of the smiling faces here... and hopefully I'll be refreshed and ready to "take them on" again! :)

Two more weeks! weeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!

SAW it... and wanted to vomit!

I borrowed a few DVDs from a friend of mine months ago... and they've been sitting on top of my microwave, unwatched since the day I brought them home. One is a cutesy little romantic comedy (totally my thing), Monster In Law. One is an Academy Award Winner (maybe not my thing, but I've GOT to see it, right??), Million Dollar Baby. The OTHER is a freaky, horror-type flick (totally NOT my thing, and I know this, but said friend and countless others recommended it, so okay), SAW.

WELL... last night, after the kids were in bed, I put SAW in the DVD player. Poor Nick happened to be in the same room, so naturally, he was subjected to watching it, too.

After two hours of "just yuck" and after the really freaky, yucky, ewwwww "twist" at the end, I seriously just wanted to vomit... then cry... then vomit again... then go run to my Mommy!!!

Nick's comment when it was over (censored a little for crude language, indicated with italics): "What kind of sick freakin' mind thinks up something like that?? UGH. That's just not even right."

To put it lightly, that's not even right.

Now, almost 24 hours after viewing this movie that so many of my sweet, SAHM friends recommended, I'm still disturbed. I mean really DISTURBED.

The best part... these sweet Mom friends tell me that SAW II is even better than the first one, and I just HAVE to see it. BETTER??? Sure. Well, I'll leave that judgment to someone else, anyone else. I'm not biting this time. One movie that makes-me-wanna-vomit-when-it's-over is enough for me per year. I'm still not "over it."

I KNEW I should have opted for Monster In Law, instead.

Spoke Too Soon...

Isn't that always the way??

We found a new home for dear Ginger this afternoon. A co-worker of Nick's has been looking for a new family dog because their beloved pet passed away last fall.

They came by the house this afternoon and instantly fell in love with Ginger (who wouldn't?? well, other than ME, I guess! lol).

I was actually a little sad to see her go. She was REALLY growing on me (I mean, I blogged about her and everything!). She really was a sweet, sweet dog. But, I know she's in a good home full of love now... so I'd say it's a happy ending! :)

Meet Ginger...

She is apparently the latest addition to our "clan."
Nick brought her home a few days ago and said, "She's your birthday present, just a few days late!" How convenient for him, eh??

Truth be told, I don't think she was intended to be a gift... but that just worked out for him! :)

Nick came across Ginger during his "travels" last week, and she wasn't being taken care of very well... at all. In fact, she was filthy dirty and starving. I didn't have the heart to turn her away, even though everything in me was shouting "NO! NO! NO! No more dogs!!! What is he thinking?!?!?!"

So, I took her in, gave her (and myself and the entire bathroom) a much-needed bath, and fed her (she ate TEN bowls of food in one sitting... ten!).

I spent two days telling Nick that he had to get rid of her... and Nick and I didn't speak at all other than that. His way of saying he doesn't want to get rid of her; my way of saying "she goes, or else." Divorce over a smelly dog? Classic.

Yesterday, my dad and his friend Lynn came to visit us for the afternoon, and Lynn fell in love with big ole Ginger. It's possible that Lynn will take her off my hands... in the meantime, she's here, sound asleep on my floor, right under my computer chair.

And, I hate to say it, but she's growing on me. DARN IT!

Ginger is adorable (just look for yourself!)... She's big and clumsy and has really smelly breath, but she's also very gentle and sweet. And, she sleeps a lot... she's certainly not any "trouble." She also listens to commands like "Sit" and "Go lay down!" AND, she's housetrained (all of the above being major improvements over Nick's ankle-biter, Lizzie the Min Pin, who does NONE of the above).

So, if I could just do something about that kickin' breath, she might not be such a bad addition to the Clan. I just absolutely hate it when Nick "wears me down" like this... grrrrrrrr. Happy Birthday to me... SURE! :)

Today is PicFest on My Blog!

I've been horrible about keeping up with blog entries here lately. Even worse about sharing the most recent pics of my offspring.
So, today I'm dedicating to posting some pics of Damon and Avery, and hoping everyone can get "caught up" with the Gruesome Twosome!
Enjoy the pics, and leave me some comments already, People!! :)
(I already know they're adorable, but it's nice to hear it from others, anyway! lol)
--E.

NASCAR Fans

One guess who "our driver" is??

Sleepy Babies

A road trip takes it all outta ya!
The kids and I spent most of our WV trip out at Amber's parents' house. Kay got a new hammock for Christmas, and Damon slept an entire night in it---must be pretty comfy! I took these pics of him the next morning, still snoozing away. Poor Avery wasn't feeling well and spent most of that day sleeping on the couch, snuggled with her Bear.

Just a Darn Cute Pic!

This pic was taken at Papaw's house last week.

The menfolk were hard at work getting his house ready to sell---tearing up carpet, painting, etc.

The kids "helped" by looking cute and posing on the ladder for a pic!

Avery's Reaction to Medical Attention

This is what happens when Avery is having a splinter removed from her foot.
She was sprawled out on my lap and Daddy was digging at her foot... I'm anticipating screams, instead I get this... She falls sound asleep on my lap with one leg up in the air being "operated" on. STRANGE KID, eh?? To be two years old again! :)

A Blustery Day at the Beach

This is what happens when I try to be a "fun Mom."
It was actually a NICE day in February... the temps were in the 70s, so I took the kids out and about. We went to McDonald's and tried to have a picnic on the beach.
However, a 70-degree day in February is NOT so nice on the beach, we soon found out.
It was freezing, the wind was howling. We lasted about 3 minutes... just long enough for me to snap these pictures. Then we headed to an in-land park and finished our picnic there!
It was a nice "thought," anyway!!!