4.30.2007

The Weekend

I'm in a rambling mood so I thought I'd talk about my weekend. Surprisingly, it wasn't as busy as I originally anticipated. Friday night was pretty unexciting with the three of us at home. I ended up crashing in front of the TV about the time Spencer went to bed...not sure why I was so tired.

Saturday morning started with Spencer's baseball game (pictures to come later). They lost so they are are 3-2 now. The cool thing is that Spencer's teacher came to the game. Very sweet of her. I totally forgot to get a picture though - shame on me!

We got a cover for the back of Matt's Explorer Sportrac - awesome deal. Basically we got it for free and just have to pay to have the locks fitted. We need this - now we can take his truck on road trips, etc.

We enjoyed a lunch out at Firebonz where they have lots of flat screens so we were able to watch the draft while we ate. We were going to attend an Earth Day event at the museum but Spencer opted to go home and watch the rest of the draft instead (not exactly your typical 8 year old).

Matt had to work Saturday night so it was just Spencer and I. He finished up his weather project for this month and then we watched last week's Are You Smarter Than a 5th Grader?. Good episode. Love that show. We played football in the yard for a bit. That night I worked a little on the foundation's website but I have a lot of learning to do.

Sunday morning was low key. Matt had to sleep. Spencer and I watched our neighbors shoot their bows into the woods. I managed to try on all of my capris and shorts from last year - figured out what fits and doesn't. What I need and don't. Also got some stuff ironed that had been crumpled on a shelf since last season.

After Matt got up and we had tacos for lunch, I joined my sister for a tour of four local houses. We hit one store for shopping (Talbot's - I didn't get anything). I dropped her off at church and was able to count how many people we can accommodate at the church. We will definitely be able to fit 100 scrappers so I hope I can get that many. That's a pretty big goal!

I went shopping at Kohl's -- felt a little guilty for spending more than I should. But after getting home and trying on some more things I decided that I'll take back a necklace and pair of pants that I'm not really *loving*, so I feel a tad better. I was able to get two shirts that are super cute and a necklace that I think I'll get a lot of wear out of. I bought the cutest pair of shoes but had a hard time choosing a color (navy, red or black). I went with black and have left the tags on, just in case! I also picked up a tee and flip flops for Spencer.

Over the course of the weekend I was able to make 9 cards for Spencer's related arts teachers for Teacher Appreciation Week (pictures to come). I also finally finished up a mini album that I started in October - ridiculous! Glad to have that completed (pictures to come).

I had a horrible time falling asleep last night and I'm functioning off about 4 hours of sleep right now, and that's not consistent sleep by any stretch. But I did watch 4 episodes of Desperate Housewives in order to get caught up. Sad, huh?

4.26.2007

The First Step!

I'm very excited!! I am planning to host a charity crop for the autism foundation that I help with (Dalton Help Foundation). The first thing I needed to tackle, and was a bit concerned about, was finding a place that would accomodate a crowd of scrappers and not charge us. I'm super pumped to report that my sister was able to get us the gym of her church. It's perfect!!

You'll probably be hearing a lot more about this crop as things get rolling with my plans. It looks like we'll most likely hold the event in August so I have about 3 months to plan. It seems like plenty of time but I know it will fly by!

Also, I've agreed to take over their website for them. I have no experience with this and Strait's coming over tonight to show me the software. Should be interesting!

4.25.2007

Easter

I didn't spend Easter with my sisters but they sent me pictures of their families. Aren't they adorable???

This is my oldest sister, her husband and two boys (14 and 10).
















This is the middle sister with her husband and daughter (almost 9 years old).

4.24.2007

Coming Soon...

OK, I can't stand it any longer...I have to share our "soon to be" good news...

Matt & I have decided to adopt another dog. I was leaning toward something a little smaller than Rio - a lap dog of sorts. But I've always preferred larger breeds so I was stumped.

Then Matt discovered a rare breed that neither of us had heard of. It's the Carolina Dog, also referred to as the Dixie Dingo based on its relation and resemblance to the Australian Dingo. After reading up on the breed, Matt was convinced he wanted one. I was sold that it'd be a good dog for us but I do not like purchasing from breeders. There are too many dogs out there that need good homes. So, I searched for a rescue dog of this breed and was quite successful.

We found Caroline. She is at a Humane Society that is about 1.5 hours from where we live (but only about 1/2 hour from where I work). We've talked with a lady there as well as the foster mom with whom she's living right now. They sent us pictures and lots of details on her. She's a Katrina dog, also.

Matt and I went to meet her this morning and I believe we're sold. I fell in love. She is the same size as Rio and acts a LOT like him. She has all her shots, is leash trained, house trained. She only barks when there's a real reason (such as a stranger in the yard). She loves the outdoors for play and is definitely an indoor dog, but loves other dogs (they wouldn't place her in a home w/out one). She is probably almost three years old and has passed any puppy tendencies for chewing or destroying.


The only thing is that we HAVE to get a fence before we are able to take her. So...we're working on that now. We got a quote today. It's much higher than we'd hoped, but it needs to be done. Not just for Caroline, but for Rio. It's going to cost us significantly more to do a split rail fence in this house than it did for us to do a 6ft privacy in our old house just a couple of years ago. The guy said that the price has gone up insanely because of gas prices. Joy joy. Matt is calling around for a few more quotes first though. It'll probably take a few weeks to get the fence in so I couldn't keep my mouth shut any longer! These pictures are all onces shared by the foster mom. Caroline is actually smaller than she seems in the pictures. She is only about 40 pounds. Isn't she precious????


The Zoo

Spencer went to the zoo with his one of his friends over Spring Break. The mom sent me a couple of snapshots. She said they had a really awesome time. These guys have been friends for quite a while considering they are only 8. They started Mother's Morning Out together when they were 3, maybe even younger. They haven't been in school together the last three years because they live at opposite ends of the county. But they've played some sports together and we try to get them together like this every so often.

4.20.2007

Professional Baseball Pictures


This is Spencer's baseball picture, taken by TSS Photography. I think it came out pretty cute!


4.19.2007

Movie - Blood Diamond

This probably isn't a movie I normally would've rented or gone to see in a theater. However, we got a call from the neighbors asking if we wanted to come watch Blood Diamond with them - and we did. It stars Leonardo DiCaprio and Jennifer Connelly. It actually has a good message - how the diamond trade (and other things) have caused civil wars in certain countries, etc. But I must warn you...it's a tough movie to watch. No kids allowed. It is quite graphic and gory with the violence. But it's worth watching if you can handle it. Critics gave it a B-, Yahoo users gave it a B+.

Book - Miracle on the 17th Green

I know nothing about golf, don't really like golf, and wasn't planning on reading this particular James Patterson book despite my obvious devotion to him. However, when browsing the library shelves, I ran into a copy of Miracle on the 17th Green. It was small and looked like an easy read so I scanned the back of it. It sounded like it might be a neat little story despite the golf topic, so I gave it a whirl. I was right in all assumptions.

It was a quick and easy read (seriously, I read it in 2 days). It's a heart-warming story and is written with a nice touch of wit. If you like golf, I'm sure that would make the book even more enjoyable. It would probably make a nice little gift for a golfer that likes to read, or a reader that likes to golf.

4.17.2007

Rock Climbing Competition


Last night Spencer participated in a local rock climbing competition. This is the first year he's been old enough to compete and I am SO incredibly proud of him for tackling this. His age group is 8-10 and I'd say there were about 10-12 kids in that group. They competed in three areas - speed, difficulty and hang time. He didn't win an award (1st through 3rd place) so he thought it was the end of the world (he's incredibly competitive). But considering his age and that this was the first time he'd climbed here, I thought he did awesome! This place is pretty cool and allows kids to come and climb on Monday nights so hopefully we'll be able to take him up there every now and then to practice. He really does enjoy it.

Rio


Here's just a random, but adorable, shot of our most precious four-legged family member.

Happy Annivesary to Us!



Saturday Matt & I celebrated our 5th wedding anniversary. It really seems time has flown by! We enjoyed a nice dinner out and a bottle of champagne back at the house. Plus, I get an hour massage soon. Yippee!! Obviously we took this photo ourselves so pardon the extreme close-up.

4.16.2007

More silly questions

Name: Holly
Birthday: July 11
Birthplace: Shelby, NC
Eye Color: Blue
Hair Color: Blonde (thanks to my trusty hairdresser Kristy)
Height: 5’2”
Right Handed or Left Handed: Right
The Shoes You Wore Today: Knee-high black boots
Your Weakness: Lack of Patience
Your Fears: Someone really close to me dying
Your Perfect Pizza: Bacon
Thoughts First Waking Up: NO! Not yet!!
Favorite candy: Chocolate
Do you Sing: Oh, I sing…no one wants to hear it, but I sing!
Are you a Health Freak: That’s funny. No way.
Do you play an Instrument: I wish I did, but nope.
What do you want to be when you Grow Up: I’d love to make a living doing something creative – maybe related to scrapbooking, maybe not. Might be cool to be a professional organizer too.
What country would you most like to Visit: Italy.
Do you prefer diamonds or pearls: Pearls.
Your favorite actress: Hmmm…Julia Roberts? Or Ashley Judd.
Your favorite actor: Matthew McConaghey (love to hear him talk).
Your hero: Wow, deep one. I have no idea…
Favorite music band: Right now I’m really loving Fall Out Boy, but than can easily change. I still love Maroon 5 and Rascal Flatts. If it doesn’t have to be a band then that opens up a world of other possibilities.
Favorite movie: Annie
Do you play a sport: Nope, I’m too lazy for that!

4.13.2007

Easter

Here is our Easter in a nutshell...Easter basket, family photo, dying eggs. Good stuff!

4.11.2007

Baseball - 2nd Game



Here are pictures from Spencer's second baseball game. After losing the first, I'm happy to report that the White Sox pulled off an awesome win on this one!

They played a very strong game, especially in the beginning. They were really leading. However, mid-way through the game, they ran into a little problem. Almost all of the players had a really bad habit of throwing the bat after they hit. The umpire put up with it for awhile but eventually starting calling outs for it. There were a lot of outs. But Coach Ed had faith in these guys and fought to get them to break the habit and win the game. And they did. I’ve never heard “drop the bat” and “don’t throw the bat” screamed so many times. It was insane. But the parents were pumped, and the players were pumped – and in the end, the White Sox got their first win, 13-11. The boys were so excited. It was truly awesome to watch and experience!






It's here!


It's hard to believe, but the 2nd annual Dalton Help Foundation Golf Tournament is here. Tomorrow morning I'll be heading out to the golf course bright and early (with coffee and donuts in hand). We will have plenty to set up and prepare before the festivities begin at 11:00. In addition to the tournament there is also a silent auction. It's mostly sportsrelated items but they have a few things this year that I'm definitely bidding on...we'll see what happens.


The weather is horrible today but I'm excited about tomorrow. They'd gotten our hopes up with some forecasts in the mid to high 70s but I seriously doubt that's going to happen. It's cold today. I'm praying for good weather - hope you will too!


Last year's tournament raised over $10,000 for the foundation. Donations were made to local and national autism associations that both help children and strive to find a cause and cure for this horrible condition. The money is also used to help pay for Dalton's therapy as well as another local family whose child they've taken under their wing. The more money they raise, the more families they can help! The cost of therapy is almost unreal.


I ask for everyone to send a few prayers our way - pray for a successful tournament and auction - pray for Brigitte and Strait. They are some amazing people. Handling Dalton is tough enough on its own, but they've taken on the world of autistic children as well. These are GOOD people! Most of all, pray for Dalton. He is a sweet and beautiful child with so much potential, with only autism standing in his way. Pray for a breakthrough - for Dalton and all the other children out there like him.
Thank you!

4.09.2007

Book - Maximum Ride: School's Out Forever

Yup, another James Patterson book. This one is called Maximum Ride: School's Out Forever.

I must admit that this series of books kind of confuses me. I thought I remember something happening in the last one (pretty important) that was never addressed in this one, but yet they are set up to work like a series with the same characters and all. Weird.
Anyway, these books are totally different than most James Patterson books so be prepared if you haven't read one of them yet. They are more science fiction and are about a group of kids that have been "altered" to have wings and are trying to escape from the doctors, etc.
The other thing about these books is that I don't feel like they are truly "concluded" at the end. I always feel like it just ends. Not a cliffhanger necessarily, just no closure. With his other series (more crime related) there isn't that feeling.

Goal Progress

I did not do so well with my scrapbooking goal in March. Actually, I stunk! As a reminder, my goal is to do at least one layout for 5 different scrapbooks during the month.

I barely scrapped at all. I added pictures to the 3 calendar pages that I shared here. But that wasn't even really scrapping. The only worthwhile thing I did was that I managed to get started on the 6x6 pages for Spencer's class (I'm doing about 19 small scrapbooks - one for each kid in his class). The pages are SUPER simple. Basically I just print the information on the computer 19 times, add that with a photo and strip of patterned paper. I might add some stickers later on or something. In general, keeping it very simple!

So, definitely didn't do well in March. I hope April is better - though it's a busy month so we'll see what happens.

4.08.2007

Music Program

Last week Spencer's class put on a music program for the parents. Spencer was incredibly embarrassed by the whole thing and didn't get "into" it like a lot of the kids did. He particularly wasn't thrilled with the idea of having to dance with a girl! But, it was super cute and fun to watch.
Also, I've really been impressed with the video feature on my new camera. I've taken a few short videos at ball games and this program and they are pretty good quality - fun to show to the grandparents and stuff!

Baseball - First Game

Get used to seeing baseball pictures...there are plenty coming between now and the end of May! This new camera is awesome but I'm taking a TON of pictures!!!
Here are some shots from Spencer's first game. They played the Red Sox and were leading most of the game. They began the last inning 7-4. However, the other team had a couple really good hits and our outfield couldn't keep up. They got two home runs and we lost 10-7. But, the boys played really well and it was a fun first game (probably easier for me to say than the boys that actually lost). Oh, Homer paid a visit too...he's the mascot for our local Minor League baseball team.

Soccer Star

I am so incredibly proud of my nephew Bo. He's 14 and in the 8th grade, but made the JV soccer team at the high school. And if it's not impressive enough, he starts pretty much every game, even though he's one of the youngest kids!! And he's cute too, huh??? Love him! Awesome kid!

Irises


Last year my sister shared some...ok, a lot...of her iris plants with me. I planted most of them, shared a bunch with one of our neighbors. They really multiplied over the year, which surprised me. I was excited about seeing what they would offer this spring. I was slightly disappointed to only get two blooms that didn't last long. But, I got some new pointers from my sister and will be better prepared for next year. Now, looks like I need to divide them yet again - and find more neighbors to share with...

Teddy


While I was at my nephew's soccer game, I got some pretty cute shots of my other nephew - who can be quite silly and not in the least bit camera shy (my kind of kid!). This is my favorite because of the fence and cool angle.

Baseball Team Pictures


Spencer had his team pictures taken a few weeks ago. We were told not to take our own but I did it anyway (and so did all the other parents). I had already placed my order and given them plenty of my money so I didn't feel guilty :) Anyway, I blurred the faces of the other kids, just to be safe. Also, he has two coaches but only one was able to make it on picture day.

4.07.2007

Spencer's School Portrait


This is Spencer's latest school picture. A pretty decent shot. He needed a haircut but we only got a one day notice of when it'd be taken. I'd also like to note that we didn't dress him.

4.05.2007

Movie - Casion Royale


I'm not a huge James Bond fan, but I enjoyed Casino Royale. Good action. Good romance. This movie is actually set just as Bond became 007 and was starting out. I enjoyed that he wasn't portrayed as a womanizer quite as badly.

I must admit that Daniel Craig is a bit of a hottie. When I was looking on the web, I found where he is also doing a movie called Bond 22, set to release in 2008. I'll definitely catch that since this one was good.
Just as an FYI, both the critics and Yahoo Users gave it a B+.