If At First You Don't Suceed...

...try, try again.

Eek! Running out of room on this Blogger site has forced me to move. I weighed all the options carefully and decided upon Wordpress as my new home. However, I never warmed up to Wordpress and found it prohibitive in ways I didn't like.

So...I have a new NEW HOME at Blogger. Please come visit me as I catch up on all the news in our busy lives.

C'mon To My House

I'm back and I've moved to a new home! Please visit me at my Wordpress blog by clicking here. It's a work in progress and I'll need your patience as I learn a new blog platform. So c'mon over, visit for a while, and let me know what you think.

Just Another Walk In The Park

What a difference a week makes! Last Sunday Georgia was in the midst of a snow storm; today temps were in the 70's with a bright sunny blue sky. After church we all went to the park to let the kids play. There's nothing like playing to burn much pent up energy. I broke a cardinal rule by photographing in the midday sun. But sometimes you make do with what you've got. I took a total of 155 photos. For the sake of boring you to tears, I narrowed it down to 25 of my favorites. Of course I firmly believe our grandchildren are beautiful and worth sitting through 155 photos. However, I doubt everyone would agree.

Click on the slideshow below to view photos from today's fun in the park. Click the arrow to begin the slideshow; once the slideshow has begun, click the square in the lower right corner to maximize your screen.

I hope you had an enjoyable Sunday!

End Of The Line

I am nearing the end of the road...the end of my rope...running out of Blogger space. How do I know this? To demonstrate this to you, I tried to save a screen print but couldn't convert it to an image that Blogger will accept.

I will attempt to walk you through it verbally (or in writing). When you are in the Create A Post screen, click on the Add Image icon from the toolbar. In the Add Image screen, look close to the bottom. There are two action buttons: 1) blue CANCEL and 2) orange UPLOAD IMAGE. Directly to the right of these buttons is a message saying how much capacity you have remaining. Mine is... You are currently using 970MB (94%) of your 1024MB.

After extensive research in the not-so-friendly-blogger-help and online user forums, I have very little options. Blogger allows you to create as many blogs as your little heart desires. Therefore, I could create another Blogger blog and link the two. Or, I could ditch Blogger and opt for another blog hosting platform such as Wordpress. I'm leaning toward the latter. Like Blogger, Wordpress is free . Unlike Blogger, Workdpress allows you to increase your blog size incrementally (for a modest annual fee) should you find yourself running out of space. {sigh}

I'm still debating my future blog options. But one thing is clear...I am running out of space FAST. Does anyone have any suggestions? HELP!

Little Princess

When Jamie was a little girl, she would pretend she was born a princess. Sorry to disappoint you, dear girl, but you were born a commoner to average parents not of royal descent. Ava, however, is defintely a princess. She does not like to be disturbed from her nap.

No, not at all. When rudely awoken, Ava will let you know her displeasure.


Yes, Ava is a princess and we are all here to serve as she commands.

Friday Failure

Things that make you scratch your head and say out loud, "WTF?"

An Unexpected Break From Blogging

There are days when life takes a front seat to blogging. Poor Doughboy had a rough weekend with a bout of the flu. Because of the snowstorm last Sunday, his return flight to Pittsburgh was delayed until Monday. This turned out to be a blessing in disguise. Doughboy ended up in Urgent Care (an oxymoron because it was neither urgent nor caring) late Monday afternoon and was sent to the hospital for a suspected blood clot in his lower left leg. He was immediately admitted and underwent a barrage of tests and IV's filled with antibiotics over the next couple days. He was eventually diagnosed with cellulitis - a painful bacterial infection that could have turned irreversible if left untreated. Doughboy's week was not pleasant.

He was sprung yesterday and is recovering at home. By doctor's orders he must rest and keep his foot elevated. It's nice to have him home but I wish it were due to less severe circumstances. We celebrated our 20th wedding anniversary by a hospital visit. Someday we will remember this event and laugh it off. For now, it remains too close for comfort.

I gave him the book I made for our anniversary. My big teddy bear actually teared up as he turned the pages that chronicles our life over the past 20 years. He has already asked for another such book for our 25th anniversary. I'm so very glad he liked his gift.

For my gift Doughboy increased our collection of Bonnie Marris art. The lovely giclee canvas shown below is one of 25. You may view other such works of art that we have in our home by clicking here. I can't wait to get it framed and hung! Happy anniversary, my love.

Wacky Weather

Yesterday was a beautiful weather day. It was warm enough to open the windows and walk around outdoors without a jacket. Today is far different. Atlanta and most of northern Georgia is under a weather advisory with snow and heavy wind. SNOW!

We also celebrated Jamie's birthday at Scrap Club. We were minus two members today, which left only Chere, Jamie, baby Ava and me. It was nice and cozy indoors as we scrapped and enjoyed our quiet time together. Outdoors the snow was beautiful but very heavy and wet. As I was snapping photos from our deck, it thundered - SNOW and THUNDER! How wacky is that?

Click on the slideshow below to view today's snowfall and photos of Jamie's birthday celebration. Click the arrow to begin the slideshow; once the slideshow has begun, click the square in the lower right corner to maximize your screen.

Happy Birthday, Birthday Baby

Tomorrow is my baby's 32nd birthday. As we celebrated last evening I couldn't help but feel a little sadness. Where has the time gone? Looking around the table at my grandchildren, I found it hard to believe my baby now has three babies of her own. You may recall this post from Jamie's birthday last year. Is it possible that an entire year has passed in the blink of an eye?

Doughboy and I are very proud of the young woman Jamie has grown to be. Not only is she beautiful inside and out, but she is a loving mother, wife, daughter, and friend. Everyone whose life touches hers is better for it. She is loved more than words can express...

Happy birthday Peanut!

Friday Failure

Things that make you scratch your head and say out loud, "WTF"?

Do you sit unnoticed on the sidelines while others are picked? Are you always the wallflower and never the date? Try the latest scarf fashion and you too will be the center of attention...

Texturize Yourself

Kate at Chronicles of a Country Girl is a master at using textures to create photographic symphonies. What's this, you ask? I'm not sure - photographic symphony just sounded cool.

Anyway, Kate really is a master at both photography and transforming photos into unique masterpieces using various Photoshop techniques. I've tried following her direction with little success. I think it has something to do with left brain/right brain. Anyway, it simply does not compute for me.

I am the proud owner of one of Kate's mosaics entitled A Whiter Shade of Pale. Now you too can own one of Kate's photo treasures FREE by leaving a comment on her blog. But you better act fast - the giveaway ends at 6PM Thursday February 26. Click here for a quick link to Kate's giveaway post. Please return the favor by telling Kate I sent you. Good luck!

Grandson = Joy

I know I've mentioned this before, but I absolutely ADORE our grandson, Ayden. Yes, I love and adore all eight of our grandchildren. But Ayden is...well, we have a very special bond.

Ayden showed up at our house Saturday afternoon with his little Sponge Bob suitcase. He was all excitement about having a sleepover at Mimi and Bumpa's house. No sleepover would be complete without a drive around the neighborhood on the cart path.

Ayden was at the wheel of his RZR while Mimi and Bumpa followed behind in the golf cart. It was a chilly day but the bright sun made it pleasantly warm.

Like any other 4-year-old, Ayden has the attention span of a gnat. He began driving with both hands on the wheel that lasted about 3 minutes. He then fidgeted with the radio and kept turning around to be sure we were following close behind. He mistakenly drove off the path twice because he wasn't paying attention.

At one point he stopped abruptly and almost caused us to crash into the rear end of his RZR. When I asked him why he stopped, he replied, "Mmmmm...nothin'. I was just looking at the eagle."

"What eagle?"

"That one, Mimi. See? It went into the jungle over there."



[Pause] "OK, Ayden".

No, it wasn't an eagle...and the thick forested underbrush along the path isn't a jungle. However, in the imagination of a little boy, it IS.

We love you, Ayden!

Monday Giveway

Don't you love the treasures that bloggers give away? It's amazing what I find while blog surfing, and Barbara's giveaway is a wonderful prize. If you enjoy poetry you'll want to visit Barabara at The Serenity Gate. Please be sure to tell her I sent you :)

I hope you have a wonderful week!

Blessed

After careful examination of the damage to our home, the results are more extensive than originally expected. The roof was inspected by a roofing company - it is deemed a total loss. Among other areas that require replacing are the stucco mailbox...

...all window screens and gutters...


...ornamental stucco around windows...


...pool cover, and pool/patio furniture (see previous post).

Other neighbors in our subdivision suffered the same amount of damage. Yet, it could have been much worse. A sleep over with our grandson, Ayden provided comic relief. He is such fun and a joy to be around. We met Ayden's family for lunch after church today. Ayden and his mommy provided levity to an ordinary Sunday.

Like mother...


...like son. Thanks for the laughs!

As for Ayden's younger brother and sister, well...they are just too CUTE! Yes, we are truly blessed.

Weather Mayhem

You may have wondered why I didn't update my blog for a couple days. Or, perhaps not. I'm going to explain my absence to you anyway.

As I left the office last Wednesday, our receptionist informed me about tornado warnings that were in effect until 8:00 that evening. Walking out the door I was immediately struck by the very warm temperatures - 71 degrees - and brilliant blue skies. Tornado warning? I didn't believe it. As I drove to my hair appointment I phoned my daughter and we both chuckled about the weather warning.

I was getting a hair cut in Peachtree City when the storms first appeared. Skies were churning an ominous green color and emergency sirens could be heard in the distance. Patrons in the salon were uneasy, but I urged my stylist to finish so I could leave. The salon receptionist came to tell me my daughter had phoned - a serious storm at her home in Tyrone was dropping large hail and heading toward my house (I live about 10 minutes away from their home in Fayetteville). The glass front windows in the salon were bowing in and out from the change in air pressure and creaked ominously. Still I urged Carol to finish quickly. I was concerned about my three pups at home alone.

By the time I made my way home, the main storm had passed. Temps had dropped 19 degrees in the wake of the storm. Driving by our neighborhood, the damage looked minimal. I continued to drive to our old home (currently empty and for sale) about a mile from our new house. The ground fog was so thick I couldn't see anything in front of me. I crawled along at about 10 mph until I reached the entrance to Ashley Forest. The crunching of tires on the road was deafening - I thought I was driving on debris from the storm and didn't realize I was driving on ice. Reaching our driveway on Gray Fox, I was stunned to see snow covering the lawn. Dummy me - it wasn't snow, it was ICE! Not just ice, but hail the size of tennis balls! Storm debris was everywhere.

Photo courtesy of Chere at Miss Priss Follies

We were fortunate to have sustained only minor damage. By comparison, many families lost entire homes. In all, 10 tornadoes touched down in our immediate area of Fayette and Coweta counties. The hail tore through our pool furniture and shredded every window screen. An insurance adjuster will determine the amount of damage to our roof, but already neighbors have reported serious damage. Thank goodness for insurance.

While the hail shown below doesn't look all that serious, let me explain. I collected several large hail stones to take home. I knew Doughboy wouldn't believe me, so I planned to place them in the freezer to show him later. Arriving home to Annelise Park, everything was dark. The street lamps were unlit and there were no lights in homes. It was eerily dark except for the flash of lightening every where. I sat in a dark house, alone with my pups, with nothing but candle light and the natural gas fireplace for comfort. I played solitaire on my laptop computer waiting for the power to be restored. I eventually gave up my wait and went to bed. I watched the flash of lightening through our bedroom windows until finally falling asleep. Somewhere around 3:00am Thursday the power came on. That is the reason I haven't posted. And that is why the hail stones don't appear as big as they were when first collected - they melted quite a bit while the power was off. But they are still BIG! View more hail photos at my friend's blog here. She lives a mile away from me in the opposite direction of our old house. According to a local newspaper article, hail the size of grapefruit was documented. Grapefruit!

Yes, it could have been much, much worse. My heart and prayers are with the families who lost everything; however, our severe weather season is only just beginning. I can only hope our luck continues to hold.

Friday Failure

Things that make you scratch your head and say out loud, "WTF!?"

I Let Him Live Another Day

Even on the weekend I rise early. My usual wake up time Monday through Friday is 5:30am. On weekends I sleep until 6:30'ish depending on when the pups need to go outside. I always wake before Doughboy and let him sleep as long as he needs.

This past Saturday, Valentine's Day, was an exception. Doughboy had left a gift for me in the chair I usually sit upon. He woke early to surprise me and anticipated my usual routine: after feeding the pups their breakfast, I pour myself a glass of orange juice then sit in my brown leather chair to watch the morning news.

Seeing the bright colored gift bag, I said "Oh look! There's a bag in my chair".

Without missing a beat, Doughboy said "Not yet".

...I let him live another day.

Spring Fever

I have a case of spring fever and I've got it bad. The rain clouds of yesterday have blown away to reveal a brilliant cerulean blue sky. Temperatures have warmed in the light of the sun. It is a splendid day!

Signs of spring are beginning to appear everywhere. One of my favorite signs are blossoms from flowering Bradford pears. The experts warn that it's a mistake to plant Bradford pear trees, and rightly so: their limbs break too easily in stormy weather. Because of their fragility, Bradfords are outlawed in our new neighborhood. But just around the corner is a neighborhood whose one and only street is lined on either side with these flowering beauties. The following photos were taken this afternoon.


Another sign of spring is the number and variety of wild birds.


On the other hand, Kady finds all the excitement a bit dull.