In the words of my good friend, Becca...

Neuvo Coche! We have been driving the car that I bought the month I graduated from college up until 2 days ago...that's when we bought THIS! It's a 2006 Pontiac Grand Prix. We are so blessed with this car! It looks great and we got it at a great price. it is just perfect for us!

Pictures

It's been a while since we have posted much. Basically, my summer ended and I returned to school. The first day was Aug. 14, 2008 and I have had a GREAT time with this class.

We haven't posted any photos of our niece lately and thought we would for your viewing enjoyment.

The first one is of Drew and baby using the computer. We love this picture because she was SO interested in whatever Uncle Drew was doing. What a Great pic!
The Second photo was taken in July and she had just learned to grasp toys and swing them around. She was so active that day and kept me laughing all day.

The third photo was taken on my second to last week with her for the summer. She was able to sit up with plenty of support behind her. We like this picture too because of her smile. I hope all is well for you and I apologize for the quiet around here!

The last week

The last week has been a whirlwind of events.

Last Monday (July 28) I finished up stapling the last staple into the walls of my classroom AND I finished up the last assignment for the course I was taking. I was feeling pretty good about myself and the fact that I was really sailing right along in terms getting things done. I figured this left me a week, or so, to rest and relax before the big push for the beginning of the school year. (Which, for me, starts on August 12). So, then on Tuesday I got a call from my mother. My grandmother had died. We made arrangements and made a quick trip to Elkhart/Middlebury for my Grandmother's funeral. We are back now, and I am busily working at school preparing for the onset of the new year. Below, you can see a photo of my grandmother along with her obituary. Needless to say, we are both spent and exhausted.

Mary Alice (Jones) Smith
Mary Alice (Jones) Smith, 88, of 53169 CR 39 Middlebury, IN died unexpectedly and due to natural causes at 6:27 PM on Tuesday, July 29, 2008 at the Goshen General Hospital emergency room. She was born August 27, 1919 in Plymouth, IN., to the late Elzie and Valira Marie (Palmer) Jones. On March 6, 1939 in Plymouth, IN she married Willard Richard Smith. She was a homemaker, and had worked for Barler Manufacturing, IXL, Goshen Rubber and Western Rubber all of Goshen. Survivors include Daughter, Sandra J. Pelfrey of Middlebury, IN; 4 Sons, Willard LeRoy Smith, Victor Irvin Smith, Terry A. Smith all of Middlebury, IN, Davey B. Smith of Elkhart, IN; 9 Grandchildren, 15 Great Grandchildren, 4 Great Great Grandchildren; 5 Sisters, Esther Klapp of Plymouth, IN, Hazel & Alfred Stickler of Millersburg, IN., Betty Sullivan of Plymouth, IN, Margaret Wolfinger of Millersburg, IN., Barbara Bayse of New Haven, IN; Brother, Harry Jones of Waldport, OR. She was preceded in death by her parents, a son, Richard Eugene Smith, 2 Brothers, Charles and William Jones. Visitation will be from 2 - 4 and 6 - 8 PM, Friday at the funeral home. Funeral services will be at 10:00 A.M. on Saturday, August 2, 2008 at the funeral home. Burial will be in Oak Ridge Cemetery, Bristol.

Movie Review - Stepbrothers

This movie had potential to be funny and the story line was...decent. The problem is that the f-bomb was dropped WAAAAAAAAY too much in the movie as well as entirely too much sexual inuendo. If the producers had dropped the profanity and the sexual inuendo, I would have given this movie about a 7 on a scale of 1 - 10 (10 being the best movie ever). However, because of those factors I give this movie about a 1. I would not recommend this movie to any of my friends or family. I guess I am pretty opinionated about it, but I did not enjoy this movie much at all.

My New Favorite Song...

"Slow Fade" by Casting Crowns

Ped Egg Follow-up

I found a buy one get one free offer on the PedEgg. Click here to learn more!

New Movie Coming - Fireproof

I was reading over at Family Reunion this morning and she had a link to the YouTube Trailer for a new movie coming this fall called Fireproof. It is made by the creators of Facing the Giants and I am looking forward to seeing it!

You know it's hot when

you got outside to mow the lawn at 8:45am and it's 78 degrees but when you get done at 9:45 it's 92 degrees! Whoa! I just cannot believe the humidity this year around here. I just sweat bullets just STANDING outside. If I do any type of work, my shirt is wet, my hair is wet....yuck. Yesterday I took 3, yes THREE, showers due to sweating! Maybe TMI for you, but geez...I could use a break from the moisture in the air!

Comments

I have posted instructions for leaving comments for those of you that have emailed me and asked. Just scroll down and you will see it on the right. I hope it helps!

Product Review - Ped Egg

I have terribly calloused heels and often get a bit embarrassed when wearing sandals in public. I have used a lava stone in the past, but was intrigued by the Ped Egg when it came out. So, I finally broke down and bought one today. At first, I was a little nervous because it looks like, well...a cheese grater. I began slowly and cautiously rubbing it against my feet and I didn't feel a thing. Once I was done, my feet were smooth and callous-free. I highly recommend this product to anyone out there that has the same problem I have with calloused heels. I will warn you however, that when I dumped it out (after grating my feet down) I was a little bit grossed out. It really does rub a lot of dead, calloused skin away. It's safe, easy, and leaves your feet smooth.

Movie Review - Wall-E

We went and saw the movie Wall-E this weekend and it was so good. I have been wanting to see it since I first saw the previews. We saw Hancock the weekend before and were disappointed in it because it really wasn't what the previews made it out to be. So, we decided to pop for movie tickets again to see Wall-E and LOVED it. It has some good messages in it and is very creative. It had funny points throughout, but true to Disney Classic style, it has a positive message at the end. If you get a chance to go, you should definitely go.

Congratulations!

We wish to offer our congratulations to our friends Carlos and Shelly at the birth of their son at 1:34am today. Everyone has been so eager to meet little Carlos Andreas. May their family be blessed!

Quiet

It's been rather quiet around here lately. My class stared on July 7 and it has already been interesting. Our current topic of discussion? Merit pay for teachers.

For our anniversary, I smoked some ribs and they were sooooo gooooooood! We spent the evening at home and enjoyed the company of one another. It's amazing how much we still love to do that sometimes!

It certainly has been quiet. Nothing exciting to report.

What about you? Anything exciting to report?

4 Years

Today is our 4th anniversary. I am so blessed with such a loving, kind, and compassionate man to call my husband. I never knew I could love another person as I love this man. I tried to find a song that works for this special day, but I couldn't settle on just one.

The first is one that reminds me of our time dating: Frank Sinatra "Something Stupid"


The second says how I feel about Drew: Denise Williams "Let's Hear it For they Boy"

Bored.

Bored.

That pretty much sums up how I have been so far this summer.

Drew and I both got our fishing licenses and we have been fishing and that has been FUN! I even bought a new pole. Fishing for me, though, is only fun when I don't have to touch the worm or the fish. What's the point? You ask? I like to cast, reel in the fish, and be outdoors with no phone or pressing issues to deal with.

Next week I am going back to class...sort of. It's an online course and I know my schedule will become very busy in a short amount of time. Before long, it will be back to school and the daily grind of teaching and learning.

How is your summer going?

New Tiller

This is the second year that we have planted a rather large garden at ma and pa's farm. Last year we busted our rumps trying to keep the weeds at bay and we did pretty well. Ma and Pa have an old tiller but we simply could not get it to work. While Drew worked and worked on that tiller, the weeds just grew and grew. So, we finally decided it was time to break down and buy one.

We wanted to buy a used one, but it is virtually impossible to find a used tiller around here. Finally we located a used one in a town 1 hour from our home. So, we set out to buy it and bring it home. The employees had told us that they were closing at noon on Saturday due to a parade and celebration that was taking place in the town, BUT they would wait for us if we called when were about 10 minutes away. The guy said it was a Troy-Bilt Horse with a snow blade attachment. (a $2400 dollar value that they were selling $799.) When we were 10 minutes away, we called the place and they said "We are going to be closing at 12:00 because we all want to go to the parade. If you aren't here, we will close." We pulled into their parking lot at 12:00 sharp. All the employees were walking out to go to the parade. They looked right at us, and drove away. Baaaaaad business.

So, we set about looking around for something else because, ya'll, our weeds were out of control. We remembered to bring a phone book with us and began calling around. One guy told us that there was a new Tractor Supply in town and they might have tillers. So, we went to the brand new Tractor supply and found this tiller. It was on sale for $50 dollars off and then a group was there asking us to test drive a Toyota Tundra and then give feedback. If we did, they gave us EACH a $15 gift card. So...the original cost of the tiller was $599, but we got it for $519 which is $300 less than we were going to pay for the used one at Bad Business Central.

So, we (by we, I mean Drew because...remember...I sprained my ankle) tilled up all those weeds and our garden look so good now. So, happy tiller day to us.

OH...and btw...the Toyota Tundra was a SWEET ride. Maybe our next truck will....

Yummmmmmm

I have been CRAVING an authentic carnival style elephant ear. Thanks for the link and the reminder, Amy! We may just have to make a few around our place!

Frosty's for Adoption!

During this weekend (June 14 and 15) every Frosty purchased at Wendy's will result in them donating $0.50 to the Dave Thomas Foundation for Adoption. Hmmmm...if everyone in MY family bought a frosty that would be, like, a gajillion dollars for adoption. Now...shoo...go out and buy a Frosty.

Just confirming I am the Klutz Queen.

What a night folks! Last night we went over to the garden at Drew's parents' place to hook up some hoses and run the water. Afterwards we spent some time talking to Ma and then decided to go. As we were leaving I stepped off the porch and fell into the grass. The porch is a 3-4 inch think cement slab. My foot slipped off the side and I ROLLED MY ANKLE! Yes I did. So, I commenced with the crying and almost passing out at the pain while Ma and Drew gently loaded me into the truck, gave me some ibuprofen, and a bag of ice. Then, we had to drive the 25 miles or so to the nearest hospital.

Once at the ER, everyone and their brother was there. Some guy needed stitches. There was a kid that had gotten hit in the jaw with a baseball. (OUCH!) Another guy...I don't know his deal and then me. They took X Rays and determined that it is a bad sprain. Bad enough that the doc air casted it, gave me crutches, and sent me home.

It was 9:45pm when I was sent home and...oh...we hadn't eaten yet! So, we got salads at McDonald's, went home, ate, and then went to bed. (around 11:30pm) At 3:45 I woke up with excruciating pain in my ankle. I downed some ibuprofen and then back to sleep I went. As long as I stay medicated and keep things elevated, I am doing okay.

I feel like a big ol' dork though because I cried so hard when I fell. Folks, I broke my other ankle in middle school and this sprain hurt far worse than that ever did. I thought FOR SURE I had broken my ankle. Thank God I did not. After a week or so, this will all be over and I can get back to normal...or trip again and cause some other bodily harm to myself.

So, I have once again demonstrated that if you are a klutz, like me, then I am definitely your Queen.

Snakes 1254, me 1

I have finally killed a snake without using a lawn mower, folks. I am so afraid of the stupid things, but I am learning that if I don't wrangle them when I've see them, they will only get bigger and smarter. I am sure the neighbors think I am a bit odd, but I have started walking around the lawn, whenever I happen to be working in the lawn, with a shovel in hand. So, I thought I would share that while the snakes currently lead the score about 20 bazillion to one, I have claimed victory over one.