Bathroom Crazies

Can you believe we woke up one morning to find a frog in the kids' bathroom? Well, thankfully it was Jeremy who discovered what he at first thought was a new bath toy but then realized when it moved that it wasn't a toy afterall. If it had been me who had discovered it, we'd still be searching for the skin I had jumped out of upon seeing it! Jeremy captured the frog and it was released to the wild. Apparently it traveled up through the toilet- so glad no one was sitting down using the toilet while the creature was in there!
Funny boy #1 post bath

And funny boy #2, who absolutely loves pulling his towel over his face and 'hiding' (from himself I think)!

Catch Up

For the one or two of you who might still follow our blog, here's a few updates. Caleb had his first dental appointment back in September. He did wonderful and received an excellent report! These milestones are just coming way too fast! We had a great hygienist and a great dentist. Dr. Gunnels and his wife Jenna are friends of mine from high school and Jeremy was actually in pharmacy school in Memphis at the same time Josh was in dental school. It's a small world after all!
He looks so small in the big chair!

A few weeks later I was so thankful we now had a family dentist as Caleb had an unfortunate jump on the playground that left him with a bloody mouth and a front tooth pushed a couple of mm's forward. There wasn't anything they could do but they did x-ray it and let me know what to look for as far as concern for it in the future.

Girls Trip

I recently had the privelege to make my first official "girls trip" with 3 of my best friends from high school. It was a great trip and served to reconnect me with my friends and provide for some needed downtime away from my house or should I say man cave! Plus, Eli had showed no signs of giving up nursing and as a last resort, Jeremy and I thought the physical serpartion might be necessary (sidenote, he had been eating well and really seemed to be using my for a paci 3-4 times a day). At 15 1/2 months old he was the same age as when I weaned Caleb, so I felt good about the timing. And this was our first overnight separation. According to his daddy, he did beautifully the entire weekend! And I could not say enough about the wonderful man I married. He had the children for the better part of 3 days and managed wonderfully! He did tell me, however, he had seen the other (my) side of things and understood me better- icing on the cake! I know if I had to work in the pharmacy at Vanderbilt for just a wee bit, no doubt I would come away from the experience with a new appreciation for all that Jeremy does for us. So, let's hope I can take that knowledge into account without the experience and be a more loving, godly and understanding wife. St. Louis was our destination and it was a blast!
Me and Rachel

Eating at a famous pizza place - appropriately named for all of you algebra lovers.

Cara and Robyn

Riding up the Arch (think of crawling up inside a super capacity dryer- with 4 other people- the lady who rode with us was nice enough to take this picture for us)

Until next time girls!

Enjoying the last days of summer

Pool days are over, until next year anyway! This was a fun place we found in Lebanon. Pushing Caleb around.
Eli learning to balance.

Practicing a few dance moves.

It's great when Daddy gets to come with us! A great day at the Don Fox Community Pool in Lebanon a few weeks ago. It is awesome! Very, very clean- in fact, a lot cleaner than the pool we pay to to swim in. Of course, they only have the kiddie pool, but it was perfect for Caleb and Eli- they both loved it!

Wilson County Fair

This year was my first year to attend the Wilson County Fair, and I've lived here most of my life. I think anyway, I do seem to remember attending as a teen, but it is a foggy memory at best, which shows just how much of an impression it made on me! But, having talked my mom into entering somethings in the food events and having a 3 year old who seemed to be very interested in the "rides," we thought we'd give it a go. It was a lot of fun, but incredibly hot too.

My husband, the druggist."Holy Cow"

Snacking on peaches.

Caleb enjoyed the ride with his daddy.

Solo? Not so much!

Eli managed to take it all in stride.

My mom's "superb" and now "blue-ribbon" croissants.

The Grand Champion of Yeast Breads- Go Mom!

August Fun

Sweet Potato and Chicken N Dumplins' for supper

I think the dumplins are Caleb's favorite food, although he would insist it is

suckers, gum or peach melba.
Eli loves okra- who'd a thunk?
More of Caleb's photography

I call this 'The Leg"

1st day of 2nd year of school

Caleb has his same teacher (Mrs. Anita) and most all of his same classmates.

When I picked him up at school today he told me that he really missed baby brother, me and Jeremy while he was at school. That's a first as last year I don't think he thought twice about being away from us. Love this boy and his spiderman lunch box!

This and That- Things that I Love

This is the best okra dish- ever! And so easy. I served it here with honey mustard dipping sauce, but truth be told, I love the okra just plain. And so good for you. One half cup serving contains just around 25 calories (plain that is) and is a great source of folate.
Caleb's photography skills. He is so funny when taking a picture; he wants to put the camera right on the subject. I guess he's just up close and personal that way. Looking good babe!

Yummy, yummy peaches!

Brotherly love.

More brotherly love.

So much brotherly love I just can't stand it!

Little overnight trips with the hubster are great. This particular trip to Memphis (for a friend's wedding) was supposed to be just us- no kids. Mr. Eli, however, had other plans about my attempts to wean him. He just wasn't having any of it. So, we took him with us and he had a ball.

He was called to the dance floor like MC Hammer and got several laughs along the way. He loved the band and was in no way shy whatsoever. His one disappointment was not getting to meet my friend Janice who was supposed to be there as well but couldn't come at the last minute due to a family crisis.

The lovely bride and groom! They were just beautiful! Miss you Lesley but wish you all the best as Mrs. Wes Poole!

What would a trip to Memphis be without seeing the Peabody? The wedding was right across the street at the Cadre Building.

It was nice to see you again Memphis- We loved eating at Huey's and shopping at the Williams Sonoma/West Elm/Pottery Barn Outlet.

Zoo Day

July 31st, 2010 we went to the zoo because it was our last day to be able to go on our current membership and we had decided not to renew (for awhile anyway). Uncle Luke went with us and was quite the help!

And it was HOT. And I mean HOT!"Must have drink now before I dehydrate."Said drink- $5.99 for all day refills. Yeah, we shared some backwash but I wouldn't call the zoo a germ free place anyway. Iccee's in a variety of flavors: cherry, blue raspberry, apple and finally, for daddy only, coke.What a very nutritious thing to feed your 14 month old. I doubt he or Caleb either one had ever had that much sugar in one day but it was hotter than, well, a cat on a hot tin roof, and we couldn't do ice cream so this was the next best thing. Gotta love Tennesse in July. Remember this time last year though? It was really too cold to go swimming. I guess to be truthful I'd rather it be triple digits in July than too cold to swim!

TOE MAY TOES and BLU BER-EEZ

Aren't they beautiful? And tasty too! Thanks Mom and Dad! Pretty soon one of these tomatoes will come into close contact with a knife, then some mayo, salt and pepper and be slapped on either side with a piece of bread for that oh so delicious southern treat known as a 'mater sandwich'. Coming soon to a plate near me and you! By the way if you have never tried one, I suggest you do- and to be truly southern, you need to use Duke's mayo and white bread. Actually, though, it's pretty good without the mayo and on whole wheat, and will save you somewhere between 50 to a 100 calories and provide you with some extra fiber.
Oh.My.Goodness. We have eaten more blueberries this year than ever! Caleb and Eli both love them and they are just wonderful! For all you ever wanted to know about blueberries, go here. And the canteloupe my parents have grown-DLISHUS! Caleb would probably eat melon at every meal if possible- he loves them all and so do I! The ones from my parents garden are much smaller than the ones from the grocery store, but oh my, they are quadruple the size in taste!
Here they are growing like grapes. They were so easy to pick and even Eli was able to get in on the fun. Now, just a word about picking blueberries... In order to get 'the sweet and juicy ones,' you really only want to pick the berries that are totally blue and easily turn loose when you pick them.

Funny, they pretty much come out in Eli's diaper the same way they look here- just maybe a tad darker blue. Well, my pies are out of the oven, (one a chocolate and one a miniature peach made from the leftover piecrust scraps), so I'll sign off for now. Hope you've managed to include some nice summer fruits in your diet this year!