Make a wonderful couple as man & wife... my sister and her new husband.Traci & Bert were married Dec. 6th. It was a very pretty wedding and a good time. Here they are with mine and Traci's dad, Brent and his wife Beth. I put this one up because I know a bunch of you have never seen my dad... and now you have.
My mom took me to Florida for the wedding... I know all of you know that my mom rocks. If it weren't for her I wouldn't get to do half things I do. Anyways, she rocked us on over to Disney World and we had a blast! Or should I say, an Incredible time!
Here I am channeling my inner super hero with the fabulous Helen Parr (aka ElastiGirl). Frankly, it was incredible that I could get into that pose! I did it for my brother though because he digs the Incredibles and thinks I'm Super. Don't laugh too hard at this Jake! We rode rides, saw shows, ate good food and also got our pictures with Lightning McQueen and Mater which was cool. Cars is such a great movie. Disney is such a great place. We just had a great time. There was so much to see and be inspired by and I love Disney!!!!! I seriously love it. Is that crazy? We didn't even take kids and still had a blast. O.k. now that you all know how much I love Disney... we did lots of other fun things. We stayed with Larry and Wanda who are beyond hospitable, thanks guys! We went to the movies. The Changeling. Not a real big Brad/Angie fan but she was good in the movie. The movie itself, o.k. but maddening because there are so many crooked people. Now a while back, my rockin' mom took me to see Australia... Great movie, not a Nicole Kidman fan but she was o.k. but Hugh, yeah, really like him and the movie was really good. Go see this one.
We have been in the Christmas spirit here... tonight's movie was The Christmas Story. Cracks me up and the boys said they thought it was better this year than any of the other years they seen it and they came to the conclusion that they are older so they 'get it' this year. Cards are almost ready to go out, gingerbread houses are decorated, shopping is almost complete and it's pretty stress free. I found out today that Jake is coming for Christmas and I am totally excited! I can't wait to see him. O.K. I know there is more to post but it will have to wait for another time.
Cave Men
Last weekend the boys went caving with their scout group. These are the pictures from when they came out of the cave... just a little muddy.
The cave is about 45 miles away and there's a 20 minute hike to it (that I was not properly dressed for in my shorts and flip-flops). The entrance is a hole about 2 or 2.5 feet in diameter and you have to go in feet first. It's dark of course so they had to wear headlamps on their helmets. There were all kinds of cave formations, like straws, popcorn, bacon, curtains and stalactites.
They were nervous about it all week and were adamant that they were not going... but we made them. I figured it was going to be one of those things that they grow up and say they're glad we made them or they will say they're mad we made them. Either way we made them... experiences like this don't come along very often. I am very happy to report that they are GLAD!! They both really liked it and said it wasn't anything like they had expected. They even said they'd go again (since you said you'd like to go caving...you'll get your chance Dad! The man on the end is 6' 3"-ish, you'll be fine). We ate lunch there and then headed home. A very cool day.
Where were you...
on September 11th? Tonight, September 11th, 2008 I was watching Alan Jackson sing his song 'Where were you?' with tears in my eyes again, just like I was 7 years ago. Time goes by so fast yet for so many people I'm sure it feels like yesterday. I am still a little sad when I see things that we no longer have the freedom of because of Sept. 11th and all the things that have been in the aftermath. The last lines of his song 'Where I Come From' say, "We say our prayers and pledge allegiance, where I come from". I am so thankful that we are free to do that in the United States, thankful sometimes beyond words. So, tonight here's a little prayer for the U.S.A. and thanks to Alan Jackson for another great concert. It was just as good as the last time.
A Lesson in Arizona Living
Ryan went out to the garage to put pop cans in the recycle bin and was greeted by this little guy. He immediately slammed the door and ran back in to tell us there was a snake in the garage. Boy, was there! So lesson learned... don't keep your garage door open, the snakes like to move in. I got out my trusty phone number guide for the community and low and behold third number from the bottom... Snake Removal. Must be a common occurrence. A nice gentleman from the fire department came and took the little guy away to be free in the desert, preferably not the desert behind our house. I have to say that I have never heard anything like that rattling. He was NOT happy and his rattle was going a zillion miles an hour and it was loud. The thing that I wonder is how long he was there because I went out into the garage to get drinks for dinner and the fridge is right by the door into the house and then Ryan took the cans out right after we finished dinner and the snake was right there in front of the door to the house. Did I walk right by him and not even see? Well, not any more... all of us are a little more cautious of where we are walking. I'm sure it won't last for long but right now we are all a little more aware and looking at the ground every second! Needless to say, this weekend we are finishing unpacking and cleaning the garage. The floor will be totally visible... I don't want ANY surprises!! We'll be cleaning- hope everyone has a nice relaxing or productive weekend.
