Back from Arky

Myself and a crew of 6 other guys returned Tuesday from a duck hunt in Arkansas. We had a blast, even though the ducks weren't flying like we had hoped. It was really odd, when we got to Des Arc on Sunday, it was 63 degrees -- when we woke up at 4 a.m. on Monday, it was 29 degrees with 20-25mph winds and raining. You would think that the front would have pushed more birds down, but that was not the case. Tuesday morning was a little better, and a LOT colder. 20 degress with a wind chill of 8 degrees. All in all, we harvested about 35 mallards and pintails, a GW teal, a speckle-belly goose, 4 ring-necks (for dog training), and a 2 "uh-oh's"... don't ask. ~Jason

The Foundry Christmas Dinner

We have served the men of The Foundry in Bessemer Christmas dinner for the past 3 years and enjoyed our time there again this year. The night is an opportunity for the community to serve and honor men who are taking steps to battle drug and alcohol addiction. With help from friends of 2 other churches and a large group from A & O we prepared a delicious three course meal and presented the men with Target gift cards. It was a humbling night for us and we truly enjoy seeing first hand how God is working in the lives of men who are learning about His love and truth.

Tate 18 months

November-- Oak Mountain with Holly, Randy,
& Reid

We enjoyed a beautiful Fall day at Oak Mountain a few weeks ago. Tate (18mo) and Reid (19mo) love being outside and playing together.

Tate is now 18 months old and we are having so much fun with her. Jason and I seem to say every couple of months that this is our favorite age and then we seem to feel the same way all over again as she grows and changes.

Tate loves to dance to any music playing whether it be

in the car, on TV, or mommy and daddy singing to her.

She is saying all kinds of cute new words, repeating and mimicking most anything we say. However one of her favorite words right now is "no" which can be difficult at times, but I must admit she sounds so cute saying it with her sweet voice.

Tate loves reading books together and enjoys saying her animal sounds as she sees them.

Tate loves her cousin Reid or "bubba" as she calls him. She made this nickname up all by herself and she gets so excited when she sees him.

She is also crazy about another man in her life....she loves her daddy and knows each evening when it is about time for daddy to be home she starts looking outside and saying daddy, daddy. Anytime we see a truck on the road similar to jason's she calls out daddy. No one can make her laugh quite like daddy can especially when he is tickling her!

All in all, we think Tate is pretty wonderful and we love our time watching her grow and learn and change so quickly. We now truly realize how time does pass so quickly and that helps us to appreciate the more challenging days and weeks. We are looking forward to spending Thanksgiving in Chattanooga this upcoming week....of course new pictures to follow soon.

I've been Tagged....

I was "Tagged" by Courtney to blog on 7 things about myself...I chose 7 things that you might not know about me....so here it goes!

1) My middle name is Lea.

2) I email almost everyday, but only recently learned how to attach a document

3) I like to come up with nicknames for people and call my sister Doby and Jason- J or JJ and have oh so many nicknames for my little Tatters

4) I once played the washboard with a band in front of an audience in New Orleans

5) I like to squeeze people's earlobes ( I prefer unattached earlobes)

6) I was head Majorette my Junior and Senior years of high school

7) My sister Holly and I shared a 1990 Honda Accord throughout high school and for 2 years of college.

** I Tag Michelle and Kathryn

Pumpkin Patch

We joined some friends from Alpha and Omega for a beautiful day at The Great Pumpkin Patch last Saturday in Hayden. We had a great time....there was so much for the kids to do. We also enjoyed taking some fun, fall photos of Tate. Here she is (above) dancing to the fun music they had for all of the kids in the pavilion area.

Her first pony ride....she liked it and didn't want to get off!

Tate enjoyed seeing cows, goats, and chickens at the petting zoo

Picking pumpkins....or rolling them on the ground as Tate enjoyed doing

War Eagle anyway...

This past weekend, we decided to take Tate for her first (of many) trips to The Plains. We went down to see some of Diana's sorority sisters... and all the kids! She had a great time, especially riding around campus in her personal chariot (a.k.a. Radio Flyer). We hope she grows up loving Auburn as much as we do, and Diana & I look forward to making many more memories with our family (however big it gets) down there. And yes, in case you begin to wonder, the outfits you see the girls in were hand-made!

AnnElyse (11 mos) & Tate (17 mos)

Tate's 1st Haircut

We decided to have Tate's hair trimmed just a little in the back. It was becoming a little unmanageable. We took her to "Sweet and Sassy" the cutest hairplace that specializes in children's haircuts. Tate did really well, she was entertained by the spray bottle and reading a few books. Here are a few pictures from her big day!

Fun with Gi Gi & Poppa at the Park

Gi Gi and Tate and Aunt Holly and Reid

Let's go for a ride Reid!

Tate had such a fun day, as usual, with her GiGi & Poppa while mommy was working. Playing at the park this past Wednesday was even more fun because Aunt Holly and Reid came over for a visit as well. Thank you GiGi and Poppa for all you do for us and for Tate and Reid. I know that they love their time with you both and we appreciate all you do for us!

Destin- Day 4-6

Well, I figured it is about time for me to actually post a blog. So here it goes...short and sweet!

I am slowly learning that sewing and smocking are hobbies that take time and patience. These hobbies are ones that require a "mother's love" which gives you the energy to work and finish a project even when exhausted and exasperated. However, I do enjoy sewing for Tate and I especially enjoy seeing her model the finished outfit. My latest project is a bubble that I have actually been working on and off for the whole summer. You can see in the pictures below just how cute she looks!



Reid looking handsome in his monogrammed Johnny that Holly sewed for him!

Destin - Day 3

Today was a 'pool day', as opposed to a beach day. The only time we went to the beach was later this evening - Diana, Tate & I took a walk out to the beach at about 5:30. The weather forecast for today called for a 50% chance of thunderstorms, and I would say that it was a fairly accurate prediction, as for about half the day it was hit or miss in terms of whether or not we were going to get wet. It would be sunny/partly cloudy for a period of time, but then all of a sudden, it would get pretty dark overhead, but not rain -- then be partly cloudy again. Finally, at about 4pm, the bottom fell out and it gave us a good soaking. Luckily, we were already back at the house either smocking (Holly & Diana), napping (Jason, Tate, Reid & Gayle) or making a Target run (John & Randy).














Tonight, after feeding and bathing the kid-o's, we had ourselves an oyster feast. Oysters Rockefeller, broiled oysters, grilled oysters, grilled shrimp, and even chicken & broccoli casserole (if you really didn't want seafood).













Now there's only a few of us still going. The girls are smocking...


























...and I am waiting for David Letterman to start! Tomorrow is supposed to be a very nice day for the beach, so hopefully we'll have some more pictures to share. Good night from FL!

Made it to the Beach!

Well, we made it down to the beach yesterday, and are looking forward to a full week of sun, fun and pure relaxation. The ride down was nice, other than trying to find somewhere to get gas in Andalusia. Every gas station we passed had no fuel, but finally, we found one that did. Tate did pretty good on the drive down. She only slept for about 40 minutes the whole trip, but thankfully GiGi and Diana were in the back with her; that kept her occupied and generally happy. She started coming apart at the seams when we got on Hwy 98, but we were only 5 minutes from our destination at that point. She was just tired of being in the car seat, and frankly, so were we!

Once we got here, unpacked, and stocked up at the grocery store, it was time to watch Auburn play a baseball game against Miss. St. -- at least that's what the score looked like. At least we won. I hope we can say the same thing next week after LSU comes to town.

This morning, we all got up and headed for the beach! Below are some pictures (we'll try to add more as the week goes along)...

Our house (at least for the week!)




















Yeah!!! We're here!!!



















Million dollar smile...













What is this stuff on my hand?!?!?!?













Let's build a castle!!!

Back to Reality... and School!

Well, Labor Day has come and gone... the one weekend you really hate to see fade away, as it represents the unofficial end of constant summer fun. BUT, we had a blast! We spent the weekend at Diana's parents' lakehouse in the water, in the boat, and in the sun! The whole crew was there including us ~ Jordan (came up from Auburn) ~ Holly, Randy & Reid ~ John & Gayle ~ Nancy ~ and Brian, Ruth & Owen. It was a full house, but those are the times you really remember for a long time.

Here's a little video documenting our big weekend...

The Wheels on the Bus Go 'Round and 'Round...

Today was Tate's first day of "school"... well, Mother's Day Out, but it sure felt like school! We were packing lunches, extra clothes, diapers, nametags, "About Me" posters, etc... We even had to turn in a sheet with her likes, dislikes, fears, comforts, favorite foods, and all about her family! Whew! That being the first time we've had to summarize it all on one sheet of paper, it was pretty challenging to "describe" our beautiful little girl in 150 words or less. Sort of surreal, too.

Here she is before leaving for her first day...

When Diana picked her up this afternoon, the teacher said "She cried on and off, but she ate all of her lunch!". Not exactly the first words you want to hear after your kid's first day of school. At least she has her cousin Reid to stick with ~ they're actually in the same "Little Lambs" class together (what a blessing!). Hopefully it will get better, and we will just continue to pray that she plays well with others and has fun. We'll also keep the teachers in our prayers -- not only that they will teach our kids with the same love as Jesus would, but that they have the same patience He would, too!

The Upcoming Weekend

We just wanted to quickly tell everyone to have a great Labor Day weekend! We will be down at the lake, playing in the water, watching Auburn win, Alabama lose, and enjoying one of the last lake weekends of the summer.

Keep an eye on Gustav...




...it could be a major headache for next week. Hope everyone has a fun, safe weekend!

WAR EAGLE!

Hello World...

Well... here we are.

After a long, hard-fought battle, with all of those around us falling victim to html edits, widgets, and "custom designed" websites, we too have fallen into the perils of the 'blogger nation'.

I often exercise the addage "under-promise, over-deliver". Diana & I believe, in the case of this blog, these words will ring true -- at least the first half of the phrase. As a reader, you should not expect much in terms of fancy, insightful, life-wise, or even routinely updated. No. As a reader, this blog will work best if we, as authors, do a good job up front of setting the expectations as low as humanly possible. Sure, there will be some good moments - some funny stories, some emotional ones, and then some that you wish we would have just kept to ourselves and not shared with the whole world, but such is life. If you're really reading this blog for motivation or inspiration to carry on throughout your day, then allow me to direct your attention to this poster.

Point is, you'll see some good pictures, cool links, and overall fun stuff on this blog. We hope you enjoy, and remember... don't expect so much. ~Jason