Four on Four

And I don't mean a little pick up basketball. This is what camping (or any family activity for that matter) is for us these days - man to man. We went on our first family of four camping trip with our friends, the Pollacks, this past weekend at Hawn State Park. This was the pre-set up camp hike.
I think Karen was doing her impression of River Dance here, but I don't quite remember...
Joe's camping trick: Peeing on my foot, while strapped to my front in a pack, without getting his pants wet!
"Boys are so moody."

One season to the next

Probably our last arrangement of zinnias from the garden. Sad to see them go - even as pitiful as they were this year. But the pumpkin ginger muffins make the change in season worth the loss. Seems like there is always something to look forward to and usually something to learn from what has passed (like don't plant your zinnia seeds before the last freeze).

"For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven."
Ecclesiastes 3:1

Fall Festival Frenzy

Can you tell they are excited? It is my favorite time of year - Fall - so I drag everyone to as many of these as we can find, or at least a handful each year. The Botanical Garden had a festival this past weekend - bluegrass music, cow milking, pig looking (they were just laying there asleep), market shopping, pumpkin decorating, cockroach races...(what do cockroaches have to do with fall?!) Odd that the topic of this post is the festival and we have two pictures of our kids in the stroller, I know. But there weren't very many kodak moments at this festival - but I promise more to come.

"Sister, Do you think she'll make us go again next year?"

(P.S. Olivia has been slack on patrol lately and one of those durn squirrels ate our pumpkin Sunday night! I'm not kidding! I didn't even know they liked pumpkins!)

City meets country

We are harvesting the last of our tomatoes green so we can put them in a paper bag in the pantry and find them, like magic, red as can be in about a week or two. Olivia is sporting a slightly over-sized t-shirt (that really should have been belted) and her cousin Rachel's hand-me-down black Mary Janes. "Matoes" have been a draw to the back yard all summer. We have the stained shirt collars to prove it.

TN 3rd installment

These are our friends, Maggie and Sam Gullett. It isn't easy getting a shot of two three-year-olds and a two year old. We had just visited with a local police man who pulled up to the park (I guess we looked suspicious), hence the fancy badges.

More time in Tennessee

Can you tell this is the coveted chair on my parents back porch? I think we have a shot of everyone in it. I love this picture, though it's not terribly creative - I just wonder what they are thinking. (My dad is probably thinking, "you take too long to take pictures...")















There's Lucy!!! Or Sucy as Olivia says.















This should be an advertisement for the Christian Hospitality Network - that is the fundraising golf tournament that Mike played in with my Dad and brother.















Couldn't you just pinch those cheeks right off?! Not yours, mom. :)















Gimme back my cookie!
This shot is hilarious. She is not this fat, but she looks like she's been stung by a be and "swoll" up her something. There are some other terrific shots in this lighting and pose, but none of you get to see them because I'm not sure what I am doing for Christmas presents yet.

(I didn't get a single picture of Tootsie or Lisa!)

Time in Tennessee

This is my sister, Alison, and her two kids - Rachel and Camille. This was while Rachel was still dressed - she dropped her dress about 10 minutes after she got there and went "nakee" (as Olivia says) the rest of the day.




















Sweet Mouse (my niece), she broke her arm at school a couple of weeks ago.















There's something in the water at Mimi's!















This is my 93-year-old Mamaw, who incidentally just went "natural" recently. She's been a blonde all these years and I have to say that it never occurred to me that she wasn't really blonde. Her comment to our shock and surprise? "How many 93-year-old blondes do you know?" (As if there are oodles of 92-year-old ones.) But she sure doesn't look 93, does she? I love this picture - they look so sweet.















Which one is the trendsetter? (This is my bro.)