Things that "BUG" You!

OK, this post is not for those who are faint of heart when it comes to bugs. You have been warned. I myself have never really been up on the creepy crawlies co-habitating with me. I understand that sometimes one or two pesky little critters may inadvertently enter my house when doors are open and they may fly or crawl in. I never "kill" bugs unless they are of the type that is a cockroach (most disgusting bug ever!) or some poisonous spider, or if they are a gazillion ants that have invaded my kitchen and need to be disposed of. A cockroach is the only type of bug that gives me the heebeejeebees (I know I didn't spell that right, but who really knows how to spell that word). All other bugs I can stand to the point of getting a wad of paper towels bigger than my head to be able to scoop them up and swiftly return them to their proper dwelling spots outside of my house.
I don't know if it is the cooler weather or the huge rain storm the occurred last night, but this morning we awoke to an uninvited guest in our house. As we were getting dressed and ready for school, I heard a blood curdling scream from the general direction of Sophie, only to find her up my leg with a white knuckle death grip on my skirt. Through the tears and screams I was able to get out of her "DARE'S A 'PIDER ON THE FLOOR ODER DARE!!!" A quick glance to the area she was referring to confirmed the culprit. (Warning Bug Picture Coming!)

There he was with all his creepiness, Mr. Grandaddy Long Legs! Now, I will agree with Sophie, the Grandaddy Long Legs is quite the spooky bug, although he is harmless to us humans so they say. But they are not the type of bug I like to pick up and throw out of my house. I also don't like to kill them, so we leave the removal of said bug to Howie. Mr. Legs scurried himself to some obscure hiding place before we were able to get Howie to our rescue. A second scare later, one quick grab of a leg, a toss out the door, and Mr. Grandaddy Long Legs was on his creepy way out of the Avery House. Wooo, that was close. Too close for Sophie.

So as Halloween approaches in the wonderful month of October, we will be content with our spider door decor. Perhaps that is why Mr. Grandaddy Long Legs thought he was welcome in the Avery House. Think again Mr. Spider! Think again!

In the Wee Small Hours of the Morning . . .

My alarm clock goes off at 5:30 every morning to a jazzy little tune that some techie programmed into my cell phone. I get to it and hit snooze once, before slowly inching my sleepy self out of the bed. This should be old hat since I use to wake long before 5:30 when I still worked as a teacher. But it's not. I unfortunately now like to sleep a little longer than the old 5:ooam and begrudge my cell-phone's beckon of me to enter the world of the living every morning. Once up, however, I actually like the dark quiet that is my home during the wee small hours of the morning. Before "the others" wake, I try to squeeze in some "me" time while I prepare for the day. This past Sunday, my morning went a little something like this . . .

5:30: Jazzy alarm goes off. Ughhh. Yes, I do have to remove myself from bed because Sunday is a work day for me (I am now the Associate of Christian Ed at my church so I kind of need to be there).
5:35: Turn on computer. Check e-mail, blog, and Facebook. Surprise, no one else is on Facebook because they are all sleeping.

5:45: Shower and get dressed. Iron girls' clothes for church. Make coffee. Our Cuisinart and Rowenta Iron are my early morning friends. We go waaaaay back!

6:15: Decide I will make muffins for the girls and Howie while they get in a few more ZZZZZZs.

6:45: Wake girls and Howie with the enticing words of "I have muffins and coffee made!

7:00:Eat muffins and have a cup of my pep-in-my-step, coffee.

7:25: Get girls dressed, hair brushed, etc.

7:45: Pile into minivan and head out the door.

From 5:30 until almost 7:00, I get to just be by myself with the exception of the dogs of course. But it's nice to have a moment to think and be before the day all begins. It's a glorious time!

Hello Mud Pit, You are NOT my Friend!

Dear Mr. and Mrs. Mud Pit,

It has come to our attention that you are intending to extend your stay at the Avery House another 4 to 6 weeks. We want you to know that your presence is not welcome and that you are to vacate the premises immediately. We realize that during the process of the renovation and addition to the Avery House, your accommodation of the premises of afore said property was inevitable. Although we have thought the mere sight of you despicable, we have patiently endured and lived with you for the time period that was allotted for the renovation process to occur. It has become apparent in recent days, however, that you intend to violate the terms of the initial contract for which we agreed that you could occupy the Avery House premises and will continue to show your ugly faces past your vacating date. You are hereby being notified that you are NOT WELCOME in the Avery House. Furthermore, you will be hearing from our lawyers if you do not comply with said terms of the original contract.
Sincerely,

The Avery House

Front of House (We have become the Rednecks of our "hood" since all we have is dead grass and mud in our front yard. All the workers park on the front "lawn." NICE!!!)

New addition. Looks a bit BIG, but just wait.

Front of new addition.

Side of House and New Garage

Future Courtyard

Pathway to the front of house from driveway.

Front Porch

Three before 6!

I often marvel that one lovely lady (myself) can get herself and her two small children up, dressed, hair combed, beds and breakfast made, dogs walked, at least one load of laundry washed and dried, etc. etc. before one darling 6 foot man (u-hemmm, Howie) can peel himself from the bed and get ready for the day. All you ladies know exactly what I am talking about, and although it would be nice to have some extra hands in the morning, I wouldn't have it any other way. It must be all that love we have multiplied that allows us to become super moms and get it all done!

A Tribute and A Reflection

I have made reference in past posts to two wonderful women that inspired me as a child and whose memory still inspire me in life every day. Those women were, of course my maternal grandmother Josie, and my paternal grandmother Bea. Those of you who know me know how important these two ladies were and are to me as well as how they inspired me when I opened my custom children's clothing shop Josie-Bea Originals named in their honor. I don't think however, I have ever expressed my gratitude to them for the greatest thing that each of them imparted upon me, that is, to love Jesus with my whole heart, to seek to use my talents to serve Him and help others, and equally important to love my family with my whole self putting them first in all things after God. My grandmothers each raised families in the South along the Mississippi River in basically the same vicinity of each other between Memphis and Mississippi. At the time that they were my age, buying clothing in the department store was not the norm, ladies wore dresses, gloves and hats when they went out in public, and fast food was determined by how long it took you to get it from the stove to the table. God and Family were of utmost importance. Times of course have changed. Clothing is no longer solely made by the mothers of America, most people roll out of bed, throw on a pair of gym shorts and head out the door to their daily routines if it doesn't involve a formal place of work, and fast food is served up in most households at least two or more times a week. In today's society, it is hard to put your family, much more God first with all the things that compete for our time and attention. It's hard, but it's important. And it is something I can say I strive to do every day. I'm not perfect, nor will I ever be. I am trying though, and for that, I know my grandmothers Josie and Bea would be proud. If I can impart upon my children the importance of putting God and family first, then I feel I have left a good mark on society. Thank you Mema and Granny Bea for giving me such a wonderful gift. I love and miss each of you!

My grandmother Josie and my grandfather Tommy
My grandmother Bea and my grandfather Harold

Howie and I on our 11th anniversary last year.

Sophie-a Ballerina

One of Sophie's favorite toys and books is Angelina Ballerina. She twirls with her and does all things that every ballerina should know how to do, but unfortunately to Sophie, she is not a real ballerina. This week, however, one of Sophie's dreams came true. She became a real ballerina. For two years, Sophie has sat on the sidelines watching her big sister twirl and plie in a cloud of pink across a magical place called the dance floor. Sophie has begged and pleaded to be able to join in on Emma-Caroline's ballet classes and even tried to sneak into one or two in hopes that no one would notice. But alas, being a ballerina for Sophie only existed in her dreams and her own bedroom ballet studio with her Angelina Ballerina doll. So on Monday, our little dancer's dreams came true as she donned a pink leotard, tights and ballet slippers, and gleefully twinkle toed into her own ballet studio where she became Sophie-a, Ballerina. Now we have two little ballerinas in the Avery House. Dreams really do come true!

First Class with Miss Rachel. Getting started.

Warming up those ballerina legs!

Update on the Drama

Emma-Caroline and Howie just arrived back from the ER with the infamous bead tucked into Howie's pocket, a prescription for an antibiotic, and a stern warning to NEVER, NEVER do that again. Dr. Angela had to flush her ear out because the bead was so far down in her ear. Thankfully it came up. The antibiotic is for the inflammation caused by the bead to the sensitive tissue inside Emma-Caroline's ear. As far as an ER trip goes, this was very mild. I am thankful for that and hope to not have to go with the girls to the ER for a more serious matter. If you are just coming in on this post, see the post below for more details.

Pea Sized Drama!

Tonight, Emma-Caroline decided to invent a new fashion statement, wearing beads on the inside of your ear. Yes, my uber intelligent little 5 and 1/2 year old made a not so intelligent choice to stuff a bead just the right size down her ear canal where it got stuck and began to hurt. Ears are something I know you DO NOT mess with, so I quickly called my doctor friend Angela, who just so happened to be working at the ER at Children's Hospital tonight, and who promptly instructed us to go ahead and bring Emma-Caroline in. Howie is there with Emma-Caroline as I write this. I feel like a bad parent that I am more annoyed than worried about this situation, but I guess this is one of those times when you just chalk it up to "kids, being kids."

The Lady Bearcats First Soccer Game!

Emma-Caroline had her first ever soccer game on Saturday morning. Her team is named the Lady Bearcats and she has a wonderful coach named Mr. Todd. We are also pleased with the organization Emma-Caroline is playing soccer through called Upward. It is a Christian based organization which encourages the children while teaching them skills in the designated sport they are playing. All children get to play, and while goals are made, score is not really kept. At this age and skill level, it's nice for Emma-Caroline to just be able to play without feeling that competitive "pressure." The first game was great! The teams all ran though a large UT orange archway before the games began. All team members played and got to play offense, defense, and goalie. Emma-Caroline really got into the game. I was very proud of my girl out there! Enjoy the picture diary of Emma-Caroline's first game!

Running through the Tennessee arch before the game.
Looking like a soccer player!

Getting a pep talk from Coach Todd. Our girl is number 3

More Coaching from Coach Todd.

Running after the ball.

Taking a water break with Daddy

Really going after the ball!

Running is all in the game!

Head to head!

Throwing the ball in!

Taking a turn as goalie.

Good game, good game!

It's Football Time In Tennessee! (2010)

Can you believe that it is that time of year again! Yesterday began the Tennessee Football Season once again here in Big Orange Country.
It couldn't have been a better day for the game with sunny skies and a crisp cool wind gently blowing. Our wonderful friends, Scott and Vaiden, invited us to go to the Tennessee vs. UT Martin game with good old fashioned tailgating beforehand. We had the BEST time and enjoyed watching the Vols go for victory. Rocky Top never sounded better! Thanks Scott and Vaiden for a wonderful time. Go Vols!

Vaiden and I before the game!

Tailgating in style! Look at those beautiful flowers Miss Vaiden brought! Now that's classy!

Enjoying the tailgate!

Vaiden took this pic of me.

"Vol Band-itos" Former Pride of the Southland Band members. They were AWESOME!!!

This guy was amazing on the harmonica!

The Avery's

Scott and Vaiden, Vol Royalty!

Southern Vols

Scott and Howie ready for the game!