One man and his girls

Ahhhh, The sound heard round the Thanksgiving Table

2011-11-27T17:31:00.004-06:00

I hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving and got a chance to catch up with members of your family. As I age, I come to realize that spending time where it counts is more important than any gift. This year, we were blessed with two opportunities for Thanksgiving with family.

The first was a chance to spend time with Big E's family at Cracker Barrel. I should be thankful for the staff of Cracker Barrel for even being open on this day. We had ten of us make it to the early "brunch" for food and fun. While I was skeptical at first, I must admit that it was a good time had by all. Next time, I hope more can make it.

Our second Thanksgiving outing involved my side of the family. My mother and sister prepared a feast that had to be seen to be believed. The volume of food could only be out done by the volume of fun being had by my nephews as they played various games in the back (except for one volume that I will get to later).

Pork, turkey, corn, blackeyed peas, squash crap, sweet potatoes, stuffing, deviled eggs, bread and more lined our plates as we sat to eat and converse. I'm not kidding when I tell you that I only managed one plate (really big one!). I was stuffed from the start never mind the desserts, which were bountiful.

Some time later, we all sat down for a little break from the food to play cards. Miles Bourne was the game of choice, a French card game for those not in the know. Cards and my family is like dynamite in a small room, loud and dangerous.

Quick thought, my family is competitive and losing is not an option.

We were having a great time, my sister was leading (yeah, she won!!!!!) when in the middle of a play, Big E leaned forward to grab a card and let out a boisterous noise. I wish I could say the noise came from her mouth but that would be a lie. In fact, not only did she do it once, but while laughing off the first one, she actually let a second fly through the room. Not only was I surprised, I was shocked by the volume of laughs and grins that come from everyone else.

I aint trying to say that my family is proper or anything, but dropping a bomb at the table is generally done discreetly, if for no other reason that grabbing your neighbor by surprise. However, Big E not only announced it with authority, she followed it with and equally boisterous announcement!

Of course, this interrupted the card game for several minutes to allow us all to recover, ie. return back to the table. During which time, Big E played it off very well, she laughed and bellowed apologies and promised that it was an accident. Of course, that "accident" occured several more times throughout the game which tells me she was simply making more room for dessert and she did eat two pieces of chocolate pie.

If only mom wasn't such a great cook, that moment may have been avoided! Of course, she slept through it all! She needed and deserved the rest.

Thanksgiving, a time for family, food, friends, football and farts!!!!!! The five Fs of the south.

Thanks Big E.

Do you 13.1?

2011-08-26T20:41:00.003-05:00

Its been a while, we've been busy!

Elizabeth is in full training mode, 13.1. Do you know? What is it? It makes me tired thinking about it!!!!!

Check out this site ....

http://www.montgomerymarathon.com/

Thats right, now guess which one is 13.1!!!! Oh yeah, I'm married to a bada$$.

These things will kill you, or at least your wallet. Heck, we spent $150 dollars a few weeks ago on a SINGLE pair of REAL running shoes for her. The bad thing is that they are only rated for 500 miles. At this rate, 500 miles will happen BEFORE the end of the year!!!! Say what? and my mom thought buying me new shoes at the start of each school year was bad.

Regretfully, my favorite part of the whole weekend, is the drinks and foods provided by several of the sponsors. Check this out, they actually give the runners (and encourage them to drink it) a cold beer at the end of the race!!!!!! Well, if it was more than one, I would consider it, but only one isnt worth it, I can buy my own.

Cant wait, she is going to be awesome. She is insanely into this thing, like it has changed my whole eating program, eerrrrrr.

Last weekend, she did a 10K (6.2) and she has another coming up in two - three weeks. Then it will be all out for the big 13.1.

And Everyone had a GREAT time ....

2011-06-20T19:56:00.002-05:00

So, our Saturday Night went a lot like this ....

People enjoying each others time and thoughts......

Shrimp, crab, sausage, potatoes, and corn all brewed together over an open fire.....

And a few cold ones to keep the "boil masters" cooled off during the boil....

Its OK to be jealous, even the kids thought this one was awesome .....

Happy Summer to all!

Its Party time ....

2011-05-30T21:09:00.003-05:00

I promise you this is true, I smell like a BBQ!!! Its not because I had one today (which I did) but because over the past 10 days we've had five different opportunities to have a BBQ. Yes, I have taken a shower or two over the past ten days, but the smoke smell doesn't seem to leave my body. At this point, the dogs are starting to look at me like I am dinner.

Last Saturday, we had 20-25 of our friends over for a summer kick off party that included Badmitton, Bocce Ball, Croquet, Beer Pong, and Mafia. Yeah, those are all games, mostly outdoors except mafia which is an indoor game that involves lying and guessing, two great activities for drinkers. Saturday was a blast.

On Sunday, I was at it again with a little BBQ action for just the family. Big E said that it was the BEST BBQ pork I ever made........she really knows how to make me happy.

This weekend, I managed to grill out on Saturday, another party on Sunday (where I helped to grill) and today I was on the grill again for a couple of nice smoked pork butts. Apparently today was pretty good, the neighbors enjoyed the all day smell and I enjoyed the complimentary calls later after Elizabeth delivered the extras to the neighbors.

The bottom line, its summer in the south and that means BBQ, steaks, hamburgers and hotdogs. Its like a carnivores heaven!!!!

Apparently I get next weekend off .... we will be enjoying a couple of concerts this weekend including one of BigEs favorites, POISON but I think I will be on it again the following weekend as we have another friend coming in from the St Louis area. I am really looking forward to him getting here. I am hoping he brings me some knowledge on "burnt ends" which appear to be a mid-west favorite.

If you are going to be in the area, let me know, any excuse for a day of grilling is a good day. If you have a good recipe for BBQ rubs or sauces, please share, I like trying them all.............

A Little Scare ...

2011-05-21T12:27:00.003-05:00

Monday, my buddy BooBoo, was feeling pretty ill. To be honest, Ive never seen a cat projectile vomit with such violence. I was honestly scared for the little guy.

Now, I admit that its been a few years since BooBoo saw a vet. The reality is at his age, going for trips to the doctor are a rather dramatic event and he usually responds to those kinds of events by pee'ing EVERYWHERE.

However, after the poltergeist episode, I figured I would take him to the vet. The doctor took a quick look at him, looked at me and I figured it was time!!!! BooBoo has given me 15 years of fun so I was braced for the worst.

We agreed that a few tests would be necessary to determine the problem, so I left BooBoo with them and yes, he pee'd all over those poor people.

Around lunch, the vet called to inform me that BooBoo was fine except that he has diabetes. Diabetes!!!! Isnt one person in the house with diabetes enough? Now, in reality, the doctor explained that this was good news and promised that it can be controlled with daily shots (no, not the good kind of shots that you drink, actual needles being stuck into BooBoo).

I picked up BooBoo that afternoon. He was a shadow of himself but the doctor assured me that with a little diligence this can be handled. On Tuesday, BooBoo and I began our insulin shots. BooBoo takes the shot, I try to administer it. Its a team effort.

Its been half a week and BooBoo has figured out the pattern now. He hasnt started to hide yet, but he is a little skittish after eating especially when he sees me coming with the needle. Luckily, he is still a little weak so he cant escape. I have come very close to actually taken the shot myself in my finger once.

If he continues to progress at his present pace, we should start to see his weight stabilize in the next couple of weeks.

Junior / Senior for the next to last time ?!

2011-04-07T20:17:00.003-05:00

Holy cow, I picture with Brooke and I, must be Junior/Senior. I think I've explained this one before, but the high school the girls go to does NOT do Prom. So, we have Junior/Senior, same thing without the dancing........

Brooke looking nice beside some ugly guy .....

Brooke and friends, each behind their date ...

Another one with the full gang ...

Brooke, at the house, improving the looks of the house ...

Spring Break, via Pictures

2011-04-03T17:46:00.002-05:00

Twenty floors up is kinda scary ...

But the sunset is awesome ...

The kids getting setup for a new day ...

Me, preparing for my new day ...

Dolphins swimming by ...

Pretty good week! I think I made it to bed once before 2:00 in the morning. Blame it all on the kids.

Halloween 2010, Running a little behind with pictures

2011-04-03T17:29:00.003-05:00

Halloween is one of Big Es favorite "holidays"! This year, they hung outside while I handed out candy.... Daisy, in one of my favorite pictures ever, tried to intimidate the kids with her means eyes ... Tell the truth, is that not one of the prettiest girls on Earth?!!!!!!

Rusty, took up Daisy's slack and scared many of the kids and adults with his sheer size....

I sat inside. with mask on, barking like a circus carnie calling for the kids to come get their candy! This was really the scariest part of the whole setup! Kinda creepy huh?

Frankie hung out behind me, setting the mood.

A quick update ...

2011-03-13T20:45:00.002-05:00

That last update was a dismal one, so I thought I would do another ... but this one will be better.

Not two hours after the last update, we finally gave up and went to the emergency room. Let me be clear here, they went to the emergency room, I went to bed!!! Yeah, that sounds heartless, but my wonderful bride told me I was better in bed than at the hospital. You know, now that I think about it, that may not have been a compliment after all. All the same, we all survived.

Since then, little as occurred that is worthy of news.

This is the Sunday before Spring Break. With kids our age, that means beach trips and more. Big E and I had a weekend to ourselves ... no kids ... close the blinds ... lets order in .... kind of a weekend. I mean .... well you understand!

Next week, we head out to the beach for a day or two with some of the kids. Big E and I havent been to the beach in years and neither of us have ever been during spring break (and we are too old to participate in all the shenanigans of it today), but we are looking forward to great seafood, shopping and some relaxation. I am a little apprehensive about it being spring break, but Big E has informed me that it will be OK! Hopefully that means, long walks on the beach ...

I guess some good food, cold diet cokes and long walks on the beach will make it better!

If you aren't gong to experience that next week, sorry. I will! Until then, wait for the next update, it will be all about work, bills and the daily grind that makes some of us oh so happy. Of course, if your lucky, I may have pictures from vacation that you could enjoy too ....

Its going to be a ROUGH weekend

2011-02-18T22:25:00.004-06:00

Wheeeeeewwwww! Its only Friday night and I can tell its going to be a rough weekend for sure.

I started feeling bad yesterday. You know, that stuffy noise, chest congested feeling you get that generally serves as a warning shot from your body that you are headed for a bout of sickness.

I went through a really short stint about two weeks ago with a similar feeling. I used a lethal combination of Nyquil, Dayquil, Jagermeister and a day off work watching really bad daytime movies (ie sleeping through them) to kill it off.

Now, couple that feeling with a four day old tension headache that seems to stem from a long overdue need for a neck and right shoulder massage, and I havent been 100% lately. I planned on spending tonight curled up with a similar leathal dose of medication UNTIL dinner.

Somewhere around 7:00, or about three bites into dinner, Elizabeth started to look green!!! I really thought she might spew right there in the deli while I finished my dinner. However, my little trooper hung in there assuring me that she was OK. Now, fast-forward three hours, and I have neglected any form of self-medication in lieu of my concern that I may need to take her to the doctor or hospital.

Elizabeth has literally been puking every 15-20 minutes since we got home. Im not talking about a little yakking and you feel better action, Im talking about full on, spent the past four days on a bender and now I am paying for it, yakking from her toes and coming out through her nose, hardcore puking.

Look, I cant deal with puke and I cant handle baby spit-up very well either. There is something about those odors that generally result in me following suit. So, I am not much use to her right now.

In these situations, Jessica is the best trooper in the world. That child will hold her momma's hair for her while she is yakking. She will "woman up" and do all those little things that mean a lot to someone that is sick. NOTE: Brooke is good at this too, but Brooke is not here tonight.

However, we received a call from Jessica's boyfriend about 8:00 to let us know that Jessica was in the parking lot of their dinner location PUKING. What the heckle? So, now I have two of them!?!?!? Made worse by her diabetes and the impact that puking has on blood sugar levels, etc.

Big E handles this stuff, not me. Thats why she is the mom and I am the dad! Now, I got to be both, im sick to dangit .... and I got to sleep on the sofa (cause I aint getting in bed with her), and ...... I need a beer!

Gulp!!! ..... ahhhh ...... So, Jessica is asleep. Big E is in bed, "freezing", with four quilts on top of her. Me, Im playing on the computer, drinking a cold one and wishing that I could hit that bottle of Nyquil. Looks like tomorrow will be a fun one for sure.

Dont worry about us, I have plenty of beer and a couple of sprites and crackers for them too......

January recap

2011-01-22T15:55:00.004-06:00

Its cold!!!

Did you make any resolutions for the new year? Have you broken them already? I'm not a fan of resolutions, in my experience resolutions are little more than pipe dreams. Seriously, are you really going to change simply because the calendar flipped to a larger year value? After all, its just another day. Maybe I'm being cynical? Tell me what you think.

With that said, we have had a little fun and excitement around the Lee household since the start of the new year. Nothing beats this past Tuesday though. We finally decide to get a vehicle for Brooke (our baby). So, last weekend, we started our search for a reasonably priced vehicle.

As luck would have it, the best deal that we found was on a vehicle that Big E has been wanting for some time now. I had to remind her that we were not searchable for a new vehicle for her, instead, we were interested in a vehicle for Brooke. I might as well have been talking to myself!!! We did see a nice small SUV for Brooke but it was way out of our price range.

On Tuesday, after some negotiation, Big E called me to say that she had settled on a price with the dealership for that nice small SUV for Brooke. I was a little surprised, but she had convinced the dealership to get the price down to the zone we wanted to be in, so I agreed and went back to work.

On Tuesday afternoon, I left work satisfied that Big E had accomplished a good thing with the dealership and that Brooke would be pleasantly surprised when we brought the vehicle home to here.

I pulled on to our street and noticed an unusual vehicle in front of our house, at first I thought that one of our neighbors had been out car shopping too. As I got closer, I came to realize that the new vehicle was parked in our driveway, and it looked a lot like the vehicle that Big E wanted from the dealership.

I still held out hope that she was simply test driving the vehicle and wanted me to experience it too. Then it hit me, kind of like a ton of bricks falling from the sky onto my head, she got a great deal on Brooke's car because she pulled a two'fer on me!!!!

We now own enough vehicles to qualify for fleet coverage from the insurance company!!! Fleet coverage! Is that insane or what? Two of those vehicles are new to family as of Tuesday.

Sure enough, with a HUGE smile on her face, Big E crawled out of her Chevrolet Avalanche (used mind you) and asked "what do you think?". Now, I may have been tired from a long day of work, but I ain't dumb enough to fall for that question. I simply smiled!

It was a two'fer day for some lucky car sales guy. Imagine that guy going home and telling his wife, "honey, tonight we go out and celebrate ....".

For those that are curious, we got Brooke a cute little Ford Escape. It too is used but appears to be in pretty good shape, runs well and looks nice. Big E picked Brooke up Wednesday from work in the vehicle at which point, Brooke figured out it was really for her (not a rental car for my out of town trip). Brooke was very excited and has thanked us multiple times (I wish she would clean her room to show her appreciation!!!).

Having four cars was enough but now we have five and one of them will not fit into the garage (the Avalanche!!! hehe). As a result, we have an entirely new argument going on at the house, who gets to park in the garage. Ughh, another argument!? I wish my truck would fit, but I dont really feel like moving things around in the garage, so the girls now argue over who gets to park in the garage. Five vehicles, one garage, one driveway, will the insanity ever end?

Well, thats life in our neck of the world. I hope you are having an equally exciting time in yours. Until next time, pollute the ozone, buy more cars ......

Technology is awesome

2010-12-30T17:48:00.003-06:00

Let me start by saying that my wife is a genius!!! I absolutely love her!

For this holiday season, I opted to update (read: replace) some of the technology in the house and that resulted in the need to upgrade a few additional peices of our technology. As with most technology, all of this stuff is Internet connectible. The problem is it requires networking magic to make it all happen and I am not a wizard of the network (nor do I have the patience to be a wizard). This is where the Magi Queen comes into the picture.

I won't bother to list all the goodies, but lets just say that my TV talks to the Internet, the Xbox is rocking more than just games, the disc player talks to everything and I think we can control all of this stuff with our phones and computers.

Being off work this week has given me a chance to figure out the basics of this stuff. Today I was playing a game on the computer, playing one on the Xbox, streaming radio off the Internet, and watching a TV, ALL at the same time. My mind was a little overloaded but the sheer coolness of being able to do all of that simulaneously is awesome.

Look, we live in a world of cheap electronics, fast computers, Internet connected everything (just look at the newest refrigerators!!) and everything else that the imagination can conjure up. I think it is awesome but at the same time, I question, are we really any better off, are we really any smarter?

I don't know about you but I don't think I am any smarter but I sure am having fun with the toys! Thank goodness for my wife that seems to be a heck of a lot smarter!

And everyone plans to sleep good ...

2010-12-24T23:09:00.001-06:00

Wow, what a day. Cant go into details now. Thanks to everyone that came over today, thanks to everyone that helped, thanks to everyone that participated, we had fun.

The dogs are exhausted. The cats are tired. We are out of it.

Merry Christmas.

Pre-Christmas happenings ...

2010-12-23T22:09:00.002-06:00

I hope your days have been as crazy as ours lately and I hope you have enjoyed it too. I don't know what is more tiring, the week leading up to Christmas or the weekend of Christmas. I think Big E would say that it is the Pre-Christmas run up that is more tiring.

We've had a blast the past two weeks with family happenings, work happenings, friend happenings, shopping happenings, and more ..... Now, we are trying to prepare for a really BIG Christmas Eve day and night.

Tonight, we had a party with our surrounding neighbors. We aren't exactly in the same age bracket as most of the neighbors (most are retired) but with that said, we have a great set of neighbors. We are truly blessed to live in an area with older people that can provide wit and wisdom for us. The party was a nice break from cleaning and baking.

We are hosting two different parties on Christmas Eve (tomorrow).

In the morning, we have my family coming over to open gifts for all of the kids. This was the only time that all of the kids (regretfully this does not include my sister since she is so far away) could be in the same place for an hour or two. So, Big E and I will be cooking breakfast, serving breakfast and laughing as our kids and nephews open presents. I am truly looking forward to it.

In the evening, we have Big Es family coming over to open gifts, play dirty Santa (why is it called that), eat and catch up. Everyone brings food to the evening event, which means you have no idea what you will be eating but you know it will be good and plentiful. This is a yearly family event and I really enjoy it each year.

I don't know what we will be doing the rest of the holiday, but I bet we will be sleeping in on Christmas morning. What you ask, sleeping in on Christmas? Yes, our "kids" are older and think getting out of bed before 10:00 AM is early. I kinda envy everyone with little people waking them up at 4:00 AM screaming about Santa Claus.

In the meantime, I think all of the stockings are hung, all of the gifts have been delivered or are wrapped and under the tree, nothing has to be put together (thank goodness), and the kitchen is cleaned (finally my mom gets to see the house clean!!!), so I am going to bed .... Happy Christmas Eve Eve, Christmas Eve and Merry Christmas.

Pride, my belly and Christmas Shopping

2010-12-12T18:18:00.002-06:00

As you can imagine, our family is like most other families at this time of the year, we are shopping for Christmas presents. One of the problems, is that I tend to get frustrated after an hour or two and start to shop for myself!! When I know what I am after, I am one of the best at getting in and getting out. However, the idea of spending all day "browsing" for the right thing does not make sense to me.

I can not be specific about the gifts and individuals, but I have really been blessed with some good ideas, thoughts and strategies this year. Maybe I paid attention to "hints" or maybe I simply lucked up, eitherway I've hit the jackpot on ideas and prices in many cases.

With that said, I spent yesterday ... "browsing". This resulted in me shopping for myself. I bought a new pair of jeans. I've had two pair of jeans give up on me lately (ie. the crotch area literally blew a big hole in each pair). You can put a patch or even ignore a hole in your jeans in any location but the crotch (I'm modest like that!). I should say that both pairs of jeans were five plus years old, one was probably closer to eight or nine years old.

So, I took a break from Christmas shopping and went Stephen shopping. Since I haven't bought new jeans in several years, I went with the size that I remembered buying last time (34 X 30). I've been that size for many years. However, when I got home, the jeans had shrunk!!!! .... or I bought the wrong size? I tried squeezing my way into the jeans (and could!! haha) but I couldn't breath after I cinched the last button.

As a result, I went Stephen shopping again today, to exchange the jeans for a slightly larger size. This is when it got funny. The nice lady at the store asked if I underestimated my belly!!!!! She better be happy its Christmas time or I would have ....

Aside from that, I managed to knock out most of my Christmas shopping. I still have an item or two that I am considering for my beautiful bride (she deserves it all) and I have a Christmas Eve gift to purchase, otherwise, I am done. I hope everyone enjoys their gifts as much as I enjoyed shopping, digging, brainstorming and other painful "ings" for them, but I also hope that everyone stops to remember why we celebrate Christmas and enjoy the family and friends that we share these moments with each year.

One last thought, its really nice having children that are old enough to purchase gifts on their own, with their own money!!!!! With that said, there are some items that they can't purchase. Today, one of them learned that she could not purchase a movie for her mother. No, it wasn't a dirty movie like that, but it was a rated R movie and she isn't 17 or 18 whatever the age limit is for rated R movie's. I guess I will have to make one additional stop to handle this purchase.

Last, to my Mom, the girls have requested frozen dinners for Christmas. You know what they want and it will be great to eat out one less night a week. Thanks!!!

I didnt say it!!!

2010-11-29T20:44:00.003-06:00

Its been a really long day, so I will keep this one short.

I had dinner with the my daughters tonight; actually, the two younger ones joined me. For those not in the know, Monday Night is MY night out for dinner. I dont remember when or why this started, but Monday is like my night out to have dinner and recharge my brain.

Anyway, two of the girls joined me for dinner. I really enjoy having dinner with the girls without Big E (who is traveling today) because I have a chance to learn stuff (which helps me understand why my mom doesn't want to know some of my stories from my childhood).

Tonight, about midway through the dinner, the following was stated ... "I dont understand, aren't all girls born with the sense of where things are located at the grocery store?".

I promise, I did NOT say it. It was actually our middle child, Little E. She made the comment after admitting that she cannot find anything in the grocery store. Apparently, the bread aisle is a little difficult to find?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!!?!?

Of course, that brought a laugh or two and a comment about whether or not I would blog about it. Well, Little E, here is your answer.

One time before the holidays

2010-11-22T19:59:00.002-06:00

Well, its been a little slow lately, so I haven't had much to post. I know its hard to imagine things being slow in my world, so let's say that its been slow with publishable material.

Last weekend, Big E decided it would be fun to get rid of a BUNCH of junk in the house, in "southern" terms that means "lets have a yard sale". A yard sale isn't exactly my idea of a good time, but it does allow us to get rid of what we consider junk and allows someone else to pay us for it (that is a winning combination, unless you are Uncle Sam and want a chunk of the proceeds).

My main problem with yard sales is the start time. Why do people show up at 5:00 AM? We specifically stated 6:30 AM and people were literally stopping at 5:00 AM as I was trying to get the junk into the driveway. For goodness sake, its still dark! Is my junk really worth that much to you?

Once it was over, Big E and I were off to Tuscaloosa for the Alabama v Mississippi State game. We were really lucky and someone gave us a couple of tickets to see the game! I won't complain since the tickets were free but lets just say that with binoculars, you still could not see the game. I felt sorry for the people around us since they most likely paid for the seats!!!

With that said, we had a blast. It was the first weekend that actually felt like football weather. There was a slight chill in the air and when the wind blew it was almost cold. Considering our seats were up at the equivalent of the altitude of a small airplane, we were cold. Bama won, we had a great time and the drive home was easy (I slept), so it was a great day.

Other than that, I don't have a lot to report at this time. The girls are doing great. The animals are going strong. Fall is here and it is finally cooling off. Life is good.

The holidays are coming quick. I plan on taking a little time off this season to slow down and enjoy it. I really haven't been able to do so in a few years but this year we don't have any big projects going at work or home that will prevent us from spending some time with the families and ourselves. I hope you get to do the same, and I hope to share a few moments of our fun with you. Until next time, happy Thanksgiving.

Stone Mountain, one more time ....

2010-08-12T19:31:00.002-05:00

The most evil contraption ever. The steel contraption you are looking at is three stories tall and contains a series of evil challenges between each platform. The challenges range from walking across a four inch wide plank to trying to walk across an one inch rope with various obstacles in the way. The bottom line, this contraption is not for the faint of heart or the weak of knees.

This contraption is a combination of rope climbing, balancing act and dealing with heights. Remember, we are tied into this thing with a rope attached to a harness around our chests. Im sure the harness could have handled the weight of any of us, but I want willing to test it!!!!

Here is a picture of Little E and JM in the middle of the third floor of the challenge. They look happy and rested, almost like the past hour of climbing the stupid thing has tested them at all.

This is Brooke after completing the thing. She looks happy, did she climb all three levels? Umm ... maybe she wimped out after two.

This is me, after only two levels. I was hanging my tongue out hoping it would help cool me off like a dog? I didnt work! Thankfully, this was near the end of the day, so I was able to take a shower, go to dinner and go to bed! Ahhhhhhh ..... sleeeeppppppppp!!!!!!!!!

Stone Mountain ... Part Three

2010-08-12T19:10:00.004-05:00

Three more pictures. This one is a the top of the mountain. Everyone was resting from the climb.

A great view of the hotel from the top of the mountain. The hotel is the building in the background. The closest building is actually a museum about the mountain itself.

Here is another cool picture from the top of the mountain. You can see the lake and if you look close, a couple of the cleared areas are actually a part of one of the two golf courses.

Stone Mountain ... Part two!

2010-08-12T18:50:00.004-05:00

I am having a problem uploading more than two or three pictures at once.

Anyway, here is a picture of one side of the mountain along with the famous carving of the mountain. This is not the side that everyone hiked up, this is the side that I rode up on the cool sky car.

Here is the side of the mountain that everyone hiked. It tok them a little over an hour to hike the 1.6 miles. Also, the big field in front of the carving is where we watched a spectacular laser adn fireworks show one night.

Stone Mountain Summer Trip with the Girls ....

2010-08-12T18:36:00.004-05:00

We took a trip to Stone Mountain a few weeks ago with the girls. These trips are becoming a little more special as the girls get older and scheduling "family" trips becomes more difficult.

Everyone had a really great time.

We went to Six Flags, Stone Mountain and the Coca-Cola Museum on this trip. We also managed to eat like fools!!!!!!! That was my favorite part of the trip.

One of the challenges for the trip was the hike up Stone Mountain, every one tried and completed it but me. I didnt even bother to pretend that I could do it. Everyone succeded!!! One of the girls had a stop and puke on the way up. Apparently, eating a full buffet breakfast before hiking is not a smart move (who knew?).

Above, I am relaxing as I watch them depart.

Here is what they looked like before departure. That's JM with them, he went on the trip with us.

I'll post some more pictures from the trip in a minute.

One time, two time, three time .... DEAD!!!

2010-08-04T20:35:00.005-05:00

Several months ago, I introduced you to Elizabeth's new "baby", Daisy. Daisy is a beautiful Cairn Terrier (terror), who has managed to double in size and almost triple in weight since we got her in March. She isn't the only one gaining weight but that is a different blog.

I admit that I wasn't a fan of Daisy (or getting any little "mini" dog) but Elizabeth was very persuasive about the decision. However, since getting Daisy, she has grown on me and I readily admit that I love that dog.

Cairn terriers were bred to be rodent chasers. In fact, they were bred to climb through tunnels and crevices in the Earth to catch their prey. In Alabama terms, that means that Daisy is ready to own and defend "her" turf!!!!! In theory, this should be Rusty's job!

As luck would have it, theory means nothing in our house. The reality is, females rule, males drool. Daisy rules Rusty in every sense of the word. She also rules the back yard which she considers her domain.

Since getting Daisy, she has managed to catch and kill two birds. She is a quick little bugger. Today, she caught and killed her first rabbit. To prove that I am not kidding, her is a picture of the rabbit.

WARNING: For those that love rabbits or don't understand the concept of the food chain, don't look now!!!!

Yes, that rabbit is dead and yes, it is our backyard. Daisy makes me so proud. Don't come in our backyard or Diasy will get you.

Its not enough that Daisy rules the backyard, but she also thinks that she rules the sofa. To be clear, the sofa is MY domain. I rule the sofa!!!! I rule the TV, when the women of the house are not around. Tonight, Daisy, apparently amped up on her most recent kill, decided she ruled the sofa too. Don't believe me? Check out these photos......

The first one is me and sweet little Daisy. Can you see how lovely she looks with her little bow? She is a little camera shy, so I had to hold her for the picture (hence the worried look on her face and my hand on her throat). Notice anything else about the picture?

Check out this close up! Yeah, that's my nose after it has been cleaned up!! Daisy apparently had an issue with me sitting in "her spot" on the sofa. To extract her revenge, she literally, head butt me to the nose.

Ahhhh, its always exciting at our house. Usually, its the girls that keep it fresh but sometimes the dogs get in on the action too. If I get a black eye, I will post that tomorrow.

Last, let me say a big happy birthday to my sister. Tomorrow is her big day. I think she will be ... yeah, I ain't that dumb ... 21 for the second or third time. Love you, happy birthday!!!!!

Am I behind or what?

2010-07-08T18:38:00.002-05:00

Its been so long since I bothered to drop a few lines and I apologize. I doubt it will be much better for the rest of the summer though. To be honest, we are so busy running around and chasing ourselves that communicating with others hasn't been a priority.

Also, I got a new computer game, so the time that I spend on the computer has been spent playing it!!!!

We've reached the age where all of our girls are working and since it is summer, we hardly see each other. I'm not kidding. There was a two week period recently where I saw Little E for about 1 or 2 seconds a day.

With that said, we've had a little fun of late that I would like to at least mention.....

1. Little E spent a week in Orlando to start the summer. She was hanging with my sister.
2. We, Big E, Jessica and I, spent an awesome weekend at the lake with Big E's family. I want to say a big thanks to the hosts. I understand that there is a picture or two of me on an intertube being pulled behind a boat with Big E. If I find those pictures, I will share them (maybe?).
3. Brooke spent a week in Tennessee with her church group. I know she had a great time.
4. Jessica had her wisdom teeth pullled this week. I thought she was already challenged!!!
5. I got to go see a great concert with some friends here in Montgomery.

For the July 4th weekend, we actually took a little time off and did NOTHING. Amazing!! On Friday night, we went bowling (I whopped em all). We also discovered that our air conditioner was frozen up that night so no cooling the house. Thankfully, we were able to get a local company to come out and fill our unit with freon on Saturday (not cheap but worth every penny here in the south). On Sunday, we grilled some flank steaks and had fajitas for dinner.

Now, the latest thing keeping us busy, we are dealing with a whole new type of fun. Some jerk decided to steal some of our bills, from our mailbox, early in June. It wasn't enough that he stole the bills, he managed to change the name on one of the checks and actually CASHED it at the bank. Ouch!!!!

I spent about three hours at the bank this week working with them to explain the problem, file the appropriate paperwork and all of the rest of the effort. I spent another hour with the police going through the story and filing the appropriate paperwork with them, and I spent another hour or two talking with the impacted businesses that did not get their payment. Its too early to tell the outcome ... will we get our money back? will the police catch the person? how mad are the companies that they don't have their money yet?

I will keep everyone up to date though. I hope it ends with me publishing a mug shot of the jerk that caused the fun though.

Enough for now, Big E is outside grilling (yes, it is awesome that she is doing it not me) hamburgers so we can eat. See you!

Special Day Today ...

2010-05-16T12:58:00.002-05:00

Its Graduation Day today for Little E. Here are a few pictures taken from her Junior/Senior back in April.

We will have the camera at the graduation this afternoon, so I will get some pictures of that posted soon.

Picture Post from Biloxi

2010-05-12T15:41:00.003-05:00

A few pictures from the Biloxi trip ....

Whew, March and April too?

2010-04-16T19:55:00.003-05:00

Time flies when you are having fun and at the Lee house, time is moving at warp speed. Since its been so long let's look back, briefly, at the past month and a half....

March
1. Brooke's birthday - Number 16
A. Wow, our "baby" turned 16!!!
B. Brooke took two tries to pass the driving test.
C. She was "too nervous" and made a few too many mistakes the first time.
D. She passed with no issues the second time.
E. Car insurance increased a meager $70 dollars PER MONTH!!!!!!!
F. Afterwards, I wondered if I bribed the administrator of the test to fail her, would he?
2. Worlds Greatest Mother-in-Law's birthday - Number XX
A. At a certain point, a birthday is a great excuse to get attention and ignore the number
B. The "Worlds Greatest Mother-in-Law" has reached that age, but I aint dumb enough to tell
C. She beat me at bowling and ultimate frisbee too ... on the Wii!!!
3. My Birthday - Number 41
A. My birthday is on the same day as the "Worlds Greatest Mother-in-Law".
B. I celebrated with my brother in Atlanta.
C. We went to a celebrity "Jimi Hendrix Celebration" concert.
D. Awesome, to say the least.
E. Funny, even in my 40's, we were "babies" compared to the age of the average attendee.
F. We ate at "Abdullah's House of Ribs and Chinese Food" for lunch.
G. If you are in Atlanta and get a chance, try Abdullah's. Take a body guard though.
H. If you eat at Abdullahs, you won't need dinner. Too much food, even for me.

There's probably a few more things to report about March, but to be honest, short term memory appears to be the first thing that I will lose.

I do remember that we had a few BBQs in March. Yes baby, I do remember the long day of BBQ'ing, I just don't remember much about the evening. Next time I will grill enough for me to eat too.

I can't take all of the credit for the BBQs, my buddy Scott is an excellent grill master. In fact, he handled the grill the second time by himself. I think between the two of us, we could make a dime or two selling a little "Que". I base that opinion on the number of requests for advanced notice for the next BBQ. I think we have another one coming up pretty soon, hint!!!

One more thing about March, it finally quit raining .... so the pollen showed up as a replacement.

April showers? I wish! Funny how you feel about getting what you wished for to begin with. March, the rain wouldn't stop, April, the rain wont come. My white truck is yellow. Our gray house is yellow. The ground is cracking from a lack of rain. Heck, I can't spend more than a few minutes outside without breaking into a continuous sneeze session. We need a little rain.

Sunday is my babies birthday!!! She will be twenty-something (at least she looks twenty something to me) this year. She is looking every bit as good if not better than when we first met.

To celebrate, we took a LONG weekend last weekend and headed for the coast of Mississippi. We enjoyed a wonderful day of golf in Greenville, AL on Friday before making our way to Biloxi. We spent Saturday and Sunday playing a few games and at the Billy Currington concert. Yes, a concert that didn't involve Keith Urban!!!!!

I almost felt like we were cheating on poor ole Keith, but Elizabeth didn't seem to mind at all. I don't know, but apparently the crowd of three thousand or so women thought that Mr. Currington is a rather handsome guy. I make that statement based on the various "cat calls" and other "unmentionables" that I heard from the "ladies" in the area where we sat. WOW!

To be honest, Billy's music is a little too "sappy" for me but a few songs and things did impress me about the show. I love music, and live music is the best. I could almost enjoy any live concert as long as there is a great guitarist and the deep beat of a bass or drum.

I will try to post a few pictures from the trip, soon. Elizabeth took some really nice pictures from the golf course and the coast.

To celebrate her birthday, Elizabeth is running a 5K race tomorrow around the meteorite crater in Wetumpka, AL. She, Scott and John Michael will be running the race. I am in NO shape (well, round is a shape) or condition (round is not a condition) to run a race at this time. For those that don't know, John Michael is Jessica's boyfriend. He is a really good kid and they've been dating long enough now that he is comfortable hanging with Big E without Jessica. I hope they have a good time ... I will be sleeping!!!

Oh yeah .... Daisy!!!! I know everyone wants to know about our little darling. That's right, I said "our" little darling. She has doubled in size (height and weight). She is learning her position in the house, number one!!! The problem that I have with her is that she is too cute to not love especially at night when she curls up in my armpit to sleep. That is completely awesome!!!

Daisy spent her first Easter with us at my Moms house. Wow, what a great day. My mom needs to open her own restaurant!!!! We ate until we couldn't walk then we chased Daisy around the backyard for a little while. I think my mom even liked Daisy and she isn't really an animal lover.

On the horizon, we have a graduation, an anniversary, a wedding and more. Hopefully, I will be a little more timely with the reports.

I finally caved in ....

2010-02-27T09:43:00.004-06:00

For some time now, Big E has been on my case about getting another puppy. When I say "for some time", I mean for over a year. I think she was disappointed on Christmas morning when a puppy didn't jump out from the tree.

For my part, I didn't want to introduce another animal to an already crowded house. Both of the cats are past their prime and Rusty is the most jealous animal I've ever seen, so what would happen if we added another animal to the mix?

To be honest, I think the rash of young ladies in the office having babies tiggered her desire for the puppy. It seems we have a new announcement every week of someone expecting a baby.

Last weekend, in a moment of weakness, I caved and agreed to a new puppy with a few stipulations. First, it had to be the type of puppy she really wanted; a cairn or yorkshire terrier. Second, the puppy had to cost less than $400 dollars. I thought this would be a safe bet since all of the terrier puppies that she has looked at for the past year cost more than a $1000 dollars.

I thought I had made a safe bet and I proceeded outside to put together the new grill (that will be another blog). Within thirty minutes, Elizabeth came running outside with tears in her eyes to let me know that she was headed out of town to pick up a puppy.

A what? Puppy? What puppy? How much? Where? All of these questions ran through my mind as she proceeded to tell me that she found a Cairn Terror .... ummm .... Terrier that was well below the price limit. She showed me pictures of the little devil on Facebook, kissed me, and bolted from the house before I could think of another reason why she couldn't get the puppy.

Meet "Driving Miss Daisy" (her registered name) or simply "Daisy" as we call her or "Scooterbutt" as Big E refers to her most of the time. She is five pounds of so ugly that she is cute.

In her first week, she has managed to take over the sofa. She has pottied on the floor (more times than I care to admit). She has torn up her first travel crate. She has terrorized the cats and Rusty (which is absolutely hilarious). AND she has molded herself right into the hearts of our family. In fact, she is sitting in my lap as I write this blog. Here are a few pictures of our little cutie ...

Styling in one of her shirts! Notice the "princess" pillow that she took from one of the girls. This is her spot on the sofa with the pink blanket and toys.

Here are a couple of additional shots of her all dressed up and ready to play.

And one more of Daisy chilling on her sofa.

Notice anything about those pictures? She is awake and ready to play. I don't think she sleeps!!!

I'll post more pictures of her soon.

Meat Juice Kool-aid .....

2010-01-30T21:12:00.003-06:00

I don't even know where to begin with "meat juice kool-aid" BUT I bet we can have a little fun with it!

We have strange friends, you have strange friends, we all have strange friends. Due to the nature of our work, we have more than our fair share of strange friends.

To protect the guilty, I've changed the name of the strange people discussed.

We have a friend, lets call him Scott, who for some unknown reason, enjoys hanging with us on a regular basis. Scott usually eats a meal or two with us a week. Now, to be clear, I am not complaining about the amount of time Scott spends hanging with us; in fact, its refreshing to have another male opinion being expressed in our estrogen filled home. In addition to being strange, Scott is actually a very smart, socially capable (this can be a problem for some computer type nerds) and generally fun (bonus points for hanging with the girls) guy.

As we often do, we decided to go out and grab some dinner Friday night. The dinner gang included Big and Little E, myself and Scott. Ummm, Outback. After a little issue getting seated (which I thought was going to cost the host a pint of blood) and a stern warning to the waiter that he better be better than the host (man was I embarrassed), we ordered our drinks, appetizers and dinner.

Side note: The waiter at Outback was great. I will also give him double points for making Big Es drink a little extra stiff to insure that she was "happy" with the service.

We made it through dinner without any issues. Everyone's dinner was palatable. Scott's dinner was a little better than ours.

After polishing off the one pound of prime rib, Scott ate his steamed veggies and fully loaded baked potatoe, dipping each bite into the au jus for the steak. Finally, with his plate empty, Scott proceeded to drink the remainder of the au jus and announced that it was the best "meat juice kool-aid" EVER.

I was amazed!!! I've seen Scott eat numerous times, some of his combinations can be a bit different. For example, the night he ate a three pound sirloin roast (he called it a steak) that took me close to forty five minutes to grill OR the night he decided that sushi, fruit cups and gummi bears candy was a valid triad for a complete meal (imagine the look on your local nutrition expert if you explained that one).

However, drinking the leftover juices of the steak is a whole new level of weird. He didn't even follow that up with a swig of water, beer, tea, nothing. How does that sit on your stomach?

We all have strange friends, Scott is one of ours. Tell me about yours .....

New technology is cool

2009-12-14T18:38:00.005-06:00

I finally got a new computer! Oh, wait, um .... guess what I got for Christmas?????

Its actually new and modern and everything. It even came with a keyboard that doesnt stick when you press Y and a mouse that doesn't double click even though you only single click.

As a "computer geek", you might think that I would update my technology a little more frequently (the last one was four or five years old) but why upgrade when the old one still works?

Man, I am becoming more like my dad every day (hahaha, now that is funny). Sorry Dad.

Side Note: "If it still works" is a great excuse to not buy things like nails, screws, hammers, planers, knives, shovels, finger nail polish, shoes, clothes and many other products BUT when it comes to electronics newer is generally better. For example, a flat panel TV can pay for itself in less than five years (in energy savings) compared to the old tube TV depending on the size and price you pay for the new flat panel TV and the picture is generally better.

The old computer had seen much better days. To make matters worse, it was my own fault. You should not keep a desktop computer locked in a small desk space with little or no room for airflow. If you have one of those computer desks with the little compartment to store your desktop computer, get it out!! Modern computers can take a LOT of punishment but like us humans, they need airflow.

Near the end of its life, the computer would overheat after an hour of normal usage and if I tried to stream music or video over the Internet it would overheat after about two minutes. Playing a game was not even possible (this is how I judge the quality of a computer), but the final straw for me was when it decided to overheat during the installation of a new software title.

The obvious question: Why would I even try to install new software on a machine with these problems?

Anyway, I got my new one Friday. Now, that I have the new one, I am running Windows 7. Thank goodness I was in Atlanta last week to learn a little something about Windows 7 huh? Maybe I wasn't too bad at scheduling this month after all (see the previous post).

I am having a little trouble moving my data from the old computer to the new one. Apparently, the old computer knows that I have a new one and will no longer run for longer than five minutes. Five minutes might seem like a long time, but when you are trying to make a copy of ALL your Outlook information (calendar, contacts, and email information) it is no time at all. As a result, I don't have anybodies' contact information at my hands.

Mom, I probably should have all this stuff written down in a little "black book", but I threw it away seven years ago when I got married. No, Im just kidding! Well, kidding my mom, who keeps a little book with everyones phone number, address, birthday, anniversary and other information. However, I am not kidding about not having one of those books.

The fact is that I am reliant on Outlook. I wouldn't know my own birthday without Outlook, much less yours!! I know the obvious question here is ... Why didn't you keep a backup? Well, I am lazy. Besides, you know your information and can give it to me again.

Now, I am hoping that I can slave (that is a technical term) the old drive into the girls computer (my new computer has a different drive connection technology) and pull the information from it.

In the meantime, if you happen to read this and want to send me your contact information, please send it to themtgylees@gmail.com, and I will use that address as a holder until I get Outlook back up and running.

With all that said, I also got myself a Webcam with the new computer. I know for you hardcore geeks out there, webcams are so 20th century, but I am slowly easing myself into this whole computer technology stuff. I plan on setting up the webcam this weekend. I am really looking forward to being able to see the nephews in Florida and talk to them over the computer (get ready Heather). If you are a webcam person, drop me a line at the address above and we can try it out.

So, having bored you with this latest post, I am going back to youtube, pandora, hulu, and several other sites to stream music, movies, games, videos, and whatever other stuff I can find just to prove that I can, because I can!!! That is cool and that is how I plan to surf the Internet now.

Green Tip of the Blog: We haven't had one of these in a while!! Get a new computer, they use less power AND you can do cool stuff with it too!!!

Until next time, onward CPU, RAM, and graphics card, we have stuff to see and do!!!!

OK, I Lied ...

2009-12-07T18:57:00.008-06:00

For the past several years, I've done a lousy job of planning projects and as a result, I've spent the last couple of months of each year traveling. One year I bought 75% of all Christmas presents in the lovely state of Mississippi. Your welcome Hattiesburg.

I promised I wouldn't do that this year. We even managed to complete our big project the week before Thanksgiving!!! With that project complete, I should have been able to hold up my end of the promise.

Alas, I have failed.

I will be home for more days this Holiday Season than the past several years, but I am still traveling this season which in my book means I have failed. Of course, with every failure comes a good story, so here is my story for the week......

Last Wednesday, I hit the Montgomery Regional Airport promptly at 10:00 AM to insure that I would be on time for an 11:27 AM flight for Atlanta for a short layover resulting in a 2:11 PM arrival in Houston. At 10:01, as I was checking my baggage, Delta announced that my flight had been CANCELED!!!!

Rather than bore you with every twist and turn in the plans, lets skip to 4:00 PM when I finally got on a plane! OK, I will own up to spending a few minutes in the airport bar watching TV with some Canadians trying to understand the concept of bad weather despite crystal clear blue skies outside. Excitedly, we taxi'd out to the runway only to have the pilot announce that we were being delayed AGAIN and just for fun, we were going to sit in the plane on the runway!

Finally, around 9:30 PM I arrived in Atlanta (a 32 minute flight). Now, for those not familiar with our part of the world, Atlanta is only a 2:30 hour drive and Houston can be reached in less than 10 hours driving. So, here I am, nearly 12 hours into my flying experience and I've only made it to Atlanta.

As luck would have it, the flight in Atlanta was only delayed for slightly more than an hour. I finally arrived in Houston at 1:00 AM on Thursday morning. Thankfully, the limo driver was waiting for me (yes, life can be hard sometimes) with a smile and disdain in his heart when he realized I had no cash for a tip. Oh well, thanks for the ride dude.

The next day was a long day of demonstrations and more knowledge transfer than a tired traveler should have to endure in a single day. I know the information will help me especially the awesome book they gave us but I floated through that meeting like a zombie floats through the night. Speaking of the night, I was treated to an AWESOME steak dinner at Perry's Steakhouse that evening. If you are ever in Houston, check out that place (it was like a man's Chuck E Cheese but with Steak).

Anyway, I was up the next morning at 4:30 AM for a quick shower and trip to the airport for a 7:00 AM flight. To my surprise, Delta actually managed to be on-time that morning and thank goodness, since it started to snow that morning at 9:00 AM. It was the earliest snow recorded in modern record keeping for Houston.

Tired and worn out, I managed to stagger into the house Friday afternoon in time for nap, a couple of diet cokes and a kiss from my wife before leaving for the monthly poker game. Now, I will admit that I could have skipped the poker but I think Big E was happy for me to be gone anyway (something about cleaning the house for the big football party). Special thanks go out to the guys for handing over their cash Friday, "momma was happy!" when I got home.

Anyway, Saturday morning, I was at the junkyard at 10:00 AM pulling a motor out of a Volkswagen (long story not to be told today), and Saturday we had big party for the most awesome SEC championship game ever.

A Little Timeout from the Story ... I admit that I LOVED watching Alabama stomp a mud hole in Florida. I also enjoyed watching Tim Tebow cry after the game. I really don't mean to be a Tebow-hater but with all of the LOVE and ADMIRATION that the media heaped on that kid, it was bound to happen.

Anyway, back to the story ... I made it to bed around 3:00 AM Sunday morning. Before your brains go into overdrive, I was asleep long before then but it was 3:00 before Big E checked on me and invited me to bed. I was watching the UFC finals and fell asleep.

Yesterday, I managed to pack and do it all over again. Yeah, thats right, I am back in Atlanta, but I will be back home on Wednesday night. Until next week ...

I manage to hit the road again, but this time its with my beautiful bride!!! I can't wait, we haven't had a night away for just the two of us in a LONG time. I guess I will buy Christmas in Georgia this year, I hear the school system needs the money!

I hope that you are having a great season. Along the way, stop for a minute and thank your loved ones for all they do for you. No matter who you are, the season wouldn't be the same without those you love around you.

I don't say it often enough but I can't imagine what it would be like without the most awesome wife in the world not to mention a wonderful set of understanding kids ....

Big Time Saturday Fun

2009-11-23T16:23:00.003-06:00

On Saturday, we got an opportunity to go see big time SEC football for the first time. Big E and I were lucky enough to be given a pair of tickets to the game, and Jessica went to the game with her boyfriend. You have to get up awfully early for a Saturday morning to make the two hour drive to Tuscaloosa for an 11:20 kick off.

As you can see, Rusty was a little jealous and begged his mommy to take him to the game too.

As I mentioned, we left early in the morning to allow us a couple of hours of walking around the campus before the game. Once we finally worked our way to the stadium, we stopped to take another picture of the girls.

Of course, we were playing a smaller school so we didnt expect a nail biter and we were not disappointed. We had a lot of fun going to the game.

After the game, Big E and I went out to lunch with another couple before making our way to the house.

There are so many things and poeple to see before, during and after the game. While I think it is more enjoyable to watch the game on TV, I think going to the game adds a completely different dynamic that is really fun too. If you are a people watching person (we both are), then you can have a blast at the game.

Now that we've done it, I think we will try and do it again next year. One game a year will be enough though. It is a lot of work to make the drive, mingle in the crowds, climb to your seats and try and watch the game with all of the other stuff going on around you (completely different than going to see a baseball game).

Roll Tide!!!

A Rude Awakening

2009-11-15T00:29:00.002-06:00

Time: 7:45

Date: Today

Location: The bed

Get your minds out of the gutter, this isnt that kind of a blog ....

If you have pets, you can attest to the fact that they can tell time. At least if you keep them on a fairly strict feeding schedule. For our animals, 6:30 is the time for the AM feeding and 5:00 is the time for the afternoon feeding.

This morning, I decided to sleep in a little. Around 6:45 the animals started to climb into the bed just to remind us of the time. By 7:15, the animals decided to start announcing their presence a little louder and with some authority.

Finally, at 7:45, our oldest cat Boo Boo decided that he had had enough and "popped" me up side my head. No kidding, the cat literally hit me in the head with his little paw. If it was any other animal ... but it was Boo Boo. Once I recovered from the shock I figured that at 17 years of age, he deserves a little break. Of course, if it happens again, he might get a break ...

A Few Random Pictures and Thoughts

2009-11-09T18:03:00.003-06:00

There really hasn't been anything too over the top lately in the house, so I thought I would share a few random pictures from 2009 and a word or two about each.

Before I jump into the pictures, let me warn you that I am doing this while listening to a Mexican "surf" music band that plays in full "Lucha Libre" attire. They are called the "Los Kanibales". Think Dick Dale meets mexican wrestling and you get the correct picture.

Not sure of who Dick Dale is? He is the guy that inspired the Beach Boys and many other's "surf" music sound. In fact, the Beach Boys recorded his most famous song, "Miserlou". Anyway, music has a tendency to impact your state of mind and emotions (at least for me) and that is what I am jamming at the moment. Enjoy!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I thought it would be fun to include a photo from a concert that wasnt country first. Most of you know that Keith Urban is her favorite artist and that I have a wide variety of rock n roll artist that I enjoy. We went to see Alice Cooper a few months ago since he was playing in Montgomery. Alice was schooled by Frank Zappa, turned the show into a "horror" show and spent decades making money as the "shock" master of rock n roll. Alice is famous for "Schools Out" and "Poison" for songs. All in all it was a cool show. Yes, that is a crutch built with bones that he is leaning on. At 60+ Alice is still very active on stage and puts on a fun show.

This is my precious wife at the LPGA event with Katherine Hull and her caddy. They were very kind to everyone and took a few extra minutes to speak and take pictures with Big E. They also were the ones that Little E followed around carying the score card for on Sunday. As you can tell, she is a large (in height) woman and she can stroke a ball deep and straight (not bad looking either). Mostly though, she was cool and both Big and Little E enjoyed her talking about being in the heart of dixie, fried chicken, people dressing funny (check out her shorts?), etc.

This is the most awesome dog in the world hanging out in the back yard. Big E took this picture before we had the fence replaced in along the back of the yard. Of cource, Rusty had no idea that his mother was taking a picture of him (at least he was poo-ing during the picture).

Well, this one should be fairly explanatory, two of Big E's favorite men in action together. Deirks and Keith playing a song togehter at the concert in Huntsville in May. This night is without a doubt a highlight of her year. I dont remember much about this concert, but that is fairly common for me and country concerts!!!!!

From the recent Washington D.C. trip, a double row tobacco planter. Ummmm.....Red Man!!

OK, so its time for the main event of the blog. Halloween 2009 Party. Each year one of the guys at Alfa has a Halloween Party. Dennis is the guy in the middle in the lederhosen outfit. Dennis is a really great party host and this year was no different. What makes the picture so special is my beautiful beer wench pictured on the left.

Big E learned early on that Dennis planned to dress up in the lederhosen, so she decided to dress the part too. Tiffany on the right is actually dressed in a Scottish outfit that matched her husband's traditional Scottish golf outfit to a tee (pun intended). I doubt Big E will be happy with the posting of the picture but its worth it!!!

Anyway, like I said initially, its been a little boring around the house lately. Maybe we will have a little more exictement in the coming weeks.

What have you done this week?

2009-10-15T18:39:00.003-05:00

Saturday, Brooke and Big E left for the tenth grade school trip to Washington D.C. Here was the itinerary for their trip ...

Saturday
5:30 Depart for Atlanta airport
1:00 Arrive in Philadelphia
3:30 Independence Hall Tour
4:30 Liberty Bell
8:00 Arrive in Lancaster, PA

Sunday
9:30 Amish Farm and House Tour
1:00 Amish Buggy Rides
4:00 Strasbourg Railroad Rides
9:00 Arrive in Washington D.C.

Monday
9:15 Mt Vernon Tour
11:45 Smithsonian Air and Space Museum
2:15 Arlington National Cemetery Tour
4:45 Observation Tower at the Old Post Office
6:30 Evening monument tour (WWII, Korea, Vietnam, Lincoln, Jefferson and Washington)

Tuesday
9:30 US Capitol Tour and Picture with Congressman Bobby Bright
2:45 National Holocaust Museum
5:15 Dinner at the Fashion Center at Pentagon City
7:00 Walking Ghost Tour of downtown Washington D.C.

Wednesday
9:30 Museum of American History
2:00 Fly back to Atlanta
6:15 Back to Montgomery

Now, that is some mileage, some walking and some serious fun all packed into a five day period.

Both report that they had a really great time on the trip. To my surprise, Big E stated that it would be a fun "adult" trip. Get your minds out of the gutter, she meant a fun trip for me and her not that kind of adult. Of course, I think I would throw in a few additional days and stops; maybe a baseball game in Philly or Baltimore for example. But for an educational trip, I would have to say that their trip was first class.

Needless to say, you cant have sixty kids and adults traveling together without a funny story or two. I will share this one while Big E isn't paying attention.

Big E is only afraid of three things; heights, enclosed places and mice. The Observation Tower at the Old Post Office is a few feet tall, probably why they call it an observation tower. Apparently the kids talked her into "sucking it up" and riding the glass enclosed elevator (so you can overlook the mall inside) to the observation.

Apparently the elevator had a minor (major in her mind) problem and only made it to the ninth floor and you had to climb stairs to the twelfth floor. Hahaahaaa, I wish I could have been there to see Big E at this point. Well, Big E could not climb the stairs at this point. Apparently her body has some sort of internal height meter that warns her when she is above the ground floor despite being inside a stair well.

I have seen this little "dance" before though .... it is the back down the stairs (backwards no less) crouched as close to the cold concrete of the stairs in hopes that it will limit how fall she falls when the stairwell collapses (has this ever happened?). Look, I've only seen her survive a climb above three floors once and that was to see Keith Urban. Do you really think she is going to climb a couple of floors to look out across an observation tower??????

Well, she didn't!!!! She did manage to text me from the elevator and the stairs to inform me of her dilemma. Oh, she was calm in the messages, but I know she was cursing inside.

I hope one day we can go to Chicago so I can talk her into riding to the observation deck of the John Hancock Building (look it up, I've been there and saw the clouds below me!).

Time for a new dog food brand

2009-10-09T10:50:00.004-05:00

Rusty is our spoiled rotten chocolate lab. When I say spoiled rotten, I mean so spoiled that the girls are actually jealous of him. As much as I think that dog is dumb, he really is rather smart. Occasionally, he will do something that truly boggles my mind. Last night I had one of those moments. Thinking about it this morning, I have to question who the master is in our relationship.

I recently requested a free sample of Rachel Ray's new dog food. Yesterday, the freebie arrived packaged in a nice single serving box with a convenient little coupon tucked inside.

In typical Rusty style, he smelled the mailed as I brought it into the house. This is considered normal behaviour at our house. To his surprise, there was actually a little something in the mail for him. Usually, he takes a big whiff of the mail and moves on (he feels the same way we do when the bills arrive). Yesterday, he took a big whiff and started to beg and plead for the mail.

Since it was time to eat, I opened the package and gave him the sample of food. He really liked the new food and wanted more. Since I didnt have any more to give him, I gave him a few marshmellows (his favorite treat) instead.

After pouring the food in his bowl, I took the included coupon and placed in my stack of need to be filed coupons and went about my business.

Late last night, I heard a rather odd sound coming from the office and figured I better check it out. To my amazement, Rusty was proudly sitting in the middle of the floor with the coupon in his mouth. Thankfully, the coupon was sealed in a plastic wrapper. He was actually licking the plastic wrapper trying to get every last drop of dog food dust off of the wrapper!! In addition to the dog food sample, he had several other coupons (half eating) spread across the floor. I guess the other coupons in the stack had a little food dust on them too.

So, I guess this was his way of telling me that he really likes the food and would enjoy a change of pace. Of course, that means that I will be buying a bag when I go to Publix later today. See what I mean about who is the master?

More Good Days than Bad though ...

2009-10-01T12:00:00.002-05:00

I've been "on the road again", so I haven't been able to post an update lately.

We were able to get Little E a "new" car. Actually, we did things a little different. We took Jessica's car and gave it to Little E and helped with a down payment on a really nice Toyota Rav4 for Jessica. Jessica will have to make the payments on the loan for the Rav4 but it will be a great growing up step for her and she really likes her "new" car.

Big E is working at the Navistar LPGA event this week as a volunteer. She is reponsible for picking up the players, caddies, etc and carrying them from the parking lot to where ever they need to go on the course. To say that she is enjoying herself would be an understatement. You can see a video of her and several other volunteers talking about the experience at www.wsfa.com. I dont know how long the video will be posted so go now and check it out, and yes, her head has swollen to the size of a basketball.

Little E got her acceptance letter from AUM yesterday. She is really excited about getting her first acceptance letter. She has already been awarded a $1000 dollar scholarship to AUM and I am hoping for some more soon.

She really wants to go to the University of South Alabama though. I dont know if I can handle letting her go away for school the first year. We will have to see if some scholarships can come her way from USA before the final decision. She is going to take the ACT again this fall to try and improve her score some more. If she can hit a 27, she thinks it will put her in the running for a good scholarship at USA.

Finally, to top it all off, I got a promotion at work this past week. The promotion wont have much of an impact on my day to day (at least not initially) but it is nice to be recognized for the work.

Fall weather has really been rolling in lately. It is nice to actually watch football and not have the air conditioner running in the background.

Good days and bad days ...

2009-09-12T15:30:00.002-05:00

Sometimes you have good days and bad days. Lately, we have experienced a good share of both so overall, I cant complain.

The girls have started back to school with a bang. Considering the news about the flu, I would have to say we've been lucky not to have a sick kid at the house. For that matter, I guess Big E and I are both lucky not to have caught the dreaded piggy flu.

I've managed to put another couple of hundred miles under my backside traveling the state for the past couple of weeks. I've been out training people of how to use wireless networks and about comptuer security principles. I have a few more miles to travel over the next couple of weeks too.

Speaking of traveling, Big E and Brooke will be headed for Washington DC in a couple of weeks. I am going to try and convince Big E to blog a few times during the trip. Also, Big E will be volunteering at the upcoming LPGA event in Prattville. I will definitely have to get her to blog about the experience and hopefully post a few pictures.

Little E got her first paycheck recently!!! Boy was she excited about actually getting paid. I guess we will be taking a trip to the bank soon to open a checking and saving account for her.

Big E and I have had a couple of really great nights recently on account of the new mattress set. Last weekend she said we were going out to look at new mattress sets, but what she didnt tell me was that we were really going out to BUY a new mattress set. See, in my mind, there is a difference between LOOKING and BUYING. However, she decided that our backs and necks (both of which have been sore lately) needed a change. I dont know if I like the new set though ... I slept till 10:30 this morning. If the new set is going to have me sleeping late and waking up without aches and pains, how will I know if I had a good night of sleep or not?

Little E has had a little car trouble lately, so I finally got around to running the vehicle to the shop this morning (after I finally awoke). The poor little fellow at the auto shop hated calling me back about the results of the diagnosis. I listened to him talk about the necessary fixes and as he faded into the recommended fixes, I simply looked at Big E and whispered "the car is gone". I kinda felt for Mathew as he tried to gently break the bad news to me about the car. The poor fellow spent about five minutes on the phone listing out all of the things but I never really listened past the cracked head, leaking gasket and some other thing that I knew meant the engine would cost more to fix than it was worth. Now, I have to go and break the bad news to Little E. I'm not sure how to tell her that her first car is dead after only 2 and half months.

Oh well, that is the chance you take buying a used high mileage car for a kid. I guess we will have to do a better job of checking everything out next time. Of course, netiher one of us are mechanics. BUT we can, as a team, change a flat tire without arguing!!! We did learn that Firestone will inspect a car and provide a report for $20 dollars. I think we will spend that money next time.

The really shameful part is that I feel Little E tried to warn us about the big issues in time to have them resolved, but neither Big E or I actually listened to her in time. Instead, we waited until is was a major issue and with cars that is unacceptable. Gun, foot, bang!!!

Again, you have good and bad days. Today, I've had both. Tomorrow, I plan on it being only a good day. Shape your world, and if you have kids, shape theirs in a positive manner ....

Now, I am going to spend a couple of hours taking my frustration out on a few zombies and other baddies on the Xbox ....... I love the smell of fresh kills on the TV screen ........

Savings ...

2009-08-23T18:51:00.004-05:00

Big E and I have been on a savings trip of late. Maybe it stems from having Jessica starting college or maybe it stems from Obamanomics. Either way, we are seriously trying to cut a few expenses.

So, in the vein of cutting cost, here are a few of our shopping trips this weekend...

1. Publix trip 1 - The total value of the items purchased was 34.20 (that includes the taxes too). The total amount paid "out of pocket" was 15.87. That is equal to a savings of 54%. The savings would have been a LOT better but we did not have coupons for Lucky Charms (yes, these are essential).

2. Publix trip 2 - The total value of the items purchased was 59.84 (again it includes taxes). The total amount paid "out of pocket" was 29.60. That is equal to a savings of 52%. The savings would have been a LOT bettter but we did not have coupons for milk, lettuce, taco dinners (2), velvetta cheese, or marshmellows. In fact, if we only purchased items with coupons we would have been around 78% savings.

3. Last, we made it out of CVS for only 15.33 today. For that, we managed to take home the following ...

2 Composition books with 100 pages each
2 Boxes of Panty liners
2 Revlon make up (lipstick and mascara)

Essentially, we only paid for the makeup today. In addition, we ended the day with more CVS money for next week than we started this week. All in all, that is a good CVS trip. If you aren't a CVS Extra Care bucks member, you really need to consider joining.

While that doesn't break down all purchases in detail, let me assure you that we did pretty good.

I've talked about stockpiling in the past, we are so far ahead with the typical personal items (deodorant, toothpaste, shaving and hair stuff, etc) that we have resorted to family and charity donations. We are doing really well with paper items too. To give you an example, unless toothpaste is free, we aren't buying.

We are struggling a little with some food items but only because I have concentrated on the personal items. In reality, I don't seem to find near as many food coupons as I do personal item coupons. With three girls that are going different directions, personal items are probably more important than food items.

What are you doing to save a little money? Leave me a comment with some good ideas.

A real quick one ...

2009-08-19T05:53:00.002-05:00

Major announcement coming .....

Little E starts her JOB today!!! YEEEEEEEEEEAAAAAAAHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

"Welcome to Chik-fil-a can I help you?" will become the question of the day. I know she is excited and as you can tell, so am I. She can finally afford the gas she is burning each day!!!

WooooooooooooooHoooooooooooooooooooooo ...............

2009-08-14T20:18:00.002-05:00

If you didn't get it in the title, let me say it again, woooooooooooooooooooohooooooooooooooooo ...

Do you know what time it is? It's school time. That's right, its school time again and that means we are back to a normal schedule!!!!!!!!!!

I cant stress enough how much of a routine kind of guy I am. Does that sentence even qualify as English? It doesn't matter, its my blog and I will write whatever form of Stenglish (Stephen + English = Stenglish) I want to write. Back to the topic at hand, I am a routine kind of person. I know its hard to imagine that a father of three teenage daughters could call himself a routine kind of person, but with me it is true. I cant stand to be out of routine. Routine = Sanity, at least it does in my world.

Here are a few examples ...

1. I like to get up at the same time each day. Big E is working on my weekend wake up time, but its taken her 6+ years to get me past 7:00 AM.
2. I start every day with a shower!!!!!! I don't care if its a shower to go cut the grass, I will be clean and awake before I do anything.
3. I have the exact same post shower routine each morning. Those details probably should not be shared in public.
4. I take the same route to work every day.
5. I cant stand to have anything of mine moved or out of place. Dont even consider putting something on or removing something from my desk. I will hurt you .....

Now that I spell those few items out, I think the word neurotic might be a better word. Holy cow, that is only a couple of hundreds of items that I could easily jot down. Maybe that is why my beautiful bride and kids make soooooo much fun of me. I am weird!!!!

Nothing like a moment of clarity ....

Anyway, sure school starting means we have to buy school supplies, uniforms, etc. but it is all worth it. Besides, school supplies are SUPER cheap this year. Have you seen the low cost of paper, pens and folders this year? CVS has practically supplied us with half a year of supplies for FREE this year. FREE!!!!!!! In fact, we managed to accumulate enough supplies this year to denote multiple bags of goodies to charity.

Quick aside, if you aren't into CVS "extra care bucks", you need to learn about their program. Sure, CVS isn't the cheapest place in town but if you know how to use the program, it can definitely be worth the effort. I wouldn't even consider Walmart, Target or Publix for our various cleaning (human and non-human) items, makeup, toiletries, etc. In fact, with our stockpiling of items, I don't need to purchase shampoo, conditioner, deodorant, toothpaste, body soap and many other items for the next six or seven months.

As an update, our oldest (Jessica) starts at Faulkner University this week, the middle kid (Little E) is starting her senior year of high school and the youngest (Brooke) is entering high school. Can you imagine? I know at least two grandmothers that are wondering where all the time has gone.

We are really starting to look forward to fall football games with Jessica (Faulkner is in year two with football) and with Little E and Brooke at the high school games too. Of course, that means fall needs to hurry up and get here!!!!

Changing subjects, we have been pretty busy around the backyard lately. Big E finally broke down and paid a fencing company to come out and replace the fence along the back of our yard. Elizabeth and I have been working (SSSSLLLLOOOOWWWLLLYYY) on replacing the planks on the fence since we moved into the house but she could take it no more. The fence looks awesome!!! With the fence done, we began planting a row a Crepe Myrtle trees along the fence. I love crepe myrtle trees (and azaleas too) so we are planting a full row of them across the back of the property to ultimately created a screen between us and the neighbors. I cant wait to see the trees in a few years after they've had a chance to grow. Big thanks go out to my mom and dad for letting us dig up their extra trees and plant them here.

With all of that said, I got to go!!!! 1 vs 100 starts live in a few minutes and we are playing tonight. What is 1 vs 100? Well, you've seen the game show, but now you can play it on the Xbox. Each Friday and Saturday, they have a live show with around 30,000 people playing for prizes. A few weeks ago, we were selected to be a part of the 100 mob. I wish I had a video of Big E's reaction to being selected. Regretfully, our mob did not win any prizes that time, but we had a blast playing.

One last update, last Thanksgiving we purchased a new washer and dryer. The washer is one of those front load fancy deals. We have been monitoring our water usage since then and I am proud to say that we have cut our water usage in HALF despite having Little E come to live with us full time as opposed to part time. Based on those water savings, you could actually use the water savings to pay for the dryer in a matter of a couple of years. Now, that is awesome and its green.

Till next time, learn a lot, leave my stuff alone, and root for your favorite team, see ya......

Rocking out with ...

2009-07-28T18:06:00.002-05:00

If you read my ramblings often enough, you may have noticed music is a fairly regular theme. Today, music is the theme again. Today, we will be rocking out with Rockband.

Unless you are living under a rock or you are old enough to remember Elvis' first single, you have probably heard of a game called Rockband. Basically, Rockband is like playing karaoke but in addition to singing you can also play guitar (buttons not strings), drums (reasonably close to playing a real small drum set) and bass guitar (again with buttons). The goal is to play in synch with the song and to sing (usually poorly) in pitch.

In reality, it is really amazing to me that technology and creativity have come far enough along to allow total musical misfits (that would be our entire family) to have a family concert night pretending to be our favorite guitar player or singer.

Enough of the description of the game and on to the main reason for the post, Big E is completely nuts for the game. I don't mind her obsession with the game. Heck we paid a LOT of money for the game (and we will spend even more buying new songs, etc) so seeing it put to use is a good thing but she is obsessed with being better than everyone else.

She has actually started to play this game by herself. Many games are designed to be played by one person and some are actually better if only one person is playing alone. However, when was the last time you heard to one person band? OR in Big E's case, a solo drummer band?

Big E is the best drummer in the house. The only other person to play even half as good as Big E is Jessica and she isn't around that much to play with the old people. Now, Big E has gotten good enough that she is actually trying to play drums and sing BY HERSELF. Today, I walked in from work and she was playing a show for the dog and cats. If she gets any better, is she going to ask for a contraption to play guitar too?

I will try to get some pictures of her in action soon. In the meantime, if you have Rockband or you know someone that does, try playing the drums and singing at the same time. Let me know how that works for you ..... for me, I ended up beating the microphone with a stick and screaming into the bass drum, neither of which worked.

So long till next time ...

It was a slow day ...

2009-07-12T20:15:00.001-05:00

Today, we had a first in the house. I figure we will have a lot more of those in the future (three girls and all) ...

As for today, we had a LATE fathers day plan finally happen. Big E and Little E took me for a round of golf. This was a special round of golf, as it was Little E's first round of golf. So, anyone with any knowledge of golf understands why I say it was a slow day, things didn't move to fast with Little E. However, Little E didn't play too bad.

Afterwards, the girls took me for some crab legs and wings. I REALLY ENJOYED the day.

I hope everyone else had a great weekend, but its back the grind in the morning.

Happy Independence Day

2009-07-04T12:44:00.003-05:00

Happy fourth of July to everyone. I hope you all have great plans of BBQ, hot dogs, hamburgers and more on the grill with friends and family. Whatever you do, I hope you have fun and are safe.

The family and I have a few friends coming over today for a little cookout. We are going to grill chicken wings. For the sauces, we have multiple types of wing sauces that we will place into ziploc bags. This way everyone can choose their own sauce or have multiple sauces.

Enjoy your weekend.

Just been lazy ...

2009-06-26T15:40:00.003-05:00

There is no other explanation than I've been lazy, and to be fully honest, disinterested in sitting in front of this keyboard typing out moments of my life. Actually, I've been completely and utterly worthless of late. In case you haven't noticed, its HOT outside and for some reason the heat and the change of seasons have been a drain on my brain. So with that said, here are a few tidbits for those that keep asking ....

We held a 50th Anniversary party for the worlds greatest mother and father in law recently. Can you imagine being married for 50 years? I can't imagine waking up each day to the same person for that long. It truly is a joyous accomplishment for them and I hope they have many more years of marital bliss.

As for Big E and I, I simply hope that we can make it that long. I would be 94 years old when we hit that milestone. I can't even fathom the concept of 94 years old in my head.

Anyway, I think everyone had a good time. We played the old Newlywed Game with three sisters and their husbands. Boy was that a site watching them try to remember the answers to the various silly questions; like

1. Feature that first attracted you to your wife.
2. Longest period of time apart
3. First Christmas present
4. Location of first date

Speaking of the in-laws, we had a wonderful trip to the lake last weekend. A few individuals didn't get to make it for health reasons, but those that did were treated to a first class time at Albert and Linda's lake house. They have such a beautiful location on the lake and the most awesome home. Each summer they open their home to everyone for a weekend of swimming, tubing, boating, relaxing, grilling and general family fun. We really appreciate the opportunity and hope they continue this for many more years.

Regretfully, I did not get to enjoy the weekend to the fullest though. In a freak accident, I managed to pull a muscle, pop something, I don't really know what happened, in my lower back on the Friday morning of our departure. I was loading diet cokes into the cooler (mom, I promise they were actually Diet Cokes) and I felt a snap in my back (like being shot with a really big rubber band) and that was immediately followed by me hitting the floor.

Being the loving and caring woman that she is, Big E immediately accused me of trying to get out of the lake weekend!!!! Can you believe that? I had to spend twenty minutes convincing her that I wasn't trying to get out of a free lake weekend before she finally decided to worry about my health. This is what I mean when I say these girls are killing me!!! Sometimes I think our vows should have been, "... in sickness, in health and as long as you are doing what I tell you to do ...".

Now its been a week since the incident and I am back to walking normally and other than being a little tight, I am fine. I will probably go get a massage next week if the tightness continues. The good thing about the incident is that Big E felt so bad about giving me a hard time that she waited on me hand and foot AND I milked it for all it was worth.

Jumping from Big E's family to mine, my sister decided to roll into town this week for a little family time. Jacob and Jackson, my nephews, are enjoying a little Mimi (my mom) time. Tonight, we are headed over to mom's house for a little family game night action. I don't know what game I will be beating them at yet, but you can bet it will involve cards.

Tomorrow, we are all going up to Anniston to spend the day with momma's sisters for a mini-reunion of sorts. I don't really know much about the details so I will share the results in the next blog.

And now for the BBBBBBBBIIIIIIIGGGGGG news of the blog .....

We finally broke (yeah, we are that too) down and bought little Elizabeth a car. We stumbled across a Ford Taurus while running by her grandmothers house earlier this week. The little old man offered us a very fair deal for the little car and it drives fairly good so we jumped on the deal. I know that a Ford Taurus isn't actually a cool kids car, but she didn't get a vote on the car. Actually she is excited about the car and hopefully, this will get her excited about getting a job too!!!!!

And for EVEN BIGGGGEEEERRRRR news ....

We got the insurance bill!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Yeah!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Since we both work in the insurance world, we knew adding yet another vehicle to the list of insured items was going to hurt, but we had never really paid attention to how much we pay (we figure our premiums support our paycheck). Holy cow!! Three cars + one truck + two teenagers = one heck of yearly sum. At least they are not boys!!

Oh yeah, I need to compliment my beautiful bride on her nearly twenty pounds of weight loss. She is looking yummier every day ..........

Until next time .... try to stay cool.

Back from the road ...

2009-05-31T13:04:00.003-05:00

We've returned home from our trip to Huntsville. We stayed in a little area called the Village of Providence. I don't know if this area is its own little township or simply an upscale area within Huntsville, but either way, it was nice.

The picture below is the fountain in the "town square" of the Providence (hard to imagine I took that picture less than twelve hours ago). The town square consisted of restaurants, an old school barber shop, a gym, and our hotel. Surrounding the town square was a beautiful neighborhood with a paved walking and bicycle path, a community pool and play ground. The homes were all designed to look like old south cottage homes (with new south prices!!!) and small scale plantation style homes. We will stay in Providence whenever we are in the Huntsville area.

As for the show, we had our best seats ever. We essentially had third row with the way the stage was setup. I wish you could have seen her eyes light up when we got to the seats. As if that wasn't exciting enough, everyone was allowed to crowd in around the stage before the show started. As you can see from this photo, Elizabeth was one of the first to move to the stage.

Elizabeth was within arms length of "her man" for the entire concert.

As for me, I remained in my comfortable seat and occasionally made my way to the watering hole to remain hydrated.

Here are a few more nice looking shots of the show. I was impressed with the huge screens that hung behind the band. Throughout the show, the screens were used to project images, live shots of the crowd, videos, etc. In addition, the screens would tilt in and out making the stage seem smaller and more intimate for some songs or larger for other songs.

In this picture the screens are tilted partially inward and are projecting a really cool outerspace vidoe full of colors.

In this picture, the screens are back and projecting live shots of each of the band members.

Of course, I cant forget that Elizabeth also had a first experience with this concert, getting to go backstage before the show for a "meet and greet" with Dierks Bentley. She and a handful of other fan club members were randomly selected for the meet and greet. Here is her photo with Dierks.......

Dierks did a really good job opening the show and warming up the crowd.

Now, I am going to lay down on the couch and take a nap. Have a great day............

Its like a broken record ...

2009-05-29T18:04:00.002-05:00

You've probably already read this post before, but here we go again. It's another big weekend for Elizabeth as we head to Huntsville for a ..... guess ...... you know the guys name ...... its a concert event ..... Keith Urban concert.

Yep, its that time of the year again. This time will be a little extra special for her since she won a ticket to a "meet and greet" with the opening band, Dierks Bentley.

Actually, Dierks is probably my favorite country artist, so I will have a little better time than normal with this show.

Since the show is tomorrow, we have endured a one hour fashion show today to determine what she will be wearing tomorrow. I'm not really sure what outfit won, but I know there was some heated conversation between the girls about which outfit looked best, fit best and would be the most comfortable. For me, a pair of shorts, a t-shirt and a hat is all I need. I figure as long as I am covering the important bits and pieces, it will be all good.

We haven't been to Huntsville in a few years, so I am looking forward to the trip. It will also be our first trip in Big E's new car.

Skipping gears, Little Bit is headed for a mission trip this week. I think this will be the last year for her to get to go on this trip though. She is really excited about going. Be sure to ask her about it when you see her next.

One last thought, I celebrated my fifteenth year of working with the same company this past week. It's amazing to me that I have managed fifteen years with the same company (more than one third of my life) especially in my career field. I was honored with a little get together with all of my past / current managers and supervisors (a few stories were told there) and fellow employees. Some of them actually had a few nice things to say about me too!! It made me think that I am truly blessed to be able to work for such a great company (that is why I stay there).

That is about all I have for right now. I will say thanks to everyone who was so generous to Jessica for her graduation. I know that she really appreciates the gifts. I will also say thanks to those who have "raised" me at Alfa, I truly appreciate it.

A few more pictures

2009-05-29T17:40:00.002-05:00

Here are a few pictures from our recent past ....

Jessica's Graduation - Pretty awesome day and event. There were 78 young people in her class this year. Afterwards, we had a great dinner at Red Lobster with my parents.

Jessica's Junior/Senior dance - That dress is "far out man!!!!"

Little Bit getting ready for her Junior/Senior dance - Believe it or not, her date was already at the house by this time.

Another Big Weekend ...

2009-05-17T20:48:00.003-05:00

First let me say that I apologize to everyone for not keeping this blog up to date. I know that there are only a few individuals that actually check it out daily but I hate that I haven't been up to posting of late. To be honest, I've been a little tired lately.

Maybe it has something to do with the impending end of school year, or that Big E is working till 7:00 every night, or that I have a 3 million dollar computer hardware purchase hanging over my head, or maybe it is the girls and their everyday lives...... regardless, we are busy!

With that, let me hit the highlights of the last couple weeks.

We are approaching the end of the school year. For Jessica, high school is over. In fact, we went to the graduation ceremony today. I will try to post pictures of the big event tomorrow. The other two finish mid-week.

As you can imagine this was a big day at our house (and for the other 77 kids that graduated from ACA today). The ceremony was at 2:30 today. We had two rows of family show up for the event (almost 35 people between her Mom and Dad's family). I really appreciate everyone that made it out for the ceremony. For those that didn't make it, Jessica understands why and appreciates your thoughts and prayers.

Speaking of Jessica, she will be attending Faulkner University this fall. Faulkner is a local faith based university that is located next to the high school she is graduating from today. Jessica was awarded a "commuter scholarship", which covers half of the cost of her four year degree as long as she doesn't live on campus. This is such a benefit to both Jessica and us.

I still cant believe that our oldest will be going to college next year!!

For graduation, we purchased a new HP laptop for Jessica. Our hope is that she can make it through college with this computer.

As a true geek, I spent a little over twelve hours preparing the laptop for her. Maybe that is why I haven't been posting any blogs lately? As I was preparing her laptop, I got to thinking about what I was doing.

Rather than tearing off into a political tirade, let me say that protection is "nothing more than a tax on the innocent". I wish I could take credit for the statement or even remember who said it first. The bottom line is that regardless of what you are talking about; cars, homes, computers, or even our lives, protection is the price we pay for those that don't value those items like we do.

I will try to get a few pictures up tomorrow. Until then, have a great weekend.

When it rains it pours and pours and pours

2009-05-07T17:28:00.002-05:00

What a week of rain, or has it been two or three weeks now. Regardless, the ground decided it can't handle any more rain so the flooding began this morning. We are supposed to get a break tomorrow with more rain to follow.

Take a look at this link to one of the local news channels photo website of the flooding around town ...

http://www.wsfa.videos.vmixcore.com/vmix_hosted_apps/p/media?id=4040241&collection_id=6783

Sadly, there has already been one confirmed death related to the flooding.

A couple of Photos for the Impatient Ones

2009-05-03T20:41:00.002-05:00

OK, for all of you that have asked, here are a couple of photos of the girls from yesterday.

This one is Jessica with her date. They went out to the Alabama Shakespeare Festival gardens for their pre-banquet photos. Jessica's dress is a straight out of the 60's go-go dancer pattern with a really low cut back. She looked very nice in her dress.

Here is Jessica and Mara with Big E at the garden again. Check out the "this is the last picture, right?" smile on Jessica's face. I think this was around picture 200 between Jay's parents and Jessica's duel set of parents.

Here is Little Bit with her date. She is wearing a fairly standard style dress that took way more than standard tailoring to fit her extremely thin frame. She also looked stunning in the dress.

We took this picture at the house. They were headed out of town to a small community for their pictures. We didn't go out for the picture session, but I hope to get some photos soon. Also of note is that this is thirty minutes after the poor fellow arrived at the house.

All in all, I think the girls had a good time. Both are complaining about being tired today. I guess they can't hang with the big dogs yet. Of course, I find that to be a good thing since they are my kids!!!!!

I hope to return in the coming weeks with more pictures. Until next time, have a great week.....

Estrogen ....

2009-05-01T19:09:00.002-05:00

Ughhh ... its an estrogen weekend!!!!

The two oldest girls have their "junior / senior banquets" tomorrow (code for prom night). So, tonight is all about getting their finger and toe nails done. Tomorrow will be an entire day of trying on their dresses, complaining about weight gain/loss since they purchased the dresses, hair problems, pictures and little fellows coming to our house to get our girls for their big night out.

UGHHHHH .... I'm going to say this one straight out for everyone to understand ... it will be a beer night tomorrow.

UNTIL ... they are gone!!!!

Then it is just Big E and I. I think we might have to go out for our own little prom night. You know what I mean, dinner and dancing with me and the wifeeee!!!! Whoo-hooo!!!!! Of course, we are broke so it will be more like pizza and a rental movie (we're old so that will be awesome too).

I'll try to get a few pictures of the girls getting ready, all "dolled up" and maybe a picture or two of me reminding the boys that I don't mind going back to prison. That will be my favorite part of the night. Actually, I am really looking forward to sitting those young men down and having the short discussion about long beatings and pain.

Little Elizabeth is now interrupting me to say that her little man can't handle the fatherly discussion. So, we might get a picture of a pair of wet pants, that would be awesome!!!!! She thinks she is going to edit this one before it is published, but that ain't going to .f.dfsd.g.g .... happen. She is grabbing the keyboard, have a ff great weekend

Lazy Blogger

2009-04-18T06:15:00.003-05:00

Wow, sorry for the time between posts. To be honest, I've been feeling a little lazy and haven't spent as much time online of late. Also, I've got this really cool game for the Xbox and it takes up a LOT of my time now.

To continue my laziness, here are a few shorties ...

1. Jessica went to New York and had a fun couple of days seeing the sights.
2. Jessica graduates on May 17th. Scary!!!!!
3. Big Elizabeth bought a new VAN. Its a really nice grocery getter.
4. I will get into trouble for number 3, but it is worth it.
5. Sunday night is our Larry the Cable Guy concert. Its going to be awesome.

Final words for the day ....

Happy Birthday to you,
Happy Birthday to you,
Happy Birthday to Big Elizabeth,
Happy Birthday to you,

and many more .........

Special Day Blog Two

2009-03-28T12:37:00.002-05:00

OK, so today is the BIG special day and you probably have already guessed but my mother-in-law really isn't the one turning 40. I won't say how young she is turning, but its a special day that we share together.

Yesterday was an awesome day. I took the day off work with Big E. We had plans to go for a round of golf, but those plans got rained out. Instead, we spent the day taking turns playing on the Wii.

For dinner, we decided to go to a local steakhouse for dinner. I didn't know it but Big E invited about sixteen others for the dinner too. WOW! It was really fun to get out and have a dinner with all of our friends. The dinner was a lot of fun and we carried the party over to one of the guys house for a little Rock Band II fun.

I want to say a big thanks to Big E for putting together all of the fun and to all those that particiapted. I really had a great time. I feel a little rough this morning, but it was well earned.

This morning, once we finally crawled out of bed, the girls surprised me with a little scavenger hunt for my birthday present. At the end of the hunt was a brand new special edition Xbox 360. It is exactly what I wanted. Now, having spent a couple of hours chasing zombies, I am ready to go to the store and grab another game or two.

To close out the birthday fun, Big E and I have a date tonight with my mom and dad. We are going out to dinner and to see James Gregory. James bills himself as the funniest man on Earth. This will be our second time to see him, ironically, the first time was last year on my birthday. I can't wait for tonight.

Special Day Blog One

2009-03-24T19:05:00.005-05:00

Well, we are another day closer to the big day. I'll let part of the secret out of the bag today. If you've kept up with my blog for a while, you have read about me referring to the worlds greatest mother-in-law. I am truly grateful and blessed to know her. Many of you know her too and I know you agree.

This Saturday is her birthday. Since she has been going backwards with her years lately (or for more than a few years), she will be turning forty this Saturday.

Some people like to think that forty is a big birthday. Heck, I would if I was turning forty, but part of my joy would be simply making it that long. Today though, forty is really like the new "twenty". I mean getting to forty simply means that you are finally old enough to know better and still young enough to care less. Also, by forty you are probably far enough along in life to no longer care what others really think about you but not old enough to verbalize it out loud.

So, with that being said, happy early birthday to the worlds greatest mother-in-law. I hope that she gets to do everything she wants for her birthday.

As for the second part of the announcement, I'll save that for another day this week. Which of course means, there will be another post this week.

Now, for a little coupon update. I hope that I didn't bring anyone down with my disappointment about this weekends coupon situation. I still managed and executed a pretty good plan. Check out this picture...

Throw in three twelve-packs of Pepsi products and you have my total trip to CVS (twice) and Walgreens this weekend with total cost out of my pocket of $15.32. Thats

3 Twelve packs of Pepsi, 1 tube of Colgate Professional Strength enamal building toothpaste, 2 Cans of Oust Spray, 2 of the new Pledge Pet Hair Fabric Brushes, Scrubbing Bubbles for the bathroom, 2 Kleenex boxes with lotion, Pledge Multisurface cleaner, Right Guard Professional Strength, 2 70 foot Reynolds wrap, 2 Dry Roll-on Clinical Strength, Fruitopia Conditioner, a six-pack of toothbrushes and holder, Chap Stick, Walgreens Extra Strength Headache 20 CT Gel Pills, Peter Pan peanut butter, Healthy Choice Rotini lunch meal, 5 cans of Hunts tomato sauce, 4 packs of Stride gum and 2 packs of IceCubes gum.

I guess, I did OK and I will be getting another 20+ in rebates from Walgreens.

Last, I also got the coolest thing at CVS this week. I got a six pack of toothbrushes in a cheap plastic round white toothbrush holder for $1.00. Sure the brushes may end up being lousy after a couple of weeks, but you can use them in other ways too. For example, clean the wheels on your car, clean that nasty underside of your toilet or even the nasty bottom of the sink drains and tub drains. We use them to clean the grout of tile (a little mixture of water, lemon, clorex bleach and salt or arm and hammer). Regardless, you can find something todo with 6 toothbrushes for $1.00 dollar. Give them to a charity or church if nothing else, I bet they would love to have them.

Until next time, if you are in our part of Alabama, get your duck shoes ready, its going to be a long and wet week....

Anonymous Comments

2009-03-24T18:41:00.003-05:00

I love getting comments but sometimes the anonymous ones truly are anonymous. Generally, I can figure out who you are by the way you write your comment, especially since so few comment. I got a comment on the last post and I dont know who it was from. Creepy?

To answer the post, some of the girls where at their "other homes". In our house that is code for going to visit their other parent(s). One of the girls was running around the Zoo with her friends enjoying a break from me (since I made her pull weeds, by hand, that morning).

Keep those comments coming and thanks for reading my trivial tidbits, I am truly grateful that this is a little more than a diary for me in my older years!!!!! Can you imagine the "remember whens" when I grow up?

Its a Two-fer day

2009-03-21T16:34:00.003-05:00

Since I've been left alone at the house today, I thought I would take advantage of the time and have a little fun. No, I have not been playing video games all day, but I am about to get started. I mean a different kind of fun. OK, if what I am about to describe is fun to you too, then you are as cheap as me. Otherwise, you probably will not understand this one....

I figured I could get a jump start on my couponing and planning for tomorrow's trips to various stores (this is now an every Sunday effort for me). The circuit generally includes Publix, CVS, Walgreens, and if the sale or BOGO items are just right, Winn-Dixie. The planning process for these trips currently takes me about 3 hours depending on the quality of the sales and the coupons that I need to find (including Internet search efforts and printing). I generally handle this fun time on Sunday mornings while the girls are asleep and I can watch a movie in peace and quiet. Today, I have peace and quiet, so I am getting it done early.

Now, the reason for the blog, I figured it was a good day to sort through the coupons and pull the expiring coupons out of the envelopes (where I store them sorted by type). To my digust, I have a larger pile of expiring coupons (by March 31) than I have not expiring. In fact, my expiring pile is nearly three inches tall. Think about that, three inches tall stack of coupons!!!!! That is a tremendous amount of savings that I didn't take advantage of. Now, I admit that there are hundreds of coupons in that stack that I would never take advantage of but there are many I would have used.

Here is a quick breakdown of some of the coupons I didn't use ...

1. $50 plus dollars of Oil of Olay coupons
2. $25 dollars of Home fragrance coupons (Febreeze, candles, etc.)
3. $10 dollars of laundry detergent coupons
4. An insane amount of dish detergent (hand and machine wash) coupons
5. A few mouthwash and toothpaste coupons
6. $10 dollars in hair care products
7. $25 dollars or more in shaving (male and female) products. Do you know what razor blades cost?
8. At least $50 dollars in general cleaning coupons.
9. Another $25 plus of body cleaning coupons.
10. There are a few food coupons in there but not many (at least I used those wisely).

I don't know why I am allowing the expiring coupons to bother me today. I guess it's that this is the first month to have so many expiring simultaneously. Did I not use them wisely or am I just collecting more? Either way, I feel like I left something on the table (savings wise) and I dont like to ever leave something on the table!

Oh well, I have a few days left in the month, hopefully I can find a reasonable sale to pair some of them with. Otherwise, I will be in for a bad day next Sunday.

Speaking of next weekend, it is a BIG day for a couple of people. At least one person will be crossing into a new decade of ages and one will be getting another day younger. I will have more on that topic soon.

Until next time, use your coupons or send them to me. I promise I will try to put them to good use.

Big news announcement

2009-03-21T13:44:00.004-05:00

I mentioned in the last post that Big E had some big news to share soon. Well, I can officially announce that she recieved a promotion in her job last week. She was promoted to the supervisor of the Networking team. She has worked really hard on this team for several years and was rewarded with a chance to lead it. Big round of applause for her.

Speaking of Big E, she is off to spend the weekend with her mom today. I think they are planning a girls night out and a special trip tomorrow. I hope they have a good time. I wonder what I am going to eat though?

Nahhh, I'm sure that I can find a pizza or something.

I hope each of you enjoy your weekned.

The Tax Man Cometh ...

2009-03-14T10:18:00.003-05:00

Its been a tough week and a half since the last post, but we've had a few things that may be of interest to share.

First, Big E got some exciting news at work. I'm not going to share it just yet but we are all very excited about it. I will probably be able to share it "officially" next time.

Sunday is Brook's birthday. She will be 15 this year. I know Brook hopes you didn't forget. It's hard to imagine that our "baby" has reached the learning to drive age. I guess it will be another brutal year of teaching for Big E. If you see Big E's car on the road, pull over just in case Brook is driving.

Brook hasn't decided where we are going for her birthday dinner yet. I have no doubt that it will be good though, she usually has good ideas for her birthday dinner. I'll give everyone an update next time.

We haven't been on the running trail much lately. My physical therapy has been a little tougher than I expected which means that I am too sore most days to consider running. I hope that after next week, I will be able to finally shake off the sore and stiffness so that I can get out on the road again. If we don't get started soon, I doubt we will be able to handle the run in April.

And now for the main event ... Paying taxes ....

As I mentioned last time, it is tax time (you probably knew that, huh?). I love this time of year. We get to learn how much (or little!!!) we earned this year and how much our government feels we should share for earning it.

This was the first year that Elizabeth and I decided to actually do them ourselves; together. I am very proud to say that we did not cuss or inflict damage upon each other during this process. I'm glad its done. Now, to quote Bill Cosby, "let the beatings begin!!!!!".

Its a yucky day outside, I think we are going to spend it inside straightening the house and watching TV. I hope you have a great day.

Havent had much to say..

2009-03-03T18:54:00.002-06:00

I haven't really had too much to say so I haven't blogged. Have you noticed? Don't really have much to say today either, so here are a few bullets..

1. Brook has a track competition this weekend, so we are headed for Mobile. Don't know if we are driving down Friday or Saturday yet.

2. I haven't been able to run since the 5K race. My knees are really feeling sore and they sound like its time for an oil change. I went to see the doctor today and the verdict ... physical therapy. It seems that my knees are not strong enough to support my weight so the ligaments under the knee caps are grinding (hence the squeeking noise when I walk). The solution is to build the muscles in my upper leg to bare the brunt of the action. Funny that I started running to lose weight but my weight is making it difficult to run.

3. It snowed on Sunday. Snow in our little part of the world is an oddity. The dog enjoyed chasing snow balls.

4. Amazing Race has started again. I am pulling for the red head ex-cheerleaders. Big Es team went home this past week.

5. Its tax season again. Can't wait to see how much I owe the government. I guess its my small way of helping Obama help the economy. Maybe all his stimulation packages will stimulate the market to help me in return. Its almost like investing in my future. Now that is funny.

Until next time, try this Green Tip of the Post ... Clean out the from behind your refrigerator to insure good air flow. While you are back there, clean the air intake grates. Try this with your washer and dryer too. Good air flow helps the units to run better and smoother.

Race Day (A Quick Report) ...

2009-02-21T09:43:00.003-06:00

This morning was our annual Huntington College Founders Day 5K race. I can call it annual since at least one of us ran the race the last three races.

For a quick recap of the previous years race, you can go back to the Feb 23rd 2008 blog. We had a big group for the race last year but this year it was only Lil Bit and I. Big E is stuck at Faulkner University with our oldest daughter trying to squeeze some extra scholarship money out of the school (I hope she sharpened her bargaining skills).

Since this wasn't my first race, I wasn't as anxious (nervous). I did follow through with a healthy dinner last night of "Ho Fun" at the local Chinese joint but this year I chased the dinner with a couple of tall cool ones (I didn't do that last year). Wheat and barley are carbohydrates, right?

Like last year, we awoke to a cold morning (28 degrees when we awoke). Thankfully the sun came out by the time the race started and we could no longer see our breath.

We've been training with the Couch Potato to 5K program and are up to week 4 now. I figured that I am a little better prepared for the race this year. As a result, I was feeling confident that I could finish it better than I did last year.

Our morning routine this time was very similar to the previous years routine and at 7:30 we departed for the race. Upon arrival, we registered, grabbed our goodies, and promptly returned to the truck to thaw out. We couldn't help but watch some of the other racers arriving and their outfits. I won't make fun of those people as they all finished before I did, so maybe it is the shoes or the tight leotard looking pants (on men no less). I don't care if it is the pants, I ain't wearing tight leotards for no one.

I loaded up (on the MP3 player) week four of the Couch Potato series figuring that I would be nearing the end of the race by the end of the podcast, and for good measure threw a few extra songs in the mix.

We started at 8:30, learning from the previous years fast start, I hung back in the pack and followed my own pace. I lost Lil Bit around the first half mile point as she was running with the pack. Once again this year, I found a couple of other runners to pace myself against and resorted to doing what I had to do to finish and not finish last. It really is sad to resort to being satisfied with next to last so early into the race.

All was going fairly well at the one mile point. I was following the program. I wasn't too out of breath, my knees where no longer hurting, and the back was happy with the stick on heating pad. At the two mile marker, someone hollered out 23:00 minutes and I realized that despite my training and progress, I was on no better a pace than last year.

At this point, I would like to pause and review last years race.

1. By the half mile point last year, I was passed by a woman pushing a stroller!! The little kid in the stroller, that could not even walk, finished the race before me. This year, that didn't happen. Oh, there was a woman pushing a stroller in the race this year, but I tripped her at the one mile marker and dared her to get up. NO, that didn't happen, she actually started the race ahead of me and I never saw her again till the end.

2. Last year, I had a short and round man to pace myself against but in the end I pulled ahead for the win. This year I had a short and round "fast walker" lady to pace myself against and in the end she strolled past me like I was standing still. Yes, that did happen. I got passed by a "fast walker" at the two and half mile point, while I was running. What the .... I was running!!!!! Maybe I shouldn't call it running anymore.

3. Last year, at the end of the race, I was thrilled to still be breathing and had to lay down for five minutes to recuperate. This year, I was mad that my time was actually worse than last year, but I could still breath and stand on my own two feet. Yes, that actually is true too. I finished with a turtle record of 37:08 BUT I COULD STILL BREATH AND STAND ON MY OWN.

After completing the race, Lil Bit informed me that I was only 1 minute behind her. Huh??? She took a little over 36 minutes to run the race. She did it in 33:40 last year. What happened? As she tells it, she managed to run the first two miles without a problem but she never took a walking break, so she ran out of stem and had to walk the entire last mile. She blew up!!! If I had known that she was blowing up, I would have stretched it out a little harder and passed her. OK, so that wouldn't have happened.

In the end, we are both happy that we got out of bed and ran the race but disappointed in our results. I am going to blame it on the shoes ... no,no,no ... the weather. It was too cold to be out there running.

Speaking of shoes, the podcast ended not long after the two mile marker. I was thankful that I loaded the extra music on the ole MP3 player. The first song that came on was "Sensible Shoes" by the David Lee Roth band. How is that for irony? Even funnier is that I finished the race listening to "Greasy Grannys Gopher Gravy" by The Government Mule. Sounds yummy, I'm hungry.

Seriously, I know I am getting older, but I didn't think it was time to officially call me old (at least not till March 28th of this year). I cant believe that I was a full minute slower this year compared to last (can you say 10 pounds?). Hopefully there will be another race coming up in April, I will be better prepared, it will be warmer AND I will be old enough to move up to the 40 - 45 year old bracket too.

Until next time, I am hungry and I must go grocery shopping. Publix better be prepared for the coupon machine.

Green Tip of the Post: Haven't had one of these in a while. Try using white vinegar instead of fabric softener. It works just as well and it doesn't leave your clothes stinky unless you use way too much.

Starring tidbits of us .....

2009-02-16T17:59:00.004-06:00

Elizabeth sent me this link today, check it out .... Keith Urban's "Sweet thing" video.

If you aren't a country music fan, I can understand that, just bear with it. There are several hints related to me and my beautiful bride in the video. Most of the stuff is pretty subtle, no pictures. I spotted 12 items the first time I watched it but I may have missed a couple.

If you watch it, leave comments with what you spot.

Speaking of Keith, Elizabeth purchased tickets for our yearly trek to see him. Ths time we are going to the Huntsville, AL show in May. I really like the Von Braun Civic Center. We are sitting front and center on the eigth row this time. She is so excited!!! I think her sign plan is to have a poster asking Keith to sign her "Monkeyville" tatoo (since she wants to get the autograph tatoo'd below the emblem).

In addition, she is really pumped that Dierks Bentley will be opening the show. I got to meet Dierks a few years ago here in Montgomery before a show. As a part of the deal, she is getting a signed copy of Dierks new CD.

Its like Christmas in February at our house.

Coupon report

2009-02-15T13:05:00.004-06:00

So I've been really working on the art of using coupons and store loyalty cards for the past two months. I had one of my best trips this morning and thought I would share it with you ...

This is my trip to CVS this morning ….

Products purchased (sorry I dont have a picture today)

3 Suave body Washes
2 Colgate Total Toothpaste
1 Charmin Ultra 9-pack
2 Herbal Essence Shampoo
1 Gillette Shampoo
1 Venus Razor Blades

Here is the breakdown on the costs ... ECB are "Extra Care Bucks" that you receive when you purchase certain products, etc. that can be used for future purchases at CVS.

Total value 35.93
Coupons Used 9.75
ECB Used 24.49
OOP 2.83
ECB Back 14.98

The plan would have been a little better but the store was out of Pringles, CVS children chewables and Bodiheat heating pads. The original plan would have cost me an extra 2 dollars and netted me an additional 5 dollars in ECB. I will go back later this week to finish the plan.

Stockpiling is awesome. I don’t have to purchase toothpaste for the rest of the year unless its free. I have enough mens shampoo to last the next two – three years for myself (so unless its free I don’t need it or I can give it away).

At this point, we have stockpiled:
6 toothpaste tubs
8 or more female shampoos
4 deodorants
2 packs of toilet paper
1 hair coloring thing
5 body washes
4 facial cleaner towelettes (those things are expensive)
and a small group of one off stuff.

Now, I need to start concentrating on the grocery bill a little more but grocery sales of stunk of late. We are low on meat, so I may have to break down and actually pay full price for a few things.

I'll keep everyone posted with more later.

Level my ....

2009-02-10T18:20:00.002-06:00

Sorry mom, but I couldn't help the title. It was just too good, once you read this update.

As I mentioned in the previous blog, I installed a new toilet on Sunday. I had a little trouble with the installation (self induced trouble). You can read the post, no need for me to recap.

Anyway, while I thought the toilet to be stable, my lovely and caring wife did not feel the same way. Apparently, when she used the toilet, it would rock a little from side to side. At the risk of getting into a LOOOOOOTTTTTTTT of trouble, I will simply say that I did not notice this issue when I used the new toilet.

I may be a risk taker (see the previous paragraph) but I am not a full blown idiot. So, we had one of the local plumbing companies out this morning to fix my mistake.

The end result was a $200 dollar learning experience for me. Some lessons are hard to learn, but this was not one of them. Even worse for me (and I haven't owned up to this one to Big E yet), is that Elizabeth suggested this solution but I blew her off. Can you imagine the trouble I am in now???????

The plumbers arrived and promptly walked in the door with the exact parts that Big and Little E purchased initially yesterday (again, see the post). Then they explained the process that they planned to use (which I told Big E would not work) and did it. No less than an hour later, the toilet was back in place, and did not rock (I tried really hard to make it rock but it wouldn't do it).

I see the crow, I grab the crow, and now I will proceed to eat the crow. The crow tastes terrible but will definitely be better than the crap that I will take from my lovely and caring little lady when she reads this one.

So fellows, the lesson learned from this one is to lie to your wife. No, no, no, that's not it. Maybe the lesson is ... If the toilet is a rockin, don't bother a knockin. No, no, no, that's not it either (but I thought a Stevie Ray Vaughn reference would be fun). Actually, the lesson is that if your lovely and caring wife offers a suggestion, it might be worth taking a minute from your disgusted, angered, childish temper tandrum and consider it. It might actually save you a little money (that could have been a down payment on a Playstation 3!!!!!)

OK, so I've told on myself, again. Does the title make sense now though? I thought this blog was supposed to be about the women in the house, not me. Lately, it seems to be more about me and the trouble I cause them. Arrgghh.

A little update on the walking and running. We are still following the Couch Potato to 5K podcasts.

Little Bit is way ahead of me (she is on week three) and I feel she is ready for the February 21 run. I am way behind (I am on week two) and not ready for the run. Big E is somewhere in between (she is ready to start week three) but she is ready for the run. I will try to post pictures and times of the race. If you need a great way to ease yourself into running, the podcasts are a great way to do it.

Its Sunday and Time for an Update ...

2009-02-08T19:46:00.003-06:00

Its time for another update ...... so sit back and relax on this cool stuff .......

We got more new stuff in the house!!!!! Today's new stuff isn't really that exciting (except for the green factor). We replaced the toilet in the master bath this afternoon. Normally, this should be a fairly simple procedure, but nothing is ever simple in our house. During the removal of the old toilet, we (read: Stephen) broke the toilet flange. For those in the know, the flange is what actually holds the toilet down to the floor (nothing like rocking in the toilet room) and insures a connection to the out flow.

I broke it. Not just a little, I broke the entire thing. Mind you, the out flow pipe is fairly important!!! I would prefer the "stuff" (wink, wink ... momma has to be proud that I didn't use another word) to go out of the house not flow back into it.

I am proud to say that I did not freak out at this point!!!

Big E and Little E made a quick trip to Lowes to find a soution. When they returned home, they had exactly what I wanted except that neither would fit the out flow pipe. It seems that breaking the flange still left a small (and well glued) portion of the old flange in the out flow pipe. This means that the out flow was no longer 4 inches, but more like 3.5 inches in diameter. Guess what they dont make, a 3.5 inch flange.

Maybe I'm not the only one to ever make the mistake but I guess it isn't made enough to warrant a 3.5 inch flange.

So, I made a quick trip to Lowes and Home Depot with Big E. Finally, we found someone with a solution at Home Depot. Granted, the solution worked, but I didn't like it and it didn't happen smoothly. In the end, what I thought would be a quick one hour solution turned into a slow five hour and several adult beverages later solution.

Worse, I regretfully admit that the girls got a nice lesson in "drunken sailor talk" before I finally rigged that toilet into place. I am happy to report that it is stable, a nice feature for a toilet, and it is not leaking, that we know of yet.

For all of the hassle, we managed to replace the next to last big water waster, the water heater is the last one in need of replacement. I won't be handling the replacement of the water heater. I don't know when that will occur, but I won't be involved except to actually write the check.

Enough of the funny stuff, lets try a few additonal items ...

1. We decided to do a little work on the front door. I will have pictures as soon as Big E completes the work. She decided to show off her artistic stylings on the door. So far it looks awesome, I will post pictures when it is done.

2. Coupons are awesome. If you need a little help saving money (and who doesnt these days), check out the Coupon Mom or the Thrifty Momma. I added them to the list of haunts. I am also proud to say that I now have my sister doing the coupon and store saver thing. She managed a 45% savings at Publix this week. That is pretty awesome and I bet it is pretty helpful feeding the twins.

3. Hard to believe that school ends in three months even harder believe that we will have one graduating this year. I guess we need to start saving for the big graduation gift.

4. We are three weeks into our Scale Back Alabama thing. So far, both Big E and I have lost 7 pounds each. I probably put them back on today, but Big E is really hanging in there. We are also on week two of the 5k podcasts. I probably will be doing week two again (back pain is getting to me) but Big E is ready to make the leap to week three. If you need an easy way to shed a few pounds, try using these podcasts.

Until next time, get out and enjoy the wonderful weather, try a walk around the block or a thirty minute walk/run.

Even more changes at the house ...

2009-02-01T16:40:00.002-06:00

There have been plenty of documented changes going on at the Lee Household, but we've had a few additional changes that I probably should mention....

1. We got six more new windows installed this week. We replaced two sets across the front of the house. One set was so bad that I actually had a pair of ripped up jeans stuck down in the gaps trying to block the outside weather from coming inside. The new windows look good but highlight the other windows along the front that we're not changed, so we will be saving like dogs to get those windows replaced soon.

2. Along with new windows comes new window treatments (must be a female thing?). We purchased faux wood blinds for the new windows. In addition, we bought the same blinds to go on the door so that it matches the windows. I have to admit that the difference looks really good from the street. In addition, it should help with heating and cooling costs as these windows were the ones for the play and computer rooms (two VERY used rooms). We better see some cost benefit from all of these new windows (nine so far since Christmas, maybe some tax break?).

3. My eyes continue to improve. Most of the haziness is gone. I can tell that they are not fully stabilized as my I now can tell that distance judgement is totally off. Its hard for me to think that after 30+ years of playing baseball and softball, I dont think I could catch a fly ball now to save my life. The doctor said that this will improve but could take upwards to four months.

4. Big day for the household today. Elizabeth was inducted into the National Honors Society today at her school. They had a short ceremony for the seventeen kids being inducted from their school this year. To be honest, Elizabeth and I underestimated this acheivement and had really downplayed it as nothing more than a "geekfest" until the ceremony and seeing the production. Actually its pretty cool to think that Little E is in the top 2-3% of her junior class. Maybe we will see a little college tuition help?

5. Speaking of saving money, are you cutting your coupons and shopping the sales. Since Christmas, I have become VERY diligent about cutting coupons and shopping the grocery bargains. With the economy worsening, we dont have a lot of choice. In addition to changing our shopping habits, we have also dramatically cut down on our eating out for dinner. The savings compared to eating out is tremendous for a family of five (that one is obvious) BUT in addition to those savings, I am also averaging around 40-45% on our grocery and health products bill a month. In reality, we are spending less on food and health products despite the increase in expenses with Little E moving in full time and the increased eating at home. If you are looking for some starter tips, check out a few of the links to other blogs on this site (Jane is good, The Thrifty Momma is awesome).

Its Super Bowl Sunday, Big E is pulling for the Cards and I am pulling for the Steelers. Regardless of who wins, the real winner is the channel showing the game. With advertisements costing 3.5 million for 30 seconds, someone (not me) is making a little money. It will be interesting to see the companies that are advertising during the game and comparing that to the current state of that company!!! I better not see any "bailout" companies advertising!

For my brother-in-law Chuck, I hope the Coach Potato to 5K program is still going strong and working. I've been a little off track the last couple of days but I will be starting week 2 of the program this week. Our first 5K of the year is coming up on February 21. We are not going to be as far along as I had hoped but we will be participating. If I am able to run 5 minute runs with 2 minute walk intervals for the course, I will be very happy with myself. Big E will be running and we are bringing Little E along to defend her first place age group win from last year.

Speaking of excercise, I mentioned previously that Big E, two co-workers and I are particpating in the Shape Up Alabama competition. The goal is for each person to lose 10 pounds in 10 weeks. We are two weeks into the project and both Big E and I have managed to drop about 5 pounds each. For Big E, the loss is related to the excercise. For me, I think it is a combination of the limited excercise and cutting the "diet cokes" in half (except for this weekend, way too many diet cokes).

Enough rambling, I hope everyone enjoys the game tonight. I hope you have a great week because I plan on having one. I will try to post a couple of pictures from the Honors Society as soon as I get pictures. Until next time, try to avoid fried foods (by the way, great BBQ is not fried so it is all goooooooodddddddddd ............).

If you want to know more about great BBQ, check out the Southern BBQ trail. If you ever are in the mood for BBQ and need someone to eat with, call or email me. Trust me, I am available to BBQ and a diet coke pretty much 24 / 7!!!

Its been a week now

2009-01-25T16:50:00.003-06:00

A quick update on the eye situation. After a week, I am still happy with the results. I am still experiencing haziness. The doctor told me Friday to step up my use of one of the medicines and it should help with the haziness.

Driving at night is still a bit of a challenge with the lights from other cars, etc.

I expect all of this to clear up over the next couple of weeks. The doctor told me that I may even experience some fogginess for a few months.

Besides the eyes, its been a relatively quiet week at the house. We've enjoyed a LOT of TV lately due to the cruddy weather.

Big E managed to lose her one pound this week, but I did not. I hope to feel well enough next week to start back with the walking and running (weather permitting). Once I start running, I should be able to drop a little weight.

Its all good ...

2009-01-16T15:06:00.005-06:00

Had my first follow up appointment this morning.

My vision is still a little hazy but the doc says that is normal. I have to keep up the continuous eye drop process for the next 7-10 days but that is a small price to pay for 20/15 vision. Thats right, 20/15 vision this morning at the check up!!!! How cool is that?

I can't imagine how great this is going to be once the haziness goes away.

The picture below is me, post surgery, wearing my cool "Terminator" sunglasses. They gave me the glasses to protect my eyes from the sun while I am recovering. They are horrible looking but they block 100% of the sun light.

I slept in my eye google things last night for the first time. Each night I have to tape on these eye protectors to prevent me from accidently rubbing my eyes. I have to keep this up until the cornea is completely healed. I didn't hate it, but they do prevent me from sleeping on my side and stomach.

Enough about the eyes ...

Today, Elizabeth and I signed up for the Scale Back Alabama weight loss challenge. The challenge consists of teams of four (two co-workers are joining us) trying to lose 10 pounds per person in ten weeks. There is a drawing at the end of the challenge for all of the sucessful people to win money prizes.

Our team consists of the following weights; 179, 180, 186 and 236. I hope that each of us will work hard enough to lose the minimal ten pounds per person. Elizabeth and I are starting back with the walking now and planning to run our first 5K of the year on February 21 at Huntingdon College. Besides the walking, I hope that we can find a way to be more motivated about the foods we eat and drink.

So the next time you see one of us, make sure that we aren't eating and drinking like little piggies (or not so little piggies in our case).

Also, if you are looking for a fun and easy way to get started walking with the goal to run a 5K, check at this website. You can download MP3 format "podcasts" that are 30 minutes in length and the best part is the commentator talks you through building your endurance to run a full 5K. There are nine podcasts that work you from the initial week of running for 60 seconds and walking for 60 seconds (for a total length of 30 minutes) through to week 9 which is running the full 30 minutes. Check it out, work through it and come join Big E and I for a race.

Until next time ....

An afternoon update ...

2009-01-15T16:37:00.003-06:00

I can see you!!! Thats right, my vision is so good now that I can actually see you reading this post.

Ok, so its not really that good. I am back from my second nap of the day and thought I would drop a quick note to everyone that all is good. I can actually see without glasses. Right now the vision is a little blurry like there is a milky haze over my eyes. This is probably because the cornea has fully healed so I expect this to last a week.

Big E is actually taking good care of me. She is constantly bothering me to drop more crap into my eyes but I will forgive her for that.

I will post her pictures soon.

One last thought on her description of the procedure, I was awake and watching all of that happen to myself. There were only two pain points in the procedure:

1. The vacumm thingee that suck my eyeball into place (she forgot to mention this thing) hurt a little. It also left "hickies" on my eyeball.
2. Removing the tape that they used to hold back the eyelids did not feel to cool either. I hope I still have eye lashes.

I need to go as the computer light is a little too bright. I drop a line after the appointment tomorrow. Plus I have an exciting announcement about an upcoming challenge that Big E and I are signing up for tomorrow.

A Note from Big E.....

2009-01-15T14:24:00.002-06:00

Ok, so I wanted to just give everyone a quick update on the patient. Stephen is doing fine after his Lasik eye surgery. I will give a quick run down of how our morning went....

7:45am = Stephen gets to take his first Valium pill. This was to help with anxiousness he may have been feeling. I have to say that he did reall well. I could tell that he was a little nervous but all in all he was not as nervous as I thought he may have been.

8:00 am = We arrive at Montgomery Eye place. Stephen signs in and within 10 minutes that walk us back to the first room. Yes, I said us. I get to watch, oh yeah!!! The first room the nurse goes over the post procedure care. Lets just say in consists of, eye drops, eye drops, and more eye drops. We will be putting eye drops in every hour today, then 7-8 times a day for 3 different types of drops.

8:25am - We move to our second room. Stephen gets to put on a surgery cap. Man, this was awesome. I hate I didn't have the camera!! At one point he had it positioned so it would look like a beret hat. Hilarious!!! Here in this room they wiped his eyelids down with betadine and had some candles burning and some soft Latin-Mexican music playing in the background. Stephen asked if he was getting a complimentary massage before the event!!! yeah, on his eyelids maybe.

8:35am = Dr. Swann comes in the room to take one last look. Goes over what will be done says that the nurses gave him the thumbs up and the room is ready for him. Here we go!!! We go across the hall and Stephen goes into a smaller room. I stay in the little office area where there is a window for me to look in and also a TV on the wall. They tell me that I will be able to see them actually perform the procedure on his eye.

8:40am = They begin to create the "flap". This was cool!!!!! So on the TV screen all of a sudden I see this big 'ol eye appear!! It was freaky..... It was Stephen's eye. The flap process is the "laser" basically making a cut on his eyeball for the doctor to pull back so that the actual laser can do the correction. I am going to describe this as best as I can. On the screen his eye is there, then all of a sudden his eye starts turning fuzzy. Imagine a picture on the TV screen and a row of snow starting to go across so you can't see it. This was done on one eye, then the other. The flap had been created.
The next step begins, now that the flap is there, Dr. Swann puts one of his eyes back onto the TV screen and I see this needle thing start going towards the eye. I'm like OK, so far so good, and then it happens, imagine pulling a scab that has grown over a sore open and just laying it over. GROSS!!! I have to admit, my knees got a little weak on this. Then on the screen is what looks like a target off of a Playstation game for fighting airplanes. He literally is lining his eye up by using a joystick!! Then we hear the datdatdatdat. (laser sound) I see his pupil go from fuzzy to jet black then to the size of a pen top. EEKKK Then once this is done, the needle comes back out, flips the flap back over, liquid comes out of the needle as this is going on and he (the doc) is pushing the flap down onto the eye with the needle. Insert weak knees here!!
Then the dude brings out what looks like a little miniature squigee and starts raking it across Stephen's eyeball. OMG!!! Literally it was like watching a window washer washing a window!!!

8:50am = Both eyes finished, doc takes a look, says everything looks good and we are on our way back home.

9:10 am = We are home Stephen is starting to feel very uncomfortable. Valium #2 taken. The next 45 minutes he is patting his eyes and wishing he could go to sleep. About 10 minutes later the Valium must have kicked in because he got loopy and started snoring.....................

12:30pm = He wakes up and thinks it is 10:30am.

So far all is good!! I have taken some pictures since we have been home but I will let him put those up.

Finished the Laundry Room

2009-01-14T17:35:00.006-06:00

I've planned on doing this blog for a couple of weeks but never got around to charging the batteries in the camera. I figured I would finally do it since I probably wouldn't feel like blogging this weekend.

On January 5th (Little Bits birthday), our shelves for the new washer and dryer arrived. Picking up the units was not a problem, but picking up the dryer and washer to stack them on the shelves was a major struggle. The end result is that they look much better on the shelves.

The weekend before the shelves arrived, I decided that the laundry room deserved a make over. I say that I decided because in my sleep I dreamed about the make over and the hassle that it would be if Big E decided a make over was required AFTER the shelves were installed. So, at 8:00 on Saturday morning I informed Big E that I was headed for the local Home Depot to pick out paint. Now, for some men this is probably not the best time to tell the wife that you are going to pick out paint colors and paint a room, but in our house I am the decision maker!!!!

OK, so that may not really be the case, but it is true that I get to pick colors for rooms. After arriving at Home Depot, I called Big E and she helped me to select the color by looking at swatches online. We had already discussed our plan to have a cool light color in the room. She went with Behr's Flint Smoke.

By 10:00 AM, I was at home and painting and by 8:00 that evening I was done. I managed to brush (no rolling paint in this house) on three light coats and only used 1/2 of a quart of paint (that is why we hand paint!).

In addition to painting the room, we also decided to hang a new clothes hanger and sliding basket (for the stray socks that seem to accumulate). You can see the top of the hanging shelf in this picture.

In this picture you can see the extra shelf and the sliding basket.

That is Rusty's food container on the floor.

All in all, the room is much improved, and it didn't cost a fortune (YES!!!).

Pre-Op Day

2009-01-12T18:28:00.003-06:00

Thursday is the big day for my eyes. Big E is referring to this as my big "day of trust".

Today was the day to go back and double check the measurements, etc. In addition, I picked up the various types of eye drops and my favorite part of the prescriptions; Valium. The eye drops are for cleaning my eyes, the post-op irritation, antibiotics, etc. The Valium is to help with the nerves and to encourage me to sleep afterwards.

The surgery is Thursday morning at 8:00 AM. In all I should only be gone at the doctors office for 90 minutes but the surgery will only last about 10 seconds per eye. I am nervously anxious about the procedure.

All of this means that Wednesday will be "clean the house" day. The goal will be to rid the house of as much dust as possible. Considering that we have two cats and a dog, there is no such thing as getting rid of dust. However, any effort we can make to limit the possibility of infection afterwards will be a greatly appreciated.

Now back to Big Es little comment about Thursday. She decided that this will be her best opportunity to get revenge for those funny little comments that get said throughout the day. Today I accumulated a total of four little comments and according to her, each comment is equal to one wall that she doesn't plan to mention. Since I will be all but blind Thursday, it could be a bumpy day. So, if the next picture of me is without glasses but contains multiple bruises, you will know why.

Twice Eatened Steak

2009-01-04T15:08:00.004-06:00

Before jumping directly into the main event of the blog, let me breifly show everyone the Christmas presents that I got for two of my nephews. These little stocking stuffers are called Flarp bags (or Stink bags). Each of them received a five pack of these little ditties. I knew that the potential was high for a little drama when I purchased them but I didn't plan on getting into trouble buying them. It took the boys less than five minutes to read the instructions (that is rare) and to go outside and sabotage someone with them. Apparently the smell is very similar to rotten eggs. Of course, that action took less than 5 seconds for me to be blamed. IT WAS WORTH IT THOUGH!!!!

Now back to the main event .... Is "eatened" even a word? If it isn't it, you will understand it by the end of the post (I hope).

New Years Day is a very special day at the Lee House. On top of being off work, watching lots of football and eating too much, it is also Rusty's birthday. This year he turned six.

By all rights, Rusty lives a VERY good life. He even has his own special "puppy" schedule:

1. He wakes up around 6:00 each morning and goes to the bathroom with me. Usually, he sleeps while I shower, brush my teeth and prepare for the day.

2. He gets fed around 6:30 each morning. This means that he needs to go outside around 6:35.

3. After breakfast, he spends the day laying around the house. He has a crate where he spends some time, he lays on the sofa for a little while and spends some more time staring out the front door protecting the house.

4. Around 3:30 the girls get home from school and basically ignore him, except to let him go outside and potty.

5. Around 5:00 I get home and we go out to play. This is immediately followed by dinner for him.

6. He spends the evening going in and out, time to potty, chase squirels, etc. Sometimes, he simply lays up against on of us and naps.

7. Around 10:00, he climbs into the bed (with or without us) and goes to sleep.

I know that we all have internal clocks but this dog has mastered the art. He knows breakfast, dinner, playtime, and has even mastered the days of the week to know when he gets to go on a "bye bye" trip versus when I am simply getting ready to go to work. Amazing.

Due to his food allergies, we do not feed Rusty table scraps. But being his birthday, I decided to share a small piece of steak with him. The steak was a little too spiced for Rusty's taste and stomach. Within one minute of munching down the steak, he threw it right back up.

This occurred right beside the dinner table right beind me. I can't handle these moments in life. My general rule is that if I see someone throw up OR if I can smell the throw up, I am going to sympathy throw up.

In this instance, Rusty managed to throw up within two feet of my chair directly behind me. Grrrrooooossssss!!!!!!! Thankfully, I did not follow suit.

Immediately following the disgusting sound of Rusty expelling the steak, I heard the sound of licking. Can you imagine?

I refused to look, but it was clear that Rusty was right behind me cleaning up his mess. Big E and Brooke were laughing and starring at Rusty (they were both still eating!!!!) as he ate the previously launched contents of his stomach. Little E and I were not laughing and could have done without the play-by-play of the events from Big E and Brooke.

I don't know how he managed to do it but the dog ate the steak twice. When he was done, he had the nerve to come sit right beside me and stare while I finished my dinner. He actually wanted more!!!!!

Thankfully, the steak stayed down the second time!!! If the steak had made a third appearance, I probably would have given him even more to eat (if you know what I mean).

Green Tip of the Post: This really isn't a tip as much as a brag. I've been watching and reading a handful of blogs and websites devoted to living frugally. I decided that one of my goals this year to be more frugal without impacting our daily lives. To do this, I've been devoting a little time almost each day to collecting coupons, reviewing sales ads (online and in store), and planning trips to stores rather than going and grabbing.

My first big change was to sign up for the CVS extra care card. This card actually provides extra discounts on some items, cash back in the form of CVS dollars (Extra Care Bucks) on some items and rewards us with another percentage (2%) back on our purchases quarterly.

Our latest trip to CVS cost a total of $39.40 which was a total savings of $53.35. The biggest cost items where the razors (which cost a fortune each month in a house with four women) and the hair coloring stuff. The picture below doesn't look like much, but there was just short of $40 dollars retail of razors and blades in the pile alone.

In addition to our CVS trips, we have also been working on our grocery store trips. Today, we managed to return home with $194.58 in retail value for a total cost of $110.91. Considering that the majority of the products where meat or entree related, we should be set for food for at least two maybe three weeks.

Happy New Year

2008-12-31T18:52:00.003-06:00

Nothing sappy or nostalgic or forward looking here, but I hope everyone has a fun and safe New Years!!!!!

Christmas Catch Up ...

2008-12-26T08:15:00.009-06:00

I hope that everyone is having or has had a great Christmas. My original plan was to do a bunch of small updates over the course of the week but I have failed at that task, so today I am going to play a little catch up.

I took the week off work. Actually, I've taken a lot of time off work lately. After spending the summer traveling, I maxed out on paid time off and needed to take the time off to prevent myself from losing future time.

Anyway, the week started with two new additions to the house. Which prompts an end of the year Green Tip of the Post ...

To begin with we got three new windows for the girls rooms. Here is a picture of two of the windows after installation. We went with insulated, low E (energy), windows from Windows World. The installation crew was very courteous and efficient. The total installation time took one and half hours for the three windows.

Before anyone leaves a comment, we know that we need to clean the brick siding in this area. This is the area where we extended the driveway, so the area in front of these windows was actually bushes, hence the dirt.

Looking at the picture below, you can see why we started with the girls windows. You could almost stick a finger through this window.

Now, the second part of the green tip of the blog is the new washer and dryer. We purchased these on the day after Thanksgiving and they finally came in on Monday. I blogged about getting these in a previous post. I spent the better part of the day picking them up, removing the old machines and installing the new ones.

Due to the big sale and the number of people buying these units, we were giving a Frigidaire set rather than the original Kenmore set that was on sale. After getting this set, I am convinced that this was a blessing. The pedestals have not come in yet, so they look a little low to the ground at the moment.

We are totally amazed at how little water and detergent is required for the washing machine, and how BIG a load of laundry that can be handled in a single load. Just eye balling the cycles, I would have to say that 65% less water used is probably true. This will not only save on the water bill (which probably isnt really going to get much lower now), but it will also help on the energy bill when using hot water.

Lastly, since the new washer has a high speed spin cycle at the end of the wash, the clothes are much dryer before going into the dryer so the drying time is greatly reduced.

The washer and dryer set were Big Es Christmas gift (by her choice), so she spent part of the afternoon Monday "playing" with them. She was literally watching the washing machine washing clothes, for hours!!!?? Strange.

Combine those two items along with getting new tires on the rear of my truck and you have three very busy and very expensive days.

On Tuesday evening, we allowed Jessica and Brook to open their Christmas gifts from us. They spend Christmas Day with their father each year and we had a big Wednesday planned already, so for the sake of our sanity this seemed best. I think each of them enjoyed the time and their gifts.

Afterwards, I looked at the pile of stuff and reflected back on how different my childhood and Christmas was compared to these kids. Amazingly different! Some might say that one is better than the other, but I prefer to think that it is just different.

On Wednesday evening, we had the annual family Christmas Eve gathering with Big Es family. This year we started at her sisters house for a little present swap. We had a lot of fun playing darts and watching the kids opening gifts.

Afterwards we moved on for the "main event", as the Worlds Greatest Mother In Law calls it. All of the adults gather for an evening of sabotage and treachery .... or maybe its dirty Santa? Anyway, we all bring a gift that we really like and take turns opening a gift. Then depending on what you get, someone else may decide they want it more and take it from you. Its fun. Mostly, its hanging out with everyone having some food, drink and fun.

Speaking of drink, JR you left all your empties in my truck and I had to take the heat for the number of empties!!!

For Christmas, Big E, Little E and I opened our gifts and spent the day playing on our new Playstation game, Lego's Indiana Jones. This game is awesome. We had a late lunch with some of Big Es family at the local Shoneys (the place was packed).

But the main event for the day was going to see the new movie "Marley and me". Elizabeth read this book a couple of years ago, so for Christmas, she wanted to go see it. All I can say is there wasn't a dry eye in the entire theater by the end of the movie.

Our dog is definitely a bad dog, but I think Marley may have had him beat. It was a good movie with a very sad ending. Overall, we had a relaxing day which we needed as we prepare for Saturday (Christmas with my family).

Until then, go out and exchange your gifts, spend your gift cards and help kick start this economy!!!! OR do like me and enjoy a cold one chilling with the family. As for us, I think we are going to go see a buddy of mine playing a little rock and roll tonight ..... ahhhh, chilling!!!!!!!!

Holiday Lust ????

2008-12-21T10:51:00.007-06:00

The holiday season brings about a strange change in some people. Living with these four ladies, I've come to be very accepting of strange (at least to me) behavior but a recent event has left me stunned.

It was a rather cold evening and I had started a fire to warm the house as Big E and I enjoyed a rare moment without any of the kids in the house. We had been out to dinner and were sitting in the living room enjoying the warmth of the fire and a good movie.

I was feeling a little tired and run down from my recent travels. Big E on the other hand was relaxed and absorbed into the mood of the moment. As the night moved on, she decided that we should take advantage of the moment!!!

Now, as I mentioned, I was tired and simply wanted to enjoy a little peace and quiet in the company of my loving bride. In fact, despite the early hour I was ready to retire to the bed for a long slumber (or snoring session depending on who you believe). However, Big E was not ready to retire and had other things on her mind.

She softly requested a little favor of me that I insisted was unnecessary and due to my present state I was not prepared to do. Moments later she whispered to me the same request as if her seductive manner would change my mind. Again, I refused her request with slightly more vigor.

A moment later, she was attacking me, ripping and tearing with a fervor that I haven't experienced before. Screaming and begging followed on my behalf as I tried to explain to her that I was tired and did not feel ..... dramatic pause ..... another log on the fire was necessary as I was planning to retire soon, but she would have none of it and insisted not only that I add another log to the fire but that I also stay up with her to watch yet another chick flick on TV.

Just look at this picture to see the devastation of the moment ..... I guess I should be more willing to watch chick flicks in the future?

Ha Ha Ha ... Get your minds out of the gutter people. Ya'll should know that this is a family blog!!

The picture is the result or inspiration for that little story. The jeans were my favorite pair of jeans but to be honest they were done. There were sections of those pants that were so thin you could see through them. After a day of shopping, while gathering the bags the pants ripped straight down the backside. Since the pants were officially history and since Big E despised the pants, she decided to ripped them further until they could not be sewn back together as I had done more than once with that pair.

I couldn't let me favorite pair of jeans die without a little eulogy. I have replaced that pair of jeans with a new favorite pair. I hope this pair is as good to me as the previous pair.

Editors note: Tell me what you think of this post, Big E found it embarrassing and Little E said it wasn't funny. I on the other hand find this one to be very funny and a perfect ode to a perfect pair of pants.

AC/DC in Atlanta

2008-12-19T17:36:00.010-06:00

I mentioned briefly in an earlier post that Big E and I went to see AC/DC this week. If you are not familiar with AC/DC, then you can check them out here. Warning, if you dont like rock n roll, dont check out their website.

AC/DC is one of my top two of three bands of all time. Heck, they are the top band most of the time.

For those that read often enough, you know that I really like music and love going to concerts. In a few previous posts, I have described some of my concert exploits. This was my sixth or seventh time to see AC/DC over the years but it was Big Es first time to see them. In fact, it is only the fourth concert that I have been willing to take her to see (mainly because we dont see eye to eye on music). Luckily, Big E recognizes some of the bands songs and actually enjoys them too.

Since the concert was in Atlanta, I decided to trade in some of my well earned Hilton Honors points for a free night at the Embassy Suites directly across from the Phillips Arena. This location happens to be centered in the middle of downtown Atlanta within walking distance of The Olympic Park, The Georgia Aquarium, The World of Coca-Cola, The CNN Center, and the Georgia Dome. To say we were in the middle of everything is an understatement.

Before the show, Big E and I went to Ruth's Chris Steakhouse for dinner. If you are going to make a night out, might as well make it big. After dinner, we enjoyed the managers reception at the hotel before going to the show.

Once at the show, it was everything that we expected and more. We concert itself was awesome. In addition, it provided for a great opportunity to people watch. People watching is a favorite past time of ours at events of this nature. For this concert, it provided a special opportunity to people watch individuals between the ages of 6 and 60 in the same location. All I can say is that some people might want to consider dressing their age.....!!!!!!

Below are a few pictures from the show ...

A picture from our room overlooking the Olympic Park, at night.

A picture of the stage at one point during the show.

Another picture of the stage during the show.

A fun photo of the Legal Seafood resteraunt which sits next door to the Georgia Aquarium. We thought it was funny that those two sit side by side.

One of the explosive moments during the show.

All in all, we had a great time. The next day, we spent a couple of hours at the Ikea store in Atlanta. We purchased a few things at Ikea, so if you get them for Christmas, we got a great deal!!!!

I hope everyone is ready for Christmas. We are not fully finished yet, but we are having fun getting there.

A Morning Post ...

2008-12-16T07:57:00.002-06:00

Good Morning! A few quick notes:

1. Sunday evening we went to the Pine Level United Methodist Church Christmas Special entitled the Cradle. My mother-in-law sang a solo (very good one) during the presentation that included live actors acting out the story of Christmas. I very good production especially for such a small congregation. I took some photos but my skills with a camera are limited and the pictures did not turn out.

2. I got an early Christmas present recently ... Little Elizabeth will be coming to live at our house full time. We are all really excited about this change in the household, and as one of our girls pointed out it should provide more opportunities for blog worthy moments.

3. Tonight is the big AC/DC concert. I am really excited about seeing and hearing the guys rock the house tonight. We are planning on going to the IKEA store also. Mom is going to be hanging with the girls for the evening which should be fun for everyone.

4. Only nine days left till Christmas!!!!

I hope everyone is enjoying the holiday season. I know that I am happy to finally be home with no other travel plans in the future. I almost feel like I can relax a little and enjoy the season now.

Guest Blog - Numero Seven

2008-12-13T19:07:00.003-06:00

I received a special guest blog today. First, its mom and you can't get more special than that. Second, it is a sign of the times!!! My mom and dad finally upgraded to a broadband (or high speed) Internet connection last week. Anyway, here is the blog ...

This has seemed to take forever; one day I'll get the hang of it all---ha ha ha! Anyway..

Congratulations, Stephen, on your 1-year anniversay of "blogging". Who in the world thinks up these words? I know I'm a little behind the times, but there is no way I would put myself out there the way you do. Of course, there is the whole thing about having nothing to hide.

Editors Note: To learn more about the term blogs and a history of blogging, click here.

I still prefer hand-written notes, "real" Christmas cards sent through the mail and "real" homemade food. This, of course, is the reason I am so behind in the technology department. Editors Note: It is also the reason for the roundness of my father, who gets to eat all of those awesome homemade meals. I do promise to try to do better.

You are and have always been a blessing to this family and I will love you always, no matter what. That is part of a mother's job, but in your case not a hard one.

Mom

Guest Blog - Numero Seis

2008-12-12T06:35:00.002-06:00

Check out the peice that I just found in my inbox this morning....

Hey! It’s Elizabeth … the little one. :)

I’m probably the last one to write a guest blog – sorry, dad – but writing isn’t my better subject and I definitely cannot write under pressure – DAD!! It takes me a little while and I have to ruminate about what I want to say. (Haha. Yeah, that was a vocab word a few weeks ago.) But anyway, here it goes …

I can’t believe it’s already been a whole year since you started this thing. Time flies! Everyone says it goes by faster as you get older, but it’s already wayyy too fast for me now. I’m a junior (‘010!!!) and scared to death of leaving high school. I kinda, sorta know what I want to be when I grow up – well I at least have it narrowed down to two choices and I have chosen the college that has both majors.

Work in a Crime Lab.
Be an Elementary Teacher (Kindergarten – Second Grade)

Now, before I state the college I would PREFER to attend … Yes, I know that these are two completely different things. But hey, who really goes to college and knows exactly what they want to do? Anyway, I’m actually taking a “class” that might help me decide whether to major in Biology or Elementary Education.

The Sheriff’s Department downtown offers all kinds of different Explorer Programs to help high-schoolers determine their major and whether they are really interested in it or not. The one I go to now is a Forensics class. It’s mostly hands on stuff so that you can really get the feel for it. As my dad has previously mentioned this includes dead bodies. No, we don’t actually physically see or touch them, but there were some pretty graphic pictures. And as for us actually getting to take the pictures (which actually I didn’t get to go that Tuesday) it wasn’t of real dead bodies. We were only going to practice proper angles at which to take pictures and what to take pictures of at the scene. Other lessons of the class include Ballistics, Evidence Collection and Fingerprints. They are also trying to set up a tour of the Crime Lab in Montgomery, which is where I would like to work – not as a CSI Photographer as my Dad wrongly mentioned.

On the other hand, teaching little kids would be so much fun!! Especially at a Christian private school because then I could not only teach them their ABC’s, but also about Jesus. :) Besides, I feel more led by God to teach.

The University of South Alabama offers both majors -- Biology and Elementary Education. So this would be the college of my choice. It is 177 miles from Montgomery and it takes about three hours to get there. An estimated cost of tuition per year is $5,500. This would be commuting of course. Editors note: commuting 177 miles each way per day is not an option. I guess I need to check into the on campus living costs. I could also apply for the Presidential Scholarship which ranges from $2,500 to $10,000 each year.

Now off the subject of my college options and back to the real reason I am writing this. Thanks, Dad for writing this and keeping up with what goes on around here. Yes, some things may be embarrassing, but I really appreciate it. I love you.

Love, Little E.

P.S. Sorry this is so long and that most of it is about me. I promise I’m not really that conceited.

Guest Blog - Number Cinco

2008-12-09T20:06:00.006-06:00

I finally got one of the key guest blogs that I've been hopiong to receive. I was going to edit the post but I figured if I left it alone, I would make a point that others have been giving me some grief about. I love you babe and really appreciate your putting up with me!!!

Season Greetings from Big E!!

Yes, I have finally gotten around to sending in my Guest Blog. I would like to go ahead and warn everyone that I am not as witty at writing as my wonderful, loving, caring, sympathetic, stud of a husband!! HAHAHA, Ok maybe I got a little carried away there with the …….sympathetic part. Remember he is the one who kind of blew off the whole Brook getting her head cracked open thing and trying to play it off like he didn’t know what had happened. I did tell him that her head was busted open before we left, he just gave me the usual “OK” answer. I have learned that a quick “Oh OK” means I heard that you said something but I don’t know what it was and I don’t care so I’m going to pretend that I understand in hopes that you go away and not interrupt my TV time.

There is soooo much that I would love to discuss in this blog, however, I don’t think that there are enough Megabytes in the world to allow me to express my many thoughts of Stephen and the blog. Editors note: I love this woman!!!! I have to admit that I do enjoy reading his take on things within our little section of the world. Though I do find myself wondering where in the world he was when some of the action was taking place. The girls and I have come to expect the quote “Now that’s going on the blog” whenever something of interest occurs.

I feel as though I need to defend myself (and tattle) on Stephen. I mean what fun would this be if I didn’t, right? The Frat Boys post!!! I can’t believe he told that. Even though Jessica and I rolled on the floor laughing as he walked into the bathroom, and to here him exclaim my name in a bad way seconds after, I mean that was classic!!! I really didn’t think that would make the blog. I mean my mom and mother-in-law read this. BUT lets be real, if you really know me, were you really surprised that I did that? I do believe that Stephen forgot to mention that he soon returned the favor. Editors note: HUH? See he didn’t tell you that part did he? Lets just say that you read how much he enjoys his “adult beverages” so it wasn’t a walk through the rose garden, if you know what I mean.

I have to admit I enjoy pulling pranks and scaring him every chance I get. I’ll hide behind the corner of a wall or the door and then jump out and say “arrggh” and then he’ll jump!! I love it!! Every now and then he will get me back.

The latest game around the house is well it is a car game. The object of the game is to smack a person in the vehicle with you everytime you see a yellow vehicle. Stephen hates this game, and why do you think he hates the game,……………..because he sucks at it!!! Editors note: All of the girls wear rings that hurt! That’s right, this would be what he refers to as a “chick” game, a game that he is not good at.

Anyway, the other day (Editors note: It was Thanksgiving Day, A day of family and love!!!) I had popped him like 6 times, to his popping me once. I mean a yellow bus, really how hard is it to see and wait his one pop was a yellow dumpster that was in someone’s driveway. So I got that pop back!! HA (I guess it is a good thing he is getting that eye surgery done)

Well, I think that I have rambled on long enough so I will wrap it up with saying, Stephen I think you are awesome and I love you so much, even when you rat out my not so lady like side!!!

Love you babe, Big E

Editors note: I think this explains it all. We are perfectly matched. I love my "not so lady" like wife and all of the fun stuff that she and the girls create around the house. My life would be boring and lonely without them. Of course, I probably would not drink the "adult beverages" or have this blog without them. Nothing is perfect except our love for each other and our girls. I dont say I love you to the girls often (or as Jessica might say, ever!) but I really do and I know their mother does do. It is that love that makes these stories so awesome and fun to share. I love you girls, all of you.

A Sunday Evening Post ...

2008-12-07T19:10:00.005-06:00

I hope that everyone is doing well. I really appreciate the guest blogs and hope that anyone else interested in contributing a little something will do so.

This is one of my favorite times of the year. The seasons have changed and the first waves of really cool weather are starting to come through, football is in full force, the cats want to spend more time in your lap, and the holiday festivities are in full force.

Friday we lit the first fire of the season. Regretfully, I lit the first but didn't open the damper for the fireplace. This created a little fun in the house as the fire had been going for several minutes before I finally realized the mistake. Of course, by that time, the house was half full of smoke. At this point, we began the frantic search for a flashlight (so I could double check my ignorance) and to find a pair of gloves to protect my hand from the hot metal to open the damper.

The good news is that I managed to fix this little problem without burning myself. The bad news is that we had to open the back door, lower half the windows in the house, and turn on every ceiling fan just to get the smoke out of the house.

With that little disaster avoided, we managed to have a perfectly uneventful evening until ... If you half close the fire place screen it creates a funnel effect that allows the smoke to escape up along the mantel. I managed to forget this little fact and for a little while smoke was escaping up the mantel until we finally realized that our eyes where burning for a reason. Once again, we found ourselves opening doors, windows and turning on fans (at 11:00 o'clock at night).

Its not bad enough that I managed to smoke out the house twice in one evening but I managed to make one more really stupid mistake. The smoke left a nice trial of blackening along its escape route on the mantel. Since I was stuck letting the house air out, I decided to go ahead and clean the mantel of the smoke discoloration. The problem is that I didn't consider the heating effect on the stone portion of the mantel UNTIL I touched the stone with nothing more that a slightly damp cloth between the stone and my hand. Being my third strike of the evening, I managed to say a few words before being reminded of the opened doors and windows.

What a night!! To top it off, I got to listen to my beautiful bride tell me about how her eyes burned, etc. I guess I really deserved it though.

Reality TV break .... Nick and Starr are the official winners of the Amazing Race. Who chose them to win?

Speaking of Friday, Jessica turned 18. I can't believe that we have a daughter that is 18 and graduating from high school this year. For her birthday, Big E and I bought her a hope chest. Now, not being a female, I don't fully understand the hope chest concept, but it seemed really important to Big E that we find one. As Big E explained to me that purpose of the chest, I finally came to the realization of why it is called a hope chest. Imagine the first fathers who built these chests for their daughters, why would they have done this? Without doing any real research into the subject, my guess is because the father was going to fill the chest with items and hope that some good man comes and takes his little girl. Of course, that is just a joke. We are really proud of Jessica and all that she has become and look forward to seeing even more growth from her in the coming years.

With that said, the battery is running low and I need to complete the laundry before I leave for Mississippi tomorrow. Have a great week.

Guest Blog - Numero Cuatro

2008-12-06T08:28:00.004-06:00

I got this one in this morning. I included her intro because I love the way she introduces the topic of the post. I will set this one up by saying that this guest blog stems from a phone conversation last week in which the blogger actually had to "call me right back" to handle a little situation.

Hey!
Sorry it took so long...been a little distracted by the sudden urge to craft :) I see how short and sweet your other guest posts are so I hope you don't mind a long one. It's just so hard to narrow down the Pee Pee subject! Congratulations on a whole year!! As we previously discussed …. Here it is:

For my guest blog I thought it would be interesting to cover the subject of Pee Pee. For a moment I thought it might be a bit inappropriate but then I remembered that this is your blog and there has already been quite a bit of potty talk here anyway!

On the subject of Pee Pee I tend to consider myself an expert. In my little corner of the world with two 4 year old boys it seems that life is really just about seeing it, smelling it, talking about it, finding it, cleaning it. Potty training was an interesting task and I just assumed that once we figured that out we would be golden (no pun intended) when it comes to Pee Pee. What I didn’t realize was that potty trained would just mean that they now had control over when and most importantly WHERE the Pee Pee would go.

Now rationally thinking the Pee Pee goes in the potty of course but in a toddler mind … it counts as long as it’s IN the bathroom. There are so many things to distract them that they may or may not pay attention the entire time the Pee Pee is coming out. It may be on the floor, on the shower curtain, splattered in the trash can next to the potty or anywhere else relatively close. This of course means that those proud moments of “Mommy, I went potty all by myself” are quickly followed by not so proud moments of “crap…now there is, at the least a smattering and at most an ocean of Pee Pee to be cleaned up”. Before you know it, your cleaning up Pee Pee while talking on the phone, taking a second look before you sit down yourself, rushing to be sure it’s all gone before your company comes over and in general on 24/7 Pee Pee watch!!

That’s my life at the moment all summed up in Pee Pee terms!

Congrats again on the anniversary .…. keep it up ….. I enjoy reading about what’s going on with everyone!!

Heather

Guest Blog - Numero Tres

2008-12-05T06:25:00.002-06:00

Another kind word ....

Great job Dude! Yeah I read it. Like reality T.V. cant miss!So Long and Thanks for all the Fish!

Guest Blog - Numero Dos

2008-12-03T16:42:00.002-06:00

Got another little diddy today ...

love this blog bro-in-law u make it so much fun to read. quick wit. keep it up!

love ya'll
the jr's

Guest Blog - Numero Uno

2008-12-02T06:34:00.002-06:00

I received this little diddy in the email today ...

Happy Aniversary to you
Happy Aniversary to you
Happy Aniversary to themtgylees
Happy Aniversary to you.

Favorite Mother - n - law

Thanks for the post!

Thanksgiving Week

2008-11-29T20:35:00.004-06:00

Its been a really good week. Both Elizabeth and I were off work this week (actually, I managed to sneak a few minutes of work in a couple of days). In addition, each of the girls spent the week at their "other houses".

We were hoping for a visit with my sister this week, but one of the boys wasn't feeling too good, so they could not make the trip. Hopefully, they will be back into the swing of things soon and make it to Monkey Town for Christmas or early Christmas.

Being alone (that is what it feels like to have the girls away from the house) left Big E and I somewhat stupefied by how to pass the time. We played Tiger Woods Golf on the PlayStation, watched TV, I played Diablo on the computer, and we spent a little time with each other (get your mind out of the gutters).

For Thanksgiving, we had a great time at my mom and dads house. My mother cooked a buffet worth of excellent food. Thoroughly stuffed, we spent a few hours outside playing. I hope everyone had a good Thanksgiving and managed to spend some time with their family and friends.

Little Elizabeth went to Atlanta on Friday to help the Operation Christmas Child stuff boxes, wrap and prepare them for shipping. She does this each year with the youth group at her church. Big E and I spent the day helping the economy, shopping. Thankfully, we were done by mid day and went home for a little RnR.

Roooooolllllll Tiiiiiidddddeeee!! That was the highlight of today. After six years, it is really nice to finally get a win. I'm not too sure about next week but today was awesome.

This month marks the anniversary of me starting this blog. In honor of the anniversary, I am asking anyone that regularly reads this to send me an anniversary post. I don't really have any boundaries for the posting as long as it fits within the scope of the blog. Please take a few minutes to send me a "guest" post. If you do decided to send me a "guest" blog post, send it to themtgylees@gmail.com

I haven't had a green tip of the post in a while, but we are trying to be a little greener at the house. We purchased a new set of washer and dryer this weekend. Big E is really excited about getting a set of front loaders that are energy star compliant. In addition, the new washer is supposed to use 65% less water. If you have an old washer as we do, stepping up to a new one could be much better from an energy and water use standpoint.

Bloody Monday and the Sheriffs department

2008-11-19T17:17:00.007-06:00

Ohhhhh yeah baby, we haven't had some good drama in the blogsphere in a while, so sit back and prepare yourself for this one.

Monday was like any typical day around the house until the blood began to flow. Big E announced that it was "fix it yourself" dinner night, we watched the Big Bang Theory and all the girls started getting ready for volleyball night.

Around 7:30 as the girls were preparing to leave for volleyball, I heard a loud thud coming from the bathroom. Apparently, Brooke and Jessica were wrestling in the bathroom as they waited for Big E to finish her business (there is always room for a good poo joke). The loud thud was the sound of Brook falling into the bath tub and busting her head against the stone ledge around the window. This resulted in what was described as a large and deep gash in the back of her head.

At this point, I was still chilling in my lazy chair actually preparing a little work for the next day. I guess you could say that I didn't put two and two together when I heard the sound.

Now, follow this little fast paced timeline ....

1. Little Bit comes running out of the back saying that it was time to go.

2. A moment later, Brooke comes walking out of the bathroom followed by Jessica pressing a towel down on the back of Brooke's head with Brooke laughing about something.

3. A few seconds later, Big E came out of the bathroom, frantic, and said it was time to go.

4. I said what?

5. She said she had to take Brooke to the hospital, the cut is bad.

6. I sat up and said huh?

7. She said it was a deep cut and they needed to leave.

8. I jumped up and ran to the bathroom, saw the blood and asked "Are you sure"?

I might have missed a hint or two along the way? But by this time, I knew that Brooke was hurt, bleeding a little and they were headed for the hospital.

I ran back to the bathroom again, and Jessica was already in there cleaning the tub. Wrong thought I know, but my first thought was why are you cleaning that up, I need pictures for the blog. Sorry, I missed that one but its not the only opportunity I missed.

I again questioned the deepness of the cut and the need to go to the doctor.

Side Note: This stems from a few traumatic moments in my childhood regarding cuts and the need to go to the doctor. Its funnier to hear my mom tell those stories, so ask her. Lets just say that I've had my head shaved for stitches, and lost a portion of two different fingers. According to my dad, I didn't need stitches for those moments either.

And now we return you back to Days Of Our Drama starring Brooke ..... I didn't take the trip figuring it was a Monday night and the emergency room would not be too busy. Jessica left for volleyball figuring it would be better than being at the emergency room, and Little E went to the hospital figuring their would be some fun people watching opportunities or maybe she was trying to be helpful?

By this time, its only 7:40!!! That is a lot to happen in a span of ten minutes.

I sat down to finish my work figuring I would see them in an hour. Big E and I spoke around 9:30 and they had still not been seen by a doctor. Someone came out and wrapped Brooke's head to help with the bleeding, but apparently Monday is a busy night at the emergency room (based on Little E's people watching report, lots of people on Monday night are still trying to recover from the weekend).

Here is Brooke with her head wrapped up ...

Once the doctor finally got to see them, they ran the usual battery of tests to make sure that she had a brain (this required two CAT scans!!!), and that she didn't have a concussion, etc. Then after five stitches they sent them home. Arrival time 2:45 AM!!!!

Here is Brooke's head with stitches. They are kind of hard to see. The doctor was really nice and didn't shave her head (secretly we were hoping for a little loss of hair).

All was back to normal on Tuesday, when Big E reminded me that I had to take Little E down to the Sheriffs office for her CSI class. Little E wants to become a CSI photographer, so she is participating in a weekly class through the Sheriffs department on the topic.

Since the class is only an hour, I decided to sit in the hallway and wait for her. I don't know everything they discussed but on more than one occasion, I heard the lecturer state something about "this dead body" or notice the "decay", etc. I like horror and gore movies, but what are they watching? Can I participate? Should I participate and monitor this session? Afterwards, I asked her if she enjoyed her "dead people" class and she responded that next week they get to actually take pictures!!! What does that mean? Do I have to participate and act like a dead person? I am concerned about this class.

Anyway, I little bit of fun. Brooke is fine and Little E is a little warped but all is actually well in the Lee house.

Its like drunk typing without the alcohol ....

2008-11-14T16:13:00.003-06:00

It'll all make sense later. Until then, here is a little update on the last few days.

Jessica took the ACT again and upped her score to a 22. We were hoping for a little better score but it is a better score than the first time. I can't really say too much about the score, as I didn't get close to that number years ago.

Speaking of Jessica, we recently changed her from a standard diabetes management process to the new Omnipod Insulin management system. This is some pretty cool technology (which is also code for expensive). The good news is that the new system is having some very positive effects on her daily life and general well being. Hopefully, this will equate to a year without emergency room trips (that is the break even point financially) and a lot more food freedom for her.

No real update on the other two girls. No news can be good news sometimes.

I took yesterday and today off work. I maxed out my paid time off (PTO) and figured I probably should try using it rather than losing it. Since I had a couple of "easy" days I decided to get a couple of Stephen things done.

The first and most important thing to do was to fix this computer. I've had no more than two gig of available hard drive space now for several months. So I finally broke down and bought a new external hard drive (500 GB!!!). With the new drive, I spent a large portion of day one moving data (music and pictures) to the new hard drive. With the new found free space on the main drive, I finally got around to updating Windows to service pack 3 and defragging the hard drive. It is amazing how much better a computer will run when it gets a little basic maintenance.

Second, I took the time to complete one of my favorite computer games; Heroes of Might and Magic V. I've been playing the game for nearly a year (expansion packs, etc). It was cool to finally see the end of the story.

Third, I took the animals to visit the vet. Yogi got is bi-annual shaving (Elizabeth is too scarred to shave him herself). The vet said he required a double dose of anaesthesia due to his weight problem. If you ask me the cat doesn't have a problem with weight, at twenty pounds, I'd say he has mastered it. The vet actually suggested that we put him on diabetic cat food or that we change him to canned cat food to avoid the carbohydrates, "it would be like putting him on the Aitkens diet".

Rusty is getting over a couple of infections. At this point he is only taking 5 or 6 pills a day.

My main man BooBoo didn't have to go to the vet though. Mainly because I am too scarred to take him. A. The vet would freak to learn how long its been since he has been to a vet and B. It would be a traumatic moment for BooBoo and I don't think he has too many lives left.

All in all a great first day off.

Today, I played a little Tiger Woods Golf 2007 on the Playstation. Then I went and ate lunch with Big E and some of the guys from work. Finally, I had a pre-op exam.

Now, before some of your minds start to wander too much, I have been thinking about having a little surgery done for a while but I didn't want to say anything until all of the bases were covered. On the 15th of January, I am going to have iLasik surgery. This is the newest of the eye surgery's to fix vision. This version of eye surgery has been approved by both the Air force and NASA for their pilots because it does not require a manual incision to be made by the doctor (where the majority of the errors occur with microkeratome eye surgery).

Since I qualify for this version of the surgery and since we are already accustomed to having the money going into a medical flex accounts (we've bought braces for the last two years), we decided it was the best time for me to get this done.

Today, I had the pre-op exam to make sure that there wasn't anything obvious to prevent me from going forward. I needed to get it done now because I need to make the medical flex account decision (that is use it or lose it money) before next week. Part of the process today was to dilate my eyes to complete all of the measurements (to be done again in January right before the surgery). Now, two hours later, I still can not see worth a crap and the only thing I can relate it to is being typsy.

If you've ever had enough to drink that your vision was impaired, that is how I am seeing right now and I haven't even had a drop to drink.

I'll return soon with more information, until then get outside and collect those falling leaves to add to your compost pile.

The dutch oven effect ...

2008-11-10T19:29:00.003-06:00

While it is completely within the realm of possibility that Big Elizabeth would cover our heads with the covers and pass gas, this post is not about that little ditty. It is about my beautiful brides recent kick for cooking in her new Rachel Ray dutch oven.

A few weeks ago, Big E came home with this new and not so cheap little item to "try" a new recipe. If you know our cooking skill level then you know that I was scared. In our five years of marriage, we have never thrown out a meal cooked by one of us for a quick pizze order, but we have eaten a few things that the dog refused to eat.

I don't know the official name of this little recipe but I know that it includes chicken, sausage, sausage, bread, chicken broth, celery, onions, and many other things that combine to create a wonderful, exciting and most delicious dinner, lunch the next day and a couple of additional meals to boot. Most importantly, the kids ate it.

So, we tried a second recipe to see if the first one was simply a fluke, and despite some ingredient challenges we had another good meal. This one consisted of chicken, parsnip, carrots, several other items I don't remember and white French Burgundy cooking wine (or Burgundy cooking wine since we were challenged finding the right stuff).

I don't like leftovers but this is one left over that gets better with time. Sort of like chilli!!!! Yuuuummmmm.

This thing was so good that it inspired me to try the cook all day and eat for a week theory. If you haven't tried this theory, there are several websites devoted to it. Anyway, I got up Saturday morning and put together a list of six or seven awesome sounding recipes including the previous mentioned two.

I arrived home with forty dollars of fresh vegetables and a new appreciation for the knowledge of vegetables of the lady at Fresh Market. In addition, I had another sixty dollars of goodies from Publix. I added this to a pile of BOGO (remember this one? Buy one get one free) chicken and sausage that I picked up last weekend at Winn Dixie.

NOTE: Winn Dixie still hasn't responded to my email. No surprise there.

We started cooking around 9:30 AM. Maybe I should say that Elizabeth started cooking. We had friends coming over for the Alabama game so I was really just in the way of the cooking with such a tight time frame. I really underestimated the time frame for cooking such a large portion of food, but we pulled it off. Basically, I cleaned while she cooked. Occasionally, we took a break to rest and see key plays from the various games leading up to the main event OR simply a cool refreshing drink. Around 2:30 our company arrived as we were putting the final touches on the final pot. With the exception of the Chicken, Corn, and Black bean stoup everything tasted great. I will take full credit for the screwed up stoup (a palm full of cumin and corriander is way too much).

We allowed everyone to sample the goodies before allowing it to cool off and find its way into the freezer. I am so proud of my awesome wife. We will actually be able to eat off our labor for the next couple of weeks (mind you we will only have to reheat one dish every three or four days).

So to conclude, here comes the winter weight. It looks like I will have to be a little more diligent with walking and running come February if I am going to run that 5K again.

Halloween Pumpkins

2008-11-04T18:21:00.004-06:00

For Halloween, we decided to all carve pumpkins this year. I thought I would do a quick post of some of the cool pumpkins that we carved. So its post Halloween before I finally create the post.

This first set of photos is a quick look at the steps to carve a pumpkin. Now, it is important to remember that we are not professional pumpkin carvers, so if you are looking for money winning creations go somewhere else.

Step One: Cut the top of the pumpkin and remove the gooey insides. Of course, I had to do this for all of my girls.

Step Two: Draw your design on the pumpkin.

Step Three: Carve the pumpkin. Sounds simple huh? Actually step three took me nearly two hours on this pumpkin. Before you carve, you need to outline your design with a toothpick. This will ease the saw blade through and help reduce the number of goofy cuts. For fun you can also try shading your design by removing layers of skin around the design to create shadow effects, etc.

Once you have completed the carving, coat all cuts with vaseline to prevent the loss of moisture from the cuts to help extend the life of the pumpkin. Here is the end result of my pumpkin.

Here are the other four pumpkins from the girls....

The coolest pumpkin of the year was by Jessica. It is a vampire biting is lady victim.

Little E went with a neat little flying bat for the season.

My lovely bride was a little more ambitious with her witch.

And last but definitely not least is the child friendly smiley face from Brooke. I really like the way the nose turned out with the shadow effect she carved.

I hope you enjoyed this cool little series of pictures. I hope that one day we get better about using the eight or ten cameras that we collectively own so I can do this type of post more often.

Grocery Shopping

2008-11-02T15:13:00.004-06:00

In our household, Elizabeth and I generally share the grocery shopping and the cooking responsibility. In the past, we had a tendency to eat out more than in. However, we started really changing that habit about six or eight months ago. It is really easy to become accustomed to eating "take-aways" every night but eventually there are two big reasons for why this is bad:

1. Financially - This one is easy to understand.
2. Health - Round is a shape just not the shape that either of us desired.

I recently added a couple of other blogs to the list of regularly read blogs. The Jane4girls blog and Wylie Mom blog have become two of my favorite blogs to read. Each of these ladies (I don't know them but I do admire their frugality) are providing for their families (at least food wise) on very limited budgets. For example, the author of Jane4girls blog budgeted a mere $800 dollars to feed her family of four this year and she still has over $200 dollars left to spend this year.

Now, I will never be as organized and willing to save to the extent of those ladies but I can learn from them. With that being said, today was my first day to get out and really try to put coupons to work. Now, I am not going to be going all gung-ho and driving from store to store buying only what is on sale but I am going to review the advertisements, the items needed, the coupon stash and make an informed decision about what store is best for the list in hand. In addition, I am willing to sign up for a store's "bonus card" or whatever.

For todays shopping experience, Winn-Dixie was the lucky winner of our hard earned dollars. The list was approximately 50% meat (we are proud carnivores), a couple of other food items and 50% non-food items (toiletries, cat items, etc). I got all of the meat BOGO (buy one get one free) and managed to use another $21.75 in coupons. The total savings between BOGO and coupons was just short of $64 dollars on a $148 dollar bill. NOT TOO BAD for my first try.

BUT ..........

I was NOT allowed to use my Internet coupons!!! I was told that too many people were saving too much money! Isn't that the whole purpose of coupons? I told the cashier and bag boy that they could take all of the food items where my coupons were being rejected and return them. Imagine the look on the poor people behind me!!!!

The more I thought about the situation, the madder I became, so here is the email that I sent to Winn-Dixie ...

I was told that I could not use Internet coupons at the Sturbridge store today. The reasoning, as I was told by Jyazmin, is that too many people were using Internet coupons and saving "too much money".

I live a bicycle ride from Winn-Dixie, Brunos, and Publix. I wonder if the other two chains are doing the same thing? I prefer to shop at a single store (and truthfully Winn-Dixie's BOGO free specials often determine the store I shop) but I cant justify shopping anywhere that would discriminate against those of us trying to be frugal with our family budget particularly with the current economic state.

I can't really believe that this is the official Winn-Dixie stand on Internet coupons. I've checked your website and did not see anything to indicate that this is the official stance (though I could have overlooked it). Is this the official stance of Winn-Dixie? If it is the official stance of Winn-Dixie, why do you provide download and print coupons on your website?

I look forward and appreciate hearing back from you.

Stephen Lee

Mom, notice that I was a good little boy in the email. Of course, Winn-Dixie probably gets a hundred plus emails complaining everyday, so my expectations for a response are minimal. If that happens, then I will go directly to the store to request an answer. I'll update everyone on this situation soon.

I think the grand total of coupons rejected was $1.65 with a total sales loss of around $10.00 (all were frozen vegetables). They didn't even complain about the free ($7.00 dollar value) cat litter coupon that was mailed to me but looked like an Internet coupon.

Funny enough, it could have been a $0.10 coupon and I would have been equally angered. Either you accept coupons or you don't!!! They let me use multiple coupons for some items (the receipt even acknowledges it).

Well, while we wait for an official Winn-Dixie response, send me your tricks and tips for saving money. Last weekend, I spent a couple of hours surfing to various websites (Proctor and Gamble, Betty Crocker, etc) and signing up for their emails, newsletters, etc. I did this while drinking beer and watching football so I didn't really lose any of my "valuable" time doing it, but I did manage to get myself some really nice recipes and coupons out of it.

Its really simple to take this approach, simply look in the pantry and go to the websites of the companies you see. WARNING: Setup a special email before you go signing up for every one's emails and newsletters. I use my Gmail (from Google) for these types of sign up offers. It is amazing the crap (oh, I mean special offers and discounts) that you will receive once you sign up for this stuff.

As a quick update, the recipe that I referenced in the previous blog was truly awesome AND it was even better as a left over. I dont usually like left overs but that stuff was better on day two and three. If you have a weak stomach though, avoid it.

Back for another week...

2008-10-26T20:06:00.002-05:00

I've been timing the weekly blog with The Amazing Race lately, but tonight I am a little behind and for a good reason.

First, lets update the show. For the first time, the married couple didn't win. We didn't see the whole show, so I don't have much of a recap but I don't want anyone to think I've giving up on the show. Last week, I received an email requesting a Google map of the trip. I thought this was a really good idea. Instead of trying to create the map myself, I found the following website.

The reason for missing part of the show is really simple, we ate some seriously awesome dinner tonight. Elizabeth and I watch a diverse series of television. One night last week, we found a good sounding recipe while watching Rachel Ray. You can find the recipe here. Tonight, Elizabeth threw this little ditty together and it was awesome. We have plenty of left overs, so this dinner is probably going to be good for at least two dinners this week.

Have you been watching the World Series? I don't think I've watched more than ten games of baseball all year. I will admit that some of the reason is the poor performance of the Braves for the past year, but with the series starting this past week, I am a little excited. The Montgomery Biscuits are a Double A team for the Tampa Rays, so we have enjoyed watching some of the kids playing ball. We try to catch at least 5 or 6 games a year and this past year was no different. We've been lucky enough to see many of the guys playing in the minors.

Halloween is on the horizon. Does everyone have there customes ready? Elizabeth and I have a party this Friday but I dont think we have customes, yet. I am interested in your ideas for a cool costume. The cost of the costume needs to be minimal, so the idea of some store bought costume is out. I am open to all ideas though. One that I have seriously considered and simply dont have a good idea for is ............. a fart. I really dont know how to pulll this idea off, but it sounds fun. Send me your ideas.

Green tip of the post: For a simple multi-purpose house cleaner, try combining a little warm water, a little salt (the abrasive), and a little lemon juice. The combination is very effective for most of your cleaning needs and it costs a fraction of the cost for your everyday cleaners.

Overtime?

2008-10-19T19:49:00.006-05:00

CBS needs to get their priorities straight. Its only 49 minutes late getting started but it looks like we have a little bad blood to kick thins off. While we wait to see how the bickering ends, lets review the weekend.

This overtime stuff is making it impossible for me to catch all of my shows. I guess that I will have to pass on "True blood" this week and catch a reply sometime during the week.

Friday night was the final home football game for the Alabama Christan Academy Eagles. The day was a little chilly with slight rain throughout the day making for perfect football weather. We won a tight one with only minutes to spare. For Jessica, this was her final home football game.

We finished the night by watching Saw II. We are re-watching all of the Saw movies in preparation for the upcoming release of Saw V. If you are not familiar with the Saw series, it is a series of movies that are part gruesome, part suspense, and completely twisted. These movies are not for the average person.

Game break ... the frat boys are charming little fellows and Little Elizabeth's team just got a flat tire.

Saturday we had a little family fun. To begin with, we purchased a few pumpkins for carving (I'll post pictures next time). We visited with my mom and dad for a couple of hours, and we concluded the day with a little grill action.

For entertainment, we had two alternatives. The first was little Gabe. Gabe is a funny little fellow, Jessica and Brooke's cousin, who comes to spend the night with us every now and then. Gabe provides a lot of laughs through his continual harassment of Rusty and his ability to forego sleep. As the old saying goes .... out of the mouth of babes!!

The second half of our entertainment was Saw III. This was not my favorite of the Saw movies but it did explain a lot about the relationship between the two main characters and the reasoning behind the gruesome trials.

Today, Little Elizabeth and I visited my grandmother for lunch. We had a neighborhood grill and block party this afternoon. This was our neighborhoods first block party. I hope that everyone had a good time, I know our family had a good time.

Game break ... the fast track was insane. If Elizabeth and I were the first to arrive for that task, we would have had to turn around and go back to the normal tasks. Elizabeth is terrified of heights so climbing that tower would have never happened.

And the winner is ... for the third week in a row, the struggling married couple. I cant believe that they are playing so strong. And the loser is ... the Carolina girls and Phil's dad for volunteering to give them a big hug!

A good show ...

2008-10-12T19:11:00.002-05:00

So its Sunday and tonight is the Amazing Race .... Tonight is the last night to select a team (Heather you better pick one soon!), so I hope you get in on the fun soon.

We had a pretty solid week. Elizabeth, Jessica and I spent Thursday in Birmingham learning about the new blood meter / injection system. I love technology to an extent, but I am not a fan of technology for the sake of technology. This thing is not technology for the sake of technology though. Its an all-in-one device that checks the blood sugar level, determines the best amount of insulin to inject, and injects the insulin in a timely manner, etc.

Next Saturday is the birthday party for our friends little one. We won't be able to make the party (its in Memphis), but wish Maddox a happy birthday. We haven't been able to see Maddox since they moved. I bet he is really getting big. I hope that we can make a trip up to Memphis sometime soon.

We had a great day Friday. To conclude a recent project at work, we had a little party for everyone that helped. For the party, we had a shrimp and crab boil. As you can imagine, the food turned out VERY good. In addition to food, we also had a little entertainment including the Wii, poker and pool. Elizabeth and I won two pairs of movie tickets!!! She thinks that she won the tickets, but actually I did.

OMG!!! Wrestling!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! See a trainer and learn a routine, that is awesome!!! I could have owned that task.

Did you notice the "Day of the Dead" skeleton hanging in the taxi cab? The Day of the Dead is a holiday, generally observed in Mexico or by those of Mexican decent. The general concept of the Day of the Dead is a celebration of the those that have passed. I love the art associated with this holiday. I bought a cool t-shirt related to this holiday a few years ago. I hope that I can find a few characters related to this holiday in the coming years.

Ok, so the geeks can't wrestle. Third team in to the wrestling arena and who knows which team out.

Arghh, the ex-football player and his estranged wife won the round again for a second time. No worries though, I dont't think they can keep it up. Big E is safe for another week .....

I hope that these teams tip the taxi cabs very well.

And now they figure it out .... a time delay! Arrrrrrrrrggggggggggghhhhhhhhh! It looks like I am going down tonight. Obscenities are being spoken under my breath. It looks like both Pop and I are out of the race. We have been eliminated from the race! I still think they could have won the race, but I was wrong.

Little Elizabeth called me already!!!!! She could not remember if she or I chose the geeks. Well, Pop and I are out. To keep it fun, I am choosing another team but it will not count at the end (unless I change my mind). I think I will go with the ex wife and husband.

Another fun Sunday show. I hope that everyone enjoyed it with us.

No green tip this post. Have a great week.

PS - Roll Tide at number 2!!!! Can I get a heck yes???????

A quick update or two ...

2008-10-08T19:29:00.003-05:00

I'm trying that whole Tapas idea again ....

1. Three new blogs listed today. I found them Monday evening. Some of the posts on the pictures blog are a little risky, but many of them are really cool.

2. The two other blogs are based on some mothers saving a TON of MONEY buying groceries, etc. Can you imagine spending less than $800 dollars a year on food for your family? I am trying to figure out their secrets. Actually, they are blogging their secrets, maybe I will be able to figure out!!!???

3. Big day tomorrow, we go to our first training class on Jessicas new blood sugar monitoring gadget. We actually have to go to two of these classes.

4. We took the girls to the park Sunday for a little football action. I was the only one to suffer an injury.

5. Roll Tide! It was an ugly win, but a win all the same.

6. Elizabeth is getting her hair done tonight so I solo'd it for dinner. Steak Ranchero and beer!!!! No tapas there, I am stuffed. I better remember that her hair looks great when she gets home.

I hope you are having a great week. Leave me a comment with your favorite Amazing Race team.

Quick green tip: Cling wrap and really thin plastic wraps like you see at the deli or butcher are actually bad for your food. The chemicals used to make them plyable tend to leach into your food. Instead, use a wax or other paper before you wrap your foods in them. Many of the microwave safe and microwave steam bags have the same chemicals.

An amazing week two....

2008-10-05T20:11:00.003-05:00

First, the divorces from Texas are idiots. If you chose that team, then you need a mental examination. Basically, their night went like this .... Read clue number one, not checked. Read clue number two, not checked. Get kicked off ... missed it by the seat of their pants.

As for selecting our teams ... Brooke has chose the brother/sister team (the cheerleaders). I really wanted to chose that team, but Brooke called them first. Jessica chose the divorces team from Texas. Maybe I shouldn't have been so hard on them. Lil Bit chose the black couple team. Momma chose the Mom and son team. I like this chose from a sentimental standpoint, but these types of teams never work out.

For me, I will take the computer geeks team. The ones that came in second tonight. I fear that I will regret this decision, but at least they can speak Spanish, so that should help along the way. I just hope that they don't get involved in a foot race along the way.

As for the show tonight, not so good. I hate it when football goes long (better get used to it). It messes with the rest of shows for the night. I missed nearly 30 minutes of True Blood on HBO.

I hope that the rest of you had a good weekend. Elizabeth and I went to a party Saturday night for a friend that was turning 30 (a baby). Anyway, someone hired a belly dancer for the party. The young lady is a very beautiful young lady, who is obviously good at her trade. Even Elizabeth enjoyed the show. For those wondering in your minds, there was NO nudity about her show. I hope that Jeffrey enjoyed the show and the party.

As a family, we went to the park today to play a little football. We should be in a little better condition considering all of the walking and running that we have been doing!!!!! Apparently, the exercises thing is not helping to the degree that we think it should be helping.

I'll be back next week. Please leave a comment about which team you are going with for the Amazing Race.

Green tip of the Post: After that last tip, do you really need another tip so fast? Save some water, or some energy (turn your lights off) or something else!!!!

Saving Water ...

2008-10-04T15:09:00.006-05:00

Yesterday, we finally poured the concrete for the driveway extension. We've been planning and working toward this day for several months. Our neighbor is a concrete guy, so we were waiting to share a truck with him.

Jerry, his brother-in-law and I all met around 7:30 for breakfast and began working around 8:45 when the truck arrived. For his house, Jerry was pouring a new walkway in the backyard and for our home, we were pouring an extension to the driveway (about 90 square feet).

For the walkway, we had to transfer the concrete via wheelbarrows, all 72 loads! To say that I hurt yesterday and today would be an understatement. Luckily when it came time to pour the driveway, we didnt have to use wheelbarrows any longer!!!!

It's awesome to have quality neighborrs and this is just one example of the quality of our neighbors.

Switching subjects, this morning Elizabeth decided to bath Rusty. Rusty recently got into the trash can and the sticky syrup from the cinnamon buns was stuck to his coat. In addition, he smelled like a DOGGGGG!!!!!!!!! So, Elizabeth decided to bath Rusty.

Thankfully, Rusty is pretty good about taking baths, BUT he hates to be dried off. Rusty considers drying off to be a contact sport. I have learned to use two towels when drying him off; one for drying him and one for distracting him. The distracting towel is wrapped around my arm to allow him to bite and chew it without cutting me up. Occassionally, the towel will get loose and Rusty will sling it around side to side (which enivitably will swipe me across the face).

Anyway, the dog is clean, he smells clean, and I survived.

Green Tip of the Post: Save water by sharing a shower. Think about it, if two people share a shower, you are effectively cutting your water consumption in half!!!! I know, I know, I know what you are thinking!!!! If the length of the shower time is doubled as a result of sharing, then you haven't saved any water, BUT you probably had a little fun. Sometimes, its OK to have a little fun, despite the impact.

We tried this theory this morning!!!!! WoooooooHooooooooo!!!!!!!!!1

Elizabeth shared her shower with ...... Rusty!!!! Did you think that I was going to say something different (get your mind out of the gutter)? Its true, Elizabeth bathed Rusty while taking her shower this morning. Now, that is conservation.

Its Amazing ....

2008-09-28T20:03:00.002-05:00

Whooo Hooo, the new season of Amazing Race started tonight. We watch a lot of television in this house, and the Amazing Race is one of our favorite reality shows. This marks the thirteenth season and if the rest of the season is as fun as the first episode, it will be a good one.

If your not familiar with the show or missed tonights episode, you can catch up here. We will be selecting our favorite teams during the second episode. If you would like to play along with us, chose a team and post it in the comments. I will post our teams in the next blog.

Speaking of television, tonight is also the season kickoff for several other shows which means the beginning of the "who is going to the bedroom to watch television" season. Sunday is our biggest conflict night between Desperate Housewives, Brother and Sisters, True Blood, Skins, BBC Specials, Cold Case, football, etc. So, I am sitting on the bed watching True Blood while Elizabeth watches Desperate Housewives.

I've got a little trip lined up for tomorrow evening. A few freinds and I are going to Birmingham to see a concert. The headlining band is Clutch. Clutch has a really unique sound that reflects influences of punk, hard rock, and stoner rock with a subtle shot of southern rock. Check them out at their website.

Green Tip: As I mentioned a few posts ago, I was going to postpone the green posts for a few weeks while we did a better job of getting the previous tips in place. Instead of providing a new tip this time, I thought I would provide an update for everyone. Since Elizabeth starting getting hardcore about the recycling in the house, we have cut our weekly trash output to the dump in half. Its amazing at how little is actually going into the trash now.

On the water front, I am starting to monitor our water usage a little more closely. We had a huge spike in water usage during the month of the bathroom remodel. I know its only been a couple of months since the remodel was complete but it looks the volume output is going to trend down approximately 1000 gallons a month.

Ladies Playing Golf ...

2008-09-27T18:47:00.003-05:00

It's no secret that Big E and I enjoy a day on the links. Today, we tried something a little different, we went to see the LPGA play in Prattville, AL. This was our first professional golf tournament to attend. The ladies are playing the "Senator" course at the Robert Trent Jones Trail in Prattville. The RTJ as we affectionately call it in Alabama is rated as one of the best public places to play golf in America. The tournament is the Navistar tournament.

We arrived around 9:00 AM this morning and promptly found a great location at the par three sixteenth hole. From our vantage point, we had a clear view of the sixteenth, a view of the green at twelfth and with a little leg work, we had views of three other holes.

Regretfully, one of my favorite female golfers did not participate in the tournament. However, many of the best females did participate. We really enjoyed the day at the course. After returning home, we watched ourselves on the Golf Channel. Its true that television adds twenty pounds (at least) to a person.

If you want to see a beautiful Scottish highlands style course, check out the coverage on the Golf Channel.

Alabama is about to start now, so I will go. Rollllll Tiiiidddddeee.

From Theives to Fugitives

2008-09-25T18:44:00.006-05:00

So I was thinking that the follow up to the last blog would be a brighter day and a better subject ... HOWEVER, at the Lee house the drama keeps getting better and better.

I started this blog because of a string of dramatic moments at our house and I thought it would be fun to document and share those moments. Actually, I was drinking and figured that one day I would look back on these moments and ..... 1. remember them and 2. find them funny. Again, sorry mom, I am only trying to tell the truth.

With three teenage girls, I feel that I am overly qualified to discuss boy troubles, best friends gone bad, he said/she said situations, and every other form of drama involved in growing up today (except the drama of being a cheerleader, thank God for the little things).

Since starting the blog, I've had a few really funny moments to document including a few that I didn't share to save myself the memories. Funnier, some didn't even involve the girls, which should be a lesson learned for you parents of little people!!!! It's true, mom (rarely but sometimes dad) are sometimes the drama.

Yesterday, we received one of those ultimate drama moments. One of those, rock you to your socks moments, when I fear for the life of my kids and the freedom of my wife. Let me preach on this one for a moment ....

After getting home, Elizabeth went to check the mail and retrieve the usual, bills. Instead of bills, Elizabeth held in her hand an official document from the Montgomery County Courthouse with Jessica's name on it. I am going to spare everyone a few of the words that were spoken at this point, but let's just say that Jessica went from child 1 to child 5.

After opening what she thought would be a running a red light ticket, Big E learned that Jessica was a wanted fugitive!!!!! NO JOKE, Jessica is a "Wanted Man" or woman in this case.

After much discussion and fretting, Elizabeth and I left for our weekly dinner at one of the local Mexican restaurants. Fat boy must eat.

So this morning, they headed out for the local traffic court. After a little discussion with the little lady behind the counter, Elizabeth finally figured out that someone had screwed up. There are a total of four Jessica Knights in the Montgomery area and one of them had managed to get a ticket for running a red light, BUT, she apparently didn't bother to pay the bill. As a result, the county was looking for her!!!

The problem was that the county was looking for the wrong Jessica and the wrong one was ours.

Now, looking at the warrants, Jessica was wanted for not paying the bill for "driving without a drivers license" and for "driving without insurance". Two out of three of these problems were directed at our daughter but one managed to make it to the appropriate person (running a red light). This only fueled the problem with Big E who requested a supervisor as soon as the lady behind the counter presented her "I could care less" attitude.

At this point, fear for our daughter disappears and fear for the courthouse employee kicks in ....

Luckily, the supervisor had a some sense OR his "pissed off mom" radar went off and he realized it was time to back peddle. The bottom line is that Big E was promptly presented with official documents from the city stating that Jessica is not a criminal. I don't know if this will pacify her or not, but I pray for the soul of the one that created the issue should she pursue it further (and our checkbook too).

Anyway, our Jessica is not a wanted person!!!! She still got a lesson learned by spending her morning hanging out at the traffic court watching the innocent and not so innocent people pleading their cases. I fear for the idiot that made whatever mistake he/she made and the supervisor, and the manager, and the city councilman, etc.

Until next time .... check these TAPAs .....

1. Jessica was accepted to Faulkner University.
2. Jessica received another letter today from Faulkner letting us know that she will receive 50% off her tuition.

Those are both awesome, but even better ...

1. The new AC/DC album comes out in a few weeks.
2. I got AWESOME tickets to see AC/DC in Atlanta this past Saturday!!!
3. Elizabeth is scarred and I don't blame her.