I Was Tagged Again

So I was tagged again. This time Senja got even with me. Just wait Sen...

I'm supposed to share 10 Childhood Memories. Great. I can't remember where I left my head and you want me to remember way back to my childhood??? I may have to call my mom for help, but here I go:

1. I remember finding Santa Claus asleep on my couch one early Christmas morning. Well, he wasn't exactly sleeping. It was more like passed out from too much "eggnog"! Santa turned out to be my Uncle Billy. He had a big bushy red beard, a beer belly, red hair - what there was of it, and was wearing a red union-suit (you know, one-piece long johns with the trap-door in the back). We were soooo excited we rushed in to wake up the 'rents and told them Santa was snoring on the couch!!!
2. I remember hiding from our German Shephard, Heidi, in the tall grass in the backyard. My mom would keep the dog in the house while we ran outside to hide. Then she would sic the dog on us, I mean tell the dog to find us. It was pretty funny!
3. We used to get a lot more snow in the winter than we do now. I remember once we had a blizzard and they closed school for a week. I think that's when my Mom developed that eye twitch. Anyway, we lived at the bottom of a big hill so there was no way we were going anywhere. We packed down all the snow in the street in front of our house and used it to shoe-skate on!
4. One winter we built igloos in the backyard. We even poured water over them so they were covered in a layer of ice. One of our dogs used to climb up and slide off over and over again! Sean (my brother) made a giant snow ball (over 6' tall) and hollowed it out. It was so cool!
5. Easter egg hunts were always fun at our house!!! I remember the last year my parents used real eggs. Some of the eggs weren't found until the summer when the lawn mower sprayed the rotting object all over the yard!!!
6. I remember meeting my Granddad for the first time. My Mom is from England so I never met her side of the family until I was 10. Granddad had the most amazing heavy accent I've ever heard! He would talk and tell us stories and entertain us for hours. Then we would go ask my Mom what he said!
7. Granddad made the world's best buttered toast!!!!! He made it under the salamander (not the lizard, the broiler) and slathered on tons of fresh butter!!!! YUM!!!! I, who hate to get up early, would get up at 5am just so Granddad would make my toast!
8. I remember throwing snails over the wall at the brats who lived behind my grandparents in England. They deserved it!!!!
9. (Sen, you will like this one.) My Nanny (grandmother in England) is very OCD. When we would have a meal together, you did NOT leave the table for any reason!!!! If you did, your plate would be scrubbed clean and put away. And if you wanted to drive Nanny crazy just leave crumbs on the table cloth!
10. My Dad's grandma lived in the hills of West Virginia. Actually, she lived on the side of a mountain. There was no running water, no electric, and you had to leave the car on the other side of the creek and hike over on the 2x4s while carrying all your junk (yeah, fell in that muddy creek many times). Anyway, once the oil lamps were put out at night, things got interesting. If you had to go potty, it involved waking my Mom and Dad, getting a gun and loading it, checking the floor and shoes for snakes (the cellar was full of snakes), grabbing a couple of flashlights, and hiking to the outhouse. My Dad would check for bears as we walked and then he would have to make sure the outhouse was free of critters. Needless to say, I don't like camping or roughing it! Porta-potties and outhouses freak me out!!!!

Now it's my turn to inflict pain on 5 others. Who shall I choose this time?!

1. Stacy because you need something to keep you busy.
2. Robin because I haven't bugged you in a while.
3. Sophie's Mom because I think you will have fun with this!
4. Kris because I'm dying to see your answers!
5. Shelly because I haven't tagged you ever!

Revealed

I have received some questions about the traveling trio so I though it would be easier to just post the answers here.

1. Above are the three photos I used. I removed the backgrounds from each photo, adjusted the colors, and put the girls together. Then the trio was ready for their adventures.
2. Yes, I made the dresses.
3. No, the girls don't live/play near each other. The girls have never met. Kieren is in Ohio. Linlee is in Washington (State). Rachel is in Texas.
4. Why are they posed that way? These were the best photos of each of them. You work with what you've got!
5. No, the girls are not from the same SWI. We didn't even travel at the same time. The Mommies know each other through our DTC group (Dossier To China). After all of our paperwork went to China (within the same month), we joined an online group and became friends!
6. The hardest part with creating the photos? All of our cameras are different. Colleen (Linlee's Mommy) has a brand new camera that takes awesome shots and makes my camera look pathetic! I just try to make the photos match as close as I can.
7. Why do I do this? Why not?! I started doing this last year. It's fun to see where the girls will go next!

So now you know my sordid little secrets. Stay tuned for the next adventure!

The Adventure Continues...

Well, the girls have been at it again! They have new outfits and have started their new adventures. This time the girls decided to go back to where they took their final steps as Chinese nationals. What better way to celebrate Memorial Day than to remember this important place!!! For those who have not become acquainted with it yet, this is the building that houses the American Embassy in Guangzhou. The girls took their oath here (actually the parents did it for them).

Where did the girls go next? Why shopping, of course!!! Shamian Island is THE place to shop! I'm scared to check my bank card.

From what Kieren told me, the trip was a blast! The tickets were from "a friend" so I guess that's okay. I'm told Linlee had a great time shopping and Rachel taught all the local children to say "Dora rocks"! Kieren wouldn't tell me where they were going next or when, so I guess we'll just have to wait and see.

Photos from Easter

Yes, you read that right. These photos are actually from before Easter! No, I'm not a slacker, well I am, but not about this! I just got a new scanner and I am finally able to scan these. Anyway, my parents' neighbor is a wonderful photographer. She uses their yard all the time for photo-shoots. These photos were taken in their backyard. I know it looks so fake! Ian was having pictures taken so we put Kieren in a few of them too. They turned out really well, but you can see that for yourself!

Photos of Ian & Kieren at Easter

Looking Back

I was scanning photos of Kieren tonight. My Mom's neighbor is a wonderful photographer and did photos last year of Kieren in her first Easter dress. This year Ian was having his photos done so we put Kieren in her Easter dress and got some beautiful shots again! This year's photos were taken outside in my parents' yard (no, it is not a fake backdrop). Anyway, I was comparing the photos from this year and last. It's amazing how fast Kieren is changing. She even looks different now, than she did at Easter. Of course I will post more photos, but I just wanted to show the two years together.

Kieren in her Easter dress. (2006 on left/2007 on right)

What a difference a year can make! (2006/2007)

UGH!

After such a long and exhausting weekend, it is time to collapse! I will post about the rest of our weekend tomorrow. Right now, I agree with Kieren. I just want to bury my head under a pillow and sleep. I hope everyone had a wonderful weekend and took time to reflect and be thankful for the men and women who make this country what it is. Good-night!

Boat Babies

I Love This Boat!!!!

20 Years of Lizard Lust

Oh. Did I get your attention with that title?? Well, I guess I can try to explain it. 20 years ago, Andy (my husband, for those just joining the show) and his college roomies started a yearly tradition of spending Memorial Day Weekend together at "Lizard Lodge". Jeff (The Godfather to the kids) and his dad (Grandpa Carl) have a cottage on Willow Isle, Indian Lake. I won't go into the whole thing about why they call themselves "Lizards", but let's just say they are men and leave it at that.

Anyway, this is their 20th year for the man-weekend. Andy has only missed one and yes, it was my fault, dammit! Nothing against the guys, but I was NOT spending our honeymoon with them!!!! So the boys are yucking it up again this year and of course we were asked (?) to come up to visit. Really the guys just wanted me to drop off Cullen and they wanted to see Kieren. So I schlepped (sp?) both kids and all their junk to the lake this afternoon. Nothing like spending 3.5 hours (1.5 hours up and 2 hours back) cursing the slow drivers (20 miles UNDER the speed limit) in front of you while you pray for a clear passing zone that just never happens. Okay enough griping. On the plus-side, it was 10 degrees cooler at the lake!!!! So here are the guys plus one doll.

The first Lizard Weekend - 1987 (I'm soooo dead when the guys see this!!!) BTW, that my husband in the apron!

20th Anniversary Lizard Weekend - 2007

(Back Row: Grandpa Carl aka "Coach" and Andy aka "Drew";

Front Row: Larry aka "Iceman", Tom aka "Admiral", Cullen, Don aka "Don Juan", & Jeff aka "JJ Flash")

Kieren and the boys (A rose among the thorns!)

This is a close-up of the above photo. Note the "why me" position! This was not staged!!!!

Kieren and Cullen with Uncle Larry. Kieren really liked Larry! She even sat on his lap and kissed him good-bye!!!! The man is now her slave.

A Time To Remember...

...what it really means to be an American.

...those who have fought for everything we take for granted.

...those who were never brought home.

...those who have fallen.

...why I can run barefoot in the sun.

...to thank my Papaw in Heaven, my Pops, my Uncle Bob, my Uncle Matt, and all the people I don't know who have served or are still serving in the armed forces. Bless you all.

My 8

Okay, I tagged myself with this one just because Kerri at The Monkey King couldn't think of anyone to tag. So here are 8 things you may not know about me.

1. I don't get mad (well maybe sometimes I get mad), I get even.
2. I once hit my brother in the head with a large can of Hi-C when we were kids. Why? See #1.
3. Fake English accents really piss me off! My Mom is a Brit so don't mess with me!
4. Heather and I have burping contests (sorry to rat on you, H). I am undefeated!
5. I really miss my dog, Fitch. He's been gone for over 2 years. I can still see the look in his eyes as the doctor gave him the shot that sent him to Doggie Heaven. I still have his sweet brother Abercrombie, but Fitchie was my baby. *sniff*
6. Fitch's ashes are sitting in a plain white cardboard box on my curio cabinet. What the heck do you do with a cremated dog??????
7. I hate HATE HATE baseball!!!!!! It's all I can do to sit through Cullen's games every week!!!
8. I've only slept with one man in my life. (Of course it's my husband! DUH!)

Okay, you've learned some weird things about me. So, I'm too tired to play tag tonight. If you haven't been tagged yet, consider yourself tagged now! Leave me a comment if you are playing!!!

Where's Kieren?

TURN IT UP!!!!


Stickers
Uploaded by drewnsam No animals or small children were harmed to make this film. Yes, those are stickers in Kieren's hair!

You Are SOOOOO BUSTED!

Guess who got busted again?!

This time Kieren got into Cullen's game cabinet and pulled everything out.

Can't I use the potty just once without the little stinker getting into something????

Oh! The Mommy-Guilt!!!

Could you walk away from this face to go to a meeting that you really didn't want to attend in the first place???? Try adding the sobbing and calling for "Mama" over and over... Yeah. Mommy-guilt, direct hit! Ouch!

Just Because...