Don't Give Me the Stink Eye...I'll Put It on the Interwebs...

Loves ya C-O-D! :)

Ella By A Tree...

How cute is this dress? It's by Blessed Be The Name. How cute was this dress?

Ella wore this dress one time. That's right. One Time.
She promptly got on her scooter and ripped two giant holes in the back. I had literally take the tags off hours before this picture and the demise of the dress. Boo hoo.

What A Jack A$$...

Hadley with the donkey. I couldn't resist using an "ugly word" (as my mother would say) in the title. Hey, at least I censored it a little bit, so maybe she won't yell at me. :)

Devastation All Around Me...

To help Alabama....

http://www.servealabama.gov/2010/2011%20Tornadoes/Response.aspx

http://blog.al.com/spotnews/2011/04/alabama_tornadoes_how_you_can.html


The news has probably already told you about the series of deadly tornadoes that came through Alabama on Wednesday. We are okay. Many are not. We live in North Alabama, and our power comes from TVA. Approximately 614,000 homes have been without power since Wednesday. Many are also without water.

The surrounding communities have experienced loss and destruction unlike anything I have seen in the past three plus decades of living here.  A lovely family that I attend church with lost basically everything. Their house is gone. Today, I picked up several loads of their laundry that volunteers were able to salvage from the wreckage. I'm hoping to get it washed and to them tonight or first thing in the morning.

My maternal side of the family lives in Tuscaloosa. Thankfully, they are all okay. Homes were damaged but can be repaired. Much of the family is camping out at my Aunt's house because she still has power and water. Jay's brother and his family are displaced at the moment. They are so unbelievably blessed. They could see the tornado coming for their house when it changed directions. They have some damage that will have to be repaired, but they are safe. Thank goodness!

Our family is lucky. We receive power from Wilson Dam and have only experienced brief power loss Wednesday night. Cell phone reception is spotty. At best. Phone, Internet, and cable were gone until today.

Please, please, please pray, send good thoughts into the universe, or volunteer to help the families who have lost homes and loved ones.



Most of you know that I am the queen of scheduling posts for future dates. I am going to continue to let those happy-go-lucky posts pop up, but I will be doing some updates on the situation in Alabama over the next few days now that I have Internet access.

Mmmmmm, Can I Have Another?...

The Tiniest Little Scar...

For those of you who have followed the blog or followed me on twitter for a while.....

Remember when Ella had a tumor on her face that had to be removed? And we got sent to a plastic surgeon because it was on her face?

You can see the little bitty scar in this picture.

Considering they took out a dime sized chunk of her skin, I think it looks pretty darn good! She still has an ointment that she uses on it once a day, and it is still fading. By the time she's my age, no one will ever even know that she had it done.

Funny Bunny...

A local photographer was doing Easter pictures with live bunnies. Ella and Layton were game for a photo shoot. Not really Hadley's bag. She's almost 12, so getting her in a picture is kind of like trying to visit the DMV. Most of the pictures turned out fabulous!

They petted the bunny....

They gave kisses....

And then, their personalities came out of hidng.....

Send Prozac. Stat.

Cuddle Bugs...

Ella is my cuddle bug. She loves to climb into bed with me at night and get cuddling. That's what she calls it. I rub her head and her belly. We talk and she lays in my arms. It's her special time with me. At the farm one night, Kaye walked into the kitchen and said that I would just have to get a picture of what was going on in the master bedroom. 

Ella and Lacey had gotten under the covers for some cuddling. :) So, so sweet!!

What Wonder...

What do you think he was doing in this picture?

Every Day With Ella...

Every day with Ella is much like Forrest Gump's proverbial chocolate box. You really never know what you are going to get.


She'll give you a smile...

But as quickly as you release the shutter, she'll give you another pose....

And then she'll take it over the top....

Life with Ella is unpredictable and messy and full of tears and laughter.
Life with Ella is full of passion and excitement.
Life with Ella.

Quit Looking at Me...

I think Pretty Boy is tired of having his picture made.

Eggs, Eggs, and Eggs...

Does your family dye eggs? Or Buy eggs?

This Easter we did a little of both.

We hunted eggs for a long time at the farm. I brought over 100 eggs! The plastic ones were filled with treats and candy. Hopefully we found all the real eggs. I forgot to count them after the kids hunted. Guess if there is a smelly mess out by the farm house this week.......

I missed a boiled egg or two. :)

Gosh, She is Serious...

This was at a birthday party.

For reals.

Little Friends...Yep, I'm About to Get Sued...

My children have the sweetest little friends. No, I did not get permission to put these pictures on my blog, so a lawsuit is probably impending. If your child is shown below, take mercy on my soul. Please.


This little darling is a fraternal twin. At the Easter egg hunt for preschool, she kept hamming it up for me! What do you think, does she ever get her picture made at home? Hmmmmm. :)

 Reid can whack a wiffle ball like nobody's business! Just check out the goose egg on the right side of Layton's forehead next time you see him. HA!

Bubble makers are a huge hit, and these three had a blast at a birthday party with one!

This was absolutely too cute for words!! The little kids at a birthday party were playing hide and go seek. Precious Avery needed help counting past twenty, so Sara leaned down by her ear and counted with her. It was so unbelievably sweet!

And this face? Oh my word! Even though we go to church together, and I've known his parents for a while now, he looked up at me and said, "I'm Harper." Then, he tilted his head. Too cute!

Little Emma is just soooooo sweet! She reminds me of Ella in some ways. She has a very serious demeanor, but when she giggles, she lights up!

And, what would a post about sweet little friends be without a picture of someone with ice cream?!?!?! Yep, Olivia enjoyed every last bite!

Parents, feel free to beat me within an inch of my life. :)

Up in Ella's Face...

Nope, I would never get right up in one of my children's faces and take a picture.

That would be so unlike me. :)

What a Face?!?!...

She cracks me up!

The faces she makes are just too much!

Sometimes He's Only Still...

A lot of my pictures of Layton are of him laying, lying, (whatever the correct word is) down. A lot of days that's the only time he's still enough to get a picture of him that isn't blurry.

He wiggles and giggles and stays on the go. I imagine that is how I was as a child. When I was growing up, I knew I moved around a lot because one of my parents was always telling me to be still, but I guess I never thought about it much until Layton came along. I was a giant ball of energy. He is a giant ball of energy. He is mine. Through and through.

Watch Out Woods...Layton Is Ready to Rumble...

Just Another Day with Chop...

Just Because...

She Requested...

Ella the drama queen loves to have her picture made. When she saw this particular photo, she kept going on and on about how beautiful she thought her hair looked.

Maybe this is where I should point out that Ella has Who Hair. You know, the Whos in Whoville. Bless her heart; her hair is so very thin and breaks so easy. It has a touch of curl, and it's a miracle when I have it under control. Some days she walks out of school looking so wilted. :)

Do any of you have super fine, breakable hair? What are the best shampoos? Any styling advice?

Wordless Wednesday?...

Did I Mention He Is Fun?...