Memories of Granny O

My Granny O passed away last Sunday...my last grandparent. As I think of them, I will share some fond memories of her.

As a kid we used to go the the lake on the weekends...the whole family. We would get to her house really early in the morning. The house would smell like fried chicken, boiled peanuts, and pound cake! To this day, everytime I eat a boiled peanut, I think of this.

Home Improvement!

We decided to rip up the carpet and go for it with some really nice laminate flooring. This is some really great, solid stuff, and it looks so great! It's hard work, but we are having a ball putting it down. We make quite the team! Here's one of sort of a 'before' of the breakfast nook.
I tried to find a 'before' shot. Here's a little bit of one.

Has it been a year?

Geez. It's been almost a year since I last posted. Lots of stuff happened. Hubby got laid off and it took 8 months for him to find another job. He has a job he enjoys, with a much more improved work environment. So, that's good. My youngest made the Varsity Cheerleading squad at her highschool, so that has made for a really fun year! Lots of football games, then on to 2 competitions. We had a blast watching her. Next year will be her senior year, so we are looking to some fun stuff with that. A major milestone!

Our oldest and her hubby built a new home. It's really nice and they are enjoying decorating it. Christmas was fun for them getting to hang lights on their new home. We made her a really pretty wreath for her door, too!.

I caught up with my friends from elementary school. We used to play Barbies all the time. What a treat it was to reunite and see them again! The 'Divas of DeCarlo Lane'! LOL!

We celebrated our 30th anniversary, our youngest turned Sweet 16, Highschool Homecoming, Cheerleading competitions, holidays, my youngest found a new boyfriend, my baby sister turned 40! My goodness what a year it has been! Looking back, seeing how God has blessed our family this past year, through all the uncertainty...I know He'll continue to watch and care for us through 2010, too. He's been faithful.

So, here are a few pics from the past year...just to catch up.

Thirty Years Ago Today...

Still going strong! Went to Ruth's Chris Steakhouse to celebrate. Allen wore his tux, needless to say, we got a few looks! But hey, why do we not use the good china and silver more often? We need to celebrate our lives more! So...we did! So bust out the tuxes and bling and enjoy!

Fifty Years...and Counting

Then...


and Now...



Happy Fiftieth Anniversary, Mom and Dad!

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This Weekend's Project

We made a wedding cake for a friend of my husband, who got married on Saturday.
So, how long does something like this take, you may ask?
Baking: 5 hours
Mixing Frosting: About an hour and half to make all the batches needed - this one needed 3
Crumb Coat layer: About an hour - crumb coat lock in the cake crumbs to keep them from getting into the final frosting layer. A crumb coat is a MUST for a chocolate cake...which this was.
Final Coat: About 2 hours, including waiting for the frosting to set up.
Smoothing: The hand-smoothing process, using waxed paper, takes another hour and a half or so.
Applying Decorations: It depends on how ornate it is. This one was fairly simple, so it took about an hour to put all the trim on and arrange the flowers.
Total Project time: 12 hours

Okay, so the guys on Ace of Cakes do it faster...I guess, but then I'm not a pro. LOL!

Then...how long does it take to cut it up and eat it??? About 20 minutes! LOL! (I always hate that part!)

Full Moon

_MG_7297, originally uploaded by Steinway13064.

Mmmm, Mmmm, Good!

More Christmas Stuff

The Grandkids...Papa likes to torture them with a group picture every year. Here's the 2008 edition!



As compared to the 2007 edition:



Bascially, Will's hair is less volumnous, otherwise, not a lot of significant change. RJ is even wearing the same Snoopy Christmas T-Shirt. My sister is so into Snoopy! LOL!

Here's the obligatory 'Youngest Grandkid's Fantasy' for 2008:



As you can see, I was not the one with his 'focus'.

As compared with same said pose from 2007:



My shot from last year was much better...It's always nice when your subject is looking at you! ;-)

Christmas Craziness

This is my husband - my hero - and my sister...my best friend.

KBBC Music Christmas Party_20081219_0053, originally uploaded by Steinway13064.

This is my Dad. He is also my hero.

Actually, this was a game we played at a party at church. Each table had to race to blow up balloons, then fill each leg of a pair of panty hose. The end result was crazy looking reindeer antlers that must be place on a team member's head. The first team to accomplish this highly challenging feat, was the winner! We were laughing so hard at everyone, we almost never got calmed back down to move on to the next game!

O Christmas Tree, O Christmas Tree...

O Christmas Tree, O Christmas Tree..., originally uploaded by Steinway13064.

My Cracker Barrel Tree! We found a bunch of cute ornaments at Cracker Barrel...that's mostly what's on here. We will add some of the family favorites, also, but I went the 'Designer Tree' direction this year.

The Christmas Box

120808_0003, originally uploaded by Steinway13064.

My friend gave me this tonight. She is one of the sweetest, most cretaive people I know. She's been there through thick and thin...She is a very special lady!

BFFs

BFFs, originally uploaded by Steinway13064.

These ladies have been friends for as long as I can remember.

The Moon and...Stars???

DCN120208030, originally uploaded by Steinway13064.

I took these Monday night, thinking it was the moon and just two bright little stars! On the weather last night, John Gaughn talked about them and explained what they were...Planets! The one on the left is Venus and the one on the right is Jupiter. How cool is that! If only my lens was longer! Oh well, it's pretty amazing!

Thankful for a gorgeous Sunset

DCN112608006a, originally uploaded by Steinway13064.

Night Shot

DCN112108081, originally uploaded by Steinway13064.

There ain't nothin' like an "L" lens! So fine!

Skywatch Friday #18

111508001, originally uploaded by Steinway13064.

Dames Point Bridge in Jacksonville, Florida.

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Skywatch Friday #15

I lift mine eyes towards Heaven, from whence cometh my help

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