Lee Party of 3

Home-Ec

2012-01-31T11:15:00.002-06:00

I think my 7th & 8th grade Home-Ec class appears to be paying off :) I've been busy with a few projects.

Made myself a purse out of an old dress

This is as close to an Alabama elephant as I am capable of. LOL! It was a bday gift.

AK requested an owl pillow

And a new school book bag

Well, I couldn't be left out of the new bag movement. :c)

And a few accessories for me

Brief Visit from Ohio

2012-01-31T10:47:00.002-06:00

My parents came down for a quick visit over the MLK holiday. While here we played all the games AK got for Christmas, including Headbandz. It's so much fun and funny. Take a look..... (sorry Mom :) )

LOLOLOL! It really is a fun game.

Mom also helped me learn to use my new Cricut. Thank goodness, because that thing was on its way to under my car....

Here are a couple of my first projects

There's a tiny little wrinkle, but overall I'm proud

Jeff wanted his username for the AU football board on the golf cart. Won't I be cute when I'm driving the golf cart????

It was a short visit, but a good one :)

Just in the knick of time!

2012-01-31T10:00:00.002-06:00

See, I did manage to update again before the month was over :) LOL!

A few weekends ago, Anna Kate went to her bff's birthday party at Fun Zone. It was AK's first time rollerskating, and I have to say, she did very well. She was VERY determined to get it, and of course, there were multiple moments of frustration, but she never gave up. I was proud of her! However, I got in some serious trouble for laughing at her....I just couldn't help it. You'll see, just watch this video...

Tell me she doesn't look just.like Tim Conway on the Carol Burnette show!!!!!!!! Skating to Michael Jackson. Bwahahaha!!!

AK's expression is priceless. She totally doesn't trust whatever Anslee is telling her. LOL!

But then she gave it a go

And gained some confidence

But she wanted a quick break, so my mom pushed her on the skooter for a bit

Aren't they cute in their laser tag gear? :)

Bumper cars!!

It was great fun!

New Year's Project

2012-01-06T11:12:00.002-06:00

You would think that I would learn my lesson about suggesting a home project because, I always end up being the one to complete the project.

And now....

Rest assured, I've learned my lesson ;-) LOL!

Resolution Wins out

2012-01-05T10:03:00.002-06:00

I told myself I wasn't going to make any New Year's resolutions this year because I just stress myself about it throughout the year. Then I decided that I actually need a goal to work towards (among my many other projects.) So, after a few days of thinking about it, I have realized how badly our blog has been neglected. I know many family members and friends actually look forward to our updates since the majority are out of state, so Lee Party of 3 wins out :) Happy Dad??? LOL

Just a bunch of stuff

2011-06-14T22:25:00.002-05:00

Hope you have on your 'decipher-Katie's-mumbo-jumbo' hat, cause this is just going to be a random update of a bunch of stuff :)

We have really been enjoying our summer so far.

Anna Kate and I have been swimming several times.

And every weekend we go out on the boat and play on the lake with friends.

Which apparently is the perfect place to choreograph this rad dance routine...

LOLOLOL!!!!

Then AK decided they needed more time to choreograph, so she spent the night with her friends. When she got home the next morning she climbed up on our bed and passed out for four hours.

Choreography is hard work!

While she slept I worked on new beach towels for us.

This is Anna Kate's

And this is mine

Jeff wouldn't let me put anything on his, so no need for a picture.

Anna Kate's desk has needed a paint job for some time now, so I decided to just do it. Don't you just love the monogram I painted?!

Every summer Jeff and I look forward to fresh tomatoes, baby Lima beans and peas. Today he came home with all of that minus the peas (they're not ready yet). He also bought some fresh sausage, so we made it a family affair to prepare, separate and freeze it.

AK chose to help with patting the sausage...ICK!

while I blanched the beans.

Two hours later we had a freezer full of pork sausage patties and baby Lima beans. YUMMY!!!!

That's all folks!

Random Summer Thoughts

2011-06-05T11:12:00.002-05:00

I forgot to post last weekend's Memorial Day pictures.....all two of them, so I'll just skip them :) Honest, they aren't anything special.

Anna Kate and I went to the pool this week. It was AWESOME! We had the entire pool to ourselves.

Mermaid AK was in pure heaven!

She insisted on bringing her own umbrella chair even though the pool provides them.

My paradise...

We will be going again this week!

Since everyone we know is either at the beach or headed down in the next few days (huff!) it got me to thinking ahead to our trip. What does our annual beach trip really mean for me? BEACH FAMILY PORTRAITS!!!! We do it every year and I always stress at the last minute trying to get outfits together. Well I already have it planned out :)

Jeff has a Columbia fishing shirt in the color blue that is in my dress. I think the colors will be nice :)

And, we are going to Gatlinburg the weekend of my birthday for a mini family vacation with my brother and his family. Since it will be July 4th, we (well really I) decided to do a photo shoot of the three girls together. I think red, white and blue will be perfect!

....okay, gotta go! The lake is calling our names!!!!

Summer Activities

2011-06-01T18:47:00.003-05:00

I can see already that it's going to be a long summer at home :) Anna Kate does not entertain herself very well for more than 15 minutes at a time. She HAS TO HAVE an activity to do. That means I am scouring the internet constantly for ideas. I've managed to plan at least one thing each day....so far. We've had fun!

Sidewalk Paint
- 3/4 cup of flour
- 1/2 cup of water
- food coloring

We have made numerous pieces of Bendaroo jewelry and food items, as well as painted cups and plates.

But I think this is AK's favorite activity so far:

Going to the library

She wanted to join the summer reading program - she has to read a minimum of 27 books by July 29th. She's well on her way at #12 :)

She's a proud reader!!!

What's up tomorrow? Well, I was thinking friendship bracelets or oven clay if we can't go swimming. Stay tuned....

One Time

2011-05-28T11:56:00.004-05:00

I don't think these girls will ever get tired of Justin Bieber. I mean, really. It's ridiculous.

Anna Kate had her BFF spend the night Wednesday since it was their last day of school. They wanted to make up dance routines to JB's song "One Time", but neither wanted to share the spotlight, so they each did one. Do you even know how hard it was for me not to bust out laughing?!?!!!!

Anna Kate's

Anslee's

Now you know that pretty dang funny!!!!!
But oh no, that wasn't enough. The next morning they came in the kitchen wearing this:

Aren't you digging Anslee's 'tuxedo'????

They even had various prom dances choreographed :)

Tie Dying

2011-05-28T11:53:00.003-05:00

Anna Kate loves to tie dye things, but her mama prefers to do the actual dying and let AK do the big reveal :)

Anna Kate wanted to do matching tanks for she and her BFF :)

I can see now that I will need an 'activity' of some sort everyday this summer or AK might die of boredom *insert rolling eyes here*.

Church Choir Concert

2011-05-28T11:42:00.002-05:00

These kids were so precious!!! They did better than any other age group! But before I post the videos I want to show you the pictures I took of AK.

I am in LOVE with these two!!!!

This one makes me laugh. She was laughing and had her squished down. It almost doesn't even look like her. Ha!

Music Makers (1st - 4th grade)

Love this song!

And the closing number

I see show choir in their future!!!

Weren't they great!?!!!

Before I Get Disowned....

2011-05-28T11:25:00.002-05:00

My dad actually asked me earlier in the week if I had changed the address to my blog. How sad is that?! It's been that long since I updated....sorry about that. One would think since I'm at home now (instead of working) that I would have a ton of free time on my hands. One would be wrong. LOL!

Field Day Fun Day
At the end of every school year the school has an activity day for the kids. Parents are asked to volunteer to help, which I have always done. This year I was assigned to the baton relay. Let me preface this by saying that it was honestly 98 degrees out and for whatever reason, our 'station' was the ONLY one that didn't have a tent for shade. Awesome. I won't go into a lot of details, but suffice it to say that between a water slide (that the parents didn't know about, therefore didn't dress our children appropriately), wet/sticky clothes and shoes, hot, thirsty and ill, it was pretty much a disaster.

I knew the minute I saw the water slide that if that was the first thing Anna Kate's class go on, she would be ready to go home as soon as she got off of it. And I was right. Our station was right after the slide, so putting shoes on wet and dirty feet to run a relay was not what those kids wanted to do....AK chose to sit out for the relay, so I took pictures of her BFF, Anslee.

She was so hot!!!

This was the only picture I was able to get of AK

Jumping hurdles :)

Between finding a snake, breaking up two fights, hauling one off to the principle and having two special needs boys wondering around without a teacher in sight, well, I was so relieved when my three-hour shift was up! AK and I bolted before anyone could stop us....

Tuesday's Tally

2011-05-10T16:53:00.003-05:00

Here are the projects I completed today (aside from demolding Jeff's bathroom and laundry) :c)

Matching Shabby Chic Dresses

Look close, because I even made my own bias tape, and trust me, that is a miracle itself!!!

Anna Kate was SOOO excited!

Now I have a request to make another one for Julianne (the Bitty Baby)....

As I was putting my things up I came across all my scraps of fabric. I did a quick Google search for ideas on how to use those scraps.

This is what I came up with

A new camera strap cover :)

I LURVE it! Don't you?

And that wraps up Tuesday's Tally :c)

Pom-Pom Garland

2011-05-09T11:34:00.002-05:00

How stinking cute is this?!!!!

I followed THIS TUTORIAL then strung them on a long piece of yarn to make a garland. I LOVE how it turned out!!! Gives just enough pizazz to the window.

Mother's Day!

2011-05-08T20:13:00.002-05:00

Anna Kate woke me up early this morning with a decorated folder full of gifts she made at school. SO.STINKING.CUTE!!!! After we got ready for church we did a mini photo shoot that I am SO happy with :-)

Following church and lunch we hit the lake. Honestly, I don't think there is anything more relaxing, other than the beach, than cruising on the boat.

It was a perfect Mother's Day!!!! :-)

**Happy Mother's Day to all the mothers in our lives. We genuinely missed spending time with each of you.**

Picnics, Paintings, Pretty Rooms & Princess

2011-05-06T21:57:00.004-05:00

Confused? LOL! Let me explain...

We attended Jeff's work picnic last Saturday. It was fun, but hot. We even had matching shirts ;-)

And this week I worked on several projects. Here, I'll show you.

I painted this bulletin board for my great-niece who is turning one! The theme of her party is princess, so I think it's fitting :)

Then I decided AK needed one. Well of course she had to pick out the design and what she wanted written on it.

So once I hung her bulletin board I started fiddling with the rest of her room.

Her bedside table

Desk

I love this friends frame :)

A bed fit for a princess

Barkley trying to blend in with the rest of the animals - ha!

Anna Kate attended the annual Night With the Queens Relay for Life fundraiser tonight. She loves the event and looks forward to it every year. She was so excited for her princess makeover :)

She met up with her BFF and the reigning Little Miss Eufaula, Anslee :)

Here she is with her 'big sister' and reigning Teen Miss Eufaula, Kaitlyn

Devouring her favorite - Little Ceasar's Pizza

A bunch of tired and impatient princesses waiting for the crowning ceremony to begin

A puppet show with Miss Eufaula emphasizing how God wants us all to be beautiful on the inside :)

Let the crowning begin!

This is Britten, Anslee's little sister. She was so cute and insisted that she won the pageant. LOL!!!

And that's been our week. Happy Friday everyone!

Dare Devil On the Lake

2011-05-02T17:41:00.004-05:00

Happy Birthday Mom!!!

2011-04-26T11:29:00.003-05:00

It's my mom's birthday today!!!! Happy birthday mom!!!

I was telling Anna Kate the story about us going through the 'bubble gum' car wash in Dothan that time when you rolled the window down and the stream of water shot right in your ear. We laughed all the way to school :)

Love you and miss you!

Happy Easter!

2011-04-24T20:36:00.002-05:00

Happy Easter everyone!!!

We woke up this morning with a special delivery from the Easter Bunny and then started getting ready for church. I was so excited to take pictures of Anna Kate. Her dress was so pretty and she looked beautiful. However, I know not to expect such things on a Holiday...ever. Her shoes were a tiny bit big and they were 'bothering' her. The meltdown that ensued was ridiculous.

Here's how things started.

Looks promising, don't you think?

But wait, it gets better!!

And that's what she gave me when I asked for her pretty girl smile.

After we both huffed back into the house, then stomped back out to the car, we proceeded to sit in the driveway until she got herself under control. GREAT start to our Easter morning....

But then we got to church, enjoyed Sunday school, beautiful music and a wonderful message.

See what a difference a little preachin' will do for ya? :)

Yay for Easter!!!

We ate lunch, then Jeff hid the eggs while I cleaned up the kitchen.

Turned out to be a lovely day after all :) :)

Bike Rider

2011-04-24T20:28:00.002-05:00

After several weeks of getting frustrated with learning to ride sans training wheels on our hill, we decided to take Anna Kate to the old Wal-Mart parking lot where it's flat.

She told us that God had given her the courage to do this!

But she was still a bit nervous

And then she was off!

Like a lightening bolt!!!

But needed to stop for a brief rest. LOL!

She told me I was distracting her with my camera

So I was banished to the car. Sigh.........

She did so awesome! Not one single crash and she is so proud of herself!

Glitter Eggs

2011-04-23T21:03:00.002-05:00

I don't recommend them!!! I saw the kit at the store and thought to myself, "Ooo, sparkles and bright girlie colors - Anna Kate will LOVE these!"...

A) Anna Kate slept through the entire process, so I don't know if she LOVED them or not.

B) It was a huge mess.

I'll agree with one of my friends who said she could have painted the eggs better with glitter nail polish!!!

They did turn out pretty though :)

And are all ready to be hidden after church tomorrow

Happy Easter!!!

Lake Sunset

2011-04-23T11:46:00.002-05:00

Anna Kate spent the night with her BFF last night so Jeff and I opted for a sunset cruise on The Lady Lee so I could get some pics. After a brief 'duh' moment (**cough-Jeff-cough**), we were on our way :)

Get a load of this!

Yeah, there won't be any tubing in this part of the lake! That sucker was at least 10 - 12 feet!!!!!

When I saw Jeff snapping this on the boat I knew he had ulterior motives....

Lakepoint Lodge

Then the sun started to set.

My favorite

And to all a good night! :)

Happy Birthday Dad!!!

2011-04-22T10:24:00.002-05:00

It's my dad's birthday today! Hope you have a wonderful day!! We love and miss you :)

Egg Hunt!

2011-04-22T10:18:00.002-05:00

Anna Kate had her class Easter egg hunt this morning.

They were chomping at the bit to get out there!

Anslee, AK's bff :)

Ethan & Anna Kate

Davis

And they're off!!!

AK leading the pack. Ha!

These kids were serious business about their eggs. The teacher asked us moms to redistribute the eggs so each basket had the same number. OMG, the drama over these plastic eggs. LOL!

This is an award AK won :)

Sniff.

2011-04-19T08:09:00.000-05:00

That's all for today...

Our Sunshine

2011-04-17T15:38:00.002-05:00

These were taken this morning before church. There are many others to edit, but this is just a little sneak peek :)

Happy Sunday!

A-Day 2011

2011-04-17T15:28:00.002-05:00

Yesterday we went to Auburn for the annual A-Day game. We were able to visit with some of our University Station friends, as well as MeeMee & Pops Lee. We met Jamye & "Baby Morgan", Rachel and her boyfriend at the game. We all had fun visiting and playing with Morgan :c)

We did go in the new basketball arena to look around and managed to sneak a peek at THE trophy without waiting in line. Score! While there AK had a wardrobe malfunction. In the words of Jimmy Buffet, she blew out her flip flop. LOL! She snatched a new AU pair, which made her very happy.

"Baby Morgan"

AK & her friend Alex

These two were loving on each other all afternoon

I would love to know what Morgan was thinking here

At the end of the day, Auburn won!!!! Ha!

WAR EAGLE FOREVER!!!

Disney World 2011 { Day Three }

2011-04-15T17:53:00.003-05:00

Our third and final day was at EPCOT.

Anna Kate was very excited about riding Test Track!

Which is our favorite ride in all of Disney!

We also rode SOARIN' and went through Imagination.

And then the magic was over :( Want another example of how reality sucks compared the magic of The World? On the way home we noticed the truck was doing an awful lot of vibrating. We pulled over at a rest area and discovered two tires on the truck were beginning to separate. Jeff determines we won't be able to make it to our halfway point, so we we begin the search for a tire place in Gainesville, FL. Finally after calling three or four we found one that had our type of tires in stock. We hobbled in and were greeted with the nicest man who invited us to walk our dogs and then get comfortable in the waiting room (where our dogs could join us) while we waited. So nice. And then entered his wife.........she took one look at Jeff's hat and AK's shirt and started convicting Cam Newton and Auburn. For two hours this woman tried and convicted him/us. I'll admit, I am NOT a very good sport when it comes to my beloved Tigers, so I pretty much cursed her in my head and kept my mouth shut....not that I wanted to. Although it cost us $300, I was just glad to get out of that place without beating down an old 'Gator' woman ;-) LOL!

And that folks, sums up our Spring Break trip to Disney World. It was full of fun, stress, lots of expenses, laughs, tears and more fun!!!

Disney World 2011 {Day Two}

2011-04-15T16:45:00.002-05:00

Magic Kingdom was our park of choice on Monday. The key is to go as soon as the gate opens and hit your favorite rides first thing. You can literally just walk right on the rides. If there is a wait, get a Fast Pass and move on to something else.

First up was the Tea Cups. This is strictly a ride just for AK & Jeff. I do not like the crazy spinning they do, so I opt out of that one :)

Look at the dare devil with her hands up. LOL!

I did get a picture outside of the ride to prove I was there ;)

You can't tell it in this picture, but we had matching Minnie shirts

Next up was Anna Kate's favorite ride....DUMBO!

Anna Kate patiently waiting in the short line

Our view from the top of Dumbo

We rode lots of other rides, including Space Mountain. I wish I had a picture of us on it just to see AK's expression. She was so brave to ride it, but man oh man did she panic when we realized she would be in her own seat. She was still in the 'shuttle' with Jeff & I, but she couldn't sit beside us. Jeff was in front, AK in the middle and me in the back. Jeff held onto her leg and I held onto her shoulder the entire time. I never heard a peep out of her until the very end when she said, "Daddy, is it over?" Afterwards she told me a 'secret' that she did think it was fun but daddy freaked her out with him screaming like a girl. BWAHAHAHAHAHA! :)

We also rode Buzz Lightyear where I again, kicked Jeff & AK's butts :)

Look how serious I am with my aim! LOL

We came back after dark and rode some things we missed that morning.

I let them talk me into riding the Tea Cups with them....

This was before I turned green from their spinning

We caught the tail end of the fireworks when came out of It's A Small World.

And on our way out we walked right up on the lighted night parade (I forget the actual name of this parade) where we saw my favorite characters, the Evil Stepsisters. They are absolutely HILARIOUS!!!!!

And that concluded day/night two. Day three coming soon...

Disney World 2011 {Arrival & Day One}

2011-04-14T18:57:00.002-05:00

Well we're back to the real world :( Let me just tell you, reality sucks compared to 'The World'!!! Here's just one example why:

On the trip down we stopped in Lake City, FL (halfway) to break the trip. When we started setting up Jeff noticed the refrigerator wasn't working. He fiddled with some things but couldn't find the problem. Thankfully the RV park had free WIFI, because we stayed up until 1:00 AM Googling the fridge problem to no avail. We woke up super early the next morning and called a repairman (that we found via Google.) Two hours and $140 later he arrived and fixed the problem. Great, refrigerator works, yay! Hold up...not yay. We lost all the food in the fridge, which had to be replaced, which was another $90. But finally, we were on our way to DISNEY WORLD!!!!!

We arrive, check-in and I pick up our rented stroller (more on that later). So excited to get set up and jump aboard the ferry boat to the lodge for our dinner reservation at the Whispering Canyon, we head off to our assigned RV lot. And as luck would have it there was a car parked nearly in the street directly across from our lot, which made it completely impossible for Jeff to back into our lot. HUFF!!!!!!!!!!!! So back to the main office we go. I go in ready to take charge and request the Manager. 30 minutes later we have a new lot in the upgraded premium loop (for free!) and get set up. Yay! Only, after all of that we missed our dinner reservation. No worries though, we just headed down to Crockett's Tavern and enjoyed a delicious meal!

Really, really ready for a nice dinner!

We were ready for some grub too!

Anna Kate said, "Momma, I can't drink from a jar!!!"

After dinner we celebrated Jeff's birthday with the fish cupcake cake I ordered :)

Phew! Okay, now it's finally time for the magic to begin :c)

Jeff woke up long before Anna Kate and I did, and headed off for his fishing trip on Lake Toho.

And he caught the 'Big One' this trip!!!!

9 pounds 5 ounces

While Jeff was fishing, AK and I met Spring and Avery at Hollywood Studios.

The girls got their faces painted.

Cinderella and Sleeping Beauty

During a bathroom break while I was watching our stuff AK asked me if she could go look at the tattoos. The next time I look up she's perched on a stool getting one....to the tune of $7!!!!!!!!! Little sneak!

First stop, Honey I Shrunk The Kids Playground. BIG hit!!!

Then on to what turned out to be our favorite attraction of the entire day

We went to a total of four shows, including the finale. The guy that we voted for in show #1 actually won the 'Golden Ticket' in the finale!!!

And then it was time for our Fast Passes at the Tower of Terror.....Anna Kate's nightmare come true

LOL!!!!! You can see Avery on the back row, far left with her little hands up. Spring is next to here and her face KILLS me!!!! LOLOLOL!!!! See that little white blob under my right arm? That would be AK. She was terrified, but so brave for riding! And then there is me....I was holding on for dear life and yet I can't figure out my cheesy smile. LOL! We loved it but AK said she was "never EVER riding it again!"

I have always wanted to see the Beauty and The Beast show and it was so good!

Anna Kate had been saving her money for months before our trip and she chose to complete her character set with it + her birthday money/gift cards.

She now has Mickey & Minnie, Donald & Daisy and Pluto.

While we were watching a show by the hat we noticed this in the sky. So cool!

After our second American Idol show we found a spot in the shade to watch the Pixar parade. While we were waiting Anna Kate was picked to be this guy's assistant. She's making the 'woof-woof-woof' sound like the 'Who Let The Dogs Out' song. LOL!

Here comes the best parade in all of Disney, in my opinion.

A Bug's Life

This is Anna Kate's new aspiration.....she wants to be a dancer at Disney World :)

Here comes' Anna Kate's favorite!

Monster's Inc!!!

Sully!

After the parade Jeff met us and we took turns riding Tower of Terror again (minus AK.) We finished right in time for dinner reservations at Hollywood's Brown Derby. It was wonderful! Then it was time to say goodbye to Spring and Avery :( We had a great time, but they had to get back home for school/work the next morning. But Lee Party of 3's fun wasn't quite over yet ;)

We hit Toy Story up and it was SO.MUCH.FUN!

Daddy

The girls

AK's ready!

And I totally wiped the floor with them!!! Winner!

It was a really great day for all of us and AK got to end it with spending the last of her money on this light-up Mickey balloon.

Stay tuned for Day Two.......

My Big Catch

2011-04-08T08:26:00.003-05:00

Happy Birthday to Jeff, my big catch of the day!! :) He will celebrate by chauffeuring us to see Mickey and the gang! His gift (besides driving seven hours pulling an RV with two dogs and two females who need to pee every 45 minutes) is a guided fishing trip on Lake Toho. He's very excited!

Happy birthday!!!
We love you :)

Fun Day

2011-04-07T20:12:00.002-05:00

We have had a fun day celebrating Anna Kate's birthday. She woke up so excited and in a good mood.

Doesn't she look cute in her birthday outfit?!

Jeff, Kaitlyn and I went to her school and took cupcakes for the class.

Then came home and celebrated with spaghetti and even more cupcakes :)

Making her wish!

Belle said, "please let me have just one teeny, tiny bite."

The birthday girl has had a very nice day and says thank you to all those that wished her Happy Birthday :)

At 3:32 PM

2011-04-07T08:17:00.002-05:00

Seven years ago today, our sweet Anna Kate was born. So tiny and early, but perfect! I can't believe how fast the time has gone by. It seems like yesterday she was our tiny 'bird' looking for her bottle :)

We love you Anna Kate and are so very proud of you!!!

Artwork

2011-04-05T08:19:00.002-05:00

I've recently (last fall) taken up drawing. It's a talent I never knew I had until I found a painting that I fell in love with for Anna Kate's room and tried to duplicate it :)

As you know, her birthday party was this past weekend and she asked me to draw pictures to use as decoration.

My Hula girl :)

I'm going to put all of these in her bedroom now that the party is over. How should I display them? Framed and hung in a line? Mounted on matt board and hung with ribbon????

After I finished all of those, Jeff pooched his lip out (ha!) and asked me to draw him some fish. These were a challenge!!!

Bass

Bream

I have one more to finish in the series.

And then I had a request from my sister-in-law, Stacy :)

I did several for Christmas gifts that turned out great! It gives me such joy to create something for someone that is just for them :)
This matches the birds in her kitchen window treatments. I hope you like it Stacy!!!

Bestest Friend

2011-04-04T13:47:00.003-05:00

Ya'll, this is the sweetest thing you will see today, maybe even the entire week...I just had to share it :)

These two handmade cards are from Anna Kate's BFF Anslee.

FRONT

INSIDE

But this one is the B.E.S.T!!!

FRONT

INSIDE

BACK

Now honestly, you know you've never seen such sweetness before! They have been best friends since 3 year old preschool and grow closer every day. It makes me happy to know she has someone she can count on and confide in for many years to come :)

A Birthday Luau!

2011-04-03T10:44:00.003-05:00

We celebrated Anna Kate's birthday yesterday since we will be at Disney World the weekend of her actual birthday. After hours and hours of making decorations, planning food, cleaning and getting everything set up, it was time! She woke up saying, "Momma, my stomach feels like a mixture of butterflies and hurting." That's how excited she was!

Party favors and tissue paper flowers I made :)

Ribbon topiary...I <3 Etsy.com.....it's where I get all my ideas :)

Gift table

My drawing skills aren't limited to just paper. Ha!

Artwork Anna Kate asked me to draw just for her party.

Back patio

Food table. This 'table cloth' used to tie around my waist as a swimsuit cover up. Sigh.......

Chocolate cupcakes with butter cream icing. I made the toppers :)

Birthday Girl!

Most of the guests were hung up in Spring Break / Pilgrimage traffic, but they eventually showed up, and then AK was a happy, happy girl :)

AK, Anslee and Morgan

Trampoline fun!

Some of the party guests

They played baseball for a while

This little cutie was our entertainment for the day :) Love sweet Britten!!!

The whole crew :)

"Baby Morgan"!!!!!!!! She thoroughly enjoyed hanging with the big girls!

Gift time. Thanks so much!!

AK and AK = Anna Kathleen (Anna Kate) and Anna Kaitlyn (Kaitlyn)

Cousins: Tatum and Anna Kate

The girls finally got their way with convincing me to change the music from Luau to Justin Bieber. I know, I know - it was inevitable.

Duck, Duck, Goose!

My favorite picture of the day! Group Hula hooping :)

LIMBO!!!! Tatum going low. HA!

Look how these two are standing. EXACTLY THE SAME WAY!

Anslee going low :)

I think Britten had a bit of an advantage. LOL!

Anna Kate going low :)

CHEATER! LOL!

A good time was had by all and we SO appreciated everyone who came. For those who moved a total of three miles in an entire hour North of Eufaula, I do apologize and I hope the trip was worth it ;)

Now everything is cleaned up and put back to normal and I am exhausted. Just a reminder that I'm getting old....ugggg.....but it was totally worth it to see the smiles and hear the giggles coming from AK and her friends!!! Now I'm off to take a nap...

A Week From Today...

2011-04-01T08:45:00.001-05:00

We will be on our way to Disney World for Spring Break. YAY!!!! I don't know who is more ready, Jeff & I or Anna Kate :)

Tomorrow is Anna Kate's birthday party, so check back tomorrow night for pictures :)

Our Princess & Her Queens

2011-03-20T12:09:00.003-05:00

Can you believe that Anna Kate will be SEVEN YEARS old in two weeks?! We surely can't!!!

She celebrated her first birthday with a party fit for a Princess.

Oh, but she's still a Princess, you can be sure of that!

But every Princess has a Queen (or two).

Anna Kate's babysitter and 'hero', Kaitlyn, won Teen Miss Eufaula last night.

And her very best friend, Anslee, won Little Miss Eufaula. We were all very excited!!!

Congratulations to Anna Kate's personal Queens!!! :)

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

2011-03-17T09:51:00.003-05:00

In honor of all our ancestors who came from Ireland/Scotland, we wish you a Happy St. Patrick's Day! :)

There's a reason I'm obsessed with anything Brittish!

2011-03-16T10:27:00.003-05:00

Because it's in my blood - literally! :c)

This is our family history on my maternal grandmother's side.

So as you can see, the Sampsons immigrated from Bedfordshire, England around 1700.

In addition to London, we will travel to Bedfordshire (or what's now called Beds) before going to Scotland and Northern Ireland.

Here is what the area looks like now.

(For the men)

I love the ancient ruins!!!

This project has been an enormous one, that's for sure. But, I think it's totally worth it, and I know Anna Kate will treasure it long after we're gone.

Next up, Jeff's family :)

Of Scottish / British Decent

2011-03-10T10:41:00.003-06:00

Have you ever seen that TV show called “So Who Do You Think You Are?”. It comes on Sunday nights on NBC. I LOVE it! After watching a few episodes I decided it was time I get serious about finding my ancestors and their life stories. It has taken me nearly eight full days to complete what I have up to this point, and I found some very interesting things!

This is my mom’s dad and his ancestors. They immigrated to the US from England and Scotland.

(Click on the image to enlarge it)

The stories are so fascinating!!!

Here is what Sussex, England looks like today. I don’t think I’ve ever seen anything more beautiful!

And here is Halifax, England. Just stunning!

Our Scottish ancestry is very interesting. They were part of the MacGregor Clan of Turriff, Aberdeenshire, Scotland from the early-mid 1700’s. James King, II specifically, had a very poignant life story and was forced to immigrate to the US in 1747. The following is an excerpt taken from a Convict Transportation document titled, “1747, Scotland to the American Colonies”: "At the surrender of the Scottish Loyalists under Charles Edward, the Young Pretender, at the disastrous battle of Culloden Moor, Inverness, on April 16, any future attempt of the Jacobites to place the Stuarts on the throne. Cumberland slaughtered the Highlanders with unrelenting cruelty and gained for himself the name of "Butcher". The captives were dispatched by Cumberland to various destinations such as Preston, Garstang, Wigon, Manchester,and Liverpool to suffer the indignities of the gallows. About 600 submitted to the King's Mercy and "were offered indentures to sign for seven years service in the Plantations". And here is another excerpt: "28 July 1747. A number of rebels imported in the ship Johnson, into Oxford, (Md.) are brought over here and are now upon sale *Note: The prisoners of the Johnson may have been transported from Port Oxford to Annapolis for auction due to lack of buyers in Oxford.” …………………………… WOW!!!

The castle James King was held prisoner until the date of trial and transportation.

Aberdeenshire, Scotland

Breathtaking!!

Highlanders, which were slaughtered by King Charles Edward in 1745

I researched for hours and found the MacGregor Clan Tartan and Coat of Arms. So cool!

Do you see why I’ve been so obsessed with finding my ancestory?! My brother Jay, and I have decided to take a trip to Europe in a few years to visit these locations. I wish it were tomorrow! :)

My next post will be my mother’s mom and ancestors. Can’t wait for you to see that too!

~ Mar sin leat!
(Scottish Gaelic for ‘Goodbye’)

Happy Birthday Dr. Seuss!

2011-03-02T13:19:00.002-06:00

"Today you are You, that is truer than true. There is no one alive who is Youer than You.” ~ Dr. Seuss

Anna Kate's First Grade Class

They made these hats...looks like a wad of paper on their heads if you ask me ;-)

Math & Adjectives

2011-03-01T15:20:00.002-06:00

Seriously? Adjectives and nouns in the first grade? I KNOW I was in the third grade before learning any of that!!!

And because Jeff can't take an ounce of credit for Anna Kate's natural ability to excel in reading, grammar and dictation, I'll graciously give him MATH!

Great work AK!!! We're proud of you :)

The Maiden Voyage

2011-02-26T20:50:00.002-06:00

Aboard Lady Lee :c)

Meet our Skipper

And his co-pilot

We were all very excited about our first trip on the lake in our new pontoon boat!!! The weather was gorgeous, 75 degrees, sunny and a slight breeze.

And of course little Sarah Beth and Juliane made the trip as well, and enjoyed it immensely!

It is a party boat, so why not dance?!

And pass out.....

KIDDING!

Here is proof that I drove the boat for all of about thirty seconds.

For the record, I did not like it. Makes me a nervous wreck!

They fought over the radio stations all day. AK wanted groove & daddy wanted country.

Guess who won?

These were docked at the State Park in Georgia

Then it was time for a little R&R

Jeff said he didn't believe she was his daughter because she was reading a book...AND on chapter three!!! I bet Jeff hasn't read three chapters total in his whole life :) LOLOL!

But, like mother like daughter

She read herself to sleep :)

Shortly after this picture I fell asleep and woke up at the boat dock. Five hours on a boat = R.E.L.A.X.A.T.I.O.N!!!!!!!!!

Happy Birthday Tatum / American Girl

2011-02-20T21:11:00.002-06:00

We had a big weekend traveling to North Alabama to celebrate my niece's 5th birthday. We drove up Friday afternoon for pizza and an all-girl slumber party :c) It was a lot of fun. We got up early Saturday morning and headed out for our trip to Atlanta for Tatum's first American Girl experience.

We met MeeMee Lee at Pops' office

Pops & his girls

After all nine girls, including the dolls (ha!), we were off. Overall, the trip was uneventful. Stacy drove slow, MeeMee nagged Stacy about staying below the speed limit and I navigated. We laughed the entire way :c)

After making a couple of circles on & off of 400 we finally arrived!

Tatum was so excited to have Lilly's ears pierced!

Then it was Sarah Beth's turn for some pampering

She was treated to the Deluxe Spa Package, which included a good rub down. LOL!

Then it was time for her $15 (GASP) braid

The girls a few minutes of downtime to play while we waited for our reservation in the Bistro

My favorite picture of the day!

We ended the day on the carousel with MeeMee :c)

After we were thoroughly exhausted and overwhelmed from the American Girl experience, we decided to venture off to downtown Atlanta to the IKEA store. HOLY COW!!!! SO not worth the trip! It was two stories of mass confusion/frustration. If I ever purchase anything from IKEA, I will be more than happy to pay shipping!

We made a few more stops on the way home and had dinner at Texas Roadhouse. YUM!!!! (Thanks Pops....he-he.) Then we loaded up and went to MeeMee's for a sleepover. The girls played until they literally passed out and then it was off to bed for all. After a hearty breakfast courtesy of MeeMee, Anna Kate and I started home. We made it home around 2:00 and then took a two and a half hour nap. Sigh....

We had a GREAT time and appreciate every one's hospitality! Happy Birthday Tatum :c)

Happy Valentine's Day!

2011-02-14T20:05:00.002-06:00

My Valentine sent these to me :c) BOOTIFUL!!!

Anna Kate received a few things from us as well :c)

I had my friend Renee' make the Hello Kitty pillowcase...precious!

She also got a Hello Kitty watch, Hello Kitty dinner set (bowl, plate & cup), Hello Kitty ice pack (the girl is forever having accidents), Hello Kitty fleece throw and glow in the dark stars for her ceiling. Oh, I guess I should mention that she's currently obsessed with Hello Kitty...and Justin Bieber. LOL!

I had lunch with some friends for Renee's birthday and then went to Anna Kate's Valentine party at school.

I got there just as she was passing out her Valentines. The little brown haired boy to the far left is one of her Valentines. LOL!

Jacob, the other Valentine :)

Cupcake icing all over...

BFFs AK & Anslee :)

It was a good day! And Jeff brought our new-to-us pontoon boat home!!!!! Can't wait to take her out.

And finally, Happy Anniversary Mom & Dad!!!! We love you :c)

"Never Say Never"....

2011-02-11T22:48:00.003-06:00

Well, I officially have Bieber Fever! LOL! I admit, I hadn't really jumped on the Bieber bandwagon before tonight, but this movie won me over. What a precious, precious boy Justin is. And man, he can really sing! iTunes, here I come.

Two of my friends and I took five squealing girls to the Justin Bieber 'Never Say Never' movie premiere tonight. Trust me, it was a B.I.G deal! So big in fact, it warranted new shades...

And a new JB shirt...

These girls were FIRED UP!!!!!

I mean seriously, fired up!

I know, that's one of the big girls, LOL!!!!!

The movie was awesome! The best part was the concert clips in 3D. Unreal! Afterwards we made a quick stop in the new Hobby Lobby...my favorite store ever, and then to eat at Ruby Tuesdays. Shortly after that, we were all Biebered out!

Fun times!!!

Third 9 Weeks Progress Report

2011-02-10T09:17:00.002-06:00

I know I've said it a gazillion times before, but it truly amazes me what first graders are learning these days. I mean seriously, I was JUST learning to read the easy words and writing my name.

This is Anna Kate's most recent progress report. All A's :c) She continues to excel in everything. Well, except for handwriting, but I'm blaming that on her daddy. Ha!

Look at the continued improvement :)

She has her final Unit 3 test this morning. Jeff & I were just shocked at what she will be tested on. Here's what we studied together...
Page 1
Page 2

She got every single question correct!

Cell Phone Dump

2011-02-10T08:59:00.003-06:00

I love having a decent camera (and flash) on my cell phone!!! I usually carry my little point & shoot camera with me at all times, but my phone is typically in my hand, so it's sometimes just easier to snap a pic with my phone.

I went through some of those pictures this morning and found a few gems :)

I don't remember when this was exactly, but I know I curled her hair for a choir performance at church....

This was in the Montgomery airport when we went to visit my brother in Cincinnati

Anna Kate's 100th Day of School project. Sadly, she says all the silly bands have been stolen from the poster :(

And I wouldn't call this a gem by any stretch of the imagination...

but I like my hair here, so I thought I would throw it in. LOL!

Coffee & Tie Dye

2011-02-05T22:56:00.003-06:00

Jeff got his Valentine's Day present early....we are really enjoying it too :c)

I was making hot chocolate here. YUM!

It's really going to come in handy when the single digit temps come in next week :c)

Anna Kate has been b.e.g.g.i.n.g to tie dye a shirt, so I decided for our Friday afternoon activity we would make a Valentine shirt.

You will want to follow the instructions that comes with your kit, including getting the shirt wet (damp, not dripping), but I will show you how to create the heart design.

To say she was excited is a HUGE understatement!

And now it gets fun. BE SURE TO WEAR PLASTIC GLOVES & PROTECT YOUR SURFACE!!!

Wrap in plastic & let it sit over night. Then unwrap and wash in hot water and dry.

Didn't it turn out cute?!!!

While I was busy doing laundry I walked in to this.......someone was napping....LOL!

Moving Day

2011-01-29T19:15:00.002-06:00

Phew, am I tired!!! Today was moving day in our house. I've said many times that I love my 'stuff' in the house and I love rearranging things. I can't tell you the number of times Anna Kate's room has been rearranged or how many times the spare room has been an office, a bedroom, nursery, playroom, junk room and now a guest bedroom again. But to complete my secret project, several things had to happen first:

1) We needed a bed for the guest bedroom
2) We needed to remove large items from the room that were no longer being utilized
3) All of Anna Kate's toys she had when she was a toddler needed to hit the road
4) And we needed a bed for the guest bedroom...

We have a couple pieces of white furniture (overflow from Anna Kate's nursery/playroom), so the new bed needed to match. Ta-da! We have a double bed with a white headboard already. The only problem was Anna Kate sleeps in it. Hmmmm....a possible solution. So after looking around online at beds for AK (good LORD they are expensive), I decided to ring up a friend and ask if she was ready to sell her glorious Pottery Barn twin beds. She was!!! Jackpot! (Obviously we don't have a need for two twin beds, but they were being sold as a pair, so we are now the proud owners of two glorious Pottery Barn twin beds! **NOTE: For sale - one twin size Pottery Barn bed (frame, foot & headboards only.**)

I started to work on the playroom at 4:00 yesterday afternoon removing the items mentioned above. That was a CHORE. At 7:00 this morning I started working again. Now, at 7:30 PM I am finally finished with both rooms.

VOILA!

The Guest Bedroom

We were going for a beach/lake look. I think it turned out perfect. However, I need to find new bedding. I'm just making due for the time being. Oh, and of course paint. Jeff says the soft pink walls have to go.

Anna Kate's Bedroom

When we were visiting my brother & his family last month, Anna Kate discovered the "coolest thing EVER". Her cousin Lauren had a doorbell on her bedroom door. Great. Now Jeff & I have to ring her doorbell to be permitted in. Sigh.....

Don't you love the bed!! We plan to purchase a trundle to go underneath the bed.

To the right of the bed...Barbie house (I need to organize that) and her babies.

Looking from the foot of the bed

Reading area :)

Anna Kate's best friend has a pink & purple lava lamp, so she has been begging for one. I aim to please. LOL

So, what do you think? I have a few small things to do, but for the most part my project is complete. Now I just need to clean up the rest of the house...and do a mountain of laundry. Volunteers?

Valentine Projects & Moving

2011-01-28T21:04:00.002-06:00

One of my New Year's resolutions was to NOT wait until the last minute trying to get things ready for a holiday or event. I always have these grand ideas and because I wait until the last minute, end up going with something generic and/or store bought.

Well not this Valentine's Day!!!!

This is Anna Kate's Valentine for her classmates & cousins :)

I had it printed in wallet size and will attach with curly ribbon to this....

These pillow boxes REALLY turned out cute! I'm going to fill them with individually wrapped candy, close it up and tie the Valentine on using coordinating curly ribbon :)

And because I'm a fabulous friend (ha!), I made this one for AK's best friend. You're welcome Renee'. LOL!

I'm ready this year!

This weekend holds a huge project for me. I won't give it away, but will tell you that it involves Anna Kate's bedroom......again. Stay tuned...

Just Us

2011-01-23T20:39:00.002-06:00

A friend of ours we saw out in Arizona just emailed Jeff a couple of pictures he took. Just thought I would pop them on here for all to see :c)

War Eagle!

National Championship Celebration

2011-01-23T16:10:00.003-06:00

Jordan Hare Stadium + Pat Dye Field + BCS National Championship Football Team + 78,000 Members of the AU Family = C.E.L.E.B.R.A.T.I.O.N!!!

The AU Family is "ALL IN"

The coming out of the tunnel for the last time :(

Nick Fairley goofing off as he comes out of the tunnel. Look at Cam in the background laughing at him. LOL

Cam coming out

And one loving embrace with Aubie :)

Coach Chizik thanking the fans

Tracy Rocker presenting the Lombardi Award to Nick Fairley

Cam Newton receiving the Heisman

Heisman pose!!!

Coach Chiz

The Quarterback from the 1957 championship team presented the BCS trophy to Coach Chizik. That's pretty cool!!!!

The 2010 National Champions flag goes up above Jordan Hare

After the celebration there was a reverse Tiger Walk. The team walked from the stadium to the Athletic Building.

After the celebration we headed to Anna Kate's favorite restaurant in Auburn. She calls it the 'Peanut Place', but it's really Santa Fe Cattle Co., and it's SOOOO good!

The Mayor of Auburn, as well as the President of the A Club (Letterman's Club), and the Athletic Director invited everyone to Toomers Corner to complete the celebration.

WAR EAGLE!!!!!

Before Church

2011-01-16T16:36:00.002-06:00

After spending six days away from Anna Kate, I decided it was time to get a few pictures together. I am the one always taking photographs, so it is rare that you see me in them.

And because she is just too cute not to photograph....

Happy Sunday! :-)

It's Still True!

2011-01-16T16:33:00.002-06:00

Yep, Auburn is still the National Champions! We drove to Auburn yesterday just to check. LOL :-)

Toomer's Corner a week later

This is Toomer's & the new stadium banner combined :-)

But this is my favorite!!!

It will definitely be framed front & center!

Miller Family Reunion - Final

2011-01-01T21:24:00.002-06:00

Not to rush your following along on our trip, but I'm finally finished editing and uploading pictures. Phew!...

Cincinnati Museum of Natural History

(AK looks sick in every one of these pictures :( )

Jeff's dream catch!

'Dusting' for dinosaur tracks

The crew minus me

The girls loved all the hands on activities

Cincinnati Children's Museum

The construction zone

We walked around the corner and there Angee was dressed as a Veterinarian with Kristin. LOL!

Viewing animal x-rays to determine their ailments :)

Doing surgery

Instruments from around the world

Lauren working the register in the Market

AK working the register in the Diner

Jay & Angee (LOL, Angee looks thrilled)

One of the few times jungle cat wasn't hissing and growling...

While we were there, Anna Kate had her first salon experience. I've always cut her hair, but in order to talk her into cutting it, I had to bribe her with the real deal :)

Finished product

FRONT

BACK

And then it was time for the trip home. We flew back out of Cinci and into Memphis for an hour layover. Had it not been for AK's massive ear pain, crying, etc. I think I would have liked the Memphis airport. Lots of cool places to eat and shop. But instead I carried all four bags, and at one point Anna Kate, to our gate where she curled up under my coat and tried to sleep, but she was in too much pain. **Note to future travelers - airports do NOT sell over the counter medication for children.**

Cinci to Memphis. Shortly after this picture is when flying became my living nightmare!

Miserable in Memphis

Aaaah, finally asleep....for all of 10 minutes.

Arriving Montgomery....thank GOD!

And since then, Anna Kate has literally been in the bed for two days just miserable.

But our Dr. agreed to meet us at his office this morning to take a look at her. Fifteen minutes later we were picking up another set of prescriptions. *Sigh*

What a way to start the New Year. I hope this isn't a sign of what the next year will hold.

On the bright side, Jeff & I leave Friday for Glendale, Arizona to support our Auburn Tigers in the National Championship Game. WAR EAGLE!!!!

Happy New Year everyone! :)

Miller Part - IV

2011-01-01T15:24:00.002-06:00

We wanted to get some family pictures while we were all together, so mom made matching outfits for the girls and we all tried to coordinate.

Jay & his family

AK & I...(we were missing Jeff)

Mom & Dad, children & grandchildren

Mom & Dad

Sweet Kristin :c)

Lovely Lauren

Silly faces

And naturally, Uncle Jay had to be included...LOL!

Uncle Jay & AK

Mom, I hope these meet your approval :c)

Stay tuned for the fifth and final part!

Miller - Part III

2010-12-31T21:37:00.003-06:00

When asked if the girls wanted to ride and look at Christmas lights or open gifts...guess what they said?

Enjoying a late night snack....mac-n-cheese

Casey the cat loved the doll tent

Playing with Uncle Jay :c)

Lauren & AK playing in Kidz Zone at the mall

These girls were serious about their shoe shopping!

Riding the double-decker carousel

Wearing the aprons Mimi made them :c)

Wrestling with Uncle Jay

Angee & Dad playing with Jeff's new Dell Duo

And now, without further ado, I give you AK & La singing Justin Bieber's 'Baby'...

As if that wasn't enough entertainment for you...I now present 'Dancing to Lady GaGa'

Still more to come....

Miller - Part II

2010-12-31T20:28:00.002-06:00

The girls helped Mimi with dinner. They were so cute!!!

(I think Kristin was trying to talk AK into cutting her hair, LOL)

Lauren & Mimi

Then the girls danced to Lady GaGa

VERY entertaining!!!

This is my favorite picture of the whole trip!

(AK & Lauren, both age 6)

This is Casey, Jay & Angee's 'jungle cat'. LOL!

She did NOT like dad - LOL!

It wasn't long before Anna Kate was begging to play in the snow.

Look at their little footprints

AK's first sledding experience

Making snow angels...another first for AK

Up next is the trip to the Cincinnati Children's Museum, family Christmas and a MUST SEE video!!!

Miller Family Reunion - Part I

2010-12-31T18:28:00.003-06:00

On Sunday Anna Kate and I flew out of Montgomery into Cincinnati to visit my brother and his family, and my parents. It was Anna Kate's first time on an airplane. She was definitely nervous, but excited too. Aside from a near flight miss out of Montgomery and three gate changes in Atlanta, we arrived in Cinci safe and sound :c) And, AK L.O.V.E.D. flying!!!!

Here she is before take off - SO excited!

(look at her wings the Pilot gave her)

And this is during take off - I got in trouble for laughing at her expression (oops)

From above the clouds

"Mom, this is COOL!"

Landing in Atlanta

(Check out the plane landing beside us)

Layover in Atlanta - cute little world traveler :)

AK & I in flight from Atlanta to Cinci

All in all, it was a smooth trip and Anna Kate loved her first flying experience. She was a pro pulling her suitcase through the airports!

Stay tuned for Part II...

Santa Stopped By!!

2010-12-25T15:47:00.002-06:00

Came take a look...

Sooo excited to see what Santa brought her!!!!

A letter from Santa

Then she spotted the American Girl furniture for Sarah Beth!!

She finally got her Justin Bieber shirt :c)

Crazy excited over "Julie" (American Girl Bitty Baby)

Santa thought the princess needed silver tiara earrings :c)

The long begged-for bed canopy from Pottery Barn Kids!

Santa thought a certain little girl had been much better than her daddy and I remember, LOL! :c)

Merry Christmas to everyone!

Christmas Eve

2010-12-25T15:39:00.003-06:00

Santa cookies were made...

Reindeer food was made...

Letter to Santa...

A few pictures of the 'crew'...

And to all a good night!!!

Merry Christmas from Lee Party of 3 :c)

Escape

2010-12-23T20:42:00.002-06:00

After being quarantined to this house for more than a week with AK having the flu and me getting over pneumonia, we were finally able to escape today. YAY!!! Anna Kate and I met our friends Anslee and Renee for lunch so the girls could exchange their Christmas gifts.

So cute!

Tomorrow is Christmas Eve!!!!!!

Fever In The Funk House

2010-12-23T20:31:00.002-06:00

So last Monday afternoon all three of us got our flu shots. A little late, I know, but we got them nonetheless. Two days later Anna Kate started getting sick. The very next day she tested positive for the flu. Par for the course in the Lee household. She was pitiful.

This is how she spent the next four days. Soooo unlike my active Boodles.

Since she had the flu we had to miss our family Christmas with the Lee crew :( We were so sad to miss out. All was better though when daddy showed up with a trunk full of gifts :)

Sweet Tatum missed AK so much that she 'threw' together a little care package for her. AK thought the contents were hilarious!

Polly Pockets Galore

Polly has taken over the house....

Thanks for all the wonderful gifts everyone!!!

And just because this makes me giggle....

Bell: "Dude, don't mind me." LOLOLOLOL!!!

Graded Choir Christmas Concert

2010-12-23T20:29:00.003-06:00

Two Sundays ago Anna Kate performed in her church choir concert. She played the bells in one song and was so cute!

She & Sara Beth had matching dresses :) LOL

Merry, Merry :)

Christmas Craft

2010-12-12T16:31:00.002-06:00

This was Anna Kate before church this morning. She has her Graded Choir Christmas concert tonight, so I'll be posting pics and video from that tomorrow :)

After we got home from church, she & I sat down and worked on a Christmas craft.

All done!

Isn't it cute?!

Better Late Than Never...

2010-12-12T15:59:00.002-06:00

I know, I know....I have family that has been waiting on Thanksgiving pictures and I'm just now taking the time to edit, upload and post them.

Anna Kate & 'Baby' Morgan :)

Anna Kate playing on her Great Grandmother's Baby Grand

Anna Kate names for the place settings

Baby Addison

I made this shirt & headband:)

Thank you Santa!!!

2010-12-10T12:45:00.002-06:00

Yep, that's how we Auburn folks roll...we're ALL IN! I'm SO EXCITED I can hardly stand it!!! We are going to the National Championship game. WOW! Just wow! It's going to be so.much.fun!!!! It will be Jeff & I, my brother Jay and Jeff's brother Wayne going....and staying in the same room. Gonna be close quarters, but none of us care. We're just proud to have the opportunity to support our Auburn Tigers in the biggest game of all our lives!! WAR EAGLE!!!!

Just had to share...carry on. :)

SEC Championship Game

2010-12-05T18:46:00.000-06:00

A Dream Come True

2010-12-05T08:31:00.001-06:00

As I am laying in bed in an Atlanta hotel, experiencing the morning after afterglow, I can't help but to feel like I'm dreaming. Every year you hope and dream your team will have a winning season and you'll hopefully end up in a decent bowl game, and maybe, if you're really, really lucky, you get a chance to play for the SEC title. It typically takes a fair amount of luck and things going your way to accomplish this goal. Well, my Tigers made it this year and it had absolutely nothing to do with luck (okay, the hail marry TD was lucky). Our boys have laid their hearts, guts and souls on the line each and every week. They overcame a ridiculous media firestorm, stayed focused and never, ever gave up. It's just not in them to give up OR be over confident. No, my Tigers are fighters. They have had to play against great teams, played against themselves when making mistakes, and they have had to play against the Officials, who seemed to have it out against Auburn. And we triumphed.

The spirit, support and overall belief in this team from the Auburn Family is, well, ALL IN. Unbelievable. I know how it feels being a member of that family and rallying around our guys....I can't IMAGINE what it must feel like as a player.

And Cam, I almost don't have any words for him. Aside from being an athletic freak, he is truly a good and honorable young man. For him to remain focused, humble and spiritual through all of the controversy, proves that he is faithful and God fearing. After not being able to speak out for the past month, when given the opportunity, he simply and tearfully said "When God is with me how can anyone be against me." I was tearful myself....and speechless. He deserves every good thing that is happening to him and this team.

Now, if anyone would like to donate to our 'Send Us To Glendale' fund, please let me know :-) I have it straight from a man of God (our Preacher) that as much as we have invested in this season + the four months of church we've missed, make it count. War Eagle!!! Auburn Family ALL IN and I love my Auburn Tigers :-D

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Happy Halloween - Part II

2010-11-01T17:14:00.002-05:00

Last night we had the Fall Festival in the new Youth Ministry Building at church...which is a.w.e.s.o.m.e!!!

Here are pics from a mini photo shoot before going.

or?

I know I'm biased, but it is physically impossible to be any cuter than this!!! :)

An 'Old West' filter

Kicking her heels up!

And these are from the festival with all her little friends.

Jenny & AK

Colby Mac & AK

AK & Jessica (her favorite girl from the youth group)

Ella Grace & AK

And finally, she made it to the inflatable slide. It was her #1 goal the entire time!

It was a good weekend and by some miracle, I have only eaten 3 pieces of Twizzlers. Those are virtually fat-free, right? :)

Happy Halloween - Part I

2010-10-31T21:15:00.002-05:00

These were taken this morning before church.

Sara Beth enjoys a dose of spiritual growth on Sunday mornings too. LOL!

Gonna have to do something special with this one...

Stay tuned for Part II of today's events.

The Nut Festival

2010-10-30T15:27:00.002-05:00

After all the exciting school activities yesterday, we loaded up and headed to the National Peanut Festival to meet Jeff's sister Stacy, and her family, for an evening of fun in the cool weather.

Anna Kate was SO excited to see her cousins and I honestly don't remember the last time that she's had so much fun. We bought her an armband for the rides and those kids rode until they were literally about to fall out from pure exhaustion.

Anna Kate had a conversation with my mom & dad while waiting on daddy to get home

Anna Kate & Tatum reunited at last. LOL

AK, Tucker & Tatum

AK & Tatum

Paul & Tucker

They loved the kiddie version of the Himalaya!

She cracked me up running through the fun house. Poor Tatum was so scared though :(

This screams "T-U-D-E"

Stacy insisted on being the girly character....I don't she realized that came with the rather large rump :)

Going down the slide

Never in a million years did I think AK would get on this without being scared. The thing went up rather high and swung out to the side. She liked it so much in fact, that she climbed on again with some boy she didn't know right before we left. (She's with Tucker here.)

Enjoying fair corn dogs for dinner!

Tucker & AK going through the adult fun house

My favorite picture of the night!

The old folks couldn't keep up with us 'younguns'....LOL

Tucker on the Carousal

The Three Amigos (Tatum (4), Tucker (8) & AK (6).)

Pure exhaustion.......

We had so much fun!!!

Cowgirl Up

2010-10-29T15:51:00.002-05:00

Today was Anna Kate's Halloween costume parade and school party.

She had a lot of fun and her costume was a hit!

Walking in the 'parade'

Her class

Anna Kate & Jacob. I think he has his game face on! LOL :)

Anna Kate & Ethan

Morgan, Anna Kate & Anslee

Pin The Nose On The Pumpkin

Jacob

Anna Kate's turn

She got the closest :)

Anslee, Britten & Anna Kate

Wrap The Mummy

Anna Kate & Ethan wrapping Jazzy

Anna Kate's 'Boogie Monster' story hanging in the hall :)

BFF's!

And that's all folks! Boo!!!!! :c)

Auburn Pumpkins

2010-10-27T16:01:00.002-05:00

Are you sick of all my Auburn mumbo-jumbo yet? Well too bad, cause we're eating all this National exposure UP!!! :)

Last night we painted our pumpkins. (They last longer painted.)

Anna Kate painted an AU flower all by herself

Here's mine. It looked much better until the stem broke off and the pumpkin rolled across the counter and into my lap. Huff.

And we all know Jeff can't paint, color, doodle or anything 'creative', so I painted his for him...

"SuperCam" - Pretty cool if you ask me!

It's Great To Be An Auburn Tiger!!!

2010-10-25T10:24:00.002-05:00

BCS #1 ranking and the Heisman front runner...life is good on The Plains :)

Waiting on the bus to Tiger Walk

Tiger Walk....HUGE crowd!

I <3 this picture!!!

The Eagle Flight

Pregame!

Here come the Auburn Tigers!!!

Post game celebration :)

This speaks for itself......

WAR EAGLE!!!!!!!!!

So proud!

2010-10-22T07:57:00.005-05:00

I remember when I was little, my mom would make all my Halloween costumes. I can tell you just about every one of them; bag of jelly beans, bride, black cat, pumpkin...just to name a few. I'm sure I took her time and effort for granted, and for that, I am sorry. You see, I wanted to make Anna Kate's costume this year. When I told her I was making it, she rolled her eyes and sighed. I recognized her thoughts immediately, because they were the same as mine; "Great! It's going to look homemade."

Well, I finished the costume this week and let her try it on last night. I cannot begin to tell you how excited she was. To quote her, "Momma, it's GORGEOUS!!!" Needless to say, that made my YEAR! :c)

She's going to be a cowgirl, complete with black cowgirl boots, 2 braids with black ribbon tied at the bottom and a hat (if I can find one I like, which I haven't yet.) You will have to excuse the poor photo quality - I used my Blackberry camera. She is going to be one 'perty' cowgirl!!!

So mom, for all those costumes you painstakingly worked on for me, THANK YOU!!! I'm excited that I can now do the same for my daughter!

Blue / Shades Day

2010-10-19T08:37:00.002-05:00

She had to wear blue and sunglasses today. Doesn't she look thrilled? Ha! She said to me, "Momma, you're ALWAYS taking pictures of me!" and then followed that with a HUFF. Sorry kiddo, that's what I do :)

Wacky Tacky Day

2010-10-18T10:34:00.002-05:00

It's spirit week at school, and today is Wacky Tacky day. It honestly took me more time to put this 'getup' together, than a real outfit that matches. LOL!

Here she is in all her tackiness :)

- Orange school Field Day t-shirt
- Navy gym shorts with 'AUBURN' across the butt in orange
- Hot pink leggings
- Black Crocs
- White sweater

Tomorrow is Camo Day....haven't a clue what we'll come up with for that!

And, as you know, Halloween is quickly approaching and I still have a few projects to complete. I did, however, make my niece Tatum's, pirate tutu :) I think it turned out precious!

Finally, last Wednesday we celebrated Anna Kate's babysitter, Kaitlyn's, 16th birthday. Great Mexican food, cake and fun was had by all!

Silly girls!

It's Great To Be An Auburn Tiger!!!

2010-10-18T10:26:00.003-05:00

War Eagle!!! I'm going to make this short and sweet since I have numerous posts to upload and not a whole lot of time :)

These pictures of from this past weekend in Auburn. What a game!!! And the BCS has us ranked #4. Wooo-Hooo!!

Anna Kate delivered twins on Saturday :)

Anna Kate, Allie & Alex (her AU buddies) playing with 'the twins'... LOL!

Note the cute hair 'adornment'....Aunt Stacy made it and we LOVE it!!!

They said, "Phew! Somebody's baby stinks!"

Napping....yeah right. Fakers! :)

And this was yesterday at lunch, before coming home.

BIG game this weekend. LSU comes to town. We HAVE to beat them. No other option if we want to play in the SECCG and maybe, hopefully, the National title game. *SCREAM*

Smarty Pants

2010-10-08T08:12:00.002-05:00

We had our first Parent/Teacher conference yesterday afternoon (this is a requirement to receive the first report card.) We knew Anna Kate's grades were good, but her conduct; well, we were a bit concerned. You see, Anna Kate likes to talk, and when I say 'likes', it's more like MUST talk. I think it is physically and mentally impossible for her to keep that precious little mouth of hers shut. Seriously. Imagine our surprise and utter relief when she handed us the report card and there was no conduct grade. Phew!

The teacher praised Anna Kate over and over again, saying that she is definitely in her top group of students and is a great reader (music to my ears). She is in AR (accelerated reading) again and loves the testing that goes with it. She also scored a 100 on the big unit test, which covers all subjects over the past nine weeks. Yay AK!!!! We are so proud of you and keep up the good work!! :c)

And for a reward, daddy is taking her to the Alabama National Fair in Montgomery tomorrow. I really do hate that I'm going to miss her first state fair experience (I have nothing but fond memories of my brother & I going when we were kids...in West Virginia though.) Instead, I will be on the beach relaxing with my great friend, a book and my iTouch. Jeff - you just take lots of pictures! LOL

This is our smarty pants this morning before school

Reading + Beach + BFF = R.E.L.A.X.A.T.I.O.N!

2010-09-30T10:08:00.005-05:00

Eight days and counting....until I'm headed to Destin for the weekend, with my BFF :) I cannot wait!!! We are totally going to veg out - chill and enjoy each other's company - just the two of us *squeal* I've never been to the beach when it isn't 98+ degrees, so I'm excited to relax in a cool breeze.

Which leads me to the 'Reading' portion of this post. For the past two years, I have used my iTouch as an eReader. It has been wonderful, however, my.eyes.are.shot!!! SO, I've decided to upgrade to a Kindle or the Nook. I have enough reward points to purchase either one, I just need to make up my mind. I tested the Nook at Barnes & Noble yesterday and really liked it. My sister in-law just received her new Kindle and I'm anxious to see how she likes it. I wish I could test the Kindle before making a decision, but I can't. At this moment, I am leaning more towards the Nook.

THE KINDLE $139

Kindle is our #1 bestselling item for two years running. It’s also the most-wished-for, most-gifted, and has the most 5-star reviews of any product on Amazon. Now it's even better.

* All-New, High-Contrast E Ink Screen – 50% better contrast
* Read in Bright Sunlight – No glare
* New and Improved Fonts – New crisper, darker fonts
* New Sleek Design – 21% smaller body while keeping the 6" size reading area
* 17% Lighter – Only 8.5 ounces, weighs less than a paperback
* Battery Life of Up to One Month
* Double the Storage – Up to 3,500 Books
* Built-In Wi-Fi – Shop and download books in less than 60 seconds
* 20% Faster Page Turns – Seamless reading
* Enhanced PDF Reader – With dictionary lookup, notes, and highlights
* New WebKit-Based Browser – Browse the web over Wi-Fi (experimental)

THE NOOK $149

"One of the 10 Best Gadgets." U.S. News & World Report 09/14/10

* The most advanced E ink® Vizplex™ electronic paper display reads like the printed page.
* Read in bright sunlight as clearly as inside your home.
* Make the font size bigger so it's easy on your eyes.
* 3.5 inch color touchscreen LCD.
* One touch control and navigation.
* Swipe to browse your library displayed via full-color book covers.
* You can read for up to ten days without recharging with wireless off.
* 2GB (approximately 1500 eBooks)
* Expandable microSD slot
* Customize your NOOK quickly and easily.
* Load your own photos to create personal screen savers.
* Keep a gallery of cherished pictures on your NOOK.
* Wi-Fi
* Use your NOOK as an MP3 player for audio books or music. NOOK holds 26 hours of audio.

So if any of you have either of these two eReaders, shoot me an email and share your thoughts. I can redeem my points next Monday, and I pray it gets here before my beach trip.

Observation Day

2010-09-28T21:42:00.002-05:00

Today was observation day at dance class. It's the first one since classes started back in August. I have to say, I was impressed.

BALLET CLASS

TAP CLASS (AK's least favorite)

JAZZ CLASS (AK's favorite)

FREE STYLE to Justin Beiber

CKOTB

2010-09-28T08:51:00.003-05:00

I once had an undying love for NKOTB, but they just can't compare to my CKOTB (cutest kid on the block!!!!)

Anna Kate's new boots came yesterday, so she INSISTED on wearing them to school today.

Yes We Cam!

2010-09-28T08:42:00.002-05:00

And War Cam Eagle!!! Those are the new cheers on the Plains :) We're 4 - 0 and Cam is on the Heisman watch list!!!

Nova pre-game flight!

The team before the Clemson game

I still don't understand how she slept..the game was tied with 4 minutes left. It was LOUD!

On the bus headed to Jordan Hare Stadium for the South Carolina game

This was intended to be a self portrait of AK & I, but...

War Eagle!!!!

Halloween Costume

2010-09-11T11:57:00.002-05:00

After many months of searching catalogs and online, we have finally decided on a costume. And the winner is.....

(I'm going to do a few things a little different on AK's)

Is this not THE cutest ever?!!!

The only reason Anna Kate agreed to the tutu style skirt is because she gets her first pair of boots. She's all about her accessories :c) She's going to be the most fashionable cowgirl in town!

War Eagle!

2010-09-08T18:52:00.002-05:00

What a great long weekend we had in Auburn. It was relaxing, exciting, restful, chilly, hot and victorious!!!

TIGER WALK

THE NEW BASKETBALL ARENA

PATIENTLY WAITING FOR HER DINNER

ENJOYING HER STADIUM DINNER :c)

The remainder of the pictures are of our home away from home, aka our RV set up at University Station RV Park

THE INTERIOR

We hated to leave Monday, but we'll be back next weekend. Until then, WARRRRR Eagle, Hey! Beat Miss St tomorrow night guys!

1st Grade Progress

2010-08-30T15:43:00.004-05:00

Anna Kate came home with her first two test scores of the year today....

Spelling test (front)

Spelling test cont. (back)

Math Test

We are sooooo proud of you, Anna Kate!! Keep up the great work :c)

AU Sewing Projects, Part II

2010-08-26T22:11:00.000-05:00

I whipped these up tonight :c)

Football Projects

2010-08-26T13:14:00.002-05:00

It's that time of year; 2 weeks from Auburn Football!!!! So in that spirit, I present the latest of my sewing projects, which are all Auburn-specific. I have more, but this is a sampling of what I've completed to date.

I 'refashioned' shirts that had stains and used items I had on hand. All four projects cost me a total of $2!!! You impressed?

Are you ready for some football?

2010-08-21T18:51:00.003-05:00

We are!!! We took our RV to Auburn today and set it up on our new lot in the RV park. It's awesome! We have so much room, shade and grass. Perfect for tailgating three days every weekend for three months!

We have the perfect trees picked out for the hammock!

"War Eagle!"

We're looking forward to going back next weekend to get the lot perfected :)

We made it 15 years together!

2010-08-19T19:21:00.005-05:00

We have had the best day together. We woke up later than usual since neither Jeff nor I had to get ready for work, then we loaded up in the car and hit Burger King for breakfast before, taking Anna Kate to school. After we dropped her off, we came back home and.....prepare yourself for ultimate romance....went back to bed. We slept until 10:00. That hasn't happened in over six years!!! The rest of the day was spent relaxing in the quietness of our lovely home. Oh, it has been so nice.

Anna Kate baked and decorated a chocolate cake for us and I made homemade lasagna. Yum!

Jeff let me pick out whatever flowers I wanted for the table. Aren't they beautiful?!

Now, Anna Kate is in bed and sound asleep, so we're going to snuggle up in the bed and watch a movie. I'd like to say the night will be filled with romance, but the truth is, we probably won't make it halfway through the movie before we're both sawing logs :) It's okay though, we still love each other immensely!

Happy Anniversary, baby! It has been a wonderful day and I'm looking forward to our trip away in December! :) Love you!

Fifteen years ago ........

2010-08-18T20:14:00.002-05:00

tomorrow, Jeff and I were united in marriage. I remember it like it was yesterday, yet it seems like we have been together forever. I guess it has been forever for me, since we have been married my entire adult life.

The past fifteen years have been full of ups and downs, laughter and tears, smiles and dirty looks, weight gain and weight loss (okay, not so much loss), increased grey hair and deteriorating vision, but most of all, it's been full of love. Happy Anniversary baby! I love you!

"An anniversary is a time to celebrate the joys of today, the memories of yesterday, and the hopes of tomorrow." ~Author Unknown

Moooove into First Grade!

2010-08-09T12:36:00.003-05:00

This morning, our little baby girl started first grade. FIRST. GRADE!!!! She was soooo excited. I think she slept a total of 3 hours last night, bless her heart.

This is her classroom :)

Before leaving the house.

Don't you love her groovy shoes?!!

I {heart} this!!!!! She's such a big girl now :(

Anna Kate and her teacher, Mrs. Patton :)

I can't believe she is old enough to be in first grade. I mean really, it seems like a mere twelve months ago that I was holding her swaddled in her many blankets. Time really does fly! I can't wait to pick her up and see how her first day went :c)

We're so proud of you Anna Kate and know you'll do great!!!!

Destined For Broadway

2010-08-03T17:10:00.002-05:00

So says Anna Kate :-)

And because Momma wasn't cool enough to 'hang' with the cast, I had to settle for a picture of AK and the girls.

A day in the life of Anna Kate & Anslee

2010-08-01T18:48:00.002-05:00

Today after church, we let Anna Kate invite her best friend over for the day. They have had the best time!!! These two could go on the road with their act!!!

Beach 2010

2010-07-22T19:11:00.007-05:00

[CLICK HERE TO VIEW PHOTO ALBUM]

Anna Kate's Latest Swimming 'Tricks' ~ Vol I

Vol II

Stay tuned for more videos...

Lee Family

2010-07-12T14:32:00.007-05:00

Each year the Lee family gets together for one weekend in July. This past weekend was the 2010 'reunion' :) This post will be picture-heavy, but I'm sure that's okay with everyone.

Jeff's dad & step-mother

With their grandchildren

The boys - Tucker, Trey & Adam

The girls - Anna Kate & Tatum

Tatum Claire

The big boys - Jeff, Turk & Wayne

The calm before the storm - Jeff, Turk, Wayne & Stacy (front)

The storm :c)

Wayne & family

The Starling family

My first experience with uncooperative parents....

Tucker & Tatum

Our family

Like my sunglasses tan?

Pretty girl!

Kids swimming - Trey, Anna Kate & Tucker

Bathing Beauties!

A great time was had by all!!!