Hatched

We have 14 baby chicks in our basement.  Fourteen cute, fuzzy, little, baby chicks have pecked their way out of their shells and into this world.  Yesterday morning the girls and I got to watch the first chick.  "It" started with a hole in the egg shell, about an hour later there was a hole on the other side.  Then it peck across from one hole to the other until the end of the shell broke off, and it plopped right out.  It was so fun to watch.  The process is absolutely amazing.  With us being at the GS concert last night (wonderful concert), super grandma and the girls had to check and update me on the chick status.  Thanks to all!  There are still a couple drying in the incubator and a few with holes in the shells.  The Utt eggs are hatching much better then the Lough eggs.  I am blaming the hatching deficiency on our rooster, Elvis.  The "Mother Hen" is so proud of the little fuzz balls.

Old Country Music

To finish up my month of LOVE, I want to share about my love for old, country music.  Conway, Kenny Rogers, the Oak Ridge Boys, Willie, Waylon, and the boys are the best.  Crystal, Dollie, and Barbra Mandrell are the queens.  Listening to Solid Gold Saturday Night while driving around is a great adventure.  This weekend, I am going to watch "the King" in concert, not Elvis... George, George Strait!  How many George Strait tunes can you name?

Baby Blue
Ocean Front Property
Unwound
Give it Away
You look so good in love
Check yes or no
Amarillo by morning
Twang
The Chair
Blue Clear Sky

That's just a few... I can't wait to put on my boots and jeans and sing my little heart out with "the king."

Love Freezer Meals

Today my sister, a friend, and I got together and made freezer meals.  We each brought the ingredients to make 6 of one dish.  For example, I took large pasta shells, meat sauce, cheese, spinach, and cottage cheese.  Linds made 42 ham balls, and Lex brought corn, beans, hamburger, tortilla shells and made taco bakes.  In 2 hours we had lots of dirty dishes and our freezer meals were complete.  Now my freezer has 2 taco bakes, 2 stuffed shells pans, and 2 pans of ham balls ready to pop in the oven and serve for supper.  Linds and I made CCP (chicken pot pie) and spaghetti bake a over Christmas break... I love having something good in the freezer ready to bake.  On those "I am out of everything," or "Get home at 6 or so," or "BL, can you start supper?" nights, the freezer meals are GREAT!

Let me know if anyone has any great freezer meal recipes, we are planning to do this again in a few months.  

Work Family

I admire the people I work with at school.  We all have differences, maybe we do not always agree on everything, but when you walk into our school you feel love.  Love for each other, love for our students, and love for learning.  We truly care about each other like a family.  I love you guys, man!

My Valentine

Happy Valentine's Day to my Valentine, the butter on my bread, the ranch on my salad, the ketchup on my hamburger, the frosting on my cupcake, and the cinnamon in my roll. 

After 19 years, he is still the one that makes me laugh, still the one that makes me strong, still the one that makes me shout, still the one I love to touch...  (sing it)  Still the one,  Still the one,  We're still having fun, and he's still the one...

There's so many ways your sweet loves made this house into a home....
When a whole lot of Decembers are showing in your face,
Your auburn hair has faded and silver takes its place,
You'll just as lovely, and I'll still be around...  (you know the rest)



Happy Valentine's Day BL!

The Ranch

My next love is the Ranch.  I adore living on this farm. 

One... we bought it from my mom and dad.  Growing up it was referred to as "Pete's."  Dad bought it from a man named Pete Taylor.  Our house sits where there once was a old corn crib.  Dad raised pigs here and calved some cows.  When I was about 12, Mom and Dad were loading pigs, and Dad tapped one with a board.  The board broke and hit Mom in the nose.  With blood running down her nose, she firmly declared that she was FINE.  She was fine, and does not have any surface scars to show.  But it sure did leave a permanent impression in our memories. 

Two... I love livestock; goats, chickens, cows, horses, and our dog, Dally.  I presently have 40 eggs in the incubator and anxiously wait to hear the peeps of hatching chicks.  We just bought 6 baby goats, they are the cutest little things ever.  In about a month, we will start calving... can't wait! 

Three... I truly believe some of my most wonderful memories, life learning lessons, and hardest work happened because I grew up on a farm not far from this Ranch.  Where else in the world does a peeping chick or a calf's first breath make all the difference in the world?

Simple Church

I love our little, simple, country church.  Of all the places to love, it is simply one of my favorites.  I remember going as a little girls, I still see my first Sunday teacher most Sundays.  I walked down it's red aisle with my dad to marry my husband.  At the Christmas program, my grandma was one of three grandparents that had four generations present.  Our family has out-grown the back pew at the Easter Sunrise Service.  Our girls were baptized there.  Smiles of friends and neighbors greet us each week.  It's peacefulness is simply amazing. 

Vintage Campers

I absolutely LOVE vintage campers.  The challenge, the what in the world are you thinking, is that yours, the knee slapping old ladies... it makes me smile.  Our first camper, the IH, still holds a special place in my heart.  I will never forget the look on BL's face when we pulled home the "project."  Our newest 1972 model is the cat's meow.  Some may think it looks like a Taco Wagon, but to me it's heaven.  Restoring vintage campers is my dream job, but not on a high demand.  I have a new project this spring... I can't wait.  The neighbors are joining the Ditch Diva Club. Nothing makes me more proud then to see a campground with a bunch of Ditch Divas there.  We need a banner.  I think there might be a market for Ditch Diva t-shirts?

Top 5

I love my daily commute.  Here is a list of the Top 5 funnies from my daily commute over the past 12 years...

1.  the slip and slide in Pulaski at the construction site
2.  passing a tractor on the side of the road and realizing it was Dad
3.  watching a car completely destroy the road sign (no one was hurt)
4.  seeing a lady in the ditch, we stopped to assist, I asked her if she was alright, she replied that she wasn't to good, I asked how I could help... she replied that she wasn't hurt, just not to good (why was she driving?)
5.  my partner in crime reading a book, while I drive or vise versa. 

Everyday is an adventure!

Halfpint

My next love post is about my baby.  Weighing in to the world at 9lbs, 9oz, who would have know she would be a lean, mean second grader.  Halfpint is an energetic, creative, and full of pee and vinegar.  I love that she keeps us on our toes, is up for any new challenge, and has an imagination as big as the moon.  Her twinkling eyes and bright smile says it all.  She speaks her mind... good or bad, nothing is left in the dark.  Halfpint has the softest cheeks one could ever kiss.  She gives the most amazing foot rubs every.  She even designed and created her own Massage Salon in the basement.  I think she even hired a secretary.  Halfpint is one of a kind!

Penelope

I will start my month of "loving" posts with my first born... Penelope.  I just started calling her that because most Penelopes are sweet little girls with blue eyes and golden hair, and they are nice to all creatures, large and small.  Plus, I haven't ever had a Penelope in school, so no one has spoiled that name.  When I was a little girl, my aunt would tell me stories of Penelope and her puppy.  I guess the name is embedded in my memory.  In these stories, Penelope would find trouble but always make the right choice.  So our Penelope, I adore her, she's sweet, stubborn, shy, pleasing, helpful, and very laid back.  I love when she helps unload the dishwasher, when I sing to her every night she looks at me like I am the best thing in the world, and when she is in trouble, she crumbles.  When she was 5 months old, she would sit on the floor content with the world... she is still content with watching the world around her. I love that she thinks before she talks, and she processes everything with deep thought.  At every parent/teacher conference, she makes us proud.  Penelope is the apple from my tree.