Christmas Morning

Our traditional Christmas morning picture is always taken before presents can be opened.


This year Josh asked for very few things for Christmas. One thing he wanted was a big stuffed animal. I found that monkey on sale for 50% the week before Christmas.

A couple days before Christmas I asked Carley what she really wanted. She told me "a big bear" even though the letter to Santa didn't specify the "big" part. Luckily I found her bear at Rite Aid for $15! They both are very happy with their new stuffed friends.






Smokey likes to be near us or in this case, right in the middle of things.

Smokey seemed a little down on Christmas. We all felt like something was missing. That something was Buddy.

On Christmas Eve, as we were leaving to our friends house we realized that Buddy was no where to be found. After searching the neighborhood and checking Craigslist lost and found posts, we went on with our Christmas Eve plans.

Late Christmas Eve night, a text message sent to my phone said that a dog matching the description of our Craigslist post was listed on Animal Control's website. Sure enough, there was a picture of smiling Buddy. Thanks to our texting angel we were able to rest easy that night knowing Buddy was safe and warm.

Since Animal Control was closed on Christmas, I picked up Buddy on the 26th and we are so happy to have him back home with us.




Santa went a little overboard with the grown up presents this year. Walt got a PS3, which he and Josh have been enjoying tremendously. Carley and I will stick with the Wii and our new Wii Fit.


Santa brought me a Nikon D300s! It's the camera I've been pining after this past year. I feel I've outgrown my little D40 and have used it hard for three years. This D300 is a beast. And beautiful.

The picture above is taken with the D40. The picture below is taken with the D300s. Both are unedited. Can you see a difference? Obviously there is a flash difference. But can you see the difference in clarity? I sure can! And that's without even knowing how to work it yet.


We know Christmas isn't all about presents. To us Christmas is about spending time with the people we love. That means some years we hustle around or travel far to be with family. And some years we don't.

This Christmas was very laid back. We spent the entire day at our house in pajamas hanging out and enjoying each other's company. Janeice and Josette stopped by for a quick visit. Some friends and family called. But the entire day was lazy and each one of us loved it.

Lazy rarely happens around here.



Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

Scenes from Christmas Eve

Carley borrowed the camera to get a few pictures around the house today. We cleaned, made cookies, watched a couple Christmas movies. It's been a wonderful day and we are all looking forward to tomorrow.

It's Beginning To Look A Lot Like Finals

It's that time of year again.... time for the dreaded finals. This semester is more brutal than most. I have five finals in a 24-hour period. FIVE. Starting Monday night at 8:00 pm and ending Tuesday night at 7:30 pm. I hope I survive.

Because of endless studying and at least a week of detoxing from school, I won't be posting much until after Christmas.

To celebrate the end of the semester and the end of the holidays, I will post every single day for a week starting January 2nd. You heard me right! Seven days of new posts from January 2nd to January 8th.

So come back then and check it out.

Morning Hunt

Walt took Josh out last weekend for his first duck hunting experience. They went with Walt's friend,Kenny, and his friend, Keith.

Josh doesn't have a hunting license so he was a non-shooter. But he still got to see if duck hunting is something he'd enjoy, and see if he'd want to take the class to get his license.

Since check-in is at 4:30 am, they drove to the reserve Friday night and slept in the van. With the seats removed or folded down and a mattress pad thrown on the floor, it's like a mini-camper.

They both had a great time together. I love to see father-son bonding.


One of the first things Josh told me was that he got to build a "fort" in the bushes. He was thrilled.




Josh with the catch and Kenny's dog, Oliver.


Josh testing out how waterproof his waders are.








Apparently they're parked beyond those trees in the distance. Long walk in waders.


Thanks to Kenny for taking his camera and capturing Josh's first-time experience for me.


First day hunting done. This boy is becoming a young man right before my eyes.