Sweethearts and "Southern-ness"

Last Saturday, while their mommy went to meet an electrician at their new house, I got to spend a couple of hours with these two sweethearts:

And, BOY, did we have fun! While Callen chilled on her play mat, Carter and I spent time reading books and "vrooming" cars.

Callen grinning at me from her playmat

(She is SUCH a happy baby!)

Carter grinning at me and getting ready to "vroom" the car to me

(After every picture I took, he said, "I wanna see Carter." Too cute!)

After spending a fun-filled morning with my niece and nephew, Ken and I headed to Tuscaloosa for the night. Cynthia had invited us to join Brad and her at the annual Les Krewe Ball. The theme this year was "Redneck Riviera" and, as Cynthia noted in our invitation, this was right up our alley. In order to be admitted to the party, you had to be "properly attired" in all your redneck splendor. Ken and I were definitely up to the challenge...as were the many others in attendance! Cynthia's daughter (and our goddaughter), Ella, was definitely NOT impressed with our outfits. She told us several times how silly we looked and ultimately told us that we looked like "monsters." I'll let you draw your own conclusions.

With Cynthia in our "Redneck-wear"

With Ken at the party

(Please note the wording on the shirt; it was given to him by his mother-in-law because he acts like "Ned" sometimes. Another story for another time.)

Cynthia and Brad--PDAs are a MUST at any redneck gathering

(How else does one stake claim to "my man"?)

One of the LOVELY centerpieces on the tables

All of the rednecks in their "finery"

Suffice it to say that we all enjoyed ourselves immensely. The scary thing about the whole night, to me, was that it was extremely reminiscent of several nights during college that I spent at the Flora-Bama. We all would have fit RIGHT in, once again! A HUGE thank you to Cynthia and Brad for inviting us and letting us crash at their house. We had a BLAST!

Snow Day

Friday, school let out at 11:30 for the impending "blizzard" that was headed to Alabama. When I left school at 11:45, the snow was indeed falling at a rapid pace, but it wasn't sticking to the roads. It was, however, extremely cold for my taste and the snow was accumulating on the grass and rooftops, so after a quick trip to Wal-Mart, I headed home to check on Lola and warm up.

Lola and I spent a considerable amount of time napping on the couch. When Ken got home, shortly after 5:00, we went outside to visit with the neighbors. Ryan and Melissa's daughter, Mattie, was thoroughly enjoying being outside in the snow and decided the best way to enjoy it was to crawl through it.

Crawling through our front yard

Ryan dusting Mattie off

(Notice all the snow on her pants & shoes)

Lola is happy to have a playmate

After spending about an hour outside, we all decided that we were sufficiently cold and headed indoors for warmth. Now, if only it doesn't snow tonight as they are forecasting. Is it time for Spring yet?

A Friendly Visit

Sean and Ken

(Plotting an evening of "up to no good")

After not seeing each other for almost five years, Sean Reilly came into town from Ohio to visit his parents and made a stop to visit Ken and me. Sean and Ken have been friends since college and he did us the honor of being a groomsman in our wedding. He came by to see our house and then we spent an evening on the town with stops at Wing's, Wine'd Down, and ended up at Iron Horse to play pool and hear a band. We're glad he was able to visit with us and hope that he comes back again soon!

Pitiful Patient

The "Pitiful Patient" as she rests

Last month, Lola snagged her dew-claw in the back yard and had to have it pulled. In order to insure that it would heal properly, our vet, Dr. Fuller, wrapped her paw and told Ken to leave it on for a few days. Of course, Lola didn't understand why her foot was bandaged, so she wouldn't put any weight on it. She hopped around and held her paw up, trying to elicit sympathy from anyone who was in our house. When she wasn't doing that, she was sitting on her place with her foot cocked out to the side. She acted SO pitiful! On the third day, we took the bandage off and I am happy to report that she is back to her old self now.