Tonka's First Snow

It looks like with the chaos that was Thanksgiving I forgot to post this. It snowed a bit last week so Tonka got to play in his first snow. He did not appreciate it at first but after he finally got his feet wet he loved it as you can see!

Hopefully we will see a lot more snow this winter so that Tonka can play.

Happy Thanksgiving!!

Whew, I've been MIA but for good reason. Last week was busy to say the least. Wednesday night I hosted a 31 Gifts Party. It was small but there was no shortage of laughter. Nights like those remind me how grateful I am to have my friends to always keep me laughing.

Thursday night was even better. It was my turn to host Supper Club for JL so 8 or so of my girlfriends came over for dinner complete with china place settings for the dining room table. We had turkey tenderloin casserole, italian green beans, macaroni and cheese, salad, and a pumpkin cream trifle for dessert. Everything was fabulous if I don't say so myself.

Finally, Friday night the family arrived for a weekend for food, fun, and fellowship. We had wayyyy more food than the average person should ever have in their house at one time but it was excellent. It was a great weekend and I took tons of pics but I've included a few below because I know you would rather look at pics that hear me babble.

Today we will head to my dad's for more Thanksgiving fun before returning home to nap on the couch. Happy Thanksgiving to your and your family!! Enjoy!!

The Sky is Falling, The Sky is Falling

Nope, that is just my retirement you see being flushed.

Just for historical purposes as I write this post it looks like the market will close today at around 7,500.

This is a drop from around 14,000 earlier this year. Wonderful.

Well its funny how it`s the little things in life that mean the most

Not where you live or the car you drive or the price tag on your clothes. There`s no dollar sign on a piece of mind this I`ve come to know. So if you agree have a drink with me raise you glasses for a toast. To a little bit of chicken fried~ The Zac Brown Band

This pretty much sums it up for me :)

Homecoming, Family, and Another BIG Win!

Each year for ECU Homecoming we gather up the family and the tailgating supplies and head east. This year was by far the biggest group we have had and all 12 of us had a great day!

Steve and I got up early Saturday morning (5am....yuck) to get things going. We then went to meet my grandparents before meeting Steve's family in Raleigh. We finally arrived in Greenville at around 10:30 to setup camp. Below are a few pics from the day. I'm already counting down until next year.

My nephew sporting his new ECU shirt. His parents are actually App State grads but I'm working on him. Gotta start them young :)

A decent shot of a tackle by ECU during the 1st half. Overall, my shots for the weekend weren't very impressive but you can't be perfect all the time I guess.




My fabulous grandparents :) My grandpa is such a trooper. He was in the hospital all summer and had some pretty bad days but he was at the game in great spirits to watch the Pirates win on Saturday.




My dad and stepmom. I'm not sure if you can tell but my father is a little confused hence the Duke hate and ECU shirt. He is an avid Duke fan so he was supporting both teams for the day.




My inlaws and my other nephew. He also has an ECU sweatshirt that he loves to rock. I swear I'm working on them all.




Me and my fabulous husband. Aren't we cute?




Steve's brother and sister in law. They are wonderful and we all had a great time. We are all counting the days until the Mountaineers come to Greenville in September. Go Pirates!!





I told you. That is a future ECU kicker right there! It was such a fun day. Thanks to everyone for traveling to ECU to enjoy the game.

"Americans never quit. We never surrender."

"We never hide from history. We make history." ~Senator John McCain

We are now a couple of days removed from Election 2008. Obviously, it did not have the outcome I had hoped for however I'm still an American.

The saying goes that you can always learn a lesson from even the worst of situations and this election has taught me many lessons. If nothing else I've learned how important it is to be involved in our nation's political system.

In the past, I've had some clue as to what was going on but this election was an eye opener and I'm scared. So, instead of sitting back and hoping things will work out I will get involved. For me hope is not a strategy as many who voted in this election seem to believe. No, I'm not going to run for office but I will be active and make my voice heard.

It's finally here.

This morning after a not so good night of sleep I woke up, got ready, and headed out to vote at my local polling station.

It hit me like a ton of bricks as I was pulling into the parking lot. I'm not sure why but I just wanted to cry. A large part of it was the whole feeling of being able to vote and help make sure an important decision for our country. The other part was I'm literally on pins and needles regarding the outcome of this election. I'm the nervous type anyway but I really feel like this election could have bad consequences for our nation depending on the outcome.

I'm going to run a few errands after work and then maybe stop back by the polling location near my house to take a few pics to put here along with my commentary once the results are in tonight.

Good luck everyone!

The question is not will but how will history be made tomorrow?

No, I'm not going to get all political on you but tomorrow really is going to be HUGE day in the history of America so I felt I had to put something in my blog.

Tomorrow we will either elect our first African American President or our first female Vice President. It will be really cool one day down the road to recap this little tidbit in history for our kids as they are studying it in school.

This country is facing lots of really big issues right now and honestly I don't think either of these candidates are going to solve them however it will still be historical none the less. What will also go down in the record books is the record number of voters who are predicted to turn out and vote in this election. It is amazing really.

This is such a big election that even many companies are pushing people to vote. Tomorrow if you vote you can go to Starbucks and get free coffee, Ben and Jerry's for free ice cream, and Krispy Kreme for a free donut. I'm voting anyway but free food is always good :)

I'll be up bright and early to vote, then picking up my free coffee from Starbucks before heading to work. May the best candidate win!!

Thriller

I'm guessing you thought this post was about Halloween just a few days late huh? Nope!

The Pirates played last night against conference foe UCF in Orlando, FL and although it was ugly from start to finish pulled it out in OT for a 13-10. This brings them to 5-3 on the season heading into homecoming this weekend.

We have a huge group of family headed down to Greenville with us this weekend. 12 people total including two of my nephews. It should be fun. I hope to be posting lots of fun pics and a recap of yet another win on Monday :)


Go Pirates, Beat Marshall!!

The view from my back porch

is soooo pretty during this time of year. We haven't lived here long but I'm looking forward to many more because of this. It is beautiful!

Happy 8 Months Little Guy!

Hanging out in the straw that currently covers our yard in hopes that grass will grow next year.



What a tasty treat!




Look at the big stick I found Mom!









Such as sophisticated pup all covered in mud :)

November already?

This is what Tonka thinks about it. It sure does seem like someone pressed fast forward on 2008. I'm thinking one of my goals for 2009 is going to be to enjoy things more because from what I hear they just keep going by faster as the years move past.