The Batts Cave

Hello

2011-01-29T12:31:00.000-08:00

Well, it is hard to believe that my last post was almost a year ago. Much too long of a time to wait and share what has been happening in the Batts family. 2010 was a good year but went very very fast. I will briefly speak of some of our family highlights. This will help it be a shorter post. (yeah right, LOL!!!)

Of course my last post spoke of our fantastic trip to NC in February where we saw snow. We actually went back again for the July 4th week to celebrate my husband's sister, Glenda's 50 birthday. We had an awesome time. Glenda even announced that she and her boyfriend, Hugh, were now engaged. They are getting married this year on September 10th.

Glenda with her fiance Hugh.

With work, schooling, and several trips to NC in 2010; we were only able to fit one camping trip in this year. We went to the Sebastian Inlet State Park for 3 days in late March for spring break. It was a great time away with the kids. We did fishing of course but did not catch much too speak about. It wasn't snook season but a lot of people were catching snook all around us. (Surprising with the loss of over 10,000 snook during the 10 day freeze that killed so many) We were so excited when Ashley our 13 year old hooked her very first snook, reeled it up to the dock, but it flipped off right before we could grab it. So of course no picture, just another fish tale. Oh well, at least we had some fun fishing with the kids.

During the summer we were able to enjoy attending our youngest son's, Dalton, basketball games. He finally reached the age of joining the pee wee league with the city. He did well for his first year. He was a little nervous during play time and would freeze up sometimes but he still did a great job. I can not wait until he joins another team. It is exciting watching your child play on a team.
Dalton's team photo

With the start of another school year we had some changes come about. My family wanted me back home instead of working. So with a farewell to my job at the church, I came home to focus 100% on schooling again. Even though I truly miss my job and being with the best staff around, it was actually the best move I could make for our family. My eldest son, Devin, was starting 10th grade but as a dual en-roller at the IRSC college; How proud we are of him. Ashley is starting 8th grade...last year before High School...where does the time go. Dalton is now in 3rd grade and he is my main focus for coming home. We are going to have a fun year with home schooling.

September brought around the birthdays of our two older children, Devin and Ashley. This was a big year due to Devin hitting 16 years old. You know what that means!!! Yes. The dreaded teenage driving juncture. October 1st was his official license day and the beginning of our pacing the floors while he's away phase of our lives. Devin had already gotten a fixer upper car the year before and him and his dad had used the year to get the car ready. Well, it was done and Devin was raring to go. Driving himself to college, how proud we are. (A little secret...I cried the first day that Devin went to the college for his classes. You probably are thinking a lot of parents do that, but it is usually when your child is leaving home to go and live on the campus. He comes home every day. I cried because it was his first time going to school out of the house. I was acting just like a mommy putting her kindergartner in school.LOL)
Devin gets his new car home on September 4, 2009
This is Devin's car in January 2010 after getting new interior done.
This is Devin's finished car with new paint job and decal on hood.

On October 29th, we our proud to announce the new addition in to our family. Please meet Thaira (pronounced like Tyra) our new puppy. She was 7 mths old when we adopted her from the Palm City Humane Society. A little on the hyper side and very stubborn but she is learning a lot and very fast. We love our new little girl.

At the close of the year of course we had a few gatherings with our families, one of which, included another trip to Mike's parents house in NC. We usually try to go for the turn of the New Year but this time we left early in December on the 10th. On the way up we stopped by the U.S.S. North Carolina Battleship located in Wilmington,N.C. This same ship was toured by the Ghost Hunters team and we were so excited to be able to see this ship. Even though it rained all day and we did not see any ghost during our tour; we still enjoyed the day of sightseeing.

After our stop over at the ghost ship we head to Granny and Grandpa's home. It was so freezing cold from a storm that came through with high winds for about three days. But, after it was gone we got to enjoy some beautiful snow. Snow this early in the winter for this area is very rare but so very welcomed by us. Mike and Ashley also made an old family recipe for us. Snow Cream made from the fresh snow. It tasted just like vanilla ice cream. Nice little treat and a reminder for Mike from his childhood. Our dog, Thaira, enjoyed the snow tremendously, she wanted to stay outside all day. Our trip was wonderful and we made it home safely and just in time for Christmas.

Well that pretty much sums up our 2010 year, but of course there were so many other things that filled the other days. Too many things to mention. 2010 was fun, fast, and forever filled with special memories. Now it is time for 2011.

This is my family portrait taken on Christmas Day at my mom's house in Port St Lucie, Florida.

Snowy Vacation

2010-02-18T07:44:00.000-08:00

Hello to all, it has been a while since I have posted to our family blog. Life sometimes gets way to busy. I started working in May of 2009 and just shuffled a lot of things to the side. Needless to say blogging was one of the shuffles.

Our latest and greatest family story is our recent vacation to North Carolina. What an awesome time we had. The trip was much needed and a big blessing to us all. We were suppose to go the week of Christmas, but we pushed it back to the week of Super Bowl due to budgeting. Praise the Lord, we did move it. It was well worth the wait.

Our main dilemma (like so many others) is money for the trip. With finances becoming our number one priority, preparing for FPU (Financial Peace University) that is coming to our church when we get home from vacation and we had just finished reading the Dave Ramsey book "Total Money Make Over". We realized that going away during Christmas week was not in our budget and we were not even close to having any money saved for this trip. So we set a goal for saving money for our trip in February. God blessed us with way more than enough to go. It pays to follow a budget and to stop spending foolishly. We were able to go on our trip without any fear of running out of money and not sacrificing any of our regular budgeted money for paying our monthly bills. That is our first blessing from God.

Our second blessing was that we have been going to Mike's parents house for many years in the winter trying to catch a snow day. With me being a Floridian and our three children too, we have never experienced snow. Now I have seen snow on the ground back in October when we drove to a high peak in Robbinsville, N.C. (Which was absolutely beautiful, amazing, and such a serene feeling), but our kids were not with us and we did not see it falling. It is too funny, every trip we make it always snows the day after we leave to come back to Florida. Go figure! Well we decided that our best chances would be in February this year and that was what we set our goal for. It was very discouraging when we received a call from Mike's parents the weekend prior to our vacation and said it was snowing and it was between 8 to 10 inches of the most beautiful snow ever.

My husband was beside himself. He wanted to get in the car that day and start driving. The chances of more snow in their area was very low, since they don't get a whole bunch in their area and this weekend of snow put them over their limit. Obviously we couldn't just get in the car and head up, we both have jobs and the kids have school. So my husband had to cool his jets and wait a week and we continued to pray for more snow to come when we are there.

Our trip got started with us actually heading out a day early due to an rain/ice storm heading that way on the day we were suppose to be driving there. So for safety reasons we left on Thursday instead of on Friday. By Friday morning (we drove through the night) we reached the NC line and there was nothing but freezing rain. It rained all day Friday, but there was still snow on the ground from the prior weekend. When we arrived to Granny's house the kids couldn't get in those piles of snow fast enough. The rain had caused the snow to be more like packing snow cones instead of snowballs. Do you think the kids cared? No...they were slinging these hard uneven ice balls at each other like crazy. I got hit by one and it hurt. Yet, the kids had a blast. They only played outside for about 10 to 15 minutes because of the freezing rain and they were soaked from kneeling and rolling in wet snow.

That first day was joy enough and made our trip so special already. Once the kids got settled in warm clothing and some hot cocoa, Grandpa informed them that they were expecting snow the very next day. How cool is that? We are going to actually see snow falling from the sky. It came, it fell, it was beautiful. The most fluffiest white cotton ball looking snow you could ever see. It made everything so peaceful. Mike thought I was nuts because I couldn't stop laughing. It tickled as it landed on my face. It stuck in my hair and all over my clothing. It was wonderful and believe it or not I wasn't even freezing. What a glorious sight. I know too many people live constantly in it and it is a burden to them, but what a treasure for us to experience it as a family.

Our visit was terrific but of course had to come to an end. We left with an agenda of sightseeing a few historical War ships in South Carolina. Stopping for the night in Charleston, S.C. and spending the next day at Patriots Point was an experience we will not forget. Devin took over 400 photos of just the U.S.S. Yorktown Air Craft Carrier that was permanently docked there. It was a great day, but very windy and freezing cold.

After our tour, we were back on the road for the remaining 8 hour drive to reach home. Within 5 minutes of driving the rain started and it rained all the way home. All I can say is that it was great to be home again. We couldn't have asked for a more memorable trip to NC and SC. Our photos tell the tale of a terrific trip. Thank you God for blessing us, yet again.

The Lock-In

2009-04-08T06:24:00.000-07:00

Yes, I got locked in at the church for a whole night. Did I mention that I was locked in the church with a load of teenagers? It was the middle school lock-in for our church youth group. I figured since Devin and Ashley are both in middle school, I as a parent should be helping out with this function. So, I volunteered to be locked-in with the girls for the night. What was I thinking???? No, seriously, I had a blast with the youth.

The night was all planned out by Pastor Billy. He made it a team game night for the youth. There were six teams with about 6 to 8 kids on each team. Each team had to earn points based on their ranking completing some very difficult task. It was a hoot watching all these kids in blind folds, or blowing a ping pong ball with lots of holes in it with a coffee straw around on the floor, and even compete in a team dance off. The games were fun, the food was great, and the sleep was lacking.

Once the girls got separated and we filed into the mullet for our place of slumber, the party really got started. The girls rushed the bathrooms to get on their PJ's,(I don't know why, none of them planned on sleeping anyways)and then it was time for some singing and dancing. Even though I did not know a lot of the songs they were jamming to, I enjoyed the show. The best part of the night was when I was sitting in the dark while the girls played a game called sardines. I loved it when they screamed from fright while hiding in a pitch black building. Too funny.

All had fun for the lock-in, although the anticipation of the boys doing something dreadful all night came unfulfilled. The morning came creeping in and the girls started slowly winding down. I soon felt my age from pulling an all nighter, it was as if I was walking in slow motion. Once I was home it was pure bliss laying in my nice comfy bed.

April Birthday Celebrations

2009-04-08T06:18:00.000-07:00

Our family gathering to celebrate the March and April birthdays was on the first weekend of April. We celebrated four birthdays; my step-brother Jon's, Aunt Elaine's, Mine, and my step-sister's Kim's. We had a great time together and had a wonderful dinner made by my mom.

After lunch Mike & Jon are just relaxing.

Tami helping mom serve cake and ice cream.

Kim opening up her birthday cards.

Ashley playing when she got out of the pool.

Aunt Elanie opening her cards.

Spring Break Camping

2009-04-08T05:59:00.000-07:00

Devin caught a toad fish; my friend Julie with her son Chris; Ashley,Dalton, & Chris found a load of starfish, the kids playing at the swimming hole, Smores time

Kicking off our Spring Break week with some camping is just what we all needed. A good break away from schooling. We booked a camp site at the Sebastian Inlet State Park for the last weekend of March. It was a time of camping with my closest friend Julie and her two boys, Alex and Christopher. Needless to say the kids were so excited to be camping with their friends. This was also Julie and her boys first time camping.

Mike, was so sweet, he hooked up the camper and towed it up to Sebastian and set up every thing for us and then returned four days later to pack it all up and tow it home. I am sure he was excited about his break at home too.

The weather was a little rough, very windy. We did not even attempt to go to the beach because of all the rip currents. But,that did not damper our vacation at all. There were plenty of things to do in the state park. The kids swam, there was a playground, and we did plenty of fishing. We also got our fill of wildlife. There was a pod of dolphins that lingered all weekend by the parks fishing dock. They were so beautiful and fun to watch. The sea turtles were plentiful, seeing their little heads popping up for air every so often. On our last day, the kids and I had a manatee come right up to the rocks where we were fishing.

This was an excellent spring break trip that was very inexpensive for both Julie and I. Sharing the expense and getting away from home to have fun with the kids. We could not have asked for a better time.

One of the dolphins passing by, the kids taking a break during our walk, Dalton found a crab claw, Me and the kids right before Mike came back to pick us up, Ashley fishing

The kids

2009-03-15T16:21:00.000-07:00

The kids have been having a blast lately. Between home school field-trips, sports, and just some family fun; it has been a fun full schedule lately. When I look at my calendar I often wonder how I am going to get through the week, but it is all so worth it.

Last Tuesday Devin, Ashley, and Dalton just finished up their tennis class and absolutely loved it. They did not want this class to end. I will definitely be signing them up for it again. This up coming Tuesday is their first day of basketball which they also took in the fall. They are excited about doing this class again too.

Devin and Ashley have been playing football with the church. It has been awesome hanging out watching the church group come together and have some fun. There have been so many showing up to play. I think this is Devin's favorite day, all he talks about all week is football. Too Cool!!!

We have had some fun activities other than sports too. We had recently went on a field-trip with the home school group for a boat tour down the St Lucie river. That was a neat adventure. I wrote an article on-line about the day and it got published in our Wednesday newspaper. Here is the link to the story, if you wish to read it. http://tc.yourhub.com/PortStLucie/Stories/Outdoor-Sports-Activities/Boating/Story~581877.aspx

Also, just last week, we had a fun family day hanging out at the county fair. We were thankful that the weather was warming up because we were going to go on a different night but it was just too cold. Well, it ended up being so hot. But, we kept cool for a while watching the rodeo under cover. Nothing like enjoying a day at the fair with some fattening food, fast rides, and loads of animals to look at. Great time for all.

So that only sums up a portion of the activities that have been going on lately. This is one reason I don't post too much. But, I like to share the fun things that are happening. Talk to you soon.

Peace River Camping Trip February 2009

2009-02-17T05:22:00.001-08:00

We finally were able to go camping as a family again. Our last trip was back in August of 2007 when we camped at Lion's Country Safari. (Awesome time there)
The long lapse was a result from our oldest son getting very, very sick and then the gas prices were way to high to drag a 34' travel trailer around. So this trip was long due.

Our camp site

Eating breakfast on our first morning

We had a blast. I highly recommend the Peace River Camp Grounds located in Arcadia on highway 70 just west of the main part of town. It was a little more pricey than your typical camp ground but was well worth it and they had a lot to do, especially if you have any 4 wheelers, ATVs, or golf carts.

ATVs were every where.

Our camping weekends usually consist of only two nights but because of a double holiday weekend we had a three night minimum stay. I was a little upset about having to squeeze in an extra night but in the end I did not want to come home yet. It was so relaxing and beautiful.

The kids in the pool.

The coolest thing to do was dig for fossils. The river is full of them. We spent most of Saturday just sitting in the river and sifted through dirt and rock to find our treasures. We found some Indian beads, bones, sting ray barbs, and a load of sharks teeth. Ashley won the prize for the most found, she dug up about a 145 teeth. We did not count the boys collections. But, Dalton, got the prize for the biggest tooth found. It is a beauty.

Mike sifting

Me and Ashley searching

Of course being a double holiday weekend the campground was very packed and I have never seen so many ATVs in my life. I sat and pondered the fact that the economy is so tight for everyone but it is funny how everyone has so many toys. I know it was tight on our budget just to camp there and it was even more for the weekend bracelet for having an ATV. But, you can tell everyone was having a great time.

We were curious what the ATV trails had to offer; so we rented a golf cart for an hour. Even though the there was a set speed limit, we were able to tour all the back trails, see the campgrounds river beach, and watch a little of the mudding through the mud hole. I was really bummed to have to turn back in the cart because the time flew and we were not ready to stop playing on the trails. I now knew why all the kids were constantly on their ATVs and going back and forth from their campsite to the back trails.

The Mud Pit...

Devin and Ashley driving the cart

It is safe to say that this was every one's favorite camping trip so far. We loved the different activities and the beauty of the river. Next time we go we will have to try to canoe the river. We will definitely go back, we did find a cheaper campground not far from where we stayed. It did not have as much to offer but when you don't have the ATVs to do the trails you are better off staying at the cheaper place. Who knows maybe next time we will own our own ATV and go back for some mudding fun.

The Newest Member of the Batts Family

2009-02-06T19:51:00.000-08:00

Meet Crystal, our brand new baby bunny.
We got Crystal last week from the Marasco Ranch and today has been one full week in our home. We named her Crystal because she has these bright blue eyes. She is so sweet and the kids love playing with her. We decided to keep her in the house, especially because it has been so cold lately.
She is 6 weeks old today.

What's been going on?

2009-01-29T09:26:00.000-08:00

Well, I keep telling myself I will stay on top of blogging but time just gets the best of me. So today I figured I will post a few things that has been happening in our lives since my last posting.

We had a wonderful Christmas and New Years with family. We traveled to N.C. on Christmas Day night to be with Mike's family for the New Year. It was great but very cold. We were able to go sight seeing one day up into Virginia, we saw Appomattox and the Natural Bridge. Very cool stuff.

This was a view as we were walking up to the Appomattox court house.

This is a picture of the Natural Bridge

Our family along with Mike's dad at the Natural Bridge.

Our beautiful iguana "Godzilla" died in December. I miss him, he was so cool. It got so cold one night and he decided to sleep in his bath (which was not that deep) but when it got so cold he could not move and his nostrils went under the water and he drowned. (We are getting two bunnies tomorrow to put in his cage...I can not wait.)

Dalton turned 7 in the beginning of January, in fact we drove home from N.C. on his birthday. I can not believe he is 7 already.

We celebrated Dalton's birthday the night before we left to come home.

Dalton just had an accident the other day. He was playing with some friends outside in the dark on our cul-de-sac and while turning to run away he ran into the side mirror of our neighbors SUV. He knocked his upper front tooth clean out. It was not loose, so we thought, but it had to be on it's way out soon for the whole thing to come out. I am just thankful he was not hurt worst.

We are so excited about going camping in a couple of weeks to Peace River. This will be our first camping trip since Devin got sick with E-coli and was in the hospital for 3 weeks. It is amazing how long ago that happened but we could not go camping for a while because the gas prices were way to high to drag our camper any where. We are very excited about our trip and I will post those pics when we get back.

Last big news, Mike got another vehicle for his business. It will be much better on gas and it is needed just in case prices go back up real high. If you are wondering why him getting another vehicle is such big news, this is something he does quite often. I am actually surprised at how long he kept his last truck. This car makes number 36 for us; and no we are not in the business of selling cars. He cleans pools for a living.

So, I think this gets me caught up with the latest and greatest. Not to much happening in my life and that is why not a lot of posting going on. But, that will change soon, with our garden being planted and us getting back into our camping excursions I will have a lot to share in weeks to come.

What a beautiful sight

2008-12-02T06:15:00.000-08:00

We are in awe lately because we have had a beautiful hawk move into the neighborhood. We notice him several weeks ago and wake up each morning to see him in our backyard up on a telephone pole. He spreads his feathers out and is getting ready to find his morning breakfast. It is wonderful to hear his calls, so unique, there is no mistaken that it is him.

This morning, while doing school, Devin noticed something out on my truck. I ran to the window to see what it was and there was that beautiful hawk sitting in all his glory right on the hood of my truck. So close, it was so cool. Usually he is way up high on the pole and now he was eye level from the window. I snapped a few shots before he flew away.

Traveling down memory lane...

2008-11-26T06:39:00.000-08:00

I was born in W.P.B. and lived there till I was 10 years old when we moved down to Coconut Creek, Ft. Lauderdale. I loved my childhood neighborhood; I have so many awesome memories. We lived on a tiny street with about 10 houses but loads of kids. We played constantly in the streets; kickball, baseball, tag, superheros, hot wheels cars, etc. This is something my kids don't get because there are no kids in our neighborhood at the present time, and I wish they had it my way. We have the perfect cul-de-sac to do all those games.

Well anyways, on Monday, Devin had a check up at his Neurologist for the E-coli episode. We decided to make a day of it. My mom, sister and me with the kids drove down for lunch and the doctors visit. While there we took a trip down memory lane. We drove by my Grandfathers house in Palm Beach, and drove by the bike trail paths that my parents took us on, "Oh so many times". We went to the end of the road to see the inter coastal of Palm Beach and told the kids about the witches cave and drove by honking our horn to hear her scream. (just a little thing our parents would do to us, of course it is not true...)

Finally we went over into West Palm Beach to see the house that I grew up in. We lived in Belvedere Homes, which is not far from the Dog Track. Our road was called Pine Rd. and I was so excited to be able to visit the area. Well, it is not the same. It is not a great area to be in, very run down.

It is so funny how when you are little you think the things around you are so big. That is what I thought about our house on Pine Rd. but boy was it tiny. Everything was tiny, even the road that we use to play ball in and walk around the block thousands of times.

Even though it is so different now and not the same as it was when I was little, I still have all my precious memories of a glamorous childhood. I would not change one bit of it. Here are some photos from our day.

Mom, Ashley, and Monica at Duffy's in West Palm Beach

Devin, Me, and Dalton at lunch

Dalton, Ashley, and Devin by one of the beautiful Banyan trees in Palm Beach by the water near the bike trails. This is just a couple of blocks from where my grandparents lived.

This was the witches cave, in the wall on the right, about halfway through there is a drainage pipe that is behind bars and that is where my parents would tease us that a witch lived in there and we believed them. Well, my kids did not fall for it.

My house that I grew up in. Now keep in mind, it was not yellow and there were no trees in the front yard and no fence around the front yard. It was a nice clean beautiful house and yard. Our driveway,as my child mind remembered, was huge and all the neighborhood kids use to meet in our driveway to do roller skating. I have photos, I think I will search for them and post.

Our Halloween, I know, I know, it is way past that.

2008-11-13T11:04:00.000-08:00

Devin is a pirate teaming up with his pirate friend Ryan.

Ashley is an over happy Disco Diva.

Dalton is our Mighty Ninja on the attack.

O.K. it has taken me a while to get the time to post a few pictures of the kids on Halloween.

For the weekend of Halloween we were pretending to be away camping in order to surprise my mom for her 60th Birthday party (which worked). I tell you it was so hard to sneak around.

First off, it is hard enough not to pick up the phone just to call her. I had to remind myself Friday and Saturday "DO NOT CALL HER!"

Well, it was even harder to go out and do shopping or just even drive on the road. I had no idea where she would be and because I couldn't call her; I couldn't even check where she was.

Any ways, the kids were invited to a Halloween party which was just a whole lot of fun. We had a blast, but boy was I exhausted. I felt so sad driving home from the party because the kids could not show grandma and grandpa their costumes. Every year we swing by their house and ring the doorbell like tricker-treaters and see if they recognize their grand kids.

60th Surprise Party

2008-11-03T11:36:00.000-08:00

Today is my mom's 60th birthday. Happy Birthday MOM!!! We celebrated this past Saturday with a big surprise party at my friend's,Julie, house. It was going to be tough to surprise her, but we did it. I pretended I was out of town on a camping trip with my family, so that would keep her from ever suspecting a party was being planned. Julie invited her and Jack over for dinner.

It was awesome. When we yelled surprise, I thought she was going to pass out. She actually started to back out of the door, like she was really going to get away. I appreciate so much all of our friends who came and celebrated this very special day with my mom. It was such a blessing for her. She is still on cloud nine. To cap off the evening, Jack, gave my mom the best present ever. He is going to take her to Israel in Feb. She balled.

My mom is opening the card that tells her that she gets to go to Israel in Feb.

Mom is crying and hugging Jack.

Mom is trying to read all of us what the card said. She reacted and half of us did not even know what was in the card.

An addition to our family

2008-10-29T13:30:00.001-07:00

We are the proud parents of Godzilla...

Isn't he a beauty!!!

This is Godzilla's own private home. Mike is building it in a beautiful corner spot of our yard. Lots of sun light.

Dalton loves looking at him all the time.

Our friend Rich gave us the iguana the other day. Just in time for the cold front. We had Godzilla out on the back porch the first night it was cold. Dalton woke up and right away wanted to check on him. We open the door and pulled the covering off the cage and there he was sitting in his water pan frozen stiff. Poor thing was so cold he had no energy to move. It was fun petting him, because he just sat still.
Last night we brought him inside; since it was going to be even colder. He was nice and cozy and still energized in the morning.

Busy as can be

2008-10-25T17:36:00.000-07:00

I know it has been kind of quiet on the blog for a while. It has been a little crazy for us. I have recently started working for the church on two nights a week and it is amazing how everything just seems to pile up quickly. I have not had the time to check on other blogs, let alone mine. I do miss keeping in touch with others and seeing what is new in some of my friends lives.

There is always the hope that next week my load will get lighter, but it never ends up that way when the week begins. I am hoping that November will slow down some for me, and boy do I love getting close to Thanksgiving. One more busy October week and than we can all breathe. Maybe I will have some great photos to share of our great camping adventures we are going on for Halloween.

We are starting up our new garden and have begun with herbs this time. They are sprouting great and we hope to see some veggies soon. We will keep you posted.
Talk with you all real soon!!!

Congratulations!!!

2008-09-22T13:51:00.000-07:00

Mike and I were so excited when we received a call from his niece, Terri, last weekend. Terri and her boyfriend, Todd, had traveled down to the Keys to get married. They decided to stop by and stay the night with us on their way back home. It was great having them come stay with us.

They shared their whole two week experience with us, and let me say, I would have given up on the trip after the first disaster. Yet, they persevered through a lot and they enjoyed every bit of their honeymoon trip. It opened my eyes to just how impatient I am in things, when they don't work out my way.

I can't name everything that went wrong but I will name the major ones that stood out the most.

1. They broke down on their way to the Keys, on the Seven Mile Bridge, at the top of the part that allows the boats to pass under. (If you have been there, you know how horrifying that is!!!)YIKES...
2. The breakdown caused them to be late to their own wedding ceremony on the beach at sunset, so all their pictures are in the dark.
3. They got evacuated because of Hurricane Ike.
4. They were camping in a tent for two weeks, with a lot of rainy days.
5. Their boat broke down while out on the water.

Need I list anymore!
They were awesome;they had a blast and looked at it as more memories to share. It was great having them, but we wish is was longer than just one night. We are so proud of Terri and excited for her new life with her husband, Todd. We pray the very best for them.

By the way, they called us when they got home to North Carolina the next night and Terri told me that they got a flat tire on their truck pulling their boat that day. I am glad they made it home.

Happy Birthday Devin & Ashley!!!

2008-09-08T16:28:00.000-07:00

September is a busy month for us because we have two of our kids birthdays right in the beginning of the month. Devin turned 14 on the 6th and Ashley will be 12 on the 10th. With school starting the day after Labor Day and planning for two birthdays, I feel like tearing my hair out. But, we breezed through the first week of school and the birthday celebration with the family was a blast.

Now I can relax and not feel so stressed. Devin and Ashley were of course spoiled by their Aunts, Uncles, Great Grandparents, and Grandparents. They all came to our house to have lunch and cake. The kids each made their own cake and daddy lit the candles for us all to sing "the song".

Nothing like a family gathering to celebrate your birthday. The only thing we were missing was Mike's side of the family. We wish they could have all been here too. Ashley shares the same birthday as Mike's mom. Happy Birthday Pat!!! Wish we could be there in N.C. with you.

Hope you enjoy our birthday video, we were fearing that the first cake would catch fire before we got the second cake lit.

My Crops are up and running again!

2008-09-08T16:16:00.000-07:00

It has been since April when our church home got flooded that I have been able to have a crop. I enjoyed having a break, but it was a very long one. I missed it, a lot. I was fearing that Hannah or Ike was going to ruin my first day back, but we were saved. The only scrapbooking I did over the summer was working on the home school yearbook with Ashley. I did not get to work on any of my personal pictures.

It is so much fun when you can gather with a bunch of ladies and scrapbook together. Here are some photos of Saturdays crop. There were 12 of us and we all had a great time. I can not wait for next month. Next month is our big all day crop for the special croptoberfest event. I will be able to get a lot done.

Okra

2008-08-31T15:23:00.000-07:00

This year has been the first attempt at doing a Florida garden for us and we have learned a lot. My husband being from North Carolina has dealt with farming and he thought it would be a peace of cake. Well, we found out that gardening in Florida is very hard. We started back in February with Lima beans, corn, lettuce, spinach, broccoli, cantaloupe, watermelon, and cucumbers. We had a nice variety of fruits and vegetables and big plans for rotating crops and having year round veggies.

Our garden had different plans in mind. We were so excited when the Lima beans came in and we picked a few. When I say "a few" it means just "a few". Not nearly enough to make a side dish for a family of five. But, still it was exciting to see our plants flower and grow. Our plants were growing great, we got a few cucumbers and a little bit of corn that seemed to not grow to its full potential ,yet, we ate it and it was good. Then the Florida heat hit, and it hit our garden hard.

We soon realized we were not giving it enough water and everything was dying. It was dying fast. We tried everything to save it but we ended up starting another round of planting. What a mistake!!! It was not long, before our garden was invested with beetles and little black tiny bugs. Our garden even was gathering a fungus from us watering it to close to dark. So we learned. After the defeat of our second round, we also learned not to try and grow anything in Florida during May, June, & July because the bugs will get you every time.

There is one battle we did win. Our Aunt Elaine and Uncle Fred bought us two earth boxes as gifts when we started our new endeavors of gardening. They are the coolest things. We vow to only use earth boxes from now on. Our last planting was Okra and we were very worried about loosing it because it was right next to the corn that the beetles just ravaged completely. I guess the beetles are picky about what they eat, because they did not touch the okra. We have had four batches of okra so far and it is still producing so strong. We feared we would loose it in Fay because of the winds. It did lean some after the storm was gone, but it was not long before it perked up again.

After studying some Florida gardening books and learning a little from our own failures; we are getting ready to rise to a new challenge. We plan on starting another round of planting in late September and hope that it gives us a lot of produce for the winter. We have already agreed to plant even more okra, if our other plants don't survive, we know we will be bountiful in okra. Be on the lookout for our garden shots in a few months. Well, I have to go and cook dinner. We are grilling out London broil and making some fried okra. YUMMY!!!

Our Weekend Project

2008-08-28T09:41:00.000-07:00

This weekend we had a major project to do. We ended up with some water damage in our front office because of that darn Fay. It was nothing to major, just soaked carpets and a little water hit our bookshelves that were closest to the window. We think the wind was so strong it just caused the rain to get through the tracks on the window.

Have I told you all that I am married to the most amazing man in the whole world. Well, I am. My husband moved all the office furniture out, including two whole walls of bookshelves, ripped up soaking wet carpet, and tiled the office in just two days. By Monday evening he had the office back together. I don't think I mentioned that he had never laid tile before. It looks amazing and now I never have to worry about wet carpet again.

I am so proud of Mike, he is the type of man that knows a little about a lot of things and can usually figure things out on his own. He is my handyman in many ways.

Everything is going good so far this week. We are a little on the busy side, Mike getting caught up with his pool customers after Fay's fiasco last week and I am getting ready to start schooling the day after Labor Day. Hopefully things will start slowing down for us to breathe a little easier. Our two older kids birthdays are coming up in two weeks so we are getting ready to celebrate two very special dates.

Oh, and our house guest have not moved out yet, and have not visited our special welcome mats left out for them. We still have no clue what they are but we are guessing they are probably rats. YUK!!! Our friend Rich came over and gave a sweep of the attic and to our surprise there was no evidence of any animal activity up there. We had two mornings where there were no parties and we thought we had them but traps were empty and the next morning they were celebrating something. They are probably up there laughing at us. It reminds me of the kids movie "Mousehunt". Can they possibly be that smart? I will keep you posted.

Surviving the Storm

2008-08-21T05:00:00.000-07:00

Well, we made it through this minor Tropical Storm named Fay. She ended up being a little tougher than expected and lingered for a very long time. No pictures to share of this event, but I am sure everyone has seen enough on the news. Even though Fay is still just North of us; today is the actual first day of a little sun peeking through the clouds. We are being promised more rain to come and I am not sure how some parts of the county can take any more of it. I am venturing out East today with Monica, to go to the mall to get tires on her car and I am sure we will see all that flooding. Hopefully we will not float away. I hope the mall is still there! I will see if I can't get some cool shots to share.

Even though we got minimal water damage in our office on the front of our house from the wind and rain we do have a major catastrophe in our life right now. I need lots of prayer from all who read this...It has been about a week now and I don't know if I can take it much longer. Every morning around 5:00 a.m. I am awoken and am unable to go back to sleep. We have guest staying in our attic and they seem to be partying it up till day break. Don't know who they are yet, but we left some welcoming mats out last night and we are hoping to meet them soon. I AM SO TIRED!!!

Ashley needs a sister

2008-08-12T11:24:00.000-07:00

Well, I have to say I was a little surprised when my 6 year old boy came in the office the other night looking as pretty as he can be. Yes, PRETTY!!! My 11 year old daughter decided to play dress up with my youngest. Now, I am very surprised she was able to get him to participate and I really do fear that he may have enjoyed it to much.

Make up, dress, and purse in hand he was quite proud to display himself to me. I could not pass up the moment to ask him to pose for a picture, which he did with glee. I guess we should have kept the dog that Ashley use to dress up all the time (Minus the make-up) praise the Lord. Now that there is no more dog to dress I guess the next choice is naturally the younger brother.

Just thought I would share.

A Relaxing Day of Fishing

2008-07-28T18:51:00.000-07:00

You know one of my favorite things to do is fishing. I grew up fishing. I can remember the times my dad would take me out on the dock down in Jupiter and show me how to bait the hook and cast a net. Being a tom boy growing up, I loved it. Fish guts, dead bait, getting down and dirty never bothered me. I love gutting a fish. If I could have it my way I would fish all day and every day. My husband shares a love for fishing but he prefers fresh water while I prefer salt water. Since we live so close to the beach I usually get my choice way to fish and that is heading out to the ocean and finding an empty beach doing the surf fishing thing.

This past weekend we went out to Hutchinson Island right past the FPL plant and found a nice quiet beach for a relaxing day. Spending 4 1/2 hours on the beach fishing was not enough time for me but my husband was very happy when it was time to leave. Of course he was happy because he was the only one who caught anything. It does not bother me much, at least I got to sit out there with pole in hand and feel the tugs. I had two near catches, but of course that starts to lead into fish tales. So I won't go there.

Mike caught a bonnet hammerhead shark. The kids danced around shouting while daddy reeled that bad boy in. Once he got it on the beach the kids were so exciting and praising daddy for catching a shark. It was pretty cool. We decided to keep it, hearing that hammerheads are good to eat. We had to bleed it right away so it would stay good. We got it home and I cleaned it and cut it into 10 good sized steaks. After marinating in Italian dressing we grilled it for about 15 minutes. Let me tell you something, that was the best I had ever eaten. I never have tasted shark, and it was awesome. The kids are hooked too. The shark steaks tasted just like fillet mignon.

Needless to say we are ready for another fishing trip, but this time we hope to hook another shark. It was well worth the trip out.