So happy together

So much to say, So much to say, So much to say

(I can't seem to get the pictures where I want them. Sorry)

So this post is going to be full of random stuff. Brace yourself.

24
First I'd like to express my excitement about the new season of24 . We've been waiting a long time and the season opener last week was worth the wait. Jack is back from his 20 months in a Chinese prison, being tortured but not saying a word. He is strangely vulnerable, but still tough as nails. The big surprise was Curtis dying, after Jack was forced to shoot him. Oh, and the atomic bomb going off in LA. My dad was hoping it took out Hollywood...Anyway...I'm glad that the writers and producers are not afraid to be politically incorrect and portray the big bad enemy as radical Muslims. This is the reality of our day whether or not some people want to admit it and possibly offend someone.

Mac
My precious son is now 9 weeks old. He is a good baby and I'm really enjoying him more and more. He "talks" alot- all the "goos" and "ohs" and "maas" are so much fun. He sometimes gets so talkative and smiley and excited that he spits up all down himself. He's sleeping well at night, usually through the night, but the last couple he's been up around 2. At his 2 month check up (last Tuesday) he weighed 11 lbs and some ounces and was 24 1/2 inches long. This means he's growing well and gaining weight. They gave him four shots, two in each leg, which is horrible for him and for me. But he's a tough guy and he pushed through the pain.

Pinelands Nursery (see pictures at top)
This weekend I was in Milton, FL where my family lives. I took Ruthie to see her Uncle Alan's nursery, and she loved it. She got to pick a kumquat;meet a cat, a turtle and a puppy; stomp in rocks, and look at lots of plants and trees. My brother Alan opened the nursery a couple of years ago and I am so proud of him. He sells any plant you could want, plus some really fun Mexican pottery and ironwork. He has a greenhouse full of tropical plants, tons of rocks and gravel and stone, lily pads and palm trees, and a pet turtle in the office. There is a new cat that has wandered in and is living there, and he ate my brother's roast beef sandwich on Saturday. (This is a travesty. My dad made this heaping sandwich of the best roast beef I've ever tasted, and the cat got it when Alan went out to help a customer.) My family and I love plants, so this is such a wonderful thing for all of us to support and enjoy. It really is the nicest nursery I've ever seen, and several customers have told Alan this as well.

Alan started out working at a wholesale nursery in Navarre, when he was in high school and then while attending college. He stopped going to school in order to start a lawn service business that grew by leaps and bounds. This led to a landscaping and irrigation business, the landscaping part being what he enjoys the most. After several years of hard work and increasing success, he opened the nursery and sold the lawn maintenance business. So now he owns Pinelands Nursery and East Bay Landscaping. Alan turned 30 last year, and I am so impressed by his hard work and success. He is an awesome older brother, even though he did give me the flu for Christmas. He's even turned into a loving father of little Annabelle (19 mos) and Alee (9 weeks). So I salute you, entrepreneurial brother figure, mi hermano con queso!

If any of you friendly readers find yourself in or near Milton, you should stop by and purchase a kumquat bush or two! It is located on Highway 90 just north of I-10 at the FWB Navarre exit (Hwy 87).

Thoughts on Perspective and Space or Walking the Same Old Street in a Different Direction

The other day I went walking in my neighborhood. I walk alot, and I find myself going the same route, mainly because I know how long it will take, and how many miles it will take me. This day I reversed my route and it was so strange to me how different a walk it was. I saw several plants and trees that I had never noticed before. I saw houses from new angles and the way light fell through the trees and brought out new features of the same old street I had walked a million times before. Things hidden were revealed and I enjoyed it immensely. I think there are other streets I need to walk down in a different direction. The same eyes, the same feet tracking down the pavement, but new nuances of light and shadow, of hidden and revealed features, of angles and curves.

Happy Birthday Ruthie!

The day of the party was perfect- sunny, breezy and warm (74 degrees!). We were excited to have a January party outside in the park. Here is Ruth with her cousin Jackson and her friends Becca and Bailey. They had alot of fun!
Here is Ruthie on her actual birthday. She wanted to wear her party hat again when we ate the leftover cake. 

Happy New Year!

Happy New Year everyone! I put a picture of my brother on here because he got me sick. And a picture of Ruthie enjoying her second Christmas, while Mac enjoyed his first.

Today Auburn won the Cotton Bowl (sorry all you Nebraskans) so here is Ruth wearing her daddy's Auburn hat.

And Ruthie found her Halloween costume from last year, which she decided still fits and now she wants to wear it around the house.