The Angry Baker

Here's What's Up

2012-02-10T10:44:00.004-05:00

I signed Shiloh up for preschool last week. She's not excited at all. If you ask Shiloh if she's going to school in a few months, her response every time is a very adamant, "NO." She would rather stay home with me. If you ask me, my response is a somewhat excited, "Yes!". Yes, I'm the bad mom who is actually kind of excited about my daughter going to school. Now, don't get me wrong. I will be crying the morning of August 27th. Heck, I teared up just telling Richard about registration. I'm sad that my child is old enough for preschool, but, man, those mornings to myself will be great.

In other news (I don't think I shared this on the blog), my sister is pregnant again. Andrea will be having another boy in early June. Andrea and Daniel were happy with the news. Everyone else wanted another girl. They said they couldn't handle another Camryn. I see where they're coming from. If we ever did adopt again, I'd be tempted to wait for a boy.

In adoption related news, we had our yearly visit with Will's family a couple of weeks ago. He turned two on the 26th. He's a cutie. Will and Shiloh have the same eyes, nose and smile. He also has chubby cheeks like Shiloh used to have. He has Kim's dark hair, dark eyes, and his skin tone matches hers perfectly.

In other adoption related news, some of you may remember that Kim is pregnant again. She found out in December that she's having another little girl. We found out in December that she's considering placing again. She still doesn't know what she's going to do. I'm trying to be patient because I know it's a huge decision, but I wish she would give us some indication as to which way she's leaning. Richard is smart. If you ask him, she's keeping the baby. He has himself convinced that her plan is to parent. This way, he has nothing to think about. I, on the other hand, can't do that. I know for a fact (as does he), that she truly does not know what she is going to do yet. My brain won't let my think otherwise. I wish it would. It would make all of this a lot easier.

Checking In

2012-01-17T14:25:00.019-05:00

We're still here!

Let's see... I believe the last time I posted anything was shortly after Camryn's birthday, so you've missed a few things. Here are some pictures to catch you up :)

Shiloh's teeth could not look better :)

Richard and Shiloh started work on their first album together ;)

We spent Thanksgiving in Michigan with Richard's family. Richard and Blake came out to Target with us on Black Friday

On the way home we stopped in Ohio to visit Great Grandpa and...

Gigi

Shiloh got her own Christmas tree

Silly showed up at our house

Shiloh had her second dance recital. This time her friend Tristyn was also in it

Grammie came down again

And we were there, of course

Lee, Laura, and Ella came to visit from Alabama

And we all went ice skating together (Shiloh and Richard's first time)

Shiloh and I went to see The Nutcracker at The Fox Theatre in Atlanta

Santa came

And Shiloh was happy

We went to NC for Christmas with the Outens, and Grammie and Grandpa

And then we had a nice, relaxing, lazy Sunday

And today is our 9 year wedding anniversary!

Do Not Fear

2011-11-07T09:10:00.005-05:00

Be not afraid. Have no fear. Fear not. Do not be afraid

I'm currently in the middle of the Esther Bible Study by Beth Moore. Two weeks ago we had a lesson on fear. According to Beth Moore, the number one commandment in the bible is, in more words or less, "Do not be afraid". She asked us to think about what a life without fear would be like. This was huge for me. Since I could never do her words justice by trying to paraphrase them, here is a quote from her...

"The most critical breakthrough of faith you and I could ever experience
is to let God bring us to a place where we trust Him-period.
We don't just trust Him to let us avoid what we fear most. We determine
to trust Him no matter what, even if our worst nightmare befalls us...
Our only steadfast defense against life's certain uncertainty is
unconditional trust in a Savior who loves us more than His own life."

I want to believe God, not just believe in Him.

Eh

2011-11-06T19:36:00.002-05:00

We had a good weekend. Happy Birthday, Dad!!

(There, I blogged)

Already Out of Ideas

2011-11-05T18:53:00.007-04:00

Day 5, and I can't think of anything to blog about, so here's what's on my mind.

We just found out that our tenant in the Athens house is not going to renew her lease with us in January. The tenant's daughter is entering the military so section 8 is downgrading her since she'll have one less dependent. The contract we have with section 8 ends mid-late January, so we should have plenty of time to find a replacement. While on the topic of the Athens house, next month we will pay off the smaller loan on it. (we have an 80/20 loan on that house) It feels good to make some progress with it.

I have some news to share when I get the okay, but that's all I can say for now. (Don't you hate when people do that? I do, too ;))

And my mind is pretty empty right now, so that's about it. I'll end with some pictures.

Camryn's 1st Birthday Party

A couple of my favorites from Shiloh's 4 year pictures

Moments Like These

2011-11-04T15:00:00.009-04:00

So thankful for moments like these.

Keeping With The Adoption Theme

2011-11-03T12:02:00.004-04:00

Richard and I are making the preparations for/seriously considering for another adoption. Which one we are actually doing kind of depends on what day you ask me. I say me because Richard is on board for whatever I choose. He would like a second child, but he would also be fine with only Shiloh. The decision is basically mine to make. That's not a good thing. I can be pretty indecisive. Which means that it may never happen because I'll never be able to make a decision.

In the past couple of months we've (I've) decided we're going to adopt again, told friends to keep us in mind if they know anyone considering adoption, decided maybe we're not quite ready, contacted an agency regarding home study info, had a contract sent to us from the agency, decided maybe we should wait until after the Holidays to start anything, and that's where we are today. I think I'm hoping that maybe between now and January 1st I'll have some kind of an epiphany regarding what decision we should make.

Today I'm leaning more towards a second adoption, but I'm sure that by tomorrow afternoon I will have changed my mind.

Here's What You Missed

2011-11-02T09:08:00.005-04:00

Kim is pregnant again. Shiloh is truly going to be a big sister this time. Kim is keeping the baby. I say that because we haven't had the contact I thought we would with Will and his family. Anyway. Kim went trick or treating with us Monday and after we were done Shiloh was sitting on the couch with her. She pointed to Kim's belly and asked her what it was. On a side note, she had already been told of the pregnancy. Moving on... Kim told her her there was a baby in there, and that was all that was said on the subject.

Skip ahead to yesterday morning, Shiloh and I are sitting on the couch talking about how much fun she had Halloween night. Somehow Kim's "belly" came up, and we have a conversation that goes something like this...

Me: Shiloh, do you know that the baby in Kim's belly will be like your brother or sister since you came out of her belly also?
Shiloh: Yeah. I know.
Me: Oh, you do?
Shiloh: Yeah, I know. I've been praying for a baby sister (which she has EVERY night), so she's growing one for me.

After she said that, I was concerned that she thought this baby would be coming to live with her. I asked her about it, and she said that she understood that the baby is going to live with Kim. I think she really gets it. As much as she can anyway.

I'm excited. I really do hope that Shiloh will be able to have as much of a sibling type relationship with this baby as she possibly can. I asked Kim if she had any idea what she's having. When she was about this far along in her pregnancy with Will, she already had a feeling he would be a boy. She said judging by the heartburn, she would have to guess this is another girl. I really hope it is since I know that a sister is what Shiloh really wants.

Speaking of Will, while Kim was over she showed us some recent photos Will's mom had just emailed her. It is CRAZY how much he looks like Shiloh. When he was born there were definitely some similarities. There were some pictures where he 100% had his own look. Then there were others where your guess would have been as good has mine regarding whether or not it was Shiloh or Will. When we saw him around his first birthday I honestly did not see much of a resemblance. Now? OMG. From right below the eyes down, they are identical. You could copy and paste Shiloh's nose/mouth onto one of his pictures and it wouldn't look much different. The only real difference is that Will's lips are a little fuller than hers were. It is crazy. Even their upper, four front teeth are identical. He is adorable. His second birthday is coming up in January so maybe we'll get to see him again.

I'm Horrible!

2011-11-01T10:19:00.006-04:00

How could I give you a Halloween post with no pictures?!?

Making Halloween cookies to share with friends

Shiloh and Kim

Buzz, Love Bug, and Rapunzel

National Blog Posting Month

2011-11-01T09:57:00.002-04:00

...or NaBloPoMo if you're a real blogger.

I'm not sure if anyone reads this anymore, but apparently November is National Blog Posting Month (who knew?). The goal for bloggers this month is to write a post every day. I've decided to give it a try in an attempt to get myself back in to the blogging world, so here goes....

It's November 1st, which means that last night was Halloween! Halloween is one of my most favorite nights of the year (I'm such a heathen!). I love the sense of community that Halloween night is, for me anyway. Neighbors opening their doors to neighbors, even if only to quickly give them candy and then promptly close the door on them. Just kidding. Shiloh had a blast ~~running~~ briskly walking from house to house with her friends, Tristyn and Easton. As I type this it is 10:10 am and she is still passed out in her bed. Can we trick-or-treat every night???

In all seriousness, we did have great night shared with Kim and The Evans Family. The kids were very polite saying "Thank you" and "Happy Halloween" without having to be reminded too many times. I'm still not sure if they enjoyed trick-or-treating more, or passing out candy to other trick-or-treaters after returning to the house. I am already looking forward to next year, and Shiloh already has her costumes planned out for the next 3 years (seriously).

It's Been A While

2011-08-05T12:59:00.003-04:00

The Thursday morning after my grandfather passed away Richard, Shiloh and myself loaded up the car and headed off to Cleveland for his funeral. His was my first military funeral and I lost it after the flag over grandpa's casket was folded up and handed to my father (the oldest child). It was a nice service and I enjoyed seeing family members I haven't seen in more years than I'd like to admit.

After spending some time with family we loaded up again and headed to my parents' house in Pennsylvania, and we've been here since. Well, not Richard. He flew back the Sunday after the funeral. We've been pretty busy with trips to various bouncy places and the Pittsburgh Zoo, a ride on the good ship lollipop, a visit to my mom's parents in Ohio, and a trip to my parents' house in NY. Things have quieted down a bit though, since my sister and her two kids left yesterday morning. Shiloh and I still have just under two more weeks until we head back to Georgia. Richard is pulling up all of the carpet on the first floor of the house and replacing it with wood floor, so we're hanging out here until he's done. This weekend Shiloh is heading up to the lake again with my parents while I stay in PA to attend a Pirates game on Saturday. Train will be performing after the game so I'm pretty excited!

Check back later for some pictures from our visit!

He's In A Better Place

2011-07-12T10:20:00.004-04:00

He was one of the sweetest souls you'd ever meet. He was a great father to seven kids. Yes, SEVEN. Seven kids who all turned out pretty good. He was one of the most loving and devoted husbands I know. Not a day went by without him sharing memories or stories of Grandma Gene. Even 22 years after her passing. He was a WWII Veteran with stories I wish I'd taken the time to hear.
Yesterday we lost one of the few remaining truly good men left in this world. We love you, Grandpa John.

My dad and grandpa at my wedding

Wordless Wednesday

2011-06-22T22:27:00.001-04:00

Wordless Wednesday

2011-06-15T13:03:00.001-04:00

Wordless Wednesday: Shiloh's New Bathroom (This Is How I Deal With Sasha Missing)

2011-06-08T13:43:00.004-04:00

Now we just need to pick out a paint color and some tile :)

Nothing Much

2011-06-03T13:20:00.004-04:00

I feel the need to write a post, but there's really nothing to share. Nothing of importance anyway.

Sasha (the stray kitty we took in) is doing okay. We took her back to the vet last week for a check up regarding her upper respiratory infection. I was looking forward to her receiving a bill of good health, but instead I received another $100 plus bill almost identical to the one we received on her first visit. After days of no nasty green snot coming from her nose, on the way to the vet she starts sneezing and sure enough when I open her carrier to retrieve here I find a big, nasty, green, snot booger inside. We were given another bottle of antibiotics for her. Then she needed another ear mite treatment because "the eggs had hatched" from the mites we killed off with the first treatment. We also started her vaccinations and purchased a dose of frontline since we had to remove a tick from her earlier in the week. This was all a week ago, so a week of more antibiotics later and she's still sneezing nasty snot boogers. She's killing me with this. I'm pretty certain Richard isn't going to fund many (or any) more expensive vet visits.

Today I made reservations for Richard and I to spend a weekend in Atlanta during my mom's visit later this month. Two years ago we were in desperate need of some time to ourselves, so our friends took Shiloh for the weekend and we headed to Atlanta. It was so great! We stayed at The Ellis Hotel in downtown Atlanta, which is where we'll be staying again. We visited The High Museum of Art and The Georgia Aquarium during the day, and checked out some local bars at night. It was an awesome weekend, and Richard and I are both looking forward to doing it again.

It is HOT. Thankfully, our neighborhood pool opened last Saturday. But even the heat is going to kill that soon. We visited the pool Saturday and the water temp. was quite chilly, Tuesday I was able to get right in with slight hesitation, and Thursday there was no hesitation when getting in. Last year it was July before the water became flat out warm. Unless we get some rain soon, I have a feeling that this year we'll hitting that point within the next couple of weeks.

Wordless Wednesday; The Neighborhood Pool Is Finally Open (But These Pictures Aren't From It)

2011-06-01T08:36:00.008-04:00

Wordless Wednesday: Friends

2011-05-25T12:12:00.003-04:00

Some words...

I feel weird posting pictures of Shiloh with all of that make up on, which then makes me feel like I need to explain it.

When the director told us that all performers needed to be in "full make up", which includes eyeliner, mascara (we didn't do this), lipstick, blush, eyeshadow, and eyebrow darkening (I don't even know what that is so we didn't do this either) I was not at all happy. I wear foundation and lipstick, so the idea of putting all of that on Shiloh didn't sit well with me. Then I spoke with my friend, Alli, who danced the majority of her life and taught dance as well. She assured me that it's needed due to the lights on the stage and that it's just what you do for a recital. I was still a little unsure about it. I couldn't imagine Shiloh sitting still long enough for that amount of make up to be put on her. However, thanks to some kit kats and Alli's awesome ability to put make up on a 3 year old, it actually wasn't that bad.

Dance Recital Pictures

2011-05-24T10:01:00.009-04:00

On stage during the curtain call

Flowers from mommy and daddy; and grammy and grandpa

Shiloh, mommy and grammy

Alli, Zach (Shiloh's Godfather), and Alli's sister, Lexy

daddy, mommy and Shiloh

Shiloh and Kim

Shiloh and grammy

Paaassssed out! She didn't even wake up when Richard and I took off her tights and leotard and put her jammies on :)

Dance Recital

2011-05-23T09:58:00.003-04:00

Below is the link to Shiloh's dance recital. The quality of the video is poor because we weren't allowed to video tape so I had to use my regular camera. Anyway. Here it is!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xtedgEr9tsw

I'll post some pictures later today or tomorrow.

Busy, Busy, Busy!!

2011-05-20T10:05:00.005-04:00

That's how our weekend is going to be. And I'm so excited!

It starts out tonight with a trip to the airport to pick up Grammy! She'll be leaving Monday, so it's just a quick weekend visit but we're happy to have her.

Tomorrow will be jam packed starting with a trip to Centennial Olympic Park in Atlanta for the Herman Cain rally. I'm not going to turn this into a political post, but please learn his name and research him!! Herman Cain is a breath of fresh air and someone Richard and I are actually excited about. And while I am easily excitable, it takes a lot for Richard. We will unfortunately only be at the rally for a couple of hours because Shiloh's dance recital dress rehearsal is Saturday evening!! I can't believe it's already here! I also can't believe that Shiloh is even old enough to be in a dance recital! The rehearsal should be interesting. Shiloh can be painfully shy and I'm not sure how she'll react to being on stage, if she'll even go on stage. We've been talking it up with her, but her nerves are definitely showing through.

Then comes Sunday! The BIG day! Definitely look for pictures and possibly a video Sunday evening! Not only is Shiloh going to be wearing the cutest, little ballerina costume, but she'll also have a face full of make up. I haven't decided how I feel about all of the make up, but it is necessary since the recital is at a high school auditorium so it doesn't really matter how I feel.

So you don't think I'm being a prude, we're not just talking lipstick and blush. She'll also have on eye shadow, EYE LINER,and MASCARA (if she'll let us put it on). They even want us to darken her eyebrows. I didn't even know people do that, but it should definitely make for some great pictures.

Wordless Wednesday: I Don't Want To Overload You With The Kitty, So Here's Our New Roof

2011-05-18T08:08:00.005-04:00

Okay, you're going to get a few words...
One of the bad storms that went through the south a few weeks ago caused some wind damage to our roof. Not the one with all of the tornadoes, our roof was actually fixed by the time that happened. Anyway. We filed a claim with our insurance company and, thanks to Richard's job, we were able to upgrade to architectural shingles!

Oops, I Did It Again

2011-05-17T09:09:00.003-04:00

Yeah, I changed my blog title back. Richard has been bugging me about the title since I changed it last week. He said that my blog was lacking character as "Just Us". I think he was really just upset that Maddie's picture was taken down. Either way I promise not to change it again.

Sasha Update

2011-05-17T08:01:00.005-04:00

We took Sasha to the vet yesterday. It wasn't too bad! Fortunately, there were no surprises. Meaning that her only issues were the upper respiratory infection and ear mites. Her blood work was negative and they didn't see anything in her fecal sample, although they did deworm her just to be safe. We brought home some antibiotics for her infection and once it starts having an effect we'll take Sasha back to the vet and start getting her vaccinated.

Also, the vet confirmed that she is a girl and she's around 3 1/2 months old. The vet gave her the arbitrary birthday of February 7, which will be easy to remember because I just so happen to have a cousin with that birthday.

ETA: I gave Sasha her first dose of medicine this morning (via a dropper). A good bit of it ended up on the side of her mouth, but I'm certain at least half of it went in. I'm pretty proud of myself. And she doesn't hate me. Since cats can hold a grudge I wasn't sure if she'd come to me after I was done, but she's still lovin' on me.

Sasha

2011-05-15T15:35:00.009-04:00

We have a new friend...

Sasha, as we're calling her for now, showed up at our neighbor's house this past Thursday. We're guessing she's about 3-4 months old. It's kind of hard to tell because she's SO malnourished. If you run your hand down her back you can count every bone in her body. Richard and I brought Sasha over to our house Saturday morning since the house she originally appeared at is vacant. We set food out for her on the front porch all weekend, and left the garage door open about 4 or so inches at all times so she can come and go as she pleases. She seems to like us because she only left once the entire weekend. I went out to the garage Sunday evening to throw some recyclables in the container. As I was entering the house, Buddy (the little dog) ran right past me and chased the kitty out. She did return about 2 hours later and hasn't left again, so it must not have been too traumatic for her.
We'll be taking her to the vet this afternoon to get her checked out. I'm kind of nervous because she appears to have a pretty bad cold. We're having to replace the a/c unit at the Athens house this week so the last thing we need is a large vet bill, but how can you turn a kitty away? And I'm not even a cat person. Although I think I might have to stop saying that soon.

P.S. We think she is a Birman

Wordless Wednesday: LOVE

2011-05-11T00:01:00.000-04:00

She Is Pretty Awesome

2011-05-09T10:38:00.004-04:00

This morning Shiloh and I decorated a birthday card for Gigi, Shiloh's great grandmother. Gigi will turn 83 (if I'm not mistaken) on Wednesday, so Happy early Birthday, Gigi!!

During our most recent visit with Gigi and Great Grandpa, Shiloh gave them a couple of nicknames. I wasn't aware of these names until she started telling me a story about visiting a couple of people a few weeks later. She was sitting on the potty (I was getting her toilet paper) when she started asking me if I remember when she visited Jesus. (HUH?) I started asking questions about this visit trying to figure out what she was talking about. A few questions in, she brought up "the boy with the band-aid" who was also there. I was clueless at this point, and I'll admit I was getting a little freaked out about this visit that she was so insistent had happened. A couple of question later she finally gave me a piece of the story that made sense. There was a dog. A little black dog that she played with at Jesus'. (Ooohhh, Okay) That would be Tara II, my grandparents shih tzu.

I, of course, had to call Gigi and let her know what kind of an impression she left on her Great Granddaughter. It's not every day someone gets mistaken for Jesus.

I was reminded of this story as Shiloh and I were taking Gigi's birthday card out to the mailbox this morning. As we were walking down the driveway, Shiloh was explaining to me how the card will get to her.

"The mail lady will pick up the mail, and take it to Jesus..."

Happy Mother's Day!

2011-05-08T19:00:00.006-04:00

Breakfast compliments of Richard

Picnic lunch at the park

Four Eyes

2011-05-06T00:02:00.000-04:00

I got new glasses! And guess what?! I REALLY like them!

I haven't bought (or worn) glasses since high school because I never thought of myself as someone who wore them especially well, but I actually like the way I look in these! I might just take my contacts out every once in a while now.

I Do This ALL The Time

2011-05-04T21:56:00.005-04:00

So, I just realized that my "Wordless Wednesday" was a day early. Oops. I have a problem with days of the week just running together sometimes. Life as a stay at home mom, I guess. Anyway. Since I was a day early, here's another one for you. Well, except this one has words.

Wordless Wednesday: Auntie A Was Here!!

2011-05-03T08:20:00.001-04:00

Oh, What A Day!

2011-04-27T15:02:00.013-04:00

Playing at Chuck E Cheese's with Kim

"I scored!"

One of my favorite pictures from the day

Someone was spoiled at The Disney Store

Guess what I want!

Heading home. Wore out!

Shiloh and I had a great visit on Monday with Kim. It started out at Chuck E Cheese's, and ended with us sitting outside of Toys 'R Us waiting for AAA because someone (me) locked her keys in the car. Shiloh had a great time with Kim, as she always does. After playing a few games at Chuck E Cheese's with the two of them (so Shiloh could warm up to Kim), I went back to the table and they played away.
After CEC we went across the street to The Disney Store and Toys 'R Us, at Kim's request, so she could get Shiloh an Easter gift, which turned into Easter giftsssss. Shiloh loved it though!
It was a busy day that left us both exhausted until around 8 pm when I got a sudden burst of energy and declared that a trip to Wal-mart was needed. An hour later we were putting this in the back of Richard's truck...

Yeah... She might be just a little bit spoiled :)

I must add that this kid is a natural on the bike! She's a pro at pedaling and mastered breaking within 5 minutes :)

Sorry....

2011-04-20T15:00:00.001-04:00

Please excuse the way my blog looks. I hit the wrong button when making some changes and don't have the time to fix it right now. Thanks :)

Wordless Wednesday: We Have Company!!

2011-04-20T14:14:00.013-04:00

Dance

2011-04-15T11:47:00.001-04:00

Shiloh and her dance teacher Ms. Green. Shiloh wasn't really in a picture taking mood.

This Is A Fun Age

2011-03-31T08:53:00.000-04:00

Overheard while Shiloh was playing with her Barbies and Disney Princesses....

Barbie: "Listen, folks! Do you remember my name? DO YOU REMEMBER MY NAME?? TELL THE TRUTH!"

One of her Disney Princesses: "Yes."

Barbie: "Then what is it?"

Disney Princess: "It's Barbie."

Barbie: "Oh. Ok."

Wordless Wednesday: This One Actually Makes Me Feel A Tiny Bit Old

2011-03-30T21:48:00.005-04:00

And no, I'm not 30 yet.

Wordless Wednesday: For The Relatives Not On Facebook

2011-03-23T11:59:00.009-04:00

Shiloh Got A New Bike!

2011-03-14T11:06:00.003-04:00

Or Richard did. It depends on who you ask.

In Case You Were Wondering...

2011-03-12T10:47:00.001-05:00

1. Make a list of 5 things you can see without getting up.

The dining room table, grocery cart, some puzzles, the trampoline, and a dollhouse (I'm sitting in Shiloh's toy room with her while she watches Toy Story.

2. How do you style your hair?

Brush it, part it down the middle, and blow dry... Does that count as styling??

3. What are you wearing now?

Pajamas... a red Ohio State shirt (what else) and red, winter themed pj botttoms

4. What’s your occupation?

Stay at home mom

5. What do you hear right now?

Toy Story 2 and Shiloh telling me everything that's going on in Toy Story 2

6. Who was the last person you hugged?

Richard

7. What is/was for dinner?

It was a leftover night. I had leftover pizza.

8. What’s the last tv show you watched?

I'm not sure what it was called, but I watched some design show on HGTV while working out at the gym.

9. Dog person or cat person?

Dog, but I find that the more I'm around cats the more I seem to like them. However, allergies will keep me from every fully becomin a cat person.

10. If you had to change your name, what would you change it to?

I'm pretty sure I haven't wanted to change my name since 6th grade, and back then I probably would have taken anything other than Alicia. I didn't like my name as a kid.

11. What was the last thing that you bought?

A movie at redbox, but I guess that's more renting. So, I guess the last thing I bought was dinner last night (pizza and breadsticks) on our way home from Shiloh's dance class.

12. If you could afford to go anywhere in the world, where would you go?

I don't know... I'm not big on traveling. I'd probably let Richard pick since he has more interest in that area.

13. Where do you see yourself in five years?

I really don't know... Sometimes I think about going back to school for nursing when Shiloh starts school, so maybe I'll be finishing school or finding a job as a nurse.

14. Favorite book?

Two of my favorites are Atlas Shrugged and Water For Elephants (I'm SO excited for the movie to come out next month!!)

15. What are you doing this weekend?

The gym and a trip to Gay, Ga!

16. If you could play any musical instrument, which one would you play?

the piano... I took lessons as a kid and can still play somewhat, but I would like to be MUCH better.

17. How are you?

Okay... Counting down the minutes until Shiloh's bedtime. It's kind of been one of those days.

18. What are you looking forward to the most?

Putting Shiloh to bed then laying in our warm, comfy bed and watching a movie with Richard.

I Need Some Opinions

2011-03-11T08:37:00.000-05:00

I'm hoping some of my readers will come out of hiding to help me out with a little dilemma I'm having. This may seem silly to some, but I really don't know what to do.

Here it is....

We have a couple of friends, Rachael and Szymon, who will be getting married later this year. When describing our relationship, I use the word friends loosely. I'm sure Richard feels different, but Szymon is more his friend. Basically, one of Richard's closest friends from his Marine Corps days, Haven, is life long friends with Szymon. We only see Szymon and Rachael when we're hanging out with Haven at his house and they happen to be there also, so basically MAYBE twice a year.

Here comes the dilemma...

Their wedding is on Shiloh's birthday. Some of you might be thinking, "where's the dilemma?", but birthdays are SO important to me. And it doesn't get more important than Shiloh's birthday. And, my goodness, it's only her 4th one. How can we already miss one? Also, it's on a Saturday! Again this might sound silly, but I was so looking forward to having her party on her actual birthday.

Richard is all for going. I've thought about sending him to the wedding without me, but I think that might cause me to have some resentful feelings towards him. I want her birthday to be more important than their wedding, but I understand where he's coming from. I think most of this goes back to how birthdays were celebrated in our households growing up.

So what do you all think? Am I being silly? Would you go to the wedding, stay home...??

My Favorite

2011-03-10T11:46:00.004-05:00

I LOVE this picture. LOVE, LOVE, LOVE it!

This picture was taken a couple of weekends ago during our visit to Alabama. The daughter (Ella) of Richard's rack mate from boot camp (Lee) turned 3, so we were out there for her birthday party. Lee had recently purchased a motorcycle in an effort to save on gas money. He is new to the world of bikes and had only ridden one once before. I'm pretty sure Richard's bike still has a scratch or two to show from it. Excited to experience the joy of riding together, Richard loaded up his bike on the back of our truck so the guys could do just that.

After Richard and Lee returned from one such joyous ride, Shiloh decided she wanted to give it a try. Richard couldn't say no to his daughter showing an interest in one of his passions, so he quickly found a somewhat suitable helmet and off they went. From what I could tell, Richard only went about as fast as he needed to in order to keep the bike upright, but Shiloh loved it just as well, as the above picture shows :)

Taking A Break

2011-03-10T10:57:00.004-05:00

Yesterday I decided to take a break from Facebook. I feel like lately it's been influencing me just a little too much. Also it's having a negative affect on a friendship and possibly my mental health :)

Since yesterday was Ash Wednesday, I figured I'd use the season of Lent as my time away. So when Richard returned home from work yesterday he changed my password and his. I know, I know. It's kind of sad that I can't trust myself not to cheat over the next 40 days, but I know myself and my lack of self control. And I'm better for being able to recognize that, right??

I'd like to use this time away to find a better way to spend my free time. Last night I mentioned something to Richard about doing daily devotionals and focusing more on my walk with God. This morning I decided to look up some devotionals and the first one I came across for today could not have been more perfect.

"I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; I will guide you with My eye." (Psalm 32:8)

I'm guessing my break from facebook will also bring me here more. I've been lacking in posts lately, but since this is now my main connection to friends and family out of state, expect more.

Wordless Wednesday: Where's Shiloh?

2011-03-02T16:07:00.002-05:00

Wordless Wednesday: First Date Night With Daddy

2011-02-09T09:32:00.001-05:00

Tiny Dancer

2011-02-03T14:03:00.015-05:00

From the moment Shiloh was born, I've dreamed about warm, sunny weekend afternoons spent watching Shiloh on the soccer field. She would be too distracted by the dandelions or butterflies to notice the ball...

Well, it looks like this dream is going to remain just that, at least for a little bit longer anyway. After spending a couple of weeks trying to decide between "soccer school" and "dance school", dance finally won out. As a former soccer player, I was definitely cheering a little bit harder for soccer, but only because I knew that she would love either one. There is an indoor soccer place just minutes from our house, so we'll probably still her up for a winter season sometime in the next year or two. That way she'll get some exposure to both.

But back to dance. Earlier this week I signed Shiloh up for a trial class so we could make sure she is definitely a fit for the class before forking over the money. Well, yesterday was her trial class and she LOVED it. Her friend Anniston is in this class as well, so that rid Shiloh of any of her usual shyness. She walked right in and immediately wanted her pants and shoes off like the other girls. Once they were off she walked right through the door and on to the studio floor and never looked back.

She did well for her first class. She's definitely a little more energetic than the other girls. She liked to add little hops and jumps where they weren't supposed to be. But isn't that why we put 3 year old girls in dance? So they can do cute things like that. Overall, though, she listened to her teacher, Miss. Greene, very well and was really trying to do what she was instructed to do. The teacher spoke with me afterward and said Shiloh did well. She has a little problem following some of the instructions (i.e. her little added hops), but Ms. Greene said you can really tell she wants to learn and she's focused, and that's what is important.

Needless to say, we're signing her up! I held off on signing any paperwork yesterday because I felt like I should talk it over with Richard first, but in my head she was already signed up.

Now onto my favorite part. In May they put on a dance recital! I am SO excited. I don't know any of the details yet, but I can't wait to see her on stage shaking her little bum. Because even if the dance doesn't require bum shaking, I'm sure Shiloh will add it. Also, the teacher informed me that for the recital the girls will all need actual ballet shoes. They can be purchased at Payless for $30, but most of the moms said they get their girl's shoes at thrift stores and consignment sales. That sounded good to me since I don't even care to spend $30 on my own shoes, let alone shoes for a three-year-old. So after class we walked next door to a thrift store that just happened to have two pairs of ballet shoes, that just happened to be the exact size that Shiloh wears now and the next size up. We, of course, snatched both pairs right up turning a $60 purchase into $3.98. It doesn't get much better than that.

Shiloh is already asking to go to dance class again. It's going to be a LONG week until her next one, but I'm so glad she enjoyed it and did so well. She's definitely growing up.

Here she is all ready to go

Getting to know Miss Greene

Stretching... Look at that flexibility ;)

She had a hard time looking away from the mirrors

Showing off her "new" ballet shoes :)

The pictures from the class were taken through a window, so the quality is not the greatest.

70 Degrees In January!

2011-01-31T11:38:00.009-05:00

Adoption Struggles

2011-01-27T13:56:00.004-05:00

I'm feeling a little guilty right now.

I spoke to my friend, we'll call her Sara, who I mentioned along with her sister (she'll be Amanda), here. It sounds like Amanda is having some doubts regarding her decision. It also sounds like Amanda wasn't educated like she should have been prior to this birth. I tried to remain neutral when talking to Sara about everything. I remember being six days into our 12 day revocation period with Shiloh, and being told by one of Kim's friends that Kim had changed her mind. We spent the next six days just waiting for the dreaded call from our attorney. It was pure hell and a pain that I wish upon no one else. But Amanda has support from some family, and if she wants to parent, why shouldn't she be given a chance?

During Amanda's pregnancy she reminded me a lot of Kim. She was 100% dead set on adoption and no one could tell her anything else. Amanda and Sara seemed to become angry if anyone spoke of anything other than the positives of adoption. I saw this coming, but didn't feel close enough to Sara to speak up. Sara is the fiance of a friend of one of Richard's military friends who we are pretty close to. Anyway. As I suspected Amanda honestly thought this was going to be an easy thing to do and no one would be able to talk her out of it. Feeling this way, she never took the time to educate herself regarding adoption, and it sounds like the Potential Adoptive Parents' (PAP) attorney wasn't much help either. (apparently, Amanda never even knew that counseling was available for her until today when Sara asked me about it and I informed that it should be, and that the PAPs should have paid for that)

Anyway. According to Sara, Amanda seems to be second guessing her decision. I told her that is normal. It's one thing to say you are going to place your baby, when he/she is nothing more than heartburn, vomiting, and little kicks every now and then. It's something else to look at this beautiful little baby and make that decision again. I tried to educate Amanda and Sara where the attorney failed (counseling, TPR doesn't have to be signed that day, this is Amanda's time with the baby), but also share some of Kim's story. I know Kim misses Shiloh and Will like nothing else, but I also know that she is at peace with her decisions and happy with where she is today.

I honestly don't know what decision Amanda is going to make. The last time I spoke with Sara she informed me that she had spoken with the PAPs and they did pay for counseling for Amanda. I know this is probably horrible to say, but sometimes I'm glad I was so naive when we adopted Shiloh. As far as I can tell, everything about our adoption was ethical. Nothing was ever pushed on Kim. We had a pretty open relationship throughout her pregnancy. I did stay in the hospital room with her, but Richard and I made sure we gave her time to herself by going out for meals, going for walks, etc. I remember tearing up as we strapped Shiloh into her car seat. I left the room with a nurse because I didn't want Kim to think I was crying out of happiness. I remember looking at the nurse telling her that I wasn't crying out of joy, but that I was so sad for Kim. It almost confused me because I wasn't expecting to feel that. This is something that I struggle with now. Richard and I had discussed starting the adoption process again this month. We've had to change that plan because work is extremely slow for Richard right now, but even if we had, all we were going to do was spread the word we were wanting to adopt and then pray about it. If we met someone between now and the end of the year then we'd continue on with the process, if not then we'd be done and be a happy family of three. I feel almost guilty at times about the pain someone else will have to go through for my happiness...

Anyway. I'm going to go ahead and abruptly end this post or it will go on and on and on... I just hope that no matter what decision Amanda makes, she puts that little girl first.

Wordless Wednesday: This Is What My Saturday Nights Have Become

2011-01-26T11:21:00.002-05:00

(for the record, the word was FUNK)

Although, I'm not complaining.

Birthdays

2011-01-26T11:11:00.003-05:00

Happy Birthday to Will!!

I thought it was interesting that this morning the sister of a friend of ours went into labor. Everyone is at the hospital right now, with the potential adoptive parents of her child by her side. I've been thinking about her a lot today. To keep what I'm feeling short and simple, I'll just say that I wish her the best with what she is going through today and what she will go through in the coming days.

More Food

2011-01-25T15:14:00.004-05:00

If you like to eat at a certain Italian restaurant with the initials O.G., and you are also a fan of a certain soup on the their menu called Zuppa Toscana, you MUST try this recipe. It tastes EXACTLY the same as what the restaurant serves.

Ingrediants:

1 lb ground Italian sausage
1½ tsp crushed red peppers
4 Tbsp bacon pieces
2 tsp garlic puree
1 large diced white onion
5 cups water
5 cups of chicken broth
1 cup heavy cream
1 lb sliced Russet potatoes, or about 3 large potatoes
¼ of a bunch of kale

Directions:

Sauté Italian sausage and crushed red pepper in a large pot.
Drain excess fat and refrigerate while you prepare other ingredients.
Using the same pot, sauté bacon, onions and garlic over low-medium heat for approximately 15 mins. or until the onions are soft.
Add chicken broth and water to the pot and heat until it starts to boil.
Add the sliced potatoes and cook until soft. It takes about half an hour.
Add the heavy cream and cook just until heated.
Stir in the sausage and the kale, and heat all the way through.
Enjoy!

I also made these rolls to go with it. Amazing.

Operation Frozen Pot Pie Freedom

2011-01-22T10:50:00.008-05:00

I went a little overboard with my Chili making earlier in the winter season, causing me to need to find a new cold weather food favorite. About this time I found myself craving a good Chicken Pot Pie. Pot pies were never a favorite of mine growing up. We always had the kind that you pull out of the freezer and pop in the oven. Richard has the same pot pie past as myself, so he was less than ecstatic and very skeptical upon hearing that I was on a mission to find the ~~easiest~~ tastiest Chicken Pot Pie recipe.

After a week of sighs and nasty faces from Richard at just the thought of a pot pie, I started to feel guilty about making it. I actually pushed it back to the very end of the week, making every other meal possible, until I ran out of other options.

The final product...

30 minutes and multiple helpings for Richard later...

Yeah. It was THAT good.

Chicken Pot Pie

1 pound skinless, boneless chicken breast halves - cubed (I found sliced chicken breast at Kroger, so all I had to do was cut them into cubes. I'm all about easy)
1 cup sliced carrots
1 cup frozen green peas*
1/2 cup sliced celery
1/3 cup butter
1/3 cup chopped onion
1/3 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1/4 teaspoon celery seed (we didn't have celery seed on hand and I didn't know what celery seed as, so I figured the actual celery would be enough. See how new I am to homemade cooking :))
1 3/4 cups chicken broth
2/3 cup milk
2 (9 inch) unbaked pie crusts (we used Kroger brand and they were awesome)

*We are not fans of peas, so we kept them out and added more carrots and celery.

Directions

Preheat oven to 425 degrees F (220 degrees C.)
In a saucepan, combine chicken, carrots, peas, and celery. Add water to cover and boil for 15 minutes. Remove from heat, drain and set aside.
In the saucepan over medium heat, cook onions in butter until soft and translucent. Stir in flour, salt, pepper, and celery seed. Slowly stir in chicken broth and milk. Simmer over medium-low heat until thick. Remove from heat and set aside.
Place the chicken mixture in bottom pie crust. Pour hot liquid mixture over. Cover with top crust, seal edges, and cut away excess dough. Make several small slits in the top to allow steam to escape.
Bake in the preheated oven for 30 to 35 minutes, or until pastry is golden brown and filling is bubbly. Cool for 10 minutes before serving.

What Shiloh Is Saying

2011-01-21T17:02:00.002-05:00

"I know", as in...

Anyone: "Shiloh, you look really nice today."
Shiloh: "I know."
Anyone: "I had a lot of fun with you today."
Shiloh: "I know"
Anyone: "Shiloh, I like your shirt."
Shiloh: "I know."

...you get the picture.

"Very"
As in, "I very want to play Candyland right now."

"Should"
"I should like... This one!" Said as she finally decided which Strawberry Shortcake band-aid she wanted to use.

"Well, actually, yeah, actually, the phone, yeah, yeah, well."
What you might hear while talking to Shiloh on the phone when Shiloh has nothing to say but doesn't want to give up the phone just yet.

A Year Later...

2011-01-20T10:30:00.009-05:00

He's a cutie!

For anyone new to my blog, "He" is Shiloh's brother, Will, who was also placed for adoption. Richard and I were to be his adoptive parents until we had to back out for various personal reasons.

Aside from their chubby cheeks, I have a hard time finding similarities between Shiloh and Will. However, they are both awesome sleepers and had blocked tear ducts early on (Shiloh's fixed itself, but Will had to have his opened). Also, Will's a screamer, too. And by screamer I mean, at random times he'll just let out an ear piercing scream.

We had a wonderful evening together. Laura and Jeff (Will's parents) are so nice, exactly as they were in the hospital, and were so welcoming. Laura made an awesome dinner of homemade lasagna, breadsticks and salad; complete with homemade salad dressing. After we ate I told Laura a visit at my house is out of the question. My online pizza ordering skills won't compare to her cooking skills.

I spent most of the time huddled around the kitchen counter with Kim talking and playing with Will while Laura cooked. Shiloh spent most of her time running around with Will's older brother, Charlie. She had SO much fun with him and they played so very well together, with no fighting/arguing whatsoever.

Overall, it was a great evening and I'm hoping that now that we've gotten the first visit out of the way, we'll have many more with all of us.

I want to touch on Shiloh and Will's relationship real quick. I'm sure some of you are wondering about it. Considering this is the first time she's met him, they really don't have one. When Will was first born we thought we'd see him on a somewhat regular basis, so we showed Shiloh pictures and talked about him with her. Once we realized we had no idea when she'd see/meet him, we backed off. I'm pretty sure all of the talking we were doing was going in one ear and out the other anyway. I mean, how do you explain to a just-turned-two-year-old that she has a brother who she has never met? Especially since at that point in her life the word brother meant absolutely nothing to her. I did talk about Will with Shiloh on Tuesday evening (the night before our visit), just to try to explain to her who we were going to see. I basically told her that Will grew in Kim's belly just like she did. Adoption isn't a topic we touch on a lot in our family. When my sister was pregnant with my niece I discussed with Shiloh how she grew in Kim's belly, but that's about the extent of it. I don't want to push it on her, and when I bring it up she doesn't engage herself in the conversation, so I leave it at that. Right now we focus more on nurturing Kim and Shiloh's relationship. As she gets older we'll touch more on the terms and who's who. For now, she knows Kim, she's as comfortable with Kim as she is with any family member, and, for us, that's enough.

Some of you may also be wondering if I was affected at all by our visit. I know that was Richard's first question when we got home. I think that not seeing him for almost year was probably the best thing that could have happened to me. Leaving the hospital after visiting him was physically painful for me. I hurt for myself, of course, but even more so for Shiloh. I failed her. She had this awesome opportunity to be raised with her sibling, and we screwed it up. I spent some time on the kitchen floor the next day "talking" to God, trying to make sense of everything. Definitely not one of my best moments.

Anyway. After a year I, of course, felt no attachment to him and, if anything, it was kind of weird looking at him knowing that he is related to Shiloh. I told Richard, after we returned home, that this is a side of adoption that I never even imagined. I will admit that I did spend some time later that night looking at pictures I'd taken, trying to imagine Will a part of our family/as my son, but looking back, knowing the things I know now, I can honestly say and see that he wasn't meant to be ours. If he couldn't be raised by Kim, he's definitely with the family that was meant for him.

Moving on to what some of you have been waiting for... I have the cutest picture of Kim, Will and Shiloh that I would love to post, but it seems that lately I have more than my ~~five~~ regular visitors coming to this blog so I don't feel comfortable posting a picture of Will on here. However, if you'd like to see it, let me know and I'll email it to you. I will leave you, though, with a cute picture of Kim and Shiloh from last night.

Guess What We're Doing Today....

2011-01-19T10:53:00.003-05:00

Visiting Will.

Yeah. This visit came out of nowhere.

Yes, this is Shiloh's first time meeting him.

Yes, I'll have a follow up post tonight or tomorrow.

Wordless Wednesday: So. Much. Ice.

2011-01-19T10:03:00.006-05:00

Wordless Wednesday: SNOW!

2011-01-12T17:47:00.006-05:00

Success!

2011-01-09T11:14:00.007-05:00

In an attempt to save money, we are refraining from eating out this month. We don't eat out excessively. Generally, only once (or maybe twice SOMETIMES) for dinner (usually Zaxby's or somewhere similar) and once for breakfast (we love our Claude's biscuits).

Week one was surprisingly easy. Shiloh didn't have school Tuesday so there was no temptation to pick up lunch on our way home, as we are sometimes known to do. Richard did a great job remembering to grab leftovers on his way out the door each morning, and I'm working on expanding my menu of foods so we don't get bored.

Now, when we made the decision to stop eating out Richard and I both agreed we can't give up our weekend biscuit. We've been visiting Claude's every Saturday for almost as long as we've lived in this house. SO I started a quest for an easy, but yummy biscuit recipe. After asking around and doing my own research online, I decided on one that I thought I could handle. This brings me to my new blog title...

I'm a pretty decent baker/cook, but I NEED a recipe. And if I'm trying a new recipe for the first time I become a kitchen control freak (I have no confidence in myself when trying something new), or as my husband decided to call me today, The Angry Baker...

I left Richard and Shiloh in bed with some cartoons on this morning to head downstairs and get to work on some biscuits. I pulled up the recipe I had chosen, when I realized I had the wrong type of baking powder. This caused me to have to find a whole new recipe in a very short amount of time, and it put me on edge. Shortly after getting my dry ingredients together, Richard and Shiloh walked into the kitchen. Shiloh decided she wanted to help, but I ~~demanded that she just watch~~ talked her into just watching. Thankfully, after a few minutes she got bored and left to find something more entertaining.

I finished my sifting, stirring, kneading and rolling in peace. It was time to cut out the biscuits. I don't have a biscuit cutter so I had found a large glass to use instead. Before I could grab said glass, Richard walks in the kitchen, grabs a new cup from the cupboard, walks over.... And that's when I bit his head off. I was certain he was about to stick that cup in MY dough. Of course, he was just going to hand it to me, but I envisioned him ruining my dough (biscuit dough is to be handled as little as possible) by placing the cup all crazy like in my dough causing me to have to roll it out again because I wouldn't have enough room to cut out all of the biscuits possible. After handing me the cup, he walked out of the room, but not before turning around to let me know that my new name is The Angry Baker. He first suggested that I start a new blog about my baking with this title, but I informed him that wouldn't work because it would be a blog with only links to other websites. I have no original recipes. I then remembered that I was in need of a new name for this blog, and so the new title was created.

And there you have it. Not a super exciting story, or really exciting at all, but I like it. And I LOVE the picture. I tried to get Shiloh to hold the rolling pin and oven mit while looking angry, but she wasn't up for pictures this morning. I think having Maddie do it ended up being a better idea anyway.

Last, I feel like this post wouldn't be complete without some pictures of our "Claude's" biscuits. They turned out remarkably better than I expected. Richard was even happy with them.

I Have A New Blog Title

2011-01-09T09:16:00.002-05:00

If you care, I'll give the backstory later today, or tomorrow when we're hopefully snowed in ;)

Venting

2011-01-07T18:55:00.005-05:00

I need to vent and I'm too paranoid to say this on Facebook, even though I don't see how it could ever get back to the person it pertains to.

So, between Sunday night and Monday our area is forecasted to receive 5-7 inches of snow. If you don't know already, I live in Georgia. We are not equipped to deal with 5-7 inches or snow in a timely manner. We don't have multitudes of snow plows, or giant structures filled only with salt for when it snows.

Now before I continue, let me first say that I am extremely thankful for Richard's job, but this is just one example, in a long list of examples of why his boss is one of the most horrible people I know.

Moving on. Keeping in mind the amount of snow we are potentially about to receive and the fact that we live in the south, Richard's boss, we'll call her I Have No Idea How To Run A Business, Which Makes Sense Because I'm Only A Business Owner Thanks To My Divorce, sent out an email shortly before the end of today's work day informing everyone that regardless of the amount of snow received EVERYONE (except her, of course) is to be at work at 8:00 am.

I just don't understand this woman. What kind of message does this send to her employees?? How little does she care about them? And for the record, not that it should make a difference, but he doesn't work for some huge company where everyone is just a number.

Hopefully, we won't get the 5-7 inches being projected because I can't imagine Richard driving to work on roads with that much snow on them, especially in his truck that is not 4 wheel drive.

I'm so irritated.

Just Call Me... (Fill In The Blank With Someone Who Is Known For Making Bread)

2011-01-06T15:41:00.006-05:00

I received a bread machine for Christmas. Thanks to traveling and general holiday busyness, I was only able to use it for the first time earlier this week, and I love it! A good friend of mine received one earlier this year and uses hers primarily to make dough for dinner rolls, homemade pizzas, etc. When I asked for my bread machine I was intending to use it for the same purpose. I actually have plans of Friday night make your own pizza/movie night :)

(as soon as I can convince Shiloh that she loves pizza. Yes, my kid does not like pizza)

ANYWAY. After opening the bread machine and looking over it, I found a fairly easy recipe for whole wheat bread towards the end of the instruction manual. I hadn't thought about using the machine to make our own sandwich bread, but why not? It can only save us money, right? Soooo......

Here is my very first loaf of homemade whole wheat bread!

It's a bit dense, but I've read that whole wheat flour will cause that. I've found some tips to lessen the density so I'll have to give them a try on my next loaf. Other than the density though, it is amazing. I told Richard yesterday that I will never buy another loaf of bread as long as I have this machine.

Something's Changed

2011-01-06T11:18:00.006-05:00

As you may have noticed, I've changed the title of my blog.

I started out as "Shiloh's Mommy" (I'm not very creative). I then decided a change to the name "All About Shiloh" (see, not creative at all) made more sense because, well, my blog was ALL about Shiloh. However, lately I've been having some "me" issues. Normal stuff. I think. Basically, just feeling like I've lost me. It seems that the last three years of devoting what feels like every waking moment of my life to Shiloh, as a stay at home mom, is starting to have an effect on me.

I want to make sure to note that I'm not complaining about being a SAHM. This was my choice, and I wouldn't change it.

Although, I guess I can't blame it all on my mom title. If I were to be honest, I kind of lost myself when I moved down to Georgia. I left all of my friends and family, and found myself clinging to Richard and his friends. This is kind of embarrassing to admit, but seven and a half years later I still have yet to make one friend without the assistance of Richard. I did become good friends with a coworker from the job I left when Shiloh was born, but we lost touch when I left. My closest friend down here is the wife of a coworker of Richard. All of my other good friends? They're all the girlfriends/wives of Richard's friends. While I love these friends and wouldn't change them for anything, the fact that I met them ALL through Richard is kind of bothering me. This isn't even the problem though. I just need to focus on me more. Have more girl's nights out, read more books, focus on what I want/who I want to be. As a side note, I want to point out that Richard has in no way held me back from doing any of these things. This is all on me. These are all changes I need to make.

Anyway. Back to the blog title. Because of how I've been feeling lately, I want to change things up. Something more general. My previous blog titles have given me such a sense of being pigeonholed that unless I have a Shiloh story to share I don't blog. I'm having a hard time coming up with a new name though, so "In Between Names" it is! (Note the creativity again)

One change I've already decided I'd like to make is joining a small group through our church. This is something I've mentioned to Richard before, but it seems to fall on deaf ears due to the fact that he grew up going to church just about every day. I think I'm going to start the conversation again, but this time not give up so easily.

Year In Review - Picture Style

2011-01-01T21:10:00.015-05:00

Happy New Year!

A Look Back...

2010-12-31T11:46:00.003-05:00

What did you do in 2010 that you’d never done before? Ummm.... Let me get back to you. This year wasn't all that big in the "firsts" department.

Did you keep your new years’ resolutions, and will you make more for next year?
I don't do resolutions. However, I've taken a break from running/working out these last two months, and I'll be starting that back up on Monday. But I wouldn't call that a resolution. I just wanted a break and this seems like a good time to start back up, especially since I've gained 5 pounds during my break. Thank you, awesome holiday food :)

Did anyone close to you give birth? Yes, my beautiful, chubby niece Camryn was born :)

Did anyone close to you die? No. Thankfully.

What countries did you visit? The Bahamas

What would you like to have in 2011 that you lacked in 2010? More patience and an iPad :)

What date(s) from 2010 will remain etched upon your memory, and why? October 22- Camryn's birth and I think that's about it.

What was your biggest achievement of the year? Finding peace with the things I can't change/have no control over. Mainly adoption stuff.

What was your biggest failure? I guess parenting stuff.

Did you suffer any illness or injury? Nope. Again, thankfully this was a very healthy year for us :)

What was the best thing you bought? hmmm... I don't know.

Whose behavior merited celebration? Shiloh's, when she started peeing and pooping in the potty :)

Whose behavior made you appalled and depressed? No one close to me, so I'll have to say Obama :)

Where did most of your money go? Bills

What did you get really, really, really excited about? Shiloh becoming potty trained, but it also made me a little sad.

What song will always remind you of 2010? Even though it came out in 2009, I would have to say Train "Soul Sister" -Shiloh's favorite song.

Compared to this time last year, are you:happier or sadder? happier
thinner or fatter? about the same
richer or poorer? about the same

What do you wish you’d done more of? I wish I had spent more time on myself... Girl's night outs, pedicures... Whatever, just more time to myself.

What do you wish you’d done less of? Thinking about things I don't have, instead of focusing on all that I've been blessed with.

How will you be spending New Year’s? Dinner with a bunch of people then Zach and Alli's for the ball drop

Did you fall in love in 2010? I fell in love with my niece :) But, I guess in the way they are asking, no.

What was your favorite TV program? Sons of Anarchy

What was the best book you read? Atlas Shrugged. And I'm so proud of myself for reading it. GREAT book, by the way.

What was your greatest musical discovery? Breaking Benjamin. I actually discovered them at the end of last year, but I expanded my collection of their music and love for them this year :)

What did you want and get? A breadmaker for Christmas

What did you want and not get? A larger tv for our bedroom.

What was your favorite film of this year? I don't think I have a favorite. Some good ones were Toy Story 3, Inception.... And that's about all I remember.

What did you do on your birthday, and how old were you? This year Brandon (march 31st) and I (march 30th) celebrated our birthdays together and had a low country boil at my house. I turned 28, as did Brandon.

What one thing would have made your year immeasurably more satisfying? Winning the lottery :) I don't know.

How would you describe your personal fashion concept in 2010? Comfy? I don't think I have a personal fashion concept... Those words mean nothing to me.

What kept you sane? Prayer

Which celebrity/public figure did you fancy the most? Gerard Butler and Jax Teller from Sons of Anarchy. I can't recall his real name.

What political issue stirred you the most? ObamaCare... I cried when it was passed. True story. You can all laugh now.

Who did you miss? Family in general. I thought about Richard's mom a lot this year. I think about how things would be different if she was still with us.

Who was the best new person you met? Camryn... I didn't meet a lot of new people this year.

Tell us a valuable life lesson you learned in 2010:
I don't know. I've been spending a good bit of time lately trying to just focus on what I have and remembering to be thankful for all of the little things that are easily missed. Just be happy.

Christmas Rundown

2010-12-22T14:54:00.003-05:00

I'm feeling a bit lazy and not wanting to write an actual post with full paragraphs and all, but it's been over a week since I've posting anything, so here's a quick rundown of what we've been up to....

1. Shiloh got a "new" playground. Richard picked it up 2 weekends ago and spent last weekend pressure washing it and starting the reconstruction of it. He has basically achieved his goal of finishing it in time for Christmas. It just needs to be leveled and some swings still need to go up.
2. We're all ready for Christmas! In all honesty, we've been ready for awhile. The house was decorated and the tree was put up the first weekend of December, and gifts have been wrapped since the first week of the month. I can't believe Christmas is only 2 days away, but at the same time it feels like it will never be here!
3. Today Shiloh told me that she is kind of afraid of Christmas, and Santa coming into her house. I assured her that Santa is only going to come in real quick to leave her presents and then he'll be moving onto the next house. She is pretty excited about the reindeer, though. We're going to make reindeer food on Friday and put it outside on the front lawn so they can find our house :)
4. We'll be having Christmas dinner this year with our friends Dale and Laci (and family). Since we can't be with family on Christmas, I'm excited that this year we'll have someone to be with. Ever since Shiloh as born it has just been us, which isn't bad, but it will be nice to have people to share the day with.
5. On Monday Shiloh and I are heading to my sister's house (in NC) to visit with my family. My parents, along with my other sister, are driving down on the 26th and staying through the 30th. This will be the first time my dad and sister get to meet baby Camryn :)
6. As of now, it looks like there will be snow in Georgia on Christmas!!! It looks like it should be raining when we wake up and then turn to snow later. I'm trying not to get my hopes up regarding this, but, oh, it would make this the greatest Christmas since I moved down here. I guess we'll see.
7. I love Christmas!!!!

I hope everyone out there has a safe, happy, and blessed Christmastime!!

Snow, Snow, Snow!!

2010-12-13T09:28:00.003-05:00

For the first time, in the seven years that I've lived in Georgia, it actually feels like it's Christmas!! Why, might you be asking? Because it's SNOWING!!! Every year that I've lived down here come December we're still outside in jeans and long sleeves (with no jacket), but not this year! As I type this, our wind chill outside is 7 degrees. That's pretty unheard of down here, in ANY month. Yesterday we had flurries from 11 am until around 5 pm, and this morning when Shiloh and I woke up it was snowing again.

This video was taken at our friend Brandon's house. He lives in the 4th part of the neighborhood (we're in the 2nd part), so this shows you what it was like in our area yesterday :)

Now I need to go throw some chili in the crock pot and get a fire started! I love this weather :)

ETA- I just watched the video, and unless you enlarge it, you see nothing.

Wordless Wednesday: Shiloh's First Homemade Ornament

2010-12-08T02:14:00.000-05:00

Life Is Slippery. Here, Take My Hand.

2010-12-06T15:41:00.007-05:00

Family Pictures Sneak Peek!

2010-11-22T09:49:00.003-05:00

We spent the evening of the 14th at Stone Mountain having family photos taken. Here is a little sneak peek from the photographer. This week or next we should be receiving a cd containing all of the pictures, so be prepared for a picture overload some time in the next week!

Wordless Wednesday: Happy 235th Birthday!

2010-11-10T11:46:00.001-05:00

A Couple Of Funny, Little Stories I'd Like To Remember

2010-11-08T09:04:00.003-05:00

This past weekend Richard decided it was time to bathe the dogs. It's easiest for him to just climb on into the tub with each one, so he strips down to his boxer briefs and does the job. Shiloh was hanging out in the bathroom enjoying the spectacle. As Richard continued to wash the first dog, the bathtub continued to fill up with more and more water, until I heard Shiloh yell, "Look, Daddy! Your big girl panties are going to get all wet!"

Shiloh's current obsession is Candyland. She received it for her birthday and has insisted on playing it MULTIPLE TIMES just about EVERY DAY. Every time we play Shiloh must find all of the pink cards first and then hand them to me one by one. This morning she asked to play AGAIN and without thinking I grabbed all of the cards and started shuffling them. At that point Shiloh turned to me with a very serious face and said, "Mommy, if you took my pink cards I will crush you."

Wordless Wednesday: Thanks To Shiloh, We Might Now Have Pictures With Each Other

2010-11-03T08:22:00.004-04:00

A Late "Happy Halloween"

2010-11-02T16:19:00.003-04:00

Shiloh with friends, Tristyn and Easton

Shiloh Has A Pretty Awesome Daddy (or at least I think she does)

2010-10-30T12:36:00.002-04:00

Wordless (not really) Wednesday: Fall

2010-10-27T09:47:00.005-04:00

The last few falls down here haven't been all that impressive. It seemed like as soon as the leaves started to change, they were on the ground. But not this year!! I know this isn't the greatest picture or view, but it's the prettiest one I can remember seeing in a long time :)

LOVE

2010-10-23T12:21:00.004-04:00

More Camryn!

2010-10-22T17:37:00.008-04:00

Happy Birthday, Camryn!!!

2010-10-22T15:23:00.005-04:00

Camryn Love Outen

October 22, 2010

at 2:51 am

8 lbs 13 oz, 21 1/2 inches

Fun facts:

-Camryn is the 3rd great grandchild on my mom's side of the family to be born on this date.

- Five out of the eight great grandkids on my mom's side of the family were born in October.

- She's a Marcinick! Richard even mentioned that he noticed some similarities between Camryn and my baby pictures. I do too, but I didn't want to be the one to say it. :)

C'mon Camryn!

2010-10-21T09:55:00.003-04:00

Shiloh and I will be leaving in about an hour and a half for North Carolina to meet my first niece, Camryn!! Andrea is scheduled to be induced first thing tomorrow morning at 5 am! Wish her luck and say a prayer for a nice and easy delivery! And return tomorrow for pictures :)

ETA: Andrea's water broke around 8:30 pm. Looks like Camryn is coming on her own!! :)

Wordless Wednesday: First Haircut

2010-10-20T08:36:00.003-04:00

If Laughter Is The Best Medicine, Shiloh Is Keeping Me Very Healthy!

2010-10-13T16:54:00.003-04:00

I couldn't pass up posting this little story on the blog.

Earlier today Shiloh was sitting on the potty while I was doing some cleaning. I wasn't paying much attention to her (I could hear her singing so I knew she was okay), and she had been in there for awhile, so I went to check on her. I was walking into the kitchen from the dining room so I was able to see Shiloh before actually reaching the bathroom (she had the door open so I could see in). What I saw was absolutely hilarious. There, standing on the open toilet seat, was a naked Shiloh, singing and dancing/shaking her hips while looking at herself in the mirror. I was able to get my camera and take a picture before she noticed me, but I need to figure out how to edit her privates out before I even think about posting it.

Oh, Shiloh! You always find a way to brighten my day!

Wordless Wednesday: My Second Favorite Shiloh Picture

2010-10-13T04:04:00.001-04:00

Wordless Wednesday: My New Favorite Shiloh Picture

2010-10-06T08:02:00.001-04:00

Questions For Richard

2010-10-04T20:28:00.004-04:00

(I'm she)

1. She’s sitting in front of the TV, what is on the screen?
Teen Mom
I guess, if it's Tuesday night. Don't judge. One of the girls on the show placed her daughter, so I was sucked in.

2. You’re out to eat, what kind of dressing does she get on her salad?
Ranch
Correct.

3. What’s one food she doesn’t like?
Boiled Peanuts
True and disgusting

4. You go out to eat and have a drink, what does she order?
Red Bull and Vodka
If we were out to dinner I'd probably get a sweet tea, but if we're talking strictly about alcoholic beverages it would probably be a daiquiri

5. What shirt size does she have?
Richard: Are you wearing one of my shirts?
Me: No, what size do I wear.
Richard: So, girl sizes?
Me: Yes... Small, Medium, or Large.
Richard: Large... because of your boobs?
Medium

6. What shoe size does she have?
7.5
Either 7 or 7.5, depends on the shoe

7. What’s her favorite type of sandwich?
Reuben
Correct

8. What would she eat everyday if she could?
Confetti Cookie Sandwiches
Probably fast food. I know that's so gross, but it's true.

9. What is her favorite cereal?
Frosted Mini Wheats
Correct

10. What would she never wear?
A bare midriff shirt
Correct

11. What is her favorite sports team?
Buckeyes
Duh

12. What is something she does that you wish she wouldn’t do?
Leave eyebrow hair that I plucked on the sink
I have been known to not clean up every single hair I plucked.

13. What is her heritage?
Polish
Polish, Ukrainian, English, and something else

14. You bake her a cake, what kind of cake?
You don't like cake
Good job

15. Did she play sports in high school?
Not in high school
True. I played soccer up until high school

16. What could she spend hours doing?
Reading
If it's a good book, yes.

17. What is the unique talent that she has?
Winning the lottery
I guess. I won $500 twice on instant lotto tickets.

18. What is her type of coffee?
You don't drink coffee
Correct

Happy 3rd Birthday, Shiloh!!!

2010-10-04T09:55:00.015-04:00

(3 days ago) Better late than never, right?

I was dreading this birthday. Even though I kept telling myself I need to write a blog post by the 1st, I also kept finding other things to do instead.

Our family had an awesome birthday weekend, though. We picked grammy (my mom) up from the airport Thursday night and dropped her off to head back home yesterday afternoon. I definitely pulled away from the airport with a sobbing Shiloh in the backseat. She loves her grammy!

Her birthday party was great! We decided to go with a balloon themed party this year because this birthday had become quite an emotional one for me (I feel like my baby is all gone) and I just couldn't get into it. The balloon theme idea seemed easy and simple (it was). It turned out well, though. We filled the house with balloons, the kids loved it and it looked pretty cool, too.

Here are a few pictures from our weekend....

Eating her pink birthday donut

Birthday flowers from grammy and grandpa. It's a tradition
Openning a present from grammy and grandpa... Five pairs of princess shoes :)

Ready to open presents from mommy and daddy

There were more balloons in the kitchen and toy room :)

Shiloh, Kim and Jerrell (Kim's dad)
One last bounce before we had to take it back the next day

Another Wordless Wednesday: The True Shiloh

2010-09-22T15:53:00.001-04:00

Wordless Wednesday: Gwinnett County Fair

2010-09-22T14:50:00.010-04:00

First Day Of School

2010-09-07T12:52:00.005-04:00

Homeschool preschool, that is.

Since Shiloh won't actually go to preschool until she is 4 (going on 5), we joined a homeschool preschool group this year. It is made up of seven 2-3 year olds; the oldest turned three last month, and the youngest turns three in June. Two of the moms were teachers (preschool and kindergarden) before having kids, so they run it and the other moms help out. We meet for 2-2 1/2 hours every Tuesday morning. We'll meet like this for the remainder of the regular Gwinnett County school year. Each week we do a new lesson plan (for the most part), every month we'll do 2-3 field trips, and there is even homework (usually just a craft that pertains to that weeks lesson).

I think this is going to be so good for Shiloh. I'm most excited about the socialization aspect of this. She doesn't see much of other kids, unless we're at the park or the play area of Chik-Fil-A or Mcdonald's, so we'll get to work more on sharing, taking turns, and openning up to kids she doesn't know. Also, she'll get to work on taking directions from someone other than mommy or daddy.

Today was a great first day for her. The first thing we did was music. She didn't really participate in that, even though she knew one of the songs (Head, Shoulders, Knees, and Toes), but she did stand there nicely and watch everyone else. After that we went into the "classroom" and read a book about our bodies, during which Shiloh sat very nicely on the rug and listened intently. Next we talked about the letter "A" and number zero. Each kid got to try drawing an "A" and a zero on a dry erase board. When that was done we split into small groups and worked at three different stations. One station was letters and numbers. Each child was given a paper with the little and big A on it. They then took an apple stamp and traced along the letters with the stamps. We also worked on writing the number zero. The next station was folder activities. There were three different folders; a big/little folder, a same/different folder, and a shape sorting folder. The last station was decorate your own birthday cake. We talked about when each kids birthday is and then they decorated a birthday cake cut-out and glued on a candle with their birthday written on it.

I believe next week we'll be talking about "our community". If I'm remembering correctly, I think a field trip to Pulix is planned as well (apparenlty they give tours to kids).

P.S.- Before Shiloh was born, Kim gave me some pictures of herself ranging from age 3- high school age. In this picture Shiloh looks like a blonde haired, 3 year old Kim. It's interesting to me, because Kim's features have never really stood out in Shiloh. I've never looked at her and thought, wow, she looks likes Kim/I see a lot of Kim in her, but lately there have been a couple of pictures where I've thought just that. I guess it's kind of neat for me to see. Since I can't find myself or Richard in her (and I don't know who her birth dad is), it's neat to be able to see SOMEONE in her. If that makes sense. Anyway....

It's The Most Wonderful Time Of The Year

2010-09-02T14:12:00.001-04:00

Hurricane Season Is Good... For Us.

2010-09-01T09:50:00.006-04:00

For those of you who don't know, Richard is a Claims Adjuster. He basically works for a company that audits insurance claims. Before an insurance company pays on a claim they send it to ASI (the company Richard works for) for Richard, or one of his many coworkers, to audit and ensure that all of the contractors prices are fair. Richard is paid based on these claims (commission). He receives a minimal salary, but the majority of his pay comes from the claims. The larger the claim, the more he makes off of it. Things have been quite slow this year. Winter was slow, as to be expected, but summer has been just about as slow as winter. Because of this we've been anxiously awaiting hurricane season, which brings me to the point of my post...

It's hard having a husband who gains financially from other people's disasters. We could really use a good hurricane right now, too. With Shiloh's birthday, Brayden's birthday, Camryn's birth, a trip to Michigan for Thanksgiving, Christmas, and Austin's birthday the day after Christmas, these next few months are going to be quite expensive. I told Richard the other night that if we ever adopt again, I will require that the child be born between the months of March and June. (I was joking, of course. I think) Anyway. It's hard not to feel guilty while hoping that by the end of this week quite a few Long Islanders need a new roof. (Richard is one of only two people who has a license to work on NY claims)

I Have Been Waiting Months To Do This!!

2010-08-26T08:56:00.006-04:00

Seriously. I have tried begging, negotiating, and bribing. Finally, yesterday while at the park I told her that if she let me put her hair in a ponytail she wouldn't be so hot. That's all it took! It was a good day.

On a sidenote, we bought Shiloh a new car seat. It is AWESOME!! It is solid and offers so much support for Shiloh. I love that it has padding anywhere the straps might touch her skin. For example, there is padding for her shoulders/neck area, in between her legs, and where the harness snaps into place. The best feature of all though is the recline. Everytime Shiloh fell asleep in her old car seat her head immediately dropped down. Not in this one!! She's fallen asleep three times since we purchased it and her head has stayed up everytime. If anyone out there is in the market for a new car seat, I highly recommend this one. Oh yeah, it's the Graco Nautilus 3-in-1. One last feature, this will be her final car seat. When she is old enough we can take the back off and it becomes a booster seat.

Wordless Wednesday

2010-08-25T09:48:00.003-04:00

Legend Has It

2010-08-24T13:57:00.003-04:00

At the band's most recent show there was a man recording all of the performances. This guy (I'm not sure of his name) operates a website that features music from various artists that he sees and likes. It sounds like he frequents local Atlanta bars scoping out the talent. Anyway. The guy must have liked Richard's song "Stay" because the other day it showed up on his website! Below is a link to the band's song. Richard is singing and playing bass. For all other songs he does backup vocals, but this a song he wrote while in a previous band and has shared with Legnd Has It.

http://urockhard.com/watch_video.php?v=DAX7U572BDG5

Happy Birthday

2010-08-23T09:55:00.022-04:00

I tried to write you a nice paragraph detailing how amazing you are and what an awesome daddy you are, but, well, you know how good I am with words... So instead, I'll share a few pictures that say everything I can't.

Thank you for all that you have done for this family and all that you continue to do. You are our rock. Happy Birthday.

I Want The Bear

2010-08-18T14:11:00.006-04:00

I attended my first consignment sale today with a friend. I've always wanted to go to this specific sale, but I've been too nervous to go by myself because all I've heard is that it's a zoo. Well, the other day a friend mentioned she was going, so I offered to tag along.

Anyway. I had SO much fun! I ended up not buying any clothes (Shiloh doesn't really need any anyway) because I don't do well when there's just racks of random things for me to go through, but we definitely found some other keepers. Shiloh got four Disney movies ($10.50), a Halloween costume ($8.00), a Disney Princess Halloween basket for her candy ($3.00), a Nemo Look and Find book ($2.00), and a Care Bear ($2.50).

I was hoping to find some birthday or Christmas presents today, but it sounds like you have to be in line an hour before things open on the first morning to get the REALLY good stuff. Regardless, it was fun looking through everything and I think I'll definitely be back in 6 months for the next one. I may even try to sell some stuff.

Up until today Shiloh was certain she was going to be Cinderella for Halloween, but once she saw "the bear" costume everything changed.

Wordless Wednesday: Mr Potato Dad

2010-08-11T11:06:00.001-04:00

Potty Quotes and an Update

2010-08-10T16:46:00.009-04:00

After Shiloh's third successful poop of the day, she called to me from her potty, "Mama, I'm done!! There's a big one!!"

Since starting potty training Shiloh will randomly walk up to Richard and/or myself and say, "When I poop I go (insert pushing noise and strained face)"
- I guess we need to work on her fiber intake...

Update:
Shiloh is still doing great! I was a little concerned that she might regress some when my mom left, but that has not been the case. She has even taken three naps in her big girl underwear and has remained dry the entire time! We still use a diaper at night, but that's it. I knew she was ready to potty train, but I never thought she would do this well! Richard and I couldn't be prouder!

Napping

BIG, BIG NEWS!!!

2010-08-06T09:37:00.012-04:00

We have a potty user!!!

Richard and I left for our vacation Saturday afternoon and Sunday morning my mom and Shiloh started potty training. Her first time on she peed and hasn't looked back! Since Sunday morning she has only had one accident. She and my mom were playing hide-and-seek and when my mom found her hiding in the closet there was pee running down her leg.

The pictures below are from the "Shiloh pees and poops in the potty" party we had when Richard and I returned home last night. She is VERY proud of herself.

The cakes says, "Good Job Shiloh"

A List Of Things

2010-07-27T13:17:00.006-04:00

I don't feel much like writing out a bunch of paragraphs right now, so here's a list of our happenings.

Shiloh and I had a great visit with my family earlier this month. Shiloh experienced quite a few firsts during this trip; first time on a slip n slide, first ferris wheel ride, paddle boat ride, big boat ride, and she had her first fishing experience (she helped me reel in a little perch from the canal).
While we were out of town Richard was working hard on tiling our kitchen, mud room, bathroom, and laundry room. We chose a porcelain slate tile that looks great, if I do say so myself. He finally finished laying all of the tile Sunday and will finish grouting it tomorrow. I'm very excited for this project to be done. Since our return from PA (July 12) the downstairs bathroom has had no door on it and as of Saturday the toilet has been out as well.
Tonight Richard and I are going to the Dave Matthews Band concert!! I'm pretty excited! I haven't see DMB since my senior year of high school (that means 10 yrs ago)!! We have lawn seats so I'm hoping the weather stays nice. Yesterday we had some crazy storms go through and they are calling for some PM thunderstorms today.
Tomorrow my mom gets into town!!! She'll be visiting until next Saturday, when she'll drive to my sister's house in NC to spend some time with Andrea and her family. I'm super excited for multiple reasons.... which brings me to the next topic!
Richard and I leave this Saturday for vacation!! That's right. Just Richard and myself! I'm so excited! Saturday afternoon we're heading to Lake City, FL (a little bit south of the GA/FL line) to spend the night. Then Sunday we'll finish the drive to Port Canaveral where we will board our cruise ship!! It's not a very long cruise, but I think it will be just the break we need. Monday we'll be in Freeport, Tuesday in Nassau, Wednesday is a "fun day at sea", and Thursday morning we'll arrive back at Port Canaveral.

Here are a few pictures of Richard's work. He hadn't grouted it when these pictures were taken. The grout is a dark gray color.

Wordless Wednesday: Visiting Grammy and Grandpa's

2010-07-07T19:33:00.008-04:00