Monday, August 31, 2009

Dora, Dinosaurs and Possums -- Oh my!

Again, I've been a bad blogger! I just can't seem to get in a schedule. I have lists of things to do, but somehow I've done quite well at avoiding doing them! Does anyone else feel my pain?!?! Well, I'll do better...I promise!

These past few weeks have been fun, even with the back to school blues! But first of all, can I brag a bit?!? You know that video that I submitted to GMA for their "Your Three Words" segment? Well, we made it on! Yep, good ol' Hickory Ridge made it onto national T.V. They didn't let me know that we were going to be on, so I didn't realize it until neighbors started calling and sending emails! How funny is that?!?! Here's the final clip that aired. (I like my songs better, but I knew they would change it.) Watch the commercial first, then we're the last 30 secs of the segment.

http://abcnews.go.com/video/playerindex?id=8388744



We had a fun family day a couple of weekends ago. Over the summer, John, being the wonderful daddy that he is, bought tickets for he and Lily Clare to see 'Dora Live" at the Fox theatre. Seriously, do you know many dads who would voluntarily choose to sit and watch two hours worth of Dora? Since he and Lily were gonna have a date, I thought Sam and I needed one, too. Off we went to downtown ATL for a fun day.

Sam and I said goodbye to John and Lil at the Fox and we hopped a cab to the Fernbank Museum! Sam's first cab ride and he was ecstatic -- no car seat for him! Unfortunately, he was hoping that we would luck out and get the Cash Cab (he loves that show!), but to no avail. No flashing lights or music went off when we sat down. Our driver, Mohammed, (that is the truth, not a stereotypical example) asked all of the regular cabbie questions ... how long are you staying in Atlanta, where are you from, etc? I think it threw him off when we said we were from Alpharetta and just taking a cab for the fun of it! After I told Mohammad (we got to be on a first name basis) about our family day, he proceeded to tell Sam how lucky he is and how well his parents are taking care of him. Mohammad told Sam that when we get old, he needs to take very good care of us! I like that Mohammad, he's a smart man! So here are some pics from the cab ride and museum:



Our last little bit of excitement happened right here in our own back yard. One night, in getting ready to head up to bed, I heard a little rustling out on the deck. I took a peek out the window and low and behold, there was a nasty possum eating out of Bear's food bowl. Of course, I had to run and get my camera! So, I snuck a few pictures of the ratty creature until he (or she -- didn't get close enough and don't really know how to tell the difference) heard me. After a little zig-zag action, Mr. (or Mrs.) Possum ran down the stairs and what do you think he did...did he run out into the yard, did he climb over the fence? NO, he jumped in the pool!!! GROSS! And in case you are ever asked if a possum can swim, the answer is YES! That scutter swam around looking for a way to get out, but unfortunately never found his exit. He did get sucked into the skimmer and John was able to lift him out with a random stick/possum scooping device and toss him away! He was alive, by the way, so no possums were hurt during this process. Needless to say, double chlorine was added immediately and we hope to never have this happen again!Gross!
Even more gross!
How dare he (or she)?

So, there you have it. "Moore than you want to know", right?!?!

What's next~
Laurie

Thursday, August 20, 2009

Rain down on me!

After two summers of drought, this is what happens when we get a rain shower...

Drinking it up~
Laurie

Saturday, August 15, 2009

Back to School...

Such an emotional roller coaster that I've been on this past week! On one hand, I hate for the summer to end, on the other, it's nice to get back into a schedule. So, as a tribute, I made a little video to show how the parents in our neighborhood feel.

If any of you watch Good Morning America - Weekend Edition, you may know the "Your Life in Three Words" segment. This is where people make videos about what has happened in their life and convey their message in three words. So, I thought I'd make a little video with my three words "Back to School" and submit it. Wouldn't it be neat to be on GMA?!?!? (Well, I did need to notify the moms so no one showed up in their jammies, as usual, but it went off without a hitch!!!)

So, here is my submission -- please watch it 'til the end!! We hope to see you on ABC!




Good Times~
Laurie

Tuesday, August 4, 2009

We're all glad that Daddy works!

How many of you have wanted to be a fly on the wall in my minivan? {crickets} Anyone? {more crickets}

(I can only dream of having a minivan this cool!!!!)

Well, if you were a fly in my van (and if flies have ears) then you'd hear this type of interesting conversation coming from the backseat:

-------

Lily: I wish Daddy didn't have to work. I want him to stay home all of the time.

Sam: Lily, Daddy has to work. If he doesn't work, we wouldn't have a house. And we'd starve to death.

Lily: And we'd have to eat wood.....and ants.

-- A bit of silence, the brains are working.--

Sam: Mom, what part of the ant are you supposed to eat? The middle part?

Me: I'm not sure what part of the ant we'd eat. I've never thought about that.

Sam: I think that's what they eat on t.v.; you know, when they are lost in the woods?

Lily: And we'd have to eat goats.

Sam: Yeah, ants and goats. {long pause} I'm glad Daddy works and we have a house....


Me too~
Laurie