Wordless Wednesday

She's Almost Here!!

Last Saturday was Kailleen's baby shower - Mia is almost here!!!  Laura and I went down for her baby shower.  There is another picture like this of Laura and Kailleen - from about 5 years ago.

The cake was adorable - little pink shoes!!

 

   

And we got her some really, really cool Briuns stuff  ;)

Best of luck Kailleen, Rob and Jason!!

A Traditional Southern New Year's Day Meal

Black-Eyed Peas, Collard Greens and Cornbread. And some folks say you should have hog jowl with it.

It is said that eating these Southern Classics will help bring a prosperous year. The greens represent dollar bills and the peas represent coins, ensuring wealth and luck. According to folklore this tradition dates back to the civil war. After Sherman burned the south the only thing left in the fields were black-eyed peas for animal fodder. Eating the pea represents humility and lack of vanity. "Eat poor on New Years and eat fat for the rest of the year"! Another saying says, " Peas for pennies, green for dollars, and cornbread for gold".

The pork (hog jowl is cured and smoked cheeks of pork) symbolizes forward progress -- A pig roots forward. A chicken scratches backwards. A cow stands still. So, for a meal that symbolizes your year ahead, it's definitely pork that you want to eat.

Okay, so that's not exactly what I made. I did make black-eyed peas and cornbread, but we had pork chops and spinach. I hope it still counts!!

 

Posted with Blogsy

Happy 2014!!

I know I posted this before, but I'm posting it again. Because it's awesome.

First of all, its Calvin and Hobbes. Second, it's a great attitude. We are what we are. Or to quote another great cartoon character

 

Embrace your individuality. There's a reason you are one of a kind. Okay, I know you're thinking that maybe for some people it's a really good thing, but truly for all of us, it's a great thing.

 

I wish you all a healthy, happy, prosperous 2014.

 

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Think Fast!!

Did you know that January first is the deadline to end production of incandescent light bulbs?  In a recent Sylvania survey, just a little over half of the population was aware.  

You'd better think fast before this

Looks like this

If you've already had trouble finding the bulbs you were looking for, that could be because the government began phasing out 100- and 75-watt light bulbs in 2012 and 2013 respectively. The elimination of 60- and 40-watt bulbs will have a much greater impact because they are the two most popular bulbs on the market.  It's still perfectly legal to buy incandescent light bulbs as long as supplies last - companies just can't import or manufacture any new ones.  So, instead of incandescent light bulbs, we will have to choose from halogen incandescents, LED's (light emitting diodes) or CFL's (compact fluorescent lamps).

They are all supposed to save us money and be environmentally better - I'll wait and see.   By all accounts Thomas Edison was a pretty forward-thinking guy (not that I'm old enough to have known him), so he would probably be pleased to see this happening.

In the meantime, no more terrariums,

planters,

or ships in a lightbulb (!!?!)

W.W.U.F.D?

What Would Uncle Fester Do?

Oh those crazy kids

Google likes to add all sorts of animations to the pictures I have stored on their site.   Some are good - some not so good.  This one I like.  This was taken last year (2012) at Thanksgiving.  The 'kids' were clearly having good time.

On the couch - from left to right - Kris, Brad, Tim, Josh, Andy.

On the floor - Reilly, Lianna, Logan, Justice, Laura

Have yourself a merry little Christmas
Let your heart be light
From now on, our troubles will be out of sight

Have yourself a merry little Christmas
Make the yule-tide gay
From now on, our troubles will be miles away

Here we are as in olden days
Happy golden days of yore
Faithful friends who are dear to us
Gather near to us once more

Through the years we all will be together
If the fates allow
Hang a shining star upon the highest bough
And have yourself a merry little Christmas now