Child's Play

Hunter hangs his bag by his number and he also waits here before he leaves for the day

Hunter's School

Always happy if there's food involved...

Fun on the School Playground...

Hunter shows off his Halloween fork and spoon set from Grandma. She and Grandad were SO proud of him, going to school and also for sitting so nice during Church with the other kids.

(They all got to go up front, put a puzzle together and listen to the Pastor tell a story)

Hunter loves cookies, especially CHOCOLATE ones....

These pictures are from Sunday when we went to a special Church Service at Hunter's Presbyterian Church Pre-Kindergarten. They recognized all of the family of the students with a very nice gift bag. There were 2 bible story books and a homemade loaf of bread. One book was Daniel in the Lion's Den and Hunter loves it! They had a nice reception afterwards with fruit, cookies and lots of snacks. We are so thankful for this wonderful school that he goes to! He loves it!!

After we went home and changed clothes, we went to Yorktown for my Credit Union Work Picnic. They always have the big slides and inflatables. Last Year, we had to go down with him but this year he was fine by himself with us at the bottom waiting. He had cotton candy, snow cones, cookies and hot dogs and was still looking for more sweets! OH NO!

He better enjoy them there because we try to have balanced meals at our house and fruit or veggie snacks for Dessert.

I have some other pics from Kings Dominion this past Saturday but I'm exhausted! (and not feeling wonderful today either) I had a meeting this morning where I was at the office at 7:50 A.M. WOW....I'm so tired!! Plus, I'm still getting used to Hunter's day schedule. He's at school Tuesday and Thursday from 9;15-12:15 and has Speech on Mondays and Thursdays from 3-3:30. I take him to School and pick him up on my lunch hour with about 15 minutes for leftovers before going back to work. I close at work the days he goes to School to make up my time and if it wasn't ANY worse, Mike is taking a class at ODU those nights and isn't home before 11!! His grandmother takes him to Speech, thank Goodness, or else he wouldn't be able to go. We are SO blessed with family!!

We've been working on his Speech Homework at night right before bedtime. He looks at my lips and tries to pronounce it with the same sounds. Bless his heart, I'm just so happy he's getting help. He's SUCH a sweet little boy and I love him so much!!

Hope everyone has a wonderful Hump Day..I'm off to bed! Goodnite!

*Oh, Just another tidbit*

My friend has a 6 week old little baby girl that she wants me to take some pictures of. I don't EVER want to do Photography as anything more than a hobby but I've really been trying to practice practice practice. I' enjoy taking pictures of Hunter and us at Christmas. Well, she said she'd LOVE me to practice on her daughter so we're going to get together soon. She is such a precious little thing....I can't wait!

UPS VENT....ugh!

Well, I was supposed to get my Crumpler Camera Bag today but instead UPS really screwed up. I TOTALLY understand how mistakes can be made but this just sounds insane. I ordered it at the beginning of the week and paid EXTRA so it would be here before the weekend. I'm going to Kings Dominion Saturday with my family and didn't want to carry my big Lowepro Sling typle bag. Then, Sunday is a SPECIAL Church Service at my son's school and our work picnic. Needless to say, I wanted my hands as free as possible and that just isn't going to happen. The UPS Tracking showed all along the 21st as the delivery date and it even showed this morning it went out for delivery at 6:40 A.M. When I called tonite to UPS after it didn't show up, she told me it's been redirected for delivery MONDAY. It's just sitting in the Newport News UPS Office, which is closed all weekend. She was very sorry for my problem and completely understood. She also said they would pay 100% for the delivery charges but it was very strange that it wasn't even attempted to be delivered. The driver dropped it back off at 7:45 P.M. and there was no other comment. She said usually, there is a reason why it was not delivered. I knew a friend a while back who worked for UPS and I thought he said that he could not go back to the office until all packages had been delivered and he had a very tight schedule. How strange. Well, I guess I'll get over it but it just made me so mad! I'm sure I'll have another bigger bag that I can use but I was SO looking forward to finally having a bag to fit my stuff without being huge. \

**Ok, Vent Over...Just had to get that out**

Otherwise, it was a pretty good evening. Mike had a part fixed on our car and I was late leaving for work so we went to a little later evening at the steak restaurant near us. It was yummy and wonderful to have a chance to sit down, to rest, to recoupe.

I finished putting my Fall decorations out tonite and I love the feeling of our home. Delicious Pumpkin Spice Candles and Plug Ins burning, leaves and pumpkins all over and no dust! (my least fave thing to do .. ..... :)
Also got to play with my new Hermit Crabs, Mickey and Minnie. They're fun....they walk SO fast and seem pretty playful. they love to walk up my arm!!

Well, I'm headed to bed. I'm tired and looking forward to the weekend! Have a good nite!!

TOO Much Caffeine Tonite

I had a Coke tonite for dinner and I'm paying it for it now. It's after Midnight and I can't sleep! Mike got home early from School and I was hoping to be done cleaning. He wanted to work on his computer, though and it gave me a chance to get a lot done. Cleaned my entire Kitchen and Living Room tonite, decorated with some Fall stuff and had candles burning in all the major rooms. It smells SO sweet in here! Also took Hunter to the Pet Store and bought him 2 Hermit Crabs. I'll try to post pictures on Friday but I'm TOO tired now. They're fun. It tickles him when they walk on his arm but he thinks they're "COOL". I'm thinking of naming them Mickey and Minnie but I'll think about it over the weekend for sure. It's all Lynn's fault..LOL! She went by to pick up her new kitten and a bunch of us went by to see it while she shopped. He's so sweet, only 3 months old. I'm more of a dog lover myself but they could defentley grow on me! So sweet and little...a real precious boy. His name is "Little Man"....aawwwww....

OK, I'll post more Friday. I'm going to bed now and hopefully, I'll have more pics to share then
Have a WONDERFUL Friday =:)

Weekend Fun

Just wanted to post some pics of us, having some fun this past weekend. We went camping on the Eastern Shore. It was beautiful; WINDY but beautiful. We played on the playground with Hunter for a while and took lots of pictures. (These are ALL straight from the camera and NO editing...Hoping to do that this week:) We had a blast!

Our friend, Lavaughn tried out my camping chair and was SO comfy. I caught her laughing hysterically here. She's so funny!

Our other friends, Reba and her hubby Doug rode bikes most of Saturday. It made me wish we would have brought ours but we walked with them anyway:) I'm wishing for Fall now. The cool temps this weekend spoiled me!!

This is one of my sunset pictures. It's crooked but I wanted to catch the color of it in a hurry.
Hope everyone had a great Tuesday. I was up early Monday morning for a meeting, then dinner with our office and Tuesday night, I had a birthday party to go to. It was really nice!
I didn't get a chance to say it earlier but

Happy Belated Birthday, Sweet DNK!

Another early meeting for Wednesday and then, I want to STAY HOME with my family Wednesday night! Hope everyone has a great Wednesday!!

I'm Officially a Croc Owner

I went out tonite and finally, got a pair of Crocs. I always thought these didn't look comfortable at all and in my opinion, leaves a lot to be desired in the looks department. But, if I had to choose, I like the Mary Jane styles the best. I really wanted a black pair but they didn't have my size. So, I got the next best thing. (and maybe I'll get the black later if these work out!)

I've had some serious pain in my heels lately. That's one of the reasons I started getting a pedicure in the first place. It's only been two weeks since my last one, though so this is probably from wearing my flip flops constantly. After wearing them to Water Country for two days in a row, I think my feet are letting me know they don't approve. I had heard so many people say these shoes are great and last night, when I found an article about their possible health benefits, I thought I should try them. So far so good.

Tomorrow, I get some new candles. Yankee Candle Outlet was having a friends and family 50% off sale today and a friend from work picked up whatever we wanted. I got a large Pumpkin Spice Candle, some Autumn Wreath Air Freshener refills and a couple tarts to melt in my burner. The best part was ALL THE SCENTS were 50% off! YA! Can't wait to get my new stuff tomorrow!! I LOVE that place!

Friday, we're leaving for a new campground right on the water. Map quest says it's about an hour and fifteen minutes away so I can't wait!We're going with two other couples that are so much fun. I hope everyone has a wonderful weekend!!

Is It Friday Yet?

What a week! We're going camping this weekend and I can't wait. I hope I can get there Friday night early enough to put my baby to bed and then sit outside. Just prop my feet up and feel the wind in my hair. Not a care in the world.AAAAAHHHHHH...

I have a Heel Spur on the bottom of my left foot that is killing me...I can hardly put pressure on it while walking. Tonite, I soaked it in Hot Water and Epsom Salt and I'm hoping that it will soften up the rough spots. I wear my flip flops all the time so I'm wondering if it's taking a toll on my feet. My feet have gotten sore before but this is the worst. I've had two people tell me to try Vick's Vapor Rug too with a bandage on top so I'll try that tomorrow.

I also spoke to the Speech Pathologist today about Hunter's speech therapy. Her schedule is completely full and the only time she has for him to go to is not possible with my work schedule. She didn't have anything for me but is talking to her supervisor about us going to another school at 8 A.M. for him to get help. Another option is for us to work with him with some paperwork from her about what to go over. I've seen a huge improvement but he still needs help. We're just praying that God will open up a door for us and things will work out. He gets so frustrated, not being able to communicate what he wants to say. MOST of the time we can understand him but every once in a while, it's a mystery. I almost cried this afternoon...UGH!

Hope everyone has a wonderful Thursday. I'm off to bed!!
Good Nite!

First Day of School

I just wanted to post some pictures of Hunter on his FIRST day of School. He was SO excited. He didn't mind a bit when I dropped him off. He gave me a kiss, a hug, told me he loved me and then on his way he went..I wasn't ready for him to be that eager. I felt like something inside of me just melted. I'm SO happy that he's starting a new chapter in his life...But will he not be my baby anymore? I just love the way he is so loving and I'm NOT ready to give that up. "My Friend" is here......I think I'm being OVERLY emotional...LOL! HA!!

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We got there early to get in the Car Pool Line and read books while we were waiting. It was fun and I am looking forward to this special time we will share together!

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He did great today! He said he had a lot of fun. I put him to bed early because I could tell he was worn out!!

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This is Hunter's school bag and the iron on patch we printed last night. (edited to hide the school name) Mike found this awesome image online and corrected it a bit so that it would look his best. They told us to personalize it so he'd recognize it as his own. He was THRILLED when he saw it this morning! (I had it hanging on the back of the front door so he saw it when he walked downstairs)

Well, I'm off to bed. It's 10:51 P.M. and Mike isn't home yet from his first class. I was hoping I wouldn't be asleep when he got home but I can't keep my eyes open anymore.

Good Night! Hope you all have a good "Hump Day" Wednesday =)

Busy Busy!!

What a busy but terrific weekend! My flash was delivered Friday so I couldn't wait to use it! (even if I didn't really need it and hadn't read the manual..LOL) We ate Subway and went to the park so Hunter AND I could play:) Came home and watched tv in bed...I love lazy Friday nights.
Saturday, we spent the day at Water Country with the family and had a BLAST. The weather was perfect and after a long day, I was tired! I came home and FINALLY, figured out how to work my actions. Make sure you scroll down to see all the different ones I tried. I can tweak them on individual pics but I was just trying them all out and playing for the first time. Sunday, we slept in and relaxed a little before going to Water Country. After lunch, we put Hunter down for an early nap so he's be rested. It was the LAST day of the season so we wanted to enjoy it one more time. We only stayed about two and a half hours but that was long enough. We were still recovering from the previous day and I still needed to go see our grandparents. These pictures are from going to see my parents. My dad is going on a trip tomorrow and we wanted to tell him Goodbye. Grandma read to him and Grandad practiced his flash cards with him. That's about it, except for some cleaning and laundry done Sunday in the morning and when we got home tonite. Mike got some time to study some and I picked up around the house a little.

We're hoping to find Hunter a pair of new tennis shoes tomorrow. I thought his current ones fit good but they're getting kinda tight. Tuesday is his FIRST day of school and I want him to be COMFY!!

We have a long week ahead of us. Besides Hunter starting school, Mike starts his class at ODU so he'll get home from Norfolk LATE two days a week. It's only for about a month but he's looking forward to this review class for his PE Exam, just a little over a month away...

Well, I'm tired and going to bed. Good Nite!!
Hope everyone has an awesome Monday!!

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I DID IT!! **I DID IT!! ** I DID IT!!

Ok I bought Jess's Actions (From Two Peas Website) about a month ago and have NOT been able to use them. First, I had to download WINZIP so that I could open them. Then, I have not been able to figure out how to load them. I played around with them tonite and looked for some articles on the web and I FIGURED it out. Thanks to Tifany on the Photography board, she mentioned the step I was missing!! THANKS! I didn't do any adjustments with these since these were my first and I wanted a comparison of all the different actions. I LOVE how they turned out! How fun. I know I'm going to love using these and I can't BELIEVE I figured it out. I'm the slowest learner there is..LOL:) I just wanted to share what I came up with. Any CC would be great!!

Original

Oreo Cookies

Acid Washed

Dark Chocolate B&W

Bronzing (Deep & Rich)

White Chocolate B&W

Warm It Up

Vintage Soft and Faded

Simple Sepia

Rainbow Bright

Pretty Pastel

Over Exposed Vintage

Getting Ready for School...

Well, Here it is; Hunter's school. Can you believe it? This is the beginning of about 20 years of school. How did my baby get SO big? He loves carrying his book bag in!

These were taken Thursday, when he went in for an Open House JUST for him. He met his teachers, got to walk around his school to find everything through a Scavenger Hunt and play a little in his class!

These are his teachers. They are SO nice!

Hunter starting playing right away!
These 2 slides and rides are in the indoor play room. How cool!

Hunter walked right into Chapel and sat down. He's ready for "Church"

Just wanted to share some of my pictures of my little student. Tuesday is his first day and I know I'm going to cry. The Director said he carpool runs slow the first week since EVERYONE wants a picture of their child the first day. Yep, that will be ME!
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Hope everyone has a wonderful Saturday. I'm off to Water Country with my family. I've got to run since I need to run by RITZ CAMERA this morning to pick up some filters and things I ordered that are in. I know I'll want to PLAY when I get home. Take Care!

Happy Birthday to me...

What a terrific day! It started at 5:30 in the morning when my bff sang Happy Birthday to me through a text message on my phone. I also got a ecard from her, another song through email and a really nice visit with 6 of these yummy cupcakes! I feel Da Love!
Lots of people sang to me, emailed me, messaged me and called me today and to everyone, THANKS to the bottom of my heart!

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Tomorrow, I'm going out to dinner with my family to celebrate birthdays. Afterwards, I think I'm going to give him one and let him have fun with it. I was instructed to let Hunter have one and take pictures of it smeared all over his face. No Problem...A mess is NO issue with a BOY!

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I ordered my External Flash for my Sony DSLR and I'm going to be severely stalking the UPS man until Friday when it's delivered at work. Friday night, I want to PLAY PLAY PLAY!

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My hubby is so wonderful to me. Tonite, I thought I'd be picking up something like Wendy's Value Menu and rushing off to the Open House at Hunter's school. My Parents were babysitting. Instead, Mike picked me up from work and we went to FDR, Food Done Right. It's a small but quiet little restaurant with some serious good food. He had already been, preordered our dinner, paid and told them to put our order in when we came in, about 6:10. Everything was ready, hot and delicious! I have yummy leftovers for lunch tomorrow. I also had 6 LARGE Sunflowers waiting for me that I'm going to put in my office. I also got a beautiful card from him and one from Hunter, a box of Pistachios and a box of Hot Tamales! (some of my fave snacks)

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Tomorrow, we both go back to Hunter's school so HE can meet his teachers and get to know his school. I can't wait. It was a little overwhelming tonite. Is it normal to be happy but so sad too? I can't believe he's actually old enough to go to Pre Kindergarten. It IS exciting in some ways. We bought him a t-shirt, sweatshirt and his tote bag. We need to personalize his tote bag so tomorrow, I think I'll go by Joanne's Arts and Crafts and try to find a cute Iron On. I'd LOVE a great big Mickey Mouse, since his bag is red.

OK, Hope to post pictures of Hunter at school tomorrow. I can hardly keep my eyes open. I hope everyone has a great Thursday!

Happy Birthday to Our Dad!

This is my Father In Law, who I like to call "Mr T". We had dinner out tonite to celebrate his birthday (also mine, which is Wednesday) and through all the talking, I did manage to get a good shot. I love his smile because his whole face seems to light up. In the background is his youngest son and his little girl.

This is our YUMMY and VERY rich birthday cake that the restaurant gave us. It was SO rich, it almost tasted like there was liquor in it. But it was only coffee, which was TOO good! I loved it, a very different taste.

This is my new Candle Holder, which looks VERY Home and Gardenish on my Mantle. I LOVE IT! I also got some Yankee Autumn Wreath Candles for it that smell INCREDIBLE, some money, and gift cards to Chilli's. I'm hoping to go to dinner on Friday with those and I'm saving my money for some camera stuff.

It was a wonderful birthday celebration and I was so glad to be with my family again!! Too bad this website doesn't offer Scratch and Sniff..My living room is filled with the smell of Autumn. I'm really tempted to put out my scarecrow, fall wreath, leaf decorations...OH, Sorry. I was getting carried away but I AM so excited about some cooler temps. (AFTER this weekend, of course since we're going to Water Country this weekend ... it's the last days for the season.)

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OK, This is just a funny shot of Hunter at dinner with friends on Monday. We got him a cookie for being on good behavior while we were away this weekend. He was VERY happy! (AND covered in Chocolate) TOO CUTE! He was also being egged on so that's where the hands are coming from!!

OK, I'll post more later in the week. Mike and I get to go meet Hunter's teacher at his preschool tomorrow night. (Wednesday) He'll get to meet her for about an hour on Thursday. I know I'm going to cry. I know I'm going to cry. I KNOW I'M GOING TO CRY:(

My baby is growing up!!

Anyway, Have a wonderful Hump Day!!