lots of cousins

I really wish my family lived closer together. Living in Texas, Florida, Pennsylvania, and Georgia just doesn't lend itself to a lot of family gatherings. I love family. There's just something about the sense of being... related. This is a fun group of cousins. There are only four of us here. Together, we have nine children here. No one can seem to figure out what to call them... second cousins... great cousins... first cousins once removed. It doesn't matter. They are all related... and they enjoyed being together. The oldes one, who is 16, said this Christmas was the best one ever - and not because of her presents, but because everyone was... together.

Nannie was a little sad that there were two cousins who weren't there. Maybe next time.

Here's the whole crew. We took a ton of pictures without my dad because he had to work. We were going to PhotoShop him in at the end. And then, just as everyone was getting ready to go in 20 different directions... he came home! And we dragged all those kids back out and made them line up and smile... one more time.

I love this picture. It's just not often enough that we are all in the same place.

Flat Gracie goes grocery shopping

Well, what a day for Flat Gracie. Aunt Ginny wanted to take her to PA, but after she went through Security at the Airport, she couldn't find Flat Gracie. She called Uncle Tommy and he said Flat Gracie stayed in the car with him so she didn't get to go to PA. Uncle Tommy brought her over to Grammy's and she took Flat Gracie to Albertson's Grocery store to see Pap-Pap.

She helped stock shelves with her Grandfather. She it enjoyed it so much she started running around the store, here are the different places where we found her: In the oranges, bananas, lemons, limes, coconuts, and finally Juicey Juice!

Oh that Flat Gracie, she is soooo fast!

special quilts from aunt ginny

My family is blessed to have two quilt makers. One is my mother-in-law. She is one of the most meticulous, precise quilters ever. She does a lot by hand and it just amazes me... especially since I can't do anything in a straight line (cutting, sewing, walking...). The other quilter is my Aunt Ginny. She made me a quilt in 1987 around the time she started quilting - and I still use it. In fact, it is the first quilt Hubby goes for when it gets cold. I love how soft it has gotten, the spots where the fabric has frayed a bit, and the little tag with her name on it.

Aunt Ginny collects fabric and quilt rolls like I do scrapbook paper, only she actually makes things! She is always sewing or taking a class on sewing. For Christmas, she made each of the girls their own quilt. I was completely surprised that she did that. The fabrics seem to "fit" each girl and they are kid-sized which is perfect for them! Thank you, Aunt Ginny, for gift they'll treasure forever.

Flat Gracie goes to a basketball game

Hi again.

Flat Gracie came with us to see her cousin Ryan play basketball for Mt. Dora Middle School. This is a picture of us in the bleachers watching his game (Pap-pap, Grammy, Aunt Ginny, Cousin Ashleigh, Flat Gracie and Aunt Debbie). Unfortunately, we didn’t get a picture of Flat Gracie with Ryan. We were in a hurry because Flat Gracie decided to fly with Aunt Ginny to Pennsylvania to see her other cousins, Alexa and Austin.

christmas morning - with my sister

After what seemed like forever and two days, my sister and her family arrived. We were so anxious to see her, her hubby, and BabyC.

Let's keep it real... we were anxious to see BabyC!

Once they arrived, we brought in all the gifts and commenced to making a complete and total disaster of Nannie's house. I always get so worried that we are going to throw something important away in a mess like that! The girls got some cute things... Summer got the cool slipper boot things she was dying to have. Nannie got a digital picture frame loaded with tons of old and new pictures. I got a new lens for my camera, which I had been hoping for for some time. This is going to sound silly, but I think my most favorite gift was a mug from BabyC. It had the picture of him and my girls from the ElfYourself video. Every time I use it, I smile.

Being with everyone was such a treat. That evening, we had plans to head over to my Aunt Ginny's house for dinner and to visit with the rest of the family. But for the rest of the afternoon, this is what we did...

Flat Gracie goes visiting

Hi Flatstudents!

This is Gracie's grandmother writing from Mount Dora, Florida. Mount Dora is not too far from Disney World and it is home to a lot of people who are mostly grandmothers and grandfathers. It is raining today, so Flat Gracie didn't get to do any fun things outside. So Flat Gracie went on some errands with us and visiting.

The first picture is of Flat Gracie and Grammy. Flat Gracie helped me pick out a couple of books to read from the Mt. Dora Library - thanks Flat Gracie!

The second picture is of Flat Gracie and Pap-Pap. We went to "Cupcake Delight" and Flat Gracie shared our special cupcakes. They were delicious - Thanks Flat Gracie!

The third picture is of Flat Gracie and Aunt Ginny in her sewing room. Aunt Ginny makes very special quilts for all her family and friends. This Christmas Flat Gracie and her sisters received beautiful quilts made especially for them by Aunt Ginny. Maybe Flat Gracie will bring her new quilt to school to show you. Thanks Aunt Ginny!

The fourth picture is of Flat Gracie and Uncle Tommy in his special garage! Uncle Tommy has a car that is an antique - it was made in 1931. Can you figure out how old the car is? Even though the car is very old, it is very beautiful because Uncle Tommy takes very good care of it and keeps it in his special garage! This picture is of Uncle Tommy and Flat Gracie sitting on his Harley Davidson Motor Cycle. Notice Uncle Tommy is wearing a helmet for safety! Thanks Uncle Tommy

The last picture is of Flat Gracie and Emma. Emma is a Shitzu and lives with Aunt Ginny and Uncle Tommy. Emma is very friendly and very sweet. She always wants a treat when you come visit her, so Flat Gracie gave her one. Thanks Flat Gracie - Woof, Woof!

christmas morning - the kids

The kids were amazed that Santa would parachute gifts down to the houses of Mt. Dora. SuperGirl in particular was very curious about the parachutes. In fact, she picked up the parachute before her gift! Pickles was afraid to touch the gifts. And interested in why the snow on the ground hadn't melted. We were in Florida after all and it was warm. There were a lot of giggles and wonderings about Santa as the girls gathered their goodies and headed indoors.

I wondered how it would be, not having Christmas at home. This was definitely different in a good way! We all had fun - and it was fun seeing Nannie be excited with the girls, asking about what their gifts were and watching the mayhem unfold in her living room.

Summer was thrilled to get rocket balloons. I'm not sure what the draw was to those, but they were at the top of her list. The new camera went over great. She loved it. And I have loved seeing the pictures she takes with it. I'm seeing a whole new side of her.

Pickles and SuperGirl both got American Girl dolls. Good thing, too. Pickles has a birthday coming up in February and she wants to take her doll to the American Girl store for a day of shopping and pampering. I hope she gets some gift cards to the AG Store!!

We were all so tired, but the excitement made all that exhaustion from the trip just disappear. Until after a wonderful breakfast... and then we all crashed.

We knew my sister and her family wouldn't be over for another couple of hours, so we all took naps, showered, baked cookies, knitted, and did anything else we could think of to make the time pass quicker... I was dying to do a little BabyC holding after all!

Flat Gracie goes to Orlando

Hey flat students! This is Gracie William's Aunt Melinda. Flat Gracie has been here in Orlando, Florida with me, her Uncle Ryan and newest cousin, Colin. You know Orlando, right...home of Mickey and Minnie Mouse? We didn't get to take Flat Gracie to Disney World, but she has been before. I carried Flat Gracie around with me doing my chores around the house and running errands. I am a new mommy so that is pretty much all I do all day. I took a few pictures of Gracie helping me with a few things...Flat Gracie helped me play with Colin while I got some chores done. Then she helped me get Sidney, our dog, ready for her walk. She also had a quick bite to eat with Uncle Ryan and Colin before heading out for more chores!

Flat Gracie was with us from January 21-28th (sorry...I kept her a little too long, I know...I didn't want to send her off to someone else so soon because I miss her so much!). The weather here in Orlando is in the 70's and really sunny...that is why we are called the Sunshine State! It is supposed to get cold this weekend, though. Like I mentioned, Orlando is famous for Disney World, but the state of Florida is famous for it's oranges, alligators, sunshine and miles and miles of beautiful beaches! Gracie has already seen some of those beaches before, too.

She left us today and is on to her next adventure. I guess you guys will find out where she is soon enough! Have fun following my precious Flat Niece!!!

I love you, Gracie!
Aunt Melinda Smith

wordless wednesday

how does santa deliver gifts when there's no chimney?

Santa Cannot Deliver Packages
Without a Chimney

By Elfin Claws
SPECIAL TO THE MOUNT DORA NEWS

It has been reported that Santa cannot deliver packages to children in Mount Dora if their house does not contain a fireplace and chimney. Special arrangements have been made by the Elves to attach small parachutes to the packages and Santa will drop the packages as close to the house as possible. All children should stay indoors to keep from getting hit by the falling packages between the hours of 12 Christmas Eve and 9 am Christmas day. Children are encouraged to search the area around the house for their packages, that is, IF they have been good. Santa is aware that because of the many trees in the area, some packages and parachutes may get caught in the trees. Parents are to help their children retrieve the packages because Santa would feel terrible if one of the children was hurt climbing a tree. The last thing Santa said as he climbed into his sleigh was Merry Christmas and then he laughed Ho-Ho-Ho. This reporter noticed that Santa has not lost any weight this year and his belly still shook like a bowl full of jelly!

christmas 2008

Christmas this year was quite different from how we usually do things. My side of the family is all - ALL - in Florida. The original plan was to meet half way, but the amount of time we would have been able to be together was quite limited. In a moment of absolute sweetness, Hubby suggested we just leave Christmas Eve and make the 16 hour drive to Orlando.

And that is what we did.

At 2:00 PM on Christmas Eve, we loaded up the car... all the presents... all the clothes... enough Chex Mix to choke a horse... three kids... a mom... a dad... and a dog... and we started out to the Sunshine State. I took the first leg of the trip and drove until we got to Beaumont.

When we stopped to switch drivers and potty, the nasty weather kicked in. And for the next 10 hours of the trip we had rain, fog, and just plain nasty driving conditions. The kids were too wired to really sleep, so we were all awake most of the night.

Did you know that you can track Santa on your BlackBerry? Well, thanks to Google maps, you can! Somewhere in Mississippi we saw that he was very, very close to our location. Pickles and SuperGirl were looking out their windows for a glimpse of the sleigh and reindeer without being spotted. Pickles looked and looked, and she swears that she saw a glowing red dot (Rudolph's nose, perhaps?) and then a streak of light. If you ask her, she'll tell you it was Santa's sleigh taking off for its next delivery.

As the sun came up in Florida, the fog was still with us. We were all bleary eyed and ready to see the family. A call to Grammy was made and she assured us that everyone was up and they were cooking breakfast... just waiting for us to get there. With the promise of breakfast tacos and muffins, presents, and hugs, it just made the last 30 minutes of the drive seem to take forever.

We pulled in to Nannie's neighborhood and the anticipation of the long drive and Christmas morning was almost too much to bear... the thought of what was waiting at the house made the girls giggly and ready to get out... and what a surprise they had waiting for them!!

chex mix making marathon

I'm going to back up and bit and try to cover the last month in chronological order. I'll spread it out over several days so you don't get overwhelmed. We'll start here, with the Chex Mix Making Marathon. Because everyone in my house likes something different and because I am such a nice mom/wife, I decided to fill all the requests for Chex Mix all the while packing for a week long trip to Florida and Christmas away from home.

First up was the Puppy Chow. Really, couldn't they have come up with a better name? I realize it looks like Puppy Chow, but who wants to eat something with a name like that? If it didn't have chocolate AND peanut butter in it, I probably never would have tried it. And now I think, gee, if the name puts someone off it's okay, because I really don't want to share... This was one of Summer's requests.

Next up was the traditional Chex Mix. This was Hubby's request. His exact words were, "I'd like to have some Chex Mix for the road. You know, to munch on while I'm driving all night to get you to your family... and I really like YOUR Chex Mix so much better than the store bought kind." How could I refuse that? The man got a big batch of homemade Chex Mix.

My helpers helped bag it all up when it cooled off. What good helpers I have...

Here is SuperGirl, stirring up the last batch of Chex Mix. Summer requested this one, "Mrs. Andrea's Chex Mix" but she didn't know it was already on my radar. It's called Holiday Mix, but The Straight to the Hips Mix would be a more accurate name. Really, it's sticky, so you might as well just stick it on your hips and butt. The recipe says to give it away as fast as you can. It should also include the warning, "IF you can."

We had to get a container from the garage to mix this one up. I just didn't have a bowl big enough and it makes a lot. We gave away a little bit and took the rest to Florida. And I wonder why my pants won't fit... Can you SEE how good this is? Oh.my.goodness. I could eat my weight in Holiday Mix.

So everyone had the Chex Mix their little hearts desired. We weren't on the road an hour when I smelled peanut butter... the kids found the Puppy Chow. A few hours later, Hubby had to decide between a sandwich and Chex Mix. When we arrived at Nannie's house, there were only a few crumbs left. Hubby and I ate it all night long. And I hid the Holiday Mix at my feet. I only shared once we got it to my sister's house. We finally decided that yes, Holiday Mix could be breakfast... after all, it DOES have cereal in it!

the great onion experiment

I have a friend whose son needed some assistance with a science experiment. Because it's always school around here, I thought it would be fun to assist and learn something ourselves along the way.

We were given six different methods of chopping onions and had to make note of how badly our eyes watered (or didn't water). And because everything is more fun with a friend, we grabbed another student who planned to do the experiment and did it together. Here are Giggles and Summer, ready to get started. Giggles looks sweet and happy, even when she is trying to look mean. Summer just scares me.

First up was the candle. We were told to burn a candle near the cutting area. Here are their thoughts and physical reactions:
Summer: "I want to cry right now.” Her eyes were watering and burning.
Giggles: “My eyes are wateringish.” Watering, couldn’t see.

The girls took a break to wash up and went for a sit on the front porch. Next on the chopping block (hee-hee) was the freezer. We put an onion in the freezer for five minutes before chopping it up. Notice that we have some Snickerdoodle Blue Bell ice cream. We found that in the back of the freezer. I don't know how in the world we have some left over...

Summer: “My eyes are starting to burn.” And as she was running out, red faced, she yelled, “Who do I sue???”
Giggles: “My throat stings… ow!” And then she ran out.

It appeared we may not make it through all six trials. We gave the girls a break... they rinsed their eyes and went outside to jump on the trampoline. Somewhere along the line, Summer tried to convince us that the onions were doing this to her eyelids...

Next, we tried chewing a piece of gum while chopping the onions. When asked, "What kind of gum do you have, Mrs. Shan?" I replied, "Blue."

Summer: “All my senses are burning.” and then... “I’m stinging and starting to water.” This one took a little longer for her eyes to react.
Giggles: “I’m trying to concentrate on not crying.” She had stinging eyes, but it took longer to react.

Next, we were on to holding bread in our mouths. They were to hold a piece of bread in their lips while chopping the onion.

Summer: “It burns!”
Giggles: “I’m done! IT BURNS!!! NO MORE ONIONS!!!” “Hey, the bread wasn’t that bad.”

While the girls were outside resting their eyes again, I washed their cutting boards and sprayed them with vinegar for the next trial. Upon looking for the budding scientists, we found that they'd gone for a little run. Hmm... it looks like the onion fumes have gone to their heads.

Here are their lovely reactions to the vinegar...
Summer: “Vinegar stinks!” Stinging… eyes watering.
Giggles: “Yuck, vinegar smells.” “Okay, so far, it’s (the chopping) not that bad.” “Watering now… kinda stings.”

And then we were on to the final test. Goggles. We all agreed this would probably be the best, most effective method of chopping onions. Of course, it's not the most fashionable but these girls are still cuties...

Summer: “Amazing!” A little bit of watering.
Giggles: Not major watering/burning.

All in all, it was a fun little experiment. They came to some conclusions... however, Dayna and I think a fresh pot of coffee and having your daughter cut the onions is the best way to get the job done without tears and stinging eyes! Oh, and in case you're wondering about the onion smell... my house smells like a chopped onion, but our hands don't! We used the little stainless steel trick... rubbing our hands on the stainless faucet as we washed. No onion smell here!

Here are their conclusions...

Summer's ranking…
1 – goggles
2 – gum
3 – vinegar
4 – bread
5 – candle
6 – freezer

Giggles's ranking…
1 – goggles
2 – vinegar
3 – gum
4 – bread
5 – freezer
6 – candle

These two don't care if they never see another onion. Can't say I blame them. Thanks for being such good sports!!

4th picture tagging

So... I have been 4th picture tagged... Here's the deal:

• Go to the place on your computer where you store all your pictures and open the 4th folder.


• Open the 4th picture.


• Post the picture and give an explanation of what it is.


• Tag 4 people.


• DO NOT CHEAT!! You cannot edit or crop the picture!!

Now, for me, this was hard, because all my pictures are in my Photoshop program files and I have no idea where those actually are beyond "over in my external hard drive." I'm working with what is on my computer... and what is on my computer are mostly other people's pictures!!

This picture is from a trip a parents made recently to Miami. This is a picture of where we lived when I was in first and second grade. We lived there on the first floor, where that brown fence is. To the right, where that opening is, is where the mailboxes were. And that circle drive is where I played with my friends, watching them catch lizards and eating the nectar from some flower bushes that used to be there. I had several good friends here... Anne Marie (her parents were really good friends with my parents and her step father might have been Cuban), Leslie (if I remember right, her mom did little Bible lessons with us), and Stacy (her Jewish family was from New York and they all had very thick accents).

I am tagging... Dayna, Andrea, Stacey, and Shannon L.

new year... new location...

Welcome to the new blog! I'm glad you found me. It's been a very hectic holiday season and getting back into the swing of our life has been a challenge in and of itself. I'm just happy to be back in a routine of some kind!!

So why the new blog? Well, with the "state of our economy," I decided I wasn't willing to pay for a blog when I could have one for free that I could have more fun with. Hubby gave me Photoshop for Christmas and I've been playing around with it (see the header? see the signature?). I pulled everything off the old blog and saved it on my computer and I'm starting fresh here. I'm a little sad those posts won't be there to see, but I'll get over that.

With the start of a new year, my mind has been going in forty different directions... from household stuff, to school and schedules, menus, recovering from Christmas, balancing accounts and more. No wonder I have found myself down, discontented, and frustrated. That's not the best way to start the year, is it???

So in order to pull myself out of this little grumpiness I am wallowing in, I think I'll go back and blog a little about our holiday fun. There was a lot of fun had! Stay tuned...