On the Road Again

The dogwoods are so beautiful here! Yes, we've made it all the way to Birmingham with life and limb intact. It wasn't as bad as it could have been. I truly recommend a DVD player for all long trips. I'm surprised at how much better the kids do while engaged with a movie. We watched 2 Scooby Doo movies, Cheaper By the Dozen, some more I think. Jim and I don't watch - we just listen. That Shaggy is, like, such goofball, dudes.

We started seeing the dogwoods in East Texas. I just love them. I'm pretty sure they wouldn't grow in Abilene. There aren't enough tall trees for them to be under. I saw one pink one (in Alabama, of course) but lots of white ones. When I was a little girl my grandmother, Mama Crawford, had a box with the legend of the dogwood on it. The box had a very strong smell. I always thought it was dogwood wood but it was cedar, of course. My grandparents were old and I don't remember much about them but I remember that box.


Legend of the Dogwood

An old and beautiful legend has it that, at the
time of the crucifixion, the dogwood was comparable in size to the oak tree and
other monarchs of the forest. Because of its firmness and strength it was
selected as the timber for the cross, but to be put to such a cruel use greatly
distressed the tree. Sensing this, the crucified Jesus in his gentle pity for
the sorrow and suffering of all said to it: "Because of your sorrow and pity for
My sufferings, never again will the dogwood tree grow large enough to be used as
a gibbet. Henceforth it will be slender, bent nd twisted and its blossoms will be in the form of a cross -- two long and two short petals. In the center of the outer edge of each petal there will be nail prints -- brown with rust and stained with red -- and in the center of the flower will be a crown of thorns, and all who see this will remember

Did Spring Really Sprung?

28! Twenty-eight degrees! XXVIII! I'm tired of the cold! I'm trying to be happy the sun is out but it's 28 degrees!

A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the ER

Kenny: I've thought of a way to get the bagel out without burning my fingers.
Mom: How's that?
Kenny: I use a knife to stick it down in the toaster to get the bagel out.
Mom: Why is that not a good idea?
Kenny thinks for a minute: Because it would get the knife superheated?
Mom: No, the knife is a conductor of electricity and you could be electrocuted.
Kenny: Oh...

Spring is Sprung

Yeah, Kenny is at school for the entire day!!! Abbie is happily watching one of her favorites shows (Charlie and Lola), Jim is at the office, and I'm sitting down to type. All is right with the Waldrop household.

Spring Break ended with rain. Three days of rain. Here is Abilene it doesn't rain very often and people are usually thankful for the rain. I grew up with plenty of rain - it doesn't fascinate me. I don't remember how many days it has been since it last rained. I don't know how many inches it rained. I don't know the water level at Lake Fort Phantom. I try to notice if my plants need water; in Bham we didn't water in March, ever.

It did put a kink in the Spring Break plans. After being home all day on Thursday, I decided the children needed to go to Mimi's and pick up pecans. Then they could sell the pecans and maybe pay for their way into the movie. They needed to get out and they needed a task. It rained.

Uncle Billy took them to see Hoodwinked on Saturday because they were bouncing off the walls!! They enjoyed the movie and they love hanging with Uncle Billy. On Sunday one of Kenny's friends, Miles, came over. It's interesting how Abbie plays with the big boys. She loves them the way she loves Kenny. She supposes that they will treat her like she's fun to be with. The boys usually look at me when she hugs them looking up into their eyes. They're never sure this is okay. I think it's sweet.

Spring is Sprung

Yeah, Kenny is at school for the entire day!!! Abbie is happily watching one of her favorites shows (Charlie and Lola), Jim is at the office, and I'm sitting down to type. All is right with the Waldrop household.

Spring Break ended with rain. Three days of rain. Here is Abilene it doesn't rain very often and people are usually thankful for the rain. I grew up with plenty of rain - it doesn't fascinate me. I don't remember how many days it has been since it last rained. I don't know how many inches it rained. I don't know the water level at Lake Fort Phantom. I try to notice if my plants need water; in Bham we didn't water in March, ever.

It did put a kink in the Spring Break plans. After being home all day on Thursday, I decided the children needed to go to Mimi's and pick up pecans. Then they could sell the pecans and maybe pay for their way into the movie. They needed to get out and they needed a task. It rained.

Uncle Billy took them to see Hoodwinked on Saturday because they were bouncing off the walls!! They enjoyed the movie and they love hanging with Uncle Billy. On Sunday one of Kenny's friends, Miles, came over. It's interesting how Abbie plays with the big boys. She loves them the way she loves Kenny. She supposes that they will treat her like she's fun to be with. The boys usually look at me when she hugs them looking up into their eyes. They're never sure this is okay. I think it's sweet.

Movie Night

Time for the review:
Jim and I saw Failure to Launch last night and laughed out loud. Jim was afraid it would be a girly movie and was a little relutant to see it. It's not too girly!! It's so funny. Matthew McConaughey was sooo cute. That man's teeth are unnaturally white. I know that he paid someone alot of money for those WHITE teeth! There's funny guy friends, a funny roomate, and Terry Bradshaw is hysterical as Matthew's dad. In fact, the only nudity is Terry's butt. There was some cursing and the "Queen Mother of Dirty Words" is used one time. Good for the parents to go see.

Maybe I'm getting older but I love laughing out loud at the show!!! I screamed, I guffawed, I was probably annoying. I always want my money's worth.

Spring Break - Day 2

Bad News: Abbie woke up at 7:00 and was raring to go! Kenny was ready to leave at 8:45!

Good News: They both left with Mimi and Pop at 9:20 to spend the night at a hotel! They went to some park to see dinosaur tracks and then spent the night away! Mom and Dad went to the movie and out to eat (on a gift certificate) BY OURSELVES.

How Long!?

Spring Break Day 1:
Breakfast - French Toast Can't go wrong with French Toast, right? Abbie didn't want any - she's still full from last night. Uncle Billy took her to Cracker Barrell and then Kenny to Red Lobster. We all want an Uncle Billy!
Kenny gets a haircut - We have to wait 1 hour! Is Sports Clips really worth it? It only costs $7.oo. I was too cheap and tired to leave a tip.
Abbie gets new shoes - Sports Clips is next to Payless so we go in and get white dress shoes. It helps with the wait. $14.00
We go to the library - They get books and one DVD each. Thumbalina (Abbie's choice) has a scratch and won't play. Abbie reads her books before we get home.
We go to United - It's all I can do to keep them from running up and down the aisles. Abbie gets to ride in the cart.

One down - 6 more to go!

I'm Too Sexy For This Shirt

I rarely leave my clothes someplace besides my house. Last week, I misplaced a shirt. It's black, has a collar and is a little too big. I hadn't missed it until I got an email asking if it was mine. I knew that last week was crazy but I thought I had made it home with all my clothes on.

The big question: Why didn't Jim notice?

Mazel Tov!

I know that all my faithful readers are anxious to hear about the wedding I worked this weekend. It was lovely. All professionally done so it's much easier on me. These paid people come in with lots of help, a clear vision, and knowing that they are getting paid. Because there's money involved they're just more motivated and focused. (Sorry, all you moms of the bride.)

I saw no tattoos. Don't be too disappointed - maybe I just missed them. It is a little hard to believe in this day that a room full of 20 somethings is tattoo free.

The video was interesting. Almost every wedding we've had at Southern Hills has a video presentation with childhood pictures. This is the sweetest thing!!! I can't wait till I get to do this to Kenny and Abbie! At this wedding, there were 3 songs. One of the songs was "Broken Road" by Rascal Flatts. That's a powerful song. All about how all the broken hearts and losers dated led the singer to his love. Great. The funny thing was the pictures of the couple together. There were SEVERAL of them kissing. It got a little personal. I think the kicker was them in the tub together. Yes, she had a bathing suit and so did he (I suppose) and it was cute with lots of bubbles but it still felt a little TMI (too much information) for this writer. But hey, it's all good now, right?

Disclaimer: These are sweet people and I love her aunt. The MOB is very nice and gave me a big bonus. It was really lovely.

Wow! I've been really busy this week! I worked Dittos for Kiddos twice, taught school on Tuesday and Thursday, and worked a wedding this weekend. Now I'm on to sewing a dress for Abbie. It's impossible to find great fabric in Abilene. It's going to be a combination Easter and Aunt Margaret's wedding dress. Yes, that's right Aunt Margaret Tresler is getting married on April Fool's Day! (I'm pretty sure it was just the 1st day the church was available.) We will be going and both kids have to look wonderful, of course. I'll let you know how it goes!

***************************************************************

I was working at Dittos and one of the other workers was telling of her direct sales job - Passion parties. Eeeekkkk! You figure it out. One the other workers then says "Well, now I feel close enough to ask you all..." Let me tell you, I was scared. I didn't know what was coming out of her mouth! "Do Church of Christ people have to keep their houses clean? Without any clutter? Like, is that in your Bible?" I was stunned but in a much better way than I expected.
I know what you're thinking - is this woman blonde? Yeah, she's blonde. It turned out the 2 COCers she knew were very clutter-free. All the COC in the room confessed to messy and cluttered houses.
Is there somewhere we can add that? We could probably stick it in Proverbs somewhere. Do we need more guilt in our lives?

*************************************************************

For those of you that don't attend (or were unable to attend) Southern Hills, try to listen to Phil's sermon online. Phil has been doing a series on sin and today was on fire! I love my church. I love the conviction of our elders to love all sinners. I love reaching out to all sinners. Listen online or download for your iPod.

Love the Face You're In

Oprah has Meg Ryan on today and has been showing teasers. Someone has down as injustice to Meg Ryan's face. Poor Meg....

Lesson learned: accept crow's feet, laugh lines, and sagging with minimal intervention.