Africa, It Ain't...

Pine Mountain, Georgia... it is.

That's where we spent last Friday with my brother, sis-in-law, and nephew. We loaded everyone into the car that morning and headed on over to the Wild Animal Safari.

I don't know if you've heard of it.
I don't know if you've been.
I do know most of you would run in the opposite direction.

This is technically our second visit (hang head in mock shame). We went when the boy was only 4, and Aunt April couldn't make it then. So we knew...
Well. We HAD to go again.

When you arrive and pay for the tickets, you can choose to drive your own vehicle through the safari or rent one of their vehicles.

Driving your own involves signing a 12 page waiver that uses words like "gore" and "irreparable damage."

Renting and driving their vehicle means burying any dignity you have and spending the next hour in this sweet ride...



Our side door didn't work, so we all had to climb in through the front. Nice.
Read just a bit further, and you will see why this tail light is broken out. (It wasn't my brother's driving... that's another whole post.)



The basic concept of the "Wild Animal Safari" is to ride through their park and see the animals in a "natural" setting. Nice concept.

In truth, you ride through their park and get accosted, molested, roughed-up, and harassed by some pretty big creatures who want the tasty(?) food you purchased at the ticket counter.

NOT buying a bag of food isn't a wise choice. Heck... we had food, and the giraffe tried to eat part of our cool minivan.

Good times.

Since most of the van's windows are broken, the animals poke their heads (horns and all) INTO the window. INTO your face.
And just so you know, most of these guys are BIG . And smelly. And covered in mud. And DRIPPING with slobber. Dripping. Did I mention the slobber? Cause the fancy word, saliva, just doesn't cut it here, folks. It's slobber.




Told ya they got close.




That's the boy's head in the pictures... he was in the front seat with his uncle. Screaming and laughing and having the best time.




I don't know where he is in this picture... perhaps the floor?




Or it's possible they ate him.



It's not all giant beastly things. There are about a million cute little deer, turtles, donkeys, zebras, and even pigs. We got to pet a giraffe. Who was much more interested in chewing up our van.



Little Noah wasn't quite as scared as his big cousin was 6 years ago (the first time he went through the park). He just kept changing the lap he was sitting in... depending on whose window had the biggest nastiest head in it at the moment.



Good times.

If you have a few more minutes, go over to Rogersland.

(Scroll down a bit past my cute nephew hunting Easter eggs...)

There's video. I think I laughed harder at the video then I did when I was actually there. Maybe I was dodging a big slobbery bison at the time.

Recovering is Hard to Do

Is it a sign of old age when you need a week to recuperate from your weekend?
Or is it a sign of a good time?

I didn't "see ya'll on Monday" or participate in "Ten on Tuesday." I'm lame like that.

The big city of Atlanta was a hoot of a good time. So much of a hoot that it's Wednesday already. Almost a week since the good time.

We traveled on last Thursday afternoon in hopes of making it there for dinner and before Noah went to bed. So we had to snack on the road.



Nothing but the finest for me.

We did make it by dinner and before bedtime.

At approximately 7:45 pm on Thursday night, the boy and his cousin began the wild rumpus that was their weekend.

Laughing, screaming, laughing at nothing, yelling, running, more laughing at absolutely nothing, more running, spitting, getting in trouble for spitting, laughing at spitting, and then a little more laughing.
And that was just Thursday night before bed.

I promised pictures and stories of the good times, and I have SO much to share...

It's gonna take a few days.

We'll start nice and slow and sweet...

The boy taught his little cousin how to make "soup" in the yard. From sand and leaves and Lord only knows what else. We wanted to make sure my brother and sis-in-law knew how to dial Poison Control before he's 3. We did.




There was a dress rehearsal egg hunt to get us all prepped and ready for the big day. They hid, and I had to find. Sadly, there's no candy involved in rehearsal.




There was plenty of lounging around and snuggling, too. Personally my favorite thing to do with my two favorite boys.



Rest assured, it gets much more interesting. There are even giraffes and singing gorillas involved. You have at least 3 more days of our family's stories to look forward to. Try and contain the excitement.

Nothing Like a Good Road Trip

We are headed out the door. Headed over to Rogers Land. This will probably be our last adventure as "Mom and Son" in the Great Deployment of '09-10. Pretty soon we will be a family of 3 again, and I get to pass off the driving to someone else! Woo hoo!

I mean, I just got up and going, and I am already dreading it. Not dreading the trip... Been looking forward to it. Not dreading seeing my brother and sis-in-law.. I wish we lived closer. Surely not dreading kissing this face...



Just dreading the driving. I am not a patient car person. After about 2-3 hours, I'm done.

I will promise you that this trip will be blog worthy when it's all said and done. There are certain activities in the works that just give me shivers of excitement. And I am not joking.

Have a wonderful weekend, folks.
See ya'll on Monday.

Attack of the Zombies

Consider yourself warned.
These were some kooky questions... but I loved them!

Here's Ten on Tuesday
1. Quick! Zombies are coming!! What do you do?
Scream. 'Cause screaming makes everything better. Then, I would run. I am NOT a runner, and I hate exercise. But, I've always said, "I don't run unless something is chasing me." Zombies would qualify.

2. Whew, that was a close one. …I think your phone is ringing. Oh, it’s your best friend! She thinks she’s been bitten by a zombie. What advice do you give her?
Put some Neosporin on it. And meet me at Starbucks.

3. You realize it’s time to leave your current location because it’s clearly not safe anymore. Are you going to move at night or day? Defend your reasoning.
I would go during the day. I like to be able to see what's going on. I don't think Zombies like the light. Oh, that's vampires, isn't it?

4. During your relocation, you come across a weapon superstore. My, that’s convenient. What kind of weaponry do you choose?
Yeah baby. A flame thrower-gun thing. That IS the correct terminology. 'Cause I have seen movies where they burn Zombies, and it works.

5. As you leave, an old lady on the side of the street begs you to help her. Do you? Why or why not?
Well my first instinct is YES! Help the old lady! But... what if she's a zombie?!? I would have to get a little closer to her and look into her eyes to SEE if she's really an innocent old lady. I think Zombies have weird eyes.

6. Good choice, you’re clearly a good person to have around in a zombie apocalypse. Oh hey, there’s a wifi signal here! You can’t stay long but this is your chance to gather some intel on the current situation. What’s the first website you check?
Whew... Glad I thought about the old lady being a zombie...
Umm... I would check CNN first. (I know it's not part of the question, but then I'd check Facebook. To make sure my family and friends are ok.)

7. SHH! What was that noise?!
The sound of me gasping for air and my heart beating out of my chest 'cause I had to run.

8. I think it’s time to get out of here. I hope you have a plan. Where are you going now?
I have no idea. Honestly, they probably would have caught me by now.

9. Wait a minute, that looks like a bite mark on your arm… You may be infected too! Will you tell other people?
Told you they'd catch me. I will tell them to join me in my Zombie Army. (I don't want to be alone.)

10. How does this story end?
With me having nightmares. I can't even watch "crime" TV without dreaming something is after me. Now it'll be Zombies.

Ya'll KNOW I Hate This Time Change...

... So I won't go on and on and on. (Maybe.)

I'll just say that I am one tired old lady. TIRED.

And to make matters worse, I keep reminding myself about what time it REALLY is. Or what time it would be if we hadn't set the stupid clocks forward.

Please don't call me a complainer. I love love love the fact that it stays light later. I just hate the fact that it's dark when we get up, and I lost an hour of my day.

It messes with my brain.

And that is dangerous.

Now on to much more important things.

For almost a week I've had something on my mind.

Urgency.

The need to live with intention and purpose, while keeping in mind that none of us is promised tomorrow.
As opposed to living like I'm "running around like a chicken with my head cut off." (Which I DO.)

Pretty deep thoughts for a girl who can't get over Daylight Savings Time.

Someone in my Bible study last week told us about the feeling she had when her daughter was about to go away to college. It wasn't a feeling of "I don't want her to go." It was a feeling of "I hope I've done what I was supposed to do to make sure she's ready for the realities of this life." That thought has stuck with me all week.

Have I said and done the things that matter? That really matter?
Have I thanked people?
Have I treated people with respect?
Have I made certain my son knows why we do and say the things we do and say?
Have I been the example I need to be? In EVERY situation?

So many days I feel like I'm just "going through the motions." And I don't want that to be reality.

Now. I need a nap.

My Bench Buddy

If I had the time and sense enough to do it, I would write a tribute to each of my most favorite friends.
They all are such blessings to me, and they each one make my life better in some way.

But today, it's all about Amy...

Amy and I met in California; we were residents together of the Army's beautiful post in the middle of the Mojave Desert.

She was my neighbor, and we became instant friends.

We spent HOURS sitting on the park bench at the playground, watching our kids play in the sand. Some of the best times of my life, girl!

Anywho... Amy is creative. I mean CREATIVE. The girl has talent. She makes Martha jealous. She can decorate and craft and sew and paint like nobody's business. And... she re-upholsters furniture! I told you she was good.

All this week, she's giving a "tutorial" on her blog.

If you feel inspired to re-cover something, go visit.

I always felt inspired to be more creative and crafty around Amy. I guess I should have used (abused) her talents when we lived closer...

Her hubby is also currently deployed, and she's done 348,572 projects. They're on her blog, too.

Maybe if I still lived next door to her, I would have accomplished more during this deployment. Maybe I would have decorated and sewn and re-upholstered furniture.

Or maybe... I would be sitting on the park bench with Amy and SHE'D be doing nothing with me!

Ten on Tuesday with a Headache

I don't know how coherent and thought-provoking any of this is gonna be. I have been battling a raging headache most of the live long day.
I made the mistake of sweeping off the porches yesterday. Months worth of dust and the beginnings of some pollen, I'm sure.
I can hear the song playing in my hurtin' brain right now...

"It's the most wonderful time of the year...."

No. Not the Christmas version. My version. The one abut Spring time and Zyrtec and trips to the doctor. What? You don't know that version. I promise to fill you in someday.

But not today. Today belongs to Ten on Tuesday. And I am glad. My aching skull can't come up with too much.

I think Chelsea said these questions came from her hubby.

1. Of your current hobbies, which would you choose to spend more time, money, and effort on? Why?
Easy peasy. My scrapbooking. It is a LOVE that I have let die.

2. List the two other hobbies/habitual activities (not chores) besides the one listed above that you regularly do now and didn’t choose in question one.
Blogging and reading. But... there are WAY too many chores in there.

3. Why are you spending time on the above two hobbies/habitual activities at all if you really wanted to spend your time on the first one you chose? …or to put it another way, what are these two hobbies/habitual activities fulfilling that the first one doesn’t if you don’t want to put all your effort into the first hobby?
Ouch. The main reason? I am a perfectionist. If I feel like I can't sit down and churn out years worth of beautifully scrapped photos... Then I just don't sit down and do it. The other 2 require less effort and are a little more "instant gratification." I also know I'll be interrupted in my scrapping, and that irritates me, too. Gosh... They're terrible reasons.

4. Ready John 3:16 in the bible… In what way does this passage affect you? What are your feelings towards these words, positively or negatively?
Love it. Love it. Love it. Can I say it again? It is the reason I get up in the mornings and the hope I have when I don't feel like getting up in the mornings. It humbles me and makes me so very grateful. I do not deserve love like that.

5. M&M’s: nuts, no nuts, or peanut butter?
With peanuts. 100%. Although, that peanut butter kind is pretty tasty. 2 flavors that God meant to go together... peanut and chocolate.

6. Putting away the feeling of pride being a bad thing; what secretly/openly are you proud about yourself?
I am organized. I don't know if I can be proud about that, though, because of my motivation. I am only organized because I'd probably kill somebody if I weren't. I hate chaos.

7. Given one room in the house to do with what you want, not changing the actual size of the room and with all the money you would need, what would you do, and be specific? (this can range from bouncy floor,walls & ceilings; to hard wood floor with wood paneling and purple ceiling with a chair; to nothing)
Another easy peasy. The Den or Living Room. I don't know what you call it, but it's where we LIVE. I want new furniture... sofa, chairs, loveseats, ottomans, rugs. I'd love to paint (boo, ARMY housing). Hardwoods would be great. So would a new TV, as long as I'm dreaming.

8. What’s the next movie you’re going to see? Not what you’d LIKE to GO see, but the next movie you realistically are going to watch.
Probably the Netflix one that's been lying on the coffee table for 2 weeks... it's "G.I. Joe", I think. (Come on now, I live with a 10 year-old boy.) OR... I will take that boy with me this weekend to see Johnny Depp. I mean "Alice in Wonderland."

9. Use the keyboard only and make your best smiley/funny/cool face –> like this! 8^)
:^O I am not good at that. I like my email with the real little faces you just put in.

10. What makes you cry? What makes you pray? What makes you laugh?
You make think I'm making this up, but the same answer applies to all three. Everything! I cry at the drop of a hat (everything), I TRY to pray all the time (for everything), and (ask my friends and family) I laugh at everything. Even the stuff that nobody else is laughing at. Or, I make up something to laugh about.