a garden, a graduation, a birthday, a sick dog and a new camera.......

So much has happened since the last time I blogged. I was going to do them all separate and then decided, why not just knock it all out. It's all about perfect nonsense so why not have a bunch of randomness in one blog. So here goes... a new camera, a sick dog, a birthday, a graduation, and a garden... It's all nonsense right!!!

A new camera -

So I got a new camera a Nikon D 300. I'm super excited and can't wait for my 2 sessions this weekend so I can really get to know it. So the night I brought it home (and the following weekend) I got random with it. Taking pictures of anything that would stand still or move either way it didn't matter. I decided to share a few of my senseless shots!!

A sick Dog -

When we got home from the weekend away (that adventure is explained below) Oliver was not acting himself. By not acting himself I mean he was calm and not insane. When I got home from work Monday he was very calm and wasn't freaking out like he normally is when we let him out of his crate. I figure out later that he was very hot, very splotchy, and panting! We check his temp and it's at 105. For any dog this is not good, and for squishy faced dogs this is REALLY not good. Apparently they don't have the same "cooling mechanism" that allows them to cool down once they start running a fever. I love my dogs but refuse to pay $1000 for a trip to the Puppy ER. I opt for calling my mom (you never grow out of that) and she agrees to call her vet. Dr. Brock assures us he'll be fine if we give him baby aspirin and pedialite. We do it and watch him be pitiful all night long. The next morning Rob drops him off at the vet. After being evaluated all day, and having to have several shots to get his temp down, they determine he had an allergic reaction to something and can't explain the high fever. So 3 RXs and $200 later we have a simi-healthy dog that's becoming crazier by the day. This is a good sign!! :0) While he was sick and not moving I had to take a few shots with the new camera! I mean really how cute is he??

A Birthday -

Anelyse's birthday was last weekend. We took the kiddos on a trip to San Antonio and checked out Seaworld!! Incredibly I didn't take the new camera we just took Rob's digital camera and I took a few shots with my iPhone (classy I know). Hopefully at some point I'll download from that camera and share some shots, from that shorted adventure. I will say my family allowed me to create an itinerary for our day at seaworld! OH MY GOODNESS we even stuck to it and I was in planning heaven..

A Graduation -

That same weekend Beajae also graduated from the Non-Commissioned Officer Warrior Leadership School. It was great to watch her get to walk across the stage. We are very proud of the Soldier and Mom that she is. She has a very successful military career ahead of her!! I can't believe she's an NCO! WOW!!

Man our kids are such great models!!

Train the Best to lead the rest!

The girls.....Waiting for it to get started!

A Garden -

Our garden is growing pretty good. Not many of our plants took after the transplant but what did survive is really looking great! let me just point out that I have had such a stressful week that I somehow managed to walk outside, water the garden, and almost get back into the house before I realize I was only wearing one shoe!! WHO DOES THAT??? I had no idea the other shoe had even come off at some point. Side note I found the other shoe half way up the stairs!

Pumpkins that I hope are ready right in time for fall!! They might be a little early!

Petty excited about growing corn! A veggie that I refuse to eat unless it is popped!

Mary Mary Quite Contrary.....

I now know why Mary was so Contrary and that's because she had a garden! Last summer (yes almost a year ago) Cameron went to my grandparents for a week. They live in the country have land and a large "garden". Upon returning she started begging me to help her plant a garden. As you can see it took her a year to wear me down, but it finally happened. Several weeks ago we started our garden. We went to Lowe's and $80 (the first trip we've had several other trips)later we were set. We came home planted seeds and waited. Our seeds began to sprout and all was well. Gardening is easy, right? This is where you insert a chuckle. Then came time to transplant. So Rob built us a 16x8 garden in the back yard. Now we have corn, squash, watermelon, pumpkin, spinach, cucumbers, and tomatoes. Oh wait that's not all....We also planted a salsa garden with herbs and jalapenos and sweet peppers. I know, I know, one more thing on my plate! So far it's been a lot of watering and a lot of wondering. Have I mentioned that I kill MOST plant life within days of being around it!!

side note::: If you're looking for quality photography don't look now or here check out my other blog!! :0)


How's a whole plant going to come out of this??

Such a good waterer!

Our first sprouts!! Cameron was SOOO excited!

More sprouts and a very proud gardener!

Rob working hard on the garden. We had to fence it or our poor garden wouldn't have lasted a second with Oliver!!

The garden is finished (by finished I mean still needs a gate and part of the fence is just leaning in place) and plants are growing. We'll see how this goes!

The balancing Act!!

As I said before our lives are a crazy mess! We run around non-stop and sometimes it's impossible to see when everything has gotten out of balance. Between church, cheer, gymnastics, and jobs, things get unwound before we know it. Losing your family doesn't happen over night it's a process. I know I get so caught up in trying to grow a business, be a full time teacher, and a full time mom, that I forget that I have a husband and kids that need more than a hot meal, a warm bath, and clean clothes. We seldom look around and count our blessings!

So after a rough night we woke up this morning, went to breakfast as a family, took naps, and then took the boat out for the first time this season. It was kind of chilly but we didn't care. With a cooler full of sandwiches, chips, drinks, and gummy bears, we were set for success!! We spent 2 hours cruising the lake, no computers, no tv, JUST FAMILY!! Such a small step goes a long way in restoring balance. I encourage everyone to get on the Wii Fit Board of life and take a look at where your center really is. You might be surprised at how off you are and not even know it. The next 2 images are of my view tonight. God's World takes my breath away!