Well, we made it through Christmas. This month has been a huge test for me. On Dec. 2nd, I went to see the doc for my annual blood work. First things first, my blood pressure was high. It was somewhere in the 140/90 range. Next up, a quick EKG and height and weight check. The nurse and I got to talking and we forgot the height and weight part. No worries I know how tall I am and exactly how much I weigh. In fact, if you plug those 2 numbers into the little charts online, I am obese. Tough pill to swallow. Fast forward to Monday morning when I got a call about the numbers that came back with the blood work. Triglycerides are way way way too high, HDL is way way way too low and sugars and not at a healthy level. I know in my heart of hearts that this is 100% my fault. Doc says it can be somewhat hereditary, but I know exactly how each and every number got to where it is. My fault. The best part about it is that I can fix it, too. I have a wonderful doc that is athletic and doesn't push drugs to fix things right off the bat. He said my first order of business was to completely cut out all fried foods and sweets. Fried has not been an issue at all. Sweets have been a little harder to steer clear of with the holidays. I think all in all, I've done a bang up job. I will find out at the beginning of January exactly how well I've done, but I have high hopes of impressing the doc with my progress. While concentrating on eating healthier and cutting out the bad stuff, I've lost 9 pounds. Loving that side effect. So, here's to keeping on keeping on.

Well, we had our first snow of the season a week or so ago. The weather men swore we would only see a flurry or two. We got 2-3 inches. Now, I am not a fan of cold weather, but if it is going to be cold...it should snow. I was hoping to stay in my pj's and on the couch all day, but school was open and work was too. Oh well.

He finally learned how to ride a bike! Guess what Santa's bringing?!?!

Holiday House is a sure sign that the Holidays have arrived. It's usually a Saturday morning girls' outing. This year we decided to beat the crowd and head on over Thursday evening. Dan had plans, so Michael tagged along. I must say, he was a trooper. There's nothing you can't get him to do for a Reeses Cup and some Legos!

I wish I could see more of these. With the time change, it's super hard to get a bike ride in after work. I was lucky enough to catch this sunset one afternoon shortly after the time change.

With his little cousin spending the night fairly regularly, we needed another bed in Michael's room. We hunted high and low and even contemplated building a set of bunk beds. While shopping around and checking out our options, the kid fell in love with this contraption. And, it was cheap. So, we bought it. Now, if we could just get him to sleep in it all night every night. Lately, he's been heading to our bed around 4am. A king bed just isn't big enough for 3 people. Changes a comin' and he's probably not going to be happy.

Little Rock has done a phenomenal job with the River Market area of downtown. There is always something going on. This weekend, ice skating. All of us had a blast. It was so warm and muggy, we were all drenched by the time our hour was up.

Thanksgiving has come and gone and the tree is decorated. We usually go to Bradbury Tree farm out in the Sardis area (I think). This year, we decided to check out what the local nursery in Mayflower had to offer. Now I don't know the names of my Christmas trees, but I've always wanted one like this and the tree farm never had them. Dan's always sworn that these trees were cut a month before they show up on the lot. Nursery owner says it ain't so! They are cut by his buddy in WV one day and they are on his lot the next. That's just one day less fresh than cutting it down ourselves! Score 1 for me this year. It priced out about the same as going all the way to the tree farm if you take gasoline into account. Plus, we were still spending money at a local family owned and operated business.

Banjo and Porsche wish you a very Merry Christmas.

Fun times this Halloween. We have pretty much the same routine each year. The three of us along with Scott, Cynthia, Lil Owen, Auntie Lori, Big Owen and Ann head over to my folks house for a bowl of warm chili and some good 'ol fashion Trick or Treating.

This year, Lil Owen wanted he and Michael to be Mario and Luigi. Michael was all over that. He loves video games and Mario is one of his favorites for sure.

I can not even begin to explain how wound up these kids were on Halloween. You could call one of their names and they would no more listen to you than a man in the moon. Wild. Just wild.

The boys do love each other. Owen is by far Michael's best bud. I love it. Best buds and cousins. Doesn't get any better than that!

After they scored about 10 lb. of candy each, it was back to Granny and PawPaw's house for the parents to "inspect" the candy for safety. I think that's my favorite part:) Michael was allowed to pick 5 pieces to eat and that.was.all! I've heard conflicting reports about whether or not sugar actually makes kids hyper, but I was not budging on the 5 piece rule just in case.

Happy Halloween.

Vacation was a blast. Michael had a Fall Break from school so we took advantage of traveling in the 'off' season. The child is ready to cruise again. He loved it.

After sailing on the Destiny for the 2nd time, I will book a bigger ship or nicer cruise line for out next sailing. This is the same ship Dan and I went on for our honeymoon 9 1/2 years ago, and I'm not sure it's been updated much since.

On the way to MIA, we had a layover in MEM. Little Man couldn't find anything other than this cookie that would work for his breakfast. Oh well, it's vacation. He's going to eat so much ice cream this week that this cookie won't make a difference.

He never misses the change to ask the Capt. if he can check out the cockpit. He loves this stuff.

Finally in MIA and we have the afternoon to play. This is a huge tree at Bayside which across the street from our Holiday Inn.

Dinner at Bubba Gump Shrimp Co for dinner in MIA.

Finally on the ship. The Carnival Destiny.


Waterslide fun.

Professional cruiser.

Exhausted. So much to do and so little time in the day.

Grand Cayman pirate adventure. Did I mention they tied me to the mast and poured a 5 gallon bucket of ice water over my head? Oh, no, not all at once. In 4 or 5 separate showers. Burr!

Dunns River Falls. Ocho Rios, Jamaica. Would definitely recommend this and would probably do it again. It was very cool.

Overall, we had a wonderful time. We will likely cruise again, but there are a ton of other places we want to vacation first.

Back to reality.

It's been too long...we've done too much...and I have WAY too many photos! Starting with school, Michael is liking eStem and has all A's for the first 9 weeks. Very proud of that accomplishment. It's a much harder curriculum on top of a new school, so I'm proud.

Of course, shortly after school starts, summer ends. We spent Labor Day weekend at Jack's on the White River. My SIL's family and friends have had this tradition for many many years. We were grateful for the invite and finally being able to join in on the fun. We had a splendid time! Michael and I lit out on Friday morning to get there, get the camper set up and get settled in before Dan arrived on Saturday morning. Everything went without a hitch...except for the 100 mile drive turning into a 250 mile drive. Mapquest =1 - Me = 0. We made the best of it and enjoyed the scenery. Whattayagonnado?!?!

Once Dan arrived on Saturday, we rented a boat and headed out on the river. Didn't catch anything, but had fun trying. After a bit of fishing, we headed to a gravel bar in Sylamore Creek and let the kiddos play. Fun was had by all.

While hanging out at the resort, the kids LIVE on the playground. There is an old school, heavy metal marry-go-round where they congregate. In the evenings, the grills are going, and a few beverages are consumed.

We will definitely do the Memorial Day / Labor Day thing at Jack's again. All of us had a blast.