My Sister's Nursery is ready!!!

Well the baby's nursery is ready...IT looks soooooooooo cute. The furniture is in there. The little outfits are hung in the closet...they have plenty of diapers...everything they need. Now we are just waiting for a little boy to be ready to come into this world.

Last night was exciting. My sister and her husband came down to visit and she kept having pretty strong back pain...worse than before. I finally talked her into going to the hospital and letting the nurses check her. So they left...I just knew she was going to call and say come on down we are having a baby...but it was not to be. Just more Braxton Hicks Contractions. His heartbeat sounded good and he was kicking away so they observed her for awhile and released her to go on home.

I talked to her this morning and she is doing fine. I just wanted to share this picture I had of the baby's room.

What a gorgeous weekend

It was a beautiful weekend here in East Tennessee! On Friday after a hectic month end day at work we packed up the car and headed for the mountain to see Amber, Ed & Taylor. It rained on the way up there so I figured it would just be a dreary weekend. Boy was I wrong. We spent Friday night watching movies, listening to my new bluegrass CD "Rhonda Vincent & the Rage", Taylor and I tried to dance with cans balancing on our heads, and I finally gave out and went to sleep in the Family House next door.

Saturday morning was beautiful. The guys took their fishing poles down to the private lake and man did they catch some fish. Brian finally caught some big bass...they have been eluding him for a year. He was so proud...of course Ryan always catches some even if no one else does. Amber and I sat on the porch in the rocking chairs and then painted the baby's nursery. It looks so good. We put the little curtains up and it really looked like it was all coming together. She seemed so happy with it. Saturday evening we headed back home.

Sunday another beautiful sunny day. Brian got the lawnmower out and mowed the yard, I love the smell of freshly cut grass after a long winter of not smelling things like that. I cut off the heat and opened all the windows to let the air in. Managed to get my Easter decorations up also. Got my umbrella for my pool deck table out and put it up and got the cushions on the chairs. Then we made fried chicken, biscuits & gravy and mashed potatoes because ED, Amber and Taylor were coming over. They had a nice visit...got to use the hot tub and then they headed back home.

I made a bonfire and Brian, Ryan and I sat around it for awhile. When the thunderstorms started it was time to call it a day. I am so glad the time has changed back now and we will have more daylight! Thank you Lord for a beautiful weekend.

Amber's Baby Shower

Well this past Saturday we had Amber's baby shower. It was a total success. She got tons of stuff that she needed for the baby. It was honestly one of the best showers I have ever been to. It was really funny because our dad attended. He even played one of the games! He is crazy! This is a picture of Amber & Ed and his granddaughter. I can't wait until their little Noah gets here. It will be so exciting.
The girl on the right is one of Ed's daughters.
It was a fun day

Taylor does it again!!!!

Congrats again Taylor!!!!!!!! Looks like Taylor has done it again. She tried out for cheerleading this year at her Middle School and made it!!!! Wooohooo! We are very proud of her.

Sorry I haven't updated the blog in awhile...we spent last weekend at my sister's place in the mountains and had a blast it was a beautiful weekend...temps in the high 60's up there. The pictures I have included are from our trip.

Today however it is snowing again. I am so ready for spring to arrive. I want warm weather. This weekend we stayed around the house. Saturday Brian and I went to Johnson City and shopped then went to eat at a new restaurant called Smokey Bones which I loved! Saturday night James, Julie, Robin and her friend came by we sat around had a few beers and chit chatted...it was fun. This coming weekend we are having a party for Robin's 31st bday. I built a huge bonfire and covered it over with plastic so it will be good and dry for the party. It should blaze right up. I just hope the weather cooperates. Sunday we watched "Jar Head" and "Yours Mine and Ours" I loved the latter of the two.

That's about it from here.

Congratulations Taylor!!! Aunt Ashley is Proud!

This is a picture of my neice Taylor who came in first place at her Middle School Spelling Bee...she went on to the County Spelling Bee last night where she made it through 5 extremely difficult rounds. She is #16 on the stage in this picture. She ended up 9th in this bee. I am so proud of her! Congrats Taylor!!!! Keep up the good work!

My Brother-in-law in the Snow

I just had to share this picture of my Brother-in-law in the snow up in Roan Mountain where he & my sister live. They have been dumped on this winter several times but this is my favorite picture. Enjoy.

Slow Weekend

Well it's Monday again. I hope this week at work goes by faster than last week did. Last week things were really slow here at the office. I like it better when I am really busy and the time goes by fast. The weekend was much the same.

Friday night we went to Fred's house to draw on the race pool...I ended up with Tony Stewart & Greg Biffle (both of them led much of the race only to blow up at the end)...Brian had Jeff Gordan who didn't do much better. I am in a NASCAR slump when it comes to the race pools this year so far. I hope things turn around quick. Saturday morning we got up and went to Ryan's basketball game...they led most of the game and lost by one point at the end(That's him with the ball in the picture). It was a good close game though...fun to watch. Saturday night Ryan went with his Grandparents to the Carter Fold to listen to the bluegrass music and dance. Ryan hooked up with some girl who was 18yrs old...he told her he was in High School...She had to have known he was full of it. Ha ha. He is a character. Brian and I went out for dinner and drinks and then went shopping at the mall. Sunday morning we laid around in bed until after lunch...it felt good.

That's about it...Oh yeah...my mom & stepdad made the newspaper in WV over the weekend. They finished in the top 10 in the cutest couple contest & the news reporter did a story on them. It turned out really good. I am proud of them.

I guess my Dad & stepmom will be getting back from St. Martin today. I hope they bring some warm weather back with them.

Snow, Snow & More Snow!!!

Wow...I woke up to 3 more inches of snow this morning! Beautiful! The only bad thing was trying to drive to work. I have to go 3 miles on a country road before I get to the main highway & it was SLICK! The county scraper trucks came thru at around 4am and scraped the roads but they did a terrible job and it kept snowing and by the time I left the house it was very scarry! I was thankful to make it to work. This area doesn't get a whole lot of snow generally so the road crews are not the best at what they do.

On Friday night we got about 2 inches and I was almost positive that they would call off Ryan's basketball game on Saturday morning but they didn't...just pushed the time back a couple of hours. Brian, Ryan and I went home afterwards and watched the Busch Race on TV. Got the surround sound hooked up to the new TV. I went by Robins house for a little while. Had a drink and talked with her then Sharon & her man showed up for a visit too. It was fun. I hadn't seen Sharon since the summer when Robin, Fred, Sharon, Ryan and I went out on the lake in Fred's boat. Sharon and Robin had a camp set up and they were really enjoying themselves. Sharon is a hoot to be around.

Yesterday we watched the latest Zorro movie...I really liked it. Then we watched The Cave and I didn't care much for it. Another scarry, sci-fi movie...just not my thing. I guess tonite we will watch "In Her Shoes".

Ryan was very happy about the additional snow this morning due mainly to the fact that they called off school and he will get to spend the day with his Mamaw Betty.

I am starting to get a little worried about my Dad. I thought he was supposed to be back from St. Maartin this weekend but I haven't heard a word from him. He usually calls or sends an email when he returns...I sent him one this morning to see if he was still gone (he takes his laptop with him)...but I still haven't gotten a response and it is now 11:30am. I guess I will pick up the phone and try to call in a little while.

My mom and stepdad were in a "Cutest Couple Contest" in their local newspaper in WVa...the idea was to get as many votes as you could each vote costing $.25. I was really hoping they would win 1st place but there were a lot of people in the contest and they had over 1000 votes but still came in 6th place. That's ok though because I found out yesterday that the top 10 couples are going to be in a special a edition where the paper is going to interview them also they win some sort of prize too. I am so happy for them. They really are the cutest couple.

It's Snowing!!!

We finally got some snow!!! It was so beautiful all weekend. On Friday night we rented some movies and went to the grocery store to stock up incase it got really bad. Friday night we watched "The Constant Gardner" and "Flight Plan". I loved "Flight Plan" but could have done without watching "The Constant Gardner." Then we got up on Saturday morning to about 1-2 inches of snow. It was beautiful...it continued all day long. They cancelled Ryan's basketball game so we got to hang out and watch it snow all day. Saturday night Brian and I went to Fred's to draw for the race pool...YES NASCAR SEASON IS HERE AGAIN! It was the weekend for the Bud Shootout in Daytona. Ten of us put in $5 each and we draw numbers 1-10. We chatted with Fred, Michelle, Brandon, Brian Simms and Velvet for awhile but we had to get to Robin's house for a night of playing cards. We had some AWESOME finger foods that Robin had fixed, played some cards, and sat around chit chatting with Robin, her guy friend, Randy, Renee, Dudley, and Robin's dad Mike came by for a little bit. It was a nice gathering. I drank too much beer and we left there around 10:30pm.
Sunday morning it was time to go play in the snow but first we watched another movie this one was called "Doom" it had The Rock in it...pretty good action sci-fi movie but very gorry! We headed up to my husband's mom and dad's house where there is a nice hill for sledding and we hit the slopes. I will try to attach a picture to this. Then we built a snowman and headed into the house for some hot beef stew. Then it was back home to watch the last movie...a comedy called "Waiting" this was one crazy movie...not for little kids to watch. Not much of a plot just a bunch of young people who work in a restaurant and their crazy antics.
This weekend was a good one. I hope we get a few more good snows like this before spring. I did make a special request to my dad last week though...He was heading for ST. MAARTIN...a little island in the Carribbean...and I asked him to bring some hot weather home with him. Maybe he will.

Teenager Trouble

I am really at my wits end lately with Ryan. He will turn 13 in a month and his attitude is terrible, his grades are terrible, he is trying to grow his hair (which drives me crazy), he back talks and lies. He was always such a sweet little boy. For some reason since school started this year everything has just gone downhill fast.
I received a letter in the mail 2 weeks ago telling me that he was in jeaopardy of failing for the year because he has 2 F's in Math for the year. Ryan has always been an honor roll student and now I am being told that he could possibly fail a grade. He is not on drugs (yet)...I know this for a fact. He is in a terrible school where in some classes there is no control what so ever. I have started picking him up from school so that I can make sure he has all of his homework, I am in constant contact with his teachers, I go over his studies with him at home & it seems as though he understands it...so why when he gets to school does he fail his tests? I have even gone to school with him and sat in on his classes just to get an idea for myself what is going on. The other day I asked him if he had any graded papers to share with me & he said no. Well I find out this morning from the math teacher that she sent papers home all week for him to get me to sign and return & he brought them back with my signature that he had forged & she could tell. If he had brought them home I could have went over them with him and helped him understand but now he is probably having a test on that work today and there is nothing I can do to help him.
I guess it is just part of being a teenager. I guess I need to just let him fail and learn for himself that his actions have consequences. I can't do his work for him & if he is not willing to do it then he will do it over again next year & repeat the 7th grade. It just seems like such a waste when he is such a smart boy.

Me & Ryan at Easter

 

My first big mouth bass 

It's Electric!!

I just had to post this picture of Ryan's new Electric Guitar. He is so proud of it. I am proud of him for saving his money and buying it. Also for paying for his first month's worth of lessons. I am very very very thankful that it came with headphones that you can plug into the amp so I don't have to hear it all the time.

The Weekend

Well this weekend was another one of those lay around and do nothing weekends. On Friday night we had a few people wonder over. Our neighbor JR showed up and then my husband's Cousin Brandon & his girlfriend Velvet came by for a little while. We drank a few beers and talked...it was cool. Saturday morning was cold and rainy! The perfect day to stay in bed and sleep late. When I finally did get up I made huge biscuits, fried some country ham (not good for my diet), and scrambled eggs. MMMMMM. Then we all got blankets and camped out in the living room...this was Barrett/Jackson Auto Auction Weekend on Speed Channel. My husband lives for this. We have been watching it everyday since Wednesday. I am glad it is finally over. Don't get me wrong I like to see the old & new cars (all perfectly restored, etc) go across the auction block...but after several hours of this the cars all start to look the same. But I cuddle up and watch it with the guys. We did manage to squeeze in time to watch the movies I rented. The first one we watched on Saturday night it was "Two for the Money"...I love Matthew M. in this movie...He is sooooooooooo hot. After that it was back to the auction where a bus sold for $4 million dollars. That was the highlight. On Sunday morning we got up and went to church. It was a nice service...the music was awesome. Preacher Craig always has a good message too.
After church we came home and watched the other movie I had rented it was called "Lord of War"...it had Nicholas Cage in it I love him too but this was not one of his best movies. After that I took a nap & got ready to watch the playoff games. I am glad Pittsburgh is in the superbowl but I was dissappointed that Carolina didn't play better than they did. I don't know who to put my money on in the Big Game.
My sister, her husband & my neice came by for a little while. Amber tuned Ryan's guitar back up. He has been playing it to death! Taylor (my neice) and I discussed the games we are planning to play at Amber's baby shower. Taylor is very excited about being in charge of some of the games. I am glad they got to come by and visit.
All in all it was a nice weekend.

Ultrasound pics!!!!

I just wanted to post the first picture of Noah Abraham Holsclaw on the internet. This is the latest picture compliments of Dr. Green. Thank you Dr. Green!

It's A Boy!!!!

I am not believing this but I just talked to my mom and found out that when my sister went to the doctor today...they did another ultrasound and have now decided without a doubt that she is having a BOY!!!! I am very excited for them because between Ed & Amber they have 3 daughters and I know they are ecstatic about this news! I can't wait to tell my son who was hoping that they would have a boy.
I was excited that they were going to have a girl and give it my name but they really need a mean little boy. Ha ha.
That's the good news for today...just had to share.

Monday Mourning

I hate Monday's anymore...I think I have the winter blahs or something. I basically laid around all weekend & accomplished nothing. It was nice for a change though...we watched a lot of movies. We saw "The Island", "Alexander", "Four Brothers", "Red Eye" and "Stealth". I liked them all but "Red Eye" was my favorite. I couldn't believe Colin Ferril in "Alexander" too much male on male contact for my taste. It snowed and the wind chill made it really cold outside so we kept a roaring fire and stayed cuddled up in our blankets on the couch.

My hubby took me to TCBY for a yogurt on Saturday night while our son was gone with his grandparents. I did manage to get out yesterday too and go visit Fred for a few minutes. We watched the last half of the Steelers/Colts game. There for a minute I thought Peyton Manning was going to tie things up but it wasn't to be. That's ok. I hope the Steelers and the Panthers end up in the Super Bowl but we will see.

Here is a picture of my pregnant little sister. Only 3 & 1/2 months until our little bundle of joy arrives. I can't wait until it warms up some so I can get up to the mountain where they live and help Amber get the baby's room ready. I think she has a baby bed already. I really need to get busy and buy some more things for her. I wonder is it ok to have a baby shower for someone who had a child 13 years ago? I know some people think you should only have a shower once for someone of child bearing age. But since it has been 13 years can you have another one? Any thoughts on this would be appreciated.

Until next time...cya.

My Little Happy Jack

Hey I just thought I'd share a picture of my Jack Russell Terrier...his name is Rascal. He is a handful. It is supposed to be nice outside today so I am going to go home and take him out for a stroll. He loves an adventure...whether it's taking a walk or riding in the car he is always ready to go. Anyway that's Rascal!

It's a Girl!!!!!!!!!!

Good news from my sister. I just found out the other day that she is having a GIRL!!!! I am so excited. I will have a little baby girl around to spoil. Yeah!!!

Sometimes I wish I had tried to have another child so I could possibly have a daughter of my own but my husband and I just decided that one child was enough for us. I love having a son...don't get me wrong...but the woman in me sometimes wishes I had a little girl to share girly things with like shopping, painting your nails, doing your hair, dressing up, etc...My son & husband go 4wheeling & hunting together so I get left out alot. It's ok though...with the arrival of this little bundle of joy (sometime around late April early May) I will have someone to do those things with.

When my sister came by yesterday she filled me in on a little secret that everyone knew about except for me. She is giving the little girl my first name as her middle name. I was so touched & honored that she is doing that. I never in a million years thought that I would have someone named after me. She said our mother was disappointed that she wasn't naming the child after her but it is Amber's choice and for some reason she has chosen my name...isn't that cool.

Nothing much going on here other than that. There is snow falling today which is rare here in East Tennessee & I love it. Being from WVa I miss the almost constant snow in the winter. I mean if it's going to be cold it may as well snow a little. Last night we ventured out to the deck and got into the hot tub just as the little ice chunks started to fall from the sky. It was a perfect night to soak our bones in that hot water. In my heart I am yearning for summer though. I love it when I get to open my pool back up and lay out in the warm sun, tanning & swimming, or just lounging on a float. That is why I only work part time in the mornings too. I want to be off work around lunch time in the summer so I can hit the pool.

Enough of my dreaming of summer though...it's Friday and I am going to do nothing but relax this weekend. It will be great after all these weekends of shopping and holidays & family visits... just to lay around and do nothing. Enjoy.

A New Year!!!!

Oops...with the holidays everything has been crazy so I haven't written in awhile. Sorry.
Christmas was awesome this year...not too much running around. I actually got to enjoy Christmas Eve. I got alot of gift certificates or money which was what I asked for.
My son got several things but the big thing was his MP3 player. We spent the weekend downloading music onto it & he is escstatic. My husband like myself asked for gift certificates.

We celebrated our 11th wedding anniversary on New Years Eve. We always have a good time. This year we celebrated with friends at a bonfire to start off with then everyone ended up at our house for a big fireworks display at midnight. We had a house full of people. It was a fun party night. I actually didn't even have a hangover the next morning. I usually drink way too much on New Year's Eve and also drink too many different drinks. This year I stuck to the beer although I did take a swig of moonshine at the bonfire because my neighbor's bother was practically shoving it down my throat. They are a wild bunch.

On Monday we enjoyed a day off...and my Mother and Stepfather drove down from West Virginia. We took Mom to Red Lobster (her favorite place to eat). I wanted to treat her to a birthday dinner because I knew I wouldn't see her on the actual b-day. It was yummy! Then we all went to my house and exchanged Christmas presents.

Well I will end this here...I will try not to wait so long before I write again.