Sunday, October 31, 2010
Tuesday, October 26, 2010
Weekend in the mountains....
For the first time since Reese was born...Kim and I spent the night (both of us) away from home! Wow!
Thursday, October 21st was our 15th anniversary so we ended up in the mountains of East Tennessee. I have to comment on the cheese factor in Pigeon Forge now but all in all the trip was a great time. More on the cheese later....check the pics.
First....this was our cabin. Probably one of the coolest places that we have stayed with it being site-unseen. It did not disappoint.
Second....was Cade's Cove. It was beautiful. I could have posted about 400 pics from there but the camera doesn't do the foliage justice. Instead....I took a pic in a water trough for a cool effect.
Then...We went to the top of the park. Clingman's Dome.
I don't recall ever going here - Mom and Dad may correct me but if we went it didn't impress me at the time or we couldn't see anything. The day we were there was a brilliant day and you could see for MILES. What was really inspiring was that old folks with OXYGEN were climbing this 1/2 mile incline to see this. When they say this is a strenuous hike...it's strenuous. We climbed it pretty quickly but I was sucking wind the whole way. What was also very cool was the intense smell of...well...Christmas trees. I'm not so city-stupid that I don't call them evergreens or conifers or whatever in the hell the country boy term is but it smelled like a giant Christmas farm up there. Or a Yankee Candle....It made me think that I want Reese to understand her surroundings. To realize that these trees smell like what we think Christmas smells like....all the time. And that Christmas tree farms in the middle of a Walmart parking lot is NOT where your trees truly come from. But there's more....we walked on the "AT". Appalachian Trail for those not following along with my citified ways. Truthfully we only walked about 1/2 a mile on the A.T. but we turned off and went back to the parking lot. Didn't bring along the essentials for a long hike and I ended up getting sick Saturday and Sunday - carried into Monday and Tuesday - so I'd have been up the creek on a hike. The hot tub was calling me.
And this was our view from the cabin porch....Awesome view in the evenings.
Thursday, October 21st was our 15th anniversary so we ended up in the mountains of East Tennessee. I have to comment on the cheese factor in Pigeon Forge now but all in all the trip was a great time. More on the cheese later....check the pics.
First....this was our cabin. Probably one of the coolest places that we have stayed with it being site-unseen. It did not disappoint.
Second....was Cade's Cove. It was beautiful. I could have posted about 400 pics from there but the camera doesn't do the foliage justice. Instead....I took a pic in a water trough for a cool effect.
Then...We went to the top of the park. Clingman's Dome.
I don't recall ever going here - Mom and Dad may correct me but if we went it didn't impress me at the time or we couldn't see anything. The day we were there was a brilliant day and you could see for MILES. What was really inspiring was that old folks with OXYGEN were climbing this 1/2 mile incline to see this. When they say this is a strenuous hike...it's strenuous. We climbed it pretty quickly but I was sucking wind the whole way. What was also very cool was the intense smell of...well...Christmas trees. I'm not so city-stupid that I don't call them evergreens or conifers or whatever in the hell the country boy term is but it smelled like a giant Christmas farm up there. Or a Yankee Candle....It made me think that I want Reese to understand her surroundings. To realize that these trees smell like what we think Christmas smells like....all the time. And that Christmas tree farms in the middle of a Walmart parking lot is NOT where your trees truly come from. But there's more....we walked on the "AT". Appalachian Trail for those not following along with my citified ways. Truthfully we only walked about 1/2 a mile on the A.T. but we turned off and went back to the parking lot. Didn't bring along the essentials for a long hike and I ended up getting sick Saturday and Sunday - carried into Monday and Tuesday - so I'd have been up the creek on a hike. The hot tub was calling me.
Thursday, October 21, 2010
Monday, October 18, 2010
Apple Festival and Burt's Pumpkin Farm...
Saturday was the annual trek up to the Mountains of North GA and our field trips to the Apple Festival and now Burt's Pumpkin Farm. The pumpkin patch is relatively new to us but we felt like we should try it out last year and now it has become a bit of a "have to" because what is more cute than your little one surrounded by thousands of pumpkins and parents trying to get the perfect picture?
Of course we let time push us to the edge of Reese's nap time and lunch time ---- NOTE! Reese typically goes down around 1:30p or 2:00p and sleeps for an hour or two. Just file that away for a rainy day cause yeah....we forgot about that and pushed her a little too hard at Burt's and she paid us back in kind. You'd never know it based on the pics but she was a little pissed between snapshots.
The Apple Festival was ok...We go for the food more than anything since the crafts are a little sketchy and nothing seems to be built to last. I have to say that I was unaware that the long denim skirt trend was coming back but it would appear to be the case at the fairgrounds anyway. I think another trend that I had not anticipated was the "slightly unable to walk unassisted but I sure can push this little carty looking thing with brakes" concept. These little carts were everywhere! From the able to the unable....tons of folks had them. I also think Ellijay has the highest Rascal to walker ratio in the country and that's a feather in their cap to be sure!
Enough funny business...the food was terrific as usual. My Brunswick Stew booth was back and I had my fried twinkie again.....heaven on a paper plate.
And finally - me sporting a little woodsman look with my gray goat.
The rest of the pics are just compiled from a good day away from it all. Good weather, great food, and my little family making memories. Good stuff.
See....you'd never know that Reese had a miniature meltdown right after this. In reality, she was a doll for the stress of the day and as usual....she was just an amazing little girl. The memories just keep getting better.
Of course we let time push us to the edge of Reese's nap time and lunch time ---- NOTE! Reese typically goes down around 1:30p or 2:00p and sleeps for an hour or two. Just file that away for a rainy day cause yeah....we forgot about that and pushed her a little too hard at Burt's and she paid us back in kind. You'd never know it based on the pics but she was a little pissed between snapshots.
The Apple Festival was ok...We go for the food more than anything since the crafts are a little sketchy and nothing seems to be built to last. I have to say that I was unaware that the long denim skirt trend was coming back but it would appear to be the case at the fairgrounds anyway. I think another trend that I had not anticipated was the "slightly unable to walk unassisted but I sure can push this little carty looking thing with brakes" concept. These little carts were everywhere! From the able to the unable....tons of folks had them. I also think Ellijay has the highest Rascal to walker ratio in the country and that's a feather in their cap to be sure!
Enough funny business...the food was terrific as usual. My Brunswick Stew booth was back and I had my fried twinkie again.....heaven on a paper plate.
See....you'd never know that Reese had a miniature meltdown right after this. In reality, she was a doll for the stress of the day and as usual....she was just an amazing little girl. The memories just keep getting better.
Sunday, October 17, 2010
Big Green Egg...
Several weeks ago I was given the go ahead by the CFO/CEO of Hall Industries - aka Kim - to purchase a new grill. Now, some of you know that I have a stainless grill that can cook a small person without them having to bend their knees if so desired - just a joke but it is a big grill. I bought the grill as a second from a local stainless builder and after I got the thing home, I realized that the grill that I have paid a few hundred dollars for actually retailed in some places for as much as $4000. I have NO idea why anyone would pay that for this grill because its nice but it ain't $4K nice...FO SHO!
Well, Kim signed off on a Big Green Egg which is part grill but also smoker as well. You can pretty much do anything on an Egg from steaks to pork to pies...seriously. It acts like an oven or a smoker or a blazing hot grill. The stupid thing about the Egg is that it doesn't come with a stand so you have to either buy a "nest" or a table. I decided that I wanted to build a table versus throwing out $500 to the fine folks that build the Egg for their table. I should have done a before, during, and after pic but the finished product is all I have. I'm pretty pumped to use this thing and can't wait to smoke a pork shoulder for some home made BBQ!
Bob Villa I'm not...but I'm pretty pleased with this table. The final product with Egg and all looks like this:
I've had to improvise with a paver versus the granite only....because the stinking hinge was hitting the back of the table. I'll fix that later with a piece of granite that matches the current pieces but I didn't want to wait so I moved forward with some concrete. It'll beaight. (it will be alright for those that don't speak the tongue.)
Well, Kim signed off on a Big Green Egg which is part grill but also smoker as well. You can pretty much do anything on an Egg from steaks to pork to pies...seriously. It acts like an oven or a smoker or a blazing hot grill. The stupid thing about the Egg is that it doesn't come with a stand so you have to either buy a "nest" or a table. I decided that I wanted to build a table versus throwing out $500 to the fine folks that build the Egg for their table. I should have done a before, during, and after pic but the finished product is all I have. I'm pretty pumped to use this thing and can't wait to smoke a pork shoulder for some home made BBQ!
Send us your email address....
I haven't flipped the switch on the blog privacy settings because I haven't been completely sure what was needed and what wasn't...It seems that all you have to do is submit your address to us via the blog site and we then recognize that address and approve you. We're not trying to be blog snobs but I do worry about so much of lives being exposed on the blog to just anyone that wants to see it.
Bear with us through the transition and we'll approve addresses as soon as we can everyday. Thanks all.
Bear with us through the transition and we'll approve addresses as soon as we can everyday. Thanks all.
Tuesday, October 12, 2010
What is it.....
Someone guessed correctly or at least they commented that it's Reese's bubble maker. Nana was trying to take pics of Reese while they were blowing bubbles and she came away with this pretty cool pic.
So....Updates.
I traveled pretty heavily from the end of July through September so I just didn't have proper time to update anything. Life has since slowed back to the normal pace and I can sort of get my feet beneath me now. Problem with my travel is that everyone knows me as an inside the office guy so my email load continues around the 100 to 125 email count even when I'm not there to check them. Brutal stuff to catch up and keep rolling with the normal stuff. Anyway....enough about work.
I've been working on a little project for the house since Kim gave her blessing on the purchase of a Big Green Egg....I've been building a table for my egg and will be working on that table as soon as I get up from the computer tonight. Pics soon!
Reese has been simply amazing lately. Her vocabulary has just exploded. If I rattled off all the words she is using now and in half way decent conversation I would be here all night. She is showing interest in potty training by telling us every time she pees or poops. Both are labeled pee pee but it doesn't take a genius to figure the difference. The poor kid wreaks when she poops.
Vacation was a blast and the days since vacation have been a joy with her. She knows everyone in the family now and my Mom finally has a name. She was hoping from Grandma but Reese trumped it and calls her Mawmaw now. I don't think Mom has a problem with that at all....she's pretty excited to be called anything as she was the last to "earn" a name but G's just weren't coming in Reese's vocabulary so that's how Grandparents get their names....by default and whatever the kiddo can say.
The Apple Festival is coming up this weekend and we'll be making the trip up to Ellijay this weekend to get in the fall festival mood and I'll be FINALLY cooking on the egg this weekend kicking off a new era in food production around the Hall house.....ahhhhh Charcoal grilling again.
There is so much to talk about and so many things to cover so I'll do these posts in spurts over the next week or so just to catch up and cover all the bases. Treat this like the introduction of the book....I'm telling ya what I'm gonna tell ya......THEN, I'll tell ya what I'm telling ya.....and then we'll have a conclusion where I'll tell ya what I told ya. Writing explained right there by Adam. Take notes folks....I go fast.
More on Wednesday....
So....Updates.
I traveled pretty heavily from the end of July through September so I just didn't have proper time to update anything. Life has since slowed back to the normal pace and I can sort of get my feet beneath me now. Problem with my travel is that everyone knows me as an inside the office guy so my email load continues around the 100 to 125 email count even when I'm not there to check them. Brutal stuff to catch up and keep rolling with the normal stuff. Anyway....enough about work.
I've been working on a little project for the house since Kim gave her blessing on the purchase of a Big Green Egg....I've been building a table for my egg and will be working on that table as soon as I get up from the computer tonight. Pics soon!
Reese has been simply amazing lately. Her vocabulary has just exploded. If I rattled off all the words she is using now and in half way decent conversation I would be here all night. She is showing interest in potty training by telling us every time she pees or poops. Both are labeled pee pee but it doesn't take a genius to figure the difference. The poor kid wreaks when she poops.
Vacation was a blast and the days since vacation have been a joy with her. She knows everyone in the family now and my Mom finally has a name. She was hoping from Grandma but Reese trumped it and calls her Mawmaw now. I don't think Mom has a problem with that at all....she's pretty excited to be called anything as she was the last to "earn" a name but G's just weren't coming in Reese's vocabulary so that's how Grandparents get their names....by default and whatever the kiddo can say.
The Apple Festival is coming up this weekend and we'll be making the trip up to Ellijay this weekend to get in the fall festival mood and I'll be FINALLY cooking on the egg this weekend kicking off a new era in food production around the Hall house.....ahhhhh Charcoal grilling again.
There is so much to talk about and so many things to cover so I'll do these posts in spurts over the next week or so just to catch up and cover all the bases. Treat this like the introduction of the book....I'm telling ya what I'm gonna tell ya......THEN, I'll tell ya what I'm telling ya.....and then we'll have a conclusion where I'll tell ya what I told ya. Writing explained right there by Adam. Take notes folks....I go fast.
More on Wednesday....
Sunday, October 10, 2010
Tuesday, October 5, 2010
A Year in the Life of Us is back.....
After a hiatus on the pic-a-day blog, A Year in the Life of Us is back up and running as well!
We were getting a little complacent with the updates and decided that we just needed to keep it going so we could see the changes in little Reese. Check in daily and we'll make sure to keep that blog running as well.
Thanks all!
www.ayearinthelifeofus.blogspot.com
We were getting a little complacent with the updates and decided that we just needed to keep it going so we could see the changes in little Reese. Check in daily and we'll make sure to keep that blog running as well.
Thanks all!
www.ayearinthelifeofus.blogspot.com
Saturday, October 2, 2010
I promise to update....
I know, I know....I've neglected the blog for the better part of two months now but there is a spectacular reason as to why. The salt mine that I work at decided that not only should I work longer hours at the office but I should also travel full weeks repeatedly so as only to get further behind....I'm sure my review will be forth coming now and this commentary will only aide in the decision to force me to make bricks with no straw amongst other random punishments.
I'll try to sit down later this weekend to document some of the goings on with Reese, her VASTLY expanding vocabulary, her silly little ways, and all of the stuff that Kim and I have brewing while trying to raise this little girl.
Gotta head to a christening party this afternoon and a neighborhood social tonight so today is sort of shot. Love to all. C-ya
I'll try to sit down later this weekend to document some of the goings on with Reese, her VASTLY expanding vocabulary, her silly little ways, and all of the stuff that Kim and I have brewing while trying to raise this little girl.
Gotta head to a christening party this afternoon and a neighborhood social tonight so today is sort of shot. Love to all. C-ya
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