Friday, August 31, 2007

Getting creative

Yesterday my J Crew bridesmaid dress for Amy Stromberg's wedding came in the mail. I opened the box and left it on the floor in the office. Maybe 30 minutes later Samuel went into the office and used the J Crew cardboad box to make himself a "chair". He is all about sitting on cushions or pillows to be able to read books, and I guess he decided that this cardboard box would make a great seat for him. Mom and I got a kick out of it when we walked into the office. Even at 16 months, they have a mind of their own! It's amazing! Watch this video-



I also took a few photos-

Listening to music from a Bible songbook

Raising his hands up as he listens to the music-
Praising God at 16 months old

Wednesday, August 29, 2007

Pool photos

My mom has been giving Samuel swimming lessons, and yesterday I took him over to her neighborhood pool again. Samuel had a good time! He loves being in the water and doesn't mind at all when Mom takes him under. They spent time in the "big pool" and then went into the baby pool for Samuel to be able to walk around. Samuel must have good balance because the baby pool had quite a current... No joke. It knocked him over once or twice, but that was good considering that he was in it for awhile.

Enjoy the photos!


all smiles


What's this whale all about?


Maybe I could use it as a phone.


playing with toys


After he fell down, he played with the whale.

New Car Seat Cover

Samuel's Britax Marathon car seat is so nice, but Samuel sweats like crazy in it because the cover is made of nylon. I have been wanting to get him a 100% cotton custom cover, and today my mom bought him one on eBay. Thanks, Mom! It is adorable! In case you're wondering, it is brand new, and it was made by a seamstress like my mom but with more time on her hands than my mom has. Here's a picture of the cover. I consider it unisex because it's just animals. The pink you see is just from the elephant's ears. (Jeremy, don't freak out, ok?)



I will take a picture of Samuel in it once it arrives. I can't wait for it to get here!!! By the way, there are custom covers for infant car seats too. I wish I had known that...

Monday, August 27, 2007

Samuel is 16 months old today!


Another month has flown by, and Samuel is now 16 months old. I snapped the photo this afternoon. This is the best I could do because he wouldn't sit still long enough for me to get a better one.

Free stuff and the latest

I found a blog today that has a Friday freebie, and I thought you might be interested. Complete the form to receive your free sample of Post It Super Sticky Sight Word Notes for Kids

Jeremy was here for the weekend, and he left this morning. I was sad to see him leave. I found myself in tears, which was surprising because I haven't cried the rest of the times he's left. Once he left, I decided to take Samuel for a stroll. It wasn't too hot, but it was sure humid. We had a nice 30 minute stroll around the neighborhood. We got home, and I decided to clean the upstairs bathroom when I got a call from our realtor saying that another realtor wanted to show our house between 12PM-1PM. I was thrilled and spent the next 2 hours cleaning the house (all of that for a 5-minute showing). Samuel was such a good baby to let me clean while he played. He couldn't have been happier! He made a huge mess with his toys, but he helped me put them away. He's been great about putting his toys away.

Jeremy will be gone all week. There is a chance that I will join him on Pawleys for the weekend, but that will depend on how things go with the rest of the people working up there. I won't go unless there will be a separate bedroom for Samuel. The last time I was up there Samuel had to spend 2 nights in our room, and that didn't go so well. The 2nd night there was the worst night I've had with him since he was a newborn. All 3 of us lost hours and hours of sleep. It was awful. In general Samuel sleeps much better when we're not in the room with him because he senses us there and doesn't want to sleep, but it's never been that bad before.

We introduced Samuel to my dad's boat on Sunday. The next time we will actually be taking him out on the boat. On Sunday the current was so strong, that my dad wouldn't have been able to get out and back into the slip. Samuel took the wheel and was ready to go for a ride.



































Saturday, August 25, 2007

One thing our little ones really need

(Our sleeping angel at 2 months old)

Before Samuel was born, I never knew how much sleep babies and toddlers need, so I was quick to research it. I wanted to make sure that Samuel wasn't ever sleep deprived. I bet you wouldn't believe the number of babies that ARE sleep deprived. Some parents don't realize how much sleep their child needs. Last night a friend of mine was curious about how many naps her child needs at 2 months old. She was saying that he's only up for about 1 1/2 hours at a time, and I was telling her that, that was normal. I looked up sleep guidelines for her in The No-Cry Sleep Solution by Elizabeth Pantley, so I decided to post it here in case you are wondering how much sleep your baby or toddler needs. These are just general guidelines.

1 month old - Total of 15-16 hours per 24 hours (3 naps totaling 6-7 hours and 8 1/2-10 hours at night)

3 month old- Total of 15 hours per 24 hours (3 naps totaling 5-6 hours and 10-11 hours at night)

6 month old- Total of 14-15 hours per 24 hours (2 naps totaling 3-4 hours and 10-11 hours at night)

9 month old- Total of 14 hours per 24 hours (2 naps totaling 2 1/2- 4 hours and 11-12 hours at night)

12 month old- Total of 13-14 hours per 24 hours (1-2 naps totaling 2-3 hours and 11 1/2 to 12 hours at night)

2 year old- Total of 13 hours per 24 hours (1 nap for 1-2 hours and 11-12 hours at night)

3 year old- Total of 12 hours per 24 hours (1 nap for 1-1/2 hours and 11 hours at night)

4 year old- Total of 11 1/2 hours

5 year old- Total of 11 hours


Pawleys Island 2007 Video- One True Media

My grandma's apricot nectar cake

Did your grandma make a dish or dessert that you loved? When we visited Granddaddy and Grandma Drewry, my grandma always made Apricot Nectar Cake. She kept it refrigerated, and I loved it! My parents taught me not to eat too many sweets, which is a good thing since I could have eaten the whole cake. I never got the recipe from my grandma, and now she's 92 with dementia. Guess what? While I was on Pawleys in early August, Merritt Harrell made this cake, and I was so excited to finally get the recipe. I thought that I would share it with you. I would love to add your grandma's recipe to my blog, so send me a recipe that you think other people would enjoy. It doesn't even need to be your grandma's recipe.

Apricot Nectar Cake

1 box yellow cake mix
3/4 cup oil
3/4 cup apricot nectar
4 eggs
1 tbsp lemon extract

Mix the ingredients and beat for 4 minutes. Bake at 325 for 55 minutes.


Icing

Juice of 2 lemons
Whipped 1 1/2 cups powdered sugar

Let the cake cool 5-10 minutes. Then, poke holes in cake and drizzle the icing on.


Friday, August 24, 2007

Another toddler (and Mommy) snack


I'm sad not to have a Trader Joe's around here because I love their little wheat crackers in the 100 calorie packs. I had to get creative once I ran out of the boxes of Trader Joe's crackers I bought when I was last in Atlanta, and I came across Kashi Original 7 grain TLC Crackers. TLC stands for Tasty Little Crackers, and I totally agree. They are very tasty. I break them into small pieces for Samuel. I haven't been so honest though because I am telling Samuel that they are cookies. Samuel has a sweet tooth like I do, but I am trying not to let that get out of hand since he's only 16 months old. He seems to like these crackers, so I'm sticking with them until I can get my hands on some of Annie's Homegrown ones. I don't see anything wrong with Annie's bunny grahams for Samuel as long as I watch his portions. I don't know how many of those bunny grahams are in a serving because I forgot to look, but I never give him more than 10 (they are tiny and thin). I have decided that I don't want to give him bunny grahams everyday. He seems perfectly satisfied with the Kashi "cookies", and that makes me happy! :)

Thursday, August 23, 2007

More yummy organic food


Can you tell that I'm on an organic kick? I have to admit that this is a new thing for me, and I'm not totally converting my cooking to organic. I'm just happy to add some organic food to our diet. Once again Merrit Harrell introduced me to a product that I love. While we were together on Pawleys Island a few weeks ago, I was making Samuel a veggie burger. She had bought the same ones for her 7-year-old daughter, but she commented that she preferred the taste of Amy's veggie burgers. When I got home from the beach, I decided that I would like to find them. It turns out that my Wal-mart grocery store doesn't carry them, but I went to Bi-lo today and found the Amy's Kitchen Chicago Veggie Burger. I can't express in words how much better these taste than the Morningstar ones I've been buying for years. Samuel ate it up so quickly!!! I wish I had talked to Merrit about this before now. It turns out that Amy's has a wide variety of foods including some great frozen meals. So far, I have also tried the Burritos and the Pesto Tortellini Bowl, and I'm impressed. Take a look: Amy's Kitchen.

Organic snacks for kids (and their parents too)


Annie's Homegrown

A few weeks ago Merrit Harrell introduced me to the BEST organic snacks for kids: Chocolate Chip Bunny Grahams. Now I'm hooked! I wish I could say that only Samuel eats them, but I would be lying. Living in a small town, I can't find the whole wheat bunnies that I want to buy for Samuel, so I decided to look online. You can actually buy all of their products from the website. My local Wal-mart carries only some of their products. Samuel and I have already tried and enjoyed the white cheddar mac-n-cheese. To learn more about their wide variety of organic food, go to: Annie's Homegrown. You won't be disappointed!

Wonderful Magazines for Children


My uncle works for the National Wildlife Foundation, so I grew up reading Ranger Rick magazines. Until Samuel was born, I had no idea that they also have a magazine for toddlers called Wild Animal Baby. I thought I would share the link with those of you that have animal lovers in your home. Samuel absolutely loves animals!

National Wildlife Federation magazines for children

Wednesday, August 22, 2007

My First Shot at One True Media

I'm trying One True Media. It took me longer than I thought it would to put this together. I'm sure it will be easier for me next time. Enjoy!


Rock Hill job

God is continuing to give Jeremy work. He will be doing a 2-week job in Rock Hill, SC. He hopes to start in the middle of Sept. since we will be taking a family vacation with my parents to Fripp Island from Sept. 8-15. Before we go on vacation, Jeremy will finish up the work on Pawleys Island and finish the last details on a job here.

Now we are praying for work starting in October. Jeremy and a friend named Spencer started a company in Atlanta months ago. They are currently bidding jobs in Atlanta. We would like to sell the house and move before Jeremy begins more work in Atlanta. We continue to pray for a buyer.

Samuel is waking up from his nap. We're off to help my mom download some pictures and place an order on Shutterfly.

Have a good day!

Tuesday, August 21, 2007

Nice weekend on Pawleys Island

Samuel and I are back in Beaufort. We enjoyed our time on Pawleys Island. Jeremy worked while we were there, but it was nice to have meals together and a little time in the evenings. Jeremy is still on Pawleys Island. He'll be back in Beaufort from Thurs. to Sun. and then back on Pawleys all next week. Life is busy for Jeremy, but he seems to be enjoying the work. Samuel and I will probably go back to Pawleys next weekend. It's nice to be able to spend time away from home since being at home means keeping the house immaculate in case of a showing. Last week I wasn't so good at keeping it immaculate, but it worked out o.k. since I didn't have any calls for showings.

I didn't take any pictures this trip, but I did post a lot of pictures from the last trip. Visit my pictures link in the right margin. It will take you to our Shutterfly collection.

Have a good day!

Friday, August 17, 2007

Learning to be more spontaneous

I have to admit that I've never been a spontaneous person. I'm a planner. I always have been. I am trying to work on being more spontaneous, so per Jeremy's request, Samuel and I are going to Pawleys for a few nights. I've been cleaning the house and packing since we got home from dinner with my parents at Moe's. I'm almost packed and only need to do a little vacuuming in the morning in order to feel good about leaving the house ready to show. You never know when you will have a showing, and the last time we were at Pawleys they showed the house 3 times in 7 days. Maybe leaving will bring on the showings. Ha Ha Ha.

We will be back in a few days, and I'll write more then since I won't have internet access there.

Have a good weekend! God bless you!

Thursday, August 16, 2007

A must read for every Christian parent





I have a long list of books I've read this summer, and I have thoroughly enjoyed all of them (minus Quaker Summer, which was the oddest book I've ever read). As I look at that long list, I realize that the most important book on the list is Revolutionary Parenting by George Barna. It is a wonderful book because it challenges us to be the parents that the Lord would have us be. It gets down to our purpose as parents and what our goals are for our children. This isn't your average parenting book. I can promise you that. If you read it and aren't challenged, then write me and I will buy the book from you. I have plenty of people that I would love to give it to.
I would also love to do a group Bible study on this book one day. It would be very insightful to read it again with other believers.

Visit George Barna's website to learn more about him and see whether or not you are interested in the book.

Here's a description about the book from the Barna website:

"What does it take to raise a modern-day spiritual champion?

If you're like most parents, you think you're doing an okay job - and you probably believe you're doing better than most. But if your goal is to raise kids with a life-impacting faith, that may not be good enough.

Determined to learn the secrets of those who've raised spiritual champions, world-renowned researcher George Barna conducted a series of surveys and thousands of personal interviews with both young adults and their parents.

In the process, he was able to uncover a number of common denominators to parenting success. Some of his findings will encourage you; others will surprise you. But be forewarned - raising a spriritual champion takes Revolutionary Parenting."

Pawleys Island Shots

I finally named and worked on photos. Here are some. The rest are on Shutterfly. The link is in the right margin under pictures.



Enjoying sitting in the water


Experiencing sand


Happy baby


Samuel's first shovel (a little too big for him)


Samuel's first beach chair

Hot, Hot, Hot

It is so hot right now. It's been hot since we went to Pawleys. I was hoping it would get better, but it's still really bad! Samuel and I took a stroll on Tues. and Wed. morning, but that was enough for me. Between the humidity and the heat, I couldn't take it again. Our humidity here makes it so much worse.

Another thing that concerns me is the fact that it's too hot for the county to spray for mosquitoes. They had been spraying via plane, but this weather is prohibiting it. The paper said they can't spray if it's more than 85. Samuel seems to get bitten as quickly as Jeremy does, and the poor thing has several bites now. It probably doesn't help my paranoia that a 7-year-old died about a week ago from a mosquito borne illness. Now I'm super paranoid about mosquitoes. YIKES!!!

Samuel is talking more each day. His latest words are: wa(tch), be(d), door, shoes. The reason I put parentheses around the consonants is that Samuel hasn't gotten them out yet. He's also saying some of the body parts like nose, head, and ear. The cutest thing he does is that he walks over to the refrigerator door when he wants a snack or milk and says, "door". He says "door" when he sees other doors too, but I think it's cute that he tries to get me to open then door to give him a drink or a snack. I've been teaching him to say, "open". Now he can say, "o".

If I haven't said it enough, let me repeat that Samuel LOVES books. His favorite thing to do these days is to take a book and sit on the bottom step of our staircase. It puts a smile on my face. His teacher and mother hopes he continues to love books. Yes, I'm going to be his teacher from now until he goes to college, and Jeremy is going to be the principal. I think Jeremy just wanted a title... I guess we'll call it Holloman Academy. :)



Jeremy is still on Pawleys and will be there for awhile. I was going to join him there for the weekend, but since he will have to work non-stop, that seemed like a long way to go to be alone. Jeremy has lots of work to do; unfortunately, it's 3 hours away from me and Samuel.... Not only that, but there is another dentist job in the works in Rock Hill, which is about 2 1/2 hours from here. That means even more time apart. During this time, all I can do is trust that the Lord knows best and has a plan in all of this. I definitely wasn't cut out to be a single parent. I'm just taking it one day at the time.

I'm going to start a list of our prayer requests in the right margin. If you feel led to pray for us, you can look there. I will keep it up to date. So many of you have been faithful to pray for us over the years, and we appreciate it! If you would like us to pray for you, please let us know via e-mail or comment. We would love to lift you up in prayer.

I just finished the Firstborn series by Karen Kingsbury and am taking a little break from reading. I watched a wonderful movie this afternoon after I put Samuel down for his nap. It's part of the Janette Oke -Love Comes Softly series. I ended up renting the 3rd and 4th ones since our library only had the first two movies. I loved the 3rd one and will probably watch the 4th one tomorrow while he naps. I recommend the 4 movies. They are on my Must See list in the right margin. They are good movies. Not only are they fun to watch, but they are also encouraging since they are Christian movies. If you're not into movies, you could always check the books out from the library or buy them online at Amazon or Half eBay. I love Amazon because shipping is free if you spend $25 on things strictly sold by Amazon. Half eBay is also a cheap place to buy books and many other things.

Have a wonderful day!

Tuesday, August 14, 2007

Bad news and prayer request

Tonight I got some bad news. I never like getting the news that someone has passed away. It's very upsetting... As most of you know, I taught at HE McCracken for 3 years before Samuel was born. Richard Hitch was my principal the first two years. He had heart problems while I knew him. I learned tonight that he had a lung disease and couldn't have a lung transplant because of his heart problems. He died at home today. I am saddened by this news. He was only 62 years old. That seems young to me now that I'm in my 30s and have a mother that exact age. I have a lot of good memories of my two years under his direction, and I know many of us will miss him. His memorial service is scheduled for tomorrow in Beaufort, and my mom will watch Samuel while I attend it.

The prayer request is for you to pray for his family during this difficult time. Please lift them up in prayer. I know his wife and the rest of his family would appreciate it.

Thanks,
Marianna

Monday, August 13, 2007

Not enjoying this...

I have to say that I don't know how my mom has done it all of these years. Ever since I can remember, my dad has regularly traveled out of town for business. I guess it's something that my mom has gotten used to. I, on the other hand, can't see myself ever getting used to being apart from Jeremy. I don't like it... He will be gone for 6 days. I was planning on going up to stay with him for 3 or 4 nights, but the electricians ruined that plan. They were supposed to be in and out by Wed., but now they will be there until Friday. That leaves me here missing Jeremy for 6 days.

For all of you military wives: I admire you because I DON'T know how you do it. It's hard work taking care of a child or children on your own. Not to mention the fact that a wife needs her husband!

I will pray for Jeremy when I'm missing him and hope that the time passes quickly. That's all I can do.

Here's a picture of my sweet husband one day last week. We met him for lunch at a cool restaurant a few doors down from the job site. (In case you ever visit Pawleys Is., the restaurant is called Quigley's Pint and Plate and it's at Mingo, which is a new complex with townhomes and businesses. )

Sunday, August 12, 2007

Toddler recipe

Thanks to Mandi Peek for this healthy pumpkin muffin recipe. She let me copy it out of a toddler cookbook she had. The only sugar in the recipe is 1 tbsp of maple syrup. I actually added 2 tbsp. I think it could use more than 1 cup of pumpkin. Next time I'm going to try an entire can. The best part is that you don't even need a mixer to make these! I made mini muffins because they are easier for toddlers to eat. Enjoy!!!

Pumpkin Muffins

1 cup plain yogurt
1/2 cup whole milk
2 eggs
1 tbsp maple syrup
1 tbsp canola oil
2 1/4 cups whole wheat flour
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1 cup canned pumpkin

Preheat oven to 375. (I used a dark non-stick mini muffin pan, and I changed the temp to 350 after I got my first muffins too dark/hard on the bottom)

Whisk together yogurt, milk, eggs, maple syrup, and oil until smooth.

In a separate bowl, whisk together whole wheat flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt.

Add the yogurt mix and the pumpkin and stir well.

Bake 20 minutes. I recommend storing them in the refrigerator. I learned the hard way... They started growing things when I had them in a covered sheet cake pan.

Saturday, August 11, 2007

Videos from Pawleys Island, SC

A Video of Samuel's 2nd time in the ocean
Pawleys Island, SC 2007




Video of Samuel playing at the beach house



Video of Samuel playing in the sand

Home Again

Samuel and I are back in Beaufort. Boy, is it hot here! We came home to the air conditioning trying to keep up with the heat index of 115. Not an easy feat... Since Samuel is so warm natured, I decided to let him nap and sleep in the office (downstairs) for a day or two until it's not as hot outside. I got him to bed last night before 8:00 PM. He was doing just fine with the sheets I had put up to act as curtains and his sleep machine was going, but I forgot one major detail. I forgot to unplug the light from the timer I have it on. Big oops... It normally comes on around 9:00 PM. At 10:00 PM I heard Samuel screaming bloody murder. I think it was a nightmare even though the light was on when I went in. I don't think a light would cause a baby to scream like that. Anyway, I unplugged the light, and tried to get him back to sleep. Last night at bedtime and then again at 10:00 PM I sang him a song to get him back to sleep. It was amazing because he acted a little unsure of things before I sang to him. A simple "Jesus Loves You" did the trick. Thank you, Jesus, for that!

As if that wasn't enough drama for one day, at 6:40 AM our smoke alarms went off waking me and Samuel from a deep sleep. Did that scare me! I panicked and called my neighbors (Thank you, Zoe!) and my dad (Thanks, Dad!) since Jeremy wasn't here and I wasn't sure if there was a fire. Zoe came over, which was sweet of her, but, of course, they stopped once she was here. I have to be thankful that they stopped though. I meant to call my dad back to let him know that all was well, but I forgot. He showed up a few minutes later to check on us. I was actually trying to get Samuel back to sleep by that point since it was still early. Samuel was tired enough that he went back to sleep once my dad checked the house and detectors thoroughly. Both of us slept until 8:45 AM, which was so nice since I stayed up late and got up early the week that we were on Pawleys Island.

Speaking of Pawleys, I have some photos and a few videos that I took on the beach and at the house. The only problem is that I left my cords in the office with Samuel. I will work on that once he goes to bed. Samuel and I went out to the beach by ourselves 5 days, and we went as a family on Sunday since it was Jeremy's day off. Samuel and I had fun in the sun, but boy was it hot! I took him around 9 or 10 each morning and stayed for about an hour since I am super careful not to stay in the sun too long. After my dad having melanoma when he was in his early 30s and then watching my mom have several skin cancer surgeries, I have decided to lather up the sun screen when we do go out and try to avoid the sun between 10AM and 3PM. One day I was out past 10AM, but I normally don't do that. I know some of you probably think I'm over cautious, but I am determined not to end up under the knife nor do I want that future for my children. Did you know that teenage cases of melanoma are higher than ever? The sun is a scary thing...

Not only did Samuel have fun in the sun, but he also enjoyed the company of Lane Harrell, the 7-year-old daughter of the contractor for whom Jeremy works. Lane entertained Samuel on many occasions and loved on him! Thank you, Lane! I know Samuel is looking forward to seeing her again, which should be soon since they live 3 doors down from us.

It was so nice to be at the beach with other people and have a chance to get to know them more. We spent time with Daniel, his wife Merritt, Merritt's family, and Daniel's parents. Also, Spencer was there working with Jeremy. It was a lot of fun!

We also had a chance to visit a church while we were there. We picked Pawleys Island Community Church because Jeremy had seen it and I was pleased by their website. I had a chance to look at it before we left. (While we were gone, we had no internet access.) It was surprising though that I didn't know any of the worship songs. I was shocked since I've been singing forever and listening to music constantly. Their pastor is also the worship leader. I started to wonder if he wrote the songs. Who knows??? Anyway, they are doing a sermon series on the Fruits of the Spirit and this one was on Self Control. Pretty convicting... Samuel did cry when we left him in the nursery, but he must have stopped quickly because they didn't page us, and he seemed to be content when we went to get him. They said that he did really well. Good job, Samuel!

Jeremy should be here in an hour or so, so I should get going. I will post pictures and videos soon.

Blessings,
Marianna

Wednesday, August 1, 2007

busy, busy, busy

We've been busy. On Monday morning, we were still getting ready for the Realtor Open House. Afterwards, we were pleased to hear that 17 realtors stopped by. They filled out comment sheets with a lot of positive comments and a few negative ones. There isn't much we can do about the fact we don't have a garage or that we have a small living room; although, after reading their remarks, we are considering staining the deck and are toying with the idea of adding screen to part of our porch. We will see....

Faye and Jack were in town until this morning, so we spent a good deal of time with them. We enjoyed their company! It was nice to have 8 days with them since most of the time they come for a long weekend.

Oh, yesterday while I was shopping at Wal-mart, Samuel was with Jeremy and learned how to climb up on the couch. I missed his first steps and now this... Here is proof that he was on his way. He tried to climb out of the rocking chair in his room. You can see his leg up. I took this on his 15-month birthday on Friday:



Yesterday after Samuel woke up from his 3-hour nap, Faye and I took him swimming, and we had a lot of fun. Samuel loves the water! It's amazing how he doesn't mind being taken under water. Also, at one point he saw his boat on the other side of the pool and acted like he was going to swim to it. I helped him "swim" to it on his belly. So cute! Once we got home from the pool, I made chicken tacos and Faye joined us for dinner. After dinner, I thought Samuel still seemed hungry, so I gave him a few bites of a tortilla. I turned around, and he grabbed the rest (the majority) of the tortilla and went to town. I have a video to prove it.



Jeremy and Spencer headed to Pawley's Island this afternoon, and Samuel and I will be going that way on Friday to spend a week at the beach and with Jeremy. Jeremy will be working, but it will be nice to have some time with him at lunch and at night. I prefer that over being alone at home. The bad news is that there is no internet access where we will be staying, so I won't have a chance to blog while we're gone. I will take lots of pictures and videos to share when we return.

I almost forgot. Samuel wanted to say "thanks" to Grand-Mom for the card she sent in the mail from San Francisco. He enjoyed his card and didn't want me to take it from him...



Have a blessed day,
Marianna