Back to SKEWL!

After many, many, many years Doug is now a student again! His class started this week. He did his orientation, ordered his book, printed his syllabus, and bought his supplies. He was going to do classes but his promotion had him training all month so he had to switch to on-line. He is starting off with one to get his feet wet and use to doing online classes. He is so excited. Yall know he is a big ol' dork so he is enjoying this. He is so excited to get his book and start working on his assignments. Now we have to get him a desk to do his work on and a place to store it all. Wish him luck for all A's!

Happy birthday Auburn!

Saturday was Auburn's 1st birthday. So you know what that means.... 1yr check up at the vet. We got up early this morning and headed out. Daddy came with us but he could not stay since he had to go to work. She did good until about a minute or two after we got there. She started shaking like a leaf. Poor thing! She thought she was at the groomers but once she realized she wasn't and we were staying with her, she calmed down a bit. She behaved and did what the vet needed her to do. The only part she did not like was the thermometer... :) The only thing the vet found wrong with Auburn was she is overweight. 17.6 lbs. fat butt! So we are scaling back the food and giving her low calorie treats like raw carrots. Her first human food! Other than that she is 100% healthy. We got some special shampoo and oil for her food to help treat her scabby, flaky skin pn her back. The doctor said it may be allergies but she wants to try the oil first before putting her on an antihistamine. We really liked the vet and the office. We go back at the end of February for a check up on her skin and to get her shots. I hope Daddy can take off and go with me for this one. I know she is going to remember those after the first one! So since we are done and back home so early, Auburn and I plan on spending the rest of the day snuggling on the couch and napping. Poor thing is exhausted from an exciting morning. And momma will never turn down snuggling on the couch and naps! :)

Auburn playing with her best friends

Here are a few pictures of Auburn playing with Mom and Dad when they were in town.

Auburn and Dad are best friends. He would play with her until she dropped from exhaustion and she loved it. She would sit by the door, waiting on him to come out, in the mornings. She loves her Granddaddy.


Mom is warming up to her nicely. They played a lot this time. Mom kept saying, "No bite!" Ha!

Forgot one

Don't know how I forgot this picture. I really don't know how I was able to take it. Everyone cooperated!

Auburn has turned me into a sap

What do these two movies have in common: Water for Elephants & Rise of the Planet of the Apes?

Answer: they both made me cry.

Why you ask? Not because of the people and their performance but because of them being mean to the animals in the movie. When they killed the horse and whipped the Elephant in Water for Elephants, I could barely finish the movie I was so upset. I mean, I was mad. I just held Auburn and kept telling her no one would ever treat her like that as tears streamed down my face. Poor wittle ewyfant! Then when the shelter people were being mean and abusive to the monkeys, it just broke my heart. Once again, I grabbed Auburn and held her close.

It's not that I had a heart of stone before I got Auburn. I guess I just notice animal cruelty more. I can not watch the sad commercials wanting you to donate money to save the cats and dogs. I beg Doug to adopt all the animals the news show on TV at night; either abused/neglected or in the pound. I am not allowed in a pet store if they are doing adoption day.

Having Auburn has made me a sap for animals but it's not a bad thing (unless I become the crazy dog lady with way too many adopted pups). It just makes me sad to see the abuse in movies. I always picture someone doing that to Auburn. :( No animal deserves to treated that way. So from now on Doug is going to have to pre-screen movies with animals in it so I can watch the movie without crying (and wanting to bring the animal home to live with us).

2011 in Pictures

Auburn beat Oregon in the BCS National Championship game to become 2011 National Champs


I lost my Grandmother


We got a new addition to the family


Doug turned 29


We went to a few Augusta Greenjackets baseball games


I turned 28


I got a new job and Maryland so we had to say goodbye to some great friends in Augusta





We moved to Odenton, MD


We got into some trouble at the Renaissance Festival


We went to Rehobeth Beach, Delaware


My parents came up for Christmas and we went to DC and Gettysburg, PA

A New Year

2011 was a big year for us. We started out with jobs we hated and ended up with jobs we love. We started out in a home we owned and ended up in an apartment. We started out in the Georgia and ended in Maryland. I started out never flying by myself and ended up a pro. We started out just the two of us and ended up with a third. We started off with tons of family and friends close by and ended up with very few.

Lots of changes but all for the good. It was a rough end of the year, leaving family and friends and having rent and a mortgage to pay, but I know things are about to change. Financially, we had an up and down year. We had to pay a nice hunk in taxes, then we had moving expenses, then we had the house in GA and the apartment in Maryland to pay for. It seemed like every time we got back on track we would get knocked back off again. But we got the deductions changed on our W-2's, I got a better paying job, we rented the house in GA in December, and yesterday Doug got a promotion at work. With one phone call from my husband, who I am so proud of, all my worries melted away. I know in 2012 we will be back on track.

I know 2012 is going to be a good year for us. We have all our friends and family supporting us, we have new friends to make, great jobs (with great pay!) to go to everyday, and we have each other (and Auburn). I have the best husband in the whole wide world. He makes me so happy and he makes me feel loved every second of every day. I am so thankful to have him in my life. I could not do it without him.

Happy New Year to you and your family. I hope you have a wonderful new year and that it is full of laughter, smiles, and love.

"Here's to the freakin" New Year, "I'll drink to that, yeah!"

Snow in Gettysburg

The pictures did not show the snow so I took a video to show it.

Gettysburg, PA

While my parents were here we decided to take a trip up to Gettysburg, PA and see the Civil War battlefield. I was very surprised how big it was. It literally stretched out through out the town. It was a cold, cloudy day but it was ok because it SNOWED the ENTIRE time we were there. It was so cool!! We originally wanted to take a bus tour but for a fraction of the price we could hire a personal guide to drive our car around and give us the tour. It was very informative and very convenient. We stopped when we wanted to, got out when we wanted to, and always had someone there to take a group picture. Our guide knew we were from Alabama so he geared our tour towards that. He we very smart and quite a character. The tour took about 2 1/2 hours so we opted to not do the museum. Doug and I plan on going back in the summer to see that and the battlefield again. There are around 1300 monuments on the battlefield and quite a few dozen other important sites. I am not posting all but here are a few pictures from the day.

More DC Pictures