...and he takes the tractor another round, another round, another round...

Spring means lots of things, but around our house, all the talk was about the garden.

And after a not so successful season (that is why there were no during shots), the boys have decided they are going to have to devote more time next year!!! Although we did have corn, black-eyed peas, okra, and more peppers than you can imagine, Rob mowed down what we was left last weekend! We were disappointed that we didn't have more squash and cucumber, from which Rob made these delicious pickles:

Aunt Allie's Dill Pickles 

(from Mississippi Magazine July/August 2010)

6 pound small fresh cucumbers

16 fresh hot peppers

16 teaspoons dill seeds

16 teaspoons mustard seed

16 cloves fresh peeled garlic

6 cups white vinegar

6 cups water

12 tablespoons pickling salt

 

Wash and sterilize 8 quart jars and lids. To each jar add 2 teaspoons dill and mustard seed, 2 cloves garlic, and 2 hot peppers. Wash cucumbers and pack into jars. Bring vinegar, water, and salt to rolling boil. Fill jars with boiling mixture. Seal immediately. Pickles will be ready to enjoy in 4-6 weeks. Any soon, and the pickle flavor will not have time to develop. 

Yield: 8 quart jars
Can't wait for next year!!!

Princess "Leo" and the "walks"

Well I have been waiting, waiting until the day when my little boy grows up, leaves behind Scooby Doo, Tom and Jerry, and The Jetsons, and becomes obsessed with Star Wars. Well, the time has come. He is now all things Obi Won, Luke, Yoda, Hans Solo -- loves them all. And, (as Rob would interject, "just like his mother,") he cannot watch this movie without asking 100 questions about every scene. The best part, though, is that in true Reed fashion, the "off" words are in full effect. 
Princess Laya -- Princess "Leo"
E-woks -- "Walks"

And speaking of the off words, here are a few more from summer:
Icee -- "snowy"
Sunburn -- sun"bites"

14 years ago...

...we had our first date (sorry for the wonky scanned pic, but it is worth seeing)...

(and there are SOOOOO many things about us in this picture that make me cringe): 
1) What is up with my hair? Did I not own a mirror at 19?
2) What is up with my clothes (are those OVERALLS)? Hoping that was the style...
4) It's obvious that I was hitting late night food WAY too much!
3) And what is up with Rob's ghostliness?


Anyway, who would have imagined in an April six years later...

 ...we would say "I do"...

Now, after 8 years, we've been blessed with 100s of laughs, 1 dog, 2 precious boys, one adorable baby girl, and so much fun together. I married my best friend and have so much fun with him every day. Here's to 80 more years of wonderful memories to look forward to!

 

Bulletin board project

The walls in Mary Flynn's room were too bare. They needed something and I started thinking, we need more room for pictures, but it's not in the budget to buy a ton of frames to hang on the wall. I kept seeing darling bulletin boards on other blogs and in magazines. 
I decided I could make one myself. 

Step one: Buy bulletin board at Wally World. I think this one was about $7.

Since I didn't take ANY during pics, I am going to try to remember how I got here:

 Supplies:

bulletin board

pink ticking fabric (about 1 1/2 yard)

about 10 yards of ribbon

heavy duty stapler

quilting batting (medium thickness)

So, I started with cotton batting under my fabric so the board would have some tuft.  I lined up the fabric and batting so the lines were straight on the board with about 2-3 inches overhang. Then I pulled out the industrial stapler and stretched fabric/batting over sides to the back. I stapled the top and bottom first, then stapled the sides. Then I went back with some over-sized gro-grain rick rack to attach the pictures/bows. Again with the stapler, I lined up the ribbon, starting in the corners stapling, then filling in the angles. And I was done!

Easy enough...and a very quick project. Because of the size of the bulletin board it took up a ton of space on the wall which is exactly what I was going for.

And once I got through, I realized it was the perfect place to keep our bows (cause she WILL be wearing them once she gets a few more strands of hair!).

our loud child

Luke does not do anything at a low volume. He loves loud, cries loud, and plays loud. I guess that may be part of being the middle child, but he is going to be heard. Several weeks ago he found the drum set and Reed did not like all the noise. Reed told me that he wanted this sign to stay up for three weeks...so it did!

Creations by michie -- BUBBLE!

Since all things pink, girlie, and pouf-y are foreign to me, I have been very excited to get going on some fun girly projects for Mary Flynn. Here is what I've been up too:

And here is the result:

...and another

...and another

Mary Flynn is going to be bubblicious once summer comes along! 

Chalkboard project

Isn't this a gorgeous cardboard painting (tehe)? I have had my eye on it at our local antique store for about a year. Mom and I were in there several weeks ago and thought I might could get her to come off the price a little -- got her down to $50! I have been wanting to paint over the painting with chalkboard paint "a la" Ballard but did not have the $400 in my budget!

So here is the end result:

I simply taped off the sides around the frame and painted directly over the old painting with Benjamin Moore chalkboard paint. So so easy! 
Some weeks I post what we are having for dinner and others (mostly) it looks like this. Once we start t-ball in a few weeks and our summer starts getting busy, I'm sure it will be more like a who/what/when/where to keep us organized.