City of Lights

Tucked away in the state of Louisiana is a city called Natchitoches. You may recognize this place from one of my favorite movies of all times...STEEL MAGNOLIAS. Natchitoches is known for its Christmas Festival which was featured in the movie when Arnell said, "no body move, I lost my contact!" The festival runs every weekend in December. Vendors line the Cane River selling gator on a stick, chicken fingers, meat pies, funnel cakes, etc. The river bank and all of downtown is decked out with lights. Its a quaint little place. On Friday and Saturday nights they have a fire work show. Last year was my first experience at the Christmas Festival so I insisted that Elizabeth and I take this kids this year. We had a great time walking around, eating and watching the firework display. Bailey was a little frightened at first but she got used to the loud noises and enjoyed all the pretty colors. It's been a great tradition that will carry on if for no other reason because I love gator on a stick and its one of the few times a year I can get it. The lights are great too though!

Christmas Card Photo

I will preface this post with a confession that I am a ridiculous pet owner. Ever since I got Matti I have treated her like a child which means that I feel compelled to send Christmas cards with her photo in them. I know its crazy and I am not sure why I even do it because she never wants to cooperate in the process. Here are some attempts we took at Thanksgiving. I have also included a photo of me and my Christmas tree. As part of the embracing of my home in Louisiana I have a Fleur De Lis tree...I love it!

for good or for bad...this was the winner!


this was attempt number 1....not sure what to think about being on the table!


this was our final attempt and she did not like being on this bridge!

GALA 2008

Every year at Christmas, Union Board hosts our GALA extravaganza! It is a time honored tradition for students because they get a catered meal...they get to dress up...and if they have had their eye on someone all semester they usually work up the nerve to ask them to Gala. It's lots of fun for the staff to sit back and watch. This year GALA fell right in the middle of finals so it was humorous to watch students walk around for days in grubby clothes with bloodshot eyes and then come to GALA in suits and formals. The entertainment is always a treat and this year was no exception. This year Dr. Aguillard, Dr. Guilbert, Dr. Quarles, and Tim Johnson sang in a quartet and they were fabulous. In fact I have been walking around for days singing their little number.

My first GALA I was asked to emcee the event so I had to go all out with my attire. My second year I just sat back and blended into the background. So for year three it was time to make a grand entrance again! I must say we accomplished our mission and I had the funnest date of the night. I was escorted by none other than Alex the Wildcat...our mascot. Peoples' faces were priceless and everyone wanted to know who was in the suit. Sara and I were Beauty and the Beast of GALA. Here are some pictures of the evening.



Me and Alex


Amy and Cory


Sara and Peter...they got engaged that night!

The Greatest Show on Earth

I have finally embraced life in Pineville. One thing that has helped tremendously is doing things in the area when they are in town like the Pecan Festival and the CIRCUS. The Ringling Brothers Circus came to Alexandria last week for the first time in 35 years and needless to say I was a little excited. The other great thing about living in Pineville these days is getting to experience life with Bailey and Jesse. I feel justified in doing things like going to the circus when I have a child escort. Elizabeth and I had a girl's night out and took Bailey. Of the three of us I definitely had the most fun and I am okay with that. I hope I never lose that kid at heart spirit. There were two things I was disappointed with....the three ring circus was scaled down to a one ring circus. The price you pay to be a small venue. And the second was the high priced cotton candy. I paid $10 for a bag of cotton candy...I guess they thought that was a deal since it came with this great hat you see above. Made for a great photo opp and it was a sweet treat that isn't on my diet these days (don't tell Rob).

Twas the Night Before Christmas REMIX

Twas weeks before Christmas and all through the apartment all the creatures were stirring...ESPECIALLY THE MOUSE!!!

So this morning started off like most mornings but quickly became more of an adventure than I bargained for. I got up and let Matti out to take care of her business. When she came back in I settled into the couch with my oatmeal to ease into this fine Wednesday. Not long after I sat down Matti joined me, which is her usual routine when I am on the couch and especially when I am eating.(see previous post). Suddenly she began digging in the corner of the couch. Again, this is not unusual. Sometimes her bones or toys get stuck in the crack and she digs until she gets them or until she gets spanked for digging and I get them out for her. This morning she was digging with much more intensity than usual and my spanking her was not enough incentive for her to stop. I pulled back the cushion just enough to see another fury little critter who was also struggling to wake up this morning. For those of you who don't know, I have had quite the mouse problem lately. This little guy that my carnivorous dog had now trapped was lucky or not so lucky #11. Gross ugh? He had obviously gotten into the poison I had out because he was not on his "A" game when it came to escaping. I would like to say at this point that I courageously grabbed him by the tail and disposed of him but NO. I called on my next door neighbor and early morning hero, Eric, to come get the mouse. Before Eric arrived the little guy did get a second wind and made a run for it and sadly enough I almost demolished my Christmas tree trying to run from him. Matti stopped him though and slung him around a little bit before Eric put us all out of our misery.

Our ladies Bible study group talked about hospitality yesterday but this is one thing I can honestly say is NOT WELCOME IN MY HOME. I hope all his friends got the hint when he didn't come back this morning and they will stay the heck away!

Beggars

So what would a meal be like without our little (and some not so little) four legged friends begging for anything and everything you would willingly give them from your plate? They love table food so much they don't even realize that the things they are lucky enough to get are the things from our plate we didn't like or were too full to eat. And why do we give in when we know it's really not good for them? Because they are so darn cute. Don't believe me....see for yourself!

This is my dog, Matti...who obviously wasn't content with her cottage cheese.


This is Lucy....Teri's dog. The not so gentle giant!


This is Roxi...my dad's dog who could balance herself for hours waiting for food.

Look A Likes

I finally got to meet Allie Michal Taylor while I was home for Thanksgiving! I cannot get over how much she looks like Brandon. For those of you who know Brandon and Marissa you will see what I am talking about. She is precious and has the funnest personality. I know she has been Brandon and Marissa's sanity since Gabe passed away. She is quite the sweet heart and is going to have her daddy wrapped around her finger...she already does. Just wanted to share at least one of the pictures I got of her during my visit.