Roll that beautiful baby footage......

Okay, now ya done gone and made me mad.....

I Said, "Stop Taking My Picture!"

Zachary Michael

Guess what I'm thinking.......

Future Leader Of The Free World!

Zachary Michael

Happy Birthday Bek!

Happy Birthday to Bek. Twenty nine years ago, in the year of 1977, a beautiful baby girl was born on this very day. There was much ooohhhhing and aaahhhing over her beauty. Rejoicing was heard throughout the land. Kings and paupers alike paid homage to her immeasurable charm and immense beauty. Non other could surpass her cheerful personality, a smile gracing her face at all times........errrrr.....well......... maybe not at all times. In the photo to the left she was caught in a rare moment of distress as her big brother, Mike, mugged for the camera, oblivious to her distress. This would prove to be an ongoing feature to their relationship even though great love would be shared between them.

Happy Birthday, Bek. We love you!

Ohh, they love me, they really, really love me.....

Photo: Very Proud Auntie Bek and Papa Mike

Yesterday brought the arrival of the newest member of the family of my best friend, Patsy. Much rejoicing could be heard yesterday as we all ooohed and aaaahed over sweet little Zachary Michael. Words can not describe how cute he is.

Zachary Michael

This is a photo of the proud parents, Mike and Heather, with their beautiful, brand spankin' new baby boy, Zachary Michael. Isn't he adorable?

Welcome To The World, Baby Zachary!

Baby Zachary arrived today at 12:45PM. He is so cute. Mom and Dad are doing well and Grandma and Auntie Bek are very happy and grateful. This is the only picture I got with my camera because they whisked him away to weigh him and measure him, but Bek got one of Patsy and me with Zachary. I hope it turns out to be a good one. I only got to hold him for a minute but it was a very sweet minute.

He weighs 7pounds 2 ounces and measures 20 and 1/2 inches. While we were standing there watching the nurses do all the things they have to do, I saw a couple brand new babies taken into the nursery, and my heart did a double beat because I thought of Ava. How lucky we all are to have two healthy babies in one year. Yipee!

Welcome To The World, Baby Zachary!

Patsy is a 'NEW' grandma, once again!

Baby Zachary arrived today at 12:45PM. He is so cute. Mom and Dad are doing well and Grandma and Auntie Bek are very happy and grateful. This is the only picture I got with my camera because they whisked him away to weigh him and measure him, but Bek got one of Patsy and me and Zachary together. I hope it turned out good. I only got to hold him for a minute but it was a very sweet minute.

He weighs 7 pounds 2 ounces and measures 20 and 1/2 inches. While we were standing there watching the nurses do all the things they have to do, I saw a couple brand new babies with dark hair, taken into the nursery, and my heart did a double beat because I thought of Ava. How lucky we all are to have two healthy babies in one year.

Congratulations to all!

Yipee!

Does this look like a Gap commercial or is it just me?

This photo was taken last October on Graves Mountain. It looks like a Gap ad and Jacob is the star. I've posted it before, but I love it. I've been going through my old photos. I want to get some developed......no rush, right? One true thing I've learned in life is that you can never take too many pictures. As I've been going over these photos of the past three years ~just three short years ~ of Jacob's life, I can see all the fun we've already had with him. It's going too fast. Anyway, I'm on the ball now and will have my Jacob album full very soon. It's already half full. It will be proof positive of his vast experience on this planet. I can't wait.

Zachary.....We're waiting for you.....

Okay, this is my last post for today. We're all on baby watch. Actually, we've been on baby watch all week. Patsy's son, Mike, and Heather will have a little boy very soon, Zachary, but he seems to be slightly reluctant to meet us. He will definitely arrive before long though. This is the e-mail I received from Patsy earlier today. We're all patiently waiting, Zachary!

Patsy's E-mail:

"Mike and Heather went to the doctor this morning. If the baby doesn't arrive in the next couple of days he is scheduling an inducement for Thursday at 6:30 am."

Hopefully, I will have new photos to post very soon.

Beach Traffic Buddies.....

As we were on the way home from my dad's yesterday, fighting the beach traffic on 64, (it really wasn't too bad) Herman's cell phone rang. It was Bek. They were somewhere, not too terribly far behind us, in the traffic. They were on their way home too. Patsy, Bek and Jacob had spent the day at Yorktown Beach. They said it was the perfect day for the beach and Jacob had a wonderful time. Bek sent the photos this morning and I've posted some of them below. I bet Jacob took a good nap. He looks so tired at the end of the day.

A working man is on the job.....

A working man is on the job.....

Getting the job done......

Still getting the job done......

Ready for a nap, Mom.......

...this is what a working man looks like at the end of the day.....

Lightening Strikes Palani Drive Restaurant

I received an e-mail from Bek today with information on the restaurant, Palani Drive, that was damaged in a fire last night at 401 Libbie Ave. Richmond, Va. Lightening struck it during the storm. She writes, " In fact the 4 businesses on that strip were all affected by the lightning strike. I saw it on the news today."

Palani Drive Menu

Humorous but oh, so true.....

A friend sent this to me today.

American Health Care

Two patients limp into two different American Medical clinics with the same complaint. Both have trouble walking and appear to require a hip replacement.

The first patient is examined within the hour, is x-rayed the same day and has a time booked for surgery the following week.

The second sees the family doctor after waiting a week for an appointment, then waits eighteen weeks to see a specialist, then gets an x-ray, which isn't reviewed for another month and finally has his surgery scheduled for 6 months from then.

Why the different treatment for the two patients?

The first is a Golden Retriever.....

The second is a Senior Citizen.

I love this about Patsy.....

Herman's Father's Day card from Jacob.

Patsy has always allowed her kids the freedom of self expression, no matter how tasteless their choices may have been over the years. Once, when Bec was a little girl, Patsy allowed her to choose a Christmas gift for her boss. She chose a nice pink, oh so pink, tie. Patsy gave it with pride.

Now, following in that tradition, she always lets her grandson, Jacob, choose what he wants to get for Herman on Herman's special occasions, and Herman loves this, never knowing what will come next, but always certain that it will be interesting...... like the big blue bird feeder and the little blue bird chimes. Jacob thought the blue bird 'series' was beautiful and remarkably, so does Herman.

This weekend was Father's Day and the photo of the card above was Jacob's very own choice, and what a classic, still remaining with the animal/nature theme. Patsy said they were looking at the cards, trying to choose one, when Jacob's eye landed on this one. She said his eyes lit up and he said, "Let's get that, that one over there," and, of course, that's the one they got.

Herman loves it and he loves the little boy who gave it to him.

The Curl

First Kiss......

Is this the cutest photo of Brandon kissing Bec, or what? I love the expression on Mike's face. I think this was taken in 1978 or 79. Patsy, if you can pinpoint it better let me know.

Hamburgers and Grilled Vidalia Onions

Before we had too much wine, Patsy and I lightly tossed the vidalia onions in olive oil. We added Worcestershire sauce, garlic powder, salt and pepper to the hamburger before making the patties. Yum!

Wine Coolers And Raindrops..........

Patsy, Bec and Jacob came over last night, as always on Thursday nights. It was their turn to cook and we had hamburgers on the grill, corn on the cob and salad. You can tell it's summer because our menu reflects it. We cook on the grill as often as possible. It was great. The hamburgers really hit the spot and Herm brought home a bottle of wine for Patsy and me. Being the snobbish wine connoisseurs that we are, we mixed it with ginger ale until it was a lovely shade of pink, and sucked the entire bottle down before the evening ended. No, we did not use straws. We're much too classy for that. Em hmm!

Jay, Jacob's buddy, came along too. They played in the back yard. Jacob was so funny. He was quite jealous of any attention that we might give to Jay. He wanted to make sure that everyone knew that we belonged to him and went to great lengths to prove this to Jay. Only two and a half years old, but already staking his territory, and quite effectively, I might add.

It was a beautiful evening until it started to rain. When the rain came down Patsy ran for an umbrella, and when she returned she and Bec just kept cooking. Of course, Patsy had consumed a few glasses of wine by this point in the evening, and couldn't really feel the raindrops anyway. I think the umbrella was just for show as far as she was concerned. Bec, however, always the model of decorum, imbibed only ginger ale.

As always, it was fun.

'Tis The Season.......

Barbecuing A Bit Of Dragon

Since the discovery of fire, man has been barbecuing. Maybe that's why it's the only kind of cooking most men still do. I guess it's a man thing, fire and raw meat and all that. 'Tis the season once again. Here's a small offering to the ladies. Enjoy!


When a man volunteers to do the BBQ the following chain of events are put into motion:

Routine...

1) The woman buys the food.

2) The woman makes the salad, prepares the vegetables, and makes dessert.

3) The woman prepares the meat for cooking, places it on a tray along with the necessary cooking utensils and sauces, and takes it to the man who is lounging beside the grill - beer in hand.

Here comes the important part:

4) THE MAN PLACES THE MEAT ON THE GRILL.

5) The woman goes inside to organize the plates and cutlery.

6) The woman comes out to tell the man that the meat is burning. He thanks her and asks if she will bring another beer while he deals with the situation.

Important again:

7) THE MAN TAKES THE MEAT OFF THE GRILL AND HANDS IT TO THE WOMAN.


8) The woman prepares the plates, salad, bread, utensils, napkins, sauces and brings them to the table.


9) After eating, the woman clears the table and does the dishes.

And most important of all:


10) Everyone PRAISES the MAN and THANKS HIM for his cooking efforts.


11) The man asks the woman how she enjoyed "her night off" and upon seeing her annoyed reaction, concludes that there's just no pleasing some women....