Life as an Old Married Couple

due to some technical difficulties

2006-08-02T10:05:00.000-04:00

For some strange reason, I am having a really hard time with blogspot lately. It's either eating posts or just not coming up for me at all. I've been trying to post pictures, but it's been whigging out. I'm kind of fed up with it, so ...

I've moved! Again!

I know, I know - I keep moving. AUGH! But I promise this next place will be my last. It's a newly launched blogging site, so not that many people have joined (i.e., you have to have an invitation to join, which I got from some random stranger that I found in a Vox community. Anyway ...)

So bookmark my new blog, delete this website, and then I'll stay put. Unless the new website starts acting flaky, too.

http://laughoutloud.vox.com/

free photo editing software

2006-07-31T22:23:00.000-04:00

For those of you who are now using digital cameras but don't want to spend a lot of money or time on the professional photo editing programs, I found a really good program that is completely free and easy to use.

In about 30 seconds, I took this picture ...

... and turned it into this.

Here is a link to the download - it is called Picasa. You can read about it before you download anything.

http://picasa.google.com/

It is a Google-based program, so you won't have to worry about viruses or anything like that sneaking in on the download.

Just thought I'd pass that along.

more animals eating

2006-07-31T22:12:00.000-04:00

I don't know why I keep taking pictures of animals eating, but here's Penny chowing down on a grape.

hungry?

2006-07-27T13:59:00.000-04:00

random pictures from downtown G'ville

2006-07-26T16:00:00.000-04:00

adventures in fence-building

2006-07-26T10:01:00.000-04:00

DAY.TWO

Got pretty much all of the posts up

Also have a future herb garden

One of my lavendar star flowers

DAY.THREE

Installed 5 panels

DAY.FOUR

Ken and Ken put up all of the horizontal posts

Working hard

I feel like we're living in a cow pasture with just the horizontal posts up

I finally got my crepe myrtle planted (it looks much better, now)

Grass is still dead

They got a bunch more panel boards put up yesterday, and they were working hard this morning when I left, so it shouldn't be too long!!

wedding pictures

2006-07-14T12:24:00.000-04:00

I interrupt this fence project to bring you wedding pictures ...

Note: we still do not have all of our pictures, so this is a very select few. I'm hoping to have many more to post within the next few days. Also, these were all scanned, so the quality is significantly lower than the actual pictures.

My JLo booty shot, lol:

Bride with attitude:

Da bling:

I haven't scanned in the "meeting for the first time" pictures, so I'll get those up sometime today.

This is one of my favorites so far

I was holding my hand out for the ring from Sydnei

Ken couldn't get the ring on, lol

Gorgeous shot of Becki

Love this shot of Chad grinning in the background

Me and my beautiful mom

Sydnei giving me marriage advice

We did it! (and we're so cold)

This picture is so us - I'm on my tippytoes, and Ken has a bunch of stuff in his pockets, lol

Like I said, we don't have all of the pictures back, yet. We're missing ALL of our family pictures, all the black and white pictures, all the pictures of Ken by himself (he's so sad), a lot of the ceremony pictures, a lot more pictures of just me and Ken before the ceremony, and all the pictures from the restaurant after the ceremony. So this is just a select few of the thousand or so pictures I already have.

FENCE - DAY ONE

2006-07-12T09:03:00.000-04:00

BEFORE

As you can see, it's all very wide open and completely unprivate.

DAY.ONE

Unfortunately, they can't use the panels that we bought, because they would have to take them apart and rebuild them to conform to the contours of the land - our backyard is uphill, so this would be a huge hassle. The good news is that we are going to use shadowbox instead. I am so.excited. about this, because I love the shadowbox fence, but it was $$ so we initially decided on the board-on-board. But now, we really don't have a choice unless we go with the plain panels, which neither of us like.

For instance, in this picture, the shadowbox fence is the one that's straight ahead while the plain panel fence is the one on the hill.

Shadowbox:

Ken wants to have the "step" look up the yard with straight across at the top of the yard:

I'm not sure how I feel about that, but I think this is one instance where I better just keep my mouth shut and let the men make all the decisions.

Fourth of July

2006-07-06T07:38:00.000-04:00

We had a great July 4th in Georgia. I didn't take any pictures while we were down there, but the girls enjoyed the ride down in the new "mommy mobile."

As Sydnei said, "She got a BIG tongue, Kiki."

more yardwork

2006-07-02T20:37:00.000-04:00

We got a lot of yard stuff done this weekend.

We bought our fence! We're having it installed this week, and we are so excited.

We planted 2 butterfly bushes and 2 lavender starflowers in the back.

And then we put a retaining wall up in the front and re-mulched everything.
We need more stones and more mulch, so please forgive the uncompleted look.

(As a reminder - here's the front right after we planted everything)

We also got a crepe myrtle tree that we'll plant once we get the fence up.

My gardenia plant is looking really really good ...

... and I have my first bloom! I was so excited to see|smell it.

So here's an overall view of our little backyard haven.

published picture

2006-06-29T08:35:00.000-04:00

Remember this post? Well, it looks like it's really going to happen!

Hi Keli,

Sorry for the delay. We are tying up loose ends and are in the midst of submitting to the Ministry for its final approval.

We are wondering how you would like us to credit you in the Acknowledgements Page? We would send you a .pdf of how your image is being used if you'd like.

Please get back to us asap.

Thank You & Best Regards,

Nur Hayati Binte Jumain
Educational Publishing
Marshall Cavendish International (Singapore) Private Limited
1 New Industrial Road, Times Centre
Singapore 536196
Tel : (65) 62139533
Fax : (65) 64875913
URL : www.marshallcavendish.com

2006-06-27T10:08:00.000-04:00

Ken and I ran the Greenville Candlelight 5K this past Saturday night, and what a fun evening it was. Mom + Daddy + Mema + Popee came to see us run, and we had such a good time together.

Mema emailed me some of her pictures, so here we are at registration ...

And right before the race.

I'm pretty sure Mom got some of us while we were running, so I'll put those out here whenever she gets a chance to have them developed.

Ken's knees were hurting from the previous weekend's marathon, so he agreed to run it with me. We were aiming for 8:30 miles but, sadly, we finished up at 28:38. The hills were a little tough and the last mile was all uphill. Needless to say, I wasn't prepared for that.

I'm not sure when our next 5K is, but my goal is 27:00 for the Midnight Flight this year.

wake-up call

2006-06-21T15:21:00.000-04:00

How would you like to see this on your way to work every morning?

I do.

A Cartoon Network spokesperson confirmed that these billboards, along with others, including "I'm a Hot Toe Picker" on Wade Hampton and "Clowns Hate Tangelos" on South Pleasantburg are in-house teaser ads that will promote a new summer programming announcment in a few weeks. All three billboards are clearly references to Cartoon Network shows "Foster's Home for Imaginary Friends" and "The Grim Adventures of Billy and Mandy."

Source: UpstateLink.com

good choice

2006-06-20T08:36:00.000-04:00

Hyundai Tucson Earns Highest Initial Quality Ranking in its Segment

J.D. Power and Associates announced today that Hyundai is the highest ranked non-premium nameplate in the 2006 Initial Quality StudySM (IQS) and is ranked third among all nameplates. Hyundai owners had fewer problems with their vehicles than any other non-premium car or truck brand.

In addition to Hyundai's strong overall showing, the Hyundai Tucson earned the trophy for the highest initial quality in the compact multi-activity vehicle (MAV) segment.

Hyundai ranks among the top three nameplates in the study for the first time in the history of IQS, according to the the 2006 Initial Quality Study issued by J.D. Power and Associates. Highlights include a top ranking for the Hyundai Tucson in the compact MAV segment, and top three segment performances for the redesigned Sonata and all-new Azera, as well as the Elantra and Tiburon.

The IQS study measures 217 attributes, including the overall driving experience, engine and transmission, and a broad range of defect and design problems reported by vehicle owners. Hyundai has been steadily improving its non-premium nameplate ranking, ranking third in 2005, up from fourth the previous year.

Read the rest of the article here.

they love me! they really love me!

2006-06-14T09:20:00.000-04:00

I came into work this morning to find this email waiting for me.

Hi,

We are interested to use your image of the effects of acid rain in our Chemistry books. We would therefore like to seek your permission to use the image.

We would appreciate very much if you could contact us at nurhayati@sg.marshallcavendish.com or simply reply to this mail.

Thank you & Best Regards,
Nur Hayati Jumain
Educational Publishing
Marshall Cavendish International (Singapore) Pte Ltd
URL : www.marshallcavendish.com
Email : nurhayati@sg.marshallcavendish.com

I checked the website, and it's a legit organization from what I can tell. I can't even believe it! I'm going to be a published photographer!!

I emailed him back and told him that I would be honored to have it used and that I would like a little more information on the project. (aka, will my name be used and can I buy the book? hee!)

I miss New Mexico.

2006-06-13T10:22:00.000-04:00

As I'm sitting here at work, I can't help but miss our amazing honeymoon spot. So ... here are some of my favorite honeymoon pictures. Hope you don't mind seeing them twice.

From downtown Santa Fe:

From Loretto Chapel:

From our day trip to the Rio Grande Gorge and the deserted Taos Ski Valley:

Just noticed the guy fishing in the middle of the river:

Man, what an awesome trip.

funny pictures

2006-06-12T17:07:00.000-04:00

Ken is going to kill me for posting these, but I thought they were too funny.

I was working late the other night and came into the bedroom to find this:

At least Mollie was where she was supposed to be:

To answer your question - yes, I had to sleep with Mollie in the pen. ;)

And just in case you missed it in the last post ...

HONEYMOON PICTURES ARE POSTED!!

Still waiting on our professional wedding pictures,

but they keep adding events, so hopefully, ours will be up soon.

another one?

2006-06-11T09:48:00.000-04:00

Just because we don't have enough ... we went out yesterday and bought the new Mac mini computer. We've been thinking about getting a new Mac for a while since we've been working a lot on our wedding DVD and pictures, honeymoon pictures, and the four hundred pictures I take every night. And the size of the Mac mini is just unbelievable.

So, say hello to our you-don't-want-to-know-how-many-we-have computer.

Looks Small, Acts Huge
The Mac that redefined what you can expect from a compact, affordable computer does it again. Mac mini now features the revolutionary Intel Core processors, more expansion options, and a new way to command your digital life — all in the same amazingly compact package.

Up to 4x Faster
Powered by the Intel Core Solo or Intel Core Duo processor plus a whole new system architecture, the new Mac mini delivers up to 4x the speed of the previous model. (2)

Music, Photos, Movies, Blogs
With the included iLife ’06, Mac mini makes it easy to organize, edit, and enhance your digital creations. With a Combo drive, you can burn your own CDs and play DVDs, and a SuperDrive lets you play and burn both CDs and DVDs.

Put on a Show
Use the Front Row interface and Apple Remote to browse through all the music, photos and movies on your Mac mini — from the couch across the room. In addition, Bonjour sharing now makes it possible to access shared music, photos and video playlists from other computers on your network.

BYODKM
At just 6.5 inches square and 2 inches tall, you can put Mac mini almost anywhere. And it’s easy to upgrade from an older system or set it up side-by-side with another computer. Just BYODKM - bring your own display, keyboard, and mouse.

Built-in Wireless
Bluetooth 2.0+EDR offers fast connections to peripherals such as cell phones, mice and keyboards, PDAs, and more. AirPort Extreme lets you connect Mac mini to any industry-standard, 802.11g-compatible wireless network.

More Expandable than Ever
Perfect for all your digital devices, Mac mini is now more expandable than ever, featuring four USB 2.0 ports, a FireWire port, and Gigabit Ethernet, as well as digital optical and analog audio in/out. It also supports up to 2GB of memory.

I used it today to create a new website with all of our honeymoon pictures -- click here to see it.

In other news, Penny is doing wonderful. She burrows all the way in the sand and stays all day long and then comes out at night. She's a cute little thing. Her and Cash seem to be getting along just fine - they pretty much keep to themselves most of the time. I finally got the tank regulated with the temp and humidity, and they seem happy. All is well in Hermit Crab Land.

I've got crabs! Again!!

2006-06-08T22:59:00.000-04:00

I took stinky June back to Petsmart to get a new crab and I really took my time to find one that's very active. I lucked out, because I brought home a beautiful new crab who is bee-bopping all over the tank -- even climbed up into the hammock, which Cash hasn't braved, yet.

Say hello to ...

♥ P E N N Y ♥

Yes, she has mirrors on her shell! How cute is that!?!

I only got one picture of her, because I don't want to freak her out with the camera flash. I'm trying to take it as easy as I can on her for the first few days. I also opened the lid a bit to keep the heat and humidity down since that may have been the cause of June's untimely death. She seems to be enjoying her new digs, though.

I also stopped by Lowe's and got a big bag of play sand so that they would have deeper sand in which to burrow. Cash has never molted, so he should be doing that soon.

Well, I better run. I've got more pics and videos to post, but I'll do that sometime tomorrow.

goodbye ... again

2006-06-08T09:52:00.000-04:00

Don't get too attached to June - she's dead.

My luck with crabs? Not so good.

June in June

2006-06-06T22:08:00.000-04:00

After reading everything I did wrong in a crab blog (yes, there's a crab blog out there - how funny is that?), I decided that it was time to keep Cash from dying. I also ended up getting a new crab as a companion.

Introducing ... June

Isn't she a cutie?

I went after work and spent way too much money getting a new habitat for Cash and June.
(Now, I kind of wish I had named the other one Johnny)

What I bought:
10-gallon tank and lid from Walmart ($16 vs $40 at Petsmart)
Drinking water conditioner
Salt water conditioner
New climbing stick
Reptile hammock
2 bigger and better water bowls (one for drinking water and one for salt water)
New sponge for the drinking water bowl (adds humidity)
Digital Thermo-Hygrometer to monitor temperature and humidity
Baby food (bananas/apples and carrots)

I bought an under-tank heater, but I don't think I'll need it until winter, so I'll probably take it back for now.

I also ordered a dozen paw print shells from Shell Horizons for $6.

June is already too big for her shell, so I need to give her lots of shells to choose from.

I went to get some play sand from Lowe's, but they were out, so I'll have to go to Home Depot tomorrow.

Anyway, won't you come take a tour of their new home?

(That's baby food in the orange dish -- Cash loved it! Haven't seen much movement from June, yet - it will probably take her a couple of weeks to get acclimated to her new surroundings)

The humidity and temp before (humidity is WAY too low)

And after I Saran Wrapped the lid (perfect)

More pics of June

Cash enjoying his new digs -- he is all over the place right now!

I checked the humidity and temp on the cage at Petsmart, and I was so disappointed. And of course, I wanted to buy every one of them, but ... Ken would kill me. If I get this thing figured out, then I'll get a couple more.

she lived a good life

2006-06-05T09:23:00.000-04:00

R.I.P. Henrietta

You were a good crab.

before and after

2006-05-31T19:48:00.000-04:00

Master Bath

Before

After

Fireplace | Mantle

Before

After

(We are going to replace the picture with a mirror)

Upstairs Hallway

Before

After

Front Yard

Before

After

Memorial Day Weekend

2006-05-30T10:56:00.000-04:00

We had another busy weekend.

I had the day off Friday, so I finally went and got my name changed at the SSA office. I was surprised when I only had to wait about 40 minutes. I'm all official now. I had planned to go to the DMV to get my license changed but I was starving, so I went home and waited for the fence guy to come to give us a quote. He quoted us a bit higher than we thought, so we got the name of a local fence company off of one of our neighbor's fences. We'll call them sometime this week and then go from there.

On Saturday, we went shopping at Lowe's and got 2 new outdoor plants, 2 indoor plants, and 8 bales of pinestraw. I planted all of the indoor and outdoor plants in various containers, planted my gardenia next to the back door, watered everything, and put down pinestraw around all of my new plants while Ken mowed the grass and sprayed the whole yard with weed killer.

Then, we gave all of the girls a bath, which is a huge job in and of itself.

We came inside, and I Swiffer'd the downstairs and dusted while Ken vacuumed the carpet. Then, he steam cleaned the living room, the front room, and our bedroom while I vaccumed the stairs and all the rooms upstairs.

I hung up about 20 pictures all around the house, after using the studfinder, which Ken couldn't use since it kept going off. Hahahaha.

I cleaned all of the bathrooms and then we moved the white cabinet that was in the downstairs bathroom into the master bath next to my sink.

I also treated the dining room table, and it looks much better. There are a bunch of nicks in the wood, so I've got to figure out how to fix those -- probably around the same time I have all of the chairs recovered.

We finished the rest of the yardwork yesterday. Unfortunately, the weed killer didn't seem to work, so we might have to call a lawn care company to come out and take care of our weeds, as well. Boy, it never ends.

I'm getting so spoiled. I had a 4-day weekend, and now I have 3 days of work and then a 3-day weekend. Can't beat that.

Speaking of spoiled, here are some recent pics of our girls (oldest to youngest) ...

Mollie

Jessie (waiting by the front door, as usual)

Macey

One of Ken's friends asked him when we're going to have kids, and we were like, "Kids? We already have three!"

And you can definitely tell that we haven't been married that long because I actually remembered yesterday that we had been married for a month. Give me a few more months, and I'll be like "April when? What day? How many months?"

I got a new car!!

2006-05-22T09:17:00.000-04:00

As many of you know, I've been wanting a small SUV for quite some time, and since I just sold my Mazda Protege, now seemed like the right time. After much deliberation and many miles of traveling around the upstate, I finally found the perfect car for me.

2006 Hyundai Tucson Limited

And since I haven't had a chance to get any, here are some website pictures of the inside.

So there she is. I absolutely love her!