Savannah Homes & Churches

Savannah Food

Savannah

Savannah Slideshow

I had a FABULOUS time in Savannah with my mom, sister and the Edwards' ladies. It started off rocky - our flight was to leave Houston at 6am Friday morning. Sarah's phone rang at 3am while I was in the shower saying that our flight had been cancelled. After about an hour of dealing with Delta, she finally got us rebooked on a Continental flight, but we wouldn't be leaving until about noon. Our Friday plans in Savannah were shot. After being tagged as "special" at the airport, we got the pat-down and finally got to board the plane. We finally got to Savannah around 7pm sometime. Exhausted - but excited - we checked into our hotel and went out to find something to eat. We had some "traditional" Savannah food - fried green tomatoes, shrimp and grits, crab chowder and SWEET tea. Man, when they say "sweet" tea - they really mean it there. Being the Texas girl that I am, I thought I could handle it, but it was practically syrup in some places. Saturday was filled with walking, eating, looking at homes and more eating. We still didn't make it in to Paula Deen's restaurant, but we found a super sweet girl at lunch that gave us some "insider" info. Apparently, first dibs on reservations go to the locals, so you just need to find a phone number to use and call in your table. Easy peasy. We did get to eat dinner at an AMAZING restaurant Saturday night - the Old Pink House. Delicious. On Sunday, we had breakfast and strolled down River Street before heading to Paula Deen's. I must say that was the best fried chicken ever. Everything else was pretty dang good, too.

I could go on and on boring you with all of the details of our trip. However, what I found most charming about Savannah was the scenery, so I'll let the slideshow do the talking for me.

Thanks, Mrs. Edwards, for the idea. Thanks, Sarah, for the great planning. Thanks, twins, for the wonderful company. And BIG thanks, Mom, for making the trip possible. I had a great time!

I'm back...

We made it home (finally) late Saturday afternoon. Unfortunately, we all came home with a nasty cold, so things have been moving very slow around here. I have a lot of stuff to catch up on - not to mention trick-or-treating tonight. Should be interesting...Chris has to work late so I'll be going out with the boys alone. Wish me luck. I'm working on my 30-in-30 posts to catch up, but it may be Friday before I get it online. I also will have Savannah, pumpkin carving, cupcake making and traditional Halloween pics to share.

Georgia on my mind...

I'M SO EXCITED! As I type, Chris is on his way to meet his mom so she can watch the boys for the weekend and I'm about ready to finish up my packing! For what, you ask? I'm going to Savannah, Georgia with Mom, Sarah, Mrs. Edwards, Kimberly and Elizabeth! Me! On vacation! Without men or children! WOOOO HOOOO!!! I'll probably eat enough wonderful food to gain back all of this weight I've been fighting to lose - yes, we are going to Paula Deen's restaurant! - but I hope all of the walking and the hotel fitness room will help to counteract all of the buttery goodness I'm bound to ingest. When we get back on Sunday, Chris is picking me up at the airport and then I have several days full of in-law fun. I'll have to double up on the "30 in 30" series when I return.

Just for fun, check out the cute luggage tags I made for all of us! They are thick chipboard and I coated each of them with Mod Podge to keep them from getting damaged. I had a blast making them, so if you want one, too, I'll start taking orders now. (And don't worry, the address side doesn't look exactly like that - I just blurred out personal info for all of those weird internet stalkers...just in case.)

30 Years in 30 Weeks - edition 7

My mom and Mrs. Edwards think I'm using my blog as "therapy". Well, sort-of, I guess. Not that I have any deeply-rooted problems that I need to get out, but I am documenting a lot of stuff that I don't want to forget. I mentioned before that I eventually want to get all of this into a scrapbook about me...I guess for my kids one day. It's also just pretty dang funny to go back and look at your childhood photos. I appreciate the additional comments that some of you (okay, basically just Jan) leave so that I can add those memories, as well.


So, this is a picture from my 6th birthday party with my cousins Nikki and Kelli. Notice the Cabbage Patch Kids theme. Those dolls were so "hot" back then. I guess they started the whole "must-have-gift" trend. My grandma bought all of us grandkids one for the previous Christmas. Oh, what the heck, I'll throw in that picture, too. Grandma worked at K-Mart in Humble and managed to score one for all of us. That was sweet. If she hadn't been an employee, I don't know how we would've gotten those things. (Side note - my grandma's birthday was this past Sunday...I still miss her so much! What an awesome woman.) Even though my Aunt Care was like 20 years old, I remember how extremely excited she was to get one, too! My Cabbage Patch Kid's name was Amanda. When they came out with the 25th anniversary doll, it looked exactly like her - same outfit and everything. One time, our house in Porter got broken into and I distinctly remember being afraid that my Cabbage Patch dolls would be gone. Guess that's not really what the thieves were looking for...

As promised, here's our Christmas picture with the Cabbage Patch dolls:

Nice dress, huh? I must say, looking at me at this age, I can definitely see where Caleb looks like me....minus the long hair, frilly dress and white stockings.

A good actor...

Cole has become quite the mischevious little monster these days. He is the total opposite of his older brother, "Careful Caleb" - as he has referred to himself before. I know some of you won't believe it, but Cole has started throwing tantrums when he doesn't get his way. I know, I know...most of you see this ever-happy child, full of giggles and smiles. He knows how to put on an act! Last week, I had to cut my errands short twice because he started having a public meltdown. He just doesn't understand that you can't stand up in your car seat or in the grocery store cart. Yesterday was especially fun. He fell off the couch three times (and has a rug burn on his forehead to prove it), tried to reprogram the computer, covered himself in spaghetti sauce (okay, so *I* fed him that....knew it would happen) and discovered how to climb onto the dining room table. Fun times. A girl can't even go to the bathroom these days! Here are some pictures of the fun...notice how the spaghetti sauce really makes his blue eyes "pop".

(Quit talking about my hideous office wallpaper!)

Hello, old friend!

Well, it's been a long time since I got a chance to sit down and scrapbook. Today, I decided to skip my workout and play with my craft goodies instead. Yay. Although, I'll probably regret it next time I get on the scales. Oh well.



I did this for a "scraplift challenge" on the BBC scrapbooking board. Basically, someone posts a layout and the challenge is to copy it and make it your own. I really like how this turned out! And, in case you are confused as to which child this is, it's Cole.

I also made this card earlier in the week for Nancy. Just a little token of thanks for helping me last Saturday. I stamped the butterfly twice, cut one image out and layered it on top of the other for the 3-D effect. My white ink on the sentiment smudged a little, but I had already attached everything. :0(

30 Years in 30 Weeks - edition 6

1983 brought a lot of changes in my life. I turned 5, Mom got remarried and I started Kindergarten.


So, do you recognize that man in this picture? It's Ben!!! With brown hair!!! This was the summer right after Mom and Ben got married. I must admit, at the time I probably wasn't too happy about it. I mean - I was 5. I remember being VERY jealous...leaning up in between the front seats of that old blue Toyota Corolla, crying on my Grandma's lap during their wedding...you name it. Anyway, I'm pretty sure this is Palo Duro Canyon. If not, it's definitely somewhere in West Texas or New Mexico. Our family vacations almost always ended up going that direction. Loooonnnngggg rides in the car.


That fall, I started Kindergarten at Humble Elementary. I only went for half a day - in the afternoons. I was upset that my friend, Stacey, was in the morning class. The remainder of my day was spent at Children's Choice. The smell of A&D diaper ointment and Lysol always brings back memories of that place. Mrs. Williamson and Ms. Debo were my teachers at Humble Elementary. Both were very nice. Mrs. Williamson had long "Farrah Fawcett" blond hair and wore a lot of make-up. Ms. Debo was tall and skinny with kinky-curly hair. Ever read that book, "Miss Nelson is Missing!"? The characters always make me think of Mrs. Williamson and Ms. Debo. But, unlike that mean old substitute teacher, Ms. Debo was VERY nice...and didn't look witch-like at all.


My kindergarten classroom was VERY big (or it seemed so at the time). I remember a large wall of windows at the back of the room with big hands attached to it - a "lemon yellow" hand for left and red one for right. Lots of play centers. My favorite shirt to wear was a Smurf t-shirt. It had a Smurf and a rainbow screen-printed on the front and turquoise-blue trim around the neck and sleeves. When the class all sat down together, the same two boys always sat on either side of me - brown-haired David and blond-haired David. I guess they were my Kindergarten boyfriends. I actually ended up going to the same college as brown-haired David. After school, I went back to Children's Choice and, usually, Ben picked me up. At least once a week we either went to get ice cream or bought Mom some flowers. I was pretty bored in Kindergarten. If you ask my mom, she'll inevitably tell you the story about my "end of year test" where I was asked to count to 20. I counted to 100 before Ms. Debo said, "Okay, Kristi, you can stop."

My favorite (and least favorite) things...

MY FAVORITE THINGS:
1. Nancy.
My garage sale was Saturday. Even though I woke up to rain, I held on to hope and went ahead and set up an hour late when the skies cleared. Things were looking good. Nancy came over after she got off of work at noon and even brought me the extra dollar bills I called and asked her for. She was here for about 30 minutes before the sky literally opened up. I don't know what I would have done if she wasn't here to help me out. I think we managed to save most of my stuff, but to say that we were soaked afterwards would be a gross understatement. Unfortunately, she's about half the size of me, so I had to send her home in the smallest t-shirt I could find and a towel. I'm still trying to dry everything out and pack it away.
2. Living close to "home".
I love that I live close enough to Mom and Ben that weekend trips can be "quick". Mom came over to pick up the boys Friday after she got off of work and kept them while I attempted to have the garage sale. I went and picked them up yesterday. Love that.
3. My husband.
Even though he had to work Saturday, he still helped me out as much as he could. He went in a little late Saturday morning to help me set up. Yesterday, he helped me get things cleaned up and organized in the garage. He even let me sell his PlayStation 2 (of course, that means a new game system is on the "wish list" now).
4. My washer and dryer.
Yep. Those two are getting a lot of love recently. I think that goes without explanation.
5. Papa John's Roma Meats pizza.
Yeah, I know that pizza isn't exactly in the "healthy" category, but I was just much too tired to even think about cooking dinner Saturday night. Chris and I decided to try this new specialty pizza. YUM. Spicy Italian Sausage, Italian Salami, fresh Roma tomatoes and Italian herbs sprinkled on top. Probably gained 5 pounds back that night...

MY LEAST FAVORITE THINGS:
1. Rain.
Well, when it interrupts my plans. Not only did we have to frantically load everything back into the house, but my phone got wet. I had taken off my canvas apron (a tool belt) and set it down in my lawn chair shortly before the rain started. My cell phone was in the belt. I didn't think it got that wet, but evidently it did. It's showing some signs of life, but if it still isn't working tomorrow I will be praying to the Verizon gods that the insurance covers water damage. If you are trying to call me, this is why I'm not answering. Please be patient - your call is important and will be answered in the order it was received.
2. Kids growing up too fast.
Yes, I know it's inevitable. Losing two teeth at 4 years and 9 months was one thing, but Caleb seems to be aging by the day. He's starting to like the "ugly" toys - well, they are ugly in *my* eyes. However, the biggest blow came when we were watching a little tv the other day. "Thomas and Friends" came on. You know how much Caleb loooovvveeesss Thomas. Well, he looked at me and said, "Mom, can we change the channel? Thomas is boooorrring." I almost cried. He also wants to take the Thomas sheets off of his bed and get rid of the decorations in his room. I've been informed that he wants a "superheroes" room. One glimmer of hope - he played trains all weekend at Nana and Pop's house.

Need some prayers...

Chris' store manager has accepted a position at another store. One week left until he and the other Co-Manager are left alone. (Not that that's a problem - they can handle it) However, we had a pretty lengthy discussion last night about the direction he wants to go from here. Evidently, several people he works with have come to him and asked him to apply for the now-open Store Manager position. He isn't sure what he wants to do, so I'm just going to pray about it and hope that some of you will keep us in your prayers, too.

Birthday Cards

Haven't been doing too much in the "crafty" department lately. I'm getting a little obsessed with this garage sale and "decluttering" my house. I know what you're thinking - Kristi? Decluttering? Yes, it's me typing this. No, I haven't lost my mind. Anyway, I really liked how these cards turned out that I made last month. I've had to wait until the birthdays passed before I could post them, though. Sorry about the sorry lighting. Made these for some of my mom's dearest friends...

30 Years in 30 Weeks - edition 5

Are y'all tired of me yet? LOL

Okay, so here's the traditional Texas-native picture. This must be somewhere along the way to Huntsville on I-45. I remember one trip (may not have been this one) when I picked - gasp! - several bluebonnets and took them to Aunt Billie. I remember holding them wrapped in a damp paper napkin. Not sure why I remember that. Like Mom mentioned in her comment on last weeks edition, it's strange the things we remember and the things we don't. (Must mention that I was wrong last week - it was only 13 snips to trim my bangs. Thanks, Mom.) Seeing this picture reminds me that I STILL don't have a picture of Caleb or Cole in the bluebonnets. MUST do that next Spring! Can you believe what an awful mother I am???

I have some very vivid memories of this picture. Left to right: Me, Nikki, Kelli and Mandy. This pic was taken at the annual Christmas play we did for Children's Choice (the daycare I went to). I can remember being sooo excited because I got to be the "Lead Angel". Can't remember if that role meant I actually got to say anything or if it just meant that I was the angel with the halo, but I felt pretty proud of myself regardless.

The Tooth Fairy strikes again!

Well, after all of the excitement of the first tooth coming out, we had a repeat performance yesterday. We quickly discovered that Caleb's "matching" bottom tooth was loose as well. At about 6:45 last night, Caleb came running to tell us that his other tooth had come out while he was playing in his room. However, the proof that he brought me was a sunflower seed. We searched and searched until we finally found his tooth laying on the floor just under the bedskirt. The original tooth fairy was called away with an unruly child that didn't want to go to sleep last night, so her male counterpart filled in. He's more generous than the tooth fairy. She might have to reconsider her plans for a tropical vacation if this keeps up! LOL

PS - Caleb currently hates having his picture taken, so I have all sorts of eyes-half-closed, looking-at-something-else, or covering-my-entire-face pictures. This is the best picture of the set. He must get his dorkiness from Chris. And, no, his face isn't dirty in these pictures - that's a bruise that's finally going away.