Florida Fay

Students in Jax public schools were back for only 2 days, when they announced schools would be closed today & tomorrow due to Tropical Storm Fay. So, I took advantage of the day off today and slept until 2 in the afternoon! Felt like a teenager again!! It’s been raining all day, off and on. I took all of these images through our windows.

 

Here’s an image of our back yard during a brief lull.

 

 

It’s a good day to be a duck…

 

 

Ryley’s little pool shows that we’ve already gotten a few inches of rain. 

  I’ll keep you posted as long as we have power! Please say a prayer for Florida & it’s residents

Checkin’ in!

Just a quick note to say hello.  I have LOTS of blogging to catch up on! I was in NY for 3 weeks and only managed to write twice while there.

Teachers here in Jax started back to work this past Monday, August 11th. My plan was to fly back early that morning and be at work before lunch, so I could enjoy the last day of my H.S. reunion on the 10th without having to rush off to the airport afterwards. My flight was cancelled (US Air) and it took me until Tuesday afternoon to get back -  I plan to share the whole ordeal soon. I hightly doubt I’ll fly US Air again.

 

In the meantime, here’s some pix from my trip… (photos are taken with a Canon Power Shot pocket camera).

 

Here’s some of my fam…. Dad, Ryley, me, ‘little’ brother Brandon, brother-in-law Wiley, Ryley’s cousin Ethan, and my sister Jacki.  Ethan will have a baby brother or sister in the spring! Is it my imagination, or does Ryley actually resemble me a tiny bit in this photo?

Sorry girls, Brandon’s married. Ashley just finished basic training for the National Guard and is now at school in Georgia. 

 

 

It’s my tradition to visit my home town’s Tastey Treat ice cream stand. Ryley enjoyed a chocolate custard with chocolate sprinkles on a sugar cone with me.  It’s a MUST HAVE every time I go home

 

Me & Ryley sitting at a Tastey Treat picnic table.  She still looks like her daddy spit her out himself! She’s got my eyebrows, that’s about it.

 

I really have to get to bed. The first day for students is tomorrow!!! Can’t wait to see how it goes! I love the first day of school. Everything’s new, exciting, and the kids are on their best behavior

Love & blessings,

2nd birthdays

Ryley & her cousin Ethan are 8 weeks apart in age, so this summer we thought it would be fun to make them a cake! 

 

I’m definitely NOT Martha Stewart, but had fun anyway…

 

Grandpa (my dad) holding his grandkids

 

blowing out her candle…

 

 

Ryley won’t look at the camera & of course Ethan thinks it’s hilarious

 

Uncle Wiley got the kids their first Cabbage Patch kids! They lick their ice cream cones (magnets in cone & tongue), get sprinkles on their faces when the cone is dipped in ice cold water, then the sprinkles disappear when wiped off with a warm cloth… really neat!

 It’s the 25th anniversary of Cabbage Patch kids….THAT makes me feel old!

 

 

 

 

My favorite image of my adorable nephew Ethan when I caught him playing in the sheer curtains.

 ISN’T HE PRECIOUS!!??

 Love & Blessings,

 

“poop, Mommy”

You can tell from the title, this is a good one. Feel free to laugh!!

So, we made it onto the plane going from Jax to Atlanta… me, Ryley, a bulky stroller, & 2 heavy carry on bags. Got the visual?

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I was all excited, because this time I know it will be ‘easy’ to keep Ryley entertained… I brought a mini-DVD player & 3 new DVDs to hold her interest.  Turned out I had it switched to ‘on’ while charging, so by the time we got on the plane, it had lost it’s charge…. & the books were in the overhead compartment. Ever try to entertain a toddler with a Sky Mall magazine?  For your sake, I hope not.  Luckily the lady sitting next to us had children and grandchildren, so she didn’t mind Ryley trying to feed her pretzels.

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I found an outlet for the DVD player in the Atlanta airport, so Ryley was able to watch some Blues Clues during our layover… unfortunately it wasn’t long enough to charge the battery.

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Then we were sitting on the 2nd plane waiting for take off. THIS TIME I was savvy enough to get her books & Elmo out before hoisting the 2 heavy bags over my head into the compartment. There was a delay of course, so everyone on the plane was getting anxious to take off. . . . .

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Then I smelled something…and Ryley said “Poop, Momma”.  She was wearing a onsie (Jerry had dressed her) so I couldn’t peek. But the smell compelled me to take action. Of course, we were next to the window and had to crawl over 2 ladies, AND get a diaper out of the overhead with the entire plane watching (we were at the very front of coach). Went into the potty at the front of 1st class… and there was no changing table. I’m thinking how on earth am I going to do THIS? Turned out to be a false alarm…just gas, but I didn’t confess that to the ladies as we crawled back over them.

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Then, not 5 minutes later, she did it for REAL and it stunk to high heaven. Notice I said I got out A diaper before? Yes, I had only gotten one, so I had to go through all that again (did I mention the bags were heavy!?!?). This time I got 4 out. The changing table was in the bathroom at the very back of the plane, so Ryley waved & said ‘hello’ to all the people as we walked by.

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When we got back to our seat, Ryley’s milk had spilled all in our seat…. but I had 3 diapers in my hand! I didn’t dare use more than one though, just in case she had another blow out. So, I put one down & hoped it would soak it up, but I still had a wet butt when we got to Buffalo.  At that point I could care less that it looked like I wet my pants!

 

It’s really nice to be here with my family! It was all worth it :o)

Here’s Ethan & Ryley today playing in a box… unsuspecting the camera…

 

love 

Fabulous new Hartz awareness site!

Check it out!  http://www.HartzKills.org

Also read their comment to my blog on June 30, 2008 about Iggy dying after I used Hartz flea & tic drops on her…

HartzKills.org
http://hartzkills.org

Heidi — I am so sorry to hear about what happened to you and your cat.

The fact that Hartz is still in business after killing people’s pets for so many years is a testament to the inability (and unwillingness) of the EPA to do its job. And Hartz has stepped up their advertising efforts recently, no doubt to take advantage of people’s financial vulnerabilities in this terrible economy. There are banner ads all over the Internet, full-page ads in magazines, and now there are TV commercials:
http://youtube.com/watch?v=s1aagjTJyVc
http://youtube.com/watch?v=jOxfzN8g6PY
Go there and post text comments warning people who see these videos against using this poison!

Yesterday, I launched HartzKills.org. I’ll be adding stats and figures as soon as I get them, but according to this article, there have been 33,000 consumer complaints about Hartz to the EPA since 2000.

I hope you’ll add HartzKills.org to your list of links, and thank you for helping to spread the word and save lives.

From URGENT- DO NOT USE HARTZ PRODUCTS!!!, 2008/07/24 at 11:06 PM

Hello From NY

Ryley and I made it safely to NY yesterday! We’re visiting my family and my 20 year *ouch* h.s. reunion is in a couple weeks.

I have a funny story from our flight that I’ll share next time I write. I brought my hard drive with me, so I’m hoping to catch up on some blogging while I’m here.

Jerry surprised me and came home from Iowa a couple days before we left. He didn’t tell me he was on the road. Thank you for all your prayers for his safety and his mom’s recovery. She’s doing a bit better!!! They were able to put her on water tablets when her kidneys improved, which is helping to reduce her fluid build up. She’s still in a lot of pain, but is a fighter, and the prayers are helping.

Love & blessings,

Little Firecracker

July 12th ALREADY!!??? Who pushed the hyper drive button!?

Jerry & I want to thank everyone for your prayers while his mom (Karen Ecklor) is in the hospital. She was moved to Iowa City this past week, and the doctors are determining the next steps, while family anxiously waits & prays.

Since the 4th of July was Karen’s birthday, Ryley and I created some special photos to help brighten her spirits…

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

In the photos below, Ryley was talking to her daddy on the phone, saying the typical toddler “No Daddy!”  She says that a lot recently, because she wants to say, sing, & do everything herself.  She cracks me up!  We’ve noticed her putting together 3 words pretty frequently now, so she’s able to give us a more accurate piece of her mind!!! She isn’t even 2 years old yet - are we in for it?  

 

The sheepish look is because she is about to close the phone, knowing that will hang up on her Daddy!

  

THIS  is my FAVORITE!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 Thanks Again!

Love & Blessings,

Online Lemonade Stand for Pediatric Cancer

Happy Fourth of July!

I received this directly from a good friend who is raising money to help fight pediatric cancer.  This subject is near to my heart, because I photographed a 19 year old girl named Erin during the final days of her life when I took a week long workshop about photojournalism called “Truth With A Camera” at the Cummer Museum in Norfolk, Virginia in association with Virginian Pilot newspaper photographers.  Ironically, earlier today I was just thinking about her and the powerful images I had taken during that time. I was thinking about how that experience will help me as an Affiliate Photographer for Now I Lay Me Down To Sleep (www.nilmdts.org).  Then this evening, I received this email from my friends’ (Becky & Andy Conti) children Peyton and Zachary, so I had to pass it along. Children raising money to help other children…  What a WONDERFUL THING TO DO!!! The address below in green is their address. I’ve been there. Please continue reading. Love & Blessings,

 

 

Hi there, 

Do you want to be part of a Miracle and help us “put the squeeze” on pediatric cancer in centralVirginia? We are hosting an Online LemonAid Stand benefiting Children’s Miracle Network-Richmond and we are inviting you to “purchase” a cup of LemonAid. Each dollar will be donated to your local Children’s Miracle Network hospital in an effort to help treat children with pediatric cancer.  Our goal is to raise funds by asking family and friends to make a secure online donation.  So we ask, do you want to be part of a Miracle? 

We will have a lemonade stand at our house (7125 Lighthouse Place,Mechanicsville, VA) on Friday, July 18 from 4:00 to 6:00 pm.  Please stop by and get a glass of lemonade. 

If you can’t come by on July 18th, you can help support us by making a secure online donation using your credit card. Click on the link below: 

http://my.e2rm.com/personalPage.aspx?SID=1874640 

Vist the Children’s Miracle Network - Richmond site:

www.childrensmiraclenetwork.net 

Fondly,

Peyton and Zachary Conti 

For more information on how YOU can host an Online LemonAid Stand, please visit www.childrensmiraclenetwork.net today! 

Thanks for your support!

 

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If you are having trouble viewing the above web address, copy & paste the entire URL into the address bar of your browser.

Procrastination: the mother of invention. Better yet ~ MOTHERHOOD: the mother of invention!

Thought I’d share this quick card idea I came up with.

Not sure which caused it…procrastination, or that I’m a MOM and have so much on my mind that I kept forgetting to buy cards…. but I was in a bind last week and needed cards quick. So I got some card stock, water paints, and my daughter Ryley (22 months old). While she painted random scribbles on simple white card stock, I got on the computer and printed simple birthday messages on separate card stock. Then I tore the bottom edge off the bottom of the card covers using a ruler as a guide. By the time I cleaned water paint off the table, floor, and Ryley’s hands/face/arms, her artwork was almost dry. Then I cut pieces and used doubled sided tape to fasten them to the cards. On the bottom card below, I used the same piece of art but cut a small strip out to create interest.  You could also tear the artwork into pieces rather than cutting it! 

 

 

 

 

VOILA!

 

Water paints: 99 cents

Card stock: about 25 cents

Receiving homemade cards with handmade artwork from your 22 month old granddaughter, niece, cousin: PRICELESS!

URGENT- DO NOT USE HARTZ PRODUCTS!!!

In my last post, I showed photos of my recently deceased kitty Iggy. Her death had been bothering me for a couple days, because it just didn’t make sense. (I had spared you all the horrible details of her excruciating death.)  So, I researched kidney and liver failure in cats online, but that didn’t satisfy me. Since I had put Hartz Ultra Guard flea & tic drops on her 2 days before, and she acted like she had been poisoned when she died, I googled “Hartz”.  I am devastated and APPALLED at what I found. There are actually websites for victims of Hartz products!!!  PLEASE help me spread the word to all your animal owning friends, relatives, co-workers or even everyone in your email address book! I usually use ADVANTAGE for my cats, but since times are tight, I made the fatal decision while in Walmart the other day, to save a little money by buying Hartz Ultra Guard flea & tic drops.  You can read my complete story and MANY others at www.hartzvictims.org (I signed my name, but it was posted as anonymous). 

With Love, Heidi