h.varnon

a glimpse of island life

2012-02-11T20:39:00.000-05:00

an almost daily occurance

Christmas palm tree

Dozer

full moon over Tortola

checking out Trunk Bay

great snorkel spot

Welcome to our house

2011-11-26T21:02:00.000-05:00

Here's the official tour of our apartment.
Seriously, come visit us.

The journey thus far

2011-11-10T16:39:00.001-05:00

It's been an adventure getting this far. I'll start at the beginning:

Jeff arrived on island October 15th with plans to stay with a friend of our Grandad's, Marty (aka Party Marty). Within a few days, Jeff found jobs for himself and Kyle and an awesome apartment for the three of us. Kyle and I arrived on the 21st of October, after an unexpected night in San Juan, Puerto Rico. We were supposed to arrive on the 20th but our flight from Miami was delayed, therefore causing us (and about 20 others) to miss the connecting flight in San Juan. We were put on the next available flight, which departed at 10am the next morning. The airline put us up in a hotel for the night and gave us about $40 worth of food vouchers. Seeing as we weren't exactly sure where we were going to stay once we got to St Thomas, our delay was a surprise blessing from God :)

Jeff met us at the airport in the rental car and we headed straight to the ferry over to St John. Jeff found a used Jeep on craigslist and wanted to go take a look. We ended up not buying the Jeep but we did spend the day at Cinnamon Bay! Pretty good first day in the VI if you ask me.

Marty arranged for the three of us to stay at his friends Paul and Edythe's while we waited for our apartment to be ready. We spent the first ten days with them, learning our way around and getting used to driving on the left. We no longer have the rental car and are in the market for a ~~nice~~ working, used island car. It's interesting trying to get around without a car, not impossible though.

Safari taxi

Fortunately there is "public transportation" (of sorts) that will pick you up and drop you off pretty much wherever you need (and is cheap if you're a local). It is, however, quite a hike up and down the hill that we live on- especially when you're carrying multiple bags of groceries/cleaning supplies back up the hill (at least it's a good work out!) Speaking of the hill we live on, we are finally started to get settled in our apartment! Once we're all settled and everything is where it's supposed to be, I'll post some pictures. For now, here is one Jeff took of the whole house (we live in the apartment below the house):

visitors welcome!

It's a great place with a fantastic view of Pillsbury Sound (the body of water between St Thomas and St John). And it's only minutes away from Coki beach, not only the best place on the island to snorkel but also the location of Coki Beach Dive Club, of which Jeff and Kyle are employees. They started their jobs just two days after Kyle and I arrived. God is so good! As far as a job for me goes, I started one today! Praise the Lord!! I will be nannying for a family with two children 3-4 days a week. They are great kids. We're going to have a lot of fun :) I'm so thankful to have a job. Thanks to all who have been praying! Keep praying that we find a car at some point. That way we can pick up visitors at the airport ;)
I think that's it for now.

What I've been up to lately

2011-10-29T21:12:00.000-04:00

video by Kyle Tomey

In case you didn't know, Jeff, Kyle and I decided to move to the island of St. Thomas in the USVI. Come visit us anytime! The view isn't bad...

More photos to come :)

Have fun storming the castle!

2011-10-13T17:39:00.000-04:00

Reunion photo of (most of) the cast from my all-time favorite movie:

video platform video management video solutions video player

I might have to go watch the movie now...

Nice try, Monday

2011-09-26T17:00:00.000-04:00

Mr. Monday Morning tried to get the better of me this morning. I emphasize the word tried.
My goal was to leave my apartment by 8:30. The snooze button is a good friend of mine so I was running a little behind schedule. I had everything I needed to take with me for the day sitting by the door so I wouldn't forget anything as I rushed out the door. And rush out the door I did, locking it quickly behind me. Only to realize that I didn't grab my keys off the hook before I shut the door.

So there I was, standing at the top of the stairs, hands full of everything I needed except my keys. My first thought was, "what are the chances that the friendly Realtor whose office is downstairs might happen to have a key to my apartment?" I ran downstairs to find out... chances not good. I did find out, however, that my landlord would be arriving in about thirty minutes. So I gave him a call to let him know I'd be waiting for him.

I went back upstairs and sat down on the floor. I think the general reaction to this circumstance would be one of anger/frustration/annoyance/insert-negative-emotion-here. Thankfully, my reaction was none of those things. You see, my gracious heavenly Father knew that this morning I would hit the snooze button ~~two~~ ~~three~~ five times. He knew that because I am a selfish, lazy human being, I would not make time to spend with Him before I left for work this morning. He also knew that, because I would be rushing to get out the door, I would lock my keys in my apartment. But God also knew that I would have these thirty minutes. My Bible was in my purse on the floor next to me, not sitting on the couch in my locked apartment where it usually is. I had no where to go for thirty minutes.
God gave me those thirty minutes to spend with Him.
So that's what I did.
He's good at what He does.

Just another Monday morning

2011-09-19T10:48:00.000-04:00

Someone decided to Jackson Pollock my car last night. They could have at least picked a better color:

(Thanks, Dad, for helping me clean it off this morning!!)

...

2011-08-04T10:00:00.000-04:00

Lately, I've been thinking I might start blogging again.
Maybe.
We'll see.

Time to be creative

2010-05-19T14:44:00.000-04:00

The wall above my bed has looked like this since I moved in to my apartment back in September (minus the purse):

It took me until about 2 weeks ago to finally find the perfect artwork to hang above my bed. I got the idea out of Real Simple magazine and let me just say that I love it!

Check out the newest creative addition to my tiny apartment:

The clock hands and bird decals I bought at Target. Some of the frames I already had and some I found at Hobby Lobby( in the clearance section!). And the photos, well not only do they serve as numbers on a clock, but they are also memories:

12= 12 members of the GC volleyball team in Nicaragua

3= the candle from my 23rd birthday cake

5= gate number at the airport in Athens, Greece

7= the apartment building Jessie and I lived in

10= the back of a friend's shirt

I am really bad at blogging

2010-05-11T17:52:00.000-04:00

I think I've started at least 7 blogs in the past few months that I've never gotten around to finishing. And I have tons of things I'd like to blog about stored in my brain. I think the blame goes mostly to the fact that I don't have internet access at my apartment and partially to the fact that I'd rather be doing other things than sitting at the computer writing a blog.
I will get better.

Blogs to come:
The story of my new old bicycle
My new favorite clock
How plastic water bottles have taken over my living room
My new friend Flat Jeffy (I've intrigued you, haven't I Jeff)
...

it's a rainy day in the month of May

2010-05-03T11:21:00.000-04:00

If you've read Diane's blog, you're aware of the crazy rain we had here this past weekend. Yesterday, after it finally stopped raining, I went for a walk around downtown Franklin to check out the flood damage.

Here is just a glimpse of what I saw...

this is a yard, not a pond.

I found similar signs on the doors of most businesses downtown

that's not even the worst of the flooding around here. I just haven't been able to get out to see more. Right now there's only one way out of Franklin, so you can imagine the traffic nightmare. I decided not to spend my day sitting on Columbia Ave so currently I'm having breakfast at the Mercantile deli. Maybe I'll get out my mask, snorkel and fins later and swim to work?

Happy Earth Day!

2010-04-22T11:44:00.008-04:00

i love the whole world

check out more earth day love over at Diane's blog

where I'm hanging out...

2010-03-22T20:18:00.000-04:00

new toy

2010-03-03T17:08:00.000-05:00

career?

2010-02-27T12:18:00.000-05:00

As many of you know, I work at a church here in Franklin TN. What you may not know is what I do at a church here in Franklin TN. My official title is "Middle School Ministry Assistant"-whatever that means. Some people think I'm a middle school teacher, some people think I'm a secretary, some people think I'm a youth pastor. I think I'm none of those things but all of those things at the same time. I work 40 hrs/week, sometimes more. What do I do? Well, a lot of different things. For instance, right now I'm at a Girl's Ministry Conference at LifeWay in downtown Nashville. Two weekends ago I was a part of our church's Disciple Now weekend (which consisted of a weekend full of 240 students, 28 Bible Study leaders, one worship band, one speaker,countless volunteers, and not a lot of sleep). On a weekly basis I spend my time: planning events/mission trips/Bible studies, participating in events/mission trips/Bible studies, designing brochures/postcards/calendars/newsletters, preparing for Wednesday night worship and Sunday morning worship/Bible Study, figuring out how to best use our budget, keeping attendance records, hanging out with students, and trying my best to depend on Jesus for the strength I need to do all of those things.
That's what I do. It's crazy. And fun. And stressful at times. But it's also so rewarding.
If you want a glimpse of what I'm talking about, check out my other blog: Varnon Shmarnon.
Here I am, hard at work...

Thanks Di

2010-02-25T13:32:00.000-05:00

Thank you to my big sister Diane for this blogging award!

Here's how it works:

1. Thank the person who nominated you for this award.

2. Copy the award and place it on your blog.

3. Link to the person who nominated you for this award.

4. Share 7 interesting things about yourself.

5. Nominate 7 bloggers.

7 Things About Me:

1. I want to travel the world.

2. My best friend lives in South Korea

3. Most of my friends here in TN are between the ages of 11 and 15

click here to see what I mean

4. I'm the crazy aunt.

5. I love to reuse things to make new things.

6. I don't own a microwave

7. I love photography and would love to work for National Geographic

Since I'm not a huge blogg follower, I'm just going to nominate one fellow blog friend:

1. Jessie F

24

2010-02-16T18:40:00.000-05:00

A little over 2 weeks ago, I turned 24. My mom was in town so Diane, Mom, Javen, Liam and I went to Merridee's for breakfast. Mom and Diane brought me flowers, a balloon and petit fours (a childhood favorite of mine). They also gave me a new shower head filter (since Franklin water is full of chlorine). Strange birthday gift, I know, but I was excited about it!

My (not so) little brother gave me this movie (complete with a magically-appearing-food-when-it-rains umbrella):

Aunt Joy sent me a fun little birthday package. In it was:

a scarf made of recycled cotton, a recycled jam jar with a few buttons in it (to which I added all of my saved buttons), a card, and this photo:

Javen & Liam? Nope- its Diane and me! Family resemblences are crazy!

Now, you might be wondering why in the world a button jar is a good birthday gift. Well, for someone like me who likes to reuse everything, it's a great gift! Not only are random buttons good to have around in case you lose one from your favorite coat, they can also be used to make things like:

napkin rings!

Hooray for birthdays! Thanks to everyone for the gifts, texts and facebook messages. And a special thanks to my wonderful family members who sent me cards in the mail (even though some never made it). I love getting mail, especially cards and letters!

I love you all!

no longer Milton

2010-01-16T21:18:00.000-05:00

That's right folks, Milton's real name has been revealed!

Liam Robert McDaniel came into the world at 10:12am, on January 15.

8 pounds, 2 ounces and 22 inches long.

Check him out...

proud Dad

big brother

look at that hair!

Javen kept touching his face...

perfect.

He's here

2010-01-15T15:22:00.001-05:00

Liam Robert McDaniel
more photos to come...

Secrety craft

2009-12-26T17:10:00.003-05:00

Since my big sister said I had to, here are the photos of the shadow box glitter painting we made for my mom for Christmas.

And just because I have them...

Merry Christmas!

Milton!

2009-12-02T09:45:00.000-05:00

Erin and I threw Diane a little baby shower last Sunday in honor of baby Milton (that's what I call him since Diane and Jake won't tell anyone his name).

My favorite part of the shower was decorating onesies. I bought white onesies and puffy paint so everyone could make a onesie for little Milton.

I can't wait to see the little guy in these.

I am thankful for purple potatoes

2009-12-01T15:45:00.000-05:00

That's right, I said purple potatoes. Ever heard of them? They're pretty cool if ya ask me. Check it out:

Kendra came down from Greenville and spent the week with me. We had three Thanksgivings on Thursday... First was our own small meal of Tofurkey (it's a Gilmore Girls thing...)

Next we went over to one of my sweet friend's house for a "misfit Thanksgiving". We played Apples to Apples and had a great time. Unfortunately, I have no photos so you'll just have to imagine Kendra & I playing Apples to Apples with a bunch of random people.

Finally, we ended our day at the Teller's new house.

Diane, Jake and Javen were there as well. We all contributed to the delicious meal. I brought the green bean casserole and cranberry sauce, Kendra made the [purple] mashed potatoes, Diane made sweet potato-apple goodness and chicken noodle-something that Jake loves. Erin made hashbrown casserole, Paul made a strawberry-pretzle surprise. And of course we had turkey and pumpkin pie. It was a very colorful meal (as you can see above).

Brody and Javen enjoyed their Thanksgiving for sure. All that food. Could be their new favorite holiday.

i love the beach

2009-11-18T11:03:00.000-05:00

This past weekend I got to spend a relaxing day on the sunny east coast of Florida.

Diane, Jake, Javen and I flew down Thursday morning and spent the weekend with Granny, Grandad, Aunt Jerrie, Jeff, Dennis and Jen. We had a great time playing cards, eating lots of good food, playing tennis, more cards, more food, playing pool volleyball, even more cards, and chasing Javen around. Jeff and I went to the beach on Saturday. We built a sandcastle (which points to the ocean, in case you were wondering where it was), played a little volleyball and soaked up some sun.

These birds cracked me up. They would run really fast toward the ocean as the waves receded so they could find food in the sand, then run even faster from the crashing waves coming towards them. Their little legs moved so fast they looked like cartoons. I kept calling them cartoon birds, much to Jeff's dismay (I believe they are really some kind of sandpiper- according to bird-man Jeff).

I love fall

2009-11-04T16:52:00.000-05:00

especially in Maryland. These were taken back in October when I was home.
Enjoy...

Ocean City/Assateague

2009-10-19T14:39:00.070-04:00

When I was home two weeks ago, Jeff and I drove to the ocean. We visited Ocean City, MD and Assateague Island. I hadn't been to Ocean City in a long time. And I'd never been to Assateague.

So we went...

Tomorrow...

2009-09-30T15:16:00.005-04:00

...I am going home.

To do list:
Hug the momma
Apple Picking/Pumpkin Patch at Larriland
Maryland-Clemson football game
Rock climbing with Jeff
Catoctin Mountain visit
Unplanned adventures

Maryland here I come!

from ville to shining ville

2009-09-17T15:30:00.000-04:00

Last month I had the pleasure of taking my sister Kendra back to school. She flew into Nashville, hung out for the week, then we drove up to Greenville. In the five hours it takes to get there we:

passed an army truck and an old MiniCooper on the back of a tractor trailer, twice saw lots of straight, flat road ahead of usmade silly faces

feared for our lives as we watched these girls dancing while driving:

and laughed at me and my crazy hiccups:

There was another video that I thought I took but apparently didn't actually record.
Needless to say, we had fun on our road trip.

Soap sistas til the end

Here it is Jess...

2009-09-10T11:02:00.006-04:00

Ok, so I'm not totally settled yet but here is a glimpse of what my apartment looks like. Please excuse the mess...

my purple front door

the tiny living room

stairs to bathroom/kitchen/bedroom

tiny bathroom at the top of the stairskitchen to the right of the bathroomstanding in the kitchen the rest of the upstairsbedroom

It's tiny but it works :)
Once I've got everything in its place I will post more photos.

A week of M's

2009-08-31T23:29:00.005-04:00

It has been a busy summer. Things are finally starting to wind down, sorta. This past week was a busy one! And I think this week is going to be even busier. You see, since my good friend Jessie has moved to South Korea, I have been in the process of trying to find a different apartment. Long story short- I found a very small, very "Heather" apartment in downtown Franklin. My mom came last week to help me begin the move. I starting packing and cleaning last Monday. Friday was the official "move the furniture and anything else heavy/big day." With then help of some pretty awesome people (thanks guys!!!!!), all of my furniture was in my new apartment by 8:30 Friday night (which is saying somthing since I have so much furniture.) Saturday Mom helped me take a few more loads over in my car. We got everything but the kitchen, bathroom and my shoes (I have big feet and a lot of shoes). I had hoped to finish things up on Sunday but two things prevented that from happeining. One- mom went home so it was back to just me (thanks for all the help Mom!!). Two- an all day meeting. What meeting, you ask? Well, the reason things have been so busy lately and are about to get busier (besides moving) is because the Middle School Fall Retreat is this weekend (which you should come to if you are a ClearView middle schooler!!!). So after church on Sunday was spent in a Leader meeting and visit to Camp Widjiwagan (where our retreat is going to be).
All this to say, I've been slacking on my blogging as of late. And to make things worse, I have yet to get any photos of my new place (sorry Jessie). Photos are coming, I promise. But in the mean time, here's a little video for your viewing pleasure.

Happy New Computer!

2009-08-17T22:48:00.007-04:00

So Jessie is in South Korea. She's teaching 6th grade at Global Christian School this year. Because we love her so very much, a bunch of us got together and bought her a little gift. You see, she has this computer that doesn't really work the way it should. It has a brand new battery (good, right?) but it randomly turns off every now and then (with or without the new battery, not good) And a few of the middle keys don't work (why, we don't know?) Problem.
Solution: buy her a new computer. All I had to do was send out a little message on good ole facebook and before I knew it we had collected enough moolah for a brand new computer (complete with travel backpack)! Before she left for SK, I presented her with an envelope full of $$ and a print out of the computer she was to buy.
Her reaction? I was hoping you'd ask...

realizing what was happening
reading the details

overjoyed :)

she just kept saying "thank you"

She went to BestBuy the next day and bought herself a new Toshiba laptop. So thanks to all of you who helped make this happen for Jess. She really really loved it!

And the best part? Her new computer has a web cam. Which means if you have Skype, you can video chat with her. Just don't forget about the time difference.

Heading East

2009-08-10T00:54:00.001-04:00

Jessie and I drove to Maryland last Sunday. The drive was easy but long. We went to church then hit the road around 2:30pm.

We stopped in Knoxville to eat dinner with the Inman family.

We pulled in the driveway right at 4am. The next morning Jeff and Kendra got their wisdom teeth removed. Sadly I have no photos to prove it (though Jeff and Kendra probably aren't too sad about that). Since Dad was helping Mom take care of the chipmunks, I got to coach the first volleyball practice of the season at New Life. Yay volleyball.

Before I had to head back to Franklin, Jess and I also got to hang out with our favorite 7th grader named Haley. She's not so little anymore.

Jason was there too.

Soon Jessie will be heading even further east. Actually I think her flight goes west to get the the Far East. Whatever. Check out her blog Seoul Searching in South Korea.

As for me, I'm just apartment searching in Franklin.

:)

2009-08-06T09:27:00.001-04:00

New Life Alumni Game 11/08

2009-08-05T09:13:00.000-04:00

/m\

2009-08-04T10:52:00.000-04:00

love you, mean it.

We love the Davis Family!

2009-08-03T10:49:00.000-04:00

serious reflection

2009-08-02T09:48:00.000-04:00

hilarious

2009-08-01T13:44:00.001-04:00

Sunny day in Harpers Ferry

2009-07-31T09:10:00.000-04:00

We <3 the St Louis Arch

2009-07-30T08:34:00.000-04:00

gangstas

2009-07-29T08:48:00.000-04:00

2009-07-28T20:46:00.000-04:00

BFF

2009-07-27T08:39:00.000-04:00

Happy Birthday Diane!

2009-07-26T08:53:00.000-04:00

I love my big sister

we're not up to something. promise.

2009-07-26T08:08:00.000-04:00

cowgirls

2009-07-25T08:06:00.000-04:00

We love HALEY!

2009-07-24T09:17:00.001-04:00

Las Paletas!

2009-07-23T09:19:00.000-04:00

our friend Anna

2009-07-22T09:16:00.000-04:00

and her hamster PB (peanut butter)

late night photo shoot

2009-07-21T09:13:00.000-04:00

Jessie & Heather catch-up

2009-07-20T12:07:00.005-04:00

In case you haven't noticed, I have neglected to post the daily Jessie & Heather photo for the past week. I have a good excuse, really. I spent the last week in New York City hanging out with some pretty awesome kids- site seeing and spreading the love of Jesus. Photos from the trip coming soon.
But in the mean time, since I know you all have been missing the daily Jessie & Heather photo, today and today only, I'm posting not one- but SEVEN amazing photos. That's right, I said seven(7) photos . Oh boy, get excited...

Rockin the shades

2009-07-11T10:33:00.000-04:00

spelunking

2009-07-10T09:03:00.000-04:00

Remember when we used to go bowling every Wednesday night?

2009-07-09T10:01:00.000-04:00

Close up at Harper's Ferry

2009-07-08T10:54:00.000-04:00

HAPPY BIRTHDAY JESSIE!!!

2009-07-07T09:59:00.000-04:00

I <3 you.

Car trouble

2009-07-06T11:18:00.000-04:00

besties

2009-07-05T10:16:00.000-04:00

Happy 4th!

2009-07-04T10:18:00.000-04:00

July4, 2006

Baker Park

Breakfast on the terrace

2009-07-03T18:37:00.002-04:00

We have had the nicest weather today! I think it's been the best day of the summer (weather wise) This morning, Jessie and I decided to have breakfast out on our balcony since it was the perfect temperature to be outside. Of course, I took a few photos (to show off my new patio furniture)...

Straight Hair Day

2009-07-03T10:09:00.000-04:00

One month from yesterday, Jessie and I will be making our way east. No, I don't mean South Korea. We'll be driving back to MD so she can spend a week or so at home before she heads off to the far east (now I mean South Korea). For all you Marylanders out there, I'll see you in a month!

Our favorite Rockstar

2009-07-02T09:50:00.000-04:00

Fall Leaves in Maryland

2009-07-01T12:45:00.001-04:00

Black Friday 08- New Life Alumni Volleyball Game

2009-06-30T10:47:00.000-04:00

cold day at the zoo

2009-06-29T13:43:00.001-04:00

we love flowers

2009-06-28T12:43:00.000-04:00

Grover & Elmo

2009-06-27T12:37:00.000-04:00

however you say hello in korean

2009-06-26T17:24:00.000-04:00

This is my best friend Jessie:

She has recently accepted a teaching position at a Christian school in South Korea. Yup, that's right, South Korea. I am so excited to see what God has planned for her in this new chapter of her life. It's crazy that in a little over a month she'll be leaving on a jet plane, off to live half way around the world. Crazy, but so cool.

So in honor of my best friend Jessie, I am going to post one photo of us everyday from now until she leaves for South Korea. And maybe for a while after that. Depends on how many photos I can find of the two of us. If you have any of us, would you mind emailing them to me? (ah-hem, Jeff, Mason, Mark... Thanks :)

Tennessee sunset

2009-06-12T19:53:00.002-04:00

Today I...

2009-05-31T00:08:00.002-04:00

ran a 5K,

bought a $5-yard-sale painting,

found some thrift store treasures,

stopped to smell the roses,

and ate some cheetos with a fork.

13 going on 30

2009-05-21T21:13:00.006-04:00

Last Friday Jessie and I went to our friend Anna's 13th birthday party. Anna is the girl who lived above us when we lived in our cave. She's so cute. She left a message on Jessie's phone telling us about the party the night before. So, of course, we went. There were about 9 girls there, ranging from age 11 to 13. We had fun dancing around, playing some games, and eating junk food. Some of the games we played were: the winking game (or mafia), a limbo contest, and of course Truth or Dare. Jessie and I used to play truth or dare ALL THE TIME in middle school so we were quite excited when the girls wanted to play. I'll give you a few examples of some of the "truths" and "dares"...
"Tell us one of your dreams (no making it up!)"
"Who's the cutest boy in your class" (after hearing this, one of the eleven year olds said, "I'm ELEVEN! Come on guys that's disgusting!")
"Do you have a boyfriend?"
"I dare you to pick your nose"
"I dare you to run around the room screaming bloody murder" (she literally screamed "BLOODY MURDER" while running around the room)
"I dare you to run outside to the end of the driveway and put the queso dip in the mailbox" (this one never actually happened)

Needless to say, Jess and I felt old after playing truth or dare with a bunch of middle school girls. But the party was a lot of fun. The girls didn't want us to leave. We felt like the guests of honor, the old guests of honor.

The birthday girl- Anna

LIMBO (for some reason they all decided to pull their shorts up really high while limbo-ing)

the girls dancing...

me dancing...

Anna and I

Jessie hanging out with M'Lee

singing "Happy Birthday" before opening gifts (rockstar style)

surrounded by presents!

the aftermath

Jess, Anna (holding her new hamster, Peanut Butter) and me

We love her.

Home (part two)

2009-05-14T12:17:00.001-04:00

Not only do I love the actual state of Maryland, I (even more so) love the people in it. During my short trip home I got to see quite a few of these people. I'll start at the beginning...
I arrived at BWI airport around 11:30pm Wednesday night. My dad was waiting to pick me up. We got home around 12:15am to find Mom and Joshua asleep. Mom woke up when dad walked in the room so I waited a few moments then followed him into the room (she was surprised, it was great). So, within the first hour of being in my beloved state, I saw my parents and little baby Joshua.

Thursday afternoon I met Mark and Mason at Mimi's Cafe (Mim's according to Grandad) for lunch. Two more people I love.
Friday evening Mom and I dropped Dad off at New Life for the sports awards ceremony then went to a church league softball game. Lots of people I love. For instance:

Saturday morning I went over to the Knight's to play some Wii with Haley and Jason.

She's not so little anymore :(

Saturday evening Mom and I went down to the Discovery Sports Center to watch some volleyball. Dad had only 6 players so Sarah got to join the team for the day. Wish I could've played!

I'm glad I got to be home for a little while.

Home (part one)

2009-05-13T13:00:00.001-04:00

About two weeks ago, Southwest was having a sale on flights to and from Nashville so I decided I'd go home for Mother's Day. Last Wednesday night I showed up at home around midnight. My mom had no idea that I was coming. I am now the favorite daughter :)
I love going home and every time I do it makes me miss Maryland a little bit more. This is just a glimpse of why I love the Old Line State so much...

traffic

hills

tree forts

tall trees

my backyard

blue skies

color

downtown Frederick

scenic routes

Stayed tuned for part two.

Um... ma'am? that's my car...

2009-05-04T11:20:00.007-04:00

Last Thursday, Jessie and I stopped by Costco to pick up some photos. As we were walking outside, I pulled out my keys to unlock my car. About the same time I pushed the unlock button, I heard a beeping sound that my car doesn't make. Strange. I guess someone else unlocked their car at the exact same time. Anyway, as we neared the car I noticed a woman opening my side door and putting her Costco purchases in my back seat. I turned to Jessie and said "that woman is putting her things in my car!" So we quickly walked over to her and I said "um, excuse me ma'am but you're putting your stuff in my car." She looked up at me, confused and embarrassed, and said "but how did I unlock.. I don't understand... I just....." She then proceeded to tell me that she had borrowed her friend's car that day, which turned out to be the the silver SUV parked beside mine. The poor woman was so embarrassed. I assured her that it wasn't a problem, just an honest mistake. Jess and I got in the car and couldn't help but laugh. She would've had a hard time getting my car to start with her friend's keys!

New place

2009-04-26T18:25:00.010-04:00

Jessie and I are loving our new apartment so far! We are unpacked and half way through decorating. There are still a few things to be done and minor things that we need (like a new TV) but for the most part we are all moved in!

I would now like to take you on a tour of our humble abode. Of course to get the full affect you would need to come see it in person (please do, we love visitors!!). But for now, this will have to do...

This is what you see when you first walk in the door. There is a coat close on the right.

Because the esctional couch (that Aunt Jerrie gave us- THANK YOU!!!) is so ginormous, we had to split it up so it would fit in the living room. We made this is our little reading corner. Notice the lamp- it's the Eiffel Tower.

Here's the view of the living/dining room from the front door. We're on the third floor so we have vaulted ceilings.

On the left is Jessie's bedroom and behind the wall is her bathroom. The door to the right is the front door. And yes, we have one pink chair that doesn't match the others. I like it that way :)

View of the kitchen from the living room.

Jessie's room is to the left. My room is the open door on the right. If you were to turn around you'd be facing the door that leads to the deck.

We have a pretty good view of Franklin/Cool Springs. Hopefully I'll be able to hang up the hammock Jeff got for me in Honduras out here.

Back inside we go. This is Jessie's room (if you couldn't tell from the Chinese fan and scrolls on her wall).

And her bathroom...

My room is a work in progress. I've decorated some but there's still lots to do.

I did however, find a headboard. And yes, I mean find. It was left by the trash compactor in our apartment complex so I took it, cleaned it off (really well, don't worry) and attached it to my bed! It's in really good shape, I don't know why anyone would just throw it away.

Voilà... free headboard :)

Another view of my room.

and here's the bathroom.

So that's pretty much it. Like I said, to get the full feel for it you really need to just come visit us. Seriously.

Happy Earth Day!

2009-04-22T10:06:00.002-04:00

This is probably my favorite Discovery Channel commercial...

Now everybody get out there and take care of this wonderful planet God has given to us!

Genesis 2:15
"The LORD God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and take care of it."

Check out these links:

Psalm 24:1
The earth is the LORD's, and everything in it, the world, and all who live in it.

Javen turns one

2009-04-05T20:14:00.001-04:00

As promised by Diane, here are some photos from Javen's first birthday party...

there are more presents behind that big blanket-covered box

static hair

Aubrey loved "Tamarmoney" (aka Harmony)

tired birthday boy before his cupcake

"mom what is this?"

kind of liking the feeling of icing...

..ok maybe not

don't you touch my cupcake Dody

first bite

it's much better when broken into smaller pieces

I think this is a strawberry

homemade carrot cake cupcakes

Aubs thoroughly enjoyed hers

Aubrey wanted to help with the presents

he LOVES dogs

turtle toy from Aunt Heather (that's me!!)

book from Aunt Jessie. notice the Chinese writing. It says "Happy Birthday"

DVD's from Uncle Q

help from Grandma McD

Brody helped too.

the end.

why it took us so long to move...

2009-03-29T23:30:00.000-04:00

not suremessy roomfull cabinets
broken door
dresser #1
dresser #2

Grant

there is no Arizona

chasing Javen around the couchlunch with the Davis'
Anna hugs!
more Anna hugs!
tornado sheltercrazy rainbeautiful sky after the storm

All good distractions :)

We are finally all moved in... well at least all of our stuff is in our new apartment. It will take us all week to unpack I'm sure.

there's no place like home

2009-03-28T21:54:00.011-04:00

Jessie and I are moving this weekend. I say "are" because we're not quite finished yet. We starting on Friday by coming to our new neighborhood to sign the lease and get our keys. We then went to pick up a Uhaul truck so we could haul all of our furniture in one trip. I drove the truck. It took us about 2.5 hours to load up the truck. We had help the last 15 minutes or so when Paul, Swafford and DanMan showed up. When we got to our new place, it took less than an hour to unload everything. It really goes a lot faster when you have help! We are so thankful for those guys :)

After we unloaded the furniture and took the truck back, we went to eat at Tossed with Diane and Javen. We then headed back to our old place to load up our cars with everything that was left. It's amazing how much stuff we have between the two of us. Where did it all come from? We brought one load over and once we unloaded everything we decided to call it quits for the night.

This morning we woke up to bright, sunny rooms!! Ah, the joy of windows (our previous place was a basement apartment = no windows). We arranged the living room then headed back to our cave to pack and load once again. Before we loaded our cars, we went to lunch with the Davis family at MAFIAoZA's in Nashville. After lunch we went to Las Paletas. It's a Popsicle place. If you're ever in Nashville, you have to go.

Then we were back to packing and hauling. We took another load to our new apartment. Halfway through unloading, Jessie said, "I wouldn't mind if it started to rain a bit." It was about 75 degrees and we were working hard. A nice rain would've cooled us off a bit. About two minutes later, it starting raining. BIG raindrops. Then it started hailing. The sky was really cool- it was a mix of clear blue sky, white puffy clouds, dark rainclouds, and dark sky off in the distance. Jess and I jumped in the back of my Pilot when the hail started and just watched it fall. A few minutes later, it stopped raining and hailing and the sun came back out, kinda. The sky was still crazy looking. Jessie said something about the possiblity of a tornado. I kinda brushed that thought aside. Once we finished unloading we made our way back to our old apt once again to get another load. I turned on the radio only to hear that we were under a tornado warning! The sirens were going off and the lady on the radio was telling everyone to get inside. So we arrived back at our old apartment to find the Davis family in the basement. They were having a little picnic in what was my bedroom (the safest room in the house when it comes to tornados).

The storm finally blew over so Jess and I got back to packing. At this point, we had gotten everything out of the bedrooms and were working on the kitchen. It was probably around 6pm or so and we were slowing down. I cleared out all the drawers and cabinets and packed as much as I could into what boxes we had left. Jessie started loading things into her car. Once she packed her car, she headed back to our new place. I followed not long after. I arrived home to find Jessie asleep on the couch. The day had taken its toll on her. Let's just say we are both worn out. Moving is tiring, especially in the middle of a tornado. I didn't think it would literally take all weekend to move. There's not much left back at our old place. Hopefully we'll hammer it out in a couple of hours tomorrow after church. Then the dreaded unpacking will commence.

new apartment

WINDOWS!

old neighborhood

Jessie's room

my room

more photos to come...

First Annual Bill Varnon & Grandson Spades Birthday Tournament Extravanganza

2009-03-23T23:53:00.007-04:00

My family was here this past weekend for Javen's first birthday. All 6, uh 7, wait- 8... um I think there are 10 of us now. Let's see-- Mom, Dad, Jeff, Kendra, Diane, Jake, Javen, Jessie, Me and Harmony (she's our foster baby). So yeah, all 10 of us.
Anyway, it was just a typical Varnon weekend. Lots of food, lots of laughing, and lots of spades.
Saturday was Javen's birthday party. He now has more toys than can fit in Diane and Jake's living room. But that was to be expected.
As always, Jeff and I took tons of photos of the festive weekend.
Like I said, just a typical Varnon weekend...

this is a depiction of Illinois, in case you were wondering.

it makes perfect sense.

little thief

2009-03-19T10:00:00.001-04:00

Tuesday night I was over at Diane's. While we were in the kitchen getting things ready for dinner, Javen was playing in the living room, or so we thought...

he had found my purse, taken out my wallet, and was pulling credit cards out.

this is his innocent look...

turns out, he got his chubby little fingers on my "emergency card" that my parents gave me when I turned 16. it's their account but under my name. I told Javen he can go to town with that one.

Once he heard Pop was buying, he offered to take me shopping.

We're going to the mall this weekend to get some new toys.

oh great metaphor...

2009-03-17T09:00:00.000-04:00

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

self portrait.

2009-03-16T01:14:00.002-04:00

I usually don't do these forward-type-things but, just for fun...

my sister, Diane, tagged me to do a self portrait.
apparently, there are rules:
1. Sit down.
2. Take a picture of yourself. Don't primp! Just snap one.
3. Upload it.
4. Tag 3 people to do the same.
My result:

haha.

The tagging ends with me on this one. sorry rule number 4.

A day at the park

2009-03-12T00:44:00.014-04:00

Last week we had a few days of really nice weather. Diane, Javen and I went to the park to play! Javen absolutely loves the swings! He had fun on the slide too but the swing was definitely his favorite, as you can see in these photos...

he looks a little unsure of the slide.

that boy can move fast! I had to hold on so he didn't crawl right off the playground!

swinging with his momma.

I got a turn on the swing too.

He loved swinging by himself:

doesn't get any cuter than that.

moving

2009-03-09T11:36:00.000-04:00

Jessie and I are moving again...
In two weeks actually. We found an apartment in Franklin that meets out budget and is in a good location. It's in Carrington Hills. Two bed, two bath and it has WINDOWS! Amazing, I know.
While I don't have any photos of the apartment, if you go to the website you can check out the floorplan. Hopefully by the first week of April I'll have some photos to upload. And of course if you just happen to be in Nashville sometime soon, feel free to stop by and see us in our new place!
Oh and in case you find yourself with nothing to do on March 28th, we'd love a few extra hands to help us move in :)
Here are a few photos of our place now. Be warned- our rooms are a bit messy...

(notice the lack of windows. oh sunlight, how i miss thee)

nobody likes you when you're twenty three

2009-02-12T10:00:00.002-05:00

Two weeks ago I celebrated my twenty-third birthday. Here's a little bit of the celebration that took place...

me and Anna (she lives upstairs)

oh the birthday tiara

we're a little blurry

that's better

for my birthday, they made me queen of the world (the tiara says "birthday princess")

I actually turned 113... or 311 if you look at it from the other side.

look pretty good for my age don't I?

Grant

2009-02-10T22:37:00.005-05:00

So the family that lives in the house above us has this dog. Grant. He lives in the backyard (or garage when it's really cold) and doesn't get a lot of attention. Well, Jessie gives him attention every once in a while. Usually when you go near him, he gets all excited and crazy. He likes to jump up on you and lick your face. He's really friendly.

The other day, Diane and Javen were here. It was so nice out so we were on the swing under the deck. Javen saw Grant in the backyard and got really excited. So Diane took Javen over to see him...

rockstars

2009-01-22T22:00:00.004-05:00

Our little Haley isn't so little anymore. Before we left Maryland in December, Jessie and I got to hang out with Haley for a while. For Christmas she got a Nintendo Wii with a bunch of games to go along with it, one of those games being Disney Sing It. And of course Jess and I had to play. After Haley showed us some of her amazing singing skills...

we gave it a try. I wasn't too sure at first.

but it was so fun.

Haley wanted to see what Jessie looked like with her hair. Lovely don't you think?

Then she wanted to give my hair a try...

We felt so cool, hanging out with our RockStar friend Haley Knight.

We just love her so much!

I expect to receive cookies more often...

2009-01-10T02:26:00.007-05:00

For those of you who don't know, this is my good friend Mark:

Mark likes to bake. And he's rather good at it. So for Christmas this year a few of us got together to give Mark the gift he's always wanted... A KitchenAid® Professional 600 Stand Mixer.

I wrapped this mixer in as many different boxes as I could so Mark had more than one box to open. These next photos show his growing excitement as he unwrapped each box...

Of course he had to use it right away. His first creation using the KitchenAid® Professional 600 Stand Mixer was a delightful chocolate mousse with raspberry sauce. It was enjoyed by many...

Including Mr. Donald Summers,

and me of course. (yes Kendra, I know you're in the photo too)

a little bit of Christmas

2009-01-06T22:34:00.000-05:00

I haven't blogged in a while so I figured it was time. Here are a few photos from Christmas at home. I'll post more later this week. Specifically some of Mark opening his KitchenAid® Professional 600 Stand Mixer...
I just love Christmas.

don't mess with her or she won't give you any presents

yeah, him too

we got the same camera bag.

Kendra got New York for Christmas

Dad loved his new magic blanket!

College Grad

2008-12-21T22:25:00.013-05:00

My wonderful friend (and new room mate) Jessica Ann graduated from Bryan College this past Friday night! We have both been awaiting this moment for a long time. We are finally both FINISHED with college (hooray!).

Mom, dad and I drove to Chattanooga Friday afternoon to attend this momentous occasion. This was only the second year Bryan had a December ceremony, and since it was much bigger than last year, they had no where on their campus to hold it. So the Decemeber graduates walked down the isle and across the stage of the Tivoli Theater in Chattanooga. It was such a beautiful place to hold a graduation ceremony. Commencement only lasted about an hour, the room was beautiful, not too hot and not too cold, and the seats were comfortable. My only complaint was the lighting wasn't the greatest for taking photos. Of course I took some anyway. Here are a few...

Jessie is the blurry one in the back with the white bag on her shoulder

Education majors wore blue sashes. Can you pick Jessie out?

Jessie's grandparents, mom and brother came too.

This is her Pappy.

Her brother Michael

Her loving friends Matt and Nicole

and then there's me...

that's better

Jessie's first act as a college graduate:

Jay-walking

Congrats Jess! I love you!

I'm thankful for...

2008-12-04T20:43:00.005-05:00

do you like them in a house? do you like them with a MOUSE?

2008-11-22T23:40:00.006-05:00

It's gotten cold out finally. which means the mice have started to seek warmer places to call their homes. this past Tuesday I happened upon a furry little rodent scampering across the floor of the Station (the youth room at church). I actually stepped on his tail before realizing it was a mouse. The little guy either followed me home or told his friend where I live because on Friday Diane discovered a mouse in the living room. That's right, he was in the house.

We took action immediately...

he hid under the entertainment center for a while.

we tried to lure him out..

Jessie almost caught him with that ice cream container. Diane tried to kill him with her laser eyes.

more cheese...

Diane googled "How To Catch a Mouse" not helpful. but funny

Jake was determined...

so he went out and bought some mouse traps

That night we set the traps. This morning Jake came down to find all the cheese missing from the traps but no mouse. Smart little guy. But around 4:15 this afternoon while we were all hanging out in the living room, we heard a sudden SNAP! It made us all jump. But we knew we'd finally gotten him.

The following photo is the result of our mouse hunt. I apologize if it's a little graphic.

Poor little guy. May he rest in peace.

sometimes all you need is a pair of purple glasses

2008-11-20T20:43:00.010-05:00

Today for lunch Paul and I, along with other staff members, joined ClearView's 55+ adult group for the monthly luncheon (they invited the whole church staff to join them). It was quite an interesting and entertaining lunch.
So we got our plates, piled on the pot-luck food and sat down with the 55+ group. I should mention that Paul went to the dentist this morning before coming to work and was still very numb from the Novicane. Due to the half of his face that he couldn't feel, Paul was struggling a bit to eat. As Connie said, "he fit right in" with the crowd we were with.
Anyway, the schedule for the luncheon went something like this:
11:00 – the group started gathering.
11:30- we started eating
12ish- we sang a few hymns and Fletcher Allen spoke.
1:00- the luncheon ended.

Once the singing began I knew I was in for a memorable lunch. We sang two hymns out of the Baptist Hymnal, not leaving out a single verse of either song. The second song we even sang in groups- the first verse all together, the second just the women, the third just the men, fourth was a solo by one of the men, and the last verse we sang all together again. By the time we were finished with that song, most of the elderly folks were a bit winded. It's a good thing we only sang two songs, I don't think they could have sung much more!

After the singing commenced, the speaker, Fletcher, began. It took him a moment to get situated. He kept slipping off the stool (don't worry he didn't actually fall, it was just "very slick" as he put it) and having to adjust the microphone. He realized that he'd left his reading glasses at home but not to worry, at least four people offered for him to use theirs. After trying a few different pairs, he settled on a nice purple pair from Betty. He opened his message with a poem he had written for his late wife. He read it out of his book, "Plowing Wind and Time." The poem was called "But Love" and is about his wife. As he read I looked around the room and noticed many teary eyed women listening intently to his words of love towards his wife. How sweet.

Though his message was short and at times hard to follow, Fletcher kept the attention of everyone in the room. The 77 year old man spoke about serving others, forgiveness, and friendship. One of the stories he told was about a missionary women in China back in the late 1800's. She came from a wealthy family and had many nice clothes, shoes, and hats that she would wear everyday as she did her mission work. As Fletcher told the story, he referred to this woman as "Miss Fancypants."

His anecdotes and examples kept making me giggle. At one point he was talking about befriending the people you see everyday- for example the young guy or girl you see at the checkout and the grocery store. He said, "they wear their name tags right here (pointing to his shirt pocket) so it's easy to simply say 'Hello Gladys, isn't that a pretty name. How are you today?'" Gladys. What a great name to use as an example of the "young girl" that works at the grocery store. Now, no offence to you Gladys' out there, but lets be honest, how many people name their baby daughter Gladys these days? I've had this conversations many times actually, not specifically about the name Gladys but similar names that I feel are no longer used. For example, Phyllis. When you hear the name Phyllis do you picture a newborn little girl with chubby cheeks? No. At least I don't. I see a cute old woman teaching her granddaughter how to play canasta. How about Milton? Or Herbert? You get the point, sorry for the tangent... back to lunch with the seniors.

All in all, it was a very enjoyable lunch. Fletcher finished his message by saying, "I'm going to have to cut this short (he'd been speaking for about an hour) because I'm almost out of breath." After he prayed he made sure to let us know that he was giving us each a copy of his poetry book and if we didn't take one it would "break his heart." Of course I couldn't break his heart so I gladly took my copy of "Plowing Wind and Time."

Old people are so wise. And adorable. I hope I'm adorably wise when I'm 77 years old. I'll just have to make sure I have a pair of purple reading glasses.

anybody want a peanut?

2008-11-19T23:26:00.008-05:00

If you know me well you probably know that the movie "The Princess Bride" is one of my favorite movies. And if you know me really well you might know that I can quote the entire film, from beginning to end. But did you know is that The Princess Bride happens to be my favorite book as well (or that it even exists in book form)? Written by S. Morgenstern a.k.a. William Goldman, it far surpasses the movie in greatness. I might have to read it again now that I mention it.
Anyway, William Goldman has written other great books besides The Princess Bride, one of them being The Silent Gondoliers. I love this book as well (though not nearly as much as The Princess Bride, just to clarify). Not only is it a funny story, it takes place in one of my favorite cities- Venice. Ah, Venice. If you haven't been there you should go. I'll even volunteer to go with you. I know, I'm so nice.
What makes Venice so great you ask? (besides the fact that it's in Italy) Well, let me just show you...

You don't need a car (which means you'd save tons on money on gas, not to mention car insurance. who needs Geico? I just saved a bunch of money on car insurance by going to Venice).

You could buy fresh fruit and veggies everyday from this cute old man selling produce from his boat (the S.S. Mario).

After purchasing said produce you could return home to your apartment nestled away in this quiet piazza (which has plenty of space for a good game of 4 square or hopscotch).

you could go to the amazing Guggenheim Museum whenever you wanted to (the two smaller white buildings in the photo).

I mean, come on. Does it get any better than that? Plus its only a train ride away from other great cities like Florence or Rome.

here's one last photo, it's one of my favorites.
Piazza san Marco on a busy afternoon

old summer job excitement

2008-11-17T00:24:00.006-05:00

I got on my myspace page for the first time in who knows how long tonight. I was reading through some of my old blogs and I came across this one from June 23, 2006.
It's titled "another boring friday" but i promise it's not boring...

so i have a boring job. not a bad one, just boring. i am the receptionist at a company called CBM and basically all i do is answer the phone. which rarely rings. and when it does ring, there's a good chance that it's a wrong number

so it's been 2 weeks since i've had this job. and in those 2 weeks i have probably played all the games there are to play on yahoo and i now know everyone's most recent relationship status on facebook. if you ask me how my job is going... my reply is always "good, but very boring."

but. today there was some excitement. this week especially has been slow. not many phone calls. nothing to file. niente. with the exception of this morning

this morning i was doing the usual, playing some type of solitaire on yahoo just waiting for the phone to ring. i was the only one in the office at the time. so these 2 regular looking men in their late 40s come in the office and ask me where they can find an employee of ours. well of course i dont know. one of them then proceeds to pull out his badge and says "we're the police." yeah. the police. undercover police to be exact. the one officer then asks me if there's someone i can call to ask how we can get a hold of this employee. so i call sandy and tell her that there are two policemen here looking for.. we'll call him Bob... and they want to know where he might be. so policeman #1 gets on the phone with sandy and tells her that they have a warrant for Bob's arrest. yeah. Bob's in trouble. so Sandy tells them where he should be and they say how they don't want him to know they're looking for him because he'll run... apparently he has before.

so as mr. policeman is on the phone with Sandy, guess what, the phone rings. so i run into Dean's office to answer it and i of course have no shoes on. mr policeman sees that i am barefoot and makes a comment to sandy about the "young lady walking around the office barefoot." something about how i might fall, i dont know.

anyway, Andy Griffith and Barney Fife tell me that they are going to try and find Bob but if he comes back to the office to call them. yeah. now i'm a part of the chase. just call me sergeant barefoot.

not too much later Sandy and Andy are back in the office so i'm no longer alone. the cops return a little later to report that they found Bob, asked him his name, he lied and ran. great, now he's a fugitive.

the cops leave again and we return to our normal work atmosphere. except when Andy leaves for the day at 12:00 he locks the door and tells me to hide under my desk if anyone tries to get in. ok not really, but he does lock the door just incase

so that was my day. just a usual friday at the office. not too many phone calls. i told you this job was boring.

Scala Contarini del Bovolo

2008-11-13T22:46:00.005-05:00

Venice is one of my favorite cities that I've had the chance to visit. Tucked away in the Palazzo Contarini del Bovolo stands this spiral staircase. Both times I went to Venice during my semester abroad I visited the stairs, first with some friends and then with my mom. I remember my mom loved it so much, once we'd climbed to the top she called my dad to tell him about it.

This is one of my favorite photos. I took it from half way up the stairs.

I love this one too.

I remember taking this photo while mom was talking to dad on the phone. The view made me think of the chimney sweeps from Mary Poppins.

coo, what a sight.

my favorite nephew :)

2008-11-12T23:28:00.001-05:00

the knights of certaldo alto

2008-11-09T21:25:00.004-05:00

There's a quaint little town in Tuscany known as Certaldo Alto. It sits atop a hill overlooking the larger, more "modern" town of Certaldo. Mom and I spent a day there back in May of 2006. This is something we stumbled upon...

potential new apartment

2008-11-06T10:14:00.007-05:00

really this is for Jessie so she can see the apartment I looked at on Tuesday.
The pictures really don't do it justice...

entrance from the garage and coat closet

living room ( the curtain rod and curtain will be replaced)

fireplace in the living room

pantry (i think it will be painted, if not we can paint it!)

kitchen

another view of the kitchen (with the lovely Anna modeling it)

bathroom- it's getting new floors and the shower/tub is being redone

more of the bathroom with the washer and dryer

bedroom (the walls are yellow)

bedroom # 2 (it's bigger than it looks in this photo)

Jess- I can't wait for you to see it! I'm super excited :)

homecoming and halloween

2008-11-01T19:07:00.006-04:00

Last weekend was Greenville's homecoming weekend. I made the 4.5 hour drive up there so I could play in the alumni volleyball game (and see my siblings of course).

Kendra waited to carve her pumpkin until I got to Greenville so I could help come up with something to carve...

can you guess whose is whose?

they look so much alike

Yesterday, as you all know, was Halloween. Diane and Javen went to Florida to visit the grandparents so they were not here for this festive occasion.

When they arrived in the Ft Myers airport, they were surprised to find these strange characters waiting to pick them up...

Javen looks a little unsure.

In other Halloween news, Chuck Norris stopped by last night for a few minutes.

I guess you're never too old to go trick-or-treating.