Tuesday, January 27, 2009

Those PESKY Vultures!



There are A LOT of vultures in our neighborhood...hmmm. They apparently roost in the woods across the pond from our house. They also love to perch on the roof of our house and our neighbors house.

Imagine my surprise when I went outside and found these particular pesky "birds" on the roof.

And no, I didn't approve this choice beforehand. It falls under the category of "Why God gave kids both a Mom AND a Dad."
And yes, Randy was on the roof FINALLY taking down our Christmas lights!!! Hey...it is still January!

Monday, January 19, 2009

We're SO Excited!

The camper has a king(we think) sized on one end and a full bed on the other.
Oh...and it has an AC...now that is really roughing it!



A view of the dinette and the full bed.


What a nice looking rig!

Yep...a pop-up camper!

We have been looking for about 4 months and finally made a purchase this past Saturday. The camper is a Coleman camper by Fleetwood and it is the RIO GRANDE model (maybe a sign?!).

At any rate, Team Blankinship is VERY happy about this new purchase! In fact, Randy and I have "high-fived" each other every time we pass it in the garage!

Let's go camping!

Thursday, January 8, 2009

One Happy Kid!


I am a little late in posting this, but...better late than never!


Reed lost his first tooth over the New Year's weekend and BOY was he EXCITED! In fact, we all were!


He went to the dentist back in October and she told him (and me because I was standing right there) that his tooth was loose. Well...here it was January and he was still wiggling that same VERY loose tooth! I think seeing Maddie with all those teeth missing and all the verbal encouragement from everyone convinced him to just pull it out!


So we all waited, with bated breath (this all occurred right at the end of supper, so all 9 of us were sitting at the table), as Reed wiggled it around and then pulled it right out! We all, spontaneously, started cheering and he was jumping up and down and pumping his fist in the air like he had just won the World Series! It was priceless!


And ,just like that, his whole smile changed and all I can see when I look at him is a BOY...not a little boy, but a boy. Definitely bittersweet for me! It helps that he is still so stinkin' cute.


The tooth fairy left him FIVE BUCKS(I guess the economy hasn't really hit fairy land) and a note (shaped like a tooth) letting him know that he can keep this tooth to show his grandparents when they visit. So the teeny little and easily misplaced tooth is sitting proudly in an 8oz. Styrofoam cup on Randy's dresser just waiting for Gram's visit in a few weeks!

Monday, January 5, 2009

What a GREAT Christmas Vacation!

Showing off their catch! The 2 big kids got to go fishing with the Dads.
At Emerson Point

The touch tank at Mote

Admiring one of Mote's resident Manatees
All of us at the Manatee Viewing Center at the electric plant in Apollo Beach.

I know I have been mostly absent from posting lately...sorry, but things have been both hectic and BIG fun!

But now, there is only the 4 of us in the house, the 2 youngest are in bed and the last load of laundry is in the washing machine! So, I can sit down and post a few pics for your viewing pleasure!
We had such fun the past 2 weeks and we got to do ALL of our favorite things with fun people! We are so glad that David and Debbie could come for Christmas and that the Andy Bennett Family came for New Year's!

And ,can I just say, that Katie left my house cleaner than she found it! Now that is a visitor who is welcome ANYTIME! Seriously.

The kids enjoyed having Madison, Claire and Gavin around so much! And yes, 9 people CAN co-exist in our house and everyone even had a bed (some filled with air)! We went to Emerson Point (of course), Mote Aquarium (of course), to see the manatees, fishing (of course...its Randy and Andy) and Build-a-Bear (Cassidy and Claire)...all in 5 days!

I know that I should be posting some heartfelt and meaningful essay on looking back at 2008 and all the amazing things to accomplish in 2009...not gonna' happen! I have a few things I'm not willing to commit to cyberspace on my 09 to-do list.

And, while I'm being perfectly honest, I am SUPER excited about...SCHOOL TOMORROW!