go fish

when i was in college, someone came to leslye and my room and started looking at tesse (the betta fish). and he was fascinated with him. "it's so beautiful..." and i agreed with him... "it's amazing how little space they need to be happy." i replied, "yeah... i was just talking with someone about that the other day... how they grow in the little puddles in the rice paddies in asia... it's pretty incredible that such a beautiful, vibrant fish originates in mud puddles."
then he said something very striking. "yeah... it's kind of like people."

"[Humility] is the attitude of one who is like the soil. humility comes from the latin _humus_, fertile ground. the fertile ground is there, unnoticed, taken for granted, always there to be trodden upon. it is silent, inconspicuous, dark and yet it is always ready to receive any seed, ready to give it substance and life. *the more lowly, the more fruitful, because it becomes really fertile when it accepts all the refuse of the earth.* it is so low that nothing can soil it, abuse it, humiliate it; it has accepted the last place and cannot go any lower. in that position nothing can shatter the soul's serenity, its peace and joy." anthony bloom

we went to colorado!

charlie and i were so thankful to get to go to colorado to meet baby caleb and see susan and al as new parents. It was so fun to hold him!

look how sweet caleb is!i know his mommy wishes he would sleep a little more at night, but he is very even-tempered
one morning we went to a farmer's market... we got apples, apple cider (with no ingredients other than apple and spices!), beets, kale, and an assortment of mushrooms.
caleb really likes to look behind us at brown curtains. we decided he likes the light/dark contrast :)
charlie was so good with him!
i made him a pumpkin onesie. he's probably going to hate me when he sees this as a teenager.
we went on a gorgeous hike in the mountains
susan is awesome. she wore her one-month-old son hiking!


the new mama! she looks great!



we had a really great time! thanks for having us, susan, al, and caleb!

landscaping!/photo blog

several weeks ago, one of charlie's friends gave us tickets to the lsu/mississippi state game. it was my first lsu game.
we were -really- high up.
this perfectly depicts rufus and moomoo.

our house before:
Charlie and his horticulture friend, clint (thanks clint!)and after! well... it's not completely finished. we're going to put rosemary bushes and other herbs on both sides of the steps. maybe a flower or two, also.
but see!! much better. the small bushes are indian hawthornes... they'll fill in and grow together within a couple years. they're also supposed to bloom white in the spring.
we also have crape myrtles... a white on one end and a pink on the other.
yay!

This one is for stacy.... seeeeee! punkin is MUCH slimptier than toby or tiggy!
more puppy pictures

punkin patch

hey. it's been a while. i've been wanting to write and feeling quite uninspired. at least as far as concepts go.
i've decided to do at least one thing every day just for me. something that i enjoy and will make me happy. (you'd think that wouldn't be hard...?) yesterday's was simple. i made a french bread pizza because i had been thinking about it all week thanks to ethan leaving his in our freezer at work. so i went winn dixie and got a loaf. and the sauce? i made it. out of roasted then pureed eggplant, onion, bell pepper and tomato paste. am i allowed to say that i thought it turned out really well? i even smeared a little rocotta on before the mozzarella. mmmm. i love food.

i'm not sure what i'll do yet, today. but i'm bound to come up with something. maybe i'll watch the dogs chase bugs and run around the yard. or maybe i'll make a pumpkin cheesecake. i've really been craving one. (do you notice the food theme?)

last weekend i went to arkansas to visit my parents, sister, and college friends. it.was.awesome. sharing rooms, meals, couches, growth, experiences, tears, laughter and... lives with the same people for 4 years does something to you. i'm so thankful for them. soso thankful. also... thank you guys for welcoming charlie in... it's awesome to know you all love him like you love me.


in other news, this is a busy month. charlie and i leave wednesday for colorado!! we're going to see baby bear!! i can't wait to squeeze him!! okay, too many sentences ending with exclamation points. i'm just really excited!!!!