holidays – Page 3 – ToadMama.com

December 4, 2012

Reflections on a Warm December Day

Temps climbed into the mid-60s here yesterday, which is VERY warm for December. I’m not complaining, mind you. I’m just saying.

When lunchtime rolled around, I decided I should go for a stroll to take advantage of the unseasonably warm weather. So, camera in hand, that’s exactly what I did.

I was thinking I’d take pictures of the many very pretty store windows in town. The windows that charm my big socks off as I stroll through town with the dogs every evening.

I wanted to share the very pretty merchandise displays with y’all.

I sort of did that. But then I got so caught up in the cool reflections captured in the windows that the merchandise displays don’t really stand out. So I’ll have to take another stroll one day.

For now, though, I thought you might enjoy seeing some of the images I captured.

I have to stop here to say that the storefront window of this florist enchants me year-round. They do such a great job with their displays. I actually went inside, too, which is where I captured the next few shots.

Looking Out at the Courthouse from Inside Designs by Teresa

Note to Hubby… if you are reading this. I would LOVE to have that lamp. Really. They have two, but I only “need one.” 🙂

Jimmie's Market and The Madison Tea Room

Of all the images I captured yesterday, I thing this one of the window at The Empty Nest would make the best Christmas card.

There was a van parked in front of Kelly Ann’s, which limited my angle severely. But I love the cute simplicity of the display.

One of these days I’ll get up enough nerve to go into that store for a much-needed fashion intervention.

Yes, that store is a repeat, but I just love the way the church and water tower are so clearly reflected. You can still see the display a bit, too.

That last shot isn’t a store. It’s “just” a house at the corner of S. Sixth and Main Street. I was very touched to see it decorated for Christmas again this year. Especially since the owner, Bob Rice, passed away a couple of months ago.

Did you enjoy your walk through town with me?

I really will try to capture the store windows another day. They’re awesome.

November 26, 2012November 26, 2012

Thanksgiving Reflections

Thanksgiving 2012 has come and gone. Our house, which was a flurry of activity for several days, is once again quiet.

That’s good and bad. Good because Hubby and I aren’t used to that much excitement. Bad because it was fun having the parents, kids, and grand kids around.

For me, the holiday was bittersweet. It was our first Thanksgiving without Mom. And Shannon, who lives in San Diego, wasn’t able to come. Both were sorely missed. Lucky for me, I didn’t have time to dwell upon those absences. Instead, we enjoyed several days of frenetic activity and togetherness (i,e., chaos!).

I forced everyone to pose for a group photo on Friday afternoon before anyone could leave. Shown in the picture are:

Back Row, L-R: TJ (son-in-law), Mike (husband), and Eric (son)
Middle Row, L-R: Dad (father), Amy (daughter), Kathy (me), Kelsey (soon to be daughter-in-law), and Brianna (granddaughter)
Front, L-R: Gaige (grandson), Joey (grandson), and Mom (mother-in-law)

No one had the patience to wait while I tried to get the dogs to sit with us. But they were there, too. So was Dad’s cat, Sylvia, pictured below.

Just about everyone had a hand in dinner preparation, except for the animals. Gaige and Joey didn’t help with meal prep, but TJ and the Hubby did a great job keeping them busy.

Below are some images captured on Thanksgiving day. I wasn’t the only photographer. Brianna took some pics and so did Hubby.

Brianna Kneading the Dough for Dinner Rolls

Eric, who is attending culinary school, was in charge of making the rolls. He enlisted Brianna’s help and essentially just supervised while she did all the work. Brianna loves helping in the kitchen, but I had too much going on for that. Eric took it upon himself to get Brianna involved. He did a fabulous job teaching and she did just as well listening.

Have a look at the finished product…

Mike was going to let all of the kids do a project in the workshop, but Brianna decided she’d rather help in the kitchen.

I can’t show you what they made because it’s a secret gift for Mom and Dad. But here’s a shot Hubby captured of the boys working.

My brain was too fried for a card game. I enjoy cooking and don’t mind all of the work. But cooking a big meal like that requires a lot of thought. And I have a very hard time concentrating with all of the hubbub in the house. You know, kids playing, cheering during football games, dogs barking, kids screeching from being tickled, multiple conversations, etc. I try not to ignore people, but have a hard time coordinating everything that needs to be done and participating in lengthy chats. Hopefully I didn’t offend anyone!

Hubby actually captured that shot of Joey with K on his lap on Friday morning while I was still in bed.

And that’s it for the Thanksgiving shots.

I hope your day was as full of fun and love as ours was!

July 24, 2012

Get Out and Celebrate

Today is National Tequila Day.

Some things just need to be publicized more. I would have never known had a friend not posted on FB that yesterday was National Hot Dog Day. And then one of her friends said tomorrow (meaning today, since her original post happened yesterday) is National Tequila Day.

I like tequila.

Of course, I like hot dogs, too. But it was late when I read that and I already had too much on my plate to squeeze a hot dog post in. Yuck, yuck.

I find it sort of messed up that a Cub Scout graphic appeared in an image search for National Tequila Day. It appears that the image was used to illustrate National Apple Turnover Day and somehow got sucked into the results for National Tequila Day.

Weird. Sometimes image searches yield good results. Other times, like today, not so much.

In addition to the happy Cub Scout, a frog image popped up. Or should I say, “Hopped up”?

What a frog has to do with tequila is beyond me.

It looks rather at home on my blog though.

Here’s an image that’s more appropriate.

Cheesy, but better suited to a National Tequila Day post than a happy little Cub Scout.

I will do my best, later today, to perpetuate this fine tradition. Celebrating National Tequila Day, that is. Not posting really odd pics found when searching for other stuff.

That’s either a really small Chihuahua or a really big margarita glass.

On another note… I did a Google image search for “ToadMama Margarita” and this next image…

… was the first to pop up.

That’s my favorite margarita and my favorite margarita picture. I think the red in the strawberry really sets off the blue in the drink.

Hmmm… I think I’d better have one of these later to celebrate.

Happy National Tequila Day, everyone!

July 4, 2012

Happy 4th of July

Today feels like Saturday. Which is awesome. Because it’s only Wednesday. And the real Saturday will happen in just a couple of days.

Mid-week holidays may not be ideal — no long weekend? — but I could get used to this work for two days, off for one day, work for two days, off for two days routine!

Now, if only it weren’t so hot…

I admit it, I’m a sissy when it comes to heat. I’d much rather sit inside an air-conditioned house than go outside and sweat.

Call me a whiner if you must. I don’t care. I hate to sweat. Period.

By that I mean, sweating for no reason. You know, you stand there with a hose, watering flowers, dripping sweat. Not from exertion, just from the high humidity. Ugh.

There’s a SLIM chance I’ll decide to brave the forecast 96-degree temps to go for a motorcycle ride. But it’s not like I don’t have other things to do.

Like prepare that “guess what we did in Philly” blog post. Or make patriotic outfits for the girls so I can participate in the 4th of July parade. Or sweep up all the doggie tumbleweeds floating around the house.

I finally realized that this heat has made the dogs shed a bit more than usual, which is why we currently seem to have an overabundance of hairballs. That and the fact that today, which is a holiday, is the day our cleaning crew was supposed to be here.

Anyway…

I never did post our storm damage update. You know, from the DERECHO that passed through our area on Friday. It makes me crazy that everybody and their brother seem to have latched on to that word — derecho — and are using it over, and over, and over. Ad nauseum (still one of my favorite Latin sayings).

We were very lucky. Both houses untouched. Damage here in Warrenton was minimal, especially when compared to the destruction in DC, MD, and other parts of Virginia, which are not that far away from us.

Maybe that’s why, despite hearing all about the damage on the news, it never dawned on Hubby, Mom, or I that there may be traffic issues during the Saturday morning drive to Baltimore. Hubby had to take his Mom back home after her brief visit.

He called me from the road to ask me to look at the traffic situation and, if necessary, suggest an alternate route. Around here, we refer to that service as MOMstar Navigation.

post-storm_traffic — Storm-induced Gridlock

Thanks to the traffic layer on Google Maps, I’ve been able to get Hubby out of jams more than once. Usually, I’m able to tell him which side street to exit onto in order to circumvent the highway traffic jam. If you’ve never used Google Maps traffic layer, it works like this… green roads have traffic moving at a normal pace. Yellow roads are experiencing slow traffic. Traffic on red roads is crawling or stopped.

When Hubby called, he was on the inner loop of the Capital Beltway at the blue star. Notice that all of the side streets around his location were yellow and red? That’s because of all the downed trees, branches, and other storm debris littering the roadways.

I told him he was pretty much screwed and that he should stay on 495. I don’t think I have ever said that before. There’s always a better alternative. Which is why I took a screen shot of that map (above) to show him later.

To put it bluntly, his entire drive sucked. He said even the roads I’d reported as green were moving really slowly.

I told you we got lucky. Here are a few shots from around Warrenton after the storm.

Looking Down South 6th Street from Near Main Street

Downed Branch (a common sight around town)

I told you we were lucky.

Now, to totally change the subject, look at this cute little house.

So, how are you spending your holiday? I think I’d better work on that other Philly blog post…

May 29, 2012

Holiday Weekend Re-cap

We enjoyed a very busy, relaxing, fun-filled holiday weekend with part of our family, chock-full of love, laughter, and lots of good food.

Amy, TJ, and the grand kids came down to visit, arriving on Friday afternoon and leaving around midday on Monday.

Getting to spend that much time with the whole family was a rare treat. Between TJ’s deployment and the family’s year-round busy schedule, I can’t remember the last time we saw them all together for an extended period. This was actually TJ’s first visit to our VA home. And we’ve been here for eight months! We were really glad he finally got to come down for a visit.

We had dinner at home on Friday and the adults had a chance to just visit while the kids entertained themselves with Lego’s (pricelessly pronounced as “Yegos” by Joey) and movies.

Saturday started off early with a trip to the little farmer’s market here in town.

That was followed by a trip to the caboose. Joey loves visiting the caboose, which sits on an old railroad siding near the Warrenton Branch Greenway, a railroad bed turned walking/biking path that’s only a couple of blocks from our house.

The caboose is a popular photo spot. As is the nearby shanty, where I’ve taken pictures of Amy and the kids on a couple of different occasions.

I couldn’t decide which shot I liked better (first one in the post or the one immediately above), so I decided to use both. Aren’t they a cute little family?

While we were out, Hubby got the grill set up to cook a big chunk of pork (8-lb Boston butt), which we were to have for a dinner of pulled pork. He’d made a couple of different sauces a day or two earlier, a NC-style sauce (thin, vinegary, and spicy) and a mustard-based sauce. The NC-style sauce was TJ, Brianna, and Gaige’s favorite. Amy liked them all. Hubby and I still prefer our Salt Lick Original Recipe BBQ Sauce (a story in itself).

While the meat slowly cooked/smoked, the adults relaxed and visited and the kids found various ways to keep themselves busy.

They were starting to get bored. Amy and TJ were going to take them to the playground, but it was sweltering hot, so I suggested we just set the kids loose in the driveway with the hose to cool off.

I didn’t capture nearly as many water pics as I’d hoped because either their backs were to me. Or the older kids saw me and got those cheesy expressions. Plus I didn’t want to risk venturing out there with my camera. An almost-five-year-old with a wide open hose is a scary thing.

That and I think the heat made me a bit lazy. I hate to sweat.

Here are a few of the not-so-great shots.

Outtake #3 (cheesy pretend-I-don't-see-camera smile)

Outtake #4 (let's look as bored as we possibly can)

After lunch, it was nap/chill time.

The downtime for everyone (I spent an hour inside soaking up the A/C!) was short-lived. Then it was back outside.

Joey is a funny little thing. He’s quite animated and kept everyone laughing with his antics.

That’s one of my favorite shots. Definitely one to show him when he’s all grown up!

I can’t believe I didn’t take a picture of the finished pork roast, which was a lip-smackin’, finger-lickin’ masterpiece. I guess it was because once it was done, we all switched to get-the-food-on-the-table gear. We’d been smelling that sucker cook all day long!

Saturday evening brought more relaxation. And then on Sunday, we all went to visit Luray Caverns, which is just about an hour west of here in Luray, Virginia.

Hubby gets the credit for thinking of that one.

Brianna, Joey, and Gaige at Luray Caverns

It was horribly busy (an hour in line just to get into the cave), but we made it work.

Which is good, because the kids had a good time. And it was really cool, temperature-wise, inside of the cave.

After about a one-plus hour, 1.5-mile shuffle (it was too crowded to call it a walk) through the cave with Joey maintaining a constant discussion about bats (where they live, where they lay eggs, how they drink, where they sleep, etc.), we ate a picnic lunch on the cavern grounds and then headed home.

TJ and Amy took us out to dinner that evening. They said since they were treating, I had to pick the place. I chose Rancho El Paso, figuring a tasty Mexican meal accompanied by a very large, very strong Sangrita Margarita would be a great way to cap off the day.

It was. But the rest of the evening was sort of a blur.

Joey finally got his turn in the hammock.

Loudest, most-animated application of insect spray ever.

We all sat outside for a while, then Amy and I took the girls for their evening stroll around town.

I always look like a giant next to Amy, who is all cute and petite. But since this is one of the few pictures with me in it, I decided to post it anyway. As the family photographer, I don’t get in many pictures (fine by me!) unless I remember to ask someone to take a picture of me.

While we were out walking, TJ got the kids showered and ready for bed. They all watched a movie while the adults stayed outside, visiting some more.

We got LOTS of visiting time in, which we really enjoyed.

Monday was fun, too. But I’ll have to save that for another post.

All in all, it was a lovely weekend. Hubby and I are truly blessed to have this crew in our lives.

January 11, 2012

Late Report on a Holiday Visit

This post is a tad late, but that’s okay. Right? Right.

It’s actually a very unique post. There are FOUR pictures of me in this one post.

Try not to get too excited.

Wondering how I managed that? There was someone else present with a camera for a change. None of these pictures even came out of my camera. How about that?

My parents, brother (Tom), sister-in-law (Sharen), nephew (Josh), son (Eric), and fiancee (Kelsey) came to Virginia for a visit the Friday after Christmas. Sharen is the one responsible for all of the pics (thanks, Sharen!).

We all love having visitors. That includes the girls. Especially when those visitors come bearing treats as Pop always does.

That’s not an especially great shot, but it’s the only one where you can see Sharen, the guest photographer. Look at those facial expressions. Josh and Tom both have that “Oh, God, she’s taking pictures in the bathroom?” look. I recognize that because I get similar looks often. And me, I’m just tickled to see there are other people in the world who shoot pictures in seemingly weird places. (I was taking pictures in a women’s bathroom last night!)

The girls were loving all of the extra attention. Tom, Sharen, and Josh are cat people. At least they think they are cat people. Check this out…

I bet Josh, shown above hugging Meg, would love to have a dog.

And Meg sure seems to be enjoying Tom’s lap!

Meanwhile, Kelsey and Mawsie were having a good chuckle over something. I was in the kitchen preparing lunch, so have no idea.

Hard to tell who is happier in that shot. Don’t you think Josh would love a dog? Until he had to scoop poop anyway.

Meg is our friendliest dog. She loves everyone.

Belle and K are both friendly, too, it just takes them a little while to warm up to folks.

Of course, they’re all quite lovey with me and Hubby all of the time. Unless they know it’s time for a bath!

Sharen even captured a sneak peek at Hubby’s workshop. He’s been chomping at the bit to get that set up so he could start making stuff again.

She got a picture of our new dining room table, too. Ignore the chairs. They are waiting for me to paint them. It’s funny that the table doesn’t look big in the picture, but it seats eight adults comfortably. With Josh there, we even managed to squeeze a ninth person in (there were more chairs in the room at the time).

All in all, it was a very nice visit.

Here’s one last shot of me…

Can you believe it is almost the middle of January already?