Our boys.......

Monday we were looking forward to seeing the boys for the first time in 90 days. The excitement was quickly quelled when the 757 took off from Seattle without our eldest son Jacob. He apparently couldn't check his anxieties and chose not to make the trip.That meant Dylon, our 10 year old, would would make the cross country flight by himself.

He had been up since 2 a.m. PST when he arrived in Orlando. His sweaty hair told us that going from 30 degrees in Washington to 80 in Florida, was somewhat of a shock. His bloodshot eyes told us he needed some sleep. After some long overdue hugs we headed home for some belated Christmas presents. But, first, some juicy juice and a briefing of expected conduct during his visit to Florida.....(have fun!!)


We finally set his gifts in front of him......He stoically took his seat without a hint of excitement.


Gift after gift, he opened stone faced..........




After all of those boring toys, games, and electronics, he finally showed some real emotion when he got to the gifts that EVERY kid wants for Christmas...........CLOTHES!!!




After seeing his new threads and a shower, Dylon had renewed energy(lookin' "gangsta" is, I think, how he put it) He was ready to meet our friends. And we were so grateful that he was here to introduce them to him.

Spreading the Holiday Cheer......Again.......

Suffering from the Holiday Hangover, we decided to try to get a real one, meeting up with some friends on Saturday night. I was in rare form judging from these pics, Hey! I'm pretty fly, for a white guy!



You think that you had some holiday stress, look at what popped out on this dude's forehead! Not only does it look big, it looks like it plans on staying awhile.......



The spirits were flowing freely, and so was the love........











Everything was fine until.......(insert "Jaws" theme song here)



That's right, some clown started ordering Gin.....Next thing you know, that same clown was ordering shots!



That's when it all turned ugly.......











YIKES! With that, it's time to go for now. So, say goodnight to Titusville's party elite.....


And, she wanted to say ni-night to you too........

New Addition to the family

We would like to to introduce a new member of our extended family. Brian and Shannon are the proud new parents of this cute little carpet stainer, "Petey"

Christmas Day

After opening presents, we went to visit with Shelby's biological mom and family. The resemblance was odd to see. I could see Shelby in Carol, Whitney, and Kyle, Although seeing her in Kyle kind of made me a feel kinda dirty....

It was great to finally meet them, after seeing them all for so long in pictures. Hopefully, it won't be so long until we meet again.

And, if anyone wants to know how to get free dinners from the restaurant of your choice, I'll hook you up with Carol's hubby Doug.




As if I needed a reminder...........

All of the B.S. that we endure during the holiday shopping season is worth it, when we witness the genuine emotion of a child when they unwrap a present and discover something that they didn't expect.....





May you too, experience the love, appreciation, and wonder of this moment in your life soon.

Happy Birthday, Brie!

Brianna turned 10 on the 23rd of December, during our trip to Alabama. Because we were traveling home on her day, she wasn't given her proper due.

For her Birthday, we went to the American Girl store in Alpheretta, Ga, and she was able to pick out and dress her her new doll, "Ashley".

Here's what it looked like..........






These two dolls were from the "Jerry Springer Collection". She ripped that B*&#@'s weave right out her nappy head....


After pawning our wedding rings to buy the doll and two outfits that cost more than an outfit from Macy's, "Ashley" needed her hair done. This is where they put the doll in a little salon chair and a growed up woman treats and talks to the doll as a real person. You'd think that they might throw in a complimentary hair style after spending this kind of money, but nope...cha-CHING! there goes another 20...........



Anyway, Happy Birthday Sweetie, we love and adore you beyond belief.

The ride home

We awoke to bone-chilling temps at Benny and Jane's, as we headed to Alpharetta for the night. I want to personally thank them both for their hospitality and opening their beautiful home to us. And a personal note to Benny, I am sorry for drinking all of the beer in the fridge, but next time you're down here, drinks are on me.....If I'm working :)

Our first leg took us Oneonta to see Ma Holden. We had a great visit, then it was off to Cedertown, GA to see Uncle Curtis. He told me that it was "colder than a mother-in-laws love" outside, then told me about my wife "good luck, she's a mess". Tell me something I didn't already fall in love with her for!

We spent the night with Brian and Shannon, went to the American doll store, then got home last night at 11:00 pm........


Which brings us to today, Christmas Eve.

This will be my parents first Christmas not hosting, and they are snowed in tonight, making it extra difficult. Just know that you are missed and loved by all that you have touched. Every Christmas wish, Christmas hug, and Christmas present shared tonight, will be shared with you two in our thoughts. Be happy and remember what it is that we are truly celebrating.

To everyone else out there reading this, Merry Christmas! I hope Santa brings you everything on your list, even if asked for these........

Sunday in Bama

I tossed and turned all night and didn't sleep a wink in anticipation of the Holden family Christmas get together. At 4 a.m. I finally had enough and got out of bed, only to find out that it was 4 a.m., so I went back to bed til 7.

I was the first one up and went to make some coffee. Aunt Jane had the coffee pot ready, all I had to do was "mash" the button. All was well until it was done and I poured some into a cup and the aroma of some fluffy flavor like hazelberry hit my nose....I looked in the cupboard and , not only was it flavored, it was DECAF!! What's wrong with this world? Next thing you know, Auburn will fire Tommy Tuberville and hire some no name like Dean Chizik! I just shook my yankee head and headed for the for the door, I needed to get some real coffee. As I reached for the door knob, I noticed a blinking light....on the keypad for the house alarm. I didn't have the code to disarm the thing. It just blinked....and blinked....as if mocking me. I was a prisoner in a stranger's house. I opened the slats on the blinds, let the sunlight warm my face, and watched a jogger run freely through the wooden bars of my new cell.

Shelby and the kids came upstairs next for breakfast. They put some english muffins into the toaster oven, buttered them up, then disappeared downstairs. A few seconds later, the buzzer went off on the toaster oven, which apparently uses the same buzzer that Milton Bradley employs on their "Operation" game. It was loud, obnoxious, and everyone upstairs was still sleeping. I tried to turn it off, but couldn't. It seemed that the "toast" button was stuck in the on position. I finally unplugged the thing and waited for the guards to come and fix it.


Aunt Jane finally woke up and entered the kitchen. When I explained about the toaster, she said "Oh yes, sometimes when you "mash" the button, it sticks". She then proceeded to beat the crap out of the thing until the button, knocked into submission, popped back out. My comment to her was that if would "push" buttons instead of "mashing" them, perhaps the appliance would work better......She looked at me as if I were the crazy one....

I did talk her into freeing me from the house to get some coffee. When I returned, it was time for a shower. It had only been 3-4 days since my last shower, but, I wanted to impress. There was only one thing standing in my way........


I wanted to take a washrag, maybe clean up my armpits, wash my face, spray on some extra cologne, and take my chances a the party. But, apparently, when I saw this prehistoric guardian of the soap dish, I let out a little girlish squeal, because Shelby heard me and ran in to see what it was.......Now, my manhood was on the line. If I didn't face this, I would be disgraced at the family function.

Luckily, Shelby isn't into insects, let alone bugs of this magnitude, so I told her that I would take care of it and closed the door. What happened behind that closed door will, forever, stay there. When it was time for Shelby's shower, the roach was gone and that is all that matters.


We arrived at Joey and Holly's place, and although I was nervous, shaken from the roach incident, and working on no sleep, I was ready to meet the family. Everyone was very nice and pleasant. Other than Laura's odd fascination with what I like to eat, the day went pretty well. The highlight of the get together is the ornament exchange. Here's what I came home with.....


I also came away with a a bonus prize of a "gnome" ornament that I'm supposed to bring back next year for the exchange. Somehow, I don't think it will look quite the same when everyone sees it next year...........

The stars of the the party were definitely Gavin and Ma Holden. Separated by 85 years and both spreading the same amount of smiles........








And, if there is anyone out there who wants to meet a really hot southern chick, let me know....On top of everything she already has going for her, she owns some killer appliances!

Alabama or Bust

An 8:15 departure time had set a new record for the Pinetop Posse. The goal for 9:00 had been surpassed and we readied ourselves for the 600 mile trip North.

With car packed with people and presents, radio Disney was piped into wireless headsets for the kids and we were 'Bama bound. Then came the noise.........

At first, I thought that a cat had climbed into the engine to keep warm, got caught up in the fan belt, producing instant Kung Pao Kitten, er, Chicken. I then realized that it was only Nicholas singing. Had I known that the noise was going to continue for the next 597 miles, I may have "accidentally" fallen out of the car once we had reached an unsurvivable rate of speed. It wasn't that his singing was that "BAD", it was just that of the 10,000 words of lyrics that came from his lips, he got 6 syllables correct, and of the 6 syllables, none were in the same word.



Two hours into the trip we stopped here:


No, not a parking lot a Disney, but rather a Florida rest stop.It looked like a safe place for the kids to run around and burn off some energy, so we let them play.




Tifton, Georgia was the next destination on the journey, I wasn't quite sure of the significance of this place, but apparently it has the the best Chick-fil-A in the South because there were 300 people there. With 350 miles left to our destination, surely we wouldn't stop to eat, especially with it being so full.....Surely, i was wrong.

I realize that I am not from the South, but what is so impressive about a deep-fried chicken burger with 2 sliced pickles on it? And why would it cause a Suburban full of people, who have 7 more hours to drive in the day, stop and wait 20 minutes in line for one?

I got a cold wrap, out of spite..........

Our next stop wasn't much further along the trip and this is another one of "Y'all" Southerners bad habits:

Boiled peanuts............I had 1....That's ONE nut, about a month ago, and looked like Jim Carey in "Dumb and Dumber" when he tried the caviar. It should be called "mushy paste in a salty peanut shell". I hear people tell me that it's not not so much the peanut that makes them so good, but sucking out the salty juice.............Does it sound as dirty when you read it as it does when you say it?

Anyway, that stop took an hour, because we ( and I use the word "we" very loosely here, because I love my mother-in-law, bless her pea-pickin' heart) had to check out all of the jams. jellies, peanut brittle, and everything else that they had on sale at this roadside crock pot. I was bored, so here's some pics......






After that, I jumped behind the wheel, 1) to relieve Mr.Holden, he needed a break from driving, and 2) If anyone asked to stop at a roadside stand selling "Pecan Christmas Ornaments", I could pretend that I didn't hear them....So, I drove til dark, I took some pics while driving, such as my first cotton field, Sorry if their blurry, but I was going 75....Mrs. Holden told me to stop so I could get some "up-close" pictures of the cotton....I pretended that I didn't hear.....



We decided to stop in some little Alabama town to refuel and Mr.Holden was going to take over controls to land this plane as we were getting close to Benny and Jane's( about 100 miles). I got out, used the restroom and returned before I noticed that no one else had left the bus. Apparently, there was a pinhole in the bottom of Brianna's Chick-Fil-A Iced tea cup some had found it's way out of the container, into the built-in cup holder, down the side of the burbs interior, and onto the floor.

One would've thought that some caustic solution had permeated through our completely sterile environment. After a full roll of paper towels and 45 minutes, our one-woman HazMat team had finished cleaning up the Toxic Tea, then excused herself to the restroom.

We finally got back onto the road......for 15 minutes, then stopped and bought a drink....I guess this gas station sold better Gatorade then the one we were just at.

After 12 hours on the road, we finally reached Birmingham, Alabama...5 minutes from our final destination. Mrs. Holden turned from the front seat and asked where we wanted to eat supper......Really? Holy how many times have we got to stop, Batman!! Never mind the fact that we still had leftover food in the McDonalds bag from Titusville, the Chick-Fil-A bag from Tifton because we can't throw it away in case "someone wants to eat it later"..........

LATER IS NOW PEOPLE!!!!!!!!!

Luckily, the rest of the crew was ready to reach our final destination as well, and she was overruled. We reached Benny and Jane's, brought in our bags and prepared ourselves for the Holden family Christmas.........