Kris Kringle My Butt.

Not naming names, but someone was not too keen on the Jolly Ol' Saint Nick.

Just saying.

Welcome, Friend

May I introduce the newest member of our Communal Brood...

Hudson David Harman



Born December 17, 10:46pm

20 3/4 inches long, 7 pounds, 12 ounces



Pretty little redheaded baby, just like his Mommy.

Looks like Daddy though!



Congratulations, Nic & Addie - he's just perfect. Can't wait to meet him in person.....

My Son, the Barker.

The Boy. He thinks he is a dog. I guess he THINKS, at least. That's a start.

Just Plain Rude.

So Check Out my SideBar. See that Wish List?? Merry Christmas to ME. I mean, US. As in Seven, Jon and ME. (Mostly me. How fun would a DS be with Brain Age?? I might actually get off the computer for once!)

Why not? I wish other people would tell US what THEY want for Christmas!

So here is part of what we think would be cool to have for Christmas this year. The Stroller and the Travel Bed are more like Must-Haves, but of course, we can get those for Seven if no one decides to get them for him. They will really be useful, though - much more practical than toys.


How about all of you scoot on over to Amazon and make a Wish List too? Or just email me what you would like to have? Anyone??

Christmas Cards.

Make them yourself at Vista Print. On my Sidebar I put a link that will save you 50%. 50%!!

Even if you don't want to put a picture of yourself on one (why not??) you can personalize them however you want for a lot less than you could BUY the plain kind for.

30 of them for $18.49. It's only a couple of bucks more to upload your family photo (or any photo) and put it on one of the gozillion options they have. I made two different kinds last year. These are so professional looking. While the ones you get at Walmart are fine, you can get these for just a tiny bit more, they include ENVELOPES, hello? And they look like you spent a mint.

I really need to get on that for this year. You should too. It's the midle of November already!

Hey, once you're done, send me one, huh? Please?

Another Great Idea for Christmas,or Anytime.

I found these this morning. I think they are amazing. I know that Seven doesn't need toys (or really much of anything, to be frank) for Christmas, and maybe you other Moms feel the same way. I mean, do they really NEED all of this STUFF scattered around our houses? Seven likes playing in the oven drawer. In any drawer. In a box. So, why fork out $20 for a toy that needs $45 in batteries just so he can destroy it in about 4 minutes?
Well, for those of you who feel the same, look at these. They would be a great gift for either yourself, your kids, or your grandkids (hint, hint). I know having your kids in school is feeling a little, well, wierd, Jenn & Rikki - but maybe these could make it a LITTLE easier on you. The clothing labels are machine washable! The other lables for drink cups, lunch boxes, etc., are dishwasher safe. It's a cool way to keep track of the kids stuff. They even have washproof stickers that you can put their pictures on.



I think I will be getting some of these for Seven. I also think they would be great for kids like Brant, who go to daycare - Lord knows that those places can't really keep track of whose sippy cup is whose.

And yes, click through and these people will pay me. I'd promote it anyway, as I think they are pretty smart, don't you?

Tell Me These Aren't Too Cool...

Oh Lord.

I was supposed to be working on making ads for my Amazon deal over on my DoughMessTic site, when I saw this link to Endless.com. I had no idea what they sold, but I clicked through.
Mis Take.
Big Mistake.

If you are a reader of this blog, then you are A - related to me, B - practically related to me, or C - you got here by accident. Either way, I think I know who you are. And that means I know you have a little one, or 2, or 1 on the way. (Or all of the above, Jenn)

So, I went shopping for you. How sad is that? So if you love these as much as me, please - CLICK THROUGH THIS LINK. Shop. Buy. I stand to make a couple of bucks if you do, and you KNOW how bad I need it. Plus, they offer 100% Price Guarantee, so no need to price check anywhere else - and hello?? Free OVERNIGHT SHIPPING?? Who does that?



Okay, here's what I found...




I want Seven to have these. Maybe for Christmas. They look so easy with the Velcro, and since we are going to Italy in January, they'd be great to have. God, I hope he'll WALK by THEN!!

These Pumas are super cute. Sev had a pair last year. Mommies with tiny babies - these look cool. Jenn & Nicole - new babies, HIP babies. You all should get these. Or maybe those Geox. I love the look of them both.


How cool are these?? Seriously. I love them as much as the Geox. They come in 4 colors. I can see William in these. And Seven. And Brant. (Can you see how broke I am going here? Must. Stop. Now.)

I saw these and thought of Lainy. They have pretty much every Robeez shoe out there...Julie, Dayna, I know you can find some super cute slip ons for Rain and Lydia. I was kind of overwhelmed with all of the cute girly shoes!


Rikki - I thought of Rae & Ryane when I saw these. Too cute. And they are on a huge sale... Dayna, maybe Claire would like them? If not, there are a ton of other great girl shoes there.


Jenn - I thought your boys would like these cool shoes. I know Nick has Teva's and the boys might think it's fun to have shoes like Dad, and these are nice because they don't have laces to worry about.

Enough already. Maybe that will give you some Christmas ideas or something. I was seriously impressed with the HUGE selection of kids/infant shoes. Yes, some are a little pricy, I'll admit. But maybe you are looking for that ONE GOOD PAIR. Also, they do have adult shoes too, and handbags, etc. It says if you spend $125, you instantly save $25. So that's a pretty good deal!

At least go take a look. I may not be able to buy them for you for Christmas, but at least I shopped for you a little!

(Ahem, if there is a grandparent reading this and wants to know a certain boys shoe size, let me know. I can arrange that. It would be 5. In January, he'll be wearing a FIVE. Just in case. :))

No, I Can't Walk.

No, really, I can't.

Halloween as a Frog

Big Fun.

We both took Seven around Trick or Treating after he had a few pictures made here at the house. Then we ran into Rikki and the girls (or was it scarecrow and monkey?) and had more pics made, then more candy hunting, then over to Rikki's for more pictures and seeing Lainy the Moo Cow. Lots of fun was had by all!

Breakfast Takes a New Turn...

Oh, just watch for yourself.

Hostage Crisis in the Hundred Acre Wood

Today was so nice out, so after lunch at Moms,we took Seven for a stroll around the neighborhood in his wagon. (A big Yay to Jon for finding the wagon over a hill, abandoned, and FREE. Best deal ever.) He loves it, and sits up like a little man and just takes it all in. Along for the ride were Winnie the Pooh (Sev evens calls him Pooh, which I think is too sweet) and of course, his knife. Can't leave home without the knife, you know, 'cause you never know when you might have to teach somebody a lesson. Lots of gangstas in Pearisburg these days...so it's good to be protected.

Poor Pooh didn't know what hit him. One minute, all is well and he's being cooed upon and hugged and licked. The next - Bam - we have a hostage situation. This picture says it all, I think... "Keep this wagon moving or the bear gets it."

Yeah...We kept moving.

Drumroll, Please...

Here's a glimpse of life in the Whetzel kitchen. While Mommy bakes, Seven gears up for a career on the road.

We miss you, Kit.

Family Day Field Trip...The Cascades

As I sit here typing, Blogger Friends, I cannot lie.

I AM FAT and I AM OLD.

I am out of shape, and God, do my inner thighs know it. I know exactly why I gave up physical activity...umm, it's called pain. It's going to take me a week to get over this Field Trip.

Jon decided (and rightly so, it was a great day and the leaves are gorgeous) that we should take Seven hiking to the Cascades yesterday, a local waterfall. It's steep, people! The hike up is 90% uphill. It's along the creek, and the views around every corner are so nice, but - huff, huff, huff - geez. Again, old and fat.

Jon carried Seven in the ever-so-manly infant carrier. He was so cute! With only 1/4 mile to go, he finally gave up and fell asleep. So sadly, he missed his first ever waterfall. The two-ish mile hike out was easier than the two mile hike up. Thank the Lord. I think somehow, someway, they are making that waterfall a little farther away each time I go. I honestly think the last time I hiked it I was still a teenager. I think I'll go sob now if it's all the same to you.

Just a side note to the Cascades. We noticed so many VT students there. Like, everyone we met aside from a little old couple or two were students. Does anyone remember the days of freedom - no real job, no real responsibility? No baking groups to post for? No real bills to pay? Just living life and hiking the local trails, excited that it's the weekend and there's nothing to do. For us, we had to MAKE the time to be together, thrilled to have a whole day just to be with each other and the Boy. For US, it was the best thing we could do. For them, there was nothing better to do.

College sucks.

After our hike, we had a nice little lunch in Downtown Blacksburg at a little Italian place called Ceritanos. We ate the buffet, because it was easier and knew we could more easily feed Seven that way. He LOVED it, and was such a little grown up. While the food was good, I know that if we had ordered off the menu it would have been better...but it was good. A nice lunch all and all.

After linch we headed to Riner to the Pumpkin Patch. Or, as it should be called, the Land Where People Forget How Much Pumpkins Really Cost Because Their Children Look So Cute In A Pumpkin Patch. I'll post more on it later - it was really, really nice. Stay tuned.

Pretty Boy

That's really all I have to say about that.

...Run Away, Run Away...

I still don't know how he managed to get it off the table. Seriously. Sorry, Dad, umm, that one was supposed to be for you.

For an update on our youngin' - well, still only 2 teeth. He weighed 20 pounds at his last doctor visit (his 1 year) and was about 30 inches tall. He's a great eater, and there isn't much the child won't try. He loves Poppy's Reese Cups, green beans, peas, and sweet potatoes. He'll eat anything sweet, but that's something he got honest.
Still not walking, though he cruises alot and will stand on his own with good balance. And smart. He's so smart, I think...but I'm his Momma and that's to be expected of me.
He got his second haircut last night, and we didn't mangle it toooo bad. He looks so grown up now.

Jon will be heading to Georgia this weekend, leaving us alone - again. He's going down with Adam Krantz to watch the Bulldogs play, so I'm sure he'll have a good time.

I start Course Two of my Cake Decorating class tomorrow. I really enjoy doing it, so maybe one day I will be good enough to get paid to decorate cakes. Who knows? At least it would be some extra money. (I think no such thing exists..."extra" money.)

Hope everyone out there is doing well and enjoying the cooler weather and a strange start to football season for teams everywhere.

Family Day Field Trip...Mountain Lake

So, Nicole lives in Raleigh now, but she's the one who sends me a link about Mountain Lake and the incredible waterloss. Honestly, since the day I left working there in 2001, I have only been back up maybe 4 times? The last time we went was in October last year after Seven was born. We had a great brunch there...and though the lake level was down, and looked, well, so sad, today was just unbelieveable.

These two pictures were taken in October, at the far end of the lake. The "Deep End" if you will. As you can see, the water is very, very low.

Many of you will remember the days when the Boathouse was completely surrounded by water, all the way to the trailhead. And when the Gazebo steps led right down to a floating dock. I even remember when the LakeHouse at the far end had water in both the back AND the front. When you needed to walk the dock to get to the front door.

Those days are no more.

These two pictures were taken today...from the same vantage point as the Ocotber photos.

There is not even enough water to float a boat in. No exaggeration. No water at all. The dark spots in the photos are just silty dark hardened mud, not water. It's so hard to describe, as you really need to see it in person to get a gauge on how overwhelming it is. If you look closely in the top picture, you can see a man on the left hand side, about halfway down. That's how deep this end was. Over 100 feet. The rocks at the top? People use to jump off of. You can see the water line on them if you look closely. But now? Gone. It's all gone.

Everyone should go and see it...especially if you can remember the Dirty Dancing Days. The days when Mountain Lake was still a lake.

You Talkin' to ME?

Seriously, it's plastic.

He's been playing with it at Mommaw & Poppy's along with a toy pistol. Perhaps he is in training to be a gangster...just so long as he get's the ginormous bathtub like Al Pacino, well, okay then. He's my son and I need to support him in his decisions, right?

In case you didn't see it, I posted a video of him being all genius-like on my DoughMessTic site. But the genius doesn't stop there. He is now intrigued by the stacking rings - the kind we all played with as babies, except now they make entirely too much noise. What's WITH that? What happened to cars that require YOU to make the engine noise, or stick horses that don't neigh? Must everything make a bunch of racket? Just an observation...but I think maybe we are requiring less and less of an imagination out of our children these days. As soon as he's big enough, Sev's getting a big cardboard box and some crayons to turn it into whatever he wants...no noise, no batteries...and I hope that he will love it.

Happy Birthday, Baby!

I can't believe how fast you've grown...

Theaaar Was A Bahher in the Hiwaaay.

Well, not the highway, but I couldn't resist. The bear was in a tree behind Mom and Dad's house last night. They let it go. Poor thing was looking for the town pool we have decided and got suckered into going to the wrong pool. He chose the pool next door to their house without water in it.

Well, Dad says the pool does have water, but it's nasty.

Now, I just know that there is a clan of jock bears across town, laughing at Dorky Bear for falling for the the "pool gag" as they were swimming around in the refreshing Country Club pool. They shouldn't have given Dorky Bear the wrong directions.

Dorky Bear might just go postal on those jocks.

Let's Catch Up...

Seven has been a bit of a handful this week. Not baaaaddd, but not his typically easy going self. His upper teeth are trying to come in, which has meant a little trouble sleeping, and a little neediness when it comes to Mommytime. Unfortunately, Mommy has been busy trying to keep up with the emails flooding in about wanting to help with Operation Baking GALS. But I do try to play with him as much as I can.

Like yesterday...we played in the backyard for quite a while. He loves being in the grass, and especially loves dirt. Likes to feel it, throw it, and eat it. We have a palm tree in the foyer that he will NOT leave alone. I swear, we must vacuum the dirt off the floor 3 times a day thanks to that plant.

Well here's a little glimpse of the big man to keep you in the know...he's changing everyday. I can heardly believe he's almost a year old already. Where did the time go?

Happenings Around the House...

Rainbows. Geniuses. Bakers. Blimps.

All this week. So it was a good week.

Start with the Rainbow. We had a doozy of a storm roll through late one afternoon, and a HUGE double rainbow spread out across town once it was over. It's always hard to capture on camera, but I did what I could.

Moving on to the Genius. So perhaps I am biased. A little. But what you'll see here is a little bit of an irritated child, putting up with us (barely) and showing us how advanced he is.

He is eating chicken wings. Yes, really.

As you can see, Jon is making him feed it to himself. Yum Yum.

He declares after each bite that it is Gone. And then fusses when he is not immediately given more chicken wings. GONE.

"Mom?" (as if I can help...I am holding the camera.)

And lastly - the SKY. Our new favorite object. Up there. Yes. Ever so cute.

Pout.

He wants more chicken.

Now we are on to Bakers.

Bakers from all over the blogosphere stepped up this week to help me help Jason Ballard - you know, my cousin - who is serving in Iraq. Over 100 bakers pitched in and made a care package full of baked goodies and sent it off to Jason. 100. Wow. Check it out on my other blog - http://www.doughmesstic.com/ - and the new site I developed just for that reason - http://operationbakinggals.blogspot.com/ . It's really quite amazing.

And last but not least, Blimps.

Today the Goodyear Blimp flew RIGHT OVER OUR HOUSE. Like Right on top of. If I had been paying more attention, I could have seen the color of the pilots eyes.

Well, maybe I exaggerate. A bit. But it was CLOSE.

And you wanna know WHY it flew over?

That's because I am an internet Rock Star. On my other blog, the one where people who don't know me think I am cool, I am now getting over 2000 hits a WEEK. A WEEK, people! That's a lot! So, the Goodyear Blimp had to come check me out...to see what all the fuss was about.

And of course I emerged from the house all dolled up in my skinny jeans and perfectly brushed hair, waving like a pop princess (or was it in Jon's Redskin Pajama bottoms, inside-out, hair unbrushed and barefeet, toting a camera like Oprah Winfrey was on fire in my yard? Not sure. I can see both scenarios so vividly when I think about it.) I think he must have been on a super secret mission - all stealth like - because he didn't land in the yard. He thinks he fooled me, but I'm no fool.

Oh well, anyhoo - here is a picture or two to prove it.

Up next??

Total.

Internet.

Domination.

Yep, you can say you knew me when.

The 5th Ever BillHilly Bash...August 31st

Howdy ya'll...

Not doing invites per se this year. That's so we can save the money and spend it on more food!!
We do have a great Bluegrass/Country Band lined up again this year, and lots of goodies to eat on the menu!

The Date - Sunday, August 31st
When - 5pm until you leave
Where - duh, that'd be our house
What you need to bring other than yourself - lots of money. (That's a joke.)

Now, what we want to know is...are you coming? And who are you bringing?
Leave me a comment here, or send me an email at doughmesstic@gmail.com

Hopefully this will be our biggest Bash yet! Don't let poor Seven down - it's his first birthday!

Who's A Big Boy Now??

Tonight Seven got his first haircut. Yes, I KNOW he is not yet a year old. Bad luck, schmad luck. He needed it cut, and that's that. He's much blonder now. Sorry for the blurry photos, but nighttime and Seven don't make for clear pictures.

To make up for it, here are a few that I took over the weekend while we were playing together in the back yard. Am I allowed to say he's cute? Well, he is. Even if he IS mine.

A Poor Little Neglected Blog.

That's right, you've landed on the blog who recently sees so little of me. It seems I spend so much time over at DoughMessTic (hey, people actually READ it. I have GROUPIES. I'm SPECIAL there, just ASK me.) :0)

So, Jon has prompted me to post a few tidbits of our life outside my kitchen (which is, by the way, freshly painted, no permanent damage done (I hope.) )

Where to start?

Saturday we took a Field Trip that involved lots of riding around and a picnic at the river. I blogged about it on DoughMessTic, but not here. So here are a few extra little pics for you that didn't make it in that post.

Sunday we went to the pool for a dip. Mr. Seven was a ham, as per usual. He really loves the pool and seems to enjoy the slide, too - you should see his little face when he leaves the edge!

Slacker.

Yep. That's me. I've only taken a couple of pics of Seven in the last few days...so much going on.

The drywall guy came everyday this week.

I worked at the store.

I baked for the Cafe.

I cleaned the house. A lot.

I mowed. It's a big yard, too.

Jon's parents came in on Thursday for a long weekend of golfing.

But everyone else is busy, too, I guess. No excuse.

However, here are a couple of pictures taken last night at the Country Club Member/Guest Social and Dance. I'm sure everyone knows everyone here, but appease me.

It's Rikki and Doug, Me and Jon, and Leslie and Eric.

Nicole came by unexpectedly and sat with us for a while. She looks great, by the way, though I have no photos of that. Just take my word for it.

We all had a really good time...dancing even. Got home at 1:30 and really felt our ages.

By the way, yes, I am 28. Don't I look great?

(That was meant to be funny. Keep up, people.)

Possibly interesting news coming up next week. No, NOT pregnant...Get Real. Stay tuned...and pictures of Seven in the very near future. Promise.

Hope You Had a Happy 4th!

We did. Here are just a couple of pictures from yesterdays cookout. Lisa, here's a pretty good shot of your Dad. Just thought I would share.