Tuesday, March 24, 2009

Hi! It's me...

pewholdsflowers


...your long lost blog friend. Please accept Paige's flowers as a token of my appreciation for your patience. Not sure really what has happened to me; I'm still alive and not pregnant {just in case you were thinking that's what's happened to me}. Life has been busy and Justin has been working a lot, which is good, unless you're me who enjoys seeing him, spending time with him, and ok, having his help with the kids. He had some really long days that turned into really long nights that turned into him working most of the weekend. All that results in me having really long days, really long nights and really long weekends handling the children solo. Which also means no time to update the blog, etc. But I have missed y'all. I'm also SUPER behind on my emails... like 2+ weeks. Be patient and I promise you'll get a reply sooner or later.

One night last week we took a family trip to the mailbox after dinner. The girls enjoyed picking flowers in the grass...

pesflowers


And giving them to a neighbor as she passed by...

pgivesflowers




mcsazaela

We had some friends over on Saturday night for dinner, which was a lot of fun...

kidsatcounter

And Sunday night we celebrated birthdays {Justin & his brother} at Justin's parents house...

morganandaddy

I decided yesterday that the sweet little girl pictured with her daddy & the birthday candles is in need of a major INTERVENTION. She's addicted to her thumb. All previous attempts to stop her from sucking have failed. Annie {our sitter} came this morning to keep Hornet and the girls and I loaded up and headed off to ToysRUs, neither had ever been. They were so excited, as I'm sure you can imagine. Morgan picked out a doll and an outfit that we have now hidden until she stops sucking her thumb. And yes, Paige wore that polka dot dress {from Walmart} last night to the birthday party, she slept in it, and then she wore it all day today! Please tell me you do that too?

girlsincart

It's going to be really hard for Morgan to stop. She's sucked that little thumb for her entire life {4 years} so if you think about it... pray for her... and while you're at it you can pray for me too!

This afternoon I met Justin at the farm to put in our garden. It's no small task when your vegetable garden is the size of a football field. Well, not quite that big, but it's a big ole honkin' garden. And so much more fun when you know most your plants were started from seeds... well, I guess all plants are started from seeds, but you know what I mean...


justinplanting

This year we "pulled lines". Last year our rows looked like we decided to garden blindfolded. We were bound and determined to have straight rows this year.


gardenrow

Justin's dad was a tremendous help today. He's in the early stages of retirement and our garden {which is sown on his soil, so I guess that technically makes it his garden} will be so grateful. He hoed the entire thing by hand. Thank you, Pop Pop!

Speaking of gardening.... do you know about Tim & Sally?

timsally

My friend, Amanda Trasher, sent them to us via, Grady Thrasher {the author and her father-in-law}. I was beyond surprised when they arrived. We absolutely love both of these books! Amanda and I met through the blog last December and several times now I've proven my lack of brain cells to her and she continues to be my friend, thankfully. When we first emailed eachother I somehow thought her boys were her grandsons. This was before she had her blog or before I saw her... of course, if I had seen her I would have known she wasn't a grandmother. But that day my brainwaves didn't connect and I wrote Amanda a nice email back telling her how cute her grandsons were. Thankfully she corrected me! Then the books came last week... I shot her a quick email to tell her how much we loved them and that I didn't know her mother-in-law was an author, let alone the author of these great books. Grady Trasher. Grady... have you ever met a woman named Grady? Me neither. Amanda's husband's name is Grady too and I still thought Grady was a woman. That'd be like me naming John Martin: Darby. Not to mention that Grady Trasher is pictured in the back of the book and he is very much a man. Not really sure why I thought Grady was a woman. Thankfully Amanda corrected me on this one too! :)

Thank you, Amanda and Grady for these absolutely delightful books! We love them!

OK THIS TAKES THE CAKE: Thank you, Kaysha... kind commentor Numero Uno, who has informed me that I have spelled their last name wrong... THEY ARE OBVIOUSLY the THRASHERS.... not the TRASHERS. Clearly, my mind is gone.

And last but not least.... look what the UPS man drug in last night!


upspackage


My new camera! More to follow, I'm sure...

41 comments:

Kaysha Patel said...

LOL!!! I am literally on the floor dying of laughter because I don't think you realize that their last name is actually Thrasher...not Trasher. Oh Darby! Your posts really brighten my day! :)

Tess said...

I spy a Davis Deeb in your cookout picture! hehe I am so glad that you guys hit it off, I am SOOOO jealous that Jaime gets to hang out with you! Thanks for everything Darby!

vanessa said...

I sucked my thumb until I was 4. My parents tried everything even getting a mouthpiece thing at the top of my mouth. One of my dad's students was 13 and sucked her thumb he came home from work that day worried I would be like her and told me about her and I just stopped cold turkey. I guess I didn't want to be in the 7th grade sucking my thumb Gross! GOOD LUCK!

erika said...

i like seeing your toes in that box picture.
ready for your photography... get to shooting!
i love you,
e

Angela said...

I was a thumb sucker until I started first grade. When I started kindergarten I sacrificed by blankie that I had to have at all times, and then I decided to quit on my own when I started first grade! I didn't want the other kids to make fun of me!!! And I never had to have braces! Give her time...she'll give it up soon!

Angela said...

I was a thumb sucker until I started first grade. When I started kindergarten I sacrificed by blankie that I had to have at all times, and then I decided to quit on my own when I started first grade! I didn't want the other kids to make fun of me!!! And I never had to have braces! Give her time...she'll give it up soon!

erin said...

ha! the trashers... good for a chuckle. although it certainly is someone's last name, and in that case, not funny at all. you are hilarious as usual. glad you're back... i know blogging has to be on the back burner to life, but as a fan, well i miss ya when your gone!
my mind is mush over here too if it's any consolation. sick grumpy kids, spring came and left, i'm baking all the time and as a result when the kids are finally well and back in school i'll be 3 pounds heavier! wish it was nice enough here to throw on a sundress (and heck, leave it on for a day a night and another day) walk on the lawn and pick flowers. I NEED spring!xoxo

Robyn said...

have fun with your new camera. (Robyn- Jennifer's friend from Bham)

Laura said...

the pictures of the girls picking the flowers and giving them to your neighbor - just precious!! It was great visiting with y'all last week - oh, and your blog link put my traffic through the roof - you have quite a following! Have a great week!

Becky said...

that is hilarious!! and nothing like a picture of your new camera with your old one. i have no advice on the thumb. i think our friend lindsey is trying band-aids with elle. i bet she'll stop in and comment. good luck. AC has converted to her paci from the thumb. i'm sure i'll be thankful later. i'm a pro at taking away the paci. i can't wait to see the garden in full bloom!

christy said...

You are too funny. You know with each pregnancy you loose more brain cells, right? I am not kidding.

My son was on the paci until 3+. We did the send your paci away with the paci fairy to help other kids & you will get a toy, any toy you want from TRU. It worked! The paci is a lot easier to remove than a thumb tho. :)

Candice said...

as I read this my son is putting on his skeleton pajamma pants for the third day in a row. So yes I do that too. Sometimes it's a pick your battles kind of thing. Your girls and son are so cute and I love reading about all of them and you. Cant wait to see the camera pics.

Dianne said...

Oh Darby, my daughter sucked her thumb and there was never a better baby. That's the price you pay. Yes, she did have braces on her teeth and no she didn't go off to college sucking her thumb. So, I think we survived. The point being....don't get too anal about these things. They are all a part of growing up and will work their own way out.
Love you and I am so glad you are back. Can't wait to see your new camera's bounty!!

Kellie said...

You are so silly girl! Can't wait to see all your new pictures - it's highly addictive!!!!

pixelimpress said...

my sister's thumb-sucking "lingered" way too long and she'd slip into thumb-sucking mode when truly exhausted. she once fell asleep in the middle of the afternoon and mom and i pulled her boyfriend into her room for a sneak peek. she was in HIGH SCHOOL. (and not too happy with us!) and probably not too happy with me now that i just divulged that for others to read.

but no worries... she "turned out" just fine!

happy photo taking!

pixelimpress said...

oh darby, after i left my above comment i began to worry that you might worry about thumb-sucking lingering. i was just trying to inject a little humor on the subject. don't worry... my sister's teeth were and are perfectly straight and she never wore braces! sorry if i caused any panic!

Melissa said...

So glad you're back! I sucked my thumb for a long time too. The way I stopped was that I put up my blanket. I would pull the fuzz off the blanket and suck my thumb to go to sleep. I remember Mama reading me to sleep for many nights until I figured out what to do with my hands! Can't wait to hear more about that camera!

Angie said...

Darby,
I have birthed two thumb suckers and after many failed attempts from store bought rememdies and even Dr. Tee, nothing worked, just time. Dr. Wiley used to tell me, "Braces will cost less than therapy"!

Angie

Anonymous said...

Darby, Forgive me for sticking my nose in here but I wanted to pass on some "advice" on the thumb sucking issue. My nephew was a major thumb sucker and nothing that my sister did could stop it. They really wanted him to stop before he went to school. In desperation, they tried this contraption that fit over his thumb. It looked ridiculous and seemed like a blow to the ego - but it worked. After a very short time, he quit sucking his thumb altogether. And never went back...

Mrs. Brock said...

Darby,
On something other than thumb sucking...while I loved seeing the picture of the plants for your garden, what about a close-up of your too cute husband shirtless?!?! ;)
And I love the fact that the Raiger wore her dress for two days, she obviously knows how cute she is in it!

Anonymous said...

My daily dose of laughter has been served!! Somehow I think there is enough grace to forgive the spelling error ;) Just a feeling..
Love the garden!
We have a finger sucker at our house-just turned 4 and I believe she has essentially licked our entire town by way of those fingers! They say that this too shall pass (and by then I will be sad that my little one is not so little, right?). Welcome back!

Laura said...

I know your going to get a lot of thumb sucking advice. LOL.

All my kids have been thumb suckers (my youngest twins still are). My oldest daughter stopped with bribery (wait I call that incentive) and on her own. My son, however, was always more addicted. He tried and tried but could not do it. someone recommends a thumb guard from the right start. It's pricey but I was told by everyone it really worked. So I got the webpage up and talked about it with my son and he was horrified. He did not want to wear it. So he asked me to put tape or a bandaid on the thumb instead. Just try that he begged. So we did. I would catch he sucking a bit in the night but after a week he was cured. I would have gladly bought the guard and I am sure he would have found it no big deal once he had it. So either way that my story. Long and winded too.

I love your blog and read it always!

Oh and my twins love to sleep in their new clothes and wear them again. With four children, you learn is doesn't matter at all.

Oh and I have to admit we did talk about damaging teeth as a threat for the thumb sucking, he was very worried about that. Buck or crocked teeth.

bluehydrangea said...

Welcome back!! I didn't realize how much I depended on your fun family updates until you took a break. Your family is too cute and I love your blog!!

Amanda Thrasher said...

Do you know how many kids call me Mrs. Trasher or Mac Trasher's mommy? We get a kick out of it around here. No harm done. Glad you are enjoying the books.
Amanda

Ashley Turnbull said...

Girl, get that camera out and start snapping! Oh, and I owe you an email...un momento and I will get that to you!

Lindsey said...

i have missed you as well! i'm with you on the thumb sucking thing. the band aids are still going well but i am letting elle have her precious thumb at night. try not to stress about it too much. i do think they will stop when they are ready, some longer than others. and braces aren't the worst thing. can't wait to hear/see more about the garden and see pictures with your new camera!
**forgot to tell you that we almost went to landmark that wed before we left to head back to bham. wish we would've now--we could have finally met!

Jessica said...

Adriana has that polka dot dress too - and she loves it! Adri's 2 and I haven't even thought about giving up her paci yet.... I just know it's not going to be fun for me or her. She is quite attached to it, so I can only imagine how hard it will be to stop sucking on her thumb. loved the story about the "trashers"... I think all the moms can sympathize! Can't wait to see pictures with your new camera!!

Julie Wolfe said...

Darby, Autumn used a plastic guard, for lack of a better word, to get Irelyn to stop sucking her thumb (at 4 1/2 yrs.) and it worked in no time. Have you seen them? I hadn't before then; but I'm sure my parents would have loved one when I was little. Anyways, you should check it out. They wear it on their thumb all the time and it buckles around their wrist.

Jennie-Marie said...

How excited that your camera has arrived. I'm cracking up about the "Trashers." And on the thumb sucking thing... just be patient but do stick with it. I did suck mine until I was 13, yep the same year I met my husband I gave up the thumb. Sad but true!!! Good luck with it. Glad you are back, I've missed your posts!

Unknown said...

can i just say that not only do my kids wear their clothes, sleep in them, and then wear them again...i do too. please tell me you do THAT!

thewheelerfamily said...

Your blog makes me smile. I also have a 4 year old, but she is a nail biter not a thumb sucker. I was so fed up with the habit that I order the most wonderful all natural cream called "Control It" off the internet and she no longer bites her nails. The product also claims that it works for thumb suckers too. Try it. It really does work!

bellamia said...

Darby- I LOVE books as you know..so after reading your blog I looked the books up on the web...contacted Grady...who is one of the nicest "MEN" I've ever met (even though it was only through e-mail)! I will have his books sometime this week or next in my store!!! He is giving them to me for me to sell under the retail price that is in the larger stores!! Like I said he is a sweetie AND graduated from Dothan High in 1960, so he's a Dothanite!!! Thanks for the info on such a GREAT product!!! Can't wait to get them in my store!

bellamia said...

Oh, obviously you know I was just playing with you on the "Men" thing...but I wanted to add that he is going to sign ALL the books he sends me as well...so sweet and special!! Thanks again for the info!

fric and frac said...

I couldn't help noticing the awesome yellow bag with white stripes in your shopping cart! Looks awesome...how about a full size picture? I'm intrigued.

Katy said...

I've been lurking here for awhile and I love your blog!!! Just wanted to let you know I too let my kids wear their clothes to bed and then let them wear them again the next day!!!

Mandy said...

Darby -
If it makes you feel any better, I sucked my thumb until I was like 6 years old. Why did I stop? Well, my dad had starting dating which is now my step-mom and I guess I was kinda embarrased about the whole issue. I remember her sitting me down one night and telling me that it was okay that I sucked my thumb. And I never sucked it again after that day. Don't know why it made me stop but it did. Also, when I was little my parents used a liquid called stopsit(sp) It was really nasty and I learned how to get out of my bed at night to wash it off, but it might be worth a try if they still make it. Good luck though. I hope whatever you try works!!

annek said...

Darby, I sucked my thumb until I was about 6 or 7...of course that was a long time ago....but I survived. I read to all ages of kids and I notice some kids getting comfortable and very quietly slipping their thumb in and trying to make it so it's not obvious (2nd graders) and it makes me feel a certain tenderness for them...they remind me of me. Luckily (or sometimes it didn't seem luckily) neither Brenna or Megan ever wanted a pacifier or thumb...so you just never know. Years from now...what difference will it make. If they need braces they need braces...and you deal with it when the time comes.Incentives can be good though...if they work...it's worth a try. It'll make Morgan feel grown up.
Annebk

Anonymous said...

Darby,
I'm new to your blog but I love it. I'm sending it to my daughters. Okay, one is an in-law. Your photos are knock-outs. Are you a pro photog? I'm glad you like Grady's books, and said so on your blog. Grady is a wonderful author, an incredible person and a perfect client.
My daughter sucked two fingers til she was about 10 and got braces. That cured her and remedied her buck teeth caused by sucking her fingers. She no longer sucks her fingers, but her baby daughter does.
mimi (full disclosure-his publicist)

The Pughs said...

Darby,
You don't know me but we have some mutual friends. I am from Troy and have commented a couple of times before. First, my husband would be so jealous of the garden. He grew up on a farm and paid for college through selling peas, cows, watermellons and so forth. Since we have had our boys time has been lost. We normally have a garden but not this year. Luckily, his parents continue to have one so we benefit from theirs. Secondly, I was an avid thumb sucker until I was in 6th grade...I know you are thinking, "Holy Cow!" My parents tried everything from putting socks over my hands and taping them on to the terrible clear finger nail polish stuff to hot sauce. I never sucked it in front of people when I got older only to go to bed and watch TV. I would have been embarrased if anyone saw me. I made the decision on my own one night to stop and haven't sucked it since. It was more comforting to me than anything. Continue to try things so she will learn that she doesn't need to suck it. I was also threatened every visit to the dentist with braces and I am the only one (4 sisters) that didn't have to have braces. We will definitely keep you in our prayers as I know how difficult it can be.
holly.pugh.qgjz@statefarm.com

Hillary @ The Other Mama said...

Oh my. Good luck with the thumb. I'll be thinking about you.
Don't cut the tip off, though, please. It may have worked for our passy, but surely would stain something wtih the thumb. :)

No.35style said...

that is such a sweet picture with the neighbor...your garden is going to be so nice...love fresh garden vegetables.