All that jazz

She is Here....

2011-08-17T10:47:00.000-04:00

Well she's been around for a little over three weeks now.

It has been forever...

2011-06-15T16:14:00.000-04:00

....and then has been a little longer beyond that. Yes, we have been off of blogger forever. Elizabeth is hooked on Facebook, I'm a little busy, Braeden is trying to potty train, and Addyson is on the way. So, to say that we have an enormous amount of time to write on our blog site would be a flat out misconception on our part. However, it is still fun to do!! Since we are getting so close to time for baby Addyson to show up, I thought it would be nice to start some more posting again so everybody can see the new addition once she arrives. The house is certainly upside down in an attempt to prepare for her arrival, but as many of you parents know, this is never actually completely done. We will try our best though. So here's to some more disciplined posting and the beginning of another baby adventure!! Stay tuned....

Maternity Clothes

2010-07-29T21:54:00.002-04:00

I'm not pregnant. I was looking at ebay for a nice pair of maternity jeans for that some time in the future when I am pregnant and instead came across this lovely skirt. I couldn't help but wonder...What pregnant woman would look good in this skirt and where would you wear it? I also thought about what my pregnant body would have looked like in it. Not a pretty picture.

Maximus

2010-07-10T14:32:00.000-04:00

Maximus's favorite thing to do in the summer is sleep on top of the air conditioning vents. He got a little too attached on this day!

Pictures at an Exhibition

2010-06-28T22:02:00.001-04:00

The one and only time I have ever been to an art museum was at the High Museum of art in Atlanta. I can not say that I am an art consosieur but I do enjoy viewing art to see how the creativity of others is put on canvas, portrayed in a sculpture, or display in any other unusual way. I say all of this as a means to introduce to you a very young and new upcoming artist. He is truly ahead of his time and could be one of the best photographers the art scene has ever encountered. Here is some of his work.

A little music trivia: Does anybody know the song that the title is referencing?

ARRRGGHHH!!!!

2010-06-28T13:15:00.000-04:00

I cannot figure out what Landon has done to the blog! I can't get his template off of my template!

Father's Day reflection

2010-06-20T22:14:00.001-04:00

Today is the day that we honor all you fathers. It is a time to spend with your kids, your wife, and hopefully your own dad as well. As the day began for me, it started as it does every Sunday morning with an early rise to be at church by 7:45...yes that's 7:45 am. One of the verses from the sermon this morning was Hebrews 12:2. It reads, "looking to Jesus the pioneer and perfecter of our faith, who for the sake of the joy that was set before him endured the cross, disregarding its shame, and has taken his seat at the right hand of the throne of God." As I was reading this passage the phrase "disregarding its shame" really stood out to me. Seems like an odd phrase I know, but as I thought about being a dad it occurred to me that disregarding shame is essential to being a good dad. No matter how much we may want to do our own thing or pursue our own selfish interests, we must step up to the plate and do what's right. As dads we need to look past our own shames, our own embarrassments, and sometimes our own agendas so we can be the dads we need to be. Christ did this for each and every one of us. He took on the pain of the cross not because He wanted to, He did it because he loves us. He disregarded everything for you and me. If we love our kids even a fraction as Christ loved us, then we disregard our obstacles and do what is right. We will go the extra mile. We will love a little harder. We will be a little more compassionate. We will be a better husband. We will step it up and be the best dads we know how to be.....our families will love us for it. The time for ourselves will come. Happy Father's Day guys....keep it up!

Has it really been that long....

2010-05-02T22:14:00.006-04:00

Elizabeth and I have been really slack on the blog front. It just doesn't seem like life slows down enough for us to post. Everytime I pledge to do better, I end up doing worse. My chances of getting off of Kerry's "blog probation" list will be impossible now. Alas, we will continue to press on and try our best to let everybody know what has been happening. So what has been going on...

I got arrested!!! Seriously, they picked me up from work and everything. Every year a few employees participate in an event call Lock Down by the Muscular Dystrophy Association (MDA). This year I participated and one of the "perks", if that's what you want to call it, is that you get to ride in a police car and really get arrested. I will be the first to confess that handcuffs are not comfortable. Our nice civil servant arresting me did not show any leniency on me whatsoever. The dodge charger I rode in was brand new and the nice officer kindly let me see how fast it can go. All in all, my company raised about $1100 dollars and I got to ride in the back of a police car for the first time, and let's hope the last.

Elizabeth had spring break. She and Bdub took off to Chuck town to see Grandma. They spent some time at the Charleston childrens museum. Braeden absolutely loves this place. He especially likes the water area. As you can see, he made a very special poster for daddy when he returned. The poster was really needed for daddy. While the two of them were away, we had a dear member of the family pass away. Some of you that read this blog knows or have heard me talk about Uncle Bub. He lost his fight with cancer, but in retrospect he gets to join all the saints in Heaven. This man influenced many aspects of my life. He taught me how to ski, helped improve my golf game, taught me how to drive recklessly and so on. He was one of those uncles that you will always remember. This was a time where I truly needed the strength of my wife. Elizabeth really helped me tremendously during this time by just being who she is. She didn't ask me any questions, she didn't make me talk about my feelings (she knows I will), she was simply there to hold my hand. I can not thank her enough for that. A professor in seminary lost her son around this same time and I would like to post a quote from his funeral as it pertains to Uncle Bub.

“Into your hands, O merciful Savior, we commend your servant Bub. Acknowledge, we humbly beseech you, a sheep of your own fold, a lamb of your own flock, a sinner of your own redeeming. Receive him into the arms of your mercy, into the blessed rest of everlasting peace, and into the glorious company of the saints in light. Amen.”

Next we had Easter. Easter was a fun time this year. Little Buddy actually participated in hunting eggs this year. Granted, he stopped hunting after about 5 eggs, but it was a start. He would much rather pull his wagon around the yard. Regardless of his participation, it was a beautiful weekend and we really enjoyed being together as a family. A s always we enjoyed worshiping with the community we call our church. It's great to share with other Christians the delight in celebrating Easter and the true meaning. However, it is always good to munch on some peeps too!!

Well, I believe that is enough as far as catching up. Let's hope that Elizabeth and I can do better in the future. As the summer approaches, she will have a little more time to keep everybody up to date with at least recent pictures. I have to admit, I was a little embarrassed to get back on and see that we still had snow pictures on here especially considering that all the flowers are in bloom now!! We will do our best....Grace and Peace....Landon & Elizabeth

The Real Stuff

2010-02-15T20:15:00.005-05:00

Mr. Weatherman said we would get a light dusting on Friday night.....hmmmm.....it started at 3:30 in the afternoon and by the time I went to bed at 11 o'clock it was still coming down steady. Yes, you guessed it, we got 5 or 6 inches of snow. It was great!! This was the real stuff too!! Not the icy sleet mix with a little bit of snow drizzled in there. This was the real fine, super white, powdery stuff that you dream of skiing on. The kind that when the sun came out the next day it almost blinded you to gaze upon. The kind that made the perfect snowball and when you hit somebody it exploded everywhere!! It really brought out the kid in me. Elizabeth, little buddy, and myself all went to grandma's house to play with our nieces and to give everybody plenty of room to run around. We made snow angels, had snow ball fights, posed for pictures, ate lunch, and even wiped out on a sled (then we did it all over again until nap time). I can't remember the last time I had so much fun in the snow.

A Die-Hard Fan

2010-01-03T22:23:00.005-05:00

As we have mentioned many times, and as many of you parents can testify too, we are sometimes truly surprised at some of things our children do. Once again, our little buddy has given us a moment that we have to share. Let me preface this in saying that regardless of what football team plays on TV, it is the Tigers. It is C-L-E-M-----N!! This boy was introduced to Clemson football this fall and, like many of us, has fallen in love with it (rain and all). As you can see in the photo, he is truly die hard all the way.

There's something magic about this helmet. Not only does it represent our favorite team, but anytime little guy can not sleep, the helmet will take him off to dreamland. I hope we always remember the little things and funny stories that make things so unique to him.

Reflections on my Christian Life class - first semester is over!

2009-12-28T12:32:00.003-05:00

As my first semester of seminary comes to an end, I can’t help but think how one semester, of many to come, has changed my concept of the Christian Life. One thing that stands out above anything else is how diverse the Christian Life is portrayed throughout each segment of history we studied. From the strict “Rule” adherence of The Didache to the concepts of learning centers using “Faith Practices,” the Christian Life has taken on its own progression over the course of history. However, I’m not writing this to explicate in a formal paper everything I have learned; I’m writing this to reflect on what I have learned.

The theologian that impacted me this semester would have to be Dietrich Bonhoeffer with Martin Luther King Jr. being a very close second. Bonhoeffer’s concept of community provides a strength that is essential in encouraging and supporting one another in the Christian Life. Many times we are all faced with difficult situations in our life that may demoralize our attitude and self-esteem. In our Christian community though, there is strength to help us cope and avoid the funk that we often can subject ourselves in. I see this on a daily basis with our Stephen ministry program at church. We help those who are going through a life changing experience that needs the extra encouragement to get through cancer, death, depression, financial trouble, divorce, prison, and numerous others. Why not depend on our church community or ministries such as Stephen ministers to encourage us through God’s guidance? What better way to approach a problem? Why would we depend on all the “self-help” novelties in society when Christ’s community can help provide for our needs? The community concept portrayed by Bonhoeffer provides a sense of community that can revitalize congregations and bring not only the individual but, I think, entire communities closer to God.

I mentioned previously that Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. also impacted me this semester. I regrettably have to admit that I knew nothing about Dr. King beyond his “I Have a Dream” quote. I have never read the entire sermon, much less studied him in any detail. His personal theology on the love of God is one that I can truly relate in a way that I try daily to include in my daily Christian Life. The fact that our God is living, personal, active, purposeful, and magnanimously loving gives me personal security in the fact that the reason I chose to go to seminary is real. My God is real, this Jesus we study is real, His love is real, His presence is real, He knows the reason I’m in seminary, and He loves me regardless of my shortcomings. I’m not the only one that’s taking this path and I can learn from those before me. Dr. King also emphasizes the human condition in his theology and makes comparisons between the “essence” and “existence”. The “essence” represents the core of Christianity, meaning how God intends for us to live. The “existence” is what we actually experience as a broken humanity in our everyday life. I am in the “existence” everyday constantly striving to reach the “essence.” I may not ever realize the true meaning of God’s “essence,” but the journey (or struggle as seen in Pilgrim’s Progress) to get there is what helps define my Christian life. Struggle, how can I continue on without talking about Pilgrims Progress by John Bunyan? What’s great about this was the fact that even when you get your burden to the Cross and leave them for Jesus, we are still faced with problems and temptations that we still need the Cross to overcome. Nothing illustrates better the struggle to find purpose in our life than the journey of “Christian” in this allegory. We all struggle with our Christian life and having the assurance that we can take every one of our burdens to the Cross and leave them there is extremely comforting.

Speaking of Christian life, how has this course changed or enhanced my outlook on the Christian life? When the course started, I had no clue what this course was going to entail. How does one teach a class about the Christian life? Are we not just simply living the Christian life? As the course progressed though, you realize that you are only covering very broad strokes of the Christian life. The course has given me a greater appreciation of my Christian life, especially as those before me struggled with defining it. When you think about the struggle of being a Christian, you see that these theologians were truly passionate about what they believed. Bonhoeffer was imprisoned, Dr. King was assassinated, Gutierrez was faced with the poverty stricken of Latin America, and the community of “The Didache” was faced with martyrdom and plague. The lives of these theologians were not easy, but yet they found courage, strength, motivation, and peace in God. They were able to overcome all their tribulations to portray their own love of Christ through their words and actions. How does the study of these theologians influence my Christian life? If anything it has made me more aware of different aspects of the life of my church. It has allowed me to appreciate the mobile meals ministry or the Stephen ministry more than in the past. It’s allowed me to realize how these ministries contribute to the life of my church and our community. It has given me a realization that I need to function in my community and provide support and encouragement where needed. Most of all, it has made me realize that my life correlates directly with the church and how critical it is for me to participate. God invites all of us to participate and he has provided us gifts of community to share our unique talents. The appreciation of my church has grown tremendously over the course of this semester. The realization that my church needs me as much as I need them has brought me closer to our pastoral staff and congregation. Better yet, the realization that my church community is a gift from God has brought me closer to Him. However, how passionate am I toward my Christian life? Will I be able to stand strong in the times of doubt and worldly judgment? These theologians were resilient in their faith and actions which made their Christian life very defined. This is the most difficult struggle I deal with in my Christian life. I like to think that when the situation arises, I will be solid with my faith through my actions. My life has not been faced with the struggles of racism, war, or even poverty like these theologians. I have not had the life changing struggles that can cause one to falter on your faith. I like to think though that through my community I would find the support and encouragement to rise above these potential conflicts.

The Christian life is a critical aspect of the congregation of the church. As I continue on with my seminary education, I will constantly be analyzing how my ministry will influence the life of a congregation one day. I think it would be interesting to study certain theologians such as Bonhoeffer in emphasizing a Christian life class. What’s even more interesting is I personally have used some of the theologian writings to construct how I handle my relationships in Stephen ministry. I’m trying to incorporate the encouragement present in their lives into the relationships I form in this ministry to help one cope with the life changing experience. The true healing is through Christ, but I can see a significant impact already made in a life by applying the teachings. When you witness God working in a way through the study of one semester, it encourages me not only to continue His work, but that the decision to come to seminary through His guidance was right. All these decisions and experiences will continue to not only amaze me, but influence my Christian life as I grow in knowledge and my faith. I can see how the journey of seminary has the potential to totally transform my life in Christ. I can’t wait!!!

What about you though? How is your Christian life influenced? How do you participate in the life of your church? Do you have one moment where you realized how critical your church is to you? What do you do when you're frustrated with your Christian life? These are all important questions. With a new year approaching and the time comes near to make the traditional resolutions, I encourage you to reflect on your current Christian life and make a resolution of sorts to improve it. It doesn't need to be a life altering resolution, but something between you and God that can help you improve on what you have or have not done this past year. I doubt neither you or God will be disappointed with the effort!!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY BRAEDEN!!

2009-11-29T21:24:00.004-05:00

November 29, 2009

November 29, 2008

November 29, 2007

Finally....

2009-11-16T19:53:00.004-05:00

I am sorry for the delay in getting Halloween photos on the site. Between school and Elizabeth's schedule the past few weeks have been way too busy for our household. We seriously need things to slow down a bit, but alas....the holidays are here and we all know what that means. Halloween started out with a quick, and wet as usual, homecoming trip to Clemson for mommy and little guy. We all met up after I got home from class for some much needed candy scavenging. Here's a few pictures.

Too Quiet?

2009-10-11T21:53:00.003-04:00

You know, sometimes Elizabeth and I actually get a chance to sit on the couch together and watch TV. Such a time happened last week, with our little buddy playing somewhere near by. As we started to get really pulled into the NCIS episode we were watching, we noticed that our son was really quiet. As a matter of fact neither one of us knew where he was. This is never good for our household and the age bracket of the little guy. For you parents out there with toddlers you know what I'm talking about. This is a time of playing in the toilet, playing in the dogs' bowls, climbing in the tub fully clothed and turning the water on, and various other things. You get my drift...it's usually not good when he gets quiet. So, as we normally do, we split up and searched the house. Elizabeth found him first and here's what we saw....

He was probably calling Grandma.

Just Another Pretty Face....

2009-09-08T22:56:00.002-04:00

Do not let this pretty face fool you. Over the summer, this face was one of pure mischief. As many of us know, the life and times of our beloved pets are never dull. Many of us have numerous stories that we can share where our pets, however sweet, have somehow got into a situation that has left us furious, or so amused we can't wait to tell our friends. One such story happened this summer while I was sleepily hanging out with the boys this summer. Elizabeth was gone on one of her multiple vacations with our son and I was left at home to go to work. One night as the boys and I were watching an entertaining episode of whatever on the boob tube, Ty decides to go to Maximus' bed and start chewing on his bone. For the longest time (maybe 40 minutes or so) this did not phase Maximus in the least. He continued to lie there on the floor pretending to be asleep. Well speaking of pretending, he suddenly gets up from his comatose slumber and rushes to the front door. As he is looking out the front door, he continues to huff and puff and let out little barks as if something is outside worthy of attention. Of course, this can't be done without Ty joining in on the fun. Ty immediately gets out of the bed and relinquishes the bone to join Maximus at the front door. Aha....Maximus had Ty right where he wanted him. He knew Ty would investigate the bogus situation outside long enough for him to return to his bed and his bone. Maximus immediately turns away from the door, goes to the bed and starts enjoying his bone. Maximus is not as dumb as he looks everybody. He knows how to get his way. I dread the day when he figures out how to do this trick to Elizabeth and me.

Big Boy Bed.

2009-08-10T21:58:00.003-04:00

Back during the Spring, Elizabeth and I found a great consignment sale in our town that happens just twice a year. The selection was great and we were able to find something for the whole family, Braeden got the best stuff of course. In this sale we were able to find a toddler bed for my little buddy which matched his furniture perfectly. We have been playing with it all summer and trying to gradually introduce him to this new fun way of sleeping. This past weekend we decided to give it a try for the entire night!! Other than one little mishap, he did rather well. Take a look for yourself....

After an hour here's how he was positioned....

Here's where he was after two hours...

We gently put him back in bed of course and he slept there the rest of the night. So far for the last three nights, he has stayed in the bed. He kicks the blanket off of him and in the morning wakes you by turning his radio on in his room at maximum volume. He's turning into such a big boy...my little buddy.

I can't take it anymore.....

2009-07-29T20:54:00.004-04:00

Hello everybody!! I can not let the blog site go dormant any longer. Everybody has been so patient on letting us take our time in updating. So many things have happened the last couple of months, I'm not even sure where to begin. Let's start with news....

Michael Jackson, Billy Mays, Karl Malden (sp.), Farrah Fawcett, Walter Cronkite, Steve McNair have all passed away. There's a few other sports stars in there that I know I've missed. Some of these were expected and some were definitely unexpected. The biggest one for me is certainly Michael Jackson. I grew up on his songs such as Beat It, Billy Jean, Bad, Thriller (never was a fan of this one), Man in the Mirror, Black and White, and the list can go on and on. I remember one of my first record singles I ever owned was Beat It. I played it until the needle needed to be replaced. All these greats will be missed. Now how about Hammett news.....

Elizabeth and Braeden have been on a couple of vacations this year. I was able to join them for a small one a couple of weeks ago in Ocean Isle. What a great time we had in the ocean and at the water park. My little buddy is growing so fast. It seems as though he is learning a new word every week. One of our favorites right now is "belly button" which comes out as "Belly Butts." How cute is that!! This week has been a little dramatic for us. Our older dog Ty had 4 seizures a couple of days ago. This is certainly out of the ordinary. We are accustomed to having one about every 6-8 weeks. We are adding a medication for him to hopefully manage the seizures to a level that will lessen the occurences. I guess the biggest news in our life right now is that I am going back to school. Yes, the 6 1/2 year college student and MBA grad is yet again, going back to school. This is a higher calling though totally not of my worldly nature. In about 5 weeks I'm starting Union PSCE seminary in Charlotte. God is calling me to a life of full time ministry that starts with a seminary education. I'm going through a part-time program that will take 5 years to complete. In the meantime, I will continue with my fulltime daddy, husband, and job responsibilities. I ask that you simply pray for the knowledge and energy to be able to handle it all. It will be an exciting journey ending with the utltimate reward!! What else is there....I think that's enough for now. I'll be doing my best to keep this thing updated as the school year starts for Elizabeth and me.

Camera is still out of service...

2009-05-04T12:06:00.002-04:00

To all of you that are regular readers of our blog, you know I can't write a post without some sort of picture. So I apologize for not being a little more disciplined in getting the latest happenings out there to everybody. In the meantime, here's some more entertainment for your viewing pleasure.

This is Impressive

2009-04-17T12:50:00.002-04:00

As many of you know I'm a huge music guy and every now and then I find something that I like to share with everybody. Check this out!!!

Back to Normal

2009-04-13T22:10:00.004-04:00

Now that Spring Break is over, my little trip to the MASTERs is over (yes I was there on Saturday), and we celebrated our risen Savior, our life is getting back to normal...whatever that means. Let me share with everybody some more pictures from Spring Break and Easter!!

Spring Break is Here!!!!!

2009-03-31T21:34:00.015-04:00

This week we are taking a family vacation and doing absolutely everything that deals with relaxation. We are totally and selfishly indulging ourselves every chance we get. Today, we visited the aquarium (we're in Charleston for the week). From the moment we walk into the building Braeden absolutely loved it!! We were so excited that we were going to capture this with photos and post them so everybody can share this experience with us. Of course, as Murphy would have it, our digital camera totally died on us. At this point we were pretty bummed. Fortunately, I brought my old film camera to capture these special moments. However, you can't reshoot pictures and delete when they do not turn out picture perfect with this camera. To top that off, I only had 1 roll of film and it was black and white. However, we pressed on because this is vacation and nothing is going to get to us this week no matter what. Here's a few that we captured today. Tell us what you think. By the way...these pictures were not easy to take with a toddler. I spent a lot of time just sitting in one spot following him with the camera until he stopped long enough to take the picture.

He was definitely posing for this one....what do you think?

Breaktime

He loved pointing at the fish.

Here we are at Waterfront Park.

Mommy chillin' out on the grass... she is beautiful!!

This would've been a great picture in color...but we didn't have that option today.
Mommy in front of the fountain...another good shot. Was she a model before we met?
He had a lot of fun, but he never misses nap time no matter what!!

Jammin' Djembe

2009-03-08T22:21:00.000-04:00

Winter Showed Up...

2009-03-03T19:58:00.005-05:00

This past Sunday we got blanketed with about six inches of snow. It was one of the largest snows in a few years for our area. Unfortunately, daddy had to go to work on Monday and Braeden did not really like it.

My Funny Valentine!

2009-02-17T21:48:00.004-05:00

Literally it was a funny valentine card that I found for Elizabeth. Then she gives me a moderately serious card accompanied with breakfast in bed that almost made me teary eyed. I think my wife secretly likes Valentine's day. I've never put a lot of effort into Valentine's day in the past but over the past two years Elizabeth and I make sure we treat ourselves to a good time. This year we had dinner at the Piedmont club which consisted of a 4 course meal and live jazz music!! So, YES I had more planned than a funny card. We had a wonderful time and apparently grandma and grandpa had just as much fun giving Braeden a bath!!

It seems as though Braeden is doing something different each week. This week he is walking with more stability than last week. Next week he'll probably be running and starting to read. One aspect that has been very nice is we have not had to go to the doctor in a while. We have been fairly healthy now for several weeks which as any of you parents know, is a blessing. I know there were times Elizabeth and I just assumed we would be at the doctor for some reason each week. Thankfully, that has subsided a bit.

So the Tigers decided to show up for Duke, not show up for FSU, show up for Boston College, not show up for Virginia, and show up for Maryland. I've caught myself complaining about the roller coaster play and realize that I'm complaining about Clemson basketball losing a game. I have not been able to do this since the Rick Barnes days and I certainly like Purnell a lot better than I liked Rick Barnes. GO TIGERS and keep up the good play.

We're off and running...um....walking

2009-02-09T20:17:00.003-05:00

Everybody has told us we better be prepared for this day, but from our little experience so far he is much harder to catch on all fours than walking.....for now.

Are you Fireproof?

2009-01-28T22:26:00.003-05:00

Have you seen "Fireproof" yet? What are you waiting on? I highly endorse this movie. Not because of the great acting or the action packed scenes, but simply because anybody that is married or thinking about being married needs to see this. Whether you have a happy marriage or you struggle, this movie could help. It touches on all aspects of relationships that everyone of us encounter. If your church has a class that goes with the movie I suggest you to take it and do the workbook. It will grow your relationship with one another and add another level of intimacy. Just remember, nothing is "Fireproof" and you can always get burned.

Every now and then I come across an article that really stumps me. A couple of weeks ago I read an article that asks the question, "Is it harder to be a parent, or harder to be a spouse?" When I first read this question I was thinking well that's easy. However, as I started to reread the question I realized that it may not be as easy as I think. Yes Braeden is a wonderful child and we do not have a lot of problems, but will that always be the case as I continue being a parent? Will parenting continue to be this easy/natural with him over the years? Then I think, how do you keep your marriage alive and exciting for 10, 20, 30, 40 or even 50 years?!! Which one is tougher....good question. What do you think?

Elizabeth finally got her Wii fit. We have been searching for these since Christmas and as soon as Best Buy would get them in they would sell out. So, this past Saturday I was able to track one down and get it for her. For those of you that have them, you know as you set up your profile it will give you a "Wii fit age." This is a BAD idea. I've talked to two people already that has gotten very upset over this feature. One of them being Elizabeth. She did not like what it told her and neither did my mom. Do you think the Wii fit is chauvinistic? All I know is I'm very uncomfortable to be in the same room with the Wii fit and my wife now. I hope they learn to get along.

I have trouble doing a post without a picture and everybody is asleep so you get this wonderful self portrait!!!

More Proof...

2009-01-14T23:01:00.003-05:00

More proof that Braeden is more interested in climbing than walking. Watch how he turns and looks at me when he gets close to his destination to see if he as approval from daddy to play.

New Year, New Skills

2009-01-07T14:19:00.002-05:00

Braeden would rather be climber than a walker.

Braeden's Favorite Face

2008-12-24T02:50:00.005-05:00

I don't know where this came from, but it's cute!!!

12 Month Stats
Height 31 1/2 inches 92%
Weight 24 pounds 70%

I can't remember what the head circumference was because I was so stunned by his weight. My child will only eat baby food and every now and then he won't even open his mouth for that. He refuses most solid foods unless they crunch! Hopefully this little problem goes away soon. Unfortunately, I think Braeden may have inherited his mother's picky eating habits. This does not please his daddy.

We took our first family photo tonight (first professional family photo anyway). I really hope the pictures turn out good.

Braeden doesn't want to walk. He seems to like crawling just fine which is good because I can barely keep up with him when he's crawling. I don't know what I'm going to do when he's running.

Landon and I got a Wii for our anniversary. Ok, I got a Wii and Landon got clothes, but I didn't know we were allowed to spend that much money on our anniversary. Considering we almost forgot to celebrate it (it kind of got overshadowed by Braeden's first birthday) we had a very nice night. It was an awesome gift and I'm really excited about it. I just wish I had more time/energy to play it. I also hope I don't end up being one of those 10 people that end up in the hospital each week because of Wii injuries (heard that on the radio today!). Throwing the controller through the tv would be bad also.

I realize I'm rambling, but that's what happens when I make a post at 3:00 in the morning. I'm going to try to go back to sleep now. Good night everyone!

uugggghhhh

2008-12-10T21:21:00.003-05:00

Well it has happened again. The family has been hit with the stomach bug....again. This is twice since August. Elizabeth started out with it, then it went to Aunt Nancy, then to Uncle Ernest, then Braeden, then daddy, then grandma, and then Nedpa. As far as I know it has stopped right there. It has been absolutely gross. We had all these plans to drive to NC and get our Christmas tree. Well needless to say that fell through. We are all better (for the most part) but it has certainly taken it's toll on all of us.

Christmas time is here. This is by far my favorite time of the year. Right now I'm watching Home Alone. I love this movie. It still makes me laugh. I love how "Kevin" outsmarts the robbers. One good thing about this time of year are all the Christmas movies they show on TV. Of course there are plenty of other things too...like....good food, fun times, shopping for the boy, Christmas lights, special church programs, Jesus. I just love this time of year. My stress level has definitely gone down.

Well that's enough Random thoughts for now.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY BRAEDEN!!

2008-11-29T19:05:00.002-05:00

Oh No Tim is 4 -- 0

2008-11-21T15:25:00.003-05:00

This is what happens when your little brother gets a hold of your flower bed for your 40th birthday. Yes my older brother turned the big 4 - 0 yesterday. We all gave him a surprise birthday party in his garage with the usual assortment of novelty items of being "over the hill." Happy Birthday Big Brother.

Happy Halloween

2008-10-30T22:28:00.005-04:00

Tonight we went to a pre-halloween party at the Piedmont Club. Grandma invited all of us and everybody had a great time. There were magicians, clowns, ghosts, goblins, pumkins and Yoda. Thanks Grandma!!

This guy greeted us at the door.

This guy had a really good time. These ears make him feel better.

This guy covered the entire entrance to the Piedmont club. It was huge!!

9 month stats

2008-10-23T17:06:00.002-04:00

Braeden was finally healthy enough to have his 9 month checkup today. I think he has officially figured out the doctor's office. Everytime someone walked through the door he screamed. He seemed to know someone was about to do something to him that he was not going to like. He did not like the doctor checking his heart, looking at his ears/mouth, touching him, etc. He only liked him when he walked out the door. He really didn't like having his hemoglobin checked or the shot though. I don't think I've ever seen him that mad before. He has been fine since we left though.

Weight: 23.13

Height: 30 3/8

Head: 18 1/2

Oh my ears!!

2008-10-22T21:40:00.003-04:00

Well, as many of us out there, we are having trouble with ears. Braeden has been on an antibiotic for almost 20 straight days. Each time he finishes one a fever follows exactly three days later. Then we take him to the doctor and they always say, "His ears look horrible!! WHY is he smiling at me?" Of course I respond, "He's good like that, doc. What can I say? I'm a lucky dad." They usually look at me a little funny after that statement to see if I'm being sarcastic or not. So, next Thursday we have a consult with an ear doctor to see what we're really going to do about his ears. The pediatrician is recommending tubes, but since his last doctor visit, and three shots later, Braeden has been fine. He has not had the usual day 3 fever, his nose has stopped running, his appetite is back, and he's playing a lot. So now Elizabeth and I are wondering if we're going to need them after all. What a roller coaster.

We took Braeden to the G. Tech game this weekend. He had a blast!! He actually stayed with us for the entire game this time. This was made possible by the nap he took during halftime and most of the third quarter. He told me when he woke up that Tiger Band put him to sleep. I don't know what the "director" is thinking, but I have seen Tiger Band perform more to the away stands this year than the home stands. G. Tech absolutely showed them up. Where is the band of old? Where is the attitude we use to have that we were not going to let anybody blow us off the field? We have turned weak like the football team. Maybe Tiger Band needs a change too!!!! That's enough, I'm finished.

Does anybody watch the new Knight Rider? I'm hooked on it as if I was in middle school again. Kit is still cool, I still want one, and now he even changes like a transformer. What more could you ask for in a show?!!

We have had several people tell us that they enjoyed the video from the last post. We are glad to have brightened everybody's day!!

What is so funny...

2008-10-01T21:04:00.003-04:00

Elizabeth and I captured this tonight and we have no idea why this is so funny. I opened every piece of junk mail we have for this moment!!! Sorry about the orientation of the video. You'll have to turn your head sideways.

Braeden's 1st Post

2008-09-13T22:00:00.004-04:00

Today mommy and daddy took me to my very first Clemson Football game. There was a lot of orange and noise everywhere. I had a really good time. There was a man that sat beside us that yelled a lot at the coaches and especially the refs. He seemed to be very upset at some Ron Cherry guy. Here are some pictures from my first football game. Thanks mommy and daddy, I had a really good time.

Doesn't this background look fake?

This was pretty neat!!

We are alive...so here comes a random update of happenings and what not that you all can read to catch up with what is going on.

2008-09-03T22:16:00.006-04:00

I know it's been a long time since Elizabeth and I have posted anything. The last couple of weeks have been rather eye awakening. Once Elizabeth stopped all her vacationing she had to come home and get ready to work again. So as she was preparing her classroom and curriculum, we had to get Braeden prepared for daycare. This wasn't too bad because Braeden's Daycare is owned and operated by some of my cousins. I went there when I was a baby and this place is probably one of the best in town. So school starts, day care starts, and all our schedules change in the matter of a night. It took all of three days for Braeden to get sick. He had an ear infection, upper respiratory infection, and some type of stomach bug. Before school started my mom and dad wanted to take us to Santa's Land and on up to Pigeon Forge. So as we get there, daddy gets sick with some sort of stomach thing. Then Monday night, the night before school starts, mommy gets sick too. Then it spread to my mom, dad, and brother. It was ugly and gross. So everybody is better now and we're still adjusting to the new schedule of daddy taking Braeden to daycare in the mornings, mommy having to get up and go to school, and mommy picking Braeden up in the afternoon.

If anybody knows where our Clemson football team has vanished to, please tell them to come back for the rest of the season....thank you that is all.

Do any of you out there watch America's Got Talent? This show has some of the strangest acts I have ever seen, but also has some of the most raw talent I've seen. There is a group on there of these two guys playing violin. They are called "Just Strings" or "All About Strings" or something about strings. These guys are good and their act is very refreshing. If you get a chance to watch them I'd suggest it before/if they get voted off. I think I could sit around and listen to them for a while.

So last week in the midst of all of us getting better our dog Ty started having seizures again. We have not had any seizures for about two years. We get Ty to the vet for them to check his phenobarbital levels and see if we can increase his dosage. The vet asks us if Ty has any added stress to his life that could be triggering the seizures. Well....can you say a nine month old little boy that chases Ty around the house in his walker? Case closed...we'll probably have to up his medication.

cute pictures

2008-08-04T09:23:00.003-04:00

This is a picture of Farris and Braeden taken at the beach. Farris is one of my cousins little girl.

Braeden fell asleep one night when we were visiting the other house and Farris thought she would help him sleep better by putting all of her stuffed animals around him in the bed. This was the result. How cute is that!

Cleaning out the closet part II

2008-07-31T10:58:00.004-04:00

Before I started unpacking the suitcases from our beach trip I decided to go ahead and finish cleaning out the closet. Trying on the shirts and shoes in my closet did not go quite as well as trying on the pants. Although now that I've gone back and looked at the pants that I can fit in and look descent in I've discovered there are only 4 pairs that fit into that category hanging in my closet and I've become a little less excited about it. I hate doing laundry and only having 4 pairs of pants that fit, teaching 22 second graders, having 2 dogs and a baby means that the possibility of me having to wash those 4 pairs of pants each time I wear them is very big! Maybe that's just motivation to keep losing weight. Then I can move myself over into the section of my closet that contains the pants I wish to fit into someday soon again.

Anyway back to the shirts and shoes. I don't know what happened, but the large majority of the shirts I wore before I was pregnant look absolutely awful now and the shirts I wore when I went back to school are all worn out and way too big. So I salvaged what I could and took the rest up to a thrift store close to our house. With a couple of new additions, I think I can live with the shirt situation. However, the shoes are the worst. Every single pair of shoes I own hurt my feet and the most of the ones I've gone out and tried on hurt my feet. If my principal would let me, I would teach barefooted, but that is most likely not going to happen. I saved two pairs I think I can wear if I can figure out how to stretch them. If I can stretch them, I can take the pair I bought yesterday back and that would just make Landon oh so happy. I also saved a couple of other pairs that I think I can stand to keep on my feet long enough to wear to church. They just can't be worn anywhere where they have to be worn for a long period of time or where I have to walk any further than from the car to the church. The rest either went in the trash because they were too nasty to give to charity or they went to the thrift store. My closet looks very sad now, which not only makes me sad but makes me want to go shopping, and which is going to make Landon flip his lid when he looks at the bank account to see how much money I've spent on clothes over the last couple of weeks. So, please pray that Landon doesn't kill me for spending too much money and/or I don't kill Landon for getting mad at me for spending too much money. Thanks!

Look what Braeden's been learning to do at Marty's!!

2008-07-29T09:31:00.004-04:00

FYI - Marty is my mom's grandma name.

Ocean Isle Beach trip 2008

2008-07-20T19:09:00.006-04:00

Braeden and I have been at the beach for the past week and still have another week ahead of us to enjoy! Braeden loves it here. It makes me miss living in Charleston to see him having so much fun in the water and on the sand. I miss having the beach 15 minutes away from my house as well as my family and friends.

I have some of the cutest pictures to share of Braeden and the beach and all the crazy people we have been with for the last week. Unfortunately, I'm borrowing someone's wifi (sp?) and the signal is not strong enough for me to upload any of them so I won't be able to post those until we get home. Landon was able to use some vacation time and come join us for a few days. He left this morning and we miss him already. We had a wonderful time together while he was here except for yesterday when the tropical storm decided to take over. It was craziness all day. There would be torrential downpours of rain for five minutes and then the brightest sunshine and bluest sky you've ever seen. But by the time you got your stuff together to get outside, it was raining again. There was never any thunder or lightening, just rain. This went on all day long. Very frustrating for someone who just wants to go sit on the beach. Landon, Braeden, and I were able to get out on the beach for a very short time and find some shells though. Hopefully the rest of the week will be full of sunshine and Braeden and I will be able to spend lots of time outside. We'll miss having daddy to play with though.

Cleaning out the closet part I

2008-07-10T15:31:00.002-04:00

So I decided to start going through all of the clothes in my closet today to see if there was anything in there that was ever going to fit again. This is a process I have been dreading all summer, but I figured since I have to go back to work a month from tomorrow I better start figuring out if I had any prepregnancy clothes that would fit otherwise I was going to be wearing the same 5 cheap and very worn out outfits I wore week after week after I went back to work in February or the workout shorts, tank top, and sports bra that I have worn everyday since we got out of school. (I haven't seen the point in getting dressed a lot this summer. It's too expensive to go anywhere and besides Braeden is a much happier baby when his routine is not disrupted. That basically means we get up, eat breakfast, play, take a nap, get up, eat lunch, play, and take a nap, then we go exercise, come home, eat dinner, play, and go to bed. Thus, very little clothing that would be considered acceptable for work has been attempted to get into in about 6 weeks.) So I go into the closet and discover quite unexpectedly that I actually have a few pair of pants that fit and actually look good! AND to top it off I could zip and button everything in the closet. Now some of it didn't look so hot zipped and buttoned, but that didn't matter because the fact that the pants zipped and buttoned meant that there was some hope that I may be able to wear them again.

NOTE TO LANDON: This does not mean I am not going to be buying new clothes before school starts back because I have some clothes that fit now. It means I get to celebrate losing all that weight by going out and buying new clothes in a smaller size!

4th of July

2008-07-08T14:30:00.009-04:00

Here are some photos from the 4th of July:

Braeden says "I hate this thing they are making me wear!"

But Braeden likes to drive the boat!

And Braeden likes fishing with daddy too.

Landon, Braeden, and I cooling off in the pool.

This is not where daddy's guitar is supposed to be

2008-06-30T11:21:00.006-04:00

Braeden has found the dog food

2008-06-26T12:40:00.004-04:00

A couple of weeks ago our neighbors were having a yard sale and Landon found a walker and bought it for Braeden. At first Braeden could only move the walker backwards, then it was side to side, and a little over 3 weeks later I am rearranging the house because Braeden has figured out how to move the thing anyway he wants to including through doorways and down the hall. Today he made it all the way across the den and through the doorway to the kitchen which just happens to be where we keep Maximus's dog food and water. Since Maximus is such a large dog his food and water have to be elevated from the floor to keep him from getting a condition called bloat which can kill him. Anyway, the food and water are just at the perfect level for Braeden to reach and grab hold of. So, needless to say dog food was all over the place. Thank goodness dogs don't care where they eat from because otherwise I would have been cleaning up a very big mess instead of taking pictures!

My First Father's Day

2008-06-19T22:09:00.004-04:00

You know over the years I never understood the big deal behind father's day. I knew dad always appreciated spending time with Tim and I, but we did that all the time. What was the big deal about this one day? Well, I still may not really know what the big deal about father's day, but I certainly enjoyed it. It was great to know how much Elizabeth and Braeden love me and appreciate what all I do to keep things going. I can now understand why it meant so much to dad growing up and know that it is also going to mean a lot to me. You know dads all over have an awesome responsibility to their family and it is very unfortunate there are dads out there that can not take enough responsibility to take care of their families. It's a sacrifice that we all chose to make the day we said "I do" and the day our wives told us, "I'm pregnant." Even though I've only been a dad for six months, it has been great! I've enjoyed being a dad more than I thought I ever would. My first father's day was awesome and it is one I will never forget. From the Nemo card that I got from Braeden to putting my arms around Elizabeth that night and her telling me happy father's day. It was truly a special day for me and all my friends that are fathers now. It was great getting text messages from various friends throughout the day wishing me the best on this special day. At the end of the day there were two thoughts that came very clear to me:
1) Make a goal to be the best father that I know to be until next father's day...and renew that each year. Learn from old and new fathers some of things they do. Learn from others' mistakes so I don't make them with Braeden. Don't ever be satisfied with mediocrity when it comes to Elizabeth and Braeden.
2)A wise father once told me one of his favorite verses in the Bible. It is 3 John 1:4, "I have no greater joy than to hear that my children are walking in the truth." I can totally see the joy this father experienced knowing his children were walking in the truth. There truly would be no greater joy knowing that Braeden will know Jesus Christ one day and walk in His truth. That in itself is an awesome responsibility that Elizabeth and I will certainly struggle with at some point in time. Let's face it, we all give in to temptation and I know Braeden will too. Let's hope he can overcome thanks to the foundation that his parents helped developed.

So how was my first father's day....IT WAS GREAT!! It was also a day of awakening knowing I can't ever stop for my son's sake. He's my boy and I'll try my best...that I can promise him.

I still love the pool!!!!

2008-06-10T21:41:00.003-04:00

Braeden loves the pool!!

2008-06-08T17:13:00.004-04:00

Ok, love may be a strong word, but there was no fussing and no tears, so I think his introduction to the pool went pretty well. He had a great time splashing the water. I only hope swimming lessons go this well.

Daddy, we took a whole lot of pictures for you! We will see you on Thursday.

*If anyone knows if it is possible to clear up these photos please let me know. *

6 months old

2008-06-02T15:15:00.003-04:00

We went for Braeden's 6 month checkup last Tuesday. Everything went well except that the date was the 27th and Braeden wasn't 6 months old until the 29th and they wouldn't give him the shots. So, we had to go back this morning for those. He's been asleep for an hour and twenty minutes now, which is not entirely unusual, I just hope he wakes up happier than he was when he went to sleep!

Here are the stats:

weight: 19 pounds 13.5 ounces (85%)

length: 28 inches (90%)

head: 17 and 3/4 (85%)

Hopefully Braeden will be feeling better by tomorrow. We will be heading to Charleston for a few days.

A Day at the Park

2008-05-28T20:08:00.005-04:00

A couple of weekends ago my dad's side of the family got together for a little reunion. We gathered at Cleveland Park for some BBQ and good times at the park. This was Braeden's first outing at the park and he absolutely loved it. He was so excited the whole time he skipped a meal. Since Braeden loves to eat, this was very unusual. His favorite thing was the swings. He never stopped smiling the entire time he was swinging. Have a look for yourself...

After a good time on the swings (which we need to buy for him b/c he loved it so much) it was time to eat so he got to ride with his cousin in the Radio Flyer red wagon.

Now the funniest thing all day was all the cousins and their children decided to feed the ducks. So we had about 15-20 people feeding some ducks about 2 loaves of bread. I think the ducks are still full.

So.....

2008-05-18T22:24:00.003-04:00

Why did we post a picture of Maximus' head in the fridge you might ask? So everybody can make their own stories and share with us all in "Jazz Chatter" of course!! Not really, but that could've been fun. I make this dish for Elizabeth and I called Oriental Noodle Bowls. It is a really good recipe, pretty easy to make and we eat it often. It also makes enough for Elizabeth and I to eat on for two days. So a couple of weeks ago I make the recipe and proceed to clean up. As I start to put the big bowl that I make this in into the fridge, it slips. Yes, it slips totally out of my hands and comes crashing down all into the fridge. All the noodles, carrots, broccoli, beef and sauces went all over the fridge and the floor. It even got into our vegetables drawers. So for all of you that do not have dogs or are thinking of getting dogs, this is reason # 273 to get a dog. They are great vacuum cleaners. I still had to clean a lot of the fridge, but the pleasure for Ty and Maximus was like a child at Christmas!!

One of Braeden's favorite things to do is jump. He's so cute when he does this we thought we would share it with everybody. We hope you enjoy!!!

2008-05-14T19:37:00.001-04:00

HAPPY BIRTHDAY DADDY!!!

2008-05-06T21:57:00.000-04:00

We love you!!!

Hi Everybody

2008-04-24T21:19:00.005-04:00

Sorry it's been so long since the last post. Not much has happened. Landon got sick and then got better, I only have 5 weeks of school left and Braeden is absolutely wonderful. I think we forgot to post his info from the last doctor's visit. Braeden was 16 lbs 6 oz. and 27 inches long on March 25th. He's growing like a weed. We had to graduate from the carrier to the big boy carseat because his feet were hanging about 6 inches over the edge and I was sure I was going to smash them into something. He's eating some food now. He's okay with the rice and barley cereal, hates bananas, and loves oatmeal. These pictures are of the outfit Uncle Ernest sent from The Masters.

Happy Easter Everybody

2008-03-23T22:24:00.002-04:00

"Two other men, both criminals, were also led out with him to be executed. When they came to the place called the Skull (Golgotha), there they crucified him, along with the criminals - one on his right, the other on his left. Jesus said, "Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing." And they divided up his clothes by casting lots. The people stood watching, and the rulers even sneered at him. They said, "He saved others; let him save himself if he is the Christ of God, the Chosen One." The soldiers also came up and mocked him. They offered him wine vinegar and said, "If you are the king of the Jews, save yourself." There was a written notice above him, which read: THIS IS THE KING OF THE JEWS. One of the criminals who hung there hurled insults at him; "Aren't you the Christ? Save yourself and us!" But the other criminal rebuked him. "Don't you fear God," he said, "since you are under the same sentence? We are punished justly, for we are getting what our deeds deserve. But this man has done nothing wrong." Then he said, "Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom." Jesus answered him, "I tell you the truth, today you will be with me in paradise." It was now about the sixth hour, and darkness came over the whole land until the ninth hour, for the sun stopped shining. And the curtain of the temple was torn in two. Jesus called out with a loud voice, "Father, into your hands I commit my spirit." When he had said this, he breathed his last breath. ~Luke 23:32-46 (NIV)

On the first day of the week, very early in the morning, the women took the spices they had prepared and went to the tomb. They found the stone rolled away from the tomb, but when they entered, they did not find the body of the Lord Jesus. While they were wondering about this, suddenly two men in clothes that gleamed like lightning stood beside them. In their fright the women bowed down with their faces to the ground, but the men said to them, "Why do you look for the living among the dead? He is not here; HE HAS RISEN!! Remember how he told you while he was still with you in Galilee, "The Son of Man must be delivered into the hands of sinful men, be crucified and on the third day be raised again." They the remembered his words. ~Luke 24:1-8

On this special day, it is our hope that you and your families remember these words and celebrate our Risen Saviour.

To move, or not to move.....That is the question

2008-03-08T09:46:00.003-05:00

Gifts from Uncle Ernest

2008-03-07T19:50:00.003-05:00

Braeden received these in the mail today. We love them.
Thank you Uncle Ernest.

For your viewing pleasure....enjoy!!

2008-03-05T22:01:00.002-05:00

It's Been awhile

2008-02-07T14:08:00.001-05:00

It's been awhile since I've gotten on here and talked to everybody. Don't fret though, I have been reading everybody's blog and keeping up with all the happenings in blog-world. Many things have happened over the past couple of weeks. It snowed, Elizabeth started back to work, Braeden had his first round of shots, Clemson had a number 2 recruiting class, Shaq gets traded to Phoenix, I started back running again, Braeden sleeps through the night and much more. First things first though...let's talk about the lil' man.

He has been doing great. Most of you saw the picture that Elizabeth posted. Is that not the best picture ever (am I biased or what)? He has grown a mile! He also had his first round of shots which he handled very well. He cried three times (big cries) and stopped, then looked at us like, "What was that about?" He never had any adverse affects from the shots other than being a little grumpy. I know if I got three shots in my legs I'd be a little grumpy too!! We have had another transition to handle this past week with Elizabeth going back to work. It has been a little tough getting use to me getting up earlier to take Braeden to Grandma's and Elizabeth having to get up and let him leave her. We have handled it well and neither one of us can wait to get him home and play (I love to play). How about our labor and delivery doctor being in Tiger Band with us? That was a shocker!!

What about the snow!! We probably got about 3-4 inches of accumulation. I made it to work that day, but not without taking some time out to play (remember, I love to play). I'll post pictures on here next week of the snow at the Hammett household. I wish it stayed around a couple of days, but alas this is the south and you can't expect that here.

GO TIGERS!!!! What an awesome recruiting class Tommy and the coaches put together. Does anybody know if we have ever had a recruiting class any higher than this one? Even in the Danny Ford days? Now, let's coach them up and win a championship!!!

I took about three weeks off from running and it has been really HARD getting started back. I don't think I'm going to do the Bridge Run this year. The chances of me being in shape enough to do it are slim to none.

That's about it for now...take care everybody!!!!!

Braeden 2 months

2008-01-29T13:05:00.000-05:00

13 pounds 6 ounces

23 1/2 inches

He's a wonderful baby!

Christmas Memories Part II

2008-01-19T21:38:00.000-05:00

Santa Visited!!!!

Santa visited Ty and Maximus too!!!

Christmas Morning at Tim's

Braeden is ready to open presents!!!

Weird

2008-01-15T19:17:00.000-05:00

So, I was at the doctor today for my 6 week checkup when the doctor says I think I knew your husband when I was at Clemson. Considering Landon has never met a stranger, this did not surprise me, so I told her that he took some biology courses while he was there and she said that could be where she knew him from since she was a biology major and we left it at that. After she had left the room it occurred to me that she probably knew Landon from some music course. Turns out the doctor who delivered Braeden played mellophone in Tiger Band from 1995-1998. How weird is that?

Her name is Adrienne Ellis.

Some Christmas Memories

2008-01-08T21:33:00.000-05:00

   Maximus took over my Jungle Gym
   Santa and Me
   Need I say more?
   Christmas tree is finally up.
   Buzz and me!!
Here are some pictures from our first Christmas with Braeden. More photos to come once they are loaded to our computer.

Hi daddy!! We're coming home :)

2008-01-01T23:17:00.000-05:00

What Christmas is All About!!

2007-12-24T09:34:00.000-05:00

In those days Caesar Augustus issued a decree that a census should be taken of the entire Roman world. (This was the first census that took place while Quirinius was governor of Syria.) And everyone went to his own town to register. So Joseph also went up from the town of Nazareth in Galilee to Judea, to Bethlehem the town of David, because he belonged to the house and line of David. He went there to register with Mary who was pledged to be married to him and was expecting a child. While they were there, the time came for the baby to be born, and she gave birth to her born, a son. She wrapped him in swaddling cloths and placed him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn. And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night. An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. But the angel said to them, "Do not be afraid. I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is Christ the Lord. This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger. Suddenly a great company of the heavenly hosts appeared with the angel, prasing God and saying, Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to men on whom his favor rests. When the angels had left them and gone into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, "Let's go to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has told us about." So they hurried off and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby, who was lying in a manger. When they had aseen him, they spread the word concerning what had been told them about this child, and all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds said to them. But Mary treasured up all these things and pondered them in her heart. The shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things they had heard and seen, which were just as they had been told. ~Luke 2:1-20 (NIV).

Elizabeth, Braeden, Ty, Maximus, and I hope everybody has a Merry Christmas. We Love You all!!

2007-12-19T12:56:00.000-05:00

Christmas is on it's way...

2007-12-12T23:05:00.001-05:00

Can you see me waving at you?
One of my favorite Christmas ornaments
The tree is up!!!
Well, Braeden is about two weeks old now and we are starting to get into some semblance of a schedule. We eat, we stay up, we sleep, then repeat. You all know that it is that simple too right? With this being my first full week back at work it has been a little challenging. Of course I'm way behind and do not want to stay over because I want to get home to see my son (that's still sounds weird to say). Tonight we finally bought a Christmas tree and decorated it. Braeden slept through the majority of it, but he'll enjoy it one day. It was a very good time for Elizabeth and I to spend a bit of time together. We love doing little things like that together. If you remember last year we drove to Maggie Valley and picked our tree at a farm. That was tons of fun. We're going to try to do that again next year. Christmas is a very special time for us and we love spending it with one another. We put the jingle bell collars on the dogs, listened to Christmas music, and started putting lights on the tree. We love this time of year!!

I've posted some new photos of Braeden. Go to "Our Photos" in the links section to view them.

Merry Christmas everybody. Love you all!!!

Braeden and the dogs

2007-12-07T11:48:00.000-05:00

My mom took these pictures of us bringing Braeden home.

Maximus and Ty checking Braeden out.

Maximus thinks it's a treat.

Ty trying to figure out where the noise is coming from.

Braeden is 1 week old

2007-12-06T22:55:00.000-05:00

For those of you Landon and I haven't talked to here's how it all happened:

Last Tuesday I had my check-up and left the office very depressed because I was still just at 2 cm and felt like this baby was never going to come out of me. I spent the rest of the day Tuesday and all day Wednesday in bed trying to convince myself that I could make it another week to be induced. Landon came home from work about five and around seven we ate dinner. While we were eating I started to feel a little funny. I started to notice some pelvic pain that kept coming and going. Since this was about the third or fourth time these pains had started coming and going in the last couple of weeks I wasn't real sure what was happening so I just went to bed again. About an hour and half later I asked Landon to come lay in the bed with me because the pains were coming every 6 minutes and then every 12 minutes and were starting to hurt. This went on for the next 3 hours with the pains getting closer together. Finally about 11:30 they were 5 minutes apart. We weren't supposed to go to the hospital until the contractions were 5 minutes apart for one hour, so we waited some more. About 12:15 they went to 3 minutes apart and Landon decided it was time to go. For some reason I was convinced I was just having pains and was not in labor and argued with Landon the whole there. I just knew they were going to send me home. Thankfully they didn't.

After we got to the hospital they put me in triage and hooked me up to the monitors for a little while. I was having contractions, but wasn't dilating all that much so they made us walk the halls of the hospital for an hour. This was not fun. I was wearing a hospital gown and flip flops and was searching for something to hold on to every 3 minutes to keep from falling over. After walking for an hour we went back with the contractions still about 3 minutes apart and getting stronger. After we got back the nurse checked me again and finally admitted me to the hospital. This was about 2:30 AM.

When they admitted me they asked me if I wanted to go ahead and get my epidural or if I wanted to wait. I told them to go ahead and do it, thank god, because I had to wait 2 hours before they finally gave it to me. They had perfect timing though because theanesthesiologist walked through the door as I burst into tears for the first time. I was just about to decide I wasn't going to make it.

This is where the trauma began. The nurse sat me up so the anesthesiologist could get started. Landon and the nurse were both standing in front of me which was a good thing because as the anesthesiologist started explaining what he was doing, I started passing out. I did this twice. I was never in pain from the epidural, I didn't feel anything. The only thing I could figure out was that the drugs they were injecting me with were making me sick. Finally they were done and they let me lay down again. The epidural worked almost immediately. I went straight to sleep. Then the nurse came back to put my catheter in. When she moved me onto my back I almost immediately began throwing up. It seemed like it took forever for the nurse to put that catheter in, probably because I was paralyzed from the waist down, laying on my back and puking my guts out. I thought I was going to choke to death before she finished.

Finally my doctor came in and checked me, only 6 cm, and gave me some medicine for nausea. It was about 7 or 8 o'clock about this time. The doctor decided to break my water and start me on pitocin . I was so exhausted by this point, I don't think I really had any clue of what was going on, but I could still hear the baby's heartbeat in the background. All of a
sudden I noticed a change in the heart rhythm. It began to get really slow and then pick back up. The next thing I knew, the doctor and three nurses were in my room and they were saying they were going to insert some internal monitors. They didn't like the readings they were getting from the monitors so they tried stimulating the baby's head. Nothing was happening. I was trying not to get too freaked out but then the doctor started explaining that it was time to get the baby out and before I knew it was being taken to the operating room for a c-section. They told Landon to wait and they would be back for
him in a few minutes. We got into the operating room at 9:57 and they had the baby out at 10:09. My memory is a little fuzzy during this time, so Landon will have to fill those details in for you.

Anyway Braeden is doing wonderfully. He's starting to get his days and nights correct, thank goodness, and is eating very well. He had his first doctor's appointment yesterday. He is almost back up to his birth weight and is 21 inches long. Here are a few pictures from his first week.

Baby is HERE!!!!!

2007-11-30T15:58:00.000-05:00

Braeden is HERE!!!!
Born November 29th at 10:09 a.m.
7 lbs 14 ounces
20 3/4 inches long
Mom and little one are doing very well!!

Belly Shot!!

2007-11-24T08:55:00.000-05:00

Well, I'm not going to say we're totally ready for the baby but he certainly seems to be taking his sweet time in getting here. I know our due date isn't until the 29th, but I don't know how much longer Elizabeth can keep this little guy inside of her. She has been struggling for the last week or so. Her doctor told her to make to start her maternity leave a week earlier and she's been having contractions off and on for about a week now. Nothing stays periodic though. We'll have them for four to six hours and then they go away for two days or something like that. So, we thought we'd give everybody a belly shot before the time came. We would like to thank everybody for their numerous gives that have been given so far. How do you find room for all of the things it takes to have a child...phew!!

I hope everybody had a Happy Thanksgiving!! We had a wonderful meal at my mom and dad's house with Turkey, dressing, and all the trimmings (it was yummy good). Then we came home and I started getting out the Christmas decorations. We hung all the stockings and decorated the outside of the house. We would like to go a tree farm again and pick our own tree (we had a lot of fun doing that last year), but we don't know how mom's condition will be after lil' man gets here. We'll have to wait and see. That's all for now....we'll keep everybody posted!!

Weddings, Baby, and Halloween oh my!!

2007-10-31T22:25:00.000-04:00

Happy Halloween everybody!! I hope all of you have a great one and eat so much candy your teeth hurt. Not really, but Halloween is a really good excuse to go overboard on candy and all the bad stuff we're suppose to avoid right? Remember all you parents out there, you have to sample your child's candy before they can have any. It's for their on safety (plus another great reason to over indulge on sugar goodness!!). Don't let the ghosts and goblins get you!!

Elizabeth and I finished up our baby class last week. Now I am officially ready for labor and delivery....right. All it did was make me more nervous. I now know what all can go wrong. Sometimes ignorance is a much better option. All kidding aside, I'm glad the knowledge is there. I do feel more prepared as we get closer to the date. This week is the marathon baby shower week. We have three baby showers over the next four days. Amazing huh? We have put the changing table in the nursery (thank you Uncle Harry) and clothes, diapers, and such are starting to roll in. We're getting prepared. Tomorrow Elizabeth starts her weekly doctor appointments and the countdown begins for the little one. We still have no name, but rest assured a detailed list will be accompanying us into the delivery room!!!

I wanted to send out a big CONGRATULATIONS to Lee and Melissa. They were married this past weekend in Greensboro. For those of you that do not know Lee, he's a good buddy of mine from packaging at Clemson. We had a ton of classes together and graduated together. He was also a groomsman in our wedding. They tied the knot and are somewhere in Hawaii doing what newlyweds do best. Best of luck to the new married couple!!!!

My First NASCAR experience!!

2007-10-15T21:51:00.000-04:00

A couple of months ago I entered this fitness competition at work anticipating that I would win one of several consolation prizes. This prize was a $25 gift certificate to Frankie's Fun Park in Greenville. My thinking was it would be a night Elizabeth and I could spend with one another for a little fun during this whole pregnancy period. Well, instead of winning this prize I won the GRAND PRIZE of two tickets to the NASCAR race in Charlotte this past weekend. You can imagine the thrill that I had of winning this considering I have never watched a race, never had a desire to watch a race, and really did not know anything about the sport whatsoever. So, instead of selling the tickets I decided to give it a shot to see what all the hype about NASCAR was truly about. So this past Saturday one of my best buds, Chris, and I set out on our marathon Saturday to be a racing fan. From the time we arrived to the time we left, the experience was absolutely phenomenal. The atmosphere, the power of cars, the noise of the cars, the wrecks, the people, the track, the stands around the track, everything was awesome. Before going to this race, I thought Death Valley in Clemson was a massive structure for a sporting event. However, you could fit two Death Valleys in there and this place seats twice as many people. Needless to say, I think I am a new NASCAR fan. It is absolutely amazing how fast these cars go and that people are actually crazy enough to drive that fast. TV does not do this sport justice. To become a true fan, you need to go to a race to experience what the craze is all about. In preparation for the race, Chris made me pick someone to follow. So, I picked Tony Stewart and we both followed him during the race. We were able to listen to his Pit Crew using the Scan Trac headphones which added to the excitement. If you ever get the chance....I'm saying GO!!!

Baby Update:
We're taking our Baby class right now.
Elizabeth is getting more miserable each day.
Still no name

Baby Shower

2007-10-03T16:39:00.000-04:00

We had a our first baby shower over the weekend in Charleston. We received so many gifts. It was unbelievable. It was so nice to get to see everyone and to visit with family and friends. I wish we could've stayed longer. Here are some photos from the shower.

Ansley and I getting ready to open all the presents!!

One of the gifts. Looks like it will be something fun for the baby. Ty and Maximus will probably like it too.

Darcie's baby Kam.

Ansley got tired of watching me open gifts. So she started hiding in them.

All the Bunch girls and me and Nancy.

How did you spend your Friday?

2007-09-24T22:20:00.000-04:00

It's the beginning of another long week and I'm trying to figure out what happened to last week. It was probably one of the busiest weeks we have had in a while. Just to put it in perspective, I try to take time at least 3-4 times a week to run 2-3 miles. I got to do it once last week. It was really really busy. I can always tell when I don't get my daily excercise in. It's one of the things I do that helps me get to sleep at night.

Friday evening we got to spend time at a soccer game. Krisila, our oldest niece, had her first soccer game. She plays in one of the leagues where they do not keep score which to this day I can not understand. However, it keeps her active and she really enjoys it. She played great, especially as a defender. For those of you that played soccer when you were little, it's good to know that it hasn't changed a lot. You have the rugby scrum with a lot of little people kicking the ball often with no particular direction. This particular game was a make-up game and there were not any referees for the game. So the coaches refereed with help from the crowd (particularly me). I was pretty much the side judge letting the teams know which team would throw it in. One particular time when the ball was kicked out of bounds, one of the little girls on the team looked at me and said, "well....who gets it?" I really don't know why this was so funny, but it really made me laugh. I guess I expected all the kids to be really shy toward people they don't know, but not this little girl. Photo of the day...the first soccer game.

Baby Update:
-Elizabeth has been having some slight heart problems. Heart rate is too high too often. We're monitoring this on a daily basis right now.
-First Baby Shower is this weekend in Charleston.
-We think she had her first Braxton Hicks contractions this past weekend.
-Still no name.

The Biggest Fan

2007-09-13T21:25:00.000-04:00

Football season is here!!! The time of the year where you can smell Autumn in the air, a time for tailgating, a time to gather with friends that you haven't seen in a season, and much much more. More importantly, another season of Clemson football has started. Tigers look strong this year and it looks as though this could be the right time for a possible conference championship. We certainly have the talent to do it, but can we stayed focused to do it?! As the season started, Ty gives his prediction for the season and prepares the best way he knows how....a little backyard football. So, the photo of the day is Ty getting excited about Clemson football (I like to call this his Sphinx pose). Oh yeah...Ty's prediction is 9-3, but he's really hoping for a ten win season.

Baby Update:
Nursery was painted today. Pictures will come after all the furniture is in the room.
Elizabeth's belly is moving!
Baby continues to give me high fives!!
Still no name.

Nature's Thank You?

2007-09-10T22:10:00.000-04:00

A couple of weeks ago, when it was excrutiatingly hot, I planted a new plant in our yard. As I'm planting this new sibling, I obviously watered a lot to help nourish the root system. As I was watering I had a little visitor. A very beautiful swallowtail was hanging out and drinking the water around the plant. It stayed right by me the remainder of the time it took me finish planting. Almost as if it was saying "thank you" during the most hottest time of the summer. Of course nature, as it always does, took over and Ty chased it off because he was trying to eat it. Before the great chase, I captured an awesome shot of the swallowtail. Photo of the day....tiger swallowtail!!

To give you a very quick baby update:
Elizabeth is now doing her every other week doctor's appointments.
The nursery is in progress.
Elizabeth's belly is starting to move.
I went to my very first maternity fair yesterday.
We're both getting really excited!!
Time is ticking really quickly all of a sudden.
No name yet. (this makes me a little nervouse, but Elizabeth has no worries)

It's Sunday...

2007-09-09T08:17:00.001-04:00

Let's all Worship

Need We Say More....

2007-09-04T02:59:00.001-04:00

A picture of us

2007-08-31T16:29:00.000-04:00

Here's a picture of us. We haven't taken any lately because I won't let Landon any where near me with a camera!

It's finally here...

2007-08-30T22:13:00.001-04:00

It is FOOTBALL SEASON once again. A time for tailgating, trash talking, fantasy football leagues, and of course football. I'm very excited about the first game on Monday night against Florida State. It will be good to see people that I haven't seen in awhile, and most importantly to see how our tigers will do this year. We have gotten a lot of mixed reviews this year and we really do not know what to expect with a revamped offensive line and another new QB. One thing is for sure though, no matter what happens we're all always there for our Tigers. I have had some inside access to our playbook and found one of trick plays...check it out and tell me what you think.

I want to send out a huge Congrats to Holly and Kevin on the birth of another daughter, Alle Marie. For those of you that don't know, I was responsible for Holly and Kevin meeting each other and now they have 2 beautiful children. Congratulations to you both, Elizabeth and I wish you the best.

Anybody want to make a prediction at the Tigers record this year???

Just in Case you didn't know...

2007-08-08T21:58:00.001-04:00

IT IS REALLY HOT!! I was on my way home today from work and notice my temperature reading on my rear view mirror. I initially wanted to wait until the truck was stopped before I took the picture, but the closer I got home the more the temperature was gradually decreasing (and I wanted to capture the moment). When I was driving by the airport the actual reading was 106 degrees. Can you believe how hot it is??!!! The entire southeast is roasting and parched right now!! The photo of the day.....temperature!!

Elizabeth had another check up today and everything is great. Baby is healthy, Elizabeth is healthy, I'm healthy (wait a minute...I didn't go to the doctor) everything is going great for the future mom and dad!!!

In other news, Becky and Dave had their baby this week. You can check out all details and photos at http://becky-dave.blogspot.com. Congratulations to Becky and Dave, and welcom the new little girl, Gretchen Nicole!!
Also in the news.....25 days until CLEMSON FOOTBALL!!!!!!!!!!!! GO TIGERS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Get your fantasy teams assembled everybody, football is almost here.

Car seat

2007-08-08T19:21:00.000-04:00

Feel free to purchase this for our baby. It only costs a measly
$300.00 :)

This is Funny!!

2007-07-31T22:26:00.000-04:00

Maximus has such a hard life!!!

2007-07-23T16:09:00.000-04:00

What a week!

2007-07-16T22:31:00.000-04:00

Last week was certainly a very exciting time for the two of us. We found out we're having a boy and Elizabeth started feeling the baby move. This happened all in the same week. With all the excitement, I almost forgot to let everybody know about another special event. It came the day after the baby news. It was Elizabeth's birthday. She is now officially 29 (and holding)!! It was a fairly low key event. Our nieces came over and went swimming along with our neighbors, Scott and Melissa. Once I got home I started preparing the feast. Elizabeth requested steaks for dinner, so I marinated a couple of steaks all day and cooked a couple of burgers for the nieces. She mentioned that the steaks were so good, she didn't even have to use steak sauce. For those of you who know Elizabeth, and how much she loves chicken, that is a huge compliment. Needless to say, it made me feel like a pretty good chef for the night. At least she had a good meal for her birthday. After the feast, we all chowed down on her cookie cake. Fortunately, Elizabeth snapped the picture before we started. So, the photo of the day...Elizabeth's Birthday Cookie Cake. Yum Yum!!

It's a BOY!!!!

2007-07-11T13:00:00.001-04:00

Landon and I had a very exciting morning. We went to the doctor's office for an ultrasound and found out we are having a boy. We are very excited and can't wait for him to get here. We don't have any names yet, but hopefully we'll decide on something before he arrives. Sorry Nance, but we will not be namimg him after Uncle Dylan, keep trying!!

Landon will have to post the photos from the ultrasound later. I can't figure out how to do it.

Here you go everybody!! We are attaching a picture of Uncle Dylan also.

It's a BOY!!!!!!

2007-07-11T10:22:00.001-04:00

More details later :)

Baby Update

2007-06-24T20:28:00.000-04:00

Just a quick baby update for everyone. I went to the doctor on Thursday. The visit was short and sweet (which I guess is not a bad thing). I'm doing fine, didn't have anything to complain about. I found out that I've gained a whole pound and a half since my last visit and I got to listen to the baby's heartbeat. That was about it. We will have our next ultrasound on July 11th. If the baby cooperates we will get to find out if we are having a boy or a girl!

Landon said that I had to tell everyone that I (Elizabeth) was making this post. I was pretty sure everyone could figure that out from the content mentioned above, but Landon thought that it was necessary anyway.

I almost Forgot...

2007-06-03T22:44:00.000-04:00

We had two very important birthdays in the month of May and I almost overlooked recognizing them. Ty and Maximus both have birthdays in the month of May. Ty is now six and Maximus is two. Maximus is certainly going through his terrible two's. He gets into everything all the time. We constantly have to keep an eye on him. One of his favorite things to do is to get something he knows he can not have and then bring it to us. What can you do at that point but laugh? He never damages it or eats it or chews it or plays with it. I guess he just wants us to know that he is capable of getting into a lot of mischief if he wanted to. Ty on the other hand is officially into the senior citizen bracket for dogs. From what I know about Ty he has come a long way in his behavior. I know Elizabeth and Nancy Ellen have some unbelievable stories about what Ty use to get into and maybe they can share some of the best ones with all of us. The two of them are extremely sweet and loyal dogs. So, let's wish them both a "Happy Birthday." The photo of the day, is the new mother-to-be getting a hug from Ty for his birthday gift.

For all of you animal lovers out there, I have finished reading "Marley and Me" by John Grogan. This is a very good book if you love dogs like we do. I would highly recommend to add it to your summer reading list. It will certainly entertain you!!

It's taking shape

2007-05-29T22:58:00.000-04:00

Elizabeth had another doctor appointment last week and got another ultra sound picture to share with everybody. As you can see, the baby is starting to take shape. She's starting to show and is having trouble with some of her clothes actually fitting. She's officially into her second trimester and is slowly starting to get the motherly glow. On top of that she is also finished with school for the summer and is going to really enjoy her summer vacation. It is certainly an exciting time to watch the baby develop and be with each other. We still have about 6 weeks before the determination of the gender so be patient with us. We'll let you know!! Photo of the day.....our little miracle!!!

We hope everybody had a great Memorial Day. Elizabeth and I spent time with each other, spent time on the golf course, spent time with the neighbors, and spent time on the lake. I initiated the jet ski yesterday with a ride on lake Greenwood. The water was still a little chilly, but it was tolerable. It was a very needed long weekend and really tough to go back to work. This is the time of year where you don't want to spend inside an office, but outside enjoying the weather before the humidity hits.

Thanks to all who have called, left comments, and sent cards (loved the card Andee...very funny)!! We really enjoy reading them and hearing all the different stories. Keep them coming!!

Surprised?

2007-05-21T00:12:00.001-04:00

OK...so other than Andrea, how many of you were totally shocked? Great news huh? It was worth the wait right? We are due on November 29th, right near our anniversary. We will find out the gender, but we have about another month to wait on that one. Then we'll have the great fun of picking a name and decorating the nursery!! So you may ask how did we find out? The dead give away was we could not get Elizabeth enough food. She was constantly hungry the week of her spring break which is very odd for her. She usually eats fairly light and at normal times. However, this week was odd because she could never get full. So we purchased two tests and they came back positive. What a feeling!! You get the great news that you're going to be a mom and dad, then the nervous almost sickening feeling comes over you that amounts to, "Can I really do this?" Of course, that lasted for about 5 minutes and then the excitement returned. Now it's incredible to read what is developing on the baby from week to week. Does any of this sound familiar (especially Becky right now)? There's times I feel everything is happening too fast and I'm not going to have enough time to get the baby room ready, but there's also times that it's not moving fast enough. Needless to say, this is a very exciting time for the two of us!!

The photo of the day is a fountain I found in Spartanburg. I know it's a little diluted in importance compared to the recent news, but I only have the one picture so far of the baby. I have to deliver on my "photo of the day".

Hello Again!!

2007-05-15T21:04:00.000-04:00

Sorry for the long delay on an update for the blog. Here's some news and the photo of the day. It should be self explanatory!!

2007-05-02T14:58:00.000-04:00

New Update Coming Next Week!!! Stay Tuned!!!! Photo of the Day and more!!!

Another Happy Birthday!!

2007-03-06T21:10:00.000-05:00

Today is Mary Kathryn's Birthday. She is Elizabeth's youngest sister and is a freshman at Clemson. Sunday night we met in Greenville for Japanese and Sushi. However, she would not let us embarrass her and do the chicken dance in front of everybody. It was her Birthday so we couldn't press it I guess!! Beware MK, it will happen eventually!! So happy 19th to MK. We Love You!!!!!!! (by the way...we need a picture of you)

The photo of the day is from a Fountain near Morgan Square (see previous posts on "A History Lesson"). I took the picture while I was on the ground. I love the angle though and look at the blue in the sky!! I know...I am way too excited about a picture. That's what the photo of the day is all about, right?! Anyway, this is a part of downtown that is going to start a renovation similar to what Greenville did about 5 years ago. It will be very nice to go to and enjoy when the renovations are complete. Hope you enjoy.

The Tigers beat V. Tech!!! The analysts are saying that if we beat FSU in the first round of the ACC tournament, we will get a bid to the BIG DANCE. I personally think we are already in, but only the selection committee will ultimately let us know.

Spring is right around the corner. I can't wait!! I'm ready to see some green and flowers!!!

Happy Birthday to Krisila!!

2007-02-28T22:11:00.000-05:00

Today (March 1st) is Krisila's Birthday!! Krisila is our niece and she is turning the BIG 7 today!! Seven years ago, I was playing in the band for a Clemson Women's basketball tournament while she was born. After she was born, I had to wait three weeks before I got to go home and see her. It was worth it. I think Krisila was the first baby I have ever actually fed and definitely the first one I ASSISTED in changing a diaper. When I got to "dot the i" in the script Tigers at Clemson, she was actually on the field (not born yet) via my sister-in-law. Now, she's in first grade, loves princess stuff, and loves her Uncle Landon and Aunt Elizabus. I have to admit though, ever since Aunt Elizabus came into the picture, I have taken a back seat to the attention, but that's ok. This post is for Krisila on her seventh birthday....We Love You!!

Did you watch American Idol tonight? Anntonella was very bad again tonight. How did she get this far if she can't sing on pitch? She was a little better than last week, but anybody that tries to sing Celine Dion on this show is just asking to be eliminated. This girl is really not good. You would think these girls would realize by watching previous years that they should not even attempt Celine, Mariah, or Whitney no matter how good you can sing. The judges are going to crush you!! The best performance of the night goes to Malinda Doolittle (love that last name). Her rendition of "My Funny Valentine" gave me cold chills. She started off very uncertain but opened it up with her powerful voice and plenty of emotion. All I could say was "WOW" she just gave Lakisha a run for her money. Who's getting voted off tomorrow?

Alright!!! Clemson won tonight in overtime against Miami. This is Clemson's first twenty win season since the '97-'98 season. The Tigers have one more regular season game before the tournament. C'mon Tigers...win out and make a statement in the tourney so you can go to the BIG DANCE!!!! Oh so on the bubble!!! Elizabeth and I can tell March Madness is in the air!!!!

You like to Read?

2007-02-26T20:47:00.000-05:00

Well, nobody sent any pictures of their antique advertisements. You can still send them and I'll post them later. Meanwhile, the photo of the day is a statue outside the public library. It portrays how much fun reading can be. One funny thing is I never really enjoyed to read until I finished college. Why is that? Is it the content we had to read or the amount we had to read? Who knows. Right now I'm reading a book called "Visitation" by Frank Peretti. So far, it certainly has my attention and it's hard to put down. Elizabeth and I have listed some of our favorite books here on the site and we highly recommend reading them. We update them periodically as we read new ones.

This past Sunday, Elizabeth and I joined First Presbyterian. We have been attending since we moved here and have enjoyed it very much. There are many ministries for us to get involved and we're excited about grounding ourself here. I'm sure we'll get involved in the music program to some extent. I'll probably sing in one of the choirs while Elizabeth gives the handbells a try. She also is thinking about helping to teach Sunday School for the little ones in their "Pathway 2 Truth" program. This is a curriculum where the kids focus on a certain portion of the Bible for 5 weeks through various activities such as cooking, crafts, and videos/movies. We're also excited about joining their gym so we can go and work out together while meeting new people. This will certainly begin another chapter in our life.

To give everyone an update on the diet...as of today I have lost 13 pounds and up to running 3 miles. I have about one month to continue training for the bridge run in Charleston. I think I'll be ready!! I'm sending the registration in tomorrow. Anybody else running it?

Old Advertising

2007-02-23T21:04:00.000-05:00

This past week has been very tough. Elizabeth got sick, I got sick, and work will not let up for either of us. Needless to say, we are very happy to see the weekend finally here so we can get some well needed rest!! There's a lot of sickness going around in the upstate of SC, so everybody keep those hands washed.

I hope everyone enjoyed the history lesson. While Elizabeth was at home resting, I went around town one afternoon and shot some fresh new pictures for the site. I came across this old Pepsi advertisement painted on the side of a building. I thought that it was a very interesting picture and wondered what kind of stories this wall could tell. How long has it been there? Who all has leaned against? Who painted it? Now it's just a wall with peeling paint on an abandon building. How many of you have old advertisements like this in your town? Do you like this type of advertising compared to all the roadside billboards today? I know one famous old form of advertisement is in Marietta, GA. It's called the Big Chicken and it is a KFC in the shape of an actual chicken. Go find them...take pictures...send them to us and we'll post your old advertisements and see what everybody finds (leave a comment and I'll send you an email address to send your pictures).

The first four singers have been voted off of American Idol. How did Antonella not get voted off? Her rendition of Aerosmith was the worst of the entire show. I think Randy and Simon were even shocked not to see her leave. She absolutely butchered the song to the point of making it hard to even hear the melody. If she continues on this path she will not make it past next week. Chris Sligh made it through the next round. Obviously, the local favorite around here, Elizabeth and I will be watching him very closely over the next few weeks. We think he has a chance to go far.

CONGRATS to Becky and Dave. They are pregnant and are going give parenthood a try. Good luck to you both!!!

A History Lesson.

2007-02-19T17:11:00.000-05:00

Early years

Daniel was born in Hunterdon County, New Jersey, the fifth of seven children of James Morgan (1710-1782), a forge worker. When he was 16, he left home after a fight with his father. After working at odd jobs through Pennsylvania, he continued into the Shenandoah Valley. He finally settled in frontier Virginia, near what is now Charles Town, West Virginia (not to be confused with Charleston, West Virginia).
Morgan was a large, rough man, poorly educated, and he preferred drinking and gambling to study. He also showed a huge capacity for work. He worked clearing land, in a sawmill, and as a teamster. In a year, he had saved enough to buy his own team, and concentrated on being a teamster.

American Revolution

After the American Revolutionary War began at the Battle of Lexington and Concord in 1775, the Continental Congress created the Continental Army. They called for the formation of ten rifle companies from the middle colonies to support the Siege of Boston, and late in June of 1775 Virginia agreed to send two. The Virginia House of Burgesses chose Daniel Morgan to form one of these, and serve as its captain. He recruited ninety-six men in ten days and assembled them at Winchester on July 14. He then marched them to Boston, Massachusetts in only twenty-one days, arriving on 6 August 1775. He led an outstanding group of snipers nicknamed "Morgan's Sharpshooters".

The invasion of Canada

Later that year, Congress authorized an Invasion of Canada. Colonel Benedict Arnold convinced General Washington to send an eastern offensive against Quebec in support of Montgomery's invasion. At the time, Arnold was considered a hero for his actions during the Battle of Fort Ticonderoga; he would not come to be considered a traitor until 1780. Washington agreed to send three rifle companies from among his forces at Boston, if they volunteered. All of the companies at Boston volunteered, so lotteries were used to choose who should go, and Morgan's company was among those chosen. Arnold selected Captain Morgan to lead all three companies as a unit. The expedition set out from Fort Western on September 25, with Morgan's men leading the advance party.
At the start, the Arnold Expedition had about 1,000 men, but by the time they arrived at the Isle of Orleans on 9 November it had been reduced to 600. (Note: historians have never reached a consensus on the use of a standard name for this epic journey.) When Montgomery arrived, they launched their disastrous assault, the Battle of Quebec (1775), on the morning of December 31. The Patriots attacked in two thrusts, commanded by Montgomery and Arnold.
Arnold led the attack against the lower city from the North, but went down early with a bullet in his leg. Morgan took over leadership of this force, and they successfully entered the city following him over the first barricade. When Montgomery fell his attack faltered, and the British General Carleton circled to address the second attack. He moved cannons and men to the first barricade, behind Morgan's force. Split up in the lower city, subject to fire from all sides, they were forced to surrender piecemeal. Morgan surrendered his sword to a French priest, refusing to give it to the troops. Morgan was among the 372 men captured. He remained a prisoner until exchanged in January 1777.

11th Virginia regiment

When he rejoined Washington early in 1777, Morgan was surprised to learn that he had been promoted to colonel for his efforts at Quebec. He was assigned to raise and command a new regiment, the 11th Virginia Regiment of the Continental Line, and by April, Morgan had recruited 400 men to fill its ranks.
His recruiting test for riflemen became a campfire legend. He got several broadsides printed with a picture of the head of a British officer (some versions said King George) and only recruited those who could hit this target with their first shot at one hundred yards. Word of this even reached England, where Morgan was regarded as a war criminal, since aiming at individuals was considered unsporting, and aiming at officers downright treacherous.
On 13 June 1777 Morgan was placed in command of an assembled Light Infantry Corp of 500 riflemen, including his own. Washington assigned them to harass General William Howe's rear guard, and Morgan followed and attacked them during their entire withdrawal across New Jersey.

Saratoga

Morgan's regiment was reassigned to the army's Northern Department and on August 30 he joined General Horatio Gates to aid in resisting Burgoyne's offense.

Freeman's Farm

Morgan led his regiment, with the added support of Henry Dearborn's New Hampshire 300 man infantry, as the advance to the main forces. At Freeman's Farm, they ran into the advance of General Simon Fraser's wing of Burgoyne's force. Every officer in the British advance party died in the first exchange, and the advance guard retreated.
Morgan's men charged without orders, but the charge fell apart when they ran into the main column, under General Hamilton. Benedict Arnold arrived, and he and Morgan managed to reform the unit. As the British began to form on the fields at Freeman's farm, Morgan's men continued to break these formations with accurate rifle fire from the woods on the far side of the field. They were joined by another seven regiments from Bemis Heights.
For the rest of the afternoon, American fire held the British in check, but repeated American charges were repelled by British bayonets. Eventually, low on ammunition, the Americans withdrew. The British claimed victory, since they held the field, but they had twice the casualties of the Americans.

Bemis Heights

Burgoyne's next offensive resulted in the Battle of Bemis Heights on 7 October. Morgan was assigned command of the left (or western) flank of the American position. The British plan was to turn that flank, using an advance by 1,500 men. This brought Morgan's brigade once again up against General Fraser's forces.
Passing through the Canadian loyalists, Morgan's Virginia sharpshooters got the British light infantry trapped in a crossfire between themselves and Dearborn's regiment. Although the light infantry broke, General Fraser was rallying them, when Benedict Arnold arrived to remark that that man was worth a regiment. Morgan reluctantly ordered Fraser shot by a sniper, and Timothy Murphy obliged him.
With Fraser mortally wounded the British light-infantry fell back into and through the redoubts occupied by Burgoyne's main force. Morgan was one of those who then followed Arnold's lead to turn a counter-attack from the British middle. Burgoyne retired to his starting positions, but about 500 men poorer for the effort. That night, he withdrew to the village of Saratoga, New York (renamed Schuylerville, New York in honor of Philip Schuyler) about eight miles to the northwest.
During the next week, as Burgoyne dug in, Morgan and his men moved to his north. Their ability to cut up any patrols sent in their direction convinced the British that retreat was not possible.

New Jersey and retirement

After Saratoga, Morgan's unit rejoined Washington's main army, near Philadelphia. Throughout 1778 he hit British columns and supply lines in New Jersey, but was not involved in any major battles. He was not involved in the Battle of Monmouth but actively pursued the withdrawing British forces and captured many prisoners and supplies. When the Virginia Line was reorganized on 14 September 1778 Morgan became the Colonel of the 7th Virginia Regiment.
Throughout this period, Morgan became increasingly dissatisfied with the army and the Congress. He had never been politically active, or cultivated a relationship with the Congress. As a result, he was repeatedly passed over for promotion to brigadier, favor going to men with less combat experience but better political connections. While still a colonel with Washington, he had temporarily commanded Weedon's brigade, and felt himself ready for the position. Besides this frustration, his legs and back aggravated him from the abuse taken during the Quebec Expedition. He was finally allowed to resign on 30 June 1779 and returned home to Winchester.
In June 1780, he was urged to reenter the service by General Gates, but he declined. Gates was taking command in the Southern Department and Morgan felt that being outranked by so many militia officers would limit his usefulness. After Gates' disaster at the Battle of Camden, Morgan thrust all other considerations aside, and went to join the Southern command at Hillsborough, North Carolina.

The Southern campaign

He met Gates at Hillsborough, and was given command of the light infantry corps on 2 October. At last, on 13 October 1780, Morgan received his promotion to Brigadier General.
Morgan met his new Department Commander, Nathanael Greene, on 3 December 1780 at Charlotte, North Carolina. Greene did not change his command assignment, but did give him new orders. Greene had decided to split his army and annoy the enemy in order to buy time to rebuild his force. He gave Morgan's command of about 700 men the job of foraging and enemy harassment in the backcountry of South Carolina, while avoiding direct battle.
When this strategy became apparent, the British General Cornwallis sent Colonel Banastre Tarleton's British Legion to track him down. Morgan talked with many of the militia who had fought Tarleton before, and decided to disobey his orders, by setting up a direct confrontation.

The Battle of Cowpens

Morgan chose to make his stand at Cowpens, South Carolina. On the morning of January 17, 1781, they met Tarleton in the Battle of Cowpens. By this time, the opponents were numerically balanced, with about 1,000 each. Morgan had been joined by militia forces under Andrew Pickens and William Washington's dragoons. Tarleton's legion was supplemented with the light infantry from several regiments of regulars.
Morgan's plan took advantage of Tarleton's tendency for quick action and his disdain for the militia, as well as the longer range and accuracy of his Virginia riflemen. The marksmen were positioned to the front, then the militia, then the regulars at the hilltop. The first two units were to withdraw as soon as they were seriously threatened, but after inflicting damage. This would invite a premature charge.
The tactic worked very well. In less than an hour, Tarleton's 1,076 men suffered 110 killed, and 830 captured. The captives included 200 wounded. Although Tarleton escaped, the Americans captured all his supplies and equipment, including the officers' slaves. Morgan's cunning plan at Cowpens is widely considered to be "the" tactical masterpiece of the war.
Cornwallis had lost not only Tarleton's legion, but also his light infantry, which limited his speed of reaction for the rest of the campaign. For his actions, Virginia gave Morgan land and an estate that had been abandoned by a Tory. The damp and chill of the campaign had aggravated his sciatica to the point where he was in constant pain; on 10 February, he returned to his Virginia farm. In July 1781, Morgan briefly joined Lafayette to once more pursue Banastre Tarleton, this time in Virginia, but they were not successful.

After the Revolution

After Morgan returned home to Charles Town, he became gradually less active. He turned his attention to investing in land, rather than clearing it, and eventually built an estate of over 250,000 acres (1,000 km²). As part of his settling down, he joined the Presbyterian Church and built a new house near Winchester, Virginia in 1782. He named the home Saratoga after his victory in New York. The Congress awarded him a gold medal in 1790 to commemorate his victory at Cowpens.
In 1794 he was briefly recalled to national service, as he led militia units to suppress the Whiskey Rebellion. By presenting a massive show of force, he managed to resolve the protests without a shot being fired. Morgan ran for election to the United States House of Representatives twice, as a Federalist.
He lost in 1794, but won next time to serve a term from 1797 to 1799. When he died in 1802, on his 66th birthday, at Saratoga, New York, Daniel Morgan was buried in the Mt. Hebron Cemetery in Winchester.
In 1821 Virginia named a new county - Morgan County - in his honor. (It is now in West Virginia.) The states of Alabama, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Missouri, Ohio, and Tennessee followed their example.
In 1881 (on the occasion of the hundredth anniversary of the Cowpens battle), a statue of Morgan was placed in the central town square of Spartanburg, South Carolina.

The square (Morgan Square) and statue remain today. Morgan and his actions served as one of the sources for the fictional character of Benjamin Martin in The Patriot, a motion picture released in 2000.

So now that you have had your history lesson for the week...the photo of the day is the statue of Daniel Morgan in Morgan square.

All band people that view this site need to check out http://becky-dave.blogspot.com/...... Becky and Dave have NEWS!!!