Delinda, the PhD!

So on May 10th my older sister Delinda graduated from Emory University with her PhD in Art History and African Studies (with Honors I might add!)! This is such exciting news for us as a family because Delinda is the first one in our family (of the kids, no you don't count mom) to get a degree let alone a PhD! We can call her Doctor DJ now! It's also exciting for me personally because I've been along for much of the ride with her. She convinced me to move out to GA with her when she made the move to get this degree here at Emory. Boy am I glad I did, even though I sometimes miss the West coast... there has been many wonderful things that have happened out here. ANYWAY, she and Jen made the trip out here as well our brother Greg. Greg stayed with us and it was wonderful to see him, be with him, bond with him, watch he and Ben bond... it was just good. The ceremony was quick and painless... unlike most graduations. I teared up so much. I haven't seen her THAT HAPPY in ages and I think she was super proud of herself and relieved it was over!!! She's been through MUCH through these last 5 years to get this done. Crazy trips to Angola, moving here and there, lots of late nights of writing, crazy advisers, losing files/half the papers she wrote... but a lot of good has happened for her too. Namely her landing a PRIME job as a professor at the Art Institute of Chicago already and has been teaching there for a little while already. Anyway, before the graduation took place we sat in our seats next to Delinda's friends Liz and Dan and waited but I got up for a minute to call Ryan. Delinda was previously attending the graduate school's commencement, where Arnold Schwarzenegger was speaking. While I was on the phone with Ryan I was at the windows looking out at the street when a parade of motorcycle cops and black SUV's drove by and there he was, with his window down smoking a HUGE cigar!!! I was on the phone still with Ryan and "said, oh... look Arnold Schwarzenegger just drove by!"

She invited Greg and I (who were the only ones that could attend) to go with her and Jen to a Department Luncheon afterward. Unfortunately Greg and I couldn't stay long because Greg's still pretty weak from being sick and also, Ben was at the daycare and they had found some spots on him that turned out to be nothing... but that night we went to dinner and got Indian food. And it was DEE-LISH. MMMMMM, I love me some Tikka Masala. Seriously.
And I am also very grateful for the siblings I have. I missed John and of course Shauna- but was so glad at least Greg and I were able to attend. My parents of course were heart broken- but the funds weren't available but they were there in Spirit! Yay for Delinda!

Memorial Day Weekend 2010

Well, we had a fun weekend. The weekend started off with a party at Ben's school. My boss let people off early, so I was able to leave at 2:30 and go spend time with him while he ate goodies and played in the water with his classmates. It was lots of fun, he was pretty clingy and didn't want to let me out of his site (heartbreaking)- but he got a little wet. Mostly because all the bigger kids than him were hogging the little water things (I don't know what they're called) and took at the water balloons before he could. But we left and then I brought him home and sprayed him down with the hose. That was a lot more fun to be honest! Also Friday was Ashley's birthday and so to celebrate we went to dinner with her and some of our other friends at On the Border. Of course it was delicious and we all enjoyed it, but the best part of the night was going to her house to see her open up her surprise present that Jacob got a bunch of us all together to go in on. A new camera! A nice one too! She was so happy and excited and it was fun to see her reaction. I sure love that chick. She is a great BFF.

Saturday we woke up bright and early to prepare for our first family/friend camp-out! This was the first time Ben had ever camped, and first time I'd ever camped with Ryan OR Ben, AND the first time we have ever taken Ally (our dog) anywhere besides Nana's house or the groomer/vet! We were bound and determined to go this time, because EVERY SINGLE TIME we plan a camping trip, it RAINS. The weather reports didn't seem to promising either, but we'd already paid for our campsites and we weren't going to let it stop us. So we got all of our stuff together (TOO much stuff) and met up at the Terry's and headed to Carter's Lake in North Georgia for a two night camping trip. Our friend Martha chose the sites, we had two, and it was awesome! It was so good to be back in the nature again, I've missed it so. We set up our tent, we cooked burgers and hot dogs on the grills at the campsites and Martha and I made DELICIOUS tinfoil dinners. Ally and Bowser met each other and pretty much stayed out of each others way- mostly because Bowser is still a puppy and wants to play and Ally is a crotchety old woman who doesn't like to play with strangers. SO after being overly frustrated with my adorable 2 year old- we FINALLY got him to go to sleep at around 10pm- Ryan had to lay in the tent with him until he fell asleep. We all gathered round the old lantern and talked, all while being attacked by NASTY Palmetto bugs. Eck, those things are nasty. There were millions of "biders" as Ben calls them, mostly just weird looking Daddy Long Legs... but they were EVERYWHERE. We went to bed, and of course slept like poop. The ground is not comfortable anymore. Time to purchase an air mattress or two! Plus Ben was a floppy little fish the whole night and I kept having to put him back on his pillow for fear of kicking him in the face or something! We had a good breakfast the next morning, and then basically chilled out the rest of the day. The Terry's had to leave early, so it was us, the Burke's and Geoff. We went to the "beach" at the lake and saw the most WT I've ever seen in one place in my life. Wow. Ben had lots of fun in the water though, he wasn't scared at all. He had his little floaties on and sunglasses and he had a good ol' time. After we got back we started preparing and making dinner, Dutch Oven Chicken (thank you Tiffany Reed) and clouds started gathering and it started to pour. The chicken had started to boil believe it or not, and we thought while sitting in our tent that the rain was going to put out the fire and ruin the chance for our chicken to survive. But after not too long, the rain stopped the fire reignited itself and we were back in business. We made our sides and dished up and.... the rain started threatening again. So we ate quickly covered everything up again and got in the tent just as it started to pour again, this time with lightning and thunder. This scared Ally, and Ally being scared concerned Ben. While in the tent he grabbed my cheeks and intently looked at me as if to REALLY get my attention and said "Mama, Mama... go home". NOW, we would've stayed and just gone to bed... but the darn P.O.C. tent we (I) had started to LEAK. UGH... Geoff's did too. The Burke's tent wasn't though. We made the decision (at about 7pm) to pack up and head home, the weather reports weren't promising and we just didn't want to drown in our sleep in a tent! Ryan and Geoff were the best, and got everything in the car in the pouring rain while me, Ben and Ally hung out in our empty tent and watched Sesame Street podcasts and sang songs together. Well, me and Ben anyway- Ally can't sing very well! As soon as we got in the car, Ben fell asleep and we got home safely and went straight to bed. We were POOPED. Yesterday was spent basically vegging out. The house was/is in shambles but yesterday, there was NO desire to even touch it. It'll be clean by the end of the week though... I hope! We all took naps... I believe though, that mine was the most glorious of all of them. Holy Moly (is that how you even spell it?) that bed was comfortable. The pillows were great, the sheet was perfect the wind from the fan... all worked in harmony to woo me in to a beautiful MUCH needed rest. I do have to say that Ben won for the amount of time slept out of the 3 of us. He slept for a whopping three hours, but he obviously needed it. Anyway, we had a really fun time- plan to do it again. Ben was a natural which makes his momma proud. Ally did great, better than I expected. And Ryan loved it too. We plan to purchase a new BIGGER tent (especially now because when setting it up to dry it out the poles all broke... ), some air mattresses and pack less next time and just go when we want. I really have missed my outdoorsy side... we got along really well, and when we were together- I felt a lot less stressed. SO, we plan on getting together more often. :) Believe it or not, I didn't take any pictures with my camera- just my phone, so this is what we get. Oh well.

Another Thoughts Blog!

-every time I eat Famous Amos cookies, I think of my dad. Always have, always will. I guess specifically because he loves the Sandies from them and also I remember getting them out of the vending machine at the City Hall in Flagstaff where he worked and thought it was the greatest snack on earth. Those and Tato Skins when they were still around. Mmmmm.

- I was just reading People online and they were talking about Gavin Rosendale and Gwen Stefani's kid turning 4 and have a bunch of pictures of him and were critiquing his attire and how he's sooooo fashionable. Come on! He's FOUR! His parents or their nanny's put him in that. Good gosh people. Stop trying to make LITTLE kids grownups already!

-There are so many things going on with the earth lately it's really starting to trip me out a little bit. Close to home, the BP Oil Spill in the Gulf and how it's affecting the coastal regions and the wildlife there. One of our most favorite vacation spots in Destin, FL and it could even affect the beaches there! I was struck by something a news reporter said today, that it's almost IMPOSSIBLE (a strong word in my opinion) to get rid of the oil that has spread. So heartbreaking. Also the Volcano in Iceland we heard so much about but then all the hub-bub quickly died down, but is STILL possibly active and could erupt again. I read about frogs blanketing a highway in Greece and slowing traffic! So weird! Article HERE. Just a lot of crazy stuff going on... maybe stuff like this has always happened, we're just more of a

-One thing I've noticed here in Atlanta, is the reaction I get when I tell people (mostly coworkers) I'm going camping or even LOVE to camp. They act surprised, like they didn't think people still did that. And the question I get asked over and over again is "Like camping camping? In a tent or a cabin?" and when I say a tent... they always come back with "you're tougher than I am" or "no way, not me. I need a hotel." The cabin comment gets me though... camping is NOT sleeping in a cabin, unless it's bare-boned and then maybe I'll give you that. Camping is sleeping on the ground, in a tent or under the stars- in my humble opinion.

-I get REALLY tired of lazy people at work. Period.

-I really miss my family. I miss Shauna a lot. I get lots of little reminders of her that I'm so grateful for, but it's hard still. It was her birthday 2 weeks ago yesterday. She would've been 44. But ever since she died (I still hate saying that... wierd I know), I really feel so much yearning for my family. And they're so far away from me. I'm so grateful for my own little family though.

-I love it when Ben randomly busts out in songs that I didn't even know he knew. It's the greatest. Or when he randomly says "hi Mommy", because anyone that knows me knows that I have a habit of feeling the need to just say "hi" to whoever is nearest to me to just break up the silence.

Free Scentsy Product!

Fellow Bloggers! I just wanted to let you know that this Thursday and Friday (the 27th & 28th of May) if you purchase ANY Multi-Pack set (warmer and 3 bars) I'll send you a plug-in of your choice FREE!
Also, you can earn free Scentsy products by hosting a party as well! For those of you far away from me, we can even do an internet party or basket party and I can send you the Scents for you to take to friends/coworkers/family to try out!
If you're not familiar with Scentsy- this is a great alternative to burning candles in the home. Especially for us who have little ones running around. They are wickless, they don't put off any harmful fumes or smoke and there are TONS of different scents and warmers to choose from. AND will save you money on all your candle purchases!!!
Check out my site at https://smithgirl.scentsy.us/ and let me know if you have any questions!

Cute Benny

Ben is saying lots of sentences now. Let's see if we can remember some of them."I don't want it."
"I see you Mommy."
"Here you go."
"Get down Ally."
"Open the door."
"Hi Ally-bear"
"Thank you Mommy (or Daddy)"
"Where did it/he go?"
"I want my sandals"
"Get the mail"
"Mommy, watch this!"
Me: "where's daddy?" Ben "back there" pointing to the back bedroom.


He sings 3 songs a lot now too; Twinkle Twinkle Little Star (with emphasis on the ends of the different lines and especially loves singing it with his Daddy), Happy Birthday (to Ben, sometimes mommy or daddy), and ABC song. And I just discovered today he knows the "No More Monkey's Jumping On the Bed" rhyme too.
He's a little handful of course, he's two and a little boy through and through- but we love him oh so much. I know I say that all the time, but for reals... he makes me so happy. He's got such a great sense of humor. He already knows how to pick on his mama, he loves his doggy, and his daddy, he loves to be outside,He loves to read books (and some times tears them up...ugh...) and he's very sensitive. If he does something wrong to someone else and he's told to say sorry- he has to cry too because he feels so bad. He loves his family, and our friend family. When we drive around curves or corners he'll say "Whooooaaaaa!" with me! He loves his little tent we bought him. He loves to take our throw pillows in there, of which are apparently his because he always says "mine" to them.
I'm so tired right now, that's all I remember and I'll probably need to add to things as we go along. I just can't remember everything and I surely can't forever- so here's my future memory saver!

SLACKER!!!!

I realize I've been a complete bum about writing lately. It seems like I just can't keep up. I'd like to say there's not much going on, but it's quite the opposite. We've taken on a lot of "projects" and have a lot of things to attend to, places to go... that kind of thing.
So with that being said- I hope to cover some of the goings on that I've missed blogging about, but I plan to do them in individual blog posts. I might back date them as well. Here we go!

Look WHO's Expecting!

Ashley, Jaclyn Schaer and I did a Owl-themed baby shower for our lovely friend Hillary this weekend. I hosted it at the house and took care of most of the food, because let's face it- I'm not good at games or other real creative things like that. I got the pictures and food, but that's about it for me. We had a wonderful turn out and we were so happy to be able to do it for Hillary, because we kind of like her a little and are SUPER excited to see this little guy she and Mark are bringing in to the world. She lets me hold and feel her tummy a lot, kind of not by choice! I just love feeling that little person moving around in there and trying to figure out what he's doing and I enjoy talking to him too. It reminds me of one of the only parts of pregnancy I liked! Here are some photos of the joyous occasion. (Although I'm bummed because we didn't get ANY of me, Hillary, Jaclyn and Ashley together!)

Can I get a Woot-woot for Post #400??!!!!

I need to catch up a little bit. We have been so busy lately and will continue to be for a few more weeks. I guess it's good... just sometimes overwhelming when my house gets neglected and dust accumulates and the bathroom fairy has quit because he just can't get through the grime.And things stop putting themselves away, like laundry and mail that needs to be filed... ugh... okay enough of that silly talk.

The weekend after we got back from Utah, we had already planned to go back to the cabin with our buds. It was welcomed and we were excited about it. Nothing out of the ordinary. We just left after work Friday and came home Sunday afternoon. We got out a lot more this time because the weather was really nice. We went down to the "Hooch" a lot and in the field and on Saturday night after grilling out on the deck, had a campfire and made S'Mores. That was Ben's official first campfire, believe it or not. He was very cautious and did great. Mommy (that's me) wasn't feeling so hot pretty much the whole trip so I didn't last too long down there. But it was SO fun and I love doing stuff like that and miss doing it as often as I used to.
The next weekend we enjoyed Easter with Ryan's family. The kids hunted for Eggs filled with candy and $$$$ and Ben won the Grand Prize of $5! It's already in his piggy bank!

The Smith's

Happy Anniversary (March 24th)

Because of everything that happened, we didn't get home from UT until the morning of our anniversary and probably would've forgotten all about it except for the fact that my parents gave us a card before we left that Monday after the funeral. This year we decided to forfeit celebration but I still wanted to mention, HAPPY 3rd ANNIVERSARY! Three years ago on March 24th, my sweetheart and I were married.

In a separate post I wanted to note some of the things we go to do, and kind of talk about the trip out and the driving and stuff. The good parts of being able to go see the family.
Driving out was pretty rough, I'll admit it. I mean, the whole purpose of getting there wasn't exactly the greatest one in the world. But the first night we stayed in a pretty ghetto Motel 6 in
West Memphis, AR that stunk and was just kind of scary. Ryan wanted to keep going but both Ben and I were pretty worn out. Ben was sleeping mostly in the car, but was still restless and needed a stretch. After a short 4 hour rest, we got back up and headed out on the road. Arkansas . Oklahoma. During our drive that day we luckily found the most wonderful rest stop in TX... some where in Texas, not sure where. Somewhere in the desert near Amarillo. It had a wonderful playground for Ben, which was seriously a God-sent because he REALLY REALLY needed to get out and PLAY. Not just walk, but play.
We made it to the border of New Mexico and decided to see if we could snooze off our sleepiness at the Welcome Center for an hour or so. We did, and it wasn't enough. We managed to make it to Santa Rosa, NM that night and stayed in another Motel 6 there. This one wasn't as bad thank goodness. The next day we traveled more of course, this time we were bound and determined to make it to UT... we had to, it was Friday by then. Poor Ben was just about done with us and being cooped up in his seat. So we tried to do a lot to entertain him. We had a screaming contest...

We watched Sesame Street on Ryan's iPhone, made a mess with apple sauce, slept some, sang, read books, played with toys, ate whatever we could find... got out when we could. Like in the middle of the desert of Eastern Arizona at the Geronimo tourist shop near the petrified forest. We got to make a stop in my hometown of Flagstaff for a quick bite to eat and pretty much after that it was TERRIBLE. The last 4 hours were SO hard for all of us. Ben was done, and Ryan and I had pretty much gone loony at this point! We tried to laugh a lot, but Ryan kept repeating in all seriousness "I'm so driving home alone and we're finding a way to pay for you and Ben to fly back home"! Ha! Yeah right! We finally made it to St. George that night around 6pm. We visited with cousins and family and saw my parents and talked a little.

After the funeral we spent some time with Andrea Green and Ryan A. and my family again. We went to the park with the kids. Greg unfortunately couldn't make it to the cemetery that afternoon because he had to go to the ER and so we watched their girls. Here are some pictures of the day.
The kids playing at the park.
This is the view from where Shauna is buried. So pretty and peaceful.Ben with his cousin.

And here are all the grandkids on my side of the family.

Sunday was my mom's 73rd birthday. So we spent some time with her, went to the grave again, and had dinner at John and Clau's house. Here is my beautiful sis and the horses next to Shauna's grave. It's kind of ironic, my oldest brother Brian passed away when he was a baby and the buried him on my dad's birthday, they buried Shauna the day before my mom's.
Monday we headed home. Only this time, because of the generosity of my parents and Andrea we were able to purchase ourselves and mostly Ben a PORTABLE DVD PLAYER. Holy Hannah that made SUCH a difference on the way home! There were moments of boredom still. Like the moment Ben decided to give himself a spit bath. It was pretty nasty, but really funny too. That kid, has got a personality. Let's count how many times he says "Momma!" to me while I'm looking at him! HA! On the way home, we stopped again in NM for one night, then drove until we got home... so.... another 23 HOURS AFTER THAT. OH MY GOSH. We left Monday morning and pulled in to our driveway at 6:30am Wednesday morning. We slept for a bit and then Ryan had to go to work at around 11am that day. Poor guy. That was SO extremely exhausting... and quite frankly we'd completely forgotten about the state of Mississippi... stupid Mississippi adding another 2-3 hours on our drive... But we were safe. Ben slept ALL night long and we made it home. And came home to a beautifully clean home thanks to our lovely friend Ashley, it was truly a blessing!
Let's not forget the bathroom stall in a bathroom in NM almost literally falling apart and almost falling on me. The maintenance guy standing there looking as me and another patron HELD IT UP and him saying "where'da bolts go?" after waiting as patiently as I could in like 30seconds I said "Uh... I need to go! Can one of you please take this from me???" HELLO??? It was pretty funny though. How about Ben randomly throwing up in Arkansas on the way home, eck... strawberry yogurt too. How about the green Hot Fudge Sundae at the McDonald's in Shamrock, TX. How about the HUGE rock that hit the windshield while I was driving and only nicking it thank goodness. A big shout out to Red Box DVD rentals- WOOT! Before we left, we went with my dad to go get a rock from the mountain across the road from my parents house and then drove it across the country. It's in the front yard sitting next to the "Ben Tree"! We call it the "Shauna Rock". I am SO glad we got to go. It was a HARD, LONG drive but so worth it. The Lord truly watched over us on so many levels and I am so grateful for that, my family, and my husband who was so supportive and loving during that tough time.