William Burnet Maier

In the wee hours of August 30th, my 100% woman sister Katharine and her husband Mike welcomed William Burnet Maier into their family. He joins their ever adorable son James, who even though he presumed his mom might deliver a baby goat - like the one they see at the petting zoo, was apparently not dissappointed and immediately fell in love with his brother. O call my sister 100% woman who didn't miss out on her epidural like I did with Lindsey Kate and my sister Marilois did with Frances Faith - she CHOSE to have the baby au-natural at home. That is one AMAZING woman!!! We laughed at the thought of James going to sleep last night not even aware of the impending birth and waking up to find not only did mom deliver a living, breathing, baby doll brother, but they were home with it too! Only in the Netherlands! :) What an amazing way to keep the family together. That home birthin' stuff isn't such a bad idea - except for the pain, I mean! :)

I don't have pictures yet, just a link to their blog www.maierbaby.blogspot.com with a few photos. No really close-ups yet. I'm waiting..... :)

Anyway, my family joins me in welcoming your precious new member of the family. We're praying for a speedy recovery for Kat. and blessings on the beginning of this wonderful new life!! We love you!

Tea for Two (or 12)

Yesterday was Lindsey Kate's 8th Birthday. We decided to invite her friends over for a tea party. Here is a picture of the girls posing in their dress up clothes.

Lindsey Kate told my mom (Bami) that she wanted a tea cup collection for her birthday. That was the inspiration for the tea party. Bami found these adorable tea cups at TJ Maxx and they were reasonably priced enough that we were able to purchase one for every girl as their party favor. I ordered "feathery" crowns and crown rings from Oriental Trading Company for all the girls.

We provided extra dress-up clothes and makeup with a mirror for them to fix themselves up. I heard Heyward declare "WOW, I look GOOD!!". It was VERY hot but as she tied on her rabbit fur wrap, she declared "This is perfect to top it off!"

Here is our lovely tea-party table and the girls enjoying their "tea". We actually served sparkling grape juice instead of tea. One little girl remarked "This stuff is SO good - you will need to give my mom the recipe". FYI - the recipe is equal parts of grape juice and ginger ale. Makes a delicious punch!
My dad wore his tuxedo and served the tea party fare to our princesses. The girls enjoyed a lovely menu of Cupcakes, iced cookies, flower-shaped ham and cheese sandwiches, pickle sandwiches, dill pickle spears, grapes and strawberries. One "princess" commented "I've never been to a party where I didn't have to fix my own plate"
Poor brother wasn't feeling well and cuddled up in a chair with "Poochie" and slept through the WHOLE thing!
Here is a picture of the food table (minus one plate of sandwiches and the cupcakes). The white tulle and Christmas lights made such a lovely decorating tool. After the "tea party" was over, the tulle doubled as veils which we tied to the girls crowns. They were SO precious!!

Legos and Strawberry Shortcake

This was a multiple cake weekend. I baked two for parties on Saturday and then cupcakes for Lindsey Kate's party on Sunday.

The first is a Strawberry Shortcake cake for our friend Maddey's 2nd birthday.

The second is a lego cake for our friend Jack's 10th birthday.

First day of School

WOW! I was horrified when I logged into my blogger this morning and realized I did not blog ALL summer long! I guess that sums up in a nut-shell what kind of summer we had. No time for anything! We had a lovely vacation in South Carolina, Church camp, tennis camp and cheerleading camp plus a 3 week visit from Katharine and James. WOW - an event filled summer!

Anyway, today is the first day of school. Heyward in the 4th grade, Lindsey Kate in the 2nd and Micajah at pre-K. I am attaching pictures. How many of you wore Converse hi-tops as kids? We certainly did. I had a total trip down memory lane when Lindsey Kate wanted pink hi-tops for he school shoes! How funny!

My friend Tiffany's little boy Caleb is in Micajah's class at pre-K. She called to share this adorable story with me this morning: When she went to drop off Caleb, he was being a little clingy to her. She said Micajah came up to her and said "If he forgot his blanket for nap time, I can share my towel with him". She said thank you, but that Caleb brought his towel. He then said "I also brought school supplies I can share with him. I have 2 glue sticks, markers and paper if he wants to use them". How adorable, huh? I am glad to see he wants to share his stuff with his buddy.

Last week of School

It is hard to believe that the school year is almost over. We are in our final week. What a busy week it has been. It actually began last week with Micajah's graduation and Lindsey Kate's honors day on Thursday. Yesterday the girls ate lunch with the principal for earning over 100 AR points and it was Heyward's honors day and graduation. Today the "big slide" will be at school for the girls and tomorrow the snow-n-go will be there. Friday is the AR walk of Fame for the Accelerated Reader. Lindsey Kate worked really hard and became the the high points earner for the school. She will be leading the parade like Heyward did last year.

The fires are still burning nearby and we are constantly in smoke. It varies from day to day. The worst day we were unable to see more than 10 feet out the windows. It seems that I have kept a headache for the past 2 weeks. Thankfully Micajah's breathing has not been affected much by the smoke.

Cookbook Feedback

Any time you accomplish something in life, you somehow like the approval of others. Not that it is necessary, but nice. Since publishing my cookbook, I have been faced with brief moments of self doubt. Are people going to think it is as good as I do? Are they going to feel like they got their monies worth? When they cook, are they going to like them as much as we do? Things like that.

Anyway, I had my first book signing last week. It was wonderful. It was hosted by a lovely french market here in town called Ellie Kats. We had a wonderful turnout. The ladies hosting and I made a few appetizers from the cookbook and we all had a merry time. I sold lots of cookbooks, too, so that helps with the confidence boost. Since then, I have gotten several phone calls and e-mails about the cookbook. I thought I would share a few with you.

"I got my cookbook last week. I read it from cover to cover. I sat down and read the recipe for Easter Story Cookies to Leroy and we both cried" - Jean Jack, Valdosta, Georgia

"Teri (my sister) and I were so impressed with your cookbook. We have never read a cookbook all the way through, but we couldn't put it down". - Landa Hart, Fargo, Georgia

"I've carried my cookbook around and read it like a novel. It is wonderful" - Eve Murray, Homerville, Georgia

"It is by far the best cookbook I have ever seen - and I collect cookbooks." - Janet Wood, Homerville, Georgia.

"Such a treasure. I've read it through and now I'm hungry. You must be a magnificent cook. " - Ann Paulson, Ponte Vedra, Florida

If you haven't had a chance to order my cookbook yet, you can do so by clicking here. http://www.tatepublishing.com/bookstore/book.php?w=978-1-60247-405-5

Baby birds

Outside the front door of our office, a bird has built a nest and filled it with little babies. I hear them "peeping" all day long. I quietly went outside and using the zoom on my camera got a "birds eye" view of them. You can only see one here, but I think there are about 3 or 4 in the nest.

What a wonderful, visible reminder of Spring and the newness of life that God brings forth every year!


Song of Solomon 2:12 - The flowers appear on the earth; the time of the singing of birds is come, and the voice of the turtle is heard in our land

Hope you have a wonderful, spring-filled day!

Wildfires

If you have watched much of the national news lately, you may have heard of the wildfires raging in South Georgia. They are in our neighboring county. They really pose no threat to us (except for smoke), but we know people who know people who have lost their homes, etc. Several friends have been put on standby that they MAY have to evacuate, but the fires are still 5-6 miles away. We are in SEVERE need of rain. The forecasts show no chance of rain until the weekend and only a 30% chance then. The fire is approximately 40% contained, but more than likely the firefighters will not be able to put the fire out - except with rain. More information can be obtained at www.satilla.org

We have moments (days) of no smoke at all, and days where the wind blows it right to us. Saturday I went to Valdosta to groceries and on the way home experienced smoke from more than 20 miles west of Homerville all the way home. We had an inside weekend and had to cancel our church picnic on Sunday because of the smoke. Thankfully, we had rented several movies to keep us busy over the weekend. Posideon, Stranger than Fiction, RV, Over the Hedge and Happy Feet. All in all, a good movie weekend!

The girls are taking their standardized tests at school this week. They were actually quite excited about it and made a point to get up and dressed early. No one wants to have to sit in the teachers lounge when others are taking the test and make up the test during the afternoon fun-time after the tests!

Please, please pray for rain!!

Sweet Blessings

I have been an AWFUL blogger lately. I have tried several times recently to update the blog, but have had trouble logging in. I have decided I have to log into a post on one of your blogs then I can update mine. This is the 2nd time today I have typed this blog because I somehow lost the earlier version.

Anyway, above is a picture of my Cookbook, Sweet Blessings, that is being printed as I type (unless it is already hot off the presses!). They will be shipped to my publisher April 13th and I should have my copies sometime next week. It will not be nationally released until June but is available now directly from my publisher. http://www.tatepublishing.com/bookstore/book.php?w=978-1-5988691-7-X

Heyward is in Orlando now enjoying a field trip with her gifted class. They went to Wonder Works yesterday and spent the night last night at Sea World. They had an "experience" there where they tour the park after dark and sleep outside of the shark tank. They will be home tonight! Can't wait to hear all about it.

We enjoyed a wonderfully quiet Easter with the newest member of the family, Frances Faith Campa.

She is so precious and sweet and napped most of the time!

Happy Valentines Day

Inspiration is divine. That is the only way to describe it. I was trying to come up with an economical Valentine for the kids teachers at school. Shopping at Walmart over the weekend, I found these adorable oven mitts for $1.88 each. The only problem, what to do with them. So, I had the brilliant idea (certainly with God's help) to bake cookies on skewers, decorate them and stuff them down into the oven mitts. I must admit, they turned out pretty cute! Baking the cookies on the skewers worked wonderfully. Not one broke. Here's the recipe if you are interested.

1/2 cup (1 stick) butter
3/4 cup sugar
1 egg
3/4 tsp. Vanilla extract
2 cups self rising flour

Cream butter and sugar. Add egg and vanilla and beat until smooth. Slowly add flour. Roll out dough on a lightly floured surface and cut with assorted cutters. Bake on ungreased cookie sheets at 375 degrees for 8 - 10 minutes until browned.

The icing was 1 stick butter, 1 block cream cheese, 1/2 teaspoon vanilla and 1 box powdered sugar. Tinted with red food coloring paste (the liquid would make it runny).

Hope you and yours have a WONDERFUL Valentines day full of LOVE!

Naughty or Nice?

Every year, Mrs. Clause leaves a Gingerbread house on our back door step. The children say it is the "signal" they are on the nice list. Last night, this ADORABLE creation arrived. Aunt Mimi and Uncle Pablo found it on their way over to eat dinner with us! I managed to keep the children from devouring it long enough to take this picture.

Today was Micajah's party at school. I managed to snap this picture of the two men in my life. Aren't they sweet? Tonight is Micajah's program at school. His sisters are going to be "helpers" in the program. Lindsey Kate is playing Mary and Heyward is playing an Angel. Yesterday afternoon as we were getting ready to go to practice, Lindsey Kate was getting a baby doll to represent Baby Jesus. She asked for a blanket to wrap him in. Heyward told her "Be sure when you wrap him, he looks really poor".

Christas Bunco

My girlfriends came over last night for our Christmas Bunco. It was SO much fun and it was extra-special because it marked our 1 year anniversary of playing Bunco. In front (from left), Maria, Ansley, Amanda and Sam, (back) Erika, Liane, Misty, Kalynn, Me, Tiffany.

One Huge Lemon

This is a Ponderosa Lemon. I put a sharpie in the picture for perspective. These huge lemons average 2-4 pounds. Yep, 2-4 pounds! Ours weighs in at 2 pounds .08 ounces. Our friend Kim Davis blesses us with one every year! She eats hers like a grapefruit. I don't think I could do that! :)

Happy Halloween

A lady recently being baptized was asked by a co-worker what it was like to be a Christian. She replied, "It's like being a pumpkin: God picks you from the patch, brings you in, and washes all the dirt off you may have gotten from the other pumpkins. Then he cuts the top off and scoops out all the yucky stuff. He removes the seeds of doubt, hate, greed, etc. Then He carves you a new smiling face and puts His light inside of you to shine for all the world to see."

Our kids and I were discussing this story as we carved pumpkins over the weekend. What a wonderful way to describe what it is to be a Christian. If you have ever carved/hulled out a pumpkin, you realize what a difficult task that can be. How they ever get the pumpkin you buy in a can out of the mess that is inside a pumpkin is beyond me! Also, our friend Kitty taught us a WONDERFUL trick. Sprinkle nutmeg and cinnamon on the "lid" of the pumpkin before putting it back on. The warmth of the candle inside makes it smell great!

We are looking forward to spending time with friends tonight grilling hot dogs, trick or treating and visiting our local nursing home to spread some cheer with the residents there.

May God bless you and carve a beautiful smiling pumpkin in your life!

Stop, Drop and Roll

In honor of Fire Prevention Week, the Fire truck came to Micajah's school today to teach the kids about dialing 911 in the event of an emergency, not being scared or hiding from the fireman if he comes to your house and to STOP DROP and ROLL if you are on fire. Sparky the fire dog came too. The kids loved it, except for a few that were a little scared of the firemen. One little girl (bless her heart) every time they said "fire" she began to SCREAM. They finally called her daddy to come check on her she was so scared.

Anyway, here are a few photos. Other than one little girl, Micajah was the only one that wanted to try on the fireman gear. Isn't he cute?! The other is of the whole class with Sparky in front of the firetruck.

10 Glorious Years

Today Jody and I celebrate our 10th Wedding Anniversary. What a wonderful journey it has been! I would have never imagined 10 years ago that we would be where we are, doing what we do, and blessed beyond measure as we are now. We've had ups and downs, thousands of laughs and smiles and very few tears. We've watched Laci grow into a beautiful young lady and celebrated births of three precious blessings from God. I feel overwhelmed with emotion as I think back on the fulfillment that God has given me when he granted the desires of my heart to be a wife and a mother. I have moments where I feel that I fall short of the mother and wife I want to be, but I guess we all do at times. Still, there is no where I would rather be and no one I would rather be with than my precious family. Thank You, Jody, for the best 10 years of my life and Thank You, precious Lord, for blessing me more than I deserve.

The Huckleberry Garden

Our friend, Natalie Vondersmith, came a week ago to photograph our children. I have been glued to them for a week. You can go to http://www.natalievondersmith.com/huckleberrygarden to view the entire slide show.

She is such a talented artist and was a joy and a blessing to work with.

Catepillar cake

This weekend, I baked a cake for our friends Amy and Ben Swayze. Their son, Cole, turned one and I was so glad to bake his cake for them. They wanted a Pistachio-mocha cake, like ML's wedding cake, but we didn't want to give espresso or pistachio to a baby. So, we made plain vanilla cupcakes for his cake and made the catepillars out of them.

Splashin' in the 'Boro

Laci invited us to come spend the day with her in Statesboro yesterday. After an uneventful drive, we arrived in Statesboro and spent some time with Laci and our grand-dog Libby at Laci's house. We then went and had a delicious meal at Longhorn where Laci works as a hostess, but had the day off.

Laci then took us to Splash in the Boro www.splashintheboro.com a water park in Statesboro built with Splost funds. It was SO much fun. They had two pools, 3 water slides, and lots of activities for the kids. Heyward was the only one of the little ones tall enough to go on the big slides, so Jody, Laci and I took turns going down them with her.

I'm posting a few photos of our day. Thanks, Laci, for showing us such a good time. We look forward to coming again VERY soon! The kids are already asking how soon we can go visit you!

A "Beary" Happy Birthday

Lindsey Kate turned 7 on Saturday. We celebrated on Friday with a family party and on Saturday took 6 kids (3 were ours) to the Build A Bear Workshop in Jacksonville. It was so much fun. It was the first time we had been. The kids all got to choose an animal, give it a heart, stuff it, wash it, name it and bring it home. We came home with Pinky the pink Poodle, Linda the dog and Poochie the frog.

At the end of the party, Lindsey Kate rang a bell and everyone in the store sang Happy Birthday. We then rode the escalators upstairs to eat at Chick Fil A in the food court. I don't know that any of the children had ever ridden an escalator before. It was quite exciting. Remember how much we loved them, Katharine?

Micajah and Lindsey Kate were quite impressed with the cake. Linds said it was "Way more better" than the one in the picture and Micajah said "Yep, it is prettier than Miss Regina". Miss Regina was his teacher at preschool last year. He guages the beauty of everything against Miss Regina. The fireworks on the 4th of July were "pretty, but not as pretty as Miss Regina". So, I guess I did pretty OK if the cake is prettier than she.

Anyway, here are a few photos. One of the Cake and one of the kids at Build a Bear.