SPRING!!!

After a(nother) memorable and LONG winter, it's probably safe to assume we're all ready for spring.

Okay, maybe we're not ready for the allergies. Or rain and mud. Or briar and poison ivy. Or tripping over and into the mole/vole/whatever tunnels all over the yard. Or dandelions. Or mowing.

Or taxes.

Still... it's wonderful to be outside again without numbness!

And to be reminded that there is light at the end of the tunnel. Some of them, anyway.

Happy SPRING!!!

For more scoop about us, visit The Suite Life of Lucy and Ethel...

What Happened to February???

While we're at it, what happened to January?

The new year started off with a literal bang in the form of a possessed oven and an emotional one when we had to have our big Emma put to sleep. And a frigid one with snow, wind, more snow, and ice.

It continued days later when Favorite Daughter Katie announced her engagement.

The January hoopla spilled over into February, as Favorite Firstborn Matthew began his new teaching job at a middle school.

And more snow and wind and frigid temps.

The other day I saw this:

What is it?, you ask. It's NO SNOW (hey, that sounds like 'It snow snow.' Awesome.)

The excitement was bumped up a notch or two yesterday when Matthew unexpectedly had his appendix removed in the morning... and was dismissed in the afternoon. Almost a drive-thru procedure.

Today I saw this:

Yes, GREEN is peeking through!!! I can't believe it, but I sure am ready.

I trust I'm ready for March madness, period.

Are you???

The First Ten Days of 2011

December started out wintry and ended wintry, with a 3-night visit from Favorite Daughter, Katie, and her Favorite Boyfriend, Paul, and the demise of our possessed oven thrown in for good measure.

Day One of the new year started with the purcha$e of a new oven on Emma's 12th birthday.

Five days later, Emma earned her wings, mere weeks after Kali earned hers. Even though we pretended we were sorta prepared, being Emma-less hasn't been easy. She was a gigantic presence around here in more ways than one.

Emma's last trek down from the cabin

Meanwhile, the snow is falling again/still/whatever. We're due for ice tonight and tomorrow, and since the entire region is affected, Randy is enjoying a snow day from school. Okay, maybe 'enjoying' is a bit optimistic for the whole day, considering he hasn't been able to log into his NC Wise account for test exemptions, making him a little, um, momentarily irritated. Oh, well. We have popcorn and hot chocolate! I may share.

Matthew's stuck here, too, but with internet, food, and a TV for football games, he's not complaining too loudly.

I pretended I was an archeologist wannabe on a recent hike to the cabin:

In other news, we're having a Hibernation Special thru March - $75/night. Stay two nights and get the third night for only $50. Woo hoo! Don't worry - there's still chocolate :)

We're also taking PayPal now! It's an easy process, and while we haven't abandoned Visa, MasterCard, and Discover yet, the $$$$$$$$$$$$$ fees for credit card transactions are driving us to ponder it. Just ponder.

Hope all is well with you and that the first 10 days of 2011 have been happy and healthy.

Our Talker

Emma

1-1-99 - 1-6-11

Merry Christmas, Slightly Belated Edition

(I just found this in Drafts. Sheesh.)

Big Emma (somewhere under the Santa hat on the left) and her 3-day company, Maggie, both hoping they've been good 'nuf this year for something yummy.