Feb – Alan turned 51. Here’s a little something in honor of
him getting older . . . Two elderly gentlemen were eating breakfast in a
restaurant one morning. Tom noticed something funny about George's ear and he
said, "George, did you know you've got a suppository in your left
ear?" George answered, "I have? A suppository?" He pulled it out
& stared at it. Then he said, "Tom, I'm glad you saw this thing. Now I
think I know where my hearing aid is."
Mar – Rylie, our beagle, continues to escape from our fenced
backyard. Just when we think we have it more secure than Fort Knox, she finds
another way out. I don’t know how the fat dog squishes under the fence. It’s
like her bones evaporate! Of course, she always returns - - happy, tired, and
hungry.
Apr – We took Amanda and 9 friends to the beach for Spring
Break. The kids were fabulous and I thought the entire trip would be uneventful
. . . and it almost was. Then I got a text from Austin when we were 90 minutes
from home = “If you could pick up some morphine on your way home I would
appreciate it . . . pretty sure I broke my toe . . . it ouches." I told
him to fix it with duct tape (that is his usual solution). His toe was smashed
at work when a pallet of milk broke. He was in a lot of pain! We got home, went to the ER, and brought him back
home to recuperate. He had a black toe and missed 6 weeks of work.
May – Amanda has been very busy. Austin texted her - just to
check in - and her response was "I hate everyone." Alan had a similar
experience when he texted her. She replied, "Just kill me." That's
our sweet, little ray of sunshine! She, however, graduated with honors on May
24th and Austin put on a shoe (not a sandal or flip flop) for the 1st
time since his accident to go to the ceremony. It was a big night for
everybody!
June – Two days after Amanda graduated, we boarded a plane
bound for Australia. It was a fabulous two week vacation. We invited Austin,
but he made a responsible, grown-up decision and decided to stay home so he
wouldn’t miss the 1st two weeks of his summer classes. So, he got to
stay with Rylie – our beagle/escape artist. I am pretty sure that we had more
fun than he did!
July – Austin
has purchased his first house. His top priority – an above ground pool in the
back! The pool has been a big hit. It
has a shallow end and a deep end thanks to a sloping yard. Austin and his
roommates were able to make it a heated pool by floating a fire pit on top of
the water. The pool was also used as a golf target. They would chip balls into
the water. At night, when it was hard to see, they rode the riding lawn mower
to the backyard and turned on the headlights for a little extra lighting!
Aug – Kelsey,
Austin’s cousin and roommate, had been baking when she mentioned that she
thought she smelled gas. No one worried too much about it, but after a week or
so, Austin decided to call the gas company – just in case. While he was still
on the phone explaining the smell, 4 emergency vehicles - fire trucks,
ambulance, and police - drove into his cul-de-sac. They had all arrived because
of his phone call. They really take gas leaks seriously! His house was inspected.
There was no leak. His oven was emitting some gas that smelled, but it wasn’t
going to blow up the neighborhood. Whew. AND (drum roll, please) Amanda headed
to Kennesaw State University –
we are officially empty nesters!
Sept –
The weather is turning cooler so it is time to take down Austin’s pool. The
grass beneath the pool had died so the round, brown area immediately became a
putting green. It’s like the Country Club of the South in his backyard, but no
shoes are required! The cooler weather has also put Rylie in hyper escape mode.
After one particularly long night of her prowling the neighborhood and barking
constantly, I bought six 40 pound bags of dirt and 6 cinder blocks. I divided
the dirt and cinder blocks between her 2 favorite escape holes. Alan worked
from home a few days later (so he would be at home when his iPhone 5 was
delivered) and the stinking mutt escaped by moving about 6 inches from the last
cinder block. I refuse to be outsmarted by the dang dog. Here is her new
nighttime outfit . . . Yep, she’s now a conehead!
Oct – The dog escaped again! She moved
2 of the cinder blocks and got the conehead off! Dang dog!
Nov. – We are now hooking Rylie’s dog harness to a leash on
a tether in the backyard. It’s very disheartening to look out and see an empty
dog harness at the end of the leash.
The photo above is not our house or our dog, but one
more bit of beagle humor seemed appropriate . . .
Dec. – Our reason for the season and our anchor in life . .
. Matthew 1:23 Behold, a virgin shall be with child, and shall
bring forth a son, and they shall call his name Emmanuel, which being
interpreted is, God with us.
All our love – Alan, Deana, Austin, Amanda,
and Rylie
Merry Christmas 2012
