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✍ All sorts of new and exciting things coming up for the cast of L to the Third so stay tuned!

Wednesday, August 31, 2011

Wordless{ish} Wednesday: There's a first time for everything


{We've all adapting to our new house, but it's been a bit rough on Sammy not having carpeted floors to cushion his falls.  He learned this the hard way when he did a full-on face-plant on the ceramic tile in the foyer, resulting in his first bloody nose.}


{Fortunately he was up and walking it off before I even had a chance to clean off his face.  Sammy's like a Timex watch--he takes a licking and keeps on ticking!}

Tuesday, August 30, 2011

The last day on the road


I get the feeling that Sammy and Sandy were beginning to tire from all of our time on the road, because they really let us sleep in on our last day of the trip.  Before we got on the highway again, I took a quick detour in downtown Big Spring to check out a turn-of-the-century architectural gem:



Joseph Potton was a master mechanic with the Texas and Pacific Railroad; he built this home as an investment property and leased it out until his retirement in 1912.  The home was meticulously maintained by Potton's descendants and is now operated as a museum that can be viewed by appointment; I really wish we had been able to see the inside of the home.  But the road beckoned and Sammy and I were soon on our way.


We did manage to find the time for one last pit-stop in Odessa, Texas, where Sammy and I visited with the world's largest jack rabbit--however, I think it's a bit of a dubious honor:


Well, at least there were no tears this time!

Monday, August 29, 2011

Rockin' with the star of Texas


 After a relaxing day spent with Captain Husband's family in Dallas, it was time for us to hit the road yet again.  We had about 10 1/2 hours worth of driving in front of us, so we decided to split the last leg of the journey to El Paso in half and booked a room in Big Spring, Texas.  We headed on our way and it wasn't too long before I came across something worth taking a detour: the world's largest cedar rocking chair, known as the Star of Texas, located at the Natty Flat Smoke House.




This was one of those times where I wished Sammy knew how to operate a camera because I totally would have climbed up onto the seat for an "Edith Ann" inspired photo or two, but he stayed in the car with the a/c blasting while I ran around and took the few photos that I could before the heat got the best of me.  We then headed back onto I-20 where we were soon surrounded by the seemingly endless vistas of the west Texas deserts.

Friday, August 26, 2011

Sammy does Dallas


Captain Husband, Sammy, Sandy and I spent an extra day in Dallas hanging out with CH's uncle Sammy (yes, another one) and his family.  It was so nice to take a break from driving to just hang out and relax for a bit.   We weren't the only new faces around; Sammy's second cousins, Chris and Kaleigh, adopted a new dog the day that we arrived:


Buddy was such a happy little guy and he got along so well with Sammy; I actually found myself second-guessing my no-dogs-until-CH-retires moratorium during our visit.

 

The best part about our little Dallas detour?  The pool (especially as it was 110 degrees while we were there)!  We spent the better part of the day just playing and splashing in the water with Uncle Sammy.  While I wish we had been able to do a little sightseeing while we were in the area, it was nice getting to know CH's uncle and his family and I'm really glad we were able to spend some time with them before we headed off on our last leg of our journey to El Paso.

Be sure to check out the other photos by clicking below; have a great weekend everyone!

Photobucket

Thursday, August 25, 2011

Today's post is brought to you by giant cows

I'm going to preface this post by saying I'm exhausted--Captain Husband and I have been working non-stop these past few days in an attempt to get our house in some sort of order.  To say that our house was a disaster area would be a gross understatement (the movers basically came over yesterday, opened up each box, and dumped it on the floor.  Repeat this process about a hundred times, and well, you can imagine the results).  We've managed to get most of the kitchen sorted out, as well as the master bedroom and Sammy's playroom, but there's still a lot of work to do.  Where are the magical moving fairies when you need them?  Okay, enough whining--on to the giant cows!


Sammy and I stopped at the Southwest Dairy Museum in Sulphur Springs, Texas, on our way from Memphis to Dallas; my main reason for this detour was the aforementioned giant cows, which did not disappoint.  Even Sammy was impressed this time around.

Wow--those are some big cows!


After running amok for a bit, Sammy decided to try out his Hunter S. Thompson impression and then we were back in the car heading for our next destination: Dallas!

This is bat country!


The Daily Wyatt

Wednesday, August 24, 2011

Wordless{ish} Wednesday: Making our way to Memphis



{Our first stop that morning was in Sevierville, Tennessee, where I got into some trouble at the Rebel Dish Barn.  I exercised a modicum of self control and managed to make it out of there with only three purchases.}


{During our lunch stop in Cookeville, Tennessee, Sammy and I came across a sunglasses-wearing pink elephant.}


{He wasn't all that impressed.}


{Because I'm a huge history nerd, I couldn't resist making a slight detour just outside of Nashville, Tennessee, to walk around the grounds of the Hermitage, the home of Andrew Jackson.  It was a gorgeous place--maybe next time we'll actually have enough time to tour the house!}


Tuesday, August 23, 2011

Bulls Gap or bust

After taking care of some last minute cleaning and other little things at the house, it was time for us to pack our bags, load up our respective vehicles (I was driving with Sammy in the car, while Captain Husband had Sandy in his truck--I think he got the short end of the stick in that deal to be honest), and hit the road.  It's a good thing my car has a trunk large enough for several dead bodies, because I wound up using just about every inch of available space back there:


You're looking at approximately five hundred pounds of clothing, bedding, diapers, toys, the kitchen sink, etc.  And if that's not enough stuff, check out the set-up I put together for Sammy in the back seat:


If you're ever attempting a long road trip with a toddler, I cannot recommend enough the importance of the bag of toys and snacks kept within arm's reach so that you may throw hand them lovingly to your screaming devil cherubic angel in the back seat at a moment's notice.  And while I've never been big on the whole portable DVD player deal, my mom offered to loan us hers and, boy, am I glad she did.  That thing did a wonderful job of keeping Sammy distracted (and happy) as we drove all over the place.

Okay, so on to day one: We set out from northern Virginia at about 10 am--our destination that day was Bulls Gap, Tennessee, about seven hours away just past the Virginia/Tennessee border.  If I'm going to be in the car for hours on end, I like to make random pit stops at places just to break the monotony of it all, whereas CH likes to drive straight on; if you're lucky, he may even stop once for a restroom break (I'm only partially joking).  This is why I'm convinced that having to drive our vehicles separately on this trip single-handedly saved our marriage, but I digress.  I had checked out a map the night before and decided that day one's pit stop would take place in Natural Bridge, Virginia, with a side stop at a funky little diner just for fun.



There was a huge King Kong sculpture in front of the diner just in case you didn't notice the big pink building as you drove by.

After a delicious lunch of roast beef and mashed potatoes, Sammy and I made our way to the actual Natural Bridge for which the town was named: this geological formation is an impressive 215 feet high, about 40 feet thick and spans 90 feet--it's so structurally sound that it actually serves as a bridge for Route 11, which is kind of crazy when you think about it.  There's a bit of a pricey entrance fee to go and see it, but at least Sammy was free of charge so I put him on my back and we made our way down to the site.  It really is quite monumental--my photos don't even begin to do it justice.




I let Sammy stretch his legs out a bit and then we were back in the car and off to Bulls Gap, Tennessee, where we met up with CH and Sandy and spent the night.  Next stop--Memphis!

Monday, August 22, 2011

Greetings from holy-cow-it's-so-sunny El Paso!


I am very happy to report that Captain Husband, Sandy, Sammy and I all arrived safe and sound in El Paso this past Thursday; it was a loooooooooong road trip but we all managed to survive it without too much irreparable psychological damage (I hope).  We have the keys to our new place but we've been spending our nights at a hotel near our house until our household goods arrive (should be some time today, actually--keep your fingers crossed).  We've been making some progress, though; yesterday we bought some new blinds and installed them in what will become Sammy's play room and over the weekend we also managed to purchase a new mattress set, fridge, and washer and drier, which goes a long way to making our new house a home.  Here are a few shots of the house in progress to tide you over in the mean time:


Yes, there is a wet bar in the living room.  We're already planning a Mad Men-inspired party around it.




I'll be posting photos and such from our cross-country journey the rest of this week, so be sure to stay tuned--after all, you wouldn't want to miss giant cows and the world's largest cedar rocking chair, would you?

Friday, August 19, 2011

Please welcome Tonya from Whoopsidaisy!


My name is Tonya and I am a SAHM of four.

This is my go-to line of introduction when I’m asked to tell a little about myself.   Case in point is a writing group I recently joined.  As I looked into the circle of unfamiliar faces, these were my exact words. 

After the meeting I pondered why I didn’t say “My name is Tonya, and I am writing a novel” or “My name is Tonya and I love the outdoors.”

Now that my children are growing older, (my youngest is three, oldest is 14), I’m finding an intense need to carve out more time for myself, more time to just be Tonya. 

But who is Tonya without her children?

I’ve come to realize that my children are perfect to hide behind at times when I’m feeling insecure.  Have to go to a large gathering?  Take the kids along!  They can look cute and provide endless conversation starters.  My 20th high school reunion?  Buy a ticket, plan to go, and then chicken out at the last minute, using the kids as an excuse.

This is NOT a good thing.  It keeps me from taking risks, using my children as shields to block uncomfortable feelings. 

So what am I doing about this?  I’m taking more “me” time.  Not an easy for me for a multitude of reasons, but mostly because I don’t want to burden anyone – it was our decision to have four children, so I had better just buck up and deal with it, damnit!

However, to quote an overused phrase, it takes a village.  We live such separated lives.  Families all over the country, if not the globe.  Mothers working full-time, part-time, all-the-time.  We may know our neighbors only by the occasional wave or polite “How are you?”

Where is our village?  we may ask ourselves.  Although it is difficult, find that village we must.  Even if it takes us into unfamiliar territory. 

For me, blogging is becoming part of my village.  Frankly, I was a wreck about blogging at first.  Who are these strangers who would want to read about me?  Why do they care?  Is blogging yet another form of navel-gazing in our it’s-all-about-me, Paris Hilton, reality television immersed society?

Well, blogging IS NOT that.  It’s about connection.  Connection to others in our fractured world.

So who am I?  I am Tonya.   Blogger.  Writer.  Lover of the Outdoors.  AND mother of four.

Thursday, August 18, 2011

Please welcome Lindsey from Adventures of a Mom of 2!

Hi everyone! I'm Lindsey, I write over at Adventures of a Mom of 2. I'm married to a Marine going on 5 years and mom of a wild 3 year old and one of the world's cutest (I may be a little biased) 18 month old! Enough about me and on to the show!

While Laura is on the road she asked for a few guest bloggers and I happily asked her if she would let me & guess what?!?! She said YES! I am honored to share a few of {my favorite things}. I have an obsession with Pinterest. If you haven't checked it, beware it's addicting!

Without further delay, here are some of my {favorite things}:


{I need this for my entry way. This one of my favorite sayings.}


 {Custom-colored-chalkboard paint is on my list of DIY projects.}

 {This traveling car roll - perfect for my matchbox-car loving 3 year old.}

 {DIY kitchen sink - this is on my hubby's todo list when he returns.
I spy the perfect place to use my colored chalk DIY!}

{This image makes me tear up every.single.time I see it.}
{source unknown}

 


{This is my Fall dream outfit.}

Thanks for reading my {list of favorites}. Please stop by and say hi!

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