will the real Harry Potter please stand up, please stand up

Chance went to a Harry Potter party last week. Shocker, I know. Pretty much EVERYONE I KNOW has been to a HP party recently. He actually saw the latest movie (along with most of Tallahassee) at the very first MIDNIGHT showing the day it came out. It's so funny to me because he hasn't read ANY of the books. Never cared to. Tyler has read them ALL about 30 times since he was in 3rd grade. And yes, I was the mom that took her elementary aged kids to the bookstore in the middle of the night so they could get the new release FIRST. And I was also the mom that let her kids skip school so they could see the movies before anyone else.

Even though he hasn't read the books, Chance has loved the movies. The party he went to last week was at church and they were spending the day catching up on the old films and then all going as a group to see the last one. He was so excited that he woke me up at 6:30AM. The event didn't begin until 9:00am and it only takes 20 minutes to get there. You do the math.

This is what he wore...

I needed to get away

And after a very sweet invitation from Jess, I got away!! Whoop Whoop!!

I did nothing but take a few photos, read from the book that Tyler got me for Mother's Day, and stare blankly into the horizon as the sun blazed my skin. Loved it!!

Tyler and Jess, on the other hand, spent a lot of time in the water.

Tuesdays with Iris

Almost every Tuesday, Iris gets out of the house. Most of the time, she goes to Lake Ella for a nice, brisk walk. And then to Black Dog Cafe for a water.

Iris is the one on the right.

A couple of times, I've tagged along. And this time, Tyler joined us. But, unforturnately, Falcor did not. It's a sad story of sibling rivalry and a bad memory of a fully-clothed swim in the lake.

This is Tyler and Jessica. And Iris on the left.

Iris belongs to Jessica's sister, but spends most of her days with her parents while her sister works. And on Tuesdays, she gets to go out. Jessica invited us to join she and her mom at the lake for a lap and a visit and I loved it. I haven't seen her mom in a while and, well, any day I get to spend some time with Jessica, is a good day.

Sweet Jessica. That's what I call her. She is absolutely, positively the sweetest, nicest, kindest, most compassionate person I know. She loves her family, her friends, her school, her community, and her environment with all that she has. It's awesome.

Tyler and Jessica met and became friends during their freshman year in high school and started dating during their senior year. I asked Tyler recently what his most favorite thing about his relationship with her (almost THREE years) is.

He squirmed and grinned as boy does when his mom asks him about his feelings. It was so cute.

"She's my best friend. She makes me laugh. I can tell her anything and everything. She lets me be me."

AWESOME!!

Killing some more time

Killing time

deep woods exploring

Yes, I've been MIA lately. There's been so much going on around here that I've barely had time to check my email. So, that means, that over the next few days, I have TONS to share. It's all going to be a little out of order, but one of the best things that I ever learned when I used to scrapbook was that, if you get behind, start with the most current event and work your way backwards. And believe me, I used that piece of advice on NUMEROUS occasions. NUMEROUS. LOTS. Okay.

Chance and I took off yesterday afternoon on a little adventure. We've been trying to locate a few new places to hang out with the dog and fish. I've been nagging the boys pretty regularly lately about how they are never home and how we never do anything together anymore. School. Work (they both have jobs now). Bands. Friends. There's always something to do. So when Chance suggested that we take a little drive yesterday, I packed the dog, camera, and water bottles before he could change his mind.

And here's what we found.

It's an old dam. We had to hike through the thick, overgrown woods, past the snakes and bugs and I don't even want to know what else, until we found it. It was the coolest thing I've seen in a while. We only stayed there about a half an hour, because, as awesome as it was, the stench of the stagnant water was too much for me to take. And I can take a lot. Normally, stuff like that doesn't bother me. But it was bad. But it was also soooo cool.

I can't wait to go back. Preferably after a little rain.

Praying

For about 13 glorious minutes each afternoon, there is this golden, warm sunlight that shines through our windows. And for 13 minutes I just sit and enjoy it. It's amazing and inspiring. Really.

We have been glued to the TV news today and are praying for those that have been and are affected by the earthquake and tsunami in Japan and all along the Pacific.

photos by http://www.theatlantic.com/infocus/2011/03/earthquake-in-japan/100022/

Lazy Sunday with a small dose of adrenaline

It all began very innocently. I was able to get most of the photos from the concert on Friday processed and uploaded yesterday, so I was looking forward to hanging out in front of my computer screen and reading all the interesting stuff I've bookmarked this week. I do that a lot... bookmark pages for later... it's kinda like my version of TIVO for the internet. And the subject matter is as wide as it is long. I'm an eclectic internet reader. 

Chance had a few things to do this morning and then he was off to spend the afternoon with his dad. I knew I would have about 6 hours of uninterrupted quiet time to myself. Bliss. 

Then I heard it.

About 2 hours in, I heard a noise around the side of the house. I immediately jumped up, unwound myself from the various computer wires that had become wrapped around my feet and looked out the open blinds to see two teenage boys riding off on our bikes. The bikes that have only been here for 8 days.

Yep. That's right.

I ran around to the side door, but by the time I could get there, they had already gone through a patch of trees across the street and were casually strolling down the street. On our bikes. In broad daylight. On a Sunday afternoon.

I called 911 and said, very calmly. There's been a robbery at my house. 

That's when the dog got out because I had run out of the house and left the doors open. Perfect.

An officer showed up about 4 minutes later and after getting a brief description of the bikes, took off to search the surrounding neighborhoods. I live on a very busy street corner with lots of foot traffic. And lots of cookie cutter houses. It reminds me of the theme song to Weeds:

Little boxes on the hillside, Little boxes made of ticky tacky
Little boxes on the hillside, little boxes all the same
There’s a green one and a pink one and a blue one and a yellow one
And they’re all made out of ticky tacky and they all look just the same.

So the officer didn't have any luck finding our bikes or the two lovely boys who took them. So if you see a teenage boy about 14 riding around on a purple beach cruiser with big white flowers on the frame and a gel seat, give me a call. My only hope is that his friends make fun of him for riding an old lady bike. And I'm pretty sure that Chance's bike needs brake work and has a warped wheel. Good luck with that, buddy.

Blue Skies and Sunlight

And around the corner...

Hallelujah! Chance and I really needed these blue skies today. He hasn't been feeling well and it's been raining and cold and we needed to get out of the house. So we loaded up the dog, the cooler and the camera and headed to a couple of our favorite fishing spots.

It definitely perked us both up. There was a little chill in the air that made our cheeks all nice and rosy. And, of course, Falcor had a blast and just about ripped my arm off several times while trying to go swimming.

The funniest moment of the day was when we were headed to Tyler's this afternoon, we were stopped at a red light, and we realized that this particular intersection at Apalachee and Magnolia had the new red light cameras. And when they flashed, Chance absolutely went HYSTERICAL, laughing and yelling at the people that will soon be receiving a photo in the mail of their infractions. He cracks me up.

Absolutely ADORE that boy.

Amen. Goodnight.

He's all moved in

He put the art on the walls before he moved in a single box.

It was the first thing he brought over to the new place that he will now call home. I was appalled. Both by the fact that he wanted to put nails in the wall before he knew where the furniture would go and by the fact that he will now call somewhere else home. I tried to convince him to wait, both on the move and on putting the pictures up first, but gave in on both fronts. He's an adult, I keep telling myself, and he is smart, clever, and capable. Just let go... let him put the art up on the wall.

It brought back a memory of an old Roseanne episode when Darlene moved to the city. While Roseanne was helping her middle child unpack her things, Darlene insisted on putting her socks in the bottom drawer. Darlene was always the rebellious child and wouldn't be convinced to follow the unspoken rule that the socks go in the top drawer (we all know it's true). This drove Roseanne insane, but she gave in until the end, when she climbed out of bed after Darlene had fallen asleep and moved all the socks to the top drawer.

This episode kept playing in my mind all day while the boys and sweet Jess were moving in all the furniture. I was whispering to myself all day -- I can't believe he put the art on the wall. It's never going to work. What are we going to do? We don't have spackle or extra paint to cover the holes that he made. OH NO! Here comes the dresser... oh, well, that looks okay. But the bed, that's never going to... wait, that looks good. By the time they got it all in and put where TYLER wanted it to go, it was PERFECT. It looked great. WOW! Who knew?!?

He was right.

Bed against the wall because that's where he wanted it.

But I have to confess something that you have to promise not to tell him. He has this built in area near his closet that has drawers. So while he, Chance and Jess were gone to pickup another load of boxes, I quickly unpacked all his clothes and put the socks... can you guess? I had been through enough with the move, the art, and the idea that my first born now has his own place that I couldn't stand the thought that they would end up somewhere other than the top drawer.

P. S. And after downloading the photos from the weekend's activities, I've realized something. And it's this.

That as much as my baby child, Chance, drives me insane with his plans, his change of plans, and his changing of those plans, we would not have been able to get everything done this weekend if it were not for him. I love this photo... Tyler has great light in the apartment.

Chance has the energy and the drive to finish that makes us all feel just enough guilt to get up and get it done. He hauled boxes down the stairs and then back up the stairs. No, I've got it, Mom. You go sit down, Mom. Let me do it, Mom. He is my baby. And I thank God every day for sending him to me.

And FYI... the little panic attack of yesterday is over and I'm moving on. I've battled the pile of junk that landed in my dining room on Friday and Saturday, organized it, and just about put it all away. I've left the three keepsake buckets there in case I run across anything else that needs to be put into them. And that's all I'm going to say about that.

just wanted to let you know

that I hate moving more than anything in this world. And it's not me that's moving, it's Tyler. But we still had a few (or so I thought) things left at the apartment. Chance and I made THREE trips this afternoon to our house with carloads of JUNK that I just can't seem to part with yet. Mostly old papers and keepsakes that need to be looked through before trashing. So now my clutter-free happy place is wall-to-wall buckets of... oh, what does it matter. My house is closing in on me and I'm thinking I need to sign up for garbage service now so I don't have to put any of it back in the car.

Missed me much?

Yes, I've been MIA for the last few days and I've got lost of excuses why. Here are the top ten:

1. Grocery shopped
2. Had a carpet picnic at Tyler's new apartment
3. Applied to Tallahassee Community College and filled out my FAFSA.
4. Cindy came by for a visit.
5. Saw the Capital City Kingsmen Drumline at their January camp
6. Processed the 300 images I took at the camp (I posted them on FB photo page here)
7. Sold Tyler's jeep.
8. Drove Tyler to look at a T-bird.
9. Drove Tyler to buy a T-bird.
10. Rode with Tyler to have his utilities turned on, change his insurance, registration and title, have his car washed, get a couple of new tires and an oil change.

Excuses not reasons. Ha ha. That was preached to me by my dad when I was younger because I was always late. And I had lots of excuses. 

But that having been said, I must have really been busy because generally I don't sleep that much, not more than 4 or 5 hours a night, and I CRASHED last night about 10:00pm. And slept until 6:30am. Bliss.

That was until I pulled back the covers this morning and the frigid conditions in my house hit me in the face like a ton a bricks. Chance has a small heater in his room and I rushed in and curled up beside it until the shock wore off. Which took about 20 minutes. And then Chance started yelling at me to get in the car and take him to school. Kids, right?

So besides Tyler getting an apartment, selling a car, buying a car, drum camp, and work --and Chance's school days, hanging out with his girlfriend (thanks Cindy), dismantling an xbox, planning his next big project and foaming at the mouth over Tyler's t-bird -- my big news is this...

I'M HEADED BACK TO SCHOOL.

And that's why I've been MIA. Yep. It was a little scary on Monday when I went to take the College Placement Test (scored much better than I thought I would and no remedials for me, btw) to realize that I'm old enough to be most of those kid's MOTHER. And I had to laugh as I maneuvered through the throngs of all those new students who were trying to figure out what had to be done next, just like me. Application. Check. CPT. Check. Financial Aid. Check Check.

I just hung up with enrollment services and I'm all set except for those pesky transcripts, which were sent to TCC on Tuesday by my last school. Now just waiting on them to be posted so I can officially register. Yay! And my schedule should be manageable since I already have a lot of basic classes completed. Double yay!

Oh, and I almost forgot to tell you about the new occupant in our house...

photos made with blackberry phone

Chance's sweet girlfriend got him a build-a-bear MONKEY named Scarlett with a recording of her voice in it's left arm. There's a little giggle she made at the end of the recording and it cracks me up every time I hear it. She arranged to leave it on his bed so he'd be surprised when he got back home on Sunday. And boy, was he surprised. The little thing is wearing a Paris shirt with a frilly, black skirt and has this tuft of hair sticking straight up. The MONKEY I mean... not CHANCE.

He had made her one for Christmas and named it Patrick and gave it to her a little early so she would have it for the holidays. Now they have a matching pair, boy and girl, to keep them company. So sweet. :)

And here are a few pics of Ty's new car. The first is of him driving it for the first time and then one of him parked at the utility company. The last one is not of Tyler, but of the squirrel traps on the building of the insurance company. I took it because I've gotta get me some of those. Seriously.

photos made with blackberry phone

I'm off to wait with Tyler at the new place for the utility guy to light the pilot lights. If you are still reading, I do have a little bit of a surprise coming... I'm having a giveaway in honor of 2011 and those who are graduating this year. I have a little soft spot in my heart right now for those that are closing one door and opening another. I'll post the details soon.

I hope your day is joyful and that you are near some source of heat that keeps your hearts (and your hands) warm.

2011 Photo Projects - my final answer

Ok, so after a hideous FAIL at Project 365 last year, where I only took photos for the month of January {and I actually cheated with myself because I kept forgetting :) but I'm very competitive that way}, I've been looking for a stress free way of documenting my families time together. I've looked and looked through blog posts and flickr groups and found that there are a lot of options and supportive groups around. Of course, P365 and P52 are the most popular, but I'm always trying to find a new and unique way of doing things. It's just how I roll.

And here's what I've decided after reading this blog post by Miss Kim. She too failed. We are sisters in the P365 fail group, if there was one. Hmm. Maybe I should start one. I'll have to think about that.

What she decided was that because of school, work, and general busy-ness during the week, that she would document her family's weekends. Because that's when they spend their time together... hiking, playing games, and just hanging out.

AND THAT'S ME TOO! I feel like I hardly see my kids during the week and I don't want to just make up some photo of my keys on the table next to my sunglasses because I've got nothing for that day. Not that there's anything wrong with that. It's just not for me.

So, I'm going to post the photos here {2011} a year of weekends each week. And even though the first photo in the album is one that I posted last week in another album, my goal is to only put pics in this album that I don't post anywhere else. Starting today. Yep.

But I have another project too. And this is going to be the hardest one of all I'm afraid. But I think it is the most important one. I follow a blog by Tara Whitney who is a photographer in Orange County, CA. Last year,  she decided that it was important that she step from behind the camera and join her family photos. Her six people twelve times project has inspired me to do the same. Like most photographers, I shy away from being in the images because of too many reasons to list here. I can count on my hands {and maybe one toe} how many times we've had a photo with just the three of us and yet, I could not tell you the number of times I've turned down the opportunity to have someone take our picture. Plus that's what self-timer is for. And now that my kids are getting older, it makes me sad to think that they won't have pictures of us together... laughing, hugging, hanging.

And how else will they make fun of my hair and clothes twenty years from now? So, if you are still reading this and wondering where the picture is, here ya go...

Don't judge me, but this is the last picture that I remember that had the three of us in it. And I had beach hair. It was 2 1/2 years ago. There may have been one after church about 18 months ago, but I can't find it which means I probably didn't like the way I looked. I hope I didn't delete it.

But I'm afraid I did.

and he took a header off the exam table...

Well, well, it's been an interesting day around the York household. It all began around 8:30a yesterday when Chance started texting me that his knee was bothering him for the 324 time. Plus he has the knot on his lower right eye. And some other issues that I've been waiting for our checkup date to talk to the doctor.

But since I knew he would drive me crazy, I decided to call yesterday and find out how soon I could bring him in. And they had a 10:45a for today. So I took it knowing that this would appease him for the moment. Thirty minutes later he texted that he didn't think he could stay at school so I headed back there to pick him up.

And then forced him to stay in the bed for the next 24 hours.

We were running late as usual this morning and trying to get to the doctor's office without being tooooo late and finding out that we would have to go the long way around because there was ANOTHER bank robbery in Tallahassee today. We finally made it and were only 4 minutes late. Whoo Hoo!!

Then we waited. And waited. And waited to be seen. We waited a full hour before they even called us to do weight and temps. But luckily our wonderful doc joined us soon after we were put into a room. We discussed Chance's many ailments and were in the middle of deciding what the best course of action would be. He was sitting quietly on the exam table with his legs dangling off the edge when it happened.

Chance:  Mom, remember that time I got that shot right before 8th grade? I feel weird like that.
Me: Gosh, you look really pale.

The doc turned around on his rolly stool and checked the pulse in his foot.

Doc: Your pulse is really low.

Chance's eyes glazed over and he leaned forward and promptly fell head first off the table like he was doing a flippy off the diving board. Not backwards or sideways. FORWARD!

The doc caught him before his head hit the floor.

Me: Ahhhhhhh! Are you okay?
Chance: What just happened?
Doc: You had a vagus (something-or-other I don't remember).
Me: What's that?
Doc: He fainted. And then rebooted.

We managed to get him back up onto the table with his knees propped up and he started coming around. He was clammy and lightheaded. And I was freakin' out 'cause I could have sworn he was having a seizure and the doc thought so too at first. But he assured me that he really did think that it was probably just a fainting spell and that it was a fluky thing. Maybe.

Chance laid there a little while longer while they checked his blood pressure (fine), got him some water, and generally regain control of his faculties.

How often does it happen that your child has some crazy, weird thing happen in the doctor's office and the DOC is right THERE to catch him as he falls. Thanks goodness, huh?

Usually I take a photo of Chance when we go to the doctor, sitting on the exam table, because I think it's funny that his feet almost touch the floor. But not today. Today I will leave you with this photo that I took while he was fishing the other day... I swear that the first thought that came to mind was are there bears around here? That's my foot next to the print and it's not a dainty foot, boys and girls. It's a 10 1/2 wide. So this animal footprint was HUGE. And if it was a bear and the bear is now wondering around town...well, that would be about as big of a shock as that one time when Chance took a header off the exam table at the doctor's office. God bless. Amen. The end.

at the pond #34912

Chance begged and begged to go fishing today. He guilted me into because it's the last day of his Christmas break. It's cold, I said. He quickly stated that I could sit in the car. Oh fun, I thought.

It really was an absolutely, beautiful day even if it was a little chilly. And I did sit in the car for a little bit. But then I realized that we were probably going to be there for a while so I got my camera and headed to the water. So here are the required photos of Chance fishing.

One day, I'm going to post a recap of the last six years he has spent at this pond. But not today.

So, then  I'm all, like, now what? Looking around, all I can see are dead plants, bushes and tree things. I tell myself to look hard. Try to see something that you might normally overlook. And lookey what I found. Knockout Roses... only there are no blooms. Just the bush. And what's left of the flowery part looks like a star. And, of course, the thorns are still there. I'm pretty sure that this is not a new discovery, but I was pretty darn pleased with myself. Ha ha. Beautiful color amongst all that dead brown-ness.

And. Does anyone know what kind of duck this is? It swims underwater. At first I thought it was one of those snake birds. But they have longer beaks and narrower heads. I figure I could spend hours on the internet trying to figure it out, but I have stuff in my reader that needs to be read. Can you help?

Let me know. It's the coolest, freakiest duck I've ever seen.

Happy New Year!

TODAY
January 1, 2011
the first day of the new year
a great year
always a better year than the last year.


Kids happy and healthy. Check.
Dog happy and healthy. Check Check.
Couple of goals set. Check Check Check.


I did make the deadline that I set for myself of getting the website up and running by today {9:33pm is still today, thank you very much!} And I realized that after five days of going through all my files that I took a BUNCH of photos last year! And I'm looking forward to taking a bunch more this year.

Thanks to my friend, Cindy, I finally left the house last night to celebrate and ring in the new year in a proper manner. You know what I mean... football, food, and fireworks. Oh and fun. And firepit.

Watching the ball drop ....

Midnight noise from the boys...

Party friends...

Happy 2011 ya'll... hope it's all you want it to be.

Thanks to all those who read this blog. It's still new and in a constant state of remodel lately, but I really appreciate all those who stop by now & then. 

cabin fever

No, I haven't been anywhere except Walgreens in about three days. I have been working sooooo hard on a few projects that I hope to unveil on New Year's Day! Yay! I did take the dog on a walk today around the block instead of the typical just let him out the back door. I needed to stretch my legs a little and breath in some fresh {albiet FRIGID} air. I didn't even take my camera with me... believe it or not! So instead I will leave you with this cute picture of Tyler and Jessica on Christmas Eve. She looked so cute and brought me the most adorable ornament for Christmas. THANKS Jess!! It was great to see your sweet face.

great tallahassee blizzard of 2010

Chance and I left the house this morning because the word on the street {i.e. facebook} was that it was snowing in Tallahassee. We knew it probably wouldn't make it to our house and we didn't want to miss it so we headed north as fast as we could. In our pjs.  

But we only had to go as far as midtown to find the flurries that made my baby squeal like a little girl. Merry Christmas, sweet boy!

MERRY CHRISTMAS!

Oh, and btw, eating leftovers and using TWO plates. Just for me. Keepin' it real. Just sayin'.

Spin Cycle

The face of laundry businesses have changed since the last time I visited one about 10 years ago. They are open 24 hours, have super, huge, monster-sized machines, flat screens on every wall, air-conditioning, and these cards that you swipe on the machine instead of feeding that 10 pound pocket of quarters you've always saved for laundry day. Oh and did I mention WIFI? Yes, free WIFI!

Wash-Around-the-Clock, Tallahassee, FL