50th WEDDING ANNIVERSARY

WE HAD SO MUCH FUN SATURDAY NIGHT ! UNCLE MELVIN & AUNT EUGENIA CELEBRATED THEIR 50 GOLDEN WEDDING ANNIVERSARY THEIR WAS A YARD FULL OF MOSTLY FAMILY & OF COURSE TONS OF FRIENDS & GREAT FOOD!! WE HAD THE BEST TIME WATCHING GRANNY ON THE DANCE FLOOR. I ENJOYED MEETING EDEL & HER FAMILY. EDEL IS A EXCHANGE STUDENT FROM BELGIUM THAT STAYED W/ MELVIN & EUGENIA & THE GIRLS WHILE THEY WERE IN HIGH SCHOOL.

11 pound catfish!!

GOOD OL' LONNIE CAME BY FRIDAY EVE. TO FISH A WHILE, HE CAUGHT THIS 11 POUNDER ON A NIGHT CRAWLER WORM! SO.... FAR I'M STILL THE CATFISH QUEEN, I WILL ALWAYS BE SHORT IN THE BREAM RACE WHEN COMPARED TO GRANNY THE BREAM QUEEN !!

SUMMER TOMATO PIE

1 PIE SHELL

6-7 HOME-GROWN TOMATOES

1 SWEET VIDALIA ONION

1 1/2 CUP MOZZARELLA CHEESE

1 CUP MAYO

~BROWN PIE CRUST FOR ABOUT 5 MINUTES. LET COOL

PEEL & CUT TOMATOES IN FAIRLY LARGE SLICES. USE A SPOON OR HANDS TO PUSH OUT THE WATER/JUICE & SEEDS OF THE TOMATO. YOU WANT JUST THE "MEAT' OF THE TOMATO. PLACE ON PAPER TOWEL TO ABSORB ANY MORE JUICE. YOUR PIE COULD ME "MUSHY" IF YOU DON'T DO THIS, CUT ONIONS INTO PAPER THIN SLICES. PUT THEM IN A BOWL & MICROWAVE 7-8 MIN'S UNTIL CLEAR & LIMP. PLACE A LAYER TOMATOES THEN ONIONS THEN MORE TOMATOES & ONIONS. MIX CHEESE & MAYO. & SPREAD ACROSS THE TOP EVENLY. COOK 350 DEGREES UNTIL CHEESE IS GOOD & BROWN. THIS IS USUALLY ABOUT 10 MINS. COOL ABOUT 5 MIN. & ENJOY!

PASS THE PEAS PLEASE

~I'M VERY THANKFUL FOR ALL OF UNCLE MELVIN'S HARD WORK & KIND HEART! HE ZIPS UP & DOWN THE ROAD GOING FROM ONE GARDEN SPOT TO ANOTHER. HE'S HAD CORN, TOMATOES, SQUASH, NEW POTATOES & BEST OF ALL PINK-EYED PURPLE HULL PEAS!! MY NEPHEW JAKE PICKED ME A TUB FULL OF PEAS TODAY FROM THEIR GARDEN. OH BOY, ARE THEY PRETTY!! HE DID "BARGAIN" ME FOR A GARLIC CHEESE BALL, I FELT I GOT THE BETTER END OF THE DEAL SINCE THE TEMPERATURE HIT ALMOST 100 TODAY! :o)

~~Love doesn't make the world go 'round; love is what makes the ride worthwhile.

Bill Dance Fishing Bloopers - Crankbait in foot

sunflowers!!!!!!!!

I've been waiting patiently on my sunflower faces to show up & I opened the blinds yesterday morning & TA-DA!!! *the bumble bees loves'em too!

i chopped it off....

I broke down & did it!! I chopped off my hair today! I've tried for a while now to let it grow. It just wasn't meant to be for me to have long flowy hair! So, just look what i did! ...oh well i'll get use to it or it'll grow....maybe?

BIG BASS !!

A buddy of Jeff's pulled in this big ol' bass while we was gone, him & granny had to "measure" it & said it was around 8 lbs & granny said it was over 4 boards wide!!!

hamp's harvest

~we came home w/ plenty of vegetables here is just a sample of Judy & Hamp's garden! I love home grown tomatoes!! (yummy) Also them weeds better give up cause Hamp isn't giving in to them! Nope! Not yet!

~HAPPY 4th of JULY~

We've just got home from a overdue vacation! It was GREAT !! We spent most of the 4th of July week at Judy & Hamp's in Barnwell, S.C. Hamp had got together a couple of fishing trips for him & Jeff. Thursday the trip was at Santee for bass fishing w/ Mr. Inky (mr. icky? ;) Jeff came back telling about alligators & the swamps. The next trip was Saturday on Lake Murray for a day of stripe fishing. They had the best time & a tons of fish tales to tell before they settled in for their naps! As for me an Judy we conducted a full inspection of the pool & made sure it was in great working order by soaking in it for a couple of days, it passed the inspection! Jeff drove us over to Akin one day for a little shopping they have all kinds of good little shops & pretty flowers too! We stopped on the way home & picked up Dylan he's gonna stay w/ us for the rest of July.

this is one of the paw-paw turtles we've been trying to catch at the pond, Jeff finally got a hold of him & we have since relocated him to a better place..........;o)

*You can always count on a ton of laughs from them crazy Miller's, Georgette sent this to me today & I just love it!!

LEMONS and SUGAR

...This should probably be taped to your bathroom mirror where one could read it every day. You may not realize it, but it's 100% true.

1. There are at least two people in this world that you would die for.

2. At least 15 people in this world love you in some way.

3. The only reason anyone would ever hate you is because they want to be just like you.

4. A smile from you can bring happiness to anyone, even if they don't like you.

5. Every night, SOMEONE thinks about you before they go to sleep.

6. You mean the world to someone.

7. You are special and unique.

8. Someone that you don't even know exists loves you.

9. When you make the biggest mistake ever, something good comes from it.

10. When you think the world has turned its back on you take another look.

11. Always remember the compliments you received. Forget about the rude remarks.

~~ 'Whenever God Closes One Door He Always Opens Another, Even Though Sometimes It's Hell in the Hallway'

~~I would rather have one rose and a kind word from a friend while I'm here than a whole truckload when I'm gone.

Happiness keeps You Sweet,

Trials keep You Strong,

Sorrows keep You Human,

Life keeps You Humble,

Success keeps You Glowing,

But Only God keeps You Going

THE BIG ONE THAT GOT AWAY.....

GRANNY & HAMP SLIPPED OFF SATURDAY EVENING TO DROWN SOME CRICKETS & SHE SNAGGED HERSELF A HUGE CATFISH. WHEN WE COME ACROSS THE HAY FIELD WE COULD TELL THEY WE'RE UP TO SOMETHING. JEFF PULLED HIS SHOES & SOCKS OFF & WAS GOING IN AFTER THIS MONSTER & IT JUST HAD OTHER PLANS!!!! I WILL LET YOU IMAGINE WHAT JEFF IS SAYING IN THIS PICTURE!! :)

the DEER are NEAR.....

OMG! :)~ WE'VE TALKED A COUPLE OFF TIMES ABOUT GETTING ONE OF THOSE "DEER CAMERAS" TO SEE IF WE REALLY HAD DEER COMING AROUND WE'VE SEEN SOME PRINTS FROM TIME TO TIME. WHILE I WAS AWAY AT SCHOOL JEFF TOLD ME HE CHECKED & WE HAD 83 PICTURES OF SOMETHING? WELL

LOOKY HERE!!!

HAPPY ANNIVERSARY !!!

...I JUST LOVE HIM!!

TRESPASSING TURTLES

WELL, I AM PROUD TO ADMIT THAT WE ARE TO A GRAND TOTAL OF 25 TURTLES THAT WE HAVE CAUGHT IN THE TRAP. IT'S AMAZING WHAT YOU CAN DO WITH 2 WEEK OLD ROTTEN FISH PARTS!! WHEN WE CHECKED IT THIS EVENING WE HAD 10 TURTLES & THIS A TRAP RECORD SO FAR! PLEASE STAY TUNED FOR MORE TURTLE TALK WITH JILL :0)

dinner plate dahlia's

I'm very proud of my dinner plate dahlias! This is their 1st year & I hope they'll just grow & get better with each year to come!!

THINGS WE CAN LEARN FROM A DOG....

~Never pass up the opportunity to go for a joy ride.
*Allow the experience of fresh air and the wind in your face to be pure ecstasy.
~When loved ones come home, always run to greet them.
*When it's in your best interest, practice obedience.
~Let others know when they've invaded your territory.
*Take naps and stretch before rising.
~Run, romp and play daily.
*Eat with gusto and enthusiasm.
~Be loyal.
*Never pretend to be something you're not.
~If what you want lies buried, dig until you find it.
*When someone is having a bad day, be silent, sit close by and nuzzle them gently.
~Thrive on attention and let people touch you.
*Avoid biting when a simple growl will do.
~On hot days, drink lots of water and lie under a shady tree.
*When you're happy, dance around and wag your entire body.
~No matter how often you're scolded, don't buy into the guilt thing and pout, run right back and make friends.
*Delight in the simple joys of a long walk.

***FOR THE RECORD COCOA IS A OVER ACHIEVER AT EACH OF THESE....:)

HE GOT CLOSE...

OH ME!! JEFF CAME REAL CLOSE THIS EVE. TO BREAKING THE POND CATFISH RECORD! I MUST TRY TO DO BETTER TO MAINTAIN MY REIGN AS "CATFISH QUEEN". WE WEIGHED IT W/ 2 DIFFERENT SCALES AND IT WAS 11.8 LBS. HE GOT PRETTY CLOSE TO MY 14.5 LBS FROM 2007. YOU SHOULD HAVE SEEN THE WORK THAT WAS PUT INTO GETTING THE FISH IN, GRANNY TIMED IT! 18 min.'s TO BE EXACT! I WAS THE ASSISTING"NET" GIRL ;)

COCOA HAS HAD A ROUGH WEEK...

MOST OF YOU KNOW COCOA OUR CHOCLATE LAB. WELL, WE'VE HAD OUR RUN OF NEW BABY BIRDS AROUND HERE. THE FIRST WAS THE ONES WHO BUILT IN THE WREATH, THEN THE KILDEER'S IN GRANNY'S DRIVE-WAY & LAST WEEKEND WE HAD A MOMA MOCKING BIRD GIVING FLYING LESSONS IN THE BACK YARD & THE LITTLE'ENS HOME FOR DECORATION LOVED TO WATCH THE MOMMA SWOOP DOWN & PECK COCOA!!! NOW, WE HAVE A FAMILY OF VERY ,VERY PROTECTIVE BLUE JAYS IN THE OAK TREE IN THE FRONT YARD & THEIR 2 BABIES OR DOING THIS "HOPPING" NUMBER ALL OVER THE YARD & COCOA DON'T UNDERSTAND THEY ARE NOT TOYS!! THE DADDY BLUE JAY MEANS BUSINESS HE'S PECKED HER TO PIECES & MADE SEVERAL DIVES FOR ME & JEFF TOO!! THAT POOR COCOA WILL BARLEY COME OUTTA THE CARPORT TODAY!!!

~MOBY now lives in Horton.....

THE CRAPPIE KING'S RETURNED HOME LATE FRIDAY EVENING AFTER A EVENTFUL DAY ON LAKE GUNTERSVILLE!! HAMP & JEFF HAD A GREAT DAY ON THE WATER, CAUGHT A MESS OF FISH & AFTER THEY CLEANED THEM, WE HAD WAY TO MUCH TO EAT. IT SURE GOOOOOOODDDDDDD!!!! THIS IS THE BIGGEST WEIGHING IN AT A WHOPPING 2.6 LBS ~~

1 Snake,2 turtles,2 ducks & FISH !!!

We had us eventful day yesterday!! Jeff built us a turtle trap last Fri. eve. cause we have way to many of them little burgers in the pond! They'll just pop their heads up & be a smarty about it & they are eating the fish bread also!! We got the trap launched this weekend & we had 2 in the trap yesterday eve. & also while Jeff was disking the edge of the woods for my wild flowers seeds he killed a great big chicken snake!! I know, I know your not suppose to do that, to us they are all COBRAS!! :) ~~ Well we got settled from that & I got done with my weed eating then we decided to walk to the far end & fish a while, Then here comes Cocoa chasing a momma Mallard outta the hay field & I had to find them babies too!! So Cocoa is sniffing & wagging (pointing) & we find 2 babies, we wanted to try & clip their wings, but we just took their picture & turned them loose... this is only after they covered me w/ duck poop!! I guess I asked for it anyway... I usually do!

LIFE IS WHAT ~YOU~ MAKE IT....

I CAME ACROSS THIS LITTLE TID-BIT OF INFO TODAY & I LIKED WHAT IT SAID & THAT IT MADE ME STOP AN THINK, IT IS SO VERY TRUE!!!

" YOU GOT 3 CHOICES IN LIFE:

GIVE UP, GIVE IN, or
GIVE IT ALL YOU'VE GOT!" :)

YUMMY.... CRAPPIE!!!!

JEFF & HIS BROTHER MIKE TORE OUT FOR GUNTERSVILLE LAKE EARLY SAT. MORNING & CAUGHT A TON OF CRAPPIE !! THEY WERE PRETTY & TASTED SO GOOD THANKS TO GRANNY!!! WE CAN'T WAIT FOR SOME MORE!!!

we got babies...

the picture of the momma bird is the "dance" she'll do for you if you get close to her nest... or her babies! those lil' things are quick so my pictures aren't to good !! have a look at them......