new year, new purpose

happy (almost) new year! as i type right now, i am serenaded by the sounds of my boys slammin' each other on my bed above me. ahhh... break is almost over. yes, it is. almost. i can see the light. can you see the light? i can.

anyhow. i wanted to offer a tip for the new year. 'cause you know me. i'm all about the tip. no, i'm really not. i try but i never can quite get the hang of it. i'm sure it has to do with my adult ADD. huh?

oh, yes, my tip. okay. you know all those beautiful blue Ball jars you collect? yes, those. the "perfect" ones. well, are you like me? have you been wonderin', "what in the heck am i gonna fill these cuties with?"

well, i have and this is where the tip part comes. wait for it...

fill 'em with plastic bottle caps! you're welcome.


are you wonderin' why on God's green earth you would do that? well, to give back. you see, there is a boy at maddie's school that is on dialysis. and the school has started collectin' these caps to recycle and then donate the money to his family. did you know that one cap will pay for one minute of dialysis? of course you didn't. that's what i'm here for.

so, the point, assumin' there ever was one, is that i have a favor to ask. will you collect these caps for maddie? you know, so she can donate 'em to him? you will? awesome.

well, that is all. happy new year!

*oh, and btw, you don't have to store them in those blue jars. i don't. that was just for presentation. i love those jars, but i still don't have anything in 'em. i actually have a lil' basket that sits above the trash can. not quite as cute of a picture tho. you know? don't judge. it's not nice.



**if you collect 'em, we'll find a way for you to get 'em to us. promise. just leave a comment sometime and let me know you have 'em. k. thanks.

make 'em...

i always make sure i plug in the CHRISTmas lights every night through the holiday season. they make me so happy that i don't want to miss even one night. so, don't forget to make 'em all... merry and bright.

some mornin's,

all you need to start your day is a reminder to...


but, others? well, they take a bit more of a kick...


guess which kind this mornin' was.

*i am ashamed to admit it, but this, my friends, is what santa stuffed my stocking with. now, i'm no doctor, but i'm thinkin' i might should consider a few new year resolutions. hmmm...

is there a doctor in the house?

oh, it's that time of year. the time when sugar-plums start dancin' through our heads; we put on or 'kerchiefs and the moon shines on the snow's breast. (i didn't write it.)

but some sugar-plums work year 'round. yes friends, for some sugar-plums, the dance is never-ending. these sugar-plums toil tirelessly day after day. which sugar-plums am i referring to, you ask? why, the sugar-plums assigned to young wes mess here. that's who.





i seriously thought i might have to send scottie in search of a defibrillator. icing was flyin' through the air and there were some strange noises that kinda sounded like, what i would think, an asthmatic turkey durin' an attack might sound like. but, he made it. and all that remains are these two snapshots. ;)

happy wednesday.

is it weird...

is it weird that, while we were home for a visit, i jumped in the van on a cold and rainy afternoon and drove out to my ol' stompin' grounds?



is it weird that i took my camera and documented it?






is it weird that, when i came upon the hill where my childhood home once stood, i squeezed my eyes shut as tight as i could, in hopes that i would remember every little detail? is it weird that i just sat there and weeped for a while, wanting so bad to go back in?

is it weird i remembered and drove my old bus route from beginning to end?


is it weird i drove on further to my mamaw and papaw's old place?



is it weird that, after 16 years, i miss my papaw as much today as i did the day he left?



is it weird i bought a pipe from an antique store that looks and smells just like the one he smoked, and that i have it displayed on my bookshelf? is it weird i want so badly for him to know my children and scottie? and to know how awesome they are? is it weird that i ask Jesus to make sure that he knows about 'em? it is weird I have not read a single book on this here entire bookshelf, and that if i had to pick a "last meal" it could quite possibly be fried potatoes and salmon patties?


it is weird. it's weird and it's sad. and it's really, really cool. cool that i love the life i had growin' up. cool that i have so many fond memories of all these things. cool that I know one day he will meet my family, and cool that I got to call him my papaw. but, still a bit weird. pretty much. just keepin' it real.

new nic

this is nic. nic is new to these here parts. yep, he's a newbie. but, you could have probably guessed that, huh? 'cause if you take time out of your day to read my blog, you must be pur-dy smart.

anyway, welcome to the world, new nic. we're so glad God made you.







got a feelin' you're a pretty blessed lil' man.

dad nabit! (with my fist wavin' in the air out of frustration.)

i swear, only i don't, i am the most technologically challenged individual you will ever come across. if you ever come across me. which, i hope you do. well, if you're a nice person. i don't like it when mean or rude people come across me. they're not cool.
but, i'm gonna pretend that you are a wonderful, charmin' individual. and, now, i shall continue on. you're welcome.

i spent four hours tryin' to upload my fancy-shmancy web gallery that i just recently came across in my photo editin' software. i have all the computer gadgets and tools anyone could ever want. scottie bought me a web domain last year for CHRISTmas, and it's still blank. i have the entire adobe creative suites thingy, and yet, here i am. typin' along in blogger and postin' a flickr slideshow. pathetic. i know. but, before you go lookin' down your nose at me, just try and recall this...i rule and you drool.

and now, without any further ado, another stinkin' flickr slideshow (and it is spelled "ado", i googled it. so don't try to second guess the google-er. you'll loose every time.) happy friday.

comin' out his ears

this is wes bug.


and, wes bug, if i do say so myself, has personality comin' out his ears.



now, as of late, he also has a bunch of yucky yellowish gooey slime comin' out his ear. but the doc says that should clear right up after a few days of the drops. you're welcome.

sumpin's different

can you guess what's different? yes, the lighting is different. but, that's not it. look closer...


you don't even have a guess? okay, i'll tell ya'; he got dried. washed and dried. don't feel bad for not noticin'. neither did wes bug. and that's somethin' i find pretty darn cool 'bout lil' punk butts. they don't pay much attention to what is on the outside. wes snuggled right up with him the next night, and never said a word. three years of sharin' a bed with this lil' lion, and not a word. how cool is that?

but, i did tell him i think we should change his name. i don't know, but he just doesn't look like a ryan to me anymore. oh well. happy wednesday.

pretty stinkin' - stinkin' pretty

this is grady.





this is laney.





this is grady and laney.





and, they are pretty stinkin' high on my list of "people i don't ever wanna have to live without" list. and, maybe, that's because their momma is pretty stinkin' high on my list of "people i don't ever wanna have to live without" list, too.




maybe. or maybe it's because they're just stinkin' pretty.

both. it's both.

also known as...

this is will.



but, you can call him:






oh, and he also answers to: "little boy with a great big God," skinny-butt, wilber and bubby. just so ya' know.




happy friday.

hAy, hAy, they're the monkeys!

laney: good grief, wes! would you please just stop and ask for directions. it's a maze and we're three! honestly!

wes: i know where i'm going. just chill.
laney: oh, i bet you do. when are men ever going to, blahblahblahblahblahblah...


wes: see i told you! this way, laney.
laney: yeah! i see it. good job, wes! but, you do realize we would have been here a lot sooner if you would just learn to admit sometimes you need help! geez.





ahhhhh.... fall. i mean, really? how much do you love fall? can i get a "whoot-whoot," people?

the one where you discover a cure and i contribute to the senseless killin' of faux butterflies

this...




is maddie. although it may seem, by these pics, that maddie is a butterfly wisperer, that is a false assumption.




the truth is, these butterflies were a clearance purchase from awhile back. at some point, i decided that one day i would spring them from the closet and give 'em their moment in the sun. i just didn't know when.



lucky for you, that moment, however brief, has finally come. i am, however, saddened to inform you they did not make it through the night. my 3-year-old niece had her turn with them after maddie. but fear not! this is not the last you will see of them, my "Llave." (that is a slang word, in spanish, for friend. it's literal translation is key. you're welcome.)




and because it seems i may be developing an aversion to vertical photos, i'm gonna post this one:



ahh. that feels much better. wait. no! no, it doesn't. it seems i have indeed developed an aversion to vertical photos. wonder what the cure is. what's that? you know the cure? WHAT? a jumbo tenderloin sandwich? you're sure?

okay then. off to edward's drive-in. here's to hopin' =)