A Miracle!

We have been truly blessed! I (I being, Holly, the only person who actually contributes to this little blog!) am again in the great state of North Carolina, getting our baby back! I know, crazy huh! Have I mentioned how maddening March has been?!? Fortunately for us, the birth mom had a change of heart and decided she did want us to adopt her baby. Words cannot describe how incredibly grateful we are for this miracle! It is an answer to many prayers! It feels sooo good to have this beautiful baby back in my arms!! Baby Lula (we are still working on a middle name) was born early on the morning of March 16th weighing 6lbs 4oz. She is a dream! I send my love and thanks to all our amazing family and friends! Greg and I could not have made it through this with out you! Not sure how long I'll be stuck in N.C. but I hope to see you all soon! Lula and I are both missing her daddy very much!

The Madness of March

Lately the term “March Madness” seems to apply not only to the NCAA basketball tournament but also to our normally boring life….youth conference, funerals, birthdays, and last minute flights...oh the madness of it all! In that madness, I spaced one of my very dear friend’s birthday. So Happy (very belated) Birthday T-Money! You don’t look a day over 25!



Spending a weekend with the local fourteen to eighteen year-olds isn’t exactly the most joyous thing in the world but we survived it. Thankfully the teenage angst and drama were kept to a minimum.

YOUTH CONFERENCE 2009

My dear Grandma passed away at the ripe old age of 94. At the viewing, small laminated copies of her favorite sugar cookie recipe were given out to all the guests. The cookies may not be gourmet but the memories associated with them are worth millions!

Grandma Payne’s Cookies
2 cups sugar
¼ cup butter/margerine
½ cup shortening
2 eggs
1 cup milk
½ teaspoon salt
5 teaspoons baking powder
2 teaspoons vanilla
5 cups flour
Bake at 350 for 8 to10 minutes




We jetted off to North Carolina in hopes of adopting a beautiful baby girl. Unfortunately things didn’t work out. We want to thank all of our wonderful family and friends and the support they have given us. Also, a special thanks to Charlotte at Humble Mill Pottery for putting us up in her whimsical 1920’s home.

so precious...so close...so frustrating...





While in North Carolina, Greg’s dream of visiting Duke University was fulfilled. However, he was pretty bummed out when we learned that the doors were locked to Cameron Indoor Stadium. Good thing we are sneaky sneaky! There are some glass doors on the side of the Stadium and if you jiggle them just right…

Flippin' Sweet Photo Intro

We are calling this feature Flippin' Sweet Photo or FSP for all you abbreviation fans out there. In hopes of keeping this blog somewhat interesting, we will randomly post a Flippin' Sweet Photo/FSP from our past. We'll even throw in a little info about the FSP. We hope you will find this feature as amusing as we do! Laugh it up!

WHAT: We were dating and this is the first vacation we took together.

WHEN: September 1997

WHERE: Seattle, Washington

WHAT THE?!?: Sweet cowboy boots, too bad they are no longer in style. Oh wait, that's right, they never were!

Snow Birds

We’re not blue hairs yet but Greg’s joints creak when he walks, so we joined the 55 and older crowd and headed south on I-15 for some warmer weather. Our February trip to AZ has become a much-anticipated tradition. Goodbye snow, hello sunshine! We are blessed to have truly remarkable friends that made our vacation an absolute delight! Thanks to Chef J, the food (as always) was delicious! T-Money, you are the most craft-tastic crafter I know! The only draw back…I now have a slamming headache due to the caffeine withdrawals! I had no idea how quickly one could become accustom to multiple trips to Sonic in a day! I am amazed at the amount of diet coke one skinny little blonde can drink before noon! We love you guys!

You wouldn't believe the number of pics we have with Greg pulling faces, not looking at the camera, or displaying his middle finger! Actually, if you know Greg, you would believe it cause you probably have some similar pics of your own. Man, I love this guy!

Chicken Soup

The home of my older sister, Heidi, is affectionately known as “the zoo”. Pretty much it’s chaos there 24/7. We spent a night at her house last week and she sent the following email regarding the fiasco to her oldest son in California.

Just thought I would share a funny story from the zoo. Tuesday night Holly and Greg were passing through and needed to sleep here. I had forgotten they were coming and I was at the girls’ ball game when I remembered they were on their way. When we got home, Ty was really sick to his stomach and Kosha had complained that she didn't feel good, but she always does that so I didn't pay much attention to her. We did get the mattress in, bed made, floor vacuumed and the bathroom cleaned before they got here. After everyone got settled down, Ty couldn't sleep cause he hurt too bad. I was up because I had a sinus infection. I took some medicine then laid down on the floor by the heater and Ty was on the couch. Then Misty threw up so she came and laid by us too. At 2:30am, Danny's (he's a nieghbor) rooster started crowing, waking Holly and Greg up. Then the darn thing started crowing again at 3:30, 4:30 and so on. Dad was up with a headache around 4am, he left for work at 5. Justin threw up about 2 feet from the bathroom, like you used to do. So I had to clean that up about 5:30. Finally, it was really quiet from then till 7:15. Poor Holly and Greg, they knew they spent the night at the zoo. Kosha threw up about 8am so I let her stay home. Good thing too because I was too sick to take care of Jessie so I went back to bed. It wasn't the best day or night we’ve had in a long time.
Well, I guess I better get busy cause I know my house went to pot and I’m grouchy. Just thought I'd share my funny, I figured you could appreciate the zoo.
Love, Mom

PS: I told Holly and Greg when they came back through we would have chicken dinner. Greg said sure as long as he was the one to wring the rooster's neck. I wonder if Danny would miss his new rooster very much?

Better Late Than Never

This may look like a Valentines Day Card but really it is an Anniversary Card in disguise! My valentine is very much like this card…a romantic softy disguised as a tough guy! He writes:

Holly-
Wow! Here it is, it’s already Valentines Day! No wait, it’s May 8th! You were bad in February so I said, “No card for you!” But I did save it for this very special occasion. I cannot believe it has been 10 years! It has been truly amazing!….(there’s more but it’s way too mushy)

So whether you are good or bad this Valentines Day, we hope you have a happy one!

First Words

OK, so we created this blog about a month ago and have yet to post anything. Sooooooooo here it is! Our first official post! Please be patient with us as we get the hang of this whole blog thing. Yes, we are those people who have made fun of others for blogging so we just want to say that we are very sorry. Also, please feel free to make fun of us at anytime, as we are certain we deserve it! Actually, we hope you do laugh and find much enjoyment in future posts. We both feel that at the end of the day, it’s really all about the laughs we have had! So we wish you happy reading!