Photostory Friday~ LIfe Interrupted by Reptiles

Last week, I.HAD.A.DAY! Oh was it a day. If you don't know about it....you might want clickity click that link, and get up to speed. We'll wait.....

Anyhoo.....let's just say it took me some days of adjusting this sudden turn of events. I've learned from experience that it doesn't pay to get all worked up about things. Life is too short. I can just take a new look at things, and find a way to appreciate what it is.

Now I'm not saying it didn't take me awhile. Cause it did, but last night...six days later, I consented to taking some pics of these new pets. For the record, it took me less time to accept the bunnies....cause....well.....they are bunnies...and who doesn't love bunnies? Even if they are eating everything in your yard.

So...without further ado (because we all know I tend to have WAY too much ado around here.)
I'd like to introduce to you......(drumroll please!).........Shiny the Ball Python!




Sugar Bear chose the name....so no snickering! She is 36 inches long, and chubby. To give you better perspective on her size, I took this photo with more of The Hubby showing. (he is not fond of pictures of himself.)




The Hubby is the only one who holds her, and she seems to really enjoy being handled. She will soon be enjoying her first meal at our house. A poor innocent little mousey. : Sugar Bear is very matter of fact about the whole thing though. She informed me that our cat catches and eats mice every single day, so I should not be sad if the snake does it. But I feel like it isn't the same. I don't go out and hand feed a mouse to the cat. Anyhow....I won't be watching this meal, and the jury is still out on whether Sugar will be observing or not. She really wants to, so I'm pretty sure I'll let her.





The next new pet up for inspection is......(another drumroll needed, but I'm sure it's lost it's luster.) Statue the Frilled Dragon!



Yes, Statue is about 12 inches long and pretty darn feisty! He eats crickets, meal worms, and veggies.




Some folks also call him a Christ Dragon, as he can walk on water. I'm sure you have seen this sort of lizard on TV. He can get up on his back legs and run. We have not seen him do this, and I'm actually not sure he knows he can. As the name, Sugar so perfectly chose, suggests, he mostly freezes and just waits for you to go away.





Here is a photo for perspective. He is sitting on The Hubby's shoulder here. He is the only one that holds Statue since it seems quite likely that he will bite. So far he hasn't, but I'm not taking any chances.




I mean...would you put her child's hands anywhere near THIS vicious monster???? I didn't think so!

So there you have it. The exciting new additions to the Living and Loving household. Lucky...lucky....US!

oh....and I TOTALLY know you are sooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo jealous of my fabulous 1980's carpet. I know you are! Admit it!

Photostory Friday~ 1825 days......in a moment.

It only seemed to take a moment.....and suddenly 1825 days had past. Somehow....someway, FIVE years have slipped through my fingers, and I went from having an empty hole in my heart, to being the luckiest mother, of a 5 year old angel, in the entire world. How I came to deserve this I do not know, but I will be forever grateful. There are simply not enough words to describe this journey I have been on. Sugar Bear is, by leaps and bounds, the best thing that has ever happened to me. No single being has changed me so much in such little time. I am who I am because of her.

Back in May of 2009, I went to a local pottery place to spend an afternoon with my co-workers. It was what we call our yearly "Wellness Day." For my project, I chose to make my little Sugar a birthday plate. It was my intention to save it for her next special day, and surprise her with her favorite breakfast on it. Now let me say.....it is a long time between May and January. I have been so excited to finally get the opportunity to use it.




Recently, that time came, and boy oh boy was it such a special moment for us both. Sugar was so very surprised, and I was joyous to see the look on her face. She was so complimentary on all the hard work I had put into it, too. She knows how to butter up this Mama, that's for sure. I explained that every single year from here on out, this special plate will hold a birthday meal just for her. How very excited she was. She quickly gobbled up her pancake with strawberries and whipped cream to see the picture on the plate. I neglected to get a photo of the plate without the food on it, but the center has a birthday cake painted on it. I am NOT an artist....this plate took me hours and hours and hours, but in the end....I was pretty pleased with it....

.....and I think Sugar Bear was, too! ♥

Happy Birthday my little love bug! May the next 1825 days go alittle more slowly.

Stay tuned for a few (okay, a lot) more photos of her big day.

P. S. Several of this week's shots were taken on her big day, as well. If you see the brown pajamas....then it was taken on her birthday.

Photostory Friday~ I'm not a holiday photographer

I can take photos. Yes I can.

I can take good photos. Yes I can.

I can take fabulous photos. Yes I can.

I can also take some pretty lame snapshots. YES I CAN!

I don't know EXACTLY what it is about major holidays, but I simply can not take good pictures on that day. I just can't. Everything is stacked against me, and no matter what, I just know that I will get a few handfuls of snapshots that will certainly document the day, but won't please me an any way, shape, or form. I've accepted it, and don't even let it bother me anymore.

So....without further explanation...here is a wrap up of Christmas Eve, and Christmas day in the Living and Loving Household, brought to you in mediocre photos.

On Christmas Eve, we hosted The Hubby's parents at our house. We had a lovely day of FOOD, and more FOOD. Sugar was the only child, and enjoyed lots of attention. In the afternoon, she spent some time on the computer "tracking santa".



And playing some Christmas games.



Because The Hubby is totally immature he teased Sugar Bear for a week that his presents were BIGGER than hers. We had the last laugh when his were dumb things like a large cooler for camping. Amazingly enough, it didn't bother Sugar Bear one bit that he had the big presents. I was surprised.



There was much joy when it was finally time to open presents. The first was a fun game from her grandparents. We love it.






By far one of her favorites of the day was an umbrella. She had been wanting one "just like mommy's!" with the wooden handle and animals on it.







Yes....good times.....awful photos.

oh...but I can make a really yummy salad.



YES I CAN!

After the Grandparents left, it was time to prepare for bed, and make sure Santa was set for goodies. Sugar was not only tired...later we'd find out...she wasn't feeling so great. She did have the mindset to make sure we included something healthy for Santa, as she was worried about his nutritional intake of just cookies all night.







oh and it is always fun to pretend to eat Santa's cookies.

Soon she was tucked in bed, and sound asleep. Until 2:37 am, and I heard, "MAMA!!!!!......blech....!" oh dear....Sugar was puking. Seriously...this girl is never sick. I was so shocked and dismayed. I got her and her bed all cleaned up. Climbed in bed with her and spent the rest of the night fretting about it. I knew I had to cancel our trip to my parent's house in the morning. I am not the type of person to bring sick....or possibly sick child to someone else's house. However, I knew so many would be disappointed...especially Sugar Bear.

The good news...she didn't puke again....but she was out of sorts. Tired, and had no appetite for several days after. I'm not sure what it was, but it was a bit of a downer. We did make the best of it, and stayed home, and played with our new toys. Here is what she woke up to. The three wrapped gifts were some from her dad and I, and the other three were from Santa.





She had asked Santa in person, for a puzzle, and the magnetic mosaic board had been something she included in her Letter to Santa.

Another HIT was the little robotic bug. What a fun little creature.

So that is it....all the photos I took. Seriously....don't most people take MORE pictures on holidays than any other time of year? I have MORE photos of Sugar Bear picking lint from between her toes than I do of Christmas. Seriously? What gives?

Photostory Friday~ A few of me

Hosted by Cecily and MamaGeek

Back in November, while staying in a hotel, I found myself admiring the pretty bathroom. Then I found myself admiring myself in the mirror.

Okay, so I wasn't REALLY admiring myself, but I did take advantage of the nice big mirror (without spots), and the good lighting. There are soooooooooooooooo few photos of me, and I figured I'd snap a few, since I'm feeling pretty good about my recent weight loss.

Taking a photo of yourself in a mirror can be harder than it looks. For some odd reason I end up looking at myself and not the lens.T

Once I got a few I felt satisfied with...something strange occurred.

Honestly, I chalk it up to feeling like a SUPER FREAK for taking pictures of yourself in a mirror in the first place. If you feel like an idiot, you might as well act like one too.

It quickly went down hill.

I couldn't help myself.

They crack me up, because it takes me right back to the moment. I simply got so self-conscious for trying to take some attractive photos of myself, and just had to lighten the mood. Yes....I'm weird.

Photostory Friday~ The 26 Alphakitties

I know many of you were VERY worried that I would abandon my Kitty Project this month, but I just couldn't possibly be done just yet. I have 26 letters of the alphabet to discover. So, I'm doing what any photography nut would do, and I'm devoting the month of December to the letters of the alphabet. I'm not entirely sure what I'll do from the 27th to the 31st, but I'm sure I'll think of something. Never fear!

So here we have the first 8 days of December, in the life of Kitty. I must say though, my camera is having issues and keeps screwing up the date and time, so if you happen to look at the metadata you will find it confusing. I most certainly did NOT take some of these photos at 3am, and I did take each one on the correct day.

Day 92

(A is for APPLE. I eat an apple almost every single day. Keeps the doctor away.)

Day 93

(B is for BRICK. These bricks make up the building in which I work.)

Day 94

(C is for CUP of CHINESE tea. Kitty had a nice place to sit and watch The Sugar and I have a wonderful mama/daughter date night, since neither of like tea.)

Day 95

(D is for DOOR. There are 25 little doors on Sugar's Advent Calendar.)

Day 96

(E is for EAR. Kitty likes to whisper sweet nothings in Sugar Bear's ear.)

Day 97

(F is for FROST. We have had the coldest weather here EVER....and I do mean EVER.)

Day 98

(G is for GUITAR. I keep meaning to learn how to play, so I can teach Sugar Bear.)

Day 99

(H is for kitty HIDING in my HAND. Sometimes...you just need to be held.)

This project is still evolving as I go, and means a lot to me. I find myself thinking in a whole new way at times, and even though I struggled through parts of November, I am really loving my December shots. What a blessing this is. I'm so very grateful to have a life that allows me to explore all the little things.

Photostory Friday~ This Year

Hosted by Cecily and MamaGeek

During the week, twice a day, my truck takes a trip up a very steep hill. The path leads to the house of the person who provides loving, nurturing care to my sweet Sugar Bear, while I'm at work.

Usually, the petal is to the metal, and we are steaming along in a hurry to GET THERE. Either I'm needing to drop off the Sug and get to work, or I'm hustling to pick her up and get to dance, or head home. Always in a rush.....ALWAYS.

This Fall, there has been such an amazing sight, that I look forward to setting my eyes upon during that time of rush. I find myself smiling before I even get there. I lean forward with anticipation, and a quick intake of my breath announces it's arrival each time.

On the last block, before I hit the top of this mighty hill, on a wonderfully made cement brick wall, the brightest, and most amazing fiery RED ivy is growing. My eyes perk up at the sight, and my heart beats a happy tune, as I admire it's beauty.

Each and every time I pass by thinking, "Oh how I'd love to capture THAT!" And each time I look at the clock and shake my head with the knowledge that it won't be today. Until.....one day....it was the day. The sun was low in the sky, and the autumn glow was lighting the scene. I had the time....and the time was right....and it was GOOD!

While I took my sweet time to capture it's story, the owner happened to walk by, and exclaim, "Amazing isn't it? I can hardly wait for next year!"

Me either....but frankly, I'm still enjoying THIS year.