Music DIVA

Aivree has decided she is going to sing I Love to See the Temple on American Idol. For weeks now she's been practicing her Bristle Block guitar with her more than helpful backup singer Raleigh Anne. She even pretends like I'm Simon, Paula, or Randy. She asks me to give her comments or helpful information so she can practice singing better. It's pretty funny.

The Summer Harvest

The summer/fall harvest is my favorite time of year. I love all of the canning, bottling, and preserving that comes with it. For me it is the sweet reminder of my childhood days when I'd wake early in the summer months to see my mother in her garden picking, pruning and tending to her beloved fruits and vegetables. She had a way of making gardening seem artistic, pure, and beautiful. Even weeding was an art to her. She taught me to love the smell of perfectly tilled earth, freshly picked corn, and even to love all the work that gardening entails. In fact, this last summer was no exception...for one full week my mom took time to come to my aid to remind me how to can, bottle, and freeze. It was a wonderful time. Here are a few pictures of my two girls getting their hands dirty while helping freeze corn and pick cucumbers

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Daddy's Birthday -- last August

Last August 25 Marcus turned 33. Aivree and Raleigh Anne spent the whole day decorating the house, coloring a HUGE birthday poster, and of course making a cake for their Daddy. All three of them made a wish when blowing out the candles.

My Two Little Chefs

I love how my girls love to be with me in the kitchen. Many of my fondest motherhood memories thus far include cooking with my two little chefs. Aivree considers herself a 4-year-old cooking star. She often times will pretend she's on TV hosting her own cooking show. Raleigh Anne likes cooking mainly for the taste testing portion. We've had a few mishaps such last Christmas when Aivree took it upon herself to turn the stove on to 500 degrees while I had Christmas cookies in the oven. Needless to say the cookies were well done. We've had whole eggs thrown into bread mixtures (shells and all), extra TBSP of salt and yeast included into several recipes, and on occasion a Raleigh booger has shut down a whole batch of cookies. Overall though, the joy of cooking is just watching the two of them learn, laugh, and tease each other. It's a perfect day spent together.

Aivree and Brenner

Aivree and her cousin Brenner are the best of friends. In fact, Gizzy and I keep saying it's going to be a very difficult day when the two of them realize they can't marry each other. Until then we love to watch the two of them interact. Here are a few cute photos of their infatuation.

Photos of the Girls

I love these photos!!! It was so much fun watching Aivree and Raleigh Anne get their photos taken. At first the two of them were quite unsure about the camera. Raleigh Anne even pretended to be very shy -- but trust me, that didn't last very long. She got sassy pretty darn quick. Aivree just enjoyed the whole experience.