Ben is TEN!

Benjamin was born a decade ago today!  Yes, my little boy is 10 and growing up fast.  Here are some pictures to see how he's changed and grown over the years.

This was taken right after Benjamin was born

1st Birthday

"Happy Self Portrait"

Benjamin took this picture above himself.  It's one of my favorties.

Icing Face

B was eating an iced cookie and really enjoyed it!

Driving

3rd Birthday

Benjamin making a wish in New Orleans

Benjamin in Biloxi

Standing on the ice in our pool in February 2009 on a warm day!

Benjamin, Miss O'Brien, and Jakob

He's already driving!!

Happy Birthday, Benjamin!

Happy Father's Day

I have sent my dad a Father's Day card, wished him Happy Father's Day on Facebook, and now am writing a blog to honor him.  I'll call him later just to be sure he's having a good day.  :)
I could sit here and write a bunch of words about Dad, but I think I'd like to share my memories via photographs.  Enjoy!

This is Dad when he was a little boy. 

This is Dad and his brother Gale when they were young

Here is Dad and Gale in 2010

This is Dad with his beautiful family in the early 60's.

This is me and Dad in the 70's

Dad and Mom - what a handsome couple!

Benjamin and Grandad.

We were in Oklahoma in the picture above and there was music playing outside.  Dad kneeled down with Benjamin and began singing to him.  I was lucky enough to capture the magical moment.

Do I really need a caption for this picture?  I think the T-Shirt says it all.

Night Thoughts

Last night, in the middle of the night, I woke up thinking about my blog.  I had a great topic, but of course I cannot remember it now.  I told myself that I should get up and write at least the topic down, but I didn't. 

A week or so ago, I "wrote" two poems in my head in the middle of the night.  Once again, I should have gotten out of the bed and written them down.  They weren't long, but I cannot remember the exact wording once I am awake. 

Of course, these ideas might just SEEM great to me in my semi-wakeful state.  They could be horrendous ideas that would bore even my biggest fan.  (HA HA) 

So I think I am going to get a little notepad and pencil and keep by my bedside so I can just roll over and write what I am thinking in the middle of the night.  Who knows, it might be really funny...or really horrible...or just boring.  :)  We shall see. 

Crazy Weather and The Sane Lane

Crazy weather....well, not really.  It's pretty normal weather.  HOT HOT HOT...and severe thunderstorms...followed by thick morning fog.  Well, I thought the fog was a bit unusual, but after the heat was so hot yesterday, followed by some wicked storms, complete with hail and some rotating clouds above the office (not a tornado), I suppose some thick fog was in order.

The fog was so thick this morning, that when I left my house, I went "the long way" to get to HWY 41 so I would not have to guess if someone was coming around the bend as I was pulling onto the road.  Smart idea, huh?  ;)  The long way is approximately .3 miles out of my way.  HA HA!

At one point, I think there was about 25 feet of visibility...I knew where the stoplight was supposed to be, I just couldn't see it until I was almost to it.  Thank goodness it was green!  Thank goodness my lane of traffic was the sane lane.  The right lane on HWY 41 coming down from Ridgetop was for the drivers who had their headlights on, travelling the speed limit and leaving distance between each other.  The left lane, however, was for the idiots.  They were going 65 or better, no headlights or just parking lights on.  Okay, there were a couple of idiots who were using their headlights, but I was floored at how many folks did NOT have headlights on. 

Thank goodness the fog cleared as I neared the interstate and the rest of the morning was gorgeous!  CLEAR blue skies, bright sunshine, and moderate temperatures....which quickly climbed back up into the oppressive range.  *SIGH*  It was nice while it lasted.

Mowed Grass

We used to have a local man mow our grass for a very reasonable price.  After a week or so of waiting for his regular appearance, Jim gave him a call and left a message.  After repeated messages and no return call or visit to our knee-high-grassy yard, we decided that something must have happened to him, although we're still hopeful he is okay.  (He is also a Nashville Firefighter) So we decided to purchase our own mower.  We had loaned our push mower to some "friends" and I seriously doubt we'd ever find them or the mower in this lifetime.  So Jim did a lot of research on mowers and we decided on a Craftsman riding mower.  It's pretty nifty and easy to drive.  What I like is the 8" turn radius!  WHEEE!  I'm so easy to please. 
So our grass is now cut and will remained in the "groomed" state until winter.  And if Benjamin has his way, he'll be doing the mowing from now on...at least in the front yard. 

Benjamin's First Rollercoaster

Yesterday, we went to Holiday World in Santa Claus, IN and had a fantastic time!  We spent most of the time in the water park because it was SO hot!  The first water slide, the Watubee, we got on allowed all of us, Jim, Benjamin, our nieces Katy and Hailey, and me to all ride together.  We nearly flipped the float we were in and all of us LOVED that ride.  Nothing really compared in excitement at the water park after that first ride, but we did have a lot of fun.
As we were leaving, Benjamin said he wanted to see if he was tall enough to ride The Raven, one of the roller coasters at the park.  It's a wooden roller coaster that goes 60 MPH during the ride at some parts and has an 80 foot drop and 61 foot drop.  For anyone who likes roller coasters, this is definitely a fun one to ride. Since he was tall enough, we asked him if he really wanted to ride it.  He said yes, so we got in line.  We opted for a middle car this first time and as we were waiting for the cars to arrive, he said, "I'm nervous.  My legs are shaking."  We got in the cars, buckled up and away we went.  Going up the hill, he had his head hidden in my shoulder, but eventually looked around and as we got to the top and started over the hill for the first drop, he began screaming.  He screamed the ENTIRE RIDE and I was laughing and screaming with him.  Near the end, he said, "I hate roller coasters!" and I was worried he really didn't like it, but as we were walking to meet Jim, I asked him if he wanted to ride it again some day and he said, "YES!"  I'm sure glad he likes roller coasters as much as I do! 

This is a picture of the first drop into the tunnel