Daniel-Son Paint da Fence.

Ahhh yes, the proud painting child, smiles as he does away with the faux painted girly walls!

Well one of our projects is done....Andrew and Braydon's room is painted! WOOHOO! This past Saturday and on into Sunday we put our "camping green" pants on. We fought the good fight of having to paint much lighter walls with much darker paint.

It only took two trips to the "big city" but all is good now that we can say, "it's over". Oh wait, David's room is next weekend....AAAHHHH!

We have decided that our painting expertise is only bedroom-worthy and that we shall be hiring somebody to paint the kitchen (all those cabinets, and we will be painting over wallpaper...this could be a problemo!).

Catch Phrase of The Evening.

This took place at the local Mexican restaurant right in the middle of our dining experience........

Chris: "Ma'am, there was a fly cooked in with my refried beans."

Waitress: GASP!!

Now, those of you who know my husband, know that in confrontational situations he can get a "little" upset. He didn't. Maybe it is the small town life...who knows. We promptly left and didn't speak of it again.

Poor husband.....but thinking about it doesn't really do my stomach any favors either because I had a BEAN burrito...EWWW! I guess there could be worse things than fly guts....yeah right!

A Mid-Week Surprise.

Today, Chris calls me from work and asks if I have dinner started yet...

Thank goodness I hadn't started...he wants to take me out!!! YAHOO! Not only does he say he is taking me out, but he is taking me to Texarkana (the big city for us).

What a great surprise. We ate at Olive Garden and then on to Michaels for crafty ideas for the boys and me this summer.

All and all it was an unexpected but wonderful evening.....thanks honey!

Fargo, the Wonder Pest.

As you all may know, we have a chihuahua. He thinks he has earned the title of "King" in our household especially since Chris has been allowing him to sleep with us at night. He comfortably wiggles his way into the middle of the bed and pushes both of us to the edges. While doing this he also manages to steal most of the cover as well.

Lately, the main concern is his "potty" habits. He was doing just fine until recently. The dog will now wake up between 3 and 4 in the morning and jump off of the bed and walk in circles until we escort him outside. This behavior is extremely annoying. We do not like to hear the pitter patter (spelling?) of little feet on our carpet at those hours of the morning. I am afraid just to let him continue walking in circles (not for the fear of him just becoming dizzy and passing out, that would actually be alright), I do not want him to lay a "big one" on the floor....so this is what we are dealing with, not any life changing event, just a lot of dog poo!

Since our children are grown enough to sleep through the night, we did not have night duty any longer (YAY).....but now, Chris takes a night, then I take the next. Who would have thought it would have come to this....Marital Dog "Dootie"!!!

Things I Have Learned From Living in Arkansas.

Possums sleep in the middle of the road with their feet in the air.

There are 5,000 types of snakes on earth and 4,998 live in Arkansas.

There are 10,000 types of spiders. All 10,000 live in Arkansas plus a couple no one's seen before.

If it grows, it sticks; if it crawls, it bites.

Onced and twiced are words.

It is not a shopping cart; it is a buggy.

People actually grow and eat okra.

There is no such thing as "lunch." There is only dinner and then there is supper.

Iced tea is appropriate for all meals and you start drinking it when you're two. We do like a little tea with our sugar!

Backards and forwards means "I know everything about you."

Jeet? is actually a phrase meaning "Did you eat?"

You don't have to wear a watch because it doesn't matter what time it is. You work until you're done or it's too dark to see.

You don't PUSH buttons, you MASH them.

You measure distance in minutes.

You have to switch from "heat" to "A/C" in the same day.

"Fix" is a verb. Example: "I'm fixing to go to the store."

All the festivals across the state are named after a fruit, vegetable, grain, insect or animal.

You install security lights on your house and garage and leave both unlocked.

You know what a "DAWG" is.

You carry jumper cables in your car ... for your OWN car.

There are only own four spices: salt, pepper, Tabasco and ketchup.

The local papers cover national and international news on one page, but require 6 pages for local gossip and sports.

The first day of deer season is a national holiday.

100 degrees Fahrenheit "a little warm."

We have four seasons: Almost Summer, Summer, still Summer and Christmas.

Going to Wal-mart is a favorite past time known as "goin' Wal-martin" or off to "Wally World."

A cool snap (below 70 degrees) is good pinto-bean weather.

A carbonated soft drink isn't a soda, cola or pop ... it's a Coke, regardless of brand or flavor. Example: "What kinda coke you want?"

Fried catfish is the other white meat.

We don't need no stinking driver's ed ... if our mama says we can drive, we can drive.

If you understand these jokes please forward them to your friends from Arkansas (and those who just wish they were).

EVERYONE can't be a Arkansan; it takes talent. You might say it's an art form or a gift from God.

This sent to me via email from an actual Arkansan.

Green Foamy Foam.

Twas the night before school and all through the house,
Kids were getting ready for bed, I was ironing a blouse.
When all of a sudden there arose such a clatter,
I ran to the "getting ready for bed area" to see what was the matter.

Okay, enough of the tired poem sound-a-like thing....

David yelled, "MOM". I ran back to the bathroom and during the soaking/cleansing of his retainer, he had accidentally dropped the efferdent tablet (he soaks his retainer daily with these tablets to sanitize) on the floor. Well, before he was able to grab the tablet, Fargo decided to snatch it up and give it his own proper disposal...in his belly.

Fargo, of course, was looking a little rough-like. He was walking in circles with that submissive ears down kind of look. Chris and I were wondering if he might just blow up with all the foam production that had to be going on inside. Wouldn't that be just a wonderful sight?!?!

A few moments later......

The dog was a green foamy foam production machine. He had become a rabid-like beaner dog with foamy jowls and quite fresh breath.

No harm was done, that we know of, and he is back to his snatcheristic ways.

The Post-It Poster Child.

David loves to get up early on the weekends and play the Wii, but he is first required to make his bed. He rarely remembers this rule. When he forgets and plays the Wii anyway his consequence is no Wii for the rest of the day.

This was his latest plan for not forgetting to make his bed. He has made himself just a couple of reminder notes on the back of his door. Chris and I discovered this "reference area" this past weekend.

I don't think he should have a problem anymore. At least I can hope.

The Confession.

Braydon: "Mommy, I have to tell you somefing."
Me: "Ok."
Braydon: "I have to tell you the troof (truth)."
Me: "Ok."
Braydon: "The troof is...well the troof is I do not like diesel engines."
Me: "Hmmm, ok."

You heard it hear first, folks....breaking news at the Smith Ranch.

It's A Pollen-Palooza.

The picture above is after a downpour of rain here in Nashville. The pollen count is so unbelievably high that it just about covers all outside surfaces. The cars are yellow, the roads are yellow, and when the water pools (as above) it creates pollen mosaics. I thought this particular collection of water was rather pretty.

Everyone, hurry and invest in kleenex stock. I know it has to be skyrocketing around here. Runny noses are on the rise and colds are being passed out like church bulletins.

Our Hotel Disaster!

On our way to Indiana, we thought we would take it nice and easy and cut the trip up into two days. We normally just drive the entire 12 hours and just deal with all the "long trip issues".

The kids were so excited that we were going to stop and spend the night in the hotel, swim in the pool, and just have some downtime from driving. I think they were just a little too excited....

We had dinner at the one and only Lambert's, Home of the Throwed Rolls. That was a great experience. There were rolls 'a flyin' and side dishes passin' by at all times. I was, however; hit in the bottom with a roll, no damage done(plenty of cushion)...just good times. Then it was time to return to the room at the hotel.

Bedtime hours were upon us and the children were going to share a bed...Ha, yeah right!

We were bothered with giggles, "he's touching me", hehe, "his foot is on me", and anything else you could think of for THREE hours.....

DADDY HAD ENOUGH....!!
He jumps out of bed with a wicked purpose, I'm sure. He asks the children who would like a spanking first and my dear little Braydon speaks up with such confidence and volunteers.......his brother. How sweet! Chris and I are laughing so hard at this time, he just hung his head, grabbed his pillow, and we each slept with one of the hooligans.

Oh, I forgot to mention Fargo was with us for the trip and during all the chaos, he had to be walked a couple times, barked at every passerby, growled at the air conditioner turning on, and jumped up and down off the bed at least fifty times.

It doesn't have to be said, but Daddy will never do this again.