Country Living Southern Style II

Hope everyone had a nice Christmas! We sure did. We spent it at my Mother-In-Law's. My sister-in-law made corn and potato salad. My husband went to his Mom's early Christmas morning to bake the turkey for me. I had so much to make, I didn't have room for the turkey to bake. He did a great job with the turkey. I made the dressing, mac and cheese, green bean casserole, and boiled some eggs to make deviled eggs. My daughter did the desserts for me, two cheesecakes, one with cherries and one plain because she doesn't like the cherries on top, and we were supposed to bake two pumpkin pies, but I didn't get around to those, so perhaps we will have those for New Years. Did I mention the boiled eggs meant to make the deviled eggs are still in the fridge...in their shells? I just got too tired to finish them. :-O After dinner, we played the game Boxers or Briefs. It was hysterical. Some of the family started meandering in here and there and we visited with them.

On the way to Lake Harding. All three of the lake pictures are taken on Lake Harding in east central Alabama. Closeup of leaves on a tree in Valley, AL Ridge Valley My daughter took this one off of Prince's Bridge on Lake Harding.

My husband and I never really had what you would call a honeymoon. We spent our wedding night, October 7, 1978, at the Bob White Motel in Alexander City, Alabama in the same hotel and room my parents spent theirs in so many years before. At the time, it seemed like a good idea, but looking back now I wonder what I was thinking when I came up with that idea! No offense, Mom! My husband played drums in a gospel group and they had a singing at a church in Talladega the next day, so we had to leave bright and early for that. Needless to say, it really wasn't much of a honeymoon. In 1999, I think it was, my husband had been working in Colorado for many months in the construction field. My children and I stayed behind in Alabama because I had a good job and we didn't want to uproot them from their schools and their friends. When my husband decided it was time to come home, I flew out to Colorado so I could help him drive back home. This was my first time being on an

I love photographing the moon. This is one of the more interesting shots I have taken. Here is a link with some cool info on the moon: http://www.squidoo.com/ear thsmoon Enjoy!

I was sitting at my desk looking out my office window on Saturday, November 6, 2010 between 11:00-11:30 AM when I got a glimpse of these beautiful deer. The first one is a doe and her two fawns. This one is my most favorite. Aren't they beautiful?

Mr. Scarecrow I made him, but he still freaks me out, especially when I walk by him at night, lol.

Madyson and my daughter, Carrie My niece, her son, Brice, and my sis, Sherrie on the hayride Brice and the great Pumpkin

Dear Journal, This is my great nephew, Brice, in his Halloween Costume. Isn't he the epitome of adorable? We took him and my daughter's friend's daughter, Madyson to The Oaks Pumpkin Patch for Halloween. They got to play and see animals, and pumpkins, ride on a hayride and so much more. It was a fun day. The day before my daughter, her friend, and I went to the Syrup Sopping in Loachapoka, AL. It was also lots of fun. The weekend is over now and I am exhausted, but I can't quit yet. I still have English to do! Happy Blogging! Susan

Dear Journal, The moon was so pretty tonight. So glad I was able to get this great shot with my new camera. I am soooooooooooo loving this camera! Happy Blogging! Susan

Photos by Carrie Rudd. Dear Journal, My Mom, Sis, her grandbaby, Brice, my daughter, and I went to a family reunion on my Mom's side last Saturday in Deatsville, AL. I only knew one person there when we got there. This was basically my Aunt Rena's family. Aunt Rena was my great aunt because she was my Mom's Mom's sister. If I ever met her, I don't recall. I would have been quite young and she has been deceased now for many years. Uncle Melton's daughter, Joan, and her family were there also. Joan is the only one I knew. We got some good pictures with my new camera. I will post a few. Guess that is about it for now. Happy Blogging! Susan

OR Dear Journal, I am in the market for a new digital SLR camera. Here are two I am looking at, but the question is which one should I choose? I need the best deal I can get because I need this camera for school and I would love to either upgrade or replace my computer and get a new printer. I am sick of this 2nd rate equipment I am having to deal with because I am limping through school on account of it when I could be soaring! I could have straight A's instead of three As and a B+. :( It's all because my computer doesn't have enough memory and it hangs up, which caused me to post my assignments late a couple of times. Oh well, I am going to go "window shopping" first and compare prices to get the best deal. Wish me luck! Happy Blogging! Susan

Recognize these scarecrows? Phillip (my daughter's best friend), Carrie (my daughter), and Donnie, (my hubby). Phillip and Carrie on the hay ride to the pumpkin patch. The porch of the restaurant was decorated so pretty! Carrie and the whopping pumpkins. I forget this horse's name. :( Meet Stormy-he was named as such because he was born on a stormy night, but it also suits his personality because he bites! The Oaks Pumpkin Patch is located in Lafayette, AL. For more info, see this link: http://jackolanternlane.com/what.html It was a fun afternoon! Happy Blogging! Susan

Dear Journal, I am writing in you to meet the requirements of writing in a journal every day for 15 minutes for my English class. I have a busy day ahead of me today! My niece is expecting her second child and her baby shower is today at 3 PM. Her baby will be my 39th great on my husband's side. I also have another niece, Leslie, who is expecting her first baby in March. I took care of Leslie when she was little so it's hard to believe she is having a baby of her own. I only have one great on my side, a great nephew. His name is Brice and he is 20 months old. He is absolutely precious. I got to keep him for a little while yesterday. I don't think there has ever been a sweeter baby on the planet and both of my babies were good when they were little. There is just something about my little man. He's very special. He will win your heart over in a heartbeat. Besides the baby shower, I have four chapters to read for English and two papers to write, plus I have to

Dear Journal, I can't believe it is a new quarter in school already and I have three classes under my belt now with a total of 3 college credits! I have two As and a B+, with a GPA of 3.70, so I am really quite proud of myself. I am attending The Art Institute of Pittsburgh Online Division and am enjoying it so far immensely. I am going for my Bachelor of Science Degree in Photography. My new class was to be Color Theory, but I was not enjoying that class at all because it uses Adobe Illustrator software in which I am not familiar. I talked to my Academic Advisor and told her I was very lost in this class. I almost took a month off because I have a lot going on, but, in the end, I decided it would be a bad idea. I felt like if I left now I would never come back. I've done that once before with The Institute of Children's Literature when I was much younger. I am angry with myself now for not finishing that course after I paid for it. To finish it now, I would have to pay an

A couple of the drawings I did for my drawing class. The first was my final project. I drew the shelf that holds a lot of my photo boxes and photo albums since I am going to be a photography major. This one was one of my teacher's favs. The next one is my fav. It is the exterior of my home. The second is a tree with a partial shed under it. My drawing class has been my favorite class so far. I made an A+ in it! Yay me! :)

So glad Autumn is finally here! It's my favorite time of year. I can almost smell the burning leaves, feel the warmth from the bonfires and taste the roasted marshmellows in my mouth (I like mine burnt!). I just finished up two more classes at The Art Institute of Pittsburgh. Still can hardly believe I am going to college at 51 years old! I made an A in my first class. Right now, I have an A in drawing and a B in Computer Literacy (that class kicked my butt on a few things), but the final grades are not in yet. I really learned just how computer illiterate I am, but I can say after taking that class I am not quite as computer illiterate as I once was. So far, my drawing class has been my favorite class. I enjoyed it immensely. I used to love to draw when I was younger, but really haven't attempted it in many years. I hope to keep it up even though the class is over. I am not near as accomplished as a lot of the people in my class were, but it is something I have alw

Dear Journal, Can't believe it has been a month since I posted. Time has gone by so fast since my last post! A lot has happened since then. My cousin died at only 39 years old on July 2nd. Her death was ruled an accidental overdose. She died on a Friday, we were supposed to have her funeral on that Wednesday. We didn't. What a horrific nightmare that has become. Long story. Too late and too tired to explain right now. I started college fulltime on July 12th. So far, I am finding it really rewarding and challenging at the same time. I have a current GPA of 96.77. I am really proud of that. Doubt it will stay up there like that when I have to take Math. It is not my strong suit at all. I got an update on Adam from his brother, Josh. He actually ate something on his own and was looking around on his own. Such great news considering every bone in his face was broken after that horrific motorcycle accident on June 11th. Please keep praying for him, he has a long road of recovery ah

Today is my mother-in-law's 81st birthday, so I want to take a moment to wish her a very Happy Birthday today! Happy Birthday, Mom! I have been with her son for 32 years, so she is truly like a 2nd mother to me. Thanks so much for the prayers for my Hubby's cousin, Adam. He has finally been removed from ICU to a regular room. Please keep praying for him. They did the reconstructive surgery on his face Friday two weeks ago. Last I heard, he was still in a medically-induced coma to keep him from pulling out his lines and tubes. Aunt Joyce (his grandma) said his eyes were still swelled shut. I guess so, since every bone in his face was broken! They are not sure he will regain his sight, especially in one eye. Adam is only 25, so I would really appreciate continued prayers for him. Let this be a lesson to all who ride motorcycles! WEAR A HELMET! My hubby and I will be empty nester's soon. I have pretty much decided I am going back to school for photography. I need

Addison, Adam, and KK-Photo courtesy of Mary Rudd. This is a photo of my husband's 2nd cousin, Adam, his daughter Addi, and his fiance, KK. Addi's Mom's name is Brittney. KK and Adam have a new baby boy named Gabe, who is just over a week old. Adam was in a horrible motorcycle accident on Friday, I think it was. He was on a friend's bike, he hit a barbed wire fence, and was thrown into a tree. There was a guy nearby who was hitting golf balls. When he went to retrieve his balls, he found Adam and called the paramedics. Adam was airlifted to Columbus, GA with extensive injuries. He has a broken leg, every bone in his face is broken, bleeding on the brain, and they are not sure if he will regain his sight or not, especially in one eye. They had to put a shunt in his brain to relieve some of the bleeding, but they cannot leave it in due to the risk of infection, so they had to remove it, even though his brain is still bleeding. I covet prayers for Adam. Thanks i

It's that time of year again! Graduation! I got so many invitations this year. Too bad I don't have pics of all the graduates that I got invitations for, but here are four who are very important to me. The first one is my lovely great niece, Teri Marie. Teri graduated from high school. She is granddaughter to my Hubby's sister, Margaret. The second one is my cousin's daughter, Amy. She is pictured with her Mom and Dad in the photo (Wes and Prissy). Prissy is my first cousin (my Mom's sister's daughter). Amy graduated from high school and was on the honor roll and got a softball scholarship. The third one is my niece, Jennifer. She is pictured in the photo with her siblings, Anthony and Michelle. She graduated from college in Colorado. Wish I could have been there for that! And last, but certainly not least, is my daughter's BFF's, Allison and Phillip. Ally just graduated from high school in S.C. and Phillip from high school here in Alabama. W

The first image is a photo of me I edited in photobucket. I love how it turned out. I think the black and white photos with just a touch of color are awesome! Had to play around with a few photos to finally get the effect I was going for. This peony turned out to be just the perfect subject growing prettily in my mother-in-law's front yard. Hope you agree. :)

My daughter, Carrie, and one of her BFF's she met when we lived in Colorado. They hadn't seen each other in 5 years since we moved from Colorado back to Alabama and Audrianna moved to Indiana. She gets to visit for two weeks! My baby girl is one happy camper. :)

I am late with my submission, but better late than never, right? This is a view you will find on the beautiful Azalea Trail every Spring in Opelika, Alabama, which also just happens to be my Hometown!

My soul is so weary and troubled, but I see Your light in the darkness, Heavenly Father. The things of earth grow strangely dim in the light of your glory and grace. Amen.

If you haven't seen this movie, you should. It is an awesome movie. What a difference this family made in this young man's life. Have your tissues handy, you will need them, but in a good way. Very touching movie! It really pulls at your heartstrings! I give it two thumbs up!~

Hubby, Brice, and Carrie looking at the cakes she baked for him. I think his smile is the seal of approval! :) My baby girl in her Easter dress. Can't believe she will turn 18 next month. Where has the time gone? ::sniff:: Phillip and I-he was my classmate and friend for many years. Now he is my stepuncle. Whoda thunk it? He has colon cancer. Please keep him in your prayers!~ Brice modeling the new outfit we bought him. Have you ever seen anything so sweet? Brice found his first Easter egg!~ I think Brice liked his fish the best. He was scared of the blue gorilla, lol. Brice examing the loot with my daughter, Carrie. Brice, my great nephew, reaching for his birthday cake that my daughter baked for him. As you can see by the photos, we had a nice Easter. Hope you did too!