Family

This past weekend we had a bunch of the family come for a visit.  My nephew, Telly, is a freshman at Texas Tech and plays in the band.  Tech played Baylor last Saturday at Cowboy (aka AT&T) Stadium.  So, his mom, his Waddie and Dudie, and 5 of his cousins came up from Houston to see him march. There was lots of noise, laughter, and just a lot of fun.  I have an awesome family.

On Friday night, we headed to the Lone Star Brahma's hockey game.  Brendon is an off ice official, so he got us tickets.

Uncle Lonnie rooting on Brendon every time we heard the buzzer!  Brendon was working the clock.

Getting ready to chuck a puck during the 2nd intermission.  

Ashlynn and Carson stopped by for a visit on Saturday.  It's always good when you can spend time with your cousins.

Then it was off to AT&T Stadium.  None of us had ever been inside, so it was fun getting to see it for the first time.

Here is the Red Raider waiting for his turn to race across the field.

And what we came for......watching the Goin' Band from Raiderland.  Telly is out there somewhere!

Telly is the cute one in the middle.  Tech didn't win that night.....but we sure did.  Spending time with the family is the best!

Watching Him Grow

So, little man is learning to eat food.......these pictures are of him trying pears for the first time.  As you can see, I don't think he cares for them too much.  Even Ashlynn got in the act of making faces with her little brother.

Maybe just playing with the spoon is good enough!

Carson has become a real pro at eating "big people food."  But I still think pears aren't some of his favorite.

He has also learned to sit up by himself....he's still a little wobbly, but he can do it on his own.

And this week, his mama even let him try to feed himself.  I'm not sure he got any in his mouth, but it's quite obvious he got it everywhere else!

I love watching him grow.  He's such a precious little man.  6 months old and counting.

He's growing up so fast!

It's so hard to believe!  Carson Luke is already 5 months old!  Where has the time gone?  Yesterday he was a little snuggle bunny who would roll up in a little ball and let you hold him tight.  Now, he has found his feet (and loves to suck on those toesies!), smiles, giggles, and loves his big sister.  Oh yes, he still likes to snuggle.  :)

What a precious little man he is and what joy he brings to our family.  He is a special gift, and yes, this JuJu could just squeeze him....and does every chance she gets!

Today was her last day of Kindergarten.  Where has the time gone?  So, we no longer have a Kindergartner, but a first grader.

This little girl brings so much joy to our lives.  Congratulations, Ashlynn Kate. Granddaddy and JuJu are so very proud of you!

He's Here!

Carson Luke Neely

May 9, 2013

7 lbs. 9 ozs.

21 1/2 inches long

He's here and he's already 2 weeks old!!!  What a precious little man our Carson Luke is!  How can anyone hold a baby and not believe there is a God?  Carson is absolutely perfect.  10 little fingers.....10 little toes.  He loves to snuggle.  Once again, this JuJu is in love.

Our Last Day

We spent our last day in Tennessee at the Ripley's Aquarium of the Smokies.

 Seahorses are most fascinating to me.

 A dragon seahorse.

 Wes and a horseshoe crab

 This was fun.  This aquarium had all the fish that were in the movie Nemo!  Every child there was looking for Marlin, Dory, Nemo, etc.  How clever!

I really enjoyed watching these jellyfish.......glad I didn't have to get near them....but they were so graceful.

This was a huge aquarium that you could also walk underneath and watch the fish, sharks, turtles, swim over you.

The Great Smoky Mountain National Park

While in Tennessee, we took several trips into the Smoky Mountain National Park.  I really believe this is one of the most beautiful places on earth.  

 The "smoke" hung really low on the first day we were there.

A view when the "smoke" is gone.

The Little Pigeon River by a picnic grounds.  We had several picnics while we were there that week.

 Pictures just can't capture the beauty of it all.

The Appalachian Trail spans 2150 miles from Georgia to Maine across 14 states.  We met two hikers who were hiking it and they expected to complete it in Maine by October.  They started in Georgia......this was April.....they expected to end in Maine, in October.  That is dedication.

Just imagine having a picnic beside this. 

Parrot Mountain and Gardens

One of the most fun things Wes and I have ever had the opportunity to do is to go to Parrot Mountain and Gardens. A really neat Christian couple own the bird sanctuary (which is on top of a very high mountain!).  They just want to share with folks God's beautiful creation of the Smokeys and provide a place for abused and neglected birds.  They also are working to reintroduce extinct birds back into their original habitat.  We could have spent hours and hours there as the staff was most gracious and you were allowed to pet, hold, and feed birds to your heart's content.

 I love Cockatoos.  They are my most favorite of all the birds.  There were many here that I could play with!

 Very smart.....very gentle.....I was in love!

 This guy loved Wes.  He crawled all over his shoulders and then found the button on the top of his cap.  He didn't give up until he had the button......chewed on it awhile, and then spit it out.

 This was the prettiest and most gentle parrot.  Just wanted to be with you.  Quite content to just to hang.

 I would have paid almost any amount of money if they would have let me take this little guy home.  He is a rose crested cockatoo and I really wanted to make him part of our family.  Unfortunately, he wasn't for sell!

 Lowrys.  Walk into their cage and they know you have nectar for them.  We had them all over us!

 Some kind of South American Lowry.  I saw so many different kind of birds that I just couldn't keep up with all the names!

This is my favorite.  I was feeding two cockatoos sunflower seeds.  But as you can see, the McCaw didn't like being left out.  He had grabbed ahold (very gently) of my shirt and kept pulling me towards him!

If you are ever in the Pigeon Forge area, you need to visit this place.  It is amazing what the owners have done with it and how important it is to them to show off God's creations - whether it be the birds or the scenery!

Tennessee

Wes and I had the opportunity to rent a cabin in the Smoky Mountains last week.  We had a wonderful, relaxing time.  Gatlinburg and Pigeon Forge had plenty of things for us to do if we wanted to get away from the cabin for awhile.

 

Our home for the week

 The view from our cabin

 The Lumberjack Feud Show.  These guys were awesome! A very entertaining show.

 Log rolling championship

 Yep, they sell moonshine in Tennessee.  I learned a very important fact....moonshine itself wasn't illegal.  However, the government wanted to tax the sell of it and the farmers didn't want to pay.  So, they began to hide their stills and work them at night.....hence the name.....moonshine.  It only became illegal during prohibition.  This stuff is evidently pretty powerful stuff.  It is sold in mason jars and it was 40-50 proof.  Which means it was 80 - 100% alcohol.  Just like the good old days. Yeah....no wonder they call it "White Lightning"!

Little Pigeon River runs through Gatlinburg.  This is just one of the beautiful scenes you can see all throughout the town.