Happy 11th Birthday, Abigail!

My sweet Abigail Grace, sucking her fingers and rubbing the satin lining out of Lambie's ears...

Some pictures taken since Abigail's last birthday...





Abigail means "father's joy," but she is her mother's also. Our family would not be complete without her funny faces, sweet hugs and grown-up vocabulary. After all, as Rebecca reminded me yesterday, she is our "sweetie baby."

Happy Birthday, dear Abigail. Happy Birthday to You!

The Last Rose of Summer

When I was growing up my mother would often say, "I look like the last rose of summer."  I have been known to use that very quote myself, especially on days where I feel like my appearance is wilted, tired or faded.  As I was walking around my backyard yesterday, I thought of those words -- how summer weather is almost gone and the flowers of that season are slowly fading. While I am excited about the appearance of fall with its pumpkins, mums and cooler weather, there are still a few plants holding onto the last little bit of summer.

These little red flowers just popped up a few days ago. They are especially enjoyable to me because my nanny always had them in her yard, and they make me think of her.

My rosemary plant (right) didn't fare so well. Oh well...if I want fresh rosemary chicken, I'll just go to Macaroni Grill.


I had great success with my potted tomatoes this year. I did finally give them over to the squirrels. That's right, you little evil things, have them!

Hydranges, even faded ones, are still my favorites.

Couldn't resist pics of our sweet little bunnies.

And, finally...the last rose of summer.

Our Volleyball Life

In our family, fall = volleyball, not football. (Well, except for Jeff, for whom fall = both.) Two nights a week will find us in a gym watching games somewhere in the metroplex. Rebecca was excited to make the gold team this year. This past weekend she played a tournament in Cedar Hill with the navy team, who needed an extra player.  It was a long weekend, three matches on Friday night and several on Saturday. The team hung on to capture a 3rd place trophy.  And, Rebecca loooovvvves trophies.

It is amazing to watch how much she has improved this year. She is a really good all-around player. And, due to subs needed on the navy team, has ended up playing on both navy and gold teams.  We're very proud of her hard work and commitment to her teams.  So, if you're ever free on a Monday or Thursday, give us a call and come enjoy some fall volleyball.

BFF'S - Emily, Amanda and Becky

The Tale of the Drawing of Peter Rabbit

ONCE upon a time there were four little Rabbits, and their names were Flopsy, Mopsy, Cotton-tail, and Peter.  They lived with their Mother in a sand-bank, underneath the root of a very big fir-tree.

Flopsy, Mopsy, and Cotton-tail, who were good little bunnies, went down the lane to gather blackberries:  But Peter, who was very naughty, ran straight to Mr. McGregor's garden, and squeezed under the gate!

I have loved the story of Peter Rabbit for as long as I can remember.  When it came time to do my first nursery, naturally the characters of Beatrix Potter came to mind.  The beautiful watercolors were irresistable for a baby's room, and so Katherine's nursery was filled with Peter Rabbit, Jemima Puddleduck, Squirrel Nutkin and many others.

Recently we watched the movie Miss Potter and fell in love with her drawings all over again. I was inspired to ask Katherine to draw me a picture of Peter Rabbit.  She agreed, but like most artists, must wait for the right inspiration to create the watercolor.  As it seems, my inspiration was not her inspiration.  So, I did the next best thing:  I went out, bought some watercolor paper and a beautiful frame and plopped it in front of her.  Nothing. Not even the barest brush across the paper.  "These things can't be rushed, " she said.  Apparently.

Then, I tried the next best thing:  I nagged.  And, begged. Pleaded? Complained?  Cajoled? Gently reminded?  Nothing worked, until one day, in about 30 minutes time, she sat down at her desk and before you could blink, presented me with a beautiful watercolor -- the picture you see above and below. Miss Potter herself could not have done any better. (Well, actually I guess she did.)

It boggles my mind to think that the tiny baby I laid in the crib with Peter Rabbit sheets is now creating such a picture for me. I am honored to be the recipient of such a gift (even though I kinda had to beg for it)  I mean, she is a teenaged girl after all; but, thankfully one who is willing to humor her mother once in a while.

I am sorry to say that Peter was not very well during the evening.  His mother put him to bed, and made some camomile tea; and she gave a dose of it to Peter! But Flopsy, Mopsy, and Cotton-tail had bread and milk and blackberries, for supper.

THE END.

Thought for the Day

Life is too short to read bad books.

Twenty Years

I couldn't let today pass without mentioning that I have been married for 20 years! Jeff and I certainly have come a long way since that day in 1988. The older I get, the harder it is to remember events from so long ago, but some things still stand out clearly. Jeff, do you remember?

1. It rained -- all day.
2. You gave me a beautiful strand of pearls.
3. We saw each other before the wedding, and they said we wouldn't last.
4. Restless Heart.
5. My heavy bouquet that I could hardly hold.
6. Your too tight shoes.
7. Our cake fell.
8. Bird seed hurts.
9. 2 napkins x number of guests divided by 2.
10. You said "I do" and I did, too. I'm so glad we did.

September 3, 1988

September 3, 2008

HAPPY 20th ANNIVERSARY!

The Other Room

In answer to Paige's question, what's in the other room...

Floor Makeover - Final

Floor Report - Almost Finished

I'm sure you've all been waiting on the edge of your seats for the next installment of Holmes Family - Floor Makeover. Isn't my life exciting?!?  I guess when you do the work yourself, there is a greater amount of satisfaction when the project is finished.  So, we're all getting pretty happy about now, because the floor is almost complete and we can return furniture/books/pictures to their places on the floors/shelves/walls.  After all, there's not much use for a piano in the kitchen.

This first section took the longest to prepare and measure. After that, it goes pretty quickly.  (More quickly than acid staining concrete anyway.)

When it came time to ask for piano movers, Abigail jumped right on in there.  Katherine was her usual helpful self. Katherine, this word's for you. Hmph!  

Jeff surveying his great work.


The last bit of carpet is rolled up and sent out the door. Yahoooooo!!!! My nose is so happy. Well, maybe not quite yet, because it's all stuffed up right now from all the dust; but, it will be ecstatic soon, I'm sure.

Total collapse. We are finished!

The floor is unbelievable. It's so smooth and beautiful. One more day to put down trim around the edges and we will be finished.  Stay tuned for the final episode of Holmes Family - Floor Makeover. Coming Labor Day to a blog near you.

It's Just Tearing Me Up

Tearing out carpet...killing the sinuses...but it must be done. After 10 long years of living with the ugly, stained gray carpet, we are ready to put down a new floor. Unbeknownst (great word) to us, there was a parquet floor underneath the carpet! I could have screamed. We could have been living with a fairly decent wood floor all these years instead of that allergen-infested gray matter. Oh well...

There was also a small bricked off area, that we can only guess might have held some type of heater or fireplace. Well, it's gone now...and EVERYTHING is covered in dust. Achoooooo...... Thankfully the wood tiles were very easy to just pop up.




As you can see, the carpet under the piano will be the last to be removed. Any strong guys out there need something to do?


What a girl...Abigail picks up tiles in spite of her allergies. I have Benadryl standing by. By the way, has anyone seen Rebecca or Katherine?

A clean slate...

Sample of the new floor

After photos coming soon...