Christmas 2009

Todd and I had an absolutely wonderful time in Missouri and Oklahoma! We did not get to see everyone we had hoped to see, but our days were packed full of events, love, and good times. To go into detail about everything that happened and what we did, would be a huge blog, so here are some pictures to get some of the details.

Shane, Rachael and Baby Elsie Mae! Elsie's first Christmas! She is so precious to us.


Dad Ferguson and his new girlfriend Debbie. The Ferguson Christmas was held in OK at Shane and Rachael's house. It was so much fun. Ben brought his new girlfriend and so did Clarke. The family is expanding especially with cute little Elsie who stole all the attention, and made some bank with the Christmas Gifts!

Uncle Todd with his new niece Elsie Mae Ferguson.

Elsie is almost a month old here. What a great early Christmas present that God gave Shane and Rachael. I had to take a few pics during our stay in Oklahoma.

Grandma Mac celebrates her 74th Birthday with a Surprise Birthday Party! My mom and her baby sister, Bonnie "pulled the wool over her eyes" as a group of over 50 friends and family gathered together to celebrate with Mac. Cake, candles, flowers, balloons, candies, punch, cards, and presents made this day super special for Grandma. She couldn't stop talking about how we surprised her and how special she felt at her party.

Grandma Mac blowing out the candles...with a little help from her Granddaughter Crystal! Oh my sister is so funny.


A different kind of Family Photo! How fun to take a picture with my brother's kids. Logan is 3 and Emma is almost 1. What a great Family Photo.


Mom and Dad Walls! We love and miss you! "Home is where my mom is!"

The Walls Family Photo. Can I just say that we were freeeeezing. From left. Papa Glen, Emma, Mema Cleea, Rance, Logan, Elizabeth, Todd, Paige, Haley, and Crystal.

What a long but short trip. Never has 2 weeks flow by so fast in my life. We love and miss our family every day. Merry Christmas!

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I had every intention of blogging yesterday, however I started to get a sore throat so I headed to bed early.
And when I woke up by little sore throat was a really bad sore throat. I was blessed by not being scheduled to work today! Sleeping in and gargling salt water and spraying Chloraseptic was not on my agenda. I was suppose to go hang out with Sally and her family. She is my friend that I worked with in Springfield at Bolivar Insulation. They are celebrating Thanksgiving at her dad's in Alabama and she was going to drive a couple hours down to see me. (such a good friend) I hated having to call her to cancel (I don't want to pass this bug around), so I will have to drop in on her when I'm up that way to make it up to her!
On another note. I was also planning on baking some Cranberry Pumpkin Bread. It's a Dad Ferguson tradition...or one of his many specialties around the holidays. Look I even had Todd pick me up some Cranberries! When I get to feeling better I will make the bread, I would hate to contaminate it with my sickness. lol

The curiosity was killing me. I have never bit into a cranberry before. And now I can say I have and I ate it like a woman. Maybe my sore throat has killed most of the taste buds, but it was tangy and bitter but surprisingly better than I thought it would be.

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We were able to hang out with a few friends last night. It was a lot of fun with lots of laughs.

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The first Christmas present is officially wrapped! Do you like my cinnamon sticks as accent pieces, oh yeah, I'm "that" creative! As Todd and I start to realize that Thanksgiving is this WEEK and the next week we are in Missouri; panic, anxiety, and lists begin to fill up our days. We are so blessed to be able to fly home for the Holidays, or as we like to call it a late Thanksgiving and super early Christmas with a touch of Birthdays! Thank you Lord for the time you are giving us with our family!

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I stole this picture of Elsie Mae from Shane and Rachael's Blog. I couldn't help myself. A proud Aunt has to show off the new addition to the family!!! If you ask me, Elsie is just as perfect as could be. I can't wait to meet her and hold her and kiss on her. This is me getting antsy for Dec 4!!

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Inside the box of leaves was a small little USB drive that has tons of pics of my family. This one made me laugh. I could only imagine all of us jumping into a pile of leaves thinking it would be a "soft" landing! Knowing Logan he probably laughed, Eliz through a pile of leaves on his head, and he ran out of the pile to jump again! I sure do miss these kids and all their laughter! Thanks Eliz for the pics.

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What a great surprise! My niece and nephew playing in the leaves in this small little box! This was mailed to me and I received it today! so excited! I bet Logan had some fun putting all the leaves in that box. Emma probably put a few in her mouth! Thanks kids! I do miss the piles of leaves!

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Check out the new Cabool Florist Blog!
http://caboolflorist.blogspot.com
Don't forget to visit the store for their annual Open House!

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Who in the world can fall asleep sitting up like this? And while his wife is in the kitchen banging stuff around cooking dinner. It just amazes me how hard he works, but when he "hits a wall" he's down for the count. Speaking of, it's 8:30 and he's already sound asleep in bed. (I made him move from the couch)

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Sing the song: "Just driving along in my automobile..." and then clunk cling , "Oh Poop!" I pull over....look under the car nothing, nothing hanging by a thread, nut, bolt, nothing. I get back in the car and the noise is gone. I drive 5 feet and see a piece of metal like thing in the road...did I mention I was by myself, it was pitch black, and my phone was DEAD! I pull over to pick up the lump of metal....I'm 98% sure that this piece of metal came from the bottom of the golden nugget. a.k.a. my old car that get's me to work and back home period. So if there is anyone out there that could tell me if this rusted piece of holey metal is important, I might go see a mechanic. Otherwise the 2% hit home and I just happened to hear dragging metal under my car and pulled over and found this a few feet away. hummmmm
On a more important note. One of the best Local seafood places Captian Anderson's is closed for the season after today. The good part is that they had a big End of Season special 1/2 Florida Lobster Tail with seafood stuffing and 2 sides for $15.95. Oh yeah! Score, I finally had some Lobster and I didn't have to pay the usual $40ish for it! yipeee I got it to go and Todd and I had a romantic Lobster date in the clearance section of AE (I'm not allowed in the back of the store, and Todd couldn't leave). Talk about interuptions when the man was trying to work and all I wanted him to do was take 10 minutes and eat some LOBSTER!

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Just when Todd gets back to town he gets to leave again. This time he is covering for another manager at the AE store in Valdosta, GA for a couple of days. It will be a good experience for him. My little helper husband!
Oh yeah, so who is jealous that I have a blanket made out of sweatshirt material? So nice.

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A hand can symbol so many things. A Big High Five! Lending a hand. Count to 5. And your age. Maybe in 50 years I can look back and see what my hand used to look like. lol

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I Love My Husband!!!!!!!!!!!!

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The Iron Man Triathlon was in full force today. I have no idea how many participants we had but we were able to watch them ride by for most of the day. These people really are dedicated to what they do. Yeah for those that like endurance. But I would rather spend $500 on something other than an entry to the Iron Man.

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Well it took only 2 days before another message in the sand was found. Today it was outside the condo. The Iron Man Triathlon will be taking off tomorrow morning. A few of our guests are participating in the event. My coworker and I will be taking turns running outside to cheer for the bikers as they pass by.

On a different note. Shane and Rachael had their baby today! Rachael was not due for another 4 weeks, but when her water broke this morning she soon discovered that Elsie Mae did not want to wait any longer. Congratulations Okie Fergs!! We can't wait to meet her in December!

Oh yeah and for another announcement, Todd and I will be making a trip to Missouri and Oklahoma in December. I will be there Dec 1-12 and Todd will be there Dec 3-8. We are anxious to see all our family and our friends during our visit. yeah!!!!

And for another note. Todd just got back from an AE Regional managers meeting in Tampa. He was recognized for being awesome and came home with a Sirius Satellite Radio. Big stuff man! I'm just so darn proud of my hard working man!!

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If I were to step around the counter and walk through the back door towards the beach, this is the view I get to see. Not bad eh? The snow birds are starting to show up so I'm starting my ehs in stead of uhs. lol

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A quick trip to walk on the beach to find a couple of seashells and a message in the sand. "Don't worry be happy." I wonder how many other people found this little message and smiled? Maybe I will take another walk on the beach tomorrow and hopefully find another little something to take a picture of for my next post.

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So after a month of no internet we had it for a couple of days before....oh yeah...no internet again. That would be why I haven't blogged in a while. Sorry about that. I was so angry that I didn't even want to go to Panera to use the free wifi or use Todd's blackberry to do a text blog. But I'm back...for now.
Ok so these little cards are part of my new project. This group of 5 flowers were all flowers from the big family Hawaii trip last year. These are just the cutest little cards ever. Or at least I think they are. These and other groups will be on my etsy site soon.

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Trick or treat time is almost here. I had to get my favorite dark chocolate treat!

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I'm pretty sure I've said this before...I DON'T DO MORNINGS!! And today Monday morning...well "Friday" morning to me....is no different. Although after I finish this wonderful cup of coffee, my morning will be super! I started the day a little tired, a little unmotivated, but I'm finishing the day happy. Happy because I finally sold my first photo on etsy! Actually she bought 2. It's so cool. Someone will have my photos in their house....someone besides my family! lol :)

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Eureka!! Finally internet at home again. I was about to give this project up since getting to a free wifi spot with my laptop was challenging.
For those wondering if I had an amazing beach view at work, here is the proof. This is my view all day long. Sure I have a fountain with running water. But my eyes hurt from all the chemicals that is in the water. The ocean view would be right around the corner, unfortunately I have to walk around the counter to see it. But I guess the Gulf is closer to me than others. No complaints...I guess. lol

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Oh yeah. My chi stopped working the other day and I finally got around to taking it back to the store to exchange. It was rather pleasant. I use to hate returning merchandise. After working at different retail stores I've become mune to the idea. No big deal.Just take it in plea your case and walla a new item. Oh and surprisingly the chi is totally worth the bucks. I never thought I would ever say that or own one. Talk about a magic wand!

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Before you were able to check out my white seashell collection. Now it's time to showcase my grey & black seashell collection.

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HI.
This is a plant at work.

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Well I got thinking about my post from yesterday. And I left with the conclusion that I didn't leave you with my profile name for etsy. Silly me. We are 417beach. Below is the link to the webpage. Happy shopping! lol

www.417beach.etsy.com

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The temperature finally went back up! It was t-shirt, shorts, and flip flops for me today...and I still managed to break a sweat out in the sun! I'm loving this!
I decided to take full advantage of the day and do a few pictures for my etsy shop. Here is a little sample of what I did. Do you like?

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Again another night going to bed early. Todd has a few full weeks of work ahead of him. Please say a little prayer for him.
As far as the picture. How do I turn my bedding into a beachy feel? I love the bedding which my folks gave us a few Christmases ago. Now that we love at the beach, I think it's time to incorporate some of the outdoors inside.

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It's 7:40 pm and we are already in bed. This could be either a sign that we are getting old or that Todd has been working a lot. Either way we are beat. Nighty night.

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This may be lame, but I spent my evening sorting through all the seashells Todd and I have picked up from our last big beach snorkel afternoon. Organization is not one of my strong attributes, but I did have a grand ole time dipping my toe in the organization world tonight.
Here is a White Shell Martini; it's a simple collection of all the white seashells gathered up on the shore of the Gulf of Mexico.

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A cold front came through the area to cool everything off. It's time to slip into some warm cozy socks!

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Not having internet at the house really does stink!

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A wonderful relaxing day. We both had the day off so we stayed in doors. The only thing we accomplished was finishing the 2nd season of Dexter. The pic will be posted tomorrow when I have to get out of the house.

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There is just something about living close to the beach that makes you want to go there on your days off. And maybe it has more to do with this amazing weather we have been having. Today it was 87 degrees, the water temp was perfect, and it was a yellow flag! Combine it all and you have a perfect day at the beach. As you can tell from this picture. Another thing you can tell from this picture is that we were about to get rained on by that enormous rain cloud which had no end. It did start to sprinkle but we had already endured enough sun time so we were ready to head back. It just amazes us that it's October and we are wearing tshirts and shorts and swimwear. It's just plain craziness and we love craziness.

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Tonight we went on a little date. We drove around a few neighborhoods dreaming of a new home, then we headed to Target to pick up a toaster. Oh I know a toaster. Todd was about to go crazy not being able to toast his bread, english muffin, waffles, etc. $22.10 later we left with a sack full of Target steals. After we picked up the $6 toaster we remembered we were on our last bit of toothpaste, so to the clearance section (you can always find great toothpaste on clearance at Target). And victory was ours as we picked up two tubes. Then we decided to shop all the clearance end caps. It was such a fun date! We picked up this awesome door mat. With all the sand and dirt around here we need to wipe our little feet before we enter our beach house. Let me know if our $1.24 door mat was worth it!

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Life is getting tough. Just the other day I wished upon a star for a way for me to "brew" starbucks coffee at work without a coffee pot. And walla starbucks heard my wish! Via! Surprisingly it actually tastes pretty good. Another surprising factor is that this is more economical than when I stop at the gas station for a cup of joe. Hum, I never would of thought I would see the day where starbucks was less expensive than a gas station. lol

On a side note: I would like to apologize for the missing picture Friday and no pic yesterday. I did take one, however since our internet at home is not working I get the privelage of driving down the street for some wifi. And well I just didn't make the drive the past 2 nights. It's such a challenge learning how to live in my house without the internet. lol

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In Hawaii the Palm Trees produce coconuts and bananas. In the Panhandle the Palm Trees produce these nut/acorn things. I have no idea what it is, but I bet someone that reads this just might Google it.

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Hum this could be interpreted in different way at different times in our lives. Is life so black and white?

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WAIT a second. I thought butterflies were only around in the spring and summer months....I'm so confused. :/ Would it be because it was 88 degrees outside and felt like 100? I think so. Those butterflies are just as confused as me. I just love Mother Nature. This pond at the park near our house reminds me of Grandma Mac's place. It's lined with all kinds of trees. The water is full of fish, lily pads, cattails, and a few ducks. It's just a small piece of home for me to sit and enjoy.

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Is it October? We woke up this morning and Todd posted on his Facebook status: 6am and 82 degrees. First 6 am is too early for me since it was my day off work, but the 82 degrees, wow-weee! I had lunch with my friend and then decided to take full advantage of the warmth. The beach became my resting place for the next 2 hours. I would of stayed longer if I had brought some sunscreen. The water was still wonderfully warm the sun super hot. A great day to play at the beach. The water is still so clear. A small suggestion to all my friends, Don't go on vacation to the gulf in the summer, wait and go NOW. The fall is so wonderful. Less people, less money, and Perfect temperatures.