Oh yeah...pictures from the beach

I'm so slack when it comes to downloading pictures from the camera. Pictures of our honeymoon are still on here (from March). So I figured, while trying to avoid all house cleaning efforts going on downstairs right now (by acting like I'm working on something important), I'd post the beach pictures.

We went to the Outer Banks...really a fantastic, relaxing vacation. If you are ever out that way, I highly recommend Awful Arthur's...name notwithstanding, the place has fabulous steamed crab legs and spiced shrimp.

On to the pictures:

The view from our condo...

Before the storm blew in, a guy surfing with a kite-something-or-other (surely dangerous, but pretty coool to watch)

A real-life Nor’easter blew in on Wednesday. The wind was so bad that the sand felt like pins hitting your face. Hard to capture on film, but this was a pretty good shot:

Finally, the wife just had to grab the camera when I sat down and tipped my chair over backward...now that's love.

Happy Game Day!!

We are big college football fans in this house....and today we end up on opposite sides of the field. Clemson/South Carolina today. Clemson is obviously the superior team...and I look forward to a thorough Gamecock stomping. (Good thing the wife won't read this until Monday...or the smack talk would escalate even further in the house this morning!)

As for our life, we are doing pretty good. Still not pregnant...the Gods haven't liked us yet. We are taking the holiday off, and will start the process back up in January. I figure holidays are stressful enough...and heaven forbid that the child be conceived during my holiday stress, she'll end up being a twitchy little thing. Much better to wait for calmer times.

We decorated the house yesterday for Christmas...it truly looks fantastic. The wife is a kid most of the time, but more so at this time of the year. As we pass any toy store, she asks for a train to go around her tree. I am the obligatory eye-roller. But I guess you all knew that.

Well, off to start game day preparations. Wings, chips, beer...all the necessities. The one good thing about not being pregnant is being able to have a beer with the game...the two just seem to go together.

I hate being sick

I'm a baby when I'm sick. I guess everyone is. But I really wonder how this is going to work when there is an actual baby in the house. I get whiny when the wife is distracted by laundry. I guess I'll eventually have to buck up and be a grown up.

You know you are old when...

...a big night out on the town consists of going out to dinner, then wandering around the Lowe's Foods with a stack of coupons looking for the best deals. That was our Friday. We are so sad.

We saved some money though, on both the groceries and dinner. Dinner savings were at the wife's expense, because she got her meal comped when one of the waiters accidentally dropped a tray of food on her. What's a little sour cream down your back, when it saves us money, right? (at least that's the story as long as I'm not the one wearing food).

Happy Monday people!

At a loss for words...

All I can say is...wow...

Wow...what a night

So, to give in to the drama, we wake to a new day. It does seem like we are looking at a totally new country, one that hopefully we can once again feel proud of. I do think that Obama and our new government will turn this trainwreck around. And as we went to sleep last night, I truly believed that the excitement of the evening, the energy seen around the country and the world, was the sign that we are bringing our children into a better world.

(Downer alert)

However, it has turned very bittersweet this morning, as I wake to see Proposition 8 in California inching toward passage. Just 6 months ago, the California Supreme Court saw past the religious issues and treated marriage as the government should, as a legal institution. In ruling the ban on same-sex marriage unconstitutional the court said - "We therefore conclude that in view of the substance and significance of the fundamental constitutional right to form a family relationship, the California Constitution properly must be interpreted to guarantee this basic civil right to all Californians, whether gay or heterosexual, and to same-sex couples as well as to opposite-sex couples,"...very, very powerful stuff.

Today, though the news stations are still saying that it is too close to call, Proposition 8, which will nullify the courts decision and write discrimination into the state Constitution of California, is up by 400,000 votes. I must say, I am truly shocked in a state like California, is commonly known as the flagship of change and progressive thought, is rallying against the court ruling and stating basically "No, we don't think same-sex couples are equal, we don't think they have the right to the same family relationship, and we don't want them to have civil protections under our laws".

So the day is bittersweet. More than anything, I feel bad for the many couples who, when finally given the chance at a legal marriage, went out, got married, reveled in the feeling of equality that we've never seen, and now, by the end of the day, might see their marriages nullified. That is a sad day indeed.

Howdy from the beach!

We are so far having a fantastic vacation here in the Outer Banks. Good seafood, lots of relaxation...just what the doctor ordered.

I haven't gotten any good pictures yet, really, but these are the fun things we've been doing:

Sunday was warm and gorgeous. We sat out on the beach, ate snacks, watched people fish, played Uno. One woman close to us caught a 44-inch fish of some sort, which seems pretty impressive to me. She was jumping up and down...it was kind of exciting for us too...never knew fishing would be a cool spectator sport.

Monday (yesterday) it was still pretty warm, but windy. We took a long walk on the beach, found some cool driftwood. Then, later in the afternoon we packed up the grill, cooler and our chairs, stopped by the Teeter for some supplies, and headed to the beach again. A lot of trucks were driving on the beach, and we tried to drive down there ourselves, but our SUVwasn't made for it. The farthest we got was about 100 feet up the sandy trail, and we got stuck. I got out and pushed the truck back down the trail. We were right next to the lifeguard headquarters...I'm positive they were all gathered by a window up there laughing at us. We decided to park the truck at another public access and haul everything.

We got settled on the beach, between two groups fishing, and set up. Lit up the grill, cooked hotdogs, drank beer and toasted marshmallows. Read books and magazines. Stared out at the ocean. Laughed at other trucks, hoping they would get stuck too (they didn't - we are apparently incompetent off-roaders). It was the most fabulous afternoon EVER. We came back to the condo, went out for crab legs. Topped it all off in style.

Today is cold and windy, thus we are stuck inside. This morning, in the whole 5 minutes we stood on the deck braving the wind, we saw a guy on a surf board being pulled along by what looked like a parachute (kite-style). He was really cooking. I'm not sure how you control a kite thing, stay on a surfboard, and manage to not kill yourself. I couldn't do it myself, but it looked like a whole lot of fun and it was fun to watch (we are really talented at having vicarious fun through complete strangers).

Pictures will show up eventually. I'm sure. But don't hold me to it, I have a big streak of lazy going on today.

Hope everyone is well, and that you all went to vote. We are all prepared to stay up late watching election returns. It should be really exciting. Happy Tuesday everyone!!

Sorry, Try Again

Well, try number 1 was not successful.

I had to steal the graphic off the Clear Clue Easy site, but that is what I woke up to this morning. Oh well...we keep going!

One comment about the digital pregnancy test...come on...do we need to be so blunt?? Why not "Sorry, try again" or "Maybe next time"? I mean, they are at least nice on the game pieces from McDonald's...one would think they would be nice here.

Off on vacation...but wanted to update the faithful that I know will read this blog while I'm gone. For everyone else who doesn't, I guess they get left in the dark, huh? :)