Two Rewarding Events!

Today was a GOOD day for Tiggerlane! I found out that Shauna awarded me the "Rockin' Blogger" Award! And NOT because of the loud music thumpin' in my Intrepid. I am so thrilled! A Neophyte like me doesn't get awarded much in blogger-land - so I'm honored. I will be awarding 5 more folks in the NEXT post - so be watching for that.

Also, I somehow missed Vicki at Catching Light in all the Fun Monday excitement - so head on over there to check out her rigs!

I just had too much excitement for one day, because LOOK AT THIS:Oh yeah - these men are making my dreams a reality - they are measuring and staking out our new home! Another good thing is that we only had to give up one spindly little tree. Plus, we have friends who can use the firewood, so disposal will be no problem:Here the guys are, measuring everything, just to be sure it is all right:The next step, after everything is measured, staked and lined out with string, is spray-painting lines so the backhoe guy can dig the footing. Seems like it takes an awful lot of guys to spray that first little bit, but hey - better safe than sorry. The head builder, Jackie Ryan, is in the green shirt in this photo. His younger brother is in the white shirt with the tool belt, and the baby brother of them all is holding the spray can. Honnus is in the straw hat - and he is the backhoe man. Dontcha just love the name "Honnus?"Now the spray painting has begun in earnest. These lines tell Honnus where to dig.They didn't give me a golden shovel, and the mayor didn't come to the event. But I sat with breathless anticipation, as the backhoe was just about to de-virginize my land.And here is the first scoop! We have officially BROKEN GROUND! There is no turning back now!I couldn't have been happier if this backhoe scoop had been full with loads of ice cream - look at that strip of ground! Our first step to having a new home.Honnus then dug the footings while the other boys used tools to keep him lined up and on the paint. Because of the slope of the land, they had to stair-step some of the footings. As you can see here, they laid rebar in the holes, and even curved it to match the shape of the footings.I am standing about in the corner of the kitchen - strangely, it looks so small. It made me think of a playing a huge game of "Whack-A-Mole." I was assured that it will look much bigger when it is framed up.Roger thinks I'm obsessed. Well, uh, YEAH! I sure am! This is a shot of almost the entire house - it is 76 feet long, and our garage to the right of this photo is 28x28.Roger's comment?
"It looks like a pet cemetery."

Fun Monday/Tuesday - July 16th - UPDATED AT 8:30PM CST - Now with even MORE NEW PARTICIPANTS!

Welcome to the BIGGEST FUN MONDAY EVER, with FORTY-NINE FIFTY participants, hence the title of this post!

Here was the assignment in voyeurism: I wanna see your CAR! It can be your current car, the first car you ever had, maybe your first new car with that new-car smell, a car you wrecked once, or even the dream car you would drive - given all the money in the world! Oh - and if you have a truck, SUV, lawnmower, whatever the local authorities allow you to drive, let's see it!

Here is what Tiggerlane currently cruises in around town, sporting the Century 21 front plate (they only require back license plates in Arkansas), and thumping the speakers LOUDLY - a 2002 Dodge Intrepid:
Roger can't STAND things hanging from the rear view mirror - but I require them. On the left is what was an air freshener. Now that all the freshness is gone, I just like how it looks. In the middle is a present I got when I bought my real estate office - the key to success - get it? It's like my good luck charm. To the right is my naked man. I got him on a bottle of tanning lotion. One of my daughter's friends took our button-maker, and created the PERFECT face for him. Kinda like a child version of Truman Capote, you think?The only sticker on my car (another thing on vehicles that Roger doesn't like) is the one supporting Amber's cheerleading:For the record, my car just hit 50,000 miles. I bought it as a program car in 2003, and at that time, it had 16,000 miles on it. Now, before you criticize me for staying at home too much, here is Roger's ride:It's a 2003 Chevrolet pickup - and guess how many miles he has on it? We bought it brand-spankin'-new, and he just hit 9,000 miles. HA.

Now, go check out all the other fine participants:

Swampwitch at Anecdotes, Antidotes and Anodes
Willowtree at Once Upon A Blog
Kila at momto3cubs
Melissa at waking up
Sayre at Sayre Smiles
Beccy at Peppermint Tea
Amy W at A Family Story
Wolfbaby at Dreaming and Believing
MJD at Return of the White Robin
Ms Cellaniea at...where else but Ms Cellania
Lisa at The Food Snob
Karmyn at Dreaming What Ifs
Debbie at A Step at a Time
Shauna at S.O.S.
Robin at Pensieve
Susan at A Slice of Life
Raffi at citiZENMINDful
Julie at Abbily Ever After
Julie at Another Chance Ranch
Debs at Deb's Melon Patch
Pamela at The Dust Will Wait
theotherbear at Uncaringbear
Arkansas Songbird at Quarter Notes
Robinella at Not a Stepford Wife
daddy d at Mama Said, Papa Said
Min at Mama Drama
Jodi at Miller.Insight
Kaytabug at Lady K
Tonya at Rimmer's Adventures
Bichonpawz at Bermudabluez
my4kids at - well, none other than My4Kids
Fianna at Fianna's Little Internet Space
BS at The First of Six
Joy T at A Spot of T
Claudia at La vida Claudia
Nikki at Now what the hell do I do?
Beckie at Give It a Try - One Day at a Time
Bethany at Ice Cream Mama
Christine atAre We There Yet
Jennie Boo at O So Mo Love
The Artist Formerly Known as Purple Worms at House of the Purple Worms
Hannah at It's a Mum's Life
Mercy's Maid at Dystopian Challenge
Raven Dase at Dase's Stitching Place
Gawilli at Back in the Day
sallad.net at, you guessed it - Sallad.net
NEW ADDITIONs:
Possibly the youngest participant EVER is Izzak at Izzaks blog
Karina at Candid Karina
Robocop at Life and Times of a Turnkey

Have fun looking at all the modes of transportation these bloggers have to offer! And if I have messed up your link, PLEASE let me know. Neophyte = pretty clueless about HTML. Also, if I missed your link, let me know, and I'll add it by noon.

Our wonderful host for NEXT Fun Monday, July 23rd, is none other than Willowtree at Once Upon A Blog. MAJOR thanks to him for hosting! And Willowtree, Mercy's Maid has volunteered to host sometime - so maybe you should tag her next!

Fun Monday Assignment - July 16th, 2007 - UPDATED, Once Again, for YOU, My Loyal Readers

Wow...so I'm the Fun Monday Hostess for the week beginning July 16th! Hold on, let me adjust my tiara...and now, I'm all a-wonder. Could this be the BIGGEST FUN MONDAY EVER?? You guys are blowin' the lid off this thing! HOORAY!

Of course, I managed to forget that Sunday, July 15th, is the day I ship The Offspring off to choir camp - which is three hours away. At least I'll have some time without her hogging the computer Sunday night to get my act together. And they probably won't have flutes there, which puts my mind at ease somewhat.

AND...you're gonna LOVE this...it's been raining for WEEKS here. What did I walk in to first thing this morning? Agents and staff, letting me know that WATER is seeping up thru the carpet in one of the offices. Carpet people come. I'm moving agents around the buildng. Carpet is being ripped up. I'm getting someone to suck up the water. Builder is giving me advice about how to treat the situation. And yes, I went to a dear friend's office for a minute just to break down and CRY, so I could GET IT OUT. A small malady in the grand scheme of things, but still - sigh.

But at any rate, in case you haven't HEARD the Fun Monday gig, I have a simple, fun assignment in voyeurism, should you choose to accept your mission (And I DO hope you accept, b/c I'm REALLY needing some FUN this Monday!):
I wanna see your CAR! It can be your current car, the first car you ever had, maybe your first new car with that new-car smell, a car you wrecked once, or even the dream car you would drive - given all the money in the world! Oh - and if you have a truck, SUV, lawnmower, whatever the local authorities allow you to drive, let's see it!

Leave your name and/or blog address in the comments section, and I'll add you to the list.

Here are the participants so far:
Tiggerlane
Swampwitch
Willowtree
Kila
Melissa
Sayre
Beccy
Amy W
Wolfbaby
MJD
Ms Cellania
Lisa
Karymn R
Debbie
Shauna
Robin
Susan
Raffi
Julie (Abbily Ever After)
Julie (Another Chance Ranch)
Debs
Pamela
theotherbear
Arkansas Songbird
Robinella
daddy d
Min
Jodi
Kaytabug
Rimmer's Adventures
Bichonpawz
my4kids
Fianna
BS - thefirstof six
JoyT
Claudia
Nikki
beckie
Bethany
Christine
JennieBoo
The Artist Formerly Known as Purple Worms
Hannah
Mercy's Maid
Raven Dase
Gawilli
Salled.net

This is SO GREAT - a plethora of bloggers are gonna be showing off their rides! Thanks for your participation - this is an easy Fun Monday for all, and I'm amazed at how BIG this Fun Monday Phenomenon has become - WOOHOO!!! If I've linked you to the wrong blog, please tell me - I AM a Neophyte here, and I'm nervous about messing this up.

If you're getting a little tired of seeing the SAME OLD THING up here - well, I've got a bonus for ya. Check out the painter, and watch the whole thing:


If you want to host NEXT Fun Monday, July 23rd, let me know!

Fun Monday Relaxing

It's FUN MONDAY TIME! And this week's hostess is Debs, and her was request was as such:
Show your favorite place to relax. It can be a chair, corner, ledge, or limb. :) Get out those cameras and take pics or just write how you feel when you are in your "zone".

My favorite place is my BED. I spend most Sunday mornings lounging around in bed with a huge cup of coffee, watching the various politicos hammer it out on the morning talk shows. But sometimes, it's a good spot to relax, b/c The Offspring likes to sneak in and cuddle:In case you are wondering, that is actually MY teddy bear in the photo. And I'm not ashamed. ONE. BIT.

When it's not a million degrees or horribly humid outside, I like to take a few moments to just sit and think in this little spot on our front porch. Amazing how just listening to birds, watching squirrels scamper about, and cursing every moron who runs the stop sign on our corner can relieve stress.In the evenings after work, sometimes I'm so exhausted that I have to take a cat nap on this little corner of the couch - while vaguely watching the nightly news:Like how I stuck that bonus shot of me in the mirror there? That took effort, lemme tell ya. The Offspring also likes to use this spot for putting on makeup - hence the presence of a mirror in my living room.

Want proof that the couch is comfy? Here ya go:Finally, here is the place I hope to be able to relax at soon. Our new deck will be where our truck is in this photo, and I expect to spend a LOT of time out there. The view alone makes me relaxed.So, guess who is hosting next Fun Monday? ME! YES!! The Neophyte who knows very little about HTML is going to try to add all the linkage correctly, not leave anyone out, and be a gracious hostess. Check back TOMORROW about your next assignment, should you agree to tackle it!

Family Fun on the Un-Fourth

Ah...the family tradition, and the holiday I get VERY excited about - the Fourth of July! However, since Roger and I have to get up early to work on the 5th, we decided to have a premature celebration on the night of the 3rd. Who said we were normal, anyway?

On the way to Roger's dad's house - the site of the annual event, we saw the most amazing thing. It's been raining for WEEKS, and yesterday was no exception. However, after the rain stopped, we saw a full rainbow, spreading across the hilly region where we were headed. I was driving the car when we spotted it and couldn't stop to take a photo until we arrived at Paw's. But, I managed to capture half of it. It was the perfect start to our evening - and I just wish I had been able to take a better photo. Mother Nature's little contribution to the festivities.Now, when I say I enjoy this holiday - I mean it. I take it VERY seriously. Roger always rolls his eyes when we do the shopping for fireworks, b/c even though we do buy the traditional items, nothing will stop me from buying at least two large packages of mortars. LARGE packages. We lay the bounty on the hood of his dad's truck, and my job is the unwrapping and untwisting of the fuses.And THIS year, I didn't have much help. Why? Well, The Offspring spent a good deal of time hanging out with A BOY. A BOY. Nothing like teenage-years to make a mother's heart grow faint, but The Offspring really likes this BOY. To be honest, ANY boy would make me nervous. The Offspring is growing up - yet she is still a petite little thing. And THE BOY is two years older than her - but looks like a giant next to my precious baby! He seems to be a nice kid, and he has made an huge effort to be upfront and communicative with Roger and me. He has tried to put our minds at ease about his intentions, and he is very open with us - so far. But, let's be honest, he's still A BOY. Sigh.At least they won't be able to see much of each other. They have this strange affliction that causes their hair to flop over one eye. So they'll only see each other half as much as normal kids.

Another fine family tradition is the "Redneck Launching System." Since Roger's medical background has exposed him to all sorts of trauma, his greatest fear is that someone will lose an eye or a limb during our blasting sessions. Well, what better way to solve any construction dilemma than to use copious amounts of duct tape? Hey, we be country folks. We know how to do this stuff up right.A friend and his two young daughters came with us this year, so to pass the time until it got completely dark, the girls lit the traditional sparklers.Paw is getting up there in years, but doesn't he look proud of all our loot? We're gonna have a bang-up good time. Oh, and the toilet seat? Well, Paw is also a Yellow Dog Democrat, so he was showing us his latest invention. If you lift the lid, the "bowl" has a photo of George W. inside, and the lid portion says, "Flush." Clever Paw.These Arkansas men have set the stage and seem satisfied that the correct trajectory will be achieved. Nothing like a few heavy rocks and a cinder block to ensure stability.Better yet, the launcher must be tested while it is still daylight, lest any additional adjustments need be made to the Redneck Launching System. Wastes a couple of mortars, but when you have over 100 of them - what's a few wasted?Well, now that seems to be just right. Let's see what the launch looks like in the dark.Oh yeah - at this point, my heart is racing with excitement - we're going to be rockin' the hillside like nobody's business! First, we start off with some of the smaller, self-contained fireworks.Okay, okay - I'm about to pee my pants, waiting for the big show - so let's get it GOING! WOOOHOOOO!I've got this fireworks setting on the camera, and I had to try several times to get good photos and time the capture just right.The littlest lady had to take a break under the carport with Paw. Plus, it's tough to carry a two-year old on my hip while taking photos and keeping my eye on The Offspring and THE BOY. It IS dark, now, after all.This is when we go...Ooooooooh....and Aaaaaaaah....and RUN! RUN! RUN!FANTABULOUS!! I'm so excited - but I can't light the mortars fast enough to be able to run away and reposition for photography's sake, so I let the boys handle it, resulting in photos like this:The boys got it down to a science after the first few rounds, figuring out how to tie the fuses together and synchronize their lighters. They managed to get all four mortars to launch within seconds of each other.Makes for a great display. I'm lovin' every minute of it.And what kind of fireworks celebration would it be without a good old-fashioned Roman Candle War?Getting near the end, my photo technique got better.Oh yeah, just like I like it.Putting on this show (mostly for MY benefit) does take its toll, as evidenced by Roger's hands.

Another fantastic holiday with no limbs lost. I can't wait until next year!

The REAL Fun Monday Post

Okay, so I fudged a little with the fireworks photos - but I had to buy some time to find and scan the real photos for Fun Monday. Hopefully some of you came back to see what my summer memories entail.

Actually, I had a hard time with Prairie Air's assignment, which was as thus:

Your mission, should you choose to accept it:
Share one or more of your favorite summertime memories with us. It can be a childhood memory or more recent. The memory can be a vague conglomeration of how you spent summers past (catching fireflies, playing outside till dark, watermelon seed wars) or it can be a detailed memory of a specific event.

Oh...well, now that you mention "vague conglomeration?" I'm cool. Because my favorite summers were the ones where I felt most free - beginning with the summer immediately after my sophomore year at Texas A&M University -please don't take offense, Mr. Big. But that was the first summer I didn't go home to Mom and Dad's. I stayed in College Station, TX, and scheduled my summer classes so that I could spend as much time as possible getting ridiculously tan. Here I am, with the only crab I've ever caught:I was maybe halfway to my fully-tanned summer state. Our group (which was always changing) had a lot of innocent fun - and this was one of my favorite projects, burying people (and yes, the chick in the pink shirt is me):No matter what, I remember summers with my favorite roommate, Julie Barborek. She is the one pictured here in the sunglasses. I completely lost touch with Julie, and hate that. I wonder where she is now.We would always meet interesting folks during our summertime travels. I can't tell you much about these guys, except that the one of the left is named Scott, and took care of me one night when I got horribly sick when I mistakenly mixed tequila and beer. That's when I learned that "beer before liquor - never sicker" phrase. Oh, and that's Julie (Jules) with me.I had to include this photo, because of two things. #1 - Look at the price of gas! This had to be in late 1990 or so. #2 - Can you believe I am standing in the parking lot of a gas station in BARE FEET??? Oh well - considering the circumstances of my abandonment (see the posts labeled "THE STORY" if you need to catch up), maybe I felt more natural.And lastly, I have to share this photo, b/c there was one night that Jules and I went to South Padre Island, but decided to (shock!) PARTY WITH OTHER PEOPLE. Anyone who knew us back then wouldn't have believed it. But an amazing thing happened - we ran into each other in the restroom of one of the most crowded bars on the island - and here is the photo, documenting that moment:I know it's easy to pick college memories as the best - but it was the time when I truly did learn who I was. I met so many people who taught me so many things, and it was the one time in my life that I could be totally irresponsible and feel no guilt.

Fun Monday Summertime

Some say there's no time like the present, right? Well, this weekend was a whirlwind of activity, so the REAL Fun Monday post will be a little late. Mondays at work are always hectic, and the photos I meant to share with you are at the office - along with the scanner.

So, to tide you over, here are some of the photos I took at Saturday night's fireworks extravaganza in Hatfield, AR (home of Arkansas Songbird):

I have a fireworks setting on my camera, which I got to try out for the first time. There is a bit of a delay, so I had to practice a little, but I like how these came out. There are more on my flickr site.

I also shot the finale with the same camera. Not GREAT results, but here's a Happy pre-4th sample:
And for even MORE fun, check this out - Marnie actually obeyed my orders, and completed the no-makeup challenge. I'm still suspicious that she had a chemical peel weeks before and some moisturizer on, b/c her naked face is still mighty pretty. Check out the Canadian beauty here.

Okay, now run on over to Prairie Air to visit the more dedicated Fun Monday participants. I promise I'll post the REAL entry by Tuesday.