Photo of the Day --Meghan

This is my niece, Meghan Johnson--she's my sister Mel's daughter. Her dad is Rodney Johnson. This was taken Christmas 2007. Mel also has two children and Meghan's the oldest and then Patrick. Meghan is also a student at UNC-A. Meghan is probably the most photogenic person I have the privilege of photographing. I've absolutely have never taken a bad picture of her! She's quite sassy too! And absolutely beautiful! She should model, for goodness sakes!

Remodel--Kitchen Dining 2

Another shot standing in the living room after the living room floor had been raised. The closed off opening to the right of the glass door was a sliding glass door going into the small dining area off the kitchen. Remember--click on pic to see larger.

The finished kitchen dining area. Aren't the floors beautiful? This table and the wardrobe in the center we got at an auction. I know a dining room probably isn't a proper place for a wardrobe but I like it there. Both these pieces just happened to come from the estate of my sixth grade teacher, Mrs. Elizabeth Grinton. Let's just say I had some issues with this very strict teacher!

My great friend Michelle, as stated earlier, helped us with decorating. She was invaluable with color selections. I knew what I liked--warm earth tones--rich, deep colors and she helped us make sure we didn't select colors that wouldn't work together. Here in the kitchen, kitchen dining and the mudroom, she suggested this yellow. I've never been a great fan of yellow but went with it. I must have painted this room five times before I got it acceptable for me! I glazed over the yellow with green from the living room to tone it down a bit. I still like it! Oh, and btw, all the walls of this house had already been done using the technique called "knock down". The builder of this house in the early 80's was from California and he was just ahead of the times for us around here. It's pretty common now to have textured walls but it wasn't back then. We loved the texture and didn't alter it--just used it to create great effects using glazes in some rooms--like the big dining room--which I forgot to mention when I posted that room but I painted (actually Grant painted that room the first color and he will still tell folks "I covered these walls with one coat!") it a deep but kinda bright red, then glazed over it with a chocolate brown that toned down the red and really gave it depth the way the brown stayed in the depressions. It kinda looks like leather--very beautiful!

Just put this here because I had the room. It's Olivia on the tractor with Jug instructing her. The previous owner, Tom Akin "stores" his two huge farming equipment--if I was a bit more manly, I could tell you what they're called but I can't--anyway, he has no where to keep them so just has left them with us! He doesn't mind us using them--keeps them from decaying from disuse and one of our neighbors using them too. We don't mind one bit!

Olivia loves learning from her daddy how to do the manly things. As she commented on a previous entry--she very much appreciate being independent!

Remodel--Kitchen Dining

This is the small dining area off the kitchen before we'd done a thing to it. Look very closely at the window to the left--that's Bella. Adding all these remodel photos reminds me over and over what a presence she was in our lives. I continue to miss her terribly. Remember: click on pic to see larger.

Anyhows....the parquet flooring was a real b--ch!! As stated before, really ALL of us worked on removing it. And ALL of us got sick as hell of it! It was glued securely--wasn't meant to ever come up!

Here's Otis (is that his real name or just what Jug called him?) working on the flooring.

And here's me, Olivia and Aaron posing the night we FINALLY finished removing the flooring!! Man, were we ever tickled!

This was taken standing in the living room. The area to the upper right is the small dining area after the sliding glass door had been removed but before the sheet rock had been installed. The floor of the living room has been raised up to the level of the rest of the house. The sliding glass doors to the left--there are actually three of them, we did not remove.

Taken standing in the kitchen, view of the small dining area after the sheetrock had been installed closing the sliding glass door hole. After pics in another blog. Blogger only allows a maximum of five photos per blog! Scheech!!

Photo of the Day--Taylor and Kyle Gann

Taylor and Kyle Gann--my great friend Michelle's children. This was just a few weeks ago celebrating rascally Kyle's birthday. He is a rascal! He just kept asking Michelle who all was going to come to his birthday celebration and when asked what he wanted for his birthday he first said nothing but then was more honest and more Kyle saying--MONEY!! At the little party and after the meal and cake, typical Kyle: "where's my presents?!!" Cute, cute, cute kids!!

Remodel--Kitchen

Here's Grant working in the kitchen. Not sure but I think he's getting some of the parquet flooring loose. I'll need to upload some of that process photos too. It was quite the arduous chore! There was parquet flooring securely glued to the kitchen, small dining, mudroom, utility area and pantry. All of us worked for days getting it removed using saws-alls. My carpel tunnel gave me an absolute fit. We were all sick to death of it by the time we got through!

Kitchen during the remodel. We completely gutted it--removing all the cabinetry, tile counter tops, parquet flooring and the lighting.

Another angle of the kitchen during the remodel of 2005. That's very enthused Grant ready to work!

And the kitchen after we'd moved in September 2005. The lights were yet to be redone but it essentially looks like this today. Master Craft did the cabinetry. I haven't mentioned before but we put in hardwood floors throughout the ground floor except for the bathrooms and kitchen and mudroom. This is stone tile here. And that's Corian counter tops--love them. I'm not crazy about my chairs at the bar and we've been looking for decent replacements for them for three years now! Don't want to spend a fortune on them either--wanting something rustic looking with metal and cloth cushions for seats..... we'll find just the right chairs one day!

What's Left of a Man

Nathan’s Play






We didn’t plan to go. We just went up to Boone to be able to see Olivia! At supper, I teasingly said that Daddy (it was me!) wanted to see all the penises and Olivia said, well, yall should come! So, we did! Jug and I both think it was the BEST play we’ve ever seen! Such vulnerability, so open, honesty that hurts to even hear let alone say. These eight men unzipped their coats they hid beneath and exposed themselves to the audience in a way that has changed me and God knows, it certainly changed them. I never saw the Vagina Monologues but this was the male version of that play. This masculine version, What’s Left of a Man has been done at ASU for many years. The most moving, emotional play I’ve ever experienced!





It was crowded as hell; a small theatre and after driving around and around looking for parking we were too late to get seats! Livvie, Kristin and I sat on the floor which was the stage—so we were up close and personal! While Jug was parking, I told the sweet, young attendant that my husband could NOT sit on the floor! Just physically impossible for him so they found a seat for Jug. Jug and I were the ONLY attendees over the age of 30! Felt kinda weird, I’ll say! It almost felt like we weren’t supposed to be there—like this play was only intended for the young and hip and more open-minded?? It was such a friendly group of young people. Perhaps they all noticed the old folks but they didn’t seem to mind. I’ve been to many plays in my life and been in a handful myself. I’m not very patient with this form of entertainment—get bored very easily. This was a long play—two and a half hours and the I sat on the floor (and I ain’t no spring chicken myself) and was completely enthralled, never even considering leaving because of boredom or discomfort!!!!!!





Eight young men. Eight distinct personalities. And every last one of them opened themselves to us, to each other, in a way that is extremely rare for men to be able to do. They spoke from their hearts and they spoke with almost painful honesty. They told stories of their past, hell, they told secrets. They offered us a picture of a male that is the real truth and not the stereotype that we all carry with us. With this picture I was reminded all over again how not different men and women are. We are all just human beings. We both are insecure about ourselves and think and feel much the same. As they shared their stories and we saw their truth, goose-pimples were raised and tears stung our eyes.





Then I just saw people—not young people, not even young men—just people, human beings and I felt just love for them. As a fellow human being, not a woman, not a mother, just fellow human, I wanted to wrap my arms about each and every one of them and squeeze them and let the love just flow into them. The air in the tiny auditorium was charged with this energy. I think all were thinking/feeling much the same as I was.






They wore just solid black, loose fitting, comfortable shirts and pants, no shoes. Another means to just be—just be a man, a human being. And one by one, they’d share their souls with a difficult to relate story or poem or sing a song. For two and a half hours! And I was riveted! The night culminated with the lights dimming and they each shed the last of their protective coverings and fully exposed themselves. The lights came up and the eight men stood there, not as naked men, but as eight fellow human beings. God, what that took to be able to do that! And you know what? I didn’t see their damn nakedness, I saw the person, and I heard their words and I knew their pain and God, yes, I knew their growth. It was glorious to behold. I was changed in that moment and I knew it, felt it—knew the hundred or so fellow human beings experiencing this with me were changed too.






I salute them! I applaud them standing up and whooping and stamping my feet. I will never look at/feel about, men the same again. Yeah, so they aren’t as communicative sometimes as women and they carry their stoicism like a badge and perpetuate this bravado all in the name of masculinity. I’ve been married to a man and emotionally intimate with this man for 27 years. I’ve given birth to a male and raised him and held him when he was frightened and I’ve brushed tears from his bearded face. And I’ve freshly, newly, been given this opportunity to see my men as vulnerable, soft, sweet, insecure, frightened, strong, brave, kind, pained, fellow human beings. I’ll never be the same.

Photo of the Day --Grant

This was taken in the spring of 2005. I'd just gotten a new flash and was testing it out. He was just waking up. A beautiful boy!

Remodel--Dining Room

The dining room bare naked. It was carpeted with a ivory carpet and we'd already removed it here--it's rolled up in the foreground.

This is friend Keith Lenderman--old high school buddy of mine and my gold best friend Pam's husband. He helped a lot with the painting.

The completed dining room make over! Huge transformation! And that's our beloved Bella resting there. It's still so hard to see all the photos of her. We miss you Bella!

Oh--and also--don't forget to click on the photo to see it enlarged. Those lower cabinets--we planned to put doors on them but never have...just one of the many things that just don't ever seem to get done! Jug and I both are kinda bad about that....get it livable, acceptable but never perfect! My brother Jim did most all the built in cabinetry here--he's a very gifted woodworker himself.

Adding this here just because I came across it today. It's Olivia helping with raising the living room floor. It's a great pic of her! I think, no, know the kids benefited SO much from the summer remodel....the time spent with their daddy, such quality time. They learned so much too! How very fortunate we are that Jug has so many, many skills and is a gifted teacher. Sometimes, and we all giggle about this, he goes on and on and the kids are much more respectful and listen better than I do! I'm afraid I'll roll my eyes and tell him I don't need to know how to wire a lamp--that's what I have him for!!!! We love him to death!

Photo of the Day

I like candid shots best. But it's rare I'm able to get a really good one. I guess if I were a professional photographer I'd take hundreds of shots a day and be tickled if a half dozen were really good. This photo of me and my husband, Jug was taken in April of '05 while we were in Vegas. We were by ourselves and for the life of me, I can't remember who took this! The way my left arm is extended, I'm inclined to think I just held the camera out and went to shooting away! Not bad!! But it really shows my big pig nose!! Dang those Higgins anyway!

Talked to Olivia a good while today. I'm so excited she's coming home this coming weekend!! Yay, yay and yay!!! It'll be so good to have her home if just for the weekend.

Still working on the photo albums. Up to April 2003! Slow going. But finding lots of good pics.

Uploaded "Remodel--Living Room" pics this morning. Click on "Remodel" on the top left of this page to see. Be sure and click on the photo to see it close up.

Remodel--Living Room Before and After 2

Here they're raising the floor of the living room. That's Jug and Olivia. Poor Livvie looks so tired! We all worked so very hard that whole summer. But the payoff was tremendous!

And Grant practicing his balancing skills on the soon to be raised floor.

This is two of Jug's guys: Rick Shumate and .....man, can't remember the other's name! Jug will have to tell me. They're putting up the sheetrock to close off one of the two sliding glass doors we closed off.

And this is finished room with the view of the fireplace and TV. Turned out so nice! This was the wall that had the sliding glass door going into the bedroom before! Check out the fan. Click on the pic to see much larger.

Remodel--Living Room Before and After

Click on the photos to see enlarged photo.






Little background on our remodeling project. We bought this lovely place out here in the "country" of Moravian Falls early June 2005. We just fell in love with the views and the land--26 acres that includes ample pasture land and wooded areas and even a creek. It still so close to town. We can get to downtown Wilkesboro in less than ten minutes.







Jug, fortunately was able to be home most of that summer so went spent a solid three months doing the remodel. Jug is a master craftsman--that man can do anything! We all worked together--Jug and I put in 10-12 hour days for three whole months. We had help--a few of his employees helped, as did the Lendermans--Pam and Keith painted, Michelle--she helped a lot with picking out colors and going with us to help us select home decor, my brother Jim with the dining room built-ins, and we did hire electricians and plumbers--otherwise we did it all ourselves. Quite an accomplishment!





It's about 2700 square feet. In this first pic--you see what the builder (built in the early 80's) had in mind for this front room--they used it as an aviary/sun room. This room was about two feet lower than the rest of the house and literally surrounded by sliding glass doors--every wall. It was tiled with terra cotta. We thought this a huge waste of space! This room was not heated/cooled either. In this first pic--the sliding glass doors on the left are going into the dining room and the sliding glass doors on the right went into the bedroom! Weird, I know. We completely closed off the set going into the bedroom--and this wall we covered in a beautiful rock fireplace and bookshelves.

This is another view of the same room. That's Grant working on the left. Both the kids helped that whole summer. They were real troopers!! They learned a lot! And got plenty of blisters! Those are sky lights in the ceiling which the seller had already closed off as they leaked, I guess. We debated and debated about what to do about those openings. Finally deciding to use this unique look and wired the openings and hung lights there. Turned out good. I meant to upload a pic of the raising of the floor--maybe tomorrow.

















Here's Jug and Grant taking out the sliding glass doors. This room had five walls--and seven sliding glass doors!! We completely eliminated two of them, left just openings for two and left three functioning.

























So here tis---finished room! Huge difference!! This is the "after" view same as the second (above) before view. Didn't it turn out fabulous!? I meant to upload an after view same as the first before but actually did this view twice! I'll do another "blog" entry with that view. On the far left you can barely see the fireplace. I love my living room. It's so open and bright. Sometimes, though, in the winter, I have to lower the blinds the light gets so very bright it almost hurts my eyes and makes it hard to see TV.

Photo of the Day

Wow! Is this not the most beautiful child? This is my great-neice, Maddyson. She's my nephew Adam and Kara Kerley's baby. So cute!

Front House After

The porch is begun.... roofing it here.

Jug and helpers did this entire project. The "Crackle Barrel" porch REALLY added to the house--so charming! It's also like having another room to the house. We use it a LOT. It's just a slice of heaven! I've spent so much time this morning finding photo files, resizing them so they can be uploaded--was hoping to get some of how it looks now. It'll have to wait until tomorrow......

All done here except for pouring the floor....

Floor is poured here

And stained here

All done except for a little grass....

Front House Before

This was taken in like April or May of 2005 before we'd actually even made an offer--I think, anyway. I think I have better outside shots somewhere and if I come across them, I'll post them.








So this was before we added the massive, what Jug calls, the Crackle Barrel porch and re-roofed with red metal.










Wider shot. I see and had forgotten how much work we've done on this mulched area in the foreground. Still doesn't look great, but better than this!! The drought last year really did a number on our plants and the grass. Poor Jug worked so very hard on the lawn last spring just for it ALL to be killed by the drought. We're starting over this year and hoping for more rain than last year.














This was probably taken last spring, 07. I have it dated 06 in the files but that can't be right because I KNOW it was last year that Jug tilled up the yard. More shots of the porch next.

Photo of the Day--Princess Olivia

Not the best quality pic--it's a digital photo of a photo and I came across it yesterday in a CD of my saved photos.

So very typical of Olivia when she was a little thing. She was almost ALWAYS in this costume! I'd bought her the fancy slip for some fancy dress she wore for Christmas one year. It actually had a little bell sown in the slip! She loved it. She was forever parading around dressed up like this. What happened to that? Now she's so casual with her dress! She was such prissy little girl! She loved patent leather shoes too. She called them "tippy shoes" because they made what she thought was a "tippy" sound with each step. So cute!

Have been absolutely consumed seen starting this blog with a new project. I realized as I was trying to find photos for the blog that it would be such a huge help if I knew where the photos where! I actually have not put ANY photos in albums since 2000! Eight years of photos--thousands, I'm sure. So that's what I'm doing. Not doing any embellishment on the pages, just getting them in albums chronologically. I have all photos saved on CD's starting in 2001 when I got my first digital. I'm going to be sure the CD's are labeled with more detail as to what's on them so I can find what I'm looking for quicker. It's a daunting task. I'll be at it for the foreseeable future! Next project for blog: The Remodel. Will upload before and after pics in 2005 of our 3-month remodel project of our home here in Mo. Falls.

Blessings to you,

Kim

Photo of the Day--Mel

A really good pic of my sissy, Mel. This was taken, oh, about 2002??? Can't remember what file I found it in yesterday. Some folks think we look a lot alike. She's two years younger than me. The person in the world most "kin" to me! And I love her with all my heart!!

Mel got her masters in Clinical Psychology from ASU a couple of years ago and is now working at the prison .....hmmmm....it's up in the high country, Avery County, I believe. Anyway, she loves the work, is very rewarded by it.

Sandy (Hayes) told the funniest story the other night at Olivia's opening: said that they'd pulled up to the prison to pick up Mel, and Sandy was like, OMG, Mel actually does work at a prison!! Sandy saw the fence with the barbed wire dressing it, she saw the guards with guns and the tower and it just hit her where Mel works! It might intimidate us but she really enjoys her work. And I happy for her!!

If you do what you love--you'll never work a day in your life! Who said that???

Photo of the Day

A favorite photo of our Miss O

Taken while at Carova, NC June 2007

Gabby

GABBY









In June, Olivia says she desperately NEEDS a dog companion while away at school and her Great Dane Bella was way over the weight limit at her apartment. She goes to the shelter and isn't captivated by any and decides to wait on fate. Sure enough, as it aways does, fate had the perfect pet for her. Olivia and I were at the vets with one of our other furry friends and we just mentioned that we were looking for a small dog. They had just received four puppies from the pound that the pound couldn't put down and no one at the vet's had mustered up the necessary gumption to do it either. They brought all four of the pups in and Olivia picked Gabby mostly because I said she seemed the calmest. (Huh! Boy, was I fooled!)






These first two were taken within just a couple of days of acquiring her while we were at the beach (Carova) in June of 2007. Her personality was evident!!





















And this was Gabby at Christmas 07. She is a MESS!!!! She's of unknown for sure lineage but she looks like a mix of some sort of Welsh Corgi, Jack Russell and Rat Terrier. Her ears are huge! And stick straight up. Not in this pic though. Gotta get one of that.
















This was also at Christmas 07. Gabby must have been taken from her mom's teat too young! She sucks on a thump or finger to fall asleep. She's sucking O's finger here. Weird, I know. But it is sweet! It'll calm her right down too. Gabby's very hyper, lots of energy and gets very excited when anyone new comes in.

Also at Christmas. Mama with three babies loving on her.






I keep telling Olivia that she can leave Gabby with us anytime. She always says NO, mama, you can't have my dog! I'd take her in a minute! She's my granddog.

Bryson

BRYSON




After losing Bella in July, 2007, in an attempt to fill the vast void she left in our lives, we contacted the Mid-Atlantic Great Dane Rescue League and after a rather arduous application process and were finally approved, we brought Bryson home for a trial run. We became extremely attached to him--especially Olivia and me.





















He's a beautiful harlequin, very large, he weighed in at 140.





























Intimidating, huh?













Typical evening at the Shumates! That's Bryson, Zoe and Gabby relaxing with Mama.









Much to our disappointment, we were unable to keep Bryson. Did he EVER have issues with strangers! And he was so very, very large that I was actually afraid of him. Grant was too. When someone came knocking on the door, he just went nuts! Ferociously barking and growling and I could not contain him to my satisfaction. We had him over a month and that was certainly long enough to get very attached to him. After Jug was home for Christmas he helped me to see we just couldn't keep him. We couldn't have such a large animal that would could not completely trust. We miss you Bryson!






We actually tried another Great Dane after Bryson that also didn't work out. He was fine with strangers--he just had a problem with the other pets. After he attacked Zoe and the fight required after-afters stitches for poor, very traumatized Zoe, we returned him also.






Then Jug said what I needed to hear: Kim, you have two good dogs, Rosie and Zoe. You're looking for a GREAT dog. A Bella, a Max. When he put it to me like that, I knew I needed to stop trying to replace dogs that can't be replaced. I also realized we were/are financially responsible for six animals (our three and O's three) and that's just enough!

Zoe, Rosie, Bob, Atticus and Callie

Zoe and Rosie

Rosie's (on the right) been with us 11 years this month. She was a stray of unknown breed that my friend Ellen Royal and I found as a very tiny puppy walking one day when we still lived at the lake. She's good and loyal companion. Zoe, acquired from a breeder, started out being Grant's dog but she's very attached to me. We call Zoe Idiot Dog most of the time. She is very strange--all there is to it! Very neurotic. Sneaky, got to watch her ALL the time or she's in the trash or having an accident. She's looking at me sheepishly in this photo. I took it this morning and she knew she was "in the dog house" because the little sh-t peed on the carpet this morning and I had put her out and hadn't yet let her back into my good graces!!

Olivia's Atticus

Jug calls him Henry. She named him after To Kill a Mockingbird's Atticus--she loves that book. A very good cat. He's who exposed Jug and me to feline friends. We'd never been cat people until Atticus. We're now a member of the People Who Love Cats Club!!

Our Bob

My friend Lisa Factor calls me up one day about two years ago and says--now, Kim, you know you can say no to me, right? Yep, I can. Well, you're not looking for a cat pet, are you? And sure enough, I was! After Jug and I saw how wonderful a cat can be --having Atticus here when O was home from school, I was actually looking for a good cat. Olivia and I had been to the shelter in Asheville twice and I had left empty handed because I was waiting for the perfect one! Lisa and her family had just acquired a new puppy, a Maltese, I think, and as a puppy, she was extremely tiny--like a good sized mouse and their cat, my Bob, their Shadow, thought she was prey! Lisa said she couldn't relax for fear Bob would eat their new baby!! I said, yeah, bring him over. Best cat that EVER was! He is absolutely perfect! He's indoor/outdoor which I love because he rarely uses the litter box. He's very affectionate, climbing up onto mine or Jug's lap daily to snooze. He's vocal too. Talks to us all the time. A truly great cat!! And no, Lisa, you can't have him back!!

Isn't Bob just regal?

This is Callie. Another of Olivia's cats. She was also a pound kitty. She's a Siamese mix. Olivia acquired her because she thought Atticus needed a companion. Callie had been completely de-clawed which I think is the most cruel thing you can do to a cat! She's completely defenseless and can never go outside. Recently, Olivia's friend, Aly has taken Callie on. We are just about pet poor and Olivia had begun to feel a bit crowded in her one-bedroom since she got Gabby. How it continues to work out for Callie and Aly!!