Sunday, November 27, 2011

Thanksgiving 2011

The sights of Thanksgiving 2011....
(In no particular order.)

Cole with a big ol' Florida Grasshopper-bug!   I remember seeing these when I was a kid...I usually encountered them face-to-face when climbing a tree.


Cole, Ian and  Levi - sitting on the porch waiting for the dinner bell to ring.

Many a Hancock as passed the time of day on this front porch.
Cole enjoying a quiet moment with his book.
Courtney with her favorite pie!  (My Peppermint Chocolate pie tastes just like an Andes Candy. YUM!)
Me, sitting on the porch...the ceiling has ALWAYS been this bright blue.

Blake, after a fun day of golfing with the Neanderthals...their annual Thanksgiving week tradition.
Cole checking out the sandhill cranes at the golf course.
Golfing Goobers!!!!!  All we need now is the Dancing Gopher from Caddie Shack!

Ian...who finished the first draft of his novel while we are visiting FL.  A change of scenary must be good for the creative soul.
Mama, Wilbur, and David....with their Thanksgiving meal aftermath.
Blake's artsy photo of some moss early in the morning.
Mama with her hairiest grandchild...Riley.  He just snuggled up to her, sat down and smiled for the camera.









Mama with some of her grandkids....Levi, Courtney, Ian, Cole....and Riley.


Levi, Mama, and David.
Cole, Blake, Me, Ian...and Riley, of course.
Gary, Courtney and Carol with Mama.
Connie and Johnnie with Mama.

And me, with my dear big brothers, Gary, Johnnie, David, and Mama.

The Hancock Family Thanksgiving annual photo.


I'm so thankful for my family. 

Saturday, November 5, 2011

Unto Us A Child Is Born!

The Advent Banners for FBCLS are finally done. Wahoo!
This definitely was a looong term project. I mentioned it in my 'Goals' post back in January, and started collecting the fabrics. Over the last several months I've enlarged the pattern & drafted it onto the fusible. and I'm so happy to say that it's finally finished as of yesterday...November 4th. It wasn't a HARD project, but at times, very tedious. My favorite part about it are the fabrics. The bright fabrics just really sing! I love it.

I have to give a HUGE thanks to Sherry H. and Vickie T. for helping with the cutting out of all those pieces. We had a lot of fun at our impromptu Saturday night 'cutting party'! AND a SUPER-GIANT Thank You to Pam for helping me during our marathon assembly day yesterday. Our brains work well together, and together we got 'er done in our "Shake an' Bake" style of quilting/crafting & sewing.... 'I helped!'.








UPDATE - Dec. 21st....  Each Sunday of Advent a different banner has been brought in by the family who does the Advent Reading/Candle lighting.  Its really been lovely seeing the banners displayed in our Worship Center.  But they were displayed separately - not as a group.  BUT  on Christmas Eve our congregation will finally see them assembled together into one and here's a sneak peak....




I am thrilled beyond words to have these banners in our church. 
I had fun making them, but to God be the glory!

Friday, November 4, 2011

Halloween 2011

Our Halloween was pretty low-key this year. The boys are getting older, I didn't have a lot of time to invest in sewing major costumes, and money is tight as usual...so the boys pretty much came up with their own costumes. Easy on the wallet, and easy for everyone involved.

Ian is Leonard, a nerdy character from the tv show 'Big Bang Theory". He greased his hair back, wore an old pair of Blake's glasses (with no lenses), and imitated Leonard's nasally voice perfectly. He even had the fidgeting mannerisms. Good job Ian! (BBT is one of the boys' absolute favorite shows.)



Cole is a weird Redneck Goober. Sometimes he turned the beard around to hang behind his head & had a 'mullet' look going. All in all - a fun, easy costume. No major hassles to make or wear. Wahoo!

Alex is a Ninja! Pam did a GREAT job of using just t-shirts on this outfit. The 'mask' is a t-shirt with the sleeves tied behind his head. The grey 'vest' is a t-shirt with the sleeves tucked up. A little red fabric - sash. And a little red ribbon adds some nice color highlights to the costume.


Bella Comes to Visit

Bella has come to visit us.


Bella is a tiny little dog...that doesn't know she's a dog. Riley is handling this visit like...well, like Riley handles everything. He's says 'Okay. That's cool. Just love me and feed me, and I deal with it.' He's shared his toys ...but she has torn a few of them up. (Rude guest doggie!) And he's shared his bed....she sneaked up there. And he's even given her a bed. But Bella still doesn't know she's a dog.



Bella had the pleasure of being with us on Halloween....
Can you find her in the picture? Usually Riley ends up in the Halloween picture with Ian and Cole, but not this year.


Bella feels safe and secure...if she's in Blake's arms.
Every time he leaves the house, she worries, whines, frets, runs around frantically, and howls. Despite trying to comfort and calm her, she howls...and we laugh because it sounds like Riley on helium! (See the video on Facebook. It's hysterical...Ian and Bella howling!)

Bella is tiny. Technically, She's a miniature dachshund. That means even in the little-dog world, she's short! I actually measured her legs....and
I don't think she's really a wienie dog...I think she's a COCKTAIL Wienie Cheesedoodle!

Bella likes to play. If it makes a squeaky sound, shes on top of it. She doesn't run, she ZOOMS! Like "Speedy Gonzales" - she instantly arrives.


While Bella is here, she's had to learn a few lessons...
* Dogs do not sleep on the bed with people.
* Dogs are not allowed on the furniture.
And most of all...
* DOG DO NOT GET ON THE TABLE and STEAL FOOD!!! BIG no-no. I bopped her little hiney for that tonight and hurt her feelings. Here she is hiding in Bobbin's 'cat box'. Bobbin usually sleeps here...but has temporarily abandoned it due to Bella-contamination issues.

Bella's visit has taught us a few things like...
* We are not little dog people. We like BIG dogs. If I trip over Riley and fall down on him, he pads my fall and doesn't get hurt. (Yes, this has happened...more than once!) I wouldn't want to see that happen with Bella. *Shudder!*
* Camping with a big dog gives you a safe, secure feeling. Riley's deep serious bark could warn away bears, coyotes, and wild hogs. Bella = bait. 'Nuff said.
* Riley's easy going ways and good manners have us completely spoiled.
He knows the rules and fits in. He's a dog and knows his place, but
also is completely loved and adored by our family.
* Visitors are nice, but they need to learn the household rules...
and NOT leave 'doggie doodles' on the carpet!

So whiles she's here, we'll love her and take good care of her, try to teach her some manners and most of all - educate her that she is a D-O-G DOG.