First comes love, then comes marriage, then comes...

a TURTLE?! A short, stumpy thing with a big head, fat tummy, and little nubs for arms and legs? That's exactly what we saw on the screen... and it's inside of me!

Yes, we are expecting. As of now, we're not exactly sure what we're expecting, but the doc says it's a baby, due July 21, 2010. Today marks 10 weeks, and we're currently calling our offspring "Turtle-Bean". Since it's almost Christmas, we thought we'd send you all a special greeting from the fam! Happy Holidays!

A word to the wise... Never ride with or near a Smotherman!

Since mid-August, Richard and I have collectively witnessed 4 car accidents, 2 of them within 12 hours of each other. I don't know if we just drive too often or on too dangerous of roads, but I had never witnessed an accident since these began!

The first one was about 5 miles away from our house on a 6 lane road with a middle turn lane. It was raining and there was a lot of traffic. We were heading North-bound in the traffic. A little red Honda was sitting in the center turn lane facing South-bound. As we began moving, we watched a black Toyota sedan drift from the left South-bound lane into the center turn lane, without signaling. We then watched the Toyota continue moving, braking only when within a few feet of the North-facing Honda. It was too late... there was crunching metal and I was yelling, "WHAT WAS THAT PERSON THINKING?!" We turned around and went back with ponchos on to check on the drivers. The Honda was being driven by a slightly crazed woman who kept saying, "I should have stayed in the pet store a little bit longer! I can't believe this happened!" over and over. The Toyota was driven by a petite elderly woman who had be defrosting her windshield with her hand while changing lanes and claimed, "That woman just came into my lane." Hopefully she doesn't have her license anymore.

The second one was about 2 miles from our house near a 45 degree turn in the road. We were heading South-bound at about 10:00 on a Friday night 2 weeks ago. I heard a screeching sound and saw a pick up truck coming around the turn North-bound. The truck jumped over the curb and ran head-on into the corner of an office building. The impact flipped it sideways, with the driver's side laying on the ground. We pulled over and immediately called 911, watching the driver and passenger climb out of the passenger window, unharmed. While we waited to talk to the cops, we noticed they were both wearing wrist bands and acting like they were in a daze. The girl lit a cigarette off of one lying on the ground that was still burning. (I assume she dropped the other one during the accident.) Long story short, the guy ended up with a DUI... and I got a phone call from his insurance company the other day. We've been playing phone tag, but I can't WAIT to talk to them about what we saw!

The third accident happened the very next morning, at the entrance to our neighborhood. (Notice they keep getting closer and closer to home?) As we were waiting to pull out, we watched a driver pull out from a gas station at about 5 mph to cross 2 lanes of traffic going 45 mph. He's lucky all it ended up being was a fender bender. After we waited for 30 minutes for the cops to show up, we ended up giving the other driver our information and leaving.

The fourth accident was witness just this evening by Richard. He was driving home from work and was about 5-6 miles from home. Heading East-bound in the center of three lanes, he saw a car about 1/4 mile ahead driving in the right lane with its left turn signal on. As Richard approached, the turn signal was still on, but the car was not changing lanes. Then, just when Richard reached the car, he decided to TURN LEFT (not change lanes, but TURN PERPENDICULAR) to cross over 2 lanes! Richard slammed on his brakes to avoid an accident, but the car in the lane next to him T-boned the driver's side door.

I don't know why we keep ending up witnessing accidents, but if you decide to ride with or near us in traffic, please proceed with caution!

"You want to put that thermometer WHERE?"

We took Rubix to the vet at 8am this morning. Fortunately, they take walk-ins. She had her temperature taken (not fun!) and that checked out fine. The vet then explained to us that she needed to shave the hair from around the wound, flush it out to sterilize it, and then put an antibiotic ointment in and around the puncture. Rubix came back to us looking a little bit different. She now has a "summer cut" and we can keep an eye on the wound (and find it a lot more easily)!

We were told that it was very important that we make sure the wound stays open and heals from the inside out. Dogs apparently are able to heal quickly, but with bite punctures like this one, bacteria can be closed up inside when it scabs over and an infection may develop. We were given both a topical and an oral antibiotic to administer twice daily. Rubix is doing just fine, showing off her "tough dog club" initiation wound like a pro!

Hole in One... One Rubix, that is.

Richard and I were so excited to take Rubix and her Poppa and Momma Smotherman to the dog park tonight! She was goofing off with several different dogs, enjoying herself as usual. We all were laughing at their antics, taking pleasure in watching her socialize with her dog pals.

After about 10 minutes at the park a fluffy, spotted dog trotted into the group from across the way. I mentioned to Richard that her hair was raised near her tail. This usually indicates the dog is about to show some aggression. Seconds after I said that, the dog was showing its teeth and began snarling and attacking Rubix.

Poor Rubix tried to fight back, but was unable to get the dog off of her. Richard and I began yelling and ran toward the two dogs. He tried getting between them and breaking the fight up, but they were traveling across the park. He pushed the other dog with his leg, giving Rubix the ability to fight back a bit.

Finally, the owner of the dog ran up and grabbed her off of Rubix. He held her down, trying to calm her down. Rubix walked over to the gate and I started looking over her for injuries. At first, I didn't see anything. Then, the other dog's owner said his dog had blood on her teeth and he didn't think it was hers. I looked again around her collar and this is what I found:

That dog bit Rubix and left a puncture wound on her neck! I was so angry and worried. We drove Rubix home and I cried the whole way. She didn't whimper or whine at all. In fact, for most of the car ride, she was hanging out the window.

When we got home, Candace and Richard took her outside and cleaned the wound out with soapy water and peroxide. Then, they put Neosporin on it. She didn't seem bothered at all. Our puppy is quite the trooper! We're going to take her to the vet first thing in the morning to find out what all we need to do for her. We just hope it won't get infected and she won't be in any pain.

Rubix tries to read!

Richard and I have been trying to leave Rubix alone in the house outside of her crate this summer. We're hoping we can get her to the point that she can have the house to herself while we're gone, so she's not cooped up all day during the school year.

In the past, we've just given her the kitchen, and she was fine for 30 minutes, 1 hour, and 3 hours. Then, we tried 5 hours and she ruined a whicker 4 drawer chest we had in the kitchen. No worries, though... it wasn't worth much and we wanted to get rid of it anyway.

So, today I tried leaving her with free rein of the house while I ran a few errands. I unplugged electrical cords within reach, picked up shoes and expensive items off the floor, and placed out the 3 things she's allowed to chew on: her tennis ball, squishy football, and her rubber Kong filled with treats. 45 minutes later, when I arrived home, the kitchen was still intact and my beautiful, innocent puppy greeted me cheerfully at the door.

As I glanced up the stairs to the living room, however, I quickly learned her innocence was short lived. In the 45 minutes that I was gone, she had managed to grab one of my library books off the end table, and had torn it to shreds! I was so mad... but found some delight in realizing that she at least had the decency to leave me the last 1/3 of the book that I hadn't finished. So, I'll be finishing my torn book in the next day or so, and returning the mangled pieces along with $26.00 to the public library!

Oh, the joys of having a dog with a desire to read! I'll certainly be leaving library books out of her reach from now on.

We are FAM-I-LY!

On Saturday morning when Richard and I were trying to decide what to do for the day, I was browsing her site. I found this really great link to a coupon from the Picture People photography studio! We found that there was one about 30 minutes away from us, so we called and made an appointment to come have our "family" portraits made. Richard and I have very few pictures of us together, and none with Rubix.

Our appointment was for 8:00pm. We got there early so we could find where the store was in the mall. Richard picked Rubix up and carried her like a baby through the food court. I have never seen so many people ooohing and aaaahing over a dog in my life! We patiently sat for about 15 minutes waiting for our shoot to start. Rubix was so good! She just sat there and looked around while people walked by in the mall.

When the actual shoot started, she was so nervous. She walked over to the backdrop and laid down in front of it. We had to pose her from that position a few times. The photographer was great! She worked with us and let us have a say in our photos. Rubix had her tail between her legs in a few of the pictures, but that just got cropped out. About 1/2 an hour later, we had 20 something photos to look at. They printed them on location, so we walked out with what we paid for!

Here are the 3 shots we ended up with:

1 year and counting...

We have officially been married a year today! What a great

relationship we've built over the last 2 years... and plan to continue

building throughout our lives.

This picture was taken in June 2007, about a month into our

relationship. My, how we've changed already!

On Friday night, Richard and I went on a dinner cruise near downtown

Tampa. We had a lovely dinner, watched a few people cut a rug or

two, and enjoyed watching the sun set over downtown. Here are

some pictures! God has blessed us so much and continues to bless

us more and more every day!

My left leg is shorter than my right leg!

... and I thought it all ended with the kissing knees! The latest and greatest in the news about my strange body is that my left leg is shorter than my right. According to my physical therapist, Cristina, I am only this way because of this gigantic knot in the lower left of my back. The muscles are really tight there, and this has contributed greatly to the pain my right knee. I can only conclude that the left back/hip area and right knee work together cross-laterally.

So, after two days of therapy (with at least 4 more to go), I've learned a few things I need to change. I have a few bad habits that have to be worked on:

1) No more sleeping in the lower "h" position. Up until now, I routinely slept on my right side with my left leg bent, crossed over my straightened right leg, with my left knee resting on the bed. Now, I have to sleep with my legs straight or slightly bent, with a pillow between my knees.

2) No more hunching over. I have horrible posture, and sitting up straight is exactly what I need to do to get rid of this pain in my back, which is causing the pain in my knee.

3) No more bending at the waist. I have to do more squatting to get things out of the dishwasher, car, or anything low.

I'm looking forward to going for my remaining PT sessions. Hopefully we'll get this problem fixed before it gets worse!

We give thanks to God always for all of you...

God surely has blessed Richard and I! He has surrounded us with good people we can call our friends. Not a day goes by that we don't thank the Lord for our good Christian friends. We are strengthened and encouraged when we spend time together with them. It's easier to do what is right.

As Paul wrote to the Thessalonians, "We give thanks to God always for all of you.."

Thank you for your constant uplifting, the spiritual talk, and just altogether fun! We love you all.

Pay it Forward

First of all, I'm pretty proud that I was able to copy BOTH of these videos onto our blog in the first place... those high school html coding classes sure paid off (and they were FREE)! :)

Second, I'd like to share a short story about how Richard and I were told to "pay it forward".  If you've not heard the phrase before, I believe it comes from a movie called "Pay it Forward" (watch the first video and it will explain it a bit better).  It's the idea that you help someone else out and instead of asking for payment in return, just tell them to help someone else by "paying it forward".  The second video just shows a Liberty Mutual bank commercial that goes along with the idea of the movie.

Anyway... we went to a local ice cream joint we hadn't been to before last night.  We ordered our ice cream, and I got out my debit card to pay for it.  The girl frowned and said, "We only take cash."  (This is the second time in 2 days that we've had issues paying for food!) We offered to give the ice cream back, but she told us we could eat the ice cream, then go get the money and bring it back by 10pm, when they closed.  We sat down to eat our ice cream in an area near another couple and Richard went to check for money in the car.  He found $2.00 in change.  We needed $4.00.  As we sat discussing how we were going to pay for the ice cream, the couple finished theirs and left.  

Shortly afterward, a car pulled up close to where we were sitting and the woman of the couple walked over to us.  She said, "I heard you saying you needed $2.00.  Here you go," and handed us $2.00 in quarters.  I said, "Oh, no no no... You don't need to do that.  We were going to run to the bank or back home."  She responded, "Oh, don't worry about it.  Just pay it forward."  We both were surprised by the generosity of this complete stranger, and inspired.  It's a shame most people are so focused on themselves that we're surprised when people actually do nice things.  So, I'm going to find at least one other person to do something for in the next few days and just tell them to "pay it forward".  You should do the same.

Here's my debit card... want the pin number too?

We went to Shane's Rib Shack for dinner with a few friends tonight. The line was moving a little slow, and Amy said the credit card machine wasn't working. She said the lady was writing down people's credit card information to use later. This made both of us uncomfortable, so we were trying to come up with a way we could avoid it. I don't especially like strangers having my debit card information sitting around. Since I only ever use my debit card for purchases, I didn't happen to have any cash on me. Richard suggested writing a check.

When it was my turn to order, I asked the cashier if they took checks. She looked puzzled. "Ummm... that's a good question. I'm not sure. Let me ask," she replied, somewhat haltingly. She knocked on a small door between the cash register and the kitchen and a man's head appeared shortly thereafter. "Do we take checks?" she asked him. He looked at her and then at me, with the most perplexed expression on his face. "Do we take checks?... Ummmmm... I don't see... why not?" was his response.

I was glad I wasn't going to have to set myself up for a potential identity theft, and wrote the check. The total was $13.45 and I had no trouble writing out the dollar amount in number form. It was the written out form that caused me some trouble. I hastily wrote the check, feeling pressure to move quickly as the line was growing behind me. On the line I wrote, "Thirteen forty-five and..." OOPS! I crossed out the forty-five, initialed it, and wrote "45/100". Since I only ever use checks for church contributions and VOIDing to give bank routing information for automatic deposits and withdrawals, I was sadly unprepared for this moment... not to mention, slightly embarrassed.

I am grateful that I am of the credit card generation, but sad to say that my check writing skills are slowly waning. With internet, credit cards, and cell phones, our children will probably be very limited in their hand writing and grammar skills! They'll laugh when I say we once wrote with pencil and paper, rather than typing everything out. Writing fine motor skills are bound to vanish completely! What is our world coming to?

Cupcakes and Baking

For my birthday, Richard got me this AMAZING book of cupcake creations. It's chock full of neat off-the-wall ideas for making cupcakes that will wow everyone. They truly are works of art. Richard referred to this gift as the "least exciting" of my birthday gifts. However, I spent 15-20 minutes poring over the pages and saying, "WOW!" every few seconds. Needless to say... it was the perfect gift! I bought a bunch of sprinkles, cupcake liners, cake mix and icing recently. If I create anything worth showing, I'll be sure to take pictures and post them.

I also just discovered that they have their own website and a BLOG where other cupcake fanatics can post their creations! This is definitely now a favorite!

They have an American Flag cupcake arrangement, but it requires 96 total cupcakes and a lot of candies to make. I'm considering making this for July 4th, instead. I love Kraftfoods.com and use many of the recipes, so I'm sure it won't disappoint. I don't think we have any plans for the 4th, so maybe I'll just make this and enjoy eating it while waving sparklers left over from our wedding in the air. Who knows?

My knees are kissing!

I went to an orthopedic doctor this morning to find out what's wrong with my right knee. It's been hurting since the beginning of May. In filling out all the paperwork to deduce the problem, I came to the following conclusion. I don't know the reason for my pain, which is the reason I made the appointment in the first place! I was only able to tell the doctor that I've moved into a multi-level condo, gotten a dog, and just finished my first year of teaching 2nd grade.

After several rounds of paperwork (which I'm not sure anyone even read, because I had to keep telling them information that was already written down in at least 2 places), x-rays, and at least an hour of waiting room time, I was FINALLY taken back to a room.

I filled in the doctor on what I had told everyone else on the way back. He had me stand on my tip toes, heels, then left and right foot while atop a small step stool. I then had to step down as slowly as possible from the step stool to the floor on my left and right foot. After this, he had me sit on the edge of the patient bed and push away from the pressure he placed on my shins, calves, and then inside and outside of my lower legs. I was sure I was performing very well on this test!

With his thick German accent, Dr. H stated that I was right to think that the house, dog, and teaching were the source of my problem. Then, he explained a little bit more...

THE PROBLEMS

1) When I stood on one foot, it was completely flat on the ground. He gestured toward my flip flops and said, "Those are the worst things for you." In Florida, flip flops are convenient and necessary! This was a disappointment.

2) My knees, according to Dr. H, like each other too much. He said that when I walk, I should set my foot down and my knee should naturally follow in a straight line behind my foot. However, my knees "kiss" each other. When I stepped down from the step stool, he was watching the foot/knee stepping relationship. He said because of this kissing knee problem, my knee/thigh bone joint was being treated as a rotating joint rather than a hinge joint. If untreated, this would erode the cartilage behind my knee and lead to arthritis.

THE SOLUTIONS

1) Ice the knee 3 times a day for 20 minutes at a time.

2) Take 3 ibuprofen 3 times a day.

3) Go to Physical Therapy 3 times a week to build up the thigh muscles near my hips to gain control over my knees.

4) Wear sneakers or flat shoes with some orthopedic inserts they're going to give me.

5) Come back for a follow-up visit in 4 weeks.

It sure is good that I have the summer off and can go to PT 3 times a week without trouble! Hopefully 4 weeks from now, I'll be better than my usual self. Richard's been calling me his old young wife. If you think about it, please pray this is an easily solved problem!

I'm back in the game!

The summer is here... which means school is out and I (Ashley) have tons of extra time to clip coupons (which I haven't done in quite a while).

Tonight was BY FAR the best CVS trip I've ever had. Richard came with me for what I assured him would be a quick, profitable trip... and BOY was it!

Here's what I got (with store prices)

$12.00... Soy Joy Bars - 12 @ $1.00/ea.

$ 6.99... Revlon Mascara - 1 @ $6.99

$ 6.99... Revlon Eye Liner - 1 @ $6.99

$13.99... Almay Foundation - 1 @ $13.99

$39.97... Total Before Tax

And how much did I pay?? $1.62!!!! and I got $10 Extra Care Bucks (money to spend at CVS on anything in the store) and a coupon for $5 off a purchase of $25 or in the next month. So, since I got back $15 in coupons, that means I made $13.38 on this trip. I am just GIDDY!

We're Moving!

On March 28th, we're moving about 5 minutes west of our current abode.  Yes, we're losing our access to the longest uninterrupted sidewalk, parades, and a gorgeous view from the 8th floor overlooking the Bay.  However, we are nearly doubling our space in square footage, gaining a washer and dryer, an extra bedroom and 1/2 bath!  YAY!  

Here are some pictures:

Back entrance (ours is the gate in front of the white car)

Eat-in Kitchen!!!! (view from back door)

L to R: Washing Machine in Kitchen, Stairs up to Living area, Pantry

View of Kitchen from stairs

Living Room (view from top of stairs from kitchen)

Front of Condo

Further away, but not our condo (just gives you an idea)

Back inside, view of living room from front door

1 of 2 bedrooms (on top level)