Shoes

I was lazy tonight. My camera battery died, and I didn't feel like waiting for it to charge. Apologies for the poor quality of my cell phone camera.

I've started walking again. Healthy Leigh, here I come!

My Sid

Jeep

So today, another phase is complete for my Jeep. New wheels and tires. I had trouble getting in after Sid added the lift. Now, I literally have to HOP in. Nevertheless, I love the transformation and look forward to more changes to come!

Dixie Gives Me the Silent Treatment

Dixie hates pictures. She'll stare into the camera until the very instant she expects the flash, and then smuggly turns her head. I love her anyway.

New MP3 Player

I finally got a new MP3 player. I thought I wanted an Ipod until I remembered it wouldn't work with Napster, and I couldn't live without Napster. So, I bought a Sony...I call it my S-Pod. I'm so very clever.

Unexpected Thunderstorm

I gathered up all of my hammock necessities - laptop, camera, Ipod, headphones, bottle of water, pillow. I forgot I had taken in the hammock, so I set all my goodies down and got the hammock back on it's stand. I gathered all of said goodies, climbed into the hammock, started my music, closed my eyes and heard....thunder...and saw....lightening...and felt....raindrops! All that work for nothing, thanks to an unexpected thunderstorm.

EDIT: Just wanted to add that this "unexpected thunderstorm" passed through with a vengence. 60 mph winds, blinding sheets of rain and 5 hours with no electricity.

View From My Hammock

I don't think the night could have been more perfect. The sun set so slow I thought it would be daylight forever and the stars chose to come out one by one. The wind thought it would be nice to rock me in the hammock and I was almost chilly...almost. I listened to music spill out of my headphones and the songs on my playlist provided the perfect soundtrack..."No you'll never be alone, when darkness comes I'll light the night with stars, hear my whispers in the dark." I will miss these summer nights.

To Kill A Mockinbird

I've decided to reread To Kill A Mockingbird for the first time in at least 10 years, and I've already fallen in love with it again. I'm only 11 chapters in, but I can't count on two hands the number of times I've laughed out loud or paused to ponder a beautiful line. What a masterpiece.

A few of my favorite quotes so far:

'You never really understand a person until you consider things from his point of view - until you climb into his skin and walk around in it.'
Atticus Finch

I wanted you to see what real courage is, instead of getting the idea that courage is a man with a gun in his hand. It's when you know you're licked before you begin but you begin anyway and you see it through no matter what. You rarely win, but sometimes you do.

Atticus Finch

"Mockingbirds don't do one thing but make music for us to enjoy. They don't eat up people's gardens, don't nest in corncribs, they don't do one thing but sing their hearts out for us. That's why it's a sin to kill a mockingbird."
Miss Maudie

Fresh Sheets!

Is there any better way to start a new week than sleeping on fresh sheets? So, they're wrinkled - who cares?

Napster Night

One of my favorite pastimes is diving deep into Napster, immersing myself into music. I love to find my favorite artists and then click on "other members like" and discover new bands I've never heard. Even more, I love finding types of music I'm not as familar with but that I love like opera and jazz. So tonight, as I lay in the hammock, I'm having a Napster night. After typing this blog entry, I'll join Sid for smores. Yum!

We had a date night tonight - dinner and movie, how original!

We both wanted to see Get Smart - me, because I love Steve Carrell - Sid, because he loves Anne Hathaway (and not for the same reasons I love Mr. Carrell!) The movie was okay, but mostly it was nice to snuggle with Sid and share movie popcorn (it was a cheat from my diet - it was a small - and it was delicious!)

Legacy Center Lunch

One of my favorite local hangouts is The Shops at Legacy in Plano. I don't know if it's the whole open air concept, or the live street music at night, or the fantastic restaurants, but I just love love love it! Today I met Amanda for lunch at Cafe Express and had such a great time!

Sunflowers at Dusk

On our hunt for the moon illusion, we drove down a dirt road (the road I took to break in the four wheel drive on my Jeep a couple of winters ago). I thought the sunflowers were especially beautiful with the darkening sky as their backdrop.

A Shiver in the Air Tonight

Sid and I don't watch a lot of TV, especially in the summer and thanks to the new DVR (where we can skip all the commercials and save precious time). My new summer evening ritual is swaying in the hammock, reading a book, and watching the sky turn from orange to deep dark blue. After the storms today, there was a chill in the air, especially this evening when I actually had to cover up. The moon was chillingly beautiful, but we had to run inside when the rain started again.

Moonlight

"Moonlight is sculpture." Nathaniel Hawthorne

Another Hiking Photo

I realize that today's pictures looks exactly like yesterdays. The reason? We hiked and hiked and hiked Saturday and today, and I never seemed to have my camera when we were doing anything else. Today, we played detective. Our Makenzie given nicknames were Detective Leigh-Leigh, Queen Makenzie, Detective Dixie and unfortunatley Sid was a man with no name. We were on the hunt to find Makenzie's dog, Duchess, who we pretended was lost but was actually happily swimming in the pond.

The rest of the afternoon was spent with my family - Randy and Cindy, my stepbrother Sam and Shelly, stepsister Deena and Brian, niece and nephew Jack and Kathleen, Grammy and Aunt Suzy. A great time was had by all!

Kenzie, Pups, and Frogs - Oh My!

Today, Kenzie, Dixie, Bear, Duchess, Sid and me went for several hikes on Nana and Papa's land. It started as a quest to catch bugs with her new bug discovery kit, but we quickly bored of that and simply enjoyed strolling on the trails through the trees.

Kenz is terrified of frogs but is otherwise a very brave little girl. One minute, she'd run ahead with the dogs with zero fear, but the next, she was running back to me with wide eyes, asking me all kinds of questions about little froggies (isn't it halarious that children think adults are walking encyclopedias?) Do they wait in the treetops to jump on our heads when we pass? Do they come out during the day time or only at night? Do they like to jump on people? Did I just hear a frog in the woods? I ended up having to carry her "in the forest" but she'd walk when we were out of the trees. Maybe she made the whole phobia up so she wouldn't have to walk any further?

Twilight

I actually took this picture on Saturday, not Friday. Friday, we traveled from Dallas to central Texas to visit my parents. We didn't get in until after 7, and we spent the evening sitting by the pond.

To justify my cheating, I did read this book all the way from Dallas. Amanda told me I HAD to read it, and was she ever right. It is so good, I'm like an addict - hiding in places no can find me so I can read just one more chapter.

Dream House

Mckinney has the coolest new development, inspired by Romanesque architecture and villages in Croatia. The houses are ridiculous, and once the development is complete, there will be restaurants, shopping, a hotel and boat rentals. We took a walk along the "lake" this evening. The sun was just starting to set and we pretended that the house in the background of the photo was ours. The picture doesn't do it justice. It's at least 10,000 SF and we counted 7 chimmneys. Just what we need!

Oh, The Summer Night

Oh, the summer night

Has a smile of light

And she sits on a sapphire throne.

~Barry Cornwall

My New Do

Today I said goodbye to my haircut of 2 or 3 years and said hello to a fresher look.

Wild and Crazy Monday Night

Cookie Crisp and Nashville Star. Look out!

Hammock Heaven

Sid and I splurged on a hammock this weekend and it's already proven it's worth. We spent two hours swaying in it last night, gazing at the perfectly clear starry sky (and three shooting stars). This afternoon, we took turns laying it and reading our books and watched the sunset this evening. I still feel like I'm swaying now as I type in bed.

Jeep Grows 2 1/2 Inches

Sid installed my 2.5 inch lift today, finally! More big changes to come...

Sunrise, Sunset

The sunset was gorgeous tonight!

Good Food, Good Movie, Great Friend

I met my sweet friend Amanda today for lunch and a movie- SATC finally! - at Studio Movie Grill, and she surprised me with a birthday gift, care package for the loss of Grandad AND potato soup with all the fixins!! Thank you, Amanda!

"I get by with a little help from my friends." - John Lennon

World's Best Latte

I had the best latte ever today from my favorite Starbucks in Mckinney. I took the first sip and instantly regretted getting a tall instead of a grande. Mmmmmm.....

Today We Celebrated My Grandad

We buried my Grandad today. He would have been 90 years old in July and he lived a long, beautiful life. My photo for today is the flower arrangement on his casket, but I'm also including a few photos Sid and I took last summer on a trip to Bandera, where we had a family cabin. Grandad wanted his grandchildren to have a special place away from the city where we could get mud on our clothes, dirt under our nails, and learn a true love of nature and God's critters. I believe it was his greatest accomplishment, especially since all four grandkids were baptized (most of us by him) in the Medina River. My most cherished memories are of the long summer days spent playing in the trees, catching lighting bugs, swimming in the Medina River, or sitting on the back porch watching for critters. I know I will always rememebr him in that sacred place, sitting in a chair on the front porch of the cabin, telling stories, waving to people as they pass, with a huge smile on his face.

This is the back entrance to the cabin where we would make Mom stop the car, and Randy and I would race up the hill and sneak in the back to surprise Granny and Grandad. Of course, they could hear us giggling and breaking branches all the way up the hill, but they always pretended to be surprised.

If there is a prettier river than the Medina in Texas, I've never seen it. We would jump from the rope swing, swim and tube for hours, but we always had to wait an excruciating hour after a meal for our food to settle.
I loved (and still do) this bridge, because it meant we were minutes away from the cabin and I loved seeing how high the river was. Many times, I saw the water over the bridge after a storm. One time in particular, it was so high that Grandad had to evacuate us the back way. With me on his shoulders, he walked through muddy water hip deep. I remember that I wasn't scared, but sad that it was time to go home. We also loved swimming backwards against the current, trying to make it back on the slippery concrete.

I'm sure I'll be posting many more photos this summer.

Grandad's Song

God's Family was my Grandad's favorite hymn.

Vitamin D

Sid and I got some much needed Vitamin D today by taking the top of the Jeep and driving around for a bit. Nothing like sunshine to lift the spirits.