Spring Has Sprung !

Not sure that it's quite official yet, but it appears spring has finally sprung in south Louisiana !

Yes, I fully realize that spring doesn't "officially" begin until April.

But, in my mind, two things dispute that.

(1)  Our weather lately has been glorious!  Just a few short weeks ago, we were experiencing lows in the 20s and highs in the 40s in the Baton Rouge area.

I hate winter...

But shotly after Punxatawney Phil (the famous groundhog) came out of his hole on a cloudy day in Gobbler's Knob, Pennsylvania, it appears his forecast for an early spring has sprung to life !

The past week or so has brought temps into the mid to upper 70s during the days - and a few days already in which the mercury has topped the 80 degree mark.

I love it - I simply LOVE it!  And I'll love it even more when the temperatures begin approaching and topping 90 degrees. 

Really !

(2) Baseball season has begun!

At least the collegiate baseball season has begun, and LSU is already 4 games into its 2011 season!

(And for the record, as of this writing, LSU is 4-0 and looking strong)!

Opening weekend for LSU Baseball saw beautiful weather, and more than 30,000 fans paid to witness the Tigers' weekend series with Wake Forest at LSU's Alex Box Stadium !

Among those in attendance on Sunday were my daughter Allyson, son-in-law Jimmy, and two of their three sons Randy and Tanner.

Their number 3 son, Carson, was at our home keeping me and My Better Half company for the day!

Judging from the pictures transmitted from the game by Allyson - Randy and Tanner enjoyed the sunshine, the baseball, and the concession stand!



The boys even got to run the bases following the game, a Sunday tradition at LSU baseball games. 

And even though Tanner got slightly "misplaced" on the field for a short time, they each got to experience a perspective of the game that not many get a chance to enjoy!

And I'm sure that, at least in Randy's 7 year-old mind, the experience brought about visions of one day playing on that very same field as an LSU Tiger!!



Randy rounding second base; Tanner on his way from 1st to 2nd


And I can assure you, I want to be there to see that !!

Until next time ...

Odds -n- Ends

It's been an interesting week, to say the least, around our family!

Where to begin...?

Well, our 5 year-old grandson, Conner, ended up at the hospital with pneumonia at the end of last week.

A HORRIBLE cough, temperature of 104 degrees, and having trouble breathing.

Nothing is as pitiful as a sick child.

And when it's one of your own - whether it's your child or your grandchild - it hurts your heart to see them in pain.

Doesn't this picture just break your heart? 

Well it breaks mine!

But Conner recovered like we knew he would, and by Sunday his fever was back to near-normal levels, his appetitie was coming back, and his hacking cough was beginning to subside.

Just in time for his big sister, Kaleigh's, 8th birthday party!

Kaleigh was born on February 14, 2003 in Minden, Louisiana.

Yes, our very first grandchild was born on Valentine's Day !

That will also tug on your heart strings...!

So, we celebrated her 8th birthday with a family party at her house.

Complete with a "High School Musical" birthday cake!

Of course, Kaleigh's brother Conner and sister Kyndal, as well as cousins Randy, Tanner and Carson were all on hand to help celebrate!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, KALEIGH !!

So, after the party was over with, we all went back to our respective homes to wrap up another Sunday and get ready to start another week.

Sounds pretty normal, right??

And it was.

Until we got a phone call around 8:30 on Sunday night from Kaleigh's mother.

Our daughter, Jennifer.

Who informed us - in a rather harried state of panic - that she had broken her finger!

She was attempting to put pieces of a baby bed into her attic.

But being the klutz that she is - and has ALWAYS been - she somehow managed to fall.

From the top step of the ladder leading into the attic.

To the hallway floor 10 feet below. 

Well, a broken finger doesn't sound all that bad.

Right??

That's what we thought...

Until she sent us the picture.

Don't look at this picture if you're queasy about seeing gross stuff.

It's not a pretty sight.

So, you've been warned.

Here it is...

I told you it wasn't pretty !

As it turned out, it wasn't broken at all...

It was merely dislocated.

Like that's any consolation to the girl with a finger pointing almost due west when it normally points north !

Anyhoo... 3 hours later - following a trip to the emergency room, where a series of X-rays confirmed that nothing was broken - the medical personnel distracted her and yanked her finger back into place.

OUCH!!!

And it looked like this:

(I'm guessing Jennifer will be more upset that I showed a picture of a less-than-appealing manicure than the fact that I showed you a finger that looks like something you would see in a freak-show at a county carnival).

I'm sorry, Jennifer.

Really I am !! 

But all is well now.

Her finger is still swollen, of course.

And very, very sore.

But it's pointing north again!

So she's got that going for her...

Which is nice.

So, those were the highlights of our week.

How was yours ??

Until next time....



Winter!

So much for "global warming", Al Gore...!

Winter is here - and I don't like it.

Don't like anything about it.

Nothing, I tell you - absolutely NOTHING!

It is currently 29 degrees here in South Louisiana.

Yes, I realize it's MUCH colder in the midwest and other parts of the country.

Like Chicago, where my niece, Emily, is attending graduate school and sent me this picture she took from her apartment.

But I don't care.

I don't live in the midwest or other parts of the country.

The temperature is expected to get down to the low 20s in Baton Rouge the next two nights.

And our highs will only reach into the mid-40s.

Which, for us die-hard Southerners, is cold.

Real cold !

The good news is that, by Monday, our high is expected to be 70 again.

Much better !

But I'm still anxiously awaiting the really warm weather...

No, make that HOT weather!

I'm ready for summer!

The hot, sticky, nasty, humid "dog days" of summer.

My kind of weather.

Golf weather !

Look for me at Greystone Golf and Country Club.

That's where I'll be once things finally thaw out around here.

And it can't get here soon enough for me!

Until next time....