Let's Talk Turkey...

Okay, so on any given day while Cleo is at work, this is what our yard and the woods surrounding it look like...full of turkeys. And yet as soon as he gets home, camos up and heads into the woods to hunt turkey they amazingly disappear! Turkey season officially opened on March 21st and Cleo has diligently tried to call in a turkey and kill one without resorting to sitting on the back porch and just shooting one at the feeder. Several weeks before the season opened, we headed to the sporting goods' store, got him a turkey call thingamajig and he has been practicing (in the house while I'm trying to read or watch tv!) his turkey calls. He has read up on the internet and had coffee at the local waffle house with several old locals and tried to get all the ins and outs of successfully calling in a turkey and yesterday late in the afternoon it all paid off for him. He was like a little kid who shot something for the first time with his new BB gun when he came walking onto the back porch with his prize over his shoulder and a really big grin on his face...PRICELESS!! I was so excited for him...and we both figured that since he's been feeding them corn all winter it was only fair that he kill at least one of them. He said it was such a rush to call one in and actually get a shot at it.

Cleos' first turkey kill of the 2009 season

This wasn't the biggest Tom we have seen, but he was pretty good size. He had beautiful feathers.

So now that he's figured it out, I'm sure he will be out every night after work and on the weekends trying to do it again and get another one. He doesn't hunt just to kill anything but more for the sport of it. He has gotten pretty "soft" in his old age and he would never just go wild and kill something...but if he could get a really big Tom with a long beard, he would like to have it mounted to add to his "man cave" furnishings.

It is so cool to see him have so much fun right outside our own backdoor. He truly is in heaven our here......

Sue & Brent

This past weekend we were lucky enough to have Sue and Brent (Cleos' sister & brother in law)come and visit with us. They had been on a bike tour through the back country of GA, TN & NC with some friends and extended their stay by a night so they could come and see us. They got here Friday afternoon and Cleo got home from work shortly after. We visited for a while and then Jarod came down and went to dinner with us--Lindsey had to work late and wasn't able to come with him. We went to eat at a cute little diner in downtown Newnan called the Redneck Gourmet. It's obviously nothing fancy, but they have great food and the atmosphere is fun. Sue got to experience a southern treat and ordered fried pickles as an appetizer. The whole table enjoyed them. After dinner we went back to the house and Jarod left shortly after to head back home. We stayed up until well after midnight talking and laughing and just enjoying being around each other.

Sue and Brent...y'all are the BEST!!! We love you both so much and just appreciate you coming to see us and our new home. Even though we don't get together often enough, we can always just pick up where we left off and feel comfortable with each other. It's fun to spend time with family and not feel obligated to "entertain" or do anything special. We can't wait for the reunion this summer and to see the rest of the family. Thanks again for rearranging your schedule and coming down---thanks also for dinner and really glad you enjoyed the fried pickles!

Aren't they just the cutest sister and brother ever???

Happy Birthday Lindsey!!!

Tomorrow is Lindseys' birthday (our beautiful daughter in law) so to help her celebrate, Cleo and I went up to Atlanta last night and took her and Jarod out to dinner at our favorite Mexican Restaurant "Los Bravos". We eat up there whenever we get a chance and this was a perfect opportunity to enjoy good food and good company. Jarod had told me a while back that Lindsey was always stealing his cozy made for him by Grandma Cheney years ago, so I thought it was time she got her own. Now, I wish I could say that I made this beautiful pink NC State cozy for her but that would just be a lie!!! My good friend Alison made it for me and she did a beautiful job and Lindsey loved it. It has the NC State logo all over it in pink and then pink flannel on the reverse side so it will be nice and cozy and I don't think Jarod will be stealing this one from her...what with it being pink and all (what a plan, huh??).

This is a close up of the material...isn't it cute??

I ordered cupcakes from a great bakery here in Newnan called Sweet Sensations, but we were all so full after dinner that we didn't eat one. I hope that you enjoy them Lindsey and let me know if they're any good.

And then of course there's Georgia (Jarod and Lindseys' golden retriever). She is pretty much a "princess dog" and loves attention and she does like to pose for a picture so of course I couldn't leave her out of this blog. She is a sweet dog and a really good "practice in parenting" for Jarod and Lindsey.

Cleo and I hope that you have a wonderful birthday weekend Lindsey and hope that you enjoy your surprise today that Jarod has planned for you. We had a great time with y'all last night and we love you very much.