Easter, lovely Easter.

Before I start this post, I would like to state for the record that I love life right now and am so excited that summer is so close! So close.

Anyway, here we go...

This first picture starts off our Easter Sunday with my great-grandmother, Wilma Palmer. This is on my mother's side of the family. Granny is 87 years old, and lives in Murphy, North Carolina (about 2 1/2 hours from Atlanta). You wouldn't know it from the photo, but Granny is sharp as a tack. I'm serious. She remembers everything - and can whoop some tail with sports trivia.

Haha, Granny, you kill me! Look at that pose. Right after we took this first photo I said, "Granny, the camera's right there. You're deaf, not blind." and she laughed.

The photo below is half of the supper spread.

First of all, we have Ben's deviled eggs (yes, Ben made them! He is a pro.). The large pink platter is, yes, you guessed it, ham. You can't tell from the photo but these were GIGANTIC pieces of ham. Tradition states that the oldest man in the house cuts the roast (turkey, ham, whatever). Since my dad wasn't there, it was up to Ben this year. This was his first attempt at carving the ham, and let's just say he started from the wrong side of the roast. He did a great job, considering. We also have Granny's baked beans (on the right), mashed potatoes up front, and the creamed corn has the lid on it. I burned it, which Granny warned me not to do and I did anyway. Whoops.
The other side of the table - ignore the ham, you already know the story.

That speckled looking dish on the left is actually Granny's sweet potato casserole, with honey, coconut and marshmallows. It was fantastic! What was not fantastic, however, was the green and brown thing at the center of the photo. This was canned asparagus, and was softer than baby poop. The cheese sauce on top, however, was delish! Good job Beth.
The aftermath: dishes overload. There is no dishwasher, for the record.
This is Beth and Daniel having a splash fight. Daniel is Beth's boyfriend, and is a great guy. We love him!
Andrew was not amused. He just wanted to dry the dishes, not flirt with Daniel.This is my Aunt Ramona (aka Uncle Mona) and her wolf-ish boyfriend Jeff. They were busy chain-smoking on the back porch. Yet another amazing photo of Granny. My goodness she is photogenic.
Some of my favorite memories in Murphy, growing up, are sitting on the back porch with the family. On this particular day we sat outside for quite a bit, which was lovely and the weather was gorgeous. Granny asked Ben to make a pot of coffee, and a few minutes later said, "I can smell the coffee, it's ready." So I went in to get her a cup, and found the coffee maker smoking and sputtering. It literally had exploded all over the counter. This is Granny examining the coffee pot. She laughed it off. This is my favorite part about Granny's house - her fridge. In the photo below you can see the entirety of my mother's family from infancy on.
I know. I know. Isn't it amazing? Mom and Dad, circa 1979. This is their engagement photo (I believe)! Ben said later on that night how much I looked like my mother in this photo. I was so flattered - she's gorgeous! Dad, however, is looking a little sketch with the 'stache.
ps. The best part about this is the name magnets that Granny puts next to the photos of people on her fridge.

Below we have a photo of the whole gang, minus Ben, because we couldn't figure out how to turn on the photo delay button. Many thanks to Erin for figuring it out. Anyway, the first photo in this series is without Ben.
Then we decided that he could hit the button and jump into the photo and make it on time. He literally hit the button and slammed down on his butt. Below we have the first try...
And here we have the second...
What can I say? The look on Granny's face is priceless. She was so amused that Ben kept jumping into the photo. I am grinning like a six year old on Christmas morning and Andrew is obviously amused, which is rare. It was awesome.

Thanks Granny for inviting us! It was a great day.

another house - ma's house!

Today we're going to take a trip away from the little green house and visit my parent's house in Avondale, Pennsylvania. My father was promoted at work and they moved back in December - and I came for a visit! Below is a photo of the countryside on the way out to their house...I mean mansion.

They live in a neighborhood called Brittingham (I cannot say "Brittingham" without speaking in an absurdly over-the-top British accent).

Here we have my parents' big brown house! 6 bedrooms, 5 baths...it is huge. I call it "Chez Louie." They just removed the slats/deck from the front porch and plan on adding stone to the facade (I believe).

As we walk in, you can immediately tell what my mother's taste is. She and I have a really similar taste - although she has a knack for artwork that I haven't quite mastered yet.
Dining room - she painted that mirror herself.
The living room. See the painting to the right? She painted that based on a piece she saw at Pier One. And the paisley rug - so my mother's style.Family room. This couch is amazing - I really could live on it. This is the kitchen. Lovely!
This is my sister's room. Note the girly bedspread and guitar. This is Myles and Jacy's room - or as my dad put it, "the NURSERY."
Put the brakes on, Dad, we haven't gotten married yet!


Below is a photo of the myriad of doors you must walk through in my parents' wing of the home. Yes, "wing" accurately describes their part of the house. Well hey there Regan! As usual, he has a ball in his mouth.
Here's ma in her office - the desk was intended for my dad's office upstairs but was mistakenly put in mom's office by the movers. Not that we mind!
Ah, yes, the family photos. This used to be on bookshelves at the old house, but is now condensed and in mom's office. Don't look at any fat photos of me. Thanks.
The morning before I flew home, mom and I went to Kennett Square, a nearby town. It's cute! It kind of reminded me of Madison, Georgia. One street, neat shops, good food. Below is a picture of me in front of Sinclair's Sunrise Cafe. It was delicious - I had an omelet, mom had a wrap, and the waitress was very nice.

This is a picturesque view of downtown Kennett Square. There's a foodie store called Tallulah's that has great food and CHEESE! Man, I love cheese.
We went to a store and I found these for my future herb garden. Mom is bringing them to me because I refused to bring them on the plane. They're metal and I was convinced that TSA would confiscate them as weapons. They didn't have Basil - hence "Herbs."
There is also a great bookstore there operated by the Senior Citizens of Kennett Square. These people were a hoot - there was an elderly Russian lady who kept yelling, "IT NOT RESPOND" when she was trying to run my credit card. Anyway, below is a wall of cookbooks. I was in heaven.
All in all, mom's house is gorgeous, Kennett Square is adorable, and I had a good trip. I will post more about Philly and my travels later.