Happy Fall, Yall

Bama football is doing good.  So far we are undefeated and have a bye week today.  Last weekend we played Ole Miss and they challenged us more than any other team.  Unfortunately, we had some injuries and two are season ending. 

We went to my high school's homecoming game last night.  Ugh.  When we left at the beginning of the fourth quarter it was 51-0.  So sad.  Maybe basketball will be better.

We had the pool cover put on last weekend and it looks so sad.  We really want to enjoy the pool more next summer.  We really had a few weeks this summer by the time the concrete yahoos finished.  We are now in the process of bringing in all the pool furniture and cleaning it.  We also need to find room in the basement for the supplies, furniture, and accessories.  We really hope to paint and complete the bathroom part of the basement this winter.  Within two years we want to have it completed with cabinets and such.

A few weeks ago we attended a required adoption "seminar" for domestic adoption.  Really glad that is done and we don't ever have to sit through that again.

The Niece has started kindergarten and absolutely loves it.  I am still amazed how much she loves it.  I am so glad.  She is learning to read and that thrills her.  She is making friends and enjoying the social aspect, too.

Gas prices have dropped to about $3.49.  Still scary.

We had the first presidential debate the other night.  Turns out the good guy won!!  Now he just needs to win the big contest in November.

 Well, time to get ready for a whole of of SEC football.  We are smoking two tenderloins on the Big Green Egg today.  Each marinated in totally different seasonings.  Can't wait to try them.

Happy Fall.
Tide Gal

Let's Play Football!!

We were able to go to Cowboys Stadium for the Alabama vs Michigan game.  It started off great, but Bama just blew them away and the second half was a bit boring.  The stadium is nice, but we were in the end zone and had no restrooms on our floor.  Yep.  Really.  A billion dollar complex and we had to go down stairs for restrooms.  And the only food for sale on our floor was corn dogs.  Honestly, I was floored.    And, they sold out of Alabama t-shirts.  Right now we are undefeated.  Also, our biggest competitive teams are falling apart.  Arkansas's quarterback is hurt.  LSU may lose four players due to grades.  And Auburn has lost their first two games and may be in the mist of a NCAA investigation in regards to grades being changed.  Are we on the road to a National Championship?  #15??

Our embassy in Libya was invaded and our ambassador was dragged into the streets and murdered.  Awful.  Lots of political aspects that I just won't address here.  Sadness.

The pool season is just about over.  We have had several cool nights and the water temperature is just too cold to enjoy. We have ordered a cover, but the leaves are falling already.

Last night we went to see Elton John.  A-M-A-Z-I-N-G.  He sang for 2 1/2 hours.  No drum solo, no guitar solo, and no useless talk.  Just singing the classics.  I would say everyone had a wonderful time.

Tide Gal

Roll Tide

We are off today for Alabama's first football game of the season.  We play Michigan at Cowboy Stadium in Arlington, Texas.  We will fly and now will have to possibly fly around Hurricane Isaac.  Lovely.  It should be a great game.

This could be another great season for us.  Some "experts" have predicted we could win another National Championship.  We will see in a few months.

The Olympics ended and the US did great.  We ended up with more medals and more gold medals than any other country.

Gas prices are going up.  I think it is about $3.59 or more a gallon.  Ugh.  Nuff said.

This is not a lot of information or much detail, but I have a plane to catch. 

Roll Tide,
Tide Gal

More Updates

We got our fingerprints done on Tuesday, May 28.  This is our last fingerprints in this program.  Not sure where we are headed now.  Hm....

The 2012 Summer Olympics in London are in full force now.  We are having a blast watching them, but having a problem staying awake late to watch the best events.

We are starting to get ready for football season.  We should have a decent team and our first game is against Michigan in Arlington, TX at the big house.  Should be fun.

More later....
Tide Gal

14 Baby!! 21-0!! Redemption

So, we went to New Orleans for the Bash in the Bayou for the National Championship game. The number one team, LSU, against the number two team, The University of Alabama. We were the underdogs. Few "experts" predicted we would win. And, the LSU fans were extremely arrogant. They had no problem getting in the face of Bama fans to let them know they thought LSU would beat Bama badly.

But, The University of Alabama easily beat LSU. Easily. LSU seemed to have lost the will to win and most of their eyes seemed vacant. Their coach said after the game "I didn't see that coming", referring to the game plan and win by Alabama.

It was an incredible game. LSU fans started to trickle out of the Superdome in the middle of the third quarter and it was a flood of them leaving in the middle of the fourth quarter.

Alabama beat LSU 21-0 and really could have scored more. It was so much fun to watch and enjoy in person.

So, that makes the third University of Alabama National Championship game I have attended. And, we won all three. Maybe I am the good luck charm?? I think so.

Roll Tide, Baby!!
Tide Gal

Happy New Year!

All of the Christmas decorations are gone and we are almost done watching bowl games. AND!! We leave tomorrow headed to New Orleans for the UA vs LSU National Championship game. So nervous. The media is very invested in this game, both locally and nationally. It will be crazy and the fans will be wild.

In March, I am going with The Niece to Disney World along with my brother, mom, and stepdad. Tide Guy may be able to make a last minute decision to go. We haven't told her about the trip, but it will start with a wild ride on an airplane. She will go nuts when she finds out about the plane ride and seeing Mickey and the gang. I cannot wait to see her face.

We have some sides up on the deck and are ready to put the rails back in those areas. But, we are waiting on some "spacers" from the rail company. When we receive those the rails will go up. I have painted all but one of the side boards. They take up a lot of space in The Shop so I can't paint them all at the same time. After they are up Tide Guy fills the nail holes and seams with a silicone grout and sands to even out the surface. Then I put on the last coat of paint to cover the grout. I will be so glad when this is done!!

Yesterday we had to put The Stepdad's dog to sleep. Chance was 10 years old and had cancer. It was so sad. He was absolutely the best dog ever. So mild mannered. The Niece could sit on him, try to ride him, pull his tail, give him lots and lots of love, and lay on him. Chance would just look at us like "please get this kid off of me". He would walk with people as they went around the block. All the kids and grandkids of the neighborhood loved him. Everyone fed him. One older man would let him on his enclosed porch and another let him in his house. Another neighbor would buy him bones to chew on as he sat on his front porch like he owned the house.

Okay. I need to finish up packing for the big trip. I hope the next post says we have another National Championship to add to our other 13!!

Roll Tide,
Tide Gal

Crimson Tidings....

Christmas is over and what a great one it was. The house looked lovely and was decorated with ornaments and items from our travels. We had a 10 foot tree in the family room that was just gorgeous. I made some gorgeous bows for the top and added a lot of extra sparkles. With all the fluff on top, it looked to be about 13 feet tall. In the office was a 6 foot tree with ornaments from our travels. We buy ornaments when we travel and that has turned into a beautiful, unique tree. I did a 9 foot Bama tree in the media room that was decorated with black, crimson, and white everything. We had ribbons, bows, elephant ornaments, and UA ornaments. The topper was a Bear Bryant hounds tooth hat with lots of "umph" on top. We also added shakers, a car tag, ball caps, and flags. Of course there was a hounds tooth tree skirt. It was amazing.

My mom got me a large metal cow that is painted in great colors, I'm going to put it in the basement when we get it ready this spring/summer. In addition to other things, I got a North Face jacket and a new laptop, which was necessary as my other one was about to crash. Tide Guy got a pellet gun and some UGG house shoes. He also got a propane standing heater that will be great around the pool. We both got some cash and some other goodies. We got tickets to see Celtic Women. Oh, and we got tickets to the National Championship Game!!! YES!!! We are going to THE game Santa left the tickets in our hounds tooth stockings in the media room.

The Niece had a great Christmas. She finally got it this year. Meaning, she knew she would get more than one gift. In years past, she would open one gift and want to play with that item without opening any more. No longer. The paper was flying. She racked up, too. She got an iPad, iPod, New Balance shoes like her dad's, Justin Bieber items, John Deere tractor items, tons of Ken (of Barbie and Ken) items, the Barbie camper and accessories, a BB gun (and "bullets", or as we call them "BBs"), a Wii game, a DS game, and some outside toys. She had a blast and it was such a joy to watch her.

I painted four of the side boards for the deck and we got those up yesterday. It was freezing, but we got that done. Now, I've to paint more so we can get those up and get the railing back up.

Well, today is another busy day. The Niece is having a friend over to spend the night and I'm going to help by spending the night, too. I will probably be exhausted tomorrow.

Have a great one!
Tide Gal

Catching Up....Again!

Ugh. So much has happened since the last post.


Let's start with Bama football. We were undefeated until we played LSU in November. We lost in overtime 9-6. We could have won the game as we missed several field goals. It was just heart breaking. Our hopes for a National Championship were gone. Then, for the next several weeks, things just started happening to put us back into position to play in the big game in January. There were several major upsets in other games and conferences. Suddenly, if the voting went our way, we were back in. And it happened. So now, Bama is playing LSU in New Orleans for the National Championship. There is a lot of controversy surrounding this game. Some saying we should not be in it as we lost a game, even though we lost in over time to the number one team. Some saying there should not be a "rematch" between the two teams. Some saying two SEC teams should not be playing. Some are saying LSU should play Oklahoma St because OSU lost a game a few days after their women's basketball coach was killed in a plane crash. Anyway, since New Orleans is in LSU's backyard and easy driving distance from Alabama, ticket prices are insane. Insane as in over $1,500 EACH!! And that is for the upper endzone tickets. We are hoping prices go down after Christmas. Way down. Regardless, we are going and meeting a lot of friends in New Orleans. We are still hopeful for tickets between now and game time. I have been to the past two National Championship games and I just have to go to this one.

Other big football news surrounds Penn State and a retired assistant coach, Jerry Sandusky. He has been arrested and is being charged with child abuse. It seems the abuse on boys has been going on for many years. Joe Paterno was forced to retire mid-season since he was informed about the alleged abuse about 20 years ago. At first he had a lot of support from some students, but now things have quieted down. And, even worse, since his ousting, Joe Pa now has cancer and is going through treatments.


On a brighter note, Tide Guy put the very last board onto the deck last weekend. Ah!! Love it. Now, we have to have the tub put back onto the tub deck, remove all the railing, add "sides", and put the rails back on. It will be nice to have the whole deck completely done. But, the "sides" are hardy board and will have to be painted. Now, with it with it so cold it will be a problem trying to paint outside.

We also cleaned up a bit in the back yard last weekend. More limbs and trees are gone. I think we are to the point where the tree cutting may be beyond our abilities.

In the adoption world, China is still slow. Nuff said.


Gas prices are actually going down and we paid $2.97 the other day!! Finally.


We just had Christmas at my mom's yesterday. The Niece (turned 5 last month) had a blast. Before eating and opening gifts, she rode her scooter inside the house singing loudly "it's the most wonderful time of the year". It was hilarious. She has finally gotten the opening gifts thing. Now she knows that she gets more than one gift. In times past, she would open a gift and want to play with it at that very moment not realizing there were other gifts. She also got "The Elf on the Shelf" which has been so much fun for her.

Christmas is today at my dad's and Sunday morning we will go to my brother's house since Santa will visit The Niece Saturday night. I think Tide Guy and I will exchange gifts after lunch Sunday.

Well, I hope not, but this may be the last post this year. Maybe I'll have time to get back to update Christmas events!!

Til Then,
Tide Gal

There was an October 2011

Yep. October did exist. I just never had the time to document about the month.

As of now, Bama is undefeated and ranked 2nd in the BCS. We have a huge game this weekend against LSU, the number one ranked team. This game is being hailed as the unofficial national championship game. Number one against number two in a regular season scheduled game. And it is in Tuscaloosa. So much media attention has been on this game for months and especially in the last week or so. We have pre-ordered our National Championship game tickets. Since the game is in New Orleans and so close to Tuscaloosa, we do not think we will get tickets from The University so we are searching.

The Libian looney tune leader, Maummar Gaddafi, was killed by Libian rebels on October 20, 2011. He had been in hiding for months when his convoy was attacked by NATO warplanes. The rebels on the ground found MG hiding in a drainage pipe. He was then beaten and shot numerous times before dying. He has a son who is now in hiding in the Sahara desert.

We have gotten more work done on the hot tub deck. The hot tub has been removed from its deck, all the boards have been removed, and most of the new aluminum boards are cut and ready to be screwed into place. The back yard is a mess. The old boards are on the ground, trees are down, tree limbs are in piles, the hot tub is in the middle of the yard, and other junk is piled in various areas. This is all called progress.........I think.

We got a dining room set! And it is absolutely gorgeous. I finally got to unpack all the china we have, including the two sets of china we bought in Japan. So, there are four different types of china in the cabinet plus a few pieces from my grandmother. I had some Venetian prints I bought at market in Atlanta three years ago that are now on either side of the china cabinet. When we were in Germany and Italy three years ago we bought some prints that I had framed over a year ago. They went perfectly in the room, too. There is also an antique black Chinese cabinet that is being used as a buffet. We bought a huge screen from Hong Kong while in Okinawa that is in a corner. I looked at flower arrangements for the table, but could not find one I loved so I made one myself. It looks good and doesn't even look like I did it. On the table is a table runner I bought in China. All in all, that room is fabulous.

In the adoption world, it is all the same. Slow. Uneventful. Our four year LID anniversary is in a few days. Barely worth mentioning.

Gas prices are around $3.20-ish.

Ok. So now I need to prepare food for this weekend's tailgating. So much to do!

RTR!!
Tide Gal

Here Comes Fall

We are over two weeks into the 2011 Bama football season. Last weekend, Tide Guy & I traveled to watched Bama play Penn State. Last year when Penn State came to Tuscaloosa, our student section and fans gave a standing ovation to their coach and cheered as their team entered the field. Such respect for their coach, their tradition of winning, and the past rivalry between the two teams. We knew there were a lot of requests throughout the Penn State family to not boo our team as they entered the field. In fact, we felt very welcome at restaurants and on campus prior to the game. A lot had to do with the southern hospitality they received the year before and the tornado tragedy. So, to say we were surprised to hear booing as Bama ran onto the field would be an understatement. Oh well. Bama played well and the victory lessened the sting.

Yesterday I mailed the final paperwork to Alli.

We have spent a bit of time cutting down a few trees, cutting them, and hauling them away. It looks so much better to rid the yard of the ugly and basically dead trees. We are able to get a better visual idea of the area for a pool.

The work on our deck has almost stopped. Tide Guy has the outer trim down and has completed most of the upper stairs. We now need to have the hot tub moved so we can begin on that level. The only problem is Tide Guy is in DC for work 2 or 3 times a month and now all weekends are dedicated to football. Ugh. So close.

I bought gas yesterday for $3.39. Still too high.

Ok. Big day. Gotta run! We have a game in Tuscaloosa this weekend.

Tide Gal

It's a New Year

On with 2011!

But, first a few updates from the end of 2010:

We actually had a white Christmas. It was wonderful. We built a snowman that we named Snow Bear Man. I then made a snow shaped duck named Duck. I used green paint on him, and put two green bead necklaces on him. He was in tribute to the Oregon Ducks who play that other school in Alabama this month for the National Championship.

Gas prices are on the way up. Again. I paid $2.95/gallon recently. Ugh.

We started work on the dropped ceiling in the "industrial side" of the basement. It looks so good that I commented it doesn't look like we did it. We have now renamed it "the shop".

Back to 2011:

On New Year's day, Bama played Michigan State in the Capital One Bowl in Orlando. We did not go and Bama may have played the best game of the season. They completely dominated in all areas. In fact, their first and second string quarterbacks were both hurt during the game and they had to play someone that wasn't a quarterback. Our starters were pulled midway through the third quarter and we played our 2nd-4th string players. Afterwards, the Michigan State players and coaches all commented on the strength of our team. Some stated it was like playing a NFL team. The officials were quoted on the politeness Bama's team. They said they heard "yes sir" many times. I am so proud of this team. Pure class.

Tide Guy begins work on a new program at work next week. We are so grateful he found a job within the same company. The program he is on now could start back later depending on the new, current administration. However, he isn't sure he would go back. He would have to compare job security on each program.

On with 2011!!

Tide Gal

Not Much to Say.....

I haven't posted anything in a while. There really hasn't been too much to say. My Bama team ended the regular season 9-3. Not bad, but the 3 losses were games we should/could have won. Now, Bama is headed to Orlando to the Capital One bowl. As of right now, we are not planning to go. We may change our minds later.

Gas prices soared to $2.89 for a while, but gratefully have dropped back down to $2.79 or so.

Tide Guy's program at work is barely hanging on. Job hunting is not fun at this time. There is a chance his program will hang on and start back soon. There are several factors and statements that seem positive and the new congress could help.

Christmas is just around the corner. So close I can almost see it. I need to finish shopping and I hope to complete my list today.

I just had a friend visit this week. We were friends in Okinawa and I have not seen her since June of 2004. She and her husband were visiting family close by. They have recently moved and are now about 7 hours by car from me. I see a road trip in my future.

News on China adoptions? Well, we completed our home study. We also had our fingerprints done. When we received our appointments for the fingerprints, Tide Guys was at 3 pm one day and mine was 8 am the next morning. Really? Seriously? Of course, there is no phone number to see if it was possible that I could have mine done at the same time. So, I went with him with hopes they would slide me in during his appointment and not have to make the 3 hour round trip the next morning. Luckily, they did. We received notice that our fingerprints have been accepted and we are now good for another 18 months.

So what have we been doing? Here is a short list: Carrie Underwood concert, tailgating in Tuscaloosa, all Bama home games, Bama games in Columbia, SC, and Knoxville, TN, Styx concert, local basketball games, Heart concert, met Verne Lundquist in SC, started some work on the basement, etc.

Merry Christmas!
Tide Gal

National Champs!!

Tide Guy and I went to Pasadena for the National Championship game earlier this month. We saw the team arrive at the Rose Bowl and Mark Ingram, the Heisman winner, winked at me as he walked toward the stadium. (Well, he winked at someone in my area, so I assume it was me.) We sat in the Texas section. Ugh. Although they were nice, we had to contain a little of our excitement during the game. Not too much, as we cheered our team to victory. It was a nerve-racking game, but in the end, the best team won. We stayed for the Coach's Trophy presentation. The team was ecstatic and such a joy to watch. This team is such a great group of leaders and young men. I am so proud of them. They played as a team and gave credit to each other.

We slept for the first time in our new house on New Year's Eve. Tide Guy was determined to move in our new house in 2009. So, by a few hours, we made it. We still have a few little things at the other house to move. Plus, right now, the new garage is packed with boxes and such. We have done a lot here, but we still have a lot to do.

In world news, last week, Haiti had a 7.0 earthquake. There is so much damage and destruction. Hospitals, schools, hotels, their one airport, and most homes are completely destroyed. Even their palace is destroyed. Their leaders are homeless, too. People are living on the street. As of yesterday, they pulled people out of the rubble. The people are desperate for water, food, blankets, and medical supplies. There is a lot of help arriving, but for some reason it is bottlenecked at their airport. It is taking a week for help to get to the Haitians and that help is very slow. The estimated the death toll is 200,000.

In national news, gas has gone up to about $2.61 a gallon. There is an election today for Teddy Kennedy's Democratic Senate seat. There is a chance this could go to the Republican candidate thus causing the Democrats to lose their majority in the Senate. This would severely affect the health care issue in the Senate.

In the adoption world, even though there is a new director in the CCAA, nothing has changed positively. There is such a slow down it is unbelievable and basically disgusting.

On with the day!
Tide Gal