fried okra
Wednesday, August 31, 2005
  My heart goes out to everyone affected by Hurricaine Katrina.
I can't stop watching the footage of the aftermath of this storm. Many parts of the Gulf Coast look more like a third world country than the United States. We had a lot of tornado warnings as the storm passed through Georgia, but we were lucky. As the stories of loss and of survival unfold, it reminds me again about how fragile life is and how we really have no control over nature.

Now, two pipelines that bring gasoline and jet fuel to metro Atlanta are down. There is generally about a 10-day supply of gasoline in inventory, but the pipelines have been down for two days. Austin and I have both filled up our tanks and we will be taking my car any time we need to leave Loganville, since it gets much better gas mileage and Austin's car runs on premium.

Anyway, I digress. Back to New Orleans... we went to New Orleans in 2002 for the Sugar Bowl. It was a great trip and now to think about 80% of the city being under water is just so unbelievable to me. Since I didn't have this website then, I never have posted any of our pictures from that trip. So I decided that I'd post them today.




























 



Tuesday, August 30, 2005
  Just 4 more days!!!

 



Monday, August 29, 2005
  Pictures of our first baby...



















 



  Good News
The number of times Wyatt quit breathing during the sleep study was pretty normal - about 3 times per hour. Under 5 is normal. There was one time where he didn't get the full amount of oxygen that he should've been getting, but it might have been a fluke. Anyway, the long and short of it is this - they are taking him off oxygen for 2 weeks, but keeping the monitor on him and the doctor said to keep a close eye on him (which I'm sure will keep Rebecca from sleeping for 2 weeks). Eventually, they will gradually start taking him off the caffeine and he will have another sleep study when he is about a year old - hmm, I just realized that I will probably have a baby by then or about to have a baby. Anyway, doing a sleep study when he is a year old will be really tough, but if all goes well, it could be the last one he has to have. So, keep him in your prayers and hopefully all will go well and he will be all better soon. Thanks again for all of the concern, everyone!
 



Saturday, August 27, 2005
  Becca sent these pictures of Wyatt from last night... they made me cry!
Poor little guy. (I posted what we know so far in the previous post)








 



  Wyatt Update
Well, he didn't need oxygen. They sent them home around 3:00 am saying they had all the data they needed. The nurse did say there were a few little "things" that the doctor needed to look at, so they shouldn't discontinue the oxygen until they talked to the doctor. Rebecca requested that the doctor call them, but worst case scenario they have to wait until Monday to talk to the pediatrician. So, no definite answer yet, but things seem pretty positive. Keep them in your prayers!
 



Friday, August 26, 2005
  I do apologize for the lack of pictures on my website lately.
I keep forgetting to bring my camera with me to places. But I promise I'll take some pictures to post sometime this weekend.
 



Thursday, August 25, 2005
  Big Weekend coming up
My parents are leaving for Savannah this morning. I'm glad they finally have a chance to get away together. Unfortunately, my dad is sick. Hopefully he'll stay well enough to enjoy himself though.

And, the one to pray for is Wyatt. He'll be having his sleep study tomorrow (Friday) night. Jake's parents are staying with Ethan; Becca, Jake, and Wyatt will be spending another night at Egleston. Becca said that at the sleep studies they start him without oxygen and if he starts having trouble breathing, part way through the night, the nurse will come in and hook him back up to it. She said that last time her heart just sank when the nurse walked in. Jake slept soundly through the night and woke up the next morning saying, "how'd he do?" Anyway, it sure would be a relief if he's grown out of this stuff!
 



Wednesday, August 24, 2005
  Why are phone books so ugly?
It would be nice to keep a phone book close at hand, because they are very useful, but they are just so darn ugly that I have to keep mine closed away somewhere, so I don't have to look at them. I noticed the other day in a catalog that they have phone book covers that you can put on them so they look somewhat attractive, but really why does the phone company insist on resisting any kind of reasonable graphic design for the cover? Do they think we won't recognize them if they look attractive? Do they think people will stop using their phone books? That's just stupid. People will use phone books regardless of what they look like, so I guess that's why they don't want to invest any money on a redesign, but man it wouldn't take much to make them look better!
 



Tuesday, August 23, 2005
  Random things


1. I dare anyone to try to get a radio station to play "Amish Paradise" by Weird Al Yankovic. And if you succeed, let me know what radio station it was because they are cool!

2. I wonder why I woke up this morning with the theme song for "Transformers" in my head.

3. Ethan smacked my bottom yesterday. That is very strange coming from a 3 year old.

4. Wyatt is just about the hardest baby to hold in your lap. It is kind of like trying to hold a bucking bronco in your lap. He flails about and tries to fly out of your arms.

5. I didn't realize how bad the local video rental store sucks until we went to visit the closest "Blockbuster."

6. Holly stinks. I am taking her to get groomed this week, hopefully.
 



Monday, August 22, 2005
  The concert wasn't as bad as I thought and I did get to go shopping, so the weekend ended up being pretty fun...
Except for the continuing morning sickness - bleh! System of a Down is still far from my favorite band, but Gwinnett Arena is an easy drive and a pretty nice place to see a concert. And the earplugs REALLY helped! I was around a little more cigarette smoke than I would've liked; I've never really had a hard time being around smoke until I got pregnant, but now it makes me want to vomit and I worry about the baby.

On Saturday we went shopping. I got a new purse, 2 new pairs of earrings and a necklace. I couldn't find any shoes like I wanted. We ate at Olive Garden and I think I could live off their salads!

Yesterday we went grocery shopping and I spent most of the day trying not to throw up. I almost did in the Grocery store - a few times - but I didn't. And, last night we watched the final episode of Six Feet Under. Wow! It was so sad, but so good. I'm going to miss that show so much!
 



Friday, August 19, 2005
  Here is a survey I found that I felt like answering publicly for some reason...

What was I doing 10 years ago?
I was about to start my senior year in high school. I was probably already working on the yearbook. I was such a dork.

What was I doing 5 years ago?
Let's see... that would've been August 2000. I guess I was probably finishing up moving into Ashley's town house apartment. And getting ready for my final year in college.

What was I doing 1 year ago?
This question is pretty easy since my calendar is on my computer. I took Holly to get her groomed a year ago, today. And then I went to get a manicure/pedicure, and I babysat Ethan. Austin's 10 year reunion was on Saturday, a year ago.

What was I doing yesterday?
I did some work, did some laundry. We watched Evil Dead 2. I succeeded in not throwing up all day!

What am I doing today?
Working on the magazine I do work for, doing some other jobs here and there.

Five snacks I enjoy:
Right now I'm pretty picky about what I eat, but I have especially been appreciating peanut butter crackers, Dole fruit juice popsicles, apple chips, watermelon and salt & vinegar potato chips.

Five bands I like:
The Beatles, Radiohead, Rolling Stones, R.E.M., Franz Ferdinand

Five things I would do with a million dollars:
I would invest and save half of it, and then with the remaining $500,000 I would give some to family and friends and then spend some towards building our dreamhouse.

Five locations I would like to run away to:
Northern Italy, Florida, San Francisco, Wyoming, Oregon

Five bad habits:
Not throwing trash away, not putting laundry away, general laziness, not returning phone calls, and I don't say "Bless You" when people sneeze.

Five things I like doing:
Hanging out with my husband, hanging out with my family and friends, watching TV, going to movies, shopping

Five TV shows I like:
Scrubs, Late Night with Conan O'Brien, Rock Star: INXS, Alias, Days of Our Lives

Biggest joys in my life at the moment:
Austin, Holly, the baby, and my nephews

Five favorite toys:
My laptop, my iPod, my camera, our TiVo, and I can't think of another one.
 



Thursday, August 18, 2005
  Dome sweet dome
We had these friends a while back who were considering moving into a dome to live. We thought it was really odd. They didn't, but Austin and I did have fun thinking of phrases where the word "home" could be replaced with "dome." Here are some of the ones we thought of:

Dome on the range
There's no place like dome
Dome is where the heart is
I'll be dome for Christmas
Domeward Bound

Anyway, you get the idea. It might only be funny to me and Austin.
 



  I can't stop sneezing!
Tomorrow is the day that I go with Austin to see a System of a Down concert. I don't like them, but I will go and pretend to have fun, so he has a good time. I will definately bring some earplugs, though. And then, this weekend, he will take me shopping. I think that's a pretty fair trade.
 



Wednesday, August 17, 2005
  I want to shop!
For some reason, I have this overwhelming urge to go out and buy some new shoes, a new purse and new earrings. I know what I need is maternity clothes... but I just hate being practical. I must control myself!
 



  Arcara visit
Some of Becca and Jake's friends came out from Utah last week to visit them. Here are some cute pictures of the kids that Becca sent over.










 



Tuesday, August 16, 2005
  ARGHHHHHHH
I have so much to do today and no time to do it. I am at a total loss for things to write about!
 



Monday, August 15, 2005
  The weekend was good
We got to see Austin's parents Saturday and then we went swimming at their pool with my mom, sister and nephews yesterday. Rebecca informed us that Ethan is afraid of Scuba divers because of "Finding Nemo," so when Austin was swimming around with a mask, Ethan kept saying, "watch out. Here comes the Scuba diver!" Wyatt loved swimming too, he splashed around and chewed on a plastic jellyfish toy for a long time. Finally he wore himself out. But then we went and ate Chinese food at Becca's (I had Chinese food twice this weekend - woo-hoo!) house and I have never seen Wyatt be so loud and active. Becca put him in this bouncer thing and he would just bounce around like crazy waving his arms, laughing and making loud noises. It was really funny. Anyway, it is weird to think we'll have one close to that age this time next year!
 



Friday, August 12, 2005
  I'm Bugs Bunny
Bugs Bunny! You scored 42 Aggression, 85 Sophistication, and 57 Optimism! You have all the sophistication and charm one would expect from such a high-class hare. Very upbeat and generally laid-back, you are remarkably calm and peaceful even in the midst of the most stressful of situations. On those rare occasions that your anger is aroused, your retaliation usually results in embarrassing the aggressor and laying-bare how foolish he or she really is -- rather than doing any real harm. You likely have many friends and more than a few admirers and would make an excellent leader, if you had any interest in being one. But, being a leader would require hard work and attention to detail, both qualities you are lacking in. In fact, if you are not careful, your laid-back attitude will often lead you to drift through life completely oblivious to the changes happening around you. You also tend to have a horrible sense of direction.


If you want to find out which Looney Tune you are, go to this link.
 



  My next door neighbors might be trying to make me go crazy.
I went to take Holly out this morning and as I walked down the sidewalk that runs around to the back of our house, I stopped short when I saw a deer. But, it was very still. And as I got closer I noticed that it had lines around its neck and limbs - it was just a fake deer. Okay, kind of weird, but I guess I can live with that. Then I went to take Holly out again a few minutes ago and the deer was gone. I swear that I saw it earlier!
 



  I think I would walk across hot coals for a green apple/vanilla snow cone like the ones I used to get when I was a kid.
And I think Rebecca would be right there next to me. In recent years we've talked a lot about the snow cone places that popped up all over the place around where we grew up one summer. They lasted for a few years, but then they were all gone - as fast as they had gone up.

And these weren't normal snow cones; these were "Hawaiian Shaved Ice" snow cones and they are still the best snow cones I've ever had. There were two chains - "Tropical Sno" and "Island Chill" and one of the things that made them better than other snow cones is that they were made using a giant block of ice. Instead of just crushing the ice, it would sit on a spinning blade that would delicately shave of tiny pieces of ice that would fall into a white Styrofoam cup until it formed a giant mound of ice. The other thing that made them unique was that they didn't have just five or six flavors, like most snow cone places (cherry, grape, blueberry, etc.), but they had close to 40 flavors - a virtual Baskin Robbins of snow cones! And the syrup they used actually tasted just like the flavor.

Since there aren't even any bad snow cone places left around here, I occasionally will get a snow cone when I'm out of town - desperately hoping it will taste like the old snow cones from my youth, but alas, the ice is always chunky and the syrup is always sickeningly sweet and fake tasting. From time to time I will drive by an old snow cone stand in someone's yard, a relic of a failed entrepreneurial undertaking and I wonder what went wrong. I think the syrups contained some kind of addictive narcotic; my sister and I wanted snow cones every day during the summer I think. Maybe they weren't charging enough for them (we would've paid more) or maybe it just costs too much money to keep blocks of ice cool in the 90 degree average Georgia summer temperatures. Who knows?

I remember when I was little how my mom always wanted old fashioned chocolate sodas. If you order them now, they almost always will give you a coke float, but chocolate sodas were made with seltzer water so they were fizzy but had the texture of a milkshake. There was one Dairy Queen that used to make them like that and she used to take us there to get them. But, then they took them off their menu. I guess people just forgot how good they were. I also remember when Rebecca and I tried to make them on our own. Only we used tonic water instead of seltzer water - big mistake.

But anyway, change is inevitable. You never know when your favorite thing could be phased out and replaced or just forgotten altogether. But I will always remember those hot summer days and how refreshing one of those fantastic snow cones were. And I will keep trying snow cones to see if someday I can find that yummy taste again. Maybe if I went to Hawaii...
 



Wednesday, August 10, 2005
  My Philosophy about Pregnancy/Labor
I was watching A Baby Story on TLC the other day and it made me so mad. This stupid self-righteous pregnant woman was talking about how she "didn't believe in morning sickness" because she ate perfectly and worked out and never had it. She said it was "mind over matter." She was also dead-set on having her baby naturally through hypnosis. She wanted to walk to the hospital and "when the baby was ready to come into the world, she would." What a load of crap. Sorry to be crass, but I can tell you that morning sickness is real. I fully believe that some women are blessed with the joy of not having morning sickness, but I think their bodies just react differently to the hormones than the rest of us. By the way, that woman ended up having a C-section; not that there is anything at all wrong with having a C-section, but that is a natural childbirth advocate's nightmare. Haha!

So, anyway, in case anyone is interested and to avoid having to answer some of the questions that I'm sure are headed my way, I'll try to explain my intentions as clearly as possible. Here goes:

1. I believe very strongly in modern medicine and all it has to offer. I am using doctors to deliver my baby. I realize that doctors are sometimes wrong and for this reason I plan on making it very clear to the doctors that my husband, father-in-law, and brother-in-law are lawyers. It won't be any kind of threat, but just an extra incentive to make sure they stay on their toes.
2. The technology is there to find out the sex of the baby, so I plan to use it. I want to decorate the nursery, buy toys and clothes, and order baby announcements according to the sex of the baby.
3. The thought of me having natural childbirth makes me laugh out loud. I've seen the Baby Story episodes where the woman is not using drugs, and they do not seem so happy. There are few times in your life when you are allowed to use hard drugs legally and I am going to take advantage of every pain reliever they can give me (as long as they don't interfere with me being able to breastfeed).
4. Of course, I do want to do everything right (and I know I won't), so I'll do what I can during the pregnancy to eat right and stay away from detrimental environmental factors.

By the way, I know I said I would try not to obsess and talk about being pregnant all the time, but I'm a little preoccupied. If you are bored, feel free not to read.
 



  Tori
I meant to post about this yesterday, but I forgot. I went with Becca, Ashley, and Corinne to see Tori at Chastain on Monday night. It was great. I liked it better than the show at the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra. There's something I really love about being at Chastain. And, somehow we managed to stay out of most of the rain. We did spend about an hour in the car before the concert started in a bad storm, but by the time we were ready to go to the concert the rain slowed to a drizzle and never picked up much more than that. And Rebecca kept us entertained in the car :-).

So she played some good old songs that I was excited about and she played a version of "Georgia" that was great. And an R.E.M. song. It would have been a perfect night if I didn't throw up my dinner from Felini's when I got home!
 



Tuesday, August 09, 2005
  Pregnancy Journal - Month 3 (Week 10)
Physical: Nausea is much worse, and the killer headaches aren't great either. I usually am sick most of the day. From about 2:00pm to about 9:00pm I am usually not so bad, but I am usually throwing up by about 10 or 11 at night. Fun.

Food: I am mainly craving anything salty or vinegary (is that a word?). I still am on the Hibachi grill kick. I just found some instant Miso soup and some Asian Sesame with Ginger dressing - yum! Also, salt & vinegar chips and olives are good. And fruit is good. My mother-in-law, Ann, brought me some of the best peaches I've ever had a few days ago. I wouldn't mind some more of those!

Emotional: Did you see this week's episode of Six Feet Under? I don't know if I even stopped crying. And my fuse is a little short, but I haven't had too many explosions, that I will admit to.

Other Thoughts: Everything at the doctor's visit seemed okay. We saw the baby moving around some and saw his/her heartbeat. We are too indecisive to come up with a name we both like.
 



Sunday, August 07, 2005
  Finally... pictures of the new paint on the house

Before



After
















 



Friday, August 05, 2005
  Poor Jake!
He had to be pepper sprayed yesterday - just one of the perks of becoming a policeman! Anyway, they told him he couldn't touch anyone - especially children - for 24 hours. They told Ethan, so when Jake got home Ethan said, "you can't touch me because you have pepper spray on you!" Becca said that she had to walk into the bathroom at one point when he was taking a shower and her eyes started burning because the smell was so strong. Poor thing. That must've hurt so bad!
 



Thursday, August 04, 2005
  When in doubt, I can always post about my hair
I still have photos of the house to post, but I didn't feel like downloading them right now. I will, however, post about something that has been on my mind (I guess almost literally) a lot lately - my hair. I realize that I am lucky to have a lot of hair, but it also can be such a pain. Lately it has been particularly frizzy; it has also been tangling as soon as I'm done brushing the tangles out. The other night, I brushed out a ball of dead hair about the size of one of those poofy bath sponge thingies (or about the size of a grapefruit).

Also, even though I don't do much to my hair (you can't brush curly hair unless it is wet), it costs a fortune to maintain. After many, many horrible hair years, I've finally found shampoo and conditioner that I love. Unfortunately I have to drive to Snellville to get it and it costs $50 for both the shampoo and conditioner. Of course, that is for huge liter bottles, but very expensive nonetheless. Today, I went to buy replacements and there was a sale on liter bottles of the brand I like, but not the type I use on my hair. So, instead of getting 2 liter bottles for $35, I had to pay the full $50. That was so irritating.

Also, I only get my hair "done" about every six months ago, because it is so expensive and so time consuming - I usually spend close to 3 hours in the salon! Anyway, I know, I should be glad to have hair that is so unique, but days like these make me want to just rip it all out.
 



Monday, August 01, 2005
  Smells that make me want to vomit:

1. Hot Dogs
2. Cinnamon Air Freshener
3. Bacon
4. Garbage
5. Cigarette smoke
6. Coffee
7. Toothpaste (actually it might be more the act of brushing my teeth and the taste than the actually toothpaste smell)
8. Dog Food
9. Dog Treats
10. Dog Breath
 




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My name is Elizabeth Jones (formerly Elizabeth Campbell). I graduated from Shiloh High School in 1996 and with a graphic design degree from the University of Georgia in 2001. I married Austin Jones in May 2003 and we have been living in Loganville, Georgia. I have my own graphic design business called Liz C. Jones Design. We had a baby boy, Owen, in March of 2006. We also have a Lhasa Apso named Holly that was born in December 2003 (we got her in August of 2004).


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