Big Homer Love

Here is Homer's latest glamour shot.

I know I need to update everyone with news and I hope to do it this week. Please stay tuned...

Christie Smith

Hey folks, this is a reminder to PRAY if you would. Christie was injured while training some of the new horses at Windy Gap 2 weeks ago. She is still in a coma at a hospital in Asheville. Her parents are there and waiting expectantly for any reports. It looks as though she will almost certainly have some sort of brain damage from the accident. The unknown is just to what extent--we don't know yet. Please visit www.caringbridge.org and click on "Visit a caring bridge site" and type in "christiesmith" (no space) to get the full story. She was an intern last summer and a fantastic one at that! She is so special to so many people--just see how many people are visiting her website. Please pray for her and her family during a time that no parent wants to go through. Their faith is a strong one, thank the Lord God for His ability to multiply even our own faith in Him.

Puppy Love

Everybody, meet Homer.

Homer, this is everybody.

We got a puppy! And we named him Homer after Chris's great-grandfather, Homer Dale, who helped raise him. He's got quite a name to live up to! We also call him, "Homey", "Homes", "Home slice" and other variations. So, we went to look at him last night and Chris said those magic words--"I like him." We've been looking for awhile now and Chris just hadn't seen quite the right one (I, on the other hand, could have taken all of them!). But, when he saw this one, it was all over. We borrowed a crate for him so he's been staying in that when we are out and at night. He whined A LOT last night. Chris (who swore he wouldn't) got up at 2AM and took him out. (Is this good practice or what??) I found myself wondering how he was doing as we sat in church this morning. The next step for us is the vet. He hasn't had any shots yet. His mom was mostly German Short-haired Pointer and we have no idea about his dad, so we'll just have to see how he turns out! We welcome any puppy advice!

Destination Vacation

We're off to Pigeon Forge, TN and Dollywood for a few days. Chris is on Spring Break and I took off from work. We're celebrating his birthday (the big 2-7) a little early and also getting away from all of the home improvement to be done! We'll be back on Thursday though. (I've always seen the signs for Dollywood on I-40, but never stopped--until NOW!)

Pictures from Easter

We spent Easter at the home of some friends of ours in our small group. We had a bunch of fun playing with the kids, eating delicious food, and playing a rousing game of Battle of the Sexes! I definitely have a crush on the bunny rabbit. Notice the profile shot, spikey hair, roundest cheeks I've ever seen--does it get any better?? His name is Jack. His parents are Jay and Kate Womack. They are wonderful and we love our other friends Blair and Cara and the Boldens too! Blair and Cara are pictured sitting on the couch playing with Daniel (the Boldens oldest) and Ashley is the cute little thing exploring the world of plastic eggs and everything pastel. We had a great time. These folks have really become our new family in town. They are such a huge answer to prayer for me and Chris. Since joining the church and spending Sunday nights with this group, we have felt more at home than ever here.

Happy Easter!

Hi Everyone! I hope you are having a blessed day enjoying the celebration of our risen Lord! Here are some shots of what we woke up to yesterday morning. It sure doesn't feel like Easter in many ways, but that doesn't change truth. I have to admit though, Easter has always been a difficult holiday for me to really pause and take in. It always seems so short (compared to Christmas) and it's over before you know it. Also, it is just a weird concept that we celebrate death (two ideas that don't traditionally go together) and also an empty tomb. I guess at age 29 (having been a walking Christian for 11 years), I still struggle with how to celebrate Easter. I know it is something that we celebrate everyday as a Christian. It is the reason we have hope and joy and true life. Maybe this is why singling out one day above the others seems so strange to me--I'm really not sure. But, I do know that Easter is more than just another Sunday, more than a big meal and egg hunts, more than a family reunion, and more than dressing up for church. Chris told me this week that he'd really like to make Easter a bigger deal than Christmas in our home. ("A bigger deal than Christmas?!?" I thought.) I guess Easter really is THE deal though. I'm definitely warming up to the idea. This would be the holiday to rejoice over and think about and celebrate more than any other. We have life because of His death.

What do you think?

True Statement

It's true. I love this man.

(Not to mention those Young Life t-shirts!)

Chris has his own school!

This post is long overdue! Last week Chris was offered a PE job at Candler Elementary. On Monday he called to accept. This is very exciting as he will only be driving to one school. This year he has had to drive to a different school every day of the week! Needless to say, that's left him feeling a little left out of school community and it's been tough to learn the names of 1200+ students. This is certainly an answer to much prayer. There are several schools where Chris teaches now that will have an opening in the next year or so (meaning 2008), but we weren't sure he could hang on that long with such a difficult schedule. Anyway, this is wonderful news and Chris is already day-dreaming about things he wants to try at his "own school"! He does an amazing job at his schools and just by word of mouth he was basically handed this position (things he won't tell you). I'm so proud of you, Chris!

More Spring...

These are blossoms on our cherry tree out front. We aren't sure what to expect with any our landscaping, but so far there has been lots to enjoy with the warmer weather.

My Dogs are Barking

*Disclaimer: People squeamish about feet--do not look at this*

A lot of you know I'm running a half marathon in April. It's been harder and harder. Not in the obvious I'm-running-more-miles-way, but rather it's been more difficult to run even the short runs. I hope this ends soon, because it's getting old! I decided it was time to bite the bullet and buy some new shoes before the race. I said "race", but please note, I'm happy just to walk across that finish line at this point! Yesterday I was supposed to run one of my two 5 mile runs this week. This was after doing a really poor job on the 8-miler this weekend (I'm pretty sure I ran about 5 and walked the rest) Anyway, I was trying to psych myself up and of course I come to find out that my i-pod was dead after charging it the day before!? I really rely on that thing! It turned out to be a good run though. I got to listen to my heavy breathing, shuffling, and whimpers instead--music to my ears!! Anyway, if you think of it, please pray for me. This is hard.

I Love Spring!

Here's a picture of our backyard. This last weekend was absolutely beautiful and felt just like summer. (We're in search of a riding lawnmower--if anyone knows someone who's in the market to sell. I think we're a little late in the game and will probably end up paying more now than just a few weeks ago, but I guess it's spilt milk.) Since before we bought a house Chris and I have talked about this idea we have of hosting neighborhood events in our backyard. Until yesterday, we've been stuck on the idea of having Movie Night and projecting a family movie onto the side of our house. We'd tell people to bring a picnic, blankets, chairs and of course, their friends! I actually got this idea from the Kenilworth neighborhood at Halloween. A house in this neighborhood shows Two Thousand Leagues Under the Sea every year in all of it's creepiness. They project it onto the side of their house as people walk around and check out the other decorations. Anyway, no scary movies at our place. We'd probably show classics mostly. It's been on our mind now that summer is around the corner. Last night though, Chris suggested we host volleyball games and the like. We do have a perfect place in our yard that is just about the dimensions of an official volleyball court. We'll keep you posted! If you have any thoughts or a vote as to movie or games, we want to hear them! Feel free to post a comment.

For my Mom

This one's for you, Mother! I could only find this picture of the "Deep Mango" room (although I think I was trying to get a good shot of the window for curtain-making). I finished one whole window with curtains and feel very good about it. I think they turned out well. Only 9 more to go! I'll try to do one a week for now since I'm borrowing a friend's sewing machine and her know-how. Hopefully, I'll get faster the more I do. I'm a little worried about the ones in the guest room because they are real drapery material, so I plan to do those last. Exciting times at the McGlade household.

We are still plugging away at the laundry room that Chris and his dad began a few weeks ago. Dry wall is much tougher than I thought--and messier! Next up on the project list will be tiling the back splash behind our kitchen sink and putting up a fence in hopes of finding our first dog! Here is a picture of one we looked at last night...his name is Banjo, not Bingo (B-I-N-G-O) but Banjo...I like the name a lot.

Woo hoo!

Congrats Jeff and Cyndi. We love you and can't wait to meet baby Haifley!

Dinner is served

So after lots of talk and a week of planning we finally had the first COOKING CLUB! We decided to base it around making pot stickers (not really sure how that became the main course). There ended up being around 10 people in all. Each person brought something that was Asain-themed. For example, we had eggrolls, a cabbage salad, seasame green beans, lettuce wraps, and green onion pancakes. Overall, I think it was quite a success! And we've already planned the next one--Greek night. Here are some fun shots of Shaunna putting her acting skills into practice as she demos how to make those pancakes--the entertainment portion of the night. I really wish we had some shots of everyone around the table. We finished the evening on a high note: devouring a distinctly non-Asian dessert--half cooked cookie dough, warm from the oven with ice cream on top and lots of hilarious stories about sleep-walking. Matt Williams and Kristin take the cake!

Too long...

It's been incredibly too long since I've written...not that anyone is still following this. Maybe, just maybe my sweet friend Jane is still checking this (even though she's on spring break this week and not into her usual morning routine!). By the way, we don't see each other nearly enough. You'd think we moved across the state from each other--really just across the county!

There's been a lot going on since I signed on last. We've been really busy with the house (does one thing always have to lead to another??). But we are absolutely loving it. Here's are some great pictures of just how much my husband likes being a home owner...

This past weekend, Chris decided it was time to prune our trees. Since neither one of us knows much about this kind of thing, Chris promptly called our nice friend Karl for some advice. The next day Chris began the massacre. Really the trees probably hadn't been pruned in at least a decade, so there was lots to do. Chris spent most of the afternoon in the trees. (Notice our lovely John Deere shed. Literally, the previous owner painted it to match his new top-of-the-line lawn mower. This project has moved up on the list now that the weather is getting nicer!)

All in all, home ownership is fun and satisfying, but we wonder sometimes what we did with our time and our money when we lived in an apartment!

So it's been while and we've been busy...

Dining room before...



Dining room after.



Living room before...



And after.

McGlade Clan: Chris and Caroline

Closing on our house tomorrow! We will be signing our life away. We are excited, nervous, excited and nervous. Yep, that pretty much sums it up. Although we really do love Christmas, we feel like we'll be ready to have Decemeber behind us. It will be nice to be in a place with our stuff out of boxes and paint on the walls.

Home Sweet Home

This is our new home--we hope! The inspection is today, but we don't foresee any problems arising (then again, who does?). We are hoping to move mid-December. Stay tuned for our new contact info...

Halloween night in Weaverville at a party with Windy Gap friends.

LOST fans--

Here we are as Kate and Jack from one of our favorite shows.

It keeps going and going and going...

Everyone likes a candy corn .

And for the most unique costume award: the loofahs--that's right, those shower things.

Fall has Fallen

These are just a few of the common sights around town these days. B-eautiful!