Here He Is.....

He doesn't really look like anybody I know right now, but we will see. I can't wait to hold him!

Baby Wade is HERE!

This has been a long road, from infertilty, to tried and failed IVF, to new life! I am overjoyed that our new nephew has arrived healthy, and mommy is doing well...finally. She has been laboring for about 5 weeks now! Mary Peyton says he looks like Rob, but my cousin Elizabeth is there, and we think we might have a Clark baby this time! He is 6 lbs. 13 oz. with light brown hair. Elizabeth said he has a great set of lungs, and I think his big sister may be crying soon. I'm concerned to say the least about her adjustment. We will see how that goes! I am so thankful for God's goodness, and I can't wait to meet little Mr. Robert Wade Marble! Aunt Wallie and Uncle Tavis will be there soon!

"Praise the Lord!
Praise God in his sanctuary;
praise him in his mighty firmament!
Praise him for his mighty deeds;
praise him according to his surpassing greatness!
Praise him with trumpet sound;
praise him with lute and harp!
Praise him with tambourine and dance;
praise him with strings and pipe!
Praise him with clanging cymbals;
praise him with loud clashing cymbals!
Let everything that breathes praise the Lord!
Praise the Lord!" Psalm 150

Take a Deep Breath...

I AM FINISHED!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! With grad school that is. I cannot tell you the relief that I feel. I woke up this morning and didn't feel like I had a brick on my chest and a porcupine in my stomach! Two long years are now complete! And, I have a job! I am going to be teaching 2nd grade for the rest of the year. But the best news is that I have the whole week off for thanks giving. I haven't had that much time off in over a year! God is so good. This has been an amazing experience and only stressful because I am so high strung. My cooperating teachers and university supervisor were AMAZING! I finished my 3rd grade position Friday, and as you can imagine there were tears. I LOVED that class. They were the sweetest little group of kids ever! I need to post some pics, but I am a little leery of that. I have so much to be thankful for, but this year I am especially thankful for all that God has graciously provided. I don't know how you brave souls did this during undergrad. I would have LOST my mind. I am so thankful to my family and friends for your constant encouragement. I could not have done this without you all, and I am especially thankful to my sweet husband. He put up with alot of tears! Thanks, Travis!

More home front news, Travis and I are doing great. He still loves his job, and I am thankful for that blessing everyday. We have both lived through jobs that we did not like, and it is nice to be on the other side now. He played in the Turkey Bowl yesterday. Music row has a flag football tournament every year, and because I forgot to pack Travis' shorts, he had to wear his tear-away warmups and long johns yesterday. Yep, you guessed it! He lost his pants when someone went for the flag. I do have a pic of that coming to me, so stay tuned. Other than that, not too much to report. I have some sort of sinus infection or cold, but would you believe that I did not get sick one time while I was student teaching! I have germ-fighting powers! I survived MRSV, stomach virus, strep throat, pink eye, and I am sure a multitude of other lovely things. It pays to be a germ freak! You laugh, but it works. I just never eat ANYTHING I touch.

The Wonderful Wizard of OZ!

I forgot to mention that last weekend we went to the Nashville Symphony to hear/see the Wizard of OZ! It was so cool! I do have all the commemorative plates and the Madame Alexander dolls! Travis got him a catch, what can I say? We went with our friends Misty and Josh, and because Misty works for the symphony, we got to go to a cocktail party before the show where I was treated to a "Ruby Red Slipper." I must say it was very festive but a bit to be desired. It consisted of champagne and cranberry juice. I'm sure it was good for the kidneys, not sure about the liver, but not what I had expected. I'm working on my own sweeter concoction. It was so neat to watch to movie with so many people. I had never realized that there were so many funny parts in the movie, but it was neat to hear hundreds of people laugh. They digitally removed the music from the movie, projected it on a huge screen, and the symphony played the soundtrack live. Have I mentioned that I have met one of the original munchkins before! Opry Mills mall '06!

A natural born world-shaker...

Yeah, I know we never write here. Sorry for the lack of updates, but it has been busy in the Wolfe Pack. Work has been going great for me. I really love my job and what I am doing. Laurette is finishing up her first round of student teaching on Thursday. Hopefully we will update this a little more in the future.

The reason I am on here is to share a scene from a great movie that happened to star one of my all time favorite actors. Paul Newman was an amazing man whether you agreed with his politics or not. His company "Newman’s Own" donated over 175 million dollars to children’s charities since 1982. He will be missed, but lived a wonderful life.

Quick and Funny!

I decided I needed to keep a journal of all the funny things that MP says so that I don't forget. Lucky you, you get to enjoy a laugh! Look at that face! She is actually wearing one of her mommy's outfits that she wore when she was little. This was on her pre-school preview day. I called to tell her to have a good day and that I hoped she learned a lot. I also wanted her to tell her teacher that A is for Apple. I wanted her to make a good impression. MP replied, "WaWa, it's not a teaching school." Well, I'm not sure what she is going to do all day if it's not a teaching school. Where did she get that? Next, my sister was showing MP the scar on her stomach where she came out and explaining all that...She told MP that Leroy, not his real name - just what we are calling him for now, anyway...she was saying Leroy was going to have to come out that way too to which MP replied, "so they are going to have to use the baby sword." Hahahaha! I'm sure Rob was impressed by that medical term! Have a great week! I lead teach this week and spent about 6 hours yesterday on my 26 page unit. It has to get easier than this...I'm not going to get paid enough for all this work!


ps...my sister is HUGE and she is going to kill me for posting this pic, but I thought some of you would like to see Leroy's progress. He has a due date...Dec. 8th!

Long Time No Post-Happy Late Birthdays!

Holy cow! You would think we just tried to name a child. It took about 2 hours to decide on this new blog background! A little girly for Trav, but I think he is about to branch out on his own anyway. Yesterday was my wonderful sister's birthday. I wish I were there to celebrate the big 30 with her, but a phone call was as close as I could get. I do love, love, love her so. She was my first friend and has remained my best! I feel so blessed to have her in my life. Her friendship is one of my greatest joys!

Isn't she a cute little mommy!

And, my sweet grandmother, Memer, had a birthday on Tuesday. She is just the cutest person I know. With all the adversity she faces daily, Mert's health issues and general grumpiness, she NEVER complains and always finds joy in the little things. She is one of my greatest inspirations and aspirations-to be more like her! I always love getting a note from her in the mail on her DAR stationary! It's that cute! I hope she had a good birthday. I'll be there to celebrate with her next weekend, and I can't wait! I'm sure she's sick about tonight's football game. She is a huge bulldog fan. She will not be happy.

I started student teaching the first of August. 1st grade!! I have never been so hungry or tired in my entire life! LT said it right when she coined the term "teacher tired." There is nothing like it! It is going well. I have good days and bad days. They are as cute as they could possibly be, but they make me question my career choice at the same time. I can say that when I put my head on the pillow at night, that I know I have made a difference in a life. 1st grade is funny. One little boy called me his "beautiful princess" on the second day and preceded to kiss my hand. I have since made a rule that we save all our kisses for our mommies. He came in with fever blisters the next day...thought I was going to die. Almost scrubbed my skin off! Let's just say I am handling the whole germ thing remarkably well. I have developed a Purell rash, however. Your skin can only take so much of that stuff. Other than that, I'm confident it is one of the best decisions I have ever made. And it has been a huge exercise in faith in so many ways, finances, germs, ability, strenghth...you name it, but it has been so good. I do love it. I was thinking about it yesterday on my way home. I LOVE Fridays more than ever, but I wake up every morning, at 5:30am, and I'm actually excited about going back. I'm eager to try harder every day and try to be better than I was the day before. I do have to check myself when I get home, though....Poor Travis had to remind me that he was not one of my students one night. I have to leave the "teacher tone" at the door. And poor Maggie. I'm not sure she understands the phrase that she has heard often as of late, "You're making a bad choice, my friend." I'll leave you with one of my favorite new tunes..."where is short a, where is short a? Here I am, here I am. I am in a hat rack, cracker jacks and fat cats, a, a, a....a, a, a." Catchy isn't it? Maybe I will finally learn how to spell. Everyone should consider repeating the first grade; I think I must have missed half of it my first go round.

I'm Published!

One of my colleagues asked me to do a black and white sketch for one of our Upper Room books. Here it is on page 86.





Thanks, Mrs. Dimino-wherever you are, for teaching me how to use a blending stump!

Happy, Happy Birthday, Mimi!

How funny is this picture? My mom is going to kill me for posting this one! Not the best picture of you, Mom, but hilarious for sure! You are much more beautiful than that hat allows you to be. My mom is still in Virginia with my sister, Rob, and MP. So, I am assuming they took her to eat Mexican for her birthday since these are the pictures my sister just sent me. I am so sad I can't be there, but she knows how much her favorite child loves her! I could not have asked for a more wonderful or weird mother. Mom, you are my favorite mom and friend. Your love, kindness, faithfulness, sacrifice and example have made me the person I am today. And you are the teacher that I hope to be! I love you more than I could ever tell you; now blow out those candles before you burn Rob's new house down!


Cake/fire-ball made by chef MP with a little help from my wonderful cousin Elizabeth. Love yall, wish I were there!

-this quote is a perfect picture of my mom's love.
A mother is a person who seeing there are only four pieces of pie for five people, promptly announces she never did care for pie. ~Tenneva Jordan

Poor MP, Your "Brudder" Is on the Way!

Look at this face...

she is not going to be happy Friday when her Da-Du, Rob, tells her that she is having a little brother! My sister went for a check up today. Please pray that her pregnancy will continue to go well. Poor MP, she has a lot of changes coming her way. She may just have to come live with Wa Wa and Tavis!

We're From The Country and.....

Long time for sure, and I don't even know if anyone even looks at this thing, but I have a new discovery. Evidently, if I turn on Nashville Star my wife turns into the biggest backwoods redneck you have ever met. In the 30 minutes we were watching this show my wife said the phrases...

"All the girls er cryin' cause he's gone"
"He'll be modeln' sometime soon"
"That song reminds me of frog giggin with my cousin goat"

Just messing on that last one. She did have another one, but I just can't remember it now.

Happy Birthday Little Daddy!

Happiest 68th Birthday to my Little Daddy!! My sister gave him that name long ago, and although he may be small in stature, he is one of the most amazing people I have ever known! I love my dad more than I could ever put into words. He is a loving and encouraging daddy, Poppy and friend. I am so thankful that God gave me such a wonderful daddy that modeled what a father, husband and friend should be. He is one of the loves of my life, and I get to spend a whole week with him very soon! He’s a pretty darn good cook too! Happiest Birthday, Little Daddy! Here’s to 68 more!


"He didn't tell me how to live; he lived, and let me watch him do it." ~Clarence Budington Kelland
Thanks, Daddy, for showing me your love!

New Stuff

I added 3 new paintings to my art blog, Walliekattz. (Check them out).

3 Down, 100 To Go!

I awoke this morning to the smell of eggs and sausage! Travis surprised me with breakfast on our 3rd anniversary. I really can't believe it has been three years already, but I am certain that even 100 more won't be enough! I love you, Travis.

Happy Birthday Travioli!

Happiest Birthday to my best friend! I won’t get too sappy. I think I wear Travis out with my sappiness especially when it’s publicly proclaimed.

We celebrated with Tyler and Katelyn and went to the Gherst Haus – it’s a tradition now. Unfortunately we found out that Hans, our beloved polka player, had passed away. The lady in the lederhosen said, “He had one hell of a funeral!” Yeah Hans, he polka-ed his way home. He will be missed, but we shall polka again on the other side.


Travis and Hans from birthday '07.

Today Travis turns 26, and I am so thankful for another year spent with the one I love. I think we will go eat pizza tonight to continue the celebration. He asked for pizza the other night, but I replied, “let’s hold off. I’m concerned about your fat intake. I do want to keep you around for another year!” This was after he ate a kielbasas the size of my forearm at the Gherst Haus!

Travis, I love you so much, and I am so thankful that you are in my life. God did such a good job when He made you. You are a wonderful man, and it is my joy to be your wife! Thanks for asking me ☺! He could not have picked a better husband and friend for me. Good job, God! Happy 26th Year to you, Travis.

Just a funny picture of Travis that I love. I think this pretty much sums up his personality!

Would you believe I spelled lederhosen all by my self – correctly!

Big Time!

Our little girl is going to be a star! That’s right, Maggie is going to be in Pockets magazine!!! She will be the featured pet in “Pet Corner” in the October 2008 issue. I guess it helps to have a mom in high places. Eat your hearts out Bandito and Sophie

In other cute news....take a look at my other love.


She has decided that sticking out her tongue is the only way to go. Reminds me so much of myself! I love this kid!

Happy Birthday Pops!

I’m not sure where to start with this post, but here goes...Happy Birthday Pops! That’s right, today is my father-in-law’s birthday, and I must say he is one of my favorite people in the world! I was a little intimidated by him on our first meeting 5 Easters ago, but once he told the Yankee Candle story, I knew we would get along nicely. He is such an amazing father-in-law. I really feel like I am his daughter more than his son’s wife, and that is ok by me. (Note to my single female readers, marry into a family with only boys...you’re father-in-law will love you. Katelyn, we are two lucky girls!)

Here we are...the Wolfepack minus Katelyn at a wedding last May. Some of my favorite times have been spent with Mr. Mike (Pops) and Mrs. Kris (still working on a name for her). Pops is hilarious, a little off color, and a truly genuine person. I love that you have a “man cave” where you train on your elliptical, and that you clean my car every time I come to your house...I think you even cleaned it the first time I met you.

What you see is what you get with Pops, and what you get is a man that I am so thankful will one day be my children’s grandfather. I know they will feel truly loved, just like I have, and what a blessing is that! Pops, I won’t get too sappy or sentimental, but I love you more than I could tell you. How many girls can say that about their father-in-laws? I never know what is going to come out of your mouth, but that makes being around you even more fun! I know I can’t always believe everything you say...I really believed for about 2 years that you set the touchdown record at your high school, and I still believe that you accidentally burned it down. Hopefully no one from Attica is reading this. I may be visiting you in jail! I love our family times on the boat, our trips to Indiana, and any time that I get to spend in Jackson. Thanks for being such a great dad to Travis. I know your example will show even more when we have little ones of our own. Thank you for all you do for us and your guidance and wisdom. Where would we be without you? Pops, you are so special to me. I really feel as if God has blessed me with a second daddy. I love you so very much and wish you the happiest birthday ever! Too bad I’m not there to help you celebrate...we’ll have to make up for that later.
Love,
Lett

The Pet Hair Eraser! Woo Hoo!

Some women may not like to receive appliances for presents, but not this lady...especially when it helps with my allergies. (side note: Travis does not believe in allergies. He thinks they are all in my head-literally.) Well, I didn't really get this for a present, maybe a thanks for being the best wife on the planet (haha) kind of present, but no specific occasion. It could have been Christmas because I was pumped up about my new Bissel Pet Hair Eraser! Wooo Woo! Amanda, this might even take care of Bandito's winter coat. I researched this bad boy on bestbuy.com before I ran out and bought it. I wasn't born yesterday, and I didn't want to fall for the hype. But, after 65 reviews, I figured they couldn't and wouldn't have taken the time to pay all these people off. So off to Lowe's we went. I vacuumed with my old, terrible vacuum the night before I got this baby. It sucked (sorry, mom) and not in a good way. But I didn't realize how lousy of a vacuum it was until I got the BPHE! I emptied the thing 3 times! Yes, I was wearing a mask while I vacuumed; I always do. (Note: chew gum while wearing mask. You will get tired of smelling your own breath...even if you just brushed.) The old, terrible excuse of a vacuum now lives in the garage until I can find an eco friendly way of disposing of it. I thought about good will, but that is kind of gross to get some one's old vacuum. That may just be the mask-wearing germ freak in me. I leave you with the evidence. RIP old vacuum!



I assembled it myself!



The culprit: yes, Maggie, that is you in there, but you are worth every headache you give me.



I kept screaming, "How am I alive?!" I have wicked allergies, and I really do try to keep a clean house. I will have to tell Dr. Barney, the allergist, about this bad boy!

A Wolfe Easter

I hope everyone had a great Easter. Ours was busy as usual, but we had a great time with the Wolfes! We got to see Katelyn and Tyler and celebrate their recent engagement. I am so excited to have a sister-in-law! No solid date yet, but probably fall '09. I just thought you all needed to see these pictures of my husband who played the role of one of the Roman soldiers in the Living Last Supper at our church. Very moving, but Travis is more of a comedic actor. He barely kept the smile off his face. Not really appropriate when leading Christ away.
Poor Maggie was a little frightened.



Yes, he did go to Little Caesar's after dress rehearsal, and No, they did not think it was funny. I did...and speaking of funny...that's the way he smelled. Like a 1970's recliner! Eat your hearts out ladies; he's all mine!

Airborne: Busted!

So it ain't so! My mouth dropped when I went to yahoo to do my afternoon email check. This popped up where a Brittany Spears or Barack vs. Hillary usually appears. ( See for yourself.) Depressing, isn't it? I think Oprah owes an apology as well; she originally backed the stuff. You know she has the Midas touch. Anyway, I still think it works; you'll never convince me otherwise. As my medical genius of a husband would say, "It's all in your head. If you think you won't get sick, you won't." Maybe that is the beauty of a placebo? Ask me how long it took me to convince him that allergies are REAL!

On another note, my friend Mary introduced me to a new blog that I am COMPLETELY OBSESSED with! I could read it ALL DAY LONG! It's called (Confessions of a Pioneer Woman), and it's just dang good! Check it out for yourself. You won't be disappointed.

For All the Mommies and Teachers Out There

In case you don't know, I am working on my Masters in K-6. This information may help explain why I would care to post such an article, but I think this has some really good information for mommies and teachers too. I have already emailed this to some of you, but I really think it is worth sharing. This article was on WPLN this morning....(Read it here)

A Day Late!

I’m a day late with this one due to almost having a nervous breakdown after deleting most of my school files. Files recovered....thank you Jesus! But, yesterday was my sweet mother-in-law’s birthday. So, Happy Late Birthday, Mrs. Kris! If you don’t know Mrs. Kris, then you are missing out! I have heard so many stories about people having TERRIBLE mother-in-laws. I cannot imagine that torture. I honestly consider Mrs. Kris one of my closest friends and a second mom. I always have a good time when we are together. Here we are pictured at the Brickyard 500 last year. (this is the only pic I have on my computer...I'll have to scan and add another.)

Mrs. Kris truly is one of the kindest, sweetest, most genuine, thoughtful and caring people I know, and I am so thankful that God chose her as my sweet second mom. She really makes you feel good about yourself, and that is a rare quality to possess. I remember the first time I met her. She came to Starkville right after Travis and I started dating. She ate supper with us at Abner’s, and from the moment I met her I felt so comfortable with her. I also thought, “dang, Travis sure has a cute mom!” He has a cute dad too, love you Pops! Mrs. Kris has given me a lot to live up to because she is a heck of a house cleaner...Travis had to come to grips early on with the fact that I couldn’t hold a candle to his mom in the tidy dept. She is also a wonderful grandmother to Maggie, and I know our human children will love her as well. We are still working on the grandmother name. She has so many wonderful qualities that I hope to live up to...but most importantly, she reared an amazing man whom I get to call my husband. Here’s to you, Mrs. Kris....Happy Birthday! Love you!

For Your Viewing Pleasure

In honor of Lent, here is a video that is sure to transport you to the Holy Land. I hope you enjoy it as much as I have...

Rear-Ended by the 80's

Well, as some of you may have gathered from the previous post by my cute husband, the WolfePack has had some car issues as of late. Our Alti was broken into in our driveway, and the punks stole the ipod. I know, we shouldn't have left it in the car. Lesson learned! But they broke into about 10 other cars in our neighborhood as well. Travis had a little accident on the youth ski trip, and to top it all off this guy "David" rear-ends me on Monday afternoon! Oh well, such is life. We were both fine, and the trail blazer didn't sustain any more damage. He hit the trailer hitch thankfully for me, but not for him. It did a little damage to the mini van he was driving...that's right. Picture this guy in a mini van. It's a wonder I didn't rear-end someone staring in the rearview mirror looking at him! He was a sight to behold. I cried of course. It scared me, but he was very nice. The bad part was after shaking his hand in parting, I could smell his hair gel the whole way home. He may have ruined all 80's music for me because every time I hear a great 80's song I will think of this minus the poofy bangs!

And get this...the guy is a mugician. No, that is not a typo, people...this guy does music and magic! Music + Magic = Mugician! Travis found this out after talking with him. Only me, only in Nashville! Just kidding...Travis made that story up, but he had me going too. I wouldn't doubt this guy has a few tricks up his sleeve...he has to do some sort of VooDoo to create the hair masterpiece he has going.

So the story continues. Yesterday I get a phone call from Georgia. I think, "who the heck is this?" I answer and it's Dr. Taylor??? who?? Turns out this guy has gotten my name off a database. If you have an accident it goes on a database and it's a public record! He gave me some good advice....whip-lash won't set in in some cases until 6+ weeks after the incident, so don't settle on your medical claim until at least 6 weeks post accident. I'm perfectly fine, but good to know. Creepy nonetheless. When I asked him how he got my name...I put it more gently, "now how did you know to call me?" He said, "Some of your southern boyfriends told me to call." Crickets chirped! What the heck is he talking about. He then said, "That was a joke." Really funny stuff, dude. Moral of the story, be ware of big hair and mystery numbers from Georgia! Have a safe and happy weekend.

Where is R Kelly when you need him...

Hello All, I am writing this from the closet of our wonderful home in Mount Juliet. Some rough weather has made its way thru Arkansas and Tennessee and now it is our turn to brave the storm. We think it is heading north of us right now, but my hometown of Jackson, TN got hit pretty bad...AGAIN. I swear Jackson gets hit hard by a tornado like every 4 years or something. I am humoring Laurette right now by hanging out in here, because I have seen far worse.

This reminds me of the tornado that hit Mississippi State when I was a freshman. All of us were hanging out on the balcony of Cresswell when we saw the roof tear off McComas. It was at that point, along with the power line falling down that we figured that we should all head inside. Once we got in everyone was freaking out, and we head down to Matt McCabe and Geoffrey Kneasal's dorm room and these two Coast Trash guys are hanging out playing NBA Live 2004. They found it pretty amusing that we were going crazy over this storm when they live thru a hurricane about every other month on the coast. Anyway, I feel a little like McCabe and Kneasal right now, but our prayers are with everyone affected, and once again, this shows that short of maybe Gulfport... Jackson, TN is one of the toughest cities in the South!!!