The Infamous Oscar

Our Dachshund has been apart of our family since 'The Duvalls' first came to be. I begged Matt to get me him a month after we were married. I remember going to pick out which puppy we wanted, and it was between Oscar and one other puppy. I remember that the other puppy was very hyper; running in circles and barking. Oscar however, was so quiet and very shy. I said to Matt, " we should get this one, he is so calm and would make the better puppy." Now, seven years later, I often wonder what that other dog is like today?

Oscar totally had us fooled, and I like to refer to him as our trouble making dog. Since having Oscar, he has swallowed everything imaginable, peed on many house guests, had stitches multiple times, and has had to wear a cone for his many injuries more times than I can remember, not to mention he is the smell est thing ever.

Meet Oscar...

Throughout the years, Oscar has kept us entertained and our laps warm.

He also carries a very bizarre habit. He loves to be comfortable and warm. He goes to great lengths to accomplish this, and he is always on the look out for a warm place to sleep.

Even more impressive, he has taught our Chihuahua to bury himself under blankets.

Yes, I am serious.

Anyways, I thought I would share about our infamous Oscar. If you have ever met him, you will never forget. He probably peed on you, and I am extremely sorry.

Easter Weekend

We spent this Easter in Millry, Alabama. visiting my Granny. We drove down Friday afternoon with my Dad and brother James. It was quite a long drive, but luckily we have a DVD player in the car.

Here is our crew before heading to church Sunday mornng.

Before heading to church, the kids woke up to baskets filled with candy and toys.

After church James, Ella, and Wren searched for eggs for about an hour.

Now, Ella is not used to playing with kids much older than her, but her and James were perfect playmates all weekend. They played so well together and they kept busy from dawn till dusk.

On Monday, we drove down the rode to my great-uncle Fred's house where my dad and Matt let the kids fish. The little pond was full of fish, and the group was catching fish one after the other. That night we had a giant fish dinner.

Great-Uncle Fred and Cousin Mike

James and Ella took turns realing in the fish.

They were having a lot of fun... I promise

Overall, we had a really great, relaxing weekend. Being in the country is a great place to be on Easter weekend.

B*L*U*E

Ella was so proud of her blue tongue.
Getting to eat candy with this kind of result makes life truly great.

Spring Chicks

It is officially spring, and what better way to celebrate than with new pictures in our Easter dresses. Last week I passed by this beautiful weeping cherry, and I had to take the girls photos with it. I am constantly on the look out for new places to photograph and my poor girls are the ones dragged to each new find. This one was totally worth braving the cold for, because they turned out so beautiful. I love being able to capture sweet sisterly love.

Play Time with Friends

Any Afternoon worth spending outside is always good for me. Over this past raining season, I am about sick of sitting inside all day. I know the girls get restless as well. So this day, we decided to head to the park with our good friends the Gwinns. Our girls play so well together, and I know they are best friends in the making.

Here are a few pictures to help us remember this fun day.

Bye Bye Passy

About seven months ago, Ella officially gave up her passy. It was without a fight, cry, or relapse of any kind. When she was a baby she could not sleep without it. If she lost it in the middle of the night, everyone knew about. In fact, we spent most nights searching for it behind or under the bed. So when she volunteered to give it up I was quite sceptical. However, she proved me wrong and seemed to become a big girl overnight. It happen so fast, and right before my eyes. Although I think my eyes were closed, because I didn't realize it happened until it was too late.

The reason I am writing this story down months after it happened, is because I held on to her passy for sentimental reasons. Just the other day, Wren found it and pulled it out of the cabinet it was in. Matt picked it up and said, "oh this is Ella's old passy, we need to throw it away."

Now I am not usually sentimental with physical items. I think a picture will suffice when it comes to remembering memories. But for a second I thought. NO!! That is my baby's.

So, I thought I would write about the life of this purple and pink piece of plastic and give it a place in Duvall history.

Farewell passy, and farewell to my baby Ella.

Winter Wonderland Vacation

This weekend we went down to my grandparents house on Lake Martin. We were able to get down there before the snow bagan to fall. It ended up being a beautiful white weekend.

My grandma, aunt, and mom watching the snow fall.

The snow fell all day and completely covered the ground. We didn't take the girls out in the snow, but I did sneak out for a bit to take a few pictures. The three of us piled onto this cart and went riding up the road. The seats were wet, so I sat in my mom's lap while my aunt drove. You should have seen us, we looked like 'Dumb & Dumber'. I then jumped off and took a photo while my aunt took a photo.

What a view

Finally I was able to come inside to capture my girls playing.

The rest of the weekend was spent playing games, watching the olympics, and visting with family. It is always fun here at the lake and I love spending time with my grandparents.