The Hillbilly's

Just down the street from the Meremec Caverns we passed a shabby little building that had a statue of a lion on top of it and a sign in the front that said Alligators on it. We were intrigued so we stepped inside. It was exactly what you would expect to see in some back country zoo in Missouri. The stink of the place was overwhelming! I didn't breath the entire time we were there. There were alligator heads everywhere you looked, dogs sleeping (at least 4), a guy sleeping in the back, and in a display case they had these scary little creatures with their heads stuck in mouse traps. It was so disgusting! One of the dogs were sleeping in the display case. I thought it was stuffed at first so it about gave me a heart attack when it sat up.

Then we went outside to the Alligator pond. That's when we met "the hillbilly's". It was like a scene from Deliverance. I was just waiting for someone to pull out a banjo. You could tell that all these people do all day every day is sit out there with the Alligators. They had tons of fun stories about suicidal chickens that fly into the tigers cage and that one of the Alligators came from an owner who shot his wife and then himself and they found the Alligator in the basement.

You know,

stories like that.

Can you believe the size of that thing? We got to go right up to those bad boys. I'm still having nightmares about it! We left Sadie on the other side of the fence with the chickens. Luckily she didn't get any crazy ideas. I hear chickens can be a bad influence...

But actually to cross the pond to get to the deck where the hillbilly's live you have to walk across a little board and there was no way the stroller could fit. Plus she was sleeping. And I didn't want her to get eaten.

I think this was the one found in the basement. Poor guy has seen some sad times.

The Emu's were all right in your face. They are actually kind or gross looking up close. Luckily I got this handsome picture of...Well I can't remember his name.

But this is Jafar. He showed us his big belly. It was cute watching him roll around. It sort of reminded me of Bruce.

This was Ben's favorite part of the whole day. His favorite animal is an Alligator so it was like Christmas for him. The guy was letting all of the little kids hold this tiny little Alligator and then Ben asked if he could hold it. The guy put it back and went into this room that had about 80 Alligators in it so that he could get Ben a big one. It was scary! They all started hissing at him and it was so loud. When he brought it out it was wiggling so much. I ran away because I didn't want to get hit with the tail. I know I'm a wuss.

Sadie loved loved loved the Lemurs. She has a thing for furry things with big eyes. She couldn't get her eyes off of them. She kept screaming at them too. It was cute to see her so excited. Even if it was over something that eats its own poo.

Really.

I saw it happen.

Jesse James Hideout

I've been putting of this blog for a few days. I warn you it's a long one. With lots of pictures.

This past weekend some friends of ours invited us to join them in going to see Jesse James' hideout at the Meramec Caverns. We are always eager to get out of the apartment and we figured that Jesse James was sort of a bad-A so we were excited to check it out.
See us excited? Apparently after Jesse and his brother Frank got done with all of their shady business they would hideout in this cavern and separate all the loot.
The tour of the cave turned out to be 19$ a ticket. A price that nearly had me running out the door. But luckily there was a little military discount so we pressed forward.
When it is 90 degrees outside you tend to forget to bring warm clothing. But down in the deep dark cave it was freezing! Poor little Sadie. She was terrified. This is her terrified face. It didn't help that some freako kept making owl and wolf noises behind us.

The Jesse James part of the cave was pretty disappointing. It lasted about 1 minute into the cave. Apparently they didn't really go very far into it. They were just happy to count their cash and get out. But, luckily someone else did because all of the formations were really beautiful. We went into it excited to see one thing but instead got to see something else that was so much better!

Chicken with Sun-Dried Tomatoes

I found this recipe in a Cooking Light magazine and we love it! My paper copy is almost destroyed because we eat this so often, so I thought I would type it up. Might as well do it where other people can enjoy it also.

Prep: 10 min. Cook: 20 min. Makes: 4 servings
3 tbsp. Olive oil
4 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves
1 shallot, finely chopped*
1 can (10 3/4 oz.) Condensed Cream of Mushroom Soup (Regular or 98% Fat free)
3/4 cup water
1/4 cup thinly sliced sun-dried tomatoes
1 tbsp. red wine vinegar
2 tbsp chopped fresh basil leaves
4 cups hot cooked extra wide egg noodles
1/4 cup shredded Parmesan cheese (optional)

1. Heat 2 tbsp. oil in skillet over medium-high heat. Add chicken and cook 10 min. or until well browned on both sides. Remove chicken from skillet.
2. Heat remaining oil in skillet over medium heat. Add shallot and cook and stir 2 min. Stir soup, water, tomatoes, vinegar, and basil in skillet.
3. Return chicken to skillet and heat to a boil. Reduce heat to low. Cook 5 min. or until chicken is cooked through. Serve chicken and sauce over noodles. Sprinkle with cheese and thinly sliced basil, if desired.

*Or substitute 1 tbsp. finely chopped onion.

Money Eaters.

I drove 45 minutes today to the closest Nissan dealership.
I got lost and made it 1/2 way to Salem before I realized it.

Sadie screamed the whole way.

The whole reason for this trip is to get my air conditioning fixed.

The AC only works when the windows are down.
Its the craziest thing!
I think someone wired my car this way as a very mean prank.
The whole drive went like this; heat, roll window down, AC kicks in, roll windows up, AC turns off, roll windows down, etc. etc.
This continued on for the entire trip.

Can you imagine driving all the way to North Carolina like that?
No way, No how.
Ain't gonna happen.

I arrived at the elusive Nissan dealership sweaty, cranky, hungry, and altogether fed up.
I was met in the parking lot by this sweet lady who saw my face and said "AC problems?"
I was then escorted in and given a tour of where I could find a play area for Sadie, changing tables, magazines and anything else I would possibly need.
She even showed me how to work the TV so that I could change the channel if I wanted.
It's so funny how one person can change your whole mood around.
For better or worse just by their attitude.
Needless to say I was pleased with the service.

If only my car could have taken the cue to be nice to me too.
Three hours later my stomach was growling out of control as was Sadie.
In my head I was imagining all these situations like, they couldn't figure out what was wrong so for my trouble they would give me a new car.
And other delirious things like that.

I was brought back to this planet when they handed me a slip of paper telling me the cost.
So much for my good mood.
I packed up the screaming baby and headed back home to my nice cool apartment.
Who needs a car anyway?

I never missed Logan so much as I did today.
Everything you need is just 5 minutes away.
Shopping, eating, car repairs.
I used to laugh at the Logan mall and its limited number of stores.
They call the Wal-mart here the Mall-mart.
But hey at least we have that.

Army Wife

This week I'm getting a little taste of what my life is going to be for now on.
I am an Army wife and there's no going back.
Not that I would want to, I love my life.
I love my husband and there's nothing I would rather be than his wife.

Still it can be hard sometimes.
My husband is in the field for 5 days.
Which means I don't get to see him for 5 days.
A piece of me is missing for 5 days.

It's getting me ready for the year that I will be with out that piece of me.
I dread it.

You never realize how much of your life is intertwined with your husband until he's gone.
I forget to eat because I don't have him to cook for.
I forget to clean because I don't have him to pick up after.
My whole schedule is set to accommodate him.
Is that bad?

I secretly hate the Army.
I hate that we have to hang around until the 12th to find out if we will be going to Utah or North Carolina.
I hate that my husband was passed up for a spot in EOKA when he clearly deserved it and earned it.
I hate that I have no idea when he will be deployed.
I hate not knowing! There is nothing more frustrating than that.

But in a big way I'm thankful for the Army.
I'm thankful for the job security.
I'm thankful for the other Army wives that are all going through the same thing as me.
I'm thankful that I get to live in so many different places.
Mostly though, I'm thankful that my husband gets to do what he loves.

Rabies?? Cannibalism?

Today we found out what happens when you combine hunger, no nap, and not as much attention together for little Sadie. Her body couldn't handle all of that frustration! I'll admit is was pretty funny. I literally had tears flowing down my face because I was laughing so hard. But it was slightly scary at the same time because if she had teeth I'm pretty sure I would have been bleeding. I don't know what came over her but she just started biting me! Not little bites either. Like rabid dog bites. Well here are some videos to prove it...

7 months!

Sadie had her well baby check up this last week. She's a month behind because of the move so she had it on her 7 month rather than her 6th. She was 16 lbs 10 oz, her head was 17 inches, and her length was 25 1/2 inches. She was in the 50 percentile all around. Her shots went so well! I was dreading it but it turned out she hardly even cried. Ben met me at the hospital and we all went to lunch together and she just smiled and talked to every single person we saw. She's super out going and accident prone. Her new skill for the month is standing and scooting around things. She can crawl but prefers not too. The doctor didn't believe me when I told her about all of the stuff she was doing. That was until the doctor stepped close to her and Sadie instantly grabbed her and stood up. ha ha it was funny to see how shocked the doctor was. I was so proud of my girl. She's so happy! I love it!

I wish I had more to talk about than just Sadie...

but sadly taking care of this cute little thing basically consumes my whole life (not really SAD because I honestly LOVE it). So, unless you want to hear about laundry, dishes, or my constant battle to lose this baby weight. Those things and Sadie are my everyday. My husband is there too of course and he helps out a ton especially at the end of the day when Sadie and I are both pretty much fed up with each other. I think the best way for him to say I love you is "Go back to sleep I'll get up with the bug" that's when I know it's real true love. I'm amazed that people can survive with more than one kid. I bow to you that can do it and do it well! Most of the families in our Missouri ward have at least 4 kids and most have Dads either on deployment or just getting back. These Moms are my heroes. They make it to church every Sunday with kids in tow and they somehow manage to all look clean and dressed up. I can barely make myself look decent in time for church let alone Sadie too. I'll be honest some times she ends up looking a little like an orphan. sigh. Maybe with time I'll some how change my lazy ways and become super efficient and finally get on top of things.