Tragedy hits the Ipsen's

My dear old cat, TAC, was put to sleep Monday afternoon. He was a good cat, and lived a long happy life, 17 years to be exact. I've had him since I was 11 years old, in the sixth grade, we have been through a lot together. Elementary school crushes, high school dramas, college days, a wedding, a move across the country and a new baby. After I moved out of my parents house, whenever I came home he was always the first thing I called for and the last thing I said good-bye to. When he moved in with us, he would always greet us at the door when we got home. How I will miss that dear old, feisty cat!

A few funny and fond memories of Tac:

The road trip with him from CA to GA.
The time he stared Clay down in the rearview mirror while using the litterbox.
Smuggling him into a hotel in the pretense that he was a baby.
The way he would race up and down the hall, thumping like a racehorse.
The way he always wanted to pounce on things and play no matter how old he was.
The way he would hide in the closet during a thunderstorm, but after awhile he learned that it was safe to hide between my legs and the couch during any storm.
The day we found a dead baby rabbit on our front porch. Yep still a killer at the age of 17, he was so proud.
The way he would race outside everytime I opened the door to get the mail, only to demand to be let inside as soon as I shut the door.
The way he would keep me company during the day, following me from room to room.
The way he would let Hannah "pet" him as long as I was scratching his back.
The way he loved me.

Hannah learned how to crawl!

Hannah has learned how to crawl this past week and she is so fun to watch moving around. Clay and I are loving every minute of it. We also think she looks precious in her new church dress :)

Pumpkin Huntin'

We took Hannah to the pumpkin patch to choose her first Pumpkin. She had a good time. We probably had a better time watching her. She is of course adorable. Remember she is the same size as a large pumpkin. She is a little lighter.

As a side bar, I did last longer then Tiff with the Velociraptor but not as long as Kerry. It is all the the rage at my office!

This is funny!

I could survive for 51 seconds chained to a bunk bed with a velociraptor

Created by Bunk Beds Pedia

Thank you KERRY for the entertainment.

Tiff needs a cause

These past two months all of my spare time has been focused on piano lessons. I've recently began teaching lessons again,and I currently have 11 students. Between buying method books, reseraching adult method books, passing out flyers and figuring a schedule for my students, piano has kept me pretty busy. Now that October has begun it has been a month since the majority of my students started and I am completely organized. I no longer have to make trips to the music store, research methods or do anything else. Ahh... a great big sigh of relief.... I have accomplished much....

With this accomplishment, comes a new sense of freedom and once again more time on my hands. Time for me is both a welcome friend and an enemy. A welcome friend, because it's nice to relax and not be so busy, but an enemy because without tasks to keep me occupied, boredom and genearl dissatisfaction sets in.

Today I had a productive day, I did the laundry, cleaned the kitchen, cooked dinner, went for a walk, did a chapter in my finance class, practiced the piano, played with the baby and organized photos. All in all, a busy, productive day. Yet admist all these activities a restlesness grew in me that I could not shake. It quickly came to an anxious feeling that I have been carrying around in my stomach all day.

Why was I feeling so anxious? The thought finally occured to me, because I need something to do! True, I can stay busy, but it means nothing when filled with meaningless tasks. It isn't enough just to keep busy, I need to do something of value, I need to provide some type of meaningful service for someone else. And then it hit me, I need a cause! I need to find a cause that I can put my energy and efforts towards when I have free time.

I've looked on line for volunteer opportunities within my community, and the only one I was able to find was to help with a Bingo event once a month. So I now put this question to you, what is my cause? What is it that I can do that will make a positive impact on the community, organization, youth etc.? I am open to all suggestions and I would love for any input as I am trying to brainstorm what my "cause" can be.

The Great Northwest Georgia State Fair (Objects may seem smaller up close)

So here are some photos of Hannah's first forray at the fair. Let's just say that it is not the Big Fresno Fair. She enojoyed her time, as did we. Her least favorite thing: Baby chickens. Their quick moveemnts and looks of hunger and carnage scared her horribly. Her favorite thing: Balloons against daddy's head. Nothing better. Our biggest objection to the fair...NO PIGS! An outrage and I will be writing my State Represenative about this, don't you worry. Without further ado here is what you all really want, cute pictures.