The Donaho's

Sophie is my little dog that has free run of the house. We have a doggy door so she can go in and out as she pleases. Zane's dog, Heidi, has never shown any interest in being an inside dog. She'd rather own the backyard, hunt birds, squirrels and opossum, and wait for our neighbor's dog, Jake to make his occasional appearance. The only time she breaks in and covertly comes in the house is when there are breads left on the counters. Cinnamon rolls, kolaches, breads, pies, bagels are typically gone if we leave the dog door open when we leave. We've been trained to keep all those items in the pantry when we leave. Or we need to be sure to close off the doggie door. Well tonight, there were no goodies out on the counter. However, we had one very tired dog. Zane took Heidi bird hunting all day in Corsicana. I guess Sophie's bed looked more comfortable to her through the window than her own bed because this is what we found when we returned from dinner this evening. The ...

No fever today, and Garrett slept all night last night. We are glad he is back to his old self. It is still so cold outside, so Daddy made us a fire to enjoy tonight.

Garrett had a fever last night, was up for 2 hours from 3-5 a.m. this morning, and ran a fever until late this morning. We went back to the doctor just to make sure there wasn't an ear infection. He was all clear except for the fever. By late this afternoon he was starting to feel better. Since he has cut one top tooth and the other one is about rear its ugly head, I thought he deserved his 1st Cookie. He loved it. He would stick out his entire tongue to get as much of the cookie surface in his mouth. Maybe his last cookie. What a mess. But he loved it.

Garrett continues to have a fever today. During his 6 month check up this morning, he had no fever (of course), so they gave him his 6 month immunizations. He fever increased on throughout the day, getting up to 103.1. The doctor thinks he may have had something viral on Tuesday. His 2 top front teeth coming in and the immunizations exacerbated it all. Garrett didn't feel like doing much and it is so cold and rainy outside, so we made baby food. Lots of it. My audience...He just sat in his chair and watched for almost an hour. If I was the Iron Chef, he was my panel of judges. He occasionally got to taste what we made, but didn't have much of an appetite. I got this "Magic Bullet" for my birthday from my mom. If you make baby food, this is the way to do it. It is so much easier than just the blender and more functional than a baby food maker. Pouring the blended food into the ice cube trays always made the biggest mess with a blender.It is much simpler and cleaner...

Well, here we are at 2:50 a.m. Garrett just wants to be held and his fever is back up to 100.1 Here are some photos from earlier yesterday that I didn't get to post. Sophie always knows when you don't feel well. Yesterday she did something that she hasn't ever done. Even though she has a doggie bed in Garrett's room (that was her only request as we were turning her favorite room in the house into a nursery), she only lays in it when I am in there, playing with Garrett, cleaning up his room, or changing his diaper. Well yesterday, in the midst of Garrett's fever (I didn't know he had a fever at this point in the morning. I knew he wasn't acting quite right, but I didn't think to check his temperature....I'm so dumb sometimes), she opted to stay in there with him while he napped while I went out to work in the office. Normally she would have followed me out to the office to lay in her doggie bed out there (she really is quite demanding), but her insti...

Garrett has been cutting one of his huge top teeth (yes, he inherited my big ole' teeth) since last Thursday. He has been such a trooper and only cries when he bites down too hard on my rubber spatulas or a spoon. Today he had a fever of 101.7, which is the highest he has had yet. He would try to be smiley and happy, but just simply didn't feel like it. When I put him on the floor to play, he just laid his head down on the mat. When I put him down for a nap, he went right to sleep. Sophie even curled up next to him on the floor at one point - she always knows when you don't feel well. I got him early from our neighbor (who watches him Tuesday - Thursday), and I finished my computer work while he was just laying on my shoulder. Zane took this clip of him because he was looking so pitiful. Zane was saying "peek-a-boo" from across the office. Garrett was looking at him and would ever-so-lightly giggle. About 5 seconds after Zane took this clip, he was asleep. Tonight...

Here is a clip from The Big Outfit playing at Allcat's company conference a few weeks ago at Leon Springs Dancehall in Boerne, TX. Zane is here playing the mandolin. The band is really good, and this year they opened for Moe Bandy. The amazing part is that they are all independent insurance adjusters, so they only get to play together about once a year - maybe twice (because they are usually scattered all over the country working weather-related catastrophes). This clip doesn't do them justice, but I thought I'd post it anyway. The Big Outfit holds a special place in my heart because all the guys got together to play at our wedding in 2005 - which was very special to us.

Mindy is staying a few days since she has Spring Break this week. She is keeping Garrett while I work. They are having a large time together. Swinging at the park: Swinging with Garrett's friend, Adrian....isn't he such a cutie? Hanging out with friends: Garrett, Erik, Luke & Morgan... Tuckered out...

I received lots of great gifts for my birthday....thank you to everyone. This evening Mindy and I made roasted garlic and onions with a terra cotta garlic roaster she and Jarrett bought me. We mixed cream cheese with it and made a yummy dip. I also used the risotto pan that Annette and Marcus got me. It turned out great! Here are my version of "Pioneer Woman" photos.... Just getting started: melting butter and sauteeing onions and garlic in the white wine... Letting it simmer.... Once I added all the broth, I added fresh spinach and arugala.... At the very end, once I added the parmesean cheese, I added the roasted tomatoes. Viola.... We paired it with pork chops and asparagus on the grill. It was yummy! Best of all, I didn't have to do the dishes....Mindy and Zane did.

For my actual birthday, we had a really nice, relaxing day. We went to church, and Zane and some other guys from our church played "Walk the Line" by Johnny Cash. Our Pastor had requested it to tie in with his sermon of "walking the line" for Jesus. It was really neat and a great birthday gift. At church after Zane's big performance. He did such a good job. At breakfast this morning before church... Zane (or it might have been Mindy) was thoughtful enough to take a picture of Garrett signing my birthday card. He even drooled on it a little bit. My card from Garrett... This boy gives such good hugs... Little Cash & Momma... All of us... Mindy, Garrett & me... What a good birthday....with my little man... He loves his Mimi...