Poor Duke...

I'm going to echo what Natalie Copeland said on her blog, "if you know Brent (Martin) then you know Duke." Sadly, Duke was hit by a car yesterday and died. Jeff was Duke's "Godfather," and spent many hours holding him like a baby (even through he was a very large dog) and taking care of him while Brent was away. We're so sad Duke's life was cut short and that Lola has lost her best friend. He was a good dog and will be missed!

Politics

So, Jeff and I have been getting hassled for supporting Obama (he has my vote and I think Jeff is still considering him). A Tobler-family friend, Joseph, had an interesting post on his blog today. I'm not recommending it to "stir the pot" but rather as "food for thought" as the election nears. Check out his "in response" post:

http://eatpadek.blogspot.com/

OR

Click the "Joseph" link to the left.

Happy Birthday, Grandma!

My grandma turns 76 tomorrow and to celebrate she's headed to Cancun with all her children for some resort-style vacationing! She's a really great lady and is so much fun! I have the best memories of running a-muck in her house with my cousins and making Christmas candy with her and my aunts (I'm pretty sure the kids didn't do much to help, we were probably just there for the experience). I'm also sure that my compulsion for having full candy dishes when we have guests at our house comes directly from her!

Have a very Happy Birthday, Grandma! Have a fun, safe trip to Cancun! Remember, don't drink the native water and don't be surprised when the Diet Coke tastes different!

The Big Push Is On!

I had a meeting with my dissertation committee this morning and they've given me "the push" to finish things up in early December! My plan was to be done writing before the holidays and then defend in late-January, early-February, but given my progress, and one of my committee members switching colleges in January, they told me to try and wrap this sucker up in December! So, the big push is on. Time to buckle down and crank it out! I suppose it's a good thing, even I don't end up defending in December, at least it'll be done! Although, this may mess up my family's big plans for a graduation ceremony (participation is not a big deal to me but, apparently it isn't real to them unless they see me walking across the stage).

Some other fun news...my dad and step-mom are rolling into town today for some UF Homecoming fun! We always enjoy their visits and are excited to spend some time with them!

Octobler Fest!

Tonight is Haile Plantation's Oc-tobler Fest (really it's just October Fest but, my way is more fun). It's a fun little outside festival with music, German food, etc. We're excited to start enjoying the "fall"!

Jeff is getting in the spirit and wants to buy and carve a pumpkin. We usually just by one but, after I finished telling Jeff my pumpkin idea he said, "maybe we need two pumpkins." I guess that means he didn't like my idea!

No Gator football this weekend...I guess it'd be a good time to do something creative!

The Reason Why I'm Hoarse Today...

Direct quote from the LSU student newspaper football blog:

"Casey and I agree that The Swamp is the loudest game environment we've ever experienced. The fans were intense and unrelenting. We were impressed."

My man-voice is totally worth it!

Great Weekend!

Yes, we were at the game. Yes, it was WONDERFUL! And yes, my voice sounds like a man's voice now (from screaming so loudly on Saturday night)! For those of you that haven't heard, UF dominated LSU on Saturday night. Final score, 51-21. It's great to be a Florida Gator!

Mom and Greer also came up yesterday to have some much-needed girl time with me and Ashley. We had a lovely brunch at Sisters cafe and spent the day shopping for shoes and accessories for Greer's first homecoming dance in a couple of weeks. It was a great day and a great weekend!

I'll try and post some game pics tonight!

Welcome Home Jake!

The last of the Tobler boys returned from his mission yesterday. Welcome home Jake! Jeff has been thinking hard about all of his advice to you about what to do with the rest of your life!

Friday, Again...Yeah!

If I can get my allergies under control, I'm looking forward to enjoying our great "fall" weather, college football, and general conference! Since the Gator game is away, we're going to try and make a dent in all of our little house projects!