Brazil 2008

So here are just a few of the many pictures that were taken on my trip to Brazil in June. More to come on that.....enjoy!

what's the purpose of an armadillo?

so I've kind of always wondered what the purpose is of an armadillo? i mean, they are the ugliest animal I've ever seen, so clearly they're not here for beauty. what do they do besides terrify people and make them scream? i must say, even though I am absolutely terrified of them, when I see an armadillo that has been hit by a car and looks like the picture above, it just cracks me up. some time, i would like to lay next to one that looks like this and imitate it :)

today was very revealing in the fact that i actually discovered ONE purpose to an armadillo (courtesy of my fellow co-worker, ben grames). did you know that they actually make roadkill guitars out of armadillos? gross, i know. they are called charangos and it's a popular folk instrument in South America that sounds a little bit like an ukulele. the armadillo's hollowed out body is used as a resonating chamber. here are some disgusting pictures of what it looks like. i can hardly even look at the pictures. apparently the armadillos in argentina are hairy. you can bet that you'll NEVER catch me playing one of these things. for those of you who don't live in florida, be glad that you don't have to face these ugly creatures on an almost daily basis.

i'm new at this, so give me a break

ok...so this is my first post ever! how exciting:-) it doesn't take much to excite me. i've been wanting to start a blog for quite some time and here it finally is. i'm guessing it's going to be quite a work in progress, but i know that i'm going to enjoy it. i live about 20 hours away from my immediate family and friends, so i thought it would be nice to start up a blog so i can do a better job of keeping them updated on my life here in florida. i hate how much they miss out on my life and vice versa. so hopefully this will help! oh....it's my sister-in-law's birthday today! happy birthday sis! i love you:) AND....for those of you that i haven't told yet, i'm finally going to be an auntie!!! yes, my brother and sister-in-law are expecting. danelle is almost 15 weeks now and is due jan 3rd. i can't wait to find out what it is!