So, on those days when my children are well, but not well enough to go to school, I occasionally bring my children to work. Here is a picture of Kate watching Dora the Explorer at the office.

Several members of the Hammock crew dusted off our cameras in August to have some fun with a photo scavenger hunt. The rules were simple: Interpret the nine items on the list in any creative or literal way that we wanted, and have fun!

What Lisa found:

A year ago this month, I witnessed Worsham's Market burn to the ground. Well, as of Memorial Day 2009 Worsham's is back in business. Although, the building looks new and they are selling BP oil rather than Citgo, the feeling of a deep history still exists. Inside you see photographs of Worsham's generations ago. Worsham's always had an area for folks to come and hang out, and they have incorporated a sitting area for community in the front of the building to provide that same feel. I am not a super emotional person, but going back into Worsham's brought an overwhelming rush of happiness....like a childhood memory that got to come back to life.

Which meal fuels you better for the day, breakfast or lunch?
I have to have both, but I do not require much for breakfast, therefore I will say lunch fuels me better for the day. Not only does it fill my belly, but it also breaks up the day.

What communications tool helps you the most during the day?
Email. It's like my "to-do" list. If I get an email from you, most likely your questions and tasks will be dealt with faster, if not immediately. This is because I don't like a full inbox and I strive to keep it empty!

Do you doodle while on the phone or in meetings? What do you doodle?
Most likely it is a list. In order to remain focused on a meeting, I have to write down tasks that pop in my head so I don't forget them later.

What is your favorite on-the-job responsibility?
I like dealing directly with vendors. I am generally a paper/spreadsheet person, so when I get to talk to people it really energizes me. I also like taking care of my co-workers by planning parties, travel arrangements or making sure there is enough coffee.

What is the last thing you do before you leave the office every evening?
I clean and lock my desk, wash out my coffee mug and then take the mail down.

Thanks, Lisa.

I will be on vacation January 21-26th. My husband and I are going on a cruise; therefore, I will not be able to check voicemail or e-mail. Please direct calls and e-mails that cannot wait to Julia Boklage, 615-690-3409/jboklage@hammock.com.

I am actually proud of myself as I made a mid-year resolution to read more and so far I have kept it. This must be a good sign that my New Year Resolutions have a chance of lasting more than two weeks.

Of course there are the standard resolutions to eat healthier, exercise more, etc., etc., but this year I have two specific resolutions that will take first place.

1. To cook more ... not so much that I won't dine out as much because the reality is we will continue to eat out, but because I really enjoy cooking. Perhaps if I cook because I like it and not because it is "my duty," our family will both not eat out as much and be inclined to eat healthier. We'll see.

2. I want to be more positive about everything. I think today's society gives us many reasons to be grumpy and discouraged--the economy, politics, fast food, busy schedules--and on and on and on. So even though I don't intend to be obnoxious or fake about the true hardships of people around me, I hope to be thankful for the things that are good.

Merry Christmas!

I will be out of the office December 24th after 12 noon and will be back on January 7th.

If you need to reach me during that time, please shoot me an e-mail.

Have a wonderful Christmas and a happy new year!

As I sit here working, I am getting in the Christmas spirit listening to a the group Chi Rho. My husband introduced this group to me (one of his good buddies sang in and produced the record.) I heard the song, Mary, Sweet Mary and fell in love with the record Chi Rho, The Christmas Album. The group Chi Rho is a group from Wake Forest University out of Winston-Salem, NC. BUT the cool thing about this group is it is completely a cappella, which even though I have been saturated in music of all types all of my life, I probably wouldn't have noticed until David told me. I have included a selection from the record...I hope you find it as impressive as I did.

Download file

This is my little Kate and her Great Pumpkin!

I have always been around gardeners. My grandfather always had a garden. He tried to grow most everything he could get his hands on. A couple years ago he passed away. My mother and father have since taken on the garden duties. I had the opportunity this year to have a couple rows for myself in their garden. I planted, of course, tomatoes, as well as, peppers, sunflowers and pumpkins.

I purchased two little 99¢ "kid" seed cups for my children. One cup was sunflowers and the other pumpkins. Little did I know, the sunflowers would be 12 feet high and produce flowers a foot in diameter nor did I anticipate the pumpkins would take over the garden...and all for two bucks!

Of all my plants I enjoyed the pumpkins the most. Sure, I got about thousand sunflower seeds and tons of tomatoes, but there is something so exciting about watching and waiting for the pumpkins.

It has been especially fun having a garden this year because our office has been very deliberate about eating local farm-raised vegetables. We've all passed along ideas for recipes, canning techniques and extra vegetables. It has been a fun summer...but now as the pumpkins are ready to be picked, I think we're all ready for the cool fall days!