Finishing up July 2013

This Wednesday was almost a carbon copy of last Wednesday. We had dinner at Logan's followed by church and then I finished the baby shower invites that I started last week.

Thursday was the first full day of school. Brookelynn had four bags total when she got everything in the car. She had her backpack loaded down with school supplies, she had her lunch bag, her cheer bag for practice and an additional bag that I can't recall the contents.
Devin on the other hand, had to be forced to take a pencil. By Friday, Devin was asking how far away is fall break.

Friday night, Stroker and I went for another date night. This time, we went to a new restaurant here in town called Seven Senses. It was delicious.

Saturday was spent on the road...Literally. We were from Jamestown to Pikeville and back. Then we drove it a second time.

 Sunday, after church, we went to Mildreds to visit with some family that had come in this weekend for family reunion. I made a squash casserole to take. We hung around her house most of the day. I called my sis while we were there to wish her a happy birthday.

Monday was Brookelynn's first rubber band exchange at the orthodontist. Thank goodness it didn't leave her teeth sore. She had to go straight to cheer practice afterwords.

 After the orthodontist visit on Monday, Brookelynn had to have three shots at the doctors office on Tuesday. She is really good about taking shots. She actually watches the nurse inject them. She did give me a fake cry after the nurse left the room. The injections left her arms a bit sore, but she endured 2 hours of cheer stunt training right after we left the doctors office. #ToughGirl

 We ended July with dinner at Logans and Wednesday evening church. This month went well and I thank God for that. Hope August is equally blessed.

Just Visiting

After church Sunday, we made our rounds visiting first my mom and then my dad. I need to visit them more often, but our schedule stays packed.

Tuesday was school registration. Brookelynn had to attend the entire two hours. Devin just ran in briefly to pick up his schedule. When I picked up Brookelynn at 10:00, she was determined that we go straight to the store to purchase school supplies.

Tuesday afternoon, one of the brave cheer moms allowed her daughter to have a sleepover for all the cheerleaders. Better her than me I guess. The sleepover required each of the girls to bring a sleeping bag. There is one thing we have never needed in the past, so off to the store I go to buy one. Boy did I luck up...Panda sleeping bag, pillow and carrying bag. PERFECT! Brookelynn loved it.

Stacia text me Tuesday afternoon to see if I would be interested in taking a few photos of Jett, Dash, and Grey. I said "sure...can we do it today?" We wound up at Dogwood Park. The idea started heading south when we arrived at sunset. Next was the dying battery in my camera, followed by two boys that would much rather play than take photos. After a short while, Stacia told them to go have fun. It was great to sit outside, enjoy the warm summer air and watch those kids run, giggle and splash until 9:00. Stacia had to convince them that the fountain was going to turn off soon; otherwise, they would have never got in the van.

Painting and Pool Party

Today, we joined Matasia for her 7th birthday party. She had a painting party followed by swimming. It was the perfect day for both. Sunny and 97 degrees. It was nice attending a party that we could sit down and relax.

And So It Begins

Thursday made it official, summer break came to a close.It was in-service day for Putnam County Schools. I also had some blood work done and a bone density screening. Turns out that I still have Osteopenia, which is the early onset of osteoperosis. Brookelynn had cheer practice on Thursday and she joined Darlene in watching Matasia in the Overton County Fair Pageant. It was a long day and bedtime was welcomed by all of us at the Hayes House.
Friday, Stroker and I both took the day to rest. We slept until almost 10:00 am. Once we got up, we were not much better off. We had a peacful breakfast for two at Cracker Barrell  then headed back home to lay around. We went for ice cream in the afternoon and took a drive down by a creek in Jackson County. After a few more hours of laziness, the two of us went on a date at Outback. The kids were home all day too, but aside from Brookelynn joining us for the scenic drive...they both left us to enjoy our day.
It was a storybook ending to summer break 2013.

Back to School Bash

Tuesday, July 16th was the Avery Trace Middle School Back to School Bash. Brookelynn had to make a poster to welcome everyone back to another school year. Her cheer coach asked them to put on their uniforms, make posters and show up to welcome the students back. 

It was a long two hours for me, but she seemed to enjoy handing out candy to the students as they walked in and I noticed a whole lot of smiles and good times as those girls hung out with each other.
Wednesday we went to church and dinner at Logans. After church, we drove by a co-workers house so we would know how to get to her party on Saturday. Brookelynn and I also started on crafting up some baby shower invitations for an upcoming shower that we are helping host.

Slip and Slides

Other than the time we spent in church Sunday morning, we spent the entire day outside. I have the red nose and shoulders to prove it. It was a beautiful day full of sunshine. I also had a 8:00 hair appointment Sunday evening. From the stuff we got done outside to getting highlights in my hair, I felt like Sunday was a pretty successful day.

Monday, the kids and I got up around 8am and went to breakfast at Shoney's followed by a visit to Cummin's Falls. We walked down to the overlook which was beautiful and scary at the same time. Thank goodness there are rails up now to keep bpeople from slipping over the edge. I didn't even want to touch the rails out of fear that they would fall too. They were so close to the edge, I felt like the ground could give any second.

We stopped by the creek on the way home and Brookelynn and I got our feet wet. We wound up getting the water-slide out to beat the heat. Devin went down a couple of times, but the most use of the slide was from Brookelynn, Kali, Treasure, Michaely, Jalyn and Cassidy. Those girls were playing until 4:00 in the evening. Once they finally wore out, I ordered Papa Johns pizza and they devoured it in minutes. The last friend was picked up around 8pm. By that time, I was ready for bed.

It's Hard to Eat With Sore Teeth

There are still 20% and 30% chance of showers in the evenings every day. It feels like we live on the coast this summer where there are afternoon pop up showers everyday. The temperatures are starting to feel more like summer these days reaching the 90's. We havnt got out and done very much this week other than going out for dinner. We are almost to the point that we are burnt out on every restaurant, but I just don't want to spend the evening in the kitchen cooking.
Tuesday was a big day for Brookelynn, her orthodontist appointment finally arrived. She spent over an hour in the chair with her mouth stretched open while one by one, each bracket was mounted to a tooth. She was a trooper though. She is ready to have her million dollar smile in progress.

I did make some macaroni and cheese for church on Wednesday evening for our Fellowship meal. I also made a Hershey Bar Pie for dessert.

Brookelynn and I worked a little on invitations for a baby shower that we are helping host. We cut out 21 baby strollers.
Thursday, I shopped for steaks and baked potatos and Stroker cooked them on the grill. That was a nice change of pace from going out to dinner.

Friday evening, we were back to dining out as we joined about 10-12 people from church for dinner at the Dipsy Doodle. Around 9pm, we watched fireworks at Bondecroft.
Brookelynn got up Saturday morning and went to cheer practice that lasted all day...until 4pm. She was one tired little lady when she got home.

Rain Rain Go away.

The rain showers gave us a slight break on Friday. We used the day to get a few things done at the house.
Saturday the rain poured all day long. We decided to go visit my mom for a while on Saturday during the day as the rain soaked middle Tennessee. Later Saturday evening, Darlene and Gary stopped by our house for a visit. The rains slowed down a little by 8 pm and by 8:30, I had the bright idea to go to Hurricane Boat Dock to watch their firework show. All six of us loaded up in Gary's truck and headed toward Smithville. We arrived just in time to find out that the display had been postponed because of all the rain. Wasted trip.

Today was a better day. We woke up to sunshine. After church, we went to Mildred's church to watch Heather Scott be Baptised. We have attended several baptisms in the past couple of years (including our own) and one thing is for sure...I never grow tired of being a part of people's life changing moment.
After our two church attendances this morning, we joined Heather Scott, a couple of her friends, Mildred, Francis, Matt, Jaiden, and Paradise for lunch at El Tapatio to celebrate.

Independence Day Wash Out

Some people may be disappointed by rain on the fourth of July, some people may look for alternative plans, but not our crew. When we woke up and heard the rain drops hitting the roof, we were relieved. Rain means  one thing here at the Hayes House...Relaxation. We slept in, we went for breakfast, we drove back roads admiring the countryside, we even ended up in Gordansville on this rainy holiday.
By 4pm, the four of us made our way to Mildred's for a cook-out. It poured the rain at times there too, but Matt and Keith were on a mission to host a cook out and they pulled through. They even put on a nice firework display after dark. The rest of us watched them from under the dry porch. Riverfront was nice last year and we thought about going again this year, but in this weather we were more content to stay close to home.

I thought about Kelly several times while we were there. It just feels like a missing link at our family gatherings these days. You could always count on Kelly to be there when family got together. Even these last few years as her health declined, she still made her way to family functions. As the saying goes..."time heals all wounds", it's just going to take a while to get used to her absence.
She touched so many lives. How fortunate she is for so many people to miss her now that she is gone. There are many who walk this earth for years and when they are gone, there absence goes unnoticed.
I realize the importance of time with family more and more as I get older. Time together is cherished forever. Don't miss these limited opportunities to be with those who love you most. We spent the day running in and out of the rain trying to keep dry, but we were together and that is what matters.  I end this post with one of my favorite quotes...

It's not where you go or what you do, it's who is beside you that counts.

Our Discovery

July is starting off a bit on the gloomy side. There is a chance of rain in the forecast every single day. So far the weather predictions are accurate. It rains once or twice each day. 

July is also starting off with sleepovers. Brookelynn went to Cassidy's on Sunday night for a sleepover and Cassidy hung out at our house on Monday. 

Yesterday Brookelynn and Treasure made plans for a sleepover at our house. This is the first time those two girls have had a sleepover with each other all summer. They have been missing one another.

Last night, I apparently dropped the discover card on the way in the house. I had no idea that it was missing until Stroker sent me a text asking me if I dropped it last night. Attached to the text was this image.

Looks like Kimba found it in the yard for me.

 I have a tendency to bring in everything from the car when I get home because I hate a cluttered vehicle. The downfall of carrying everything inside is that my hands often get too full and I drop stuff. 

Today is yet another forecast for spotty showers. They have just arrived. I guess at this point we have to look forward to next Friday where it appears that there is 0% chance.

These showers are causing a bit of cabin fever for Brookelynn and Treasure, so why not make the most these rainy days? 

This evening, I took the girls for splash at Dogwood Park to run off some energy and get outdoors. Rain or Shine.