Time Passes Quickly

I had to get a new hair dryer on Tuesday. The one I had was on it's last leg. A gentle breeze is about all the wind that it could muster up here lately.

I prepared a home cooked meal on Thursday...Taco Salad.  I know that is not too much of a meal, but it beats Tuesday nights Papa Johns and Wednesday evenings Logan's dinner before church.  Brooke had a ball game Thursday evening, so it was nice to get to come home to eat dinner and relax for a while.

Friday evening we visited the Michaela in the hospital to see baby Addelyn. She sure is a cutie. She looks a lot like Maleigha if you ask me. I cannot believe that Maleigha and I have children that are old enough to have their own children. Part of me almost gets depressed at the thought of how much life that we have already lived, while the other part of me is in awe of what wonderful things life has in store. Who knows, my best days might still be ahead of me. I look forward to them all while savoring the day that I am in. 

Mustaches and Gums

Yesterday, Sunday, we drove to Smyrna to celebrate Ansley's birthday with her. She had a mustache party this year. It sure was a hot day out, but the kids cooled themselves off with a water balloon fight. Brookelynn enjoyed getting to spend some time with Ansley. It would be nice if they just lived a little closer.

After many many years with Dr. Boston, my dentist, I have decided to move on. 

It wasn't that I was pressured into having my wisdom teeth removed last year (and all the trouble I had along with that). It wasn't that I was pressured into having two teeth drilled and filled this past February. I'm not even going to say it was the tooth that he cracked while drilling and filling those two teeth (that previously did not hinder me in the least.)  Even after his office showed no urgency to see me when the cracked tooth broke in half, I still returned to Dr. Boston. The reason I decided to leave Dr. Boston was that his method to fix my ill fitting crown was to drill out the tooth behind the crown and close in the gap with more filling instead of replacing the crown with one that fits correctly. That is where I drew the line. It was time for me to take my smile elsewhere. So on Monday, August 25th, I officially became a patient of Dr. Haston. 

The hygienist started off my very first visit by complimenting my gum tissue :) That's a compliment that I have never had before. By the time that I left, I had received a second "gum" compliment by Dr. Haston himself. I left his office with a good report and a smile on my face. 

On my way out, I ran into my old elementary school principal, Mr. Ryan. He pretended to remember me, but we both know that he didn't.

We wound down this Monday with a walk at Cane Creek Park with the dogs. Kimba sure has a good time walking around the lake. She gets so excited that she can hardly stand it.

Before bed, I watched an episode of a summer series called "Under the Dome". I normally don't watch much TV, but this particular show has got me hooked.

Winding Down August

This is the time of year that things at the Hayes House start picking up. School is now into full swing and fall fever is beginning to make it's way in. I'm trying to hold off on fall decorations at least until the first day of September, but I will admit that I am getting a bit antsy about it. I am over summer this year. With the rain and pop up thunderstorms everyday, I am just ready to move on.

Brookelynn had fall pictures on Wednesday (8/21/13) and as luck would have it, we were running behind that morning. It was a quick wash-n-go look as we headed out the front door that morning. Of course there was intermittent showers throughout the day too. Too humid to do anything outdoors in the evening. We headed to church at 6:15 and stopped by Zaxby's for a quick dinner afterwords and called it a day.
Thursday was Brookelynn's day to take candy to school to pass out to the football players. Each ballgame has a different cheerleader in charge of distributing candy. Brookelynn took M&M's to school with a label that read "ATMS Raiders are Marvelous & Magnificent". She had to be at school by 6:25 Tuesday morning to pass out the candy, so we had to get a head start.
Devin came home from school with a swollen pinky finger on Thursday (8/22/13). He said he stubbed it in gym class. I'm not sure if it she be seen by a doctor or not. He claims that it is alright, so hopefully it's not broken. Brookelynn went to a volleyball game at Avery Trace Thursday evening. She is enjoying these middle school years.

Before I leave the blog today, I want to post a few random iphone photos that have nothing to do with my post or this weeks happenings.

This Leaky Roof

The sunny skies were short lived. Today the rain came back and so did the leaks in our roof. We have been on "the list" for three weeks now. The roofer said that since the showers pop up everyday, he cannot get caught up. Stroker went to Lowe's and bought some spray that will temporarily help leaks. The forcast looks better next week. Maybe we will move closer to the top of the list.

I prepared almost fifty postcards and mailed them out today. Brookelynn had stunt practice until 5:30 today. Since she has joined cheerleading, she is busy every afternoon.

Monday Meatloaf

What a day. We caught the sun shining today and took advantage of it. We were outside all evening. Dash came over for a visit while Stacia took Jett to his t-ball practice. Dash told us about his busted lip and kept us entertained the whole time. I also took a notion to prepare a home cooked meal. While we were outside playing, I had a meatloaf in the oven. I also cooked corn and mashed potato's.

Gray Skies and Showers

Rain again?! This has been the soggiest summer that I can remember. When we left for church this morning the clouds were rolling in. By the time we got out of church, there were showers scattered about.
Mother nature must have received her invitation to Michaela's shower for today and thought we ordered "showers" today. The skies matched the color theme too. Gray. We got our car loaded down with decorations and food, then off to Doyle we headed. Luckily, we caught a break in the rain while we unloaded the car. Brooke got the tablecloths decorated while I sat out the refreshments. Darlene helped arrange the tables and we got everything together with time to spare. Jennifer Leonard arrived with the cake and paper goods and we were all set.
Brookelynn had a game prepared to guess how many pink sixlets were in a baby bottle and the winner was within 3 pieces off.

Michaela opened lots and lots of great baby gifts. Although as far as supplies go, she seems prepared,  her life is about to change forever. Motherhood is such a hard concept to grasp. It is a lifelong commitment that we carry to our graves. We all envision what parenting will be like, but I think most of us end up with a "slap in the face" reality check when these little people start growing up and developing personalities of their own. It is funny how different our children turn out from what we pictured in our minds as we carried them in our tummies for the first nine months of their lives. It is challenging, exhausting, overwhelming and sometimes frustrating, but as moms we pull ourselves together and keep moving forward.

When It Rains, It Pours

Stroker and I got the kids delivered to school and headed to IHOP for breakfast to start off our Friday morning. Stroker also called the Honda dealership to ensure that they would be getting an early start on the car. The disappointment is that the quote to fix the car was going to cost us a little over $600. Uuuggghhh.

Turns out, in a Honda CRV, the intake manifold (whatever that is) has to be removed from the motor in order to get to the starter. Apparently it is a big job.  I never knew that it could be so costly for this type of repair.

While Honda was working on the CRV, we were doing a little work at home. 

Between Stroker and I, we got the front porch, the sidewalk, the shed, the back of the house and the back patio power washed on Friday. He and I went to pick up the kids from school together.

Devin left out for Memphis Friday evening with Gary to go fix something on Trent’s car. There must be a car epidemic going around.

It was a long day, but a productive one. 

Saturday was spent on the road mostly. The day started out sunny and 70 degrees. We stopped by the Honda dealership around 9am to pick up the CRV, which happens to start up like a brand new car. 

By 10am, we headed out to Hanging Limb TN, then to Bon Air Mountain in Sparta and then to Smithville.

 By mid day, I was making chicken salad, pasta salad and a couple of errands to pick up last minute items for tomorrows Baby Shower for Michaela. As the day progressed, so did the clouds. We made our evening rounds in the rain. We were soaked and so was our stuff, but thankful for the day and for my car that cranks every time.

What a week, the roof leaks, the car quit and we were caught out in the rain. As the saying goes..."When It Rains, It Pours". Never-the less...I am thankful for all the things that do work and for our ability to dance in the rain.

The Starter

Today went downhill fast. Before school, I had to take a trip to the gas station because I knew I could not get the kids delivered on what little amount of gas that I had in my tank. When I went to leave the gas station, my car hesitated to start. Oh No, this is not a good sign I thought. I did get the kids delivered to school without any problems. At lunch, I had a few errands to run and got started on my way with the first stop at Hobby Lobby. Second stop, Kohls and the third stop at TJ Maxx. When I got in the car to head home, it again hesitated to start. When I got home I checked the mail and ran inside to quickly check on some things. When I got back in my car, it…would…not…start.-At All. I tried and tried for fifteen minutes. Initially, I thought “This is just great…how am I going to get where I need to go?.” After sitting in the car for a few minutes, my attitude changed. I began to realize that I could have been anywhere in town and been stranded, but instead, God’s grace got me all the way home and in my own driveway before allowing my car to give up. We are quick to get frustrated at the inconveniences that we are sometimes forced to deal with, instead , we should be grateful for God’s provisions that He graced us with.  

When Stroker got home from work, he tried all afternoon to get it cranked. No luck. By 7:00, he and a friend from his work were towing the CRV to Honda.

On a much lighter note, I caught Devin working on homework this morning on the way to school. 

Summertime Rambling

Sunday, August 11, after church, we went for a visit at my sisters house. On the way, we stopped by to pick up my mom. We had a nice afternoon in my sisters backyard. Brookelynn went for a swim while we were there.

This summer has been mild in temperatures but very wet. Our roof has sprung a few leaks and we are currently on the waiting list for a brand new metal roof. We can't wait to get it installed. We are planning to go with a burgundy color to match the trim on our house.

On Monday, August 12, I decided to try out a new food place in town called the Blue Rooster. It is a take and bake style company. I picked up two meatloafs and chicken casserole dish. In total, I paid almost $26 for these and then had to take them home, put them in the oven and cook side dishes. Truth be told, we did not like the chicken or the meatloaf. Both were thrown out. I guess we are just used to food with flavor.

Since dinner was a flop, we spent the remainder of the evening outside on Monday playing with the dogs.

Tuesday, August 13, was the first football game of the year and ATMS played against Sparta. Stroker and I went to watch Brooke cheer her little heart out. She does such a good job. I love the way she tries her best. After the game, we went to dinner at O'Charley's. Bedtime was welcomed with open arms Tuesday night.

Couponing 101 at Faith Fellowship tonight. We studied how saving money and stocking up can allow us to be more generous and help others in need. God intends for us to be givers, although sometimes there are so many needs of our own that giving seems to be moving it’s way farther and farther from the top of our lists.
That is something that I want to work harder on. I want to make a conscious effort to give more. Not just monetarily, but I want to give more time and more effort to those who need it.

Golden Corral

Today was our annual birthday meal at Golden Corral compliments of my dad. This year, the attendees were...

1. Me
2. Devin
3. Brookelynn
4. Gary 
5. Darlene
6. Brad
7. Matasia
8. Zander
9. Stacia
10. Jett
11. Dash
12. Grey
13. Daddy
14. Phyllis
15. Kevin
16. Vickie
17. Katlin
18. Braiden 
19. Foster kid 1
20. foster kid 2
21. foster kid 3
22. Tiffany
23. Kendal
24. Braxton
25. Mike
26. April

We all left full and sticky from the chocolate fountain and cotton candy.

It must have been spouces stay home year because neither Delano, Michaela, nor Stroker made it.

Weekly Review

I said I was gonna rest on Sunday, and I did. We went to church first thing Sunday morning and afterwords, Devin drove me to moms. The four of us went to lunch at Casa Luna in Sparta. Devin drove me back home too. Someday, he will schedule that driving test and be out on his own.
I took my CRV in for a fuel injection service at Cookeville Honda Monday morning. Supposedly it is good to have all the ethanol and trash cleaned from the fuel lines. I know one thing that has definitely been cleaned out...my wallet. $150 for that treatment and I don't think my car runs any differently :(
I'm having a little trouble with the car starting...it wants to drag a little and take its time cranking. I dropped it off at CHS Monday evening to let the auto mechanics class take a look first thing Tuesday morning. Who knows, maybe they will learn something and maybe I will find out what the problem is.
Tuesday, I picked up my car at auto mechanics because they said that the starter was too hard for the guys in class to mess with. They did recommend having the battery checked even though it's a new one.
Turns out, I needed a new battery cable clamp because mine was too lose. Thank goodness...nothing major.
Wednesday was looking up. My car was back up to par, we had a fellowship meal at church and all is well with the world.
Thursday brought the rain back in. HEAVY RAIN. Nashville was having flooding issues again and so was Cookeville. Downpours all day until around 4pm. 

I had a parent cheer meeting at 5pm where I found out that we have fund raisers to look forward to. We also got candy schedules for the girls and received their new football jerseys.
By Friday, the sun was back out, but rain was still in the forcast. Brookelynn went to Jalyn's house for her birthday sleepover. She took Jalyn five rolls of duck tape as a birthday gift. Who would have ever thought that kids would be so intrigued by duck tape?
We had to make a trip to Sparta to Central View before we settled in for the night.

Weekend Work

Saturday's are made for rest, relaxation or doing something you enjoy. That is not how today was spent. I have been dreading something for a long time, but today I did it. I spent my Saturday painting our bedroom ceiling. It was tiring and took a few hours, but it is done and it looks soooo much better. I will probably have a crick in my neck for a week from looking straight up for hours today, but that's okay...it's done.
Brookelynn had the nerve to ask if we could go buy paint to paint her room. "Are you kidding me?" I asked.
So since I was not willing to spend what was left of Saturday painting her room, she decided to rearrange it anyways.

We did however end up trimming trees, shrubs and sprucing up the yard. A lot of work went on around here today. A lot more work than should have taken place on a Saturday. Tomorrow, WE REST!

Out With the Old

Something came over me this morning. I really don't know what it was, but I started taking clothes off the hangers in my closet and placing them in a plastic bag. Not just one or two things, but three bags eventually made it to the help center donation door. My closet is still full, but at least it is full of cloths that I will actually wear. I had so many hangers with garments that I never touch. I don't know why I have hung on to some of those cloths this long. I must have been in the zone, because I cleaned out Brookelynns closet too and some of Devin's.  I can't believe what a feeling of accomplishment I have just from clearing out clothes that we don't want.
This evening, Stroker wanted us to take the dogs on another walk so that he could watch Kimba play in the water. We took Cletus too, but a two mile walk two days in a row are a bit too much for him.

A Walk In the Park

On the first day of August 2013, the sun was shining and the temperatures were mild. Definitely not the predictable August weather.These last couple of years have been anything but predictable if you ask me. Last summer we practically melted as the thermometer was stuck above 100 degrees for weeks on end. This summer we seem to have coastal weather. Warm sunny days with afternoon pop up showers every day.

Well, today's nice weather lead us straight outdoors. Stroker cooked his mouth watering steaks on the grill for dinner. He is awesome on the grill.
After dinner, Brookelynn and I decided that we wanted to soak in just a bit more of the air before the sun set, so we loaded up the dogs and headed for a stroll around Cane Creek Park. It was Kimba's first walk at Cane Creek and boy did she ever enjoy herself. I had to pull the leash up close when we passed other people because she was so excited that she tried to jump up and lick everybody that passed. A few times I even apologized to the passersby and said "sorry...it's her first time at the park". She even jumped in the water a time or two. We text Stroker some pictures of Kimba playing in the water and he replied "dang, I wish I would have went".
Cletus kept up his pace and didn't bother a soul the entire time. Every time Kimba would run and tackle Cletus as if to say "THIS IS THE BEST DAY EVER!", Cletus would just reply with a snarl as if to say "settle down kid...it is just a long walk."