Sunday Afternoon Swim

What a nice ending to a perfect wedding weekend! We went to Lori and Eric's for a late afternoon swim and ended up eating grilled burgers there, too!  I am not sure who had more fun...us or the kids. We just wished Maddye had been there. We played a couple of VERY competitive games of water basketball...none of us are good losers as you can imagine.  We took Jeanne Claire and Joseph with us to give Sittie and Jidi a break.  They have been in Covington for a week while Jay and Kathryn are in Miami.  Oney is exhausted...he cannot keep up with Sittie and Joseph for that many days:)

Before we went to swim, the boys spent some time washing Jidi's golf cart for him.  I do not think they realized it was work...it was so much fun for them.  Give a boy a water hose and he can entertain himself for hours!

Abby and Jeanne Claire are the baby lovers. Duncan Blue was the center of their attention.  Between those two, Katie had a few minutes peace and quiet.  The ice cream truck came through the neighborhood.  Abby shared her nutty buddy bar with Duncan and HE LOVED IT! 

It was Eric's birthday! Happy Birthday Eric!

It was a nice relaxing night.  Look how cute these boys are...loving their ice cream!

Morgan's Wedding

What a weekend of wedding festivities! We kicked off the weekend with the bridesmaid's luncheon at Marlo's on Friday at Noon.  The girls were late getting home from camp so I went without them.  It was very elegant. The flowers were simple and beautiful. Marlo's did a superb job on the food. Everything they prepared was not on their normal menu. It was all special!After it was over, I ran to get the girls. We went to Morgan's house to deliver her wedding gifts. The preparations were underway for a spectacular outdoor reception!

Friday night we all attended the Rehearsal Dinner at the Chamber Center on the square.  It was a mixture of South meets Cuba. They served catfish with all the trimmings along with a couple of Cuban dishes. Morgan's fiance is half Cuban.  His Mother came to the U.S. in 1970. After we ate and toasted, we (they) sang karaoke! Morgan looked gorgeous of course...she wore her Mother's dress from her rehearsal dinner. Neat! 

Saturday flew by and before you knew it we were scrambling to get to the church on time. The Wedding was at First Presbyterian and the reception at Gwinn ans Sam's.  Southern Living magazine should have been there to document the whole event...SPECTACULAR! I LOVE THIS PICTURE...Phil posted this on his blog Sunday morning...Morgan with her Mother, Gwinn, and her Grandmother, Ms. Geraldine.

Ally and Abby looked gorgeous and I was so so proud of them. They did a great job. They sat outside in 100 degree temperatures passing out programs and welcoming guests. Sometimes I could kill them but today I was a proud Mother!

 WHAT BEAUTIFUL YOUNG LADIES THEY ARE TURNING INTO...and you know I have to slip one in of my handsome man, too!

Morgan surprised Chris (and the entire congregation) and played the sweetest piano piece right after they said their vows. Ayden, Morgan's son, was on his very best behavior. He was GREAT! It was so sweet. After Chris kissed his Bride, Ayden kissed his Mother!

The picture doesn't do it justice...unbelievable.  There were three food stations, Southern, Cuban and American/Seafood. There was a Cuban Cigar tent, a Dessert tent, and a drink tent.  A dance floor customized with an emblem...Morgan and Chris Davanzo.

Carson and Oney were in a fierce competition to see who could "out dance" the other!

And probably one of the sweetest things I love about Morgan...her special place in her heart and her life for her Brother Bennett. Bennett has Cerebral Palsy like me (obviously I am VERY fortunate and his is much worse). I know from my personal experiences how important that unconditional LOVE from others is to someone who has an impairment. My hat goes off to Morgan for being the BEST sister, wife, mother, daughter, granddaughter, friend, cousin, sister in law, and most of all BABYSITTER that anyone could EVER ask for!

Basketball Camp

I took the Middle School Basketball team to camp this week at UT Martin.  Believe it or not, I had NEVER been to Martin. I really didn't know what to expect but I was surprised to say the least! It is pretty much a really nice, small, quaint college town in the middle of a hay field! Judson was worried about the girls falling in love and wanting to go to college there (somewhere other than UT)...he has NOTHING to worry about! After going to Pat Summitt camp at UT Knoxville, nothing will EVER compare! Even though UT Martin is where Coach Summitt went to college!

I had a great time being with the girls...Ally, Abby, Taylor, Havana, Annie, Brooke, Grace and Kendall.  Missy Harris helped me drive everyone as well as our new high school girl's coach, Sharia Armour.  WE LOVE OUR NEW COACH! She is not only motivated, knowledgeable, well known and respected by her peers, compassionate, she's cute! I could go on and on. I just hope TRA gives her the tools she needs to take our girls program to a new level. 

After the first day, the girls were starving so went straight to eat dinner at Los Portales, Mexican. Well they were hungry again before bedtime, so we went to Sonic in our pajamas! They loved it of course! See the goofy girls below...

 

While we were at camp, Oney was playing with his Sittie.  He LOVES spending time with his golf cart   I mean Sittie!  His Sittie and he have really bonded this past year. It seems like the girls always have something going on and Oney is looking for a place to go and something to do! Sittie is good at keeping him BUSY! It is pool season now and Oney and Sittie go to the The Club to swim, play and eat! Oney always has more girls there than he can handle too! This picture is at the pool with Mary Leslie Cranford and Allie English.  Cute girls and sweet too!

We have an action packed weekend with Morgan Stitt and Chris Davanzo's wedding. Morgan is a dear friend of ours that babysat Ally, Abby and Oney when they were LITTLE (Oney just a few weeks). She has been so sweet to me and my family and we love her! Ally and Abby are wedding attendants for her so we have a Bridesmaids Luncheon, Rehearsal Dinner and Wedding/Reception! I will definitely has pictures and stories tomorrow!

Shiloh National Park Eagles

This is the "Eagles Nest Pine Tree" at Shiloh National Battlefield Park.  We decided last minute on the way home on Monday night (after Katie called me and said it was worthwhile) to make the stop. It was so worth it. We have known about the Eagles for a couple of years, but sadly have never made it a priority to take the time and effort to stop. We are so glad we finally did it-the WHOLE family LOVED it! 

We pulled up and got out of the car and were greeted by the nicest man (just a local) who was so knowledgable. He gave us a lot of good facts that made it even more interesting.  He makes it a part of his daily routine to check on the Eagles. He has been watching the nest for several years now. 









Some of the FACTS...
...This nest is 4 years old
...There have been 4 different sets of Eagles hatched from this same nest
...Each set has had two babies hatch and develop, with only one dying
...The Mother and Father feed the babies fish and turtles
...The babies will be leaving the nest in the next week or two once they learn to fly

The NEST is about the size of a Volswagon Bug..simply AMAZING!  The picture doesn't do it justice, it is magnificent in person.

The siblings sitting in their tree waiting on their Mother and Father to fly in to their tree to roost for the night. We were able to see ALL FOUR EAGLES and see the Mother and Father FLY.  The local man said we were treated to a show because people rarely see it all at one time.  Their wingspan (8 feet) was UNBELIEVABLE.   He also said that right before we arrived, the Mother was teasing the babies with fish to try to teach them to fly.  She would fly by their nest with a fish, land in a nearby tree, and sit and wait. He said they starve the birds a little at a time until they learn to fly.  NEAT

The Father flying in to a nearby tree where he will roost with the Mother for the night. 

The Mother and the Father roosting for the night. They are keeping a close watch on their babies.  There is a neat webite that has more interesting facts and a link to a blog Shiloh Eagles.

Memorial Day Weekend

Memorial Day 2011 is a United States federal holiday observed on the last Monday of May (May 30 in 2011). Formerly known as Decoration Day, it commemorates U.S. soldiers who died while in the military service. First enacted to honor Union soldiers of the American Civil War. It was extended after World War I to honor Americans who have died in all wars.
Memorial Day often marks the start of the summer vacation season, and Labor Day its end.
Begun as a ritual of remembrance and reconciliation after the Civil War, by the early 20th century, Memorial Day was an occasion for more general expressions of memory, as ordinary people visited the graves of their deceased relatives, whether they had served in the military or not. It also became a long weekend increasingly devoted to shopping, family get-togethers, fireworks, trips to the beach, and national media events such as the Indianapolis 500 auto race, held since 1911 on Memorial Day.

We spent this Memorial Day at Pickwick Lake like we do EVERY year! It was especially nice this year temperature wise...not too hot and breezy.  We had  Katie and Ryan Hughes and their three boys stay with us. We also spent the weekend with the Regis Family. Good times had by all.  I always get the kids red, white, and blue swimsuits (someday they will not want to do this I am sure) and take their picture. Can you believe how big or should I say "old" they all are??? GORGEOUS KIDDOS!  Ally 13, Abby 12, and Oney 9. 



I can't believe we have had our Pickwick house for 10 years this Summer. I will never forget moving in when I was pregnant with Oney.  I was having a tough time to say the least and I sat in the blue leather chair and pointed my finger while Sandra, Ginger and Daphne organized my kitchen.  Time has FLOWN by...I just thought I was busy then! 

We had a blast with our new "toy' the Sea Doo Wake. I think everyone got a chance to ride or drive it multiple times.  I am super proud of my kids (ALL three of them) for their level of responsibility with it this weekend.  They can be a handful at times but when it comes to their maturity and responsibility I would put them against ANY kid their age! Ally and Steven actually were pulled over by TWRA to conduct a standard check.  We had rehearsed the scenario with the girls several times to try to prepare them. She did great! She offered her registration and license and passed with flying colors. WOW...her Dad and I were so proud:)

Ally and Steven pulling tubers.

Ryan, Porter and Will cutting up!

Lori and I...in SPORTS mode, of course!

Katie, Duncan and I taking a smooth cruise.

Ally and Jud testing out the tube connector (that I broke later in the day).

Abby riding solo.

Maddye and Ally flirting with the Lake.

Check out our faces...Judson and I finally got to slip away for a half a second...just the two of us!

Maddye and Abby...the excited ones! Probably not a great pair???

Did I mention that everyone rode (I didn't get pics of everyone) and that we had to fill up with gas EVERYDAY?!

Duncan Blue Hughes...the "prettiest" boy ever (besides Oney of course)! He was so good all weekend-my girls LOVED having the Hughes family. Duncan found the snacks!

Katie is rethinking her naming of Duncan Blue...it could have been Jud with a lifetime of groceries?

I got Lori to take our picture since we never seem to get one of the two of us. 

We didn't really get into the water sports much since the water was still COLD and it was a Holiday Weekend.  Here are a few pictures of the brave ones...

BROTHERS...and a couple from ANOTHER MOTHER...

Those Regis boys are just dying to be "Naifeh Boys"!

I am ending this long, Holiday post with my two FAVORITE men in my life.  The are so ALIKE that it is SCARY! I can't believe that that is my baby boy and the fifth grader that I fell in love with 25 years ago...WOW...time flies!

Judson and Oney