Some Friends, Some Sun, Some Food, Some Drama

That's how I would sum up last weekend.

I am sorry it has taken me so long to post. This week has been a little sleepless. Leighton had one bad night where she would just yell out in her sleep and I would just lay there waiting for her to call me or cry and Hayley has been under the weather. B stayed with her Tuesday and I stayed home Wednesday and left work early Thursday to take her to the Dr. Along with a dirty house and piles of laundry I am still folding from last weekend. (I have been borrowing B's socks all week for a lack of clean ones in my drawer)

Last Saturday we arose at 7:00am and were on our way to Welaka at 9:00am. It POURED down rain for 2 hours on the way there.

As soon as we arrived the rain cleared up and we were unpacking all the water/sand toys. I guess no one noticed the black cloud that lingered over B's head.

I asked him to go get the wagon full of toys out of the back of the truck for the kids.

He said "Sure."

While he was gone to the truck it had started to sprinkle and we all decided it would be a good time to eat lunch while it was raining.

I was trying to be a good wife and wait for B to get back with the toys, so we could all walk together inside to get lunch. Well now it was raining a little harder and "What the heck is taking him sooo long?!?"

So the girls and I go up to the house without him. I walk up to see everyone crowded around B with his foot propped up in a chair, and it would be an understatement if I said blood was pouring out of his foot. Some were saying he didn't need stitches and some were saying he did. Let's just say he definitely DID.

So Matt and his sweet Mama loaded up B and took him to the Critical Care Center. Where in my opinion the doctor did a work of art, he pieced it back together perfectly! They were back in a couple of hours, the sun was out and B was barefooting.

What? He had his tennis shoes on.

Oh, and enough pain pills to feed an army!

Mrs. Mary saved us from having to stay at the hotel near the lake.

P.S. I think Hayley and Leighton have officially adopted Mrs. Mary as their Welaka Grandmother.

Sunday morning as Matt, Hollie, B, all our kids, and I sat around eating pecan pancakes, yeah that's right pecan pancakes and sausage, Hollie and I were remembering the days as a teen when we would load up to go to the beach and be so conscious of how we looked in a bathing suit that it didn't matter how hungry or lightheaded you would get, no one stopped for food. Just shake it off! I laughed about that! It's funny how you forget stuff like that.

After breakfast we went over to where the VanZant and Buchanan Families were staying. When we got there some of the kids were catching minnows and putting them in a bucket. Hayley thought this was the neatest thing ever, she joined right in!

These must have been the slowest minnows in the world because even I could catch them.

Well the other kids were catching them and putting them in a bucket. Not my Hayley she wanted to hold them and talk to them and take pictures with them.

Right before I took this picture she gave the "sleeping" minnows a pep talk. "Ok little fishees, it's ok, come on just smile."

I have never seen her make a sweeter smile then when she was posing with her fishees. Notice she even leaned her head into the fish, there was so much love!

She would lay them down to take a "nap." Needless to say we had sleeping fishees everywhere!

Late Sunday afternoon we packed up and headed home.

It was pitch black outside and pouring down rain. But that didn't matter to Leigh Leigh.

Monday we stayed around the house, grilled out, ate watermelon, and of course drug out the slip and slide!

We were trying to teach Hayley how to slip and slide without actually doing it. It wasn't working! One of us had to show her. Can you guess who that was?

The Good 'Ole Days

First of all I would just like to say, I am sorry for abandoning my blog for a while. All I can say is - Writer's Block!





Depending whether or not you have been affected by the downhill turn that our economy has taken, what I am about to talk about might seem a bit shallow but just try to see the brighter side with me for a sec.



Let me just reiterate. I know that there are a lot of people struggling financially right now.

I personally remember having that particular staff meeting on that Tuesday in September and being told by the manager that Friday we will be shutting the doors. I had three days to find a job because I knew the bills would not stop coming just because the paycheck stop coming.





Mine is just one of the millions of stories of people who have experienced a job loss.





But can I just share a few good things that have come out of all this?





Oh, good I knew you would want to hear me ramble! (haha wink wink)





-People are realizing where they have been throwing there money away all this time. Like the guy who finally read his cell phone bill. Really read it and cut back minutes when he never used them in the first place. People are getting rid of a lot of waste.





-Others have to do without luxury staples like TV. I LOVE this one, because it means people are getting outside and spending more time with there families! Like the good 'ole days when kids played outside 'till dark.





-Speaking of getting outside, we are growing a garden! It's healthy and it saves on the grocery bill.





-I especially appreciate the one story where the husband loses his job so the wife goes back to work. So guess who's picking the kids up from school and cleaning the bathrooms and cooking the meals. I think the husband has a new found appreciation for what the wife has been doing all this time! I bet it does wonders for getting a little help now and then.





Maybe this economic turn is a sign that people will get back to there roots and start realizing what's important. At least we can all hope.





Let us reflect on the changes over the years.

1957 VS 2009

Scenario: Johnny and Mark get into a fistfight after school.

1957 - Crowd gathers. Mark wins. Johnny and Mark shake hands and end up buddies.

2009 - Police called, SWAT team arrives, arrests Johnny and Mark. Charge them with assault, both expelled even though Johnny started it.

Scenario: Billy breaks a window in his neighbor's car and his Dad gives him a whipping with his belt.

1957 - Billy is more careful next time, grows up normal, goes to college, and becomes a successful businessman.

2009 - Billy's dad is arrested for child abuse. Billy removed to foster care and joins a gang. State psychologist tells Billy's sister that she remembers being abused herself and their dad goes to prison. Billy's mom has affair with psychologist.

Scenario: Johnny takes apart leftover firecrackers from 4th of July, puts them in a model airplane paint bottle, blows up a red ant bed.

1957 - Ants die.

2009- BATF, Homeland Security, FBI called. Johnny charged with domestic terrorism, FBI investigates parents, siblings removed from home, computers confiscated, Johnny's Dad goes on a terror watch list and is never allowed to fly again.

Miscellaneous Weekend

• This Saturday we went swimming over at our friends pool. The picture that I did not take was too cute with four little girls swimming in a huddle, sticking together like a school of fish. I was wishing that I had taken out stock on water wings, there was five or six pair in the pool that evening!

• The other picture that I did not take was of Hayley and Leighton eating Wendy's happy meals in their playhouse after church Sunday. The same playhouse that I am still not finished painting! I have given myself a deadline- the end of summer. I tried to make some curtains for it Friday night, but I didn't get enough material so back to War-Mart I go.

• Thanks to B for making fun of me, "Momma's wearing granny panties!" he announces to the entire world, ok he really just yelled it in the house. Now Hayley thinks I wear Granny's panties. Thanks B!

• Saturday night we tried out Bar-B-Q Barn or whatever it's called. It was really good, especially the baked beans!

• I watched Marley & Me Friday night.

• The power went out Sunday afternoon. Woke up from my Sunday nap b/c Hayley and I were sweating and sticking to each other. Not a fun way to wake up!

Ok, ok, ok I know let's face it I got nothing for this post I am trying to entertain you with what I ate and watched and it's not working for me. I try to at least have a point or a story to tell. My life was boring this weekend so, I will save both of us the pain and sign off.


B had a fun packed weekend maybe I should get him to write a post, yeah probably not.

Wordless Wednesday

I Ate the Bread of Idleness

Friday when I picked the girls up from their sitter I was told to sit on the couch and close my eyes. So I did. (If you wanna know the truth I was thinking that the Cockerspaniel at the sitter's house had puppies and that she was going to try to 'paw'n one off on me. Thoughts start rushing through my head like: I'm not very good at "No", we would need to get a fence, the girls would LOVE a dog) Now that I think about it, the dog isn't even pregnant and to top it off it's a male dog! So Irrational!)


Anyways, I open my eyes to see this:

They said, "Happy Mother's Day!"

They were sooooo proud!

The sweetest thing about it was the paint all over the girls shirts from the paint. I know it sounds crazy, but I just have this vision in my head of them sitting at the miniature picnic table finger painting, knowing that they were painting these vases just for me!

Friday night I stayed up until 11:00 folding laundry, vacuuming, mopping, and washing dishes so that Saturday and Sunday I could (eat the bread of idleness) enjoy the day and be with my girls instead of worrying about a "to-do" list. Let's face it when you have a 2 year old and a 3 year old no matter how hard you try there's not much idleness going on! Saturday after we woke up and ate breakfast, we hit the road. One particular road, the one that took us straight to the beach! It was the first time I had ever taken them to the beach, they had both been before just with other people. We met my mom and sister there. We all had the best time! B could not join us due to he had the Swine Flu. No I am not 100% sure that's what he had but I am sure he had a lot of symptoms like chest pain, coughing up "stuff", achy back, and sweating like a PIG at night. So there you have my version of the Swine Flu.

(Do your best Jeff Foxworthy voice) You know you're from Hilliard when.........

...you're 3 year old knows how to crack open her own boiled peanuts!!!!

Oh, and guess who followed us all the way to the beach.......






No I am NOT kidding!




We had just gotten to where you can drive on the beach, we had the windows down, and the kids were looking out the window and Hayley spotted it! She said,"Momma, is that the ice cream truck?" I can't remember what I told her but later they spotted it again and on one side it only has pictures of food food like hot dogs, chips and stuff. So I tried to convince her that, that particular "ice cream" truck only sold hot dogs.

I hope everyone had a

Happy Mother's Day

(even to those of you expecting)

Wordless Wednesday

"With All Do Respectiveity"

That was a line from the Broadway musical Wicked. Saturday my mom, my sis-in-law, my mom-in-law, & I all went to see Wicked. It was sooooooo good! And very funny. We all had the best time!

My mom had seen the show in Chicago and when she saw it was going to be in Jacksonville she called me and told me I really needed to go! So we did. The only other Broadway show that I have seen, was when I was in N.Y., I saw The King and I and I fell asleep. I had been picked from my cheer leading squad to be in the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade and we were sooooo busy the whole time we were there. I was sooooo exhausted I found the first comfortable seat in the theatre and CRASHED!!! So I don't think that one really counts.

The show pretty much took up the entire day though somehow I still managed to get three loads of laundry done. Note to anyone who goes to see Wicked it is 3 hours long. Which was fine I just expected it to be around 2 hours and so did the sitter!

Sunday after the a.m. church service the girls and I hoped in the car to head over to Julington Creek for my dad's birthday. NOTE: B could not join us as for there was an OREMC work truck in our drive way. NOTE for NOTE that means he was on call.

All was fun and games 'til mom brought out the trick candles! I tried not to think of the spit that I was probably indulging as I ate the chocolate cake. It was well worth it! (FIVE layer chocolate cake!! Someone was doing some serious baking!)

We had fun eating and swimming in the pool. I got to visit with my older brother and sister who I never get to see. I was very excited to find out that my brother is getting married at a Disney Resort in October. Let me clarify that. I knew he is getting married, I knew it is in Orlando, and I knew it is in October I just didn't know about the Disney part. So my chances of taking the girls to Disney while we are there just got a bit better!

And as if that were not enough for the weekend I decided at 7:00 pm last night to start potty training Leighton, right then, at that very moment. We haven't started out so well seeing as how 45 minutes into it I was reaching for the carpet cleaner!

The girls were soooo tired from all the swimming that Hayley's nap last until 8:00 pm. The only way I could get her to wake up was to bribe her with some ice cream.

If you need me I'll be preparing my acceptance speech for Parent of the Year!