And They Call It...

puppy love! Saturday was busy. Pattie and I went walking with the girls that morning, then I headed to the grocery store, mowed the grass, then out with the girls. That afternoon, Ann brought over Chloe (chocolate lab) to play. The puppies had met one other time at Ann and Brad's house for a little playtime. We sat outside and gabbed while the puppies played together. We're seeing grilling out, college football, and playtime in those girls future!

Today was a little more relaxing. It was fall like here this morning, so I opened up the doors and windows while enjoying my coffee. After church service, they had a special lunch for all the teachers and staff members within the surrounding counties. When I got home from that, Pattie and I headed over to Anna and Blair's house for another puppy playdate before heading to the park for a jog. Clemson and Pattie were reunited! They haven't seen each other since July 4th weekend. Turns out Pattie is now a bit taller than Clemson! Not sure how that's going to work out for their relationship?!

Eventful Week(end)

Well, it has been back to school this week (even though I've already spent 6 full days there between workshops, meetings, and getting the room together). My first clue was when I began setting the timer on the coffee pot again! Tuesday, our school received a grant to have the ESL children come in to learn about our school. We had translators from the high school come help us with the kids while our ESL teacher spoke with the parents. Hopefully this will help these upcoming first days of school! Afterwards, we spent a few hours calling parents to inform them we were their child's teacher and giving them more information. Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday were filled with a few meetings and working in the classrooms. The best part was being able to take a real lunch break! We had a true 30 minutes to eat and talk to adults...and we didn't have to stay at school for it!
Friday proved much of the same and now the room is ready for the Meet the Teacher on Monday! Of course, there are always ideas running through my head of ways to change something or add to it. However, I'm learning more and more how to let it go! I'd much rather enjoy my weekend than spend it by myself in a hot building. I'm still thinking about my garden though and how I could go fix that for less than an hour of my time; plus I love to work in the dirt! Either way, I was tired when I finally left school yesterday and was thinking there was no way I was going out. As we all know, things change! Here's what happened yesterday between 5:00 p.m. and 10:30 p.m.:
1. Get home at 5:30
2. Came home to a hot house. Looked at the thermostat only to find no numbers!!! Called the air people that were coming for a service call??? Wanted me to go downstairs, but I can't quite get the door lifted. I almost have it! So, waited for them to come out.
3. While waiting, killed a black widow in my house!!! No lie!!! I think I hit it 6 times with the shoe...just to make sure!
4. Air guy finally shows up around 6:20 and fixes it..yeah!
5. Book it to Luella's to meet Ann, Brad, Maggie, Justin, and their 2 boys for dinner. I got there just as the food had arrived around 7:20.
6. We all headed to downtown after 5 enjoying music and a beer.
7. Back home around 10:15 and finally sat down for the day!

Saturday: walking with the girls in the a.m., possible puppy playdate in the afternoon, the girls night out with a matinee, dinner, and drinks! Also, a Happy Birthday to Heather Bryant today!!!

Thanks!

A BIG thank you to everyone in the family that made my time in the mountains that much more enjoyable. We really do have such a wonderful family. Thanks again to Kathryn and Kyle who made the trip possible for me!!!

Extra! Extra!

Just a few extra good ones from the gathering:

Who Needs a Tube When You Have a Rope and Beer?!

On The Water

Kathryn graciously rented a pontoon boat for the week. I certainly think it was money well spent! Thanks again Kathryn and Kyle!!!

Make a Smilebox slideshow

Magnet

Have you noticed how babies are like magnets?! This was the first time that many of us were meeting Clementine, JT and Sarah's baby girl born in May. Obviously you can see from the pictures that she is a cutie. I'm not real sure that she spent much time by herself this week!

Clementine:

JT, Sarah, and Clementine:

Mom has the magic touch

Holding Clementine before jumping
in the 4 square game:

Drinks and Games...

...or was it drinking games?! In everyone's life a little rain must fall. Or if you're in the mountains during the summer rain will fall almost daily. Most of the time, these showers occurred late afternoon leaving us plenty of time for a boat ride followed by a late (very) lunch. We didn't let the rain slow us down for long. There was usually naps, showers, appetizers, reading, talking, and quieter games happening. Of course, the occasional game of four square can get loud! We saved the louder versions of "Oh Hell" for the evenings. Just a side note: I was the "Oh Hell" champion 2 nights in a row!

Valuable Life Lessons from our Uncles:

Taking it back to the old school:

Drinking prohibits the speed of Scrabble
Daily Occurrence
Never Just One...Margaritas on the deck

Cousins, Brothers, and Sisters

For about 45 minutes on Friday, all 6 brothers and sisters were together. Laura arrived just as mom needed to leave for an all day meeting on Saturday. So, the "kids" quickly got together for a picture. This then inspired me to want a cousins picture.

The "Kids"

Cousins minus 2

"Moose" and the Gang

Cousins with additions

Petty Reunion

Wednesday August 12th was a good day. It was Sawyer's 4th birthday and also the day I headed up to Lake Nantahala to meet the Petty Family for yet another fun filled vacation! Mom and I met up along 40 and snaked our way through the mountains to find Lake Nantahala. Losing cell phone service just past Bryson City, I knew this was going to be a tight knit family vacation! We made it around 6 that evening just in time for the last boat ride of the day to arrive and jump in the hot tub. Shortly after, drinks were pouring, laughter was abundant, and food was being served. This was just a preview of things to come!
Picture above is the view from our deck...hard to look at while enjoying beverages in the hot tub.

The crew in the waterOliver and Kate:

Morning Coffee and Hot Tub: great combo!

Another One Bites the Dust

Here's how the week looked from Pattie's view:
Sunday: mom left me in the crate all day while she went to Dana's shower in Charlotte; so I ripped the zipper off my bed
Monday: went walking, spent just a little time in the crate
Tuesday: in crate all day while mom was at a math workshop
Wednesday: in crate all day while mom was at a math workshop
Thursday: in crate all day while mom was in a 5 hour meeting then worked in her classroom
Friday: mom and "grandma" worked in the classroom all day
Saturday: in crate during the morning then finally out while they ate lunch and mom mowed the grass.
So, by Thursday I had enough. This is what my mom came home to Thursday:
bm, bm, bm, "another bed bites the dust". First major thing I've torn up. I showed her!

Wonderful Weekend

Saturday was spent mowing the grass and letting Pattie play with her sister. I enjoy mowing the grass for three reasons: 1. it's good exercise, 2. you can get sun while doing it (even with sunscreen on!), and 3. I love the way it looks when it's finished. It's a sense of accomplishment. Moving on...I was supposed to meet an old high school friend for a late lunch who was traveling from his home in Nashville to his "old home" in W-S. However, he called me around noon to say he hadn't left yet. He had to take his dog for an emergency vet visit at which time they told him they think his dog has cancer. What sad news. My heart broke for him.
Even though those plans were a bummer, I was still able to take Pattie to play with her sister Lucy. We let "the girls" run around in the backyard before walking them over to the big field at the nearby school for some real running. After bringing them back, we decided to walk them around the neighborhood so I could look at some houses that are for sale. Pattie had a good time, but after about 2ish hours, she was pooped!

Sunday morning, I drove down to Charlotte to have lunch with my friend Heather, her husband, and two boys. I haven't seen her since October and had only talked occasionally. So, we had some catching up to do! Which is why I ended up being about 25 minutes late to Dana's shower!
I got wrapped up in talking and lost track of time. Plus, once I got to the shower venue I had trouble finding a place to park. One of Dana's sisters-in-law who was helping give the shower works at Queens University. So, the shower was in one of the buildings there. It was nicely done, however, the place was hot!!! Apparently there is no air turned on over the weekends! I was hot so I know Dana was!!! There was great food, a delicious cake, and lots of presents to open. Dana had a shower at her mom's house on Saturday for high school friends and family friends. So, she was certainly "showered" with lots of gifts!!! It was hard saying goodbye this time. The last thing I said was..."the next time I see you you'll have a baby boy!!!!"