County Fair

Say what you will about small towns...I do.  The restaurant selection is pitiful.  Shopping, forget it.  You want to buy ladyfingers at the store?  Nope.  So, we work, worship, shop, eat, and visit friends in the big city next door.  But, there are some perks to living in a small town too...like the county fair.  Thanks to Kimmie, we LOVE when the fair comes to town.  For several years now, we have been attending the fair, and for the last few years we have been entering our creations into the Agriculture and Arts and Crafts exhibit competition.  Here's how we did this year...

I entered the photo story of Sam and his cicada and won 1st place.

 Sam's blanket that Kimmie made for him won 2nd place.

Evan's turtle made out of vegetables won 1st place.

Dad and Kim's garden veggie basket won 2nd place.

And, Ethan's wood-carved samurai sword won 2nd place.

Yep, it's official...we are celebrities in this small town, at fair time.

Sam Snapshot: 9 months

Summer is in full swing, and Sam is now nine months old.  We have had a full house of five boys all summer, and the one who seems to want to be a big boy the most, is Sam.  He absolutely loves playing with Daddy and his big brothers.  His laugh is the sweetest sound, and he is such a happy baby.  

We've been battling a nagging ear infection that just won't seem to go away.  We have an appointment this week with an ENT to disuss the possibility of tubes.  I'm ready for some relief for him, however we have to get it.  

Some of the cool things Sam can do right now are:

• Crawl around like a mad man.  He loves to play chase and follow us all over the house.
• Pull up on things and even let go for a few seconds and balance.  
• He "dances" when music comes on.  
• Wave "bye-bye" (although his timing can be a bit off sometimes)
• Play peek-a-boo and pull my hands down from my face when he's ready to see me.
• Do the indian sound right on que for "Ten Little Indians"

His 9-month check up was today, and as it turned out, his brothers joined him for their checkups too.  Ethan needed more shots before starting 7th grade.  Evan needed his physical for athletics, so I just made appointments for everyone, and we all went together.  

The boys would kill me if they knew I posted this photo of them in their gowns, but lucky for me, they don't read my blog.  Sam actually ripped the top part of Ethan's gown when he tried to eat it, thus the toga look for Ethan.  Ethan ended up needing five shots.  Evan got one.  It was both their first times to have a full "boy" physical.  Need I say more?

Then it was Sam's turn to be checked out.  Other than still having pressure behind his ear drum, he is perfectly healthy.  He weighed in at 22 lbs. even and was 30 inches long.  That puts him in the 90th percentile for height and weight on the growth chart.  It's official, he's gonna be a monster!

Now, on to more fun times, here are a few photos that I loved most from our family photo shoot with Ryan.  We met Ryan at 6:30 in Murfreesboro on a hot summer-in-July night.  So, there's a bit of glistening going on, but still, I love them!

Turning 30

I remember when my mom turned thirty.  She got all kinds of "over the hill" memorabilia.  She was officially "old."  But she wasn't, and now, I don't feel old.  In fact, I don't feel any different at all.  I think I am even happy to turn the big 30.  I've always been an old soul, so maybe now my body is just catching up with my soul.  Either way, I greet 30 with a smile, and a happy, thankful heart.  

We met the family at CedarRock for a birthday dinner of my choice, fried catfish.  If you're gonna have a cheat day, you may as well do it right.  Dinner was fabulous.  Dessert was perfect.  Amanda made my favorite, strawberry cake...with a big 30 on it in sprinkles. 

It's been a great start to a new season, new year, new decade of my life.  Seeing U2 in concert, a brand new fancy iron (thanks Mom), some fancy shades, a year's supply of candle tarts, a new skirt purse (thanks Amanda), a dozen eggs from "the girls," and a basket of fresh garden veggies.  What more could a girl ask for...

But, there was more.  My dad and Kim gave me "30 Things to Ponder," an origonal list of advice, life principles, and significant scriptures to reflect on.  My dad also gave me one of his old bibles, with highlighting, notes, thoughts, cool saying on church signs, etc. all included with me in mind.  He read, studied and notated in this Bible for a full year, every page, to be able to give to me.  How cool of a gift is that?! I'm blessed indeed.

A Birthday Surprise

To celebrate my upcoming 30th birthday, my husband did The Sweetest Thing.  It was a surprise really, and everyone was in on it, but me.  I guess you could say he moves in Mysterious Ways.  My mom had planned to visit for the weekend, and since we need new patio furniture for this new deck we are building, he wanted to take me furniture shopping and out to dinner for my birthday, A Celebration of sorts.  We left the kids at home and set off for Family Leisure.

When we get to about Murfreesboro, he hands me a stack of papers he has printed out of patio furniture styles he likes.  I thumb through the first few (not really liking what I see) and come to a strange page.  It appeared to be an advertisement.  "What's this?" I ask.  "I'm not sure, what is it?" was his reply.  So I'm searching the page and finally I realize it's a ticket of some sort.  I'm now trying to figure out to what.  I'm looking and looking, but I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For.  Until, suddenly I see it!  And I can't believe it!

All my life, I have loved one band above all others.  I have traveled to their hometown of Dublin, Ireland in hopes of a real-life glimpse of them.  And now, on this day, this Beautiful Day, my dream is about to come true!  We traveled to a place Where the Streets Have No Name, only numbers.  Vanderbuilt Stadium in downtown Nashville.  To see U2.  Live.  For the First Time.

Words cannot express how excited I was!  My husband had bought us 12th row seats to see my favorite band ever.  Parking was atrocious and we had to Walk On, and on, and on just to get to the entrance gate.  But, I didn't care, nothing could steal my joy!

Waiting for the show to start...

The opening band was Florence and the Machine.  That green blob of tole is Florence.

Here are some shots of Bono.  The Bono.  Did I mention he looked at me?  Right at me?  When he came across that bridge thing we could practically high-five!

And, because I'm always looking for good teaching material, I got a video of Bono singing (Pride) In the Name of Love.  Who has the coolest Martin Luther King Jr. teaching materials now?!?

I should add my favorite part of the concert was when Bono invited a guy to come on stage and play guitar while he sang All I Want is You.  The guy picked the song and dedicated it to his wife, Andrea.  When the song was over, the guy shook Bono's hand, hugged him, and went to take off the guitar strap and return Bono's guitar, but Bono stopped him and said, "You keep it."  And then security had to escort  that man out...he had Bono's guitar.

It was one of the best gifts I have ever been given and one of the nicest things anyone has ever done for me. I am thankful for many things, and a husband who loves me is high up on the list.  Thanks to my husband I can now say, 

U2 concert...been there, done that, and got the t-shirt!