Summertime fun!

It's been a crazy month full of ups and downs! The whole family (literally) got sick with a stomach flu the first week of July, so the 4th wasn't all that fun. But thankfully I got to see my Mom and Uncle Bruce while they visited, and spent time with other relatives at my Aunt & Uncle's cookout. Meredith looked cute in her patriotic dresses I got at the consignment store! And she had fun playing with her cousin Jude.

After we started feeling better, we went out to dinner to celebrate our friend Eric's birthday and wish him a fond farewell (going to Afghanistan for a few months). Always a fun crowd with Eric, Julia (his fiance), Susan, Tom, and Jami.

John entertaining Suz and Julia with his wacky expressions!

Then the next week: off to Panama City for a vacation to visit John's family and relaxation at the beach. Meredith playing with her cousins Tony & Alexis:

John and I spent a night at a beachfront cottage in Seaside, a nice resort community near P.C. We rode our bike around the village, got in the water and relaxed on the beach, ate baked oysters and shrimp right on top of a dune, overlooking the beach with a wedding going on and several groups of people with photographers, drank our champagne, then rode our bikes to desserts at the Market, speeded back across the street for the grand finale: a beautiful sunset!

The next morning all the clouds went away, we got an awesome southern breakfast (I got a yummy English muffin topped with fried green tomatoe and poached egg with fruit and John got biscuits with gravy, and we shared beignets!), and returned our cute cruiser bikes. And back to P.C. we went to see our daughter who we missed but knew was in good hands with John's parents!

The whole vacation had a slight cloud over it: my beloved Papaw, 89 years old, had a mini stroke and was in the hospital. But thankfully after a few days there, and a few days in rehab, he's back in the condo with his wife, my Mamaw!!
After our vacation, Meredith got a slight cold, which isn't fun for either of us! Then we had to get the A/C fixed in the Maxima, and John lost some differential pay in his job (due to company cutbacks). Geez.

But today Meredith is finally feeling better, and John had a job interview for a government position. We'll find out in a few weeks or so, keeping our fingers crossed.

Oh, and I turned 31 last week. On Saturday, alot of our friends came out to dinner to celebrate with me! It was really fun and nice to see everyone. They got the waiters to all sing Happy Birthday while I got a brownie with ice cream and my face turned a bright shade of red! And my sis gave me a tiara to wear to feel special! Thanks friends for an awesome time! Pictures later didn't take any on my camera!

June happenings

It's been a busy summer so far! And I can't believe Meredith's almost a year old! What?Huh?Really?Seriously?

We headed out one day to the Florida Aquarium in Tampa with our good friends Chris and Brooke and their kiddos Connor and Abby,had a great time seeing cool fish, stingrays, coral, birds, gators, sharks, then playing out in the splash park!

Here's Ms.M. playing and showing off her 2 bottom teeth (there's another growing in on top):

Father's Day

Giving us some love, and rolling around from place to place:

Hope everyone has a fun and safe July 4th weekend! Happy Birthday America!

West Virginia Vacation

In May, we traveled with my sister and her family up to Zenith, West Virginia to meet up with my parents at their vacation house. It's so beautiful in the lush green mountains, and it's a nice get-away from the busyness of our everyday lives. We saw lots of wildlife: deer, birds, buffalo, cows, horses, butterflies, and a chipmunk! The people are "country", but oh-so friendly and hospitable. It's a slower way of life... people aren't really in a hurry (except when they're speeding down the hilly curvy roads cause they know to "stay to the right" and "look out for deer"). One day we headed into the tiny town of Gap Mills, where the Minnonites live and work. They build beautiful wood furniture, and operate a "Cheese N More" shop selling homemade meats, cheeses, candy, soups, dips, you name it! We also went to the "city" of Lewisburg, which has a neat historical downtown area with eccentric shops and cafes. That weekend, after we went, they had a Civil War reenactment going on. We'll have to catch it next time. (Did you know that West Virginia was considered "Union" and Virginia was "Confederate" interesting fact...and it's weird where Zenith is, because as you drive around that whole area, you cross into VA, then back to WVA, then VA, etc.) The closest town to Zenith is Union, which looks like it's straight out of a Norman Rockwell painting. We visited the Greenbriar Estate, which is a large resort with a hotel, cottages, golf course, tennis courts, restaurants, spa, bowling alley, expensive shops like Lilly Pulitzer, etc. It's really old and has been used as a hospital during war time, meeting place for important political conferences, lodging for many Presidents, resort for the elite, and also had an underground bunker for the President and cabinet for emergencies. They're now remodeling the front entrance, and building a casino underground. And it has beautiful grounds of course. John and I went back one day and toured the Presidents' Cottage, which is now a museum. In the main hotel building, Jerry West has a restaurant and there's tons of his memorabilia! Another place we went to is called Paint Bank, VA., where we ate at a restaurant near an old mill. And they serve buffalo! I think I got a chicken salad though... everyone else had the buffalo sandwich. On the last day we were there, we picnicked at a lovely park, sandwiched between an old church and a house with a small patch of land. While we ate, we watched a guy (Kenny Chesney look-a-like with his cut off t-shirt) get on his tractor and get hay together (don't know what the process is called really). Almost every afternoon after a day into "town" John and I would go for a little hike up the mountain in their backyard or lay a blanket out for Meredith to play on. She played with grass and we blowed bubbles for her. After the kids were all asleep, the adults would sit around the firepit and talk until you could see every star in the clear night sky. Ahh...

This is my parents' place: old "farmhouse" although not really on a farm, it used to be used as a meeting place for hunting deer, bear, wild turkey. Has living room, kitchen, bathroom, one bedroom downstairs. Then two bedrooms upstairs. Yes, one bathroom-although next month they're adding on a bathroom upstairs.
Front porch view

Lilies!

The guys feeding fish in a pond at Paint Bank: Phil, John, Dad (Pappy) & Dominick :)

An old mill

The restaurant had stuffed animals everywhere! And a cool souvenir/hunting shop upstairs.

The Cow-Chicken sculpture

Showing love for her hometown team

Nana & Mr. Jude

On a hike up the mountain in back of house

Wild azaleas

Picnic by the Greenbriar River

Having fun with Daddy

Lewisburg

The Greenbriar Resort

Lobby area

One of the dining halls

The back entrance

Jerry West's restaurant "Prime 44"

Princess Grace

Lazy afternoons:

Scenery from car

Another old mill we visited

Nana & Pappy with their grandkids

At the Greenbriar's Presidents' Cottage

Notice the tractor crossing sign...

Momma in the kitchen cookin up somethin good!

Leaving WVA on way to ATL: pooped out!

Wonderful sushi dinner with Kelly & Matt in Atlanta