Bikes, Blues, & BBQ!!

I've finally had time to get some pictures put on here and post about Bikes, Blues, & BBQ. We had a really good time, and I'm so glad it worked out for us to be able to go! Gene and I were wanting to watch the parade that started at 4 but we got home about that time to change clothes so we didn't get to see it. However, on our way down to Dickson on College we got caught in some of the parade! It normally takes about 10 minutes, at the most, to get to Dickson from our house. Not Saturday. It took us about 25 minutes to make it downtown. It was just a sea of motorcycles and traffic!! It's amazing how many people come in from out of town for BBBQ.

We finally made it to the light to turn onto Dickson and worked our way down to the end. I don't know how many of you have been to BBBQ, but every year people just ride up and down Dickson on their bikes. I mean, they will literally just make loops back and forth, up and down showing off their bikes! Gene and I just rode down once and made it up to about Jimmy John's where there was an empty spot so Gene told me to hop off so he could park since we actually find one so close! We were out walking by about 4:30 or so, and there were just so many people there it's crazy. There were tons of vendors set up trying to sell stuff and displaying bikes.

We started off just walking up Dickson looking at all the bikes. We came across this one that was awesome. It's obviously a custom and everything but the frame is leather. The seat, the gas tank, the fenders, everything! It was so cool looking, and it had the owners name I guess etched into it. The one sitting next to it on the right is similar to it. It's amazing how many different types of bikes there are and how custom they are.

Here is Gene and I standing in front of the Walton Arts Center watching everyone pass. Steph made it there a little after 6 and hung out with us! Let me tell ya something, it takes all kind of crazy people to make this world go round! We saw so many very interesting characters!

This is a view looking east up Dickson towards College. As you can see there's so many people it's hard to even walk. Not only that, but you have to be careful walking along the street side because there are bikes one after another parked and some are over the sidewalk so you have to watch your step so you don't knock one over! You knock one over, and it'll be a domino effect! That would not be good!

Me and my bestest friend, Steph! She's Grace's Aunt Stephie! She and I have been best friends since we were in 8th grade, and have been through soooooooo much together. She's the sister I never had. My parents (and grandparents!) claim her as their own and her parents claim me as their own!

This was a really cool bike we saw riding up and down. It sas Hollywood on it on the other side of the guy's leg and then it has a picture of Marilyn Monroe, and I can't remember now who the guy was beside her. It was really neat. We also saw a trike that had a custom red, white, and blue American flag paint job. Super cool!

And here's a view up Dickson after dark. I had a few other girlfriends that were going to meet up with us but stuff came up and not everyone was able to come. Gene had to leave around 9 or so because he had to work yesterday morning so he had to be up early. Jennie (Steve's wife that we took our trip with), Rhonda (Bill's wife...another friend of Gene and Steve's), and Diane (Jennie's best friend) all met up with us right as Gene was fixing to leave. Us girls just walked around and visited and ate and laughed until about 12:30! We had such a good time! Of course Jennie and I had spent lots of time together on our trip and we still ride with them some so we knew each other really well. Rhonda I had met several times but hadn't ever really got to hang out with her a lot. She is HILARIOUS!! Diane I had never met before, but she was super sweet and very personable. We all clicked together!

I am so glad Mom and Granny were able to keep Grace for us! Thanks Mom and Granny!! We had a blast, and I'm already ready for next year! Hopefully next year we'll have more opportunities to go and we can do some more actual riding. If you've never been, you should definitely check it out next year.

That just about wraps that up, and Grace is wanting her Mama to hold her so I'm going to oblige!

Talk to you soon!

Updates

First, I want to start off by saying thank you so much to Leah and Shelly for the sweet comments you left on my previous post. It was very sweet of both of you. Shelly, you just about made me cry!! Good tears, not bad! I know we haven't ever had the opportunity to really spend time together, but I feel like we're great friends and it makes my heart happy!

Second, I would like to say that yesterday was a MUCH better day! Grace went down to bed fairly easy Friday night and didn't wake up until almost 9 yesterday morning! Thank goodness. I felt so much more rested.

Now, Granny (my sweet Granny that is photographed above with her sweet great granddaughter) is doing soooo much better! Mom ended up taking her to the emergency room Friday night because they never could get an appointment with her doctor. Mom said they were in and out of there in only about 2 hours, which is another blessing. They did x-rays and the er doctor said that she had not broken any bones, very good news, and that she just had some pretty bad sprains and some bruising. He prescribed her some pain medication and sent them home. Mom said she gave her some pain medication and she laid down pretty early that night and slept, for the most part, soundly through the night. Mom said she did hear her up at one point in the middle of the night to use the bathroom, but she was able to make it in there on her own! That is awesome, because Friday Mom was having to help her get around because she wasn't able to put any pressure on her left leg.

When we woke up yesterday morning Gene made breakfast.....again! I think he was afraid to let me get back in there yet, ya know, fresh wounds still! Ha! He made yummy omelets (Grace now knows how to say omelet!!) and a GOOD pot of coffee. After we ate I was racking my brain trying to figure out someone I could call to keep Grace for us last night so that Gene and I could go together to Bikes, Blues, & BBQ. Dad had told Mom he could watch her but he's not entirely confident in watching her by himself for long amounts of time. That, and I knew it would be late before we got home and I didn't want him to have to worry about that, plus my parents live 20 minutes away from us so I also knew I wouldn't want to drive all the way out there to get her and then all the way home.

So, I had talked to Steph on Friday and she had volunteered to keep Grace while we went to Colt's recital at 2. I was already planning on utilizing her!! I was going to call my mother-in-law to see if they could keep Grace last night, but they have a bike too and had been down to Dickson every night so I figured they would be again last night. I went ahead and called just to see, and they did already have plans to go back down. There goes that idea! I had pretty much decided I was just going to stay home. Gene told me he would stay home with Grace, but I told him it wouldn't be as fun without him. That was part of my wanting to go...on the bike....with him!!

Anway, so I called Mom after we ate breakfast and we were talking and she was filling me in on how Granny was feeling much better, and was able to get around by herself more with just holding on to things for leverage. Her leg still gives on her some if she's not careful. So, she asks how things are here and I'm telling her how I couldn't figure out anyone to keep her and then she said just bring her down here! I said OK!!! I had already thought of that, but I knew the last thing they needed was Grace getting under foot while she was trying to help Granny get around. Mom said that Granny didn't need her much to walk and Granny, of course, was excited about seeing Grace. Now 3 weekends in a row Grace has got to spend the weekend with her Granny!!

I was sooooooooo excited! I told Mom I just needed to take a quick shower and get some things together for Boo (Grace's nickname) and we would head down. It was 10:20 when we hung up, and we were in Alma by 11:50!! Not only was that out of excitement, but I also had to hurry up and make it back in time for Colt's recital at 2.

As I was pulling up to Granny's, there was a white van in the driveway. I recognized Shirley (a local flower lady and friend of the family) standing on the front sidewalk talking to Mom. After I got Grace out of the car seat we stood for a few minutes talking to her, and she was going on and on about how cute she is!! We went inside and Grace was so excited to see Granny, she ran right over to her and lifted her arms up for her to pick her up.

Mom was also excited to see her baby girl! I stayed for just a little bit visiting because Courtney came over to see Grace and help out, and she had her pictures with her from Hillary's wedding. So, I stayed long enough to look through them. I was pushing it making it back on time. I would have been doing fine, but I got stuck in traffic down by the Randall Tyson Track Center. I should have known better than to go that way, but it wasn't bad at all when we were headed down. Who know an hour could make such a difference!

I had enough time when I got home to change my clothes and throw on a little make-up and we were off. Colt did sooo awesome! He didn't mess up any and was one of the best players there. I think there were like 12 total. His teacher was bragging A LOT on him before he started playing, and after he finished playing! We were very proud.

After the recital, we headed back home to get the bike. Once again, we were only home long enough for me to change my clothes...again, and touch up my make-up, then we were off to Dickson! I took some pictures, but my camera is still in the saddlebag on the motorcycle and it's next door at my in-laws in the shed so I'll get back on tomorrow and post them and tell you all about that!

Right now I've gotta call Mom and check on all my girls, then take a shower and get ready for work. Yuck!

Not a Great Day

This has not been a very good day. It started off bad when Grace woke up at 4:30. Gene had fallen asleep upstairs so when I heard she was awake I went up to turn the tv off. Once I got up there I could see under Grace's bedroom door that she had turned on her closet light. I've already had to move her crib once because she got tall enough to reach the light switch. She's obviously had another growth spurt, because she can reach it again now. I was not excited about my findings, and I knew there was no way she would go back to sleep as long as the light was on.

I went in and got her and brought her downstairs. We tried rocking for a little bit, but I knew that wouldn't get us anywhere. She wasn't planning on falling back to sleep yet. I finally just put her in bed with me. Even after we laid down it took her a while to go back to sleep. I'm pretty sure I was asleep before her.

Gene had to take Colt to scool this morning because the band had to be there early for Homecoming activities. When Gene got home he came in our room to use the bathroom, and when he opened the door to come out Grace woke up. He picked her up and they went upstairs to watch tv. We all 3 ended up falling back to sleep for about an hour and a half.

Of course Gene and Grace woke up before me and of course they had to come in and wake me up. Gene kept pestering me and telling me I needed to get up and make breakfast. I was not ready to get up. I did though and started breakfast. We didn't have enough sausage left for more than one person so I didn't even mess with it, I just made some biscuits and scrambled eggs. I also made a pot of coffee. Our coffee pot is not the best. You have to put the pot on just right to keep it from messing up. Of course today would be a day that I messed it up.

I sent Grace in to get Gene out of bed. He walks into the kitchen and says "I guess we're having scrambled eggs" and just gives me a weird look. I let it go. He then walks to the coffee pot and starts to pour a cup. He makes some comment about how I didn't do it right. I let it go. He then makes another comment about the coffee. He walks over towards me and puts his hands out like he's going to touch me. I officially start an emotional breakdown. After going off on him about how he asks me to make breakfast and then it's not good enough. Embarassing. I must say that now, looking back, his comments were not meant to be rude in any way and that they were merely observations. I begin to cry. Embarassing. He instantly feels like crap. I can't speak for about 3 minutes. He grabs me and starts hugging me and telling me to calm down. Sweet right? Yea, I have no idea why I was so upset, but I was. I don't know what was wrong with me.

He makes us a plate and we eat. I'm better by this point. Not great. Just better. Grace gets her plate first, and by the time Gene and I sit down she has all but finished her 2 scrambled eggs. Hungry girl maybe?!

After Grace finishes her food, she's ready to get down and scope out Mommy and Daddy's. Gene loves apple butter (only apple butter from Silver Dollar City). Grace now loves apple butter as well. Gene had some on his plate that he was eating with his biscuits, and I had scooped some of my eggs into Grace's bowl because the child was still hungry. She starts saying "dip." Meaning she would now like to "dip" her eggs into the apple butter. Gross. She loves it!! Here is Daddy "dipping" for her so that she doesn't wear the apple buter.

Yes, that's the adorable man that I yelled at. They're too cute for words really.

Taking a break long enough to stick the tongue out for the camera.

She's been tired all day from her night of not so good sleep. She actually let Gene hold her like that for a while swinging her back and forth. She was on the verge of going back to sleep. Then she realized just how on the verge she was, and she was back down. No time for sleep people.

Ok, so I know I mentioned before that Grace was going to stay at her Nana and Papa's this weekend because we have a lot of activities going on. Well, Granny has not felt good the past 2 weeks. She went to the doctor not long after it all started and was told to come back in 2 weeks if it wasn't any better. She decided yesterday it wasn't any better and was calling the doctor this morning.



My phone was on vibrate overnight and I hadn't turned the ringer back on. I checked my phone and had a missed call, new voicemail, and a new text message. All from Mom. Not necessarily a good thing. The message just says to call when I wake up. I call. She answers, and I ask her how she is. She's good. Granny's not. My heart drops. She fell this morning in the bathroom, and called Mom around 6:15 to tell her. Mom gathered up some things and headed for Alma. When I talked to Mom she had called the doctor's office to schedule an appointment, and was waiting on a callback. Mom was becoming very impatient because it had been 2 hours. Granny's left leg was hurting her really bad and she could hardly walk on it. Of course Granny can't be home by herself in case something else were to happen. So, Mom is down there until they figure out exactly what's wrong and what the healing process looks like.



I was upset when I got off the phone. Upset because I'd already had a not so good morning. Upset because Granny's not feeling good...at all. She's supposed to be Super Granny! Upset because my babysitter is an hour away. Not only was I upset about everything else going on, but I was upset about being upset. I was mad at myself for being upset that my plans for Saturday night now had a hink in them. I felt guilty, because I know as well as anybody else that Granny needs Mom down there with her and I was being selfish.



Gene left to go to they gym so Grace and I went upstairs to watch tv, because as I mentioned in a previous post, our big tv downstairs is broken. We hung out up there pretty much all day. Gene was only gone a couple of hours, and he came upstairs with us. The UPS guy came and dropped off our new bulb. Gene came down and put it in, and voila, our tv was working again! Corey got home from school, and we were all sitting down watching CSI:NY when the tv screen goes black. Again. Yes, that bulb burnt out 45 MINUTES after we put it in. Did I mention I was not having a great day? There goes $41 down the drain. There is a one year warranty, but they will just give us our money back...not replace the bulb. So, we'll probably only get about $26 back after shipping it back. Gene came to the conclusion that there must be something wrong with the tv that is burning it out because it wasn't making sense. He called a tv repair place, but we're both broke right now so it'll be a while before we can get it fixed. Gene hasn't been working construction because they don't have a job right now. Not having that extra money is definitely affecting us.



So, Grace and I are now home alone because Gene and Corey just left for the football game. I knew Grace would wear out quick and the temperature will probably get a little cool once the sun goes down. So, it's a girls' night here. Hopefully she'll go to bed semi early and I can too to catch up on some lost sleep from last night.



I really don't want to sound any more selfish and horrible than I already have, but I'm asking for your prayers. Prayers for my attitude, and that I will be able to look at the positives instead of focusing on the negative. Prayers for my faith, not because I've lost it, but sometimes it gets shaded and I lose sight of it a little bit. It's hard sometimes. And prayers for our finances. Gene and I were just having the discussion about what things we could cancel and cut back on to start saving money until he's working construction again.



If you're still with me, I thank you for your time and your thoughts. I'm off now to take care of motherly duties.

3 Day Weekend

Today was a good day for me. Gene got up with Grace around 8, then I got up about 8:45 and ate breakfast. Gene went and rode with some friends this morning so Grace and I lounged around upstairs watching tv. I think I've failed to mention that the bulb on our tv is currently burnt out. We bought a big nice Samsung HD rear projection tv last year when we finished the house. I love the tv, but it uses a very expensive bulb. We bought it last March and this past June it burnt out the first time. Not a big deal I guess, but they cost $220. Yea, that's a lot of money for a stinking bulb. Well, about 3 weeks ago it burnt out. Not good! Gene called Best Buy, which is where we bought the tv, and he also called Samsung and the manufacturer of the bulb trying to get something done. We were not happy about the fact that this one only lasted 3 months. No one that Gene talked to was willing to do anything about it, and to top it all of they were all incredibly rude and lacked customer service skills. Needless to say, Gene has not been happy with them lately. It stinks because obviously we can't watch tv downstairs so we've listend to the radio.....a lot!

Gene was able to find a used bulb on e-bay and bid on it and won! They shipped it the first part of the week, and it only cost $41 with shipping and everything. Plus, it has a one year warranty as opposed to Best Buy and Samsung's 30 day warranty. Much better! It's supposed to be here tomorrow! Thank goodness! I am a HUGE Dancing With the Stars fan, but I work on Monday and Tuesday nights so I'm no able to really watch it. Last season we had just got our DVR so I was able to record it. I was very upset this week when I couldn't DVR it. Not a problem now!!

Back to today, Grace and I hung out upstairs from about 10:30 to 3! We kept switching back and forth from Dora to The Backyardigans to CSI: NY. Funny huh?! Grace loves Dora and The Backyardigans so while they were on we watched that, and when they were over I would switch back to CSI:NY. I had only ever seen one episode of CSI, but I am officially addicted now! Spike has been running an all day marathon like all week so I watched at least part of several episodes today. It's so good!

Grace and I did fall asleep at one point for about 45 minutes and then we ate lunch and lounged some more. I had full intentions of cleaning my house all day, but couldn't muster up the energy to get it done! Finally at 3, I decided it was time to go down and empty the dishwasher and switch out laundry because I'd heard both washers beep that they were done. I then cleaned till about 6. The boys got home around 4 and Gene had made it home just before them. I got a lot of cleaning done. Tomorrow I need to clean my bedroom and bathroom but that's it and the whole house will have been cleaned! Yay!

Tomorrow after I finish cleaning I need to load Gene's truck up with some stuff to take to the police department for our Rummage Sale next Saturday. Speaking of which, if you have anything you want to get rid of you can bring it up and donate it to the pd for our sale. We're using it as a fundraiser for the benevelont fund. If you're interested you can just drop it off at the pd and we'll take care of the rest!

Grace is staying with her Nana and Papa tomorrow and Saturday night because we have a lot of activities going on that Grace would not sit through! Greenland's Homecoming is tomorrow so that will be a long night at the football field and Grace gets way too restless way too fast, plus I'm afraid it will get a little chilly by the end of the game. The band is marching so of course we have to be there!! Then Saturday Colt has his piano concert at 2, but has to be there at 1 to practice. Grace would certainly not sit still....quietly throught that either! The boys are with their mom this weekend, so Gene and I are going down to Bikes, Blues, & BBQ Saturday night! A big group of my girlfriends are gonna meet us up there and we're all gonna hang out. I'm super excited!!!

Grace is getting really crabby and sleepy so I'm off to find a paci and put her to bed! Have a good night!

"Come on Grace, it's time to get out of the bath..."

I find myself repeating that phrase over and over every night after bath time. Grace loves her bath time. She does not love getting out of the bath. Every bath time, after I've washed her good from head to toe I let her sit and play in the water until it all drains out. Her new thing is to lay down in the tub trying to get under what water may or may not be left in it! As you can see, last night there was no water left but bless her heart she was sure trying to find some!

Booty shot

Big grin!

She is such a mess! She used to throw a FIT every time I got her out of the bath. She would kick and scream and cry half way through lotion and pj's....it was getting very frustrating. I have learned a new trick.

"Come on Grace, it's time to get out of the bath."

"NO!"

"Ok fine, I'll just leave you in here by yourself."

(Turn off the light and walk out of the bathroom for about 10 seconds, then walk back in.)

"Are you ready to get out now?"

She nods and is already climbing out of the tub!!

Ha! It's worked every time so far. Now I'm just waiting for her to call my bluff!

"CHEEEEEEEEEEEESE!!!!!"

Last night Grace wore her new nightgown that Aunt Cathy and Megan brought her from Atlanta. After I got her lotioned up and dressed I told her we were going to take her picture for Aunt Cathy and Megan. She turned around to me and just said "Cheeeeeeeeese!!" So cute. She didn't really used to be one for pictures, and would never sit/stand still for them but now every time she sees a camera she starts saying "cheese."

My little princess

I know...precious right?! What's even cuter, is that her little gown matches her princess blanket she uses for cover in her crib. She was all matchy matchy last night.

I was so tired last night after work, and it seemed like a really long night. By the time I got home from picking Grace up at Mom and Dad's it was 11, and after bath and rocking it was midnight before I laid her down. I didn't read long last night because I was too tired. She woke up about 8:30 this morning and now we're upstairs watching cartoons!

Grace goes to her Mimi and Papa's (Gene's parents) today, and I'm having lunch with Brittni, one of my best friends that I don't get to see very often. Brittni's son, Jace, is one month and one day younger than Grace! It was so crazy because she and Steph were my absolute best friends through high school, and Brittni got married in December of 2003 right after we graduated and I was one of her bridesmaids!! For the first 3 semesters of college at NWACC she and I ended up having at least one class together so we still kept in touch. After we stopped having classes together we kind of lost touch for a while because we were so busy with work and stuff and our paths didn't really cross anymore.

Anyways, we would talk every couple of months or so, but I hadn't really talked to much after Gene and I got together. Long story short (kinda!), she called me one night at work and I was about 20 weeks or so pregnant but I hadn't talked to her since I found out. Horrible I know! So, we're talking and she's asking me what's new with me and I tell her I'm pregnant, and she says
"No way! I am too!" She was about 4 weeks behind me. How crazy is that?!?! We have kept in close contact ever since then. She was there for Grace's birth and then Grace and I were there for Jace's birth. It's so neat when you have babies the same time as your good friends! I have more stories about that, but I'll save them for a different post.

So, Brittni and I are meeting for lunch at Spring Street Grill, yummy!! I know it's going to make my day, plus the fact that tomorrow is my Friday this week because I'm off on Thursday. Woohoo!!

Ok, Grace and I are off to watch Dora the Explorer!!! Have a great day!

First Day of Fall!!!!!!!

Yay! Today is the first day of fall...finally. It's my most favorite season and it is finally upon us.

I love fall because it sort of kicks off the holiday season. Now we have Halloween, Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Year's!! I love this time of year, and it will be even better this year because Grace is older now and will have a better understanding of everything going on. Plus it's football time of course. I will finally be able to make it to a Greenland game this week because there isn't anything else planned, other than Bikes, Blues, & BBQ but we have 3 other days for those activities!!

The only fall decor I have right now is just a cute kitchen rug that has leaves on it! I bought it yesterday at Wal_mart...it was only $4.88!! I'm going to work on accumulating some more items this year to start a collection.

Did I mention I love fall?!?!

Grace is 19 Months Old!!

I know I just did a post, but I forgot to put in there that Grace is 19 months old today. Happy 19 months sweet girl!! Mommy, Daddy, and bubbas love you!

She creeps closer and closer to 2 years old everyday, and I desperately need time to slow down for me for a little bit!

Momino's

Today was a great day! It started off great because Grace was so worn out from a busy weekend that she crashed hard last night and was basically dead weight when I laid her down. Sweet girl, she was sooo tired. She and I both slept until about 9:30 or so, and it felt good! I slept so soundly and really felt rested when I woke up this morning.

I must say that I was woken up a few times this morning starting at around 8 or so because the boys were up and they were making a lot of noise in the kitchen, which is just off our bedroom. I can't really complain though because Corey emptied the dishwasher and.......made me breakfast! Is that not sweet?! He came in and woke me up to tell me to come eat. I just rolled over and moaned because I was not ready to get up yet. I did though! He was so cute, he had attempted to make coffee but bless his heart it didn't turn out so well. He had me a glass of milk, a cup of coffee, the creamer, salt & pepper, and my plate sitting there all nice and neat! I think I'll keep him! Ha! They're such good boys. Colt had made chocolate chip muffins....not my favorite, but I ate part of one.

Corey went and got Grace out of bed while I was eating and he said she was just sitting in her crib playing with Nemo and her blanket! She helped me eat my breakfast, and it was yummy!

I took a vacation day today at work because I had originally thought that the Geren's were going to be here still, but wasn't thinking that they would have to go back to work tomorrow. So, today was a free day and it was nice after such a busy weekend.

I had really good intentions of getting the house cleaned. Yea, that didn't turn out quite like I planned. I did get our bed stripped and the sheets washed, along with the boys' sheets and comforters. I also got our bedroom vaccumed (I don't know if I'm spelling that right) and most of the laundry caught up. However, I was out of a lot of cleaning supplies so I was planning to make a run to either Wal-Mart or Target to stock up. Colt had to be at Razorback stadium at 2 because they do clean up on Sundays after the home games for the marching band at school. Gene was working, and Corey had gone to WinFest (not sure what all that consists of) with his Mimi and Papa so it was just me and Grace after we dropped Colt off.

We just went to Target and I got everything I needed. I'm telling you what, prices are outrageous on everything now. I couldn't believe how much money I spent for so few things. Depressing. We are back fully stocked now though on stuff! I still didn't get much cleaning done though. Oh well, I'm off this Thursday too for Bikes, Blues, & BBQ so I'll probably do more during the day then. Maybe! ;)

Gene got home right after Grace and I did and I started sweeping downstairs when Colt called to tell me he was done and ready to be picked up. Of course when I'm right in the middle of something! It worked out well though, Gene finished sweeping and mopping for me!!! Go hubby! I went and picked Coltster up and we ran to Wal-Mart to get some stuff for dinner.

I made homemade pizzas! I used Mom's pizza crust recipe that she used to always make when Tanner and I were younger and both still living at home. We always called it Momino's Pizza! It was soooo yummy! I made two. One was pepperoni, canadian bacon, and Italian sausage. The other was half hamburger and half canadian bacon, pepperoni, and pineapple. They were so good, and a nice change of pace. It's not even that hard to make. I can post the recipe if anyone is interested!

I had only made it once before, when Gene and I were still dating and I was living in my apartment with Stephanie so he had had it before but the boys hadn't. They both loved it!! Yay! I bought stuff to make homemade chocolate chip cookies too but I didn't get that done. Maybe next weekend. I made such a mess with flour while making the pizzas I had quite a mess to clean up once I got done. I should have taken some pictures but I didn't think about it.

Colt entertained on the piano while I cooked. I'm constantly impressed by that kid's talent on the piano. He never ceases to amaze me. I promise I'll video him sometime soon and post it on here so you can hear. Unbelievable! He has a concert this weekend that his teacher is putting on and he's chosen Angel by Sarah McLachlan and it's so beautiful. I keep telling myself that one of these days I'm going to sit down and brush up my skills...considering Gene originally bought the piano for me becaue I kept asking for one so I could play! It's hard for me to play when Grace is around because she gets jealous of Mommy's time when I'm trying to play. Some day soon I will!

Grace got a bath after I got the kitchen cleaned from dinner because she was a MESS from the pizza! Corey is so good with her, and it's so cute to listen to her get tickled when he's chasing her. While I was cleaning up the kitchen he was playing Hide and go seek with her. She would take of running and hide and he'd come in after her and she would just giggle. It is the sweetest sound to my ears!

The only nap she had today was just in the car on the way home from Target so she crashed hard again tonight once she got still long enough to fall asleep! She was out like a light, and I took a shower and switched out laundry before I crawled in bed with the laptop to catch up on blogs, e-mail, etc. My eyelids are getting heavy now though, so I'm off to bed now!

Good night!

Wonderful Weekend!

I have had such a wonderful weekend!! Well, I must say it did not start off so great Thursday night. When I got home from work Grace and Gene were asleep in the upstairs living room in one of the big bean bags, so I picked Grace up to put her to bed and she woke up screaming. I tried just leaving her in her room to go back to sleep. Yea, that didn't work. I no longer made it downstairs and she was already OUT of her crib and OUT of her room. Yes, she got the door open and luckily Gene was still upstairs and grabbed her. Scary! I went back upstairs and got her and brought her down to rock. Long story short, it was 10:30 the first time I tried laying her down and after 3 tries and 2 hours she slept with Mommy. It was not a good night, considering that's only the 2nd time she's ever slept in my room with me. She was just not going to bed alone that night. I don't know what the problem was.

Gene ended up coming to bed later that night and that was the first time we've all 3 slep together. I didn't sleep much, but oh well. Sacrifices of a mother I suppose! Gene got up with her around 8 and made some french toast and I followed shortly after. After that I started getting our stuff together to go to my cousin Hillary's wedding. Mom and Dad got here to get us a little after 11 and we took off for Granny's. Gene and the boys didn't go because Greenland had a game in Pea Ridge (that they won!!) and of course Colt had to march and Gene hadn't been able to make it to a game yet so he wanted to stay for it.

We made it to Granny's around 12:15 and then Mom, Grace, and I left for Ft. Smith in search of some brown shoes for me to wear with my skirt. We only had to make one stop...Shoe Carnival and I found the cutest brown heels to wear and they were only $20!!!

We got back to Granny's and I gave Grace a bath, I took a shower and got ready and we were off! We all looked so nice! The wedding was at Mt. Magazine in Paris, AR so it was about an hours drive from Granny's. If you have never seen Mt. Magazine you need to pay a visit. It is absolutely beautiful and the perfect setting for a wedding! The ceremony was outside and I didn't get any pictures of outside, but Mom did so you can see them here. My Aunty Cathy and cousin Megan drove in from Atlanta on Friday for the wedding and they met us at the lodge. We were very excited to see them because we don't see them often.

Grace did pretty good through the ceremony, other than wanting to go from lap to lap! It was the perfect weather for an outside ceremony and everthing was just so pretty. After that we headed down the hall to the reception and it was gorgeous. The decorations were amazing and I didn't get any good pictures of them either! However, I will try to get some on her soon so you can see.

Me and the beautiful bride!

The bride and groom!!

Grace & Hill

Grace tore up the dance floor! She knew exactly what it was for, and she spent most of her time out on it dancing her little heart out. They had a live band and the female lead singer even came out and danced with her, she LOVED that! Hillary danced with her, our other cousin Alex danced with her, her Papa danced with her. She was just making the rounds and everybody got such a kick out of watching her!

Grace and her Papa dancing....so cute!! They were the only ones out there at the time!

Nana and Grace...she was getting sleepy!

Daddy/Daughter Dance

First Dance

Granny & Hillary

Hillary & Aunt Cathy

Mom & Hillary

Dad & Hillary

Lead singer & Grace

Granny & Grace

We had such a good time at the wedding and everything was just wonderful! They also had a photo booth that they wanted everyone to take their pictures in like at my friend Amanda's wedding. It was really neat and Grace and I had some cute pictures but I don't have a scanner to put them on here.

We ended up leaving around 8:30 and drove back to Granny's. It seemed like it took us forever to get back because I was so tired. Grace fell asleep after about 20 minutes or so. Dad left and came back home after we got back to Granny's but Mom, Grace, and I stayed so we could spend all day yesterday with Aunt Cathy and Grace. I'm going to do another post with a few pictures of that also!

Yesterday was great because we just laid around and did a lot of nothing! Grace played....hard! She just ran and spun and laughed and cut up and had a big time. She loves entertaining and she had quite the crowd yesterday. Aunt Cathy's good friend, Monica, drove up from Springdale and spent the day with us and Stephanie drove down after she got off at noon and spent the afternoon with us too. We also went and got Granny Ima (Granny's sister) and she came up and hung out with us. It was a big hen party!! We loved it!

I didn't get a lot of good pictures of the decorations or outside, but you can visit this blog to see some really good pictures. That blog belongs to Kelly, which is one of Hillary's best friends and was a bridesmaid. I've become addicted to her blog because she's so funny and they had been trying for forever to get pregnant and couldn't until just a few months ago when she did!! Yay! They're expecting a little girl in January. I was excited about getting to meet her at the wedding! She's just as sweet in person!

Anyways, I think that's it for now. This is quite a post so I'll sign off for now!

Tag....You're It!

I have been tagged by Leah. Oh boy, I've never done this before! I think it will be fun though, so here we go!

The rules:
1. Link to the person who tagged you.
2. List the rules.
3. Tell six unspectacular quirks of yours.
4. Tag six bloggers by linking.
5. Leave a comment for each blogger.

1. I like to be in control. It doesn't matter what it is, I like to be in control. Anytime I'm in a car (except with Gene) I like to drive. I do not ride well, because I'm not in control! Same goes with the grocery store...I like to push the cart to be in control. At work, if I could work all 3 positions I would because I like to be in control of every situation. Not in like a negative way really, but I just like to be able to do it all so I know for sure it's being done! Same goes with chores at home...laundry, dishes, cleaning. As much as I appreciate the help, I like to do it all myself because it's done the way I want.

2. I prefer to fall asleep in my own bed....by myself. Gene tends to fall asleep in the living room either in the recliner or on the couch and comes to bed later, so I usually have the bed all to myself to fall asleep. This works out good for me because I like to lay in bed and read until I fall asleep and the light bothers him, so I'm able to fall asleep in the quiet (because he's not in there snoring!) and I can stretch out over the whole bed. As long as he comes to bed after I've fallen asleep it doesn't bother me, but before hand I like to have it all to myself.

3. I have to make my bed every morning. I didn't used to be like that, but every since we moved into our new house it's made every day. I think there have been 2, maybe 3 days in the year and a half that it has not been made and that's only because I was up and out early and Gene was still in bed, and you're just plain crazy if you think he's going to do it. Uh, no!

4. I can NOT go to bed with a dirty kitchen. I think I've blogged about it before, but I absolutely can not stand to wake up to a dirty kitchen. I get it from my mother...thanks Mom!! If it's a night I'm off work and at home I always clean the kitchen right after we get done eating dinner. If it's a night that I work and I come home to dishes in the sink or on the counter or anywhere but in the dishwasher or the cabinet where they belong, I'm busy cleaning and tidying. I wipe down all the counters and put everything away. I recently had a lecture with the boys about how much I dislike having to come home from work to a mess that I did not make and having to clean it up. Since then they've been good about cleaning up after they eat dinner. I still usually have to do some because I'm so picky!

5. I stronly dislike feet, much like my brother! I don't like looking at feet, smelling feet, touching feet, nothing involving feet. The only feet I like are Grace's! Gene asks me all the time to rub his feet because he knows how much I hate it, and the boys are all the time putting their feet on me because they know I hate it too. It's just yuck. We walk on them on the dirty filthy ground.....gross!!

6. I'm a professional sleeper. Or I used to be anyway before I had a baby! Pre-baby I could sleep all day if no one bothered me! I could go to bed at 9 o'clock at night and not wake up until 3 or 4 the next afternoon. I LOVE to sleep! I love taking naps and sleeping in. My husband is not a pro sleeper by any means. Take this morning for example, he was awake at 7:30 this morning so he thought I should be too. He kept pestering me and tickling me trying to get me up. I was not happy! I tried to convince him to let me sleep, but it didn't work. Grrr.... It's ok though, we were able to spend some time together before Grace woke up. He knows I'm not a morning person too, so of course he does it on purpose!

Ok, so there's a few little known things about me! Hope you enjoyed it! By the way, thanks Leah for telling me how to link...I figured it out! I now tag Stephanie, Mom, Courtney, Shelly, Tiffany, and Nikki!!! Have fun!!!

Perfect Weather

Oh my goodness, I am LOVING the fact that my air conditioner is turned off and it's 70 degrees in my house. It's actually a little on the cool side in here!! I also love that it feels so brisk and cool outside. I guess Fall is finally here! Yay!

Yesterday was such a beautiful day. Gene worked drug interdiction yesterday so he and Grace and I were all home together, which was nice since I had not seen him in 4 days. Our a/c was on when we got up but I turned it off shortly after getting out of bed and opened all the windows because it felt so great outside. Gene made us breakfast and I cleaned out our medicine cabinet in the laundry room. It needed it so bad and I finally had the time and patience to do it. I threw away so much stuff, and I was driving Gene crazy asking him about stuff that needed to be kept. It looks so much better and is all organized by category (pain aid, cold/flu, muscle creams, itch medicine, children's stuff, etc.). Sorry, that's probably boring for you, but I'm very proud of myself!

Anyway, I got that done and also got our bed stripped and our sheets washed and tidied up our bedroom a little bit. It was a productive day. Grace woke up at about 8, which came early since I didn't go to sleep until 1 am catching up with my hubby! It's ok though because it did allow me plenty of time to get stuff done before work. Gene laid Grace down on the couch around 11 to take a nap and she fell right to sleep. She was trying to catch up on her sleep from her busy weekend at Granny's! I took a shower while she was sleeping and then grabbed a blanket and my book and sat outside on the porch and read till Grace woke up. It was so peaceful and relaxing.

Gene brought Grace outside then and she and I played on the porch while he mowed the lawn. She's somewhat fascinated with the lawnmower....who knows! That child LOVES to be outside, and she threw a huge fit when I brought her in to feed her lunch. She would literally stay outside all day if you would let her. I don't know what I'm gonna do when she's old enough to get out there by herself, we'll never get her in the house. That's ok though I guess, better that than a lazy kid!!

Work was pretty good last night. Teresa (my supervisor and really really good friend) was out a lot of last week because she had a pinched nerve and possibly a slipped disk in her neck. She was so miserable and I felt so bad for her, because you could tell by looking at her that her neck was swollen and that she just didn't feel good. The doctor gave her some meds though and she was back yesterday!!! It's just more fun to work when she's there. We didn't really have much excitement, sometimes it gets tiring dealing with scum. You have no idea how ignorant some people are until you've worked at a police department for any length of time....they call us for the stupidest things. We will honestly have people call 911 looking for the number for our jail!!! Hello?!?! Really? Do you not have a phone book? Very irritating. Oh well, part of the job I suppose.

I slept great last night, because I was so tired. Gene had to work regular shift today at the pd so he was up at 5:30. I usually wake up when he gets up and is getting ready, but this morning I only woke up for maybe 3 minutes. Long enough to look over and see that he was in uniform and packing his gym bag and then I was right back out! I didn't wake up again until Grace did around 8:30. I'm still a little sleepy, but Jeanette (Gene's mom) just came over and got Grace so I could take a nap before work. Gene's parents keep Grace pretty much every Tuesday and Wednesday for sure and Thursdays too if Gene's working construction. They only have her until either the boys or Gene get home. They live right next door to us, so it's pretty convenient sometimes!!

I've got the windows back up this morning because it's so nice outside and I'm fixing to lay down on the couch and read until I fall asleep for just a little bit before getting ready for work. I really should be doing some more cleaning, but I'm not going to! It'll still be there when I get ready to do it.

Until next time....

A Day of Nothing

Well, today was a day of laziness! We didn't do much but just eat and lay around. I put the pictures in the wrong order, so they start with the most recent. I'll just talk backwards.

When we got here yesterday Granny had made a pie crust....homemade pie crust, but she wasn't feeling very good so that was as far as the pie got! Well, this afternoon she finished it and we had chocolate pie. Yummy! Grace particularly loved it, as you can see in the pictures below. She prefered to eat with her fingers instead of a spoon.

Ok, she actually used her finger AND her thumb!! Yummy Cool Whip!

After Granny put the Cool Whip on top she let Grace lick the spatula....and the bowl!! Her Papa will be so proud!

You can also see the pizza box sitting there from the Pizza Parlour Pizza we had for lunch!!!!

Again, Grace preferred to dip her fingers in the Ranch instead of the pizza.

Granny was so happy that Grace fell asleep in her lap!

Grace slept with me last night because she will NOT sleep in her playpen when we are away from home. She has only ever slept with me about 3 times. One time was at home because Gene had hung some cork board in all 3 of the kids rooms upstairs so the adhesive smell was way to strong upstairs to put Grace in her room, so she slept with me that night. The other times were just when we were at Granny's and when we were at Mema & Papa's. Even when we come to Granny's she usually sleeps with Mom, because when she stays at Mom & Dad's she always sleeps with them so she's used to sleeping with Mom. She's not so used to sleeping with me.

Well, last night she was so tired and we knew she wouldn't go to sleep with both Mom and I sitting in the living room because she gets frustrated not being able to snuggle with both of us at the same time. Granny and Mom went to lay down and Grace and I stayed in the living room to go to sleep. It didn't take her long once she got still, and we went to bed. I didn't sleep worth a darn. I can never fully relax when she's in bed with me because I'm afraid I'm going to wake her up or roll over on her. So, I slept maybe about 3 hours last night. I've had a headache and have been really tired all day.

We had put in The Little Mermaid and Grace actually crawled up in Granny's lap and fell asleep. That made Granny happy because she NEVER does that if Mom and I are both here. She slept for over an hour and I fell asleep on the couch. I didn't really sleep that long, and then we ordered pizza and had lunch. It was sooooo good, but we knew it would be!!

Granny and Grace did a lot of reading this morning! Mom and I were in the den playing on the computer and I was reading a magazine, so she was content to sit in Granny's lap and read! They were so cute. Grace has become quite fond of her Granny!!

Nana & Grace

This picture was actually taken last night, but I wanted to post it because I think it's cute! This was during her wandering around trying to stay awake phase!

We went to bed last night about 11 and were up around 8:30, but like I said I didn't sleep most of that time. Mom volunteered to take her tonight since she does sleep so much better with her. Thank goodness!!

We had planned to get out and do a little bit more than we did today, but ya know it was nice to lay around and do nothing.

I'm getting off her now though because Grace is tugging on me saying "bath bath bath bath bath." I think she's ready for a bath! After that I'm taking a shower, because I haven't had one all day! Shew! Ha!

Have a great night!

Another new look!

Ok, if you read the post before this it's pretty apparent that I've changed looks again!! Ha! It's addictive, and there are so many choices once you start looking. Anyway, it will do for now during the beautiful fall season....my favorite!

Also, my mom now has a blog so you'll have to check her's out too. You can click on it to the right.

I'll be back on after I have some chocolate pie to fill you in on what we've been doing!

Taylor

New Look!

Ok, I'm trying out a new look. I'm not sure if I like it or not. I would love comments of either yay or nay! Trust me you won't hurt my feelings if you don't like it.

I really wanted something deeper brown and deeper pink, but for now that will have to do!

Friday Activities

Well, we made it to Granny's safe and sound. It was so pretty and sunny in Fayetteville when we left, but by the time we made it to Alma it was cloudy and everything was wet where it had just rained. Crazy Arkansas weather!

Granny was excited to see her girls, and Grace was excited to see her Granny! We got the car unloaded and were hanging out in the living room trying to decide what to have for dinner. I told Mom on the way down that I was in the mood to cook, but I didn't know what sounded good. Granny had cooked a roast yesterday so we decided on that and green beans and mashed potatoes. I was craving some dinner rolls too so I made a run to Wal-Mart because I had to have diapers anyways too.

By the time I got back Mom had just about everything already ready, so we ate a FABULOUS dinner! It was so incredibly yummy. After dinner Grace and Granny went outside to swing for a little bit (it's a Granny/Grace thing)! She only likes swinging with her Granny, or will only sit still with her Granny! Too cute. I knew Grace wouldn't be excited about coming back in so I had all of her bath stuff ready so we could switch from one favorite activity to another! She was okay once she was in the tub. I've got to start taking pictures of these things to illustrate!

Anyway, Mom made a run back down to Wal-Mart to fill up on gas because everyone was in such a frenzy with the hurricane and gas not only sky-rocketing but also the possibility of running out. Grace was clean and happy by the time she made it back and then we settled in to watch the season finale of Monk, we love that show!!

Monk and Company

After Monk it was time for Psych, another favorite! Grace has been wandering around aimlessly trying not to fall asleep. She's so tired she can't stand it, but she's afraid to go to sleep because ya know she might miss something! Ha!

After Psych we watched the news and all the updates on Hurricane Ike. It's a nasty booger, and I am definitely praying for all the people who are going to be affected by it in not only Texas and Louisiana, but also in Arkansas. They're saying there's a good chance we'll get a good dose of it late tomorrow and early Sunday. Which of course is not good news to me considering my husband is in Hot Springs and is supposed to be home on Sunday.....on the motorcycle. He told me earlier that right now Jason's dad is planning to trailer them home if the weather is as nasty as they're saying it's supposed to be. Mom and I were planning to stay at Granny's tomorrow night too and just leave early enough Sunday for me to make it back to work but now I'm not sure if that's smart. I don't want to get caught out in the storm. So, I'm praying it doesn't get really bad.

That pretty much wraps up tonight so I'm going to go wash my face, brush my teeth, and try to get my child to go to sleep. Wish me luck!!!

Good Night!

Weekend Getaway

Just wanted to make a quick note, it's been a couple of days. Today is my Saturday and Mom, Grace, and I are driving down to Granny's house this afternoon. Mom has a doctor's appointment at 1:30 then she's coming to get us. I'm excited, it's been a while since we've been down.

This next paragraph is just for Megan and Aunt Cathy (hope you're reading this!). Yesterday while I was getting ready for work I was asking Grace if she was excited about going to Granny's house today and she just looked up at me with a big grin on her face and said " Caffy, Meegggaan!" It was sooo cute! Of course, I had to tell her that that they wouldn't be there this weekend, but she would get to see them next weekend! We can't wait to see you guys!!!

Anyways, this was a very long week at work and I'm so glad it's over. Gene and his friend Jason drove down to Hot Springs yesterday on their bikes to stay the weekend at Jason's parents' lake house. Yea I know, not fair! Apparently Jason's parents are very wealthy and have 2 boats and the huge lake house fully stocked with food for them. I guess there's a bike rally this weekend down there. I miss him, and he won't be home until Sunday. :( I know he needed a break though from working so much.

***Side note: I was just distracted by how quiet Grace was being. Well, I look over by the couch and she has found a pen from somewhere and has managed to get the lid off. She's playing Michaelangelo and drawing ALL over her legs and on the hardwood floors!! Oops! It's all good though, Clorox wipe got it off the floor and wet rag scrubbed it off her legs! Funny girl.

Ok, I've got most of our stuff packed up and I'm fixing to get in the shower so we're ready when Mom gets here. I hope everyone has had a good week. I know I'll be back on later this evening or tomorrow morning with pictures and stories from Granny's!

Taylor

Fall Attire

So, I know I've said before that I'm ready for cooler weather, but I'm going to say it yet again. I'm so ready for fall weather!

I love wearing long sleeve tshirts and big sweatshirts and blue jeans and tennis shoes! Plus Mom and I have already been buying stuff for Grace for cooler weather, which isn't always a good thing because they have so much cute stuff it's hard to say no. One of the last times we were down at Granny's and had gone to the mall she found this really cute outfit for Grace and was planning on going back and getting it for her. I posted a picture below of her wearing it, of course it's still a little bit too big and she will not stand still long enough for me to get a good picture but you get the idea. It's so precious!

A few weeks ago I was in Target looking around and of course I was looking at children's stuff. I found the most adorable pair of brown boots that I had already decided when it got cooler I was going to go back and get them for her. Well, after seeing the outfit that Granny got her I was even more determined to go back and get them because they will look so good with it!

Remember my new outfit I bought?! Well, I had planned to wear it today but I wanted some black flats to go with it. I have some black stilettos, but 1) they're not comfortable for working and 2) they're a little too dressy for it. So, I knew that Target would have something that would work. I was right!! Yesterday before work Grace and I drove up there and I found some really cute black ballerina flats with a little bow on them. Too cute.

I, of course, walked right on over to the childrens' shoes to see if they still had the boots. I found the section they were in but I didn't see Grace's size. I had given up and was walking down the aisle and down with all the big girl shoes I saw one more box of them sitting there.......and they were her size!!!! Yay! I was so excited. I was actually a little hesitant in buying them for her right now because they were $18 but them being the last one made up my mind. I knew I wouldn't get lucky next time if I waited.

I just tried them on her and they fit perfectly. They are tighter around her little fat calves than they probably would be on some toddlers, but they still fit and she can walk in them. She just stood really still when I first put them on her because she's not used to having shoes come up that high. She just looked at me like "now what am I supposed to do?!" Too cute! It didn't take her long to figure it out and then she didn't want to take them off!

Checking them out!

Are they not adorable?!

Ok,this picture I posted because I just love her hair!

The last picture was taken Sunday morning not too long after she woke up. She had had a bath the night before and when she fell asleep I guess her hair was still a little wet. I always comb it straight back when it's wet because it usually makes it lay better. Not this time! She had this big poof of hair on top and we couldn't get it to lay down. I love the paci smile too!!

On a side note, there must definitely be some type of stomach bug going around. Everyone at work just about has been sick, and Corey came home sick from school yesterday, and is still in bed right now. He's had a bad headache and stomach ache. Poor kid, I hate it when they don't feel good. Hopefully it won't last much longer, and he'll be better tomorow.

I'm off to take care of my whiny little girl now!!

Pictures

I didn't get any pictures taken with my camera, but Gene took a few of us with Steph's when we got home from the wedding. She e-mailed them to me yesterday so I could post them! Please excuse my red eyes, I seem to always have them in any picture taken of me!

Steph, Me, & Grace

Beautiful Baby Girl!!

The picture of Grace was taken after we had taken her bow out so it looks funny on top! Anyways, just wanted to share the pictures with you guys. I also didn't get a good picture of Steph's dress and my skirt, but I'm wearing that skirt to my cousin, Hillary's wedding also so I'll take more pictures then!!

Today I'm going to leave for work early and run by Target to try and find some shoes to wear with my new jeans and top, and then I've got to drop Grace off with Tanner and Dad so I can go to work. Gene works drug interdiction tonight so Mom and Dad get Grace!

Have a great week!!

Taylor

Girl Time

I had a really great weekend!! Well, Friday was not the best morning because Grace slept on her mattress on the floor again but woke up at 5 IN THE MORNING!!!! Oh my gosh. I only got about 4 hours of sleep because I wasn't able to go to bed until 1 am. Gene ended up getting up around 6 or so too so at least I wasn't the only one up with her. I knew there was no hope in getting her back to bed because the alarm clock would be going off at 6 to get the boys up for school so we just laid down on the couch. I was so incredibly tired, but luckily she fell back to sleep with me on the couch about 7 and slept until about 8:45. I was still tired.

We finally got up and around and drove up to Rogers to see Gene's cousin Wayne at Tri-State Optical. Wayne is the office manager and I needed some new glasses! I've had glasses since I was in 3rd grade and contacts since I was in 6th grade. I wear my contacts most often, but I wear my glasses at home and night and sometimes during the day to give my eyes a break. I'd had my old frames for over 2 years and it was time for some new ones. One of my lenses were cracked in 2 places and they just kept getting longer, plus the frames were in bad shape and the prescription wasn't up to date in them so I couldn't see as well with them as my contacts. So.....I told Gene I was needing some new ones and he called Wayne.

I ended up getting some Armani Exchange frames and new high-index lenses for only $150!! I am very blind! My prescription is so strong, and I usually don't have as many options as anyone else does as far as frames goes because my lenses are so think. Well, Wayne had the high-index lenses and was able to pick any frame I wanted! He helped me find some that would look good and then went back and made the lenses. He was able to do everything right there and I left with my new glasses! I was soooo excited. The regular prices on the glasses (frames and lenses) would have been $422.92!! Like I said, I only had to pay $150!!! It sure pays to have connections!!! I haven't taken a picture of me wearing them yet, but I will and get it posted. I really like them!

Anway, after my exciting purchase, we went on to Pig Trail Harley-Davidson of course because we were so close. Gene had to pay a visit, plus he also needed the matching shifter peg that I had bought him (I didn't realize I should have bought the set!). He was able to find what he needed and he spent more money than he intended. Ha!

We headed out of Rogers then and headed back to Fayetteville. Our next stop was Wal-Mart to do some grocery shopping. It was crazy busy. I don't know what the deal was, but there were so many people there and it took us, no joke, about 30 minutes just to check out. The lines were forever long and miss coupon lady in front of us was holding up traffic! Not only did she have a coupon for EVERY item in her cart, she also wanted it all bagged in those cloth bags they have now. Grrrr..... We finally made it out of there. We came home and ate lunch and Gene headed out to put his new stuff on his bike. Grace and I hung out inside doing laundry and putting stuff up.

The boys made it home as Gene was leaving for the gym, and Grace and I had fallen asleep on the couch. We were both tired from our early morning! She didn't sleep for very long though, and then was up playing with her bubbas. We made nachos for dinner and they were yummy!!

I had told Gene that we HAD to put Grace's crib back together and she was going back in it that night. I could not do another night of just 4-5 hours of sleep. We decided that she just isn't old enough/big enough for a toddler bed yet. I did take the bumper pad out of it so she couldn't us it for leverage to climb out of it. We haven't had any more problems.

Yesterday morning she woke up at 8, which was an okay thing because we were supposed to go pick up Mom and Steph at 10 so we were going to have to get ready. Gene made pancakes and sausage for breakfast which was yummy and then we got ready and headed out! We went to Mom and Dad's and picked her up and then picked up Steph.

Our first stop was the Pinnacle Hills Promenade. I love shopping there, but I rarely go to Rogers, so I figured that yesterday was a perfect excuse for driving up there! I had to find something to wear to the wedding.

We looked around in several different stores, and I finally decided on this skirt!!! I found it at Lane Bryant and I love it! The only reason I didn't buy it at first was because it wasn't on sale and the regular price was a little more than I wanted to pay. However, I didn't find anything else I liked so we went back and I got it. Steph let me borrow her brown heels and I wore a white shirt that I have with it. Steph bought a new black dress to wear, and we looked really great!! Grace of course looked precious in her pink dress that her Aunt Cathy got her for her birthday!

I also got some new Seven jeans!!! I love them and they're sooo comfortable! I got a really cute shirt to go with them too! I'll take a picture when I wear the outfit and post it too!!

We ate lunch at Mimi's Cafe and it was scrumptious! We spent pretty much all day at the promenade, until we had to leave so Steph and I could get ready. We made it home just in time to take a shower, and barely made it to the wedding on time!! It was at the Fayetteville Town Center and the decorations were beautiful!! The whole wedding was very pretty and Joe Giles and the Homewreckers was the band at the reception. They are sooooo awesome!! They're at Jose's all the time, so if you get a chance you need to check them out!!

After the wedding we went to McDonalds and ate then came home. I gave Grace a bath and then I had to take Steph home so I left Grace with her daddy. She was out like a light when I got home so I put her to bed and then passed out myself!! We were so worn out from a long day of shopping!!!

Saturday was such a great day. I loved spending time with 3 of my very favorite girls in the world. Thanks Mom, Steph, & Grace!!! I love you guys!

Anyways, Grace woke up about 7:30 this morning and we've just hung around the house. I'm not really wanting to go to work today because it's my Monday, but I guess I don't have a choice! I hope everyone is having a great weekend!

Taylor