Still Livin in the 40's

Happy Birthday Stan!

I am always careful of your years cause I know the ribbing is sure to come back to me BUT at least I am always younger than you!!

?? !! UGGHHH !! ??

?? !! UUGGHH !! ??

Just needed to say that loudly while pulling up my soap box for a moment......with Wachovia failing (oops...being bought out for NOTHING you might as well say), the "Rescue Bill" failing (which it should have...going from 3 pages to 100+ pages full of pork), the stock market falling 777 points and I ask....do politician really know what is going on in the communities they represent??? Are we as citizens going to keep electing these dingbats that must think we are clueless about them "sliding" unnecessary pork into bills - then blaming each other for everything??? Do CEO really even care about the companies they run or the loyal employees they crap on, all the while they prepare to use their golden parachutes to exist the "burning building" that they were responsible for overseeing but instead lite the fires?? Are we as shareholders of companies going to continue to vote "agree" on those proxies for CEO/Board pay raises (or do you just throw them away not caring or thinking our vote counts)? Nothing will change until we care enough to voice opinions when it counts.

That means at ELECTIONS / PROXY VOTES / ETC !!!

On a lighter note cause I really needed to do and hear something other than the political and stock news that played over and over again on TV ....I had to laugh while surfing the web and finding an AOL front page story.....http://jobs.aol.com/article/_a/eight-high-stress-jobs/20080912151409990005 - I didn't see sales on the list Stan....but I did see my job! I still love you with your stress...whatever stress that may be. ;)

??? Catamounts ???

We visited The Citadel in Charleston for a friendly game of football...dawgs vs cats. We watched and watched until half time still waiting for a catamount to arrive - the score 31-0 - by this time we were deaf from hearing the cannon being fired for each score. During the half time show we heard all branches of the military fight songs played by The Citadel band including bagpipes. It was very patriotic and took our minds off looking for those darn cats...who were suppose to be playing football. Thank goodness a couple of them showed up for the second half. WCU still lost but at least they did put numbers on the board. I guess it could have been worse.....maybe like watching a UGA game later that day and the dawgs not showing up at all....Go BAMA!

(just had to rib my little sis a little on her dawgs...better luck next week)... :)

Happy Birthday Libby!

Happiest of Birthday Wishes!

Another Birthday!

From 2 years old
to 20 years old....

You will always be our little Blake.

Happiest of Birthdays!

Happy Birthday Cooper!

Just think three years ago.Best Wishes for a Happy Birthday!

My Chipmunk

Last Wednesday as you can probably tell from the picture, Austin had his wisdom teeth removed. The doctor removed three teeth but could not find a forth anywhere. This picture was taken on day three after surgery.

Asbury Hills Camp

McKenzie and Sophie McKenzie and Sophie
McKenzie and Ashley
Stan and I dropped McKenzie off last Sunday at Asbury Hills Camp in the scenic wooded mountain area of Cleveland, SC (just a really winding road north of Furman University). We settled her into her cabin with six other girls. Now these cabins are rustic so rustic that they are tearing them down after this year to rebuild cabins that actually have indoor potties....no more "port-a-potties". Stan fretted the whole way back home...the entire 3.5 hours....."are you sure she will be okay"...."maybe we should go back and check on her"..."I hope she will make a friend"....just to name a few cause I surely heard a lot more of them. My opinion that I kept stating to Stan was.... she wasn't crying when we left and she actually wished us off in an excited tone, she will be just fine and anyway we will be back in a couple of days. We finally got home, I was exhausted with the drive, my new job and all "my homework" that I went to bed before my usually 2 a.m.(at least that's been the norm the last three weeks). NOT STAN...he tossed and turned. The next morning he ran for the computer remembering that Asbury Hills had a picture website solely for the camper's family...he had to see his baby. Of course she was fine and smiling in every picture. I was even jealous of all the fun she seemed to be having. The week flew by and none to soon for her daddy. Stan could not have lasted another day. The funny about all this is both of our boys have stayed at this same camp for years and he never worried so much about them.....must be something called, Daddy's little girl. You would have thought we sent our child off to boot camp and would not see her for years. I must say it is very nice to have her home again.

What a Day!

Where do I begin....Blake's home, McKenzie's not and back to work I go! Blake returned home for his summer break and we are so excited to have him home again. McKenzie spent the day with Mackenzie at the water park at Myrtle Beach and what a fun time they had (I enjoyed hearing all about it from the dark hole to the wave pool with the lazy river in between). Wednesday afternoon I ended my retirement of three days and started a new job working with my broker of 15 years at a new brokerage firm, Stifel Nicolaus. Must say that story would be way to long for a blog posting. Anyway....It has definitely been an interesting week so far.

FREE!

Stan and I were lagging behind the kids when exiting the Mexican restaurant about a week ago. For those Moms out there you will understand what happens next.....I started counting kids to make sure we had everyone. I counted two....counted again....still two. "Where's McKenzie?" Of course the boys were purposely ignoring my question....I start looking on my own thinking we must have passed my quiet little one in the lobby, nope so out I walked again and this SHE magazine box caught my attention....and like Paul Harvey says...Now you know the rest of the story. We had a great chuckle...before Blake moved her to the top of the cover trash can and kept walking.

Happy Birthday!

Our baby turns 10.
Happy Birthday McKenzie!

Happy Father's Day!

May every man be blessed with the gift of a child to love, to teach, to guide and to nurture. Enjoy Father's Day!

School Ends!

That means no more homework!

Let the summer begin.....but enough of the 100 degree days.

As we watch the weather forecast each day, Stan and I keep looking in the backyard for our pool to mysteriously appear. We have talked about this watering hole for some many years but keep passing it off each summer thinking will we get our money back, who will clean it not to mention the expense. Darn...we are both way too practical. Maybe one day when I have that private estate home including a pool guy, gardner and butler.....yeap, the heat has really gotten to me now. What would life be with dreams!

EXAMS......

Ugghhhh.......I have one child celebrating the school year-end with parties and games and another child....well let's say being forced, kicking and screaming to study for exams. Not sure about you guys but I think I could suffer through exams for four days knowing that I had almost three months of pure homework freedom. Anyway......just two half days left before I say it is officially summer and camps begin.

Cheer!

McKenzie and her medal!
McKenzie has enjoyed another year of Cheer and Tumble (actually more tumble then cheer). In watching McKenzie for the last two years, she has grown from somersaults all the way to back handsprings with cartwheels and roundoffs in between...bounce-bounce-bounce. McKenzie is always glad to have Mom and Dad in the crowd but she was absolutely beaming when she saw Mrs. Barley (her best study buddy and her third grade teacher).
Thank you Mrs. Barley for being the BEST!

Girls Weekend!

While the guys went fishing off the coast of Carolina Beach, McKenzie and Mom ventured out of town for a "BLISSful" Girls Weekend with my sister, Leigh, and my niece Caroline. The little girls were pampered starting early Saturday morning with manicures (not sure of the exact Salon name but I remember the cosmetologist was Brittney) followed by a great lunch at The Village Tavern. Later that evening the little ones were pampered again by the full body soakings, pedicures and facials at The Bliss Spa. To top the day off we all enjoyed the well deserved warm sugar cookies and milk while waiting on our toes to dry. Cooper even got into that action a little bit. Thanks Scott for allowing us the fun "girl time" while you and Cooper had some fun "guy time". Look forward to visiting again!

Happy Mother's Day!

For all the times your patience tested, your great cooking fed to the dog or slide under a plate rim, your "words of wisdom" ignored......a simple day like today puts everything back in perspective. From the homemade card, kisses, hugs and giggles shared to the cool kid wanting to introduce his mom to his cool friends (which happened to me today) to the child who simply comes home to be close. May your Mother's Day be blessed!

And to my Mom....Thank You......Happy Mother's Day with LOVE!

What a "blissful" day!

Happy Anniversary to Leigh and Scott Bliss. It always slips up on me and I always second guess myself by thinking it is August.......oh well.......Congrats on another year!

So Close .....

Our West Florence JV Boys Soccer Team went to the post-season JV Irmo Tournament this weekend. For those not in the area, Irmo is just outside Columbia, SC. This particular tournament was a follow-up to the pre-season tournament where we were CHAMPS back in February! We won two of our three games and the deciding factor came down to points. The last game needed to be a shut-out (no goals scored on us) but after a somewhat stupid but fair call that spiraled into a penalty kick we were scored upon. That one goal gave the other team the right to advance to the championship round (EVEN when we won 3-1). Austin was very lucky to have a lot of play time during all the tournament games. Blake even met us and watched the Friday game, ditched his car in Columbia and rode to Florence with us where he washed clothes and then drove back Saturday to Columbia for more soccer games before heading back to Wofford for a formal event with Kaley's sorority that evening.

How Sore Are We...

.....my sweet husband gave in and let me win the great fence debate.....to hedge or not to hedge. You see our former neighbor erected a wooden fence and we see the ugly side of slats and posts. We never could agree on the type of greenery we wanted....Oleander / Wax Myrtle / or what. We finally decided two years later and new neighbors moved in....wax myrtles with a river burch or two and man they look good although we both worked hard, Stan a bit more than I and we are paying for it now. But man it looks great!

Happy Birthday Caroline!

High Five!

Best wishes for the happiest of birthdays!

The Masters 2008

We won the Lottery....Golf Lottery that is..... Stan has been entering his name for Masters Golf Tickets for more than five years and this was his lucky year. We were privileged to purchase four tickets for the Tuesday Golf Practice and Wednesday Par 3 Tournament in Augusta, Georgia. With the possibility of never getting to go again (should our name not be pulled again), I was not going to miss this opportunity. We invited our best friends and off we went in a brand new eye catching little black sports car with shiny 10 spoked rims (hopefully my description does the Infinity justice). The course was......WOW! The food was......CHEAP! The Masters experience with friends....Priceless!

Spring Break (for Blake)

We had the wonderful opportunity to host Blake and three college friends this weekend while they commuted from Wofford College to the Camden Cup then on to their Garden City Spring Break Trip. It was a pleasure to meet Nick (who knew his way around a kitchen cooking up a feast for the Cup Saturday), Kaley (who played a mean Princess Monopoly game) and Amy (who was unstoppable in Connect Four). McKenzie had a ball with the older ones. It was a pleasure meeting each of these young adults and hopefully we will see them again as they journey back to Wofford next weekend and pass through Florence.

Can you find the birthday boy?

Happy Birthday Brother-in-law Scott. Hope its a great one!

Happy Anniversary!

Congratulations Dad and Pat on 11 years of marital bliss!

Horton Hears A Who!

We made plans about a week ago to see "Horton Hears A Who" knowing that McKenzie and Cameryn would be together all weekend, I just love the Dr. Seuss books so this was a treat. Unknowingly slick Austin made plans to see this movie with some "friends" the very same night, very same time. Driving to the theater, our orders were strictly handed down....don't talk to him....act as though we didn't know him....leave him alone....wait in the car after the movie, he would meet us there....and DON'T ask which one is his girl friend cause they are all just friends!! That experience was better than being a fly on the wall. Any who...I recommend the movie even for the little ones. Cameryn said this was now her favorite movie of all times.

Happy Birthday Pat-Pat

Happiest of Birthdays!

Our Birthday Boy!

We have just stopped celebrating long enough to update the Blog for Austin's Sweet 16th Birthday. Or do guys (boys) just have 16th birthdays? I feel certain Austin had a sweet 16th cause after every card was opened he would yell....."Oh, SWEET". Happy Birthday Austin!

Royall Young Singers

The month of March is "Music in our Schools" month for the Florence School District 1. Each school grade, from elementary through high school, was represented over the weekend. McKenzie's group, the Royall Young Singers which consists of 4-6th graders, performed on Friday night. They sang....Swinging from the roof top, Who will be a witness and a Japanese song (the name escapes me at the moment). All the practices after school is reflected in the great performances each and every time.

JV Champs!

The West Florence JV Soccer Team had a preseason tournament this weekend. Stan and Austin left Friday for the first game against Irmo HS Gold at the Ballentine Field (in Irmo, SC). What a cold unsuccessful night....we lost 4-0. Heads hung low they drove home, thank goodness the night ended and hopefully we could bring our game for the two Saturday games. We returned to Columbia ready to play against Irmo HS Black at the Irmo fields.....we WON 5-0 !! Maybe our luck and determination was changing.....Our next game was against Dutch Fork HS....we WON again 4-0 !! With these wins our points advanced us to the championship game to play the Irmo HS Gold team again, this time for the championship. Hopefully we would have a different outcome....what a great game, we played hard, we played to win...after the hard fought battle....we WON (3-2). Congratulations JV Team....it was a lot of fun to watch.

Happy Valentine's Day!

This is the sweetest day of the year. We woke early to a gleaming little girl with valentine's gifts for both mom and dad. There is nothing in the world better than a handmade card with a handmade pocket full of chocolate kisses attached to it. We are so loved. Happy Valentine's Day to all!

Another Birthday Girl!

Happy 10th Birthday Peyton!

(present is in the mail)

Skate Night....

My McKenzie and her friend, Mackenzie, enjoyed the last public ice skating at our Civic Center. It was a bit crowded but after they hugged the edges of the wall for a little while they got the hang of it.

Happy Birthday Leigh!

Many Birthday Wishes to my little sister!

Happy Birthday George!

Best Wishes for a wonderful birthday.

Is there a Doctor in the House?

Who said boys are toughest? Right now in our house the girls definitely rule. Both Stan and Austin are sick....sick.....sick. Yet McKenzie and Mom are feeling just fine. No rest for the ones who do all the work........(lol)

And God Calls

Grandpa Caldwell, who would have been 92 this March, passed away early this morning. Although Grandpa C suffered from the dehumanizing effects of Alzheimer's disease, we cherish the loving memories and life stories that were always sprinkled with a bit of humor. Thank you for all your continued prayers.

And the Weekend Comes and Goes...

Blake arrived home early enough Friday to pick up little brother from school just as his little brother requested. After some time together spending money at the skate shop and skateboarding in the driveway, the boys decided to go different directions for a little while, Austin to enjoy oysters with dad and Blake to dinner with mom and little sister. After a crowded dinner at the local Japanese steakhouse we were stopped in a line of traffic just in time to see the unmarked Obama bus caravan fly by. What excitement trying to figure out who the "special" person(s) were. Three buses and 15-20 police cars blew past us about like he (Obama) blew through the SC Democratic Primary the next day. So those of you that say nothing happens in Florence.....guess what....it sometimes does (not that this was so impressing but hey....we did see it, completely by accident). Saturday we caught up on house work and relaxed. We decided that Sunday we needed to drive to Hickory, NC to see Grandpa C. The trip was very worthwhile even if for such a short visit, it also gave us time to study spelling words in between some pretty deep conversations.

Blake left earlier this morning for his last week of his interim class....Yoga. Ummmm........Thank you Blake for the visit. It is always good to see you!

He's Back!

Blake has returned home for a long weekend with skateboard in tow. Apparently Austin's pastime has attracted Blake's attention creating an odd teacher/student relationship. Although I do not promote the hobby of skateboarding.....it is really neat to see siblings eager to see each other and learn from each other. As quickly as Blake returned, Austin and Stan left for an Oyster Roast. After returning home we all inquired on how the oysters were, Stan thought for a moment and stated..."I'm not really sure, I opened a bunch but don't really remember eating any" - this was because for every oyster Stan opened Austin would eat it while Stan was talking and easily distracted. Never knew how much my boys loved oysters....

Happy Birthday Jeff!

Happy Birthday to our dear friend Jeff Taylor! Thank goodness he leads the way and shows us that each year just gets better and better. We are thankful to have such a great friend and fearless leader. (to bad I don't have some of those great pictures we saw the other weekend to post....LOL)

We Voted!

We can talk politics because we voted. In SC you really have so much to think about in order to cast your vote.....First, is the weather good or bad.....Two, do you feel like voting today......Three, do you want to vote Democrat or GOP (and of course they are on different days, different debate weeks)....Finally, which person do you think will do the best job......AND you can't say none of them. Even though the weather was awful our particular precinct had a great turnout. AND NO I am not telling you who we voted for!! Guess you already figured it was a Republican since we voted yesterday.....and the Dems don't vote until next Saturday. Do your homework and don't waste your vote!

He's Back.....

Blake surprised us with a visit home this weekend. Although I think he comes home to really see his friends here in Florence, it is nice to have all momma's peeps under one roof......safe and sound. Then as quickly as he appears, he is off again. Thanks for the visit Blake...we love you lots! AND UPDATE YOUR BLOG (please).....

Late Night!

A day later and we continue to hear all the exciting details of a wonderful spend the night...... from three basketball games in one night, playing late into the evening, running in the woods to riding in the boat. Thanks Carter for being a wonderful boat captain and creating a memorable boat ride on the little lake for two little girls.....

Grove Park Inn (Gingerbread Houses)

Make sure you see all three posts regarding our stay at the Grove Park Inn Resort and Spa. Awesome Place!

Here are a couple of the Gingerbread homes on display along the grand hallways. Each entry must be made with only material that is edible. The creativity was incredible.

Grand Prize Winner (above). Each brick was individually layed and the entire home took 600 hours to construct. Wish the picture showed just how awesome this was.
This was an entry in the teen category (received top 10).

Grove Park Inn Pics (Room Views)

18th Fairway (view from our room before the snow)
18th Fairway (same view while snow was falling)
Skyline view from our room

What a Wonderful Start to 2008!

Grove Park Inn Resort and Spa
Grove Park Inn (Fairway View)
Grove Park Inn Spa

The family (except Blake, who was to return to Wofford the next day) left early January 1st for North Carolina. After dropping the kids off with my in-laws for a brief stay while Stan and I continued our journey to Asheville, for a much needed relaxing getaway. Have I said that my hubby is so wonderful, he planned three days of pure relaxation at the Grove Park Inn Resort and Spa. Upon entering the Grand Old Hall around 4 p.m. we heard buzzing of possible snow at 8 p.m. (who has ever heard of an exact time for snow to fall). We checked in and proceeded to our 7th floor room in the Sammons Wing. We passed wonderful displays of handmade gingerbread houses lining the massive hallways, some made by youth, teens and adults. Our room view was spectacular, we overlooked the 17th green, the 18th tee box and fairway, the city skyline and the mountains. Once settled my first request for the trip was to see my Gram's grave site, so off we trekked to Enka about 15 minutes to the west. The wind was howling and darkness was falling but I quickly located the grave site, took my pictures and off we went. With the temperature dropping and the thoughts of snowfall at precisely 8 p.m., we decided to head back to the Resort but stopping first by the grocery store for snacks and a bottle of wine followed by a quick dinner. While leaving the restaurant, I noticed what stupid me thought was a possible bug turned out to be a snowflake at 7:59 p.m. (us sandlappers obviously don't see snow enough to recognize the difference promptly). We laughed at both the exact time of snow fall and my stupidity with seeing bugs in 29 degree weather. We returned to the Resort and settled in for the evening. Waking early the next morning to see just how much snow mother nature had left over night, we quickly sent pictures to all the kids and my work to share the beauty. We enjoyed the winter wonderland views and ended the day at Elaine's Dueling Piano Bar singing and laughing the night away. Now Thursday was the highlight of the trip, an all day retreat at the Spa which is recognized as the premier Spa in the Southeast. I have never been pampered so much in my life. Stan was treated to an 80 minute reflexology message and me an 80 minute Grove Park custom message, upon finishing we relaxed with warm clover scented shoulder drapes in front of one of the many fireplaces sipping herbal teas and water. We finally left the fireplace to explore the dramatic indoor waterfalls, mineral pools and contrast pools before having a 3 o'clock lunch at the Spa Cafe'. Stan and I drug each other like two drunken cootes back to our room where we collapsed from sheer relaxation. We were mush and it was wonderful! We regained our ability to move and headed to dinner at The Blue Ridge (located in the Grove Park Inn overlooking the Asheville skyline) before enjoying another evening at Elaine's Dueling Piano Bar also located in the Grove Park Inn. I just love a resort will all amenities located on site. Thank you Stan for taking such good care of me and I will be more than happy to return to the Grove Park Inn for our golf day since we had to cancel due to snow....if we can enjoy the spa again.

Welcome 2008!

May all be blessed with success, happiness and good health in the New Year!