The Last Day of Summer

It had to happen...the last day of summer! After all our exciting adventures this summer, it was almost time to exchange our flip-flops and bathing suits for uniforms and backpacks.

Since Bill didn't have to work until the afternoon, we told the kids we would take them wherever they wanted to go for breakfast. They chose the infamous Pancake Pantry. Anyone who has ever lived in Nashville knows that means you have to have patience because you WILL be waiting in a line that usually goes out the door and around the corner of the building! Luckily, the weather was nice and the line moved quickly. Before we knew it, we were sitting in a booth eating pancakes and french toast.

We had made tentative plans to go to the pool in the afternoon, but tropical storm Claudette had other plans for us. So, after some collaboration between William and Anna, we decided to visit the Cat Shoppe. It's a no-kill shelter where abandoned or injured cats are taken to be placed with families. The cats are allowed to roam free to play, sleep, eat and visit with people. They encourage animal lovers to sit with the cats as long as possible and show the little ones "love."

The kids LOVE to do this! And, for that matter, so do I. The only gliche is that I usually have to tell the kids "no" about ten times when they ask me if they can adopt this cat or that cat. We have two and that is our family limit. If you don't believe me, just ask Bill!!

After an hour of playing with our furry friends, we headed home to make sure we were ready for the next day. Finishing touches were done to book reports and their math workbooks. Then we got our errand list put together (shoes, thermos', etc.) and headed out the door.

Needless to say, going to sleep that night was hard. The kids and I were anxious about what the next day would bring. But...somehow...we all manage to get some sleep! Thank goodness!

Welcome Baby CeCe!!

As the family and I were playing the 16th hole, I received THE phone call from Misty...she was in labor! We were all so excited that we flew through the last couple of holes and raced home. Bill and I immediately started checking flights out of Nashville. I booked a flight out the next morning and started getting Bill, the kids, and the house ready for my departure.

I flew through Dallas on my way to Phoenix. During my layover, I saw something that I had never seen before...a cat on a leash. The cat was so cute walking through the airport that I had to get a picture of it for Anna and William.

Cecelia Anne looked exactly like Maggie when Maggie was a baby! Misty didn't even look like she had given birth, but that was probably because once she was at the stage to push, it only took her about five minutes and CeCe was here! That's the way to do it!

That night, Misty's mom, Elaine, and I stayed with Maggie at the house. The next afternoon, Misty, Matt and CeCe joined us. It was so special being a part of those first few days. Maggie was curious about the baby and would ask Misty and Matt many questions. And, I had forgotten how wonderful it felt to hold such a little baby in my arms. My favorite part was holding CeCe while she slept.

I was shocked by how grown up Maggie was...she was using so many words and her facial expressions were priceless! On many occasions, she would get up from what she was doing and walk over to where CeCe was either sleeping or being held and just gaze at her sister. It was so sweet! She would even help Misty burp CeCe. I think Matt and Misty are going to have a little helper on their hands.

When the First Family heard of CeCe's arrival, they jumped on board of Air Force One and flew to Phoenix. I was able to get some pictures of them leaving the Phoenix airport.

Misty and Matt took us to some fantastic places: Paradise Bakery, Kona Grill, and the Marketplace. Add all of these places to some of my new favorites!!

I'm looking forward to all of our future trips there. The kids will love getting to meet CeCe in person, seeing Maggie again and getting to explore a new city. As for Bill...he'll be out mountain biking with Matt. Matt showed me some incredible trails that the two of them are going to hit...no getting out of shape for these two dads!!

Welcome baby Cece!! You are one blessed little girl!!

Watch Out Tiger Woods!!

Bill and I have been taking the kids golfing this summer. It has turned out to be one of my absolute favorite things to do as a family! It's something we ALL enjoy -and- it gives us lots of laughs. I am impressed by their skills with the clubs-and especially-by their willingness to take direction from Daddy.

It's also a time for Bill and I to sit back and let the kids do the driving. That's right...Anna and William LOVE driving the golf carts! They're quite good at it too. I am hoping by investing in some driving lessons now, it will be easier for us when they are fifteen and preparing for their driver's licenses'.

I brought the camera along on our latest golf outing. I'm so glad I did! On the first hole, wild turkeys went running across the course. Later, we saw several deer eating along the greens, as well as rabbits. Who would've "thunk" it??

The Best of Intentions...

Last Wednesday, my sister-in-law, Sara, and I decided to get the cousins together before Ian and Kelsey started school the next day. We decided to meet at our house and then head to lunch at Zoe's. Afterwards, we were going to take the kids to laser tag in Franklin.

Before lunch Anna started feeling unwell. We took her temperature and discovered that she was running a fever. Our "Plan B" was for Bill to join us for lunch and then take Anna back home with him so she could get some rest.

After lunch, Sara and I took Kelsey, Ian and William to Laser Chase. The excitement was mounting until...we reached the door and discovered that "summer hours" were over and it wouldn't open until 4pm. Now we were looking for a "Plan C."

Luckily, a couple weeks earlier we had tried as a group to go to las Paletas, but found that it was closed on Mondays. Being that it was Wednesday, we knew we would find success this time. So...back in the car we all went. We drove over to las Paletas, grabbed some popsicles and then went back to our house for some trampoline time. All's well that ends well!!

It's Not Summer 'Till You Camp-Out!!

Well, we (Christina and I) finally set-up William's tent that Papa gave him for his birthday. The kids loved it! And, I have to admit, so did I! Tents have come a long way! It was roomy with great windows...and the best part is that the whole roof of the tent is netting, so you can watch the stars and moon while you drift off to sleep.

The girls (Anna, Abbey and me) took the first night in the tent. It was HOT, HOT, HOT. But they were troopers and slept on top of their sleeping bags. The boys (William and Miles) and I took the second night. It was still HOT, HOT, HOT. They managed to stay in the tent for about two hours, stripped off their shirts, and then finally decided that they would rather stay in Miles' house with air conditioning and less crickets chirping. It worked out well because about an hour later it started to rain. I had to run out to the tent and throw on the rain canopy.

It was so much fun that we decided to try again in the fall when the temperature is more agreeable. Maybe I can talk Bill into sleeping in the tent with us?!?

Our Summer List!

As you know, the kids and I are knocking out their summer "to do" list. Falling into this category was a visit to las Paletas--a small business owned by two Nashville women who make gourmet popsicles of all flavors. Cucumber, pineapple, chocolate and red peppers, lime, vanilla with chocolate chips...the list goes on and on.

It's a well-kept secret that usually only the locals know about--no advertising and no sign on the door--just word of mouth. I first heard about it from my sister, Christina. Then our babysitter, Zoe, took Anna & William there last summer. It's been a family favorite ever since!

This afternoon, after a walk through Crockett Park--Abbey, Anna, William and Miles all got to pick out their favorites and cool down while playing on the trampoline. Ahh...the days of summer!

Chicago on Fire (aka. Mother & Son Trip to Chicago)

I'm sure as a surprise to nobody, William and I "blazed" through Chicago faster than the Great Chicago Fire of 1871! We did not waste a moment. He was an exquisite travel partner...up for anything and pleasant about everything.

We arrived on Wednesday morning and immediately began our exploration of the city. We visited Hancock Observatory first. We loved the multimedia tour! Afterwards, we went up to the rooftop of our hotel and swam in the pool for a little relaxation. In the evening, William was able to get us some V.I.P. tickets to Gino's East from the hotel manager. Luckily, that saved us about 1 1/2 hours of standing outside in a line.


The next day we decided to go to the Field Museum to see the T-rex, Sue, and the Pirate Exhibit. We thoroughly enjoyed both of those experiences. It was a surprise, however, to find out that "Sue" was actually a male tyrannosaurus. We're always learning something, aren't we?


Later that day, we took the subway to Wrigley Field for a Cubs vs. the Astros game. We decided to eat one of the famous Wrigley Field hot dogs for lunch. That was followed up by cotton candy, ice cream and a snow cone for William. I LOVED the game!! And, I LOVED our seats!! And now I think I have officially become a Cubs fan.


After ordering-in room service that evening, William and I hit Michigan Avenue to do some shopping. We had a blast running in and out of shops. William is not much of a browser. He wants to walk-in, look around and then walk-out. Although...he loved the Apple store and wanted to stay there to touch every new contraption! We (of course) stopped in Starbucks for a warm drink and rest --and-- then headed back out into the streets to pick-up a present for Anna.

On our last morning, we walked to Navy Pier to rent a quadcycle and ride to Grant Park. It turned out to be much more of a work-out than I anticipated! William had to move over to the driver's seat and steer while I pushed us up all the hills. We were quite a sight! Once we made it to Buckingham Fountain, we stopped at this sidewalk cafe and enjoyed a cold drink and apple slices. Then we were back on the cycle and running/pushing/riding back to Navy Pier.


After some time hanging out on the pier and on the beach, we caught a double decker tour bus that took us around the city and was really, really great. Our tour guide, Satay, was extremely smart and really shared many fascinating details about Chicago that I had never known...even William loved it.

So...despite William and I both being sick, we managed to create many wonderful memories and come up with some ideas for our next trip to Chicagoland!

1st photo: William on the plane.

2nd photo: William in our hotel room, looking at the Sear's Tower.

3rd photo: William listening to the multimedia tour in the Hancock Observatory.

4th photo: William standing in front of a Lego replica of the Hancock Building.

5th photo: Gino's East Restaurant...V.I.P. style!!

6th photo: The Field Museum with Sue in the background.

7th & 8th photos: Cubs game.

9th photo: Buckingham Fountain in quadcycle!

10th & 11th photos: On the Double Decker bus tour.

12th & 13th photos: Photos that William took on the bus tour from his camera of the Chicago Theatre.

14th photo: One last shot of William in front of his favorite window in our hotel room.