Hello Again

Yes, it's been a long time. I think that was the longest break I've taken from blogging. It wasn't even an intended break. Life just seems to zip right passed these days. It has been busy, and frustrating and wonderful all at the same time.

We have had a steady stream of visitors since we moved home in late June. My sweet friend Heidi and her family came down for a week in early August. It was during Elvis week, and Heidi is a huge Elvis fan, so we took a day trip up to Memphis just us girls. It was so much fun. We were positively silly. We decided that we would make it an annual event and meet up for a girls weekend every year. Here are a couple of picks....






As you can tell is was a very hot summer day and we were all about to melt, but we still had fun. Can't let a little thing like heat get in the way of a good time.

My aunt Cathy flew in for a week at the beginning of October. I have missed her so much. For as long as I can remember we have always seen each other every other year be it in the summer or at Christmas time. This is the longest we've ever gone between visits (4 years) but it couldn't be helped. I'm just glad I got a whole week with her. Even with that it didn't seem long enough. I could seriously move her right in with us. She and my uncle Jr. have taken up the grand parents role on my side of the family since momma and daddy have passed. She is actually my great aunt, because she was my mom's aunt but they were raised together as sisters. We have always been close and had a very special bond. There's nothing we wouldn't do for each other. When momma passed I was sitting in the E.R. holding her hand for more than an hour. I just couldn't make myself get up and leave. I didn't want it to be real. I couldn't let her go and I couldn't stop crying. I finally asked Hugh to call my aunt Cathy. I asked her to come, because I didn't think I could do this without her. She told me she already had her plane ticket and she would be there as soon as possible. There was no question she was already there before I had to ask. She really is like my second momma. And I'm so at peace with her around. She just has that presence. We had such a wonderful time while she was here. We went to Cedar Hills Farm, Fiddlin Rooster Farm and we had a bonfire and cook out with Hugh's cousin Barry, his wife Brandy and their daughter Taylor Brooke. We painted pumpkins, roasted hot dogs and made smores. The kids played soccer in the yard and even put up Taylor Brooke's tent and played in it. Here are a few highlights...



My friend Datha also came down for a long weekend in October. It really touched my heart that two of my closest friends have made the effort to take time off to come all the way down here to visit. I know they could have spent their time and money on other things. I am so blessed! It was good to have time to catch up and visit with Datha. She and Mark are foster parents now, and feel like the Lord is leading them to adopt through foster care. I don't know any couple who could be better foster parents than Mark and Datha. They have a great capacity to love. They are both in ministry and have three of their own children. Fostering has been a wonderful and heart wrenching process for them. Every child that comes to them is like their own and it is hard to let them go. You hope and pray you are sending them back into what is now a stable and more nurturing environment, but you never know. I told her I really don't know how she does it. I tear up every time we talk about it. It is so hard to hear about the situations those babies come out of when they come to them. She said sometimes she can't even let herself think about it. All she can do is pray a hedge of protection over them and know that no matter where they are, they will always have two people who will always be praying for them, and maybe that in itself is why the Lord has brought them into their lives. God bless them. I'm not the only one who was happy to have Datha visit. My children love her, especially Trey. They have a very special connection. I can't wait to see her at Christmas. They have family in Louisiana and so they are going to stop on their way down to visit. So we'll get to see the whole family for the holidays. Here are a few pictures from when she was visiting....




We have also had many of our friends and family right here in Mississippi come for a visit, so we are still in the process of getting settled in. In the midst of all of our company we have been trying to paint and furnish the house. That has been the somewhat frustrating part. We have taken down chair railing, put up new dry wall and painted. We also put up a new ceiling in our bedroom. We have made repairs to the pool and hot tub, and are working on the landscaping as well. We have had a lot on our plate. Oh, and my latest venture involved taking over the Fall Festival for Trey's school this year. I wanted to take the opportunity to get to know the faculty other families at the school and what better way to get involved. OK, so maybe I should have volunteered for part of the festival like concessions, instead of taking on the whole thing my first year, but I like a challenge. Either that or I'm a glutton for punishment. No really, it all turned out fine and I've gotten a lot of nice compliments on it. Thank you Lord! And I know what will and will not work for next year. Best of all, I met and had the chance to work with so many wonderful people.

It's been busy, but it's finally calming down a bit, and so I hope I can catch up with some of my favorite blogs now. I'm ready to stay at home, decorate for the holidays and just enjoy a little home life.