Ty can see clearly now....

T. Willy mentioned to the Big Man recently that he had a good eye and a bad eye. So we made an eye appointment for him. He went this morning, and it turns out that he is farsighted and needs glasses. He is very excited. I'm not sure that will last, but I'm glad he isn't dreading it. They may take about two weeks, so I'll post pictures when he gets his real pair.

So here are some pictures of our visit. The last pair of glasses is the pair he is getting, and they gave him a coupon for a free donut, so we stopped to get that for him. He is squinting in the donut picture because his eyes were dilated.

Here comes the (faux) bride.

MK and I went to a bridal shower on Saturday. Her boyfriend's sister is getting married next month, and we were happy to be invited.

They played "use toilet paper to create a wedding dress," and MK was chosen to be the model. She had a lot of fun with it - especially after our team won!!!

Happy 3rd!

T. Willy and I are missing MK, but she is having a great time. Yesterday they went to Atlanta and went to the aquarium and to the Coke museum. She loved both! Today she went hiking to Ruby Anna Falls, and they were going to go tubing, but the weather turned. So they stayed around the cabin.

T. Willy and I have been together, because the Big Man has been working some crazy hours. Fortunately, he had a really short day today, and he may have a short day tomorrow, so it's food that he has had some time off. His parents are in town, so T. Willy spent time with them today. I know he was glad to see someone else.

So here are pictures that MK has sent to me.

Welcome, July!

What a fun day! There was a "Family Day" at church, so T. Willy and I went over to check it out. They had barbecue and games and a bounce house and an inflatable water slide. T. Willy didn't know any of the kids, but he joined right in and had a ball. He was hesitant to climb the slide, and after a couple of stops and starts, I employed a strategy that I am going to use again. A friend posted it on her blog: one honest bite. So I encouraged him to try it once. If he didn't like it, I wouldn't bring it up again, but he needed to try once.

Well, he did it, and once was all it took! He loved it, and did it so many more times that I lost count. It was great that it had water, because I don't have to tell anyone that it is HOT out there! A water slide was just the trick.

If you know me, you'll know that I am a klutz. I completely mean that. I fall way more than most adults that I know. Today was no exception. I just tripped over my own two feet on the pavement. My knee was completely freed of its skin, and it's bruised and swollen. What I am most thankful for, it isn't the knee I hurt when I fell in November. I am just now able to put pressure on it, so it is a blessing that it wasn't the same knee.

MK has been keeping me updated. She is having a lot of fun with her friends. They went to a family reunion yesterday, and today they drive to Helen, Georgia. It's a Bavarian town in northeast Georgia. I looked it up, and I know I'll need to go there one day. They're staying in a cabin and drove into town tonight to try some authentic German food. MK shared "wiener schnitzel" with a friend, and she liked it, though she didn't love it. They're going to the aquarium in Atlanta tomorrow and maybe tubing and zip lining later in the week.

My sister in law came into town to spend the night. My niece is going to be a counselor in training at a nearby camp, so they are going to head over early in the morning. We had a nice dinner together catching up.

So, I'll include a few pictures of T. Willy playing today and some pictures that MK has sent. Have a great July!!!

What we've been doing

The theatre kids at school and I were invited to participate in "Ham it Up" at our local library. MK and T. Willy both helped, and we had a lot of fun. We led the kids in some acting games, and I was so proud of my personal kids as well as the theatre kids who helped. We heard some nice feedback, and the best part was when we were browsing the library when it was over, and a kid went out of his way to get our attention and wave. That really was the best compliment.

T. Willy has been swimming and having fun, and MK had color guard camp this week. She was named a leader this year (flag sergeant specifically) and is having a great time helping and being a part of some of the decision making. She is leaving on Friday to go on a trip with a friend of hers to Georgia. We will miss her but know she is in good hands.

Let's see if I remember how to do this

I have been absent for awhile. We have been sick. I was sick in Delaware. T. Willy went to the doctor last Monday with tonsillitis, and we spent most of the day at the doctor and hospital with MK thinking she might have appendicitis. After a few tests, we found it was something different, and she was given some prescriptions, and we were sent home. She is still feeling pain, but her medication is helping.

T. Willy is feeling better, and we are enjoying our summer. We did very little last week, so we have some things planned this week. I'm hoping we all stay well enough to enjoy them.

Pictures today are of the plate that the Big Man had made for MK's car, and the other is of T. Willy sleeping because he just doesn't get cuter.

Short but sweet

We are already going home tomorrow. I'm ready but wish we could have done more while we were here. I was sick the entire time! I can't believe it. I haven't been sick in a couple of years, but I spent this trip coughing and hacking. I even went to the doctor, but she thought it was viral and didn't prescribe anything. I'm feeling better now, but my cough continues.

No matter. We did get a couple of trips to Dairy Palace and Cheesecake Factory, my brother did senior pictures for MK, and we visited with friends and family. We just didn't make it to Capriotti's - sorry MM - maybe another time.

I'm not looking forward to the drive home, but I am ready to sleep in my own bed. Here are a few pictures of our visit.

The long and the short of it.

The short: we left Florida on Thursday. We stopped that night to visit family in North Carolina. We arrived in Delaware last night.

That may be all you want to read. It's all true, and it explains what you need to know. In writing we call it "the main idea," but without supporting details, it doesn't make for much of a story.

So, here is the long of it.

We left Florida on Thursday for our big adventure. Our travelers are MK, T. Willy, MK's boyfriend, MM, and me. We rented a car (okay, mini-van, but I insist I am not a mini-van mom;)). We had a mostly uneventful trip on Thursday on the way to see my mom's sister. I showed the kids some familiar sights along the way, and it went really well. GPS is a wonderful thing. We had a couple of navigational errors, but we arrived safe and sound.

My aunt invited my other aunt and cousins and their children, and it was a lot of fun. We caught up and watched the kids play in the yard and roasted marshmallows and listened to an orchestra of frogs that finally grew so loud that it forced us inside. It was a lot of fun, and it reminded me that it's been too long since I'd visited with the family.

We were exhausted so hadn't set an exact time to leave on Friday. I'd mentioned 7, but we didn't get on the road till about 8:30. I wasn't feeling well, so I'd woken early, taken some medicine and gone back to sleep.

I had planned the trip so that we could drive through the town where we lived when MK was born: Statesville, NC. I showed her the hospital where she was born, the apartments where we lived, and then we went to the restaurant where the Big Man worked. I was so excited to be there that I told our server our reason for going, and she has been with them since they opened and remembered him! I didn't expect that, but it was neat.

Then we drove...and drove...and drove. Good grief. I-81 was so much longer than I'd remembered. My dad had given me directions to avoid the traffic in DC, so I was really glad that it required getting off of the interstate for awhile. It was a really pretty drive. We stopped for a photo op at "Dinosaur Land." We have pictures of my brother and me there as children, and one of MK as a toddler, so it was nice to add T. Willy to it (and MM.)

We ate and filled the gas tank and went on our way, and just ahead going up the hill to Harper's Ferry, WV, was gridlocked traffic. I debated getting in it because I wasn't sure if it was just moving slowly or not at all, so I pulled into a produce stand and waited. I was so glad I did. We bought some grapes and waited it out. A man gave us an alternate route, so since the traffic wasn't moving at all, we decided to try it.

We didn't even make it a mile when the traffic backed up going that direction too. By now we realized that we were going to be there for awhile. We were able to pull over into a parking lot while we waited it out. Eventually we realized that traffic was moving in the direction we wanted to go in the first place, and we easily got back on the road and kept going. We were so glad that we went that way too, because it was beautiful!! The rest of the trip was uneventful, and we made it to my parents' house around 10. Late - but safe.

MM has lived in Florida all of his life. He has never been to the Northeast, so he saw some new states and scenery. He and the other two were great but weary travelers, and they are ready for some fun before we do it all over again on Thursday.

So here are a few pictures taken along the way.

My poor poor neglected blog.

How I miss you! Yet it's been so hectic and crazy that I never think to post. That is behind us now - school is out, and we don't go back till August. Since MK will be a senior (she was in elementary when I started blogging) I choose to live in denial all summer - kidding - I'm thrilled that she did well in school this year and is ready for her next big adventure. T. Willy also finished second grade well, and we are ready to relax.

We are starting our summer with a road trip! We are heading to Delaware to visit my family and stopping in North Carolina to visit family there on the way. I'm driving, because the Big Man will be staying here to work, so please pray for me! The trip will be halved by stopping to see family, so I won't be driving the thousand miles straight through.

Then who knows? Rest and rest - my plans for the summer. It's great to have a job I love plus get some extended time off too.

Speaking of my job, I needed to take a test that I'd put off for quite some time, and I finally took it last week. I was so nervous, but I passed! So the picture for today is from my results.

Sunshine on a stem

Yesterday I had the opportunity to attend a retirement party for two teachers at school. It was a lovely time in the country. The hostess had the most beautiful property with a gorgeous garden. Today's picture is one of the sunflowers from her garden. I've declared sunflowers my new favorite flower!

Band awards - then and now.

We are at the band awards, and I took a picture of T. Willy and myself. I then realized that I had a picture of us last year at the same awards, so I thought I'd post the one of us last year then the one from tonight.

What's happening...

We are finishing rehearsals for the play, and tonight was a late night. We open Friday, so the end is in sight.

Since MK is a stage manager, she and I are working on the play. So, tonight the Big Man took T. Willy to see the Avengers. They had a great time, and I'm glad they could have some fun together.

There are 2 1/2 weeks left in the school year. I am ready for some rest. This has been a hectic year, that is for sure. I really enjoy it, but summer is welcome too.

Here is a picture that the Big Man sent from the movie.

Happy Mother's Day!!

It was an up and down day. It started well. I talked to my mom via text off and on all day. I knew I'd hit a bullseye with her Mother's Day gifts, and I couldn't wait for her to open her box from Amazon. I gave her the Pioneer Woman's two cookbooks. They are beautiful books, and I was so excited for her to see them.

I spent the day with the kids. MK spent the night with a friend, so T. Willy and I picked her up, then we went for a drive. Our former neighbors moved to the country a few years ago, and the Big Man ran into them recently. They mentioned that they have 10 acres for sale, and I wanted to check it out. I didn't find it, but we had a special time anyway. I dream of having land, but it will take awhile to make it happen.

In the middle of the day, I found out that a friend from high school passed away yesterday. I am just stunned. She was at her son's soccer game, and she just collapsed. The guess is seizure or aneurysm, and it's just heartbreaking.

So, that was our day. I hope yours was filled with more ups than downs.

I'm including a picture of the gift that T. Willy made for me at my neighbor's house.

Field day!

At the end of the year, it becomes quite difficult to find subs for my classes. Since T. Willy had Field Day at school, MK and the Big Man were able to go. The second half was rained out, but they still had a great time. He said his favorite event was the Balloon Burst Relay.

Busy doesn't cover it.

Oh my goodness.

I'm directing our spring play at school, and it is almost time for it. One more week!!! We are working on it constantly, and I am finally seeing it come together. So, I don't have a lot of anything else to report.

MK gets her driver's license on Monday, so that's pretty big. She's been driving with me for a year, and she does a great job, but, there is no way to really prepare myself for it. It's a rite of passage, and most parents go through it, but...just praying a lot.

Here is a picture of T. Willy riding with MK and her boyfriend. They pick him up while we are rehearsing late and then bring him to the school. This is one of those trips. In addition, I added two pictures that Matt's mom took at the beach before prom. I thought they were both great.

Prom 2012

Oh my soul...

What a whirlwind today has been! It's MK's 17th birthday, and she will be getting her license next week. The Big Man and I spent the morning in Pensacola and came home to surprise MK with her first car. She was surprised and so excited!

However, there wasn't much time to linger over it, because she had a hair appointment to fix her up for her first prom! As I write, she is there with all of her friends. They went to the beach to take pictures, so I'm just going to share them and then wonder why time has to go so fast.