Weekend Highlights

Olympics
This is us pre-Olympics on Thursday night, having a little wine after gorging at Santa Fe! We watched Willow – classic.

Yay! Ringing in the 2012 Olympics with Alana on Friday night. No shepherd’s pie or “bangers and mash”, I’m afraid, but we did concoct (and drink) these with Olympic spirit!

I couldn’t bring myself to go for the chamomile tea and gin showcased as the “official” drink of the 2012 London games – I get it, the Brits are obsessed with tea and gin was the staple of many a Londoner during the Industrial Age and beyond – I get it, but I will not partake. Gin – yuck.

So, no British fare, only some good grilling! We were almost rained out, but I think we finally ate around 11:30pm. Always thankful for the rain, but I sure built up an appetite waiting for the storms to pass so we could light the charcoal and cook up the kabobs! They were delicious and I’m still eating leftovers.

We enjoyed the Opening Ceremonies, although I think we missed the most spectacular parts at the end because Matt changed the channel when he got home and we forgot to change it back after he left the room. Oh, well, thank goodness for highlights and re-runs! Been enjoying Olympic events all weekend, although I missed most of them on Saturday night since Perrin stayed with us and we watched a Scooby-Doo movie, instead...and also I fell asleep during the gymnastics Sunday night.

Go USA!

Perrin Spends the Night
Our 4-year-old nephew, Perrin, spent the night with us on Saturday night! It was the first time he stayed overnight with us – actually, the first of any of the nieces and nephews to do so! It was great and he was wonderful.

Highlights:
• He said “I think you got a new house!” when he first walked in (I rearranged my living room last weekend). So observant!!
• I gave him a “spend the night present”, a new flashlight that came with a little keychain flashlight – we all know how much he loves flashlights, so if him saying “this is the best flashlight” and carrying it around with him all night and even sleeping with it was any indication, I’d say he loved it.
• He asked me why my bathtub was so dirty – “Did someone throw dirt in your bathtub? That wasn’t very nice, was it?” Ha! Time to clean the bathtub... Again, so observant!
• We watched Wall-E in bed, falling asleep to it, which is rare, because he usually stays awake for movies! I’m sure it had something to do with the time being 11:30pm... Poor Uncle Matt slept on the couch...
• He woke me twice talking in his sleep! Just like Eliza...
• He helped me scramble the eggs on Sunday morning; actually, he did most of it by himself...those were some good eggs! He ate his share, although he didn’t want anything to do with the bacon or the toast with honey...no thanks, he said, I’m eating my eggs.

I love my P!

Sunday Worship and Blair’s Dedication
We attended New Covenant on Sunday morning for Blair’s Dedication service. What a pretty baby she is! I wish I had a picture of her in her dress...beautiful! This dedication service in no way “saved” these children, only they can make the decision to follow Christ when the time comes, but it served as a reminder to the parents and to the friends and family of these children of how important it is to bring them up in Christian homes and to teach them the ways of God.

The sermon was on the power of words. Our sermon last Sunday at Mountville Baptist was on the same thing – the tongue and the words we say. Christians need constant reminders about this very active part of us! The tongue has the power to do good or bad and what we say has lasting impact. Think before you speak, because once spoken, words cannot be taken back. Having said that, God wants us to use our words for His glory – remember, we are ambassadors for Christ and everything we do or say represents Him!

More Grillin’ and Laziness
Having successfully charcoal-grilled on Friday night, I was in the mood to try again on Sunday for supper, this time craving a big, juicy burger! Success again and, boy, were they good! Almost too good...I should have left that 2nd one for lunch today, but managed to pick at it as the evening wore on until I felt sickly full. At any rate, I was very proud of myself for having lit the charcoal for the 2nd time in a few days...hey, this is a big thing for me! Usually I have the pre-soaked charcoal that will light if you breathe hot on it, but this time I had to use the chimney and start from “scratch”! Matt sliced his big toe open on Saturday night, so he was more than willing to let me handle it all...

And speaking of his toe, hopefully it won’t fall off, because that would be expensive...

I spent most of Sunday enjoying my crossword puzzles and just being lazy, then falling asleep to swimming and gymnastics. Maybe I’ll go the gym and wash those clothes today (Monday)...

What a Deal!
I’ve been debating the purchase of a cover for my Kindle. Amazon has several, of course, ranging from ~$10.00-$50.00. I was willing to spend a little extra for the built-in light, but the reviews said Kindles were shorting out with the lighted model – urm... Enter Big Lots, where I found this for only $5.00! It will definitely do, for now!

Spring!

Oh my goodness, time has flown! The last time I posted it was still Fall, and now Winter has come and gone and Spring is here! Easter was yesterday - such a glorious day, celebrating our Risen Saviour with a Sunrise Service at 7:00 am, breakfast with the church, regular service at 11:00, and our family lunch after. It was a long, but blessed day!

I have a new niece - Dolly Elizabeth Wham, 7 lb. 6oz. 21 in., born April 19 - 3 weeks early, but healthy and oh so precious! She is so teeny - I always forget how small newborns are!

I am super excited about the MLA conference I am attending May 14-18 in Minneapolis, MN. It will be my first ever and I am looking forward to socializing, connecting, and learning! I will be on my own - slightly nervous about the flight (not the flying part, just getting through the airports and such), plus being in a strange city. But, I welcome the experience! I have my hotel booked, I just need my flight...

Mountain time and moving

We are headed to the mountains this weekend! Matt is finally off on a Saturday, so we are taking Jon and going to Saluda tonight to Sunday. Tubing and fishing are probably on the menu for tomorrow and I just discovered a jazz band will be playing at The Purple Onion tomorrow night, so I can imagine we will take advantage of that! Not that we need an excuse to eat at the The Purple Onion! I want to take a looksie around the shops, as well - gotta do that! I promised Matt I wouldn't buy another china cabinet, though...definitely cannot afford one at this moment! But, I am looking forward to some mountain time, even if all I do is sit on the front porch - after I dust it off, I'm sure. Uncle Monty, Sheldon, and Rachel have been there for 3 weeks, so we will see how the house is holding up... Mom and the aunts took Grandma up for a day this week and I know she thoroughly enjoyed that - she does love going "home"! And it was probably extra-special, considering her stay in NHC and recent health problems - anything to get out and get away to one of her favorite places (Montana being first, I'd imagine...)! On Sunday I want to visit Asheville and have lunch at Barley's - mmmm, such good pizza!

Camille has moved into Clemson! So hard to believe that my baby sister is a freshman in college! I think Mom has held up fairly well - she has grandbabies, now, of course! Camille rushed for a sororiety and got into Zeta - I think she is thrilled! Such fun she will have...

Our roommates are finally moving out within the next weeks. Jon is headed to Florida, to be near his daughter, and Daniel will be just up the road, moving in with a friend. I am so ready to have my house back! Not that having two extra guys and all their stuff isn't fun and all... It will just be nice to have the space to spread out - I'm tired of being crammed into one or two rooms! Matt is all excited about his "man cave" we are turning the back bedroom into - basically, this is where the big couch and entertainment center with all his video game things and whatnot will go...good way to get it all out of the way! The second extra bedroom will stay a bedroom, but I plan to move the majority of my clothes and other things into it - yay, more space! It is all very exciting...

Larryn and Isaac are moving back! YAY!!! They both got jobs with John Deere in Augusta and last weekend they bought a house in Thomson, GA, right outside of Augusta near the plant. It is an old farmhouse with barns and a pond and acreage, and I think they are just really, really happy with how things have turned out - I know we are! Larryn and Mary Ellis will come down toward the end of Sept. and Isaac arrives the following weekend! The movers are to arrive on Sept. 21 to drop everything off, and since Larryn starts work the very next day, Eliza and I and possibly others are going to help her unpack - how fun! I cannot wait to see the house and land and hang with my sweet Mary Ellis, Perrin, and Sawyer - and my sisters, of course : ) Mom will arrive that next day to stay and keep Mary Ellis while Larryn is at work the rest of the week.

Big things happening!

Prayers

For my grandma, still in the hospital with Congestive Heart Failure. I stayed with her last night. It is hard seeing her like this. It is hard on her being like this.

For my cousin, Make. His descent has hit rock-bottom and I am afraid for his life. I hope he will do what he must to stay alive. I hope Aunt Brenda can be strong.

I have been weepy today, and rightly so. I am ready for 5 o'clock and my husband.

Just a few things...

I ate myself sick off of Chili's chips and salsa Sunday night.

I found my lipgloss I lost like 3 months ago!

I am very excited about starting my new book, The House at Riverton.

Things I'm Not Ashamed to Admit

I like mayonnaise. I listen to Christmas music all year round. Sometimes I don't take a shower every day. I read the Harry Potter books all the time. I watch the Harry Potter movies all the time. Sometimes I put on my make-up while I'm driving. There are times when I jam out to Bryan Adams - like this morning on the way to work.

Reviews: Wonderland Tales...

I finally saw Alice in Wonderland the other night - the new one, not the Disney cartoon because I've seen that a bazillion times. I liked it! It is different, but hello, it's Tim Burton. Of course it will be different! Wonderland is still wacky, but a bit more run-down than we last saw it. The characters are colorful and bizarre, but with noticeably less pep in their step - must be that overbearing Red Queen dragging them down. Alice is sad and cynical, not at all the bright-eyed and inquisitive child she was on her last visit. Heck, she doesn't even remember her last visit! It is a relief to note that her cynicism is not angry - on the contrary, it seems rather passive. She is not at all fazed by her sudden descent down the hole, nor by Wonderland and its oddities...in fact, one begins to question her unremarkable attitude until you remember she thinks it all a dream - unworthy of a reaction, you see, since in her dream she will come to no harm, she will wake up, none of this is real. Until, of course, she realizes she can, she won't, and it is... In the end, all is right (wrong?) and Alice just tells it like it is. I especially like her advice for Aunt Imogene - "There is no prince. You need to talk to someone about your delusions"...well said. Definitely worthy of a purchase at a later date and time...

Next, The Thirteenth Tale, a book I have now read twice and can see doing so again. Really excellent. Several words come to mind - gothic, strange, twisted, sad, madness, seclusion, incest...yes, I said it. I think what makes this such a good book is that it really is just a good story... A famous, yet highly reclusive author is finally telling the story of her much-sought-after and much-lied-about childhood. Her biographer is a young antiquarian bookkeeper with a haunted past of her own. And speaking of haunted... The Angelfields live in their beautiful but crumbing estate, practically locking themselves inside its decaying walls for generations while ignoring the world around them. They are a strange family. And pretty twisted - at least, Charlie and Isabelle are. The twins are just victims of inbred mental illness and a severe lack of care. Read this book.