We had a tree fall at 3:40 am on Monday. I am so grateful to the Lord that it fell the way it did. The tree is HUGE!
Our kids were soundly sleeping in our house, and so was the dog.
Our fence was left standing, with the exception of a few boards that were damaged by a limb. The tree itself broke high enough it didn't completely destroy the fence.
Our Dish Network satellite was damaged but they said I could have it fixed for free if I add a $5.99/month warranty that can be cancelled at any time. Crazy, I know.
Then we had 3 estimates from tree services to clean up the mess. Schneider was $2800, Emery was $1280 and Timbertech (who came highly recommended for their quality) was only $650. That was an answer to prayer for us.
Here are some pictures of the fallen tree taken by my friend, Sabrina Lewis:
As I write this, we are driving home from the beach. God gave us perfect weather, a beautiful view and the kids got lots of time with Nana (my mom) and Gran (her mom).
Stephen bought a boogie board and a hat like the Coldplay guitarist wears. I'm not sure which one he enjoyed more.
Abby lost a tooth the first night there. She was concerned the tooth fairy wouldn't find her at the beach so it's still in a ziplock bag in my purse.
Sydney and Abby filled up bags at the candy store and loved sharing it with the family. Sydney's was mostly chocolate. Abby's was mostly lollipops.
Brody got lots of energy out, yelling, "Hey Guys!" to anyone who would listen. And he turned everything into a guitar and wanted everyone to sing "E-I-E-I-O" with him.
My mom read many books to the kids on the "Secret Porch".
I enjoyed staying in for spaghetti night.
Abby and Brody take after me, in that we tolerate sand in our swimsuits and like the beach for short periods of time. Sydney and Stephen, however, stayed in the water as long as they could stand it. I loved our little spot near the rocks. It really was beautiful. Reminded me of God.
I enjoyed some precious moments with my grandmother. She turns 92 this week. And she played the Wii for the first time with us. I told her they play it in nursing homes and she responded with, "Well, I'm not in a nursing home, YET!"
Enjoyed sipping coffee with Aunt Martha in the mornings and meaningful conversations with my cousin, Elizabeth, mostly at night.
Oh, and we went on a double date with Joseph and Megan (my cousin and his wife) on top of the Market Pavilion Hotel. I split a FIFTEEN DOLLAR cheeseburger with Stephen. It WAS the best cheeseburger I've ever had. And the view was certainly worth the $15. Until the waitress spilled my husband's full drink all over us and then charged us for it. We didn't tip. Ran out of the restaurant.
I am so grateful for the week away. Looking forward to returning home to our normal.
Brody and Stephen in a "head but"
Daddy's Girls
Just the two of us
All five of us (windblown again)
Stephen and his new favorite past time
A picture of the back of the house (forgot to get one of the front!)
Gran and Abby making up stories
The back porch
Gran and Sydney on the "Secret Porch"
Gran and Brody reading books
Brody, Sydney and Abby enjoying each other
Sydney and I "jumping" the waves
Megan and Abby playing in the water
Stephen posing with his boogie board
Stephen "posing" again
Brody tired and hungry. Waiting at Shem Creek R.B.'s . Mmmm shrimp and grits!
Trying to get a good family shot, "CHEESE!"
The two who are responsible for starting the chaos
Abby and her Daddy
Stephen and Brody...still waiting
Stephen: "The beach is that way."Gran, Mama, Abby, Sydney and Brody on the beachBrody turning the rake into a guitar and Stephen grooving with himLike father like son (covered with sand)Sydney and her Daddy enjoying the water together
I was looking to find something with a larger work surface for school since both of the girls are "doing" school this year. So today we sold the smaller table pictured here:
On Monday we purchased a new one from Costco, pictured here:
My precious neighbor dropped everything she was doing Monday afternoon to ride with me to Costco so I could use her card. I purchased the last one they had. Got a deal on it because it was the display. Two days before we started school. Crazy!
Thanks again, Sarah P! And thanks to Mama and Gran for watching the kids all day so I could run errands, including a last minute trip to Costco.
I have a lot to learn about my baby boy. My first learn-the-hard-way lesson for this week is allowing Brody to pull, and pull, and pull on something is a bad idea. It is not harmless, but may be detrimental to our kitchen counter top and may cause our dishwasher to fall out of the wall. See pictures below.
Lesson two is to grab things he's not supposed to have IMMEDIATELY because it may disappear. For example, if I'm hypothetically fixing Abby's hair and see him walking around with "Mouse Soup" from the library, I should not wait until her hair is done to get it back. Because it may, hypothetically speaking of course, end up stuffed in the tiny opening above our dishwasher and won't be located until the dishwasher is falling out of the wall - because my Boy Child broke our counter top. :) But at least I can save face with the librarian when I get my refund!
Thank you, Father, for making me depend on You even more with my lil' fella!
I have so many different ways I've made sweet tea over the years and in asking our supper club last night I discovered we all make it vastly different. I'm in search of the perfect pitcher for Stephen.
Please comment on how you make it. Gallon or half gallon? How many bags? Family-size? Decaf? Brand? Plastic or glass pitcher? How much sugar? What do you do with the sugar? How long do you steep? Do you add waterat the end?
