Georgia On My Mind

We are back from our weekend in Athens where we celebrated Kate's 20th birthday and went to the Georgia/Vanderbilt game.

 We went out to dinner late on Friday night, It was a beautiful night and we enjoyed dinner outside at Farm 255... it is a very cool place with great food and we were very happy that we had to walk back to Chelsea's apartment...

 

 

...because we still had some celebrating to do with gifts and dessert!

 

 

Kate liked this really cool jacket at Free People...

and so this was one of her gifts...I think she likes it!

 

Chelsea made her the brownie marshmallow cupcakes, a find

on Kate's Pinterest board! They were soooo good and sooo rich!

 

On Saturday morning, we started our day at Mama's Boy

for a wonderful home style breakfast!

 

 

  

 

After breakfast we poked around downtown...Chelsea found a couple of

game day dresses and some red jewelry and on the way back to her apartment we stopped for a pic with the bulldog!

 

 

 

Back home everyone got ready for the big game! We somehow

all ended up wearing black, though Chelsea and I had on red jewelry/

 

 

The Pleasant Hull Memorial Bell is a well-known fixture on UGA's upper quad.  The tradition of ringing the bell to signal a football game victory began in 1901.  At first freshmen (probably those poor frat pledges) were made to ring the bell for hours after victories, but more recently the bell is rung by anyone wanting to be part of the celebration!  In 2007 the bell's yoke broke during the bell ringing celebration after UGA's 42-30 win over the Florida Gators. It was quickly

repaired in time for the next home game!

 

On our way across campus we stopped to take pics along the way.

Notice our choice of footwear...Kate and I in our new boots...from

Country Outfitter...Chelsea still sporting sandals. 

I am thinking black boots of some type are in her future!

 

At the stadium...we soaked in some atmosphere and headed in;

the girls to the student section and Rich and I to tamer seats.

Those bulldogs rock that stadium :D

 

 

Every school has its own sayings and traditions to be sure...

But one thing is the same everywhere...with almost an

hour till kick-off most fans were still out tailgating...

the student section being the exception!

 

 

 

Georgia easily beat Vandy...it was hard to sit through and

while I didn't mind the bulldogs winning seeing as they are having a great start to this season...I wanted Vandy to give them a little bit of trouble...

We left the game after halftime...not a novel idea! We walked back through the campus and back to downtown (where Chelsea lives) and ended our Saturday

watching FSU pull out their win over Clemson.

 

 

 

Sunday morning we went to Athens Church.  This is our

second time there and we love it for Chelsea.  She has

joined a small group there, loves the message, and the music is AWESOME!!

 

She is so happy in her new life up in Georgia it almost makes it easy to get in the car and make that LOOOOONNNNNGGGG drive home...I said almost.  I am just wondering if there is a better way to get there from here without fighting Atlanta traffic?

 

Weekend Celebrations!!

It has been a good...long week!  I had lots going on which got interrupted by my annual trip down the seasonal allergy, coughing, voice-losing road!  I wasn't able to go to Girls Inc. on Wednesday and walking and yoga were out.  But I made good use of my time.  I called the plumber and he came and put all new plumbing under our kitchen sink...it was necessary as that plumbing had been, how can I say this..."honey-do'ed' to death!"  While here, I had the plumber fix all three outdoor spigots too. Two were leaking to the point you had to be prepared to get a shower when you turned them on and the third one didn't have a handle and couldn't be turned on.  So after a few good hours of work, I can now open the cabinet doors below my sink just to admire my new plumbing and I announced to the girls that they could now wash their cars in the driveway again...they weren't impressed!!

I have also been getting ready for our weekend trip to Athens (Georgia).  It is homecoming weekend for UGA and guess who they are playing?...VANDY!  How perfect...Kate is driving over from Nashville and we will spend tonight celebrating her 20th birthday.  Tomorrow we have all day to visit and poke around the awesome little boutiques and restaurants downtown before heading over to the stadium for the game.  I am excited about the game too...another southern school all hyped up with school spirit, tail-gating, and football fun!! 

 

Now if I could just quit coughing...because if I can't, it is going to seriously impede my ability to get vocal at this football game.  Think about it...I will be cheering for Georgia to win cause, well, they are having a great year so far and Chelsea loves football and wants them to win.  But, I will also be cheering for Vandy because it is Kate's school (though she is not into the whole football culture thing like Chelsea). Vandy is working so hard on their football program and I love it when they shake up their opponents who think...

ehhh it's Vanderbilt!! 

 

So, here's to the weekend...I hope you have a great one whether you are sitting in a stadium somewhere cheering on your favorite team or just enjoying a FALL afternoon.  It's a grand and blessed life we live!!

An Update on the Library

Last week I spent a lot of time over at my new hangout...Girls Inc.  Working on the library was at times overwhelming, plowing through all of the books and magazines and what-nots.  You might recall all of these books were awaiting my perusal after Tammy and her family cleaned and painted the room.

 

I am going to do the big reveal on Wednesday, but here are some during-the-process-pictures so that you can share in my JOY :)

 

I chose this fabric for window treatments and when I went

back to Parthenon to purchase it...they gave it to me. 

What a wonderful gift :)

Now, I don't sew...so I have pretty much figured out how to

accomplish a lot with fabric and a glue gun :)  These are

not the finished product, you can see those on Wednesday!

I have so much fabric left over I want to make pillows for

the built in bench that runs along one wall...hmmm I wonder

how I will swing this without sewing!!

While going through stacks and stacks of books, I came

across many that have been donated by one of my favorite

organizations, The Panama City Junior Women's Club...oh the memories!

Eventually I began refilling the shelves with picture books,

chapter books, poetry books, mysteries, young adult books,

classical literature, and more...

I was so happy...I think I was born to be a librarian :D

 

Last Wednesday, the first group of girls came to visit.

I read aloud as the first and second graders sat mesmerized

 (okay, a slight exaggeration) and they learned a little poem too!! Stay tuned cause this Wednesday (my Katelyn's 20th Birthday) I will show you the finished project!   

Random...Very Random

 

Thursday was my birthday and it was a very nice day which included a 5 mile walk, a trip to a new coffee shop/restaurant downtown, beautiful flowers from Rich, a surprise at Girls Inc, birthday wishes from lots of wonderful people, and a piece of Lemon Italian Creme cake...all-in-all a grand day and actually none of it was planned out, things just fell into place.  I think that this must be one of the beauties of hitting 50...which I did...three years back. Just waking up and finding joy in the day...



Friday was a very busy day.  I went to yoga first thing in the morning.
This class is good...and difficult.  It is totally different than the yoga class I love on Monday and Wednesday nights.  This class pushes me and has me at times looking at the instructor to see if she is actually doing the stuff she is instructing us to do...for example:

                             Oh...okay...this one I totally get...:)

                          And this one...side body long...I get it!

Now THIS one, seriously...I couldn't get my feet off the ground for more than 2 seconds...not enough core strength and no upper body strength...so I will make this my mission...to be able to do this pose...so that I can!

BUT...if you EVER see me doing this...call the paramedics...cause I will not be coming out of this position on my own...just saying...

    Now this looks awesome to me...maybe in October :)


Okay, so after yoga kicked my butt, I went to Parthenon to look at fabric for the library at Girls Inc. and this is what I came up with...

 

The walls are going to be the color on the paint stick (lovely paint that they already have)  The built in shelves are this shade of blue...this fabric I love almost perfectly matches the color of the paint...hmmm

 

 

I do love red....and the little bit of blue is a perfect match....hmmm

 

 

I also like this blue and taupe diamond fabric....hmmm

 

 

Any thoughts...?

 

And last, the mailman knocked on my door to deliver my mail.  He is so sweet and typically does this if there is any kind of package in the mail, even if it fits in the mailbox. So, yes, I got books for the library and this one I might just have to sit down and read over the weekend...along with all the usual weekend fun!!

 

 

Have a great weekend...whatever it brings your way!

 

Books, Books, and Yes, More Books

It's been a busy "book" week...

I have joined an online classical book club hosted by Edie from http://www.lifeingraceblog.com/ (if you have never read Edie's blog, grab a cup of coffee, pull up a chair, and prepare for an inspiring read)!

This is our book for the month of September...

 

...I am admittedly a bit intimidated even though I taught

The Iliad to eighth graders back in the day.

 

To get my mind geared up for serious reading I have been working through

The Well-Educated Mind by Susan Wise Bauer. I highly recommend this book if you want to take yourself back to those days in college when you read this stuff with one eye closed and thoughts of everything "college" was running through your mind (that's not what I meant to say and not that I did that...Chelsea and Katelyn and any other college-aged reader of this blog). 

 

Last night I started the new bible study at my friend, Bobbie's, church.

 

 

If you have never done a Priscilla Shirer study you are missing out on a beautiful and authentic voice encouraging women to move from knowing God to experiencing our living God!  Amazing stuff!!

 

It is September, and I am heading back to Girls Inc. for a school year book club that starts with the building of the in-house library!!  I am really excited to get back with the girls on Wednesday afternoons.  I love to read and value the benefits of a book-filled life.  I have been collecting books this summer and have a long list of books to be ordered...and my mind is whirling with ideas...and more ideas (I have a notion Chelsea is a bit relieved to be off at pharmacy school and not trying to keep up with me...as if ;)

 

While looking through books here at the house I came across this little gem by Eric Carle. 

 

 

I opened the book to find my grandmother's beautiful handwriting... sending Chelsea a birthday message.

 

 

So, my thoughts on this, give a book as a gift to someone you love and

remember to open the cover of the book and write a personal message.  Sixteen years later it will still bring a smile to the heart :)

 

Matt Redman - 10,000 Reasons (Bless the Lord)

 

It is a rainy day...I have a to-do list for sure...but there is no time like the present to consider the majesty of the LORD and to ponder some of the 10000 reasons...ENJOY

 

 

 

 

Graduation, White Coats, and Dorm Life

Thought I would post some pics from Chelsea's graduation from Auburn... the White Coat ceremony at UGA...and Kate's move-in at Vandy! This will definitely be a pictorial post :)

In front of Samford Hall and Jordan Hare Stadium

favorite spots on campus for Chelsea

 

The night before graduation we attended a dinner at the president's home

 for the class Marshalls...

 

 

 

We had family and good friends on hand to celebrate

 

 

Exactly one week later we were in Athens, GA. 

Chelsea is ready for a new adventure!!

 

 

And yes, one week later Kate and I headed to Nashville

(with a stop in Birmingham)

and settled her into year 2 at Vanderbilt!

Kate and Isabelle did a great job transforming the dorm

into home!!

 

The Pinterest projects were a big hit too

 

August was a whirlwind, but it is good to have the girls

 settled and ready for a new year!!