A Trip to Georgia and Other Stuff

 The first picture here was taken the week before we went to Georgia when we went to swim at the Boardwalk hotel at Disney.  It was a fun time, I didn't swim but enjoyed reading my book and the kids had fun in the pool.  Harrison and Amber caravaned to Georgia with us last Saturday, it was an easy drive since the kids could switch between cars.  I'll be honest, it made me a nervous wreck to have us in separate cars flying up the highway and I wouldn't let all three go at the same time in case something happened.  I'm a paranoid momma...I know.

 Harry and Amber's dog, Chief, was so happy to see them.  It was really cute.  We had some fun, crazy family time with everyone on Saturday night and again on Sunday.  We played games, ate good food, played with babies, went out for ice cream, swung on the porch...good times!

 I love this picture above--looks like Cheryl is giving her baby brother a talking to.  :0)  And below, he showed us he could do a cartwheel.

 After much searching through the attic, we found Cheryl's old adoption doll, Meg Eugenia.  Kenleigh loved her!

 Monday morning Grace, Joe, Pop, and I got up early and climbed Stone Mountain.  It is a fun climb and a great workout for somebody pretty out of shape like me.  Especially the last bit, it gets steep.  You get a beautiful view from up there though.

 The girls and I spend some time with Aunt Cici.  We tried out the new Grayson Coffeehouse and played a hilarious game of Taboo.  Hannah and I were on a team and kicked some butt but I think Cheryl and Grace laughed more.

 We did some Goodwill Shopping, not sure you can read the pin on the blazer but it says, "READ BOOKS."  Kind of an unusual pin but funny.  Monday night I got to go to a ladies night out at church with my mom and sister and my sister spoke about numbering our days to gain wisdom.  We had a great time, it was a great message, and we ate sandwiches and ice cream sandwiches and even made some sand art.

 Tuesday morning I went on another hike with Pop, this time on the Yellow River Trail in the woods.  After we got home, Cheryl texted and said that the elusive Thai Tea popsicles from King of Pops were supposed to be at a Farmer's Market at Emory University.  My sister is the Queen of King of Pops.  She loves them and seeks them out all over town wherever she can find them.  She had told me about the Thai Tea one but it's not a flavor that you can find very easily.  The website said they'd be at Emory so off we went.  We had quite an adventure there that included letting a little old Psychology professor get into our car to show us where to park and which way to go to find the Farmer's Market.  After about a mile hike to the middle of campus...

 We did not find the farmer's market because they take a break in the summer.  We were terribly sad.  King of Pops has a walk up window at their home office and the GPS said it was only about ten minutes away so off we went to try to find it.

 And...we found it and we were very happy!  Thai Tea wasn't listed as a flavor of the day though but we asked if they had any in the back...

 This was our reaction upon finding out that they did have some in the back.  We might have screamed and made quite a scene and had our picture taken with the girl working the window.

 Then we sat in the little "park" across the street and ate our pops.  Hannah and Grace got Raspberry Rosewater and Joe got Blackberry Ginger Lemonade.  We ate our pops and then....

 ...we each got another one!  This time Joe and I got blackberries and cream, Hannah got cookies and cream, Grace got sea salt chocolate, and Cheryl got the blackberry ginger lemonade.  Yum!!  This trip to King of Pops is what inspired my crazy popsicle making.  Mine aren't as good but they aren't bad either!

 Later that afternoon we went to the park to play and fish with Ryan and his kids and Grammy and Pop.  We played for a while and then went home and spent the rest of the evening hanging out enjoying our family time before the kids and I had to head home on Wednesday.  It was a great trip and a blessing to get to see everyone.

Seven Quick Takes...Summer Style

1.  We are fully into summer mode around here.  Ollie is home, Grace and Joe are done with school and Hannah is almost done.  I have a list a mile long but nothing is really pressing which translates in my world to--I'm not getting much of anything productive done.  I definitely operate best when I have too much to do.  I have managed to read two books this week though so all is not lost.  :0)  I did some cleaning too lest you think I am a total lazy bum.

2.  At the beginning of April I decided to walk every single day and with the exception of maybe 5 days I have done just that.  I started out going for about 40 minutes but am up to an hour.  I love it and don't have trouble getting up to go.  I have lost some weight, not as much as I need to lose but losing is better than gaining.  I have really enjoyed catching up on the messages from my church that I have missed while out of town or serving as well as messages by Levi Lusko of Fresh Life church.  I have added a new podcast that I really like too--The Jennifer Fulwiler Show (thank you for the recommendation, Julie!) and of course I still love This American Life.  I just wish there were more of those.

3.  I have been making popsicles...which might have something to do with why I haven't lost as much weight.  I made a freezer full yesterday--root beer float, chai latte, cantaloupe lime, cantaloupe cream, and cookies and cream.  Last week I made tropical pops (pineapple, coconut, banana), peanut butter banana, and green tea pops.  The green tea pops tasted kind of grassy but weren't as bad as they sound.  I have two popsicle molds but I've started just making them in those little Dixie cups with a popsicle stick.  You can make a lot more at one time that way and right now the whole second shelf of my freezer is a popsicle wonderland.

4.  A few years ago they big trend in YA books was vampires, well now it is ghosts and zombies.  I just finished a book with Joe called Dead City about a girl who becomes a zombie killer in New York.  It was a great read, we found out when it didn't fully end that it is the first in a series...hopefully the library has the next one!  I am also reading the Shades of London series by Maureen Johnson.  I have finished the first two, it is about a girl in a boarding school in London that can see ghosts and sometimes she has to finish them off.  It is a suspense/thriller type book that I have really enjoyed.  Totally different from Maureen Johnson's other books that I loved, Thirteen Little Blue Envelopes.  I also read Counting By Sevens this week and loved it.  It has nothing to do with zombies or ghosts, it has to do with a brilliant girl and a tragedy and how she and people around her deal with it.  I read Girl on the Train that is such a big hit right now and all I can say is...unimpressed.  It was okay, but I've read much better books and I am surprised people are so into it.

5.  I can't believe Hannah will be starting her junior year of high school next year.  I need to get her transcript started and just make sure we have all of her classes covered.  I'm sure we do and will but I need to get organized.  This is one of those things on my to do list that is just not getting done.  I'm so unmotivated.  I haven't put away any of this year's school and I haven't fully planned next year's school yet either.  I have time though...I'll think about it in August.  Hannah did her online orientation to dual enroll and we have her scheduled for orientation at noon the day we get home from a trip...our flight lands at 11:30 the night before, assuming there are no delays.  She is going to be one tired, jet-lagged orientation student.  She is growing up so fast and it's exciting and scary.  I just want to slow time down just a bit.  Getting her license, working, going to community college, it's just a little too much.

6.  I just got the little devotional book, Jesus Calling, it is so good!  It totally speaks to my heart and directs me to scripture to back up the devotional.  I have only done two days but what a blessing.  I am trying to draw closer to God and not be so distracted all the time by the world around me.  I am seeking God for wisdom about many things, at the forefront, is how to minister to homosexuals and love them and show them God's love.  We have quite a few gay and lesbian teens and young adults in our life and I feel completely called to love them without judging them.  I never want to compromise my beliefs and I pray about it often.  I have many, many talks with my kids and I tell them that there is much I don't know...but I do know that God is LOVE and that we are to love others and not judge them but also to have faith in God and live in submission to Him in our own personal lives.  I have had many, many talks with friends and family and am trying to navigate these waters in a godly way.  I am so thankful for God's grace and love!

7.  Ollie and I will celebrate our 20th anniversary July 8!  I have a great gift idea--I am going to write 20 memories from each year of our marriage.  Thankfully I am a pretty good record keeper and I have photo albums, my blog, and some journals to pull from.  This is another big thing on my to do list that I just can't seem to get started on.  Tomorrow though...tomorrow!