Mother-Daughter Trip

This past week Mom and I took a trip together to catch up with some old friends. We had a great time! Mom hasn't flown in about twenty years so I was able to show her the ropes through airline security, etc. She did an excellent job! It was very comforting having her around for a few days. We discussed the wonders of being pregnant (she tried desperately to get Baby Clay to kick for her, but he won't act on command!), family issues, fashion, politics, and life in general.

Thanks for a wonderful trip, Mom, and I look forward to many more in the future!

Reunions

This past weekend my family and I traveled to Mountain City, Tennessee for a Shull family reunion (my mom's side of the family). It was a great trip! I thoroughly enjoyed seeing family members that I had not seen in over ten years. There were also many family members I had never met before and I had trouble following where they sat on our family tree branches. But, it was great to know we were related nonetheless.

It is amazing to me how some families grow to include so many people and some family lines just dwindle away until there are none left. What touched me the most was watching how my maternal grandmother seemed to glow as she was surrounded by her closest relatives. She was able to meet her first great-grandson at the reunion, my nephew Caden, and I know that warmed her heart.

We took some time to walk around the grounds to my great-grandfather's childhood home which is still standing and is actually functioning as a home for one of my other family members. Even though it is in need of repair, I think it is so majestic and beautiful (it has 13 bedrooms!) On a side note, I learned that one of my distant relatives, "Aunt Dorothy", used to live on the same street where I now live in Nashville - just a few houses down! - many, many years ago. Amazing.

Last week I was also able to spend some time with my good friend, Megan, who is pregnant with her first baby. Our due dates are a couple of months apart. It was wonderful seeing her and catching up on everything in her life. I love visiting with old friends!

She is really not that much taller than me...

she's wearing high heel sandals and I am in my bare feet!

What was I thinking?

This is a very random post, but here goes. You know when you are eating something and you are fully aware that you will regret it later, but you keep eating it anyway? That was me last night after a bleary-eyed trip with hubby around 10 p.m. to the Donut Den with its magical, blinking, red neon sign. The apple fritters looked innocent enough behind their glass case, and I thought, hey, they probably won't be fresh and I won't like mine anyway. Therefore, I won't actually consume the entire thing with all its ungodly calories.

When we arrived back home, I plopped down on the couch with my apple fritter and small hot chocolate and prepared for a mediocre experience. Au contraire. It was one of the most delicious things I have ever eaten! Each bite of the sugary, fried, apple-y goodness was divine. The entire time I was eating it, I kept telling myself "MUST STOP EATING THIS", but to no avail. I chased my fritter with a glass of skim milk because I thought it would balance out all the sugar in my system. (No it won't. - you say?)

I went to sleep full and happy. Around 3 a.m. I woke up and realized I was very uncomfortable - it was HEARTBURN?! combined with a gnawing sense of hunger! Oh, sweet fritter, why hath thou betrayed me? Okay, I learned my lesson. Fritters can't be trusted. Now I need to find my yoga mat to help temper some of the damage. And, I'll probably need a nap later since I was up for almost two hours in the middle of the night.

I'll leave you with this image of a glass of skim milk so you can stop picturing that delectable apple fritter. Happy Friday!

4th of July Weekend

We had a great 4th of July weekend with my family. It was so nice to see everyone and catch up! Dad grilled hamburgers and Mom made her famous potato salad. I didn't take as many pictures as I normally do...I think I was too busy chatting and enjoying myself.

I have been very tired since we got home. Each morning I would wake up very early (between 5:00 and 6:00) because I couldn't wait to visit with whomever happened to be awake already. Mom was, of course, always up and about. And, my adorable nephew, Caden, was usually up shortly thereafter smiling and ready for his bottle!

It was a wonderful weekend in many respects, but I think I will always remember it as the weekend that I started feeling Clay kick on a consistent basis.

Reflections

Over the past few months I have found myself really enjoying simple, domesticated things. Maybe it's my "nesting instinct" kicking in? I have had so much fun cooking, baking, planting, gardening, and to my pleasant surprise, sewing. For our 4th of July trip to my parents' house, I made zucchini bread, homemade cheese marble brownies and chocolate buried cherry cookies (which were phenomenal!). I had the best time baking up a storm in my kitchen while listening to some of my favorite music.

While visiting with my family, my mom gave me a baby quilt-top with the letters of the alphabet so I can embroider it. I started working on the stitches after we got home last night and I cannot wait to work on it some more! There's something about sewing a blanket for my own baby that makes the project so appealing. In the past, my mom has tried to get me to sew and I was never really interested - mainly because I didn't have the time - however, now everything has changed. (Thanks for never giving up, Mom!)

This is a picture of a hydrangea plant that my sweet brother and sister-in-law gave me as a housewarming gift. It has just started to bloom. I love it!