lucky

mom has a sign that reads,
"if you are lucky enough to live at the lake,
then you are lucky enough."

well, we are not lucky enough,
but pretty darn close.
and very grateful.
between family and friends, we have no shortage of lake time!

kid pics from the last two saturdays:

bev's lake house is located right next to the boat ramp.

august is the official greeter when we are there.

he makes sure everyone gets the arrival and departure wave.

we saw the davis family.

and the jones family.

they gave us a little wave goodbye.

and about 10 minutes later,

they were back.

i did get to snap some pics of the kids though.

they sure are cute!

you might be a southerner

if your husband says,
"hey, come look.
there's a gopher crossing the road."
while standing in the front window.
eating a cold rib.

there are so many things i love about the south . . .
sweet tea
black-eyed peas
slow paced life
corn bread
hospitality
okra
humidity
grits & tomato gravy
manners we instill
our drawl
and many more

what are some of your favorite southern things?

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back around the time when august was born,
there was a southern living issue that had great article in it.
it was on the last page (southern journal section).
it was quotes about the south from southerners.
i, of course, threw out the magazine,
and can't seem to find it online.
so if anyone keeps their old issues,
i would love to get my hands on this.
i am thinking it must have been the summer/fall of 2007.
please let me know if you can help!

celebrating

we went to the lake on sunday to celebrate. the boys loved playing on the golf cart.
they were really excited when they heard the train going by.
they turned the radio up and busted some moves.

no one was hurt by the bungee cord - i promise.

august helped pa drive gran up to the house.

brooker drove the paddle boat.
well, almost.

nanoe and papa g came up too.

the boys kicked back in the chair.

it was a busy afternoon.

yes, we celebrated my birthday.

i wish this was august's finger.

that would mean he has diversified his diet!

i needed help blowing out all those candles.

wouldn't it be great to really be 5 again?

me and my boy.

loving him some cake.

mama is ready to finger sweep that cake out.

it was after all, just before bed.

sugar just before bed . . .

enough said.

doesn't brooker know that cookies don't require face wiping?

thanks mom and dad for hosting.
and everyone for coming.
i had a great time!

other than yogurt

what could make this boy so happy?
eating it with his best buddy, brooker!

happy birthday brooker's mommy!
hope you have a great day.

**side note - both boys started saying cheese when they saw me with the camera.
do you think they have had their pictures snapped a time or two?

baboo

on saturday we said goodbye to baboo (travis' grandmother).
she was a very special lady.
not only was she a mother,
but a grandmother, great grandmother, and a great great grandmother.
she loved her family fiercely.
and she could tell a great story.
although there have probably been more told about her.
i promise they would make you laugh real hard.

the entire family gathered at the beach for memory sharing and prayer.
we tossed rose petals into the ocean and watched them come back in waves.
only to be taken out again.
later that afternoon, we walked down to see if any petals were still on the beach.
there were so many, you couldn't help but smile.

rain came in the early evening.
it was marked with a full double rainbow.
(hard to see, but the second one comes out of the palm tree.)



we miss you baboo.
but we are comforted knowing that you are in a better place.
sharing laughs with your family and friends.
checking out god's pantry.
(she loved a fully stocked one!)
and whipping up some good cooking.
these pictures are from our last visit with baboo.
i am so glad that we had a chance to give hugs, kisses, and say i love you's.

got bear?

we have a really big one.
who will hopefully move on to greener pastures soon.
until then, no child or dog will roam free.
and the men will be prepared for an encounter!

good deed

change a dirty diaper, without discarding any of the contents, while looking completely innocent

siesta key 7 . . . the last day

this is the last post of beach pictures . . . i promise.
renner wanted to be buried with his mask and snorkel.

who are we to argue with this face?

e.n. snoozed on the beach.

august did the same thing last year.

a clean out your ice box lunch.

there were hot dogs, sandwiches, shrimp, fried fish, fried venison.

and just about anything else we could get rid of.

yes, the snack bucket showed its face again.

hope i haven't bored you to tears with all these beach pictures.
i am just really bad at making choices, especially when it comes to pictures.
i could just look at them all day and ponder, what to post?
plus it lets me go back to the beach for just a little while.
if only in my mind.

fish fry

a week ago we went to a fish fry. at uncle francis' fishing house.

the boys tried to do some fishing.

but only one fish got the memo.

the rest were playing it safe somewhere else.

i remember coming here as a little girl for family gatherings.

this yard used to be huge.

august wore his boots.

it was a good thing because it was a little wet from a good rain that day.

there are some really cool old things around this place.

if only i could have searched around some more.
the friendliest dog in the world will growl - if he thinks yankees are around.

a grill just his size.

the fried fish were great.
but uncle francis' special ketchup made them that much better.

siesta key 6 . . . more sunsets

family shot

with august.

without august.

getting their feet wet.

papa g and nonae with all the grandkids.

laughing with nonae.