A Peanuts Halloween 2016

 Here are two more master creations by Dave!  This year we went with a Peanuts theme . . from our costumes to pumpkins too.

The kids were already super wired up since there was no school today . . .  so starting the block party early was a given.  Although it was a bit strange with so many new faces, everyone had a blast!

Neighborhood kids

Linus, Charlie Brown, and Lucy

As the party started to wind down, the kids were getting antsy to go trick-or-treating.  As usual we went in one big group all of the way to Katie's grandma's house and back.

There was this one super scary display we found on the way . . complete with a smoke blowing demon.

Ahh, finally we made it to Mrs. DeRollo's house for homemade hot chocolate and treats.  The kids made themselves right at home around her kitchen table with their popcorn and hot chocolate.

I think we could have made it hours longer, but Dave and I made the kids head back home because they have school tomorrow.  What a super fun Halloween!  Now to manage not eating the entire candy bowl . . .

Welcome Hensley & Hadley Prewette

After months of praying and waiting, these precious baby girls finally arrived Friday afternoon!!  I was thrilled to be able to visit with Leslie & Justin today . . and of course to get to hold Baby Hensley.  We're still praying for sweet Hadley who is in the NICU, but will be home soon.  Pure sweetness!!

Game Night, A Hero Race, & Carowinds . . .

With a long weekend ahead, we did our best to cram as much as we could in . .  and even though we stayed in Charlotte, it was a blast!

We kicked off the fun Friday night when we had the Bryant family over for dinner.  After we ate, it was on for GAME NIGHT!!  The kids played a few of their own games while the parents played a couple of hands of spades.  As the night drew to a close, everyone played a big game of Uno.  It was soooo much fun.

Saturday morning came super quick and started with Savannah's 5k Hero race.  Dave was the chosen one to run with her and they did great!  She is still improving her endurance and ran the entire 5k without stopping.  Their time was 35:57.  

They received cool medals too!

I'm just so proud of Savannah and all that she has accomplished with running so far!

Saturday afternoon we decided to head to Carowinds for one last time this season.  How excited were we to find out that they also had a pumpkin patch!!  Bam!  Two fall treats in one. :)  The kids enjoyed selecting their mini pumpkins and, after several rides with our fast passes, we were more than ready to head home and have dinner!

Today after church it was finally time to carve the pumpkin.  Dave, as usual, showed some mad skills in pumpkin carving and did an amazing job with our TWO pumpkins to match the family themed costumes.

Front porch pumpkin carving

 It was a beautiful Fall weekend and we certainly enjoyed a lot of family time.  The kids are looking forward to trick or treating tomorrow . .  and a day out of school too!

20th WAHS High School Reunion

Where has time gone?  I mean seriously, did I really graduate TWENTY years ago?!?  I was so thankful to be able to attend my high school reunion on Saturday night.  It was wonderful to see the friends that I've known forever and catch up with so many that I literally haven't seen since we graduated.  For the most part everyone looked *similar* and still acted the same. :)  It's odd in a way being around the group that was my core for so long . . . as life has changed and taken us all down different paths now.  Many memories were shared, cherished times with my sweet mama and all of the sleepovers we had at our house, trips to the beach in the summer, and many more fun adventures we had throughout high school  I laughed so much that my temples were literally throbbing by the end of the night.

I left refreshed and thankful.  Thankful that God has been gracious to me in that I haven't endured so many hard things that others have.  From divorce to cancer to loneliness, it was all there.  I'm grateful for the path He led me down and for the family He's given me for sure.  As I reflected on the long (super late) car drive home I'm also very thankful for this group of friends and for our high school class.  We all were part of a certain group of core friends, but it wasn't that clicky like things are in schools today.  Although we had a small intimate group of friends, we were ALL still friendly to each other and knew each other well.  It was a fabulous night with dear friends for sure!

Trying out the adjustable bed at FLS on the way to the reunion

While we were partying it up, our kids were having a blast at Aunt Cherry's.  We had to stop by the furniture store to pick out Savannah's new big girl room furniture.  After selecting the perfect mattresses for us all, we headed out and the kids headed to dinner with Aunt Cherry.  They had a BLAST!  Pizza dinner, Celebration Station for games and prizes, and then Toys R Us to pick out a new game to play.

It was a super long day, but we all had a fabulous time and made tons of new memories!

My Acorn Gatherer

The acorns this year have not only been more plentiful than normal, but they have also been about double the normal size!  It's actually quite scary how noisy they are when they fall . . .I mean it sounds like the windows are going to break!  It's so loud that when walking to the bus stop last week a neighbor asked if the squirrels were throwing them at our house!  It has also been dangerous just trying to walk up the driveway.  Anyway, Preston has been thrilled to put his blower skills to good use with keeping the driveway cleared off.  The only problem is that even after an afternoon of blowing/sweeping/boxing up acorns the next day the driveway is covered again.

Is he cute or what?!

A Couple of Awesome Dates

Once the race was over today, Savannah and I hit the mall (yes, it wasn't my first choice of post-race activities, but I had promised her we could go) to get her some new shoes.  She has had this daddy-daughter date night planned for weeks and was excited to go to Chima Brazilian Steakhouse to support Make A Wish.  It's a fancy affair so she and Dave dressed up and headed out for their date.

Since they were out, Preston and I took full advantage of our time and went to his restaurant of (second to Chuck E Cheese) choice, Chili's.  As soon as we were seated he saw his buddy Maks and they immediately hugged and started joking around.  There is just something sweet about friendship in little kids. :)

We had great service, delicious food and even a yummy dessert.  Afterwards we attempted to feed the ducks at the pond, but it was just too dark for them to see.  So, we opted to save our cereal for another time in the daylight.

This has been one busy, but fabulous day!  I'm so thankful for this precious time to spend with our kiddos after they have endured so much for me to be able to complete my race series and training runs.  Hopefully things will be back to "normal" now.

Another Half in the Books!!

Post Race!

For weeks now I have been training for my second half marathon . . .make that months of training.  I'm not sure why, but for some reason I was SO nervous and anxious all week.  There were just so many variables with not knowing what the weather would be like, having to drive uptown and run by myself, missing Preston's soccer game, etc.  BUT I once I woke up and got all ready I had an incredible peace! I had so many precious friends praying for me and I know that is what carried me through.

Way back in February I signed up for a 6 pack race series (a good deal of course) and was committed for the long haul.  Even though Melissa bailed after only one race and I trained completely by myself, the end result of medals was totally worth it!

So I can now say that I have run two half marathons, both under 2 hours.  This one felt much harder, with mile 12 being all uphill, but interestingly enough one of Dave's college buddies say me running and gave me the encouragement I needed to finish the final mile.  There were lots of "Lord just help me finish", many "I am not quitting!" and lots more self pep talks on those 13.1 miles, but I made it!  After a shower and hour or so of rest, I can say that I'm SO glad I did this. . . for me.  But next year, I think Dave gets a turn to run a half while I have soccer duty. :)