Weekend in review and then some

I can't even begin to tell you how lovely it is to be sitting on my very own couch in my very own living room with my computer on my lap. Never mind the hour at which I sit; it's nice to get up before the sun sometimes, isn't it?

We had a fabulous fun-filled time in Nashville with my entire family. We were able to leave Atlanta early on Friday because Cale didn't have to work, so we were on the road by 9am. We had a nice drive, a leisurely lunch and still managed to arrive in Nashville by 1pm. We were very enthusiastically greeted by all five of Haven's cousins who were thrilled to have one more person to chase around. I spent the afternoon hanging out and baking in my sister-in-law's kitchen. All the hours I got to watch the Food Network in Atlanta filled me with an overwhelming desire to prepare something with my own two hands. I was happily obliged and found a delicious Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookie recipe that didn't contain any eggs (my nephew is allergic). They were a big hit with the whole crowd.

Friday evening was the big dance recital and the show did not disappoint. Cale and I only stayed for about a half hour, long enough to watch Anna, but then headed back to the house to relieve the babysitter who was watching Haven and our 7-month old nephew, Owen. We got back in the nick-of-time as Haven was gearing up for a massive melt down. We got her settled into bed, ordered pizza for the crowd and hung out with Owen for a bit before everyone got back. We enjoyed one anothers company, ate some good food and went to bed early.

Saturday we were up bright and early with Haven so we set off on a brisk walk around the neighborhood. We were the picture of loveliness strolling through the area in our various states of pajamas, borrowed jackets and flip-flops. It was nice though, there's not a whole lot of traffic at 6am on a Saturday morning. We returned to the house to find a few more people awake and then the mayhem began. We had a few things to do to get ready for the party in the afternoon, but for the most part, we just got to hang out together. My brothers decided that in an effort to get ready for the party, the ladies should all go out to a nice lunch together. Who were we to fight with that logic? So my mom and two sister-in-law's and I went to downtown Franklin to Puckett's for lunch. It was delicious and certainly made me feel ready for an afternoon with thirty 3-6 year olds!

The party was actually at a gymnastics place and they were wonderful there. The kids got to spend an hour running around, jumping, flying through the air and just generally acting crazy. They had a blast. They were then ushered into a tiny little party room and fed large quantities of sugar and then sent on their way. My job at the party was to get the food set-up and the goody bags put together. We managed to do so with time to spare and the whole event was a big success.

We were back home recuperating by 4pm and spent the rest of the afternoon relaxing, snacking, grilling and just enjoying one another. It was the most beautiful day so we fully utilized Steve and Renea's new patio furniture and spent the better part of the next 7 hours out there. It was one of those nights that you didn't want to go to bed because you were just enjoying yourself, but you knew you had to. I am looking forward to more nights like that when we all go on vacation together at the end of June. I feel blessed that our families don't just love each other, we genuinely enjoy each other's company.

We actually managed to get 13 people out of the house- clean, dressed, fed and looking good- to church at 9:15 yesterday morning. Now it helps that their church is literally 5 minutes from the house. But hey, we still made it which I think is impressive. Lunch out and packing and we were on our way by about 2pm eastern time. Haven was asleep not even 10 minutes into the ride. We were all thankful for that! Mike and Caroline left an hour before us, but we still managed to be making better time than they were (three kids=lots of stops!) and we decided to meet up for dinner in Louisville. We had a delightful meal at Bravo and the kids were excited to see each other again. We got back on the road and had a very long last few hours as we were slowed down for traffic and had a very cranky child. But we made it home by about 10pm and thus began the laboriously unpacking process. At 11:30pm when I fell into my nice comfy bed, I had my second load of laundry in the washing machine, a few groceries in my fridge and the majority of extraneous items back in their rightful spots.

The big motivator for getting everything unpacked, cleaned, etc. is that we are off for another whirlwind this week. Cale leaves for California at 3pm today and will be gone until Thursday. He needs to get packed, spend time with Haven and me, stop by work and mow the grass before he goes. It's going to be a busy day. Haven and I will be leaving tomorrow morning to go to Cleveland for a few days. We are finally going to go see my friend, Jess and spend the evening with her and her husband Tuesday. I can' wait to see her (and meet her new puppy!). Haven and I will be back late Wednesday night. It's going to be a crazy, but fun week!

This turned out to be a really long post about stuff that might really not be that interesting. But I never really claimed to be interesting so if you're still reading this, blame yourself! I'm off to fold some laundry!