Gaffney Weekend

We had a safe and eventful trip to Gaffney last weekend. However, when we got almost to Cookeville, a guy pulled up next to us honking his horn. We couldn't figure out what the problem was, but we finally realized there was a problem with our truck. SOMEONE (Niki) had forgotten to close the tailgate, and our bags were hanging on for their dear lives at 80 miles per hour.
In my defence, I thought SOMEONE ELSE would check the truck before HE started driving.
After driving most of the night, we arrivied around 2a.m. Friday morning.

We managed to get in a couple hours of sleep before the boys arrived wide awake and in search of Johnny. We got to spend the day with them before going to dinner with everyone that night.

Saturday had a couple highlights for me. I had my first visit to The Beacon!

Jonathans plate of food looks like a good five pounds EASY!

And yes, I got to meet The Legend of The Beacon himself J.C.. As usual the place was packed so I was worried he would rush us along but I told he we came all the way from Tennessee 'cause we had seen him on Food Network and he couldn't have been happier!
He made sure we took SEVERAL pictures and what else would he have us say but "CAAAAAAAAALLLLLLL IT!!!!!!!!!!"

Oh, and Tennessee taking the #1 spot for the first time EVER after knocking off Memphis Saturday night was a major highlight too! I didn't have anyone to sing Rocky Top with me but I did find the only other Tennessee Fan in South Carolina to share in my excitement!

Sunday we drove down to the big town of Greer, SC to see Rita-licious and the rest of the Byers Gang. We haven't seen most of them since the wedding and others since this past summer so it was definately good to get back there... AND THE FOOOD!!!! I knew I liked this family when I first met them, they know how to eat!!! It was hard to stay awake on the drive home with a full stomach but we all made the 6 hour drive without an ounce of hunger.

Weekend with the Ladies from Loudon

This past weekend was Mauri's Bachelorett Party which meant three of my good friends from Loudon came up to visit! It was soooo good to see them and we had a blast!

Friday Night we went to one of our FAVORIT Places, Millers Grocery! If you ever make a trip to Middle Tennesse you HAVE to go there. As Heather says, "It's like Cracker Barrell but WAY better!" They have a live bluegrass band on Friday & Saturday nights and its just a cool place to go. Casey & Doug met us there and Brayden provided the dancing entertainment.

Saturday was full of shopping before preparing for the night out. All together, there were 15 ladies out to celebrates Mauri's "Final Fling Before the Ring"!

I know we had fun and I hope she did too!

Being the great husband that he is, Jonathan was the breakfast chef for the weekend. He not only put up with all of our chattering but made us some of his specialites!

Hunter's Latest Find

Many of you ask about my sister and her baby. Hunter is now 8 months old, trying to walk, and just found his... umm.. yeah.

Too funny!!!

Wedding Photos

Miss. Maggie

Maggie is our six year old daughter who has no idea she's a dog. A salt 'n pepper miniature schnauzer, she is completely happy to be an only child. I can not be completely to blame for her spoiled behavior however. She's the first grand daughter to her Mimi & Papa O who she loves to visit... unless Hunter is in town. (like I said, she's happy to be the only child)
Her visits have to be limited though, she tends to gain weight and become increasingly needy after having their undivided attention.
Maggie is a very loving dog as long as she is getting your full attention... take anything away from her however is a different story. It didn't take long for her to take to her other grandfather either - when Chris & Darla are in town she STAYS on Chris's lap and has nothing to do with the rest of us.
Jonathan says she a lot like her mother... I'm not going to argue.

So Now We're Bloggers

Blogging has seem to have become so popular these days. I remember when I first heard about it I thought it was something for nerds, politicians, professors, tree huggers, and so on. Either way, it wasn't for me. Never really cared to read anyone else's and definitely never thought about creating my own.
My good friend Mauri however, much like myself, created one to keep everyone up-to-date. After reading hers I realized - with the way my family has grown in the last year it may not be a bad idea! It could even be fun!
When I mentioned the idea to Jonathan I saw he obviously thought the same of blogging as I did. I got the "what are you, a tree hugger?" look. But once I explained my logic, he's started to come around as well. So here we are!