Weekend with the Wyatts

A couple of weeks ago we had the Wyatt family come stay with us. Travis and Kendra Wyatt had worked with the youth group in Greenville when Chris was growing up and he babysat for them when their kids were younger. I fell in love with the whole family and we had sooo much fun. They have 3 kids: Grey, Emory, and Hayden. We felt kind of bad that we had a dog named Emory, too, but what can you say-it's a great name. We love having people come visit us for many reasons. One of them is because we get to do all the "Atlanta" things that we would never do otherwise. Below we are at the Varsity- oldest drive-in in America, famous for servers that say "What'll ya have? What'll ya have?" And they really do say that, only it's more like shouting. If you want a hotdog without toppings you say you want a naked dog, and if you want a hot dog to go, you say you want to walk the dog. We had a lot of fun with this, they give you all Varsity hats, too. We had one of the girls from the youth group, Victoria Garner, hanging out with us, too.

I got to go to the famous Georgia aquarium for the first time with them. It's always more fun to do these kinds of things with kids because they always get such a huge kick out of everything.


The otters were sooo cute. Who ever knew? They swam around on their back like the picture above and sucked their thumb while doing it! They looked incredibly cuddly.



Emory had a blast taking pictures with my camera, I have include about 1% of them. Let's just say the event was well documented :) Anyway, we had a really fun time.

Point of the story: if you come to Atlanta to see us you can just picture how much fun you will have by inserting your face in the pictures above... aren't you excited!!!

3 Things

Believe it or not, I have three things to post about today and NONE of them have to do with Emory! For all you Emory Fan Club members, I am sorry, but, believe me, she is getting cuter every day.

#1. I did it, I actually got my nose pierced! I know to most of you this must come as a shock, but we can get through this together. It's definitely not like me to do something like this, but I have always talked about wanting one, and I finally decided to put the words into action. Why has it taken me so long? Here is a convo I had on the issue with my dearest dad:

Me: Dad, I think I want a nose ring

Dad: Don't you think that will hurt?

Me: Not anymore than when I got my ears pierced.

Dad: I didn't mean when you had it done, I meant when I ripped it out. (No grin on his face)

I'm sure I will regret doing this when I have a teenage daughter... Let's everyone keep this a secret from her, ok?

See? It's very small, no need to worry :)

#2 Chris bought me these beautiful flowers yesterday. Why? you might ask. Well, I will soon be a published author in the journal Current Biology. This means, one step closer to graduation, one step closer to me finally being done with school after 20 years! I was very excited when I found out that the paper I had submitted to Current Biology was accepted yesterday. We have to make a few minor changes, and then my name will be in print!

#3 I had a lot of fun hanging out this past week with some friends of ours that were visiting from France, the family Verdier. I got to practice my French A LOT, which was good. There was also a lot of smiling and nodding and blank stares going on. While we were in Columbus for the weekend, we went to the brand new infantry museum, and I got to practice shooting a real riffle that soldiers use in combat (it wasn't loaded with bullets, it just had a microchip in it). I felt really cool. Chris shot a bigger gun than this one, but I was too consumed with my own glory to take a picture of him, sorry Chris.

Can you tell that Chris is wearing an Obama shirt? He has so far chosen to wear it in back woods hick town North Georgia and in Columbus, Georgia to an infantry museum. Can you see why these might be inappropriate times for him to flaunt his political leanings?

In the above picture, we are at the Coke museum in Atlanta. I am standing with Nathalie, the daughter of the Verdier family. We were good friends when I was 6 years old living in France.

This is me in front of the BEAUTIFUL orchids. Thankfully, my shirt matches. I think Mr. Verdier is making me laugh. Oh yeah, we were at the botanical gardens in Atlanta. Chris and I already had 4 free tickets to the gardens so we didn't have to buy many more. For the story on how we came by these free tickets, you'll have to ask me in person.

This is the whole Verdier family. They are a bunch of clowns and super fun to be with... even if your French isn't too good.

I just had to show some of the beautiful flowers we saw there. God's creativity never ceases to blow my mind. I love how much he cherishes beauty. His beauty is all around us, and isn't that what we seek when we are at our lowest? When I'm down, nothing lifts me up like God's beauty, a colorful sunset, a breathtaking view from a mountain top, the endless ocean, and my favorite... flowers! I've been reading the book Captivating, and I love how the author describes the traits of God that are only revealed in femininity. One of these is his beauty and his love for beauty. It may have no "practical" purpose in the western worldview, but I believe God created it for a reason. Sometimes we just need to soak it in!

Six Flags, American Idol, Sarah/Chris weekend out

SIX FLAGS WITH STACI AND JORDAN

A few weeks ago, some of Sarah's old friends, Staci and Jordan, came from Tuscaloosa to visit us (i.e. Go to six flags). Friday night was really fun; we had a great dinner and had a lot of time to catch up. Saturday we woke up early and started the day off with an essential breakfast at Dunkin Donuts. We arrived at DD around 9:00 and the temperature was already in the high 80s. This should have been my sign that the day was going to be very long. I realize now I should have politely pretended to have a terrible head ache and a stomach bug. I must admit that I am not the biggest fan of roller coasters. When we arrived at Six Flags, the park was already packed. The temp was rising quickly and the lines were extending even quicker. We were at SF for a total of seven hours and rode a total of...hhmmmm...4 rides (one of the rides twice). I should emphasize that we thoroughly enjoyed the time with Staci and Jordan but will probably opt to a cooler venue next year.

AMERICAN IDOL

Okay so I did it...I tried out for American Idol. My friend Mark and his girlfriend Jennie drove down from West Virginia to see us (i.e. try out for A.I). I must say it was a very interesting experience. There were a total of about 15,000 people that tried out that day. As most of you might guess or already know, very few people get to try out in front of Randy, Simon, Paula, and the new girl. Everyone registers two days before the tryout at which time you get a wrist band and ticket. On the third day, everyone that has registered shows up ready to be a star. Needless to say we met a lot of interesting people. Some people had flown in from all around the country. For some, this was their 9th or 10th tryout. At 8:00 a.m. (after sitting outside since 5:00) they herded everyone into the stadium.

First they have a song that the entire crowd sings while the cameras pan over faces. Our chosen song was "Oops I Did It Again." We had to sing through this song probably 20 times. The song actually sounded pretty good. There were even some people harmonizing in the crowd. I figured there must be some other COC people among us. After that little segment the waiting begins. There are rows of tables with a couple of producers at each table. As stated earlier, we arrived at the stadium at 5:00 a.m....we tried out at 3:00 p.m.!! With American Idol and Six Flags, I had the longest two days of my life within one week. The judge lined everyone up in groups of four. Once you get to your assigned table, the judge points to a person and says, "sing...okay stop...you sing...okay stop...you sing" and so on. The judge either tells everyone they suck or they let one person move to the next round. As you know if you have seen American Idol many people make it through that are TERRIBLE! These people go through rounds and rounds of producers before they get to see the famous judges. I know people wonder why a lot of these people that are so bad look so surprised when they see Simon and the gang and are told, "they have the worst voice in the world." Well, by this time, they have had dozens of people tell them they are awesome...tragic really.

Here is a bad pic taken with my phone of all the wanna be stars...I was directly in the middle so there is an equal amount of people on the other side.

We had a few days....

Because of the 4th of July holiday Sarah and I rented a cabin in North Georgia for a few days. The place we stayed was called Cabins and Coffee. We had a great time. We got to the cabins late Thursday and went straight to bed. On Friday Sarah, Emory and I spend the day hiking to a couple of waterfalls. The day was absolutely beautiful and the hike was easy but really fun.

Friday night Sarah and I were too tired to do much so we decided to go see a movie with some of the locals. Now remember...we were in RURAL Georgia...very different from Atlanta. I made the mistake of wearing an Obama t-shirt. When we arrived at the theater, I quickly scrambled to find a jacket after observing the company. The movie was very cheap...we got two tickets, popcorn, drinks, and candy for $17.00!

Over all the weekend was great...we relaxed, slept a lot, had fun, hiked, ate comfort food, and enjoyed a heart shaped Jacuzzi (cool i know).

4th OF JULY

So 4th of July happens to by my favorite holiday. I think this is for a couple of reasons. One, the only expectation is to find somewhere to hang out and have fun. Yes, people spend a lot of money on supplies but no one expects presents and people just want to see a good fireworks show. Also the 4th introduces things that I love (cook-outs, fireworks, watermelon, and homemade ice-cream). We spent our second year with the Touchton's. Not only are Ryan and Cheryl the coolest people ever, they also have the ideal place to celebrate the 4th. The live near the Old square of Marietta. There is a parade, lots of people, a pool, and there is an awesome firework show. It was a ton of fun. We really enjoyed spending time with everyone there and we hope that this becomes a tradition.

Happy belated Independence Day!

update - Prathers

As Sarah mentioned in the previous blog, some very good friends of ours were involved in a car accident this past Monday. The car accident killed the Prather's youngest son, Matthew (15), instantly. However, Jeanette spent the past couple of days trying to hang on. On Thursday evening Jeanette joined Matthew.

I have to say, Sarah and I are both overwhelmed with sadness. Jeanette and Sarah had a very special friendship and we will miss them very much. Stephen, Mike and Jeanette's oldest son, is staying with us and is being very strong. Please pray for this sweet sweet family. As Stephen gets ready to go to college, please pray for Mike as he begins to live in a much quieter household.

Sarah and I really loved Matthew and we really loved Jeanette. We are so thankful we had the honor of knowing two amazing people!

We love the Prather family dearly.  Most of you know that on June 22 they were involved in an accident which took Matthew's life and put Jeanette in critical condition.  Chris and I arrived at the hospital in Macon Georgia at about 4:00 on Monday.  Thankfully, the Touchton's were more than willing to drop everything and come down with us.  We stayed overnight at a hospital in Macon along with five of Stephen's friends, Don and Susan McLaughlin, John and Michelle Neiland, and John and Cindy Lawrence.  Cindy stayed the night at the hospital with Jeanette's sister, Mary Lou.  The doctors say all that can be done for Jeanette right now is wait.  They have her blood pressure and heart rate stabilized and are decreasing her oxygen support which are all good things. Everyone involved in the accident from the people who pulled over to help immediately after it happened to the cafeteria workers in the hospital have been extremely helpful and sweet.

The reason I really wanted to write this post I think is just to share what a sweet family the Prathers are.  Chris and I used to go to their house every Monday night for dinner.  Jeanette is an excellent cook... she never made us the same thing twice.  I remember countless evenings standing in the kitchen with Jeanette telling her about my confusion over my feelings for Chris.  She would listen, sometimes give advice, share a funny story from her and Michael's dating... no matter what she was always there with a listening ear.  She never made me feel like I was weird for feeling or thinking the way I did (even though I was).  I watched her serve and love her family with all the resources that God had given her.  Matthew was a genuinely sweet boy.  He loved and looked up to his brother so much.  All the girls in the youth group loved him because he was very handsome and for some reason was not at all afraid to talk to girls.  I remember talking to him about various girl woes and trying to give advice.  He was very conscious of the way his actions made other people feel... he didn't want to hurt anyone's feelings.  He and the boys in his class at church were very close and it was always so fun to watch the hilarious things they did on youth trips.  One time at winterfest when it was very cold they were all huddled in a circle to keep warm... only ninth grade boys in this circle... but they did let me in for some reason... I was honored :)  He always gave me a hug and made me feel special whenever he saw me at church.  Chris and I had so much fun playing games with their family, watching 24, making fun of bad acting, and even being included in some family Bible studies before Matthew was baptized.  I cannot say enough how much we love them and are hurting with Michael and Stephen right now.  Matthew... thank you for being a part of our lives, we cannot wait to see you again  We continue to pour out prayers for Jeanette's healing.

Emory is spayed!!!

If you are tired of hearing about Emory, this post is NOT for you.  I decided we hadn't posted in a while so it was time, but all I have on my camera is pictures of Emory... what can I say, it's time for us to have a kid (just kidding all future grandparents... all in good time).  Many things have happened in the exciting life of Emory Nicholson, and since her life is currently going better than either of ours, we will focus on her.  She got shaved for the summer as you can see below.  I must admit, I liked her long shaggy hair better, but she was getting sooo hot, so we had to do it.

She is a very good helper.  She follows me everywhere I go when I am doing housework and pokes her head inside every cabinet that I open.  She also loves when I water the flowers.  She is definitely a water dog.

As you can see in the pic above, she loves to ride in the very back of our car with her face plastered to the back windshield.  I can't imagine what this looks like to the people behind us.  We got her to turn around just long enough to take the pic and she then resumed her watch.... At least we haven't had anyone ride our tail while she is in position.

These are pics from the beach. Melanie did such a good job writing about it that I will refer to her blog for full details of the trip- thelifeofadaisy.blogspot.com.  I will add a few pics of Emory.  She loved playing in the waves and would be so exhausted that she just had to curl up and go to sleep.  I love this picture because her hair looks so curly and cute.

More Emory

This is Emory cheering me up after a bad day...

Thank you so much to everyone for your concern about Emory.  She is doing MUCH better, and as you can see, her growth seems to be unimpeded by the sickness so far!  We put her on a new food which is ridiculously expensive, and that's helped a lot.  Of course, it's no fun spending twice as much on your dog's food as your own, but it sure beats scrubbing poop off the walls and carpet every week.  She is getting to be very feisty, and makes herself clearly known when she is unhappy because we aren't paying her enough attention... just what I need... a diva dog!  Oh well, I have to admit I still love her and she can brighten up a bad day any time!