Jennifer's Bachelorette Weekend

This past weekend I headed to Jackson to attend Jennifer's Bachelorette party. What a fun time! Jennifer is my sorority sister and a good friend from college. I will be in her wedding in June and cannot wait to see her and Matthew finally tie the knot!


I also got to spend Friday night and Saturday afternoon with my grandmother. I love the time I spend with her since I don't see her nearly as much as I would like!




Best strawberry cake ever!


With the Bride-to-Be


With Grace, our hostess


Present time

She keeps growing and growing

Chloe will be 5 months in May. I cannot believe we have had her for over 2 months. She has grown so much in that short time. I'm so proud to say that she is completely crate trained and house broken (with the exception of a few accidents). That task was the hardest thing Clint and I have ever done together...but so worth it! She has learned to sit and stay and bring the ball back. Clint continues to work on other tricks. She is just so smart. I mean, poodles are the 2nd smartest breed, but she amazes us daily. Anyway, I thought I would show how big she is now.


Our little puppy when we brought her home.


Fluff ball a month ago


Her new hair cut. I think she lost 10 pounds just from the trim!


Our little centerfold

O Weekend, How I Love Thee

If ever we needed a weekend, this would be the one. This past week, Clint and I had been workin hard for the money. We both had been pulling some major overtime. So, this weekend couldn't have come more quickly. Friday night we did nothing because I was working. Saturday, we took Chloe to get groomed, ran some errands, and then pretty much lounged around. Saturday night we went to my friend Tinsley's house and meet up with our other friends Matt and Andrea. We all have dogs so Chloe got the chance to run until her hearts content with the other pooches. After grilling out and chatting a bit, we headed to Clarksville's annual music festival, Rivers and Spires. I actually was in charge of Thursday's music, so it was nice to be an observer for once! The big attraction for the night was the country group Lone Star. However, some of Clint's work buddies were playing on the Christian stage, so we went to see them instead. It was a fun night, but boy, were the 3 of us pooped!




Chloe and Molli high-fivin on their new friendship!



Macho men and their macho dogs. (Don't let this fool you, they love their girls!)


New Friends: Chloe Davis, Molli Palomacki, and Maggie Hembree

Natchez Trace State Park

This past weekend Clint, Chloe, and I packed up the car and headed west to Natchez Trace. I have a friend here at work who recently went there and came back raving about how great it was. She wasn't kidding. We had our very own little cabin on the lake. It was totally furnished and even had a gas fireplace and gas grill on the porch! Too cute. Even though I'm from west TN I had never been to Natchez. The park is really big. On Saturday, we took a hike in the woods, went horseback riding, and caught up on some reading. It was a little breezy so we got to take advantage of the fireplace. Of course, what made the visit better was the state discount we received! We are still on our Dave Ramsey plan so this fit into our budget quite nicely!


The view from our porch


Our cabin


Chloe Belle sitting by the fireplace


Taking in the view


Huge tree and little me

Happy Birthday Lo

I'm not going to be late on this birthday ;) Tomorrow is Clint's mother's birthday. Lo has been a true blessing to us. I don't how I was so lucky to get the best mother-in-law ever, but that's what I have! I remember making the trip to Kingsport to visit Clint's family for the first time. I was greeted immediately with a warm hug from Lo. I knew from that first visit that I wouldn't have to worry about having those "horrible mother-in-law stories" to tell. The thing that I admire about Lo is her true dedication to her family. Lo works the hardest job in America (being a stay at home mother) and she does it with such great love. Her commitment to the family is evident in everything she does. She has such a cheerful personality that you can't help but be happy around her. Clint has told me that he would not be where he is today without his mother's love and guidance. And, I believe it! We love you Lo and wish you the best year ever!

Happy Belated Birthday Ben

Again, I am late posting Happy Birthday to Ben. If you know me, you know that being late on birthdays is not like me. Work has totally been consuming my life. Ben's birthday was April 7th and he turned the big 19. Ben is the youngest child in Clint's family. He actually was the first family member that I heard Clint talk about when we first met. I can tell that Clint thinks very highly of his little brother and loves him very much. The thing I love about Ben is his ability to be silly and at the same time still remain "cool." We both wish we could have been able to help him celebrate his birthday this year. But, maybe next year. Ben, we hope you had a wonderful birthday!

Happy Belated Birthday Ryann

April 6th was our favorite little girl's birthday. I've been so busy at work, I've hardly had time to get off presents and cards, much less post on here. We were even a little late for Ben's birthday...sorry Ben! Anyway, we hope Ryann had a wonderful 1st birthday. We wish we could have been there to help celebrate!

Make video montages at www.OneTrueMedia.com

Still Missing

I have had many of you ask me about the missing mother and daughter story I posted earlier. They are still missing and have been now for 4 years. Casey (our student worker and sister to Jennifer) and her family held a vigil for Adrianna and Jennifer a few weeks ago (to mark the 4 years missing) and it didn't turn out as they had hoped. Since, they were last seen at the boyfriend's house, that is where they held part of the vigil. Things got nasty when gunshots were heard. Obviously, this is still a very emotional for Casey's family. I don't know how many people actually take the time to read my blog, but I would like to ask each of you to continue to keep Casey and her family in your prayers.They simply are at a loss as to what happened. Sometimes, the element of the "unknown" can be the hardest to deal with. Even though authorities presume they are dead, obviously, the family does not want to until they know something for sure.

The Nashville news covered the story of the vigil:
http://www.fox17.com/newsroom/top_stories/vid_1385.shtml

Family Time

We made a quick trip to Rockwood this weekend. Even though it was kinda nasty on the trip there, the weather cleared up. It turned out to be a nice weekend. Chloe met 3 more members of the family: Papaw, Nanaw, and J.Leigh. She also met mom's dog, Maggie. That meeting didn't go so well. Maggie is use to being the princess and the only black poodle in the family. Needless to say she was less than thrilled to see another little black dog bouncing around getting everyone's attention! She pretty much ignored her the whole time. While we were there, we taught Clint the rules of our family game, "Dirty Board." I shortly found out that was a big mistake when he and mom smoked Nanaw, Papaw and me!






Enjoying her first visit to Rockwood

Atlanta pics

Coke Museum


ADPi Headquarters


Walking around the headquarters with Rachel

THEY ARE BACK...

Oh yeah, this deserves a post. About a month ago I was talking with one of my friends here at work and she told me she had heard that New Kids on the Block were reuniting and might be touring again. What?! No, this couldn't be!
For those of you that don't know, my sister and I were huge fans. If not the #1 fans, then defiantly #2. So, today I found out the rumor is true! I know this may sound silly to some of you (for others, your heart is pounding as well!). However, just hearing this news immediately took me back to elementary school. I find the older I get, the less often things trigger my childhood memories. Now, I don't mean to brag (although, I usually tell everyone I know) that in 5th grade, my sister and I met each of the members of NKOTB. We stayed in the same hotel in Destin, FL. Yes, I swam in the same pool with Jordan. Yes, I saw the rat-tail up close. Yes, I braved the ocean waves to float over to Donnie. Yes, I rode the elevator with Jon and still remember his orange jacket. Yes, we made friends with their tour manager in the laundry room. Yes, I took pictures to document this experience with my hot pink side snap camera. And yes, all of this was borderline stalking, but come on...we were crazy for these boys.
I have found 3 other girls I work with (all around my age) who share in the love for them. We are all anxiously awaiting the posting of the tour schedule! Until then, we will just be "Hangin' Tough!"
Thanks for letting me share my memories and not think I'm a complete nut!

Check it out:
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/21134540/vp/23953971#23953971

Back from the ATL

Yesterday, I returned to work after being in Atlanta 5 days for a conference. (A little too long if you ask me.) This is one of my favorite national conferences because it is for all student affairs professionals. I like that it covers many different areas and that I am able to learn more about each field. Another reason that I love this conference is because I actually know some people there! I got to re-connect with some of my MTSU friends. I cannot believe it has been almost a year since I have seen any of them. The last time I saw them was my last day at MTSU. It was great catching up with everyone.
While I was there, I also got to spend some time with my good friend Rachel. We were in the same pledge class in ADPi and the same Bible Study all through out college. She was also President when I was Vice Pres. and we grew really close during that year. She is attending law school in Atlanta so she took me around and showed me the town. While riding, we realized we were close to the ADPi headquarters. Even though it was at night and we knew it would be closed, we still wanted to stop by. It's funny how that one little visit sparked hours of funny sorority stories! I'll post some of those pictures later.
I also found time to squeeze in a visit to the new Coke Museum. Yes, you heard me right! The wife of an RC Cola man went to pay tribute to the life of Coke. (But, I made sure we would still be on speaking terms if I went!) It was pretty neat to see all the history.
I will now end this post by sharing my biggest frustration about the trip: Atlanta Drivers. Plain and simple, they cannot DRIVE! What's up with all the u-turns in the middle of the road and making your own turning lane? Hello! I'm pretty sure we all have the same traffic rules. It drove me crazy. I guess that's what happens to you when you live in a city with too many people and not enough road. As we drove out of Atlanta I felt a certain sense of pride knowing that I'm a good driver compared to those crazy law breakers!