Catching up...

 There have been trips to Charlotte...some together and some with Jeff just going. But always a Panera stop when there. :)

We had a date night last month which was great to have some adult time out.

Halloween came and it always makes me think of how Norah is getting older and she grows up so fast. A flashback to see all her Halloween costumes makes me smile and then this year...she was a Pokemon Trainer-Team Mystic. I love that she always picks comfortable and cute costumes!

My teaching partner (Tammy) and I dressed up like Pete the Cat (Jokingly we were Petra and Peeta...Pete's twin sisters) for school. We think some of our sweet little 2 year olds knew who we were!

Then for trick or treating night...we dressed and headed to a friend's in Georgetown for Norah to get some candy! With Halloween on a school night...it made for an early night. We sure did miss having our party in North Litchfield that we have done the last two years! :)

Norah made straight As for the first 9 weeks at school. She also got the highest average in Science and was selected for the Academic Club at school. So proud of her hard work!

We had a family lunch one day at Mellow Mushroom in Myrtle Beach which was fun! 

And Norah and I got to have our very own date night...movies and Sushi...the perfect date in my book!

This last Saturday...Clemson's game about killed me! Hopefully we can finish these next games with a win!

And finally November 13th marked 12 years that we have been married...so crazy! We have actually been together for 14 1/2 years which is even crazier! Here is to the next 12!

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Catching up...

Hurricane Matthew and Jeff's birthday...

Time to catch the blog up...I've debated about not doing it anymore but I cannot tell ya how many times I have looked back on pics and things we have done in the past. My very own scrapbook. Anyway...

We ha Hurricane Matthew come through and it ended up being a little more destructive then we planned. For us...no power for a few days (I'm not good without power!) and some yard debris/branches down. For others in our town...it was a lot worse. The night before...we hung out...

Then the next day....the back half of the storm is what did us in...when the power went out. We turned to games, books, and that is about it... ;)


We were creative in cooking using the grill...

Went out to eat once somewhere opened to get a break from that creative cooking...
Finally desperation set in and Jeff went and got us a generator! Wouldn't you know that later that same day...we got our power back on! :)

Since we had to do something about stuff in our freezer...we had some friends over to grill up everything...that is venison and chicken...and it all got eaten!

After we survived Hurricane Matthew we had a birthday to celebrate! Jeff turned 49 (he looks 39 seriously!)...so we headed to Murrells Inlet for dinner.


Will catch up more in another post!

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Hurricane Matthew and Jeff's birthday...

A Huge Loss...

I'm not sure what to write but feel that it is fitting to mark the passing of Jeff's mom, Vee, on the blog (she was probably the only person who actually read this little old blog.) It is something that is still surreal and new. She passed away unexpectedly and quickly in October. As much as it was a blessing for her not to have to suffer...of course, it brought great sadness to her family to have lost such am important person.

It has been hard to watch Jeff as not only was this his momma but last parent and Norah lost a grandmother who she adored. There is more to say but I'm not sure how to say it in just a few words so I will leave the poem that the minister read at the funeral and a few pictures of her with her greatest gifts...her children and grandchildren.

She is Gone                                                                                            

By: David Harkins

You can shed tears that she is gone
or you can smile because she has lived.

You can close your eyes and pray that she’ll come back
or you can open your eyes and see all she’s left.

Your heart can be empty because you can’t see her
or you can be full of the love you shared.

You can turn your back on tomorrow and live yesterday
or you can be happy for tomorrow because of yesterday.

You can remember her and only that she’s gone
or you can cherish her memory and let it live on.

You can cry and close your mind, be empty and turn your back
or you can do what she’d want: smile, open your eyes, love and go on.

This poem read at the Queen Mother’s Funeral

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A Huge Loss...

Books 37-42 for the year...

So I've still been reading and here are the 37th-42nd books I have read this year. #37 was another Nelson DeMille book called "Wild Fire." It was okay but I'm not sure I will read anymore of this series or not. It just is not as good as the Daniel Silva books for me. 

Book #38...switched gears and went for a different genre and read Lisa Gardner's "Find Her." I thought this was a good book...it is super creepy in parts, interesting, and a totally different plot. I thought the end was a little weak but I would still recommend this book to anyone who likes a thriller/suspense.

Next up was "The Couple Next Door" by Shari Lapena. Since I was already in the thriller/suspense genre I stuck with it. Just like "Find Her" this was interesting and a different plot. Both were super quick reads and really good.

#40 was "Titans" by Leila Meacham. I have not read anything else by this author and the description of the book made a comment about it being like the Thornbirds (which I love!) The book was okay but it wasn't very deep or anything and not near as interesting as the Thornbirds for me. If you want a family saga to read...read "Shell Seekers" by Rosamunde Pilcher.

So after "Titans" I was back to wanting to read a spy genre so since I have loved Daniel Silva's books I have read (I've read his more recent ones)...I decided to read the first in the Gabriel Allon series. The first one is "The Kill Artist" and of course I liked it...cannot go wrong with a Daniel Silva book. I'll be reading more in this series for sure.

Back to the thriller/suspense genre but throw in some science fiction stuff and you have "Dark Matter" by Blake Crouch. This was a great book...the first half is awesome and you will not want to put the book down. The last bit gets a little more "science stuff" so you are still liking it but it gets a little crazy. So that was #42 of the year. I am hoping to hit 52 books this year so we will see...

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Books 37-42 for the year...

Books... (mine and Norah's)

My bullet journal (still loving!) now contains pages to list books I have read in 2016 and so far I am up to 36 books. It will be fun to see how many books I end up with at the end of the year. So here are books 32-36...

I decided to try reading a new author that had books out for awhile (so easy to get at library) and was a series. I picked up "Plum Island" by Nelson DeMille. At first, I wasn't sure if I liked this book or that I would stick with it. It was far fetched and I couldn't decide if I liked the main character or if he would drive me crazy. The book picked up with the second half being better than the first half and I ended up enjoying it enough to read the next one.

I liked "The Lion's Game" a lot more than the first book but yet...I think you need the first book to set up the characters for the next book. So I enjoyed this book and was sad that it ended. So immediately I got book number 3.


Book Three is "Night Fall" and I liked it but not as much as "The Lion's Game." It ends with September 11, 2001 so there is a eeriness to it. The 4th book was already checked out so I got on the wait list. Now I'm into the characters and want to see what they do next.


I have heard a lot about "The Woman in Cabin 10" by Ruth Ware and knew I would read it. It is like a modern day Agatha Christie novel. Parts seemed strange and I felt that it could have been edited in some scenes yet needed more in others. It was a quick read.

Then another book I have heard a lot about is "Siracusa" by Delia Ephron and it was another quick read. It is based on 6 main characters with 4 characters being the narratives in the story. So you immediately know something has happened with one or both of the other main characters. This is a book that shows me why I like books in series. You kinda want to know more about the characters in the future and you really don't know enough about their pasts either. The book is basically a snap shot of an event/time in their lives. I can see that this could become a movie.


The last two books were good and more of what I consider lighter reads but I'm ready for a 500+ page kinda book with lots of details, characters, and a big ole' plot. ;) But who knows what I'll end up reading next!?

Also I thought I would add Norah finished reading the series "Wings of Fire" she has read the first 8 books and I believe number 9 will be out this fall.

I went to the library and they helped me pick up three books of different series to see if she wanted to start one of them next. (I LOVE OUR LIBRARY AND EVERYONE THAT WORKS THERE! Seriously it is one of my favorite things about living in Pawleys!)  Norah does seem to like to read books that are in a series...just like me!

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Books... (mine and Norah's)

Randoms...

Life is busy as always and I have been so slack in picture taking. So here is some random stuff!

Some new wine I tried and liked...A Zinfandel and Cabernet. Both good buys. The Cabernet is the new one owned by Zac Brown (The Zac Brown Band) and I love the owl on the label! I've also been drinking some Merlot...I consider that a good light, summer wine. ;)

Found a new bar that is perfect for breakfast or a snack. Usually I do not like any dried fruit in my bars but this one is perfect. I love the texture...soft, chewy with a little crunch.

Another super love...is cold coffee!! I get this stuff from the grocery store and make my own iced coffee in the morning. Perfect!

I try to drink diet coke only occasionally so when I want something besides water...I love these Ginger Beers on their own! They are non-alcoholic so they are the perfect something special. But occasionally I like to throw in some vodka and lime for a little extra. ;)

Let's see...Jeff and I started a new show on Amazon Prime..."Mr. Robot"...we are only about 3 shows in. We are liking it so far.

Now onto something that so far has been super fabulous. My bullet journal. With going back to work, Norah's activities, lists galore, etc. I needed something to hold everything. I heard about a bullet journal...there is so much info online about it. You can start with the ORIGINAL (watch video) but there are tons of websites like THIS that can give you more info and hit up Pinterest. I'm definitely more on the simple side but so far so I'm loving it for me. I did get this NOTEBOOK (orange for Clemson!) and PENS...the monogram sticker is from HERE.

Another teacher at work drew this picture of me to put on the teacher wall until I get a real one...and I love it! It was so sweet of her to do! I love it and asked if we could keep it up all year instead of putting my real face up! Ha! I'm so enjoying being part of a team...love the ladies I work with...and the kids are so sweet...I give them hugs all day! :)

I did snap a couple pics of Norah on picture day at her school. She looks so happy. Love this girl! She also had her first soccer game which was awesome! She did amazing as well as her teammates...they won too! I didn't take one pic as I was so nervous for her! She is loving it!


Well tomorrow is Friday...can't wait!

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Randoms...