Friday night musings

I love Friday evenings with nothing to do. After a hectic work week and the busyness of life I love Friday evenings. Weekends will be getting pretty busy quickly with baby girl running cross country and her debate tournaments and hunting season approaching. So I am enjoying this quiet evening. I am a lover of the fall season. I love the food, the colors, the smells, the memories it sparks and just everything about it. I am also very ready for it to get here. I was sitting on my back porch checking out some recipes and came across PW's yummy Beef and Mushroom Stew http://thepioneerwoman.com/cooking/2009/11/beef-stew-with-mushrooms/
It is simmering as I type!!!!! We eat pretty early during the week so I rather enjoy an occasional late night supper. It is so nice outside and that is a welcome respite from the horrible heat we have been having. Wishing for fall to hurry up! Last fall turned into a chaotic mess for our house and I am praying that the Lord has something a little gentler in mind this year! But if not, I'll hang on for the ride.
Isn't God good? I mean in the craziness of life, the stillness of life, the joy and the pain of life, He is Good. I am so thankful for that. So thankful for a God that longs to be in fellowship with me even when I many times keep telling Him,"I'll be with You in a minute". He is always waiting. Hoping I will give Him some of my time- which He grants me by the way. Anybody else feel like I do? I go in circles so often with being so diligent in my quiet time to wondering how I have let so much time lapse since I stopped for Him. Yet He never fails me. So Good. All the time. I am so undeserving. We are all so undeserving. What a Savior that sent His son to give us what we Needed not what we Deserved. Praise God and Amen.
Stop long enough this weekend to listen to Him. Praise Him. Thank Him. Tell Him, "I love you too Lord."
Blessings,
Michelle

Heat. Hair. Hormones.

It is so hot. I am hot. My air conditioner has not stopped running in three months. I will have to take out a small loan to keep paying my electric bill. Really, could it be any hotter? If I sound whiney it is because I am. Did I mention it is hot?
We started school last week and my classroom is on the second floor. Someone thought it would be funny to pull the fire alarm before 8 am today so we all had to exit. To the outdoors. Where it was sweltering. Before 8 am. My hair swelled so large you could not put a bushel basket over it. I know this because I yelled at my students that were not doing their First Five activity and their response was, "Um, we can't see the board." Me - Are you trying to tell me I am wide?
Student - Uh, you're not but your hair is.
I hope I find the kid that pulled the fire alarm. They will pay for ruining my coif and costing me instructional minutes.
I picked up baby girl from Cross Country practice today and she burst into tears. I thought someone had done something to her and I was going to have to turn around and  hurt them. "What is wrong?" I yelled. "I just don't feel good" she responded. Heat. Hormones. Early schedule. First full week of high school. She has been sound asleep since 4:30.
My mama says extremes follow extremes. If that is true I better start shopping for a parka.  I can't wait!
Random post brought on by heat exhaustion. Hope everyone has a good Friday and a great weekend. I will be trying to tame this mane.
Michelle

That Time Again

It is that time again when school is back in session! It is so hot........ thank goodness for air conditioning. This year is a little different for me as the baby of the four started high school! I can hardly believe she is a freshman. Some of my favorite memories as a teacher are when my older three children were in high school with me. It was great fun! However, it has been 6 years since the last one graduated and things are very different. We like traditions in our home. Every year on the first day of school my man makes a big breakfast of his famous french toast. It is the only time during the school year that I eat breakfast at home instead of in the car driving - if I eat at all! Also, baby girl and I get our picture made on our big first day of school. As this was the first year of high school for her I started marveling about how swiftly the time has passed since her first day of kindergarten. I went and found those pics and had a pretty good cry. Isn't she darling? She was so excited. Isn't my hair huge? Always has been!

This was us this morning!!!! She is so grown!!!! And my hair is still big!!

She was just as excited this morning as she was then. If I remember correctly she did a lot of crying when she got to her classroom all those years ago as she didn't have any friends or know anyone in her class. This morning she and all her friends ran together with their new backpacks, fresh lip gloss and big expectations. No crying. And certainly no crying for her momma to come get her! I am sure tears will come soon enough - from us both. I did a lot of praying this morning. Big things ahead for baby girl and I am so anxious for her and nervous all at the same time. I want to keep my baby close by but know that is not how life is to be. Oh how I comfort in knowing that even though I can't be with her all the time - and that those days have been gone for a long time - that she has a Heavenly Father holding her in His palm at all times. I pray she will remember that and trust in it. It will never fail her.
I am looking forward to a lot of good times in the next four years. Pretty soon she will be taller than me - maybe not taller than my hair though!

Zippity Do Dah Zippity Yah! My oh My what a wonderful day!!!

Well after the painful day we spent on Wednesday biking and hiking, my man is now officially Day Trip Plan President! Yesterday morning we got up and went rafting down the Pigeon River. It was great. Baby Girl had never done it and she thought it was a blast. She even manned the front of the raft for us. Then came.......... I can hardly say it.......... It was the most fun thing I have ever done in my life...................... We ZIP LINED!!!!!! I am a fanatic now. I mean seriously, I want to travel everywhere there is a zip line and fly like the wind, I want to quit my job and become a zip line instructor ( I mean I have a whole day of experience) I want my man to build me a zip line. IT WAS FANTASTIC!!!! I hope you get that I liked it. I was a tad nervous. I saw an episode of Amazing Race where this husband couldn't get across the zip line and got stuck and had to be retrieved and I kept thinking that is going to be me. I need to clarify where we zipped. (That sounds so cool!) Everywhere in Gatlinburg and Pigeon Forge there are these carnival type zip lines up for people to do. One zip from this platform to over there and that is it. When we booked our trip to raft we were told about this place. It is way way off the beaten path. High up in the mountains on a 150 acre farm. A retired businessman from the area traveled to Alaska a few years ago and zipped, loved it and built one on his farm. It was a gorgeous place. Eight zip lines total. The first couple were training ones to build your confidence and then the rest were from 650 - 1500 feet in length. About 250- 300 ft. in the air. Zipping through canopies of gorgeous hardwoods and seeing creeks flow underneath you and the skyline of the Smokies.
Our instructors were so great. Took their time with you and really boosted your confidence. The only way I know to conquer my fear is to just jump right into something. So when they said who wants to go first I stepped up. I screamed and squealed the whole time it was so much fun.

We got there a little early so we could eat first. As I watched other people screaming through the tops of the trees I thought, " I have lost my mind." But these two faces were so excited and I did not want them thinking I was a weenie.

This is Jon coming in. He loved it too. I think he might build me one. I mean we know nothing about trees or lines or anything, but what difference does that make. Aren't the trees gorgeous?

Baby girl coming in. She wasn't feeling totally up to snuff yesterday afternoon, but she is such a trooper. She will do anything. I am so proud of her.

HeeHee!!!!!!!!!!! Can you tell how much fun I am having? It was so great, I want to go back right now.

Look at the view behind us!! God is the master artist isn't He?

What a great, great day we had. Today is our last day and we are taking it easy. Going to do a little outlet mall shopping and some souvenir shopping for some little grandpeeps I am missing a whole bunch. We have had such fun but we sure have missed our other kids being with us. We keep talking about how much they would be enjoying different things we have done- well no one said they would have liked my hike.

Maybe I can talk them into a little zipping today.........................................

Blessings,

Michelle

Cades Cove

I am so frustrated this morning as I cannot get my pics to upload to my blog! ARGH!! Yesterday morning was amazing. We had rented our bikes the night before and left our cabin at about 5:45 am. Drove to Cades Cove and biked the whole 11 mile loop!! It was incredible. They close the loop to motorists on Wed. and Sat. morning so bikers and runners have it all to themselves. Yes there were many people running the 11 miles. Up and down those hills. The UT cross country team was there and they could run faster than I could bike! I prayed for the Lord to really show out for us yesterday morning and He did not disappoint. I got some of the most beautiful pictures (hence my frustration) of deer and turkey. It was gorgeous. I can't even describe what it was like to be in that cool mountain air and watch the cove "wake up". I loved it. Loved it.!!! One of my favorite things I have ever done. I will post pics when I get home. We took our time and finished in about 2 1/2 hours. Then we got in line with the other cars and drove the cove. I thought it would be fun to hike to this waterfall I had heard so much about. Round trip it was about 6 1/2 miles of mountain hiking. NOT FUN AFTER BIKING 11 MILES. I know I get overzealous and my man is so sweet he just indulges my whims. I think that time is over though. He said I am not allowed to plan any more day time activities. We were so tired last night, but I had the best day. I am so mad about the pictures not uploading because they are so good.
Today we are white water rafting and zip-lining!!! I will try with the pics again tonight. Have a blessed day and look for some beauty in your day today. I am reminded how God is such a creative God and His creation is so phenomenal. Admire it and thank Him for it.
God Bless!
Michelle

Destination............

The Great Smoky Mountains!!!!! I am so thrilled we are here! After some serious deliberation and discussion on where to go (we took turns throwing pennies at the atlas and decided Russia and North Dakota were just too dang far!) we loaded up the truck and headed for the mountains. This is our cabin nestled way up in the park. Not inside the national park but the park surrounding that. I can't get over how much things have changed here since I was here last. It is more like Branson. We want to do some white water rafting- Cades Cove is a must. I am hoping I can talk my fellow travelers into doing it on a bicycle. We will just have to see. For now we are relaxing and enjoying the fresh air.

Inside of the cabin. It is so cute and cozy. Wish we had a reason to light the fireplace!

Do you think we should be worried that the lady at check-in told us a bear ate our hot tub cover the other day?

More pics to come later!

Michelle

Vacation, Vacation!

Yeah!!! We are finally taking some time off - I haven't felt like it has been summer yet. We are leaving Sunday morning and have no clue where we are going. Crazy isn't it. My man thinks the best times occur spontaneously. We did that last year and ended up in Savannah - great fun. Baby girl is going this time and we can't wait to get out of here. Any suggestions out there about fun places to go on the spur of the moment? These have been my recommendations so far and no confirmation made yet:
1. Tybee Island outside of Savannah
2. Grand Canyon
3. Gatlinburg - my favorite vacation spot as a kid and baby girl has never been
4. San Antonio
Any thoughts?