Biltmore Estate

Charles surprised me with a visit to the Biltmore Estate in Asheville, North Carolina. We had a lovely visit. Here are a few pictures from our vacation.

New Book:)

Kassem requested two books (he's in Afghanistan right now) and when I ordered them from Amazon I was about 10 dollars away from free shipping. Of course, the queen of reading decided to order herself a book too. I got A People's History of the United States: 1492 to Present and it is incredibly interesting; it's written in a narrative style from the point of view of the oppressed (Native Americans, Slaves, Women, etc.). I most certainly recommend it to anyone who is looking for a summer read!

Grace loves the outdoors!

Yesterday was really fun. Grace and I went swimming at Laura's house. We saw Miss Caroline there! We also saw several teachers from Old Pointe and we all had a great time. Grace is such a little fish; I need to find one of those swimsuits that has the life vest built in because she definitely did not want me holding her! She isn't scared of anything--- she tried to dive right into that water several times! She almost gave me a heart attack!

Grace and I returned some wood for Charles this morning from "Carter Lumber;" they were incredibly nice and it was an easy task. Then, we ran to Walmart and got some mundane groceries (milk, bread, etc). When we got home, Grace took a nap while I cleaned the house.

When Grace woke up, it was swimming time! She played outside and I gave her a popsicle- she made a huge mess, but it was ok since she was in the pool :) When she finished in the pool, we headed inside for lunch. After lunch, we played and then Grace took another nap while I did work for UNCC.

I reorganized the pantry for a few hours this evening- it looks really good! Grace and I played, practiced facial features (we're working on her being able to point to her eyes, nose, ears, etc), I gave her a bath, we read a book, and then it was off to bed for Miss Grace. It was a lovely day.

Marla- I tried to get to your blog today to leave a comment and I couldn't get there! I hope that you are doing well:) I miss you!

Blog Hiatus is Over :)

Ok, admittedly, I have not done a very good job blogging since summer started. Things have been a bit hectic around here. However, I'm back in business:)

Last week, Grace and I went swimming with our friends, Regina and Aly. Grace and Aly were in the pool for over an hour. They had so much fun (we CANNOT WAIT to go back!). After swimming, we went inside and played for a little while. Then, it was back home for naptime and a trip to Poppies' house.

Saturday was Mary Katherine's fourth birthday party; she was definitely a little princess. Aunt Jennifer had a pool set up and we brought Grace's pool too (there were lots of kids and we needed two pools). Everyone had a really good time. Happy Birthday, MK!


Sunday was, of course, Father's Day. I had gone to Spartanburg last Tuesday to celebrate with my dad. (Side note- thanks Dad for everything that you've done for me- I love you to the sky.) Sunday, we woke Charles up with his cards and his gifts; he is such an amazing father. Grace is truly a lucky girl. We had a nice lunch at Ruby Tuesday's and then headed to Marshall's house to celebrate with him. We had a lovely cookout with steaks, potatoes, and Nell's salad.

Grace is One!!

Grace turned one year old on May 15th. I cannot believe how quickly the time flew by! We had a birthday party for her at the house; many of our family members and friends were able to come. We had hamburgers, hot dogs, potato salad, coleslaw, baked beans, veggies, chips, and for dessert- cupcakes! Grace got so many presents that we're going to have to build an addition onto the house:)

Do any of you have good birthday memories?

My Favorite Author- the One, the Only, Mr. Pat Conroy

When I was in high school, I read The Prince of Tides, an amazing novel in which I immediately fell in love with the Wingo family and their hardships. It was a book of searing tragedy and the ways in which the human spirit can survive. I've read the book so many times that I've lost count. A friend of mine interviewed Pat Conroy and was able to get me an autographed copy of Prince of Tides. On the inside, Conroy wrote, "To Lindsay, for the love of books. Pat Conroy" It is one of my greatest treasures.


Conroy's newest novel, South of Broad, just made it to paperback and I bought it and read the 600 page novel in a few, short days. It was fascinating. The setting is Charleston and he describes the sunsets, the marsh, the beautiful houses "south of Broad" with such great detail that the reader feels completely present. Conroy is one of the greatest story tellers to ever live and this novel deals with the immense and decade-spanning friendship of a group of misfits in Charleston in 1969. I laughed and cried as I went on a journey with Mr. Leo King. Conroy elicits true emotion... as only the best authors can.



Do any of you have favorite authors? If so, share some of their works with us.

Teacher Appreciation Week

We'll use this post as a forum to post your appreciation of a past teacher (you cannot post about me).

I'll start!

Mrs. Pat Burton was my seventh grade language arts and science teacher. She was incredibly intelligent and believed in teaching us all sides of the story in order to give us the background knowledge so that we could make up our own minds. We call this "critical thinking." She wanted us to think for ourselves instead of just believing what we hear. She had snakes in her room as well as a whole family of rats- which was actually kind of fun:) She had an awesome classroom library. Mrs. Burton had such high expectations for me and through her guidance, I cultivated my life long love of learning. Thanks, Mrs. Burton!!