Birthdays, Open Mic Night, Plays, Tunica, Rocks and Seeds

and of course, a sunset. I love sunsets.

On Valentine's Day, the new Maximum Ride book came out. Brit had been waiting for months and was SO excited! She grabbed the book and immediately sat down to read.

The kids spent the night with Cathy on Valentine's Day so Bobby and I could go out. We had a fantastic evening:) I love that man! We're going to try to implenment a monthly date night!

The next day, Bobby and I went up to Tennessee to visit friends and work on their website. We hit some roadblocks along the way, but the site is up and running. We didn't get home until late that night so the kids spent the night with Cathy again. I swear they would move in with her if we would let them:)

That Thursday, we picked Sarah and Tori up and headed to The Daily Brew for Open Mic Night.

See Brit's name?! She got up there and sang 'Love Song' while Sarah played the keyboard for her. She did a GREAT job!

Cody playing Sarah's drum.

We celebrated Dad's birthday with a delicious lunch at Longhorn's.
Happy Birthday, Dad!!!

Sarah and Tori's 16th birthday was on the 19th. 16?!! I need a moment...


The 23rd was quite the busy, fun day! In the morning, we got ready and headed to Hartselle to watch 101 Dalmatians. Chandler and Keilee did a fantastic job! This version of 101 Dalmatians was the same one the kids did for their first play. It was fun for us because we knew all of the lines and songs. Plus we got to see LOTS of friends! Old and new:)

Our kiddos!

I LOVE this picture!!! The kids are doing a super hero pose. Brit looks like Michael Jackson and Cody's doing Mario!

Hmm...now that I'm looking at the picture, my two are the only ones posing:)

Our beautiful, talented girls

We've done several plays with Shane, Karley, Drew, Abbey, and Sophie. It was GREAT to see everyone!!

The 23rd was Heather's and Elisa's birthday!

We met Elisa and Donna for lunch after the play. While we were finishing up, Elisa started talking about Tunica and how much she wanted to go for her birthday. Bobby and I were talking about it the other day, so we both wanted to go. Donna had only been one other time and she really wanted to go. So I called mom and we set up a VERY spur of the moment trip to Mississippi!

Bobby, Elisa and I had offers from the hotels and casinos. We didn't have to pay for our rooms or meals and had over $100 of their money to play on!

Did you know you're not suppose to take pictures out on the floor? I didn't either so I took this one of my first 'big win' before Bobby told me the rules:)

One of the casinos, Sam's Town maybe, is giving away this Mustang on March 26th. Britney has decided that we will win it for her!

We had a great time. Elisa did really well on a penny machine of all things. I had never even played one before. Bobby and I both came home with money in our wallets...not as much as we took there, but that's why they call it gambling.

Thanks Mom for hanging out with the kiddos!

Cody has become VERY interested in rocks again.

He brought all of these into the house yesterday and put them in a box in his room.

Britney has become VERY interested in something else lately, but more on that this afternoon...

Bobby came home from work the other night, and we set to work planting seeds in the starter containers. We planted tomatoes, onions, and several different kinds of peppers.

The next day, Cody and I took out his carnivorous plant kit and made a mess in the kitchen:)
There are over 10 species of plants in this kit! Cody is super excited!


He made a peace sign out of the rocks:) That's my boy!
After those were planted, I planted my indoor herb garden. It's my first try so I hope everything turns out well. Grow seeds GROW!

Nichols Gourmet Coffee

I know...you haven't heard from me lately. But if I don't ask you to do anything else this week, I ask that you go check out Nichols Gourmet Coffee's new website:)

Nichols Gourmet Coffee

I can vouch for their coffee. It's WONDERFUL! Our favorites are Sinful Delight, Vermont Maple Crunch and Hazelnut. Mmmm. Their prices are very reasonable and the owners are just great people.

Go! Check it out! :)

The Daily Brew

The Daily Brew has an open mic night on Thursdays. Sarah and Tori have been going for some time, and have invited us to come watch them a couple times. Until this past Thursday, we haven't been able to go. We've either been sick or someone fell down the back steps and couldn't walk. At any rate, the kids and were able to go and we had SUCH a great time! They did a fantastic job!

There are videos on my FB page if you want to check them out!

All of my babies

I think it's safe to say this will be something we get more involved with. Britney had a blast and I know she'll be up there performing soon:)

Garden

We've wanted to have a nice garden since...forever. I remember that was something Bobby and I talked about very early in our relationship. We love the idea of growing our own healthy foods. There's something very satisfying about eating fruits and vegetables that you helped create.

After we bought our home, we planted apple and peach trees. We've had tomato plants through out the years, but we've never really had garden. We wanted to have one last year, but with all of the traveling we do, we were afraid our efforts would go to waste.

Last year we decided to grow our own potatoes. There are many methods of doing this, and our attempt pretty much failed because of our errors. While Bobby was searching online for ideas, he came across something like THIS. I'm sure that's not the same site, but it's close enough. Bobby and Brit built the potato box today at no charge to us! All of the wood that was used was scrap that Bobby brought home from work.
We've also ordered heirloom seeds for the outside garden as well as for a kitchen herb garden. We'll have tomatoes, onions, cucumbers (for slicing and pickling) okra, several different varieties of peppers, lettuce, beans, basil, parsley, cilantro and oregano. I'm sure I forgot a few:)

Come on Spring!

Farewell Flu

The flu bug is finally becoming as tired of us and we are with it. After eleven days, it's leaving. The kids are still coughing and Bobby is definitely not 100%, but better is better and I'm thankful for that.

Thanks again for all of the get well wishes:)

Britney's 1st Concert

Last Thursday was the day Brit started getting sick. Her fever was 103 all night. Friday morning, she felt better. Her fever was down. She was still coughing and had a sore throat, but definitely felt better. Saturday afternoon, Emily called to ask if Brit could go to a concert with her Sunday evening. I explained the situation to Emily and told her we would just have to wait and see how Brit felt. Plus we didn't want to get anyone else sick.

Brit was convinced we weren't going to let her go, but I can't stress enough how much she wanted to. We looked up the Rock & Worship Roadshow online to find out some details. She was so hopeful. Emily called back Sunday afternoon and Suzette and I talked about everything. I wanted them to have full knowledge of Britney's cooties. However, at this point we didn't know she had the flu. They decided they weren't concerned about getting sick, so we gave Brit the okay. She was SO excited!

Dave and Emily picked Brit up at 4:30 and she got home just before 11:00.

Two VERY excited girls!

Dave took these pictures at the concert. Thanks Dave!

E & B with Anthem Lights

E & B with The Afters

Brit bought the poster for $5 and they signed it for her:)

I can't really explain how excited she was when she got home. That kid was glowing! She had the best time! Bobby and I hate that we weren't a part of her first concert. We'd always thought we would be the ones to take her, but I can't complain. What an amazing memory!

Flu

The kids feel worse today! Why don't they feel better? Cody is coughing his head off, and has no appetite. Plus he's got an upset tummy - I'm assuming from the Tamiflu. Some medicines are too strong for him. Brit's coughing and said her throat is hurting again. She's gone back to bed.

I started feeling not so great yesterday. I had a headache and felt sore and icky. Headaches have been like a gateway symptom for everyone. First the headache, then coughing, sore throat, fever...

My head is still hurting a little, and my throat is hurting. Not bad, but it's there. I just feel tired and achy.

Bobby is in bed. He's working nights this week. Last time I asked, he's still feeling better. That makes me happy.

I've put on a big pot of homemade vegetable beef soup. It's starting to smell really yummy. I hope it helps everyone feel a little better.

We're missing skate day. It's happening...right now:(

Progress?

I was doing so great with my weight loss and get healthy goals. I was eating healthy foods and exercising every single day. I had mastered the Pilates DVD. I was lifting weights and I swear I could see a love handle shrinkage. I was feeling better and had lost a few pounds. Then everyone got sick and I have been focused on taking care of them and in the mix, have neglected taking care of myself. The diet has been shot to hell and I haven't worked out in about four days. I'm not complaining. Just stating a fact. I want those three Lackeys of mine to feel better, and I'll retain/gain weight for a week if I have to:)

However, I'm ready to get back to it. I was making progress and I want to continue in that direction. I'm excited about being healthier - physically, mentally, emotionally and spiritually.


Update on the family:
Brit and Cody are coughing...A LOT so their throats are raw. Britney had a bad night last night. Cody got up with a fever and neither one of them can stop coughing. Bobby said he's feeling a little better. I am still without flu. Thank you everyone for your prayers and get well wishes:)