We're All In!

At Bailey's party last weekend, I had asked Jim to run me to the house in the Polaris so that I could grab something for Brianne.  Dena had my camera and was going to snap a quick pic of Jim and I, when Weston came running to ride with us.  The pictures that followed just illustrate what happens at our house when the side-by-side is started.

Wait one second: One grandchild

Wait thirty seconds: Five grandchildren

Wait a whole minute: Every child at the party!

Don't worry...Jim went really slow so we didn't lose anyone sitting in the back.

Tricks and Treats and Everything Sweet

Bri and Josh threw Bailey's second birthday party at the barn on Sunday. It was a costume party so we will not be having a Halloween Party tonight...but I do have pictures of the grands (and girls) to share!

Weston aka Lloyd from Ninjago

Maddux aka Star Lord from Guardians of the Galaxy

Davin aka Special Ops Leader

Brooke (also the birthday girl on Sunday) aka Vampira

Ellie aka Sweet Witch (she ditched the hat within two seconds of arrival)

Delayne aka Butterfly Princess

Brianne, Kelli and Megan aka Little Red Riding Hood, a Sanderson Sister and Wednesday Addams

Dayton aka Batman

Bailey (the birthday girl) aka Anna

Happy Trick or Treating tonight!

Hope your bag is filled with all of your favorites!

Flower Girls, Junior Bridesmaids and a Fun Day with My Girls

Last Saturday all of us Goode Girls...all 9 of us...spent the day in wedding prep mode. The goal of the day was to find dresses for the two flower girls, the junior bridesmaid and the mother of the groom.

Here are a few pictures from our adventure:

The beautiful Bride-to-be with one of her flower girls at brunch.

Brooke (Jr. Bridesmaid), Delayne and Ellie (Flower Girls).

My favorite photo of the day.

My three beautiful daughters, our soon to be daughter-in-love and

the four granddaughters enjoying brunch at The Cheesecake Factory

Not my best photo ever...but I sure love this girl!

I left home at 8 in the morning.  Returned home at 7:30 in the evening.  Secured one flower girl dress, with a plan to find another in stock at another bridal shop.  Nothing on the Junior Bridesmaid.  A possibility for Mother of the Groom. And the Bride-to-be found her Rehearsal Dinner dress.

We were whooped...but had a great time with lots of laughs, a few tears and only two minor breakdowns (Bailey and Delayne, not the grown-ups).

It's times like these that I want to remember and cherish.  I told the girls that I would like for us to make room in our calendars for these types of days when there are no weddings to prepare for...even if it's once a quarter.

Wedding day is getting closer!

What a Weekend

So much fun, it's taken me a week to put in into words!

My wild weekend started off with these two beautiful ladies.  Kelley, Kristina and I began the night with dinner and drinks at Cyclone Anaya's and followed it up with Luke Bryan's "Huntin', Fishin', and Lovin' Every Day" Tour, along with Granger Smith and Brett Eldredge. What a fun night we had! 

I slept in on Saturday morning and only crawled out of bed when Bri called and invited me to join her and Kelli at Meagan's for the Southwest Classic Game -- Arkansas vs Texas A&M.  (The guys were golfing.)  I can't say many kind things about the game...but these two cuties made up for it.

Minnie Mouse, Babs Bunny and Ariel made an appearance.

During the game, the girls helped me put all of the finishing touches on the games for our Fellowship at Field Store Women's Progressive Dinner.  We had a great turnout (22!) and so much fun.  I laughed so much.  We are quite the competitive group...especially when it came time for the photo scavenger hunt!  There are photos that cannot be seen in public unless someone is there to explain what is happening. 

We are missing Nancy in this picture...but the rest of the gang is accounted for.

Sunday morning I drug my aching body out of bed and then to church.  We had a sweet time of worship and fellowship followed by the celebration of our 'Jo' birthdays...Jo, Joe and Joseph.  I came home to Jim's delicious brunch and enjoyed the quiet of our house.  The kids were all gathering at Meagan's for the Texans game, but I just couldn't.  I chose to stay home and enjoy my beautiful flowers instead.

Gerbera daisies that look like fall.

Instead, I curled up with a good book!  I curled up in bed, on the couch, on the loveseat...anywhere I could find a place of quiet and solitude.  And I had read the WHOLE THING by the time I went to bed Sunday night!

Young Jane Young: A Novel by Gabrielle Zevin
(Fiction)

Un-put-down-able book of the year for me!

This was my first book from The Bookshelf Thomasville's 'Shelf Subscription, an independent book store in Georgia whose podcast ('From the Front Porch') I listen to faithfully. I did a happy dance when I opened my first package to reveal not only a book I had been wanting to read, but an autographed copy!

This is the story of a political affair between an older politician and his intern, BUT from the viewpoint of the women caught in the storm.  We hear from the mother of the intern, the intern herself, her daughter and the politician's wife. The story jumps back and forth in time (thus the daughter) revealing a little more of how each person played a part in the outcome. I found it to be well written and to bring up the conversation of how the politician moves forward with just an asterisk by his name while the women never truly recover and find themselves as either the butt of the joke or the one that bears all the blame and shame.

I would love to sit down to discuss this one with someone soon.  I thought the author did a great job of neither condoning the affair or excusing either party while still asking the questions about power, fame, responsibility and naiveté.

Aviva Grossman, an ambitious congressional intern in Florida, makes the mistake of having an affair with her boss--and blogging about it. When the affair comes to light, the beloved congressman doesn’t take the fall. But Aviva does, and her life is over before it hardly begins: slut-shamed, she becomes a late-night talk show punch line, anathema to politics.

She sees no way out but to change her name and move to a remote town in Maine. This time, she tries to be smarter about her life and strives to raise her daughter, Ruby, to be strong and confident. But when, at the urging of others, Aviva decides to run for public office herself, that long-ago mistake trails her via the Internet and catches up--an inescapable scarlet A. In the digital age, the past is never, ever, truly past. And it’s only a matter of time until Ruby finds out who her mother was and is forced to reconcile that person with the one she knows.

Young Jane Young is a smart, funny, and moving novel about what it means to be a woman of any age, and captures not just the mood of our recent highly charged political season, but also the double standards alive and well in every aspect of life for women.

★★★★☆

Christmas In July: Goode Family Style

Lots and lots of July birthdays...and we have four more birthdays in the first half of August.

We had a great combo birthday party at Kelli and Matt's week before last.  Each person chose their own dessert.

Matt: Carrot Cake

Bri: Chocolate Pie

Davin: Chocolate Cupcake with Chocolate Icing

Deborah: Banana Pudding

Derrick: Striped Delight

I decided to just have a bite of all theirs!

Jim teased the other day that we should just have one big party for EVERYONE in July (since half of us are already celebrating in the six weeks from July 1 - August 13.)  Then wait for Christmas to celebrate again. 

Sounds good to me!

What's Making Me Happy Right Now?

1. Tyler Candle Company's Fine Laundry Detergent for my linens.

Seriously, this stuff smells amazing.  I purchased a sampler package from Tyler Candle that included a small candle, a car freshener and a very small bottle of this 'Glamorous Wash".  One day on a whim I used it to wash the sofa throws.  What a difference it made.  Now I use it on my sheets and towels too.  I love crawling into bed and catching that waft of pleasantness that you only get the first day or two after using regular detergent.

2. Cozy Dearform Slippers

In January, I was rushing to make it to our annual Popcorn and Pajamas Movie Night with the ladies at church.  I wasn't going to make it home to change into my pajamas, so I ran by the store and picked up a pair.  I decided to grab some slippers to complete the ensemble and I love them.  I have Dearform lightweight ones that I usually wear all year long...but on our few cold evenings in 2017, these have felt so snuggly and warm that I think I'll keep them out until the temps get above 90 again.  LOL!

3. 'Not-a-meal-plan' meal planning.

Three weeks ago I desperately needed to make a grocery store run.  We were out of everything after all the holiday festivities and the large meals that came with them.  I also knew that I could make a big shopping run but then I wouldn't know what to cook.  So, I pinned a few recipes in Pinterest, added the items needed to my list and made a makeshift plan that could easily be adapted to cover last minute guests or to allow for a quick throw together when you've had a hard day at work.  I cooked three nights in the first week.  That's a record for me lately!  When I get stuck I can look on this list, pull up a pin and within an hour (usually less), voila, we have dinner!  It's working for me right now.

4. Discipleship small group.

I joined a 4 woman small group back in November.  It is a one year commitment to work through the 25 lesson Discipleship Essentials curriculum.  The lady who organized the group is a friend of mine, I had participated in a previous study with one of the other ladies but didn't really know her, and the youngest lady in our group I could only refer to as an acquaintance when we began.  This has been a pure delight as I get to know these women on a deeper and more intimate level than just attending church would allow us to do.  It's a twice a month commitment that gets me up and out of the house earlier than my normal.  It challenges me to share beyond what I normally would in a larger group.  And, even though much of what we are covering I have been exposed to for years, it is challenging me to rethink the importance of the basics of Scripture.  I've really never understood the 'small group' appeal, as I was already in a smaller Bible study and attending Sunday School.  But this is different.  Always the same four people, always focusing on what we are doing with the truths revealed, and an opportunity to truly do life (the good-the bad-the ugly) with one another.

5. Book Club!!!

I've always wanted to be in a book club.  I would be so jealous listening to others talk about their gatherings.  I talked about how it all started with a holiday gathering here.  After our first meeting, we decided to do it again in January and now we have a book picked out for February too!  I'm loving it and last week when we met Meagan decided to join us.  That is just the whipped cream on top!

6. Goodnight kisses from the grands.

Meagan, Derrick and the kiddoes are staying with us for a couple of weeks as they renovate their house.  It's a change for Jim and I but we decided to just enjoy the snuggles and goodnight kisses while we could because we already know that 'the days are long but the years are short!'

7.  'This Is Us' on NBC.

I'm not a big television watcher.  Don't get me wrong.  If I sit down in front of it, it can be hours later before I get up again.  BUT I don't intentionally sit down to watch much television other than for the purpose of spending time with Jim. (Who told me last week, "I prefer my books on television." He cracks me up, y'all!) We accidentally stumbled upon this series during the 4th episode after hearing a little bit of buzz about it the week before.  Y'all, we were HOOKED! Thankfully, we were given the opportunity to catch up on what we had missed between the episodes still on the Prime Time DVR recordings and repeats over Christmas hiatus. This show is done so well.  I love the characters, I love the ensemble cast, I love the storylines, I love the mystery of what happened to Jack and when, but most of all I love the hope of a family that doesn't have it all together, but who still loves one another, warts and all.  I don't remember being so in love with a new series since the beginning of Game of Thrones...which I can no longer watch even though I loved so many of the characters and storylines. I'm looking forward to so much about this show.

Good Day On The Creek

Maddux, Jim, Weston and our 6 sand trout.

They made a delicious dinner for Jim, Brian, Deborah and I Sunday night!

On Saturday, Kelli needed some time alone at home to finish up some projects so that they could list their house with their Realtor and take pictures.  She had asked me earlier in the week to watch all four kids for her while Matt was at work.  However, due to a forgotten sleepover with Mommo for the girls, we ended up just picking up the boys.  Since we were already in Sugar Land, Jim and I decided to drive on down to Sargent to check on some work that had been done on the heater earlier that week.  (Good thing we went because it was not fixed! Wrong part.) 

Since we met Kelli at the Buc-ee's, I picked up picnic supplies because...well, you know boys and their appetites.  When we arrived, I went straight in to clean up mode.  I hadn't been down there since October and the last ones there were all men.  (Enough said.)  No, the true story is that on the repairman's first trip down there he had left the main breaker off and everything in our refrigerator had spoiled.  Jim began the process of cleaning it all up when he was down there the weekend before, but there was more deep cleaning that needed to happen. 

The boys followed me up and turned on the television, settling in to watch Teen Titans while eating their donuts and drinking their YooHoos.  (Yes, we are that kind of grandparents!)  Jim wrestled up some fishing poles and threw out a line while doing some work on his boat.  He caught a nice sized sand trout and brought it up in hopes of getting the boys outside for awhile.  They didn't bite...but I did.  So, I put aside the cleaning and grabbed my pole. 

It didn't take long before both boys were down at the water's edge and reeling in our catches.  We sat on that dock for HOURS and they had a blast.  Weston reeled in for me and Maddux reeled in Pappaw's fish.  The fish quit biting just before dark so we headed up to enjoy our picnic dinner, packed up and headed home.

It was an unexpected day of fun with the grandsons.  A memory that Jim and I will cherish for years to come.  Poor Weston crashed as soon as the truck started rolling and slept most of the way home.  After I went upstairs to finish working on the refrigerator, Maddux looked at Jim and said, "Pappaw, I thought this was going to be boring...but it was actually really fun!"  I wholeheartedly agree. 

What I Did In October

Grandmas Gone Wild 2016

I visited South Padre Island for five days and four nights of making memories with two of my longest and dearest friends.  Not our usual trip but one of us had never visited South Padre before, so it counts!

View from our balcony

At the pool

This is where we spent most of our time!

The Sapphire from the pool

The best place for a morning cuppa is looking out over the water.

CCA Awards

Attended the CCA Awards where one of Jim's fishing buddies won a new boat and trailer for the largest recorded Speckled Trout during the 2016 STAR Tournament.

CCA = Coastal Conservation Association; STAR Tournament =State of Texas Angler's Rodeo

Thad with his plaque.  The boat and trailer were in the parking lot.

Sargent Weekend

Pappaw and Sweet Bailey Rae

Blanket time in the front yard with Bailey and Carter (and Jennifer, too)

This should just say:

"My Happy Place"

Added a little décor to the porch to make it ours.

"The Strategy of Pairing" (as Gretchen Rubin would say)

Took care of my annual check-up and rewarded myself with dinner and a movie (Storks) with the Ham & Rodgers families.  I did not take a single picture, but we had a blast hanging out at the arcade and then we had the WHOLE THEATRE to ourselves.  We could pick out seats and run around during the movie without bothering a soul.  A good thing since this was Dayton's first trip to a movie theater. 

Abundance: Frisco

This year was Conference Year for our ladies retreat and we decided on a trip to Lifeway's Abundance with speakers like: Angela Thomas-Pharr, Curtis Jones, Lisa Harper, and Lysa Terkeurst.  It is a rather new addition to their conferences and was given a thumbs up by all ten of us!  There was a long road trip, shared cheesecake, honest conversations and ice cream surprises to mix with all the laughter.

Fellowship at Field Store Ladies Retreat 2016

My girl and I

Loved our t-shirts this year!

Thanks for the great design, Peyton!

Teaching a much younger woman (and friend) the glories of Snapchat!

I felt so hip!

Vintage Market

Met up with Robin and Stacy for a fun day at the Market. This was my first visit to the one at the Waller County Fairgrounds.  I feel like Goldilocks in that it wasn't too big or too small, it was just right!  Got some great finds but didn't take pics our adventure. We shopped and shopped, then we drove in to Chappell Hill for lunch at Bevers Kitchen. Yum!

My Vintage Market find of the day:

A box springs tree for the seasons

Brooke's 9th Birthday Brunch: Unicorns

A donut cake for our 9 year old granddaughter

Bailey's 1st Birthday Party: Boho

Bailey and her smash cake

Halloween After Party

They all gathered to go trick or treating about 20 minutes from the house.  Afterwards they came out for dinner, a hay ride through the woods, Halloween Bingo, Pumpkin decorating and Hocus Pocus.

From the back: Kelli (Scarecrow), Bri and Bailey (Twin Pin Up Girls), Meagan (Sugar Skull), Dayton (Half Beard Pirate)

Middle Row: Maddux (Storm Trooper), Brooke (Cleopatra), Davin (Storm Trooper)

Front Row: Ellie (Spider Girl), Delayne (Mermaid) and Weston (Captain America)

AND Lots of Razorback Football: For Better or Worse!

Alcorn State - W

Alabama - L

Ole Miss - W

Auburn - L --- with her finger and her thumb in the shape of an L on her forehead!

The older grands built a fort during one of our football gatherings...complete with fire pit!

An August Update

Things have been pretty quiet here on the blog lately...but only because we have been so busy that we have not had time to post about all the goings on.

On August 6th the girls and I enjoyed a Girls Night that we have put off for far too long. We had tickets to see Wicked again...and even though this was my third time, it was still great.  I had tears at times because I was so swept up in the story.  The first time we saw it here in Houston I felt that the actress playing Elphaba stole the show.  This performance it was the actress playing Glinda who had me cracking up with her great timing.  This is a show that I saw on Broadway with Rosa years ago and I have to say that the touring version is just as enchanting as the original show.  Again, I have no photo from the night...though I know that one exists on someone's phone -- probably Kelli's.  LOL!

August 9th was Ellie's FOURTH birthday!  Can you believe it?  She and Delayne are growing up so fast.  The party will be in September as the two girls and Weston are going to share a big party instead of having three small ones.  Look for pictures of a Disney Extravaganza!  Elsa, Ariel and Cars all gathered in one place.  It will be a sight, I'm sure.

August 12th was Jim's birthday.  He only wanted a quiet (or as quiet as our family comes) dinner out.  Bri, Josh, Bailey, Meagan, Derrick, Davin, Delayne, Dayton and Will all met us at 'Waller Mexican' (actual name Ceilito Lindo) for dinner and margaritas where we celebrated with lots of laughter and conversation.

On August 13th we surprised Josh with a 30th birthday party at The Barn.  I don't have a single picture of the event but it was something else.  Meagan went out of her way to make it special with lots of black and white and a candy bar filled with all of his favorite things.  I did the cooking for the taco bar with some out of this world pork carnitas that Jim and I had for breakfast before the big party because it was so good!  It was a miserably hot day...but everyone seemed to enjoy themselves and we had a great time celebrating Josh with some of his closest family and friends.

And because two birthdays, two days in a row is not enough for me...on Sunday, August 14th I met up with Robin and Kelley for a Girls Night out at the Gwen Stefani concert at Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion.  It was raining cats and dogs, but we had covered seating and the clouds parted for our walk into and out of the venue.  We had a good time.  Gwen was a good entertainer and the show was good -- except Robin kept hoping that Blake would come out and sing a duet with her.  Unfortunately, Gwen had performed in Dallas the night before and he made his appearance there instead of Houston.

Last Saturday, August 20th, we had our annual Ladies Progressive Dinner at church.  It's been raining for weeks and it was the last weekend before school started...but we had a good turn out.  There were ten of us that visited three different homes for our Pink Flamingo themed party.  The invitations and posters read, "Let's Flamingle," which I thought was adorable.  But one of our hostesses took it even further and made us all 'to go cups' that read, "Keep Calm and Flamingle On!"  Now that is precious!  

We invited all of the kids over for Sunday dinner and a Spades tournament.  Meagan and family, Bri and Bailey, Jim and I enjoyed a traditional pot roast with one of the best corn casseroles I've ever had.  It came from the refrigerated section at Sam's and was worth every penny!  We never made it to Spades, but decided to play Farkle instead so that Davin and Delayne could join in the fun.  After Jim slaughtered us at Farkle, Delayne and I went to watch a movie so that the rest of the family could play Clue with Davin.  It was a nice way to spend a Sunday afternoon after church.  

This weekend we will be heading down to Sargent for a few days and next weekend Jim and I will be heading to Arkansas to visit Mother and do some work at the deer lease.  Next thing you know the holidays will be upon us and the year will be over!  

Brian has been staying with us for the past week and a half.  He is in the process of moving back to the Houston area and is now working for Custom Fire Protection.  He is learning the design process of the company.  He returns to San Marcos this weekend to pick up his furniture and will be moving in with roommates just minutes from the office.  I know he will glad about that.  He is not a big fan of the hour drive he has from the house right now!  It will be good to have him around more often.  We have missed him while he has been away.  

Anyway, that's what has been going on with us this month.  September brings more birthdays, more parties and a return to Bible study for me.  What are you looking forward to in September?

Throwback Thursday #11

Family Vacation Pictorial From August 2015

Last year the kids went together and gave Jim and I our favorite kind of gift -- 

time together with the family.  

Here are our memories in pictures.

There was a giant moon while we were staying at the Sargent house and the way it's light pierced through the clouds onto the water and cast the silhouette of the palm trees on our first night there was eerily beautiful.

I just love this picture of Brian in his pink flamingo shirt.
Such a contrast to that bearded face!

The grands enjoyed long days in the kiddy pool that we set up on the deck.

The house the kids rented was named Pelican Point and the pelicans did not disappoint.
They flew by in groups of three to nearly twenty all day long.

Will and Derrick were Davin's net men for crabbing.
He had two to three crab strings baited with chicken thighs out most of the weekend.
He would run from one to the other yelling, 'net, net, net!'

The sunset over Caney Creek

Brian and Deborah trying a little fishing.

The house had a telescope and this was the best picture that Deborah and I could snap of the moon through it's lens.

Will caught an eel!

Auntie and Dayton enjoying the water

Diva fishing -- and she must be working hard at it.
Look at that tongue.

Maddux, Brooke and Davin as we celebrated Davin's 8th birthday with cake and ice cream.

Our Family

My Hero spent the majority of the trip sitting in this chair with his fishing pole at hand.

The Gang's all here!

Kelli, Matt and the family were only able to make it out for one afternoon and we got family pics while we could!