Happy Father's Day, Capital M!

Happy Father's Day Papa!

Hello Again!

I'm feeling particularly sentimental as I'm writing this post. I just spent almost two weeks with family and friends at the beach. The last half of the vacation was spent at Dauphin Island, where I spent the majority of my childhood and where the vast majority of my most precious childhood memories were made. For my mom's 60th birthday, my sisters and I gave her a week at the beach with all of her children and grandchildren. I was skeptical, I admit, about being in the same beach house with all of my siblings, their husbands, and their children. And I'm sure that they were equally as skeptical about spending a week with me and my clan! However...it was an incredible week and many more good times and memories were made!

Perhaps the best part of the trip was that my 95 year old grandad was able to come. He can't walk far, but Holley and Scott brought their golf cart, so he was able to make it to the beach, sit in the shade, and watch his grandchildren splash in the water. And the rest of the time he spent sitting on the front porch with binoculars in hand, staring out into the ocean, just like I've seen him do a million times before. And he talked our ears off. My dad commented to him that he had an incredible memory. He replied, "I've got a good memory once I get going" Truer words were never spoken. One story would lead to another and not a single detail was forgotten! He loves to talk about the past. I think I wrote this before, but when you're 95 years old, there's probably not a lot to say about the future, so you focus on memories of the past.

The first day that I arrived at Dauphin Island, I wondered if I would even be able to enjoy myself because I was so overwhelmed with emotion and memories of the past. The island has changed and driving by the empty lot on St. Dennis Court everyday was a not-so-gentle reminder that life is short, things come and go, so you better enjoy them while you can. Being with my PawPaw and Baby Lucy in the same beach house, at the very same time, was also a reminder of life's short cycle. As I walked the beach and listened to M explain in no-nonsense terms that a beach, by it's very nature, is an ever-changing body of sand and I shouldn't be so attached to the physical aspects of life, I felt my self bow up a bit. I wasn't attached to the house itself, but to everything it represented. I do miss the actual physical house , though - the sandy floor and sheets, the hum of the box fans, the Formica table, the metal table leg that my PawPaw would put in the bottom of the sliding glass door. But mainly, I miss the activity in that house, the memories made in that house, and the strong sense of family that it represented to so many people. I long for my children to experience the same thing. It was life wrapped in love, surrounded by beauty.

I have always loved to walk along the beach and collect seashells. I get an adrenaline rush when I find a sand dollar. You might assume I found a hundred dollar bill rather than a sanddollar. I get that same feeling when I see dolphins in the water. Do you? Or is it just me??

One night, AAA asked me to wake her up early the next morning so we could take a long walk and collect sea shells before anyone else on the island. When I woke her up, she said, in her sweet, sleepy voice, "Do you mind going by yourself? I'm so sorry." I was crushed. Not because I had to go by myself, but because she didn't want to go.

The memories made on that island are part of me and help shaped me into the person I am. I think I love the little details in life because life at the beach is so full of them. Seashells, each with their own unique color, shape, feel. The feel of soft sand between your toes. The rush of the cold gulf water over your head. The sounds of the waves slapping against the shore. The sound of the sea gulls overhead. The sight of the dolphins in the distance. The sunrise and sunset on the horizon. The orange sun setting against the pink sky. There are so many details that I can't type them fast enough. I am flooded with emotion when I am at the beach. The sheer vastness of the ocean itself overwhelms me and I wonder, "How can someone experience the beach and NOT believe in God?!?".

Man...no wonder I'm sentimental about it all...it was perfect.

(Now that the sentimentality is over, stay tuned for some fun beach stories! Lots of laughs and good times!)

But if I take a blogging break, who will I brag to?!

We spent last weekend in Georgia watching AAA play All-Star Soccer. The weather was awful! Between rain and the steamy humidity that follows a Georgia rain in 80 degree weather, I can't think of any worse weather to play (or watch!) soccer in! The girls looked like they had rolled around in a pig pen. I actually think that they kind of enjoyed getting that muddy!



AA's team remained undefeated until Sunday afternoon, when they lost the championship game, one to zero. can I tell you how proud I am of these girls?!? Especially my girl. It takes 6 players to play soccer, and that is all that they had on Saturday. No subs. The other teams all had at least 3 to 5 subs per team. Our girls kicked it up a notch and played incredibly hard.



Sunday's defeat was hard. They played well, but the other team was tough and had 12 players (6 subs). We were thankful, however, that one of our players showed up on Sunday so that we at least had one sub. (Not only did we have one sub, but we had a player who wasn't exhausted from playing so hard on Saturday - so it was great to see her!).



The majority of the girls cried. I'm sure that this was their first major defeat in their little lives. I didn't want to indulge AAA's cry too much because I want her to learn to accept defeat and not be a "sore loser." But when she wasn't looking, I fought back a few tears of my own. Not because they lost the game, but because they were so heartbroken (not to mention exhausted).



AAA ran off the field crying and ran straight in to her daddy's arms. I wondered at first if she was hurt, but I heard her sobbing, "I didn't play my best!" When M asked her why she didn't think she played her best, she replied, "Because I didn't get any goals." Of course he explained to her that getting goals or not getting goals doesn't equate with playing her best. We reassured her of how proud we were of her and L'il man even gave her a high-five and said, "That was even fun to watch!"



The good news is...they still received trophies and their picture was in the AU newspaper! That certainly softened the blow.

Headed to the beach for the next week and a half. More bragging to follow. :)

Taking a Break for a While...I'll miss you, blogging friends!

No Way!

There is NO WAY that my "baby" brothers graduated from high school last night!!!!

I can't believe it!

I swear it seems like "just yesterday" that they were born. I was actually 21 years old when they were born, a junior in college. At the time, I was in Tuscaloosa at the Univ of Alabama and my parents were in Sewanee, Tn., where my dad was attending seminary (mid-life crisis). I ached for those little babies! I was so keenly aware of my strong love for them. I often wondered if I loved them so much because I was really old enough to be their mother. I must have felt similar to how a grandparent feels when her grandchildren are hundreds of miles away. I called home all the time asking for the latest updates, milestones, and funny "Bo and Rett stories" (and believe me, there were...and still are...plenty of them!). I had their pictures framed all over my apartment. I missed them like crazy!!

I have so many awesome memories of those two rascals. They were six years old when they were the ring bearers in my wedding. I loved being able to show them off!

Watching them with their nieces and nephews has been awesome. I've told you before and I'll say it again... they will be the best dads! They are so comfortable and cute with little kids because they have had plenty of practice. Their nieces and nephews LOVE them and think that they are the BEST UNCLES IN THE WORLD! Just look at the pictures of them with their nieces and nephews - aren't they just the cutest uncles ever!

On a final note, when you're an 18 year old male, it's just "not cool" to be a twin. They both have their own set of friends, their own taste in clothes, their own talents, etc. They try to keep the "twin thing" to a minimum. Of course, the graduates were called out in alphabetical order, so Bo and Rett were side by side when they received their diplomas. And my sisters and I just couldn't help it -when they called out Rett's name, we yelled, "That's my brother!" And immediately after Rett's name, they called Bo's name. The sisters and I then yelled, "That's my brother, too!" I wish I could have seen their faces! They are good sports! We asked them later if they heard us yelling. Rett smiled and said, "Unfortunately."

So life goes on. I commented to my mom that I was surprised that she didn't cry at their graduation. After all, these are her babies. She has been raising kids for 42 years! Anyway, when I said, "Did you even cry?" She looked at me like I was crazy and said, "Are you kidding?!?" Can you imagine being "sixty something" and raising not one, but TWO, teenage boys?!? Yeah...she didn't cry.

But here's to the best brothers and uncles in the world! Go get 'em, tigers!

Field Day!

This was my first Field Day as a mom. And it hasn't changed a bit since I was a kid! Tug-O-War, Three-legged Race, Egg in a Spoon Relay, Partner Carry, Wheelbarrow Relay. Yes, it's exactly the same as I remember! And it was AWESOME! Way to go, Coach!

50 yard dash:


Partner carry:

Tug-O-War:

Sponge realy:

Let's mess with Ms. Tiffany!

(Ms. Tiffany has no idea the precious little darlings are giving her bunny ears!)

Sponge relay:

Team Shumate! Tug-O-War!

Wheelbarrow race:

Will and his classmates cheering on their team:

Sponge relay:
I love this picture! Boys are great!

Tomorrow is Water Day, Wednesday is First Grade Luau, Thursday is Hickory Dickory Park, and Friday is IT! Yes! Welcome Summer!