The Boys Are Back In Town

Well, the boys are back and here's what they have to say...

Happy Birthday to Me!

Our week started off by sending Austin off to Youth Front Camp in Kansas City. It's the Junior High camp that our church goes to every year. Other churches join our church there for the week. This is Austin's first experience going away anywhere without family. He was looking forward to swimming, playing in the lake and riding "The Blob". I hope it's a chance for him to make some lasting friendships with some of the kids from our church and other churches in the state.

On Tuesday we took Dylan to church to send him off to Camp Allen. This is the camp for elementary students at our church. Unlike Austin's camp, this camp is just for our church kids. Dylan was not as excited to go. He was concerned about me being sad on my birthday without him. He's such a sweetheart. James knew it would be hard on me to celebrate my first birthday without the boys, so we took a trip to Myrtle Beach, South Carolina.

After sending Dylan off to camp, we returned home to clean up the house and pack up our clothes. We made it to Charlotte (Yes, the same place I got stuck in not even a week ago.) without a problem. Then it was off to Myrtle Beach. We booked our hotel through Hotwire.com once we had our seats on the last plane. It wasn't a bad place. We stayed at the Ocean Dunes Resort. As soon as we got into our room, we went out onto the balcony. Oh how I've missed the sound of the waves crashing on the shore. The smell of the salty ocean air. I couldn't wait to get out on the beach. Off we went for a moonlit walk on the sand.

The next day I woke up at 8:00 ready to play on the beach. So, James reluctantly got out of bed and changed. We ate breakfast and went out on the beach. I was very proud of James. He only complained a little about the sand (He despises sand.)while we laid out on the beach. Then we played in the waves. James of course wanting to go out much further than myself. Then it was back to working on the tan. I love sleeping on the beach. The sounds of the waves and seagulls is so soothing to me. My dream is to one day have a house on the beach. Maybe in my forties. I started missing the boys a little while watching kids play in the sand and waves, but I kept reminding myself that they were having a great time at camp.

James and I finished the day walking to dinner. Along the way we picked out houses we'd like to own some day. James even got a picture of our top pick on his iphone. We'll have to upload it later. I had a great birthday dinner at a Mexican restaurant. And we enjoyed one last walk on the beach. It just might have been the best birthday ever!

When life gives you lemons...

Well, how does it go? When life gives you lemons, make lemonade. That's exactly what we did. Well, not actual lemonade, but we did make the most of a pretty crappy situation. Since my James is a pilot we get to fly for free. This sounds great, right. Well, sometimes it can be. Other times it's not. We were suppose to meet James in Miami yesterday. I've been missing the beach terribly and was super excited. When we made it to Charlotte, NC I was getting even more excited. Then the downward spiral began. It seems everyone and their brother was trying to get to Miami also. As other standby passengers went up to the gate counter and were met by sad faces and sometimes laughs from the gate agents, I knew it wasn't going to be a good day.



But after missing two flights and being told they all looked pretty bad, the boys and I made an executive decision to stay in Charlotte. We checked into the lovely Econo Lodge that Austin picked out from the airport poster. They had everything we needed to enjoy ourselves: a pool, free breakfast and Cracker Barrel within walking distance. The pictures are of us enjoying ourselves in what felt like our own private pool. I worked on my tan and we all swam a lot. We swam not once, but twice yesterday. That's a good day in my book. I knew it was a success when as we laid our heads on our pillows, the boys said, "We didn't need to go to Miami to have fun."


Here's hoping James and I make it to Myrtle Beach next week while the boys are at church camp. Wish me luck!

Dylan's 10!!!!!!!

It was a sad day for me yesterday. My baby turned 10 years old. He is no longer in the single digits. For those of you with small children, this might not seem like such a big deal. But trust me it is. You start thinking about how he'll be a teenager in three years. Then driving in three more. Then out of the house in two more. I have to stop thinking about it.

Really it was a great day. I spent most of it at school, my last day hooray! James took the boys and three of their friends to the neighborhood waterpark. They had a great time swimming, going down the waterslides, having a picnic and receiving some hot sunburns. Then I came home with Dylan's Indiana Jones birthday cake. We enjoyed cake and ice cream with the boys, then shooed them away so we could go to the movies. When we sat down to watch Indiana Jones, Austin informed us that he forgot to put in his contacts. So, Austin watched the movie on the front row, while James, Dylan and I went further up. There were some pretty scary parts for a 10 and 11 year old. James and I kept waiting for Austin to run up where we were, but he didn't. He must be growing up!

After the movie we went to Red Robin, the best hamburger place ever! While Dylan was on the phone talking to my mom, the waiter was taking our drink order. I slyly mentioned that it was Dylan's birthday and he was talking to his grandma. Later, while we were eating, Dylan threatened to hurt me if I told the waiter it was his birthday. He missed the previous statement. I was hoping the waiter would think about coming over to sing. Sure enough, not long after Dylan threatened to hurt his dear mother, along comes the Red Robin staff carrying balloons and a sundae. He wasn't too embarrassed. He just hid behind the balloons. But he did enjoy the sundae.




Lastly, the boys did some male bonding playing Rock Band (Dylan's present) together. I never got a turn and ended up falling asleep in the big leather recliner. Birthdays are exhausting!

What a busy time!

Well, when I last left you, we had just returned from Memphis. My life has been a whirlwind since we got back. I returned to school where I had to finish up testing, grades and report cards. We had a field trip to the park, where a child was lost for about an hour (not one of ours, but still very scary). Friday was field day where I received a great sunburn. Then it was off on another trip, with Buster in tow, to Nashville. These pictures are of Austin and Dylan at a gas station in Metropolis, Illinois (Home of Superman). Of course, I didn't want anyone labeled as "the girl", so we had to trade positions and take more photos. Once we arrived in Nashville, we celebrated my mom's birthday at my sister Sharon's house. Then it was off to Castalian Springs to stay at Pam's house for two days. I was taking care of my nephew Ethan, who just had cleft palate surgery. I forgot how exhausting it is to take care of toddlers. That's why I have no pictures of Ethan and Hannah. The boys enjoyed spending time with family, but then it was time to come back home.

After returning home at 10:00 on Tuesday night, it was back to school at 7:00 am. I was greeted with many hugs and "We sure are glad you're back, Mrs. Roberts." Maybe they do appreciate me after all. Most of last week was spent filling out records, packing up my room and watching movies. Everyone at work keeps telling me how much they'll miss me and how they can't believe I'm giving up teaching. It probably won't be forever, but for a good while. It definitely feels right. I wasn't sad at all packing all my stuff into the basement. Instead it felt more like relief. Just two more days!