Last Week, Except for Saturday

As soon as B finished summer ball the last weekend in June, we left for our 8-day, multi-stop first vacation of the summer. I would calculate the miles driven, but I am too tired! Here's documentation of the first couple of stops. First up: a visit to my dad at the coast.
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The kids helped Papa drive the boat.

Riding to breakfast.

The kids and Papa had such a great time together.



Greer couldn't make it home for a nap!

Tic-tac-toe at dinner.

With Dad.

Sweetness.

After Dad's, we left for FCA Coaches Camp in St. Simons. First though... A high school BFF, Jacy, was in St. Simons for the week too! We were able to grab lunch and meet her sweet Brynn. I could've held her all day (if Greer would've let me)! She is so cute and a visit was long overdue! We are looking forward to doing it again soon.
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With our girls.

We rarely take many pictures at camp...and always wish that we had after we're gone! It is just such a busy week and we are hot and sweaty most of the time!! Camp was wonderful as always, spiritually encouraging and uplifting. A couple of our friends who are also coaches went with us this time and four of our students went to the leadership camp held on the campus simultaneously. Other than me being sick the whole week and a major storm and power outage, everything went very smoothly. It was so fun to catch up with old friends and meet new ones too. If you're a coach, you should go! If not, help support a coach near you to go! It prepares B for the new school year like nothing else could.
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The Gs and Peyton Wilkins checking out the view.

The last night, we get to go out for dinner without kids! We so enjoyed the time with Chris & Rebecca, Davey & Amy (FCA Camp buddies) and Brad & Angie (new friends)! It was probably the only time we were all clean and showered at the same time this week! Haha!

And as is tradition, we visited the water park while we were there. Papa and the Aultmans met us there again for a great time! It was hard to leave!!





We picked on Eric, calling him our "manny." He is a great friend and co-worker for B and is awesome with our kids. We can't wait to return the favor for him and Jessica one day.

Gehrig & Anna Leigh had a blast at dinner afterwards!

From St. Simons, we drove to Atlanta on Friday to prepare for the Peachtree Road Race and 4th festivities with the fam. We'll post pics from the rest of the weekend soon! June gallery is up.

Travels

In early June, we traveled to VA for the annual Bourne reunion. The great company and strong family ties are so worth the long trip with 2 small kids! A rain storm came up when we first got there and the road-weary Gs enjoyed playing in it!

After Breakfast with the Old & Rare...a sweet pic of B and the kids. (It can substitute for a Father's Day pic since we forgot to take one!)

Making the annual trek to the gift shop after breakfast.

It is so beautiful there!

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Gehrig loved the dinosaur attractions!

On to Cave Mountain Lake!

Some of the crew on Sunday. We were missing lots of the southern Bournes in this picture!

Then last weekend, Jenn & I made a quick trip to the Greenville area to visit her fam. It was fun to see everything there. Greenville is beautiful! We love her family...they all made us feel right at home! We also got to see our sweet friends, the Baileys. We miss them!
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Swimming in MaeMae's pool.

Jenn's favorite breakfast spot...yummy!!!!

The cuties after breakfast.

Gorgeous falls in the middle of Greenville!

Walking near the falls.

On our way back into town, we stopped to celebrate our friend, Finley's 1/2 birthday! Hot, tired and fun!

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Greer & Madi with the 1/2 birthday girl!

Lots of fun with everyone and happy to see B on Father's day after it all! Thanks for being such an amazing husband and father, honey! We love you so much.

The Surprise

Great friends make life great fun. We are so thankful for the ones that God has clearly placed in our lives over the years! They bless us in so many ways.

In May, my everyday-live-life-with, constant texting, baby-swapping, truth-speaking, fun-having, playdate cohort, God-loving BFF turned 30. Jenn is the one that knows enough about all the brands/products we use to pick them up for us when she sees them on sale. She is the one who filled out and addressed Gehrig's birthday invitations when my life was crazy-out-of-control hectic last month. She is the one who my kids would accept as my substitute without so much as noticing. I love being known and loved so well by her!

Her hubby and I talked earlier this spring about making this birthday big for her. Our goal was to show her how much she means to so many and to have a great fun night...all about her! Amanda joined us to put together the surprise of the century!

It nearly killed us. Not the work involved or the time spent...it was the lies and secrets and exhausting-watching of every word that the 3 of us said to this person that we are in constant communication with every day! Whew! There were many close calls and stressful moments. We just hoped that she would forgive us for all the dishonesty, knowing that it was out of the utmost love for her! :)

Thankfully, it all came together perfectly... we still can't believe she didn't find out! Her family worked so hard to get things together too and they all were able to travel here, along with so many of our amazing friends who made trips and arrangements to come. It was so nice to have so many of our "old" crowd together in one place since we are all so scattered now. What a blessing.

The scene...a gorgeous woodsy room that worked perfectly. Folks arrived early to be there when Matt, Jenn and I got there. (B had to come later because of baseball...boo.)

We decorated each table around things in Jenn's life. She loves the Food Network and is a great cook, so this is the cooking table. We also had one on motherhood, her childhood things, college life and music.

The moment we all had been waiting for! These are the looks that made everything worth it! She was clearly completely surprised and then overwhelmed with having so many of her favorite people in one place.

We secretly got a portrait printed from a family photo session they had the week before and matted it with everyone's messages to her.

Happy... goal accomplished!

The co-conspirators. That is the look of relief, my friends!

With Jenn.

Amanda is one of the most creative and witty people I know...who loves her friends in a real way. I am so thankful for her and her friendship!

AP's wittiness at work! Oh yes, there was a skit. Lyle played Tom Bergeron on Hollywood Squares and Toni & Steph played the contestants. They were great! The questions all revolved around interesting facts and stories about Jenn's life.

The "celebrities" were folks that Jenn enjoys...Paula Deen, Mickey Mouse, Rachel Ray, Michael Scott (from the Office), the Bachelor and the Hillsong Singer. They were absolutely hilarious and made the skit so fun!

Just proof that B made it...yay!

So fun to have these guys in the same room...great visiting!

Cake time!

Some of those great friends I mentioned at the beginning of the blog... sure do wish we all still lived in the same place!

Links & Masseys

A celebration of Jenn and a great adult date night!

So yay! Happy 30 years, my dear friend. You are loved!!