Springtime at Christmas Time!

The weather has been unseasonable warm here lately and we have had Spring like weather for the past week. I was afraid it was going to rain but the sun continues to shine. It is almost too warm for this time of year but we are thankful for the good weather since so many others are having a bad time with it.

How was your Christmas? I hope it was as nice as ours. My parents, Chris, and Caroline all came over last Monday and stayed in a condo. It was a nice 3 bedroom with an oceanview. We spent alot of time over there with them. Christmas Eve, the kids went with them to Broadway at the Beach and walked around while Bill and I did some last minute shopping for groceries. We all went to Mass at 6:00 (including Bill's parents) and then went back to the condo. Chris and I put our casseroles together for Christmas dinner and Chris and Bryanna made cookies. We did not get home until around 11:30 and then Bill and I were up until after 2:00 while Bill did some last minute wrapping.

Christmas morning, I had set my alarm for 6:00 because everyone was coming over between 8 am and 9 am. Well, I got up at 6, turned my alarm off and went back to bed until 7:30. Thankfully I got up and got in the shower, took care of the dogs, and started getting my breakfast together. Before I knew it, Bill's parents were here at about 8:30. Bill and the kids were still sound asleep. I woke everyone up and got them going and before I knew it, my family was here. Now Caroline, who does not get up until after 12:00 on days she does not have school, was bright eyed and wide awake at 9 AM. It was a Christmas miracle! I made a continental breakfast of fruit, danish, and cinnamon rolls so that everyone could serve themselves except the Dads who wanted to be served. Anyway, we opened our stockings and presents and had a fun time. Bryanna finally got her orange cell phone and orange iPod and Andrew got an electric guitar. He will start lessons on Jan. 8th. I really can't remember what all Caroline got, I know we got her seat covers, floor mats, and other things for her car. Chewy got a little gray elephant with a nice tail to chew on and Snickers got some rawhide chews.

We went over to Bill's parents for Christmas dinner and had a real nice time. We had all contributed to the meal and had way too much food cooked but it was good. The rest of the day was spent napping, watching TV, and talking. Also, my 2 cousins, Pam and Patti had sent my mom and dad a digital frame for Christmas and they downloaded family pictures into it. Some of the pictures were old and some were new. I have to say, that was their favorite gift. We all enjoyed looking at the pictures. Thank you to Pam and Patti!

Yesterday (the 26th) Bill and I had our marriage blessed at our church. We basically got remarried but by our priest. It was a very special ceremony and we had our attendants back for an encore performance. Caroline as the maid of honor and Bill's Dad as the best man. After the ceremony, we all went to Burro Loco for a Mexican lunch and our priest, Monsignor Roth, came with us. He is such a special man and has so many stories to tell. Afterwards, Chris and Caroline had to head home but mom and dad stayed so we are going to spend the day with them.

It has been a very special Christmas and hope yours was special as well. We are suppose to go the Elgin for New Year's so I hope that works out. See you in 2009!

The Agony of Defeat!

The Seahawks were defeated by Mt. Pleasant yesterday by a score of 6-8. The team played really hard and fought to the end. After the game, the boys were shedding tears and it was really hardbreaking. Most of these boys will move up a level next year or play for the Middle School. So, our football season over for this year but we should did enjoy the extended season and the excitement!

The High School Seahawks won the State Championship last night in Clemson, SC. An exciting event for our high school and our community. Wish we could have attended but maybe next year!

Friday, I took the kids to a food drive that our local radio station was having. Our favorite disc jockeys were hosting the event so I took a picture of the kids with Mitch and Alix:

Bryanna is holding a frisbree with lots of little freebies inside. The DJs loaded the kids up with lots of stuff before we left!

Friday night, Bill and I attended the Elks Club Christmas party with his parents. It was a rip roaring good time with all the old folks. One guy threw his hip out doing the twist but hopefully he will recover by Christmas. The club had a nice dinner buffet and a bar set up. We had a good time and got home fairly early! The kids went to "Reindeer Games" at the recreation center Friday night and their party lasted longer than ours! I walked in the rec center to find Andrew and Bryanna standing in line to visit with Santa. So what if both kids were taller than the Santa, he is an elf after all! They were actually in line because Santa was giving out really nice bags of candy.

Well, I better get going, we are going to see the Nutcracker today!

The excitement builds!

The big game is Saturday at 11:30 am right here in Myrtle Beach so we do not have to travel. Here is a link to a video of Andrew's team from the local news channel, I hope it will work:

http://www.scnow.com/scp/sports/other/article/undefeated_little_seahawks_seek_state_title/21225/


I love how they call the team the "little" Seahawks because these boys are anything but Little! The local newspaper came out to practice last night and did some interviews and Andrew was interviewed for that article so I will post a link when the article is published. Time for me to go to work!

Go Seahawks!!!

P.S. The Myrtle Beach High School Seahawks are playing for the State title this Saturday at Death Valley in Clemson so we are wishing them the best of luck as well!

Food, Fun, and oh yes....FOOTBALL!

Seems a while since I last posted and we have had our ups and downs in our family like everyone else! I hope everyone had a very nice Thanksgiving as we did. I spent Thanksgiving Eve trying to hem a pair of pants for Andrew. I thought I had bought the magic stitch witchery but had picked up the wrong stuff....it took me a long time to get the needle threaded and then hemming, well, lets just say I am way out of practice. As luck would have it, the minute we walked into church, the hem fell out. Oh well, worst things have happened! We went over to Bill's parents for bagels and coffee and went through the sale papers with them. I had written out my shopping list last weekend and knew what I wanted to go get. We ate at Ryan's this year instead of cooking because we weren't sure of our plans until the last minute. I sure missed my Mom's stuffing and everything else! We had a nice day though and my favorite part was handing the dirty dishes to the Ryan's waitress!

Bill and I went shopping yesterday. We did not really run into any crowds except at Dick's Sporting Goods. I waited in line for about 30 minutes, not once, but twice here! We are all done shopping though except for ONE hard to buy for person who shall remain nameless...Mom.....I just have to wrap now and get some things shipped. I am WAY ahead this year compared to last year and yes everyone I will wrap before Christmas Eve this year!!! (Caroline is smiling....)

We have been doing alot of running around with the kids here lately but have managed to get them where they needed to be at the right time. Bryanna tried out for All-County Orchestra and All-County Chorus and was chosen for both of them. She is 14th chair for the violin section and 1st soprano for the chorus. It is a wonder how my musical abilities got passed on to her especially the singing part! She did really great and we are so proud of her because she worked really hard to earn these spots.

And yes, we are still playing football! Andrew's team won the Eastern Division Championship last Tuesday. I could not make it to the game because Bryanna had a concert at the high school. My mom and dad, Chris, Caroline and Bill all went to the game though and the Seahawks won 14-0. Their next game is Saturday, Dec. 6th where they are competing for the Southern Division Championship. I am not sure where the game will be yet or the time. If they win that game, they will play for the State Championship so keep all of your fingers and toes crossed for them!

On top of everything else, our sweet little doggie, Chewy, got sick last Sunday so we ended up taking him to the Vet Emergency Room. He had some kind of intestinal flu and had to have a bag of fluids inserted into him because he would not eat or drink. He was feeling much better by Monday and was back to his usual self on Tuesday. His buddy, Snickers, was even worried about him when he was sick. They are both looking forward to seeing Santa even though Chewy will have alot of explaining to do......

Take care and have a great week!!!

All About Training...

I was in Clemson, SC all last week for training for my new job. As it should be, everything in Clemson in ORANGE. Orange tiger paws painted on the roadways, the bank was even orange. I was staying at a Hampton Inn right around the corner from "Death Valley" which is the nickname for the stadium. The weather was chilly but would warm up. I had intentions of taking pictures but of course I forgot with everything else going on. My trainers were Pam and Bob and they were both really fun to work with. Bob has been on the job for 27 years! He is a Vietnam Veteran and had some very interesting stories. Pam has been with the company for 3 years and is on her 4th marriage so she had some interesting stories as well....haha The leaves were at their peak and really beautiful. I was not far from the mountains but I stayed near my hotel and work and did not venture out much. Tomorrow I leave for Augusta, GA for another week of training and then my traveling should be minimal.

Bill was very busy with the kids. We got a phone call last Sunday afternoon and Andrew made All-Stars for football. I did not think we were having All-Stars this year but I thought wrong which is not unusual. So, with Bryanna having volleyball 2 days a week, Andrew had football 4 days, plus CCD, the doggies, and his work besides he was one tired guy when I got home. I have been doing the laundry all day and went to the grocery store and got them stocked up for the week so hopefully things will be smoother.

Andrew's All-Star game is Thursday and I will be missing it. I am real disappointed and hope they win. If they win, they will play again on Saturday. Bryanna tries out for All County Orchestra on Saturday afternoon and we are suppose to be in Elgin sometime on Saturday because on Sunday my dad is taking Bill and I somewhere (he won't tell us where-just know it is not a race and we have to dress casual)

Halloween was fun for the kids. Andrew went around with his friends in the neighborhood and he also went to Broadway at the Beach. Chewy and I walked Bryanna around our neighborhood. I told Bryanna this is her last year, she spent about 15 minutes at each person's house chatting away......she was dressed as a guitar hero rock star, I am not quite sure what Andrew was. He did his own costume this year and much to my delight, he painted his face with a RED SHARPIE. He did this before I got home. Most of the sharpie is gone except a little on his arms.

Anyway, I hope everyone has a great week.

Busy October!

It has been a really busy week for us. I received an email Wednesday morning with a job offer that I could not pass up so I immediately got in touch with the company and I started my new job on Thursday. I had training and paperwork to fill out and also had a forklift certification class to attend. Bill sent me the Halloween bouquet for good luck, it is really beautiful. I leave tomorrow morning to attend training in Clemson, SC which is in the upstate of SC. I will be there until Friday, come home for the weekend and then travel to Augusta, GA for more training. After that, I should not have to do much more traveling except maybe an occasionally trip to North Carolina. I am real excited about this opportunity.

Wednesday night we also found out the the recreation department had scheduled a football tournament for yesterday (Saturday) The Falcons were victorious in their last game against the Bears and then had to play the Bears again on Saturday morning. The Falcons beat the Bears so we had to return for a noon game against the undefeated Giants. After a VERY PAINFUL 50 minutes, the Falcons were defeated and now life can move on....Andrew did a great job playing defense and sacked the quarterback 3 times in the last game against the Bears. Here are some pictures from the game, Andrew is #75 and they got to play at the new $4 million high school stadium.

Falcons vs. Bears

Falcons vs. Giants

After the game was over, I took Bryanna and her friend and we went to a Doll and Teddy Bear Expo held in Myrtle Beach. I met 2 ladies that are in my doll club. One lady is from Texas and has a doll company and the other lady is from North Carolina and had an event company but also sells dolls. There were some really unique dolls and a little newborn baby that I wanted. He looked like a real baby and weighed about 3 pounds. The saleslady MADE me hold him and it was all I could do to put him down. I can't believe how much talent that these artists have from sculpting to making the clothes. Really amazing works of art. Of course, there were tons of Barbies! There is a new set that is Elvis and Priscilla and for an Elvis fan would be great. They are dressed in their wedding clothes. We had a fun time while we were there.

We had a terrible storm here on Friday. Wind and rain. Trees were uprooted, some people lost their roofs. It was a cold rain.

Today we took the kids to the House of Blues Gospel Brunch. It was really alot of fun. The House of Blues has a live band and the guy was singing "This Little Light of Mine"- a very jazzy version and if you weren't clapping, he would make you sing in the microphone. Everyone was very good natured and seemed to be having alot of fun. They brought a "JUST MARRIED" couple on the stage to join in the singing and it was really cute. The buffet was great. They had made to order omelets, prime rib, bacon, fried chicken, grilled chicken, THE best mac and cheese I have ever eaten (sorry Gram!) red beans and rice, collards, potatoes, bread pudding (awesome!) cookies, fruit, and lots of other stuff.

Well, I need to get packed and do laundry. The leaves are changing up in Clemson so I will try to get some pictures and post them.

Have a good week!

Football/Race Weekend

This past weekend, Bill, Andrew and my dad went to the Nascar race in Martinsville, VA. It was Andrew's first Sprint Cup race and he loved it! They left on Saturday, spent the night in a motel, and went to the race on Sunday. Here are a few pictures my dad sent to me. My dad is a Jeff Gordan fan, Bill likes Jr., and Andrew likes Tony Stewart but Jimmy Johnson won the race!

Me, Chris, my mom, and Bryanna went up to Newberry on Saturday to see the football game and to watch Caroline march. It was a night game and a little chilly but we had a good time. Newberry beat the number one ranked, undefeated Wingate College and the game was very exciting. The band did an excellent job as usual and it was great to visit with Caroline.

The Falcon's last 2 games are this week. The Falcon's play the Jets tonight and then the last game is Thursday. They have had a rough season but had fun as well.

We added a new "branch" to our family tree this weekend with the arrival of Brady Cole Goedeker. Brady's mom is my cousin Kim's daughter, Nikki. Kim is a first time Grandma and will be just excellent in the role I know! Our best wishes are being sent to the new parents, Jeff and Nikki!

This is it for now, stay warm and take care!