Working hard...

There's not much going on here (a nice change of pace, I must say), so I haven't had any pictures to post. However, I can't look at the previous post any longer, so I took some pictures just so we could put the past behind us! One of Brooks' favorite things to do is "cut the grass" like Daddy. Wish his lawn mower really worked! He actually goes back and forth across the yard in straight lines and is serious about his work. I see a great future in landscaping for this boy! He's been working in the yard since we got home from school today. Elle prefers to stay inside when it's hot! So, for her I've added a picture of her new haircut. If you look closely you can check out the art gallery behind her. Hope everyone's having a good week. It's Almost Friday!!!!!

This Means War!

Our good friends and neighbors down the street are as loyal Florida Gator fans as we are VOLS. Since it is the week of the big game, Jay and I decided to replace the flag on the front of their house with a UT flag. It was tastefully done and all in good fun. Well, we awoke this morning to find our house looking like this! You will notice that the gator in the front yard has our flag in his mouth. I don't know how we will top this....especially by tonight. If you have any suggestions please let us know!! They have officially declared war! If we aren't able to do anything before the game tomorrow, you can be certain we will start now planning for next year's UT/Fla game week!

Disney Vacation

One of the best things about living in Orlando is that you can go on vacation and never leave town! This week Jay had a conference at The Contemporary resort at the Magic Kingdom, so we packed our bags and pretended to be on vacation. We still had school, etc. but did it all from the hotel. The kids had a ball!

More San Fran Pics

Home Sweet Home

While it's great to be able to occasionally get away for a relaxing weekend, it's always nice to come home! Our trip to San Francisco was not exactly relaxing, but it was a memorable one to say the least.
We arrived on Thursday before noon and were able to meet friends for lunch, walk around the city, and rest before a nice dinner out on the town. We all turned in early while still adjusting to the new time zone. This was a good thing, because we were pretty well rested when Jay awoke around 5 am in a great deal of pain. This pain escalated until we finally called a cab and rushed to the hospital. It turns out that Jay had 5 kidney stones! Luckily his pain was easily controlled with an IV of something wonderful, because within minutes of receiving it he was talking football with the doctors and making sure they would have him "fixed" by kick-off time the next day. I will spare you all of the other details, but he was feeling much better by mid-afternoon and was able to enjoy the rest of the weekend. I could write an entire other blog on the things I witnessed at San Francisco General Hospital's emergency room. Let's just say that about 80 percent of the people who entered were hand-cuffed or homeless. They were thrilled that we were not on drugs and had insurance!
Unfortunately our trip to the ER was in place of our day in Napa Valley. We missed the wineries, but our friends who went had a great time and bought us some wine to have shipped home. Saturday was football time! Despite Tennessee's loss, we had a great time. We got to catch up with lots of old friends. The UT turn out at this game was incredible! Check out Jay's pants in the pictures. We were excited about these new gameday pants, but had no idea the attention they would draw. Cal and UT fans alike were constantly commenting on them, and three people had their picture taken with him (well, with the pants). Who knew!
The rest of the trip was spent sightseeing...mostly Fisherman's Wharf, riding the trolley, etc. If you haven't been to San Fran before, it's a trip definitely worth taking!

2 days and 35 minutes until kick-off!

Jay and I are in San Francisco for the Labor Day weekend cheering on the Vols, shopping, touring the wineries, and taking in the city. We'll have great pictures to share when we return, and hopefully news of a WIN for Tennessee!!

Football Time

Today was the Central Florida UT Alumni Association's annual family picnic to kick off Football Season. We had a great time and met some new alum's that are our age and in the Orlando area. Elle and Brooks enjoyed the Smokey blow-up's, and as you can see...Brooks loved his orange and white cupcake!

We're looking forward to a fun football season beginning with our trip to San Francisco on Thursday that will include the UT vs. Cal opening game on Saturday. Go Vols!

Vacation Pics

Here is a glimpse of our vacation! There were so many great pictures, I've done my best to narrow them down without boring you to death. We got to spend the week with my entire family and even got to spend the day with my grandmother, aunt, uncle, and cousins one day at the lake house in Santee. I got to spend one morning at the spa getting a massage! The guys played golf at the Ocean Course on Tuesday while Elle enjoyed Kamp Kiawah. Wednesday morning, Jay and Kyle tried out surf kyaking and found that it was harder than it looks! Libba, the kids, and I enjoyed walking down to watch that! Overall, it was a great week! A little hot to start off, but it became bearable as the week went on. Hard to settle back into reality after a relaxing week away, but we're home and in the swing of things and look forward to going back!

Back to School

Elle started Pre-K 4 today and Brooks is going to the Mom's Day Out program at the same school. It actually started last week while we were at the beach, but today was thier first day. Elle will be going three full days this year and Brooks will go two. The big challenge for Brooks will be that he is now in a "big boy" room and will have to nap on a mat on the floor. Yeah right! I'll let you know how that one goes!

Stay tuned for beach pics! We forgot the camera, so Mom is having to mail them all to me.

Kiawah Island

Just a reminder that we're on vacation and haven't dropped off of the face of the earth! We are having a blast. Jay is playing golf on the Ocean Course (see pic) as we speak. Elle went to Kamp Kiawah this morning and had a blast. We saw two sharks this morning within feet from the shore! All of this and it's just Tuesday! We'll be home on Sunday and will have great pictures to share! Check back soon!