Tracy's Visit Day 2

Sunday morning we got up and got ready to go to church...and decided to have breakfast at Burger King on the way. (It's practically next door to where our church meets.)

We walked in to Burger King and there sat a table full of young men from our church. One of them was Ryan, now in his early 20's, but who Tracy, Brianna and I knew from Atlanta when he was a little boy. Remember those piles and piles of pictures we had looked through with Heather??? Well, we had found one of Ryan with Brianna when she was about a year and a half old, and we had taken it with us to church in order to give it to Ryan's mom, Michele.

Tracy hadn't seen Ryan in about as long as she hadn't seen Heather...

BUT, Tracy - funny as always - went up to the table of young men, and extended her hand with the picture in it and said "Excuse me, we're looking for some lost children have you seen them?" Ryan takes the picture and looks at it, and realizes it's HIM and Brianna 10 years ago! He starts looking around and then sees David, Brianna and I near the counter. Tracy had grace on him and told him who she was, and then he remembered her. It was a good laugh!

Then on to church we went, and then on to lunch and back home so David could go out of town for business until Tuesday night. =( BUT, I was grateful for time with Tracy, so I tried to be a brave soldier!

Sometime Sunday night when we were about to launch our plan to watch some of our favorite movies day and night while David was gone, we decided to paint the living/dining room. I already had the paint, so why not???

Yeah, it was about 10pm when we started, and about 3am when we stopped. Did I mention 2 of the walls are textured and are a BEAR to paint??? Here we are sometime in the middle of the night...priming the walls...

Maverick was there for moral support!



He's a little bigger now than when we took him to Disney back at Father's Day weekend...lol

We managed to get the 2 bumpy walls primed before going to bed...barely!

OH, I almost forgot...Sometime around 1:30ish we started to smell smoke! It seemed to be coming from the downstairs air conditioner. You know, the one that cools The Tracy Room!
SO, we had to turn the unit off...but God was kind and kept the outside temperature at a reasonable level that Tracy didn't seem bothered by it.

EXCEPT when she went to bed after 3am and kept hearing something turning on and off and thought it was the unit! She was up until close to 5 trying to figure out what it was and if it was dangerous!

It turned out to be our water pump...we have some kind of filter system and it kept going on and off. It was a long night, and an early morning!

Tracy's Visit Day 1

Tracy is one of my best friends...she was, in fact, my Maid of Honor this past March when David and I were married. I have known Tracy since 1995, and she has been a most loyal and faithful friend! Because she is a most loyal and faithful friend, she made a point of coming to stay with us in Jacksonville this summer, after spending most of her summer in Pennsylvania with her parents, and before returning to work as a 4th grade teacher next week.

Well, I believe, that to bless Tracy for her loyalty and faithfulness, not only to me, but to the Lord, the Lord had a special surprise waiting for her when she got off the plane on Saturday.

Tracy came down the escalator to the baggage claim area, with me in full view from the escalator. Then as she came closer she saw a person holding up a piece of paper in front of their face that said "Tracey Collier"...which is her first and last names misspelled. As Tracy got closer still, the person lowered the paper to reveal the face of a beloved friend, who Tracy had lost contact with some 8 years ago...our dear friend Heather!

Heather had contacted me a couple of weeks ago, and we got together to have lunch with our kids. I told Heather at that time that Tracy was coming, and we planned to surprise her!

Well, needless to say we pulled it off! The look on Tracy's face was priceless.

Side note, Heather, Tracy and I all met on the same day! Tracy had flown to Atlanta to visit our church their (from the Philadelphia church) and was going to stay with our friends (the Salsberrys). Heather was the one to pick Tracy up from the airport that first visit, and held up a sign with Tracy's first and last name's misspelled. Heather then delivered Tracy to the Salsberrys house, where she met me - who was staying with the Salsberry's children since the parents were out of town. I know, it gets confusing!

Anyway, there was great rejoicing at the Jacksonville airport as the three of us were reunited!

We then went to our house so I could get Brianna to a friend's house in order for her to get to youth group...here is Brianna with Aunt Heather (in purple) and Aunt Tracy (in blue) in front of our house:


Then it was off to lunch at a Mexican restaurant near our house. Along the way Heather and I enlisted our husbands to join us, and we had a fun time getting to meet Heather's husband (Larry), and Heather and Larry getting to know David. THEN, we all went back to our house so Larry could help David fix a problem with our air ducts. (David was insistent that Tracy have air conditioning in her room (aka "The Tracy Room").

We girls sat and talked, reminisced, and looked at piles and piles of old pictures. It was such a blessing!

Here is a picture of us just before Heather and Larry left around 9pm:

And, of course, Brianna had to get in the picture too!

Then Heather and Larry went on their way, and we were sad to see them go.

BUT once they left, we did have other things to do before going to bed...Like the official dedication of The Tracy Room! Here is a picture of the ribbon cutting...

All in all, it was a day full of blessing! God has been so very kind to us in SO many ways! David and I are so grateful for the friendships God has given us, and for a home that is a place for all those friends to come visit!

More on Tracy's Visit to come...

Mother, please come here and see what he has done!

You know when you hear those words you need to take a deep breath! lol

Well, by God's grace, when I saw what "he did" I burst out laughing!

Here is what Maverick he did today...

Maverick's sissy wasn't so happy...but I thought it was hysterically funny! AND it was an easy cleanup!

As I tell Brianna on a regular basis, this is just another evidence of God preparing you for a toddler in the house! (No, not pregnant yet...but hoping to be!)

Isn't our puppy SO cute??? He'll be 5 months old tomorrow...Yes, he's gonna be BIG! But we love him to pieces and couldn't imagine life without him!

Yeah, I got it bad! lol BUT, as I also tell Brianna, once we have a baby I won't be so ooey gooey with Maverick...Although I will still adore him!

Father's day, Part 2

SO, what better thing to do with My David for Father's Day then to go to his favorite place...DISNEY WORLD!

We originally planned to leave Maverick with Grandlady and take Brianna with us to Disney, but Brianna opted to stay with Grandlady instead, so we took Maverick with us to Disney...YES, that's right, Maverick went to Disney! He rode the courtesy tram and everything! Here he is with David at the World Ticket and Transportation Center at the Magic Kingdom...


The good news is that we did not have to buy a ticket for Maverick...He got to spend the day at the Disney Kennel Club...and was taken very good care of by this sweet lady...


David and I toured the Magic Kingdom, doing some of our favorite things...like visiting the spot where we got engaged...

Then it was off to the Experimental Prototype Community Of Tomorrow...YES, My David actually knows what EPCOT stands for...and I guess I do now too! lol Since David's annual pass was expiring just days after this visit, and we will not be renewing it any time soon (MUCH to our sorrow), I made sure to get a picture of him in front of the "golf ball".



David's daddy (Charles) actually played a part in the golf ball's construction. Apparently the original design was creating a tulip shape instead of a ball, so Charles was asked to help out...and as you can see, he knew just how to fix the problem! Knowing that David's dad had a hand in that structure makes it my favorite part of going to Disney...

We didn't spend a lot of time at EPCOT, and really didn't do much more than go on the "golf ball ride"...but we did go get a coke at the Electric Umbrella where we sat and talked for a good long while...remembering our different visits to Disney before we were a couple...and marveling at how God brought us together...and how very grateful we are that He did...

Then it was off to get our puppy and head home!

Maverick was NOT happy with us when we picked him up...he shunned us for a good, long while! BUT, as planned, we stopped at my favorite restaurant for dinner on the way home (DB Pickles in Ormond Beach) which had outside seating allowing us to keep Maverick with us at our table and once they made a big deal over him, and he had some water and a snack, he forgave us. It was a beautiful evening, and sitting outside at twilight with a sweet breeze blowing by was just wonderful! We got some cookies to take home to Brianna, and we were on our way!

Father's Day itself was nice, and David received his first Father's Day card and gifts...Brianna and I think he can probably get used to this being an appreciated dad thing...

My David,

I hope you enjoyed your very first Father's Day...Brianna and I are both so glad that she has such a wonderful Daddy after all this time...You are such a blessing to us both!

I love you!
Your Colleen

Father's Day, Part 1

So...I'm a little late in posting...we've had some technical difficulties with our digital cameras, which prohibited me from posting the pictures I've been trying to be faithful to take! =D

BUT, I think we got it all worked out!

This year was the second time in 11 years that Brianna had a dad to celebrate Father's Day with. Needless to say, I did a lot of crying...tears of joy and gratitude to my oh so faithful God for the amazing gifts He has given Brianna in the form of her TWO amazing dads. While she does not remember the one Father's Day she had with her father (she was only 2 months old) she DOES remember her first Father's Day with David as her dad. God is so kind!

And, while this was a momentous occasion for Brianna, it was also pretty special for David...his very first Father's Day! Even though he had only been at it for 3 months, David earned the Dad of the Year Award from me. Pictures below...

Friday of Father's Day weekend Brianna and David went to the Dad's Appreciation class at her karate do-jang. Here are some pictures...


These two (above) are David and Brianna doing an activity where one had to drop a target and the other had to punch it. One of our favorite moments as a family, which was not caught in these pictures, is that there was one time Brianna was holding the target and faked David out, so that he punched but she had not let go of the target. They were laughing, and so was I (amidst the tears of gratitude), and it was a moment of bonding for dad and daughter.

This is a picture of David and Brianna waiting to go into the other room for snacks!

AND, finally, this is David and Brianna still sipping their drinks, having just been addressed by Master Johnson.

I am SO grateful to the Lord for our first Daddy Event...I look forward to many more as the years go on!

Classic!

I just asked my wonderful, fabulous, 11-year-old daughter "What else is going on in your head and heart?"

Her answer?

"Elevator music!" as she started swaying back and forth, singing some groovy melody.

Lord, thank You for the amazing gift you have given our family by giving us Brianna. Please keep her near to You all the days of her life!