First Day of School!

Summer has officially come to an end as all four boys headed off to school this morning. Only a couple were being tolerant of their mother trying to take pictures as they were walking out the door! Immediately after the picture snapped they started fussing about making them late! At least they were worried about getting there on time! My Carter starts his SENIOR year of High School! Two in Middle School and one left in Elementary! Clint has decided to remain in 8th grade again this year since he has a late birthday, and wants to grow physically, academically and athletically. (I think the last reason carries the most weight, but he threw the first two reasons in for my benefit!) Bear with me if this blog gets a little mushy as I watch my first baby Carter do all his "last things" as he finishes his High School career!

Are You Ready For Some Football?!

Garrett has hit the grid iron full speed ahead with pads and a helmet! No more flag for him, and no peace for me as I watch my blue-eyed boy try to escape being smashed under a pile of defensive linemen! Catch all the exciting season with the David Lipscomb 5th grade Colts on my newest blog addition www.dlcoltsfootball.blogspot.com. Are you ready for some football?!

Pool Days!

Grant and his good buddy Ford...Nothing like bidding summer farewell with a blast and splash at the pool!

Happy Anniversary!

August 6th

Our most excellent lake adventure!

The boys and I took off last Wednesday and headed to Old Hickory Lake for our last summer adventure before school starts! We were so excited to have Laurie, Blake and Kendall to keep us company while Scott and Carter were still away in Orlando. Carter and the rest of the Tennessee Tigers were competing in the AAU National Tournament. (A big shout out to the Tigers who finished 7/3 while in Orlando, and had an amazing run...congratulations on a fantastic season!) After the tournament, the two of them were able to come up and join in on all the fun at the lake. We tried to fit in just about everything you can do at a lake...fishing...tubing...hanging out on the pontoon boat...and jumping into the river from a rope swing! Thanks to the kindness and generosity of friends who let us use their lake house - we had a most excellent time!



Don't try this at home...!

Gone Fishing!

Garrett was our official "take the fish off the hook" guy! Glad we had him with us...he even had to try and escape the neighbors dog who kept trying to eat the fish as we would pull them in! We sure weren't catching any record breakers, but we were having tons of fun!

Explorers...

Somewhere along the river, we found a cave. But these brave souls weren't going in! Where is Tom Sawyer when you need him?

Let the good times roll!

"Life moves pretty fast. If you don't stop and look around once in a while, you could miss it!" Ferris Bueller

Nothing like cousins!

We loved having Ethan and Everett come stay with us a week in July! I think they would have preferred to pitch their tent down by the creek, but they also enjoyed a few pool days as well. I hate to tell you Aaron, but I think they were catching minnows, "cooking" them (and I use the term loosely!) and your son Ethan was "tasting" them...I don't know...just the story I'm getting! This they were doing when they weren't chopping heads off snakes! What?!...dangerous?!...we love danger! You didn't think I was going to ruin my "cool Aunt Ronda" image did you? I would have preferred they weren't using knives from my kitchen to do the chopping with, but what is summer without a few adventures!

The cousins come to town!

God created boys, full of spirit and fun to explore and conquer, to romp and run.
-- Author Unknown

Wishing I were here...

View from the balcony at the Beach Club in Gulf Shores...it's calling my name!

It's How you Live...

Thank you Stephanie for introducing me to this beautiful song! I heard it on your blog! I have added it to my playlist, so if anyone is reading this and you have never heard the song...scroll down to the bottom of the page, and click on the song "How you live" (#19 on the playlist)...it will play while you read the words...they are worth reading!

Wake up to the sunlight with your windows open
don't hold in your anger or leave things unspoken
wear your red dress, use your good dishes
make a big mess and make lots of wishes
and have what you want but want what you have
and don't spend your life looking back

Turn up the music
Turn it up loud
Take a few chances
Let it all out
'cause you won't regret it
Looking back from where you have been
'cause it's not who you knew
And it's not what you did
it's how you live

So go to the ball games and go to the ballet
go see your folks more than just on the holidays
kiss all your children, dance with your wife
tell your husband you love him every night
don't run from the truth, 'cause you can't get away
just face it and you'll be ok

Turn up the music
turn it up loud
take a few chances
let it all out
'cause you won't regret it
looking back from where you have been
'cause it's not who you knew
and it's not what you did
it's how you live

Wherever you are and wherever you've been
now is the time to begin

So give to the needy and pray for the grieving
even when you don't think that you can
'cause all that you do is about to come back to you
so think of your fellow man
make peace with God, make peace with yourself
'cause in the end, there's nobody else

Turn up the music
turn it up loud
take a few chances
let it all out
'cause you won't regret it
looking back from where you have been
'cause it's not who you knew
and it's not what you did
it's how you live

Kelly Boyett's Wedding Weekend...

This weekend I got to head down to Saraland, Alabama where Scott and I had lived for three years while he was coaching at the University of Mobile. I have alot a great memories from those years...where my Garrett was born...where Jay Walton started coaching with Scott...and where I made, and still have some wonderful friends! This was the beautiful wedding weekend of Kelly Boyett, my sweet friend (and former babysitter of Carter and Clint!) and daughter of my dear friend Lynn. Another dear friend, Rebecca, was kind enough to include me as a hostess for Kelly's bridal tea - an event that my boys still can't seem to comprehend the need for! Turns out Kelly married a guy named Ben Smith, whose Uncle Johnny is the golf pro here at Brentwood Country Club...a pro Scott Sanderson knows well! Small world! I even got to spend time visiting with Martha Roley Ryan...one of my bridesmaids! Everything turned out beautiful! Congratulations, Kelly and Ben!

A little taste of "girl world"!

Garrett and Grant with their sweet friend Ruby Walton! Stephanie, Ruby and Willie had me and the boys over for dinner the other night, and Ruby entertained us with several costume changes while the boys got a glimpse into the magical world of girls. Not something they see alot of! (I rarely run around in my tinker-bell costume!) Of course, Willie kept things balanced out with several games of pool with Clint. Real man stuff! Thanks Steph for a wonderful dinner and a super evening!

Camp Hy-Lake

This week was Woodson Chapel's week at Camp Hy-Lake. In a moment of weakness, I agreed to go along with Clint and Garrett so that Grant could go - as Grant wasn't quite old enough to go without a parent. I say "a moment of weakness" because it's 90 degrees outside, the camp is NOT air-conditioned, and I volunteered to help in the kitchen! There was a reward for my service after all, as the camp now has a brand new cabin with air-condition and it's own bathroom! You can appreciate what I am talking about by looking at the pictures of "my cabin" and the "boy's cabin"!

My cabin...



The boy's cabin...



Despite the cabin - which the boys happened to love! - they had a great time this week participating in Bible classes, softball games, of course there were basketball games!, swimming in the lake, arts and crafts time, movie night, and tons of other fun activities planned by the camp staff. Garrett even led singing at one of the devotionals! And what would camp be without a snake hanging from the rafters over the ping-pong tables. True story...!

Oh! P.S. I now have an official "camp story" to tell!

Tuesday evening - while I was cheerfully helping to clean up the kitchen after dinner - I was attacked by a giant killer mouse who charged at me from under the sink where I was washing dishes! A kindly - but dumb - young male counselor attempted to come to my rescue by crawling under the sink and capturing the giant mouse by the tail. When he attempted to hold up the mouse to show his bravery, the mouse bit him on the hand!...which caused him to immediately send the mouse flying through the air across the kitchen!...where it landed somewhere behind the stove!...never to be found again! None of the other women in the kitchen were any help, as they were either quickly making their retreat as I was, or they were doubled over with laughter! By the next morning, I realized I had a huge bruise on my hip from where I had attempted to leap over the counter during my escape! (Do NOT listen to the boys if they should try and tell you it was only a small gray field mouse!) Next time I am packing for camp, remind me to take along mouse-traps...LARGE mouse traps!

Slip Sliding Away!

Every year at camp the kids look forward to the day they break out the giant slip-n-slide! Covered with water and baby shampoo, the boys took turns flying down the hill. There were more than a few grown-up kids on there too!

Happy 18th Birthday, Carter!

Tuesday, July 7th
My baby is 18 years old today! Since he is in Indiana at a basketball tournament, I found this picture of Carter on his first birthday!
(Don't ask me why he had on a Christmas bib in July! It was my first baby, what can I say!)

I love the beach!

If I had my way, we would pack up the car the day school got out and head to the beach to stay until the day the boys had to be back in school! But...since I don't see that happening, I always appreciate even more the time we do get to go! A very big thanks as always goes to Nana and Granddaddy for generously letting us use their condo at the Beach Club in Gulf Shores. This year we enjoyed being able to spend the week with them, as well as Scott's brother Jim and his wife - Jill and son -Kyle. (Cousin Katie is still in Africa! For those of you who know Katie, she has just graduated from Auburn with a nursing degree this spring! Congratulations, Katie!) We also took with us Carter's good friends, Jackson and Willie Coursey. The weather was perfect, the boys got along great, we all got alot of sun and I got tons of great pictures! Here is a glimpse of Gulf Shores - Summer 09!

Some of the Sandersons...