Back-to-School time

As many of you know, Shawn grew his lovely locks out this summer to the point of no control. Despite my efforts to have him get a professional "styled" haircut (instead of the freebies he has given himself the last 10 yrs), he wanted me to cut his hair for back-to-school time.

So, thanks to my sturdy hand,

this...

turned to this...

Do not let the face fool you. We both actually love his new do, but you know Shawn isn't Shawn without playin' it up for the camera.

I hope these kids are ready for him.

Michael Phelps

Can I just say that this man is an amazing athlete? And not sore on the eyes either :^)

Never did I imagine myself saying that a swimmer could be the greatest athlete in the world, but I think he is proving to be just that.

There is a lot more gold in his future for these Olympic games...I hope.

Go USA!

Beijing Olympics

I am not sure how many of you are addicted to the Olympics like Shawn and I are, but I just had to share a few thoughts.

My family and I were living in Seoul, South Korea when the '88 Olympics took place there, and we were fortunate enough to attend several events. A small "claim-to-fame" for my mom: she was actually one of the Olympic torch runners during the ceremonies...Go Mom! I was obviously very young when we were there (5 yrs old), but there are some beautiful memories (many from pictures I'm sure) that are still very fresh and glorious in my mind.

Over the years, I have learned to appreciate, embrace and often times advocate for other cultures and peoples through my studies in college and the many travel opportunities I've had in my life. I have to say that the Olympic games truly touch my heart in so many aspects. There is something so amazing and heart-warming about the entire world, even countries we've never even heard of, coming together for one cause. No one cares about the physical or cultural differences of their competitors. Everyone is there to proudly represent their country, some even knowing that they have no chance at a medal. It just makes me wonder why the world cannot come together with such ease outside of the Olympic games.

If you have been watching since 08-08-08, you have probably seen many instances of people coming together, smiling and laughing with one another, taking pics of their favorite athletes (which are also their competitors) from other countries, cheering for one cause...it's as if the political views, anger, violence, etc. have paused for just a moment. Unfortunately, there have been a few acts of violence and political protests, but in the grand scheme of things, it just seems like a better world for 2.5 weeks.

I hope you all have the opportunity to see the Olympics for all the beauty it has to offer, rather than how many more golds we have than others. Share your thoughts with me...whether you agree or disagree!

GO USA!!!

and all athletes from around the world!!!

Thank God for Lincoln Logs

All I can say is...wow what a day! And it's not even over yet!

7:30am- Annabelle (our faithful Puggle) actually sleeps in this morning and licks my nose until I wake up. Where was Shawn you ask? Sleeping soundly next to me...or faking sleep.

Now that I couldn't sleep...

8:00am-9:10am - Annabelle goes back to bed with Shawn, and my eyes are glued to the Today Show. So much for resting before our energetic nephew arrives!

9:10am - Shawn strolls downstairs wondering why I'm not ready for the gym yet. Let me give you some background...

We recently got a membership to L.A. Fitness (Shawn for the all-you-can-pump weights, and me for the great exercise classes). Yesterday was my first day back since Mexico, so naturally I was a bit rusty. All I can say is after an hour of kickboxing yesterday and some intense squats, I felt pretty rejuved...until the evening set in and I felt my bum getting a bit tight. Needless to say, I really wasn't in the mood for the gym being that it hurt just to sit on the toilet!! (Sorry for the visual) Anyways, I took one for the team and attended my Body Works class this morning at 9:45am. WHY DID I DO THAT?!?! Now I have the pregnant walk, but without the pregnancy thanks to Shawn and my insane instructor.

11:00am - Get showered/eat/take Belle out, and leave to meet our sister Laura and her family at Emory Children's hospital to pick up our nephew Jack to watch for the day while his baby sister was having some X-rays done. (Whew! That was a run-on!)

Once Jack made it clear that he wanted to build things at our "not-so-child-friendly house," we had to make an emergency stop at Target. I love that place!

12:15pm - Leggo aisle at Target. All I can say is...WOW! Those things are getting more and more expensive by the minute! And why does every box of Leggo's come with an instruction booklet to make these detailed objects? Don't kids just make buildings anymore? These things just aren't for kids anymore. Oh well. After Jack insisted on the $40 box of Leggo's, I quickly showed him the box of Lincoln Logs...now there's a classic...and easy on the wallet lol. It went over like a charm, and we headed home.

Can you believe that Lincoln Logs entertained for the entire time?! The funniest thing is that he made Shawn do all the building, and he took all the credit. I love how children work hahaha.

3:30ish - Laura, Mike and Chloe come to pick up Jack, and everyone was happy! Chloe is healthy, Jack was smiling, Annabelle was entertained, my butt and legs were still on fire....yep...everything went well!

So while I would love to pop a few Motrins and head off to bed, it's not quite over for me. Levi and Desiree (the new, young, really cute couple at the Ward) are finally coming over for dinner tonight...after Kembe tried to set us up months ago! But...at least it's happening now...yay! Hopefully my legs can carry me to the kitchen to make dinner, while Shawn continues to sleep from the "hard day" he's had LOL. Enough complaining...it's off to make dinner!

Thank you to the Lincoln Logs company for making Jack's day so much fun...and our day a bit easier.

Always listen to your Mother

Okay, so we've all heard our mom say, "Horseplay causes accidents!" While I have always been one to listen to my mother, Shawn has evidently never listened.

It all started with an innocent game of pillow fighting...

and it ended with...

1. Glasses flying off of my face

2. The lens flying in the opposite direction

3. A minor cut on my face

4. TEARS (he knew he was in trouble then)

My poor glasses

To add insult to injury, here is Shawn posing with the broken glasses!

Why must men take innocent fun too far...in everything?!

Pictures as Promised...a bit late

Our ferry ride over to Jamestown/Williamsburg, VA

Shawn posing for GQ magazine

Historic ships in Jamestown

Entrance to Busch Gardens Williamsburg (Ireland)

Shawn drinkin' from the very expensive souvenir cup

Shawn and I making "wine" in San Marco, Italy (as people walked by and laughed)

Our carousel experience (Shawn and his circle issues)

The log flume...it was soooo hot that day!

Land of the Dragons...our hatched birth...

Howdy partner!

Save a horse, ride a cowboy...in Colonial Williamsburg...oh my!

Our train ride through the park

Virginia Beach, VA

Baseball game fun...and humidity (note the frizz)

The Norfolk Tides baseball game...and Shawn's winning catch!

A Hill family visit

Before I begin with this lengthy post, I just wanted to say thank you to those who left very encouraging, heart-felt comments about my brother's service overseas. He is truly making the brightest situation out of a difficult one, and he sends weekly journals about his experiences in Afghanistan. He is surrounded by many prayers and angels, and I have no doubt that God will protect him during his time there. Thanks again for supporting ALL of our troops!

So it's obviously been a long time, too long in fact, since I've contributed to our blog, so my apologies to those who were anxiously awaiting our return...totally kidding of course. But, of course, I have a great excuse...

SUMMER VACATION!

I'm telling you that the biggest perk of being a teacher is the endless number of vacations you get, so it's been truly awesome for Shawn and I to have a lot of "down time" together since we both teach, especially those 2 months in the summer. Don't let the perks fool you though...teaching is by far one of the hardest jobs in the world (and I'm not saying that because I am one, it's just true!). Anyways, back on topic...

Shawn and I finally had the chance to visit my parents in Smithfield, VA the last week and a half and it was fantastic! I just wanted to share some of the "highlights" and comedic happenings during the trip, so I hope you're not too bored.

(Pictures to follow)

To begin, we made it to and from Virginia with zero...I repeat, zero speeding tickets! It may seem like nothing to many of you, but for us (well, I should really say Shawn), it's a tremendous accomplishment. While I myself have never gotten a speeding ticket, Shawn is quite the expert in the area :^) (I love you babe!). We had quite a full schedule during this seemingly short amount of time, so we knew we had to get crackalackin' once we got there. We arrived to our parents' house prepared for a huge welcome - big hugs, nice kisses, a huge banner...no I'm kidding - but we were definitely excited to see our mom and dad. However, they were nowhere to be found. I was pretty disappointed because they knew what time we were going to arrive, yet they felt that shopping was a bit more important that day lol. Of course, I felt bad when I found out they were shopping for new life jackets for us since they planned on taking us out on their new boat that evening (oops...why does that always happen?!)

My parents live in a very beautiful house overlooking the Pagan River, so my dad was beaming to take us out on the river and show us what he's learned as a new "boatmaster." We had such a great time - taking in the sun, breeze, and fresh smells, fishing, chatting, laughing - it was such a nice treat. The next time boating was a bit more exciting as Shawn and I were pulled behind the boat on a pretty large tube. Shawn, again, was pretty experienced with this sport. I, however, was not so much! We had a lot of fun (although we probably gave my father an elevated heart beat and blood pressure) and we can't wait to see my parents take the plunge next time we visit (subtle hint mom & dad!).

Hmmm...next adventure...oh yes! So because my mom was still working and my father left later in the week for a Habitat for Humanity trip in New Orleans, Shawn and I decided to buy a 7-day pass to two pretty spectacular amusement parks - Busch Gardens Williamsburg and Water Country USA. Being that I was raised in the area, I was very familiar with the parks and I wanted so bad for Shawn to experience the thrill and fun that I had experienced so much as a little girl. My dad and I have always been "the riders" of the family - twists, turns, loops, backwards, sideways, forwards - nothing can turn our stomachs. Shawn, as I found out later, not so much lol. He'll hate me for saying this and airing his business, but I have never seen so much projectile...well you know...in my entire life! I know I should've been and should be much more concerned than I sound right now, but it was so funny to see this tough guy who was talking so much smack about how "little" these roller coasters appeared, throwing up his lungs in the parking lot at the end of the day. Poor guy. Needless to say, we spent most of our time at Water Country :^) I think we ended up going back to each park 3 times that week, and it was such a fun adventure for both of us. Our favorites, in case anyone decides to go in the future, are the Griffon at Busch Gardens and Nitro Racer at Water Country. The Griffon (see video below) seats 10 people per row and makes a 90 degree drop of 205 feet at 75 mph. It is insane, but surprisingly Shawn's favorite ride! Nitro Racer is a 6-lane water ride that allows you to race your opponent(s) on a mat lying on your stomach. Needless to say, Shawn won every time...grrr! We're way to competitive.

The last day in Virginia, Shawn and I decided to check out our second baseball game of the visit in Norfolk, VA. We were pleasantly surprised to find out that the game was "flashback night," so all hot dogs, drinks, and popcorn were 25 cents! I'm serious for those who are still trying to figure this out...25 cents! Because we are a couple with two enormous appetites, we decided to take advantage of this steal of a deal...let's just say we dined sufficiently. The Norfolk Tides played a great game and the atmosphere was highly entertaining. For those of you who don't know, either Shawn or I catch a baseball at nearly every Braves game we have attended, so of course Shawn was on the look out for a foul ball. We have this ridiculous collection of baseballs (one ball with Franceour, McCann, and a few others' autographs) in a kitchen drawer. If anyone has any ideas of what to do with these, please let me know and I'll see if I can convince Shawn to let them go lol. Anyways, Shawn caught a ball during the 7th inning of the game, so that made it all worth it to him I guess. The Tides ended up losing that night, but it was so much fun to experience a baseball game that didn't involve Braves game prices!

We had such a fun time with Mom and Dad Hill, and we certainly look forward to another visit soon. There is obviously so much more that we did together as a family during our visit, but that would take too long to write about and I'm just too lazy. We're still trying to get them to come and visit us here in Atlanta this summer, but according to my husband we have to pop out a kid before they visit as often as we want it to. He's probably right! Dad, thanks so much for the endless amount of food, boating, and CNN/WHRO/political television (hooray Obama for making history!!). Mom, thanks for the great movie, Farmer's Market, shopping (as always). We loved your company, and we look forward to seeing you soon! Love you guys!

Check out the pictures in the next post!!