My Favorite Place...

...is without a doubt to be at the lake.  Sleeping in late, playing in the water, riding the boat, grilling out...ahhhh, it doesn't get much better than that for me!!  Don't get me wrong, I L.O.V.E. the BEACH but the lake and mountains are just "in my bones".  Sitting on the dock looking out across the water is where my heart is most content.  This summer, Brad and I have taken FULL advantage of every possible free minute to be at the lake, going for weeks at a time (really, we have been there as much as we've been home!)  

 

And, Miss Ellie Jane is a "lake dog" - she knows when we pull up at the gate where we are, and immediately starts scratching at the window ready to get out :)  That's my girl!!

A couple of weeks ago we spent the week with Brad's family, and had a great time!  Our sweet friend, Vickie came down and took some family pics for us - thank you Mrs. Vickie!!

I'm so thankful for our families, and that their not just our family but our friends - we laugh and have the best time just hanging out!

 And, 2 of our 4 Favorites with our 2 MOST favorite fur babies - Nikki and Ellie!

It has been a very blessed summer, and one that I really hate to see come to an end!!  Teacher work days started today in our schools, and summer is official over for me :-/  But, I have lots of sweet memories of summer 2011 and I can't wait for next year!!

Bailey Bash 2011

Hello friends!! Hope everyone is enjoying summer...I sure am! We have been on vacation the past 2 weeks, so I took a little break from unpacking to share a little bit about what we've been up to. If you have been reading long, you know my family has our annual Bailey Bash on the Bay the week of the 4th and it is BY FAR my most favorite week of the whole year!!

We stay at the lake with my whole extended family - aunts, uncles, cousins, and anyone else considered a "Bailey" - and we have the BEST time playing, swimming, laughing, cooking, eating, and making memories :)

All of the kids (and, Ellie too!!) are in the community Independence Day Parade - so much fun!

It was SOOO HOT, so ice cream and popsicles were a very welcomed treat :)

I love that Carolyne and Sam enjoy this week as much as us "big kids" and get to see what family is all about!! 

Each year, a sweet family friend who also is a great photographer comes to do family pictures for us - thank you Mrs. Vickie!!  This year, we did a "Team Spirit" picture since the Bailey family (with the exception of 3 misfits - but I won't name any names...HA!!) are all AUBURN FANS!!  We ARE the AUBURN Family - All In!!!   

The Auburn men...

We had a wonderful week, and were sad as usual to see it come to an end.  I hope all of you and your family had a blessed 4th as well!!   I'm so thankful to live in a country where we have the gift of freedom!!

News Flash

My precious Mama was featured today in our town's newspaper in the Food Section where they feature local "celebrity" cooks! Click here to read the article. 

If you know anything about my family, you know the reputation Mama has as an incredible cook!!  Her life has been surrounded by the food service industry - whether it's cooking for her family, catering for hundreds, or supervising the nutrition program in our school system that feeds several thousand children each day.  My friends laugh when I say we never ate supper out of a box growing up - everything, every night was made from scratch -and "fast food" was a special treat.  I'm so glad my Mama taught me how to not only cook, but to prepare great meals for my family. 

So proud of you, Mama!!

Eight

Yesterday, Brad and I celebrated our 8th anniversary!!!!  Wow - it's hard to believe we have been married that long!  It seems like just yesterday was April 5, 2003 and I was walking down the aisle on my Daddy's arm to meet my husband-to-be at the alter!!

We have had 8 amazingly crazy, fun, busy, stressful, happy, roller-coaster-of-a-ride years of marriage...and, I'm thankful to be on this journey with the one "my heart loves"!  And, the fact that Brad knows life with me is always going to be C-R-A-Z-Y, and he loves me inspite of it, makes me love him even more each day :) 

I love you, Bradley...you're by far my favorite! :)  Happy 8th!!!!

Peter Pan

Friday night I went with Valerie and the kids to see Peter Pan, a production by our community Children's Theatre at The Whole Backstage Theatre.

Carolyne and Sam were so excited - they had been watching the movie at home to gear up for the play :)There was one part in the play where Tinkerbell "drinks" some medicine and it makes her pass out...several other fairies come and help her to "wake up". Carolyne leaned over and said, "She [Tinkerbell] just needed someone to help her come back alive...that's what good friends do, you know - they come help you come back alive!" Pretty profound statement from a 6 year old!!

Consensus on the play - when the curtains closed at the end, Carolyne said, "Oh please don't let it be over - I'll miss them so much!!"...and, Sam said, "That was the best Peter Pan EVER! I need a Peter Pan costume, Mommy!!"

...yep, I'd say they enjoyed it :)

If you are local, you need to make plans this weekend to go see the play!! It's so cute! You can find performance dates and times here.

The Big 4

Our little Sam turned 4 today!! Valerie and Robby took him and some friends on Saturday to the Space and Rocket Center's Star Wars Exibit for his birthday, which he of course LOVED; today he had a party with his preschool class, and tonight we had a family party...Sam has definitely been celebrating the big 4 :)Valerie asked him what he wanted on his birthday cake, and he said he didn't want a cake - he wanted brownies...so, that's what he got - and they were so yummy!

One of Sam's most favorite things in the world is to dress up in one of his favorite character costumes...he got a new Iron Man costume!

Aunt Hayley and Uncle Brad got him some new Auburn gear just in time for the first game Saturday...War Eagle, Sam!!

Happy Birthday, Brother!!!! We love you :)

O Happy Day!

I have waited for the day to get to share this for soooo very long. My cousin, Lori - who I mention often - is MUCH more like my sister than cousin...and, we are SOOOO much alike, it's a little scary sometimes! HA!

Well, after much anticipation and waiting on the Lord for His perfect timing....I got to watch this happen Sunday afternoon...
YAAHHHHOOOOOO!!!!!!!! Lori is engaged! To her Prince Charming, I might add. He is the perfect fit - so sweet, genuine, loves Jesus, and is absolutely smitten with Lori...and, all those things make me love him!

Lori and Brandon, I reached a new level of happiness on Sunday! I am BEYOND WORDS ecstatic that the Lord chose to put you in each other's lives, and am so thankful for His perfect timing. I love you both, and can't wait to hear you pronounced "Mr. and Mrs."!

To Infinity and Beyond

Friday, I went with Leslie and the 4 Favorites (Kailey, Kenedi, Carolyne, and Sam) to see Toy Story 3. With popcorn and Coke in hand, and the ultra cool 3D glasses on (HA!!), they were so excited to watch Buzz, Woody, and the gang in their newest adventure :)

Sam is a Toy Story F.A.N.A.T.I.C. - he has loved Buzz and Woody LONG before news of the making of Toy Story 3 was released. He was Buzz for Hallowen this past year. Valerie and Robby got so excited last spring when they found him a Buzz Lightyear and Woody doll in Atlanta because they were no where to be found locally...amazing what can change in a year, huh??!!

The movie was too cute, and believe those that say they cried at the end - it is definitely a tear jerker!

Bailey Bash on the Bay 2010

One of my absolute most FAVORITE weeks of the year is the week leading up to the 4th of July! This is my family's annual Bailey Bash on the Bay (at Weiss Lake), and we have a BLAST! I have the most amazing family, and we have the best time together cooking, playing on the water, laughing, playing games, eating wonderful food...it's a week I look forward to all year long!

Chillin' at the house...

My mom and dad - love them so much!

Bad-to-the-bone Sam - he loves motorcycles!

Sweet little Payton - isn't he beautiful??!!My cousin, Cole, and his wife, Nichole - we did the floral designs and catering for their wedding back in the fall :)
Good times at the pool...

Having fun in the lake...

What do you think we were all crowded together for??

Water balloons!! It doesn't matter how old you are, water balloon fights are so much FUN!!One of the things I enjoy the most is watching fireworks by the lake. We lay out quilts, sometimes the boys play music, and we watch the fireworks across the water! So much fun!

Last year my cousin Lori had a great idea to have a photographer come and do some family photos, and they were so good we did it again! Thanks Vickie for doing such an incredible job!!

The Bailey Family... My cousins... My family...The Powell family...

It was such a great week - I can't WAIT for next year!!

Batter Up!

Brad, myself, and Ellie went to watch Kailey - the oldest of our 4 Favorites - play T-ball tonight. Being that I have not been to our community ball field since my sister stopped playing softball back in the day, this was all new to me. Kailey is only 5, so for their age group they don't even keep score - they let each team bat 2 times and be on the field 2 times, then it's over :)

We had a great time, and had LOTS of laughs watching the children play in the dirt and have 5 year old conversations instead of paying attention to where the ball was! It was just precious to watch those little dolls with their ball caps on that were too big run as hard as they could to grab the ball and fling it towards anyone that might would catch it. :) The coaches were so good with the children, and very patient. I know it will be fun to watch how much the children grow and learn over the season!

Kailey did great, and we were so proud of her! She was most excited to see sweet Ellie had came to watch her game :) We are looking forward to many more nights at the ball field!