Pauline, Ori and Chloe downtown Memphis

Memphis has so many murals now, it's amazing...all of these were on Beale Street

Stella's 11th birthday party, so much fun

We took Ori, Chloe and Pauline to see the ducks at the Peabody...so much fun!

Peabody (Coco....)

Pauline is near the French, then CoCo then Ori near the Spanish, they loved it!

You can't go to Memphis without going to the Rendezvous for BBQ

June 2, 2018

Ori met Pauline, from Brittany, France, through the Rotary Exchange Program.  Pauline's been with a host family in Little Rock for the past year.  Ori and Pauline hit it off last August when the exchange students all got together.  We invited Pauline over to Birdeye last weekend and took them all to Memphis.  We just did downtown things so Pauline could see it, and say she'd been to Tennessee while in the states.

We've so enjoyed Ori this year.  It's been a good experience for all of us and Ori too.  We've enjoyed learning about her country and culture and she ours.  Over bbq, I asked Pauline what are things she learned about Americans while here:  lots of fried food and large plates.  I agreed and she said her mother encouraged her to "take salads" while here but she said that fries are better.  I loved that.  Both Ori and Pauline feel much more confident with English and Ori said she needed to brush up on her Spanish when she gets home.

Ori and Pauline are on a bus tour in California for two weeks.  Ori will come for a night, get the rest of her bags and head home for Arequippa the next day.  It's really been a good experience for all of us.  I hope Chloe and Ori will be life long friends.

NYC, May 26, 2018

Ori, Mom and Chloe

Grand Central Station

Battery Park (see the Statue of Liberty in the background)

In front of NBC studio's where my boyfriend Jimmy Fallon tapes his show

Dang it, Chloe's eyes are closed

Top of the Rock

Tomoe

Battery Park, this guy only charged $10 for this photo

Wall Street

Tomoe

Trinity Church, where Alexander Hamilton is burried

Times Square

Memorial Day Weekend

Mom and Gary gave Chloe the perfect 17th birthday gift, a trip to NYC!  Thanks a million.  We had a great time, we did so many things, I wore those girls plum out.  We did a play Evan Hansen, Brooklyn Bridge, Flat Iron, Museum of Natural History, Rockefeller Center, Grand Central, Battery Park, Central Park and lots of eating and shopping.  We had a great time with Mom.  We stayed in Brooklyn so we could tour Pratt's campus.  Pratt is a cool place!  Thanks again Mom and Gary for the trip and Ori couldn't believe NYC, she was super thankful too!!!!

Chloe's 17th Birthday, Birdeye

Chloe's 17th birthday party...August, Ori, Stella, Chloe and Whit

That is a Unicorn cake and it was amazing!!! Done by a college freshman in town!

The Friday before Chloe's birthday, I took her friends over to the Embassy Suites in Memphis for a swim party....we all had a great time.  I enjoyed my room, it was nice to have time for a pedicure and shopping the next morning.  This photo is from
the fabulous Downtown Memphis Farmer's Market where we went after those heifers got out of the hotel at 1 pm....Good lord.  I think they slept in until 12:45....This is Becca, Tamra, CoCo, Katelyn, Sophia and Ori

Birthday morning!

May 14, 2018

Happy 17th Chloe!  You're so sweet, SO funny and gifted with spiritual gifts of compassion and generosity.  We enjoyed having family over for spaghetti and a cool unicorn cake and presents.  So much fun.  We are all looking forward to summer, no school but a little golf and art lessons in there.  It won't be boring for sure!!  Happy Birthday you 9 lb. 3 oz, 22 inches long baby!!!

Spring 2018

A group shot of the Friends of the Library board and volunteers April 28.  We threw a Crawfish Boil for our building fund to help remodel the Burnett Building.  We sold 100 tickets and raised about $1200.  Fun was had by all

Thank goodness for the shade

This is RIP, a yellow lab pup that someone found on the interstate and dropped off at the vet clinic
hoping to be claimed....well I had him about 3 weeks and he went to Rhode Island with the
Save a Lab rescue group a couple weeks ago.  Usually I meet transport in Memphis or Forrest
City but this transport were volunteers from Memphis all the way to Rhode Island.  It was amazing.
I was in on a Facebook conversation (which got old as the days went on) but I met a lady in
downtown Memphis and she took RIP to Jackson, Tennessee and so on.  Pretty neat.

Impromptu Kentucky Derby Party May 5.  I had invited a few friends over to watch the derby...well one thing led to another and we had 35 (Joy and Marcel rolled in a little later).  It was lively and fun, I just had planned on guacomole and salsa
since it was also Cinquo De Mayo, and everyone ended up bringing a few things.  It really was a fun party.  Everyone in this photo are related except for Jon David and Ashley King, which cracks me up.

Benton of course wore these pants....

I have a king snake who likes to hang around the garden.  I've seen him around several times

This year I have 3 boxes of Cucumbers and 3 boxes of tomatoes and peppers.  Thankfully we are to be around in June and July to pick...the last couple summers we've been gone during an important part of the season...

This is my courtyard.  Winnie Bob's azaleas were exceptional this year...

May 7, 2018

We had a fun crew over for the Kentucky Derby this year, very last minute and I guess nobody had plans cause look at all the folks that showed up!!!  It was right after the Good Shepherd Center 4 miler race that morning, so cousins and friends started rolling out around 3 and they stayed until dusk to go on a creek walk at Kara's.  It was a fun, impromptu party!!!  Look at Benton's pants, lol!

Chloe and Jackie got me this peach tree 8 years and it looks like we'll have quite a few

Prom 2018

Chloe and her best friend Rider McClendon

Tamra, Rebecca, CoCo and Rider
We were waiting on Katelyn Matthews to show, but she had a wardrobe malfunction...we'd
planned to take photos at the Birdeye Store and the cemetery but it didn't happen

August and Stella come every year to see Chloe's dress...so sweet of them!

Saturday morning of prom, I had to work and Chloe changed up her plans to go to JB's steakhouse
with Rider and invited all her friends over to a light dinner then they all went to prom....which
was fine but I had to get some food, clean up the house and take Chloe into town for
hair and makeup so here I am still in scrubs

Tamra and Chloe have a very funny sense of humor...I hope they'll be life long friends

Tamra's mom and Rider's mom ended up staying over for our light meal which was Hay's
chicken strips (reheated and for the record, you really shouldn't re-heat them they're much
better straight from the deli!! Lesson learned) mac and cheese, fruit and her choice of
freezer cookies.  For the record, Jackie didn't show up at all.  He hid in the back watching
ESPN...then we he did emerge when he didn't hear laughing and carrying on, he said,
"that food was terrible".  That is a quote.  And it didn't bother me because I had to throw it
together so last minute and waiting until dusk for a girl who didn't show, it was all fine for me

Friday, April 27, 2018

Well, we survived another prom, thank goodness.  Chloe asked a good friend, Rider, to go with her which was fun for her.  She did hang with her group of girls so they all went as a group.  Chloe said it was a lot of fun.  Afterwards, they all changed and went to Hijinx in Jonesboro, which is an arcade place then they went to Buffalo Wild Wings then to IHOP.  Yes, she got home at 3 am and Rider's mom came and got him at 4 am.  It was a long night!!  But they all had fun and were safe, thankfully.  I enjoyed talking with Tamra and Rider's moms over a light meal.  They were a sweet bunch.  I loved too that Tamra's mom asked why I don't use paper plates...she said it's so much easier to clean up....That's what Jackie said on Easter when he wondered why we weren't using plastic forks and paper plates at Easter!!  Hilarious.