Wednesday, Oct. 9, 2013

Well yes sir, we do have another dog for adoption.  This gal went to a home but came back because they didn't have a fence.  So here's Laney, who came home with Chloe over the summer when she was training for the Midsouth Kids Triathlon.  She's 8 months, crate and leash trained plus she's excellent with kids, cats and other dogs.  There's always something and hers is that she eats chickens so she's at the clinic waiting for a forever home.  She's adorable.  I've added some recent photos on here too.

And I should admit to slow blogging due to camera issues.  Every one of these photos is with my phone.  I have got to order a new camera, the one that we broke on the Katy Trail is whacked out.  I was using it and just holding the lens with my finger but now it won't stay charged.  I'm in the market for a new one and I'd love to hear any thoughts on one I can carry in my purse.  Spay/neuter, you can make an impact on your community.

The Laney

I had to stop at Levesque and take this shot...the cotton
is ready for harvest

OKAY so Monday I was at Wal-mart getting the vet clinic
decorations for the homecoming game and I saw this guy
in the store.  He was parked out where I was getting the hay
and I asked him what he was doing (and the fact that I love
to tour...yes, yes I do).  He was on his way to North Carolina
for his sister's wedding.  Where is he coming from you ask?
That would be Estes Park, Colorado and according to Mapquest
that's 1713 miles and would have taken him on the Katy Trail
that Jackie and I were on over the summer.  WOW!!!  When
he saw me taking a drive by photo of him he asked that I email
a photo of him so I did.  I hope he made it out there!

Another shot

School was out Monday so Chloe watched her cousins....
they made a fort in the swing set....

YAY we had another successful Walk to School Day on
Wednesday.  We had 33 kids roll out on that cool morning, we
were so excited about the crowd!

Here's another shot of the fort......:)

Chloe dressed up for the 1980's
week at school...bale bottoms and a
do rag headband....so cute...

Oh yes, the Honey Crisps are here....was gettin these fabulous
things when I ran into that touring cyclist.....I'm in heaven!

Movie and Pizza Company, Harbor Town

Tuesday, October 8, 2013

Martin and Kara wanted to go see the Lumineers and it just happened to be on Jackie's birthday so we joined them to celebrate.  I love the Mud Island Amphitheater.  We have seen Sheryl Crow there many times as well as Harry Connick Jr and Jimmy Buffet.  The amphitheater is over 20 years old and is in great shape.  It was packed for the Lumineers (it seats about 5,000).

We decided to go to Movie and Pizza Company in Harbor Town.  Jackie is the parking guru and decided this would be a close place so we could park under the I-40 bridge and walk over the amphitheater.  And he was right for $5, it was perfect.

Movie and Pizza Company opened in 1997 by a Memphian...here's the history I found from the Memphis Daily News: Ray Fiore, who co-owns Video Movies and More, Midtown Video and Movie Star, has been thinking about a concept of delivering pizzas and videos for the past four years. He said after discussing the possibility of working with the owner of Camyís Pizza on a delivery business, he decided the logistics were not right without having the two businesses combined as one. Thatís when he started planning the Movie and Pizza Co., a sit-down pizza cafÈ which will show movies on a big screen, rent movies and, in the near future, deliver the two products to residents in Harbor Town and Downtown. ìWe just donít have anything like that here,î Fiore said. Fiore said the pizza will be thin crust and will be more on the healthy side than most pizza delivery businesses in Memphis.


The place was empty when we arrived at 6:30 and we got prime parking, right out front which was exciting since the place was packed at 6:45.  Jackie and I split a pizza, half veggie and half pepperoni.  We had to wait a while on it but it was worth it.  The crust was medium, meaning not thick, not thin, but just right.  Kara and I split the salad special with a choice of greens, cheese, fruit and dressing.  It was fantastic.

No dessert people, we were off to Mud Island which I adore.  Have I mentioned that already?  Anyway, if you're in Harbor Town, don't forget about Movie Pizza Company.  It's delicious, the waiters are courteous and the ladies room was in perfect shape.  You knew I'd check didn't you?

Movie and Pizza Company, 110 Harbor Town Square, Memphis 901-527-2233
http://www.moviepizzacompany.com/

Happy 43rd Jackie!

Not a super great photo but here
 it is, we loved sitting outside!

What's funny about the Lumineers is they only have 5 songs
so it was over fast.  They had 2 bands open for them that
also have about 5 songs.  It was a good, short concert in
my favorite venue, Mud Island Amphitheater!

Birdeye Update Sept. 2013

Ahh...the final day of camp...look at Chloe's smile!  At the
end of the day, it was her "second prison camp"...she'll
be going again next year for sure.

Two weeks after camp, we had our Smith Family Vacation
to Mountain View.  On Sunday, Memaw and Grandad took
the kids to the creek and the four of us climbed Mount
Sylamore...it's elevation was 338 feet, I think we made it
to the top before we had to turn around because of time, it
was about 5 miles and tough.

One of the main reasons I've not posted a lot this summer is
because I've pickled cucumbers 6 times and now as of
today, 9-15-13, I've pickled jalapenos twice...I've been busy
in the kitchen and have neglected my own garden and this blog

In July, we met Mary Margaret Meyer over in Memphis for a
short over nighter.  Ben's doing better since his Whipple Surgery in
May, that's the serious surgery for those diagnosed with Pancreatic
Cancer.  They've had a long summer but as of yesterday,
she reported he's doing very well now.  And is slated to go
back flying after Halloween.  This is lunch at the famed
Ichiwawa in Memphis:  Joy, Mary Margaret, Jessica, me, Tara
and Becca...we went shopping after lunch and had a blast.

Me, Mary Margaret and Jessica Vaught at South of Beale
on Main Street in Memphis

Chloe's been paying attention to hairdo's and has asked me
to learn out to french braid, which hasn't happened so I ponied
up to be a model for her teaching herself how to do it....

We've re-done Chloe's bathroom too
over the summer.  It's so cute!

Chloe spent her 4th summer playing Junior Golf in Wynne.
She doesn't really like it but she survived the short 6 weeks.
She played in a scramble at the club with Jackie at the
first of August and enjoyed the fact that it got rained out...lol!

I know right!!???  First day of 7th grade for Chloe and she's
next door with Whit, 3rd grade, Stella 1st grade and the Auganator

Jackie and I on the roof of the Madison Hotel Aug. 19 for
a summer levee board meeting.  The rooftop bar is something else!

And we pulled off a very successful Midsouth Kids Triathlon
Aug. 17 (I know you saw my post Wednesday)...Chloe was
featured getting her medal in the local newspaper....:)

Whit spent the night the other night and they got all this
padding on so they could wrestle Jackie

Chloe came home after the first week of school saying,
"mom, I want to run for Student Council and I want to try out
for cheerleader next year".  I was shocked, like deer in the
headlights.  But both of those things I did in junior high and high
school so I guess she gets that from me...

21 7th graders ran for 6 spots and she didn't win and we knew
she wouldn't win.  Yes, the most popular kids won and Chloe
said, "I just wanted the public speaking experience".  Alrighty
then...she's been the liturgist at our church probably 5 times
this year and always asks to do it again.  I have never, ever
liked public speaking.  It must be from Jackie....:)

Chloe took a photography class from Andrea Gentry this
summer and has taken multiple photographs all summer.
Here's a self portrait of her and Gumball with the camera
I broke on the Katy Trail

Biscuit lives for some head out of the window time....

At Mountain View they have a ropes course...here's Martin,
Chloe and Aunt Kara

We went canoeing too....

We had a great time

I had Memaw in my canoe and for the record, I don't canoe.
We did it a few times when Jackie was in law school and I got
so mad that I decided canoeing wasn't good for marriage.
I won't let him ride with me....Memaw is a great canoe partner.

Our church has a Sunday School kick off brunch at Memaw
and Grandad's every year.  Memaw does the children's service,
see Chloe's leading part of it.  There were about 12 kids there.

What a spread...the food was great!

Grandad likes the tradition of hand holding when blessing the
food, he lead the prayer.  There was quite a crowd there.

The boys before brunch had a little tag-team football game

Our new minister's daughter Lane Frances
with Stella and Chloe

Chloe and Stella helped lead a weaned miniature donkey
over so the kids could pet it.

The famous 12% grade hill at Pleasant Hill,
just 2 miles from Birdeye...Whit and Jackie
made it up that beast of a hill but
Chloe and I walked part of it...

Chloe's photography...I love it

Dr. Calico....a good shot of Chloe's now favorite cat....
she claims he tells her about his day.  I love it.

Chloe's photography again....:)

We all rode our bikes (but Martin and August) over to
Memaw and Grandad's, it's been a neat tradition now for the
last few years...Whit rode with us...Stella and Kara close behind

Sunday, Sept. 15, 2013

Well I thought I'd show you in pictures what we have been up to since the Katy Trail and Camp Pinecrest.  It really has been busy.  Now we're in church youth group and YAC (Youth Advisory Council to the Endowment Foundation of Cross County) and trying to keep up with Arkansas' Common Core Curriculum....lots of projects in her AP classes and a full schedule.  Add a side of piano, training for her to help with me with the Midsouth Kids Marathon and Chloe's business of boarding dogs equals we are a busy crew over here in West Birdeye.  And I have neglected my garden and those trail rides with Tyler next door.  I hope to keep reviewing places we've eaten, things around here and good things about our community here in Cross County.  Happy Fall Ya'll....first day is Sept. 20 and it's my fabulous sister-in-law's birthday!  I cannot wait to give her the present I commissioned for her....It's hanging over here and I hope she loves it as much as I do!

3rd Midsouth Kids Triathlon, Wynne

Trevor, Whit and Austin goofing off before the kids triathlon

This is the 13-16 year old age group 

Tuesday, Sept. 10, 2013

I have been super busy starting in July until now but better late than never.  I will be getting caught up on multiple blog posts this week, I hope.  Our summer didn't end after camp and the Katy Trail but it looks like it on here lol!  Here are some shots Chloe and Beth Huff helped me get this year, the kids tri was back on Aug. 17 (and yes, I didn't get any of Chloe, can you believe it?).  We had a tremendous turn out for the event.  We did a few things exceptional this year and one was start the kids triathlon with the older kids first, they had the longest distances.  We all think at the end of the day, that's how we had 93 kids start at 9 am and be DONE at 10:45 am.  I'm amazed.  We were blessed too with the cancellation of a regional triathlon in Conway 2 weeks prior.  Theirs was rained out, yes, Arkansas got a TON of rain in the months of July and August but now we are in a 4 week long drought.  They had 355 disappointed kids that had trained all summer (thankfully they didn't try to bring everyone over).  They brought about 40 kids with them which was perfect.  I had a limit on our race of 100 (only 100 medals and insulated Polar Bottles, which were a HIT).  It all worked out and I cannot thank each and everyone enough for all they did.  We had a safe and fun day.  Chloe and Stella both got 2nd in their age groups, go Birdeye Triathletes!

Thank you to our sponsors:
Puryear Jackson Family Dentistry
Childers and Jackson Family Eye Care
Caldwell Pharmacy
Wynne Rotary
Cross County Veterinary Clinic
Shaver and Smith Attorneys
Birdeye Farms
Dr. Ricky Price
Cross County Chamber of Commerce
Wynne Medical Clinic

Thank you to our volunteers and special people:
Parents of every participant
Crossridge Community Hospital
Crowley's Ridge Country Club
John and Joy Shepherd
Ashley and John David King
Martin and Kara Smith
Bob and Polly Hardin
Jimmy and Beth Huff
Dr. Trent Beaton
Lauren and Bryce Dodson
Kyle and Cecelia Killough
Jen Wallis
Beverly Edwards
Susie Armstrong
Renee Griffin
Kim Matthews
Sunne Moore
Ray Thompson
Chad House
Jake Haralson
Thomas McCutcheon
Ethan Cook
Debbie Meyer
Laura Wood
Brock Meeler
Courtney Hirons
J. Harmon (duh! :))
Cross County Ramblers
Birdeye Bicycle Club
Boy Scouts
Wynne Marlins
Start2Finish Race Management
Southern Ambulance
Wal-Mart
Wynne Progress
KWYN
(it does take a village right? :))

Here's Whit finishing

We had a huge transition area this year.  There were 93 bikes
out there!  Thanks to Kyle for a great area!

Here's Stella finishing the bike leg

Oh yeah, she got 2nd in her age group, look at her go!  She
biked and ran with her swim cap on, it cracked me up!

After our pre-race announcements, we started with
the 13-16 age group which made a HUGE difference with
the whole day on timing, we finished in record time, 1-3/4 hours
with nearly double than last year

Agee Timing had a laptop on hand so participants could
check their times...if we do it next year, they plan to
bring their TV screen and kiosk, which was at another race this day.