April 2018 - Travel Adventures and Blue Skies

April was busy and May is even busier. A photo montage of the goings-on in the Hawk house this past month is below. Enjoy!

Gus getting some snuggles from his daddy...

 Ellis giving Gus some snuggles back...

 RF looking all handsome on Easter morning...

 Mama's sweet and handsome boys...

 Mr. Ellis who was much more cooperative for photos this Easter than last Easter...

 My boys are GROWING UP!

 I love these Hawk men...

The boys made resurrection rolls in Children's Church on Easter morning. Ellis DEVOURED his a few minutes after this photo. He LOVES sweets. 

 RF tasted his, but wasn't a huge fan. Mama helped him eat it though - I'm with Ellis, sweets are the best! Notice the name on his plate? He's been introducing himself to people as Franklin lately...

 Family photo!

 The boys didn't even ask about their Easter baskets before church, so after church we let them check out their loot...

 A few small items from the Easter bunny + some goodies from grandparents...

 Spring Break for me allowed Gracie to ride with us to take the boys to school each morning. They thought it was the best thing ever for Gracie to go with us. 

Bedroom de-clutter by mama...

 I love spring! Flowers make me happy!

 Thankful for sweet babies keeping me company during an afternoon nap...

RFH mad at mama...

Fresh fruit smoothies...YUM!

They live such a rough life...

The gift of wakefulness for mamas around the world...

 RA and I spent a weekend in Virginia and enjoyed beautiful views...

Shenandoah Valley in VA...

Beautiful waterfalls...

Welcome committee at the B&B...

Cave Hill Bed and Breakfast...

Such a variety of beans and rice...

 And spices...

And fabric...

 And snow fell while we were there...in APRIL!

Georgia sunset...

RF's self-portrait...

And what he says about himself...

Daddy and baby boy snuggles...

Another beautiful sunset...

SPIN class kicking my booty...

 Such a sweet smile...

Another cute little grin...

The Billy Graham Library in Charlotte, NC...

Me and my mama...

More beagles snoozing...

Such a boy...he LOVED fishing...

Let's add a little strength training in between spin intervals...it'll be good for you, she said...ow...ow...ow...

Sitting on the dock of the lake...

Ellis caught one, too!

This little boy and his brother spent some time cleaning all the sand they trekked into Nana's house!

Riding bikes is FUN!

A clover bouquet from the boys one afternoon in the backyard...

Wild strawberries growing in the backyard, too...

Snuggled in bed with his covers...

 Mr. Ellis got hot while he was at a park...so he took his shirt off...such a little redneck boy...

 April 20th...this little boy turned 5.5!

5.5 folks...how is that possible?

These bad beagles decided to try and dig out of the yard because there was a cat waltzing through the backyard...

 Another sweet smile from this little man...

And this one is a barrel of laughs...

 And a tree climber...

 And another tree climber...

I love that they love to play together...

 BROTHERS! Spring 2018 photos...

 Sweet boy Ellis - Spring 2018

 Sweet boy RF - Spring 2018

 I can hear Pomp and Circumstance playing now...cue the tears...

A beagle sunning on the back of the couch...

These two make me smile so big...

Whatever makes you comfortable, Gus...whatever makes you comfortable...

He thought it would be HILARIOUS to drive the John Deere standing up backwards. The smile left his face quickly when he realized that mama did NOT think it would be hilarious. 

Taking a water break from moving branches with daddy...

Bath-time for two beagles outside in the kiddie pool...

Then the boys decided to join in on the fun...

Keeping a close eye on the yard to make sure there's no predators...

Biscuits and sausage-gravy with scrambled eggs make every weekend start off on a great note...

Miss Daisy loves RA...

 My early Mother's Day gift from RA and the boys...a new hammock! So relaxing...until...

Blood-curdling cries from Ellis who had managed to bust his chin open...

So to the ER we go...

Waiting to be glued back together...

He managed quite a few smiles, though. He was so strong and didn't cry at all while the dr. glued him back together...

I'm ready to go home, mama...

All better!  His daddy made him a big pot of chicken and dumplings to make him feel better. 

The month of May is BUSY folks. It's the end of the school year and we have a ton of activities, events, and trips on the family calendar as we get ready to usher in SUMMER! Thanks for checking in our little family. :-)

2018 - Week Seventeen Photos

This week for the Hawks was pretty quiet. The upcoming week/month definitely pick up speed with a ton of activities on the calendar as we bring the 2017-2018 school year to a close - 20 school days and counting.

Monday, April 23 - Music

 The music tonight in spin class was TV show theme songs - we began with Magnum PI, heard Friends, Cheers, and even Big Bang Theory throughout our 45 minute ride...

Tuesday, April 24 - Profile

Sweet beagle girl keeping an eye out for predators - i.e. squirrels, chipmunks, leaves blowing in the wind, etc.

Wednesday, April 25 - Comfort

No doubt Mr. Gus is comfortable on the back of the couch in the sunshine...

Thursday, April 26 - Quality Time

Quality time between Daisy and RA enjoying a little TV... 

Friday, April 27 - Rule - Breaker

He refuses to sit in the swing the correct way. He said, "I like to have fun, mama. This way is fun!"

Saturday, April 28 - Nowhere I'd Rather Be

Nowhere I'd rather be than enjoying Saturday morning snuggles with these sweet boys...

Sunday, April 29 - Blooming

Amaryllis flower in the backyard getting ready to bloom! Summer is right around the corner! :-)

2018 - Week Sixteen Photos

After a weekend with a house full of family (last weekend), this week was a quiet one for RA and I as the boys spent the week at Nana and Babu's house for their Spring Break. I had a pretty lengthy to-do list to handle while they're gone, but I had a feeling I'm was going to choose to forgo working on the to-do list in favor of catching up on rest.

*Spoiler alert...I didn't accomplish many tasks on the to-do list, but I did catch up on rest and binge watched some of my favorite shows on TV. :-)

Monday, April 16 - Page of a Book

I've gotten a lot of reading done, completely caught up on laundry (didn't know that was possible for a mama of two little boys), and plan to take quite a few after-work naps in the coming days.

Tuesday, April 17 - First

Nana and Babu took the boys fishing at Mrs. Margie's sisters house on Lake Blackshear and they caught their FIRST FISH!

So proud of them! By the end of the night they had caught 10 total. Although, RF was quite upset that they couldn't take the fish back to Nana's house and put them in her aquarium. 

Wednesday, April 18 -Working Hard

Mr. Joe has a good friend that owns a farm not too far from their house, so he and RF headed over to "work" for a few hours. The "work" for RF involved getting to ride along side Mr. Bucky in one of their tractors! I'm sure he talked Mr. Bucky's ear off with a million questions, but he had the best time.

Thursday, April 19 - Day Trip

Mr. Joe and Mrs. Margie took the boys down to have a play-date with some of their cousins, a family of four more BOYS! RF and E really enjoyed getting to spend time playing with them. They played at home, went to a baseball game, visited a local park, and ended the evening with a little Chick-Fil-A for dinner. I love seeing them having such fun experiences when they are on a break from school.

Friday, April 20 - Amusing

 A little history teacher humor. My students send me funny memes all the time...

Saturday, April 21 - Reunion

So happy to see these boys! 

Mama missed her little guys!

Sunday, April 22 - Home-Grown Flowers

Seven Sisters Roses from our side yard...

Thanks for checking in on our family via our little space on the interwebs. :-)

A Ladies Trip to the Billy Graham Library

After our Mother's Day trip to the Biltmore House last year, we decided to take another trip this spring. After Billy Graham passed away we all decided that our trip this year would be to his library in Charlotte, NC. With everyone's schedule pretty busy, Mother's Day weekend was out as an option, but earlier this month Meme, Mrs. Margie, and Aunt Gale came to Covington and we set out to spend the day in NC.

Friday evening everyone came in town and we cooked a big supper of spaghetti and meatballs, bread, and salad. Everyone sat and chatted for a while before heading off to bed as we were planning to head out at 7AM.

Saturday morning we loaded up and hit the road. Mr. Joe and RA spent the day at home with the boys piddling around the house and playing outside (the weather was GORGEOUS!).

We spent the 3 1/2 hour drive chatting and admiring the scenery (not really - the majority of the drive was on the interstate...). But about 11AM we arrived at the Billy Graham Library in Charlotte, NC.

Entrance to the library and an absolutely gorgeous day. 

All smiles!

A fun day with these women!

 We arrived around lunchtime, so we stopped in to the deli on the property for a quick bite to eat.

 After lunch, it was time to start our tour which began with Bessie. She told us all about the dairy farm that Billy grew up on.

 We wandered through each of the rooms that told the story of Billy's life. This room was devoted to Ruth's upbringing and time spent in China with her family as missionaries.

 A replica of the mantle and family room in the Graham house...

A good portion of the library included artifacts from Billy's life, including his briefcase and his Bible...

One of the two pulpits that traveled with Billy around the world...

 Entrance to the library looking outside...

 The property also includes the house he grew up in. It was renovated when it was moved to the property, but many of the pieces are from the family.

 Family Bible and portrait in the home...

Living room. This is also the room where Billy's casket laid as the public came to pay their respects...

Kitchen...

White azaleas in full bloom near the grave sites with a beautiful bee fluttering around...

Ruth and Billy's graves...

It was a really great day spent taking a look at a man that had an absolutely incredible impact on the lives of people around the world. And a great day spending some time with three women who I think are pretty incredible, too. :-)

2018 - Week Fifteen Photos

A recap of our week in photos...it was a busy, busy, busy (yet fun) week/weekend. :-)

Monday, April 9 --- Chaotic

A chaotic day Monday after Spring Break called for take-out...

Tuesday, April 10 --- $

 

OMG! RA noticed a suspicious charge on our checking account and it turns out that someone opened an account with an internet provider in my name using my debit card number. UGH. I spent over an hour and a half on the phone with the company trying to get it handled. Luckily, once I got to the right person (and that took five different transfers...) it was taken care of and I called the bank to cancel my debit card. 

Wednesday, April 11 --- Dream

I wonder what RF was dreaming about because very few seconds he gave a little smile. No telling with that silly boy. These two boys love to come get in our bed. I'm ok with it --- one day they won't want to do that, so for now, it's perfectly fine. :-)

Thursday, April 12 ---My Vice

Seriously, my vice. Spin class. What a freakin' workout tonight. A new instructor teaching the class pushed us to our MAX. It felt really good afterward, but during...not so much.

Friday, April 13 --- Something Funny

Watching this three year old drive the John Deere is pretty funny, but watching him pitch a fit when he was told he couldn't drive it at the highest speed nor could he run over his brother is another story. This kid, y'all. He's going to give me a run for my money. 

Saturday, April 14 --- Blessing

A beautiful day in NC I drove my mom, my mother-in-law, and RA's aunt to Charlotte, NC to see the Billy Graham Library, Homestead, and his grave. It was a day of fun and blessings getting to hang out with three of my favorite women.

Sunday, April 15 ---Choices

 For the next week, I will get to make the choice on what we watch in the Hawk house as the boys are spending the week (their Spring Break) at Nana and Babu's house. RA and I have a full week of work, but a few hours of quiet in the evenings will be nice as we get ready to enter the last few BUSY weeks of the school year.