Day Off

I was scheduled to be off today and the kids and I were going to have a fun day.  The kids were supposed to have an early dismissal today before the Christmas break.  Well, apparently there are a lot of children that are sick with the flu and other illnesses, so the school decided to close after Tuesday this week.  Thankfully they offered extended care for kids who did not have care available elsewhere.  The kids went to extended care Wednesday and Thursday.  Today we had  full day planned.  We did some errands this morning. I had a return at Opry Mills and needed to pick up some last minute gift cards.  I decided to run through Bass Pro Shop to see if there was a long line to see Santa.  The line was huge, so we decided not to wait.  Since they couldn't get their picture made with Santa they decided to have their picture made in front of the fireplace instead.

We headed to Green Hills to go to the movies.  We decided on Big Hero 6.  It was a cute movie, but not what I expected.  It definitely had some scary parts that I am afraid will bother the kids at bedtime.  Paul was able to meet us for a late lunch at Katherine's new favorite restaurant, Noodles. It was a fun day together -- the Christmas countdown is really on now!

Christmas in New York

The best I could get from the nosebleeds!

At home after their performance

The kids annual Christmas program was tonight.  Luke was an elf and Katherine had to wear a Christmas dress.  The production was excellent -- it depicted "Christmas in New York". The music teacher writes, directs and choreographs the shows every year and does a fabulous job.  We were sitting far away so I wasn't able to get any good pictures, especially since I realized I left my camera in the rental car in Charleston!!!

Luke's class sang a fun song about an elf that I had never heard. They did a little dance as well.  It really was a good show!  Today was Paul's birthday.  We didn't have a cake or anything since we knew we had the show tonight.  He opened his presents this morning.  I think he had a good birthday!

Good-bye Charleston!

We started our last day in Charleston with brunch at Toast.  We had to wait quite a while to even get in, but once we did it was fairly quick.  The food was really good and we enjoyed it.

We had several hours before our late evening flight so we split up for the rest of the afternoon.  Paul and I wandered through the Market again and made our way back to King Street.  They were having a special even today.  There were lots of live performers which were fun.  We went in a lot of different shops, but didn't really buy anything.  We met Jon and Kristen back at the car in time to make our way to the airport.  The flight home was uneventful.  The kids were so excited to see us when we got home!  We are excited to see them, too.  They had a great time with Mom and did lots of fun things!  It was a great weekend and I am so glad we could get away and celebrate Paul's birthday!

Fun for the Boys

The first "First Baptist Church"

Beautiful beach

We had a leisurely morning.  We took full advantage of being without kids by sleeping in.  I was in bed longer than I have been in months. I found one of those cheesy Hallmark Christmas movies on TV and ended up watching the whole thing!  Paul even brought me coffee in bed.  If anyone knows Paul they know he does not like the taste of coffee, much less the smell of it!  He had never made it, but he did a great job!  He also cooked breakfast for everyone -- breakfast casserole.  He's a keeper!  We headed out after that to go to Wild Dunes.  The Troutts vacationed here almost every year when the boys were growing up.  They went with the same 3 families each time.  We were able to get a visitor's pass to explore the resort area.  We drove around and around looking for the house the rented on more than one occasion. They finally found what they thought was it.  We got out and checked out the beach.  It is a gorgeous day here - sunny and in the 60's!  We ran into another family so we were able to get a couple of group pictures made.

When we left there we went back into Charleston.  We toured the Calhoun Mansion which was quite overwhelming.  A family actually lives there, but it was more like a museum -- lots of very expensive antiques and artifacts. Definitely not my cup of tea.  We did a lot more exploring on foot after that.  I love the old homes here and everything that the city does to preserve the past. Anything that has been in place longer than 75 years has to remain in place, including stone "stoops" on the sidewalks that allowed ladies to step up into horse drawn carriages.  I also loved how everything was decorated for Christmas --- lots of real greenery, magnolia and fruit.  We saw very little artificial decorations.  Everything was simple and classic -- just what I like!

We grabbed lunch at A.W. Shucks. It has been there forever.  They boys remember eating there when they were on vacation.  Everyone got to feed their seafood craving.  Jon and Kristen had fresh oysters, I had fish tacos and Paul had a mahi sandwich.  It was all so good!  We went back to The Market and did some other window shopping.  We went to King Street which is the upscale shopping district. It was way out of our price range, but it was fun to look.  We enjoyed sampling nuts and taffy as well.

Our dinner reservations were even later tonight -- 8:30 so we went home late afternoon.  I took a long nap which was awesome!  We got all dressed up for our night out.  We ate at an amazing restaurant -- SNOB (Slightly North of Broad).  It was phenomenal!  I branched out and ordered the duck with blue cheese bread pudding and braised brussel sprouts.  Kristen and I ordered a pear cider sangria that was wonderful.  I could go on and on about the food, but I won't.  It was a very warm, cozy atmosphere.  We were definitely pleased with our selection.  We found a cool jazz club for an after dinner drink, unfortunately the band was wrapping up when we got settled but we still enjoyed the atmosphere.

Hello, Charleston!

So thankful for this lady!

First stop, carriage ride...

We hit the ground running this morning!  Our flight was at 9:30 so we woke up early to finish our last minute packing before taking the kids to school.  They were so excited to know that they were spending the weekend with Nonna; they didn't care much about us leaving. It was fun for us to both take them to school.

We met Jon and Kristen at a park and ride close to the airport.  Paul was busy on the phone with work the whole time.  It never slows down.  Our plane ride was quick and uneventful -- just how I like them!  We picked up our rental SUV and headed to the house we rented.  It is so nice.  Plenty of room, convenient, clean and nicely decorated.  We stopped at the grocery to pick up a few things. We relaxed a little bit before heading into town.  We had a private carriage ride tour of the city booked. Somehow I failed to get a picture of us, the carriage, or us in the carriage!  It was a nice way to start our trip.  It kind of gave us our bearings and gave us an overview of the city and some of the history.  So far I like what I see. It is a beautiful town full of Southern charm.

After the carriage ride we hit the Market which is in the heart of downtown with lots of vendors selling anything from clothing and soaps to Charleston's famous grass baskets.  I was able to pick up a few things so it was fun!  We had late dinner reservations tonight so we went back to the house to regroup and freshen up.  Our reservations were at the Hominy Grill. I described it as an upscale Cracker Barrel.  It was very good, true Southern cooking.  I had the cornmeal crusted fish with mac and cheese.  It was very good.  Jon got a piece of carrot cake to go.  We were tired from our busy day so we went back to the house and watched a little TV before going to bed.

A Slight Stall

I was under the impression the paint crew was going full steam at the house today and I couldn't stand the thought of not seeing it before we go out of town. Mom agreed to pick the kids up from school and meet me up there as she is anxious to see it too.  A lot has changed since she was there at Thanksgiving.  I found out late this afternoon that, in fact, the painters had not been there but another crew working on interior doors and drywall had been there.  I decided to make a quick stop out there, but told Mom not to make the drive.  It was best she and the kids didn't come.  There were 4-5 people working and I was not able to get upstairs as they were doing some drywall repair in the stairwell ceiling.  They had made some visible progress today though.  Almost all the new interior doors are hung and look great.  I assume they finished the drywall in Katherine's bathroom as well since the plumbers were finally able to get her tub configured correctly.

Paul's work Christmas party is tonight at Melting Pot.  We decided a couple of weeks ago that I would not go since we are going to be away from the kids all weekend. I have had a million things to do tonight and was not able to get them all done.  As I am typing right now Katherine is up running around.  That girl is wired every night and will not go to bed!  I will just have to get up extra early to get the last minute things done.  Mom did get all of the kids suitcases, etc tonight when she dropped them off so that was a big help.  The plan is for us to drop the kids off at school in the morning and head to the airport.  Charleston....here we come!

So far, so good!

Kitchen and breakfast room

Mudroom

The mantel is going to look great!

Paul was meeting another exterior guy at the house tonight.  Turns out he lives close to us and actually goes to our church.  Paul had done some work with him several years ago.  So, praying that he comes back with a reasonable bid.  His company would actually be able to get to us shortly after the first of the year!  So, we'll see if we can come to terms on  a fair price.  Paul texted me and said the painters had gotten a lot done today so  I couldn't stand it, I had to run out there again after work to see.  I had talked to the crew chief this morning to clarify some things.  I was blown away by how much they had done ! There was a crew of six guys and they are fast! The living room, kitchen, dining room, mud room, hallways and playroom have a coat of paint on the ceilings and walls.  Paul was able to quickly get the samples up in the dining room and master bedroom.  I think I am happy with all of them so I walked through with one of the guys to make sure they understood all the color selections we wanted.  The living room seems to be the most affected.  With all of the blue gone and everything crisp and clean it is going to look great!

The plan is for them to be back tomorrow.  I told Paul that there is strong possibility that when we get back from our trip and are able to get up there everything will be completely painted.  That blows my mind!  The flooring guys called today and said they have an opening the end of next week and would be able to get our hardwoods installed.  I just said no!  We talked about it and decided that once the paint is done we are going to seriously wait until after the holidays to schedule anything else.  We are actually getting in the final stretch on the interior. But, considering I have not picked out the first light fixture and we still haven't made a final determination regarding the kitchen cabinets we are going to hold off for now.

Paul had an appointment at 5 to look at a new job.  Thankfully it was close to Gallatin.  He didn't get home until after 7 so the kids stopped and picked up supper for a weeknight change.

Super Fast!

Paul and I thought we decided to "slow down" on the house for the month of December.  Well, that hasn't really happened.  The paint crew had some open time this week so they decided to come to our house.  I ran out there after work before I picked the kids up.  I could not believe how much they had gotten done in one day.  Virtually every stitch of country blue paint is gone!  All the trims, doors, walls, beams, etc are primed and ready for paint. It really made a huge difference.  Of course, I have not had time to get a couple more paint samples mixed for the master bed./ bath and the crew is needing to know what our final selections are.  Decisions, decisions!

Christmas Blitz - Rockettes!

We continued on our Christmas Blitz weekend today.  We went to church, lunch, did some errands and headed home before the show this afternoon.  Paul went and bought our Christmas tree from our Sunday School teacher.  He has a lot to raise money for a summer mission trip.  I still can't believe it is well into December and we don't have our house decorated!

The Rockettes were fantastic!  It was an all new show, but still had some of the classic scenes like the Toy Soliders and the Nativity.  Somehow I did not get any pictures of us, but snapped a quick one of the Opry House on the way out.  Katherine absolutely loved the show, but I think Luke got a little bored toward the end.  When we got back home we decorated the tree. I think we are finally completely finished and can start taking the empty boxes downstairs.  We had a wonderful weekend and I was so glad we were able to get so many fun things done!

Christmas Blitz - Cheekwood!

Playing with antlers!

Making a Santa sack

Decorating a Christmas cookie

Riding in Santa's sleigh

Beautiful tablescape -- would love to do this!

We love Cheekwood and I have regretted not making it there this fall for the scarecrows. I knew we had to go for Christmas.  We have never been this time of year.  They have reindeer, multiple craft stations and pictures with Santa.  We heard a beautiful concert at the main house and enjoyed Christmas trees decorated from around the world.  It is so nice to have such a great place so close by. We spent a couple of hours there.  We are all tired, but I spotted a Porter Paints so I ran in there real quick to get some samples mixed.  There are a few paint colors that I actually want to see on the wall before I commit to them!

The rest of  the day we are going to stay home and try to get the last of our Christmas decorating done.  We still have not picked up our live tree yet  --- we asked the kids if we could not do that this year, but they were having none of that.  So, I guess we will stop and do that after church tomorrow! Tis' the season!

Christmas Blitz - Polar Express!

Waiting to get going

This girl was happy!

Meeting Santa!

Since we are out of town next weekend we are cramming all of our Christmas activities in this weekend.  We started early by going to Mom's Christmas Breakfast a little after 7:00.  She did this on Black Friday last year, but that didn't work out this time.  The food was great, but we literally had to eat and run.  We had to be at the train station before 8:30.  We have been wanting to do the Polar Express train ride for years now and decided this was the year to do it.  This might be the last year that Luke would enjoy something like that. It was pretty fun.  Nashville definitely doesn't go all out like some of the smaller towns, but it was nice.  We boarded close to downtown and were gone for about 2 hours.  We rode to Lebanon and back.  There was a dining car where you could purchase hot chocolate and snacks. The activities included a reading of "The Night Before Christmas", carolers and last, but not least a visit from Santa and his elves!  The kids really thought it was fun!  It is another one of those events that is neat to do once, but we would not do it again.  After that we stopped for a small lunch before going to Cheekwood!

Late Meeting

French doors installed!

Yay! The funny window is gone....

We are still having a hard time securing someone to do the exterior work.  Either they are out of our price range or are not available until several months out.  We met a exterior company up there tonight.  When we got there the crew was still there working on installing the French doors.  I picked up pizza for them and us. They had a long day -- changed out the window in the living room, framed out the new window in the attic and did some work in Katherine's bathroom.  That area has turned out to be quite complicated.  I think it is finally figured out.  Just need the plumbers to come back to finish up and the drywall can be completed in there.  I absolutely love how the French doors look! They give the room such a different feel.

Field Trip with Daddy!

All smiles!

Luke had a field trip to the Planetarium at the Adventure Science Center.  Since it was a short trip and it was in Nashville Paul was able to meet the group.  Luke was so excited to have Paul come -- he has never been on  a field trip with the kids.  They both said they had a good time and Paul said he learned a lot!