The Last July Weekend of 2014

This past weekend was really great; it was a good combination of being busy and also having some downtime. Friday, I got home from work around 5:00 p.m. or so and an hour or so later one of the nurses (Galen) from my chiropractor's office came over. She is such a nice lady and has always been my favorite nurse from the office. She is a dog lover and when I told her about The Pip's bad experience at the kennel while I was in Hawaii, she said to let her know the next time I was headed out of town and she would keep Pippa for me. So, a couple of weeks ago, I asked her about keeping Pippa while I go to the PGA Championship. She agreed and this past Friday, she stopped by to meet The Pip and get acquainted. 

We visited with Galen about 30 minutes or so out in the backyard. There was a nice breeze blowing and it wasn't too hot and it was really an enjoyable evening. Galen will gather up Pippa and take her home with her (Galen) where Pippa will be Galen's old dog Hooch. I'm hoping they will get along okay. Galen is like me and doesn't mind a dog sleeping beside her and so The Pip will be very spoiled by getting to sleep in a real bed instead of in a crate at the kennel. I'm very thankful that Galen has agreed to watch after Pippa. It's so very nice of her and I think it will work out a lot better than the kennel did earlier this year. 

After Galen left, I mowed the lawn. It had been two weeks since I had mowed and it took a long while and a lot of patience to get the mower up and running well. I finished everything up by 8:00 p.m. and spent the rest of the night working on laundry and watching the Tour (which is over now and it seems weird to go home and have nothing to watch). 

Saturday morning, I was up early, as always. I went and got a pedicure early that morning because I had a big wedding to go to in the evening and my toes needed a make-over. I'll write more about this later because I went to a new place and I want to share about it with you. After the pedicure, I went by the mall to look for a white shirt, which I found and then got a car wash because I was in desperate need of one. Not only is it once again sap season at my house, but I had, earlier in the week, backed into a puddle of dirty water which splashed all over the backside of my car. I'm surprised no one wrote "wash me" in the window. 

After heading back home, I did some cleaning and laundry and then got ready for the big wedding. My friend Margaret Anne was getting married that evening to the dashing Grayson Tucker, who is one of the youth ministers at our church. Margaret Anne's mom went to high school with my parents and my family has known hers for many years so I was happy to be able to witness her big day and celebrate with her. 

It was undoubtedly the largest wedding I have ever been too with probably close to 700 people in attendance. The reception was at the Davidson Center at the Space and Rocket Center and I rode with my cousins Chris and Amy to the reception. Dinner was beef tips, mashed potatoes, roasted vegetables and salad and it was all good. Chris and Amy and I stood at one of the bar tables to eat, but if we had braved the long width of the Davidson Center, I think we would have been able to find a table to sit at as I have since heard various people had spots open at their tables. 

The reception was lovely. There was lots of food and dancing and merriment, which is just what the happy couple wanted. Chris and I did not break out our dancing shoes. Although Chris teased about breaking out the train line like he had done at my cousin Anna's wedding earlier this summer. Just when Chris asked us if we were ready to go, they announced the cutting of the cake and so I ran to the cake table to grab a piece before we made our exit. 

After we left the reception, we hit up the 31 Flavors of Baskin Robbins and Chris and Amy enjoyed ice cream and I enjoyed their company. They dropped me off at my car and then I headed home to enjoy the remainder of the evening with The Pip. 

Sunday after worship I had a teacher's meeting where we found out who would be in our classes for the next year. I've got two of the youngest Parker cousins, Indigo and Greer in my class for the next year so when they come on Wednesday nights I'll be able to impress upon their young minds.Ha! I'm actually looking forward to a new group of kids. The ones we have had this year have been a handful. 

So, it was a really great weekend, hard to believe it was the last one of July. Only one more weekend before the kids around here start back to school. Next thing you know summer will be in the history books. 

Before I get close today, I want to remind everyone about the giveaway this week. Enter yourself, your friends and your family members!