Goodbye Gazebo...We Hardly Knew You

Well, this is a hard one to post about, but we lost our gazebo today. If you weren't in Cabot, you probably weren't aware of how quickly and how strong the storm actually was. Brent and I were both at work, kinda glad for the clouds that had popped up because that meant it wasn't as hot as it was supposed to be.

About 1:45 we get a call from Jeff who says it was hailing and storming really bad, and as soon as it let up he would come over to the house and check on it for us. What he found was our 6-week old gazebo in the middle of the street three houses down. Once he called and told us that, we headed straight home to see if there was any other damage. Jeff and another neighbor moved it back to our front yard, and this is what we found when we got home....
But it wasn't the wind or small tornado (unconfirmed, but I think it was) that did it in - it was the RUST! The posts and load-bearing pieces were completely rusted and had broke off. We have only had it outside for 6 weeks, so we took the pieces right back to Home Depot. Luckily they refunded our money and advised us not to buy another one. Apparently they are all build the same way, but surprisingly they are not too embarrassed to sell it to us in the first place.

A piece of it was on the roof.

These neighbors were getting a new roof anyway...

This ditch (under the fence is actually the source of our flooding).



They think lightening hit this tree. Luckily they only had minor gutter damage, but they did cut the whole tree down.



This house is behind the pasture that is behind our house. There was another big pine tree that snapped back there.

Surprisingly, the table and chairs were fine and almost in the same place we left them.

My new basil plant was on the ground, but everything else was left standing. STRANGE!

I am really disappointed because the patio was finished, and we hadn't even been out there to enjoy all of the fruits of our labor. But we are very fortunate that nothing else was damaged. Gazebos can be replaced - new siding would be a different story. I'm also very glad that none of our neighbors had major damage or were hurt. (And I'm also glad I wasn't home during the storm, cause I'd probably still be hiding in the bathtub!)

So I guess we will go back to the drawing board and see what kind of shade we can get back there on the patio. If anybody has any suggestions, I'd love to hear them.

Don't Be Swinging On It

During one of those dorm move-ins one year at Ouachita, my dad put together this over-the-toilet shelf, which somehow was completely jacked up and uneven. I don't even know how it got to be like that, but we had to place blocks of wood on one side to get it even. When he got done, he said, "Don't be swinging on it." Mom and I thought that was so funny, that every time we would put something else together, we'd say "Don't be swinging on it."

Well, we have finally finished the fence, and I repeated our catch phrase when I was holding up the last board for placement. This was a lot of work and a combined effort (thanks Jeff and Abbe), and it's going to do just what we want it to. Give us some privacy from the neighbors and their barking dogs.

And I've had to start closing up the gazebo's screens because birds were getting under there and making a big mess. I'm pretty sure they have been eating my flowers that I've had on the table there too.

Our next project is to put together the 10x8 metal building we have bought and clean out the storage room. And then after that - I'm done! At least for a little while anyway. It's been so hot here lately, and I'm praying that our poor little air conditioner makes it through the rest of the summer. We had it worked on a few weeks ago, and they pretty much said that it was going to do as good as it can for its age. I actually considered aluminum foil yesterday...it was that hot in the house!

This is why we only put up part of a fence. ha!

Student Dr. Farmer

On Friday, my very smart and talented dental school sister received her white coat. The ceremony, held at the very posh Memphis University School, was to commemorate the students' passage from the classroom to clinical work. She is starting her third year and will begin seeing patients in the school clinic very soon. I am so proud of her and can't believe she is so close to being Dr. Farmer.

Congratulations Sister - Class of 2010! I love you!!!

Receiving her coat...

Yes, we are having fun!

Proud parents!

Mr. and Dr. Farmer

So proud of you!!!

Ephifany...or how ever you spell it

This morning driving to work, I was listening to a song and had a thought: God is God regardless of $4 gas and friends who disappoint us. No matter what is going on in this world and in our lives, He is a marvelous God and will always be.

I am sure all of Heaven's heard me cry
As I tell You all the reasons why
This life is just too hard

But day by day, without fail
I'm finding everything I need
And everything that You are to me

Everytime I breath You seem a little bit closer
I never wanna leave, I wanna stay in Your warm embrace
Oh, basking in the glory shining from Your face

And every time I get another glimpse of Your heart
I realize it's true that You are so marvelous God
And I am so in love with you.

Psalty the Singing Songbook

My mom will get a kick out of this! I LOVED Psalty when I was a kid and had books and tapes, although we never saw him in person. I really hope she still has some of those tapes somewhere. Good times!



http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3XHFBZ8E4nQ

I found this on Stuff Christians Like -its a good site to check out!

Melissa's Shower

This past weekend, we were all in McGehee for Melissa Miles's bridal shower. Sarah and I practically grew up out on the Miles Farm, and they are very special to us. Melissa's dad and mom were our Sunday School teachers in youth, and so many of my church memories involve them. Melissa's marrying a great dentist from North Little Rock, and I am so tickled for them! The wedding is August 9th, and I can't wait to enjoy their big day. (I'm an honorary bridesmaid!)

While we were doing women stuff, the guys drove to Vicksburg, Mississippi, to tour the Battlefield Park. It's only a 90 minute drive from our house, and it was an activity that could be done in the AC of the car! (It's really steamy in the Delta). They had a great time doing some male bonding, but I don't think they got any pictures. Oh well - maybe next time!

Here are some pictures from the weekend.

The Bride!

Mrs. Haywood, Mrs. Runsick, Mrs. Farmer
Sisters

My mom's crepe myrtle! It's so beautiful!

I Heart Mom, Ma, and Nannie

I had great visits with both of my grandmothers this weekend, and tonight I'm feeling so blessed by having them in my life. They are both Christian examples, and I want to use their example as one for my own life. They are thoughtful, sweet, and care for others. Oh yeah, and don't forget the domestication. Both Nannie and Ma are amazing cooks and great gardners, and I hope to be half as good of a cook as they are! (Mom's pretty good herself). I want to put up a garden next year, and I'm planning on both of them to help me get started.

Whenever I go home to McGehee, I have to fight a wave of nostalgia. 109 Razorback Drive was my childhood home, and even though it doesn't look much like it did when I was there, it's still home. We go to church, where I hug at least 10 necks and chat with people who have known me since Children's Church. I deeply long for that familiarity, but have discovered that it doesn't come in seven months. Even though it would never happen, I secretly wish that I could move back to McGehee to be near my family. I've been gone from there for 10 years, and I never thought that I would miss it so much. I know that if we did move back (not that there are any jobs we could make a decent living at), that it wouldn't be the same. But I long and pray for the day that one day I can go walking with my mom and sit next to her in the church choir loft.

Despite all of those feelings, I know that I am right where I am supposed to be, and God has a plan for our life here in Cabot. I am praying that with the heritage that I have been given, and we can make a life that is pleasing to Him.

Happy 4th of July

Five years ago, my parents and I started going to the Pops on the River at the Riverfront Amphitheater. Each year we learn something new, and we've got our designated spot (close to the funnel cake and corn dog stand). Usually, they have a jazz and swing band play before the symphony, but this year it was a folk group from Conway. No offence to the folk-lovers out there, but Happenstance sucked! And what's worse is that they played for 2 hours straight. In my humble opinion, if you are an opening band, you should not play original pieces. We wanted to hear Free Bird!

The Arkansas Symphony Orchestra was very good, as always. Their hour ended with the firework extravaganza, which was amazing as always. It rained off and on that day, and we didn't know if the weather would hold out. As it turns out, the clouds cleared out and left a nice breeze and 70 degrees. It was the best weather yet!

The rest of the weekend, we worked outside pouring concrete for a metal building. Let me just say that we will NEVER ever do that again. It was way too much manual labor for us, but it was finished last night. The fence should be finished this week, and after that, I think we're through with the outside.

Guess who loves corn dogs?!? (I'm not a corn dog fan, but these were very good).