In the past couple of months The Iddle’s world has grown to include more and more of the outdoors. This started in our backyard as we began the transformation from Slattery to “nice folks.” He has been so eager to help!
As every mother blessed with a healthy child has to, I have learned to deal with skinned knees:
We went strawberry picking for my birthday and it was a blast! While we were more taken with the actual picking of the berries than CM was, the rows made great paths and the petting zoo were a real hit!
We spent Easter as a family in Gulf Shores Alabama, with the Wilsons, the Keiths and my Daddy C. It was so much fun dying Easter eggs and the Easter Bunny brought Charlie Mac lots of goodies. Included in his basket was a really cool green fuzzy football. One thing I never ever thought of before was how very much an egg looks like a football. Our ever astute Iddle happily demonstrated this with each and every egg he found after his proper handling of the “real” football was applauded with gusto. All the easier to peel them after they’ve been sent on a forward pass, I say.
Bradley returned to Georgetown Easter evening and Charlie Mac and I stayed at the beach for another week. It was such a great time and when the sun finally came out Charlie Mac had a great time at the water’s edge. Our beach house is on the edge of a nature preserve so there is a huge amount of open beach there. In fact, I don’t think CM had ever seen so much open space and he had a great time going as far as he could before returning to check in. One thing I learned is that if I want him to limit his traveling, I need to stay watchful from one spot rather than following him. If I follow him he goes on forever and ever! If I stay put he goes out and comes back and goes out again.
[Beach pics]
As many of you know, Bradley was very involved in SU’s environmental club. We attended the Earth Day event as a family and Charlie Mac had a great time trying to join in the drum circle while I was treated to a trip down memory lane watching the college hippy scene. Ahhh….good times.
Onto the grown up hippy scene (kidding daddy!) we had a WONDERFUL time at my 10th anniversary of attending the Old Settlers Bluegrass festival. We go every year and Charlie Mac spent very little time with us there last year. This year the wonderful Kristin Maverick came with us to help so Charlie Mac has now experience camping at a music festival for the first time. Makes a mama proud, you know?!
WE GOT A PUPPY!!!
The arrival of The Good Captain Guero Oberon Hiatt into our lives is a really cool story. We had a festival two weeks ago here in Georgetown and we live right off the square where it was. Some people pulled up in front of our house to park with three lab puppies. I was thinking to myself that I really wished Sandy were here--I think that all the time actually--and was thinking that I'm not ready for another dog because I'm still looking for her all the time. Then I heard the guy say "we have three left." We walked over to talk to them and the pups were born the day after Sandy died--two and a half months ago. It seemed too serendipitous and we had wanted a dog that would be good both at home and in the field.
I'll never get over Sandy, and I'm glad for that. Guero is a good pup and is already house trained, sitting and fetching. It's almost like Sandy was on her way up to heaven and he was on his way down and she told him to go take care of her family. I still cry about her at least every other day, and I'm sure I always will from time to time. My dad still cries over Wolf who died 45 years ago. I'm happy that we have a dog in the house though, and I can love him and miss her at the same time.
Our cousin Lauren and Uncle Robert came for a day and brought with them a gift from Charlie Mac’s human Aunt Sandy. I think he looks quite dashing, don’t you??We have been working like dogs on our house and Charlie Mac has done his best to help. BoPeep and Papaw came to help us with the painting and landscaping. See them here hard at work:
hahaha! In all seriousness, we couldn’t have done it without them!
Graduation!!! After years of dedication, Bradley has graduated!! I can’t tell you how proud I am of him and how much his dedication has inspired me. It’s true that you can do what you set your mind to, even if you have to take the long, hard way around.
Clearly, Charlie Mac is as proud as I am:
Taking advantage of having as much family in town at the same time as possible, Charlie Mac was christened the day following Bradley’s graduation. He wore the christening gown that Roberts, Augusta and I wore. His Godparents are Roberts, Augusta and Amber. It was a beautiful service and Father Steve used water from the river Jordan which just gives me goosebumps!
We enjoyed the week between graduation and Bradley’s return to the rat race with some time together as a family. After two years of high speed pressure, it was so great to just enjoy each other. We have been hiking every day and have really been able to discover some of the beauty that our little part of the world has to offer.
Whew! Well, I hope that catches us up with everyone and I promise to be better about this!
LOVE LOVE LOVE,
