"A friend is one who knows you and loves you just the same."

"There’s a miracle of friendship that
dwells within the heart
And you don’t know how it happens
or where it gets its start
But the happiness it brings you
always gives a special lift
And you realize that friendship
Is God’s most perfect gift."

This is our BUNCO group (not all of them, Shay stayed home with Jake this particular evening)! I have been truly blessed with the best of friends. They are so special to me! Thanks friends for knowing me and loving me just the same!

Summerfest 2008 005

Summerfest 2008 005
Originally uploaded by susanne.goodin

We love summerfest! It is so much fun and it is great to see all the people that we don't usually get to see throughout the year. Summerfest usually marks the end of summer for me! We are working hard to get ready for the students to come back! We do have a Back to School party planned for the lake the weekend before school starts, but that is probably the only fun I will have time for. There is so much to do! We are recarpeting the office this week, so everything from the office is in hallway! Busy, Busy, Busy! I will post pictures after our lake party!

Two Great Books

OK - I must share! I just got through reading "The Five People you Meet in Heaven" by Mitch Albom. It is a great book!! It reminds us that although at times we feel insignificant, we AREN'T. We are important in the lives of others and everything happens for a reason. It was a really easy read, I read it in two days. You will love it!

The other book I am reading is "Breaking Free" by Beth Moore. I have always been so inspired by her. If you have never been a part of one of her Bible studies, you should. She is such an awesome teacher. I participated in several of her studies when I was married to John. His Mom held several at her work. It has been several years since I have read anything by her. About a month ago Mark and I were at Books A Million and I saw this book. I picked it up and I am so glad that I did. "Breaking Free" is a book that is also a Bible study. It does take a little longer to read, but is worth your time.

"Religion" is interesting to me and at the same time very confusing. I think when you go to college it causes you to question everything you have been taught. You become more analytical and begin to ask more questions. I have always been on a search for the truth. I have spent countless hours in discussions with Mark, Kay, my Dad, Mom, Aunt Cathy, John's parents, my friends. I love all of these people, which leads to more confusion - Who do you believe? All of these discussions led me to their point of view on the truth. Their ideas conflict some, and that is where the confusion lies. All people have points of view (opinions) on what is right and wrong according to the Bible. My visits to church have not led me to any peace, although I truly enjoy the preacher. I have found many of the people in the church are hypocritical and "pretend" to be the perfect Christian while all the while judging the actions of others. This just leads to more confusion. The beauty of Beth Moore is that she leads you to find your own truth in God's word. People are sinners and cannot lead me to the truth. In whatever way they were brought up, that is the truth they have found. I must find my own truth!

I'm slacking!

Sorry I have not blogged in a while, just been busy! We are excited that Byne will be coming home on August 4th!! He has to register for classes at his new school on the 5th. He will have to move into his house that he will be renting with two other boys. He seems really excited about his roommates! The other children are enjoying their summer - Kyle is at the beach, and Lakyn is headed to the beach with a friend next weekend. Dalton is still working hard at the Y and loving every minute of it. Mark and I are looking forward to Summerfest. It is a celebration of summer that Millbrook puts on every year. They have great live music and a fantastic fireworks show. You all should come out - it is on Friday evening at the Pines Golf course. Mark and I went shopping yesterday and got tons of great deals at Belk in Prattville. They are having a moving sale - the whole store is marked down. I got a $150.00 dress for $46.00. I also found a new tennis outfit for $20.00 - normally $60.00. I have new tennis shoes too and will be getting a new racket by next week - so watch out Hannah and Aunt Cathy - I am coming to get you! :) I hate to even mention back to school, but here I go. We are really looking forward to our "Back to School" party at the Lake cabin the weekend before school starts with close friends and family. I am sure I will have tons of pictures to post after the party. I have changed all my pictures to private on the flickr site. I should have emailed all of my close friends and family the password, but if you did not get it and want to look at the pictures. Call me or shoot me an email and I will give you the password. I hope you all are enjoying your summer - it just flys by!!

Byne's New School

We have decided on a new school for Byne! After many weeks of discussions, prayer, and research we have decided that Byne will attend Central Alabama Community College next school year. I know - you are asking - What,isn't he already a Junior? He still has three years of athletic eligibility left. They have a three year academic program at CACC, so he can focus on a minor this school year and then transfer to finish his major next year and still have two years left to play. Our prayer is that he has a great baseball season and is picked up by a D1 or D2 school to finish his last two years of school. Byne is thrilled because he already has friends who attend CACC. Mom and Dad are pretty happy too, because it is super close to the lake cabin. We will have a free place to stay on baseball weekends! :) This college baseball road has been a bit of a bumpy ride for Byne, but we know that God has the plan all mapped out! We look forward to seeing what God has in store for him :)

Check out my Slide Show!

North Carolina Trip to see Byne!

We had a great time visiting Byne!

We left on Thursday to travel to North Carolina to go visit Byne. He is up there playing baseball for the Catawba Valley Stars. He left on May 22nd, but it seems like he has been gone for months. We stopped in Auburn to pick up Byne's girlfriend, Cayla. Then we were off with the plan of driving above Atlanta then sleeping before going all the way to NC. I am a planner (that is an understatement)! I usually plan every minute of our trips, book hotels, print google directions - a regular Mrs. Organization. This trip Mark did not want to book any hotels. He begrudgingly let me print directions, but he wanted to just fly by the seat of our pants and find places to sleep! This worried me, but I obliged. I told him that it would be cheaper to plan ahead, but he ended up being right (I hate when that happens)! We stopped the first night at the Best Western. The girls and I were unsure - the bed linens seemed a little stiff and "crusty" but the room was clean. We made fun of Mark endlessly for his choice of hotels, but he was a great sport.

We woke up on Friday morning headed to NC. In the slide show you can see where we stopped at the rest areas in SC and in NC to document our trip. The girls climbed a wall in SC to get a picture with the flag, that was too funny. Lakyn had no fear and Cayla was scared half to death, but she did it! We arrived in Monroe, NC for the first game right before the start of the game. Byne played first base and did a great job! You could tell he was so happy to see us, and we were thrilled to finally lay eyes on him! After the double header, we headed the 1 and 1/2 hours to Hickory (where Byne lives). Mark let us pick the hotel this time since we teased him such about the Best Western. We picked one with soft linens (a Marriot)! We were finally settled in to our spot for the weekend. More ballgames, shopping, dinner, swimming,and two days later we left for Athens, GA to watch our final ballgame. Aunt Cathy, Uncle Tom, and Hannah met us at the ball field to watch him play. It was a great day at the ball park. The weather was fantastic! We had the best time visiting and Byne did GREAT! We left from Athens for Macon on Sunday evening. We spent the night with Aunt Cathy in Macon. We stayed up late talking and then woke up Monday to more eating and shopping. We returned home Monday! We had the greatest trip! We spent a whole lot of time in the car, but everyone was so glad to see Byne and we had fun together. The slide show is a picture walk of our trip - ENJOY! Byne didn't even whine about taking too many pictures, I think he was just so glad that we were there! We are now rewashing and packing for our annual Fourth of July trip to the Lake. I hope you all have a fabulous Fourth of July!

Peace and Quiet - Good or Bad?

Lakyn insisted that we take this picture the other night. She had gotten ready earlier in the day for us to go and buy her Dad a Father's Day present, and I had just gotten home from playing tennis. As a result, she looked beautiful and I looked sweaty. I love the picture anyway - we look so happy. I wonder when the "teenager" stage is going to hit and we don't "like" each other anymore. I am terrified that it will happen any day!!! I am praying that Lakyn and I will be an exception to the rule and continue to love to be around one another!

All of the children are gone this week. Lakyn went to visit her Dad, Dalton went to the beach with a friend, Byne is in North Carolina, and Kyle is at his Mom's house this week. The house is sooooo quiet. I am trying to enjoy the quiet, but it is kinda sad. I am accustomed to a house full of hustle and bustle. We are always getting ready to go somewhere or coming home from somewhere, or having friends over! I looked at Mark last night and said, "It's just you and me babe!" He just laughed, you know Mark loves the peace and quiet. I was having trouble deciding whether or not peace and quiet was for me, when the phone rang. The first ring was Byne for the fourth time today just checking in and making sure I remember to bring his baseball pants to NC this weekend. Then I settled back in, and the phone rang again. This time it was Dalton from the beach asking if it was OK for him to get a tattoo. I promptly replied, "Have you lost your mind?" That question is characteristic of my Dalton(a little on the wild side), but he will have to wait until 18 or older!!!!!! Then I settled back in and the phone rang again, this time it was Lakyn checking on Harmony and calling to say good night. After all the phone calls, I decided - maybe I will enjoy my few days of peace and quiet. Moms deserve a day off now and again, and I shouldn't look a gift horse in the mouth.

Dad in his new boat

Dad in his new boat
Originally uploaded by susanne.goodin

My Dad retired after 42 years from Aldridge Borden and Company. He has a Lake Cabin on Lake Martin and loves to spend time there. I bought him this pedal boat as a retirement gift. He seems to be enjoying it and Aarron really loved it. We all had a great time at the Lake this weekend trying it out!