FIVE ON FRIDAY

I am linking up on a Five for Friday posts.  I enjoy reading posts like this and sometimes it is easier to write just a little bit about a lot of things.  So here we go.  Five things from this week!

- Rocking some new kicks! I got some new running shoes the last time I went to Memphis and I love them.  I was getting really bad shin splints with my old pair and even sore to the touch ankles.  I just figured it was from not being a hard core runner. I went to a running store and had them watch me run and tried on all different brands and these were the ones I decided on.  Color choice wasn't even given to me until I decided on this particular style of shoe. But these shoes are great.  Super comfy, look cute with my workout clothes and I haven't had any issues with shin splints since I bought them.  I will definitely be buying another pair when I wear these out!

- Book reads! I read a few books at the beach and started this one at the very end of the week.  But the past few days I couldn't put this Nicholas Sparks book down.  I love his books.  They are a bit predictable but every once in a while I will read on of his that makes me bawl.  This one was just okay but I still enjoyed it.  At the beach I also read a new young adult novel called The 5th Wave.  It is the first book of the series and I loooooved it.  I also read Sparkly Green Earrings and that one had me laughing out loud.  Any mom must read it!  Now I am looking for my next read.  Any recommendations?

- Shelac manicure.  So I just got my first one this past week.  I normally just get normal manicures.  But I was so tired of them chipping and I am terrible about taking my polish off.  So I am kind of obsessed. I know shelac manicures are old news but I am loving it.  It still looks great and I don't see why you wouldn't get it again.  But I have heard it is really hard on your nails almost like tips. (old school!) I am really hoping that is not true. I did decide to do a really light color because I like lighter colors on my fingernails but I might decided to do something more fun for summer next time.  

- Video on Instragram- Mind blown.  I love Instagram so hard.  I love seeing pictures of people's meals, their kids, their concerts, their dogs, anything! Lately, with Elle and a new town and work and just life, Twitter is hard for me to check.  I will open it up on my phone and have 400 tweets I need to read and that is overwhelming. Facebook is just kind of lame lately.  I never could get into Vine.  I honestly told myself I wasn't allowed myself to have anything else that I had to "check" on my phone. But now with the video capability on Instagram I can have the best of all the worlds.  Yay!  I haven't posted a video yet and don't know if I will.  Videos seem more personal and I hate the way my voice sounds on camera.  Will you be taking advanatage of videos on Instagram?  Oh, and feel free to follow me on all social media.  Instragram - mallorylacey Twitter- Mal_C_Lacey

- Elle and I had such a great week.We were just busy enough and I tried to get her outside a little more than normal. It was kind of one of those weeks where the things that I pulled out of the hat to entertain her with worked.  It just makes my mama heart happy when she is happy and we are spending quality time together.

A total Pinterest win! Finger paint, plastic bags, tape, window.  So easy, mess free and she loved it!

Picnic at the park after our music class. Peanut Butter yum!

Took her for a much needed haircut.  Was so worried we were going to lose those curls but she has my hair.  Meaning it will always have some curl to it if you get the slightest bit warm.  She doesn't quite grasp the whole haircut concept. The last couple days when I am washing or brushing her hair she will cry "No mommy! My haircut!"  She thinks it can be rinsed or brushed out.  So funny.  I just tell her that washing or brushing her haircut makes it prettier. Which she believes and is still true, right?

Chalk drawings in our condo's parking lot.

Pulled out the water table yesterday.  She didn't really care all that much about it last summer but this day she loved it.  I got a good hour and half out of it.  That is epic!

Lena appreciated the kindess on this hot summer day!

CONQUERING FEARS

So you might remember a few years back I thought it would be fun to take Kenny to Chattanooga for our anniversary.  He never went white water rafting on the Ocoee or anywhere for that matter and I did it a few times growing up with youth group and thought "hey no big deal."  And then. I almost died on that little rafting trip.  No really.  If you don't recall you can read about it here.  Looking back on that post I didn't even go into much detail about the ordeal.  But it was so scary.  When we fell out one of the guides landed on top of me and I was under the boat and couldn't come up for air.  

So now that you are caught up.  I have not been white water rafting since then.  I can be fairly dramatic and I am dead serious in that I was really scared and never thought I would EVER get back in a boat. Kenny however LOVED it and has been on numerous boys trips and they do seriously hard rivers!   I can promise you that this will be the only river I do unless its one of those fun ones out in Montana I have heard about. 

Kenny and I getting ready for the rafting.

Last week, I was invited to a client trip for some of the guys I work for in the Tennessee territory for Ashley.  They wanted me to meet accounts.  Kenny was invited to go along and be a guest.  Which was funny, because this was his old territory and he used to call on a lot of these accounts.   So off we went to the mountains to relax in cabins and soak in hot tubs and enjoy being without phone service for a couple of days.  The first night our group just had a catfish fry that was a lot of fun.

The next morning, it was time for WHITE WATER RAFTING.  I originally planned on skipping out on the excursion but decided at the last minute to give it a try.  We weren't going on the part where we fell out in and Kenny was being so sweet and giving me some major pep talks.  I was fine when we were at the outfitter and then we got ready to load the boat into the water and I just lost it.  I have never really dealt with a fear like this that was out of my control.  Well, except maybe roaches.  Not to mention all the people had heard my story and were a little freaked to.  It was a little tense.

Me with two other wives.

Madeline and me.  Probably talking about how scared we were.  Ha!

If you have rafted the Lower Ocoee the first rapid is the scariest one because it is big and there is just a lot going on and the guides have scared the crap out of you right before and you get in the water and just have to paddle because your life depends on it.  No really, it totally does.  The first rapid for our boat went okay.  We hit a rock and I was bumped into the center of the boat but I didn't fall out.  I cried after we were through it which I am sure everyone in our boat just wanted me to fall out at this point ha!  But after a few more rapids and holding on for dear life.  I started to calm down a little.  I actually managed to laugh a little bit during the calmer parts. And I did it.  I rafted the Lower Ocoee.  I was completely terrified the entire time I did it and pretty much hated it.  But I was proud of myself for facing my fear and getting back out there.  

While we were there our guide told us about this new river in Georgia they just opened up and Kenny and his friends are already planning a trip there.  Want to know more?  Google Chattahoochee River Pile Up and thank me later.  It is a pretty crazy video.  Needless to say I won't be making that trip.

After the rafting trip God rewarded me with an afternoon thunderstorm that I got to enjoy while sitting in a hot tub on a covered porch. We all just barbecued that night.  

It really was a fun trip and it was nice for Kenny and I to have a little adult time all while knocking out some serious fears!

FATHER'S DAY 2013

Kenny and I arrived home from a work trip on Friday (more on that in another post) in time to take Kenny and his dad out for an early Father's Day dinner.  Mrs. Ann and Mr. Ken came to keep Elle so we were so happy get to celebrate.

Saturday we hung around the house and played with Elle and said goodbye to Kenny's parents.  Then it was time to watch Phil Mickelson play in the U.S. Open and our Bulldogs take on the Oregon Beavers in the College World Series.  Phil did great and our baseball team won their first game.  So exciting. Saturday night we watched a movie and relaxed. We actually watched that Dwayne Johnson movie Snitch.  Kenny had seen it before and liked it and I have to be honest I really liked it.

Sunday morning Elle and I got up and let Kenny sleep late.  Or at least try to sleep late.  We can't sleep late anymore.  So while he was "sleeping," we worked on coloring and writing in cards. When he woke up we gave him some happies for an upcoming guys trip he has.

Helping Daddy open the gifts.

Opening a big one.

Kenny was happy with the new shoes and backpack we got him for his trip. Then we headed upstairs to get ready for Father's Day brunch.  Elle always comes upstairs with us while we get ready. She is rarely up there so she always finds things to keep her entertained ha!

Trying on Mommy's running shoes.

We went to Restaurant Tyler for brunch and it was amazing! I definitely did not count calories for this meal. Sometimes it is just better not to worry about it.

Chicken and waffle.  I am a sucker for savory sweet combos.

After brunch and a stop for coffee at 929 (our favorite local coffee shop) we headed home to take naps. No really we were so full we took naps.  Elle made Kenny lay down on the floor in her room while she played and I am pretty sure he was asleep some of the time.

Then it was time to park ourselves in front of the U.S. Open.  We were majorly hoping for a Phil win.  Unfortunately he took second for the sixth time.  But we still love him.  We convinced Elle to keep bringing her toys in the den so we could keep on an eye on the tv.  Parents of the year but she happily obliged.

 Reading some books in her rocking chair.

 Daddy daughter time watching the tournament.

Sporting her Daddy's hat on Father's Day.

It was a great weekend spent at home with our family.  I hope Kenny realized how much we appreciate him every day.  Not just on Father's Day.  We love you Kenny!

BEACH PART 4- DON'T MAKE US LEAVE!

Well this is my final blog post about vacation. Sniff sniff.  As the vacation was winding down I longed for 3 or 4 more days. There were still things I wanted to do.  I wasn't ready.  We did manage to take advantage of every last minute though!

On Thursday night we met up with some friends who planned their vacation at the same time as ours.  We reserved a big table at Bud and Ally's and just had the best time eating and drinking and talking while the kids played.  After dinner of course we headed over some ice cream.  

Harper, Thomas and Elle before dinner.  This picture cracks me up.

Friday morning we drove over to Great Southern for breakfast.  Their breakfast is just as good as their dinner.  

Elle hamming it up while we waited on breakfast!

Afternoon at the pool.

Last night after dinner (sushi at Crush) and we had to get a little more ice cream!

Elle on the way home.  Totally exhausted.  She had so much fun!

Other Vacation Highlights:

-Seeing the guy from Lady Antebellum (the cute one) riding bikes with his wife in Rosemary Beach

- Naptime dates to Seaside and Rosemary Beach with Kenny

- Annie's totally weird sunburn from the first day 

- Riding bikes home in the dark

-The epic melt down on the first day 

-Getting yummy seafood from Goatfeathers

-Accidentally overdosing myself on AlevePM(I didn't know it was PM medicine) and having to go to bed immediately at 5:30.

- Mom giving Elle "Sam" the big stuffed monkey on the first day.  See above picture.

BEACH PART 3-ROSEMARY BEACH AND MORNINGS BY THE WATER

Yep another post about our beach vacation.  But we are midweek now and I am still sad we are not there.  So I am going to relive a couple more days here on the ol bloggy blog!

There was a little restaurant called Cowgirl Kitchen about 3 minutes from our beach house that we went to for breakfast a few mornings.  The food is phenomenal and they had a great porch that overlooked the ocean.  It was a favorite of Elle's because she could watch everyone riding by on their bikes and they had grilled peanut butter honey and bacon sand which.  And bacon and peanut butter are her faves!

Enjoying a big piece of bacon slathered in peanut butter.Messy but delicious.

Slathering up getting ready for another morning in the sun.

One of the mornings we took Elle to the pool instead and she really warmed up to the pool. We are happy about this because she isn't crazy about water overall.  But she got to where she was jumping off the edge into our arms.  And we eventually decided to just take off the swim vest off because she wasn't in the water without us anyway.  

Lounging by the pool.

Wearing her new little Seaside hat we got her.  She never wears any kind of hat.  But after she learned she had to wear a helmet when we rode the bikes she was pretty accepting of this hat because it kept the sun out of her face.  We were thrilled!

Playing sand castles with daddy. Mid high five.

Relaxing with daddy.

My view.

My favorite picture from the week.  Taken by my mom.

One night we heard the same theatre production that did the James and the Giant Peach were doing a different play in Rosemary Beach.  Since Elle enjoyed James so much we drove over for dinner that night and then the play.  The play was well, uh...interesting.  But once again Elle loooooved it and could tell us the whole story line even though we were all totally confused.  We loved the Rosemary Beach area and are considering doing a vacation there later this year to try it out and see if we like it.

Family picture waiting on the play to start in Rosemary.

Elle with....uh...I dunno after the play. Maybe she was some sort of princess. I have no idea what the play was about. Elle asked to have her picture taken again though.

After the play we walked down to the beach to look at the pretty house and the sunset.  

BEACH PART 2- MEMORIAL DAY

Our next day of vacation was Memorial Day.  We started our day at the beach. Learning from our mistakes from the first day where Elle had the biggest melt down of her entire life, we found that we could really only spend a few hours at the beach a day.  The first day we got there around 9 and didn't leave until 1:30 despite Elle giving us lots of signs she was spent.  We found 3 hours a day of the beach was our max.  Don't worry, that was plenty of time for all of us to get sunburned.

After a few hours on the beach we would come back to the house and put Elle in the bathtub immediately to get the sand off and wash her hair which was always so greasy from all the sunscreen.  Then we would feed her lunch and put her down for a nap.  She took great naps the entire time we were there and then when she woke up she was already bathed and clean for the nap.  It was perfect.

Beach time!

She loved crawling up in our chairs.

Kenny relaxing on the beach. Please note the shade. We all got pretty burned the first day we 

were out of the beach.  Shade was necessary on this day.

Memorial Day night we headed up to Great Southern (told you we liked it ha) for Happy Hour and oysters.  They run a great specials for the early eaters like us.  We eat pretty early most days because of Elle but on this night we trying to catch the start of a theatre company's production of James And The Giant Peach in the Seaside Amphitheatre.

Annie and I at Great Southern.  Few things to note.  My peach bellini which I had 

several of over the week. They were so good.  And my sunburn! Ouch!

Elle sporting her glasses and saying cheese!

A rare picture of Elle and mommy!  

So after dinner we headed across the street for the play.  We were really not expecting Elle to care much about it but figured she would like the costumes and since she was outside and could run around and play we would be golden.  Not the case! She watched that ENTIRE play and loved it.  After the play we went down to meet the actors and give them a donation and Elle was so excited and asked me to take her picture with James. It was so funny.

Watching the play together.

Elle with the actor who played James.  She gets so excited about taking pictures and then this is what she does every time.  Clams up and puts her finger in her mouth. Every. Time.

Ice cream after the play.  We did ice cream every single night.  

Had to include this picture.  The night before we saw Brandt Snedeker (PGA golf player) at the restaurant we were at and then this night Kenny saw Jojo at Great Southern.  Jojo is the piano player/singer from one of Kenny's all time favorite bands.  He was so excited when Jojo sat with his family right next to us at the play. I bugged Kenny to get a pic with him but he didn't want to ask because he was with his family.  So this was the best we could do.  That is him in the blue hat.

BEACH PART 1 - WE'RE HERE! WE'RE HERE!

We just got home from the beach a day ago and I am still on an emotional and relaxed high.  I have NEVER been so sad for a vacation to end.  I literally cried as we were leaving Sea Grove.  The past week was just amazing.  Kenny and I just had the best time with each other and with Elle. (and of course my mom and Annie) 

You see last year we took Elle to the beach at 15 months.  She should of been walking but she wasn't and while we had fun, it was pretty hard.  A lot more stuff to schlep to the beach for a baby than a 2 1/2 year old. Then it was just hard to keep her happy.  But at the age she is right now she is pretty much happy no matter what if we are outside and that definitely helped things on this trip.  We also rented a house off of 30A and having more space and a wonderful screened in porch is definitely the way to go!

We rented bikes and rode them everywhere we went which Elle couldn't get enough of.  She loved riding behind Kenny. You can reason with her and entertain her on dinners out, and she thoroughly enjoyed some of the things we went to at night that were geared towards children in the Seaside and Rosemary Beach area. And of course she loved playing on the beach and at the pool.   Gah it was just the best time ever. 

We took a ton of pictures.  So bare with me this week as I share our vacation with you.  I can't help but want to remember every bit of it. My apologies if you have already seen some of these pictures on Instagram.  Honestly, we took so many I only posted a few on social media with plans to put them all here.

We drove in on Saturday afternoon and pretty much went straight to the square at Seaside for a yummy dinner at Great Southern. (our absolute favorite go to) 

Having a drink in our shades and waiting on a table.  Just water for Elle.

After dinner there was a fun band playing at the amphitheatre that we decided 

to watch for a little bit before heading home.

Our first morning we biked in to Seaside to get some coffee before we headed to the beach.  Elle was so excited to get to the beach she wasn't really thrilled with having to wait.  Nor did she want to keep her cover up on. Ha!

Asking me why we couldn't go to the beach right away.

Elle and Daddy playing in the sand.  "Building castles."

Our family after dinner at Bud and Alley's Pizza.