Football News

Well, Ava Grace sported her Mauldin Maverick football attire yesterday in hopes to bring good luck to Uncle Doug and his football team. Unfortunately, Mauldin was unable to pull out a victory against Clover - losing the game 49-32. It rained the whole game and there was even a lightning delay during the 4th quarter. I just know that if Mauldin could play Clover again on an equal playing field (no rain) that OUR team could win. So, we are sad that the season is over, but we are so incredibly proud of the accomplishments of the boys and the coaches (especially uncle Doug and Cousin Lee).

Since I am writing about football, I wanted to say a brief word about a friend of ours. Coach Gregg Skipper (Skip to us) coached at MBHS for 28 years. He coached under my dad and coached my brother in middle school and on the JV football team at the high school. I honestly can't remember not knowing him!! On Friday morning, we received some sad news. Skip was killed in a car accident about 1/3 mile from his house. He was still coaching at MBHS with this year being his last. MBHS played Airport last night in the 2nd round of the play-offs and won!! They did it for Skip!! He will be greatly missed by my family as well as many other people in the Myrtle Beach community. Thanks for all of the good times and fun memories. I smile as I think of you right now!! We love you Skip!!

4 Months Old

Ava Grace turned 4 months old today!! Time is really flying by. She has learned how to do several things this past month. Let me see....she can grab her feet now although they haven't made it to her mouth yet (but we are waiting), she can blow bubbles while drool runs all the way from her mouth to her feet, she can laugh at the silly things her Mama and Daddy do, and she kicks violently in the bathtub (definitely one of her favorite activities of the night). She has mastered some other skills as well, but you get the point. Ava Grace has really enjoyed going to the sitter's for the last month (since I started back to work). She and Nanny (sitter) have a great time during the day and she is enthralled with the other children - watching their every move. She rarely takes a nap longer than 30 minutes at this point because she is so scared she is going to miss something. Fortunately, she is in a great mood when I pick her up in the afternoon, so I guess her little power naps are enough for her right now. She is really growing and changing every day. It is truly amazing how quickly the days pass by. It is hard for me to believe that she is already 4 months old!! Time is flying, but we are loving every minute of it!!

Remembering....

It has been a somewhat sad day yet a day filled with many memories for my family. It is so hard to believe that 14 years ago today my dad (Granddaddy to Ava Grace) passed away. Of course I can relive that day as if it happened yesterday, but instead of thinking about all of the pain and confusion of that day in 1994, I have been thinking about the fun times. There are definitely too many for me to write about, but I want to share a little bit about the times I remember and how wonderful my dad was. Of course it goes without saying that I was definitely a "Daddy's Girl"!! I lived in his back pocket!! We had many special times spent together - just the two of us. Lets see....I would go with him on Saturday mornings to the high school to clean out the locker room after the football games, I would go with him to the high school and just roam around finding things to do as he worked with the athletes (he knew I would be ok...I could run the school after all!), I would go on the practice football field every afternoon after tennis practice to tell him about the match I played that day (win or lose), we would shag in the living room and watch the contest on tv every Saturday night, and I would sit by him most Sundays at church just so he could put his arm around me!! Of course there are many memories that we have as a family too....wonderful vacations, Christmas Eve and Christmas morning, any sporting event that involved Doug or me (there were lots of those along with the other athletic events we attended at MBHS), and watching football while eating boiled peanuts on Saturdays and Sundays. I could go on and on about my dad and how much he means to our family. He truly was the best dad in the world!! I think about him every day and wonder if I am living up to half the person that he was. He was one of the most caring, sensitive, giving, and loving men I have ever known. Although most people only knew my dad as a football coach, teacher, or athletic director at the high school, he was a person whose character went far beyond those titles. I know that many people miss him very much and so do I!! I have accomplished a lot in the last 14 years that I know he would be so proud of!! Of course I wish he could have been here to share everything - high school graduation, graduation from Wofford, grad school graduation, getting married, and most recently having a baby. I know Ava Grace and Luke would bring a HUGE smile to his face.
So, on this day as my heart hurts because I miss you so much, I am so thankful for the 17 years I had with you and the lifetime of memories that you left for us. I know no matter what, I will always be "your little girl"!! I love you so much!!

4 month check-up

Ava Grace had a good visit to the doctor's today. She weighs 14 pounds and is 25 inches long. She is really growing!! It is hard to believe how small she was when she was first born. Unfortunately, she had to get 5 shots again. Ava Grace has definitely felt the affects of the shots this afternoon and evening as she has been a little fussy, run a fever, and wanted to be held by Tim and me. Of course we didn't mind the holding part, but we hope that she feels better tomorrow. Everything else checked out at the doctor's office and they won't need to see her until she is 6 months old (assuming she doesn't get sick or anything in the meantime....we are definitely praying she doesn't get sick). So, that is all the news from Dr. Goodwin for this visit!

Visit with Meme and Pop Pop

Ava Grace and I visited with Meme and Pop Pop on Saturday morning for a little while. Aunt Deb, Brittany, and Rebecca came over to visit too. It was so nice to catch up with everyone and I think Ava Grace had a good time getting to know them better. I told her before long she will be begging to go to Meme's and Pop Pop's and to Cece's. The days of clinging to her mama will be over!! :) Ava Grace sat in Pop Pop's lap and they talked about all kinds of things. She even added her two cents worth. Ava Grace and Meme talked too and Meme showed her all of the neat Halloween and Thanksgiving things she has in her house. Ava Grace has no idea how fun and noisy Christmas will be over there with all of the decorations that play music!! I'm sure her big cousin Rebecca will show her the ropes. Sorry Perry family, Ava Grace will probably follow in Rebecca's footsteps with making noise and talking nonstop. :)

I've attached a picture of Rebecca and Ava Grace from the visit. Rebecca is 4 years old going on 30! She is so adorable and so funny!! Rebecca also loves "her Ava Grace".

We're so proud of you!!

YEAH!! The Mauldin Mavericks have done it again - beaten Hillcrest for the second time this year!! It was a great game and of course with the rivalry, it made the victory even sweeter!! The players and coaches were sooo excited as this topped off a winning season at 6-5 and allowed Mauldin to make the play-offs for the first time in several years. Uncle Doug got a huge bath of Gatorade at the end of the game, but he was all smiles anyway. Mauldin will travel to Clover on Friday night to face the Blue Eagles in the first round of the play-offs. We are hoping for a victory, but above all, we are lifting praises for the kids and coaches that worked so hard this year and deserve this more than anything! Congrats Uncle Doug and the Mauldin Mavericks!!

Another busy weekend

We had another busy weekend as usual. Ava Grace and I went to Uncle Doug's game on Friday night against Byrnes. If anyone saw the score, it wasn't pretty. However, the score is not indicative of how the boys played. It looked like Byrnes beat them badly, but our kids played well - just made a few costly mistakes. They play Hillcrest this weekend and then it is off to the play-offs. We are counting on a win this Friday night - Go Mavs!!

On Saturday morning, we hung out with Uncle Doug, Aunt Stacey, and Luke. It was nice to sit around and chat. We haven't done that in what seems like forever. That was the first time they held Ava Grace since she was 2 weeks old. She smiled and cooed and also cried...the emotions of a baby change so quickly! After our short visit, Ava Grace and I headed back up the mountain to the university. The Bulldog World Series continued this weekend. It was a beautiful weekend for baseball!! We also attended the volleyball game against Winthrop. Our UNCA girls won in 5 games!! YEAH!! Ava Grace enjoys the volleyball games and her daddy is hoping that she continues to be tall and maybe play one day. There were more recruits in town for the weekend as well, so we headed to dinner. It was nice to visit with Christine and Kendall while getting to know the recruits and their families better.

On Sunday, Ava Grace and I went to church before heading to the university again. it was the last day of the Bulldog World Series and the series was even - blue team 2, black team 2. In the end, the black team ended up winning!! The guys played really well. I hope that is just a preview on what our season will be like in the spring.

So, as you can see, Tim, Ava Grace, and I haven't slowed down much since I went back to work. I know it is all going to catch up with me very soon. It has been nice to have Tim home more though, so it is worth being busy!!