6 weeks! Yikes!

Okay okay okay!!!  I'm sorry!  It has been nearly 6 weeks since my last blog, and I didn't realize so many of you were missing it so much!  It seems like everyone I've talked to in the last week has asked me... What's up with What's Cookin?  Sorry guys, I will try to get back to the weekly updates :) 

So we (the girls and I) are still in TEXAS!  One more week, and we will be back in NC.  I can't believe it has gone so fast though!  We have been soooo busy since we got here.  Let's see...

The first week....  Walt, Julie, Kaymon, and Wyatt (my uncle and his family who live in Canada and we see only in the Summer and at Christmas) were here to play with us.  It was so much fun!  We spent nearly every evening at the pool and enjoyed lots of family meals.  We even got some family pics made (missing David and my cousin Josh) but they turned out really good. 

Later that week we were scheduled to go on vacation with my parents, and my grandmother had a stroke.  (Dad's mom.)  It was a very stressful situation to say the least, but luckily we had been out to visit her 3 days before and let me tell you, on that day she was as young and feisty as she was YEARS ago!  She wound up passing a week later, and we have all made our peace with it.  For those of you who had never met her, you missed a blessing.  Grandma Pruett loved anyone and everyone, she was the glue that held that family together for so many years.  She was a feisty red-head, who loved to feed my girls lots of cookies from her cookie jar, and laugh at me for telling them they had had enough and then she would give them another one!  Granted this is the same cookie jar I remember sticking my grubby little hands in as a kid and my mom saying the same things.  She laughed at my mom too!   

You ever wonder who I get it from?  Now you know.. Lois Pruett!

3 days before the stroke that took her.  This is the only picture on the roll of film that developed.

During all of this time, my other grandmother, most of you know her as Ruth, had surgery on her foot.  She was admitted into the hospital, and has been in for 2 weeks now.  Actually now she has been transferred to a long term facility, b/c the wound isn't healing.  Infection set in and now they are working to keep everything in order so that it can heal properly. 

I know I know I know!  You are thinking....  wow!  But truly we have had a very blessed time here!  The girls spent a week with Melissa, David's mom and my sister- in- law Christy.  In the midst of all of this we even had my niece Katy come up and spend a few days with us and the girls are really having a lot of fun! 

We got to take a trip to Hot Springs Arkansas and had lots of fun at the Mid-America Science Museum,  where we got to see caged lighting. We ate some of the best homemade ice cream EVER, at a little place called "Scoops."  We visited a Bath House and took a tour, (back before people had bathtubs in their houses they would go down to a Bathhouse in downtown Hotsprings and they would take bath :)  The water is pumped hot from the "Springs" at a whopping 154 degrees.  They actually have a few of these still open today and mom, my sister and I left the girls with my dad one afternoon and decided to participate :)  After a "bath" and a massage we were relaxed and ready to meet the world again! 

At the Science museum

Caged Lightning

With Nana and Pap

 David got join us for one weekend while we have been here.  The weekend on my grandmother's funeral he got to come down.  The girls were very happy to see him, and I guess I really was too.  (Shhh!  Don't tell him!)  We got to take the girls swimming and on Sunday we were able to spend the day riding motorcycles with my parents.  We rode all day and wound up at the movies that night and saw Grownups.  Any of you who know me know that I LOVE me some Adam Sandler!  This movie really hit the spot for my parents too after having such a stressful couple of weeks!

David and the girls after swimming.

HaHa!

Me with my parents after a long day on the bike!  Fun times!!

I'm probably leaving a million things out, but that about wraps up our trip so far.  Right now we have Ava, Gracie's best-est friend since she was like 2, here with us for a couple of days.  We are going to have Gracie's birthday party tomorrow.  (Her birthday isn't until August 1st, but we wanted to have a party with all of our Texans before we head back next week!)

Oh I remember one thing I forgot... Girl's Night, and as with any good Girl's Night that information is privileged!  Ha!  Melissa, Traci, and Chandra, I LOVE you girls so much and I'm glad that you were there to partake in a couple of glasses (BOTTLES) of wine with me!  HeeHee! 

Okay guys... until next week!!!

Rest in Peace "Red"  We love you so much!