Family Time with the Whites

This past weekend, Ben, Daeon, Kaelyn, and Alayna came down to Alabama to visit.  Chris and I (and Mother!) spent the entire week before scouring every surface in our house to get rid of all the cat hair because Ben is allergic, but I guess that's good because our house is cleaner than it has ever been. Poor Atticus was banished to our bedroom for the weekend, but he thinks that's where he belongs anyway, so I don't think he was too traumatized.  I was very proud; Ben didn't even get sick (the Benadryl might have helped a little).  Ben and Daeon and the girls got in late Friday night, so we got to visit with them for a few minutes before bed.  Daeon brought me a really cool gift--one of our wedding photos printed on posterboard--and I gave her a really homemade gift--an art project made out of Kaelyn's scribble drawings (post to follow!).  On Saturday morning we went down to Centreville to spend time with Mike, Sissy, Makenzie, Payton and Bailey.  Chris's parents, Dave and Lu Ann came down too!  Sissy has a trampoline, so I think everybody took a turn, even Dave! Chris and Ben played crack the egg with the girls while I held my breath, afraid that somebody's skull was going to get cracked.  I have always been just a little bit afraid of trampolines, and Chris should be, considering that the scar across his chin was the result of a trampoline accident!

Chris, Kaelyn, Ben, Lu Ann, and Me

Mike, Kaelyn and Ben

Makenzie, Payton, Bailey, Kaelyn and Alayna

Kaelyn and her Pawpaw

I picked up my favorite strawberry cupcakes at Celebrations Bakery in Northport, so everybody had a cupcake.  They are absolutely amazing cupcakes--not too sweet, a fresh strawberry taste, and a little tangy flavor from the strawberry cream cheese frosting.  Daeon and I are going to try to figure it out, so when we do, I'll post the recipe!

This girl loves pink cupcakes

Mike bought a big piece of land in Centreville a while back, so the boys went out to ride around and do some work on it, and then they played golf together.  All the girls went fishing near Sissy's parents' house.  It should be noted that this fishing expedition required Daeon to drive the minivan up steep muddy dirt roads for about an hour on 1/8 of a tank of gas.  We thought we were going to have to turn back a couple times, but we eventually made it to the creek.  Kaelyn was the most successful fisherman; she caught 4 fish!  

Sissy gave her the secret to catching fish--you have to spit on the worm!

Payton impressed everybody by taking the fish off the hooks and tossing them back.  I hung out with Alayna in the back of Sissy's car and we watched all the girls fish.  

Me and Alayna

After a while, Kaelyn was hot and tired and in a foul mood, and Alayna was so hungry she was all but gnawing on my hand, so we decided it was time to go back to the house.  When we got there, Mike was busy whipping up dinner.  He cooked a chicken pasta dish for an appetizer that was delicious, and then he smoked chicken breasts.  We also had mashed potatoes, baked beans, and barbecue bread toasted on the grill.  After dinner, everybody watched the final four basketball games and caught up with each other while the little girls took baths and put on their pajamas.  

Me, Daeon, and Sissy

Dave brought me, Daeon, and Sissy some blackberry preserves (which are my favorite!) from a shop in Georgia, so I'm going to have to learn how to make biscuits so we can try them out.  All in all, we had a good time catching up with everybody, and I loved having some time to pinch on Alayna's sweet cheeks and play with Kaelyn since we don't get to see them very often.  Kaelyn invited me to come up to Murfreesboro to go shopping, so maybe I'll get to see them again soon!


Love,
Jillerina :*