The "Finnster, et al."

Dustin Clayton and CJ Sahs of our "best friend group" both have birthdays in the month of February.  To celebrate them turning "some age in their mid to late 30s" we went to dinner at Fable. I can't remember when we actually went because this happened a year ago, and I am just now getting around to posting it. I do remember it was the tail end of the week of the big snow because we were slipping and sliding in our heels from the parking lot to the restaurant.  We all decided to met at the Clayton's house to get ready for the evening.  The girls all got ready in Elena's bathroom.  And then were was Anna... I think we all changed at least twice - except for Amanda.  The end result was pretty darn good for a bunch of moms.  I had never been to Fable before.  It was dark, and had macabre drawings of conglomerated animals all over the walls, but I did like the ambiance.    I don't remember a lot about dinner.  Elena had just recently found ou...

We Moved.  Despite vowing to never move again, we moved.  Back in early 2021 we realized that we were spending way too much time in the car.  Yes, the boys love watching "Spongebob" while sitting in countless hours of traffic, but as parents, we had to make a change less their brain turn to mush.  On average, the boys were in the van over an hour and half every day, and that was just going to and from school.  If they had to go back to school for sporting events or practice - you can tack on another hour or so.  Michael, now working from home fulltime spent double that time in the van.    As much as we loved our little home nestled WAY back in Gallatin, we started the long and gut wrenching process of buying a new home.  When I say it was the worst experience ever - I mean it.  The sale of our house fell through - twice.  It was really quite stressful.  I became very familiar with every nook and cranny of our house - not to men...

"When you realize you resemble a 188 year old turtle."  That’s it. 

This year Sam participated in the Junior Docent program at the Hermitage.  Davidson Academy is one of several school in the Nashville area that participates in this program.  The children all learn about a specific area of the home.  Then they give details about that area to guest who come to tour the property.   Sam was stationed at Rachel Jackson's Tomb.  He did fantastic.  He was so poised and professional.  He said his lines clearly and with such confidence.  I was so proud of him.   Afterward, Sam and I toured the Hermitage together. 

This was my dream home.  It was a sweet little farm house with a red roof nestled on a little over 2 acres of land.  There is a little creek that cuts through the front yard and the whole property was surrounded by trees.  It was beautiful and quiet and ours. But, our home wasn't close to anything.  We were 25 minutes from church and almost an hour from the boys' school (during rush hour) - one way.  We were beginning to realize that as the boys get older and start participating in more after hours school activities, we really needed to be closer to school.  So we made the really difficult decision to sell our home.   While we don't regret our decision, we will always love the years we spent here.  We experienced really sweet and peaceful moments here. The boys running around the in yard, playing in creek, playing with Michael on the basketball court, riding bikes down to Deshea Creek. Michael loved to sit on the back patio and drink coffee w...