Is it May already?

How did we get to May already???  Owen will graduate high school and I will graduate from The University of Southern Mississippi.  Owen is such a minimalist and didn’t want Senior pictures or any kind of big-deal party to attend.  He is so opposite of me when I was his age.  Ha!  Ever since Covid, he has just been ready to be out of school.  That virtual year had him spending too much time at home.  We discovered he has Pseudotumor Cerebi in the brain during that time and it caused him to have to quit football once we returned to school.  He tried it, but since he can no longer get hit in the head (he was a Lineman), it caused too much worry for us all. That was a big change for all of us since he had always played and loved it since he was little.  He started weightlifting and lost about 80 lineman pounds and feels great now.  We are so thankful now to have him healthy.

Now, he will graduate and attend Lineman School.  This time, with the power company.  I can't wait to see all the awesome things he will do after graduation! 

I posted my picture because this graduation has been a lifetime away from the last one I was in.  I honestly had given up on getting a college degree.  I am still having a hard time believing that it’s about to happen!  My next adventure will be my Master’s!  

 

The beginning of Volleyball

Caroline has decided that she wants to try a sport.  We have taken dance lessons, and she still loves doing gymnastics at Coach Eddies, but now we have signed up for volleyball at her school.  I thought she was joking at first, but she kept asking to sign up, so I signed her up.  She has enjoyed it so far.  We have now had two games (in which her team won both games).  Her friend Ainsley is on her team, so she was really excited about that. 

You could tell everyone was so nervous during their first game.  They had their first practice the night before their first game due to all the crazy weather the week before and schedules being rearranged.  When the game started, the kids just all kind of looked around.  By the end of the game, they all started to understand how it all worked.  Caroline made a few points even! 

We celebrated a new journey at the Melt afterward with lunch and Boba.  Anthony and Ronny were even in town and came to the game to cheer her on.  We thought his hollering would embarrass her, but we found out that she liked it.  I’m proud of her for trying new things and not being worried about messing up.  

 

Meet Bentley

 This is Bentley Werner.  He is our dog and the baby of the family.  We had a boxer mix, Annie,  years ago who passed away, and it took me a long time to move on and ever think about getting a dog again.  Anthony’s girlfriend, Ronny, had a Golden Retriever and they were going to have a litter of puppies born in March.  We followed the puppies and I wasn’t thinking about getting one at first until I kept seeing pictures of this one particular puppy.  He was always the one getting into things he probably shouldn’t be getting into.  I started to really fall in love with a dog again and we decided that we would get him the day after our dance recital.  I didn’t have anything ready for a dog until we had some free time after dance to get a kennel.  Since we got him, he has completed our family. 

For a whole year, he has tried to get himself in this hammock.  I guess he has seen us all lying in it and relaxing.  Well, he finally did it so we had to take a picture of him in it.  He stayed in there for a good bit but then cried until Caroline joined him.  He is one of our children now and I don’t know how we went so long without a dog like we did.  As you can see, he brings all of his toys outside each day.  They start in one pile, and he carries them out into the yard one by one.  He is definitely one of our children!

Unexpected Rainy Day Home

    Yesterday, we were notified about the possibility of severe weather and that the school would be closed today.  The girls were so excited!  We stopped at Dollar General on the way home from school and got some snacks because that's what we do to calm our nerves in bad weather.  We came home and picked up around the yard, got baths, did laundry, and cleaned up around the house in case any company needed a safe place to stay for the day.  

    Around 10am, the rain was starting to get heavier.  We made sure our cat, Blinkers, was inside.  She prefers to be outside in the carport, but we wanted her inside with us in case of a tornado.  Blinkers is not a fan of our dog, Bentley.  She barely tolerates him but he was so excited she was inside with us. 

    At one point, the rain started blowing in an "X" direction.  Caroline has some anxiety with the weather and I decided it may be best if we all grabbed a pillow and blanket and got a spot in my bathroom until the worst passed.  The wind started to blow rain inside the front of the house from the front door.  I grabbed some towels and placed them under the door so water wouldn't be everywhere.  Once the heavy rain passed, we came out to see the rain that covered the front yard had already started to drain into the backfield.  There were two trees that had fallen a few months ago and were floating in the stream going to the ponds.  That was a pretty strong water current going through our yard to carry those away.  

    Once everything calmed down, the girls begged to put on their swimsuits and play in the water.  We decided to wait after seeing the trees float away because we weren't sure what else was floating in the water.  They settled on the puddles in the yard instead and had a blast.  Luckily, we didn't have the tornados like other areas around us.  We were able to return to school the next day.  A lot of people enjoyed the extra day off!

 

Quick Friday night meal

 Hey everyone!  We have been so busy getting ready for Easter weekend, that I forgot to prepare dinner.  I grabbed some freezer pizzas and bag salad.  It's not what I would have prepared had I planned a meal, but we only had one slice left so no pictures this time.  

Welcome to my family!

 Hello!  My name is Laura and I have a wonderful family that keeps me busy.  We can start off with an introduction of everyone and I will start with myself.  I was born and raised in Louisiana and graduated from Covington High School.  I started college at Southeastern Louisiana University before I met my husband and moved to Mississippi.  My husband is Tony and he is a subcontractor.  He loves to fix engines, ride mountain bikes, and keep up with some farmland.

  

One of my favorite places to visit is Disney World.  My first time going was in 2016 and I have visited three more times with my children. 

We have four children.  Anthony is a Civil Engineer student at Mississippi State and will graduate in December 2025.  He is so ready to finish college and start his next chapter.

Owen is a senior in high school and graduated early this past December.  He works with Tony right now and has applied to PRCC for Lineman Technology in the Fall.  

Caroline is in 4th grade and is such a girly girl.  She loves to be with friends and family doing things.

Catherine is in 2nd grade and is our most sensitive child.  She cares for everyone and wants everyone to be happy.

Now that we have met, I hope to be able to share some of the things that our family does as we go through different chapters of our lives.  We have so many things coming up this year.  Owen will graduate high school in May, I will FINALLY graduate college in May, and Anthony will follow in December and graduate college also.  The girls will complete their first year in gymnastics and Tony will be by our side excited about all of our accomplishments.  I am also going to share a few of our favorite quick night recipes that get us through the crazy weeks.  Hope you enjoy it!

I almost forgot!  We finally got a dog!  Meet...Bentley!  He will be 1 on Easter Sunday.  He is a Golden Retriever and has more energy than all of us put together.  Our cat, Blinkers, is not a huge fan but she is beginning to tolerate his existence now. 😄