Monday, February 25, 2008



The Saga of the Weekend..

{in which you will hear such words as "dance pictures," "panties," and "goose egg"}

Okay, it wasn't really as dramatic as a "saga," but there were some happenings worth mentioning...and what's funny is that going into the weekend I figured it would be pretty much a "no brainer" with very little to write about on Monday.

I think I mentioned on Friday that we were looking forward to the weekend, because there wasn't much going on. All of that changes next weekend, because Delaney's travel softball team starts its tournament play (get ready for softball pictures!!), but this weekend was a nice, "g0-nowhere-planned" weekend. McKenna actually had a Winterguard Competition in Tennessee, but I wasn't going because I was going to stay home and attend Delaney's Math tournament here in Birmingham (I have to kinda switch going to their events, so I don't only attend one of theirs). Delaney's math event ended up being cancelled, but then I couldn't get a hotel reservation in Tennessee at the last minute. So, I sent McKenna off without me (she was probably secretly excited; ha!), and we had a Saturday with very little planned activities.

So on Saturday, we actually slept late (until at least 8:30; VERY nice!) and then Gary and I got up and did some cleaning and straightening up around the house (hauled off the old refrigerator, tried to straighten up Sydney's room, etc.). We watched some television, made some sloppy joes, piddled around, and enjoyed some "lazy" time.

Then, that night I got together with my friends Chris, Allison, and Julie for a "girls night out" (it was one of those nights when everyone "really needed" some time away from the kids; ever had some of those times? ha!) and we had a BLAST eating some good Italian food, getting some "to die for" pastries at our favorite bakery (like, my favorite, the chocolate rugelach below!), and going on a panty run
(about two years ago...right around the time Chris became a newlywed again!...we began the tradition of ending our girls-night=outs with a shopping spree for panties. It's turned into kind of a silly tradition, but it's a very easy way to get the husbands to watch the kids for the evening. "I'll come home with panties" is a great selling point! LOL You also sometimes can find some pretty fun "guys" goodies, too. Like those boxer shorts below! I laughed at them until I was crying! Quite a sentiment to have on your underwear, huh?)



As we left our little shopping excursion, I got a call from McKenna. I asked her how their perfomance went and she said, "We did really poorly...and I have the knot to show for it!" During their performance, she had been hit in the head with another girl's saber. She said she had a huge goose head on her forehead and she had an awful headache, but that one of the moms (who also happens to be a nurse) said she had no signs of a concussion so she was just gonna try and take it easy. Needless to say, that got me a little worried, since I was so far away from her. I told her, though, to take some advil, rest, and she'd be fine.

We got home LATE and Sydney was still wide awake! Delaney had spent the night with a friend and when Sydney realized she'd have Gary all to herself, she decided that she and her Pop would have a "sleepover"--i.e., building a fort, eating pizza, and playing Barbie dolls. I think she had worn him out, but she was still going strong!!!

On Sunday morning, we were up-and-at-em to head to church (although I really didn't feel so much "up-and-at-em" and had a not-so-fun sinus headache). But we were excited to see Sydney sing with some of the kids in the service that morning. And she didn't disappoint! She sang loud and proud (and is still singing it this morning. Believe me, that girl loves to sing! lol)

At the beginning of the service, though, Gary popped up into the balcony and motioned to me to come downstairs. He had just gotten a call from Sandy (the nurse=mom), who reported that McKenna had woken up that morning with a tick movement in her shoulder and the side of her head (on the opposite side of her knot from the saber hit). She reassured me that she was taking McKenna back to the hotel, she wouldn't be performing that day, and that she would keep a very close eye on here. There was still no sign of a concussion and the only thing that McKenna was complaining about was a headache. I told her to take her to a hospital if any other symptom showed up, and then I began to feel pretty bad that I wasn't there with her. If I had traveled with them, we could be on the way home right now. I then talked to McKenna and she reassured me that she was fine; just that the tick was irritating. I told her I'd call her back later and check on her and told her to please tell Sandy if anything else started hurting (McKenna can be kinda stoic, so I wanted to be sure she wouldn't ignore a symptom).

After church, I headed home to watch some tv (the Memphis-Tennessee basketball game that I had recorded from the night before), wash clothes, worry about McKenna, send Delaney to softball practice with Gary, and then get Sydney ready for her dance pictures later on in the day!

I got her out ahead of time and took some pictures of her myself. I knew I'd end up loving these more casual, outdoor poses much more than the staged portraits shot later on (and I was right!).

She LOVED getting all dressed up for the pictures (you'd never guess she'd like wearing a frilly dress, huh?)



(i really like this shot, with the reflection of me and the camera in the mirror.)

The wait for having the pictures taken wasn't as bad as I had anticipated. And even better... I got a call from McKenna while at the studio telling me that her ticks had stopped and she was feeling much better. You can imagine the weight that I felt lifted off of me!

When McKenna returned home that night, she was exhausted. And after Delaney got home from softball practice, she was exhausted. And Sydney, after working so hard to look glamorous for her pictures, was exhausted (lol!). As a result of all of that, I feel pretty exhausted today too for some reason (hence, the late post for today!).

I'm seriously reconsidering these do-nothing weekends...because they can drain the energy out of you! (Bring on the busy plans next weekend!!)

18 comments:

Adrienne said...

LOL Sydney is the cutest!!! Glad you had a busy, do nothing weekend lol

Sheila said...

Glad to hear Mckenna is feeling better and Sydney is just too cute... After that post I must say I'm exhausted...lol.

Mississippi Songbird said...

Oh, She is just a little angel..Those are great pictures. I hope you have an equally exciting week.

hippo chick said...

Cheryl, I remember sending my oldest daughter off to Germany suspecting that she might be coming down with a bug. I was right and she was vomiting all the way across the ocean. My dear friend was a chaperone and I knew she was in excellent hands, but I felt like a terrible mom. I'm glad to hear Mckenna is doing well. As my girls are grown up, I just love stories about yours.

Monogram Queen said...

Honey you are absolutely right, the "do nothing" week-ends can be brutal!
So glad Mckenna is okay!
Sydney is a doll I can't WAIT until we take our first recital pics in April!

P.S. I love the panty run/girls night out.Oh how i'd love to join y'all!

Anonymous said...

Cheryl- your laid back weekend would be considered my busy weekend. Can you send some of that energy my way?

Sydney is just adorable and that outfit is too cute. Thanks for sharing

Anonymous said...

Those boxer shorts are too funny.

And Sydney is so cute.

Auburn Kat said...

Poor McKenna...that must have hurt! Glad to hear she is doing good.

Cheryl Wray said...

Adrienne-- Yeah, those do-nothings can be busy!! :-)

Sheila--Ha ha!

Songbird--I love how the pictures turned out and I can't wait to scrapbook them!

Hippo--McKenna went to Europe last summer and I can only imagine how miserable I would have been if I'd known she was sick. I know you were a great Mom!

Cheryl Wray said...

Patti--Get yourself down further South and you can go on a panty run with us!!!! LOL

Baberry--I'll send you some energy, but the older I get the less there is of it!! :-)

Gin--Oh my...those boxer shorts just made me CRACK UP!! They were great!

Kat--Yes, thank goodness she is doing better!!

Mz.Elle said...

Sidney is too cute.I love her sweet smile:)

Sorry about Mckenna! I'm glad she's ok now,I can only imagine your terror*shudder*

I LOVE that you and your friends end your evening out by shopping for new panties. Best.idea.ever!

Edleen said...

how sweet a do nothing weekend can turn out! *wink*

she looks so Darling in those photos!

have a Great Week Cheryl!

Dawn Bibbs said...

Wow, I'm so sorry to hear about McKenna. But I'm thrilled that she's ok. Man, I can imagine how you were feeling about not being able to be with her. Glad she made it back home with you safely.

Delaney is about to get back into playing ball again, huh? Well, we'll be right there with ya'll, as Jayla starts soccer this weekend.

Cheryl, that Sydney is just TOO MUCH!! I love that kid and I've never even met her :-).

Enjoy your week, my friend.

Cheryl Wray said...

Ms. L--Ha ha!!! Don't you love it? Make the panty tradition your own, if you'd like!!! :-)

Ed--Thanks!! You have a wonderful week too!!!

Dawn--Yep, I guess our blogs will be totally about softball and soccer now, huh? I am ready for the season to begin, though; enough of all the practicing and no actual playing! And yes, Sydney is quite the character. You know that I am just in love with her!!

Cheryl said...

You did have a very busy weekend. The pictures are so cute!!! I loved seeing her on stage singing picture. She's a prize! Have a good week. God Bless!

Unknown said...

WOW! What a NON-busy weekend you had! LOL Sydney looks adorable in her dance outfit.

I am glad to hear that Mckenna is feeling better. So scary to get a call like that when you are not with your children. All you can do is wait, and that can be torture!

Your girls night out sounds so fun! And the men's boxers got me laughing!

Anonymous said...

OMG Sydney looks SOOOOO cute! Such a little princess!!! Glad Mckenna is feeling better! Hugs.

Theresa Tyree said...

I think I see the next American Idol in Sydney! She's so stinkin' cute! I'm glad McKenna got to feeling better. Here's to a busier weekend next weekend (ha ha!). I love the new panties, but seriously, I don't think I could fit my big toe in them! LOL!