NCBH vs. WFUHS Softball

On Monday, July 28, the medical center sponsored its annual charity softball game to benefit United Way. This was a little more special than my usual softball games because 1) it was charity and 2) because we got to play on Ernie Shore Field, the home of the Warthogs. There was a little bit of a conflict of interest, since Lynsey works for the "hospital" side and I work for the "school" side, even though our offices are in the same building. Regardless the school team had a three year unbeaten streak to uphold and the pressure was on since I was drafted to be the coach for our team.

Anyway, thanks to some timely hitting and superb defense on our part, we were able to handle the hospital team pretty easily and won 23-7. Following the game we were treated to a trophy presentation, and an outstanding, well embarrassing may be a better word, cheer leading performance by the administrators at the hospital. The short skirts, pom-poms, and make-up was flying around and they put on a great show.

All in all, we had a good time, and it went towards a good cause. Unfortunately, the minor league scouts at the game did not offer me a contract, so I will have to resort to my same old job.

After the charity game, the Warthogs took the field to play the Lynchburg Hill Cats. We stayed until the bottom of the 6th inning... Lynsey's attention span when it comes to baseball is minimal. The Warthogs went on to win 8-2.

Here are a few pictures Lynsey took during the game... she apologizes for the net being in the way.

Organizing the "school" side teamHowerton's Hoorah Team Cheerleaders

O'Malley turns 2!!!

Happy Birthday O'Malley! My little boy is growing up. He has brought me so many laughs and smiles. I'll post more pictures tonight after our "celebration".

At 8 Weeks.

Almost One year old Last Christmas

Opening his gift from Deacon.

He loves bones!

Deacon watching O'Malley.

Deacon enjoying O'Malley's gift

O'Malley's peanut butter and biscuit birthday "cake"

We love you O'Malley!

Also, I got a welcomed visit from my best friend and college roommate, Courtney! She happened to be in town and it was wonderful to see her again! I was happy that Brian got to finally meet my "kyyle"! We can't wait to visit her and her husband, Bradley, in Greenville, SC.

Another note from the past weekend: Brian finally got to meet Sarah, Bradley and Harper (their little girl)! Sarah and I have known each other since elementary school and grew up playing soccer together. Over the years, she became one of my closest and dearest friends. They were in town for Sarah's brothers welcome home party from Scotland! It was so nice to finally see her again and catch up on lost time. They are expecting their second baby girl any day now and I can't wait to meet the little bundle of joy!

Stone Mountain & Salem Lake Weekend

This weekend was nothing short of active and fun! Friday night I dragged Brian to see Mama Mia (I recommend it) and we went to The Loop for dinner (my favorite place!). Saturday we went to Taylorsville so Brian could meet my mom's side of the family. We had a nice visit and it was good to see my Papaw again. We left Taylorsville and after getting lost several times (we blame Mapquest!), we finally arrived at Stone Mountain State Park to meet our friends Marcie and Craig for an afternoon hike. We hiked to the top of Stone Mountain and calculated that it was approximately 7 miles round trip. We stopped at the waterfalls along the way for much needed relief from the heat. We also saw the Hutchinson Homestead, which is a 19th century farm. The homestead is complete with a log cabin, barn, blacksmith shop, corncrib, meat house and original furnishings. We had a great time and can't wait for more hiking trips with Craig and Marcie. Before we got back on the road, we stopped at the Stone Mountain Country store for a scoop of hand dipped ice cream.. it hit the spot!

On our way up!

At the top.. finally!

Our hiking buddies: Marcie and Craig

No mom I'm not sticking my tongue out ;-)

Stone Mountain falls

Because we are in 5th grade again...

The view from the bottom

Hutchinson Homestead: A farm built in the mid 19th century

Brian at the Country Store with his ice cream

Sunday afternoon we decided to take the pups on a walk but we wanted something a little different. So we took them to Salem Lake in Winston Salem. Salem Lake is a 365-acre lake that offers a great place to walk/run/bike along the 6.9 mile trail that rings the lake. Of course we didn't make the complete 6.9 miles as the pups tired out around 4.5 miles. However, they did great in those 4.5 miles and it was a great way for us to exercise as well. We look forward to the day when the pups can make it the complete 6.9 miles.

Salem Lake

Deacon on his leash - He is getting so big!

Thirsty boys

And he is getting tired....

Worn out and ready to take a nap

It was a great weekend and we were blessed with beautiful weather. We look forward to more weekends like this.

Weddings of 2008!

As I have mentioned in previous post, there's a total of 5 weddings that we will be attending this year. Out of those 5, I am a bridesmaid in 3 of them. I thought it would be best to give a quick rundown of the weddings so everyone can keep them straight.

Wedding #1: Jessica Ryu & Sean Mulder - June 14- Warrenton, VA

Jessica and Sean were married on June 14 at The Inn at Vint Hill in Warrenton, VA. I have already posted about this wedding so no need to go into more detail. As I previously mentioned, Jessica and I have been best friends since high school. She is more like a sister to me than a friend. I love her to death. Although we don't get to see each other as often as we would like, we always keep in touch. She is an amazing person and her and Sean are adorable together. I can't wait to visit them in Columbia, MD where they currently have a house and a dog named Nessie.

Wedding #2: Jennifer Ryu & Jason Goodale - September 13 - Quantico, VA
Jennifer and Jason are both captains in the United States Marine Corps and met when they were both stationed at the Marine Barracks Washington, DC. They have planned a formal military wedding, with Jason in Blue White Dress A at The Marine Memorial Chapel in Quantico, VA. Jessica (Jennifer's twin sister) will be the matron of honor and the bridesmaids are Juliette Ryu (older sister), Colleen Sullivan (friend from high school) and myself.

Jennifer and I have known each other since high school. We were also roommates when I lived in Washington, DC for a year. Like Jessica, Jennifer is more of a sister than a friend to me. We spent many hours together while in school. We keep in touch as much as we can and it is always nice when we get to visit each other. I can't wait for Jennifer and Jason to be closer to NC, even if it is just for a few months!

Wedding #3: Lindsey Conley & Chris Slaughter - October 12 - Lexington, NC

Chris and Lindsey first met in April of 2005 and Chris proposed to Lindsey while a group of us were at the beach for what has turned into our annual beach trip. In the early morning of August 26,2007 Chris asked Lindsey to take a walk on the beach and before we knew it, Lindsey returned as an engaged woman! Lindsey and Chris will be married at Childress Vineyards in Lexington, NC. This will be the first wedding of the year where I will be able to sit back and take it all in as a guest. I met Lindsey last summer through another friend and Chris was my brother's college roommate. Since meeting, we have shared a lot of fun times together. Lindsey and Chris are an amazing couple and both have such a wonderful sense of humor. They recently moved into a new house and we couldn't be happier, as they are much closer to Winston now! We look forward to hanging out with them a lot more.
Wedding #4: Lacy Bondurant & Siler Southerland - November 8 - Winston Salem, NC

Lacy and Siler have planned a winter wedding at my home church, Home Moravian Church. Siler's dad, Carl, is one of the preachers at Home Moravian. I have known the Southerland family since I was little. Lacy and Siler have dated off and on since high school. We can't wait to be guests at this wedding as it will be nice to visit my home church for a wedding.

Wedding #5: Dawn Joyner & Chris Smith - November 29 - Winston-Salem, NC
Dawn and Chris have dated since June of 2001. They met while life guarding at Old Town Country Club. I have been lucky enough to see their relationship come full term as I was a lifeguard at the same pool that summer. They have endured long distance for several years and have become such a strong couple. Chris proposed to Dawn on her birthday, May 24, of this year. This is the third wedding in which I will serve as a bridesmaid and I couldn't be more honored. We are looking forward to celebrating their big day with them. They have planned an outdoor wedding at Pinebrook Country Club in Winston-Salem.
Dawn and I have been friends since high school. During college, I decided to attend UNC-Wilmington for a summer and roomed with Dawn. She is a great girl. We became closer after high school and we have shared so many experiences and adventures together. We currently work at the same hospital as well. I can't wait to be a part of her big day!
So that's all the weddings for 2008! We can't wait for all the fun times and trust us... plenty of pictures will be taken at each! So stay tuned...

One Productive Weekend!

This past weekend was nothing short of productive for us. Friday night was date night! We went to O'Charley's for dinner to use a gift card Brian had received for his birthday. Despite the horrible waitress we had to deal with, we had a good time. I broke away from the norm (chicken fingers) and got the Pretzel Crunch Chicken while Brian decided to try the Fresh Atlantic Grilled Salmon. Both the entrees were good and we left happy and full. We decided to surprise my grandparents with a visit and they were so happy to see us. We had a lovely conversation and it was the perfect ending to a great date night.

Saturday we took the "boys" for a walk. It was blazing hot outside and by the time we made it to my parents house (less than a mile away) the pups were ready to lay down. Afterwards, I went to David's Bridal to order my bridesmaid dress for Dawn's wedding (wedding #5 of the year). This is the dress that I will be wearing but in a deep red "wine" color.

Afterwards I met Brian at Lowe's to purchase the supplies we would need to build our cornhole boards. After playing cornhole so much over the 4th, I told Brian I would love to have a set of boards. Being the handy man he is, he said he could make them for us. So this weekend, we started the process. We decided to make WFU boards since we both work for WFU and live in Winston. Despite what the pictures may tell, I did help with building the boards.

I have more pictures of the boards but they were taken with my camera phone so I will be sure to share those as soon as I upload them. Once the boards are completely done, I will post pictures of the completed project. A long time family friend, Dot, is going to help me make the bean bags in black and gold to go along with the board.

Saturday evening, Brian and I were invited to a party at Taylor's moms house. This was a chance for both families (Taylor's Family and my Family) to meet. Bonita, Taylor's mom, was a wonderful host. Plenty of food, fun and laughter were shared.

Brian & I

Zach & Taylor

Taylor & the host - her mom, Bonita

Taylor & Pops Petree

Zach, mom, Brian

Zach, Taylor, Papaw Petree, Nan Petree

Taylor & I

Brian & Taylor

The 4 of us

Sunday was spent walking the pups, working on the cornhole boards and getting the first coat of paint on them. We had dinner at my parents Sunday night and ended the night by playing Uno with my family. It was one productive weekend, if you ask me.