Mississippi State Tennis 10u Tournaments

We live right by some tennis courts. Once the twins started school, I needed something for them to do a few hours a day during the summer while I worked. If there was a camp within a 1 mile radius around my house .. they were enrolled. This included gold camp, tennis camp and art camp. They loved it all!

Tennis stuck with them and they began doing little clinics. They were naturals. So athletic and could pick up skills quick. Although they prefer playing singles, they are unstoppable at doubles.

July 2016 MS Summer State Tennis Tournament - 2nd place

• Both girls went undefeated in singles and doubles, not dropping a set, until the finals. It was a smokin hot weekend. They got skunked in the championship match by a duo from Oxford that was bad to the bone. I think the final score was 5-8.

 

 

 



December 2016 - USTA Mississippi State Tennis Tournament - STATE CHAMPIONS!!!!

• Quinn went undefeated in singles, never dropped a set. Stud. HC was in boot so she only played doubles with Quinn. They went undefeated in doubles also, never dropping a set. It was freezing! Everyone was in awe over how good HC was while wearing a boot. That kid. They were so much fun to watch!

 

 

Reece

Beautiful, sweet Reece. She came into our life during kindergarten at Sacred Heart. She started about half way into the year because she was receiving cancer treatments at St. Jude for Lymphoma. We all instantly feel in love with her, her siblings and her parents. They moved away to D.C. at the end of 1st grade but moved back at the start of 3rd grade. Their bond was even stronger. This family will always hold a special place in our hearts.

St. Jude for Reece's checkup

Beginning of 3rd grade (they stayed with us a few days while their apartment was getting ready)

Reece's 1st Communion (the twins had theirs the year before in 2nd grade when Reece was living in D.C.)

3rd grade musical at Sacred Heart

This lovely lady is an avid LSU fan. Seems reasonable that I serve her a beverage in an Ole Miss huggy.

Picking out pumpkins at Paw Paw's pumpkin patch at our church

 

BFF's forever

Your own room!

My sweet girls … for years you didn't want to be separated. I would use threats of making you sleep in separate rooms as punishment when you were acting up. And then, out of the blue, you both asked us for your own room for your 10th birthday. It was time. You were ready for some independence and your own personal space.  It took us about 5 months to make it work logistically because my office was in the other spare bedroom and your play room was in our dining room. The walls needed to be painted, ceiling repaired, new light fixtures, new furniture, etc. You guys picked out everything yourself and we had so much fun shopping for new stuff! Wall color (you both picked the same shade of gray), furniture, décor, bedding, etc. Hassie Clare's tastes is a touch eclectic, fun and cheery. Quinn's taste is more neutral, calming and soft. You each have such a great eye for what you like.


Playroom conversion to my Office

 

I scored this beautiful desk off of craigslist.

Hassie Clare's new room

HC and Brianna

Nana gave Hassie Clare the dresser. It was Great Grandma Hassie's dresser. HC picked out a color and we had it refinished.

 

HC got mostly hammy downs but she loves it! The mirror (craigslist) and desk are new.

 

 

Quinn's new room

Quinn and Reece

We scored Quinn's new furniture off of craigslist also from a lady that lives in a high rise apartment complex down on the river in downtown Memphis. It was exactly what she wanted.

 



 

 

A sister's friendship

It is funny how you go through your childhood and don't realize how truly important some things are or will be as you get older. I always new how lucky I was to have a loving, caring family and to have food, shelter and unconditional love every day. But the little things, like the love of a sister, often go without notice. I had no idea how much I would love her and need her in my later years.

We weren't really friends growing up. I always felt like I had to protect her and mother her .... for no other reason other than I felt like it was my role as her big sister.  We had different interests and different personalities.  I was a rule follower and she was a rule breaker. She was the bratty, annoying little sister and I was the bitchy, know it all big sister.  I loved her but we were never close friends as kids.

Fast forward to our later years and man alive, I can't imagine not having her in my life. I can tell her anything and everything without hesitation. I know that she will love me no matter what ... similar to a parents loyalty and love. That is an amazing feeling to know you still have "that person" in your life especially after you lose your Mother.

I consider our friendship a bonus. We can laugh and act silly together, talk about our other family members like we are the only normal ones and unwind together without any judgement. We have a blast when we are together and I cherish being able to call her at anytime and pick right up where we left off. We share a special bond that only sisters can share and that makes our friendship priceless!

So.... to the only person that still checks this blog after 3 years of inactivity, I love you and I'm thankful every day that you are my sister!

Georgia Mae

When Ruby passed away on December 23, 2015, our hearts were broken and Jamie and I were positive that our hearts could not handle the love of another dog anytime soon. BUT … the twins were ready a few short months later and we want them to grow up with a dog so the hunt began. With our allergies we have to be very cautious. Cautious = expensive designer dogs that don't shed.

In Feb. 2016 we started the morning off with a win during a school basketball game in North Memphis.  Darted across town for a 2 hour club volleyball practice. Left the gym and started our adventure by heading to Stone Mountain, Georgia to pick up the sweetest little black puppy.  6 hours later we arrived at our hotel just in time to swim for 30 minutes and hit the hay at midnight. We love adventures, even if they are short! We woke up bright and early to picked up our sweet puppy from the breeder. She was Double Doodle (Aussie Doodle & Golden Doodle) and we named her Millie.

Millie was so sweet, cute and fun. About 7 days after we brought her home she got sick with the Parvo Virus despite receiving her vaccinations. We are assuming we brought her home from the breeder with it because of the time frame. She lived for 5 more days at a 24 hour animal hospital. We cried for her. We felt horrible for her but never lost hope until we got the call that she was suffering immensely and barely breathing so we ask them to put her at rest. She deserved so much better.

Millie Mae

RIP

December 24, 2015-February 27, 2016

The breeder was devastated also. She offered to refund our money or give us the puppy from the same litter that she kept as a breeder dog - AKA Teal Girl. This particular puppy was a lot more expensive because of her markings. With a few handshake deals that involved breeding rights, etc., we agreed to take "teal girl." She assured us that this puppy was heathy but we decided to wait until she was almost 15 weeks old and fully vaccinated before bringing her home. I did tons of research, including talking to one of the vaccine developers in Germany! I did not want to bring another sick dog home or make another dog sick by bringing her to our house....especially since they were from the same liter. Parvo is unforgiving. Not that I was pessimistic about bringing another dog home, but I did not have warm fuzzy feelings.

The twins were insisting on naming her Georgia. They wanted to name the first puppy Georgia also but I vetod it and we all know how that went down. The name just didn't roll off mine and Jamie's tongue easily. Seemed forced. But the second we saw her in person we all agreed that the name fit. She was so calm for a puppy, regal and looked full of wisdom. We would tease that she was an old, wise Chinese man stuck in a puppy body.

 

 

A few fun facts - Millie and Georgia were born the day after Ruby passed away. We like to think Ruby picked them out for us. Also, we went to pick up Georgia (in Stone Mountain, GA) on Nana's birthday April 25, 2016. She would have loved her so, so much.

Anyway, we brought Georgia home and she fit right in. She was potty trained, kennel trained, already knew commands, asked for nothing and never made a sound. IT WAS CRAZY! She was 14 weeks old. She didn't want to sleep with us. She stayed right by our side when we went outside. We had never met a dog like this before. It was almost like she was this perfect robot puppy. She wasn't very playful and scared of everything.

We took her with us everywhere that summer - tennis tournaments, the lake, the beach. Slowly but surely she started loosening up a little and trusting us. Seriously … best dog EVER!