Go Gamecocks!

Yesterday was an exciting day in University of SC history, as the Gamecocks beat #1 rated Alabama 35-21! Grandaddy Ray would be so proud!

This year the Gamecocks also beat #1 ranked Kentucky in basketball in January and #1 Arizona State in baseball in June. Carolina's football team had never beaten higher than a 4th ranked team, and this didn't seem to be the game that would do it. Alabama had won 19 consecutive games, 29 regular season games in a row, and the quarterback had not lost a game he had started in since he was in the 8th grade in 2001.

Then the fact that Clemson lost to UNC made it a perfect day for us long-suffering Carolina fans. The only thing one of our Clemson friends could say today, was that we would probably lose to Kentucky next week. It was too nerve-racking to watch the game as it was in progress, so SS and I were happy to be keeping Baby B. He is so easy to watch now - he plays with toys so independently and you mostly just have to make sure he doesn't do anything dangerous like running out in the street or falling down stairs.

One of the cutest things he does now is notice this picture of himself on our refrigerator gallery.. It's been there forever, but it's right at Baby B's eye level when you're holding him. All of a sudden he saw his "baby"(the giraffe lovey) and then down in the right-hand corner, where nobody else would ever notice, his "paci." So now he likes you to hold him up so he can point with that adorable little finger at his baby and then down at the paci, and just laughs. It is such a joy to watch him growing and learning!!

Well, I hope all of Pamela's Girls will have a wonderful week!

Go Gamecocks and Go San Francisco Giants!!

Love to all, CiCi

Our busy weekend...

We had a very busy, but fun weekend!
Friday Baby B and I went to meet friends at the zoo and then we went to meet another friend's 2 week old baby girl. Baby B really enjoyed the zoo! He noticed the animals much more than last time and we practiced all the animal sounds when we saw them. The farm animals are still his favorite though. It was a pretty sad moment when we had to drag Baby B away from the petting zoo animals.

Saturday we went to the Sweet Potato festival at 10 and strolled around looking at all the vendors and sights. At 11 we went to a birthday party where Baby B had lots of fun jumping in the jumpy house with the other children. By his naptime we were both EXHAUSTED!!! Cici and SS were nice enough to offer to keep Baby B so Daddy L and I could go watch the football games with friends. Watching the Gamecocks keep the lead in the last quarter of our game was so amazing and exciting~

This morning after church we had Loyalty Day where we enjoyed a delicous meal with our church family. Whew! What a weekend! And more excitement to come next weekend when we take Baby B to the fair...

Happy week Pamela's Girls!

Love you!

~Mommy M

Light The Night Walk – Team Joshua

I got home a couple of hours ago, tired, but glad to have taken part in the Light The Night Walk benefitting the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society here in Nashville. My office walked with the title of Team Joshua – honoring a songwriter, Joshua Ragsdale, who was signed with our company. Joshua lost a battle with leukemia this past summer at the young age of 32. He was such a bright, funny & caring person and everyone who knew this talented young man has missed having him with us.

The walk began at the Titans’ LP Field where we were fed a quick supper and we held lighted balloons representing loved ones & friends lost as we walked the 2 ½ mile circuit over a bridge, along a Nashville riverfront street, back over the river again - winding back into the stadium 's walk and over the finish line.

It was a good evening and an event that we all felt very grateful to support.

Love to the Pamela’s Girls from Auntie J with the aching footsies!

Happy 5th Birthday Barkley!!!

From the first moment I saw Barkley's sweet, puppy face at 2 weeks old, I fell inlove. That day in November when I got to take him home at 6 weeks old, was one of the many happy days of my life.




















From moving from house to apartment, from town to town, through a wedding, a baby and whiteshaker scares, we have been through a lot together in the past five years. Considering all the changes I have put him through, and inspite of his little quirks and nervous tendencies, I think he has handled my everchanging life pretty well for a little maltese.

This morning Barkley started the morning off Barking at the side door even more than normal. When I finally opened the door to see what all of the barking was about, Cici had left a necklace of doggy treats draped over the door knob. Barkley knew immediately that it was for him. He stood frozen for a photo as soon as I placed the necklace around his neck. And, of course, Baby B had to check out what Barkley had received.

The celebrations continued through lunch when we put on Barkley's famouse birthday hat so he could blow out the candle on his hotdog "cake." I even caught him winking at the camera (or maybe he was blinking because of the feathers on his birthday hat:)

It was too difficult to get a good photo of Barkley and Baby B with the cake since Baby B thought the hotdog and candle looked very intriguing.

Happy Birthday Barkley! I love you so much and hope we get to enjoy many, many more years together!

I hope you are having a wonderful week Pamela's Girls!

Love,

~Mommy M

More modeling by Baby B

Here is another fall look for Baby B thanks to his Tia!

Thanks SanFran S!

Love,

~Mommy M

Barkley

Barkley could totally relax and sleep with ease last night since Daddy L was back home with us from Clemson.

With love and laughter over my wacky boys,

~Mommy M

Coffee Breaks And Carmencita

Once a week I meet a dear friend, Carmencita, for coffee. We set up this 8am weekly ritual because we found that sometimes weeks & weeks would pass and we wouldn’t be able to get together because of conflicts with both our schedules if we didn’t set up something that we could fall back on. It’s a bit of a push to get up extra early to get to a coffee shop to meet (I think that lil’ Carmencita is no more a morning person than I am!) but it’s always worth it to catch up with each other’s weeks over a cup of special coffee.

I always get mocha. It’s a weakness. My friend usually gets regular coffee and saves some money, but I dearly love a mocha coffee drink – hot or cold. There are two different coffee shops that we alternate between. One of them was recently renovated and when we showed up there for the first time after its sprucing up, we were so impressed that we spent most of our chat that am wandering around taking photos and trying out different seats. I am adding photos that you can see. It’s really a beautiful place now – very light & open with interesting little tables, chairs and a booth or two for a group.

Yesterday I went there for lunch, ordered a sandwich and cup of hot tea and read “Wuthering Heights”, which I have been rereading for the Jane Austen Tea Society book group that I’m in. I haven’t read this book in a LONG time and so it has been very interesting to see what my take on it is this time. It’s amazing to me how – as the years of my life go by – Heathcliff seems more and more LESS a tragic romantic figure and more like a creepy psychopath. Yipes.

Carmencita always has something interesting going on. I wish that the Pamela’s Girls could meet her. She is a photographer, copyright administrator, lover of traveling, ballerina and belly dancer. She is a lovely, sweet young woman who started out as a high school friend of a nephew referred to me when she moved to Nashville, but has long since become MY friend. She also loves the Lord and we delight in sharing each other’s discoveries about the ways the Lord loves us and meets us exactly where we are in our lives.

Love to the Pamela’s Girls on October 1!

Auntie J