Putt-Putt & Plastic

On vacation at Holden Beach, my family loaded up in our fifteen passenger rental van and headed to Putt-Putt for the evening. It felt a little more like a plastic zoo, but made for some great pictures with our nephew Jaylon. He rode a giraffe, escaped the jaws of an angry alligator and learned to putt-putt with his GP for the first time ever. A night of many accomplishments I tell ya!

I believe this could be turning into the family competition. Yesterday afternoon my brother-in-law, Brandon, called to tell Brenton that he has been working on his game and that he was ready to win next time around. I cannot recall who won at Holden Beach but we now have a battle on our hands. All the "B"s and GP love to play tough.

Stand-by

And vacation is over! This past week, we headed to a number of beaches with a wedding and my grandparent's farm thrown in the mix. Brenton and I have been waiting all year for a get-away involving a beach. We got lucky this year and were able to go to multiple! Our first stop was in Florida. Stand-by dropped us off at the airport and we headed straight to the coast. Palm trees waving in the wind and a moonlit walk on the beach greeted us to Jacksonville.


St. Augustine


However, much more exciting, is the wedding that took us to Florida. Some of our friends, Dave and Kassy, were just married two weekends ago. Brenton coached Dave the last four year and Kassy was a dear friend I met with weekly this past year. Dave was the one who helped me throw Brenton's surprise party; he wanted to make sure it was all that it could be for coach (keeping in mind that we were moving on). We are thrilled for these two; they are a sharp couple.



Most beautiful cake ever...sad to see it eaten!


From Dave and Kassy's wedding, we headed to North Carolina to meet up with my family (Dongell side). We spent a number of days at a beach house on the coast, the same as last year. And, we tied up the trip with a wonderful visit to my grandparents farm in Lexington, which included Jaylon's (my sister Jen's son) first birthday party! The event of the year for a one year-old; a lone cupcake and presents came and went quickly.

The guys tryin' to look like Brenton.

Baby "J"

Another Lazy Day With the Benwares...

With summer having rolled in and not being as busy, we have fully enjoyed our down time. We definitely know what the word "Rest" means: sleeping in, reading books, casual walks, movies, STARBUCK'S, STARBUCK'S, and MORE STARBUCK'S. That's right, Starbuck's in Food Pyramid. That's how Bartlesville does it; you have to go to the local grocery store if you want your daily fix.

So, Brenton and I had one of our date nights in Tulsa about a month ago. I was thrilled to use my "Barnes and Noble" gift card I had been saving. As I said earlier, I was saving up and ready to splurge for my summer pleasures. What better way than by reading a book from one of my favorite authors? I went straight to Christian fiction and picked up the only two Lori Wick books I had not yet read (I can now say not my favorite of her works). I was beyond ecstatic since I had not read a Christian fiction book for a good year, or so it seems.


We went to the register to check out, after getting after getting the "Bucks". They rang up my purchase and swiped my gift card. No good; they swiped again. Something was wrong; so they told us they would call in the card. We had already began to look a little suspicious since they had asked if I had used it before. "No", I said of course. So the manager got off the phone and proceeded to ask me who gave me the gift card. I pointed at Brenton, smiled and said, "It was him". They continued to look at us with uncertainty and said they could not honor the $25 gift card since it had not been validated. Unfortunately we did not save our receipt for "proof of purchase"; BUMMER! What else could we do but pay $50 some dollars for a purchase that should have been under $30. Moral of the story; make sure you gift cards are validated!

Even with the slight disappointment of my expensive books, I have enjoyed my lounging days in the old west. They usually start after sleeping in or just before turning in at 2 am. Why our sleeping patterns are so off; it's summer! More time to live a leisurely life.

Wii

The lastest Benware novelty; a going away gift from our staff. We were amazed and blessed. We have had three wonderful parties and memories galore. Many thanks to the students and OWU Student Life Staff!!!