July started with a bang. Literally. July 4th is one of my favorite holidays. I LOVE fireworks. Always have. Reminds me of when I was a kid and my dad would take me shopping for fireworks every 4th. We'd have our own fireworks show in our front yard and all of the neighbors would watch. My love for fireworks has been passed on to my kids, so we loaded up and headed over to the Tuscaloosa Amphitheater to watch the fireworks show on the river. It was great and we all had fun as usual. Can't wait to do it again next year!
I was scheduled to have a laser procedure on my left eye on the 11th, but since I was heading to Panama City Beach on the 14th, I decided to postpone it. Laser eye surgery and sand didn't sound like a very good combination. And, I will admit, that my vanity kicked in too. I refused to go to the beach without my contacts. So on Saturday the 14, Hunter, Katelyn and I loaded up and drove until the map turned blue. We met my brother and sister-in-law, Randall and Gwen, and my 2 great-nieces, Breanna and Lexie, at our condo that afternoon. Anyone who knows me at all knows how much I love the beach. I find it impossible to be anything but relaxed while watching the waves roll in. The sound of the ocean is one of my favorite things. So we were beach bums for a week and it was fantastic. I took the girls crab hunting on Monday night and we caught one. That little sucker lived in a bucket on the balcony until Friday. He was a tough one and survived on watermelon mostly. The waves on Tuesday were the best ones of the week. A front was moving in and the ocean was alive. The kids (and maybe me) had a blast riding their boogie boards on some monster waves. It was a little stormy that night, and the next day the ocean was as calm as I've ever seen it. And the seaweed started rolling in. The water had been crystal clear up until that day. We didn't care though. We just made some seaweed art on the beach. The girls spelled their names with it and built some awesome sand castles. We even saw a manatee swim by. First one I've ever seen. My niece and her husband, Rebecca and Anthony, joined us on Wednesday night. We saw a waterspout offshore on Thursday. Hunter and I had been watching for one all week during the afternoon thunderstorms that passed by but didn't see anything until Thursday. We hunted for more crabs on Thursday night and wound up with a bucket full of them. We let them all go though so others could catch them later. Friday was a rainy day so we took the kids to Ripley's Believe It or Not. There were some pretty cool things in there (like a real shrunken head) and the kids loved it. We did the touristy thing and went shopping too. I love shopping at Pier Park so we did our part to boost the local economy. On Saturday the 21st, we headed home. We all stopped at Bass Pro Shop in Montgomery and shopped a little more before going our separate ways back home. I love our family trips to the beach and can't wait for the next one.
On the 25th, I had my left retina zapped. I was nervous about it beforehand. I didn't know what to expect but the thought of having my eye held open and zapped by a laser freaked me out. The procedure itself didn't take a very long time, but I was stone cold sober while they did it. No "happy" pills to take the edge off. The only thing I had was numbing drops in my eye. And it hurt. I had a headache afterward, but other than that I was fine. I was able to wear my contacts the next day with no issues. I'm having the right eye zapped on August 8. Not really looking forward to it but ready to get it over with.
The month ended with some fun times with friends old and new. We hung out at the pool and went to see KISS and Motley Crue in Birmingham. I am a huge fan of 80's music and I have always wanted to see KISS and Motley Crue live. They did not disappoint. Tommy Lee played the drums upside down and Gene Simmons spit blood onstage. The pyro and production for both bands were impressive. Well worth the $50 I paid for the ticket.
Of course, we had our usual stuff going on too - work, football practice and cheerleader practice, gym time and all of the rest of it. July flew by and I can't believe school will be starting back in a little over a week. I can't believe Hunter will be a freshman in high school! How did that happen? He should still be a little boy...time is passing too quickly these days. But I am enjoying every minute.
I mentioned in my last post that my goal was to be able to buy a pair of shorts five sizes smaller than I wore last year. I'm happy to report that I did just that. And they fit. I'm down 50 pounds now and I am having a lot of fun shopping for new clothes. What better reason is there to refresh my wardrobe after all? I know that my gym time will take a hit once school starts back and football is in full swing, but that's ok. As long as I can maintain and make just a little progress until I can get back in the gym full time, I'll be happy.
Until my next post, I hope everyone enjoys these last few summer days and summer nights.
No comments:
Post a Comment