Fall Break (Friday)

 We packed in quite a few adventures on Friday. 

We stared at Coca Cola World. It was pretty cool to learn about Coke and to taste all of the different flavors of Coke from around the world. My favorite part was that they had a list of Caffeine Free flavors, so I got to enjoy all of the tasting as well. :) Before we left on the trip we asked Bailey what she is most excited for, her answer, "Land of Coca Cola!" Haha

So excited to get in and see it all. 

Behind us is the vault containing the secret recipe for Coca Cola 😲

Thank you sir! Don't mind if I do. 

Bailey, Grandma and Grandpa waiting for the 4D Coca Cola Movie

Family Photo Shoot with the Coca Cola Bear

1981.... Great Year

 

Bailey was terrified of the vault room. She barely stood long enough for me to take this picture and then bolted out of there. Haha

After the Coca Cola World, we headed over to the Aquarium. We have heard from so many people that it is the best..... they were right!! We had so much fun. We saw Sea Lions, Penguins, Dolphins, Sharks, Sting Rays and so much more. We even joined up with our friends the Butlers. 

John, Andrea and I waiting for the Sea Lion show

Tucker waiting for the dolphin show to start. He chose to sit in the very front so he could get soaked. Apparently we all should have say there...

Bailey and I waiting for the dolphins. We thought we would be safe in the 4th row....

 

This is what you look like after the dolphin show if you sit within the first 10 rows. We thought it was the first 2 rows so we sat in the 4th row. We got DRENCHED!!!! Tucker, in the first row, got a little damp... 

 

This is my new friend smiley. I could have hung out with him all day. So cute!

Eliana, Tucker, Bailey and a HUGE fish!!

I. Love. Sharks!!

Hello sir!

After the aquarium we went back to the hotel to get clean, dry clothes on and then headed off to dinner. We went to Maggianos and it was amazingly delicious! Part of dinner was an early celebration for Dad's birthday. He will be 60 on October 19th. 

🎼🎤Happy Birthday Dear Grandpa🎼🎤

After dinner we took the kids swimming at the hotel and then put the kids to bed and played cards with Mom and Dad. 

Andrea and I pool side at The Ritz

Because I love my kids. How cute are they! 😍

Fall Break (Thursday)

 Thursday morning we got up and headed down to Atlanta for our Fall Break. A few months back David got me tickets to the Garth Brook concert at the new Mercedes Benz Stadium. I have been counting down the days ever since. We decided to invite David's parents since they have never been to a concert before. We didn't tell the kids that Grandma and Grandpa were meeting us there though. So we were excited to surprise the kids. We met up with Grandma and Grandpa at the mall in Buckhead and headed into the Legoland Adventure Center. It was SO much fun! 

Driving down to Atlanta

Living the life. These kids don't know how good they have it. When I was younger and we went on a road trip, our entertainment was whatever we could see out the window. 

Ready to ride on into LegoLand

B is just over 100 bricks tall

Tucker, shocker, is 130 bricks tall

After we fully experienced LegoLand, we headed  we to the hotel. Thanks to our awesome neighbor, we got an unbeatable rate and stayed at The Ritz Carlton. Ever since I saw Beaches when I was younger, I have wanted to stay at a Ritz. Now I can say I have. :) 

Thursday evening David and I headed to dinner with Mom and Dad. The kids stayed at the hote with a babysitter, Kelsey. She babysat for our friends who use to live in Atlanta and she was amazing. The kids had so much fun. 

The adults enjoyed dinner at Uncle Julios and then needs downtown for the Garth Brooks concert. Traffic was a NIGHTMARE! After an eventful trip, we parked about a mile from the stadium and walked (ran) to the concert. Despite the terrible traffic, we made the show on time and I was NOT disappointed. Going to a Garth Brooks concert has been #1 on my bucket list since as long as I can remember. Now that I've been to a concert, I want to be front row at his concert so I can actually see him. Haha However, I will never forget how amazing it was to FINALLY be at a Garth Brooks concert. 

I got out of the car so fast that I forgot to grab a hair tie and it was SO hot. So I went all MacGyver and used a straw to pull my hair back. It worked....ish

Pre-Concert Selfie

The Atlanta Falcon

Pass the pig...

 Family game night used to be more of a punishment than enjoyable. However, our kids have finally gotten to an age where it is fun and competitive. 

Last week we had a rousing game of UNO and Bailey really held her own. We also played Farkle. Tucker's Cub Scout leader, Aly Ulvila, got it for him after the two of them played it at a den meeting one night. Aly said Tucker was really good and so she wanted him to have it. Tucker felt pretty darn special when he got it. We played it together as a family and had a blast. Bailey is really learning her numbers, so these games are good for her. 

David heard of a new game at work called Pass The Pig. When he got home tonight he was anxious to get it from Target so we could play. We had so much fun. Bailey wound up beating all of us. If you have any games your family likes let me know, we are always up for some good ideas. :) 

The Score Keeper

She got so into it

Skillful Pig Roller

Now I'm just playing with the depth affect on my new phone. Hahaha

Oh there I am...

 Y'all! I took this picture today to send to David to get his opinion on this shirt. After I took this picture, I stood and looked at myself in the mirror.... for a long time. 

Not many people believe me when I say this, but I really struggled with self esteem when I was younger, and still do now to an extent. My coping mechanism was humor, and it still is. I would try to hide by beating everyone to the punch and just putting myself out there before anyone else could "put me out there". However, today, when I looked in the mirror I saw someone who was attractive, pretty and dare I say a bit of a bombshell in her own right. Haha I looked in the mirror and kept trying to find myself. I literally had to convince myself that it was me. 

My whole life I have, for the most part, been surrounded by people who lift me up, people who encourage me and people who love me. Yet I still had such low self esteem. There were a few mean girls in high school, but I often wonder if they were mean to me, or if I was mean to me for them. I once was looking at a collage of pictures of myself and my friends with another friend. She made the comment, "Your friends are all so good looking." She by no means meant it as a blow to me, she went on to say that I fit right in with them. However, for so long after that I always felt inferior to my friends. Even now when taking pictures I am constantly comparing myself to everyone else in the picture. People will say to me "you look great" and I want to point out all of my flaws. 

But today, that didn't happen. Today I cared nothing about the neck down (my major struggle areas). I looked at my face, my eyes and my hair. I realized that THAT is what people see when they see me. I started to look at what I WANT them to see. I want them to see my eyes that look for the good in everyone else, my ears that are always willing to listen, my mouth that always tries to uplift as well as entertain, and through all of these things, I hope they see my soul, the soul of someone who struggles a bit but is trying her hardest to do her best. 

I pray that Bailey never has these struggles, but odds are she will. So I pray that she is blessed enough to be surrounded by awesome and uplifting people like I was. I pray even more that she figures out just how awesome she really is before she is 36 years old. 

Alison Krauss and David Gray

 

David and I had a chance to go to a concert at The Ryman last night. Our good friends, Rob and Megan, invited us to go with them and we just couldn't turn it down. The kids got to stay the night at the Scott's house so we didn't even have to worry about getting home for a babysitter. Good thing too because it was a late night. 

Megan and I took a car downtown to meet David and Rob at Mortons Steakhouse. We were both looking pretty cute so I had to get a picture in the car. 

We met Rob at the bar while we waited for David. Every time I go to a bar everyone laughs at me because I don't drink. Haha I actually done even go to bars that often. Last night I wanted something yummy to drink though. So the bartender made me a fruity drink. It was really good. Had a strong pineapple taste which I love. Another picture of Megan and I. I'm sorry, we are just cute!

 

When David got there we were seated and enjoyed a delicious meal and great company. Steak, Potatoes, Onion Rings, Brussel Sprouts and so much more. It was good. 

After dinner we walked down to the Ryman. This short walk should not have been as eventful as it was. However, my shoes had a mind of their own. As we were walking my left shoe essentially fell apart mid step. It was.... hilarious! We were laughing so hard. Fortunately I had put flip flops in my purse in case my feet started to hurt. I guess shoes aren't meant to last 6 years.... 😂😂

When we finally made it to the Ryman, all the hype I had heard was definitely lived up to. There is not a bad seat in the house and it is beautiful. So much history there and so many amazing people performed there. David Gray and Alison Krauss did not disappoint. David and I weren't familiar with David Gray, but we enjoyed his music. He closed his set with the song Babylon, which I actually knew. Haha

In between sets I had to get a picture with David to prove we were there, and another one win Megan because, well.... why not take a million selfies. Haha

Alison Krauss was.... amazing. Her voice is as perfect as ever and completely flawless. I enjoyed all of her songs way more than I thought I would. Of course the only song I wanted her to sing, sh is sang second to last. We decided to skip out after that song in order to beat the mad rush for the exit. 

It was such a great evening. Reminded me of how grateful I am to have such wonderful friends and how lucky I am to live in such a great place. #HeavenSouth is definitely my home. 

Here's a little Alison Krauss for you to enjoy. 

I'm baaaaaaaaack...

 Or at least I am trying to be back. I do so much on Facebook, and as nice as it is for my family to see, I don't always want to go into detail on Facebook. Plus, eventually (someday) I can turn a blog into a book. :) 

Now as we are the Tennessee Mize's, and living in #HeavenSouth so much has changed. ALL for the good. 

Bailey is now in Kindergarten. She is AMAZING! Really though. Everything about her. She is smart, funny, a good friend and an all around good person. She loves school, but often comments that she wants to stay home to be with Mommy and it warms my heart. 

Tucker is in 3rd grade. When did my baby boy get so grown up. As hard as it is for me to let him get older, it warms my heart how so many people comment on what a good boy he is and how sweet he is. 

David is now the Senior Director of Financial Planning and Analysis at Brookdale Senior Living. He is such a hard worker and all of that work seems to be paying off. All of the right people seem to be aware of David and a lot of good things are happening for him. I am so proud of him. 

I decided to jump back into the world of working back in June. Then in September I decided that I am still very much needed as a stay at home mom still. I love that my kids still need me and love even more that I am fortunate enough to have the blessing of being able to stay home with them. 

All in all, life is good. We have our bumps in the road, but we always get through them together.