weekend of labor.

Tyson and I did some pretty serious traveling over Labor Day weekend. His parents and my sister and brother in law live in Arkansas, about 2 hours away from each other. We don't get to see either of them as much as we like, so we try to take advantage of what extra time we do have and squeeze in visits here and there. It is so nice to have both his family and mine in the same general area, but it also creates some pretty crazy schedules when we're there. I left Prattville right after school, and after some drowsy driving (I'm a sleepy driver) and good phone conversations (I know, I know...don't tell Oprah), I arrived in Starkville. Tyson was already all packed up and ready to go, so I ran into his trailer for a quick potty break and was back on the road in no time. A 7 hour trip was ahead of us and our little GPS friend told us that we should be arriving around 2:30. yipee. Tyson, being the gentleman that he is, drove the entire way! I swear I offered to drive on several occasions, but he wouldn't have it. I was able to sleep some, but the driving gave us some really good time to catch up since both of our schedules are kind of caddywhompus these days. We finally got to Tyson's parents' in Booneville, Arkansas at around 2:30 AM. Tyson's sweet parents and little brother were waiting on us when we drove up. Bless their hearts. We shared some quick hugs, but were asleep pretty soon after we got there. If you know me at all, you know I don't play about my sleep time. His parents are in the process of building a house, so they live in a little cabin where everybody sleeps in the same room. With an eleven and nine year old super excited to see their big brother, we were up and at 'em pretty early. We hung out at their house and on their BEAUTIFUL land for a little while, then headed to Fayetteville to see B-Money and Eliz...yay!

this is the view from their backyard...whoa mama.

Again, Tyson drove and we talked and maybe sang just a little bit too :) One of my most favorite moments from this ride was a particular older lady on a motorcycle. I begged Tyson to slow down so I could get a picture, but he doesn't like when I make a spectacle of myself. This might sound real ugly and un-Christian, but it was one of the funniest things I've ever seen. There's a lot of motorcycle riding going on in these parts, so to see one on the road is no big deal. For some reason, I turned to look at a couple who was riding together, and the lady's cheeks (on her face) were just a flapping in the breeze! I swear, it looked just like the parachutes you used to play with in P.E. when everybody would shake it really fast. Bless. It was hi-lar-i-ous!! Okay, I guess you had to be there, but we laughed for a good ten minutes about that one. When we got to Fayetteville, we put our feet up and played with the puppies for a little while and then went on a hike at Devil's Den State Park. It was so nice to be outside and the weather was beautiful! I'm pretty sure the doggies had a real big time too.

this isn't a great picture of my Annie, but it's the only one I have and I didn't want her to be left out. She's real precious.

T-man and Riley

Eliz made a little backpack carrier for Oscar. His little legs get tired. Bless.

This was our destination. "Yellow Rock" I believe is what they call it. Ain't it purdy?

My eyes are squinty, but you get the idea.

Maybe I should put on some sun shades...oh well.

Aren't they cute?

Eliz was about to give me a heart attack, hanging over that edge like that. No ma'am.

I think she was getting ready to hawk a good one. Marti would be so proud...

Now y'all know that's sweet.

So, we stayed in Fayetteville on Saturday night and got up the next morning to head BACK to Booneville. We rode four wheelers, played with chickens, ate some delicious food, and drove around in Tyson's Dad's Scout to look at the stars.

Tyson's little brother, Carson, riding his four wheeler through the creek.

Tyson helping Carson up on the hay bale. It's the child in him...

They made it!

Isn't he a beautiful child?

Then they commenced to rolling the hay bales over. Lord.

I took this while laying the hammock...

Larissa LOVES rocking on the front porch!

Riley ready to go on a ride...

The next morning, we were up early again, and after a good breakfast, we were back on the road. I finally made it back to Prattville on Monday night and let me tell you, I was pooped! It was all worth it, though. It was great to see everybody, even if it was in a whirlwind!