Concert Time!!!

I have been waiting for this day for what seems like a long time! Meredith knows that I am like a kid in a candy store when it comes to seeing live music. If it's any good, that is. We are going to see Ray LaMontagne at the Alabama Theatre, which is a spectacular venue. I have been to many places to see music, and AL Theatre probably ranks right behind Radio City Music Hall as my favorite venue. No denying the history of Radio City, that's for sure. We also had a fantastic date night there(AL Theatre) a few years ago when we saw Jamie Cullum. That little guy can put on quite a show. Until then, and since then for that matter, I have never seen anyone jump off of a piano. I guess that's what happens when you watch a 5'6" Englishman consume a half-dozen Monster energy drinks during his performance. My heart would have officially exploded after energy drink #3.

SO, Ray LaMontagne tonight, then on May 18th we will see Coldplay again. I think it will be hard to beat their show that we saw at the Philips, but it has been years since I have seen a show at Oak Mountain, which is ridiculous I might add!

I got a text message from my Ronnie and Dad saying that Bruce Springsteen was awesome last night. Nice early B-day present, right Ronnie?! I imagine that was a check off of things to do in Ronnie's lifetime! She was super-excited. Not sure about Dad, although I have heard him sing Bob Dylan. Ha ha! I'll be sure to post a review of the show tomorrow

Weekend Update

Sorry you haven't heard from me in a few days, it has been busy around here! Saturday was our annual yard sale, so that took the majority of the day. We had a great time, saw some good friends, and got rid of a LOT of stuff! My mom had shoulder surgery on Friday, so this morning we headed up to Gadsden to see her. THEN we went and got a present for the family... something that we are excited about and will get a LOT of use out of! I have been playing with it some already this afternoon! Here is a little taste!




Oh yes, we got a new camera! There went our yard sale money and then some, but we wanted to be able to take good pictures of Margaret Anne. Happy Mother's Day, Father's Day, and Birthdays to Meredith and Hays!

Tomorrow night we are going to see Ray Lamontagne and we are pumped! I heard he is great live, so I am excited about dinner with adults and a good concert with my hubby.

On a more serious note, please be praying for a speedy recovery for my Mom's shoulder, because she is tired, sore, and missing being able to pick up her grandbaby! Also, please pray for Sandi as she goes in tomorrow morning for another reconstruction surgery. We are excited about it because it is one big step in a positive direction. Please pray for a speedy recovery for her as well!

She's got skills, people!

It seems like Margaret Anne learns something new every day. I have been trying to get her to wave on command for a while. This afternoon when I picked her up from Granvon's, she smiled her big beautiful smile and stuck her pretty little arm up and waved! I thought you all might like to see it... ignore the crazy lady talking in the background. Don't forget to scroll down and pause the music if you want to hear the sound!

Margaret Anne has a new friend!

Fran and Phillip are in town, and that means sweet little 6 week old Lucy is here too! Since they live far away now (well, 4 hours away), this is the first time that we have been able to meet her. Margaret Anne was VERY interested in her... she wanted to pull her hair, grab her face, and hold her hand. I am babysitting Lucy right now while Fran and Phillip are out on a date. She is as sweet as she can be, and it is hard to imagine that MA was ever that small! It will be so fun when I can hang out with Fran and MA and Lucy can entertain each other.

Google Analytics

For those of you fellow bloggers out there who aren't using this tool, I highly recommend it. Google Analytics is a website that gives you lots of fun data on your website, such as number of hits per day, whether those hits are random or if they are repeat visits, and what websites are referring to your site the most. For instance, most of our visits are direct visits, followed by Google searches, followed by fellow blogger links. Ben & Anna Barron are the leading referral site. Props! Then Facebook, then Lauren & Ben Beck. Fun stuff to know! Also, Tuesdays appear to be our highest traffic day, and Saturdays are our lowest traffic day. Don't worry, for you blog stalkers out there, we can't tell who you are, so I won't be able to reserve-stalk you :). If you are interested in getting this data, the website is analytics.google.com, and you simply log in and enroll your blog to start getting data. I am a data hound (so nerdy, but true), so I love this stuff. Let me know what you think, or if you are already using it, gimme some tips!

Latimer Look-alike Meter

The experts say that "Mini-Hays" is more of a "Mini-Meredith!" I am sure most of you don't agree!

Praise be to God!

Yesterday Sandi, my sister-in-law, had another round of tests done to see how her cancer treatment is holding up. She got news that everything looks great! That comes after many, many prayers, and many, many chemo and radiation treatments. I do not know God's plan, but I do know that Sandi is a strong woman and she has a very powerful story to tell. You can read about her story here, and a little bit here and here.

I want to invite all of you locals to participate in the 2nd annual Champions of Hope Race in Dothan, AL on October 10th, 2009. I will be there, and I hope many of you will be there too. Last year Sandi was the chairperson of this race, and they had a great turnout. The proceeds will benefit women in the area who either cannot afford cancer treatment or do not have enough insurance to cover the VERY expensive treatments that most breast cancer patients must go through. Here is a picture of the survivors from last years' race:

Sandi is on the bottom right of the picture. Please keep her in your prayers, as we want to continue to get news like this! We love you so much Sandi!