Room in the Inn - Feeding the Homeless

Something that I have always wanted to do, was to go to a homeless shelter and feed the homeless. So, I found out that my church is involved in this here in Tennessee.

 

Currently "Room at the Inn" feeds lunch to about 250 people. Approximately 50 of those are participating in "in house" programs at the facility. They actually live here. The other 200 are homeless people who are given tickets to admit them to lunch. Lunch is served at 11:30, but we needed to be there at 10:30 to get ready to serve.

 

Our Old Hickory Ward signs up one time each month to help with the Room at the Inn - either by donating food, or being servers. So this gave me the opportunity to fulfill this mission on mine today. I was so excited!

My friend Laura Gilliam and I drove over together. We had some of the food loaded in the back of my car that some of the other Sisters had donated. We gathered a few last minute things, and then off we went. It only took us about 30 minutes to get there.

 

Today we helped "prep" the meal. We had to open the hotdog buns so that when it was time to get started on the assembly line, they were easier to work with. Then, we cut up 9 watermelons! There were a few other people to help, so it went by fast.

Here is the kitchen where we were getting everything ready. Todays meal consisted of 2 hotdogs (with buns), baked beans, a slice of watermelon, potato chips, and country time lemonade & of course, condiments for the dogs.  (We had to wear gloves, so I couldn't take too many photos without having to remove them.) Plus we got really busy! But we were very organized, and we were able to rock the service!

Anyway, the way that it works, is this.....we assembled 50 plates, and placed them all on the tables that were set with silverware. The veterans that live there are all brought in and seated. They get to eat their meal, and then as they finish their meal, a worker in the dining room cleans up after them, wipes down their space, and then holds up their hand. Another worker at the door, then lets one of the homeless (that got a ticket) into the dining room where they are served their meal. There is no lunch line that they have to go through (like on TV). They are actually served. I liked this idea. Because no matter their situation, they were treated with respect. No one fought over food, and even a few people thanked us, and told us "God Bless!"

 

There were all kinds of people here today. As I looked out into the dining room, I wondered what their stories were. Why are they here? What happened to them? There were no children here today, but there were a few women. I felt truly blessed and humbled by serving these people. I really enjoyed it. We were there from 10:00 - 2:00pm, but the time flew by! I look forward to next month when I can serve again.

April's Foot - Dew Poisoning

What is up with our luck, and animals these days? Well, Today is April's turn. She had this raw spot on the back of her foot that I spotted it last week. So, Bart cleaned it out really well, even wrapped it up. It started looking better, but today it didn't look good at all, and it was starting to smell.

 

 It is all that brown stuff on the left foot - it looks like scabs. She doesn't act like it hurts her, but today it looks a little swollen.

 

 So, we felt it was better to be safe than sorry. So, we are off to see the vet - yet again. We have been to the vet every month since we have been here. This is costing me a ton of money!

But, today we have a little help. We have Brandon and Bryce to go with us. So, Bart hooked up to the trailer, and got everything all plugged in. April is turning out to be a really good horse. She has always traveled with another horse though, so we loaded her up. She loaded up really nice, but as soon as Bart closed the panel on her, she started trying to strike out with her front hooves, and was backing up really hard in the trailer. I told Bart that he needed to go back in there and see what was going on.

 

Well, I just have to say - always trust a horse! She had good reason to be acting all crazy! There was a wasp nest inside of the trailer! And, wasps were flying all over! Bart got her out, and Brandon broke off the nest. In the nest, were baby wasps, and larva in there too. He smashed it really good. We loaded April up again, and off we went. Always trust a horse.

 It was so hot and humid today, and I think that April was nervous traveling by herself this time, that she worked herself up into a lather. She was dripping wet! She actually did really well, and traveled really quiet. Brandon was talking to her and calming her down.

 We were early, so while we were waiting, Brandon, Bryce & I went to look at the inside arena that they have there. Man it was nice!

 They have all kinds of jumps for the English riders. There were a couple of people exercising their horses while we were there. Man, I would love to have an arena like this. It was nice and cool too.

 There was another section that said "Private Area". Bryce went to go in there, and I told him that we had better not. So, he was being a bit rebellious, and just put his toe in there!

 We found out why it was so cool. They are running swamp coolers in there, and they actually have beach sand in their arena! There were these weird fibers in it too. What?! This is insane! Now I know for sure where my money is going now!

 Then Dr. Wooten came to look at April's foot. (Look at his poor boots. They are all worn out on the heels!)

 

 He said that it is called "Dew Poisoning" or "Scratches". It is caused by the grass always being wet. So, now we have to go back to keeping the horses locked in the barn at night time, and the turning them back out into the pasture during the day (after the dew has dried). This is crazy! And a pain in the (you know what). I think that our horses are just so spoiled that their bodies can't take all this pampering. I don't see these people who have like 30 head on their property having this problem! Whew!

 

Anyway, Dr. Wooten made up some special cream that cost us $85, and some special shampoo to get the "scratches" off, and sent us on our way. He didn't even treat her foot! We had to come home and do it. I wasn't very happy - at all. Then they overcharged us, so I had to straighten them out on that. What happened to our Brownie points that we earned today?

Oh, and while we were walking around checking out the other horses, there was a stall that was named Sky. So, I guess this is where Brandon boards her when he is at work! lol jus kiddin!

McDougal's with Bryce

So, in one of my previous post's, I said that if anyone came to visit me, that I was going to take them to my favorite place to eat here in Nolensville. Which, just happens to be McDougal's. The last time that Bryce was here, he spent all of his time over at Brandon & Sky's, and I never got a chance to take him. So, today we went there for lunch.

 

 And, of course, I had to have Bryce try the duck machine. He was able to catch 2 ducks with 1 dollar! Awesome.

 

 So, here he is with his little ducks, and with his lunch of the 'large basket' of chicken fingers & fries. He wasn't able to eat them all, but he did enjoy them. It was fun to just be with Bryce today without anyone else around. He has turned out to be a very responsible young man, and he really does have his head on straight!

 

As we were talking about things, we were watching this Mom and her 2 kids try to get a duck from the machine. The little boy was so young, and just a bit too short to even see where the claw was. But his sister would look thru the glass and then tell him which way to move the claw in order to try to get a duck during his turn. It was so cute watching them work together. He tried, but wasn't able to get one. Then his sister gave it a try, and wasn't able to either. Then they asked their Mom to give it a try, and she didn't get one either. They left to go sit outside to eat their lunch.

We basically stuffed ourselves, and they also give you a little tiny cup of ice-cream if you eat there in the restaurant. So, I got mine to go.

 

On the way out, Bryce takes his 2 little ducks over to the kids that weren't able to get their own, and gives the ducks to them. It was such a sweet gesture! Made me so very proud! You could hear the Mom saying how nice that was, and continued thanking us all the way to the car.  More Brownie points for us today! Woohoo! Such a fun feeling.

Stolen Wallet?

This morning, Bryce needed to pay his phone bill in the town of Cool Springs. So, we headed over to Verizon Wireless. As soon as we turned into where the store was, I see a wallet in the middle of the road.

 

 So, I get out, and pick it up. It still has the guys driver's license and credit card in it. So, Bryce goes to looking for the guy on Facebook. He finds him. No phone number is listed tho due to privacy. So, Bryce messages him and lets him know that we have his wallet, and we leave my phone number. A few years back, Bryce's wallet got stolen, and even tho they took all of his money, his Eagle Scout card was in there, and the guy who found it was able to get in touch with Bryce, and returned it. So, we wanted to do the same! We wanted him to know that there were still good people left in this world.

 

Bryce goes in, and pays his bill, we run a few errands, and still no phone call.

So, we head home. What are we gonna do with this wallet? So, we decide to take it to the police station. It is actually located inside of the Town Hall. So, we take it in, and give it to the police officer. He didn't even ask us our name or anything! Oh well, we are good in knowing that we did the right thing.  Brownie points for us today!

Stowaway! and Waffle House

Okay, so tonight Bart & I are watching TV. Then Brandon calls, and says that they are coming over. He was having his truck shipped out here to Tennessee by some of Sky's friends, and they had arrived with it. He wanted to introduce us to them.

 

So, they show up, and we are visiting, just chillin'. Then Bryce calls me on the phone, and starts face timing me. I think it is rude to talk on the phone when there are other people you are visiting with, so I tell Bryce - "Hey, do you mind if I call you back? Brandon and his friends are here and we are visiting." He asks who they are, and I tell him.

 

He says, "Ya that's fine, but I'm in Alamo. Want to see what it looks like up here?" I say Yes, and so he reverses the phone so that I can see behind him. I see Bart's truck in the background. I am thinking that my phone is acting up, and then Bart says, "Hey, that's in the front of the house. He's outside!" I'm like, "No Way!" I get up and run to the door, and there is Bryce standing on the front steps!!! He drove all the way from Las Vegas with these friends of Sky's for another visit.

 

 He has been out of work for a few weeks. He was so bored, too. So, he told us that he was going to go and hang out with his friend Seth in Alamo. He has Bryan taking care of the horses and the house while he is gone. He will be off of work for another 2 weeks, so he decided to drive up with Sky's friends who were bringing Brandon's truck down here.

 

 What a nice surprise! It took them 2 days to get here. They were only able to go 55 mph, because the trailer kept giving them problems. But, between Bryce & Shawn taking turns driving, they were still able to make good time.

 

Shawn Schroeder, and his girlfriend Marissa, and their son Chase were all in the same vehicle with Bryce. So, after my initial shock, we visited for awhile longer.

 Then we took them to the barn to show them the horses. Brandon picked this little white flower for me, and then Bryce picked this purple one. They are so thoughtful!

These guys didn't stop to eat anywhere on they way - just snacks. So they were very hungry! We went to Brandon's favorite place = Waffle House! And, I have to say, it was prettttyyy good!

 

(Ps. I told Stephanie that I would try this - so now I can cross that one off of the list!)

Charity Nash's Baptism Day

 Today was Charity's baptism. Bart, Brandon & Sky all had to work, so I thought that I should go to represent our family. It was scheduled for 10:00am this morning (Saturday).

 

This is the very first baptism in our new Stake Center building, and the very first baptism in their new ward - Sunset Ward. I guess the building actually got double booked in the use of the cultural hall. I got there at 9:45am, and they were moving all of the luncheon stuff from the cultural hall into the Relief Society room. So, I grabbed Obraum, and I took him with me to the Primary room where the baptism program would be starting.

 I felt really bad. Everyone was running around. It ended up starting at 10:20am. All of their family was included in the program. It was really nice. It was a simple ceremony with Melody & Faith playing the guitar and singing together. Parker gave a talk on the Holy Ghost, and did a great job, interacting with Charity to keep her attention. Charity was a little firecracker, as she always it. But, it was short and sweet.

Afterwards, they had the luncheon. I took my apron and dove right in helping in any way that I could. Melody decorated really cute. (I was only able to get a few pictures). A horse theme - of course! I was there until almost noon. I'm glad that I went, because some of her family got their feelings hurt, and wouldn't help out. Melody was upset, but we got her thru it, and it turned out nice.

 

Maylan's Thank You

Yvonne Maylan is an awesome person. When we first moved here, on the very first day of church, she literally took me under her wing, and showed me where to go, and introduced me to new people. She is wonderful.

 

So, her Grandkids were coming to visit from Nebraska, and Yvonne wanted to 'hire my horses' out for a bit. I of course told her that I don't hire out, and that we would be glad to have them come and ride one evening. So, tonight for Family Home Evening, Yvonne, her husband Mark, along with her youngest son and her daughter Melissa, and 2 kids came to play. (Sadly Melissa's husband was killed 5 years ago by a drunk driver - so sad). Anyway, it was SO HOT, and Yvonne was melting as soon as she got out of the car - but that didn't stop us. We rode for about an hour.

 

 On Wednesday, I get a phone call from Yvonne. She wants to 'pay me' for our time on Monday evening. I told her that there was no charge, and that we had just as much fun as they did. But, she insisted that she come over. She brought over fresh 'out of the oven' pumpkin bread! It was so good! Then she also included a Thank You card.

Inside were 2 notes. One was from the kids. It was adorable!

 

Then, the other was from the adults. Along with these wonderful notes was a gift card too. Tennessee people are awesome!

Hair by Sky

 

Okay. So, I was in the mood for something different with my hair. I have been stuck in a rut with the same o - same o. It has all grown out to the same length, and I just have to say BORING!

 

And, since Sky passed her Cosmetology board exams, I thought that I would bite the big bullet, and let her do my hair. I spent a lot of time on Pinterest looking for hair colors/styles that I thought I would like. So, today is the day! I really wanted to cut it all off, but all MY guys wouldn't go for that at ALL.

 

I really like the chunky color look, so I chose this one. It has red, brown, and blond in it.

 

This is what it looked like before. Just a boring brown with stress highlights! (aka gray hairs).

 

It took 4 1/2 hours for Sky to do my hair! Good thing I was patient and didn't have anything else to do. But, she was very thorough, and did a great job.

 

Ta Da! This is what it looks like after.

 

 She put long layers in there too. So, what do you think? I like the change.

Our 29th Anniversary

 Today is our 29th Anniversary! It was on a Sunday, so we didn't really do anything crazy today. We went to church, AND, got our first calling in the Old Hickory Ward. Wait for it.......Wait for it......we are now Nursery workers! We have never had this calling before. Bart is excited for snack time so that he can have Goldfish crackers! lol

 Then, on our way home, we got delayed by the police. They were out directing traffic for one of the other churches. I guess they have so many people in their congregation, that they block regular traffic in order to let out their "people". I actually think that they cause more delays, and don't help the traffic situation much at all.

 Here are the cards that we exchanged with each other.

 Then, here we are - just like 'old married people' rocking in our rocking chairs on the front porch. What you don't see are the many invisible mosquitos that tore up my arms and legs tonight! They were wicked! It is still hotter and more humid than snot here.

 We do have reservations to see Carrie Underwood at the Grand Ol' Opry on the 25th. So, that is when we will do something fun to celebrate. Can't wait - she is my very favorite Country Singer.

We went to Logan's Steakhouse for dinner, and Nicole took very good care of us. We had a great meal, and then when we got the receipt, she wrote on it! I thought it was pretty cool!