Highlights and Lowlights

To every story theres a good and bad, right? Here's ours from Tennessee:

1. Vanderbilt Bookstore...I wanted soooo badly to get Adalynn a real-life Vanderbilt shirt. But, in true Masselink fashion, it didn't go smoothly.

The Good: We got Adalynn a shirt, it's fairly cute, and it will fit her for a while (at least the summer. it's got to, it's a 2T!)

The bad: I forgot where the bookstore is located on Vandy's campus. So we drove around looking for it, and when we couldn't find it we parked illegally. So, worried about the truck getting towed (really though, it would be like towing a bus. i don't think it's possible), we walked around campus, finally found a map, and located the store. Just trying to open the door to get in, a girl arrives to lock up. It's 4 o'clock! I NeVer thought they would be closing! Travis used some quick negotiating and butt-kissing (something along the lines of, "We're from MI, and we drove ALL the way HeRe to buy our daughter a Vanderbilt shirt. Please? We'll be quick!") to get us in and *speedily* find a shirt to buy her. That was a close call.

2. My Old House

The Good: it's still standing. And the woman who lives there now (?) did not shoot me when she came out onto the porch and finds me in her driveway, snapping pictures with the fam waiting in the truck. Oops. I wasn't supposed to get caught.

The Bad:

This was my first house. White with Lots of Potential. 3 acres in the Country.

I knew I was in for a fixer-upper when I bought this house, and my family and I put aLot of work into it making it liveable. I blindly pushed ahead with projects to make this house into a home. I painted the whole house, since the family before chain-smoked...the walls were so horrid that when they took down their decorations I was still able to see where they hung. We tore down half a wall and created a larger opening between the kitchen and dining room, unearthing 5 layers of wallpaper and paneling on the way. Evidently the people who owned it prior to me didn't believe in tearing ugly out, just covering the ugly up. So we worked and worked and improved.

But, Here's the house now. They have placed a fence in the front yard for their horses - it extends up to the house. Nothing like a horse knocking on your front door. They have 3 satellite dishes staked. They nailed chicken wire under the deck for their dogs.

And the garage. They put a portable garage up behind it that they are using for their horses. They have round pens set up to the side. (why, when there is another 2 acres to the left of this picture that they could set a nice, permanent fence up on? especially eliminating the need for a fence up to the house?)

Now, I know that I didn't keep the *perfect* house, everyone does things differenty, blah blah blah. And I know I can't do anything about what these people have done. The word I got when I sold it was that some out-of-towners were interested and I *thought* it was for a vacation type home. I guess I assumed that the people would see the improvements and would want to continue the course, but I guess that's where I was wrong. It was a sad, sad moment.

(as I'm typing this I feel like I'm in an episode of "Moving Up". Ever seen it? the people move into someone else's house, put their touch on it, then the original owners return to look at what they've done. normally I talk to the tv, telling the people "seriously, how can you be so upset? you SOLD the house, it's not yours to be upset about anymore!". but now I know...)

3. Other Highlights:

Seeing Jim and Alicia (Alicia, send me the pics!) and Colin and Tiffany. Not kidding you, Travis and Colin stayed up until 2:30am playing Wii Tanks and Baseball. They are nuts.

And how did Grandpa find us in the morning? With a diaper on the doorstep. Not the prettiest object to arrive to, but it worked.

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So that was our trip. The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly.