Wooooo... Pig Sooie!

Wow... What a great weekend in Arkansas!  We flew out of Tri-Cities on Friday evening and headed back late Sunday night and there was a ton of great things in between.  Unfortunately, due to our crazy schedules we are only able to make the trip once or twice a year but when we do it is always great!  We were able to spend time with family and friends, play with the pups, enjoy the weather, and of course we got to "Call the Hogs".  These trips are always so bitter sweet because it seems like no matter how much time you have to spend with people it's just never enough.

After we flew out of Bristol we had a three hour layover in Atlanta.  I know I may sound crazy but I LOVE airport layovers.  Brian and I always find a good restaurant, kick vacation off with a cocktail, and in this case we were able to watch the Cards beat the Phillies... which always makes for a great day!  It's nice because it gives us a few hours to catch up with each other and relax which is very different from our normal life.  We found a seafood restaurant which actually ended up being pretty good!

Saturday morning we were able to sleep in a little and then we headed out to run some errands.  Andrea and Jon own a local coffee shop which is amazing!  The atmosphere is awesome and most importantly the coffee is out of this world.  My staple drink is the Mayan Mocha.  If you haven't been to Arsaga's ... you need to go!  They even have a bacon flavored mocha in support of the Hogs...

After a Mayan Mocha and a whole wheat scone we headed to the farmers market.  It was so great to see how many people support the local agriculture!  There were great veggies, local musicians, fresh flowers, and of course there were dogs available for adoption.  I'm still a little shocked that we didn't come home with another dog!

Love fall. 

Picking out the greens. 

We were able to make our obligatory stop at Academy Sports and then headed home to play with the pups.

Buffy is the boss of the house... You know how I feel about Great Danes.

But she is really tolerant of the newest addition... Punkie!

And let's not forget Digby...

Then we headed to Jon and Andrea's for a cookout.  Their property is absolutely amazing with a gorgeous pond, great deck, and most importantly... horseshoes!

Nice form.

Gorgeous. 

The boys.

Brian spotting fish. 

Beautiful.

It was so nice to be able to spend time with everyone.  Lot's of things are changing, for everyone, and it was so nice to be able to catch up!

We headed to the Razorback game to try out our season tickets for the first time.  I was quickly reminded how to "Call the Hogs"!  The game was so much fun and it was exciting to see where we are going to be sitting on Saturdays for the next fifty years!

Looking forward to many more.

The seats are pretty amazing...

Marching A. 

And so was the game!

  

Can I just remind you all of how awesome this guy is?  I am so blessed to have found such an amazing person...

Best buds. 

We spent the rest of the evening sitting on Jon and Andrea's porch around a fire.  I'm pretty sure everyone was chatting and having a great time and I'm also pretty sure that I fell asleep in my chair.  Sounds very similar to the way things are at home!

Sunday morning was really exciting... at least for me!  We walked around the property and I was able to take some photos.  Pat showed Brian and I some awesome mushrooms!  Here are a few photos from "The Mushroom Shoot".

I am by no means a photographer but these mushrooms were a photographers dream!

 A few more photos.

Pat and Andrea took me on my first horseback ride.  It may sound silly but I really had no idea that you could steer them and make them stop on command.  I was sort of under the impression that you just jumped on and held on for your life... which is sort of what I did!  Luckily the horse was amazing and behaved perfectly even though I'm sure she knew I had absolutely no idea what I was doing.

I had no idea how nimble you have to be to get on a horse!  It is a long way up there and the entire time I was getting on I was just praying that I wouldn't rip the bottom out of my jeans.  Luckily they stretched.

Please don't rip! 

PULL!

We took a nice trail ride and I was able to stay on the horse the entire time without any major issues!

Great teachers!

So fun! 

Heading out.

After our ride we had a great, home cooked lunch with family.  This, in my opinion, is always the best part of the day!  Pat made one of my favorite meals... chicken and dumplings!

Overall, it was a great weekend!  We were able to see everyone and spend some time catching up.  The weather was beautiful and so was the company.  Every time I go home with Brian I am always welcomed with open arms and for that I am so grateful!  I always feel like I'm just part of the family and right at home... I feel so blessed to have met such wonderful, genuine people!

The worst part of these weekends is leaving but thankfully this time it is only for a couple of months.   We are counting down the weeks until Christmas...