Students Making Me Proud!

The last two weeks I have had two students make me very proud.  Michael was one of my first students when I moved to Charleston.  He is 24 but still in college. ( Definitely living the dream and postponing joining the real world. :) )  He plays for a small college in South Carolina called Erskine.  He is a good player but has only gotten better since we have started working together.  

Every year Snee Farm CC hosts an amateur tournament called the Rice Planters.  It started in 1973 and has been attended by a number of tour players in the past.  Past participants include, Tom Lehman, Davis Love III, Andy Bean, Stewart Cink, Scott Verplank, Duffy Waldorf, Scott Hoch, Hal Sutton, Jeff Sluman, Steve Jones and Mark O'Meara. A lot of college students come to play in the tournament as well as some top state amateurs.  Michael has played in it the last few years but last year did not play well since we had just started working together and were making swing changes, and unfortunately missed the cut.  This year he played really well, made the cut and finished -1 for the tournament.  He shot rounds of 71,74,71,71.  I caddied for him during his last round as well as the back nine the day before.  It was fun to be out there and help him with some decision making and help keep him positive and focused.  Great Playing Michael and hope it's just the start of lots of good tournaments for you this summer!

Michael warming up for his third round!

Michael putting during the 3rd round!

His biggest fan, his new niece Stella!

I have been working with another student, Kayla who is 9 years old.  She loves golf and has been doing really well.  She plays in tournaments during the summer and has been shooting in the low 50's for 9 holes.  This past Monday she played in a tournament, shot her best round of 41 and WON!!!  Yeah Kayla!!!  I was so proud of her and excited to see our work together is paying off!!!

Summer Junior Golf Camps

Summer Junior Golf Camps have begun! This last week we had a group of 10 kids and myself and William one of our assistant golf professionals taught.  It was a fun week and the kids for the most part were well behaved.  The hightlight of the week was having a chipping contest that they could earn water balloons by chipping it in the circle.  The kids loved throwing the water balloons at eachother and of course at William and I!  3 down and 3 camps to go!

Call me Coach

I am really excited for this Fall. I was asked to coach a high school girls golf team. Ashley Hall is a private all girls school in downtown Charleston. (Barbara Bush went to Ashley Hall!) They have only had a golf team for about three years and therefore most of the players are relatively new to the game. The woman who coached the team before was a member at one of the clubs I work at and she played in college herself and actually played on the mini tours. She enjoyed coaching but has two young kids and really couldn't give the job all it needed. She asked me if I was interested and I jumped at the chance.

The season is short just a little over two months. Last year they only played 4, 9-hole matches and then the championship. This year I have 9, 9-hole matches scheduled, an 18 hole invitational tournament and the championship! They have never had team golf bags and the girls have just used their own. The athletic director ok'd me to order them golf bags. They will be school property so the girls will only use them for the two month season and then return them. I also bought hats and towels for the girls as well as team shirts so we should be good to go!  I hope it is a great season that I am good at this coaching thing since it is my first go round!  So wish me luck and Go Panthers!!

Lucky Duck

Last Saturday the Rotary Club did their big fundraiser which is a duck race.  For $10 you "adopt" a rubber duck the winner won $10,000.  There were 25,000 ducks that were dropped off the bridge over the Wando River.  Then they have boats in the water with the same ropes and stuff they use for oil spills to contain the oil.  It was fun to watch.  I had two ducks in the race.  My friend Meredith and I shared custody of a duck and then I bought a duck on my own as well. I was not the lucky winner but it was a fun event and nice to know I had a chance. 

I brought the dogs with me down there and while we were watching I let them wade in the water since it was so hot.  While walking in the sand there were a TON of little crabs.  All those little dots are crabs.  Kind of cute!

Lowcountry Living

Part of what I love about living in South Carolina is how much fun outdoor activities there are to do.  The other night my sis, her family and I all went down to their dock and fished.  It was a beautiful night, great temperatures and the fish were biting!!  I am sad to say that everyone caught one but me but it was so fun.  The summer has really just begun so hopefully we'll have lots more fish being caught and fun being had on the dock!  I really am loving this lowcountry way of life!  I can't complain!  

A Wicked Evening

My sister and I took my mom to see wicked as a mother's day gift. None of us had seen it so it was a treat for us all.  I had heard good things from many people so my expectations were high.  Fortunately I was not disappointed.  It was amazing!!!!  The singing was fantastic, the story was entertaining, funny and kept our attention the whole night.  I can't recommend this musical enough to all who have not seen it.  It was a fun night with my mom and sister!

Georgia on my mind

I was long overdue to visit my friend Singne in Atlanta.  I can not believe it took me 11 months of living in SC to make the drive over to see her.  The trip was far too short but well worth it!  Singne and Mike have a beautiful home in an amazing neighborhood.  It was fun to see where they live and what is now home for them.  I was so excited to meet little miss Addison for the first time too.  What a sweetheart and a truly happy little girl!  Anyone who knows me knows how much I love babies and puppies so I was in heaven!  Singne and I went to lunch and did a little shopping with Addison, layed outside and enjoyed some wine and jusst hung out.  Then Mike was a happy to have daddy duty so she and I could go out to dinner just the two of us.  Thanks Mike!  :)  I am hoping to make it back over to GA at some point this summer if they are open for visitors again. A 5 hour drive is too short not to do more often to see a special friend!    

Miss Addison 

Addison surprised me by putting on the dress I gave her when she was born.  She looks like a proper Southern Girl!

Frog Fiasco

My nephew turned last week and one of his wishes was frogs from Wonderworks.  Wonderworks is a fun store that has lots of toys for kids and one of the things they carry are these frogs. If you asked him what he wanted for his birthday, all he would say was a bike and frogs!!  So my sis and I agreed that I would get him the frogs.  A fun gift from Aunt TT!  According to the people who work there they are hard to kill and last for a long time.  They come with enough food for a year.  All that is required is giving them 8 pellets of frog food once a week and you only have to change their water every 3-4 months!  How much easier can it get right? 
The day of his birthday we were meeting for dinner and then going over to their house for cake and for him to open gifts.   After work I drove to wonderworks and bought the frogs.  I was lucky they even had the blue rock one that he had requested. They put them in a cute bag for me with some tissue and ribbon and I was set! I ran home to quickly change. I didn't want the frogs to sit in the car because it was a rather warm day so I brought them inside.  I set them on the kitchen counter and ran upstairs to change. As I am upstairs I hear something hit the floor.  I run down stairs and the bag is on the ground and Jesse is looking at me!  When the bag hit the floor, of course the plastic container broke and the frogs were loose in the bag.  I was lucky to get them and put them in a container with water.  What to do now though!!!!  I called my sis and we agreed that I shouldn't bring them because what if they didn't make it.  He had lots of other gifts and I would just tell him that he got to go with Aunt TT to pick out frogs. Good thing that is what we decided, because I returned home from dinner to one dead frog and in the morning another dead frog!  In hindsight, I think my mistake was putting a lid on the container, they had no air! :(  Anyway, the next day after I got off work, I picked Tye up and we took a trip to wonderworks to pick up frogs. He was so excited and held them on the way home.  He is really into the muppet movie these days so together we decided to name them Kermit and Gonzo!  He has fed them every Monday and so far Kermit and Gonzo are doing well and

Kermit and Gonzo at their new home!

Spring Break Visitors

Spring Break for many includes taking a trip.  I was so glad that my best friend from high school Jamie, decided that their spring break trip would be driving to Charleston to visit me!  Jamie is definitely one of the great things about my move East.  Up until last year we would really only see each other every couple of years although we would e-mail, talk on the phone and send cards regularly.  Arizona to Virginia was just a long trip!  Now I have already seen her three times in one year and we have two more visits already scheduled!
Jamie, Brian, and their three daughters, Emma, Caroline and Jane arrived on Saturday the 31st and stayed until Wednesday.  Our visit included a trip downtown, a carriage ride, a little shopping in the old market, lunch on the water, playing in the fountain downtown, the South Carolina aquarium, eating BBQ and a trip to the beach!
I have been told that the highlight of the trip for the girls was my dogs!  They are all animal lovers expecially Jane the youngest.  The dogs did great with the kids except for one growl from Ripken who had just had enough one night.  Jesse was fantastic and let the girls pretty much do whatever.  It was a big deal to sleep by Jesse at night so we had to arrange air mattresses around Jesse's bed.  I think after they left the dogs missed the excitement and were a little bored with just me in the house.  :)
Thanks for a great visit Finch family and I look forward to seeing you all this summer!

Jane and Jesse getting ready for bed!

Jane giving Jesse a good night hug!

The Finch girls playing in the fountain downtown! (Jane, Emma and Caroline)

Jamie and I and the girls before we got on the carriage ride

Jane at the touch tank at the aquarium!Emma, Jane and Caroline at the aquarium

Pro Lady

Cynthia, Me, Missy and Betty

I took a group of ladies from Snee Farm to a proam in Leesville, SC yesterday. Leesville is about 2 1/2 hours away from us so we met at SF at 7:30am. We drove up there and as ladies do, we talked the whole way. There was a brunch offered at the course prior to play and the tournament started at 11:00am. The tournament was a Pro-Lady so each team was a PGA professional and 3 ladies. I unfortunately didn't have my best day and we did not win by anymeans but we had a fun day. After the tournament they had a shrimp boil at the club which we were able to enjoy before we hit the road to return home. It was a long, fun day and I am so glad we played! Hoping next year we'll bring back the trophy!

My Team!

New Facility & New Title

I have been extremely busy the last few weeks but all for good reasons. The country club I have been working at the past year purchased another club in town. Rivertowne is a semi private club that is just North of Snee Farm CC. I have been promoted to Director of Instruction for the two facilities and am giving golf lessons at both places. It is definitely keeping me busy but I am enjoying the changes thus far. I have been spending a lot of time out at rivertowne so that I can meet the members and get to know people around there more. I was pleasantly surprised to see a four week womens clinic that I scheduled fill up before they even sent out the e-mail. I therefore added another 4 week clinic and it too filled up. It feels good to see some excitement about instruction being generated.
Overall I am encouraged by the future and looking forward to seeing what good things develops.

Circus Fun

My sister and brother in law and I took the kids to the circus when it was in town. We had good seats and had a lot fun. Of course anyone who knows me knows that I have always loved elephants so that was my favorite part. The kids were so excited to get cotton candy and popcorn! It is always fun in everything we do to see the excitement in the eyes of a child!

Wild About Wildlife

Yesterday we went downtown to attend The Southeastern Wildlife Exposition. This was the 30th year and it has grown to be the largest in the nation. The expo has over 500 artists and exhibitors from all over and they expected over 40,000 people to attend. The expo was 3 days and is basically a celebration of nature! SEWE hosts experts in wildlife, nature art, conservation research and environmental education. I was hoping to see Jack Hanna but unfortunately I'll have to wait until next year. The event that I was most excited to see though was DOCK DOGS! It did not disapoint! You can check out this link to Dock Dogs to see more.
There are 3 events that dock dogs does.....
Big Air - This is where the dogs are scored based on distance they jump. The dog jumps from the end of the dock and into the pool.
Extreme Vertical - This is where the dogs jump off the dock and jump up trying to grab a buoy type object that is hanging over the pool. The dogs are scored based on height. The dog jumps from the end of the dock and if they grab the buoy in thier mouth or it atleast drops, they "clear" that height. They said they record right now is 10 feet 8 inches!! When we were there, the dog won at 6 feet 8 inches, so I can only imagine 10'8!
Speed Retrieve - This event the dogs jump off the dock, swims to the end of the pool and retrieves an object. The dog is scored based on the time it takes him.

The only event we got to watch was the extreme vertical but it was so fun! I now want to do this with a future dog! We'll see. We walked around and looked at many of the vendors. Lots of hunting products and dog products. A lot of people brought their dogs with them so we were surrounded by every breed there is. There were lots of puppies too which is always dangerous for me. We also watched a retrieve demonstration that was put on by the Boykin Spaniel Society. The Boykin spaniel is the official dog of South Carolina so lots of people have one. It was a fun afternoon and look forward to attending next year.

Retrieve Demonstration

Boykin Spaniel Puppy showing a retrieve

They show the dog the bouy hanging and try to get them excited and focused on it and then move back for them to get a running start

This was a cute team, Twister is the dog and his partner was a young boy

Twister got it!!

This is Marcy, she is the dog that won this event!

GSP Playdate

As most of you know, my dog Ripken was my sister and Joe's dog. I took him into my home because he didn't do well with the children and it got to the point where Tine and Joe could not trust him the way they needed to. He has been a welcomed addition to my pack and I love him SO much and he makes me smile every day! My sister's family has missed him so much and with their other dog Lille getting older, they were ready to add to to their family again. They love German Shorthaired Pointers and it just so happened that their same breeder had a litter. So Buoy joined their family last Fall. He is such a fun puppy and just a love. Minus the typical puppy behavior, he is great with the kids too which is perfect! My dogs have met him before but yesterday I went over to their house with Ripken to let the GSPs play. It took Ripken a while to warm up but then the game was on. They chased each other around the yard and had so much fun! It was fun to see Lille excited to see Ripken too. It was a fun day for everyone!

Bathing Beauties

Yesterday was a cold day here but considering it was my day off I really wanted to give my dogs a bath. I debated on giving them baths outside but decided the water from the hose would be just a little too cold. So I piled the three of them in the car and we went up the road a little to a place called Lucia's. I buy my dog food at Lucia's and have really come to love the store. I love supporting local. Don't get me wrong, I love Petsmart and still frequent the store but Lucia's is close and they do a lot with local rescues which I love. Anyway, in the back of the store they have two showers/tubs where you can come and bathe your dogs. It was awesome and I am now sold! It was easier on the back, all the supplies were there and no cleanup! I will definitely go again. I think I liked it more than the dogs though. None of them are crazy about bath time. I think there is nothing better than a clean good smelling dog!!

Bogey ready for the bath to be over!

The showers for the dogs

Visitor #6

Sunday the 29th was a great day, with my friend Julie coming in town for a week long visit! Julie and I played golf together at Mizzou and she lives in St. Louis. Julie is also in the golf business and had to be down in Orlando for the PGA show the previous week. Julie called me one day with a "great idea". She was going to have to be back in Florida on February 5th, and rather than flying back to Missouri, she was going to rent a car and come for a visit. I couldn't have thought of a better idea myself! I had not seen Julie since her wedding last January so seeing her was long overdue!
Julie got in town Sunday evening and stayed until Saturday. Our fun times included lunch at Magnolia's, shopping in the old market, a visit to the aquarium and a tour of the turtle hospital at the aquarium, fort sumpter, a walk on the beach, walks with the dogs, a jimmy buffett concert, lunch with my sis and the kids, dinner at Hanks, drinks on the roof top bar at grill 225 and watching a missouri basketball game! Lots of fun and laughs and good memories.
Julie thank you so much for coming to visit! I loved having you and loved showing you my new home! I hope I get to see you again soon and miss you already! Thanks for being such a special friend!!!

This is gumby, one of the rescued turtles

This turtle has had an amazing transformation, he's doing great!
These are pictures of what he looked like when he came in, barnacles were all over him!
Julie and I being silly
Julie holding a sea urchin at the touch tank. We were able to touch horseshoe crabs and sting rays as well as starfish in the touch tank too.
The big tank
Julie and I at the aquarium
Fort Sumpter
Julie and I on the rooftop bar at grill 225