I feel like summer is kind of a lost cause this year between all the rain, the sickness, and all craziness.  Lucky for me, I married an eternal optimist who believes in seizing the day.  He suggested that after church today, we take the kids to the splash park in town, which is exactly what we did. It's funny because until this year, Eli has always been a little skittish of the the water spraying up in his face, but he embraced it today, running straight through the spray. Ellie loved it too.  She has no fear whatsoever. Eric and I had the best time watching them run and play while we sat under the shelter of a nearby shade tree. Being the cool dad that he is, Eric decided that we needed snacks and ran up the road to grab us some treats. While he was gone, the kids played and let me take lots of pictures. It was such a fun afternoon as a family, and a great activity for our little reunion.  I'm hoping that we wore them out

Look who we picked up this morning!  Of course a reunion required a silly photoshoot. We picked the kids up in E-town and headed straight to Logan County for Owen's 7th birthday party.  Of course, I didn't take any pictures, but it was a lot of fun. While we were already in the area, we stopped by Roy's BBQ and picked up dinner.  Back at home we took our silly pictures, caught up on some quality play time, and settled down for family movie night. The quiet house and relaxing evenings are already a distant memory, but it feels so good to have everyone home and under one roof.

Ya'll the house has been both gloriously and painfully quiet this week.  While Eric and I have enjoyed our time alone, we have also missed the kiddos…a lot! We took advantage of the time to stock up on some Disney surprises for the trip later this fall, and while I was putting it all away, I found this precious drawing from our last trip.  Keep in mind, this was almost 18 months ago, and we never knew this existed.  Sweet boy! While we are talking about Disney, look what I found while we were shopping!  I got it for $8, ya'll!  All it needs is a sweet little monogram, and we are all set.  As for the kids.  Clearly, they are enjoying their time with Gigi and Pawpaw.  Dad sent me this picture from Monkey Joes.  I can't wait to see them on Saturday!

With the kids gone, Eric and I have been going on dates and spending a lot of time together.  We should be getting chores done, but I think we need a little relaxation time! Today was United Way's Day of Caring, so some co-workers and I volunteered to do some painting at the International Center in town.  It was a lot of fun, and they were so appreciative! Later this afternoon, we had a television shoot at one of our schools, so I had to work late.  Eric met me there, but had to run home because our dog got out again!  Ugh!  We met back up in town for dinner at Chili's and then took a little stroll around campus.  Western is really so beautiful, and I love going back because it's the place where we fell in love.  It will always hold a special place in our hearts!

Happy Sunday everyone!  I just wanted to share pictures of these two cuties who left us today for a week at Gigi and Papaw's house! After church, we hit up McDonald's and drove to E-town to meet my mom and dad. Since we were early, we were able to swing by Target and buy all of our school supplies…yay! After dropping everyone off for Grandparent Camp, Eric and I headed to home to rest before shopping and eating dinner out!  You can bet that while the kids are away, the parents will play.  Haha!  We will miss their little smiley faces, but it's gonna be a great week. 

Can I be one hundred percent honest with ya'll right now?  The real reason for my blogging absence is that this summer has been long and hard in so many.  It's a season of our lives that has just been down right yucky.   Yet in the midst of these difficult times, we are learning to find joy in the moments, the small things in life.  Tonight, we needed to get out and clear our heads.  It's about a billion degrees outside, so we settled on the lake down from our house.  Walking the trails and taking in the beauty of God's creation is so good for the soul.  Time and time again, I was reminded that the Lord gives us "Peace Like A River." After the lake, we drove through the county and found a little park with access to the creek.  The shone just perfectly through the opening in the tree, which set the timbre for the evening as we watched the kids run, splash and play.  I cherish these pictures so much because they remind me that no

Ya'll, it's been a crazy week around these parts with insane heat and way too much rain.  I'm getting spotty at blogging again, so I hope this catches everyone up a bit.   Eric's mom has been visiting since she's off school, so the kids have enjoyed getting to stay home and play with her.  One night we went shopping and picked out a backpack for Eli.  I can't not believe that school will be starting in a couple of weeks.  This summer has FLOWN by! Eric's dad came today to pick up Dixie, so we had lunch at Cracker Barrel before they left.  I snapped this sweet picture of him playing with Eli.  I love the bond that ties the generations.  It's such a special relationship between grandparents and grandchildren.  

We've had a little break from all of the rain around these parts, so I had to bust out the hose tonight to water my plants.  Seeing the hose, Ellie decided to tag along begging me to spray her.   Of course, I agreed.  This meant she had to change into her swimsuit and invite her brother out to enjoy this little summertime treat. They decided that they needed to drink from the hose, and as you can imagine, it was hysterical.  I'm sure it's not sanitary, but it's a childhood right of passage.  We're going to raise a whole generation of kids who've never drank from a hose, and that's just not right, ya'll. This made me think about all the other stuff my kids will miss out on, like riding in the back of  pick-up truck, the always unsafe merry-go-round at the parks, fast metal slides, sleeping in the floorboard of the car  on vacation trying to get comfortable with the hump in the middle…anyone, anyone? So yeah, they'll mi

We had the most wonderful Sunday spending time with friends and our church family.  Obviously, we started the day with our weekly photo!  After church, we came home for a quick lunch before heading to Griffin's birthday party.  It was themed "Super Heroes," which is something my kids know a thing or two about.  Eric dropped the kids and I off at the party and then went to Wal-Mart for shells because our church was having a potluck and Trap Shoot contest.  How insanely southern is that combo?! Ha.  Love  it! We didn't get to stay at the party too long because we had to make it to the church event, so after getting what he needed at Wal-Mart, Eric came back to pick up the kids and I. The church event was a ton of fun and such a great evening.  I loved watching the kids run and play without a care in the world.  So many I am burdened by the world my kids are growing up in.  Aside from the obvious turmoil, the pace of our lives can be suffocating

Ya'll, today took an exciting and unexpected surprise!!  After a morning run to the grocery store with Eli, I started browsing the internet for vacation deals.  Eric and I have been planning an anniversary trip to Disney World, and if I've learned anything through all of our visits, it's that you have to check their website frequently for updates. Today I was just browning, not expecting to purchase a package until a deal popped up that I just couldn't believe.  We were able to book a trip adding the kids for only $200 more than it would have cost for Eric and I to go alone.  Naturally, we had to take advantage of this offer.   Between gift cards and our traveling rewards points, we already had a credit of around $500 for a future trip, so that was HUGE!!!  We will be traveling later this fall and staying five nights and four days.  Of course I will blog a lot throughout the planning process, but we already know a few things. 1. We will not be doing th

I worked a half day today and had lunch with Sabrina before picking Eli up from Summer Camp.  When I got there, he came running up to me with a big, toothless, grin.  He proceeded to explain to me that he lost his tooth but didn't know where or when.  It wasn't until he saw blood that he knew it was missing.  In case you're counting, that makes THREE teeth he has lost…literally.  The first one he lost while we were traveling, so I stuck it in my purse.  It was later discarded with the trash.  The second tooth fell out while Eli slept and was subsequently swallowed.  And clearly, tooth number three suffered a similar fate.  We're working on this.  So for now, we are writing the Tooth Fairy a little note and hope that she is in an understanding mood.