Labor Day Weekend

for labor day we went to benton to celebrate D's birthday. we had a fun time of the lake and saw Mamaw, too. the kids rode in the golf cart and the 4wheeler. kristen wore her hanah montana outfit (halloween costume) to show D. she is getting so old i can't stand it. thankfully, i still have my baby. i love the pic of him sitting in daryl's old rocking chair. from the photos he looks just like him as a baby. the pic of caden in the life jacket cracks me up. he definatley goes with the flow.
cole took the golf cart to the boat launch by himself. he is responsible and deserves more freedom. i love when i know he feels i trust him.
there's nothing like being at grandmas! sprite on demand, cookies in bed,limitless TV, staying up past bedtime and "yes" to every question asked. gotta love it :)

art contest winners

my little art contest winners.
wal-mart was having a sponge bob coloring contest this summer and the kids both entered. they were so excited, first prize was a $50 gift certificate. about 3 weeks after they turned in their sheets, we got a phone call. it was walmart asking for the mom of kristen. she had won 3rd place for her age group. we were so excited and called dad, etc. cole was quiet. not happy or sad, just quiet. he finally said, "when are they going to call me?"
i said, well, they might not call you. he was dumbfounded. there HAD to be another reason why he had not received a phone call. he truly could not conceive of not winning. he told me that when we went to walmart that day to get kristen's prize, he would have to ask them why they had not called him.
(self-confidence is NOT a problem for him).
about an hour the later, he got the phone call he was certain he would get. he had won 1st prize for his age group. the whole thing was such a funny insight into how he thinks :)

1st Day of School

wow! first grade and fifth grade.
we are so blessed to be where we are. the 10 Commandments is in the entry way of our school.

another year at FCS

we are looking forward to another awesome school year!

Caden around the house

this is the real deal!! around the house with caden.
he loves to put on whatever he can find...kristen's necklaces, goggles, etc. he loves stuffed animals (and believe me, there is no shortage of stuffed animals at our house). he loves his broom and above all, he loves his ELMO shoes. he brings them to me and looks up with those huge brown eyes and says, "Uh, Uh" which translates, "Put my elmo shoes on for me, please."
he reminds me so much of kristen at that age. she was the same way. she carried around every purse she could find, loved to wear dress up clothes and loved elmo.
if i could freeze this little booger at this age i would. it's probably for the best that God doesn't let mommys have a choice in that.

can you find the bunny?

there was a little bunny that was by the tree when we walked up. can u find him?
(he's right under caroline's hand)

2 Monkeys shoot

a couple favorites from the two monkeys shoot today....
i shot even in the bright sun, which i hate to do :)

clips

modeling hair clips... she looks so old in this pic. must be the black shirt.

sweet brothers

more beau

could u just eat him up, or what?!

trains

i wanted to try a train location and of course the boys loved it. rocks to throw and a train to climb on.

Jack

Beau's older brother Jack. a carbon copy of his daddy. he is all boy. and apparently he doesn't know the difference between "hug your brother" and "tackle your brother". but what 8 year old does?

Beau

what a sweet, precious child! he was such a tropper for photos in 2 locations. he is four and full of life. he looks just like his momma. he still has that innocent look about him.
and does he have highlights? i would kill for that hair :)

what a fun day at the zoo. the penguins were my favorite. it was so cool how close up you could get to everything. caden really enjoyed it. he had on his lion outfit that he points to and says, "RRRaaaa". this age is the best. he just takes it all in. he did great and kept up all day with us in the 100 degree heat. no fussing. he just fell asleep on the way home.
being a mommy is so fun on days like this. i am so blessed. i love my kids :)

how awesome is this?

how awesome is it to get this close to the stingray!

stingrays

here we are in the first photo watching the stingrays go around in the pool. "let's touch one, caden". little did i know there was one stingray that really likes to be pet and he comes up to the the top of the water (see his side sticking out of the water?) ginger did a good job of getting this shot just as i was screaming and jumping back. that thing scared me to death.

tiger

caden's "RRRRAAAA" sound actually applied to this animal :)

huge help

cole is such a help. it's like having another adult to help me with caden. and it's not just that he helps. what touches my heart is that he holds him because he really wants him to be able to see the animals better. he loves caden so much :)