In my mind I am going to Carolina...

Oh how sweet it is to be at home and spend time with family. On July 9th we boarded a plane to Raleigh, NC to visit Mahnee and Bumpa and have some family vacation time! Our five days were filled with fun in the sun, games, good food and lots of laughter. HIGHLIGHT of the week was .... drum roll please... Sammy and I taking a trip to the beach for the day while my parents kept Georgia ! It only takes a few hours to get to the coast from there house so we headed out at 7am and we were on the beach by 10:00. God was so good to us that day- we started out with a Starbucks run ( a MUST) , the beach was 80 degrees, no humidity, blue skies and we had an ENTIRE day to ourselves to talk, walk on the beach, nap, throw a frisbee... and then ended the day with dinner on the pier. For those of you who are parents ...you KNOW what therapy one "free" day can do. It was such a blessing. We also had so much fun at the Lake house ( thanks Brown family) - saturday we played at the lake and wore ourselves out tubing and knee boarding. Georgia was not a big fan of the boat but she lasted for about 30 min as long as she could eat powdered doughnuts! ha ha!

All in all - it was a restful and sweet time with family - We look forward to heading back in the fall. Thanks Mahnee and Bumpa for all of your LOVE ! Enjoy the pics !

This is what a child- FREE day looks like ! ( we missed Georgia a little) wink-wink!

pina coloda? SURE !!!

Hanging out at the Lake house

Georgia was not a fan of the boat OR the life jacket!

We had so much fun playing!! we laughed so hard our faces hurt !!

Say " CHEEEESSEE " !

July 4th at Yellow Creek Ranch

Happy July 4th ! Thank you Lord for the freedom we have living in America and the freedom that we have in YOU ! We spent the afternoon at Yellow Creek Ranch - Aaron's ( bro- in law )  sister's place  in Dickson,TN ... and it will most definitely take your breath away.  It was great to be with family and friends rocking on the porch, cookin' up some yummy snacks, walking through the horse stables and 4-wheeling baby!!!!    The only bummer is it RAINED most of the evening so we waited and waited for the sky to clear so we could head down to the pond area area for our FIREWORKS extravaganza ....but by 9:00 it was still coming down hard! ...  so Georgia did not get to see any sparklers  - sad!    Thanks Reece and Rayford for inviting us to the sweetest place in Tennessee - we loved it ! 

Nothing more beautiful than the land  in Tennessee!

Ella in her cool ranch hat !

Auntie A and Gracie!

Headed to the barn

feeding the horses - she loved this!

sammy and I went 4-wheeling and got caught in the rain - so funny!! I was sooo cold!!

16 months and WALKING!

 Georgia took her first steps this past weekend ! She is our sweet and NEVER aggressive child who did not even crawl until 12 months... so we were not surprised for her to take her time walking!  BUT- literally, overnite she decided to start toddling around and here she is SO PROUD of herself!  She has not broken out into a full- on walk yet .... she still cheats with a crawl every now and then !  I just love her chubby little legs in these jammies ...I could just eat her with a spoon!!

Happy Father's Day !

Psalm 127:4 " Children are a gift from the Lord; they are a reward from him. Children born to a young man are like sharp arrows in a warriors hands" ...
This is the scripture Sammy read during our prayer over Georgia the day we dedicated her at church last year . How amazing to be called " dad" ... and what great responsibility that holds. Georgia lights up when Sammy walks in the room - she sometimes calls him "daddoo" with a grin! They love to watch baby TV and eat cheerios in the morning, talk about bugs on the sidewalk, and dance like no one is watching to crazy music! It's so fun to watch them love each other. We had a great day today of ALL THINGS DAD ... here are some sweet pics from the day. AND TO OUR DAD's - thanks for loving us so well... and Lord, what an amazing heavenly father you are - thanks for being the ultimate DAD and our greatest gift of all.

Georgia calls watermelon "wattalillie"

Summer is a comin' !

Summer is approaching and I must confess that I am not a huge fan but I will embrace the season ....as it gets hotter... and hotter...
OH SUMMER.... why do you have to visit so soon!??
#1. I have to get a tan and well, I just don't have time for that!
#2. Why get dressed when as soon as you get in the car your clothes stick to you and your hair goes flat.
#3. When you wear flip-flops you get "sausage toes" ( and you all know what I mean!)
BUT- on the sweet positive side, it is super fun to take vacations, eat outside, fly your American flag at the house, plant flowers, and wear cute tank tops !
So to all the summer lovin' people, ENJOY the HOT sticky south and I will eagerly await fall and a pumpkin spice latte with a cute new pair of Jeans!
Here are some fun pics from this week - SUMMER IS HERE!

Sammy is the "green thumb" in the family!

Pischu always trying to steal snacks from Georgia!

Getting closer and closer to walking...

15 months

Georgia had her 15 mo check up today and she is growing like a weed! She weighed in at 21 lbs , and 29 inches . Dr. Huss did say she was on the petite side which I thought was very cute, but she is still in the normal percentile for age and sex. I think she will have short legs and little feet forever ... which probably explains why she has still not taken her first steps! She prefers to "cruise" the furniture and crawl super fast! We are also very proud of her vocabulary - she is trying to say EVERYTHING and most of the time she gets it right! She is just a sponge right now ... soaking in her environment daily. She is a read-a-holic and loves all things GIRLY - shoes and makeup already! Here is our little princess... just being a GIRL!

Mother's Day thankfulness

PROVERBS 31 :28-30

                                               Her children arise and call her blessed;

                                               her husband also, and he praises her

                                                  Many women do noble things,

                                                      but you surpass them all.

                                            Charm is deceptive, and beauty is fleeting;

                                      but a woman who fears the LORD is to be praised. 

I am so blessed to be a mommy ... what a gift from the Lord! On days like today I go back in my mind and think of all the Mother's Days shared with my mom and how special I felt to have a mom like her ! I used to love to make little gifts at school and wrap them for her or a have a fun shopping day with just the two of us... and even more amazing is that most Mother's Days SHE would cook an amazing meal for us to share on HER DAY!?? She is truly a woman of a different spirit. So many days as a little girl I would wonder what it would be like to be a "mommy" as I would dress up my dolls and play house... and think of all the things I would do with my children one day... and TODAY ... I had a moment of thankfulness .
I remember being pregnant and thinking, wow, my body is not my own anymore and from here on out, I am a mom. WOW , I never knew what kind of love a mother has until I saw the sweet face of Georgia Love. I love all of it -even the hard parts.
The labor pains, the sleepless nights, changing 10 diapers in a day and getting pooped on! , going out to dinner but not remembering what I ate because I was trying to entertain and keep the peace , singing while shopping and Georgia in the front of the buggy, long family walks at night , hearing "mama" for the first time, eskimo kisses, hearing early morning jabbering across the hall, teaching her to love and praying for her to know the Lord and have a gentle spirit . What an incredible roll mother's have - we are the mentors, friends and role models for our little tiny ones.
Lord, thank you for Georgia and the blessing she is me . To my mom, thanks for showing me what it means to passionately love my children and my family. You are the best mom and friend. I am bubbling over with blessings today!