Our Saturday

In reverse order...we headed out last night to watch the MSU/LSU game with our friends who are LSU grads. I must say until I met the Alexanders I truly believed NOTHING good - or even decent for that matter - could come from that school. They have truly changed my mind about that. They are amazing folks, and we even enjoy watching the game with them. They aren't obnoxious or cruel in any way even though they easily could be. Anyway, all four of us donned State wear. The boy wouldn't cooperate for a picture, but you can still him proudly displaying the logo. The girl finally sorta fits in her cheerleading uniform. She is too adorable, but was none too happy about standing up for a picture.

Earlier that day, I caught them playing with sunglasses. Wouldn't you know they would both take an interest in them AFTER we get home from the beach? They are just too cute, and I think they know it. You should see the girl strutting around...

The kids "slept in" yesterday morning (translate - 7:45 a.m.), and we quickly headed outside after breakfast to enjoy the cooler temperatures (thus why they are still in their pajamas). The girl figured out how to climb the big ladder to slide (we have 2 slides, but one's ladder has more steps). She is such a tiny thing that it is quite funny to watch her pull this off. I was snapping a few pictures when she started crying. I then walked to the side and saw why she was so upset. Watch the video to see how she easily got herself in this predicament (make sure to pause the player at the bottom so you can hear their sweetness). I tell ya, I don't think there's going to be much that will stop her.

Vacation pictures

They are finally here! To fit as many as possible, they are all very small. Simply double click to get a closer look.

This was our first real vacation since Hawaii in May 2003. This was the first vacation not involving family since our honeymoon over 9 years ago. We had an amazing week with dear friends. Four families: eight adults, seven kids running around and one simply along for the ride (that we didn't know about until after we got home - congrats Clarks!) all under one roof. We left on a Thursday after picking the boy up from school. We made it all the way to Gulf Shores that night. Clay's folks and aunt and uncle were at the end of their vacation so we had a free place to stay. The kids did really well on the long drive - even wedged among all the food for the group for the week and our own luggage. Ike was about 350 miles southwest and we felt his strength. The wind and waves were quite impressive (see the girl hanging on to the balcony on the 21st floor). We ate lunch with Clay's family including his cousin and husband who live nearby, and the place had a great sand play area for the kids. That afternoon we headed to the beach - a first for both kids. They were tentative at first, but not freaked. The boy had fun, but the girl wasn't so fond of getting hit by the water. They enjoyed walking along the beach and finding shells and such. We were encouraged that the week would go well.




All four families converged on our home away from home Friday night about 9:00 p.m. and the fun began. Here are various pics of the fun we had (and by far not even a drop in the bucket of all the pictures we have between the 4 families) - playing in the sand, playing ball, enjoying the water, boogy boarding, catching crabs and fish, soaking up the rays, playing at the amphitheater in Seaside on our last night. There are lots of things not documented because I forgot my camera, but I figure you can tell we had an amazing time...and we are all still friends! The kids did well with the change in routine for so many days (we didn't leave until the following Saturday) and with the varying conditions in the ocean. The boy preferred to be in the water and the girl preferred to play in the sand, but neither was totally opposed to the other. We are so thankful they did well. We are so thankful for the time away. We are so thankful for these friendships that began back in 2001.

Melt my heart

Before I tell you what melted my heart yesterday, may I stop and say how awesome it is to be on my back porch at 9:00 a.m. wrapped in a sheet because it is a bit cool? AWESOME!!! While fall caught me a little off guard this year thanks to our late summer vacation, I must say I am much enjoying the cooler temps. And yes, I know I am way overdue on pictures, but it has been one crazy week. Everyone appears to finally be well. The girl seems to have turned a corner this week with speech. She has been "talking" a lot for a while now, but this week her words sound more intelligible instead of just utterings only we understand.

I wish I had picture proof of yesterday, but alas I rarely have a camera ready to capture these moments. I loaded the kids in the car yesterday afternoon to head to Mardel for a couple of books and various items. The girl desires to be big like her brother so she wanted to walk from the car to the store just like him. Fortunately, I parked next to the sidewalk so I was able to accommodate her. She often wants to hold someone's hand while walking, and yesterday the boy was the chosen one. This was a first, and I wasn't sure how he would respond. He HATES holding hands while walking. In a moment of true brotherly love, he conceded. I watched the two of them walk hand-in-hand into the store.

Melt my heart. Someone mop of the puddle of me off the sidewalk.

It's been fun to watch them begin to really play together and take care of each other. I know moments like this are few and in a few years I may wonder if my mind really remembers truth or simply some fabrication of the past. I'll take whatever I can get though.

Vacation - now back to reality

There are a lot more pictures to share, but time is limited right now. Here's just a sampling of the scenery and our group (minus me - well, you can see my shadow). Eight adults, seven children, one house = a wonderful vacation and lots of amazing memories.

Here's a just a few of the things we did: short visit with Clay's family in Gulf Shores on the way there, the beach, the pool, girl time painting pottery (sadly, we all forgot our cameras), guy time deep sea fishing (again, no cameras), single date to Harry T's (we again forgot our camera), double date with the Powells (again, we forgot our camera...do you see a pattern here?), amazing seafood (I am a HUGE snow crab fan), shopping, Mexican dominoes, walks, watching kids while others had dates, parks, a not-so-great science center, and amazing fellowship with some of my favorite people.

We are now back to reality: fall temps, acorns all over the drive and the other 3 members of my family battling a stomach bug. We were the only family not to deal with illness while in FL, but it hit hard about 30 minutes after we got home! The kids seem to be on the mend already, but Clay is still down for the count. Thus why you will have to wait a bit longer for more pictures.

Off to enjoy a few moments of quiet while they are all three resting...

Special memories

I'm constantly reminded how blessed we are with the friendships we have here. I love watching our kids grow up together and sharing in all the milestones - especially the ones that aren't big to anyone else but a mama. This picture is one of those moments caught on film. If only the kids were all looking at me...from left to right: the girl, the boy, the boy's buddy, the girl's pal.

The boy is a little over a year younger than his pal, but they don't seem to notice too often just yet. The girls are only 5 weeks apart although Miss LSU is a few inches taller!







Following her gal pal's lead, the girl decided she really could hold on to the big swing. She thinks she's big stuff!


I'll be MIA for a bit as we head to the beach for vacation with some of our dear friends...8 adults, 7 kids (ages 4 and under), 1 house...sounds like a blast, right? More special memories to be made. A much needed vacation for me and Clay.

Don't worry, there'll be more pictures and stories than you desire to read when I return...and I promise to get around to blogging about my trip to San Antonio a few weeks ago. It's amazing how crazy these last couple of weeks have been!