We just returned from a 2 1/2 week trip between the beach and Montgomery. Brandon spent a month down at Eglin AFB on a military medical rotation and Christopher and I went to join him for most of it. We spent a couple days getting used to the base and figuring out where things were. Christopher loved the waterpark and pool they had there, we didn't mind it either b/c it was hot! Then we headed up to Montgomery for a week for Jennifer and Trey's wedding. We stayed with Mimi and Papa John and they were a huge help while Brandon and I were back and forth between activities. The wedding was beautiful and Jennifer and Trey have never looked happier. Christopher and the other kids had a blast dancing it up at the reception. A couple days later Christopher and I went to pick up our friends Melissa and Nicholas and headed back down to the beach for a whole week. Burt was out of town and so we thought it would be fun to have the boys together and keep each other company. We couldn't have been more right. They never slowed down and would chase each other inside and out, at the water park, around the tables at restaurants, down by the pier, and about the only time they sat still was when they slept and played in the sand at the beach. Burt came down to join us over the weekend and we spent the days playing outside and the evenings going out to eat and playing some more. It was a great way to continue our yearly trips together. Christopher and I headed back home a couple days before Brandon and were very excited when he finally returned. It's nice to be back and together again! We had an amazing experience at Eglin and made some wonderful friends and hopefully will be able to join them there next year if God is willing. So we'll keep you posted on how it turns out and will let you know how our adventures go in San Francisco in October when we do this all over again!

Just wanted to wish Jon and Lisa Shaffer a happy congrats to their new baby GIRL!!! They welcomed Sonora Jane into the world this afternoon weighing in at 7 lbs. 8 oz. We are very excited for them and know that they are going to make wonderful parents and can't wait to meet their little girl! If you'd like to check out their website, the link is to the right.

A few weekends ago we loaded up and headed to the lake to celebrate Aunt Jenny and Uncle Trey getting married soon. Uncle Kyle, Aunt Caroline and Hunter were there as well and the boys had so much fun playing together! Unfortunately it rained all weekend so we had to stay inside most of the time, but we did get out and let them swing when we got the chance. We had lots of fun at the party on Saturday night and were glad to finally meet some of Trey's family. Christopher had more fun running around and finding whatever he could in the house, usually ending up in the kitchen where the box fan was and yelling at it. It seemed like a quick trip, but was well worth it to have the family all together again. We'll do it all over again soon when the wedding finally gets here and we can't wait!

While Brandon was in Trinidad, Christopher and I went on a trip to Camp Wag-A-Tail at Grammie and Pop's house. We got to hang out with Aunt Jenny, Pop and the dogs while Grammie and Uncle Trey were also on trips. We stayed for about 9 days and had a blast! Who says being left behind is boring? Unfortunately the water was out pretty far due to the lack of rainfall this year and it looked more like winter, but we still found a way to get in and keep our shoes on. It was very muddy and so Pop ended up getting a pool for Christopher to play in. (We also found a baby snake, thankfully it wasn't alive, so we decided to stay out of the water in case it had any family around.) We took a trip in on Monday to visit Mimi and Papa John for lunch and then to see Nicholas and Melissa. On Tuesday night there was a bad storm that blew over and tree and took down the power lines, so we were glad that Pop had the day off and could hang out with us. We got to watch the power and cable guys come and fix it and that was pretty fun. On Thursday, Stump Jumpers came to cut down some dead trees and we had a blast watching them work all day! We even got to ride in the cherry picker! On Friday we had another storm that took out the power, but it wasn't nearly as bad. We went to visit Great and then to pick up Grammie from the airport. The rest of the weekend was spent relaxing with everyone and then we headed home on Sunday after lunch. Christopher learned to "run with the dogs", how to play fetch and feed them their "greenies" and that throwing a tantrum around Aunt Jenny didn't give him what he wanted. (She's a lot of fun, but sure is tough!) But we loved every minute of it and can't wait to go back again. We were glad to come home and play with our friends here, we sure did miss them. Brandon is finally home too and we are SO glad to have him back with us again!! He had a great trip and wants to thank everyone for his prayers and support.

We went to Home Depot today to get a fan for Christopher's room and when we got there they had two very exciting things going on. First was a car show, which excited Brandon very much and second was a kid's workshop, which excited all three of us! Christopher got an apron with his name on it and a pin when he/we finished building his wooden airplane. It was very humid out so he was more interested in Brittny's coke than hammering anything. We were just glad that we brought our camera with us. His apron is now hanging proudly in his room with his first pin on it. When we got home he did his best to try and help Brandon install his new fan. He did a great job using the screwdriver! Maybe we'll go back again next month and get another pin. (P.S. - if you have any kids, it's something fun and free you can do with them!)

This past weekend, Papa John, Mimi, Aunt Ame and Cameron came to visit us. We had so much fun watching the cousins play together! We went to the duck pond, had a sword fights with pinwheels, played in the pool in the backyard, bounced on the bed and the best part of the weekend was when we went to the hot air balloon festival in Decatur on Saturday night. They had about 20 balloons in a huge field with a band playing and then when it got dark all the balloons would light up at the same time, it was beautiful! At first Christopher and Cameron weren't sure what to think of the big balloons breathing fire, but it didn't take long for them to get used to it. There was a huge Energizer bunny balloon that was passing out bunny ears that the kids looked great in. We are definitely going to go back next year! (Hopefully Brandon won't be on call that weekend and won't have to miss anything!)

Yeah! We just found out that Kyle and Caroline are going to have another boy! It is going to be so much fun to have the boys all playing together! Congratulations!! It's been busy around here the last month and it's been a lot of fun too. We've been to Botanical Gardens to play in the water, played with the neighbors, celebrated Mother's Day, had our first golf lesson, recently had our first stomach virus (no photos of that pleasantness!) and finished school. Here are a few photos to show you what we've been doing. Enjoy!

We just returned from a weekend in Montgomery and boy were we busy! We arrived early Friday evening and met Brandon's parents at the zoo. His mom was putting on a walk/run Saturday morning to raise money for the Arthritis Foundation and we wanted to help set up. Christopher loved seeing the animals too. Saturday morning we woke up and headed straight back to the zoo to cheer on everyone who showed up to walk or run. Christopher had a blast and we happened to get to the chimps right when they were let out for the day and it was so funny to watch them chase each other around fighting over the oranges they were given for breakfast. We left right before the event ended to make sure Christopher had a nap and later we actually had to wake him up so we could head to Nicholas' birthday party. The kids had so much fun playing together and even more fun once they got into the cake! Saturday afternoon was spent napping and relaxing in the backyard. We let Christopher play in the sprinkler since we knew there was no way to keep him out of it. (He would live outside in the rain if we'd let him!) Sunday we headed to church and then went to watch the Montgomery Biscuits play. Christopher LOVED it! He had more fun walking around and playing and seeing all the people there. He actually watched part of the game too! We left after the 10th inning because he was barely awake and was in desperate need of a nap. Thankfully we didn't have to return home until Monday so we all crashed Sunday night. Needless to say it was a wonderfully fun and exciting weekend for the three of us and the rest of the week will be spent recovering.