Swimming at Pops

I can't believe that I forgot to post this, but its been busy...what can I say??
A few weeks ago, Jarrod's dad turned 60, so we went to their house for the day to celebrate. Logan decided that he was finally big enough to dive off of the diving board--what a brave little boy he has become! This was Elly's first swimming experience and she had a ball. She wants to have her face in the water all of the time--which is quite a problem for the person holding her because she is constantly trying to dive out of your arms and into the water. Here are a few pictures of the day.

Camping out, Walking in Water and VBSing

The past few weeks have been nuts, but so fun. We had our Vacation Bible School two weeks ago--and the kids both loved it. Logan had a ton of fun and Elly got to hang out with Honey for 3 nights in a row...that's always a great time for her. Then last week, Logan attended a local church VBS all week and although apprehensive at first, he ended up loving it. Thankfully that's the last VBS for the summer because while he loved it, I think we are all "VBS'd" out. We had a playdate sans Logan on Tuesday at Ashley's and then had a wonderful time at a local waterpark with lots of friends on Friday. This is a FABULOUS place because the deepest the water gets is 1 1/2 feet and there are lifeguards, so with small kids its the perfect, perfect place to go on a 107 degree summer day! Friday night Logan and Daddy headed out for their first Father-son campout. They had a BLAST--Logan has not stopped talking about it and I can't see that he will in the foreseeable future. Here are a few pictures from the waterpark and the campout compliments of my sweet friend Karen.

Sweet Daddy!

Well, I haven't been very good at blogging lately...mostly because we have been doing all of the things that embody summer and thus not sitting in front of the computer very often. Today, I realized that I let Father's Day pass without a little "shout out" to the best father I know. I have a wonderful step-father and he has been key in my life for over 20 years. He is caring, compassionate and just a precious, precious man whom I love and whom my children love and adore. Hopefully, I will not offend him in saying that even though he has my greatest respect...I have to say that my precious husband is the best father that I know. I could list a million reasons why--and sometime maybe I will, but most likely our two mothers are the only ones who would care enough to read that list...so here is a shorter list:

1. Everyday at 5:00, he is bombarded with Logan opening his office door asking if he can play...and most days he gets up and does. (Notice, there is no transition time, no down time, no decompression, just straight from the office to some sort of 4 year old game.)
2. He changes diapers, gives baths, reads stories and nurses hurts without so much as a sigh.
3. He takes Logan to every Tuesday Rangers game that the Rangers are in town and we're in town.
4. Building Logan into a godly, strong Christian leader is of the utmost importance to him and he goes to all lengths to be an example of that to him.
5. He helps give Logan encouragement and courage when Logan is in uncomfortable situations
6. He teaches him all of the boy things you want in a boy--to hunt, to fish, to play sports, to pray, to fix things, all about the car engine, to be a gentleman, and so on...
7. He is the best example of what a Christian husband is and how he should treat his family
8. He takes the kids to the donut shop most Saturday mornings for Daddy time
9. He is wrapped pretty tightly around sweet Elly's finger...which I'm convinced is why he was so adamant that we not have a girl. ; ) I can't even describe how my sweet 10 month old baby girl lights up when she hears her daddy's voice or sees him. Yes, the one that's supposed to be attached to me dives from my arms to get to her daddy. It is pretty priceless.
10. He loves us all and gives to us all tirelessly, fully and without grumbling or complaining. We are all better people because he loves so completely.

The Houseboat

Jarrod's parents bought a houseboat on Lake Ouachita (Arkansas) the year that we got married and each year since, we have gone with a group of our college friends to enjoy a weekend relaxing and playing together on the water. I don't know that there has been a year where we were all accounted for--which is this season of our lives...this year (our 8th trip)we greatly missed the Cummings and the Stringers who both had beautiful new baby boys to care for at home.
I truly love the lake, really I love any lake, but this lake is PERFECT--it's super clean, it's clear, it's HUGE and it's absolutely gorgeous. This year was a little hectic because we went at the end of our trip to visit my parents--this meant that my children were with us,which is generally a "no-no" this particular weekend on the boat. (Can you imagine 12 children on a houseboat for 3-4 days??? No thank you, my own make me nervous enough!) However, Logan spent most of his time with Pops and Mimi and Elly spent a fair amount with them as well. Here are some pictures of Logan fishing and Elly exploring.


Porters, Hemphills, Dyers and McClures

Wordless Wednesday

9 Months

Well, our sweet Miss Priss turned 9 months just before our trip. The week before we left, I started to call the Doctor because I was becoming quite worried about her developmental delays. Something told me to hold off and I knew that we had an appointment when we got back, so I didn't take her. Apparently little miss heard me because on our trip she started
1. climbing
2. pulling up
3. cruising along furniture/bags/anything that she could find
4. eating tablefood like a HORSE
5. and the day before our doctor's appointment, she finally started crawling on all 4's. (June 7, for the baby book)

So, at 9 months (plus a few weeks) she is crawling, drinking very well from a sippy cup (Sunday night, we had a meal with rotel and she drank the ENTIRE sippy cup of water at dinner--I have lots of witnesses!), she has an excellent pincer grasp, she's eating everything that we eat and mostly feeding it to herself, cruising, pulling up, dancing, saying "Mama" "Dada" and "Yaya" (for Logan). She can wave bye bye on command and sign all done and more. She has gained a little over a pound and is weighing in at 15 lbs, 8 oz. and is 27 1/2 inches long. She's 5th percentile weight and 43rd in height.

I say it at every "month" post: she's precious. We love her so much and could not imagine life without her and all that she adds to our family! We praise God that she is healthy, happy and such a joy to be with all day!

Trip to Murfreesboro

We had a great time visiting my parents. There is something comforting in knowing where the people you love are--being able to picture them in their house or around town. Visiting their church, their office and some of their favorite restaurants and grocery stores just gives a sense of peace, at least for me. My parents moved into their house the week before we got there, so there was plenty to do. We got a little unpacking done, got the garage rearranged, got some shopping in, and a lot of eating done. We also visited church with them, visited David's temporary office and did a little sightseeing. Of course there wasn't enough time, but there never will be. Here are some of my favorite pictures from our trip.