Splashin' Good Time

Yesterday after VBS the kids had some friends over to swim for the afternoon. I was afraid because thunderstorms were in the forecast, but it turned out to be a nice afternoon, with the storms rolling in later. These 4 kids had so much fun playing together...

There was some shooting:

And some splashing:

And some super-silliness:


And some rinsing:
And some super-star jumping:


And some smiling:

And then some showers, and some resting before church. The matinee of the afternoon was Toy Story:They all had so much fun together and swam for almost 3 hours! Between VBS and a long day of playing, my kids were wiped out!!! They both fell asleep on the way home from church and I woke up at a marvelous 8:45 this morning and realized that neither of them had woken up yet!! I love a full day of playing that leads to a LONG night of sleeping!

The morning after...

Right before I went to bed Monday night I snapped this picture of Jordan who was sound asleep in her hammock. I had told them both that if they woke up in the middle of the night and didn't want to sleep in their hammock anymore that they should quietly just get up and get in their beds, thus not hollering and waking up Mommy or Daddy. Well, Lawson was already asleep in his bed when Jon and I came upstairs to go to bed.
I was curious how long Jordan would last, and was surprised when I woke up in the morning and realized that no one had woken me up all night. I figured J must have stayed in the hammock, since I didn't really think that she could possibly wake up in the middle of the night and not feel the need to wake everyone else up too.

I was shocked when I peeked in her room and saw this:
This morning Lawson told me that he just likes to rock and get sleepy in his hammock but then get in his bed because it's softer. Jordan has fallen asleep in the hammock twice and woken up in her bed twice. They have both taken entire naps in the hammocks, though. And their favorite thing is to sit in the hammock upright and kick off the floor and swing. They both LOVE that, because who wouldn't love to have a huge swing right in your own room? :)

Sweet Swinging Dreams

Tonight was the night that we decided to hang the souvenirs that we brought back from Honduras for the kids--Hammocks!! They have been SO excited since we came back and showed them what we had found...kid-sized ones just for them!

It took us several routes of thought process to figure out just how we were going to hang them, but once we got it straight it didn't take long to get them up. The kids could hardly contain their excitement!
Lawson got right into his, with no trouble at all. He just plopped his booty in and swung his feet up and laid down... Jordan, on the other hand, required a little more assistance:
Whoops!
Almost...
Wiggle, wiggle, scoot...
Squirmy squirm,
Cool beans!
We contemplated taking wagers on how long they would last in the hammocks, since they both had plans on staying in the hammock all night...

An hour after I did bedtime, Jordan is out cold in the hammock, arm hanging over the side. Lawson has relocated to the bed, where he is sound asleep.

Sweet swinging dreams everyone!

One of our favorite places with some of our favorite people

May 21-22 we went to Chattanooga with our friends the Bybees. Sunny already posted about this here, but I thought I would make a post of my own, too! We had a late night Friday, full of driving, checking into our hotel, Cracker Barrel and getting 5 wired kids ready for bed in a hotel! We were so excited to have adjoining suites, so we put the kids to bed in the bedrooms, then the adults could stay up and talk in the living room as late as we wanted!! After Jason and Sunny headed back to their room, we moved our kids out to the sofa...Jordan got herself propped up on this couch cushion--glad she's not a grown-up because she would've been sore the next day!Once everyone woke up, it was kind of like a mad house!!!
Saturday was Sunny's birthday, so Jason and the kids had some gifts for her to open...
Then Jason put the wrong sized memory card in the new camera that he got Sunny, and had to use my tweezers to do 'surgery' and extract the foreign object!
So in the meantime, Jackson decided to just keep on being cute...
Then we went to the aquarium. Here are Lawson and Abby Kate looking at a snake...
And Lawson and Jackson petting stingrays and sand sharks. Lawson's sleeve and right side of his shirt is completely soaked, by this point...
These are 3 of my most favorite people!
We spent some time in the butterfly house, where Jon caught a butterfly, then helped Lawson hold it, then helped Lawson give it to Jordan, then helped Jordan hold it. That's teamwork!
After the aquariums, we were headed back to the parking garage to head home, and Joshua was walking backwards so that the sun wouldn't be in his eyes.
When lo and behold we heard a baseball announcer from high in the sky! We looked up and saw the stadium for the Lookouts, and guessed that the game was just beginning from the announcements. We hiked up about 8,000 steps and got in for only $4/adult! Of course we were all so thirsty we drank $20 worth of drinks, but it was still so fun!
Sunny and Abby Kate
Jason and Joshua
Jon and Lawson
Jon and Jordan
Joshua and Lawson
We left the game right after the 7th inning stretch because it was late, we were tired, and we still had to drive home! We realized we hadn't had dinner yet, so to top the night off we had a fancy birthday meal at Krystal!! So fun!

It really was a fun way to spend a weekend with great friends!!

T-Ball 2010

Today, at exactly the same time, was his last game of the season...and her first game ever. It was kinda sad that we were split up for the games, but I guess that has to happen sometimes!
Without any number requests at all, they both happened to be numbered '4' this year!
Great season Cardinals!!! And good luck Pirates!

Such A Good Big Brother

I love this picture and this memory so much!

One day a few weeks back I was downstairs trying to get some things done. My kids have always been very good about being interactive with me but also being able to play on their own when I need to work on something. This particular day they were playing upstairs in their rooms, but I noticed that they had been especially quiet for a while. I walked upstairs and peeked in--to see this.

I love that they are laying next to each other. I love that he is 'reading' this story (that he practically knows by heart) to her. I love that they are cuddled under his blanket, but that she has her blankie to keep her company. I love that they love each other so much, and really are each others' best friend for right now.

Now Let's Go Out and Play

My friend Lindsey just started a blog, and I loved reading her first post!! She is such a genuine, kind, loving person. Her blog is called I'll Never Be June Cleaver, and it reminded me of a poem that I posted a long time ago. I've never re-posted one of my posts before, but I'm going to re-post this one. I first blogged this in July of 2007.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
For most of you, it's no big secret that I am not going to win any housewife awards. Or housekeeping awards. Which would include dusting awards. Or dishes awards. Or laundry. Or shower-cleaning. Or cooking. Or anything else that involves keeping anything tidy, for that matter. At any given moment, there may be dishes in my sink, flowing out to the counter. Dirty clothes strewn through the living room (and pretty much anywhere else someone from the family has walked today!) There might be dirty diapers laying next to where I changed them (because I'm too tired/lazy to throw them out one at a time). And a plethora of toys and books spread across every inch of floor to let you know that we HAVE been doing something today.

A visit to my house has a prerequisite of at least a 10 minute phone call!! This gives me enough time to scrape the surface and at least make the carpet show through the stuff again! And if you drop in on me, you can bet I'll try to keep you out of the kitchen!!! :)

I found this poem on one of my favorite places to lurk and read--Rocks in My Dryer--and I love it!

I have always said that all I ever wanted to be was a mommy--I don't remember ever mentioning all that housekeeping stuff!! :)

Now Let's Go Out and Play

Some houses try to hide that fact
That children shelter there.
Ours boasts of it quite openly--
The signs are everywhere.
For smears are on the windows,
Little smudges on the doors.
I should apologize, I guess,
For toys strewn on the floor.
But I sat down with the children
And we played and laughed and read.
And if the bathtub doesn't shine
Their eyes will shine instead.
For when, at times, I'm forced to choose
The one job or the other,
I want to have a lovely house,
But first I'll be a mother.

--Author Unknown

Buddies

Here is Lawson with one of his best buddies...I just think this picture is precious! (Well, minus the pile of dirty napkins piled high in front of them! Five kids on one end and four adults way down on the other...can you imagine the mess those napkins had to take care of!!)

Lawson and Joshua have been friends since they were babies because their mommas (here's his momma) were friends and they had no choice! But they have grown into that friendship and absolutely love playing together and being silly together. This is their 3rd year to play t-ball together and they are having such a fun time. I hope that their friendship grows to be strong and deep over the years and that they can encourage each other to live out their faith daily.

I am thankful that Jon and I have good friends who are fun to be with but who also sharpen us in our spirituality. I pray that our children will grow up realizing the importance of having friends who love God and encourage us to be more like Him!