NC Trip, Part One

It's great to be home! We've had an eventful 5 days with my side of the family in Asheboro, North Carolina. The highlight for Scott so far has been going on the 2 hour-long canopy tour (zip line park) with my oldest brother, Scott, in the forest about 20 minutes from my mom's. Tim, I know you would have loved it!! (My brother and his wife are in India for two months, so they weren't with us this time). Evidently one of the guides told my hubby that he was a little nervous when he went down the line... someone was going a little too fast and didn't break until the very end:) They had so much fun that my sister-in-law, Leslie, and I (Kasey, are you in, too??) are going to go next year! Scott and I spent some quality time with my nephews and took them bowling, putt-putt golfing, and to lunch. We also went swimming, went to the NC Zoo, and have done a little bit of shopping:) LOVE Carter's Outlet! My mom and I even went to see a girly movie, The Proposal, which was really cute. (Scott is SOOOO thankful!) My dad also was able to drive up from Florida this trip to meet Erin (my niece) and Addison, which was a lot of fun! Erin is still awaiting her heart transplant, but as you can see from the pictures, she is doing very well under the circumstances and is a joy to be around. It was great to see the two girls (who are just a few months apart) starting to interact with each other, even if it was just stealing each others' toys!

Four generations: My grandmother, mom, me and Addie

In my mom's garden
Scott and the zip line

My brother, Scott

Eli, Addie and Erin

Playing with my new doll and stroller at Grammy's

Ethan and the elephant

Addie LOVED her cousin Ethan.... look at them holding hands!

Eli at putt-putt golf

Eli bowling-he was too funny to watch!

My Dad and Erin

Next we're on our way to the NC mountains to spend time with Scott's family. I'll share more pics later!

Father's Day Fun

I hope you all had a wonderful Father's Day yesterday! We woke up early and went to the Broken Egg Cafe on 71st for breakfast, went to church, then came home to watch a little golf and take a nap. Later in the day, we went to Safari's Interactive Animal Sanctuary, located just minutes from our house. They have over 200 animals, most coming from individuals who owned these animals as pets or from zoos that over breed. You know I love reading about celebrities, and two of the animals were actually given to the zoo by Mike Tyson (two tigers)! Our tour guide was very informative and Addison LOVED petting the animals.

I love this picture. It was extremely hot yesterday, so our tour guide decided to cool off one of the tigers. The tiger jumped in his big watering bin as she hosed him down!

Addie and the deer... look at how far the deer stuck her head out of the cage to get a fruit snack!

This just cracks me up.... I wonder what the deer is thinking??

Scott and Addie petting a wolf. Well, this one is just half wolf:)

Addie and the llama.

Meet the goat.

They had a little sprinkler set up... it felt great!

Next we went to Wendy's for a frosty. They were donating 50 cents per frosty towards orphan care... what a great reason to get a Frosty on Father's Day! I gave Addison just a bite and then she took my whole cup!

We finished our day with a swim in the neighborhood pool and watering the flowers. She quite enjoys the hose.

One more. I have a cute little friend who now resides in my front flower pot. He jumps pretty high to get in there, but has been in there the past few times I've watered. I think he's fun and I'm glad I've made him a happy home:)

Clean Slate Before and After Pictures

This weekend our church helped five families get a "Clean Slate" by transforming their homes and their lives. 500 volunteers, $1500 per house, and 48 hours later, here is what happened to the house we worked on. My super cute and talented friend, Kara, was the designer and her hubby was the project manager for the house. By the way, she is truly amazing.... check out the rest of her blog to see how she has transformed her house without spending a fortune. You'll need to check out her bathroom and my very favorite, her new outdoor living area! And, the best part of the whole weekend was that the teenager of our family (who voluntarily went to camp with his younger brothers to help them out-what 15 year-old does THAT!?!) decided to give his life to Christ at the end of the weekend. I'll post a link to our church's website when they upload the video of all 5 Clean Slate transformations later this week.

First Big Swim of the Summer!

It's been HOT here in Tulsa, so we decided to go to our neighborhood pool and hope that the water has warmed up enough for all three of us. We went to the pool some last year, but being only a few months old, she wasn't really ready for the pool yet. Well, she had a BLAST tonight! She loved kicking and falling into our arms from the side of the pool. And, she especially loved watching all of the other people in the pool. The camera batteries died within the first two minutes of being at the pool, so we'll have to capture more next time!

Earlier in the day waiting for me while I got the mail. Oh, and she LOVES her Target Flip Flops that she has on in the picture! Actually, she loves shoes in general. In fact, she has cried once or twice when I've taken her shoes off- seriously. She has also cried when I've put on a different pair than what she wanted. Is she 2, or better yet, 16 or what?? Oh, the drama begins so young!!

While I was cleaning.... she loves to vacuum with me. This is the best kid vacuum ever. I got it for $5 at the JBF sale. (Just Between Friends... consignment sale that is HUGE here in Tulsa).

A little blurry, but I had to share. Yes, she's dusting!! Before you get too excited and email me wondering how I've taught her so young, just know that it lasted about 30 seconds:)

Stylish on the way to the pool. She kept those sunglasses on the whole time! They are awesome. We got them at Academy (love that store!) and they bend in every way possible. I don't think they are breakable at all... Genius!

In the pool.

Swimming in the sundress

Addison and I were outside yesterday when Daddy came home for lunch. So excited, she ran over to her pool and jumped in as I was yelling, "Noooooooooooo!!" Oh well, she had fun and we got a good laugh. I ran in the house so I could capture a few pictures of it.

Daddy was about to spray water all over her and she was getting ready.

Below is a pic of when I told her we needed to change her clothes (which she HATES!). She ran to her swing/slide and closed her eyes. Maybe she thought if she couldn't see us, we couldn't see or find her!?

Yep, got the clothes off and evidently she discovered her belly again.

Weekend Pictures

We took a quick trip to the park on the way home from doing errands yesterday. Addie protested how quickly we had to leave the park compared to the hours she patiently waited while we ran errands (and she was great the whole time!).

Next, I happened to find a great deal at Bed Bath and Beyond while we were looking for something else (doesn't that always happen!). I found this apron for under $9! I don't have an apron, but with all the cooking I do, I figured I should get one.

Picture before church today. We discovered we don't have a bow that matches the pink in her dress.... Scott just rolled his eyes:) I mean, you wouldn't think that there were SO MANY shades of pink until you have a girl that has to have a matching bow!

One more from today...

I forgot this one from today-I think it's so precious. I wonder what she's thinking about! She walked over and just sat right at the edge of my garden. Maybe she was watching Buster:)

Addie's Fun Afternoon

It was a gorgeous afternoon in Tulsa today, so I decided to get Addison in her $5 pool for the first time. Yep, it was totally worth every penny! I think we'll try the neighborhood pool tomorrow, though I don't know how warm the water will be!

Almost ready. I tell ya, I foresee ballet classes and a little pink tutu in her future! And yes, I put bows in her hair even when going in the water:)

Noticing the pool for the first time (we've been hiding it in the garage!)

Buster joined in the fun by drinking the water from the pool-can you see his tongue?? :)

Another reason why Buster is such a great dog. He'll let her do this! Um, yeah, I think his nose is in her mouth. I told her to give him a hug and a kiss, but I didn't know she'd quite go THAT far:)

A ride on the swing. She has to go on it every time we go outside!

Scott heard about how much fun we had, so we put on another bathing suit and had round two when he got home.Addison LOVES my sunglasses. Here she is trying to put them on Scott's head.

This was such a sweet moment for me. Addison started giving Scott kisses as she was swinging.

Isn't this cute? She's turning around a little further to give him another kiss. I have like 20 different pictures of this... she kept giving him kisses over and over!

Chasing Buster who was in the bushes.