Spike's Birthday Party

I love my life as a mommy! Where else do you get to participate in a birthday party for a lizard??

Spike greets the guests at his birthday party

Time for presents!

Mommy gave Spike some personalized rocks for his home

Another gift.. can you imagine the time and detail Brooke put into planning this party? Check out the tiny present and tiny card.

Spike got his very own lizard book that had an actual story on those tiny little pages.

Time for lizard cake.. aka. romaine lettuce, a marshmallow and a candle.

Yum! Spikes approves!

So do Brooke and Ali!



Lake Hartwell 2011

This Thanksgiving we got to return to Lake Hartwell with our homegroup for another amazingly fun week.

Six families

Sixteen kids

Twelve Adults

One House

Oodles of Fun!

Pizza night! How many kids can you fit at one dining room table?

Garrett approves of the fried turkey

Our group enjoying the Thanksgiving feast

Fun outdoors!

Steve proves he is incapable of taking a serious belly photo

How many monkeys in the bed?

Lots of rope swinging! Thanks to this rope swing in Georgia, we now have one in our yard.

And so much time spent creating an amazing fairy village!

All the kids lined up with their t-shirt backpacks. Lots of craft time at the lake!

We had so much fun..such amazing memories made with great friends!

Robbie and Jessica's Wedding

In November we got to celebrate the marriage of Robbie and Jessica! It was such a beautiful and fun day. Robbie is so blessed to have Jessica as his wife and we are blessed to have her in our family.

Rehearsal

The two beautiful flower girls

The happy couple

The Wedding

Sarah, junior bridesmaid, and our girls

Me and my two beauties

Dancing for the mirror

Right before the ceremony!

Micheal pulls Tyler down the aisle

Here come the flower girls

Beautiful ceremony on Lake Bryan

The Wedding Party having a Party!

Michael and Brooke on the dance floor (they were really good!)

Family Dance

Gotta have the YMCA!

Ali and Aunt Jessica during the Dollar Dance

Brooke and Aunt Jessica

Congrats Robbie, Jessica and Tyler! We love you and are so happy for you!

Sibling Class

To prepare for the big arrival of their baby brother, Brooke and Ali got to attend a sibling class at the hospital. They each got a coloring book that talked about what to expect once baby came home.

We also watched a silly video about what NOT to do to your baby brother. I hope they paid good attention. Then they each got a diaper and attempted to put it on their stuffed animal and baby doll.

Nicely done girls!

And then a tour of the hospital.

No doubt, this baby will have the very best sisters ever!

What Ali wants to be when she grows up..

1. Animal doctor
2. Famous singer
3. Car washer
4. Weather girl
5. Fingernail and toenail painter
6. Teacher
7. Hair cutter

Invading Trenton

In October the Shelleys had a big life change that was both a cause for celebration and the cause of broken hearts. They were moving to Trenton, FL. While we are so thrilled that they get to leave the big city and  live the slower paced life they craved, selfishly we are sad to not have them around in O-Town. In November, the girls and I hitched a ride with mom and dad, and off to Trenton we went!

The first night we were there we had oysters on the fire and steaks on the grill while the kids jumped on the trampoline in the dark.

Picnic at the park

Playing at the playground! Cousins are so much fun!

Walking along the Suwanee River.

I told Ali we were going to go for a little hike along the Suwanee River. When we got there she looked disappointed and said, "Mommy, this river isn't swanny! I don't see any swans at all!" Oh, how I love her.

When we got back to Steph's, the kids decorated the back porch with chalk, flowers, and more to welcome any wandering fairies.

More trampoline fun!

And a crazy ride in Uncle Joe's buggy!

Me and my sissy! I sure miss having them close by but I'm so happy they have found their little piece of paradise.