Happy (Belated) Birthday, America!!

We had a great 4th of July! All the boys LOVED the fireworks!

Hope you all spent the holiday weekend surrounded by friends, family, or fireworks...

Here are a few pics from the parade... KK made the boys some little USA flags and the were so excited to wave them so proudly as everyone paraded by. But it was pretty comical to see Bry throw his on the ground at the drop of a hat as soon as he realized they were throwing candy!

Bryson and his candy...

The Family at the fireworks that night...

The Great-Grand Tour

It is an incredible blessing that my boys have 7 great-grandparents still here with us, so we try to make a trip to go see all of them at least once a year. The trip was about 1200 miles total, and it was loads of FUN! On Wednesday, we loaded up the 'burban with the luggage, the movies, the snacks, the pillows, and the boys and headed out to West Texas... Our first stop was Coahoma, TX to visit Gran Gran. The boys love her so much. They always talk about how Gran Gran is always laughing... and they are so right! She was all giggles and smiles the whole time we were there!

Then on Thursday, we crossed the state line and geaded onto Jal, New Mexico to visit my grandparents...

One of the highlights of Jal, NM is going to the lake and feeding the ducks....

Coby getting in some snuggling with Dandy...

The boys and my (very patriotic) Nana and Dandy waiting for the 4th of July parade

Nana and Dandy have some great trees in their yard that the boys love to climb...

Silly Monkeys

We also got to visit my Pop Pop and KK. They had lots of fun playing in their rocks, climging their fence, and playing baseball at their house. We also went with KK to see the fireworks at the park. I didnt get a great pic there, but this at least documents the occasion I guess. It was dark and they had been waiting for the fireworks to start....
I loved this picture with my Pop Pop and KK

What a crazy bunch... I love KK's silly face and then Pop Pop's look!

Then we headed back into Texas, stopping on the way back in Noodle, Texas (30 miles outside of Abilene) to see Mamaw and Papaw. One of the highlights of their house is the TRACTORS!! Although, I am not sure who had more fun racing the tractors... Papaw or the boys!

Here is the gang with Mamaw and Papaw

We went from Noodle to Jacksboro to see GiGi and Gdad, but I was bad and forgot to take a picture!! But we drove up to Wichita Falls and picked up my nephew Dustin and brought him home with us for the week. I decided to leave Coby and Cason there with GiGi to go to their VBS in Jacksboro, so I just brought 3 home with me. Micah and Dustin have had a blast so far this week!

It was a great, memorable trip... But after a 1200 miles, 5 stops, and 9 grandparents in less than one week, here is how we all feel.......

Where has my baby gone??

I had been scared to post about our paci-detox and our potty training adventures for fear of jinxing myself... and we are leaving town tomorrow for a week long out of state trip, so I have to admit that I am expecting some reverting while we travel, but for now... so far, so good!!
Bryson has not had his paci in over 3 weeks!! He found one in his diaper bag the other day and sucked on it for a second. I realized he had it and asked for it and he gave it up willingly... so I think he is over it! Yay!
We started potty training this past Saturday, and he has picked it up so easily... so much easier than my other 3. Maybe because he has 3 "cheerleaders" and examples to follow.... and in everything we have done, he has always wanted to be like his big brothers.... Yesterday, he went ALL DAY (excluding naptime) with out a single accident! We went to the pool, HEB, Walmart, and Souper Salads, and he used the potty at all 4 places! (And I am reminded of how much public toilets GROSS me out!!)
He went poop in the potty for the first time and we had a popsicle party for him. Now he is over the rewards and after he goes potty, he just wants a "high five" from anyone in a 10-foot radius of the potty... It is pretty cute! I am so proud of him, and I am so excited to have bought my last box of diapers, but at the same time, I am typing thru some tears thinking that my baby is growing up so, so fast! Enjoy the pictures.... they will be great on his senior slide show someday, so I kept them modest! :o)

When we first started, he wanted to completely strip to sit on the potty... even his shirt.... but then he wanted to have his hat and flip flops back on. It was pretty funny. We have gotten past that now, but here is a funny pic....

At Wal-Mart, I let him pick out some new undies and he chose Superman. Here is the proud little booger sporting his new duds... in his hat and flip flops, of corse!

Honey and Heaven

Our church family will not be the same for anyone with out the presence of our sister and friend, Ruth "Honey" Dillard. Unfortunately, I was not one of the many who knew her so well... (see Emily's beautiful tribute to Honey here) but I know from her funeral today that she touched so many lives so deeply. My boys knew her not only by her contagious smile but also by her bell. She had a walker that she lovingly referred to as "John Henry" and she had a little bicycle-type bell on it. The boys loved to go ring her bell every sunday, and she loved for them to run up and greet her as they rang it each week. Last Sunday, Cason asked if he could go find Honey and ring her bell and I told him that she was not there are church because she had died and gone to Heaven. His face went from a state of shock to one of pure joy. "I bet she is gettin to see Jesus, mommy!" I fought back the tears as I agreed with him. "Yes, I am sure she is with Jesus!" I wish I had the faith and the desire of a child...

Today at her funeral, they played a recording of an interview that she had done before she went to see Jesus. She had the sweetest voice. When her distinct voice came over the loud speaker, Cason began looking around, "Mommy... that's her... that's Honey!"

"No, Cason, that is just her voice."

"From Heaven?"

Sweet, sweet boy.... he was so confused... I explained that it was recorded before she passed away and he tried to understand but he continued to look around as if he expected to see her standing across the room. At the end of the service, my boys were given the honor of closing her memorial service with one last ring on John Henry's bell. What a beautiful picture I have of Honey up there with Jesus, with a smile on her face as they rang her bell one last time. Every time I hear a bicycle bell, I will think of Honey and the incredible example she was to so many.

Family Fun Night

Quick disclaimer... I can not get the videos of Cason and Coby to upload for some reason... blogger is not cooperating w/ me, so for now, enjoy watching Bry and the pure joy of his SPARE (he actually rolled 3 spares and one strike!) But keep in mind that he was equally as excited about the gutter balls as he was the strike. The hopping was the same every time! Too funny!

And just for the record, When we go to a big place like this, I often make the boys wear the same shirt so I can keep up with them easier, but I did NOT make Clint wear a shirt to match the boys... I let him pick out his own clothes... and although it looks like the same shirt in the neon lighting, it really doesn't match the boys! :o) but that would be a cute idea... just kidding, Babe, just kidding!

I made the boys chore charts for the summer, and they have been working hard to get everything done. Each morning, we dont leave the house until they have done a few things on their charts. For the most part, they have been just self-motivated with no specific reward in mind. They have gotten so excited about putting their stickers on their charts. We counted on Saturday, and they had 114 stickers between the 4 charts.... so I decided it was time for a reward. We took the boys to a fun bowling alley with neon lights for a fun family night out... needless to say, they had a BLAST! And not that it matters, but Mommy won (yes, she got a higher score than Daddy... the boys were way impressed).... I had the bowler dudes pring the score sheet for proof. I never beat clint at anything!

My videos keep messing up... so here are 2 of the 4. I love Bryson's reaction... he did this everytime he bowled. Cason did a victory dance each time, so I need to work on getting that one to upload! :o)

Twinkle, Twinkle

I know, I know, 3 posts in one day.... I had some free time to do some catching up today! This video was too sweet not to post it... he sings it better with the boys, but this was sweet to hear his version "solo"

Livin' at the pool and the little league field!

So I havent done very well updating my blog lately... we have been super busy up until this week... but since then, we have been hanging out at these 2 places:

Livin' it up at the Pool!

Here is my little motor-boat... he gets anywhere he needs to go just kicking away...

The 3 amigos... they have a blast together! All 3 are swimming really well this summer, so the pool is pretty easy for me! This has been my first "easy" summer in 7 years! :o)

My Goggle-Eyed Friends

Crazy Boys!

Livin' at the Little League Field....

Micah is rocking it out in Coach-pitch baseball... he gets a good hit on the 1st or second pitch each time... even this past time when we needed a pitcher, not a belly-itcher... (clint filled in at the last minute as pitcher when the head coach couldnt make it to the game! :o))

Coby is ready to go! I had a pic of him batting, but the sunlight in the background messed it up... We can tell a huge difference in Coby's focus and catching abilities post-eye surgery!


Cason up to bat. He is so cute as he runs those bases with a big ol' grin!

Hope you all are having a great, realxing summer!!

Party at the Dell Diamond

So this was a few weeks ago, but I had to post these pics from Micah's end-of-the-year party at the Dell Diamond. We had loads of fun. Many poeple had a hard time believing that I really did the bungoe jumping thing, so here is my proof.... back flips and all! :o) I need not mention that I had difficulty even walking the next day from my sore muscles... who knew that the bungie jumping uses every single muscle in your body.... did you know that we have muscles in our armpits? Well, we do!

Here is Micah after he got up the nerve to try it out...

This was so fun... I scremaed like a little girl and felt like a kid again... until the next morning that is when I realized that I am an old lady!

One of my many back flips... they were more successful than my front flips. I did one or 2 of those, but my first one landed me on my head. A friend got it on video, so it may appear on YouTube someday.

The class looking out over the diamond... cool pic!

Camp Agape

Camp Agape was a smashing success!! Many long days and late nights go into the planning of camp, and it is always well-worth it! This year's theme was "I AM" and we told the story of Moses, the egyptian slaves, the burning bush, the plagues, the passover, and the exodus. Here is a pic of the kids around the cool pyramid that Clint built... the kids (slaves) made bricks out of clay, dirt, and hay and they laid them on the pyramid. By the end if the week, it looked really cool. I need to post an "after" picture.

(Quick disclaimer: I was in charge of the preschool department again this year, so I have zero pictures of my older 2 boys... I have a friend who is making me a CD of several that she took and I will post those when I get them. They had a blast, too!)

Lil' Bry stomping in the mud to make bricks with his cute little friend, Bree.

Cason helping make bricks... he didnt want to get his feet yukky!

The "line" of 2-year olds! Cuteness!

Daddy came to visit at slip n slide time!! What a treat!

Cason "focusing" during crafts.

My little dare-devil.... he was the only 2-year old to try it by himself!

Case-O on the big slip-n-slide

What a week!!

Lost and Found

My camera went mysteriously MIA last Thursday when I was gone to bunko. Luckily, it was found back behind the couch... in mint condition... and just in time for Camp Agape this week (more pictures to come soon). As I downloaded my pictures today, the mystery of the missing camera began to unfold......

Picture # 1: A (small) foot... I now have 4 suspects

Picture #2: Daddy is [so diligently watching the boys while mommy is away at bunko] sleeping in the recliner

Picture # 3: Ceiling fan

Picture #4: The rug and some body part...



Picture # 5: I have no clue

Picture # 6

I would recognize those baby blues anywhere! Mystery solved... almost...

Picture #7: My red-headed stinker and his Accomplice!!