Camping, School, and Summer Fun

SOMETIMES YOU HAVE TO SLOW DOWN TO SPEED UP!

Over the past few months I have not done a very good job of reading or posting. In fact, I feel like I have been a C+ in most areas of my life lately. Have you ever had that feeling?

Well NO MORE!

I am making a promise to myself, to my family, to my friends, and to my readers to be an A+!

LIFE IS SWEET!

I KNOW...

that I have not been a good blogger AT ALL! I do read most of your blogs but I have not been great on commenting or posting. No excuses...just a busy bee :).

In the last month and a half lots of goodness has been flowing through our home and through my soul.

* Web finished out his year at Oakland High School and next year he will begin at Oakland Middle School. He will be teaching Tech Ed and coaching golf. Can you believe his classroom is the biggest at the school; 3000 square feet. He is on cloud nine!

* I read The Help last month for our book club and it is definitely one of the best books ever written. It will change your way of thinking, it will make you cry, and it will make you laugh.

* Vance is well on his way of being potty trained and it is such a blessing. He still has an accident every now and again BUT he does really well. There is nothing cuter than watching him run around in his "underwares" and pretending to be Spiderman.

* Work has been really busy and really amazing as of late. We have lots of exciting things going on and it makes me feel so good to be a part of it all. On May 26th, we dedicated the 3000th home built in TN. It was a beautiful ceremony in Appalachia, TN.

* I found an incredible blogger and her name is Kelle Hampton. I wish I could meet her and be her friend b/c she is amazing. If you have not read her story before, please do. You will want to be her friend too :).

* Jack is growing like a weed and believe it or not, he turned 1 on June 4th. Um Father Time, could you take a chill pill on being so speedy?! This past year flew by and I have bittersweet emotions about it; sad that he is no longer a little baby but excited about the future. Check out the pics from his birthday.

Jack LOVES Elmo so we had a Sesame Street Theme. We had SS balloons, cupcakes, plates, and decorations. Even Jack and Vance wore an Elmo shirt to go with the decor. His birthday was on Friday but our family gathered on Saturday to celebrate Jack and the joy he bring us!

Jack and I opening some gifts! He was not crazy about wripping the paper, so I helped a little:).

Cake Time! He dug into his smash cake like he was a pro. By the end, the cake was all over him, all over our house, all over Ashworth, and all over me. IT WAS PRECIOUS!

After the party we headed outside to cool off and splash in the water. Both of the boys love the pool and we could not be more excited to have two little fish. Their expression in this picture is priceless...HELLO MISCHIEF!

A little close-up of Jack! He looks just.like.his.daddy!

I saved the best pic for last!

The relationship between Vance and Jack is so much fun to watch. They are night and day but oh they do adore one another. From time to time we have to talk about sharing BUT they love one another and I love them so much more for it.

When Vance wakes up and walks in the living room Jack does two things; 1. smiles from ear to ear AND 2. crawls right over to Vance to give him a hug.

LIFE IS SO, SO, SO SWEET!

"You Know What Mommy? I Love You!"

Hearing those words from Vance was the best birthday gift ever!

April is my birthday month and I love it! My birthstone is the diamond and my flower is the sweet pea. It is a great month to celebrate. This year I turned 28...WOW! Still, no matter how old I get, my hubby will always be older :).

We have had such a great and busy month. The weather has been beautiful and made us all ancy for summer.

On April 17th, Habitat had our First Annual "Driving It Home" Golf Tournament. The weather could not have been more beautiful. It was a lot of hard work but Web helped us so much. He recruited four teams and two of them had the highest scores. Of course his team WON!

Saturday night I was pooped! However, I was so excited for Sunday to role around. My family came over to celebrate my birthday. We kept it simple and did afternoon ice cream sundaes. I am a sucker for ice cream, so it was PERFECT. This is me and my sweet parents :).

On my actual birthday I got to spend some quality time with the friends I love the most! We got spa pedicures, had dinner, and ended the evening with some yummy ice cream. It was so nice just sitting, talking, and catching up. It got me so excited for our Galz Trip this fall. We have some great things planned :).

Not only did I have a birthday this month, but my boss turned 50! We celebrated ALL WEEK and then ended it with a surprise party for her. She was shocked and we had the best time. My boss has survived A LOT, so she was happy to celebrate this milestone. Is her cake not the cutest thing?

Of course there is always tons of time spent cuddling and playing with the boys! It seems as though my boys are turning into bottomless pits these days; Web, Vance, Jack, AND Ashworth...LOL. I love how Jack crams his entire hand in his mouth when eating.

Lately I have been finding Vance "hiding" in the pantry. I promise he eats three meals a day and at least a snack or two...BUT he is a snacker and he comes by it honestly. Again, you will notice Ashworth is patiently waiting for a bite.

AND THE BIGGEST NEWS OF THIS MONTH...

JACK IS CRAWLING!!!

Who needs a gym when you have a crawling baby?

April was FULL of good times, good moment, good love AND we are eagerly awaiting May to bring us more!

Easter 2010 - One Of The Best Ever!

This Easter absolutely ROCKED!

I have asked several people how their Easter was and they all say, "It was the best one yet!" More than likely the INCREDIBLE weather we are having helped, but I think it was more than that. There is just new life blooming everywhere and the energy new life brings, makes us all happy!

Our three day weekend was FULL of Easter Celebrations and our boys just soaked it all up!

We took the boys to the Nashville Zoo for their 12th Annual Easter Egg Hunt. There were kidlets at every corner and parents strategizing with them on the best way to get the eggs. Jack was so happy just riding in his stroller and taking it all in. If you look real close, you can see that he has four teeth now. My parents believe this is the sign that means he is ready for a biscuit!

Vance and I dyed Easter Eggs. I helped a little bit BUT he did the majority of it by himself. His favorite part...squeezing in the food coloring.

And then Easter morning came and the excitement in our house was in full force. Before you really look at the picture below, let me just say that Vance LOVES puzzles and he is really good at them. He was excited about his "Spidey" toys BUT when he saw that dinosaur floor puzzle he said "LOOK!"

Have you ever seen a cuter facial expression? Oh wait...look at the next one!

We were hunting Easter Eggs and that was the face he made every.single.time he found one!

We made it to 8:30 Mass and it was a full house! The Homily was just perfect and left me feeling ready to take on the world :).

After church we had stop #1 ~ Nanny's House! She lives just two minutes away from us so it is nice having her close. We visited, had a wonderful brunch, and did two more Egg Hunts. Keep in mind, Vance loved hiding them and then finding them over and over again :).

Our little familia! I love how Jack has his head laid on my chest!

Vance hunting his eggs and enjoying the beautiful weather! Did I mention the weather has been amazing!

Daddy and Vance working on some bike riding skills!

After a wonderful time at Nanny's house, we headed home so the boys could nap. They slept long and hard and were ready to head to Nana Jo and Papa's House!

We had so much fun there! We hunted eggs, flew kites, threw rocks in the creek, ate big, and spent time with my family. I love them so much!!!

The next two pics might be my favorite ones to date! Each of them shows how unique and special each of them are and the joy they bring to our lives!

Yep! Easter 2010 Rocked!!!!

A Little Extra Spring In My Step

Because these are the blessings I call my boys!

Have you ever seen something more precious? Just saying!

Mommy Hood

I don't know about you BUT I love "mommy hood!" Lauren and I were just talking this morning about the moments we wish we could have a little peace and quiet BUT oh the JOY we feel from being "MOMMY!"

Things like coming home on Friday and having dinner outside on a beautiful evening!

Jack has absolutely mastered feeding himself little snacks! He can get down on puffs and cheerios :). He wants to "go" so bad he can't stand it! There are times when it seems like he is just going to jump out of my arms and start walking...LOL.

Vance was so excited to be outside, so we played, played, and played some more. I love watching the relationship between Web and Vance. They have so much fun and love each other so incredibly much.

Things like celebrating life to come with close friends!

On Saturday we held a baby shower for my dear friend Betsey. She is expecting her second baby this May. Friends and family got together at a little country restaurant called Miller's Grocery. We had so much fun and Betsey racked up!

Things like spending time with my parents and decorating Easter cupcakes!

My little chef and I with our cupcakes. He let me ice all of them and then we took turns decorating :). It means so much to me that my parents live close by. They provided an amazing childhood for me and now they are doing the same as grandparents!

Little Jack enjoying some puffs! The entire time we were decorating cupcakes Jack would clap and cheer on Vance. They encourage each other so much and it melts this mommy's heart.

Being a parent is the most challenging and rewarding things I have ever done and I would not trade it for anything! There is nothing better than hearing Vance saying "Mommy" and hearing the happiness he has in his voice. There is nothing better than seeing Jack's smile get a mile wider when I walk in the room. Yep, mommyhood ROCKS!