The 4th

On July the 4th (or 5th) we celebrated Mee Maw's birthday since K'Lynne and her crew were in town from St. Louis.  We pulled off the ultimate surprise for her.  Earlier that morning while she was still sleeping we met out in the back yard and had pictures made on Paw Paw's old blue tractor.  We rushed and got the pictures printed, framed and wrapped up that day for her party that afternoon. Whew! But so worth it  for the look on her face.  I think she was equally blown away with the pictures themselves and their sentimental value. And of course the fact that we actually pulled it off without her having a clue, ha!

We also had some fabulous fireworks this year thanks to Poppy who tried to outdo his neighbor. They have a friendly competition every year, and this year Poppy won hands down. 

Sometimes raising kids and doing life can be so crazy but we have to stop and realize how priceless and precious these memories really are with our family and friends.  If there is anything I've learned from our Mee Maw, it is the importance of taking pictures. It used to drive me crazy growing up but now I am forever grateful.  And  now... I think I'm turning into her! 

Collin turns 7!

We have an Ole Miss fan on our hands now that has just turned 7 years old! We celebrated with a small party on July 12th with family and lots of swimming and his favorite, nachos and cookie cake. He was so excited about his birthday, this boy loves a good party!  For his birthday, we redid his bedroom. He got bunk beds and Ole Miss bedding. I just can't believe he's seven years old and is starting 2nd grade. It doesn't seem real. Here are some pictures from the day.

He got a 20" bike that he loves to ride! And a snowcone maker that has just about done Mom and Dad in!

Now on his actual birthday a week later, we told him he could have a few friends to spend the night... as in the first official sleep over. We took these fine fellas out for pizza and then to "night swim." I must say for 5 boys, they were extremely well behaved!! We had a great night! Our only complaint was we ran out of time to do all we had planned, ha.

They all started out in swimsuits, but the party quickly turned into an underwear fest! BOYS!

Birthday breakfast but he wouldn't dare let us sing happy birthday again :) 

To our precious Collin,
I really don't think you can fathom what a joy you are! You are possibly too smart for your own good. We are hoping one day you'll know that your parents do know a thing or two :-) You have such a caring, sensitive heart. We are seeing you grow up and mature and gain confidence more every day. You are a GREAT big brother. And we love seeing the wonderful person you are unfold. We love you more than you'll ever know, CaCa!!

Ty turns 2!

Our July 3rd firecracker turned two! And he is every bit 2 years old. He is non-stop boy all day long.  We don't catch a break unless he's asleep. And then WE need to be sleeping too! He is rough and tough and isn't scared to let you know how he feels.  He doesn't let anyone push him around. BUT he is a sweetie too.
And hilarious!! I know there are so many times we need to be disciplining him instead of laughing under our breath. He is really starting to talk more and more.  He can say pretty much anything he wants in terms of words. And he is just now starting to say some sentences.  Now for some Ty terminology:

• "tatchie" - This means 'tractor' and this is his infatuation right now. Pretty much anything with big wheels is a 'tatchie'
• "I nee ..." I need (insert whatever is needed at that second, ha!)
• "Cockles" - This means 'popsicle' and this is another obsession.
• He loves to pet the animals "Jebbie" (Jessie), "Te Te" (Stella), and "Mnimmmm" (Minnie), although I'm pretty sure they cringe when he heads their direction
• Loves to sing the song "Deep and Wide"
• "Aww Maaan" when I tell him he can't do something dangerous, tear something up, or have candy for breakfast or anything else a 2 year old boy would like to do :) 
• "Tyoooo" when you ask him how old he is
• Says "T-Y Ty" when you ask him his name
• "Donals" (McDonalds) is the answer he gives when you ask him anything about food, ha!

On his actual birthday, it was the night of the Laurel fireworks.  So we loaded up to the park to play and have cake before the fireworks started.  We did this last year too, and I hope we can continue the tradition. It's so much fun!

We had a small party for Ty (and Collin) on July 12th.  We celebrated with none other than Elmo! Ty honestly could not have cared less it was his party.  He liked the gifts okay. But really, it came down to the cupcake icing for him. And you know what, that is totally fine when you are 2!

  He was VERY excited to see his "tatchie" tractor! He hasn't quite gotten the hang of it yet, but he will soon enough. 

 To our little firecracker,
Oh my little boy how you are growing up! We have to stay one step ahead of you and you keep us on our toes for sure! You are ALL BOY and as rough as they come. You are just what our little family needed to spice things up and keep us laughing. You are mommy's little snuggly bed partner, and I secretly love it when you make it into our bed around midnight every night. You are such a smart, special little boy and we all simply could not love you more!!

June Review

Well... yes it's been a while since I've been on the blog. Summer is fading FAST! And this makes us all a little sad but we've had such a great summer so far, so it's hard to complain. So where to start?? Right after we got back from the beach with Nana and Poppa, it was VBS week.  We did Agency D3 at our church, and I must say it was a lot of fun. Always so much work, but so worth it! We are STILL singing the songs on a daily basis.  Then after that, we celebrated Father's Day with our favorite men.  I tried to get a group picture with the kids and Kyle, but let's just say it wasn't happening. So everyone got a picture with dear ole Dad, but not everyone was happy about it :)

 Later that day we went down to see Poppy and swim and eat watermelon. Earlier that weekend we had ribs with Poppa. We are some lucky folks to have these sweet men in our lives.

Sister lost her first tooth!! It took a lot of convincing to get it out; the struggle was real. But it was more than ready.  Lolly actually gets the credit for getting it out.  Since then though she has lost 2 MORE teeth.

 These pictures have no purpose other than I think they're pretty cute :)

We ventured down to the outside movie downtown one Thursday night. The kids got their faces painted earlier at the Farmer's Market. We had a really fun time until the movie got good and rolling. Ty and Tate were ready to hit the sheets once the sun went down so we had to leave with them. The big kids loved it though!

We've been loving the fresh produce lately. Aside from not having to get up early and going to the beach, food fresh from the garden is definitely the highlight of summer. These blueberries are from Mimi and Paw Paw's house. Simply divine! Of course the kids just like to visit with Paw Paw Sumrall because he rides them on "The Mule" and they get candy and now homemade sno cones apparently. 

Kyle and I have been married for 10 years!! (in about 2 weeks) We decided since our anniversary is right at the start of school that we needed to go on our trip early. The last weekend of June we went to The Grand Hotel at Point Clear, AL. We had the BEST time. It was perfect! The most relaxing trip to date. The grounds of the resort were so peaceful and beautiful.  We got massages, ate enough to last us another year, and relaxed by the pool. Oh, and we did little kayaking too on the Bay. 

We were soooo ready to get home to our babies tho. Three nights is the longest we've ever stayed away from them.  And I imagine that won't happen again any time soon.  The kids of course had the time of their lives. We heard from Collin about every 3 hours :) :) But we wouldn't have it any other way. 

Right after we got home, we had to vacate our house because the repairs to our flooring finally happened! We were out of our house for 10 days. YIKES! But honestly between both sets of our wonderful parents, being displaced as a family of 5 was not that bad at all.  So thankful for them!

 Just a couple more things... Collin's precious Sunday School class shopped and delivered little gifts to the children at the Baptist Children's Home.  We all got to meet with and talk to the children there. We of course were so blessed by this project.  And I'm so thankful to his teacher Ms. Amanda for organizing it and giving them (us) the opportunity to do this.  

And last but not least, Collin's dog Jessie (another long story) had a pelvic/hip injury and possibly tick paralysis early in the month.  We have the most random luck with animals... you can't make this stuff up. We had a couple close calls with the pup, but she is finally healthy again. And we are so glad! Here is proud Collin with Jessie on their way home from the vet (the 1st time!)

Basically, the month of July has been a big celebration of birthdays. And surely I can get caught up on all that. Not making any promises though :)