Birthday Bash

Three years ago on May 20th I anxiously woke up, anticipating the birth of our sweet baby girl. I did not know what to expect, but I did know that God had a plan, and I looked forward to it. Little did I know exactly how much joy would be brought into my life after a few short hours.

There are not enough pages to describe the sweetness of our bundle of love named Avery. I only hope that I do not do anything to stifle her free spirit and bright mind.

Once again, we threw a 'pool party' in honor of her birthday, complete with a slip and slide lined with sprinklers. The theme was Strawberry Shortcake, which stemmed from one of her favorite books. Our dear friend, Dawn, was wonderfully creative and re-created the exact cake from Avery's book, thus thrilling the birthday girl!

We were glad to share fellowship with all who came, and missed those who were unable to attend.

Braden did not have a clue what was going on, but as usual was a great trooper along for the ride.

Avery topped the evening off with more fun and dinner with her friend Adalyn.

We decided to get Avery a big pool for her birthday, and I must say that it was the perfect gift. She has spent everyday in it and especially enjoys the afternoons when Daddy comes home and takes a dip with her. One of my favorite parts of the day is watching them play together. The water is still pretty cold for my liking, so Braden and I are better at supporting the fun from the sidelines.

I've also included the latest of Braden. He's all smiles for Daddy, so when I get one every now and then, I have to capture it on camera.

Playing Catch Up

Where to start? Where to start....



My kids love each other. Braden thinks Avery hung the moon, and Avery loves to make Braden laugh. I'm truly blessed with two beautiful angels!


Now that Braden is 6 1/2 months old, I've decided to hold off on his 6 month post and combine it into the 7 month milestones. He's growing more and more everyday, weighing in at a whopping 20 lbs, 3 oz! He is 29" long, and is becoming quite the independent little (big) man. Everytime I think Avery or someone else is being too rough on him, I find him laughing so hard he gets the hiccups!


Avery and Braden joined their friends Griffin and Jaxon last week at the children's wing of the Shakespeare Museum. Braden enjoyed the hands-on learning as much as Avery did! We look forward to going back more often so we can take it all in and continue to learn.


Braden has a girlfriend named Riley. Yes, already! The thing is, she just celebrated her year birthday! I guess he likes older women like his daddy. ;) She's a doll, and they love to snuggle up with each other and give kisses. I have not been able to capture the cuteness on camera yet.


Track season is over! I enjoyed this season more than last, but seem to have gotten a little too attached to the kids. I found myself crying during Senior Sunday at church. Here are some pictures of Braden at the State Meet. He was great, going along for the ride, and Avery enjoyed her time at home with friends. I felt bad dolling her out to different people for the three nights we were away, but I think everyone had a good time. (Wouldn't it be nice if we had family in town?!)

And finally, Happy Mothers Day to me! My kids and wonderful husband made this year so special. Kenny brought home gorgeous flowers on Saturday; then that night we went to dinner and enjoyed great conversation while the kids sat quietly and behaved.


Sunday morning, I heard the pitter patter of little feet running to hand me my card. Inside was a gift card to my favorite restaurant (Olive Garden), which we enjoyed for lunch that day. I also received a very touching card from my great hubby with another gift card! One of our track runners, who is in the youth group, brought me a flower during our Mother's Day service at church, again starting the water works. (What's up with me crying so much now that I've had kids!?)


On Monday, Kenny called during the day to say he thought it would be fun if we went out to eat again that night. Little did I know he had planned for our friends to watch the kids while we were gone. We enjoyed each other's company for an evening of dinner and shopping for Avery's birthday present and new booster seat since Braden has outgrown his carrier and is going to claim her old car seat.

To sum it up; God has abundantly blessed my life!