Another beach trip without A#1

Without going into details because most of you already know, we were unable to go to Ft Benning to see A#1 graduate from his basic training and his AIT training because he had to say a little longer so we all headed to the beach for a few days to ease our hearts. It was a good time but a sad time because we would have much rather been in Georgia but we know that everything happens for reasons we don't understand. So here are a few pictures that we took while we were there. Excuse the no makeup and the bad hairdos on my part but... we were at the beach so who cares :)









I'm not sure but this was possibly taken right before we were all just about eaten by two SHARKS!!! Not kidding!

Thankful... Day 2

1. Today I am thankful for all of my parents but I want to say a special thanks to this guy. This is Poppy with A#1. Poppy is the greatest Poppy ever and the kindness and love he shows our kids just always amazes me! You can always tell just how much it means to our kids as well by the way they respond to him. Poppy will take time out of his day to call and check on the kids when they are sick, even if my mom has already told him how they are. Poppy will take a day off of work to make a special trip to L U for a chance to watch A#1 fly or even just to go up and visit him. He will go watch as many soccer and basketball games as he can for the girls just because he wants to see them. He will make a noise maker with an empty milk jug and rocks for A#2 to take to the high school football game and encourage her to be as loud as she can with it and laugh about the memory of it for years to come. He is the best Poppy!! and we are all so thankful for him.

2. I am thankful that as our kids are growing, they are finding things that they love about life. A#2 has really been doing well with her riding and she LOVES it!!!!

3. I am thankful that our girls are watching their brother live his dream at college and are so encouraged by him that they are even talking about when they go to Liberty one day. I know it's years away but what a witness their brother is for them. A#3 says she is going to go there and play soccer. Wouldn't that be awesome?!!!!

4. I am thankful for Godly women that are such an example to me.

5. And last but not least.... I am thankful that when I come downstairs in the morning, hubby has the coffee ready!! Thanks W.B.!! Little things mean a whole lot!

OH YES HE DID AND I GOT TO SEE IT!!

A couple of us headed up to L U to see A#1 the Monday after family weekend, hoping for a chance to see him fly. Well, we got to see him fly with his instructor and then..... WE GOT TO SEE A SOLO FLIGHT!!!! OMGoodness it was fantastic!!!

That's him after his flight. One of his aunt's seen this picture and said it fits him well. I agree!

This is when he came in and dropped off his instructor. We were out on the strip when he came in and I noticed the prop was still running as his instructor was getting out. I asked if he was still going to fly and he said yes, solo. WHAT?!!!!

And there he goes! The coolest part for me other than seeing it was that we were with his instructor and he had a radio so we got to hear him do all of his call signs. Just hearing his voice and hearing all that he has learned put me at peace but made me a nervous wreck too.

Some proud grandparents.

Aaron and his Poppy.

The proudest mom EVER!!!

It's a good day for a parent that gets to witness their child's dream come true!! God is so good!

Blessings

God's blessings are just amazing!! We had such an awesome weekend together as a family and I want to thank Him in every way. A#1 was able to come home for the weekend and I have to ask you something. Can you believe he only has less than 4 weeks and he will be finished with his first year of college? Where did it go? I am seriously in shock by this. He has had such a great year, with a few lessons learned in the game of life, and has an extremely busy summer ahead of him. He has just thrived at LU and it shows. We went into his room Saturday night to tell him goodnight and he was laying in his bed reading his Bible. No t.v., no i-pod just his Bible. I know he has his quiet time with the Lord every day but to witness it was just awesome. He is reading the book of Romans. Yesterday we had a great talk with my mom and s-dad about scripture and there was so much that I could not answer. If I asked A#1, he could answer!! I just can't wait to witness what the Lord has for him.

We awoke Sunday morning at 5:30 to go to sunrise service and to our amazement there were 3 buckets left on our table with enough sugar to hype up an entire army of kids. The kids all had a movie and a few other things to occupy themselves with. Oh yeah and Silly String. They always get Silly String in their baskets. 5 minutes of messy fun in a can is what we call it.

That sneaky little bunny left a trail of candy leading up to the goodies.

And then they dig in. This was after sunrise service. We came home to get re-dressed for church and they had to check out every single thing. As you can see, A#1 is still a kid :)

Me and my kiddos leaving for church.

Me and my girls!

After church we went to my Mom's for lunch. The girls took their bike's and we all sat out front watching. My Mom just had a few places taken off of her face that ended up being cancer. Me and my sister have been telling her she needed to get them looked at and thank goodness she did. So I told her she was going to have to give up her small cute sunglasses and invest in some big fabulous one's. She did but she wasn't sure if she liked them or not. She handed them to me and said here try them on so I can see what I look like in them (they say we look a little bit a- like!). When I did, she took a picture of me and W.B. Turns out she likes how "she" looks in the new glasses :)

A#1 keeping a close eye on his sisters riding their bikes.

When she wasn't riding, she was climbing. A#3 has figured out that she can climb Mom's magnolia tree with no help. She climbed ALL DAY!!!

She took the basket with eggs up the tree with her. Monkey!!!

A#2 on her bike. She LOVES being outside!!

Nena and Poppy outside in the beautiful weather. Thanks for lunch!!! It was delicious and we had a wonderful day!!!!

Easter is over but let's all remember, HE LIVES!!!!!!

Christmas day

After we open our gifts from Santa we get dressed and head to Nena and Poppy's for lunch and our gift exchange. A#2 and Poppy have a great relationship. She was telling me the other day how proud she is of her Poppy. He has been on a mission to get healthier and so far has lost over 65 pounds. Way to go Pops!

A#2 took most of these pictures with her new camera. I think she is doing a great job so far.

This is Fost-a man. He does not look happy at all in this picture. If you ask him what he's gonna be when he grows up, a vet! He's a little like his Momma, my sister, he LOVES animals. especially polar bears and dinosaurs!

Nena and one of her new sweaters.

Me and one of my new shirts.

A#2 took lots of pics of her Daddy.

And there is the 2 of them together. This is the ultimate Daddy's' girl, that's for sure.

Checking out the features on her camera. A#2 and her Nena in black and white. I LOVE this picture!!!!!!!!

A#1 was little excited. Season 1 and 2 of HOUSE!! He's already watched season 1.

Thank you!

Veteran's day is very special in our family! We are so proud of everyone that has served our country from our family and pray that you will join us in honoring all of them today. CJ, you deserve a special mention all your own today. I love you and couldn't be more proud of you. Brian and Matt you both have done what your country called you to do and YOU ROCK!! Daddy, Poppaw, Poppy, Mr Foster, Jason and Christopher, Uncle Mark and Pa Dick, you are just a few that I could mention today that I love. God bless you all and GOD BLESS AMERICA!!!! Let's all pay it forward today and if you know a veteran, a police officer or a fire fighter ( I love you Mikie Scott and Jeremy), thank them for their service and their sacrifice. It's the least we can do.