our week

After Jason's birthday celebrations on Monday, we finally had some time to slow down and enjoy summer.  We went to a local sprayground on Tuesday with some friends. 

 

 

I think my kids may be the only ones who wear goggles there, ha!

 

It was already in the nineties while we were there at 9:30!

 

Soaking up our final days with the Shipleys.

 

The mail man dropped off some lovelies at my house and I finally got them on the deck.  What a transformation!

 

We needed to make a Target run on Wednesday.  This is how we do Target!

 

I also went to the library and stocked up on beach reads for next week!

 

The kids had a sleepover with MeMa and PaPa on Wednesday night so I went to the pool with a friend Thursday morning and it was so nice to sit in the sun and relax and not get in the water and catch a certain three year old one million times!

 

Last night we went out for ice cream with one of Bryce's friends he met in preschool and has played baseball with ever since!

 

Emmy is quite fond of Henry's little sister, Emily (who also goes by Emmy)!

 

Bryce has been reading to complete the Barnes and Noble summer reading program.  He finished his 8th book yesterday so we went to Barnes and Noble this morning for his free book!  Bryce wanted a beach read too!

 

I'd say our second week of summer was a success!

happy birthday, jason

Bryce really wanted to take lunch to Jason at work and then bring him home early!  Sounds like a great birthday treat to me!  However, Jason has lunch meetings all this week so with the help of his boss, we got creative and showed up this morning with donuts!  The family bakery is closed on Mondays and so are other local bakeries so we ended up at Krispy Kreme and Duck Donuts to get a good variety of sweet treats for Jason and his office!

 

 

I made meatloaf (Jason's favorite) and fresh zucchini from our garden for dinner.  Again, since the bakery is closed on Mondays and Sundays for that matter, I had to be Betty Crocker and make my own chocolate pound cake (another favorite).  I found Trisha Yearwood's recipe all over Pinterest so I figured it must be good and boy was it delicious.  I also made homemade chocolate frosting!

 

Happy birthday, Jason.  We hope you had a great birthday.  We love you so much!

weekend getaway

We had an out of town wedding to attend this weekend so we made a fun little getaway out of it!  We dropped the kids off with my parents late Saturday morning and then went out for an early lunch before heading out of town.  We decided to stop at a winery on our way up to Maryland.  Jason isn't much of a wine drinker, but when you have an intriguing flavor like "Hot Jazz" (jalapeno wine), you get him hook line and sinker! The scenery was just beautiful and it was amazing the "real" conversations we had since the kids weren't with us!

The wedding was for a family friend.  The bride is from Maryland so they chose a location midway between the two hometowns.  The reception was at a beautiful location on the bay.

 

The Whitlock/Caddell clan

 

We didn't manage to get a picture with the groom, but his brother was available for a photo-op.  This is our friend Grayson who was in a horrific accident last summer and by the Grace of God, he is here to tell his story!

 

We slept in on Sunday morning (glorious sleep we don't get at home), got breakfast and then headed home.  It was so nice to get away and be husband and wife and not mom and dad.  Trust me, we love the roles of mom and dad, but it's so important to still date each other! And we were excited to get back to the kids since they had Father's Day presents waiting for Jason!

photo dump

I had a ton of pictures on my phone that didn't fit the theme of my past posts, so I decided to throw them all in one post!

 

 

Bryce was excited to win the Box Tops award at school!

 

We went to pick up burn barrels one night and the owner let the kids sit in all of his trucks.

 

My cuties dressed and ready for church.

 

We went to brunch one Sunday after church for Uncle Dave's birthday and this was my plate of deliciousness!

 

A little fishing at the Kirby farm.

 

My friend Barbara is moving at the end of July and she wanted to paint one last time before she leaves.  This may be my best painting to date! 

 

Our summer days are going to look a lot like this (water, sun, and snacks)!

 

I think I'm all caught up!

Everest VBS

We had our "Everest" themed VBS this week at church and it was tons of fun!  Jason and I got to be crew leaders for the kindergarteners this year so we were with Bryce all week.

 

 

The kids played themed games each night.

 

They got to make fun take home crafts/games each night.

 

I managed to get a picture of Emmy in the preschool group one night.

 

Bryce was excited to have best buddy Thomas there and his neighbor Cheyenne.

 

One night we got to wrap Jason up because God has the power to heal - HOLD ON!!

 

It was a fun week with a great message.  Our church does such a good job with VBS and the kids just love it!

gymnastics

Emmy finished her 5th session of gymnastics today.  She had a great year and learned a lot.  She was also able to move up to the next group level.  We decided to take the summer off, but she's excited to start back in the fall. 

 

 

Proud of her pin and certificate.

 

She just adored Coach Susan.  We're hoping to have her again in the fall.

tennis camp

Bryce started showing some interest in tennis in the backyard at home, so we decided to sign him up for a summer camp.  He had camp this week, Monday through Thursday.  Thankfully it was from 8-10 in morning because it was super hot this week.  Luckily, he wasn't bothered by it and he really enjoyed the camp!

 

 

 

They finished early on Thursday for an ice cream party and awards.

 

 

Bryce scored a 34/40 on his "white ball tennis challenge" and he got the "dress for success award"!  He also got a shirt, a picture of his group and a fun magnet for the car.  That magnet may even get us a discount another tennis camp!!

 

Bryce had a great time and it was a fun way to start off the first week of summer vacation.  Now to get Jason (the one with tennis experience) to practice with him! 

weekend fun

 We started the weekend fun with friends on Friday night.  One of our good friends was in town with his son so we put together a quick get together so the kids could play and the adults could catch up.

 

We headed to the river Saturday morning for an annual summer kick off at one of Jason's aunt and uncle's house.  Jason was excited to finally get his new kayak in the water.  He took all the kids on quite a few rides!

Emmy had a blast!  So did Bryce, but he was never close enough to get pictures of him.

 

She probably asks every five minutes if someone will build a sand castle with her.

 

The kids went home from the river with Jason's parents and we met up with our neighbors for a fun dinner date.

He really does love me!

 

Courtney and I found these fun palazzo pants at a local boutique and both wore them to dinner! #twinning

 

We have a busy week ahead with tennis camp for Bryce and VBS for both kids. 

celebrating summer

We decided to go to a Squirrels game last night to celebrate the start of summer!  We have an intern at our church this summer so we had him over for dinner and brought him along with us!

 

 

The kids get so excited over ice cream in a helmet!

 

Nutzy made his way up to us and plopped right down beside Bryce.  He did great.  Emmy on the other hand ran the other way and climbed into Jason's arms!

 

The last time we went to a game, they were scheduled to have fireworks, but the game went into too many innings and the game didn't end until midnight.  The city ordinance doesn't allow fireworks after midnight so it was a bust!  We decided to give it one more try last night and the game actually ended around 9:15!  It was a great fireworks show and the kids loved it!

 

Welcome, sweet summertime!

last day of kindergarten, letter z

Z is for Zip up you backpack and go home for summer!

 

 

Nine months ago this sweet thing hopped on the school bus and never looked back!

 

Today he hopped off smarter, more confident and ready for 1st grade.

 

 

First and Last day pictures!

Bryce made us a calendar for Christmas and each month has a little poem and picture Bryce drew.  Here is the poem and picture for June! 

 

 

We could not have asked for a better year.  Bryce's teacher was wonderful, he made lots of friends, and most of all, he learned tons!