Five

Lillian's having a very special birthday, and we so enjoyed celebrating with her this weekend! It does not seem possible that this precious one is turning five.  It was a combination party-a little bit Beauty and the Beast, a little bit water slide, and a whole lot of fun!!  This sweet girl had a wonderful time celebrating with family and friends!!

This is just a precious little soul!  Tenderhearted to the core, loves all things princess, prefers everything to be purple and pink and brings joy wherever she goes!!

 Pre-party fun!!  The water slide arrived early, so they did their best to break it in before the party started!! I might add that this thing was huge!!



Lillian told her mom exactly what she wanted, and Lindsey did her best to make it happen! 

Sweet, sweet family!  These little ones are growing up!  We have a third grader, kindergartner and an almost 3 year old!  

Back to the party!  The slide was a big hit!  Reed just wasn't too sure about all the excitement! 

Her sweet expressions as we sang "Happy Birthday", and she blew out her candles!  Happy Birthday to you!

She picked out the exact cake she wanted!  Time to enjoy it and the cupcakes!

Family, friends and fun!

Mrs. Ellen arrived and the girls were thrilled! Aunt Tay and Uncle C left home bright and early to make it to the party.  Pop and I came up a couple of days early.

Back to the slide!

And then time to open presents!!  Maddie's face is in reaction to her Baby Alive!  "That baby does WHAT when you feed it!"

And Reed was definitely confused by all of this!



I am not sure another teacher has ever been as loved as Mrs. Ellen.  She will be missed!

Swinging for the fence!

Now on to the after party!  Everyone but Josh and I took a turn going down the slide!  Josh didn't want to risk hurting his back again, and I don't do things that require me to go over 3 feet off the ground!  Seriously!

You know it's fun when you have to close your eyes!

Fun! Fun! Fun!!

Happy Birthday Sweet Girl!!!  We love you so!!!!

Oh The Places You'll Go

Lillian has had a truly awesome year in K4 Kindergarten.  She loves her sweet teacher Mrs. Ellen, and doesn't like to miss school for anything!  She has blossomed this year!  Our former shy little girl now sings loud and proud, plays with everyone, and has learned so much this year!  We will all miss her being at Jacob's Ladder. Luckily, we still have a couple of years left there with Reed. Lillian is ready for big school now!  She will be with her mom and big sister, so I know she will love it!


The path was lined with these precious pictures of all the graduates.  How sweet!

Love this bunch!

There's nothing quite like grandchildren!  These babies are growing up so very fast!  We truly try to cherish every day that we can with them! We travel lots of miles to make sure we don't miss any milestones as they grow and change.  Our bond is deep and wide, and something we deeply cherish!

And what an awesome mermaid you will be!!! (Others in the class want to be a toenail painter, make up girl and McDonald's baker among many other exciting careers!)

After a big hug from her awesome teacher, they were ready to march in and begin the program!

There were songs to sing and smiles to share!

"My name is Lillian and I want to be a mermaid."

And just like that -  four wonderful years at Jacob's Ladder were over, as she walked across the stage and got her first of hopefully many diplomas!!

You're off to great places! Today is your day!

Your mountain is waiting, so.........Get on your way!!

World Cup-Day 2

After a very rainy night, we weren't sure they'd be able to play, but luckily they were. Pop and Uncle C weren't able to go with me, so I ventured back to Anniston by myself.  Two new teams were on the agenda for today.  They won the first one, and faced another undefeated team in the championship.  They ultimately lost 2-1, but played an awesome game and could have won!  Again, I have no idea where their competition was from, but they had some awesome players.  It's amazing how talented these 7 & 8 year olds are!

Game 3-These sweet girls were captains!

Hustling all the time!

Let me share something I've learned......The bottom right picture shows the team building a wall, because the opposing team is getting a corner kick.  The wall is to protect the goal.  It's not much, but I'm learning.

They won the 3rd game, and were now ready for the Championship Game. This team was also undefeated and no one had scored on them.  Trust me, they knew they were lucky to come out with a win after this one was over!!

This fast paced match featured lots of fancy footwork, closely missed goals, corner kicks, and more!  It was everything a championship game should be! The difference proved to be a penalty kick the other team scored on.......I'd explain what happened, but I'm just not there yet! The final score was 2-1.

We could not be prouder of this sweet girl and this second place finish!

They may be little, but they are fierce!  I truly hate that this season is over!  So much fun!

Next up, our sweet Lillian is 5! How is that possible?

World Cup-Day 1

So, I learned that this soccer All Star event was referred to as the World Cup.  That means that I have no idea who we actually played, because they had names like Vancouver and Orlando.  We had no idea what to expect, but this team played their hearts out and were really, really good. I must also quietly admit that I'm starting to like this sport!  I still don't understand all the ins and outs, but I'm getting there! This was also our first time to attend a sporting event in Anniston.  I think by the time these three are grown, we will get to visit every town in the entire state of Alabama.

Day 1-Game One

Pregame sunscreen, snack time, and team pow-wow!

I try to be fair and objective, but right now I am going to brag a little bit.  Maddie is playing with players that have been playing for 3-4 years.  She has been playing for about 2 months.  In fairness, her dad has been working with her in the yard forever, but this was her first attempt at playing on a real team.  She rocked it!!  She's fast and has an inner drive to succeed.  We just couldn't be prouder! I'm already looking forward to the fall season!

While she's out there playing her heart out, there's always exciting things happening on the sidelines!

Why you ask did I include this picture of this little fellow in the top left corner?  He's holding the ball from the goal Maddie kicked!!  I didn't get the kick, so this will have to do! More fun on the sidelines!

And more action on the field!

 Game one ended with a 5-1 victory, and lots of smiles!

After a lunch break, we arrive back with more entertainment with the little ones, and then on to game 2.

Yummy!!

Gymnastics practice!

So, I have no idea why I hardly had any pictures of this game!  They won either 2-0 or 3-0.  This is a really talented group, and I'm so glad she got this opportunity!

And this one never, slowed down!!

Next up, games 3 & 4!

Toes in the Sand

I decided the perfect Mother's Day gift would be a quick trip to the beach.  Luckily, my sweet hubby agreed with me.  There is nothing better than sun, sand and the gentle sound of the waves to make for a perfect getaway!!  And when you throw in some really good food that just makes it better!


I think the earlier you can get on the beach the better!!  And it's even better when you get to see a beautiful sunrise up close and personal! Reed actually snuck out early and came back with breakfast that we enjoyed on the beach.

The only thing better than a beautiful sunrise might just be a beautiful sunset!

In between the beautiful sunrise and sunset, you can find me taking it all in-the waves, breeze, sea gulls and all!! Reed calls them devil birds, but I love watching them!!

Toes in the sand!!  I promise you-all I need is my chair in front of the ocean, and I am good for the day!!

 This plate had been full of royal reds and crab legs just moments before I took this picture!!

Perfect end to a perfect day!!

I think it's only fair that we go back for Father's Day!!