A Little Bit Big

When Roo went for his one year check up (at 13 months), he weighed just over 20 pounds which put him in the 8th percentile for weight. He is a tiny little thing, and it is such a site to see him toddle all over the house like he's big stuff.

He started walking just before he turned a year old. These days, it's a full-on run. He's got a great sense of balance and dexterity. More than it seems a (nearly) 14 month old should have.

He picks up on so much from Alex. He knows how to play with so many toys that I've never showed him how to play – putting balls into the ball-popper, pushing cars on the ground, sliding toy coins into the treasure chest slots, stacking bowls, drinking from the pretend orange juice bottle at our pretend picnic. He is quick to figure things out. In days that seem filled with busyness, I find myself trying to slow down long enough to enjoy the amazement of his development. Won't be long before "little bit big" becomes "a whole lot big."

One thing that doesn't get tossed

When Roo doesn't like a food or is finished with his meal, he likes to take the food that is on his tray and toss it over board. (You can imagine what our floor looks like after meal time. :-/ ) One thing (other than sweets) that doesn't get tossed? Mac and cheese. A favorite that he always double-fists and sees through to the end.

I {heart} Chattanooga

Some people {heart} New York; I {heart} Chattanooga.

We first experienced Chattanooga when we took our Griswold Vacation to Lookout Mountain with Mom and Evan a couple of years ago. We loved it so much that it has become a frequent stop for us when we are south-bound or home-bound with long distance travel.  Their downtown is absolutely spectacular for families – especially families with small children. While there are several great paid attractions (awesome aquarium, excellent children's museum), we have come to appreciate their free activities as well. We usually allow for a couple of hours and stop for a meal and some play time, which, in the summer, typically involves water of some sort. We've learned to pack an easily-accessible change of clothes. =)

On our way to/from Destin, we let the boys have some play time in the "river" and at the splash pad. Our town doesn't have a splash pad, so these boys were in heaven getting to run around soaking wet – especially after being cooped up in the car most of the day! If you ever pass through, it is worth the stop. Just ask them...

Morning Ride to Summer Camp

Last week Alex went to a summer camp that his preschool hosted. He seemed to enjoy himself despite the fact that everyday when I picked him up and asked, "What did you learn today?" he responded, "Um, I don't know." Goodness gracious! Even though I wasn't getting much info from him, I was pleased to hear his teachers give him such kind compliments about what a sweet boy he is and how excited they are about having him in the fall. =)

Little Shells and Lots of Love

If you asked me to describe my mother, here are some things I would tell you about her.

Self-taught learner.

Ridiculously smart.

Mechanically inclined.

Hard worker.

Integrity matters.

Tenacious, determined, goal-oriented.

Fabulous cook.

Devoted wife.

Loyal friend.

Fiercely-loving mother and Noni.

Knitter extraordinaire.

Equal parts analytical and creative.

Old-home lover.

All-around amazingly talented.

In a word, she is AMAZING. Honest to goodness. I admire her so very much.

Well, just before the trip to Destin, I went to the mailbox and found a package from her. She had whipped up the sweetest shawl called Little Shells and sent for me to wear on the beach. LOVE it...and the hands that knit it for me. =) I also love that it was made out of some of the leftover yarn she used to knit Roo's coming home outfit. Adds to the sentiment. It is such a special piece that I couldn't help but share it with you all.

Thank you, Mom, for such a sweet gift. I adore it. XOXOXO

Forgiveness or permission? Let's go with forgiveness.

Last week, Alex's friend Charlotte Ann brought some Cars cupcakes to the pool for Alex to celebrate his birthday since she couldn't be at his party. I carried the leftovers home in our pool bag which I set down by the front door when we got home that afternoon. Later that evening, Jerry and I were watching TV when we looked over to the other side of the room to find this. Roo had found those cupcakes and just decided he would help himself. Thank goodness Alex was napping! We cleaned Roo (and the mess on the floor) up and, thinking we had gotten all of the cupcakes, put him back down to play. Two minutes later, he had made it back to find the loner cupcake that had fallen out of the box and was hiding in the bag. He was back at it again! What can I say? This boy DOES love his sweets!

If only there were a cape and a mask...

Little Man's First Teeth Cleaning, Take 2

Took the Little Man to the dentist when he was about two and a half. The hygienist put on the gloves and mask, and he shut 'er down. That mouth was sealed shut.

Took him back just before he turned three. A star patient. Even let them remove some of the tartar build-up. Such a brave, big boy.

Take Me Out to the Ball Game

Some friends recently gave us tickets to a Salem Red Sox {farm team to the Boston Red Sox} game here in town. The boys had a blast eating hot dogs and fries and watching the game. We had great seats right behind home plate! Perfect summer evening. =)

Here's Alex making his "scary smile."

What's a ballgame without a little junk food?

Like father, like son.

"C'mon, man! I can hardly watch that terrible play!"

Lego Workshop at Barnes & Noble

Alex and Daddy attended a free Lego workshop at Barnes and Noble one Saturday morning. Roo and I played at the train table while they finished up. Don't you love when places offer fun, free activities for kiddos?

The Chick-fil-A Brownie

Have you tried the new brownie at Chick-fil-A? Oh. My. Goodness! They are DELICIOUS!

Noni and Pop Pop bought the boys and I one when they were here last. We started out eating them at the restaurant, but then had to pack them up to finish them at home when I got a phone call that the DISH repairman was headed to the house to fix our satellite from the storm damage. Roo cried when we put it away and moaned the whole. way. home. for his brownie. Hysterical! Noni tended to his needs right away when we made it to the house. LOL! He was giddy with excitement when she brought it back out. =)

Patriotic Fellas

I sure do hope {and pray} that these boys grow up with a strong love for their country. We are so blessed to live in America, aren't we?

Starfish Smore Snacks

I have finally gotten onto the Pinterest bandwagon. Found these cute little Starfish Smore Snacks on there and decided to make them for dessert one night while in Destin. The kids loved them - and so did their parents! =)

The recipe I found called for making your own star-shaped marshmallows. Martha Stewart I am not, so I just settled for some star-shaped marshmallows I happened to find in stores for the Fourth of July. They worked out just fine. Dipped those suckers in Baker's Dipping Chocolate and then rolled them around in crushed graham crackers. Placed them on a bed of crushed Rice Krispies "sand," added some candy eyes, and called it done. Easy peasy lemon squeezy!

The Little Man's 3rd Birthday - Speed Style

After returning from our vacation to Destin, I had five days to pull together everything for Alex's 3rd birthday party. I was ready to hit the ground running come Monday morning. The problem? We returned home to find most of our city without power from the storms that passed through just days before. When I say without power, I mean businesses closed. For days. Put a crimp in a girl's party planning, that's for sure.

Thank goodness Walmart was up and running. It was almost one-stop shopping for all things "Speed" party related. I loaded that buggy up! I could not disappoint my Little Man who is a lover of all things Speed, a.k.a. Lightning McQueen.

Alex talked for months about wanting a "Speed" birthday party. Well, a Speed birthday party it was - complete with Speed cake, Speed games, and Speed prizes.

One night after Roo went to bed, I took Alex to the store to order his birthday cake. We looked at all of the Cars cakes they offered, and he got to pick out the one he liked best. I wasn't surprised that he chose this one because he had been eyeing it for weeks. We ordered it in chocolate, his favorite. When we sang Happy Birthday, he sat next to his cake looking a little sad. I don't think he enjoyed being in the spotlight too much.

But he was all for blowing the candles out. It took a few tries, but he got those suckers blown out!

Here he is enjoying his cake. The black icing they used for the track left lots of black teeth and lips. He wasted no time eating because he was anxious to get right to the gifts. =)

One of his birthday gifts - a blue M&M dispenser. The boy LOVES most anything that's blue, but most especially "blue M&Ns" as he calls them.

One of the gifts he asked for was a "sfarkly Sfeed with sfarkly wheels and sfarkly eyes." Of course they don't make "sparkly Speed with sparkly wheels and sparkly eyes" anymore because that was from Cars - The Original. Thank goodness for ebay! Jerry tracked the thing down months ago, and we hid it until Alex's birthday. I don't have any pictures of it to share, but he was excited to get it. Until he told us that it wasn't the right one.  What?! It was exactly like the one he showed us!! Go figure. I am happy to report that it is getting some action in play time these days, though.

One of his other gifts...

Think he was having a good time? Yes he was - running us all down. We've got a lot of work to do in the next 13 years before he hits the road solo! Watch out - KACHOW!

Here's Noni hard at work keeping Roodle out of harm's way. We had a few close calls!

It didn't take much for Little Man to end up, shall we say...slightly off course? Poor Pop Pop played the role of Mater, pulling Speed out when he got stuck. Pop Pop Mater stayed very busy! LOL!

Here's Alex and his friends doing some Speed bowling.

And the tire races.

Noni and I helped the girl's team. =)

The day after the party was Alex's actual birthday, so we just continued the celebration right on through the weekend. We took him to the bounce house place, another of his favorite activities.

While Alex rode the slide over and over and over again, Roo played with the balls, one of his favorite pastimes.

And after dinner at Chipotle, we got frozen yogurt at a new little yogurt bar in town called Bloop. Very cute. It had just opened the day before, and the sweet owners were kind enough to offer to take a family photo. =)

Yes, it was a weekend packed full of fun and laughter. Lots of smiles and lots of playing. And many thanks to Noni and Pop Pop for coming to help make this celebration so special!

Destin 2012

God has had a sweet way of taking care of me over the years. I am abundantly blessed by these girls' friendships. Two decades ago, God wove our lives together in such a way that a lifetime of friendships was born. These girls have added riches upon riches to my life.

Katherine, Dana, Lauri, Me

As with all friendships, there are lots of miles and roads traveled together after that many years. When we all graduated high school, I knew we'd stay friends through college and beyond, but I didn't truly have the foresight to imagine sharing the marriage or parenting {or vacation, for that matter} chapters together. As those chapters began, I realized I couldn't imagine any stage of life from here on out without them.

What started out as our "family" of four, has grown into a "family" of 17 (19, counting Lauri and Jeff's other two boys who weren't here). I shouldn't put "family" in quotes. We are family. My boys know this crew as their aunts, uncles and cousins. It's been that way since Jacob, the oldest of these kids, was born.

Life has become busy these last few years. Lots of dying to self to take care of precious little ones. Lots of life change – leaving old careers behind to start new ones at home. Miles that separate. Life to be tended to and love to give.

With these nine sweet little lives in the picture, our visits became short and rushed as other priorities arose. And so we made a bold plan to gather in one house, for one week, for what would either be a great vacation we'd want to do again, or one that would leave us questioning our sanity when we planned this whole thing. Turns out, we weren't so crazy after all. We left with talk of Gulf Shores in 2014. =)

While our trip was full of all the fun things that a beach vacation brings, the thing that I will take away most from this trip is feeling so inspired by these girls. By their involvement in their kids' lives, by their ways of parenting, by their desire to be better and do better for themselves and their families, by their transparency, by their commitment to being intentional. Amazing women, mothers and wives. Love getting to learn and grow from them.

This was most definitely a vacation for the memory books. And hopefully the first of many more to come. As I catch up on blog posts, I'll try to sprinkle in a few more pictures here and there. In the meantime, I'll leave you with some of my favorites that Lauri took of our family. THANK YOU, Lauri!