Good Friends!

To add to our summer fun, we have had some very good friends come through!  Robby rode down on his motorcycle which the boys fell in love with...I explained that they can have one when they turn 40.  I figure I will be over it by then.  In the meantime, he let them help clean it, and they got to sit on it for a photo op!

Thanks, Robby, for taking on the boys and letting them drive you crazy for a bit!  We enjoyed having you!

We also welcomed Nick and Sophia from Indiana!

It was not long after this pic was taken that I decided to turn in for the night...I will remember next time to log off my Facebook page!

Nick and Sophia were gracious enough to invite us to take a road trip to Charleston, SC with them.  They found a great beach there last year and wanted to return.  We had a wonderful time until the ride home when Luke decided to show his age.  Sometimes being 3 and really tired is just tough.  I am pretty sure we won't be invited to go along next year.

The group worked hard on a castle.

TA-DAH!

Sophia was just a great sport the entire week. The boys followed her around like puppies and basically drove her crazy.  And, even after the horrible card ride home, the boys wearing her out and letting them bury her, she still volunteered to babysit for us so we could go out for dinner.  A big thanks to Sophia for being such a trooper! 

We enjoyed all of our visitors this summer and look forward to seeing you all again! 

Summer with the fam!

Continuing with our summer fun we welcomed one very important guest, big sister Kalyn!  We had a week of pool time, movies and just goofing off before we headed to Texas to visit Nana and Papa!

I included this pic because Luke took it...he was very proud of it!

I love this picture of Lyndon and Kalyn! 

On to Texas!

Logan and Papa were inseparable.  I am not sure Papa was prepared for this hard-working guy!  Logan was on his heels the entire week.  He even got to attend a Rotary Club meeting, and he got to go to Papa's office...he was in heaven!

Papa even let him work with some high-powered tools!

This is what Luke and Papa did when they hung out! 

Another favorite!

We also happened to be there when my dad turned the big 65!  His office had a nice little party for him. 

He does not usually dress like this, just for special occasions...

I loved they cupcake table!  I grew up hearing my dad punch numbers on a calculator just like that one.  I loved to watch him add stuff up on that machine because he never looked at it.  He would add long lists of numbers and never even look up from the paper.  It still baffles me!

What you see in this picture is my husband (aka my third child) and Logan in a water fight.  They are drenched along with the windows.  What you don't see (because I did not want to chance getting my camera wet) is my mom and dad below them trying to defend themselves with another water hose.  Lyndon started it, and that should not surprise anyone.  The problem is that he started it off by hosing down my mom...not a smart move!

 

Logan is right there in the middle with his own defense.

Poor Bubba was just an innocent bystander! 

The boys also decided that they needed to build their own lean-to.  Here we are in the beginning stages...

...and the final product!  Looks pretty safe, huh?

The real treat was hanging out on Papa's boat and swimming in the lake! 

Captain Papa

Queen Nana

Uncle Don and his pipe (the boys are fascinated with the pipe)

Grandma Belle!

Post-swim snack and pre-fireworks!

It may be difficult to see, but there are hundreds of boats out on the water!  This is the annual fireworks show on the lake, and it is impressive! I took some pics, but they don't really do it justice.

AND, we finally lost those two teeth on the bottom!  The Tooth Fairy came through and left a few dollars!

Your face is going to stick like that! 

I have been getting this look a lot lately especially when he is not happy with me!

Here is hoping you had a great 4th of July and are enjoying your summer!! More summer fun to report soon!

Summer update!

 Well, I was very excited about summer because I has hoping for a little rest and recovery from our busy spring.  But, I think we jumped from spring right into summer without realizing what was ahead of us!  We started out June with a sweet violin recital for Logan.  He did so well, and I actually have it on video.  I would love to share it with you, but I managed to record it on the tape rather than the SD card. So, I will have to have it converted to show you another time.  For now, here is a pic of him playing his violin!

I was very proud for him.  He actually got a bit nervous when he got up in front of everyone and whispered to me that he was not ready for this.  His teacher offered to play along with him.  That got him playing, and he did an excellent job with Twinkle Twinkle Little Star!

Just a couple of days after the much anticipated recital, we headed to Nashville to meet up with some very good friends. We spent most of the day Saturday at Nashville Shores, a really great water park for families.  We also ate dinner downtown amidst the Country Music Festival goers. There were some really interesting people in the crowd, some even more interesting outfits and a few Elvis sightings.

  This one was my favorite! I especially like the gold guitar-shaped bag.  I told Mom about this particular guy, and she wants to know why all the impersonators choose the costumes and hairstyles of his later years.  I think it is because the only men out there willing to do am impersonation of Elvis are in the same physical condition he was during those later years.  I am not sure they love dressing in some of the gaudy outfits he had at that time, but lets be honest.  They are more likely to get some attention wearing this then trying to squeeze into lets say the outfit he wore the first time he was televised.  It certainly got my attention! 

I will say that in the five years that we have had the boys and with all of the road trips we have taken, this was by far the most relaxed. The boys have learned to use headphones and loved that they can watch their movies with them.  Lyndon and I were even more excited that we did not have to listen to Tom and Jerry episodes then entire way. 

We ate at a really yummy place called Pucketts Grocery!  I highly recommend it if you are ever in Nashville.  Just make sure you make reservations ( thanks to Melissa for doing that; we would still be waiting for a table)!

A little sightseeing,

and a little ice cream always makes for a fun trip!

Thanks to the Whiteley family for hanging with us in Nashville!  We had a blast and look forward to our next meet! 

Ok, so we returned from Nashville to have one pretty lazy day before more super summer activities! 

In honor or Luke's recent obsession with picture finds, I have given you all a challenge. Look at this picture closely and see if you can find the following: one daddy, one three-year-old, one dog, one stuffed killer whale, one five-year-old, two remotes, one wristwatch and one ARMY t-shirt. Enjoy!

Next on our summer calendar was a water-themed birthday party complete with some old-fashioned Pin the Tail and Super Soakers!

You may need sunglasses to look at Luke...

Both of my kids pinned the tail somewhere on that poor donkey's back.  I am afraid they have my sense of direction.

Partied out! 

Thanks Harris family for the great time!