Happy Father's Day

Our family is so blessed to have Marty. He loves us all so much, and he tells us everyday how much we mean to him. He loves to play with Maddie and Preston and make them laugh. I am so thankful that God chose him for me, and I am lucky to share my life with him. Happy Father's Day honey! We love you!!!

And Happy Father's Day to the other most wonderful man I know...my Daddy. I love you!


Maddie made her daddy this special tie in Sunday School this morning!

Pottery

Hailey and I were able to spend time together at a local pottery studio. It was a lot of fun!

1st Haircut!

After daddy's game, we took Preston to get his first haircut. Daddy did not want him to go to the girly full of sparkles hair salon that Maddie goes to. We chose a place with a sports theme. Ms. Melissa cut our sweet boys hair, and she did a great job. Preston sat on Marty's lap, and he was so good. Here are the photos:
He fell asleep while we waited
Here's a before

Thank you Ms. Melissa!
My big boy!

What a busy day!

Saturday, daddy had a baseball game (yes, baseball. not softball. only wood bats allowed.) It was so hot!! Here are the kiddos cooling off in the car.




But it's not too hot for this girl to show off her first mani!

Maddie's Stop Thumbsucking Party

Marty and I are not above bribing our kids. It worked on me when I was little. I would do anything for a reward. So we offered Maddie a trip to the zoo if she could stop sucking her thumb for a week. It worked. No, I'm not naive. I fully expect her to start sucking her thumb again tomorrow. Anyway, Marty and I took off work to hold up our end of the bargain. It was a beautiful day, but it was HOT!
Meerkat Den
Hailey touched an elephant skull
You have to click on this picture to appreciate it. There was a bunny in the field, and Maddie closely approached it. They both jumped and took off in opposite directions. It was too funny.
Of course we spend half of our time on the carousel. They should sell the tokens in bulk.

Preston kept looking back at me to make sure I was still there.
It is important to accessorize people!
Preston didn't know what to think about his first bite of ice cream.

Big Girl!

Maddie Grace decided last week that she wanted to start sleeping on her real bed, not the trundle. I stayed awake all night checking on her because I was afraid she would fall off. We don't have rails for her bed, but she has done great all week. It makes me a little sad that she is such a big girl.

Oh, is this girl independent. She insists on doing everything by herself, and to be honest, it's been fun to see her develop new skills. She has been dressing herself for a few months, and she is doing well with brushing her own teeth.

She can spell her whole name, as well as a handful of other words like mommy and daddy. Her teacher taught her class a song to help the kids learn to spell their names, so she can also spell the names of every kid in her class. She is amazing. My favorite time with her is first thing in the morning when she gets in bed with us and wants me to hold her and rub her back.

Stingrays

We went to a local stingray exhibit today. Hailey was able to pet them and feed them.


She was feeding this one and it surprised her by jumping at her. It was too funny!

Preston's first ride on a carousel. He loved it!
Maddie won the fishing game!
Have you ever seen such a cute chubby face?

Parker's Birthday Party

We had a great time at Parker's 3rd birthday party!

These curls will soon be going away.

1 year / Family Pictures

We were a few weeks late getting Preston's 1 year pictures. On his birthday, he was covered in red whelps that 3 pediatricians and a nurse practitioner couldn't identify. It took a few days to go away, and then he got an eye infection and his eye swelled shut. This was followed by a purple bruise on his cheek from a fall at preschool. Not good for pictures! I hope you enjoy seeing how much our family has grown.






Preston got her with a big wet kiss!
Eskimo Kisses
Can they stay like this forever?
We tried to get a picture of all three kids, and this was by far the best one. Poor Hailey tried to keep them still, but that is a big job.

Ballerina Girl

Preston goes swimming!

We took Preston swimming for the first time, and he didn't like the cold water in the big pool. He was happy playing on the side of the baby pool.





See the bruise on his cheek?

We are now a family of 5!

We are now a family of 5. At least, for a few weeks. My niece Hailey is on summer break, and she is going to be staying with us for a while. We have been extremely busy, but I hope to get some new pictures up tonight!

Stellan's Name Gallery

Maddie Grace and Preston's picture made it to baby Stellan's name gallery. I'm sure you are asking "Who is Stellan" and "What is a name gallery?"

Stellan is a precious baby boy whose parents were told he would never live once he was born. He is a miracle baby, but he has had some problems with his heart since he was born. Someone started a blog where people all over the world have taken pictures with Stellan's name in it. You can click here to check it out. We put Stellan's name on our deck while the kids were swinging. You can read more about Stellan at My Charming Kids.