Hello there. Oh man, summer's almost over?? School's about to start?!? Say it ain't so. :o/ Bleh. But that's okay, cuz we have really been living it up! :oD This post pretty much covers all of July.
Oh - I took these first couple pics in June with my new phone, but forgot to share them... Joshua and I had a GREAT time playing with the decoration stickers one day.
Hahaha!
And wow. I can't believe how great some of the pictures turn out!
Yay for 16 megapixels! ;o)
We went to Houston at the beginning of the month to celebrate 4th of July, Uncle Boy & Aunt Christina's wedding, and to do a little camping.
We enjoyed a hot dog lunch while visiting Nana at work.
:o)
Later at the Rehearsal Dinner.
:o)
Happy Fourth of July!
One day we'll get that Matt-dog out of the hot tub and into the big pool.
Oh my, she is ready. ;o)
These sweet cousins enjoyed a little nap time together.
Awwwww.
Wow - that's a lot of grandkids!
Very nice. :oD
Joshua holding his newest cousin, Shelby.
And Evie too.
And I'm pretty sure Shelby was thinking, "Don't let her poke me! Please!"
Lol! Awesome day.
The next day was the big wedding!
Too bad the flower girl fell asleep on the way there. :oP
Matthew was a ring bearer and Joshua and Evelyn were Altar Servers. :o)
Look! She's awake!
Goodness, what a beautiful wedding it was. :o)
Then it was on to the Reception.
And the Dance!
And here is a cute picture of our cat daughter. :oP
Emily seemed a little bit lost out there...
Good thing she had her big sister to show her how it's done! :oD
:o)
And I'm pretty sure they were doing the Wobble here... not sure if I should be proud or not, haha! ;o)
Dancing with that groom, Uncle Boy.
Of course, Emily just had to cut in. ;o)
It was a most fantastic day. Seriously. Thanks be to God. :o)
Evelyn went camping a little early with Aunt Jackie and Uncle Jack, so she got to visit the San Antonio Zoo.
Very cool. :o)
Happy kids.
This pic was in La Grange when we stopped to have some sausage and bread before Tia Gloria's funeral.
Later that evening, we officially began our camping trip. :o)
Aunt Jackie and Kate helped the kids make these awesome lightning bugs.
Seriously. Check them out!
I love them!! And they glowed for days! :o)
My new favorite way to camp.
;oD
On Friday, we went to Schlitterbahn!
Which happens to be the kids' favorite place in the world.
(Well... it was their favorite before we went to Disney... hmm, I may have to ask them about that.) ;o)
Em was too busy shoving cheese balls in her mouth to take a picture. :oP
We all got to ride a few rides, which were awesome. :o)
Yep, even Emily rode a big one, and as soon as it was over she said, "I want to go again!" So she did!
Matt-dog's got the right idea! ;o)
And on the ride home...
Bahaha! Poor worn out midgets.
These two were still knocked out even after they got back to the cabin.
That night, the kids made koozies for their water bottles.
"Keep Calm and be a WARRIOR"
Got it J. ;o)
Saturday, we spent the day at the river.
:o)
Matthew caught a couple of fish too!
And what camping trip would be complete without making some s'mores!
:oD
Man, so many happy kids. :o)
On Sunday we packed up and headed back to H-town.
And on Monday we were back in New Orleans. :o)
On Wednesday, July 16th, Joshua went to see an orthodontist to determine if he needed braces or not.
And, yep, you guessed it.
Awwww. He looks so cute! But so big at the same time! You know? *sigh* Because of the "open bite" that he has, J will be in braces for the next 18 months or so. :o/ He can't have popcorn or thick pizza crust or even bubble gum anymore! How is he supposed to survive??
Haha, but Joshua is pretty tough, and although he was seriously not happy about getting braces, he's making the best of it and was sure to request Dallas Cowboys colored bands - silver on the sides and blue in the front! Haha! Now, that's my boy. :oD
The next night we went bowling for the Navy Wives Club Social.
The kids had a great time. :o)
I was also officially inducted as a member of the Navy Wives Club (which is open to spouses of military members in maritime services, i.e. Navy, Coast Guard, Marines). We visited the nursing home with the club last month and hope to participate in more community service projects soon. :o)
"Rawr! I'm Spider-Bat!"
Yeah, we laughed at her for quite a while after she sprung down the stairs wearing this, haha!
At walmart one day, Emily and Daddy visited the Halloween aisle (which is already out!) while the big kids and I picked up some school supplies.
Hehe!
The next Sunday, the big kids were back at the bowling alley for their Altar Server Summer Party.
:o)
Joshua finally got around to practicing his saxophone again.
And he still sounds pretty good! ;o)
Our next mission: Get instruments for the other kids!
Well, on Monday, July 21st, we began a whole new adventure...
We got cats.
Yes, cat-s. As in plural, multiple, more than one! Aaaah!
The grey kitten is named Peeta (after a character from the Hunger Games books) and the white cat is named Ivy (after a character in the Warrior Cat books that Joshua and Matthew read).
We have gone round and round about what pets to get (if any!) and after a few years of deliberation, we finally decided to give this whole feline thing a try. So we picked up a few essentials and drove over to P.A.W.S. (Plaquemines Animal Welfare Society) to pick out a kitten.
Well, when we got there, Emmy got it in her head that she wanted a white cat... The only white cat they had was an a adult cat who was deaf... so we weren't too sure. The big kids were playing with the kittens and picked out a little grey fur-ball to bring home. Soooo.... somehow we ended up taking them both with us! The kids really wanted that kitten, but we also wanted to give the poor deaf cat a home too, you know??
;o) Lol, oh my, I know! What a day it was.
But I have never seen these kids so happy...
And check it out! Even Daddy made a new friend.
"Meet Mr. Bigglesworth...
When Dr. Evil gets angry, Mr. Bigglesworth gets upset. And when Mr. Bigglesworth gets upset... people DIE!"
Ahahaha! I can't help hearing that every time I see Chris with Ivy. That and the whole, "I'll get you next time Gadget!" Lol!
Honestly, after the first day, we weren't sure if we would be able to keep Ivy... due to her deafness, she was sooo jumpy and skittish and scared, and she kept hissing at the kitten when he would get too close. I was convinced that instead of giving her a home, we had removed her from her own "comfort zone" and we would have to take her back. :o/
Fortunately, Chris was able to be-friend her, and the next day, Ivy started playing around the house and even with the kitten Peeta! Yay!
So yes, now there are more pictures of cats on my phone than kids!
And I'm not sure how to feel about that... haha. ;o)
Check out Peeta's stylin' Star Wars collar.
And Ivy has a girly one too!
:oD
Emily has declared Peeta to be her new best friend.
Here's the video to prove it:
(Hope you can see it!)
Every day, these kids don't even bother turning the TV on when they get up, they just gather around their furry new pals and enjoy themselves.
:o)
And now these fool cats are best friends too!
They sleep together and Ivy has started acting like the Momma cat and cleans Peeta! The kids are getting the biggest kick out of that. :o)
Emily's favorite place to sleep is still in our bed...
Where she takes up all the space. :oP
And dude - we finally got those instruments!
Yep, Matthew has decided that he wants to learn how to play the trumpet!
He is not officially joining the BCA Band yet, but he will be joining the Band Club that meets once a week and is taught by the middle school Band Director.
:oD
But Evelyn is officially joining the BCA Eagle Band!
And she's been working hard on her flute skillz!
:oD
Awwww.... I think these fools might be growing on me.... ;oD
Well, there are exactly 3 weeks until school starts... eek! The kids keep complaining that the summer was too short, but I think they just don't realize how busy they have been.
This Thursday is
Hope everyone is having a great summer. :o)
Laters!
