Carson & Micah's 3rd Birthday Party

We celebrated the boys' 3rd birthday this year with a party at Chuckie Cheese. (In the photo above Carson looks much bigger than Micah but he isn't. I think he was just sitting closer to the end of his chair). They were super excited about playing basketball and seeing their friends. We invited their little friends from daycare to attend the party and most of them were able to come. Pam Pam even came and brought a couple of the children with her. The celebration began with lots of games. Micah and Carson always fight over the basketball shot game since it is their favorite.

Nana, Tracy, Uncle Dave, Elijah, and Matthew also came to the party. Corbyn and Elijah played the "big kid games" and went through tokens like they were burning holes in their hands. Micah and Carson love putting the tokens in the machines. You have to keep an eye on them though because they'll put several in without even playing the game.

Air hockey was another favorite among the children. The birthday cake was a Lightning McQueen cake and Micah was a sneaky little rascal. When he thought we weren't looking he would sneak red icing off of the cake. He didn't realize that the icing stained his mouth. The look on his face as he was eating it was hilarious. He made a face as if the icing was divine.

The kids ate pizza and then got ready for the birthday parade. All the children participated except the birthday boys. Nana carried Carson at the caboose of the parade but Micah waited and watched at the edge with me. He was afraid that Chuckie would come out and get him. Nana and Carson spotted Chuckie right away.

Micah avoided Chuckie during the parade but Chuckie snuck up on him as he was eating birthday cake. Micah gave him a high-five but Carson took off running in the other direction in a full-on panic. The boys weren't very interested in opening their gifts because they were so eager to play games. They eventually opened a few and loved all their new things. Aunt Tracy got them new Batman pajamas. They even have cool capes on the back.

Thank you to everyone who was able to attend. We also appreciate all of the cards and gifts that were mailed to the boys. Thanks for being a part of the boys' birthday celebration!

Fishing at Lenoir City Park

We took the children to the park a couple of weeks ago at Lenoir City Park. Elijah was able to go with us which always makes it more fun for Corbyn. Randy helped the older kids bait their hooks and remove the fish once they were caught while I took Micah and Carson to throw rocks.

The boys could literally throw rocks in the lake for hours...that is, until they noticed the other kids and Daddy fishing. The twins had to get in on the fish action for a little bit but then we went back to throwing rocks. It was actually raining on us most of the time so we weren't out there for very long. Corbyn and Elijah caught several sunfish though and Randy caught a big nasty catfish.

FBC Worship Camp 2008 - "All For One"

Worship Camp was a hit again this summer. Mrs. Kym always comes up with great music and activities for the children. The camp is for grades K-5 and is for children who wish to learn about instruments, music theory, creative movement, dancing, and lots of fun songs to sing. Corbyn has attended the last 3 years and I am in charge of snacks.

Corbyn's grade level group also did a black light performance that was amazing. I didn't get any pics of it though because you're not supposed to take pictures during this performance. The show was a hit and the kids had a great time. Worship Camp was big fun!

Meet Chloe

Its been a while since I blogged last and several of you have gently reminded me that I need to update. We've added a new member to the family and her name is Chloe. We adopted her from the Young-Williams Animal Center in Knoxville. She is the sweetest kitten and is super tolerant of all our family members (except Hope - the doberman). Chloe would probably even be a little more accepting of Hope if Randy wouldn't try to get Hope to bark and harrass her.

Corbyn and I have wanted a kitty cat for a long time and Randy finally agreed to let us have one. Chloe transitioned into our home very well. The boys absolutely love her and she allows them to most of the time. Corbyn has taken on primary responsibility of her and gives her tons of extra attention and loving care. She treats her more like a baby and Chloe eats it up. She mainly lives in the playroom downstairs but is allowed to come upstairs for visits (mostly in Corbyn's room).

I'm really proud of her since there hasn't been any potty accidents, destruction of property, or mauling of children. She is growing so fast and we really love her!

Vacation in Destin

We were blessed again this summer to be able to go on a family vacation to the beach. Nana planned a trip to Destin, FL for our family and Tracy's family (and Nana, of course). We had an amazing fun-filled week. The condo that was chosen had the perfect amenities for our family's needs. It was beachfront so we didn't have to lug tons of stuff very far, it had 3 pools (one of them perfect for the twins), a playground, and drumroll please..........a basketball court. If you know our family very well you realize that we can never be too far from a basketball goal. The yard next to it was perfect for baseball, soccer, kickball, etc. Needless to say, we never got bored (exhausted, but not bored). One thing that was really nice was that the condo was a gated community. Check out the view from our room:

A typical day began with one of the younger children getting folks up first. Nana & Corbyn slept in the living room (where there were no drapes) so they were early risers as well. Tracy & I took turns preparing a smorgasbord of breakfasts while Nana, David, Randy entertained children or packed up stuff for the pool/beach. We were usually on the beach or at the pool by 9:00 am. Corbyn and Elijah split their time between the pools and beach. I'd say the majority of the time was spent poolside because the boys could swim there and shade was available for Matthew & Nana. We played "monkey in the middle" everyday and even had a "chicken fight" between Elijah/Tracy vs. Corbyn/me. Needless to say, the children LOVED this concept but the battle ended in a draw (basically Tracy and I got tired of carrying them around and we knew a "winner" wouldn't bode well so we dunked them simultaneously). Here is a slideshow of fun spent at the pool:

By lunch time, we were all ready to come in and eat a bite (except for Corbyn who got nachos daily at the poolside grill). The boys took naps and the big kids usually got to go on a shopping adventure with Nana or Tracy for souvenirs, groceries, or ice-cream. Once the twins got up from nap we would head back outside for round 2 of outdoor fun. We would go swimming again or play on the playground (if it was in the shade yet). The boys learned that we couldn't (or wouldn't) go to the playground/basketball court until it was in the shade. Here are pics from the condo & playground:

Each day had a few hours of time on the beach but we didn't haul toys out after day 1 since no one really stayed there for an extended amount of time. We would head out for a quick dip and splash around in the waves. The big kids and dads spent the most time since they were the most fearless. Tracy, mom, and I weren't interested in getting in past our knees even though we could see through the water. On day 4 there was a shark sighting about 10 feet off of shore which meant even less time spent in the ocean by me. Corbyn and Elijah were really good at riding their boogie boards and they fished a little each day with their little nets as well. Micah was pretty fearless when it came to the waves but Carson stuck to the shore. He would let Randy or me carry him out but didn't want to walk out into the water himself. One of Micah and Carson's favorite pasttimes was playing in the foot showers between the beach and the pools. They could have easily spent all day playing with shower heads and water hoses. Beach fun pics are below:

We took turns each evening going out to dinner while someone stayed home with the boys or took them to McDonalds which had a super indoor playplace. We all decided to be bold and venture out to Fudpuckers as a group one evening and it didn't go very well. Randy and I were given an opportunity to go out one evening by ourselves to Chili's and it was great.

Corbyn and Elijah got to go play miniature golf a couple of times (no score was kept). Everyone's a winner on vacation!!! Another fun event in the evening was hunting for frogs out in the yard. The kids found and caught (in their fish nets) 18 frogs one night. Big fun!!

Overall the trip was a success. As expected, it had its rough patches and stressful moments but we lived to tell about each one. Randy and I chose to drive through the night coming and going to avoid listening to our twin backseat drivers who tell you which direction to go as well as give permission to drive through green lights or demand that you stop at red ones (no right turns on red allowed unless you want a serious meltdown).

Thank you so much Nana for the amazing trip and for all of the babysitting hours that you put in to make sure everyone had some down time.

I also want to acknowledge Randy for being a trooper and taking the kids swimming most afternoons to allow me some time to read, rest, or take Corbyn shopping. He made a lot of sacrifices and I appreciate it.

Happy Father's Day

Trust in the Lord with all thine heart;

and lean not unto thine own understanding.

Proverbs 3:5

As difficult as it is, I have felt called to post this blog today. Its been about 2 years now since God called Daddy home and it seems as if he were here only yesterday. I can still picture his beautiful smile complete with those amazingly warm dimples. I miss him so very much. God's grace has healed some of the brokenness of my heart but I wonder if He will ever completely fill the void that Daddy left. I know that God is able but imagine that He leaves that special place there for just me so that I may close my eyes and see Daddy's face, hear his laughter, and know that he will always love his little girl.

I know that many of my thoughts and wishes are selfish for I want Daddy back here with me so desperately and sometimes I want that at any cost...until I remember. I can so easily remember the hurt in his eyes as he lay there wondering when God would ease his pain. After the Lord called him home I used to cry out and ask God why. Why would he place such a burden on my Dad? Why take away someone who loved others so sacrificially and served the Lord at every opportunity? To be honest, I still ask Him these things from time to time but I have come to trust God a little more each day and rely on His perfect plan. I will be the first to tell you that losing Daddy so soon would have never been in my plan for he meant so much to me.

Just today in the pastor's sermon he mentioned that there were 4 stages to parenting and that the last one was friendship. By and large this is one of the things that I miss the very most. Daddy was so much more than just a parent or provider. He embodied a friend to Tracy and me - one that could be trusted with any words, thoughts, or feelings. Daddy would always listen and respect what I had to say even when he disagreed. Sometimes he would guide me in the "safe" direction in decision-making and other times he would let me fall on my face just so I could learn one of life's valuable lessons (or as pastor said today - give me just enough rope to hang myself).

What an amazing mentor and coach he was whether it was in sports, education, or life - plain and simple. Anyone who knew Daddy would understand that I could fill pages and pages with accolades and memories of such a precious man but with this post I simply wanted to take these few moments to honor and remember someone who meant so much to me. My thoughts and prayers wouldn't be complete today without praising Jesus for the precious gift that He so willingly gave so that Daddy had the victory and is in His precious arms. I will see Daddy again someday for I too received the amazing and wonderful gift of eternal life in Him. May we honor our true Father on this special day!

My flesh and my heart faileth: but God is

the strength of my heart, and my portion for ever.

Psalms 73:26

Daddy's last Father's Day, 2006

Happy Father's Day, Daddy! We miss you so much and can't wait to see you again!