2014 Virginia Trip - Phase Two

The Gooss' live near Richmond, which is a lovely place to visit.  If you're ever in the area, make a point to walk around Maymont Park.  Absolutely gorgeous.  And free.  I'm not sure what was most awesome about Maymont, it's immaculate gardens or the fact that it is free.  Or maybe the black bear they have residing there.  Or maybe the huge magnolia trees.  Or maybe that it's free.  Have I mentioned it's free?  Seriously though, you should go.  

Anyway, the Gooss'.  Or would it be Goosses?  However the plural spelling of their last name would be, they are awesome.  We met them here in residency.  There are just some people that you will love for life.  They are on our we-will-love-them-forever list.  

We went to the Half Pipe Mall one afternoon.  They had a Cheescake Factory.  Uh oh.  I probably shouldn't tell you that I bought to slices of cheesecake.  $18?  Serously?!  Worth every penny though.  

They had a Pottery Barn store too.  $2,784?  Seriously?!  Just kidding.  I actually walked out of there without spending a dime.  It's true.  Hardest. Thing. I've. Ever. Done.  

And then there was our trek over to Virginia Beach.  AHHHHH.  The Ocean.  How magnificent thou art.  Girls had a blast, kept getting swept down the shore and called back, and finally got brave and started jumping waves in deeper water just as we were ready to leave, much to their dismay.  

Like I've said before, no trip anywhere with me is complete without some ice cream.  

Now that I think of it, no trip to any state that has a Chic Fil A is complete without some chicken.  And fries. And Chic Fil A sauce.  And fresh squeezed lemonade.  This pic below is of the kids after some Chic Fil A on their family night.  Free Cookies and balloon attire.  

And after a long 11 days on the road, this sign was a very welcomed sight, indeed. 

2014 Virginia Trip - Phase One

Sometimes one just needs to leave town.  Go on an adventure.  Alone, with 4 kids in tow.  Ever feel that way?  

I didn't think so.  

I went anyway.  And it was a blast.  And doable.  The girls were actually pretty dang good.  So good that I'd do it again.  

School got out and we took off a week later for Virginia to see Adam's brother's family In Roanoke and then some friends in Richmond.  The girls needed a trip.  I needed a break from the endless projects and house cleaning around here.  We ate a lot of Chic Fil A.  Hiked, slid down rocks slides, exercised, went for lots of walks, swam, played at parks, went for scooter rides, caught fire flies, watched movies, stayed up way too late, did crafts on a roof.... what else?  Oh yea.  Ice cream.  No trip with this mama is complete without ice cream.  

Lanie loved her Uncle Nate.  She loves men in general, I think.  And Uncle Nate loved Lanie.  

Roaring Run was so beautiful and tons of fun.  There were rock slides that we slid down into pools of water.  My older two are getting brave and actually tried the huge one.  I won't mention if they cried when they surfaced at the bottom though.  At least they tried.

And by the end of leg one of the trip, this is how we all felt:

Alaina's Baby Announcment

Just made and ordered prints today.  Aren't they cute?  If you're family or a close friend, you should get one shortly in the mail. ;)

New family pictures for 2013!

My family and mom, dad, brother and sisters had a family reunion with my dad's side of the family on Hess Lake in Michigan a few weeks ago.  My cousin, Erica, who is a phenominal photgrapher, took some family photos for us!  The first one below I'm having printed and hanging in our home.  We don't have a family picture hanging in our house anywhere!  

Ava, 3 1/2 years old:

Adalin, 8 1/2 years old:

Kira, 6 1/2 years old:

Little Alaina, 7 1/2 weeks old:

This has got to be my favorite one of my whole family!

My mom and dad:

My 2 sisters and I:

And some more of our sweetest little addition:  

Wild Blackberry Picking

Adam and the olders braved the mosquitoes and went on the hunt around our vacant neighborhood for wild blackberries.  Ava ate them as quickly as she found them.  Adam and the girls actually brought home a few cups of them, then ate them all within a day.  It's the little things like this that make my girls truly happy to the core. 

Random Alaina Pics

A beach bum at 6 1/2 weeks old:

6 1/2 weeks old:

5 1/2 weeks old:

Almost 4 weeks old:

3 1/2 weeks old:

2 weeks, 6 days old:

2 weeks, 5 days old:

4th of July, 2013

Here we are, at the parade in our hometown.  To me, what was weird about going was that I was supposed to deliver Lanie the day before and didn't think I would make the parade this year!  Lanie is hiding in my baby carrier on my front :)  The dogs (in the bottom of the pic) actually did really well even with the firetruck sirens and masses of people.  

The new toilet

We needed a new toilet.  So I went to Home Depot and bought one.  Now, I didn't even think twice about hiring someone to install the thing.  Who needs a plumber when you have YouTube?  A few videos later, I had the old one out and the new one in.  I'm sorta proud of myself.  And it doesn't leak.  Ha!

The definition of "winkie"

The girls took swim lessons this year for the first time.  My mom, and this is just like her, bought them new bathing suits and googles for the much anticipated series of events.  They were so excited about the new gifts, they wore their new suits and goggles pretty much this entire day.  They are hilarious.

One of those Sundays...

It was one of those Sundays when Adam and I were so desperate for a nap that we kept shooing little Ava from our midst in between bouts of slumber.  When we finally woke up for good (after much interruption) we couldn't find her right away.  Then we stumbled upon this:

Under our bed.  Sleeping.  In her undies.