THE ABSTONS

Merry Christmas 2011!!

2012-01-18T19:56:00.000-08:00

Milk and cookies for Santa

Daddy did not clean out the fireplace and Santa left us sooty footprints

And this is what it looks like when you try to clean up Santa's mess (look behind the kids!)

Santa came!

Rise and Shine - it's present time!

What a face huh? He was only 10 days old in 2010 for his 1st Christmas. This year he still had no clue what was going on but he loved having everyone here and all of the new toys

Luke found his DS Santa left

Eli seeing what he got - must have liked it!

I love these 2 pictures of the boys

I hope everyone had a very Merry Christmas. We had a great one. It just seems like the years are flying by. My 2012 resolution is to take life a little slower and enjoy each day with my family. Christmas came and went in the blink of an eye. Happy New Year to all!

The "Blackmail" Pics...

2012-01-16T19:00:00.000-08:00

Cousin Alysse got a new baby doll and Eli just had to see what it was all about..he even had to try out the bottle!

Peek-A-Boo

2012-01-05T18:45:00.000-08:00

How cute is he?? Love these!

Random Pics

2012-01-05T18:28:00.000-08:00

Luke is building his Ninjago set - the set you see Eli trying to peek into below. Luke amazes me at putting these things together. I think this one had 540 pieces and he built it all by himself. He is a Lego junkie!

Bumper Cars

2012-01-05T18:11:00.000-08:00

Playing bumper cars with my mom - they were running into each other - he loved it!

Add caption

Yes, Aunt Joan, that is the Jax Jag shirt that you gave to Luke

Tacky Christmas Party

2012-01-05T17:58:00.000-08:00

Our church small group had a tacky Christmas party. We are pretty tack - David is Cousin Eddie from Christmas Vacation - you could even see the dickie through the sweater like the movie - we had a blast!!

This entire family shot is...just tacky - lol!! You might be a redneck...

Some of the tacky crew

Santa Pictures

2011-12-27T18:25:00.000-08:00

I love Santa's face here - it looks like Eli is telling him something he wants

Luke's Yellow Belt

2011-12-27T18:19:00.000-08:00

Luke was promoted and presented with his yellow belt in karate at the beginning of December. We are so proud of him. If he continues onto the green belt he will then begin combat with others as well as learning to break boards, all of which he really, really wants to do!

6th B'day Present - A New Bike!

2011-12-27T11:00:00.000-08:00

I LOVE this picture. These two are best buddies and I love them!!!

Oreos - What a Sweet Mess!

2011-12-27T10:46:00.000-08:00

Daddy's humor?

2011-12-27T10:39:00.000-08:00

Daddy thought it would be funny to stick Eli's finger in his nose while he was sleeping.......

Halloween 2011

2011-12-26T21:28:00.000-08:00

Zombie Ninja!

Baby Chick!

Baby Chick Down!!

The trick-or-treating crew - Cadence, Luke and Eli - I love these babies!

Random Pics.....Oct thru Dec

2011-12-26T19:42:00.000-08:00

Luke's 1st Day of Kindergarten

2011-10-06T19:24:00.000-07:00

This was Luke's first day of kindergarten. We had his hair cut for school and she cut it WAY WAY too short. I love his curls and his shaggy hair. It does get out of control at times but I do NOT like it short like it is in these pictures. This really doesn't even look like my child!!!

But now he is all shaggy again...just the way momma likes it and the way you see him in most of his pictures :)

Eli was happy the first day of school until...he thought he might have to go too - LOL!

Sweet Brotherly Pics

2011-10-05T09:43:00.001-07:00

BAD BLOGGER... Aldridge Gardens from May

2011-10-04T20:00:00.000-07:00

So I am a terrible mother, terrible blogger, blah, blah, blah. Yes, I know it has been a VERY long time since I have posted and the boys have just grown up. This post was from May and Eli was 5.5 months old...he is NOW 9.5 months old!!! Again, yes, I'm a terrible blogger. However, I am hoping to get a grip and keep this thing up-to-date. For now, enjoy the pictures from months ago... You won't believe how much Eli has changed once I post pictures from this century - lol!!

Bath Time Fun

2011-05-29T18:32:00.000-07:00

Yep, He's Mad

2011-05-29T18:20:00.000-07:00

He is a very laid back and happy baby. But he is only 5.5 months old and sometimes we do have little meltdowns now and again.

A Face Only a Mother Could Love - lol!

2011-05-29T14:14:00.000-07:00

Luckily, his eyes did not get stuck this way!

More Baseball Pics..Yes, I have been a TERRIBLE blogger!

2011-05-29T13:55:00.000-07:00

Some more pics from baseball 2011. The season is over for our little Rays team. We had a great time and are ready to do it all again next year!

My Sweet Babies

2011-04-13T03:47:00.000-07:00

How sweet is this face????

How cute is this??? They sure do love each other and it absolutely melts my heart!

In all of these pics Luke is the reason he is smiling. If Luke walks by Eli will grin...again, the sweetest thing ever!

B'day Party Fun

2011-04-11T07:38:00.000-07:00

A couple weeks ago we went to a friend's b'day party at Pump It Up... Both boys had a blast. As you will see below it pooped one little boy right out!

Monsters, Inc.

2011-04-04T18:23:00.000-07:00

Eli and Roz from the Disney movie, Monster's Inc.... when I took this picture I couldn't help but think how much Eli looked like her

Rays....#27

2011-04-04T18:09:00.001-07:00

This year we are the Tampa Bay Rays. So far we are 2-2. GO RAYS!! We have a "Lil Ray" cheering our team on this year so be sure to check out the next post too!!

Lil' Rays Fan

2011-04-04T17:56:00.001-07:00

Eli is sporting his own "Rays" onesie in support of his big brother #27! Note, the last picture....it is hard work for a 3 month old when cheering your big brother on.

Eli

2011-03-17T14:34:00.001-07:00

My Boys

2011-03-17T14:23:00.001-07:00

Tooth Fairy

2011-03-17T14:07:00.000-07:00

Luke lost his first tooth in February at school during nap time. He even made the newsletter!! You can read the annoucement below. Then just a few weeks later he lost his 2nd bottom tooth. We are still waiting for our permanent teeth.

FINALLY...a warm, sunny day!!

2011-02-15T18:09:00.000-08:00

This past weekend it was so pretty outside - FINALLY. We took advantage of this and did a little yard work. The boys loved being outside... I'm itching for Spring.

Sweet Pictures

2011-02-13T19:06:00.001-08:00

Brotherly LOVE!!!

2011-02-13T18:47:00.000-08:00

Luke is such a wonderful big brother!!! These two make my Valentines for sure.. XOXO

Dinosaur Museum in Gatlinburg

2011-02-13T18:26:00.000-08:00

Tubing in Gatlinburg

2011-02-13T14:38:00.000-08:00

AL Boys

2011-02-04T07:51:00.000-08:00

I had these cute little shirts made up for Luke and Eli. I thought it would be sweet to have all the AL boys together for a family picture. This is 3 generations of AL fans! It was a challenge to get everyone to look at the camera, smile, etc all at the same time. It was my intention to have these done outside but with the weather being so cold it wasn't possible. I still think I got a couple cute shots.

Gatlinburg Scenery...how pretty!

2011-02-04T06:28:00.000-08:00

David took us to Galtinburg for a few days while I am off on maternity leave. It was nice to just get away. I wasn't sure how a 6 week old would do on the long ride up and back but Eli did great. He is such a good baby. Very laid back and go with the flow kinda baby... We are blessed we know!

We also asked my mom to go with us. She hasn't been on a vacation in quite some time. She was a huge help with Eli and Luke - thanks Mom. She was glad to hang out at the hotel and just love on Eli while we spent some one on one time with Luke. She also kept the boys for us while David and I had an a few minutes to ourselves which doesn't happen often now with 2 kids.

BTW...if you haven't seen the post below about the world's largest sno-cone be sure to check it out - it's CRAZY!! That is one part of the trip we will not forget! I let Luke and David go off by themselves and you see what happens!

Pics of Eli

2011-02-03T14:03:00.000-08:00

Sleepy Head!!

All of these were taken at 7 weeks old!!! My baby is growing up so fast... He is such a good baby. I can't imagine life without him... he's a sweetheart and just starting to smile but I haven't been able to catch it on camera yet.

Check out those eyelashes!!! He gets those from his daddy. Luke has them too - darn those stinking boys!

Shaving w/ Sponge Bob

2011-01-31T19:23:00.001-08:00

Santa brought Luke a Sponge Bob shaving kit...he loved it. I think he has seen his Daddy shave a time or two. After a little help lathering up Luke looks like an old pro!!

Merry Christmas

2011-01-31T18:49:00.000-08:00

I have been trying to post these Christmas pictures for weeks now. I finally had to do it from our laptop. For whatever reason I couldn't get these to load from the desktop.. so Merry Christmas very very late!

Can you tell we woke him up? He still looks glassy eyed.

A gift from Mommy and Daddy

My brother brought his Xbox over. Luke LOVES to play games. At one point Luke tried to show David's dad how to play. I wish we had gotten this on video. Luke was hysterical explaining how to play!!

Eli and his great-grandmother on my side

Eli and his great-grandmother on David's side ..

Note, I had to go back in and change the name. I had put down this was Luke instead of Eli. My friend Morgan brought it to my attention that I labeled this picture and the one above with the name of the WRONG CHILD - ha ha!! Thanks for catching this Morgan. I'm a goof!

These were Luke's Christmas PJs that my granny (Luke and Eli's 's great-grandmother) gave him when he was born in 2005. It was tradition on Christmas Eve for granny to give the smaller children PJs to wear to bed that night. Unfortunately, granny passed away this September, before Eli arrived. However we know she was here with us in spirit and was looking down with love as Eli was sporting his Christmas PJs bought by granny in 2005 and hand-me-downed from Luke.

The World's Largest Sno-cone

2011-01-30T20:53:00.001-08:00

Ok, here is the story. While walking the strip in Gatlinburg, Luke wanted a shaved ice. Since it is not peak season half the stores are closed, and the half that are open don't have shaved ice, but mainly because it is the DEAD OF WINTER. But that doesn't stop David. He finds a little store that has shaved ice on the menu and asked the guy behind the counter if it is really available. The guy said yes, but that it would take a little time while he sets up the machine and gets a new block of ice. When all is said and done, this was the final product. David said it was the best $4.00 sno-cone he ever bought. Believe it our not, between the two of them they were able to eat it all the way down to the cup. By that time it was mostly syrup and to sweet to finish. Somehow they were able to avoid brain freezes and only suffered from red tongues and sugar rushes.

Tiny Dancer!

2011-01-30T18:46:00.000-08:00

This is a little clip of Luke showing his dancing skills during our family trip to Gatlinburg. The video was taken with David's phone so it isn't the greatest but we couldn't miss him cutting loose. The best part was we didn't even have to put money in the game, he just jumped up there and started dancing.

My Little Loves

2011-01-20T11:00:00.001-08:00

Eli's Birth (More Pictures)

2011-01-20T10:23:00.000-08:00

This is my FAVORITE picture. I don't know why but I suppose it is the smiles on every face, except Eli's. I love that you can tell David is smiling for the picture even with his mouth covered and the nurse is smiling while trying not to be so "in the family picture" with us. This was a great day and I am so happy to have my 3 boys (4 if you count the dog) in my life.

First picture of our family of 4. Please excuse the puffy face. They pumped about 2 bags of fluid in me in a 2 hour period or less. No good pictures can come from that much fluid!!

This is my other FAVORITE picture. Look at Luke and how much he loves he new baby brother. This picture melts my heart.

Big brother is already helping out!

SO SWEET!

My boys!! I love you guys!

My 3 boys at home....

McWane Center - Polar Express PJ Party

2011-01-11T08:36:00.000-08:00

The tornado tunnel..it was a little windy!

Playing in the "snow".. It felt really weird - wet but dry at the same time.

The "snow" packed like sand. Luke and I hate sand. If they could invent something similar to this for sand I would enjoy the beach much more.

Having a snowball fight

Luke and his buddies - Brayden (L) and Ben (middle)

How cute is this???

Luke and his buddies, plus one - Dalton (far left) Notice that all 4 boys have on action hero PJ's.. Star Wars (Dalton); Batman (Brayden); Spiderman (Luke); and, Bakugan (Ben) - typical little boys!!!

Being a big brother is quite the adjustment so I thought that Luke needed some time out alone with his friends. I decided on a "boys night" out so we asked all of his guy friends from school if they wanted to go to the Polar Express Party at the McWane Center. This was a fun little trip. Luke's friends Ben, Brayden and Dalton were all able to go. The boys had the best time together. Let me just say four 5 year olds at one time is loud and roudy!! The kids got to play in the Winter Wonderland exhibits, visit with Santa and have snacks before catching the movie Polar Express at the IMAX. It was a great time and I've decided that we need more "boys nights" with friends in the future.

If you are wondering my mom was more than thrilled to keep Eli for us while we took Luke out for his "boys night".. thank you mom for keeping Eli, I know it was just terrible for you snuggling with a one week old all evening - lol!!!

Pictures with Santa

2011-01-11T08:11:00.000-08:00

Eli was 5 days old when we went to visit Santa but I didn't let him sit on Santa's lap this year... I did snap a quick pic of his visit though..

Belly Shot - almost 39 weeks and D-day..

2011-01-04T06:54:00.000-08:00

I thought I would post a couple pictures of me right before Eli was born. This is on Saturday Dec. 11th before Eli was born the following Wednedsay, Dec 15th...I'M HUGE!!!!!! I can't even believe I'm posting this side shot from inside the house - I'm a beached whale!!!!!!

No one thought I would make it to my scheduled c-section date - not even me!! As you view the beached whale pictures you understand why no one thought I would carry to term...but...we did and David was able to be off Christmas Day and spend it with us as a family of 4.

Abston Family Christmas

2011-01-03T17:06:00.000-08:00

Trying to capture a family photo... Not sure why the red eye is still in these pictures..oh well just ignore the glaring eyes - lol!

Santa's little helper!

HUGE MONSTER TRUCK - Remote control vehicle... HUGE!!!!

Luke and Alysse

It was freezing outside so we didn't play too long with the monster truck. Plus Luke kept running into the road because of the truck so we went inside.

The cousins - Daylen, Alysse and Luke - silly kids!

David told Alysse she must have been kissing boys since all of her teeth are missing!

These pictures below are too cute. Luke was watching Daylen play his game. Luke has really gotten into gaming products lately but I refuse to buy him anything just yet.

Flat Ironed at Age 5!

2010-12-30T17:24:00.000-08:00

Let me preface this with Luke HATES his curly hair. I, personally, think it is adorable and just goes with his bubbly personality. His hair gets the attention of everyone we meet whether in a restaurant or Walmart. Older women especially love to tell him how gorgeous his hair is and how they would love to have hair like his. He gets so frustrated by these comments. It doesn't help the situation any that no one in his class has curly hair except him. Now that I've brought you up to speed let me tell you about the title "Flat Ironed At Age 5!"

We took Luke to get a hair cut and he asked the hairstylist if she would make his hair straight. She said that if Mommy said it was okay she would do it. I told her it was fine. We had just left the doctor's office where Luke had received 5 (YES, I SAID 5!!) SHOTS. 4 were his boosters for his blue form and then the flu shot. If my baby wanted straight hair and it would help his feelings and his boo-boo's then give that boy straight hair. Tori, proceeded to flat iron Luke's hair. I got tickled thinking what 5 year old gets their hair flat iron. When she was through I felt like I was looking at Justin Bieber's younger brother - LOL!!! Luke LOVED his hair. Honestly, I think he enjoyed his hair more than anything he received for Christmas. He even asked if we could wait to wash his hair so that everyone at school could see his straight hair. Unfortuntaly, school was closed for Christmas holidays so we have had to wash his hair :(

I had to take a picture to capture this day of straight hair. After I took the picture I realized how much he looks like his daddy. I always knew he looked like David but with straight hair the resemblence was unreal. Below is a picture of David. I know there is another picture somewhere (but I can't locate it) of David that looks even more like Luke. But you can still see the resemblence in the picture below.

Do you think they look alike??? Let me know what you think - leave me a comment...

HAPPY 5th B'DAY LUKE...I'm behind AGAIN...

2010-12-30T16:56:00.001-08:00

We had Luke's 5th b'day party at Pump It Up. I was 37 weeks pregnant and I figured this was the easiest way to handle his party. If Eli had decided to come early I had everything planned and done - all anyone had to do was take Luke to his party. Luckily, Eli decided to stay tucked in toasty and warm and didn't make his grand arrival until his scheduled delivery date. However, there was NO JUMPING for mommy this year!!!!!! I did good to just get a few pictures :(

I had to post this picture. Here is one of the dad's with a battle scar from the party!!!

This year's theme.... SPIDERMAN!

The loot!!! We brought our presents home to open them. I learned my lesson last year. It is total chaos with a bunch of kiddos trying to see who gave what and did this go w/ that... this year it was just us and immediate family back at our house to watch the gifts being opened.

Thanks to everyone who came to Luke's party and we missed those of you who were unable to attend. Luke loved every one of his presents.

Introducing......Eli Abston

2010-12-16T18:24:00.000-08:00

Here is my sweet baby boy - Eli... He weighed in at 8lbs 4oz and was 19 3/4 inches long.... It was so great to finally meet you....The shocker - he has HAIR!!! Luke was fair skinned and bald. Eli has an olive tone and a fair amount of dark hair.

First, of all let me say thank you to my wonderfully sweet hubby who secretly posted the night before our c-section. He is such an amazing husband and father and I thank God above daily that he is all mine forever and always.

Luke loves his little brother. He was so excited to meet him. Our nurse, Karen, was AMAZING. She took such good care of me and then when we got back to our room she took the extra time to let Luke help her give Eli his first bath. Luke was truly fulfilling his role of big brother by helping out that day. Karen gave Luke a rag and told him to work on his end (the hind end....) and she would work on her end (the head and fragile end..). I couldn't have had a better nurse or delivery that day.

Our family is now complete with all of my boys. I love being the mother to all boys and getting to watch them grow and learn from their dad. It melts my heart when I see Luke and David interacting together and now I will get to watch Eli learn from both David and Luke.

BOYS, I LOVE YOU VERY MUCH!!

I will have more pics to post later but these were just a few that I got from David's mom's camera...Hope you enjoy our new little miracle.

The Night Before the C Word

2010-12-14T19:13:00.000-08:00

Before all this begins, let me inform everyone that this is not Heather, but her loving Husband. I told her that I wanted to post from the perspective of the man, the father, the husband, the one that most of you talk about but never let on here. So, as a warning, this may be more masculine than most are use to, just grab a cold drink, have a seat and enjoy the ride. Twas the night before the C-Section, ah yes, it has finally come, the day of the year that we have all been waiting for. Well, at least those of us in the Abston clan. Looking back to March when I though my lovely wife was just showing her affection to her newly promoted hubby, I am now able to see that she was laying the ground work to her sinister plan, and once again , feeling used, I find I am just a pawn in this game. It has been a pretty good pregnancy, and I'm not just saying that because I'm the guy. The only thing that I can't seem to get Heather to understand is that I love her being pregnant. I don't mean that I would like to keep her like that constantly, just that pregnant women are beautiful and sexy. Now, before all of you think I'm some kind of freak, its not like I stand outside windows peeping in at pregnant women. It's a bunch of thing all rolled into one: you are carrying something that we made together, it is a little piece of perfection that has the best and the worst of both of us, it's another little mouth to say the word "Daddy", the rolling over, the walking, and yes all the diapers and spitting up and all that, but you look past it because this child is a symbol of our love, and that is beautiful, and that makes you beautiful. Now to the sexy part. Most women talk of the pregnancy glow. Let me tell you, guys don't see glow, crap, most of us are color blind. If we can't see colors how are we supposed to see a glow (side note- I am not colorblind, they test us for that). When you throw all the beautiful stuff in with the shapely body of a pregnant woman, you can't help but find her sexy. Plus, you have to figure that at some point she had a wild night that got her into this situation. Once again, remind yourself that this is a guy talking, don't worry, you'll make it through it. I also know that with pregnancy comes nesting. Nesting is awesome, the house is so clean that you could.... well, its just clean. I have been waiting for the nesting to kick in, and waiting, and waiting. Two days before the c-section my wonderful wife begins to nest, cleans the entire house to the point of almost dropping the baby out a few times, and I miss it cause I'm at work. I think this is another part of her sinister plan, just because she knows I've been waiting. Well, I guess I need to head to the bed, we have to be at the hospital at 5. Wait, that's another thing, 5 in the morning, at a catholic hospital. I know some catholics, they don't do anything at 5 in the morning, why in the world do we have to be there if they ain't gonna be there. I mean this is the same place that babies come from; ANNOUNCEMENT- he's been in there for 9 months, I think he can wait till 7:30. Who am I kidding, I probably won't sleep tonight anyway. OK, I have ranted long enough. In closing I would like to leave a little message to my beautiful and sexy wife; thank you. Thank you for who you are, and for what you have helped make me, and for making my two wonderful little boys. You are the greatest Wife, Lover, Friend, and Mother to my sons, and I thank God everyday for you. I know that we can conquer anything as long as we have each other. I love you more each day, and when I'm with you, forever is never that far away. I love you Baby.

Halloween 2010 (better late than never!!)

2010-12-10T17:21:00.000-08:00

A beautiful butterfly and Spidey

Shot #2

I believe Ayralyn's mom told me the costume came from Walmart - It was really pretty all the way down to her shoes. You had to watch the wings - they could put an eye out and almost did several times - ha ha!!

We celebrated Halloween 2 nights. I "assumed" (mistake #1) that everyone would naturally trick or treat on Saturday. I mean after all Halloween fell on Sunday this year and I always thought growing up we celebrated on Saturday if that happened. Our neighborhood didn't participate until Sunday so.... luckily Veterans Park hosted a Saturday night treak or treat complete with a hayride and candy. So we trick or treated on Saturday night at the park and then Sunday night Ayralyn came back over and we went door to door in our neighborhood. I was around 33 weeks pregnant but I was a trooper. I think I held up better than Luke. He was a tired little boy after 2 nights of fun for Halloween.

Big Brother/Little Brother Shirts

2010-11-19T08:47:00.000-08:00

I was wanting Luke and Eli to have cute shirts that said "Big Brother" and "Little Brother" on them. Everything I had seen on-line wasn't cute at all. Luckily, through a friend at work I found Stacey.

I emailed Stacey and went to her blog and together we came up with something that I think is absolutely ADORABLE!!! I can't wait to take pictures of my boys wearing their shirts. Go to Stacey's blog/website below and check out these adorable little shirts.

www.staceysstitches.blogspot.com

If anyone is looking for applique and/or monogrammed clothing, please contact Stacey. You can email her through her blog site. She did a great job and her prices are great too! I will be going to back to her for any future items... THANKS STACEY!!

Halloween for School

2010-11-17T18:01:00.001-08:00

Luke attends a church preschool. They only can dress as farmers for Halloween... Here is farmer Luke. This has been our "go to" outfit for the last 3 years.... Each year I'm able to find a pair of overalls and a shirt at a local consignment shop. My baby will go off to "big school" next year so this was his last year as a farmer.

35 weeks

2010-11-14T17:40:00.000-08:00

Finally, I posted something current!!!!!

Maybe I will get to posting a few Halloween pics before too long - man, I'm so behind. I blame it on the pregnancy.

Baby Shower for Eli

2010-11-13T07:44:00.000-08:00

The cake was so yummy and so cute.....

Thanks Morgan for the adorable diaper cake

My sweet hostesses (from L to R) Morgan, Whitney, Jenny, Tammie and April

The loot!!! Eli really racked up. I can't believe how much we received. I am so blessed to have such wonderful friends and family. Thanks to April for suggesting a shower. I was originally against it but in the end I had such a great time and it was so much fun.

Luke and Eli's Grandmothers and Great-Grandmothers

I thought this was sweet with Luke kissing my tummy

Me and my sweet boy. I can't believe he is going to turn 5 in a couple weeks. Where has the time gone?

The Abston boys - Luke had a baseball game the day of my shower. It was a fun boys day. We girls had a blast too!!

The fam... I really should have pulled the dress down a little. Looks like it had ridden up a bit by the end of the day - ha ha!!

A HUGE thank you to everyone who had a hand in my shower. David and I are so blessed to have such wonderful friends and family. Thank you for all the sweet gifts and for taking the time to come. I know everyone's lives are hectic in 2010 but thank you for taking a little part of your day and sharing it with us.

28 and 30 weeks

2010-11-10T16:43:00.000-08:00

I am WAY behind on posting. Especially since I am in my 34th week right now. I hope to post a more recent BIGGER belly shot soon. Above is my 28'ish week picture.

This is my 30 week picture.

I am going to try and post some pics from my baby shower that a few friends threw for me...stay tuned.

David's 32nd b'day

2010-11-02T04:12:00.000-07:00

David's b'day was oh....in September!!! I'm a terrible wife and blogger that it has taken me this long to post these pictures. David played in a golf tournament at Shoal Creek on his b'day - his b'day present to himself - lol! Luke and I made him a b'day cake to celebrate that night.

David, Luke and I love you with all of our hearts. You are a wonderful husband and father. I hope you had a wonderful birthday on the golf course!!!!!!!!! XOXOXO

Luke copied my "dad"...He did a great job!

Helping blow out the candles of course.

David's goody package for the tournament had AL and AU nightshirts in it. Luke had to put on one. If you look at Luke's hair it looks like he has bed head - nope, that's just his natural everyday look!

Posing proudly with his cake.

Let us not forget to get a picture of our cool tatoo with the cake....

Eli's 4D Ultrasound (30 weeks)

2010-10-29T04:14:00.001-07:00

This is the best "action" shot we got... He wasn't too cooperative. Is this a sign of our future??? When I got up at 5:00 a.m. that morning he was going nuts... I guess by 8:00 he was too sleepy to perform and decided to yawn - it was cute though.

You can see his face, arm and hand here. Above in orange tone is Eli...

Below here is Luke at 29 weeks... there is some resemblence??? (I couldn't get Luke's pic to rotate you will have to turn your head..)

Snoozing I suppose.... My mom said he looked like goldilocks because you can see the cord wrapped around the top of his head like he has braids!!

Visit from the Firetruck

2010-10-21T07:32:00.000-07:00

Luke is front row 3rd from left

Luke's school has been going over fire safety. Yesterday the firemen and the firetruck came to visit. Luke was very excited because his Daddy came too. No, this is not his daddy in the picture - all bald firemen look alike but this is not David.

David is no longer assigned to Station #1 (the Station that comes to Luke's school for fire safety training) but Luke wanted daddy there. David came up there to help out with the fire safety instruction. Luke wanted to know why he didn't have his "suit". "Suit" is what Luke calls the turn-out gear they wear into fires.

Miam Beach - Part I

2010-10-10T17:07:00.001-07:00

The court reporting firm I work with owns a condo in Miami, Florida. They let their clients us their condo as part of the perks. So..... David and I traveled to Miami, Florida recently for a little getaway before Eli arrives. We invited our good friends, Jason and Jenny with us. We stayed 5 days at the Pinnacle Condos. We stayed in the Upper Penthouse Suit on the 42nd floor. The views from the room were amazing. You had 180 degree views. The entire living area was nothing but floor to ceiling windows. We had a balcony out our bedroom that overlooked the ocean and Jason and Jenny's room had a balcony overlooking the bay. We pretty much were waited on hand and foot if we went to the pool or the beach. The cabana boys took care of getting your towels, placing your umbrella and overall making sure you were satisfied. They did this at the pool and at the beach. Jenny and I had a spa afternoon one day. It was just adults and it was great.

The picture above was the view we had of the city at night... I thought it turned out pretty cool!

View from living room

Additional view from living room/dining areas...see what I mean about floor to ceiling windows.

View of the bay and city from Jason and Jenny's balcony. It was really neat because during the day David and I had the best view since we had the view of the beach but at night Jason and Jenny had this incredible view of all the city lights...

View of beach from our balcony - see how high up we were. 42 stories is HIGH.

I had to continue the post in Part II below. My pictures would not continue to post so I broke them down into 2 posts.

Miami Beach - Part II

2010-10-09T07:39:00.000-07:00

The Pinnacle - we stayed in the far upper penthouse suite on the left-hand side

View at sunset - looking from sofa out through kitchen

I thought this picture was really cool of my prego sillouette. It looks like I'm floating with the city in the background. I am standing in the kitchen next to the window. Here I am 26 -27 weeks prego.

Jason and Jenny, some of our best friends. This is how you look when you do NOT wear sunscreen but DO wear your sunglasses. What can I say...all who know Jason know he is a goofball!!

We visited South Beach one night - we went into "Miami Ink" from the t.v. show. I think they have now changed it to LA Ink. It looked like any other tattoo place I've been in. I will say there were LOTS of tattoo places down there. NO David did not add to his collection - thank goodness!

While in South Beach I wanted to see "Dash" - the Kardashians store. Unfortunately, it is only open like 10 -6 so we walked about 12 blocks for nothing. Oh well I have the pictures of the outside windows. I really wanted to see how much the clothes cost.

Dash store window... I'm always looking for a feather skirt to wear out...how about you?

Taken on the balcony the day we left....Goodbye Miami....

Let me just tell you that I HATE...HATE to fly. The plane we flew in and out of Miami on was a 50-75 passenger jet. I'm actually okay with the smaller planes. For some reason bigger planes make me more nervous. The flight was only 90 minutes - still quite long on a plane for my taste.

The flight down wasn't bad at all..Maybe that was because I had been up since 3:00 a.m. with only about 4 hours sleep. However, coming back was a different story. Because we are in such a small plane a bus took us out to the tarmac to board the plane. When we arrived at the plane people were going in and out, luggage was still being put on so I just assumed they were not quite ready for us yet..no biggie. However, 45 minutes later (still sitting on our bus) and people pulling up with jugs of blue liquid and going in and out of the plane was a different story. At this point I was agitated.. what was going on? The fact David was just sitting there doing his crossword puzzle oblivious to all that was going on made matters worse. HELLO.. David, do you not see what's going on??? Shouldn't you be paying attention to this??? He was not bothered on bit. FINALLY they came on the bus and said there was a mechanical difficulty...A WHAT?? EXCUSE ME..SAY WHAT??? Okay, just take me back to the airport terminal and we will rent a car. It has to be safer than these planes that are having MECHANICAL DIFFICULTIES!! Funny thing the "mechanical difficulty" was just the commode!!!!!! LOL! Apparently the blue liquid I saw being brought onto the plane was the santizer stuff and for whatever reason the commode just would not work. WHEW what a relief... just a commode.. However, I guess due to safety regulations no working commode meant no flight on that particular plane. They decided to move us to the next plane on the tarmac. We boarded that plane and were headed home shortly thereafter.

Unfortunately, my feathers were ruffled at this point and no matter what I wasn't secure on this plane, in the air, and on the flight home. 90 minutes felt like 3 hours to me. I kept looking at my watch hoping time would go faster!!! To make matters worse as we are taking off David was reading a chapter in his book for his public safety class with something to do about 9-11 and the terror attacks... SERIOUSLY? I have just about stroked out because our plane has mechanical difficulties, all while you do your crossword. NOW that we are actually about to take off you decide to ready about 9-11 and the Pentagon... GREAT !!! No supportive husband on this flight but thank goodness we did have working commode!

GRANNY - June 26, 1916 - September 16, 2010

2010-10-04T12:38:00.000-07:00

Granny's 94th b'day party (taken in June 2010)... I love this picture!!

On September 16, 2010, my sweet granny went to be with the Lord. She was one amazing woman and loved by all who ever knew her. I lived most of my childhood, teen and young adult life with my granny. Even in my adult married life granny was always present; when David was working I would meet granny for dinner or when David was home I would go pick her up and she would eat dinner with us. Even after we moved across town I still would see my granny on a regular basis.

Fun fact.... The only home I ever remember growing up in during my childhood was my granny's. See my mom was a single parent and she and I lived with my granny all of my childhood, I believe from age 2 until my mom remarried when I was 13. My room was the middle bedroom down the hall. A couple years ago when David and I were in between selling and buying a house we (all of us, David, myself, Luke and the 2 dogs) lived in granny's house for 8 months. David and I slept in my old childhood bedroom and Luke slept in one of the other rooms. I remember thinking often during those 8 months how my life had come full circle and how my granny's house held so many special memories of my childhood and for 8 months my husband and sweet little boy got to live in the same place I called home for so many years. I am glad I was able to call my granny's home.."home" again even as an adult.

My granny even doggie sat for me every day while I was at work for my 2 boxer for years (well before I had an actual human child and then I couldn't stop at two different daycares and the dogs had to learn to be real dogs...oh the horror!)

Granny has been a huge part of my life for as long as I can remember. She lived a remarkable LONG (94 years) life. I have so many fond memories of summers together and field trips she attended with me. She loved to cook and especially loved baking!! I honestly could write pages and pages about my granny and all the memories I have. I decided to just give you all a preview of what a special lady she was and am keeping all of the millions of sweet memories I have of her to myself.

I only hope that Luke (and soon Eli) can look back one day and remember their grandparents in such a fond and wonderful way that I will ALWAYS remember my granny.

A Peek at Eli's Room

2010-09-12T08:14:00.000-07:00

We had David's uncle and aunt come in and paint Eli's room for us. Thanks Dave and Renee!!! I love how the stripes turned out. I stole the stripe idea from Morgan's nursery and blog (thanks Morgan!!).

I can't wait to get everything actually finished. I will post more pictures upon completion. Eli is due in December - look for the finished product probably Decemember 1st at the rate we move around this house - lol!!

Video Gamers

2010-09-12T07:59:00.000-07:00

Luke really loves playing video games so Daddy decided to break out the OLD Playstation 2 - yes, I know its an ancient piece of technology but we are OLD too! Luke's 4, to him it's video gold and I'm not telling him any different.

It was all fun and games until Luke couldn't get the game to do what he wanted and so I have posted his having fun pics and the 2 of him not getting his way.

Week 23 and 25 - Prego Shots

2010-09-11T15:00:00.000-07:00

Week 23 up top
Week 25 below.........I've stacked them to see if you can tell any size difference.

Week 23 above
Week 25 below....I've had numerous people say they do not think I will make it to December - I guess only God and Eli knows!! I just want Eli to be healthy, whenever it's his time to come.

I hate having my pictures made and especially after I have worked all day and am haggard looking. Here are some belly shots from week 23 and week 25 w/o my head in the picture - lol!

In the week 23 pictures Luke wanted to be included - he was taking a bath in week 25 shots or I'm sure he would have been in those too.

Eli is moving around ALOT these days... He is a very active little boy. Luke finally got to feel him move. I think now that Eli is packing on the pounds Luke will be able to feel him more often - I know I can!!!

Panama City Beach Pics

2010-08-06T18:10:00.000-07:00

Okay, I'm a terrible mother...We went to the beach almost a month ago. I've had some pictures saved to post forever but I just haven't felt like arranging them and posting. So I've decided to just post this without trying to make it flow. I'm 23 weeks pregnant and tired..I hope you can you cut me some slack???

This picture will come back to haunt Luke in 10 years or so... He put on my bathing suit top. He is so pretty he could pass for a girl - lol!

Pool Time - Luke learned to start swimming without his floaties while we were at the beach. To bad summer is almost over. I think if this was just the beginning of summer he would be swimming like a fish. I hope he doesn't lose all he has learned and accomplished over the winter months.

Come on buddy you can do it!!! We are so proud of him. Daddy was a little tougher on him then I would have been. That's why I'm just taking the pics. He would get tired and winded and I would just want to jump in and grab him... Daddy would make him tough it out. Luke caught on really fast. We are so proud of him.

Daddy couldn't quit working... notice he is on the phone while floating in Luke's ring...

Luke wanted a "surfboard" and of course as soon as he saw one with a shark on it he had to get that one - he looks so grown up here..

Luke did not like the beach at all. We drove 5 hours to hang out at the pool. I have never been a huge fan of sand myself and obviously Luke takes after me. We would stay at the pool while David would go jump in the ocean for a little bit.. David loves the beach and the water so having us with him is no fun - sorry babe!

Sabertooth Luke - Luke requested I take his picture while he posed. I have to admit this picture does make mem laugh.

Best buddies!! My two favorite guys.

I have pictures from Gulf World. I might get them posted before next summer but I make no promises... :)

Boy or Girl??? It's a......

2010-07-29T17:14:00.000-07:00

Boy!!!!! We had our "anatomy" ultrasound today. Everything looked great and our baby boy is measuring right on point. We took Luke with us and he was so excited to find out he was going to have a baby brother. The ultrasound machine does both 2D and 4D so the tech was nice enough to kick the screen over to 4D so Luke could see his little brother. Granted at 19 weeks the baby is still alien looking but Luke loved getting to see something other than a stick looking figure in black and white.

We told Luke his brother was giving him 2 thumbs up... if you look closely you can tell that it really is two thumbs but at first glance it looks as if our newest addition is giving us "the bird".......

We will welcome our newest addition to the family this December. I will be VERY outnumbered. There will be 4 boys (if you count our dog) in the house.

We are so excited to complete our family with another little boy. We have had so much fun with Luke and can't wait to do it all over again.

I know you want to know our name suggestions... we don't have suggestions we have an actual name already. The newest addition will be named "Eli". We cannot wait to meet Eli this winter.

R U Ready to R-U-M-B-L-E???

2010-07-18T14:45:00.000-07:00

Anyone wanna piece of me????

Box Head

2010-07-18T14:43:00.000-07:00

Swimming w/ Friends

2010-07-18T14:14:00.000-07:00

Saturday we went swimming with some friends. We had a great time. Thanks to Eric and Tammie for inviting us over. We met around 11 and the storms didn't hit until 4:30 or so that day.

We have started to slowly deflate Luke's swimmies so that he has to start using more of his own power. He is doing so well. If he isn't in the water his swimmies will literally fall off his arm if he is just standing - that is how much air is out of them. I am hoping by the end of next summer he will be a no swimmies swimmer!!

This Tammie and Eric and their WONDERFUL pool!!

These are some of our friends Morgan and her little girl Emma

This is Brooks - Morgan's 8th month old - isn't he the cutest!!!

I missed the best shot - the ball actually hit David square in the back of the head. If you look at Luke's face you can tell he is up to no good!

Squirting Daddy in the eye w/ the water gun.

Emma caught me taking her picture and she decided to smile for the camera!!

Brooks again - he is the happiest baby. If our 2nd child can be as mellow as Brooks we will have it made.

Luke's 1st Fishing Trip

2010-06-16T16:40:00.001-07:00

I love black and whites!!!

Luke's 1st fish ever - he was so proud. All caught on a Spider Man Rod & Reel - Go Spidey!

I kicked butt and took names on catching fish that day. David said I was Bill Dance w/ a ponytail. I think that was his sarcastic way of saying... "Baby you rock!" - ha ha!

WORMS - I wanted Luke to have a true fishing experience so I wanted him to use live bait. However, I didn't expect the worms from Walmart to be on steroids a/k/a "night crawlers" - I about passed out when I saw them. I mean what happened to good ol' red (SKINNY) worms??? I was going to help bait Luke's hook - after I saw these I said no thanks!!!

David is just a sicko - that's all I can about this picture

Happy faces after a fun time fishing!!!!!

Say What Wednesday!!!

2010-06-16T05:50:00.000-07:00

We were out having dinner last night for my mother-in-law's birthday (Happy B'day Tammy!) and Luke just broke out in song. He was singing something that he obviously made up.

Me: Luke, where did you learn that song?

Luke: My brain told me it

I can't argue with that!

Class of 2010

2010-06-11T04:11:00.001-07:00

On May 26, 2010 my little brother, Patrick, graduated from high school. I was 13 when he was born. My mom has had a child in school for 26 years straight!!! The picture below was taken in 1997 (kindergarten) - I had just graduated high school the year before in 1996!!

As I was typing this I was thinking about how my mom and David's dad are both Minor High School graduates (won't say what years..you guys can thank me later) and so were David and I. 14 years later my brother graduates from Spain Park High School and assuming they keep our zoning the way it is now Luke will graduate from Spain Park High School as well... I just thought that was kind of neat.

2010 - Graduate!!!

Congratulations to my brother.

Love, your very very old sister :)

Say What Wednesday

2010-06-09T05:49:00.000-07:00

We are pulling into our driveway................

Luke: How do you know where our house is
Me: Mommy and Daddy bought this house so we remember. When you are old enough and drive a car you will learn where things are too
Luke: With a very serious look on his face he states "I'm not going to drive a car. I'm going to drive a hotwheels."

David was tucking Luke into bed and discussing the impending arrival of the new baby...........

Luke: I don't need to really eat dinner so I can feed the baby while you eat dinner
David: Really?? Well what's mommy going to do if you feed the baby
Luke: She is going to change its stinky diapers - I am not changing stinky diapers. That's yuck!
David: Well what am I going to do - what's my job
Luke: You are going to keep it safe

That's right Luke - Daddy always keeps us safe but I'm willing to bet money that Daddy gets diaper duty too!

Baby A - 11 weeks

2010-06-08T06:03:00.000-07:00

Baby "A" at my ultrasound last week. When we first started the baby was on his/her side and not facing us. The u/s tech moved the baby around and he/she got very angry. He/she was kicking and hitting and moving around like crazy. I'm scared that at 11 weeks Baby A already has a "tude" - we may be in big trouble - lol!

Picking Strawberries

2010-06-07T16:53:00.000-07:00

My grandmother (Luke's great-grandmother) planted some strawberries for Luke so he could watch them grow and pick them. He was so excited to see "his" strawberries as he called them.

Luke's School Program

2010-06-07T16:37:00.001-07:00

Luke's school program was in early May. They sang a few songs on stage for their part of the program. It was really cute. Luke yelled out and waved to my brother and his daddy while on stage.

I'm behind on blogging I know. I have been tired and lazy. Growing a baby is tough work! I hope to start doing better.

Say What Wednesday!!!

2010-05-12T07:21:00.000-07:00

I've never played along with "Say What Wednesday" before but this week I just had to share. We recently told Luke that he was going to be a big brother. This is a conversation we had over the weekend.

Luke: Mommy, you want a piece of gum?

Me: Sure Luke I will take a piece of gum.

Luke: It will make the baby minty fresh!

I couldn't help but giggle - I mean you can never be too "minty fresh" right?

Computer Problems

2010-05-11T16:23:00.000-07:00

I guess you noticed I haven't posted any pics in a while.. Two reasons:

1. My morning sickness is actually night sickness and I have been feeling really bad in the evenings. I hope we are on the downhill slide of naseau. The doctor gave me Zofran and it is a miracle drug! I would glady be their poster child for the drug and do it for free - thank you makers of Zofran! I haven't had to take a pill all day so keep your fingers crossed for me that my naseau is subsiding.

2. THE REAL REASON....our computer got some virus and we have had to have it wiped clean and it is taking a while for the process to conclude. I guess I could get with 2010 and download to our lap top (which I'm typing on now) but I prefer the desktop.

So keep your fingers crossed the naseau is gone and that our desktop returns home free of any virus and able to take on picture downloads. Hope to be back soon with pics.

Guess what......

2010-05-08T15:42:00.000-07:00

Yes, we are pregnant - well, I'm pregnant and David is just dealing with all of the hormone fallout. He's been taking it like a trooper. I love you baby and hopefully soon psycho prego lady will no longer exist - lol!!

We found out we were having Baby "A" on April 15th - yes, tax day. Not sure what kind of sign that is. We finally were able to go and get confirmation that we were indeed pregant and hear the heartbeat. Everything thus far looks great and we are very excited. Baby "A" is due this December.

We told our moms over dinner and David took some video footage. I will see if I can upload the footage shortly. Really it's just a bunch of hollering. Everyone figured we were done having babies. I can now confirm that we are for sure done. 2 is our limit!!!

Happy Mother's Day to all the mothers out there. I hope everyone has a great one.

P.S. Per Luke he is only having a brother. If anyone mentions the idea of a baby sister he shoots them down very quickly. It will be a while before we know what we are having but in Luke's mind a brother is all there is. And...he has already named the baby - ARE YOU READY FOR THIS.... He is calling it "Nuggie" (pronounced "NUG-E")...Yes, that is the name Luke has picked out. Bet that name isn't on the Top 2009 Baby Names list. Either way Mommy and Daddy aren't sure Nuggie is the right name boy of girl!

Lets....PLAY BALL!

2010-04-17T15:06:00.001-07:00

This particular day we had snack/drink duty after the game that's why we have the cooler. The games only last 1 hours so there is no need to pack a cooler - we will save that for several more years down the road!

Luke and Coach Mark

Running to 1st

Running home

Our company is one of the sponsors for Luke's t-ball team. We get our business name posted on the "sponsor" billboard in the center of the park.

GO CARDINALS!!!

Here Comes Peter Cottontail....

2010-04-08T16:46:00.001-07:00

The Easter Bunny left a Power Rangers watch!

Showing off his watch with a Power Rangers move! Check out that bed head!

Family Portrait - The sun wa SO bright even with it to our backs. I could barely hold my eyes open for this picture.

I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE this picture - and I love my boys too.

The pictures below crack me up. Luke put on my sunglasses. The first thing that came to my mind when I saw these - P. Diddy - yes, I'm crazy but he reminds me of one those flashy rich music producers/singers waiting to get into his Bentley. LOL!!!!!!!!!

These below were taken later in the afternoon at my aunt's house.

Congratulations Daddy!

2010-04-01T06:22:00.000-07:00

I'm so proud! David was promoted to the position of Apparatus Operator or "AO" at the fire department. I tried to post the memo from the Fire Chief annoucing his promotion but it didn't work so well. To celebrate David and I had dinner at the Country Club - alone (thank you mom for keeping Luke!). It was "Italian" theme night and the food was delicious.

Luke and I wanted Daddy to know how proud we were so we had a special little package of cigars put together for him and delivered to the fire station. Ben at the Tobacco Shop did such a good job putting the package together. HERE'S MY PLUG....If you are ever in Hoover on Montgomery Highway, please stop in and see Ben at the Tobacco Shop. It's a great place to buy your tobacco products (Again, Ben thank you so much for the great job you did putting together the cigars for David and delivering them - it was great!). Below is a picture of what David received:

David, Luke and I are so proud of you. You are a wonderful husband and father. We love you all the way to Heaven and back - forever! (It's an inside thing...)

P.S....I realize I published this post on APRIL'S FOOL but I promise David REALLY did get a promotion, we are VERY proud of him and do LOVE him all the way to Heaven and back - forever!! LOL!!

Euro Bungee

2010-03-18T16:24:00.000-07:00

My mom wanted to take Luke to the mall and do the "Euro Bungee". At first he wasn't too sure about it. He enjoyed it though. After we were done some other kids did it and I think Luke loosened up to the idea. Maybe we can take him and do it another time. It ranges from 20lbs to 200lbs. Maybe I'll give it a try!!!!

1st T-Ball Practice!!!!!

2010-03-09T16:27:00.001-08:00

Ready to leave for his 1st practice ever

Everybody going after the ball - we need to work on this a little more

First time up to bat

Batting and catching at the same time - he has skills! Look how tiny his waste is!!

I've waited for this day since I found out I was having a boy. My brother played park ball and I loved it. I knew I always wanted a boy so I could do it all over again - and now it's time!!!

On 1st base!!!

Going for a ground ball

Just like Daddy!

What a great 1st practice. We are set to do it again this weekend. Our first game is later this month.

Dinner Club - Guitar Hero "Rock Band"

2010-03-06T16:25:00.000-08:00

We are part of our church's "dinner club" small group. We get together once a month at the "host" home for great food and fellowship. You bring your children and make it one big party. This month we were the hosts. We had so much fun. One couple brought Rock Band and everyone played and sang all night - it was mighty funny. The kids had a blast playing downstairs in the bonus room. We had 20 adults and 14 children that night (yes, 34 total!) and I, by God's grace (thank you Lord..) was able to pull it off. Thanks to everyone who came. We truly enjoyed it.

These guys are the Rock Band heros!!! They played the entire song all the way through - WAY TO GO GUYS! The rest of us.......we are not so good :(

I played drums for my turn - Luke helped - we weren't good!

We are looking forward to next month's dinner!!!

Park w/ Friends

2010-03-06T16:05:00.001-08:00

A couple weekends ago it was a really nice Saturday so we spent it at the park with friends. The boys are in pre-school together and we try and get together periodically for play dates. This was a great day. Well...until we went to Zoe's for lunch and Luke spilled his chocolate milk on the back of this man's jacket, up his back and onto his hat - the man did NOT seem happy. Accidents happen and life goes on!!!!

Animal Kingdom - Weds & Thurs - Part I

2010-02-16T17:52:00.001-08:00

Animal Kingdom - Weds & Thurs - Part II

2010-02-16T16:46:00.000-08:00

Cathy, these two (above and below) are just for you

Luke is tickling Tigger's nose!

I had to post this picture.. why? Because my child requested I take a picture of him sniffing the tiger's hiney - yes, he is a gross little boy. This was a cut-out of a tiger in Rafiki's Planet Watch. As you can tell from Part I of Animal Kingdom he is obsessed w/ tigers.

A hippo skull....

We spent Wednesday and Thursday in Animal Kingdom. I have to say Animal Kingdom and Magic Kingdom are my favorites!

SNOW...for real!

2010-02-13T16:47:00.001-08:00

Thank you Children's Place for my "freebie" during the summer - it was the snowman making kit... Didn't know if I would get to use it - the kit even had the red scarf too.

Friday it snowed!! It was great - Luke's preschool closed at 11:30 - David was off work and my job closed at 12:00 - we had so much fun playing in the snow.

Monday - Hollywood Studios

2010-02-12T18:28:00.000-08:00

Mike & Sully from Monster's Inc.
Luke didn't care about seeing them so no pics of Luke with them. He loves Monster's Inc. so I was surprised when he said he didn't care to see them. But he had just come from meeting the Power Rangers (see below) and I guess Mike & Sully weren't cool enough.

Yes, I'm a Power Ranger too - check out my moves!

Green arm man - notice all the ponchos in the background??

Mater - they never did look my direction - Hello, ignore the photopass guy - I'm NOT buying their pictures - please look at me!

Luke looks ticked off in this one - not sure why but at least he's looking at me and not the photopass guy!

Ahhh much happier face!!!

Luke insisted I have my picture taken w/ the pink girl ranger.

It was a rainy day but mostly Hollywood Studios is indoor stuff - shows, etc. The highlight of the day came at 4:30 p.m. - MEETING THE "REAL" (as Luke says) POWER RANGERS!!! He was so excited. It was worth the money and driving time to see how excited he was to meet the Red, Blue, Green, Yellow and Pink Ranger. We got all of their autographs too! On the way home, Luke asked if he could change his name to "Power Ranger". He's the coolest kid in school these days since he met the "REAL" Power Rangers!!!

Hollywood Studios is where my child rode the "Tower of Terror"... I'm still in shock that he rode it and loved it.

Tuesday - Epcot - I will post Monday's next..OOPS

2010-02-11T17:56:00.001-08:00

Not his happy face??? He wasn't mad though.

The two loves of my life :)

At our character dinner

I was supposed to post our Monday adventure to Hollywood Studios but forgot - oh well, here is Tuesday's adventure, Epcot. We had a character dinner scheduled Tuesday night at the Garden Grill. The tables face outward and you constantly spin around the room while eating. Not fast spinning, you make one complete circle in about an hour. There are different scenes on the walls facing you to enjoy while you eat - the food was excellent and it was all you can eat too! During dinner we got to hang out w/ Mickey, Donald, Chip & Dale. The characters came around 2-3 different times. Luke had a blast.

Sunday - Magic Kingdom

2010-02-09T04:16:00.000-08:00

Celebrate Parade

I thought this was a gorgeous picture of Cinderella's castle at night

First character greeting - Lilo & Stitch

It was very cold as you see everyone bundled up - low 60's and 20 mph winds... We didn't care we were in Disney World!

Posing w/ the shark from Finding Nemo

First official day at the disney park was Sunday. We stayed the entire day at Magic Kindom. I believe they were open until 11:00 p.m. that night with the extra magic hours and we stayed until almost closing time. Magic Kingdom and Animal Kingdom are my favorite parks. Magic Kingdom had the most to do for smaller children - Luke rode his first roller coaster here - Big Thunder Mountain - HE LOVED IT...He held his arms up just like Daddy did.

Luke also rode The Tower of Terror - yes, you read right...my 4 year old rode the Tower of Terror and his response when he got off "that was awesome" - he is going to love Six Flags when he is older!!

More pictures to come hopefully tomorrow night....next up, Epcot

Hey Everybody

2010-02-08T18:27:00.000-08:00

I'm slowly trying to add a few pictures each night to the blog from our Disney trip. I took over 400 pictures so narrowing them down is tough. Plus Blogger has been really slow.. Check back each day for additional pictures. I might get them all done before 2011!

Downtown Disney - Saturday Night

2010-02-08T17:12:00.000-08:00

I loved the way this picture turned out in black and white!

Palentologist Luke - dig site at T-Rex (see full post below)

On Saturday after we arrived we took the ferry to Downtown Disney. They have a restaurant called "T-Rex". It is really cool. It's nothing but dinosaurs moving and roaring while you eat. If you have ever been to Rainforest Cafe its along the same lines but w/ dinosaurs. T-Rex also has a "dig-site" for kids to dig and discover fossils while you wait for your tables.

Disney World - Saturday - We Arrive - Our Resort

2010-02-08T16:53:00.000-08:00

Pictures from our resort - Port Orleans Riverside. This was a Disney World Resort which meant we could catch a bus to and from all the theme parks. We also were very close to Downtown Disney. Our resort had a ferry service that took you to and from Downtown Disney. The resort was really great.

Disney World

2010-02-07T18:12:00.000-08:00

We just returned from a week long trip to DISNEY! We had a blast and got to spend alot of time together as a family. These shots were taken when Luke found out where we were headed. It was a surprise for him. It made the entire trip worth it to see these faces! MORE PICS TO COME SOON!

Roll Tide Roll (only because I love my boys!)

2010-01-06T18:14:00.001-08:00

Sporting their team shirts!!

We are a house divided (War Eagle) but.... because I love my boys I can still find it within myself to cheer on our State's "other" team that is playing for the National Championship. As Luke says "Roll Tide Roll" - Go Bama!

Spider Man Song

2009-12-29T17:22:00.000-08:00

Merry Christmas - Random Pics

2009-12-29T07:37:00.000-08:00

Santa left Bosco some bones in his stocking!