Beach Vacation 2012 Part 1

We took a beach vacation with my parents and sister for the last week of June.  We loaded up the car and drove to Fort Morgan, Alabama (just outside of Gulf Shores).  I was pretty nervous about the drive with the kids because they had never really driven more than 3 hours before.  We left at 4:45 a.m. and they did pretty good.  We stopped a lot for bathroom breaks and meals. Harper was pretty content most of the time with the DVD player. Brody napped some, snacked some, looked at books, played with lap toys, etc.  It was a long day but well worth it in the end. 

After 12 hours of driving we finally made it to our condo at Martinique on the Gulf in Fort Morgan, Alabama.  Harper enjoyed watching the GPS for the last hour of the trip because we kept getting close to the "flag".  As soon as we arrived, she said - "where is the flag"?

"Who is ready to get out of their car seat?  Oh me. me. me!!
When we arrived, we took off down the boardwalk to check out the beach.

Well, unfortunately Brody was less than thrilled with the sand, water, etc.

Harper on the other hand loved it!

It might be a long week...


Our condo overlooked the ocean, so each morning we enjoyed sitting and watching the waves.

Breakfast out on the deck






No - still not a fan.

Oh there was a rare smile that first day.




We all got in on the sand castle building / engineering.

Brody enjoyed a nap on Aunt Beka's lap.

Too many pics for one post so more to come!

Daddy Time

We love summer around our house because it means daddy is home more. We had a get together with our Bible fellowship class at one of their neighborhood pool's a few weeks ago.  The kids enjoyed the "lazy river".



And this pic is just because I never posted it for Father's day!

We are so thankful for daddy!

Coaches Outreach

Last weekend we headed down to the Hill Country for the Coaches Outreach Summer Marriage Retreat. We had a nice weekend away at the T Bar M Resort in New Braunfels while the kids were well taken care of in Paris by Papa & Mimi.  We enjoyed relaxing, studying God's word, and focusing on our marriage.  We are so thankful for this ministry for Coaches.

On Saturday afternoon, we headed to Gruene for some sightseeing and shopping.

Splash Park Fun

We enjoyed a fun morning at the splash park with friends last Friday.  The splash park is right next to a park so the littles were more interested in the playground than the water at first.
Brody and his buddy Brynlee chatting

Kate and Harper loved running around in the water

Brody made his way over eventually




 





We were having fun until the elementary school next door let out their entire 2nd grade for a water day.

Can you see Harper & Kate huddled together on the left side of pic? They just stood there and watched all of the big kids run around them.

Our splash park fun was cut short but nothing that a little watermelon snack didn't make better.

Rainy Days

Last week we had several days of rain and storms. The loudest storms seemed to pop up during nap time and in the middle of the night.  Good thing we have a King size bed so those extra bodies can fit in.  This was the first time that Harper has woken up during a storm in the middle of the night and run into our room. The next morning we had fun playing in the rain.


Brody was eager to try out his new puddle jumper swim floatie.

Rainy days = lots of dress up for Miss Harper. Look who decided he wanted to take part in it also.
(jeff hasn't seen this photo)

I love watching Harper let her imagination run wild every day.  She loves playing with her baby dolls.  she has her favorites and they change names every day. I love to hear her tell me what adventure they are going on each day.

Every night we read a few books to Harper, then a Bible Story, then the Lord's Prayer.  Normally she repeats after us line by line.  This night I asked her if she knew it by memory and this is what I heard.  Makes this momma proud!

10 years later

When Jeff was in College he played in a summer baseball league in Kansas City.  He lived with a host family for the summer. The Pierce family was so kind to take Jeff in for the summer. At the time they had 4 young children -  ages 7,5,3, & 1. Jeff has seen Rick, the dad, a few times in the past 10 years but hasn't seen Cheryl or any of the kids since he left in 2002.  They now have 5 kids. They were visiting family in Texas last week and were able to stop by our house on their drive back to Kansas City.  I loved meeting the Pierce family. Jeff thought it was awesome to see all of the kids grown up.  When he lived with them, Abigail was only 7 and now she is getting ready to start her Senior year! What a precious family.

Jeff and his host dad, Rick.


My kids loved having the Pierce kids around to play with that morning.  The younger boys were so sweet to Harper and Brody. Saying good bye. Hopefully it won't be another 10 years before we see them again.