Happy 4th of July!!

Although we planned to be in Texas on July 3rd, it was perfect to arrive on the 4th . Eleanor enjoyed a big bear hug from MaGa (her name for Grandma Gette)

Our red, white & blue cuties

The shirt says it all

Mommy and her other lil' fire cracker

Emerson was trying hard to stay awake for the fireworks- Grandpa Gette was a great seat for the view

Nice thing about the new mini-van is that the back seat flips backwards for perfect tailgating- Aunt Leanna & Eleanor got cozy in the back. The funny thing was that we were waiting in the park for the fireworks from the horse race track, but they were taking too long. So we decided to start driving back to Aunt Leanna's house where we saw the fireworks we were waiting on and the ones from the Ballpark in Arlington after the Rangers game- two for one!

Texas, here we come... with an unplanned stop

Chuck E Cheese was not the unplanned stop, but the necessary place to eat after dragging the kids car shopping all morning. The reason for car shopping- our 2002 Ford Escape had a blown transmission about 200 miles from home on our way to Texas. So, Buford, Georgia, was our unplanned stop and we made the best of 2 nights there! 

Chuck E Cheese has the best rides & games!

Welcome to our family- a 2011 Volkswagen Routan

Thanks to the great accommodations at the Courtyard Marriott (and thanks to Grandma Teresa Pope for the family discount) and to the wonderful staff at ReDooz for helping me keep the two kids busy while Nakia worked on getting our rental car. I highly recommend it if you are looking for a great consignment store!

A luggage cart is a free, fun ride!

Eleanor was ready to show off the new ride and hit the road

She mainly loves the DVD player with wireless headphones, which was nice for Mommy & Daddy because we could listen to our own music at the same time!

We were glad to get to Alabama finally, although we didn't get to stop at our friends, Laura & David Laurencio's house since we were delayed a day, but don't worry- we stopped on the way back!

Hello, Mississippi! An overnight stay was much-needed in Jackson

And they had a pool! 

What a big jump! Thanks to Daddy for the support and guidance.

The mighty Mississippi River, getting closer...

Sweetness- is there anything better than sibling love?

We made it to Texas! Boy, was it hot!

Busy as bees

Sweet Emerson is getting into EVERYTHING lately, including the diaper bag, and leaving a trail of his mess

But how can you be annoyed at a precious face like that?!

Emerson is modeling his shoes from Sprouting Soles, that I won from a Facebook giveaway- he is so happy about them!

He is ready to move!

What a happy, drooling baby!

Shoes off!

Eleanor and Kaitlyn don't look like it, but they were very excited to go bowling! Thanks to the free summer bowling at AMF lanes- all we paid for was the shoes!

Emerson just got to hang out for now, but I bet he'll be doing it next summer!

Eleanor appreciated the ramp to help aim & get the ball farther down the lane

Silly face

There is my sweet smiling girl!

Thanks to Lily & Kaitlyn for joining us for lunch at Common Market- it was fun & delicious!

Eleanor's last day of swim lessons and she is all smiles

Probably because she knew they were getting popsicles after they were done

Eleanor and her classmate, Maddie, looked cute in their matching swimsuits

An Adventure to EdVenture

EdVenture is a great children's museum in Columbia and thanks to Groupon, we went for free! Plus we got to invite some friends- thanks to Sandy, Riley & J.T. for joining us.

Emerson is not good at staying still in his stroller- this boy wants to get out and explore!

Eleanor is always fascinated by the play grocery store (I wish she felt the same way about going with Mommy!)

Emerson was so happy to be down on the ground playing with the blocks

Eleanor and Riley were trying hard to work together and make the tractor move- J.T. was enjoying the ride

There was even outside water fun- Eleanor is trying to create a wall to stop the boat

Eleanor and Riley being silly at lunch

Maybe I should have taken a picture of what Eleanor was writing, although it was probably her name- she is great at writing that now!

Beautiful music was made and so much was had at EdVenture!!

The Best of June

Emerson and I are happy to have Eleanor home for the summer- she is great at sharing toys and playing with her little brother

She loves to get in the crib with Emerson after nap

They are so sweet to each other

Although it looks like Emerson is escaping, he loves the attention from his big sister!

Our friend, Ethan, turned 3 and he had an awesome Diego birthday party- here Eleanor is showing us her clue cards

Emerson was showing off his new hat & hanging with his awesome Daddy

Check out Eleanor's bird feeder

Emerson is a boy with many expressions

And an independent spirit to get his own snacks

Eleanor had an awesome time at Vacation Bible School at St. Philip Neri- she learned some great new songs and the movements for them

Emerson has become more interested in the kitchen, which is always helpful when Mommy has to cook

Emerson got a new carseat and he really likes it!

Unfortunately, Emerson and his friend, Charlie, did not like the sprayground

But Eleanor was happy to be on the swings

These friends go to different schools so they don't see each other often, but when they get together it's like no time has passed

Riley, Eleanor and Julia enjoying some lunch after swimming

Eleanor took swim lessons at Winthrop & it really helped with her confidence- we hope to do them again next summer there (my favorite part was that it was inside- no sunscreen needed!)

Our neighbor, Princess Campbell, came over to play often & it made the summer so much fun!

June 24th was a happy day for Eleanor- the opening day of Cars 2, the movie- so Mommy & Daddy got a sitter for Emerson so we could take Eleanor alone to see it

Who's got a coffee filter on his head? This cute guy :)