Pickin' and Ridin'

July was an absolute BLUR around here! After the 4th of July it just seems that summer was OVER! I flew to Ohio for my Thirty-One conference and then we spent a few days in Lebanon. When we got back we tried to fit in as many fun things as possible! One fun thing we did was go pick peaches at the Hamptons. Lisa keeps Braden for us on Mondays and Haley is a senior this year and an AWESOME babysitter too! They are the sweetest family with the sweetest peaches!

Braden calls Haley "Hay Hay!"

Yummy.......that called for a homemade peach cobbler!


Another fun thing we did was ride the train from Lebanon to Nashville. Braden LOVES trains (just like Brooks use to) and he had never ridden on one before so we took him and he really enjoyed it!

July 4, 2011

I always look forward to the 4th of July! This year we got up and ate breakfast, worked out, went to the Greenback Parade. It was hotter than blue blazes (just like it has been ALL summer), but we still had fun! The boys got LOTS of candy and loved seeing all the horses, tractors, firetrucks, floats, etc. After that we went and bought some firecrackers and came home and took naps. Then we went to the 4th or 5th annual neighborhood cookout. We all cook LOTS of food, swim, play, eat, and then shoot firecrackers. It is such a fun and special family day!

Can you tell they are just a little HOT???

Braden got excited about the fireworks!

We decided that Braden was better off with a flashlight instead of a sparkler!

Dollywood Splash Country

This year for Christmas Rue Rue and Papaw renewed our Dollywood passes for us and then we decided to upgrade to include Splash Country too! We ended up going 5 or 6 times the entire summer and LOVED it!! Braden was a little unsure of the place the first time so we left him with a babysitter the next few times and then we took him back last Saturday and he enjoyed it soooo much! We are already looking forward to going back next summer! (These pictures are from our first time there at the end of May. I did not take my camera much after that b/c I was afraid it would be stolen.)

More swimming!

I think you can probably tell by these pictures that we are enjoying the pool this year! With it being so HOT, this is about the only way that we can be outside!

The Cousins Come to Visit!

In June my brother's children came to stay with us for a few days. We played on the slip-n-slide, went swimming, played the Wii, went to VBS, and had LOTS of fun together! Brooks and Braden were in HEAVEN! They love being around Melia, Olivia, and Vance! Before church picture
Vance and Braden having a snack.

Slip-n-slide action

Wii time!

Silly cousins!

A great start to summer!

We began the summer with visits from friends and swimming, swimming, and swimming. We have probably been swimming an average of 3 or 4 times every week. I think the boys are growing gills! The first time to the CourtSouth Beach.....it is affiliated with our Fitness Center.
The boys love it!

Early in June we also had a visit from Mrs. Elizabeth and Reagan. We played, went to Chic-fil-a , the park, and then came home to eat ice cream. Reagan is about 8 months older than Braden and they got pretty chummy!

First Swim of the Summer

At the end of May we had our first swim of the summer at our neighbor's pool. Brooks picked right up with his great swimming skills and Braden, we quickly learned, is a water dog.Braden is not wanting to stop for a picture.
BIG swimmer!

Brave boy.....now he jumps in without us even in the pool!