Party Gator Style

Saturday, we celebrated Micah's 8th birthday with a pool party for all of his friends.
He decided that he wanted a Gator Style party and we were thrilled when we found these invites that look like football tickets from partymommas.com

(I'm not really sure why this picture is posting sideways, but you get the idea. )

We also couldn't resist ordering matching candy bar wraps to give out as party favors.

Here's the 'grub'

complete with GATOR-ade, of course!



We even found Zapp's Cajun Dill GATOR TATORS!

I especially love the Gator Jersey napkins we found at Academy ~ they even stood up!

Uncle Brad came early to help set up.

Needless to say, Micah was thrilled that he was the first guest.

No good Gators party would be complete without a little football action.

Savanna, Marissa, and Rylee chillin out in the pool.

Hunter and Brylee had fun flirting in the playpen.

Check out Brylee with her off the shoulder action.

Althought the original weather forecast called for rain, the Lord was gracious to give us a GORGEOUS day that was perfect for a pool party.

Don't even think about it!

Party on, boys!

Bizzy, Mitchell, and Savanna took a break from swimming and snuck some sour patch kids...the operative word being SOUR!

Check out these groovy grandparents in their shades

Our brave and funny friends came to the GATORS party sporting their Bama and FSU gear!

But if you look closely, you'll notice April IS drinking GATOR water!

Happy Birthday Dear Micah

Happy Birthday To You

Huff and Puff

and Blow them all out!

Time for food and presents!

The theme of present time was MONEY, MONEY, and MORE MONEY!

That is one blessed little boy!

Legos are always a big hit.

The Wetball Football must have had a neon sign over it in the store saying

"Buy for Micah's Birthday!"

It became hysterical everytime he opened another package with yet another wetball!

What's even funnier, is that he wants to keep them ALL!

Brian and Scott were our volunteer lifeguards for the day.

Ronnie, Caze, and Ashley horsing around in the pool.

Don't ask me why the biggest of kids found their way to the baby pool.
C.J. decided to help us clean up by finishing up the rest of the nacho dip right out of the crock pot. Instead of getting caught with his hand in the cookie jar, he was caught with his hand in the crock pot.

Micah solicited Uncle Brad's help in putting together some of his new Lego creations.

Good thing Uncle Brad has his Masters in Engineering!

Check out the wad of cash!

Would you believe he walked away with over $225 in cash and gift cards?

I wonder if I can ask him for a loan?

Actually, he thinks he might save up for a laptop.

We had a great day celebrating with family and friends!

Mother's Day Dinner

We have the BEST moms in the whole world!

They are incredibly strong, faithful in their walk with the Lord, and constant encouragers for all of us. Their love and support is the backbone for our entire family.

We gathered together with our families to enjoy a wonderful dinner and set aside time to celebrate these lovely ladies and the way they have poured their hearts into all of our lives.

Brian is a master griller! We agreed long ago that I do all the inside cooking and Brian does all the outside cooking.

He threw some pork chops, corn on the cob, and garlic bread on the grill and cooked them all to perfection!
We sat by the pool watching the children swim and snacking on some DELICIOUS red pepper hummus!

After dinner, Micah entertained us by rapping to some Toby Mac.

Savanna sang 'Love Is Come' by Mark Schultz.

The mini concert was the best present I could have asked for!

We passed out Mother's Day gifts and couldn't resist a shot of our favs...

New Yellowbox for all the Moms and Grandmas!

What fancy (and comfy) feet we have!

I am pretty sure Yellowbox is a form of addicition.

Happy Mommy's Day to ME!

These precious children are the best gifts I could ever have!

I think one of the most amazing things about being a mom is that we catch a glimpse of the Lord's love for us as His beloved children.

I love my children with an unconditional, unending, protective love. I desperately want what's best for them. I hurt when they hurt. When they disobey, it breaks my heart. But when they come to me truly seeking forgiveness through confession and repentance, my heart's desire is to lavish mercy and compassion on them.

I can not fathom that the Father's love for us as His children is far greater than the love that I have for these sweet children. I feel overwhelmed today trying to comprehend the depth of the Father's love for us.

My new coffee mug says it best:

Being a Mother...



...is a Holy Privilege

Amen to that!


Everyone voted unanimously that for Mother's Day it was definitely time to replace my 2 year old crocs. This is now the third IDENTICAL pair of sandals that I have owned. But they are THE most comfortable shoes you can imagine.
These puppies aren't cheap, but as you can see from the wear and tear on my old ones, I think I definitely got my money's worth out of them.
Check out the old shoes on the top compared to the new ones on the bottom!
Who knew they were suppossed to have treads on the soles?

I love all my cards, flowers, balloons, lotions, and homemade treasures!

I especially love my crown so I can be "Queen for the Day!"

It has been a wonderful day and my precious family has truly treated me like royalty.

Thank you all for making this Mother's Day super special!

Shout It Out

I think I may have met my match!

Thank you Lord for blessing me with a child that loves to play baseball.

Thank you that he is healthy and able to run and enjoy the game.

Thank you for the strength and agility with which you have graciously given to him.

And I want to thank you, Lord, for his competetive spirit that compels him to ALWAYS slide in to home plate to secure the run for his team.

Thank you, Lord, for washing machines and 'Shout'!

Amen

Souvenir Suggestions?

Since we've been on the topic of Disney, I thought I would search out some ideas for fun and creative keepsake souvenirs for our next trip. When the kids were little we always did the autograph books. After we had collected a half dozen of those babies, we ventured out into other ideas.

We've done autographed picture frames...
tote bags...
and even hats!

Anyone have some fresh ideas for Disney souvenirs they could share with us?

Wednesday Walk ~ 1st Disney Visit

Disney on Ice made me nostalgic about our very first Disney visit when Savanna was 3 years old and Micah was 7 months old.
Savanna told us all she wanted to do when she got there was kiss Mickey on the nose.
Couldn't believe she actually had her wish come true within mere moments of arriving on Disney property.
Although I know that 'magical' season of their childhood is gone, I still can't wait to enjoy Disney with them this summer in a whole new way. They may not believe in fairy dust and princesses anymore, but now they are big enough for roller coasters, baby!
Let the countdown begin!

Disney on Ice

We truly have some of the best friends in the world!

Would you believe we had friends GIVE us FREE tickets to Disney on Ice?

Free always makes it better, right?

We hit the concession stand for some fun eats and then settled in for the show. None of us really knew what to expect. Although we are true Disney amateur experts, we have never seen Disney on Ice.

It surpassed all of our expectations!
All our favorite Disney movies were acted out including Aladdin complete with over 20 Genies!
Nemo and all his underwater friends including a Bruce that required DOUBLE skaters!

Of course it wouldn't have been complete without Mickey and Minnie and their whole gang.

I was pleased as punch when they made the "It's a Small World" ride come to life on the ice.

It's become a tradition that Small World is always our first ride whenever we visit Disney World.

It was the very first ride we rode on our children's very first Disney visit many years ago. I remember Savanna crying ~ LOUDLY crying ~ when the ride was over. Since it was the beginning of the day, and there was virtually no line, we got right back on the ride. Every time we got to the last room with all the flowers, she would start squallin' and baulin'. After about 4-5 trips through Small World, we finally convinced her that there was more fun to be had in the rest of the park.

It's just plain hard reasoning with a 3 year old.

They even did a tribute to the night time Spectromagic Parade.

We had a wonderful evening and now I can hardly wait for our summer Disney trip!

Thank you Curtis and Linda for your generosity and thoughtfulness!

Blowing Kisses

As if my sweet nephew didn't already have my heart, he definitely sealed the deal when he blew me kisses goodbye!

What a little flirt ~ I sure do love this little guy!

P.S. Don't you love the Jello stained red fingers? Looks like someone might be a 'lefty'.

Beach Wedding

Brian was asked to officiate a wedding on the beach for a precious young couple.

The bride told Brian she wanted the ceremony to be "short, sweet, and meaningful."

That was a pretty tall order, but I think he did a great job and kept the entire ceremony right at 20 minutes!

There was a tremendous crowd, especially if you consider that they live about 7 hours from where they actually got married! Can you imagine having 150-200 friends and family that would be willing to travel that far just to share in your special day?

~

One of my favorite memories from our own wedding was when I looked out at the guests during the ceremony and just tried to soak in all their faces and all the love that was represented in that room. It was such a unique gathering of people who had played important roles in our lives and helped shape us into who we were on that day ~ Elementary School teachers, Sunday School teachers, neighborhood friends, college roomates, extended family members, former youth ministers, etc.. That group of people will never be gathered together again. It was a one of a kind grouping of all the people who loved us the most and who we loved the most in the world.
Brian was literally tortured about the shoe situation at a beach wedding.
What to do?
The bride instructed that it was to be a 'barefoot on the beach' shin dig. But my husband just DOES NOT do barefoot. Me on the other hand, I LOVE barefoot! In fact, I guess I should quit saying that I love shoes ~ I actually just love COLLECTING shoes, not actually WEARING them. I am SO much more comfy in BARE feet.


I was so thankful for the beautiful weather and the luxurious condo that the family provided for us. It was a wonderful day "suffering for Jesus" out there on those sugary white dunes listening to the crashing waves.

Savanna thought this was the BEST wedding!
In fact, she informed us that SHE want to have a beach wedding too!
I love the concept of the beach wedding, but the truth is that I have way too many control issues. The weather is SO unpredictable sometimes ~ not just the rain, but the WIND!

We had a fantastic weekend celebrating with these sweet families and wish the new couple great happiness in their marriage.