Fun things about the weekend...gone fishing :)

Happy Monday - yes, there is such a thing...

John spent a lot of time last week chanting his newest song his Deddy taught him "Gone Fishing" - and the happy song part of it...."La la la la la la la la la". With his 1st fishing excursion on the weekend horizon and his Spiderman fishing pole in reach - we were excited w.anticipation :)

Saturday was by far the highlight of the weekend. From spending time w.Kimberly & Matt to "wetting a hook" (KLee terminology) to watchin' our lil' doodles soak up the day and the moment as much as we did - it was a day abounding in blessings. We had to warn Matt to be sure he wanted us to hang around b/c we were likely to accept his invitation for post fishin' chillin'. With a mountain (more like a chain of mountains) awaiting us at home - the invitation for some time well wasted was like sweet music to our over plan, overdo, kick our own ass on weekends, been gone 3 straight weekends in a row ears. We didn't literally jump at the offer, but we were sure as the world bouncing on the inside to have that time under the tree, listening to music, drinking cold beer and shooting the breeze with some "our kinda people" folks. Big thanks to Kimberly & Matt - you shared your fishing hole, your worms, that big shade tree in the backyard & your company...our souls feel replenished to have had that time with you.

Of course we took a million & one pics of the fishing and of course I felt that warranted a video to capture them all...

The other, less than thrilling, highlight of the weekend was the arrival of the....Paci Fairy! With promises of the long desired "Mommy Mrs. Tato Head" to be awarded for snatching all of John's pacis...we dutifully placed them on the kitchen counter so she'd be sure and see them...

Lo & behold she came AND John desperately wants her to bring his pacis back :( She can have her Tato Head back..."I DON'T LIKE the PACI FAIRY" (through gritted teeth) - we've heard this proclamation quite a bit. We're trying to ease this transition w.TLC, empathy & PATIENCE for all those times we hear his door open after he's supposed to be in bed. The Paci Fairy may be headed to the "big store" sometime this week for a Toy Story Slinky Dog just to show John how proud she is of all his diligence :)

There were no pictures taken on Sunday. We didn't honor the Sabbath by means of resting since we started a day early with that on Saturday. Instead, we marathoned in cooking, laundry, yardwork, tidying up inside/out, putting the deck back "together" (post stripping/staining) and sweating cause it was freakin' HOTTTT!

Amidst the marathon we did find plenty of moments to enjoy those babies b/c even in all our busyness we try to never lose sight of the lil' joys within reach. And riding on the high from Saturday - I think we had grins on our faces all day yesterday :) After that collective breath there on that pier w.the worms, the fish, the heat, the laughs - I completely concur w.the sentiment on John's fishin' hat ~ "Life is Good"...indeed it is.

Have a great week!

(oh & a BIG) ps. Cooper Lee Tuttle has arrived! Yet another reason it's a Happy Monday :) At 7lbs 14 oz, just an oz bigger than his cuz Ella was - he arrived shortly after 1 last night. Congrats Jason & Jessica - can't wait to meet him!

Fun things about the weekend...celebrating my boys :)

Good fathers make good sons...

and you both make me so proud.

Happy Birthday again to my larger than life 3 year old.



Another Happy Father's Day to my wonderful husband, beloved Deddy to John & Ella.



You both bless our family beyond measure...

Dear John,

Well (as you're fond of saying these days), it's almost that time again...your birthday! This time 3 years ago, I was 30 min away from having my water broke and beginning the longest 24 hours of my life :) Watched your birth video not too long ago - the real one w. all the tears, exhaustion, anticipation, fearful moments (from your listless right arm). I don't know that it won't ever be emotional to relive those moments waiting & finally welcoming you into the world. Knowing what I know now - I mostly see how our world would never look or feel the same after June 18, 2008. We were blessed to become parents and we count blessings every day that you're the sweet soul who made us Mama & Deddy.

In this 3rd year you have grown & changed so much. Still constantly amusing & amazing us seemingly every other breath. In between those moments, you're growing your lil' tenacity and that personality of yours sure keeps us on our toes! I've made several people chuckle in the past year when referring to you as my "spirited 2 year old" - you're all that & then some :) If you were any more a chip off your mama's block - well, I don't know that you could be! And while you wear our patience relentlessly into the ground sometimes - we're still so proud of you & all your "spirit."

As a byproduct of that overwhelming "spirit", you spend a fair amount of time in time out. Truth be told, you should know that we're often just around the corner trying not to let you see us laugh. You amuse as much as you frustrate :) With your constant talking, singing, kung-fu'ing - there's certainly never a dull moment. "I want to talk" - if we had a dollar for every time you rebut us w.that line we could buy a lot of "surprises" for you at the "big store".

In the last year you have become a great big brother to Ella. Watching you with her sometimes takes our breath away. Your ease, tenderness, helpfulness and attempts to make her laugh at you delights us beyond words. Yes, sometimes you hug her too tight, you snatch a toy from her - protesting, "she doesn't want that one" (interesting, when she's firmly grasping/chewing on it), you "accidentally" cause her to fall over, you get nose to nose in her face (which she clearly despises) or you cry & thus she feels the need to cry. By and large though - you are a great big brother and I find myself often saying that I hope you always live up to the adoration she clearly has for you! You two are clearly smitten with each other and we just soak it up knowing that it will be fleeting for at least the ages of 5-15 :)

I don't want to get long winded here (as I tend to do), but I do want you to know how proud we are of you. You have set the bar so high and we just look forward to all the joys, adventures and laughter that we'll continue to be blessed with being your parents. We love you son and hope that you have the happiest birthday EVER!

Love ~ Mama & Deddy

you're my blue sky...you're my sunny day

Fun things about our Beach Trip...

Notice I said "trip", not "vacation" - that was intentional :) Going to the beach w.2 lil' ones was unlike any vacation we'd ever been on. So rather than redefine the meaning of vacation, I'll summarize by saying we thoroughly enjoyed our summer trip w.our lil' ones :)

We had an awesome, busy, fun, laugh-filled, sand-filled (discovered a whole new realm of crevices for this), water-filled, sandfiddler'd galore, long days on the beach (once we finally got out there), cold beer'd, mommy drink'd, porch swing rockin', sun-filled, pilin' on the sunscreen, cooler fillin', takin' the view, memory filled trip!

It was a blessed time together. We have 2 beach babies who take to the beach & water like they were born right there on the sand - counting our blessings in that (we'd hate to have to send them back)!

Borrowing from a sentiment conveyed by Kelle Hampton, I'll let this lil' video be the summation of my re-cap. Because as she so eloquently put it...

...moments are many and, in comparison, photos are few. Any mother who recognizes the rich and multiple occasions in a single day that are photo-worthy will understand that a blog, a memory card, or a keyboard with only twenty-six letters and a sticky "p" key are hardly capable of capturing them.

Enjoy :)

Fun things about Memorial Weekend...

yeah, yeah, yeah - I know it's Thursday & we're on the cusp of the next weekend...but what can I say, except Mama's mentally already on our much anticipated vacation :)

Since I'm still here in body, if not spirit - thought I'd throw in a "fun things" before we bid adieu...better late than never :) beggars can't be choosers and quitters never win...I know, I'm digressing, but all those sayings are irritating so figured I'd heap them on while I'm at it...

At any rate - here's the fun things :)

Look who's taking a big girl bath w.brother these days :)



My Ellas ~ heart be still



Golfing greatness ~ ALMOST hole in ones :)
**confirmed: there's no putt-putt like prize awarded for those in real golf**



Grilled meat :)



Trampoline fun w.Pop Pop & Corben :)



NC Wine Festival :)



Cheers!



Mistaken identities :)
**this one's for Shannon**



Sisters ~ sigh



The Mayor :) taking a lil' time to be w.us common folks, ha



Puttin' on my "cry face" w.Ken Knox ~ whew that was emotional
**thanks Shannon for capturing the moment**



Nana ~ the bomb-diggity if there ever was one...how she puts up w.me and my shenanigans, I'll never know :)



Pappaws on the porch :)



Big smiles ~ him, b/c he's holding a sweet pea...her, b/c she probably got a fistful of that chest hair she likes to yank on :)



Banagrams :) this is fun most of the time, ha



Wading pool fun :)

There were A LOT of things not pictured this past weekend ~ it's not all sunshine & smiles, ya know. Sure - as always, there was plenty of fun & laughter, but there were also some bittersweet tears shed. As my sister and I ambled (b/c that's how over-served people travel) across that familiar grass between my parent's house & my granny's we were greeted by a

heavy scene of reality - the nightly routine for our granny & pappaw. I don't need to divulge all the details, but I can say that through our tear-filled glances at each other a connection & an understanding was felt. No words were needed...

The love for "our people" is what defines us at our very core. Our love for each other, my sister and I, although we're not rocket scientists when it comes to always showing it...it's there & it permeates deeper than we can even begin to know. I am so glad to have shared that time w.her & I'm so glad that my "do I need to apologize to anyone" post-drinking creed on Sunday was met by my granny w.just a laugh & "you don't owe me an apology for anything!" I'm glad she didn't shoo us away :) she's known for not always welcoming company (don't let the smile fool you). I think we needed that moment w.her, my pappaw - and mostly, w.each other.

It's good for the soul to be reminded where you come from. In our case, if we're blessed, I hope it's a reflection of where we're headed. Where we're in it for the long haul, where we'll fumble & fall - but we'll get up, dust ourselves off & do better next time. We'll love with our whole hearts, even when it hurts. We'll forgive and life will go on. We'll laugh at each other, at ourselves but mostly at other people - they're all crazy but us, anyways :)

And Shannon, I sincerely hope you didn't embarrass the mayor at the gospel sangin' on saturday night. If you did, find solace in knowing Jesus did turn the water into wine - he apparently thought there should be enough for everyone to enjoy. And in the famous words of DL Hughley, recounting what Jesus probably said as he was performing this miracle, "Now normally, I don't do this, but, uh... go on head, keep the party goin." :)

Happy 1st of June everyone! Hope you're surviving the heat!

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A Story People to commemorate Seth's "almost hole in one" ~ love you darlin' :)

The first time I played golf, I had the most fun throwing bread to the goldfish in the pro shop. It made as much sense as anything else.