Nana's New Car

Watch Out!!! Nana got a new car!! Nana has dreamed of owning a Mustang convertible since before college.  She finally treated herself and demonstrated how hard work WILL pay off!  Cam LOVES Nana's new car and riding around with the top down.  She often tries to tell me about the adventures she and Nana take in "Nana's Car" during the day. :) So excited for Nana....she deserves it!!!

Front view :)

Girl's Weeknd

      This weekend the boys headed to Cincinnati for a weekend filled with golf, while the girls stayed at home and had a packed, but very fun and interesting time together. :)  Friday night Cammie was invited to Kaidyn's birthday party at Chuck E. Cheese.  This was Camryn's first time there and she had so much fun!  Little Miss K. is so sweet and so kind to all her friends, including the younger ones like Cammie. :) C loved riding the rides, playing Skee Ball and following her friends around.  She enjoyed pizza, a cupcake and even the birthday show with Chuck E. Cheese.  I was so impressed that he didn't scare her (he is kind of scary up close :) and she seemed to enjoy the giant version.  With Disney in our future I just don't want her to be scared of the big characters. :)  After the birthday party we picked up the dogs from mom's house before they headed out with friends and were on our way home.  Chrissie, Ellie and Penny met us at our house where we enjoyed pizza and some girl time as we played, snuggled, watched t.v. and slept downstairs. (With Friday being our first teacher day...the older girls were beat :)

My cutie pie :)

      Saturday we were up early and ready for a day of shopping!!!  Chrissie, Tammy (Chrissie's mom), Nana, Pop, Cammie and I had plans to head to the outlets.  Chrissie had 30% off at Gap and Banana Republic and we sure are not ones to let a coupon go to waste. :) Unfortunately, Nana had been battling some sinus yuckies and decided not to go at the last minute.  Pop stayed home to take care of Nana, so the girls went on their way (while Ellie split her time and stayed with Mamaw and Pop...2 kids at the outlet mall was a bit much the first time, so we tried our luck with just one :).  We had a great time at the outlets, found a few good deals and C even wormed her way into a few rides. :)  

Just another reason to love the outlets :)

Best way to shop.....she was OUT! :)
(Such a lady :)

     We rushed home to get Ellie and were ready to settle down for a relaxing evening when we discovered C locked us out of the house! :(  For the first time ever I followed my mom's advice...locking the front door, putting the garage door down, doing all the things to keep us girls safe while the boys were gone.  Chrissie, Ellie, Camryn, all 3 dogs and I had headed out to the backyard to enjoy a few minutes outdoors before it got dark.  Chrissie went to open the door so she could feed Ellie and discovered it was locked.  Immediately she asked me if I locked the door and then asked my little monster who smiled and replied with "mmm-hmmm".  We had no phones, no car or house keys...nothing.  I ran next door to our amazing neighbors, Robin and Billy to use their phone to call my dad.  Billy ran over and tried opening the locked door with his credit card but had no luck. :( Ellie is now SCREAMING...she is starving and we can't get in.  My mom and dad accidentally gave us our house key back the week before when returning car keys so they had no way to get in either.  Thank goodness my dad is handy.  He came to our house as fast as possible, tools in hand and was able to get the door opened pretty quick.  (Thank goodness for dads...what we would do without them??? I feel like my dad has saved me a handful of times...he is the best! :) After Ellie finally ate, we had a heart-to-heart with Camryn about not locking doors and were able to calm down we finally settled in and called it a night.
          Sunday we ran a few errands, planned for our first day of school and tried to start Cammie's yarn-wrapped letters craft (way more involved than what I anticipated) before Chrissie, Ellie and Penny packed up and headed home.  I can honestly say their golf weekend has turned into one of my favorite weekends of the year!  It just keeps getting better each year!  Many people think we are crazy to keep 2 kids and all 3 dogs under one roof, but we absolutely LOVE it! :)

Beach Bummin'

"Let's go to the beach, beach. Let's go get a wave."

We have been in Florida for the past week and have had a blast!  Cammie, Chris and I were invited to go to Florida with our next door neighbors and good friends, the Yanez crew.  We traveled 14 1/2 hours to Indian Shores Beach in Florida.  Surprisingly, Cammie did really well during the long drive.  She didn't sleep as much as I thought, but watched a little Mickey Mouse and Little Einsteins to help ease the long drive.  She also munched on marshmallows and cheese crackers, while staring out the window and talking to mom and dad.  When we finally arrived we were so excited to see and show her the beach.  Danielle and I headed to the store for a few necessary items (milk, bread, ya know the necessities) while Chris and Joe took the girls to see the beach (Florida as the older girls called it :) for the first time.  Cammie absolutely HATED it! :/  She screamed, cried and demanded to be held the entire time.  The next consecutive days of our vacation didn't get much better.  She would tolerate it as long as she was being held or sitting on someone's lap.  If any part of her body touched the sand or got dirty she went crazy, starting to yell and cry. :(  So much for enjoying the beach this year. :/  By Thursday she started feeling a little better about the beach and would at least tolerate it in small doses as long as she didn't have to touch the sand. (Just as a mom memory...we had to lay a towel down for her to stand on and play with her sand toys on the beach.  She didn't play with sand of course..only the water :). Although the weather was a little iffy (more rain than usual) and Cammie's hatred of the sand we still had a great time!  We are so thankful our friends invited us to come along and share their vacation with them!  Here are some of the highlights of our trip:

1.  Dance Parties:  The girls loved taking a break and dancing at any given point during the vacation.  It was so, so, so cute to watch the three of them and their dancing abilities! :)

2.  Swimming in the Pool: Since Cammie wasn't a beach fan we spent ALOT of time at the pool.  Our little water bug loved "simming" with her float on and friends.  She learned to kick her feet, lay back and float like a starfish and started getting a little more comfortable jumping in the water.  The pool was definitely her spot (a little like her momma :)  Here are just a few of the MANY pictures we took of our little water bug.

Big Stuff :)

"Again, again"
(or in Cammie's words "gin, gin" with a hard g sound :) 

Starfish!

Playing her favorite game (cups) with her new friend Christopher

kick, kick, kick :)

3.  Playing in the Rain:  After dinner one night we headed to get ice cream about 1/2 a mile from our condo.  We knew rain chances were not in our favor, but we decided to chance it and tried to beat the rain.  We headed out with 3 strollers for some yummy dessert, where we unfortunately of course did not beat it. :(  The girls were having too much fun playing in the rain, while we were eating our ice cream so we decided to head back even though we were on foot and it was raining pretty good.  Cammie loved playing with the water coming out of the down spout and thought mommy running with the stroller back to our place was too funny. :) Silly girl!

4.  Baseball Game:  Tuesday night we headed to the baseball stadium to watch the Tampa Bay Devil Rays.  Although none of us are big Devil Rays fans, there was no way Chris would allow us to be so close to a Major League Baseball stadium and not attend.  Gotta love that baseball heart :)  I was actually happily surprised at how well Cammie did at the baseball game.  Our seats were VERY high up, but she really seemed to like the game, songs, chants....everything that goes along with a baseball game.  It also helped our cause that they had her favorite snack...popcorn :)  Here are a few pictures of the girls at the game.

Taking a break from our seats to let some little legs run :)
Strike a pose!

Sharing C's favorite snack :)
(Love that her mouth is packed full of popcorn :)

5.  The Beach:  Even though Cammie hated the beach...we did manage to snap a few photos of our attempts to acclimate her to the sand and salt water.  Some days were better than others, but our strong-minded girl made up her mind early that she didn't like it and had no plans of spending time there....even if some of her bestest buddies tried to show her how wonderful it could be.  Maybe next year :(

A face still trying to figure out whether to smile or cry :)

Not moving off mom's lap....sat there for about 15 minutes

Playing with the girls, moving water from bucket to bucket...while standing on a towel

Feeling a little better....but quickly changed our mind and went inside for a nap :)

6.  And a few last random, but fun pictures of our trip! These girls had a great time!

Taking it all in :) First glimpse of the pool and beach

All greased up and ready for the sun! Love her hair :)

Matching ruffle butts :)

Snuggling together with a good book (Cam's favorite...Click Clack Moo :)

Cammie and Mommy

Riley....she was definitely our swimmer!

C getting kisses from Gram :)  It was so sweet the way she just warmed right up to her :)

Deep in thought....she loved those darn cups!

Stingrays!  They were so close!

LOVE, LOVE, LOVE little Luci!

I think she's got enough sunscreen for the day lol :)
Gotta love that independence :)

Love this munchkin!

Best Buddies :)

Silly face :)

Cheese!!!

Pool Time

Cammie has been soaking up the sun and loving some pool time this summer. She has been quite the water bug and has been swimming anywhere and everywhere including The Aquatic Center with "Mammy," Chrissie's clubhouse pool, Grandma's house, Riley and Luci's Gram's house and small pools in ours or the neighbor's backyard.  Recently, we filled up her little pool at home and she and Zoey had so much fun together!  

I could listen to her belly laugh forever....love the memories we are making this summer!

Bounce Time

Although Camryn goes to SIGS weekly for gymnastics, we had never tried the open bounce time they offer during the day.  This summer has been so busy that making it there once a week has been a big enough commitment for us.  Friday morning we were planning to have a pool day to wear the kiddos out before making the long drive we had ahead of us to Florida the next day.  After watching the weather a few days before, I realized that we may not have great weather for a pool day and decided to have a second plan just in case.  As much as C loves gymnastics I knew she would love Bounce Time.  Her friends Riley and Luci went too and she had so much fun!  She loved the inflatables, climbing over, under, up and down all of the obstacles they offered.  She also loved the freedom to jump (or run) down the trampoline without having to wait her turn or follow specific directions.  Running around with her friends, swinging on the bars and playing in the cheese pit were probably her favorite activities of the day.  She loved it so much I am a little worried about her ability to follow directions when we return to gymnastics class next week.... :)

Taking it all in

1..2..3..GO!!

Look how big I am! :) (We have the start to a full ponytail, but it's hard to see in this picture and it fell out almost immediately :)

Can't get over how much strength she has gained from gymnastics ...she can swing on her own and pull her feet almost to the top of the bars!

Whoa!!! (In her words :)

Pushing Luci in the barrel

Oops! She fell out :)

Being silly :)

Ultimate bliss of a two year old!

Love Luci's face....shows how much she loved it! :)

Happy Birthday Mom!

Today we celebrated my 28th birthday!  Hard to believe how fast my 20's are starting to slip away! :(  I know it is so cliche, but having Cammie has made each year since go faster and faster!  She fills every day with so much love that we seem to pack them full and they go by so very fast.  Anyway....for my birthday all I wanted to do was spend the day with some of my favorite people.  We started the day with a trip to the zoo.  Chrissie and Ellie joined us for E's first trip to the zoo, along with Danielle, Luci and Riley.  We had a great day for the zoo and made sure to see all of C's favorite animals including the giraffes, elephants and monkeys.  I don't think I will ever forget that zoo trip as we saw the tortoises "hugging" and one of them burped on the other one...according to Riley.  :) 

Cheese!

C and her favorite animal...the giraffe...she is looking at them in amazement! :)

Love this picture of the two girls....holding hands while Luci points out the warthog to Cammie :)

Next we had to head to the vet to pick up Zoey's medicine.  I accidentally spilled all of Zoey's liquid medicine down the sink when I knocked the bottle over the previous day. Talk about literally throwing (or in my case pouring) money down the drain. :( Although I had planned to head over there and refill everything before we left for vacation, I certainly did not want to spend my birthday there.  Thank goodness they were super speedy and we were in and out in a matter of 15 minutes!  Camryn even weaseled a trip to McDonald's out of the trip, since there is one located right across the street from the vet.  


After spending a little girl time with my bestest friend, I met Chris and Camryn at SIGS for gymnastics. I love watching my girlie during her class! She has learned so many neat things and her coordination and strength continue to improve!  She can hop from one object to another, pull her feet up to the uneven bars, do a forward roll all by herself, is working on her backwards roll and climbs a ladder just to name a few.  


***Sidenote: While I was at Chrissie's, Chris and Camryn tried to sneak out and get me a birthday card and cake.  He says they were gone maybe 15 minutes and in that short time Brohdi got on the counters and ate all of the cupcakes I had made yesterday. :(  He completely demolished 2 storage containers filled with 13-15 cupcakes wrappers included....Crazy dog!  I don't know why we love him..must be his underbite. :)

Once gymnastics was over, we headed to the store to get Chris a new phone.  His Blackberry completely died the day before. :(  He had just told me how great his phone had been and how he never had any problems a few days before....I told him we were doomed from that day on.  My dad kept teasing us about Chris getting a new iPhone on MY birthday.  Go figure!

Finally, it was time to head home and celebrate my birthday.  My mom met us at our house with pizza, cupcakes and a Coke Zero from Chick-Fil-A....she sure knows me and always knows how to ensure I am taken care of on my birthday! :)  Chrissie, Nick, Ellie, Danielle, Joe, Riley and Luci came over to celebrate with us...ensuring my day ended absolutely perfect.  :)

Walt's Graduation

I just can't believe my baby brother is getting ready to go to college!  Where has the time gone? I remember when he was born.  I was 9 years old.  Weird....I sure wasn't excited about going to the hospital that day.  I was sulking about my grandma not making me breakfast before we went to meet him. (I guess that's what happens when you are used to being the only one for 9 years :) I never imagined we would ever be as close as we are and have been.  I love that kid so much!  Every time he sends me a text or calls me and ends it with an I love you it still melts and tugs at my heart a little.  


Nick and I are as different as night and day.  I have always been grown up and serious.  He has always been goofy and nonchalant without a care in the world.  I have always been concerned about school, money and the future.  He lives every day with the intent to have fun and a good time.  Sometimes I am envious of his fun-loving attitude....wish I had a little bit of that in me.


When Chris and I started dating nick was 5...I remember when Chris would come over to hang out.  We would plan to watch a movie and my mom and dad would send Nick downstairs to "supervise." (They tell me they miss this now since no one is home to supervise Nick and his girlfriends lol).  This meant one of two things: Chris was either going to play cars with Nick (to which Nick would dump all 500 of his Hot Wheel cars on the floor) or we would play "drive-in" where Nick would turn his Little Tykes truck (similar to a Cozy Coupe) upside down and sit on the bottom of it so he soared above the couch (and our view) to watch a movie with us.  Nick and Chris' little brother and sister, Nate and Maggie went everywhere with us.  We would travel to zoos, parks, baseball games, you name it altogether.  


All of a sudden Nick grew up and turned into a high-schooler.  Chris and I spent our fall Friday nights at the football field, home or away to watch Nick play.  He played a little basketball and golf, but his true love was football.  I think that was the first time I realized how grown up Nick was becoming.  I watched him pour his heart and everything he had into football.  The coaches asked him to stop drinking cokes early in his career and he didn't drink one until after the last game of his senior year.  He suffered through two-a-day practices in the extremely, hot July and August temperatures.  He may not have had the natural talent, but he was one of the most hard-working kids out there.  


During high school Nick and Chris started to bond even more.  One interest they share is golf.  As Nick picked up playing golf at school, he was finally acceptable enough to play with Chris, Dad and Nick Lawrence.    In an attempt to alleviate confusion on the golf course my Nick earned the nickname Walt after the name printed on his then golf clubs, Walter Hagan.  His nickname has stuck ever since.  To most of us Nick is and will always be Walt.  (He's even listed in my phone as that. :)  


Although I am still in denial that Nick is becoming an adult (he is the baby and definitely acts the part after all) I am pretty proud of him.  He managed to graduate with an Academic Honors Diploma (I was certain he had given up on it early on) and is a pretty good kid.  He often makes me feel like his second mom the way I worry and agonize over him, but I love him nonetheless.  I am hoping he is ready to shock the world and put his very, smart brain to work!

Cammie and Walt at awards day...both are thrilled to have their pictures taking after sitting so long :)

Nick and his best buddies...Tanner and Drew (I am so going to miss these guys! Tanner and Drew are not only Nick's friends, but also the first class of seniors Chris has had in baseball.  I feel like I have followed these kids forever!)

Cammie patiently waiting during graduation :)

Nick walking in

And she's had enough! :)

Right before the class of 2012 said good-bye and threw their hats in the air, Nick's class broke into a flash mob that they had been practicing for quite some time.  It was pretty cool and definitely a great memory they will carry with them forever! Check it out!

Throwing of the hats!

Walt and Cammie...they are terrible to take pictures of when they are together :/

Walt and Dad

Cammie and her Pop (There was clearly something exciting going on behind me :)

Nick and Mom

My baby brother...I love him so much!

Sad that this was the best picture of the family!

Cammie and Aunt Maggie

Hilarious that Nick's cake had congratulations spelled incorrectly :)

Now he's off to bigger and better things!