A Trip to the Fire Station!

We decided to round up some friends and take a trip to our local fire station as a fun end-of-summer activity!  Here are a few pictures...

  

A Camping Adventure!

We had the blessing of camping with our dear friends the Lampmans last month.  I would consider the Lampmans to be some of our most adventurous friends....and it's good to have friends like them because they push you (in really unassuming ways) to do things that you would never think of on your own to do...like tent camping for the first time with your two small children in Arkansas in the heat of July.  Although we left Dallas with a phone number for a hotel near our campsite (just in case), I am happy to report that we never had to use it!  We all had such a blast!  We decided to camp at Buffalo Point National Park in Arkansas because the Lampmans live in Nashville, TN with their three sweet kiddos, and we wanted a "halfway" point for both of us to drive to.  A couple highlights of our trip included a canoe trip down the Buffalo River and a trip to the Blanchard Springs Caverns.  I included a few pictures below as well as a link to our whole "camping trip" album on Shutterfly if you are interested in viewing more. :)  

Link to whole album: share.shutterfly.com/action/welcome?sid=2BZNmLds1YsXy

Katelyn, Ben, and Anna

 Blanchard Springs Caverns

 Blanchard Springs

 Our little tent (that fit all four of us comfortably!)

 Katelyn and Conner playing slap jack

 Our campsite

 Anna (and if you're wondering...that brown spot on her nose is a souvenir from a face plant she did in the McDonald's parking lot on our way to Arkansas)

 A content little passenger...not looking too bad for an 8-hour road trip each way!

Cow Appreciation Day

This summer our family participated in Chick-Fil-A's Cow Appreciation Day on July 13.  If you're not familiar with this awesome day, let me bring you up to speed...basically, you dress up like a cow (from head to hoof) and you get a free COMBO meal (that's right, COMBO meal!!) at Chick-Fil-A!  Now, if you dressed with a cow "accessory" you could get a free sandwich, but I say, why stop with the accessory?!  Four cow costumes and four free combo meals later...we are one happy family!  

18 months

A little late in posting this, I know....

Anna

Katelyn

Missing Britt.

So my sister Brittany is in Australia, and although I/we miss her dearly, we are so excited at how the Lord is blessing her time there in her pursuit to know Him and make Him known.  I just ran across these pictures we took before she left when she was testing out her Kammok.  So cute!

Mother/Daughter Date Night!

Each month Dave and I alternate taking Katelyn on a date.  We usually collaborate on what our plans will be, but sometimes we just surprise her with whatever fun thing we planned on our own.  Last month it was my turn and, at Katelyn's request, we went to Corner Bakery for some pumpkin bread, and then I surprised her by taking her to an outdoor movie (The Muppets) at a nearby park.  We had such a fun time, and it was especially fun for me because I remember going to outdoor movies with my family when I was a kid.  Such sweet memories!

Katelyn dancing with a new friend (they had music to enjoy before the movie started)

At Corner Bakery

Mrs. Jean

Our next door neighbors recently had the husband's mom, "Mrs. Jean," move in with them due to her deteriorating health and need to not live completely on her own.  However, since the husband and his wife work all day, she is there by herself a lot.  The girls and I started visiting her every afternoon on their front porch for a few minutes.  It is such a sweet time!  Mrs. Jean always has a treat for each of the girls, and they love it.  Side note: This totally reminds me of my next door neighbor when I was growing up...she would always do the same for me when I went over to say hello!  Anna especially gets excited when its time to walk next door and visit.  :)  Here is a picture of sweet Mrs. Jean and the girls.