Getaway Weekend

Hallie sleeping in the tent we got her at Ikea on the hotel floor.

Chase hanging out with Hallie in the bathroom.

Fish.........lots of em.

Jelly Fish....can you find what's missing in this picture?

And what's missing in this picture too?

Hallie and a penguin

Matt and Mr. Coca Cola himself.

Last picture before my camera died.

Our friends Kelsey and Eli went house hunting this weekend out in Warner Robins where they are going to be stationed next and invited us to come along for a "get out of town weekend". Warner Robins is about and hour and a half from Atlanta. So the first night we stayed in the hotel on the base where they are going to be stationed then got up Saturday morning and went house hunting for the first half of the day with them. Then we drove out to Altanta and made a trip to Ikea (I love that place) and ate dinner there. The second night we stayed on an army base in Atlanta (which was interesting since there was barely room for two people in that room...let alone two plus two kids). So then Sunday morning (due to a guilt trip from my Mom and an already guilty conscience anyways this is going to be our last weekend plans that include going to theme park type places on Sunday) anyways, we got up Sunday morning and went to the Georgia Aquarium (supposedly the largest aquarium in the US) , then we went to the Coca Cola Factory for the afternoon. The aquarium was fun (espeically for Hallie) and the Coke Factory was really fun (especially for me). My favorite part of the factory was at the end of the day when you go into the soda fountain room where there is all you can drink soda from all over the world. They have signs about different groups of fountains saying "Asia" "Africa" "Europe" you get the idea. And you could taste the soda from all the different places. Some of them were the nastiest things I have ever tasted. My favorite section was the coke section with all the different flavors of coke. It was awesome. So then after the coke factory we loaded up and headed back to Florida (with one MAJOR diaper blow out along the way) and still made it home at a reasonable hour. So yeah....fun weekend. Glad to be home. I'll put up more pics than this when I get Kelsey's copies from her. My camera died at the beginning of the coke factory.

Just a little shout out....

Just wanted to make sure everyone takes the opportunity to stop by my friend Kelly McCaleb's blog. I bought a kit for making a baby quilt from her Etsy Shop and I love love love it. She always has great eye candy and a few uplifting/funny things to say. So I just wanted to make sure everyone know's she's out there and to check out her blog and her shop. I check it everyday and love reading what she has to say.

Pre-Air Show

The big Tydall Airforce Base air show is tomorrow, but today they did a run through and let military members and their families come watch so we don't have to fight the crowds, traffic, shuttles, and all around craziness that is going to be going down there tomorrow if we don't want to. So we went today and it was pretty cool. Hallie really enjoyed seeing all the planes and getting to look around inside of them. However, she wasn't the biggest fan of how LOUD the airshow was.

Hallie trying to keep from going deaf standing this close to jets flying past us.

The Thunderbirds (airforce show pilots). They were super cool. It looked like they were always wing to wing or nose to tail and moved through the sky as if they were one plane. It was awesome.

Hallie in a cargo area of a plane.

The mustache mafia.

I thought this was a really cool pic of Hallie with the plane in the backround.

Pilot Matt and Pilot Hallie

The power of suggestion right? The plane in the background is an AWACS. The plane that Matt will flying on and doing Air Traffic Control from the sky from. Kind Of. Only he'll be controlling air battles and jets and what not.

So cute in her Daddies hat

Parenting.....

So I've been doing a lot of thinking about different parenting styles lately. There is such a wide range of how people handle their own little people that I feel like I'm constantly learning from friends and family around me. I know people who are hard core, super regimented, really into education education education. I know people who it seems like had kids and nothing in their life really changed, they were able to just keep moving forward with their lives....their kids running like cute little wild people along behind them. So here's what I've been thinking about, what way is the RIGHT way. I don't mean to sound selfish, but, I could go all out (and I really admire the people who can do this) and cloth diaper my kids, puree my own baby food, always have a spotlessly clean house, laundry always folded with perfectly crisp lines and right where it belongs before it has a chance to cool down from the dryer, gormet dinners every night, but would that really be the best thing for me? And if I am not happy, will kids still be able to be happy? Is it possible to do all those thing AND let your kids have a childhood? Is it better to sit down with a book and read it over and over and over telling them "green" "triangle" "A". Or is it better to have them outside looking at the green trees and pointing out the shapes around them. Or does it really even matter at all? If I'm constantly forcing shapes, letters, and colors down their throats....will that really make them any smarter in the long run? I really don't know. Is it bad that I let Hallie watch the disney channel for like 2 hours a day? Does that make me a bad parent? Being a parent is what I have now commited my life to, and I really do want to do it right. But what is right? Hallie is SUPER smart, but I really don't think I can take any credit for that. Am I doing enough to challenge her? Help her learn more? I am I doing enough to make sure she's having fun? Learning to be socially acceptable? Should I even care about these things when she's only two and half? When should I start caring? I feel like I just kind of go from day to day, unschedueled...but enjoying life. My kids come first as far as needs go and I try to keep them entertained. I don't know.....this is a random stream of conscieness post. Just thinking out loud.

Orlando Weekend/Easter Weekend

We decided that is was about time that we got out of town for the weekend and went to check out Orlando. Our friends Jim and Danielle went in with us and we rented a vacation house a mins away from Sea World. (vrbo.com it's great next time you plan a vacation). Anyways, the house was 4 bedrooms and 2 bathroom and had a pool and hot tub in the back yard. We got there late Friday night and went right to bed. Then we got up Saturday morning and went to SeaWorld for the day. They have this great deal where Military and their family get in free. Cant' beat that price. So all of us went to Seaworld for the day and we had SOOOO much fun. Good shows, great weather (until the rain that came near the end of the day), the kids had a great time. It was really fun. Then Sunday the kids got up to see what the Easter bunny had brought them and got to go swimming for a little while in the pool. After that we headed out and went to downtown disney (we let the kids believe they were actually at disneyland...way cheaper and they were just as pleased ) . We let Hallie pick out one stuffed animal at the disney store, she chose a baby pluto and has not let that thing leave her side since. Then we all went to eat at Rainforest Cafe (which kids always love) and had a yummy meal. Up next.....a trip to Ikea. I love that place. We got Hallie a kids table and Chairs for her bedroom (20 bucks!) and I got some containers for baking stuff that are really cute. Then we loaded up the car and headed home. It was a really great weekend, but it's always so nice to get back home to your own bed!

Hallie at the water area in SeaWorld
Waiting for the Shamu show to start

Isn't this a great pictures of Shamu?

Once again, the Shamu show

Yup, he STILL has a mustache.

Hallie and I feeding the dolphins

The sting ray tank. Nearing the end of a long, fun, and now very wet day.

I took this picture before we even started the car. She was awake when we buckled her in.

Hallie and Rhiannon with the lego people at downtown disney.

Cinderella of course....

Easter Morning.

Swimming in our pool

Sitting in some mushrooms at downtown disney

mushroom sitting again

Chase and Brad taking their turns in the mushrooms

WARNING: LOTS OF PICTURES OF FISH AHEAD

We went to the beach again today (what can I say? It's our favorite thing to do) and the boys did their usual fishing thing (where they usually don't catch anything) but today was very different. They caught 8 cat fish and 1 reef shark. That's right, a shark. It was a baby one, like a foot and half long, but it was definently a shark. Don't worry, we took its picture then threw it back in. Then when we got home after the beach the boys cleaned and gutted and fileted the fish then Kelsey made spicy blackened cat fish. She did a really good job and we had a dinner for 6 adults and 2 kids out of the days catches. So here another days worth of beach pics. Sorry these pictures are kinds of in reverse order.


Matt, Eli, and Steve cleaning and cutting the meat off the fish. My house still smells HORRIBLE
The fish....poor little guys.

Men and their fish. You didn't think I was serious about "Mustache March" did you?

Hallie thinking about life while sitting in a bucket.

My family. I love them. I hate Matt's mustache.

The girls playing in the sand. Matt dug Hallie a REALLY deep hole and she loved being buried up to her neck.

Double Whamy for Eli! Two fish....one line.

Our little sunbathing beauties.

A shark and mustache man.

Eli and the shark.

The shark.

Whatever works!

So Hallie ran into the bathroom to go potty today (she's decided she's too big for the training potty and wants to use the big kid potty like her friends) and I walked in there when I heard her yelling "mommy! I'm done!" And this is how I found her. So funny.

My Matt

Since listing random favorite things HAPPENS to be one of my favorite things to do, here is a list of my favorite things about Matt:
1. How every night when we are both already in bed, I will forget to have done something or get something and he will always get up and get it or do it for me.
2. That it is one of his favorite things to cozy and watch a movie.
3. He takes "mustache March" very seriously and is determined to be the best of the best.... even if he does look like the creepy guy at the movie store. :)
4. He never does anything half way...he's a doer (the opposite of me, I'm a procrastinator) so me motivates me to get things done too.
5. He a REALLY good Dad, like one of the best Dad's I've ever seen.
6. He shares in the work load around the house with me when he's home and not studying so we can enjoy spare time together.
7. He understands me, and all of my weird little quirks.
8. He's an amazing husband.
9. He wears a man tank top at the beach just to gross me out. I think it's funny when he tries to annoy me with his clothes. And I think it's funny when those clothes just so happen to disappear and he can never find them again.
10. He really good looking.
11. The gospel is so important to him and he wants to make sure it's equally important to our kids.
12. He lets me pluck his uni-brow (one of my favorite things to do)
13. He's such a great provider, he takes that role very seriously.
14. He is the best thing that has ever happened to me.
15. He likes my family.
16. Going to the beach is another one of his favorite things to do (I would die if it wasn't)
17. He is totally supportive in anything I want to do or have. There are really few things (as in material possesions) that I want, but when there is something....he finds a way to get it.
18. He looks really good in combat boots and camo.
19. He loves me.
20. He loves our kids.
21. I love him.
22. I could keep going but I'm sure you are all getting totally cheesed out...........

Just another beach day....

Not to brag or anything, but while the rest of you are in sweatshirts.....we're in our bathing suits. We go to the beach every Saturday for a good 4 or 5 hours. Matt and his guys friends fish and the kids and I just hang out on the sand. A bunch of our friends always meet us down there (they all know if it's sunny, and it's Saturday...we will be there) so I have people to socialize with and Hallie has kids to play with. So here are my kids loving their life......