Big Day!

Today was Michael's first day of school at St. Paul's. He was so excited. He woke up at the crack of dawn, ran to the car and sang the whole way there. A quick kiss and hug and he was off playing with the other kids. I hope everyday goes this well!

Fishing!

Joe bought the boys their first fishing rods. They have been going out back everyday and catching quite a bit. Mike and Hank both got their first fish! Mike got his and reeled it in all on his own:)

Clare's Early Birthday Celebraion

While my family was here, we had an early birthday celebration for Clare. My Mom and Roger put on a great party! They made a steak dinner that was fabulous! The kids got tons of gifts. The special favorite was the kitchen. They love it! They all got rain boots too, which they love. They wear them every time they go fishing now! It was a great party and lots of fun. Clare was head over heels! She changed from her birthday outfit into one of the dresses she was given. They all had a blast!

Family Visit to FL!

My mom and the gang came to visit just before school started! We had so much fun. In fact, Mike and Clare were crying their little hearts out when it was time for them to leave! We went to the pool, the beach, shopping, out to dinner...it was a blast. It is always so sad when it's time to go:(

Moving

Thursday the packers came and started packing up the house. By Friday they had finished. Now Monday the movers come to load it all up and take it down to Pensacola. We are really excited to see our new house and see our old friends. but of course, we are pretty sad to leave our friends and our house behind. We're still waiting on a buyer to come through on the house. So far, no luck in that department. Fingers crossed!

New Bikes!

The boys needed new bikes in a BAD way! They had resorted to fighting over Clare's pink tricycle. So we broke down and got them both new bikes. They LOVE them! And now, they are part of the neighborhood bicycle gang that rides around the cul de sac harassing the neighbors:)

4th of July!

To celebrate the 4th of July we went to New Bern to watch their fireworks. It's about an hour from us, but they had tons of entertainment and great fireworks, so it was worth the trip. The kids played on bounce houses, we ate and enjoyed the Marine Corps band before the show. It was on the river, which was really nice. The kids loved seeing all of the boats parked in the water to see the fireworks!



No one was really happy that I made them pose for a picture while they were trying to look at the water!


Henry had a good time, but never really wanted to leave my lap:)



Clare clawing her dad's eyes out to get a better view of the fireworks!



Mike's "before and after" with his cotton candy



Michael dominating his cotton candy

Trip to IN!

We had a great trip to IN! The kids were great on both the car ride there and back. We were pretty busy most of the time, but we got to see everyone at least once!
The first weekend was our anniversary weekend, which we spent in Indy. Joe was in a wedding on Saturday and we had a great time with all of his friends. The week was filled with hanging out with family and friends. The following weekend was the big surprise get together in Brown County for Joe and Chris's birthday/anniversary. Of course the whole trip went way too fast and we never spent as much time with anyone as we would have liked. But now we are in moving mode, getting everything ready to hit the road to FL. Everyone is welcome anytime! And as a bonus, anytime large groups want to come visit, there is a lodge on the golf course to house anyone who can't fit in the house! We'll be ready for visitors after the middle of July!

Topsail #2

Thank you everyone for coming down to visit us! I wish I had taken more pictures of the group, but you know how easy it is to tote a camera along with all the kids!

Topsail Beach!