Blankets Creek

We took an afternoon ride at Blankets Creek today. (Payton was napping so she missed out.)

It is so beautiful back here.

In the middle of the ride I had to tell Chris, "I get it." I get why he loves riding. It is a blast. At times it feels like you are on a ride at Disneyland. When you get going fast and you have to duck under branches, pop your tire up over bridges, navigate through the trees...it is a thrill! And to top it off, you really don't feel like you are working out. :)

Piggy Tails

Sasha (my mother-in-law) put Payton's hair in piggy tails... Isn't she cute?

Fireflies

We got to see fireflies tonight. This was the first time that I have ever seen them {am I right mom?}! Their twinkles in the night are beau.ti.ful. BUT - I didn't know that they look like this...

Hummmm... Their twinkling is the better view. :)

Horton

What is the first thing that comes to mind???

But what about this?

Dylan calls them "hortons". Can't bring myself to correct him. He is only little for so long. So for now, they are called hortons. {smile} They are around a lot, so we all get to chuckle when Dylan yells out "There's a horton!!!".

Best Buddies

This is how I found my kids this morning...

Who knows how long they were sleeping like that. I would assume all night long??? Then later in the day, they were playing together again - IN THE RAIN!
At first daddy gave them a little encouragement -

then it was all over from there.
Yes, Payton was first to lay down in the water. Glad they got to be kids and SO glad that they are best buddies.

Workin'

We worked in Papa and Sasha's yard today.

We got hot, sweaty, and dirty.

But we had fun!

Grey Clouds

Dylan found a leaf bug today. Isn't it huge?

We got to watch another storm "roll" in. So I grabbed my camera and this is what I captured:

Isn't God amazing? And the best thing - it is still HOT! I am rocking the shorts, tank top and rainbows in the storm. That makes me happy!

Happy Birthday Aubrey!

Today was my sister-in-law's birthday. I called Davese, my sister and got the recipe for this Carmel Apple Dip to celebrate. {isn't it pretty?}

It was a hit! And SUPER YUMMY!

Happy Birthday Aubrey!

Tennessee

We went to Tennessee (about a 1.5 hour drive) today with the sole purpose of buying....

All for celebrating the 4th of July/Payton's birthday!

I can't even photograph the whole building - THAT's how huge it is. When driving from Georgia to Tennessee (or visa versa) you CAN'T miss this building. And if you are lucky to drive by at night, make sure you bring sunglasses. I can't even describe how brightly lit up this building is.

Needless to say, the kids had a BLAST looking at everything.

Want to know the best part about mini road trips????

Ahhh, precious quiet time in the car...

Sweet Dreams....

Yes, she's asleep...hugging her Baby Belle.

For my Dad...

Happy Father's Day to the most loving, hard working, caring, Jesus following man in the whole wide world!

Even when YOU are in the hospital, you are getting to know all the nurses, doctors, and interns and showing them Christ's love.

You are such a great grandpa {aka "Papa Nutt"}. You take time to show Dylan how to shoot your rifle. It's bigger than he is!

You let Payton "drive" the car. She thought she was so big.

You hold my kids up to look at baby birds in their nest in the tree in your backyard.

You still let us jump up on your lap even when we are grown. {Side note - Sorry Jeannine, I could find a picture with you in it. Next time we are all together, we will have to take one!}

Wish I could flash back to this moment, hug on you and tell you that you are the best daddy ever. I love you.

Not one but TWO

Not one but TWO frogs were found today. Meet "Tiny" and "Big"...

Hot Kotch

No, that is not misspelled... that is how Payton says "hop scotch". She learned how to play today. Well at least, play in her own way. She pulls her knee way up high and tries to balance while jumping. She doesn't get it yet - but it was cute to watch.

The kids also spent the afternoon riding their bikes. I can't believe my BABY can go into the garage, put on her helmet and flip flops (MY flip flops to boot), get on her bike and ride out. Where did time go?

To cool off the adults, {er ah, I meant KIDS} I made strawberry snow cones. My in-laws bought the Ninja Chopper - it turns ice cubes into snow in seconds. So making the snow cones are super easy and super yummy! Click here for the recipe and instructions for making the snow cone syrup. I think I may try to make Hawaiian Ices next.

What other fun games are you playing outdoors this summer? I need ideas!

Bruster's Real Ice Cream

We stopped at Bruster's Real Ice Cream today. And I hate to say that it blew "B.R." away. All kids under 40" get a FREE baby cone, so Payton chose Strawberry and they rolled it in sprinkles and put candy eyes on it. It was too cute.
Dylan got Chocolate Oreo and it was HUGE and it was $2.19 (or close to that amount - I don't remember exactly)! Seriously looked like 3 scoops from "B.R.". Hopefully these pictures show just how good it was.

The Thunder Rolls

The thunder rolls and the lightning strikes do~do~do {thank you Garth Brooks!}. We were eating dinner out on the back patio (enclosed) and got to see this roll in within a 5-10 minute time period. Crazy. The kids kept asking if God was moving his furniture (something that my grandparents said to me growing up - good memories)!

I only posted the 9 second video. I won't bore you with the 3+ minute one - that one I am sending to my mom. She L.O.V.E.S. warm rain and thunderstorms. It reminds her of growing up in Africa. We can't have thunder and/or lightning without thinking of you mom!

No one warned me.

No one warned me to not start watching the series "24" right before bed. I could NOT fall asleep afterwards!

I know you are in shock as to WHY I haven't watched it before. I have a good excuse really...okay actually I don't. It's similar to when I was little and got hand-me-down clothes from my sisters. I thought I was so cool. But think this through (1) hand-me-downs mean the trend was over and it was not in style anymore (2) my sisters are 8 & 10 years older than me so that means the clothes were too big for me. I was just behind the times.

And I am yet behind the times again with watching 24!

But, thanks to Netflix, I can watch as many as I can handle in one setting. No commercials and no waiting until next week. Oh and don't tell me what happens! :)

Pool Time!

And the greatest part is they are pooped now. Bedtime should be a breeze tonight!

Warbington Farms

We went to Warbington Farms today to see if we could get some fresh produce. When we got there they had a cute little petting zoo. Two mini horses, 2 mini goats and 1 chicken to be exact. It was perfect for the kiddos.

The black goat was outside the cage. He was very friendly. Kept jumping up on Payton to get more food.

We came home with half a HUGE watermelon, 2 cantaloupe, and a small basket of peaches. Yummy!

Oh and it finally rained today. It was came and left quickly, but it was a good downpour!

Walking, rest stops and...

We went back to Blankets Creek today. Chris and Todd (my bro-in-law) rode their bikes. Dylan rode his bike with me and the girls.

Payton walked with Sasha (mom-in-law), Aubrey (sis-in-law) and I.
Pretty sure my nephew, Zayn, had the best ride around.
On the way home we drove down a street named "Water Tank". This is what was on the left side of the street. Only in Georgia. We had a good laugh though!
In the afternoon Payton ran into our room saying, "I need to get my Bible to go on the porch!" I followed her out and saw her and Sasha rocking in the rocking chairs reading their Bibles together. So sweet!
Chris and his dad made Orange Chicken tonight for dinner that was SO AMAZING! Costco sells Panda Express Orange Sauce ($4.99 for a huge bottle) and they put that over popcorn chicken. They stir fried some vegetables and served it with brown rice. Seriously good. You have to try it.