July 13th- West Virginia Wedding

Chris had an interview in PA, so we drove up on July 12th.  We stayed with my Aunt on Friday night.  She had made a wonderful, delicious dinner for us~ Lazagna, salad, green beans, bread!  YUMMY!!! Thank you Aunt Paula for letting us stay and visit!

 

 Bryan and Christina's wedding was beautiful.  After 8 years of dating, they are finally hitched!!!!

 HAHAHAH!! Can't believe that Ethan caught the garter....Haley the bouquette!!! 

 Hunter being so silly with Aunt Paula....

 Love this picture of all the grandkids thus far.......what a really great bunch of kids....the clean up well, don't they! I love you all!!!!

 Dad with my cousin Chad (Paula's youngest son).  I have fond memories of playing with Chad when we were little.  He is 2 years older than me.

 Christina, Mom and I....35 1/2 weeks pregnant with baby #4. 

 Love the boys.....Chris with David

 Me with my sister Christina!

 Uncle Jerry with Aunt Barb.....dad's brother and sister....

 Aunt Barb with Aunt Paula.....dad's sisters (Carolyn missing).  These beautiful ladies are looking like grandma (as I remember her looking when I was young) more and more as they get older. 

After the wedding, we travelled to my cousin Pete and Dawn Miller's home.  We slept their Saturday evening and was able to enjoy our next day with lots of family.  The boys went up to cut a tree down for Christina and David's mantle over their fireplace!  What a beautiful place Pete has....check out his barn, bush hog, lots of land...horses, cows, bee hives (honey is amazing)....and Dawn's cooking- doesn't get ANY better than this folks.  I enjoy seeing all the cousins too!  

 Ethan found a turtle to show everyone.....cousins....

 One, Two, Three.....this was a huge tree stump...... solid pine...oak....I'm not sure exactly!

 Uncle Junior and I... one of my favorite Uncles!

 The kids played with the slip'n'slide and the tree swing is wonderful!!!!

 Dad, me and Bub....(Clarence- George, Willie, Botch's father)

It's always a sad time to leave West Virginia....so many WONDERFUL memories every summer staying for a month.....and each year I go, I soak in as much as possible.  I am truly blessed with a fun, good family.  Nope- not perfect, but no one is!  I love them so much and am SO grateful for EVERYONE!!!! Some cousins I hadn't seen in YEARS.... that I was able to visit with this time!  Thankful for the memories! Thank you Pete and Dawn for housing us and feeding us such wonderful food....Love you both so much!!!! Until next year.....

Random pics...

Chris and Ethan went on a hike for Scouts....while I was at home doing a Yard Sale!  They had a great time spent with friends....

 

 Ethan really enjoyed Scout camp this year at Westover Park.  His friend George and Collin also went!  It was nice to carpool for the week and take turns picking up the boys from Harrisonburg!!!

 My good friend at work told me about this hike~ Fredley's Gap~ it's about 20 minutes from our house!  Here are a few pics of the 'water hole' with some of the kids friends' from school!! The water is cold....it's a spring right out of the mountain!!!

 A few fun pictures of the kids in the pool.....Ethan told me, "Mom, didn't you know I'm growing gills?!" 

Annual Tent Camping

Each year since we have lived in our house~ 5 years now~ we set the tent up in our backyard for a night and 'camp out'.  I think it was Ethan's idea when he was younger and it's been tradition ever since! It is fun to get set up and sleep out under the stars...with our air mattress.  The dog even enjoyed himself this year!!!  We did this on the 1st of July! Chris put our fan inside the tent with an extension cord...I was glad b/c it got hot.  We didn't even have a sheet over us (which is unheard of for me b/c I like to be covered with something even if it's hot)  The kids enjoyed sleeping in their sleeping bags.  We told stories while looking up at the stars.  I know I slept but I'm not sure when.  It was after 11pm when we fell asleep.  It began raining around 2am...thank goodness Chris and Ethan put the rain flap on.  With each toss and turn, our air mattress was loosing air.....woke up at 4 on the ground...too lazy to move inside b/c then Chris would be on the ground completely (with both of us on it, we had a little bit of air! LOL!)  It was a good night....kids loved it!  I was glad for my bed the next evening...let me just say!  Good memories!

 

 Alexis trying out the doggie door!  Hello there!!!!

 Daddy and Ethan set the tent up quickly! Happy backyard tenting!!!!

Swim Team Meet #4

Broadway VS. Mass. Marlins
Luke, Ethan and George~~~~ Meet #4 VS. Massenutten. Marlins~ July 9th 

Alex, Alexis, Ann and Lee...playing cards! 

 Happy Swimming Alexis and Ethan! Do your best! So proud of you!!!!

Go Broadway Sharks....!  Swim Fast, Hard, Fast!!!!!

Independence Day

 Wow.....the kids are perfect stepping stones right now! LOL!!!!

Ethan- 9, Alexis 7 1/2, Hunter 4.  We are so blessed to live in this great land we live.  We enjoy so many freedoms many people don't have~ freedom of religion, freedom of speech, freedom to vote!!!  Happy Birthday America...July 4th 2013!!!!!

Washington DC Zoo...July 3rd....

We never made it to the DC Zoo last year.....so we decided we'd better take a trip while I wasn't too big yet with the baby. What a perfect day it turned out to be! While it rained almost the entire trip there, it cleared almost immediately after parking and walking into the zoo a little after 10am! We stayed until the zoo closed at 6pm! What a wonderful day. Dad met me with Little Dave and Haley and we had a great time! The kids were good listeners and we had fun seeing all the animals. I thoroughly enjoyed myself. This was the first time for me since I was little that nothing was under construction and most of the animals were out because it wasn't a hot day! YAY! Enjoy some pics....
I am feeling good at 34 weeks here with baby #4! Feeling blessed that's for sure!

I absolutely love these kids.....and all their silliness.......enjoying a popsicle before we go in!  Look at all that green- just beautiful....we've had lots of rain!

 

Love Dad's smile from the back!!  Dad- We got our exercise today, didn't we! HAHA!

Panda bear.....

We all must have watched this elephant scratch himself for at least 10 minutes.  It was quite amusing really- each leg, neck, back, bum.... I guess everyone has an itch sometime! HA!

The kids really enjoyed these water sprayers throughout the zoo...... aren't all kids magnets to water?  Mine sure are! LOL!

Love these cute boys!  

The monkies sure were fun to watch.....

Ant-eatters anyone....

Am I scary or what?

Inside the monkey house! Haley and lil' Dave.....

Haley being silly....the monkey scared her!  Had to be there...it was quite funny!

This lizard was huge!

Hello there Hunter....

Alexis and Hunter looking scary........

The kids were pretty facinated by all the fish, amphibians and other 'little' animals.... 

 These little blue frogs- so cute I thought....they are poisonous...I had no idea!

 I love these pictures.  This was under the seals.....Little Dave, Hunter, Ethan, Haley, Alexis

 Here are all of them again with the seals.....plus a little girl on the end....a visitor! heehee...

 Love their silly faces!  Hunter, Alexis, Ethan, Haley and Little Dave!

 Say cheese.....Christina and I have a picture of us on this statue when we were 8 and 6ish....Here are most of our kids....Hunter- 4, Alexis-7, Ethan-9, Haley- 11, little Dave- 5

 I love Dave's smile....He wanted a special picture just him on this bear....cutie boy! 

 Here are all of us in the AC to get a drink and go to the bathrooms....clean and good handwashing! LOL!

 I LOVE this picture!!!! Smile guys! This was just before we left....what a great day! Happy Zoo days

 You know you've done alot of walking when your feet look like this! HAHAHAHA!!!

 Dad and I~  Thank you Dad for coming and meeting us and bringing Haley and lil' Dave.  We had a great day and I enjoyed spending the day with you.  I hope you enjoyed your day with us and grandkids! I love you Daddy!

Here is everyone at the petting zoo.....the kids are so good to take pictures everywhere! LOL!

I love you guys and I hope you had great memories of today at the Zoo!