Duck Hunting - first trip for the boys

Duck season opened the weekend after Thanksgiving, and our boys were sitting on GO to join Dad in the duck blind, for the very first time. All new camo, from head to toe... boots, pants, pullovers, and hats. So much excitement for these boys!!

 Russ did a great job capturing memories. :)

-The duck hunting face-

We're hoping Barnes gets his own BB gun for his upcoming birthday. You can imagine the tears when there were only *two* guns. Sigh. He's officially big enough for his own. Right? I think. Maybe. ;)

LaCabana in Martin for dinner. It was good, and Phoebe Cakes was so happy to see her Daddy after a long day of hunting! 

After we left La Cabana, we drove around town to look at Christmas lights. These green lights have been here at Christmastime for as long as we can remember, and when mentioned to Russ's parents they said it had been there since they were young. So cool!! I love it.

Excited for all the duck hunting memories to come!

Christmas is near!

xo

The pool

We made our first trip to the pool today.  Our neighborhood pool is at the top of the hill when you enter our neighborhood.  Each time we pass by, Lawson begs to please go to the pool. 

It was a tough morning with whining and fussing.  It was also HOT outside, so I decided the best way to (hopefully) cut down on the 3 year old behavior was to get out of the house.  It worked. 

Lawson loved it.  And he was so happy... no fussing until time to go.

Emmitt, not so much.  He was slightly afraid, but we will go back tomorrow and I am hopeful with more and more exposure he, too, will love it. 

Here are a few memories that I captured before we got into the water.

I am glad we went!

Fun on the Farm plus some

Last weekend we made a last-minute-quick-trip to Martin.

We had three missions to complete while there, which I will mention at the end, but the fun we had was worth our fast trip.

The weather was warm and beautiful.  While at Mrs. Jane and Mr. Richard's we played outside and Lawson enjoyed his first fishing experience.  I am glad I had my camera and took close to 100 pictures... here are a few faves from the afternoon.

Emmitt is big enough for the swing and Lawson is big enough to push him.

Emmitt loved it!

And Lawson loved fishing with his Dad and Uncle Jim.

Emmitt hung out with Grandmother and Granddad while I took a few pictures.

He caught one!

My favorite fisherman... followed by Lawson, and Emmitt to come in the near future, I am sure.  :)

Lawson learned about worms and fishing.  Here he is asking Dad if he needed another worm?

Parker was loving every minute and the boys... not so much... his excitement was not helpful for fishing.

Dad helping him reel it in.

Fisherman Lawson

Fishing with Uncle Jim

Moved to the dock for more fishing...

He was really good at catching fish!

I like this one. :)

Brothers fishing with Parker

And then the "plus some"...

One of our reasons for going to Martin was for me to borrow Granny's sewing machine.  Our new house faces the West in the evenings meaning WARM during late afternoon.  Our windows are tall and the blinds aren't cutting it.  Window treatments are a MUST.  I have not found anything pre-made that I like nor anything that will work given the size of the windows.  I did, however, find fabric that I like.  I had decided to have them made.  Unfortunately, the only lady that I thought I could afford, I couldn't.  And not to mention the fact that she only uses her fabric and lives 40 minutes from Columbia and requires you to come out so that she can "consult" you on her thoughts of what you need.  She is in her 70's and has been sewing for years.  I am sure she is GOOD, but not what I had in mind.  After talking with her for 20 minutes I decided it wasn't right. 

I then called a lady from my hometown and she told me that she wasn't comfortable making them without coming to our house to measure.  Six hours from Martin wasn't going to happen either. :)  She did, however, convince me that I could make them myself.  I hope she is right.

So, I am going to make them.  We will save about $800 (for labor only; not including fabric) if I make them and I am convinced that I can do it.  Will start on the downstairs shower curtain this week.  I decided to begin with a curtain that people rarely see.  I am excited about using Gran's machine and about the (hopefully) satisfaction that goes with completing something all by yourself.  I will keep you posted.

Granny is 95 years old and she helped me learn to use her machine.

(overlook my Saturday appearance - Erin thanks for capturing my sewing lesson from Granny)

I like this picture. :)

Our other missions accomplished were a picture for above our couch from Kirkland's Antiques and new shrubs and trees from Zimm's. 

Russ will be redoing our front landscaping over the upcoming weekend.  Lots of DIY projects going on at our house.  We are excited! Will post pics as it goes.

Thanks for reading!

Windy day + Kite = FUN!

About two weeks ago, we had a very windy day here in Evansville... 

Lawson received this Elmo kite from Aunt Glenda for his birthday, and it was a great day for kite-flying!

He had so much fun... it's too bad you have to have wind to fly a kite!

Please know that the kite-"flying" moments of the hour we were outside were far and few between.
I am thankful for the "sport mode" on my camera or I wouldn't have captured these exciting high-flying moments.

It was a fun morning!

We will certainly be ordering more "wind" in the spring... these cute little reusable kites are loads of fun!

***SNOOOOW much fun!***

Mr. Snow arrived indeed... I wasn't so sure he was going to make it, but as last night's bedtime approached, so did he.

They had been predicting snow since Wednesday night and it was continually pushed back with regard to arrival time and to be quite honest, I didn't expect even one little flake. By Friday morning, they were saying 1-2 inches in Evansville, but I wasn't convinced... we got home from eating dinner around 7:30 with nothing. I put Lawson down around 8:20, and walked by the front windows and much to my surprise, the street was suddenly white! It was beautifully and peacefully falling...

My faith in the weatherman was somewhat restored this morning as we awoke to 7 inches of snow, although it was 6 inches more than he predicited. I had not made the urgent grocery run last night as I was certain there was no need... my anxiety level rose significantly this morning as I noticed the milk in the frig expires tomorrow AND I had no Coke... why didn't I just trust the weatherman??!!

The day went on and many household accomplishments were made including a Bonus Room overhaul. Granny - I will post some pictures just for you later! And following Lawson's afternoon nap, we played outside for about 45 minutes and then made a quick grocery run. Playing outside was SNOOOOW much fun! Lawson LOVES the snow!

We got dressed and bless his heart, living here in Evansville, snowpants/suits are not the norm as they were in North Dakota so I struggled on what to put on him; he seemed to fair ok in his blue jeans and boots. I was hoping to put the puffy red coat on as I believe it would be warmer, but I am not sure what I was thinking... the green coat was a go!

He was so excited --- he kept saying,"outside? noooo?" Followed with an exaggerated nod of the head, nodding it "YES!" (noooo=snow in Lawson's language.) It was great fun and he thoroughly enjoyed himself. He not only enjoyed playing in the snow, but also had several handfuls of snow before our playtime was up... I suppose it was ok for him to have a few snowball snacks. : ) I absolutely love the pictures and posted way more than necessary - I took 112!!!!! eeks! Didn't realize I had taken that many until I downloaded them and I added several for our families to enjoy. They really are cute!

He's ready to go outside!

I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE this picture!! Melts my heart!

And this one, too!

Alex and Brenna were across the street shoveling their drive and he was extremely interested in what they were doing.

He kept saying, "Hi!", in his loudest outside voice!

Mmmmm...

"Bite?"

Clapping your snowy hands makes a mess!

And as soon as I said that it was time to go inside... he took off!

I like this picture, too, just because he was attempting to run in his boots.

He was laughing the whole time!

And that's all.

Thank you, God, for another remider of your presence... it was truly a beautiful snow! It brought us much joy today, and will bring our friends and family much joy as they look at these pictures!