Summer

It has been a long time since I posted. So I am going to catch up on our summer. We had a wild, crazy, fun, fast summer! It was fun but went too fast!

Gardening

 A couple of weeks ago we decided to buy some more flowers and plant them in our yard to add more a little more color. It didn't seem like we bought that much but we planted 41 plants! Billy dug the holes while Bailey and I put in the plants. And the boys just played. I love our yard now. My biggest challenge will be to keep in watered until it takes root and can go on it's own but so far so good! We planted some more lantana, ice plant, vinca and a few other things.

This was the lantana I planted about a month ago...

This is the same lantana today...blooms everywhere!

Added a few vincas in the mix

This ice plant only had half the blooms in the beginning of May! We planted six of these on our retaining wall ini the back yard. Really hoping they do this well so that one day our back wall will be covered in purple flowers!

I love this plant. 

Here's the back yard...love our solar lanterns!

Then here is our new back porch. We spend ALOT of time here these days! We have supper here almost every night and I have breakfast and coffee here every morning. So blessed to have this porch! 

Ok well this is what we have been up to the last month yard work and being lazy on the back porch!

May Flowers

We have lived in our house for almost three years and have changed very little of the landscaping outside. We have ALOT of green shrubs more than I really want but they came with the house so until I can pay someone to dig them up they will stay. I added some flowers a couple of years ago around the mailbox and they haven really taken off. So this year I was tired of just green and decided to head to the nursery today and buy some more flowers! Now, I am not a gardner and I have no idea what I am doing. I tried to look for things that said "full sun" and didn't need much watering or attention. Oh and I looked for the word perennial! So I got a few lantana cause I think they grow pretty well and some other things that I can't remember but I just thought they were pretty. So here is to hopefully a colorful yard! Fingers crossed! Wish me luck!

Here are the mailbox flowers. The really big green ground cover with purple flowers and the white flowers are what I planted two Mays ago. I planted them just before Mother's Day. The little purple flower close to the street is what I planted today. My neighbor has some at her mailbox and they are doing great so I copy catted her. 

These are some Iris's that I transplanted from a neighbor's yard down the street. I didn't think they would come back but they are still living after two years and they are mulitplying! They are almost ready to bloom.

More lantana

These are some flowers that I got right before Easter and they are still living! I have a hard time keeping potted plants alive outside but they are doing pretty well I would say. I have two of these planters on my front porch. 

After I finish the front yard I am going to try and tackle the back yard. It needs a lot of help!

Tabasco

Today we went to the place where they make the famous hot sauce - Tabasco. The factory is on Avery Island in Louisiana and is the only factory in the world where Tabasco is made. Avery Island has been in the same family since before the Civil War. All the seeds for the peppers are grown in Louisiana but most of the peppers are grown in Central and South America. It takes three years and 28 days to make the sauce. The peppers are are harvested, crushed, mixed with a little salt and stored in wooden barrels all in one day and then stored for three years before the process is finished. Who knew hot sauce could take so long to make. Also under the island are salt mines which are believed to be as deep as Mt. Everest is tall! Ok there is your history lesson for the day! Highly recommend you visit if you are in Louisiana.

Bailey's Birthday #7

When I asked Bailey where she wanted to go eat for her birthday and after giving her a few choices she quickly said, "Mexican!" You see a few weeks before we had been to eat Mexican and she saw someone have a birthday there and they put a sombrero on their head and then sang Happy Birthday. She thought that was great! It's funny though because Bailey does not like to draw any attention to herself at all! But I guess the sombrero overshadowed any attention! And I think she thought she would get to keep the sombrero. A little disappointed when she didn't. But she had fun anyway.

Then for her party we invited a few girls from her class to do a painting class. Bailey picked a butterfly to paint. They all wanted different colors so they were all one of a kind pieces! Bailey loves to do anything art so this was a fun way to celebrate turning 7! So thankful for our sweet princess!

Halloween

As I was looking for things to post I realized I never posted Halloween pictures. Oops! Bailey was Cinderella, Jesse was Darth Vader, and Jack was Captain Hook or some kind of pirate. Our friend Aspen went with us but she was scared of Jesse with his Darth Vader mask on and would scream hysterically when he had it on! Finally after about 20 min she understood it was only Jesse and he was able to wear his mask. Funny and not all at the same time!

Turning 40

Hard to believe I woke up one morning and was 40! I mean I don't feel 20 but 40! Come on. Yet here it is! I am not falling into a deep depression or having a midlife crisis nor am I saying "life begins at 40!", like I have heard numerous times since my birthday. Rather it's just another birthday. I do look forward to life in my forties. Lots has happened in the previous twenty years. In my twenties some highlights were- I graduated from college, moved to New Orleans, graduated from seminary, moved to Istanbul, met my husband, and traveled to some great cities in Europe. In my thirties some highlights(or major events) were- getting married, having a baby girl, having a baby boy, moving back to the states, saying good bye to my best friend, who is at home in heaven, then moving to GA, having baby #3, buying our own business, and the best part of my thirties was knowing and trusting Christ in a way I didn't think was possible.

My parents gave me surprise party while home one weekend. Here are some pictures...

Valentine's Day

This year Billy and I had the privilege of going to Charleston, SC for a couple of days. My parents along with my sister came and took care of the kids. We were blessed that they would do this! So thankful to them for giving us some time away and taking great care of our three monkeys.

Billy and I had our first date on Valentine's 10 years ago. He texted me and asked if I wanted to go to a movie. Later found out I wasn't his first choice. He tried to get a couple of guys to go with him but for some reason couldn't. Anyway, we ended up going to dinner and then a movie. And then after the movie he talked in a circle in a around about way of pursing me. Thankfully I got the gist of what he was saying and here we are today! We had a great Valentine's which included a carriage ride (with 14 other people) around Charleston followed by a much needed uninterrupted nap!


Photo Sharing - Video Sharing - Photo Printing

Bedtime

Jack is the worst at going to sleep lately. He will get up, run around and we make numerous attempts to put him back in the bed. Some nights we are successful sometimes not as you can see below. We found him in the hallway when we went to check on the kids before bed. We used to find Jesse like this all time - in the hallway, in the floor in his room, behind this door, under his bed, in the bathroom and sometimes with clothes sometimes not. But this was a first for Jack. He hasn't done it since so we'll see. I started threatening to take away TV for a day (and already did it once) and he is doing much better at staying in his bed! And he never goes to sleep with out his Goofy and his doggy! Never!