Our trip to Charlotte

We had a wonderful trip to Charlotte.

 What I enjoyed most was the time spent with family.

 David was able to spend some good quality time with his daddy.

 And my girls were able to bond with their MeeMee

 And Pappy.

 They spent time with their Aunt Jennifer.

 And we got to see how beautiful Bethany looks pregnant with a precious baby girl.

 Edward came by full of smiles.

 And we were able to celebrate Steve's 30th birthday.

 Grace and Stephen had a blast playing together.

And so did Luke and Faith.  The hardest part is always going home but I'm certain we will see them again sometime soon.  Thank you all for such a great time and all the wonderful memories.  We'll treasure them forever.

Visiting Charlotte: Playing outside

One thing we did almost every day during our visit to Charlotte was play outside!

Sometimes we'd play in the sandbox.

Or pretend to be cowboys and cowgirls.

We'd hunt for lizards.

And then use them for target practice.  (Please note:  No animals were actually harmed during our visit.)

Sometimes, Stephen would play Tarzan looking for his Jane.

Jane could often be found just hanging out.

Then Tarzan would join her.

Sometimes we were snakes slithering in the grass.

Other times we just enjoyed simple snacks in the sunshine.

Faith took some of her first steps outside.

Even though she wasn't happy about it.

Joe could always be counted as a great adventure guide.

And a fast spinning windmill.

Spinning the kids around and around.

Upside down, of course.

 When not being twirled around, Grace wanted to make Faith feel included by tickling her with a leaf.

I don't think Faith was too fond of that leaf tickling her. 

But she loves her sister madly, just like her sister loves her.

Watch as Faith takes some of her first steps!

Visiting Charlotte: Sunday

We started this morning off by going to church.

 And after church we came back to MeeMee and Pappy's house.

 And we took a few photos as a family.

 Then we worked to get lunch ready.

And the entire family got together to celebrate Steve's birthday.  He turns the big 3-0 tomorrow.  Happy Birthday Stephen!!!!!!!

Visiting Charlotte: It's the ice cream man!

We were all playing outside when we heard a familiar jingle down the street.

 It was the ice cream man!  Grace and Stephen ran to the corner and waiting for him to arrive.

Aunt Jennifer told them to pick anything they wanted.

 Both Stephen and Grace wanted popcicles!

 Delicious!

 Then both the kids chased the ice cream truck down the street

Before coming back to give Joe a big thank you hug.

What an awesome way to cool off on a hot summer day!

Visiting Charlotte: Strawberry pickin'

Today we took the kids to the strawberry patch to do some pickin'.

And just like last year, we started at the Berry Amazing Maze.

And like last year, Grace thought outside the maze...

And then she watched while Stephen found his way out.

He improvised, as well.

Faith tried climbing over at first.

Then she tried going under.

Then Luke came over for some encouragement.

And he showed her the way out.

Then we headed to the fields.

Stephen looked closely for berries.

And started piling them into his container.

Faith got down on the ground for some berry pickin' too.

See!  She found one!

And tasted it, too.  They were very sweet.

Grace found that the best berries are hidden underneath leaves.

 After all of our berry picking, we were ready for some refreshments.

 What better than strawberry smoothies?

 Then Luke discovered a strawberry height chart.

 Then Faith went over to investigate it.

 Followed by Grace.

 Grace wanted to know "how high" she was.

 Then MeeMee showed Grace how tall she was.  Grace thinks MeeMee is really tall.

 Next, Stephen and Grace wrestled a bit trying to decided which of them was the tallest.

 After that the kids took turns pretending they had different bodies.

 That was a lot of fun.

 Even Faith enjoyed it.

 Then we headed over to look at the chickens.

 Stephen and Luke looked like best buddies.

 It wasn't long before we were all hot, tired, and ready to go.

 It was the end of strawberry season so our tubs were only half full.

But it was the family time spent together making memories that we truly enjoyed.