Strawberry Pickin'

When I was younger, my mom often took us strawberry picking. We'd wake up at the crack of dawn to avoid the extreme heat of the day, and we'd go pick as many strawberries as our crates could hold. Then we'd get home and my mom would make jar after jar (after jar) of jam. She would also make the most delicious strawberry shakes and pies. I remember how GOOD the strawberries smelled. Buying them in the store could never compare. So, my mom and I decided to take Lily strawberry picking last week. Carry on the tradition, so to speak. Now, we didn't exactly get up at the crack of dawn...so we were pickin' in the HEAT of the day. It was SO HOT! Lily was really excited to be there (for about 15 minutes). She got her own little basket, and watched my mom (the "expert") to see how it was done, picked about 5 strawberries, ate one of them, decided she was hot and thirsty, went back to the car to drink her juice and wait for us to finish. Oh, and she had to use the port-a-potty not once, but TWICE. Sweet memories!
Seriously, it was fun. And, we really enjoyed washing and eating them later that day. (after swimming the afternoon away at my sister's house.)

SO Blessed!

So, the dance recital on Sunday could NOT have gone any better. Lily was amazing. She did all of her moves, and had a huge smile on her face the entire time she danced. I sobbed thru the whole thing! I will be paying the ridiculous 45 dollars for the DVD, because it will be worth every penny. I am extremely proud of my sweet girl! Can't wait to sign her up for class in the fall...my little ballerina!


OK, so after the recital we were off to Tennessee for our family vacation and, can I just say, it was WONDERFUL!!!!!! We had the best time. I am just feeling so blessed to have such an incredible family. All of the kids got along so well, and us adults had our fair share of fun as well. I can't remember the last time I laughed as hard as I laughed our last nite there playing Pictionary. Good times! We all wished we could have stayed a few more days...the goodbye's are never easy.

Our cabin was great...lots of space for the 15 of us...
We hot tubbed, swam in the pool, played games,
went tubing down the river, went go-carting, ate WAY too much, and just had a blast the whole week. Lily was great! Super sassy, for sure, but great. Gee Gee brought a jar of beads and string, so Lily spent a lot of time making custom jewelry for the family...man, that girl enjoys a good project!

Gee Gee, Jim, Michelle, Reilly, and Harrison: we miss you already! Can't wait till we can all be together again.

Oh yeah, and on the way home I got a phone call from my social worker giving us the green light on our Korean adoption...looks like Lily is going to get her wish and be a big sister afterall! In a couple years our family vacation will be even bigger - YAY!

Updates...and we're out!

Lily's dance recital is tomorrow afternoon...these 6 little munchkins are gonna be tappin' their toesies to Elmo's "Splish Splash"...Lily cried thru her entire dress rehearsal, so I'm saying a prayer for her performance tomorrow. C'mon baby, you can do it!!!!

We are outside ALL THE TIME NOW! You will either find Lily in the yard "watering her garden" or across the street with her friends. Man, I love summer!

Lily is starting to get the hang of her "big girl" bike. She goes very, VERY, VEEERRY slowly...but I'm sure she'll be speedin' right along by the end of the summer. She sure does look cute doin' it!

This is a DELUXE princess bike, too...complete with streamers, a princess bag for goodies, and a water bottle for when her highness needs to re-hydrate! (this could possibly be her favorite feature at the moment).

My hip-hop show was last nite. I haven't worn that much make-up or put that much spray in my hair since the early 90's! What a blast. We did a good job (for an adult beginner class!) and all got the adrenaline rush of a lifetime. Might have to do this again next year!?

As you can see, we've been busy here. Lily's actual birthday was good. *Thank you for all of the sweet birthday wishes to her! * She went for her check up in the morning...my niece told me I was mean to take her to the Dr's on her birthday, but Lily really LOVES her doctor! She is now 30 pounds, 39 inches...

that night after dance class she went to a pool party and had SO much fun. Sorry, no pictures.

Tomorrow after the recital we are leaving for our family vacation in Tennessee...catch ya when we return!

Oh yeah, and HAPPY FATHER'S DAY to all the fabulous fathers in the world...especially mine! (and to my sweet hubby, as well!)

Happy Birthday, Lily!

Seems like just yesterday...but forever ago, all at once. My baby is growing up so quickly. When we celebrated her first birthday we had only been a family for about 2 months. Now I can hardly remember what life was like BEFORE she came along.

Lily, you are an incredible blessing. You have made me feel joy and love in ways I didn't even know were possible. You are a bright, FUNNY, opinionated little girl and you teach me so many things on a daily basis. I am a better person because of you. You have changed so much over the years, and I feel myself changing right along with you. You are affectionate and kind. You must tell me at least 10 or 20 times daily how much you love me. (the biggest, the best, and the most!) You are happiest when the whole family is together and you are so pleased to know (as we are) that "famiwee is forever". You keep all of us on our toes with your questions about every little thing. We are going to have a hard time keeping up with you, that is for sure. I tell you all the time that you can do and be ANYTHING you want in life, and I just know you will do great things...you say you are going to be an astronaut and I believe you! Right now you are asking to be a big sister, and we're working on that one for you. I'd love for you to have a sibling to share the rest of your life with. You would be such a great big sister, too! You love being outside watering your "garden". You love butterflies and flowers and anything that sparkles (especially your "party" shoes). You love to draw and paint "masterpieces" and then giving them as presents. Oh, and you LOVE TO DANCE! ALL THE TIME!!! You love the computer as much as I do, and you enjoy learning new things. I love teaching you about Jesus, and love how you talk to him as if He were sittin' there next to you. My heart sings when I listen to you pray - it refreshes me and my faith is renewed by watching you display yours. Thank you for being our daughter. Our angel from heaven...we cherish every moment with you. Happy fourth birthday to you...and many more!

Love, Mom

Party Pics!

I'll let the pictures do most of the talking, but here is a recap of Lily's birthday party:
First, it was about as perfect as it could be. Lily was a HAPPY girl from the moment she woke up till the second her head hit her pillow last nite. We had a wonderful morning cleaning the backyard and baking cupcakes (Lily in her NEW apron)...she was a huge helper. Then she got ready in her princess dress and waited anxiously for her guests to arrive. Booma D and Papa D were first (and they're staying until Monday-YAY!!!!) She was talking a mile a minute, catching them up on everything they've missed over the past few months. Then the rest of the gang arrived and the party was ON.

There was food, a pinata, squirt guns, bubbles, a new caterpillar sprinkler (which got put to use right away), a kiddie pool, and just lots of fun. Lily is now the proud owner of a scooter, a big-girl bike, her first Webkin, lots of pretty clothes, and so much more!

When we wished Lily a happy birthday she was quick to remind us that she isn't 4 QUITE yet...not till Thursday. But, it was a wonderful celebration for a wonderful (almost) 4 year old.

Grumpy Cheerleader

Well, baseball season has begun for my nephew, Braden. It is his first time playing on a team, so we all showed up for his game on Saturday morning to cheer him on. Lily grabbed her pom-pons and was chatting excitedly on the way there about how she was going to be her cousin's cheerleader. However, when we got to the game, she lost all enthusiasm for her "job".
She was much more interested in running around with Payton...picking up sticks, rocks, and flowers, and (of course) making funny faces for the camera.

I'm trying to fight off a cold...this weekend is Lily's birthday party and I have much to do.