Summer Garden

We LOVE to garden. Correction...Kevin and Ava love to garden and I like to eat fresh food from it. I've never been one to enjoy dirt. Ew. Every year, we take a small part of our backyard and fill it with yummy veggies. My Dad, who takes farming to a whole different level, has given Kevin good advice and a few secrets. It is really important to us that the girls see how vegetables are grown.
We have squash, zucchini, onions and tomatoes galore.

This is our first pick! Check out the size of that zucchini!

We took Ava to Lowe's for their FREE project this past Saturday and she absolutely loved every minute of it.

Time to catch you up!

Today, I was reminded of how quickly it turns from Spring to hotter than heck Summer. My goodness. My quick trip to Walmart signaled the beginning of my permanent summer ponytail and the air conditioning running 24/7. When it is spring and the weather is bearable, we try to do as much as possible outside. Here are a bunch of pictures of what my girls have been up to. We are really excited about Ava's recital coming up, the hot air balloon festival, being able to have tomatoes from our little garden and Ava has been talking about her birthday and Campmeeting for months. I am positive this summer will be so much fun...even if we are constantly red faced and sweaty.

My baby is walking! Papa stopped by to surprise Ava with ice cream and left with the distinction of being the first person that Nora walked to. Priceless!

Beach trip #2. Gorgeous family day!

Yep...she had 2 popsicles at once. Ava wants Nora to play in the pool with her but the only way I can get her to sit down and stay in it is to keep the popsicles comin'. Works every time!

Chubby legs! Enough said. Love them!

Mother's day morning...my precious Ava picked out a Hello Kitty sigg bottle for me. You better believe I have it with me all of the time. There is no greater blessing than being loved by my two gifts. Praise God for them!

Fun picnic. Nora always has to have what her big sister has.

Making "mud soup" together. And yes...we wear Christmas jammies all year.

Nora had the best time jumping on the little trampoline in the front yard. Odd place for it but at the time, it made everyone happy.

Beach Day - Before Oil Spill

Two weeks ago, we took the girls to the beach for the day. We thought it would be the first of many day trips but now, we know that the beach will not be a relaxing, pleasant experience for a while. It breaks our hearts. It feels personal...as if it is my beach and how dare someone mess it up. Like so many others, we are sad for the animals effected first. We realize it was an accident in a way but at the same time, it is so disheartening that there is such a lack of respect for God's creation. So frustrating.

So...here are some pictures of our beach trip. We are going again tomorrow because we were told it may not be good to go after this week. I'm curious how different it will be and if it will smell. I have heard that the smell of the oil is already strong.

My sweet girls...and a clean ocean.
Nora loved the sand but wasn't a fan of the water.
Ava's a nut.
Nora spent a good bit of her time chasing the sea gulls.
We were so proud of Ava. She saw the man in the truck picking up "glitter" and wanted to help. She even went up to some kids who had thrown their drinks down and told them, "you need to pick up your trash." That's our girl! Tell em'!