Wade is 2 months old!

Hey there little guy!  

Wade is a happy, sweet, easy going little guy and he's surprised us a couple of nights by sleeping 9 hours at a time!  He has been smiling and cooing.  And snoring. 

His little disposition reminds me so much of his older brother at this age, and they even look alike too!  In fact the below picture is McCord at 2 months wearing the same outfit as Wade in the above picture.  Who's who?

I'll have to post a picture of Wade in front of the maple at a later date - we've yet to get a good afternoon without rain to get outside.  

You better.

Summer Snapshots

This week...

...and I've had fun playing around with the new photo editing website.  Pic Monkey.  Fun stuff!

Mc's Birthday Party

Thank you Poppie & Gee Gee for letting us host Mc's 2nd birthday party at your house!  We loved spending this fun day with family.  Many thanks to Mc's cousins, aunts and uncles, and grandparents who made the day so special for him!

Happy 4th of July

We joined in the fun this year at our neighborhood's annual Johnsonville parade.  Some of you folks who grew up here can probably tell me more about the details of the parade's origination, but we think it started with a family about 20 years ago, who just decided to start their own 4th of July parade in the neighborhood.

Everyone was invited and there were no rules to join.

Little has changed.

The parade lasts for about 30 minutes as everyone walks around the neighborhood together.  This year there were at least 150 people - a couple of buses even brought in kids from a summer camp up in the mountains!  Everyone was decked out with homemade decorations for strollers, bikes, wagons.  There were a few convertibles, someone dressed as the Statue of Liberty, a handful of patriotic dogs, and lots and lots of kids.

The Johnsonville queen was crowned, everyone sang "God Bless America," and then the parade was officially underway!

We smiled, laughed, sweated, and waved through our 30 minutes of fame.  The whole experience was a hearty slice of small town Americana pie and we were so glad to share this delicious memory with our boys.

McCord is 2 Years Old!

Happy Birthday, Monkey!

Here you are at just 2 weeks old pretending to stand in front of the maple we planted in your honor...

...and here you are at 2 years old standing in front of your maple!  Both of you have grown tremendously!  Your daddy and I have had the ultimate pleasure of watching you grow and learn.  

We love you more than we ever knew we could love.  You have a kind and gentle spirit, you're quirky and shy, yet silly and rambunctious at times.  You are curious, affectionate, and you love to "fix it!" when anything breaks - or even if it isn't broken.  You have become the sweetest big brother we could ever imagine, and a big help to Mama and Daddy.  

Last night while you were sleeping, Daddy and I crept into your room and filled it with balloons and birthday decorations.  When you woke up this morning, there was no doubt in your mind that it was a special day!  We borrowed an idea from your cousins and placed a long red ribbon leading from your room, all the way through the house, to your birthday gifts.  You had so much fun this morning following the ribbon throughout the house to see what was on the other end.  There you unwrapped various tools, some army men, and a superhero cape with a hammer on it that I made.  It is good to be 2!

To celebrate your birthday, we took you out to eat lunch and you had your first virgin strawberry daiquiri.  We went to see some heavy machinery on a lot where they are doing a lot of construction.  We played in your sandbox, ate cupcakes, played in the sprinkler, and even burned a couple of sparklers.  To top it all off, you and Wade got to take a bath together for the first time, and you seemed to enjoy that.  

Happy Birthday, McCord!  We love you!