Silly Girl

Happy 7th Birthday Chloe!

 We helped to celebrate Chloe's 7th birthday today at her "Fairy Princess" party. The girls had a lot of fun with all the other party goers wearing the special tutu's Christina made and also the wings, wands and crowns they received as party favors. Noah was also quite happy with his box of legos in the mass of girliness. Little fairy princess girls were running all over the house as they celebrated and played. It was fun to see the girls and hear all their squeals and giggles. I got to make the cake for the birthday girl - a 3 tier birthday cake covered in garland, flowers, a crown and some butterflies. So girly! Just the way Aunt Chrissy loves it. It was a fun afternoon and I hope Chloe had a wonderful time celebrating her special day.

Swim Lessons Continue-

 Although school has started back for the older two kids, Kate is continuing with swim lessons until Miss Elisabeth heads off to college. The last lesson is next Wednesday, the 15th. I know Kate is really going to miss her Miss Elisabeth. Elisabeth was so, so sweet to rescue Kate's pink elephant when we left it at the pool on accident. But before she found it she went out and got Kate a beautiful Build A Bear Swim Bunny! Kate was thrilled -- she had hot pink sandals, a swim suit, a purple and white beach towel and hot pink sunglasses that Kate could wear also. So cute. Luckily Miss Elisabeth also found pink elephant for us too!
Kate continues to get better at swimming. She has jumped off the diving board and swam to the ladder on her own several times. She also is able to swim to the wall and grab on. It is more than we had hoped for, honestly - I wasn't sure how well she would do this summer, just being three, but it has been a total success. It won't be long before Kate is a big girl on the swim team!

Happy 12th Birthday, Phoebe!!

Happy birthday to our sweet girl -- Love her so much!

Look Rock Hike & Cades Cove Picnic

 We took the kids up to the mountains over the weekend for a hike up to Look Rock and also to picnic in Cades Cove and play in the river. We had a lot of fun hiking and also playing in the water. The kids even got to see a crawfish up close when Doug spotted one crawling up the bank of the river. We tried hard to catch some tiny fish - no luck, but lots of laughs. Most of all, it was much needed time away with the kids, having fun, laughing and making memories. I have so many memories of the mountains, and I love that we are making our own with our kids. Definitely good times.