The Cross-Country Road Trip Begins...Illinois!

My brother, Skylar, flew in and helped with the 32 hour drive. It was 16 hours to Illinois, and another 16 to Texas. What a sweet brother I have. We had a terrific time first stopping in Illinois! Thank you to our grandparents for being incredible hosts! Emmy had a great time hanging out with cousins, Hailey, Cameron, and Hayden. These girls get along so well! They had fun playing with balloons, running around outside, going out to eat, and playing dress-up. Grandma, thanks for being a trooper while Emmy jumped all over you. She's in this silly wrestling stage and she climbs and jumps all over people. And unfortunately, she felt the need to show Grandma her moves. And Brenner was typical Brenner. He's a ladies man, and loves attention. So he had a ball seeing new faces.

Grandma and Brenner



Uncle Steve with Brenner







Hayden and Emmy

Emmy even got to go bowling for the first time! Aunt Tammy and Emmy were quite a pair. She helped Emmy bowl, and they scored in the 90s! Nice! She really, really enjoyed herself. It was so cute watching Emmy and Hayden push the ball down the lane and then they'd lie on their tummies and kick their feet while watching their ball roll down.
Bowling Divas- Aunt Tammy and Emmy

Hayden the Super Diva

What a pair!
Then we visited Grandma and Grandpa Z. Emmy and Brenner went on wagon rides, ate Avanti's (Mommy's favorite Italian place) with Aunt Kathy and Connie. My cousin, Adam, made an amazing gingerbread cake. So yummy! I even got to catch up with my old girlfriend, Mary, who I've known since 3rd grade. Emmy enjoyed looking at flowers and resting on the porch swing. And Brenner enjoyed making his flirty smirks and Grandma and Grandpa. They, of course, got a kick out of it. He's my little heartbreaker.
Emmy posing with Grandma's hat



Grandpa and Emmy

Grandpa and Brenner



My Aunt Kathy


Piano Time!





My brother, Skylar










Illinois was a blast and I can't wait until we can see everyone again.

Last Flight at 32

Wade had his last flight with his squadron, VFA 32 in Virginia Beach. I took the kids up to the flight line with the rest of his squadron, and got to celebrate his 3 years with the Gypsies. A fire engine soaked his jet while the taxied in. It was pretty cool. And he was ceremoniously hosed with water as he exited the jet. Emmy even got to join in on soaking her Daddy. We are really going to miss being a part of this amazing squadron. They've become a big part of our lives. So, it was a bittersweet day. So exciting to be moving onto to something new! But so sad to not continue on this journey with the gypsies. We will miss you all! We love you so much!

Our Last Playdate

Frankie, Ava, and Emmy
We had our last playdate at the park with some of Emmy's best friends. We all met at our place, pulled out the double strollers, and rolled on down to the park. Thankfully, the weather held out for us. We had a little picnic, did some swinging, running and sliding. It was the perfect afternoon spent with some really wonderful friends.

Ava and Emmy

Brenner and his gal pal, Ellie


The Stroller Gang

Me and the kiddos

Becca with her 2 precious girls, Ava and Ellie


Liz with her new baby girl, Bridget who is hiding in the carrier, and handsome Peter

Kimberly with big brother Braeden and cute as a bug lil sis, Frankie

My friend, Joelle, with her little guy, Camden, who is just 1 month younger than Brenner

Two studs, Brenner and Camden

It's Mama's Day!

Besides having the greatest mother on earth, I have the greatest grandmothers too! I love you 3 so much! It won't be long until we can see you! Happy Mother's Day! I spent this Mother's day at home with my two wonderful kids. And, oh, they make me so happy! I hope that I can be as great of a mom as my mom has been to me these last 26 years. That's going to be a tall order considering my mom raised 5 and I struggle daily with 2! Ha ha! But I'm starting to get the hang of it. And my wonderful husband helps nonstop whether it's making dinner, (which I have to admit, he's been doing a LOT of that lately), or giving the kids a bath and putting them to bed (which gives me to relax and unwind from the day), or letting me escape for a bit to run errands or just window shop to blow some steam. Did I mention, he's amazing?!

We started the day with running errands. We purchased a hitch for my car, looked at new cell phones, and walked around Michael's as my mind was turning on all the fun projects I want to do for our new house in California. Then we came home and worked on the house. And the house is a d.i.s.a.s.t.e.r. I mean, it's bad. Well, I'm sure it could be worse. I KNOW it could be worse. But I'm having a difficult time dealing with things being all over the place and not organized and put away, and pretty! I like things to be pretty. And, now, they're just not. And they wont' be until we get our boxes out of storage in California and unpacked and organized in our new place, which could be a few months from now. So, the house is in disarray, but I've been enjoying throwing things out. I'm the complete opposite of a pack rat. One of my favorite things to do is throw things away. I love going through my clothes after each season and discarding things I never wear. I love going through the kids clothes and getting rid of what doesn't fit. No, I really don't love that. It actually makes me sad. They're both growing too fast! Looking at their newborn clothes makes me realize just how small they were. And I miss that. Then I start to reminisce about the day they were born and then I look through pictures. There's nothing like those small, newborn babies. But, they're still young, my goodness Brenner's only 8 months! And then I'm going to blink and they're going to be in school, coming home with boy/girl cooties, then going boy/girl crazy, starting high school, learning how to drive, and graduating high school. Then I can complain about how much I miss my 2 babies. Until then...

Wade made me a fantabulous dinner tonight. He grilled some nice, thick pork chops. But not before marinating them all day in a secret bbq concoction. Soooo good! Oh and he even took the extra step to make my favorite drink from Outback, their Wallaby Darned. It's a frozen peach drink with Peach Schnapps, champagne, and vodka. Yum-O! And he did a great job reinventing this drink I must say! And I'm finally about to finish up the day watching the Spurs game and eating cheesecake and brownie swirl dessert while blogging.

Thanks to Wade and my two great kids for making this day fantastic! I love you 3 so much! I am so proud to be your mommy, Emmy and Brenner. Life is good. God is GREAT!