We Have Internet!

I can't even begin to explain the pure joy I have in knowing our house has 100% Internet access! It's been 4 months of living off "borrowed" service... finding the spots in our house that pick up service from the very few people that live near us. Country Living among the gorgeous hills is the bomb, would never trade it. But, in this day and age, Internet access is insanely important! 

I'm going to diligently work on updating... sooooo much fun and craziness jam-packed into the past few months! 

OH, THE CHANGES!

I can't believe how much I need to update... sparse internet means hit n miss time to get online... SO MUCH AHEAD... 

#1 update I'll gladly expand upon???

WE'RE HOME IN TENNESSEE!!!!!!

Stay tuned...

Here's our backyard :)

Kaylie's 11th Birthday Celebrations

Our sweet Kaylie turned the BIG 11 this year... so much energy and love in one little body :)

We started the day opening presents...

Makenzie got her a cute "fancy" zebra glass...

 Best buddies :)

 Someone was very happy to get makeup, lotions, nail polish, etc.

 Grandpa Mel and Donna took everyone out to lunch at one of our favorite places, Golden Coral... birthday girl really enjoyed her dipped strawberry!

Kaylie had a blast shopping with them for a new outfit, dress, shoes and earrings :)

Before Daddy had to go to work, Kaylie got to blow out her candles with Daddy, Makenzie, Dannen and Mommy...

 Zamma and Auntie took me and our kiddos out to dinner at a neat Mexican place... bring on the fried ice cream!

 It may have been an "off" year for birthday celebrations, but I know this little lady had a great time! It's amazing to see what a beautiful person she has become :)

Lightning

 If you were to ask me, "What's one thing you like about Florida?", it would automatically be the thunderstorms! For YEARS, I've been wrapped up in different weather phenomenons... I actually had planned on attending college and becoming a Storm Chaser. (FSU fell through- LONG story- and then we moved out of Kansas City, which was near the school to become a storm chaser.) It drives my family crazy when I run outside in a thunderstorm, trying to capture a picture, or attempt to drive in a hurricane... yes, I did that! My most fond moment was back in 2004, when staying at a hotel in Southern Florida (Ironically enough, just a little bit away from here), Kaylie was just one. She was always a car-sleeper, so when having a tv on in the hotel kept her up, I took a drive! It freaked my Dad out... I remember watching him stand in the doorway as I drove off (oh, boy if I could only go back...), and accept us both with a HUGE smile and loving hugs. The weather was INTENSE! 

We get afternoon, early evening storms pretty much every day. The night before my birthday was an exceptionally crazy storm! Living on the 4th floor of a condo means we're up high... and I swear we could touch the lightning LOL

I was outside on the patio when I actually captured these shots...  

 

The hairs on my arms were standing up! Talk about LOVE!!! :)

Little Guy is Swimming!

One of the only good things about living here in Florida is having a pool right outside :)

I wish we could go every day, but let's be honest, I'd rather NOT cook my kids in this horrible heat or worry about sunscreen every 15 minutes. The times we do go are spent having fun. With two big sisters who swim like fish, our little guy was VERY anxious to keep up. 

He started learning to stay under water on his own, which of course scared the crap out of me lol Jumping in was his next big adventure... and when my not-so-little son comes flying at you, there's no hope but to close your eyes, turn your head, wait for the splash, then look to make sure he's up! The smiles were HUGE and getting him to stop laughing right away was a task... yes, please laugh and have a great time, but don't swallow the water LOL

One day, Dannen decided to go after his shark floating in the pool, and just kept going... all the way over to the other side. We couldn't stop giggling and praising him! After a few times across, right in the middle of the pool, looked at Daddy and said, "Okay, I'm tired", and stopped swimming. Next step is watching to make sure he reaches his destination and making sure he can get back :)

When my cousins were visiting, Dannen decided he was going to swim underwater... didn't think I could be so excited over something so little lol He came up, after swimming about 4 feet, and shouted, "Did you see me?" Of course, goggles are his best friend!

Though I will always have my eyes on all three kids, knowing I can give him "some room" in the pool is kind of exhilarating and relaxing as a parent. My baby is growing up and learning to be self sufficient. The need to hold someone is gone... again, kind of sad, but pretty cool to reach as a parent :)

+2 equals 16 Teeth!

Thank goodness our Tooth Fairy is super traditional and shares a quarter per baby tooth and two quarters per molar!

Makenzie had been working on two teeth for about a month. So, when Kaylie got wind and they were "bored" one night, DENTIST Kaylie got to work. Makenzie is super brave, and allowed her to pull each tooth out, just a few days apart from one another lol

Makenzie sits at 16 teeth gone... just two more to go before all that's left are molars :)

Pinterest Ideas

I've seen so many cool ideas on Pinterest... and quite honestly, have to set a timer when I frequent the website, otherwise, it's an hour later and I'm still zoned in on the screen lol

With the ridiculous heat, we decided to try this cool popsicle pin... 

Overall, it was pretty cool! The downsides, and yes, there ARE a few: The green gummies are extremely nasty, the blue start to have an alcohol taste toward the middle of the popsicle, and the gummies have a slimy outside before reaching the somewhat chewy inside. Though they were fun to make and eat, I will not be adding this to my "do-again" list...

 Who doesn't love watermelon?!?!? Seriously, I absolutely hate cutting it... for fear of losing my fingers or even slicing my arm. When this watermelon post showed up, I couldn't wait to buy some (had to wait until the price was right lol)... 

There were a few moments where those little buggers wanted to go flying across my counter, but it was fairly easy :) I cut one half yesterday @ dinner time, and as of 5pm today, it was gone lol Eating watermelon and getting messy go hand-in-hand... but at least this way you don't have to have watermelon smile marks lol

VBS

After enjoying 4 VBS programs last year, we knew it would be a little more difficult being in a new state this time around. Thankfully, we found an absolutely GREAT VBS and nice church for all three kiddos to attend.

I didn't get to volunteer (SOOOO hard since I've been the cook for our TN church the past two years), but thankfully the church took some pics I got from their Facebook page...

Kaylie and some friends... Her teacher was great and loved Kaylie! After receiving Kaylie's cute hand-made card, she was in tears and even shared on video for the church how special getting that card was to her.

 Makenzie and her group of friends being silly :)

 Kaylie and her friend Jullian eating their octopus hot dogs...

 Dannen and the boys being goofy... love my little ham!

 Kaylie and Makenzie are to the left of the big pink flower... checking out the fun experiment.

We're thankful for a great environment to help our kids' love of God grow!

Boca Beach

One of absolute favorite beaches here in Florida is Boca Grande Beach... it's about an hour away, costs an extra $6 to go over the bridge, but the gorgeous white sands, clear water, quiet surroundings and DOLPHINS are totally worth it :)

We were thankful to spend time with family a few weeks ago... wanting to see the sun set, we killed time for 2 hours playing in the sand, searching for crabs and star fish, playing in the water, walking the beach and swimming 10 feet from the friendliest dolphin ever! It was perfect :)

Kaylie & Makenzie looking for crabs...

 Makenzie...

 Dannen...

 Kaylie...

 YES! THAT'S A DOLPHIN!!! It stayed by us the whole time and we even got to about 10 feet away before it got nervous and moved. We were right by the current, so getting closer meant the possibility of getting swept away...

 Going quickly...

 Makenzie running in the water...

 So calming :)

 Kaylie found this starfish... it was still alive!

 Cheesing it up for the camera...

 Fun in the water...

 Searching for shells...

 Playing in the sand...

 Storm in the distance...

 Keeping each other safe...

 Cousins hanging out...

 Group shot minus a few lol

 She saw the dolphin again lol

 Following the dolphin as we headed back to the vans...

Such a great few hours at the beach... it may be a pain in the butt with the sand (uggghhhhh!), but totally worth swimming so close to a dolphin, enjoying time together :)

Kittens!

What can I say? We're suckers for cute kittens! These cute little sisters joined our family May 27th, having been born on April 16th. We made 100% that they were all one sex... no more kitten-making experiences for this family LOL

(Yes, Peanut is no longer with our family. Though she was truly a mommy's girl and adorable, her bathroom habits and lack of wanting to be social with ANYONE other than me was causing a ton of issues. She was always very timid, but since moving here and adjusting, she would constantly go to the bathroom in our kids' rooms and hide from everyone but me. Not much fun to have a pet who was anti-social and making messes EVERYWHERE! She's well taken care of and I know will do just fine in her new home.)

William named his kitten "Cashew"... Kaylie named hers "Kitkat"... Makenzie named hers "Bubbles"... Dannen named his "Batgirl"...

Snack time!

Daddy and his kittens :) 

 They LOVE to cuddle!

 LLLLOOOOOVVVVEEEEE!!!

 "Kitkat" kisses are the best :) 

 This is their favorite way to nap lol

 Dannen was VERY happy to have his own kitty... "Batgirl" fits him well LOL 

 Look at that face!

 Tiny kittens means fun hiding spots!

A high school friend of mine posted a comment on Facebook... "Kristy I give you credit you always follow the if you're gonna do it do it big motto  enjoy those sweet kitties great way to start summer"

Sounds about right! LOL Yet another chapter in our crazy lives...

New Playground

While out and about, looking for Makenzie and Dannen's soon-to-be new school in the Fall, we not only found their school, but a fantastic park! Bonus is that they're right next to each other :)

Though it was super hot outside and I know we'll be bringing lots of liquids and snacks in the future, this place was pretty awesome!

 Hi!

 I think Kaylie almost launched Makenzie right off the teeter-totter lol

 The "spinning thingy"

 That's their elementary school in the back ground :)

 Girls-only hideout lol

 Can you spot Dannen?

 The slides were pretty hot :(

 AHOY up there!

 Monkey Kaylie!

 Long-legs Makenzie :)

This place was awesome! Can't wait to spend lots of time here this Summer :)