This is my Girl...

Our little girl is quickly changing and growing right before our eyes.  I found myself saying a few times in the past week or so how much she has matured in the last few months that I've been lucky enough to be at home spending much quality time with her this summer.  I feel like I need to take the time to document  the young lady she is quickly turning into.

She is the perfect mix of fun, spunk, and sweetness all rolled into one cute little ball of energy.  Her firey personality makes her such a joy to be around, and I love her ability to warm up to others and quickly make new friends.


I also love that she's not afraid of anything.  Worms, fish, bugs, and birds.  She loves them all, and is always wanting to hold, catch, pet, and hug them.


She found this little feathery friend at the cabin a few weeks ago, and was very sad when Daddy said we had to let it go back to it's Mommy.

She is a little artist, but is also an independent little one.  I found her quiet in her bed a little later than normal one morning, and soon discovered she had created a masterpiece all over her body, sheets, and bed rails.

She loves to meet new friends, and play with other kids.  She is quickly comfortable enough to go to friend's houses for playdates without Mom, and I'm always told she does really well. 

One thing that can be a bit of a challenge is the fact that she loves to dress herself.  So much so, that sometimes she will do just that up to 4 or more times a day.  This makes for some interesting outfits, and LOTS of laundry!

There is also all kinds of sass rolled into this little body.  We love it, and laugh at it now, but may be regretting it down the road when she hits the teen years!

She loves to get her hands dirty, but also loves to be a princess, and is getting into the little-girl stage of 'spinning her dress'.

This little girl has no fear.  Another trait we adore, but may be regretting down the road.

She can easily help herself to whatever she needs, and decided this was a good spot to have a little chip snack by herself at the cabin.

She loves to pretend that she's a puppy, and has given herself the name 'Bagook'.  She has figured out how to crawl around on the floor panting and yipping whenever she has gotten herself into a little mischief.  How can you get mad at a little curly-haired puppy named Bagook?!

One of her very favorite friends is Kasey, and Kasey's puppy, Louie.

This little girl is full of laughs, smiles, and CURLS!

And is always being silly and adventurous!

I love when she gets herself all dressed-(in pants and long sleeves when it's 90+), throws on a hat and backpack, and tells me, "Good-bye, I'm going to work"!  I asked her what she does at her work, and she told me that she eats hot dogs and fruit snacks.  I want her job!!!

Adi sure loves her Daddy, and her Daddy sure loves her!

She left her babies for a minute to throw out a line.  Actually, her favorite part was baiting the hook.  She sure loves worms- but doesn't quite have the patience to really fish yet!

Her new favorite toy- Babies!  She is always carrying around a baby, and talks to them like they are real.  In this sweet little high-pitched, sing-songy voice.  It's precious.

I. Love. Her.  And, can't get enough of smooching up those cheeks!

I love my baby girls big brown eyes.  They absolutely amaze me with how beautiful they are.

I love that she now started making 'silly faces'.  I struggle a little more with the camera on her, because I don't want to always be photographing her little tongue sticking out!

She is mine.  And, we are blessed.

This little gal is definitely a keeper.  I love what she has added to our family.  Her and her brother have a special little bond that is exactly everything I hoped they would have and more.  Oh, they have their moments, but in between those is a pretty wonderful relationship.

We thank God for you every day little Bean.  So glad we have been blessed to call you ours!

Anniversary Date. Celebrating 8 years.

Even though we said that our amazing, wonderful vacation to Jamaica this past winter was to celebrate 8 years, we obviously still had to celebrate a little closer to the actual day.  Our anniversary fell on a Tuesday this year, and since we were just returning from a whirl-wind extended stay at our cabin, and the yard, house, and gardens had been neglected for 10 days, we decided to stick around home, and throw some steaks on the grill.  Saturday, though, we planned an afternoon/evening away to celebrate each other.  We planned it without really planning, and jumped in the car, and did and went wherever we felt.  It was wonderful.  We had so much fun hanging out together, chatting, and relaxing.

We left the cabin in the early afternoon after kisses goodbye to the kids.

We had to first swing home because 'someone' forgot his wallet.  We can't have a date day without the credit card!  After that we headed to Brainerd.  We love Buffalo Wild Wings, and were in the mood for a quick appetizer.  We stopped in and shared a basket of their deep fried pickles- so good!!!

After that we headed to Zorbaz on Gull Lake.  What fun!!  Neither of us have ever been there, but have decided that we will be returning.  The weather was beautiful, and the view was amazing.

We sat out in the sun for quite a while, and talked about how fun it would be to bring our boat to Gull Lake and cruise around, and stop in.  We had some more yummy appetizers, finished up, and moved on.  We were getting hungry now, and wanted to find some seafood for dinner.

We came out and couldn't figure out which one was ours!!!  First time I've seen a car exactly like ours on the road, and here it found a spot right next to us!

We stopped at Iven's on the Bay for dinner.  The food was amazing.  Even though it was still pretty warm out, we asked for a spot on the deck overlooking the lake.

We had a hard time deciding on dinners.  There were so many yummy-sounding choices on the menu.  Chad ordered red snapper, and I had shrimp and scallops.  Both dishes were amazing!

The sun was starting to go down as we finished what we could of our meals.  There was another couple having dinner on the deck so we took pictures for each other and headed out.

This was probably one of our most memorable anniversary's to date.  It was wonderful to spend it with each other, no agenda, and just going along as we pleased.  We loved every minute of it, and don't really want to wait until next year to do it again!  We may have to plan a 1/2 year anniversary just to get away and enjoy each other.

I have been blessed with a most amazing husband, and each year gets better and better.  I love this man, and am so excited to see what the next 8 years have in store for us!

more fun from the 4th!

Over the 4th we spent 10 days at the cabin.  We packed those 10 days with as much fun as excitement as we could possibly fit it.  It was perfect weather to be at the lake, and I commented that the kids were going to turn into little fish for as much time as they spent in the water.  Some days you had no choice but to be in the water, or inside in the AC.  We chose water most of the time.

The boys spent lots of time in the paddle boat.  They would hook a couple of boards to the back, and they would go back and forth between the docks.  They called this 'red-neck kneeboarding'!  Pretty clever!!

Eli got to go for a couple of tube rides:

The Potato  Heads made another appearance.  This time watching over the resort:

These snorkel gear pictures crack me up!!!

This little guy was in Heaven!  10 sleeps at the cabin?!  He couldn't believe it!!!

I just love these girls:

This was a typical day on our beach.  People everywhere having fun!

These 2 busy boys took a little break to make some bead necklaces.

 I just love this little curly-haired girl!  She is so full of spunk, she just cracks us up!

Ready to head out for another adventure.  Always on the go!  The tip of her nose found a little nailpolish.....

She says she's 'Spider-girl'.  Not to be outdone by big brother.

 I love the face she makes and the little sound that comes out when she's shooting a web!

He spent LOTS of time fishing.  One of his favorite things to do.

The days were great, but the nights brought a couple of storms.  We laughed at all the laundry hanging to dry and strung between the trees!

All the Mommy's found some time to hang out, relax, and cool off, also.

When the sandbox isn't filled with kids it's Shelbie's go-to to try and stay cool.

He did not want to stop and snap this picture.  Quite a cheesy smile he's sporting!

Rick and Mary Jo were brave, and pulled our float decorations out to enter their boat in the boat parade.

Waving some sparkler sticks!

They filled the boat with kids, and we stood on the docks and watched them cruise through!

And this is what a fun-filled 10 days at the cabin will do to you!