I draw the line

Avery has been dressing herself for a few months now. I can deal with the crazy stares at the grocery store, the shoes on the wrong feet, and the socks that don't match. But today, she wanted to wear her tutu and this wig to gymboree. She has actually worn the tutu before to gymboree, so thats not a big deal. But I will not let her out of the house when I can't even see her face.
HA!

HAPPY ANNIVERSARY to us!!!

(My lovely anniversary gift! Thanks!)

Today, Nick and I have been married 6 years. It is amazing to think I have been with him half my life. We started dating at 16, and most everyone knows the rest of the story. We have literally grown up together, surviving the teenage years, the college chaos, and the long-distance realtionship burden. We have been through everything: love, loss, and joy, and we have done it together. He is truly my best friend. Nick, I love you!

Where it all began....church camp, Summer 95

Senior Prom

June 29, 2002: A day to remember...

13 years later, proud parents!!!

Girls Weekend!!!

I just got back from our annual beach trip and of course, we had a blast. We missed Leigh and Lori, but we still managed to have fun!! Leigh went on vacation with her in-laws, and Lori was supposed to be on bed rest. On the way down,however, Lori went into labor and had her babies- Kinsley and Jackson. More on that later!!!

We didn't do too much sunning, but it didn't matter. It was refreshing just to hang out and talk about everything and nothing. I love how nothing ever changes between us, even after 12 years. Love you girls, can't wait till next time!!

p.s. Thanks so much to My Mom and Nana Pat for watching the kiddos so I could get a break!!!

Some highlights:
* driving a little fast in Luverne after finding out Lori was in labor
* eating in the most wonderful McDonalds in the South
* ordering pizza & watching quality television
* laughing at Nicole's phone calls
* visiting our favorite spot- Howl at the MOON
* showing our patriotism to God Bless the USA
* making friends with PAUL
* meeting the Ted Kennedy look-a-like
* gossiping about whatever
* my BCBG find and MJ's $20 dress!

Here Comes TROUBLE!

Its a BOY! By November, I'm going to have TWO nephews! Both my sisters are having boys, within a week of each other. It is going to be SO much fun. I can just see Day-Day, Baby Stroud, and Baby Davis running around the yard making my Mom crazy!!! My Dad would not know what to do with himself with three boys instead of three girls! I am sure he is looking down on us and laughing. Good luck to both my Sisters! Love you!

Who needs a spoon?

Mistake #1: Leaving out the yogurt Avery didn't eat for breakfast.
Mistake #2: Not locking the kiddos in the bathroom when I took a shower.

I came out to this. I'm not sure, but I figure Avery gave Davis the yogurt, although I wouldn't be surprised if he managed to get it himself. Then he proceeded to squeeze it open and eat it right out of the container. YUM!

Mr. T

Happy 1st Anniversary!

To Leigh and Josh!!!
I can't believe its been a year since we were at the beach celebrating ya'lls wedding. I am so glad you found each other, and that I gained such a wonderful brother (in law). Have a great day. We love you guys!

Ya'll know I LOVE my babies...

But it won't be long until I am at the beach with the MJ, Nicole, and Linz!! No diapers, noone to feed but myself, no toddler demands, and no annoying dogs!!!
I'm ready for some relaxing girl time!
COUNTDOWNCLOCK

Get this boy a Captain's Chair

Wedding Weekend!

Ok A-town friends, here are the pics.
Scroll on down to read a summary of the weekend :)

Nick and I pose before heading to the REHEARSAL

Of course, A had to get a picture, too

The Men in the Yellow Shirts

The Bowers ladies sing a song for the couple

John and Miranda + Kate


THE WEDDING
Sharing a moment...

The guys

Groomsmen duties= wiping down chairs after a rain

Yeah, ya'll look good.

Here come the Feds

Can you tell who the Proud Pop is?

Isn't she lovely?

Dancing with the Mother of the Groom

Me & the boys

Moose & Rachel

You're my boy Blue!

Me & the beautiful bride

Still in love...

Now that's a good-lookin' crew!

WaterBabies

In between the wedding fun, the kids and I met Leigh, Josh, Ivy, Riley and CLAY to swim at MawMaw's pool...


Popsicle Break! Davis was not too happy when his was gone.

So Sweet! Don't be fooled, the next second they were fighting over the strainer that gets bugs out of the pool.

Davis loved him a float!

Avery, not so much!

The new boat

Today, the Williams crew got to ride on the new boat. Me and the Sisters went in together and got a tritoon. We liked Josh's boat, but it was a little too fast, bumpy and small for all of us. It has a shaded area in the back, which is perfect for Davis(and the preggos). And its something like 22 feet long, which was plenty of room for Avery to run back and forth, which she did.

Funny story, when we all started jumping in the river to swim, Avery freaked out and was crying. (We did this plenty of times last year, and she loved it). She kept telling us to get out of the gross water. Eventually, after all of us and Brit and Anik got in, she wanted in too. Then she cried when she had to get back in the boat. She was laughing and kicking and trying to swim. Don't know what happened, but now she is officially a river rat.

(Oh to any germ-o-phobe, I know the river IS nasty. We took showers as soon as we got it, to wash off that "gross water")

Some highlights of the day...

Davis has a snack before the boat ride

While Avery gets her boa and purse

You can't tell from this picture, but Davis hated his new lifejacket.

Cooling off

Gotta love boat hair!

Enjoying the ride

Yeah, I think I like it.

The Captain

Just like Home...

We celebrated all weekend the marriage of two of our dear friends, Blue & Rachel. Nick was a groomsman, so we enjoyed every minute of the wedding festivies. Friday night, we had a delicious Italian dinner, and then a karaoke/dj nite. It was so much fun, and of course, you know I LOVE TO KARAOKE!!! I sang Bonnie Raitt- I cant make you love me. This song didn't get me on American Idol, but it was a hit in Athens!!(jk)
Saturday, the kids and I met Nick at the wedding. Blue was a handsome groom and of course, Rachel looked amazing. When she walked down the aisle, Avery said, "Look at the beautiful princess!" It was outside(at Blue's Mom's house)overlooking Lake Ida. The weather held out and it was beautiful. After the wedding, we dropped off the kiddos with Nana & Papa and went to the reception. Another wonderful night, catching up with old friends and talking about the good ole days. Congrats guys, we love you and hope you have fun in JAMAICA!!!

side note: I must give a shout out to the band, Plato Jones. YOU GUYS ROCKED!!!

A day in the life

In the car today, I was scanning the radio and heard the end of a conversation about stay-at-home-MOMS. I am sure there were two sides, but the call I heard was something like, I could never stay home. I mean, what do they do all day?

Well,anonymous caller, in case you are reading (fat chance), I thought I would give you the details of a typical day in my SAHM life.

6:15:Davis up. Feed & change him. Let dogs out.
6:20 make coffee. Play with DayDay
6:45 feed dogs, take laundry from dryer, start another load
7:00 fold laundry
7:15 check email (and blogs:)
7:30 start packing for weekend-we are going to a wedding
7:45 Davis getting fussy, put him in high chair and feed breakfast
8:15 Avery up. Take her to potty, get juice, fix cheerios
8:30 iron clothes for weekend, fold last load of laundry
9:00 Get Davis down for nap
9:15 break up fight between dogs over A's uneaten cheerios
9:20 empty dishwasher, pack bottles, formula, and baby food
9:30 finish packing
9:40 potty, diaper changes, get clothes on
10:00 Kids, Me and Dogs in Car ready to go
10:15 Dogs dropped off for the weekend
10:25 Meet MOMS club friends at Park
11:00 pick up prescription
11:10 pick up dress and tie at dry cleaners
11:30 get gas
11:45 go to eye doctor, get A's glasses fixed (AGAIN)
12:15 buy replacement lens cover for camera

Ok, anyone else notice its only lunchtime?!?
I won't bore you with anymore timelines, but I also managed to:drive to my Mom's, meet up with Nicole, stay the afternoon with Lori, eat dinner with Ivy, Clay & Riley, meet Leigh & Josh's softball game, and catch up on some phone calls.

So anonymous caller, what did you do today?

Cousin Time!!!

I watched Matthew yesterday so Julie could get some work done. My camera battery was low so I only got this one picture, but it pretty much sums up the day. Avery wanted Matthew to hold her hand the whole time, dance, play dress up, and carry around babies. Poor Matthew. She also felt the need to "Mommy" him the entire time- I won't call her bossy, but she feels that she needs to help or show him how to do everything. I finally found a gender-neutral activity- we went outside to water the flowers, which really meant they got to play in the water. We had a fun time!!! Matthew, if you are not scarred for life you are welcome to come back.

What I would never say at 2 years old

Avery wanted to call Nana. We dialed the number, listened to it ring, and got the answering machine.

She said, I not leave message. Better call cell phone!

Back to Ballet

Avery started Dance again today. This class is actually a pre-school class and she gets to do 30 minutes of ballet and 30 minutes of tap. She has been asking when she was going to ballet again since her recital in May, so I figured I'd let her take it in the Summer, too. We got out a special "ballet bag" and put her ballet slippers, tap shoes in it. She thought she was hot stuff.

Kathleen and Cate are in her class so Avery is even more excited. I asked her what she learned today and she said, "A got sticker and candy."

Nice to know I'm paying $65 for a 5 cent pack of smarties.
Just kidding, she loves it, and thats all that matters!