Tropical Storm Beryl

Living on the coast for most of my life, I can truly say that we have been very fortunate to never have experienced the devastation of a direct hit from an intense hurricane.  Sure, we have had some powerful storms blow through over the years, but with only minimal damage compared to what other cities along the coast have had to overcome.  Beryl was beginning to look a little ominous however, so we prepared with extra water for the baby and made sure all of our flashlights were working!

When the outer bands began to impact our area, I took Kate and Gabe for a look at downtown.

We watched the storm clouds as they got darker and kept creeping closer.

The winds were also beginning to get strong!

The kids were so excited about Beryl!

The sky had a creepy calm, but was also so very beautiful!

Thank you God for showing us your power and awesomeness in the storms,

but also for keeping us safe tonight as Beryl moves in over our city!

The storm hit land in the middle of the night.  The kids were nervous of the winds and strong rain so they slept me me...and pushed Jon out of bed into Kate's room.  We lost power for about an hour last night, but thankfully we slept through it.  I woke up to the loud rain around 3am and was amazed as I watched the trees bend and sway, and yet remain intact and upright!  Once the sun began to rise we were finally able to see what Beryl left behind.  In our yard only small branches were knocked down and one small section of fence.  Once it was safe to go out in the car, we headed back downtown to see the aftermath.  I didn't take any pictures because it was still raining a little while we were out, but a friend of mine got a couple great shots I wanted to share.  There were several trees down around the city, with some parts of town losing power for many hours (including my Grandma in Jax who lost power for almost 2 days!).  Overall, however, we were once again spared from any major devastation!

The street sweeper was busy this week!!!

This is our soon to be street being cleaned after the storm.  You can see part of the large limb on the right that fell last night.

Oh yeah, we're buying a house!!!!  An amazing house!  More details to come in a few weeks!!!  :)

McDonalds Grand Opening

Several months ago our old McDonalds was torn down and soon after the rebuilding/remodel began.  Then, just in time for summer break, the new McDs was open for business.  It's definitely new and clean, but I don't know if I like it as much yet.  The old place had a really big play area for the kids, separate from the rest of the restaurant, with its own seating area for parents and kids to eat and play.  This new building has only a tiny play area in the restaurant designed for infants and toddlers.  :(  With no tables in there though, and without a door, I can't see myself taking Grant there to play very often.  I wouldn't be able to sit and talk with friends while he played, and he would constantly be trying to sneak out the entrance.  Needless to say, I'm not a fan...  I also don't really care for the overall restaurant design.  We almost always sat in the playland section, but if I were to sit in the restaurant, you had several different sections to choose form before:  playland, cozy couch with fake fireplace, quiet seating by the bathrooms, or noisy general seating by the front door and drink machine.  Now, there is just one loud room with the only variation being booth, chairs, or high top seating.  Despite my overall dislike of the changes, I'm sure we'll keep coming every once in a while because my kids do prefer their happy meal toys to any other fast food place in town and it's new and clean!

To celebrate the remodel, McDonalds was hosting a fun Grand Opening with games, prizes, and food specials.  Of course we had to take the kids to see Ronald McDonald!!!  :)

I think they all like their hats!

The McDonald Express!

The kids had fun at the Grand Opening today and came home

with way too many new Happy Meal toys that they won as game prizes!

Grant's 1st trip to the pool!

The water is still a bit chilly, but it's warm outside....and we're heading to the Aquatic Center!!! This was Grant's 1st time in a pool!  :)  He didn't seem to understand why I was so excited, but I think he'll love it here by the end of the summer.  Today though I think he just thought I was putting him in an unusually cold bath!

Time to get soaked in the Splash Zone!!!!

Our friends Caroline, Riley, & Courtney joined us for fun in the sun today too!!!

After splashing in the baby pool and a few laps around the lazy river,

Grant was ready to lay out and work on his tan!  :)

Okay, enough for today.  We can go home now!

Kate's last day in Kindergarten

It's really here!  As much as I would like to freeze this day and not move forward, I can't.  When Kate graduated from Happy Apple a year ago I was so emotional, feeling like her days as a baby were truly over. But then we were blessed with an amazing Kindergarten class, making the transition to "real school" very easy.  This year felt in so many ways like Happy Apple.  I couldn't have handpicked a better teacher, assistant or group of kids had I tried!  Everything about this year has been amazing!  I hope that all of Kate's years in school are wonderful and I pray that she is placed with great teachers and students each year, but I also know nothing will compare to this year....

Kate has learned so much and has had so much fun too!  My baby girl is growing up and moving one step closer to conquering the world!!!  We are so proud of you Kate!  I am so blessed to be your mommy....but please don't grow up too quickly!!!

Jon usually takes Kate to school in the mornings so that I can stay home and get Gabe ready for school.  But, I wanted to take Kate this morning....to take lots of pictures of course!!  As soon as we arrived, we saw Kate's friend Caroline getting out of the car.  These girls have been best buddies since they were just two!

We arrived at Kate's classroom and she was excited to start her last day!

Because Gabe is already out for summer, and I have Grant too of course, I had to say goodbye to Kate....and let her learn and have fun without me....for a few hours.  Yes, I would be that mom sitting in class with Kate all day every day if I could.  :)  When Grant comes to school they might all be locking the doors because I'm there too much.  lol!  But, let's not think about Grant in Kindergarten yet....because that means Kate will be in 6th grade.  : /  I am NOT ready for middle school yet!  Anyway, I was able to come back later in the day to be with Kate and help out with the last day paper sorting and festivities.  I just love watching Kate with her friends on the playground at school....she is so different here than with her friends when not at school.  She seems so much more grown up here for some reason....

After the playground the kids went on a fun scavenger hunt all around the school, ending with treasure!!!  Then, what better way to celebrate the last day of Kindergarten than with an ice cream party!  These kids had toppings galore....and had a blast too!  I am going to miss so many of these kids this summer!!

Can I stop the clock yet?!?  I found myself looking up at the time often this afternoon, wishing the minutes to slow down.  Is it really almost time to put on backpacks and go home...leaving Kindergarten behind forever??  Kate spent her final few minutes drawing a giant picture of our family.  :)

Mrs. Cobb & Mrs. Delaney

I truly can't say enough great things about these two ladies!  They are a perfect fit for each other, creating a fun, balanced, and loving learning environment.  I have no doubt that as Kate gets older, she will always look back to her year as a Kindergartner as being one of her best ever years.  I know that 27 years later, I still think about the fun I had in Kindergarten and know I have my teacher Mrs. Livingston and para Mrs. Blount to thank for that!  Mrs. Cobb and Mrs. Delaney, thank you for making this year so wonderful!  We are so grateful for all the time you give to all your students and all the love you have shown to Kate.  Just please promise me something...you aren't going anywhere until Grant finishes Kindergarten....then you are free to change grades, schools, retire, etc.  :)  Do we have a deal?!?

A basket full of goodies to show Mrs. Cobb how much we appreciate her!!

Kate helped me pick out goodies from food to gift cards.....one treat for each letter of the alphabet!

Kate is holding up her favorite gift, a little bulldog for the letter "Bb."

My attempts to stop the clock have failed.  Kate's backpack is packed, tables and chairs are stacked, kids are being lined up....Kindergarten is really over....  But from the big smile on Kate's face, you can see I'm the only one struggling with this!

I went out ahead of Kate so that she could walk across the street as a Kindergarten "walker" one last time.  Before crossing the street she got one last hug from Mrs. Cobb.  Kate crosses this street as a Kindergarten graduate.  1st grade....here she comes!!!!

Grandma, PawPaw, & the boys were also waiting with me with hugs and balloons.

Our crew of "walkers" all holding up fingers to show their new grades!

These three girls have formed such a special bond this year that I hope will last a lifetime!

Kate, Harper Mae, & Emma

Jack & Gabe....future Mrs. Cobb Kindergartners!  : )

Kate, you are so ready for 1st Grade!!!  We are very proud of you!

Congratulations on a great Kindergarten year....now let's have some fun this summer!!!!

Swimming with Friends

After Gabe's last t-ball game, we were invited to come over and swim with our friends Mallory, Wyatt, & their mommy!  The kids always have a blast swimming and even more fun swimming with friends!!!  As you can see, they also had a little Girls versus Boys water war!  :)

Fun in the sun!

Also joining us at the pool was their teammate Joseph (who I somehow didn't get a picture of) and little Miss Mackenzie!

Gabe's last game

Gabe has definitely enjoyed his first season of t-ball more than he seemed to enjoyed soccer last Fall.  He would still opt to play video games over any sport, but at least I think we are making progress.  :)  Not once did he refuse to play this season!  And hopefully in time, he will enjoy soccer too!  Anyway, today was his last game for the season.  He played hard and even chased down a ball to the back fence!

He looked great at bat, hit the ball, but was struck out on first base both times up to bat.  :(

We definitely need to work on his running with a helmet on his head...

Little Brother Grant cheered for his favorite player from the sidelines with PawPaw!

After the game the kids enjoyed a special snacktime....followed by trophies!!!

You did great this season Gabe!!!

Friends and Teammates

Wyatt ~ Gabe ~ Madeline ~ Joseph