Nana and Grandpa's grandchildren

Nana and Grandpa took this precious picture of all of their grandchildren. It was a wild and crazy week with this crew!

Beach trip with Nana and Grandpa

We spent Memorial Day weekend and week at Orange Beach with Nana and Grandpa and all of our Stowe cousins. We arrived on Saturday, unpacked, and headed straight to the beach. Jane Gray and Charlie ran right into the waves, but Meg refused to even set a toe in the water. She much preferred to play in the sand with Ella (she hugged on Ella all week!). The week was sunny and fun-filled. We played at the beach (snacked, built sand castles, chased birds, flew kites, played football, boogie-boarded, hunted for seashells and swam - even swimming with two stingrays!), swam in the pool, went crabbing with Uncle Jay and his girls (caught 8 crabs and several fish), caught sandcrabs, played putt-putt, won a few hermit crab races at Calypso Joe's, and enjoyed a dolphin cruise. We were sad to say good-bye to the beach. It was a fun, and exhausting, week!

Baby birds

A mother wren made a nest in the hanging basket on our back porch. The children have loved watching her work - making the nest, hatching the eggs, and feeding the baby birds. Tonight, Daddy tapped on the chimney, and they opened their mouths and started chirping loudly. It was precious!

Last day of gymnastics

Jane Gray's last day of gymnastics class was this afternoon. She has loved the class and all of the new friends she has made. Her goal was to master the cartwheel, and she has done just that. She has had such a sweet and encouraging teacher, Mrs. Gina, and we will really miss her and the class this summer!

Jane Gray's end of the year class picnic

Jane Gray has officially graduated from kindergarten! Her class had their end of the year picnic today. Mac Brown, Mason's mother, put together a DVD of pictures she had taken throughout the year - there wasn't a dry eye in the room! Mrs. Pringle, especially, was emotional. She and Mrs. Pittman have been so wonderful to Jane Gray and the rest of the class. It has been a great year! After the children played on the playground for a little while, the class came back to the room for their snacks, and Mrs. Pringle spoke about each child. She said that Jane Gray was smart, an excellent reader, and a really good friend. Mommy and Daddy could not be more proud of our little graduate!

Meg dancing with the stars

Jane Gray and I like to watch Dancing with the Stars. The dancing is amazing, and the show gives us a good opportunity to discuss modesty. Meg loves to dance, too, and she gets so excited when the music comes on. Tonight, she dressed up in Jane Gray's tutu and danced up a storm!

Jane Gray's last ballet class

Jane Gray's ballet teacher, Deana the Ballerina, invited the parents to observe the girls' last ballet class. The girls wore their tutus and showed us what a typical ballet class looked like. Jane Gray was thrilled that we were there and loved showing her brother and sister her dance moves. At the end of the class, Deana let the girls come up to the front of their class and teach their mothers something - Jane Gray showed me how to do a full twirl. You should have seen Mommy trying to twirl! I'm sure it was hilarious!

The Lone Ranger

Whit Anderson had a cowboy birthday party this year and gave his friends a Lone Ranger DVD as a party favor. Well, Charlie (and the rest of the cowboys) are obsessed with the Lone Ranger. He watched the DVD this morning - notice his hand is on his gun at all times. When a bad guy appeared on the DVD, Charlie jumped up, mounted Silver and gave this serious look. "Hi-yo Silver, away!"

Charlie and Griffin

While in Memphis for the wedding, we were able to visit with my dear friend, Betsy, and her son, Griffin, on Saturday morning and then again after meeting them for church at Second Pres. Charlie and Griffin are tight buddies and had a great time with each other. Griffin, as most of Charlie's friends do, calls Charlie by his full name "Charlie Barbour."

Pop and Sherrie's Wedding

We were in Memphis this weekend for Pop and Sherrie's wedding. The festivities began at Sherrie's house Friday night - she invited all of the wedding guests to her house for dinner. The kids stayed at Forsyth's house with babysitters. After the party, we picked up the kids and headed to the Memphis Country Club for the night. We woke up early the next morning, ate donuts and headed to the wedding brunch. After the brunch, we raced back to the Memphis Country Club for naps and then to the church at 3:00 for pictures and Communion. The wedding was at 5:00. Jane Gray was a flower girl, and Charlie was the ring bearer. They both did great - in fact, Charlie did so well, he fell asleep during the wedding. The reception was at the Memphis Country Club, and we all danced the night away (and ate lots and lots of cake!).