Family Hike

A few weeks ago, Ellis came home unexpectedly at a very early hour. It just so happened to be beautiful outside, and we decided it was the perfect day for a family hike.  

We thought we should pick a nice short loop...just a little something to give us a breathe of fresh air so the kids could be back in time to get a nap and Ellis could catch up on his work. I said, "No problem, I know just the hike!"

Yeah...

We went on a hike with Kelly and Dan about a year ago, and I thought I remembered it being pretty great. (The fact that it was a year ago should have been the first red flag that maybe we might not end up where I thought we would). But, as you can can see from the pictures, we still had a pretty great time.

Mac was so excited that he pretty much ran the entire time.  Here he is running back to get us...mommy and daddy hike so slow!

Mac kept yelling, "Come on Guys!!!!"

Finally, he found a good little log to sit on as he waited for the rest of us to catch up :-)

Here we are, a few miles in and Mac is still running. Ellis kept offering to put him the backpack, but those little legs just kept going!

Mommy and Corrie just enjoyed the scenery at a nice pace. See that glove Corrie has on? And the hat? Yeah, those went missing for a while before we noticed they were gone.

We finally got to the end of the hike and we realized my memory may have been a little foggy...We came out to the road (wasn't part of my memory), and by this time even Mac was ready for a rest in the backpack. We had no clue where we were, but we were pretty sure we had at least a few miles to hike back up the mountain!

We eventually got tired and desperate enough to start flagging cars down to ask them what mile marker we were actually at. The first car said we were still 5 miles away from where we parked our car. My first thought was "Woah Nelly...this is gonna be a long time hiking along the side of the road!" Thankfully, it turned out that we were only about a mile away. And we got some good pictures of the beautiful views.

And we got a super cute picture of Corrie. I think she knew we would be getting back to the car soon :-)

Remember how I mentioned that we went on a hike a year ago with Kelly and Dan? Well...I guess it's been a about a year since we looked in the pockets of the hiking backpack. These sippy cups were filled with milk at one time...

Makes me want to play and coach again

Hey Mac, you are 3!

Well Mac, it's official: You are 3 years old today buddy! 

You didn't quite understand what was going on, but we gathered at Grandma and Grandpa Johns' house on Saturday to celebrate your birthday. It was an extra special birthday party because you got to celebrate with your cousin EJ, who just turned 6. Congrats EJ!  

All you cared about from the second you stepped out of the car was getting to eat a piece of birthday cake. We have been reading Winnie the Pooh books, and one of your favorites is the one about Kanga's birthday party because everyone sits at the table with a piece of cake.

However, before the cake celebration, you got to play with your cousins and Landon and Bryar. 

Grandpa Johns' sure knows how to make a little boy's dream come true. You got to play in the dirt at your very own construction site! (Mommy is still trying to get the sand out of your hair.  And I am using the word "trying" liberally. I mostly just shake it off of your pillow in the morning).

After playing outside, we all enjoyed the most delicious food we have ever had at a birthday party. Your uncle Eric outdid himself preparing the meal for all of us!

Then, it was finally time for the cake. When you heard we were gathering for cake, you went and sat at the table by yourself and waited patiently for the cake to come, excitedly putting your hands on your cheeks and laughing. Finally, the cake arrived on the table! We sang happy birthday to you and EJ, and you could hardly contain yourself!

Daddy got to spend some time with Uncle Derek, his best friend. 

This is how you show us you are really excited about something: you make little fists with your hands and put them up to your cheeks and smile!

Just look at how you are eying that cake! You loved singing the birthday song to EJ and hearing it sung to you.

Finally! Your turn to blow out your candles! (It was hilarious. You spit all over the cake).  Thankfully, Uncle Eric was looking out for you :-).

We ended off the evening with a great big bug hunt! Everyone got a bug catching net and ran around the yard looking for plastic bugs. Who knew how exciting that could be? 

Turned out there was a live frog included in the hunt! Can't beat that!

Corrie Potato Head

She must dress up in everything! Even Mr. Potato Head's glasses.

Sorry Corrie...

Remember that post a while back with the picture of Corrie playing in her favorite little princess ball-pit? Unfortunately, Mac played just a little too rough with that beloved toy, and Corrie is now stuck with the alternative: the rubbermaid ball-pit.

Sorry Corrie...but I guess this is what happens when you have a big brother to deal with! 

And just to add insult to injury...

Returning House Guest

Anyone remember the bats we had when we moved in here? That was quite a story on many levels.

Well, I just saw that one of our old friends has been stopping by to say hello.

The amazing part of this is that I honestly have a complete peace about our little friend.

We know what to do now to keep our family safe, and God has changed my heart about many things...I guess that includes freaking out about bats. What can I say? I guess I just trust Him in a way I didn't a year ago.

Just your average day at Walmart

Mac kept telling us that he was "tickling" the fishies!