Olsen Park 4th of July Parade

Our neighborhood had their annual parade today. We always enjoy it--bouncers, face-painting, walking around the neighborhood with decorated bikes/strollers/scooters, friends & food. This was Sydney's first parade & 4th of July. She was not sure what to think!

Before the parade. Thanks Shannon & Ashlyn for decorating the stroller. It looked awesome!

Philip & friends. This is probably the only time we saw Philip til the end.

I do not know this family but thought their "ride" was pretty cool!

This is what Sydney did the majority of the parade. I'm sure she was thinking--"why are we walking around the block with all of these people?!"

1st experience w/arm painting. She peeled it off during nap-time!!

Shannon (our awesome sitter) & Ashlyn

6 Month Post Placement

Hard to believe that Sydney has been home for 6 months! I was looking back at our Gotcha Day pictures and could hardly believe that was Sydney. She is nothing like that quiet little girl that would just sit on our bed for hours. Thank Goodness because that would of been too easy!!
A few ways Sydney has changed: Sydney has started to get out of bed sometimes in the morning & after nap time instead of yelling "Mommy I don't see you" until PJ or I come get her. She speaks (or yells) in complete sentences. Sydney does not feel like she has to eat everytime she sees food. Knows her name is Sydney and that she is 3. Loves the book Goodnight Moon--which was Philip's favorite too. Sydney has become the new "sassy pants" in our family!

Playing outside with Daddy!

Dinner with The Wagner Family

We were able to have dinner with one of our travel families from China--The Wagners--while we were in Dallas for the weekend. Stephanie & I emailed like crazy before we actually met in China. Love how you can be friends with people before you even meet them! We miss all of our travel group & talk about them constantly. We need to plan a reunion sometime.
Stephanie & Jeremy have adopted two precious children from China. The dinner & conversation was wonderful & LOUD!! The loudness was not from the 5 children at our table. Thank you guys so much for meeting us. It is amazing to see how much Sydney & Noah have changed in 6 months. We enjoyed it! And can not wait til the next visit.

Sydney & Noah

American Girl

Does anybody else have a daughter that loves American Girls?! Ashlyn loves American Girl. She can look at the magazines for hours picking out what she wants. For her birthday (back in March), she received a couple of gift cards for American Girl and wanted to shop with them at the actual American Girl store. This is a big deal because there are only like 8 stores in the whole world! So, Ashlyn & I spent mom & daughter time at the store in Dallas on our way back home. It was fun! I'm wishing that I was a 7 year old again.
Ashlyn brought Lanie (not to be confused with Lainey--which is her grandmom/PJ's mom). Ashlyn & Lanie got right in line for the hair salon. Yes--the dolls get "up-dos"! Ashlyn picked out a hairstyle for Lanie & then she wisked off for her new look. The hairstylists are really talented! We got pointers on how to do the dolls hair!
All 3 of us had lunch at the Bistro. Well actually I let Ashlyn decide what we were having & she ordered us dessert! Not surprising because Ashlyn loves sweets! After that we shopped & shopped for American Girl things. Ashlyn picked out new outfits & earrings for Lanie, a chair, tea set & some other fun things.

Excitement before we go!
Lanie (after her updo) & Ashlyn

Lanie surfing the net while Ashlyn & I ate dessert!

We had so much fun! Can not wait to do it again girls!!

Reunion Trip (part 2)

PJ & I took our kids and our two older nieces (Kaitlyn & Meagan) to the University of Texas to just hang out & soak the orange all in! We LOVED it! And so did all of the kids (even though one of our nieces is NOT a UT fan. I know what is wrong with her!! Just kidding Meagers.)
It was great to back in Austin for awhile. We shopped for a super long time at the co-op, walked around campus & then had a late lunch at one of our favs--Chuys!
We miss UT & Austin. Hook'em Horns!

A really big Bevo!

5 grandkids (the newest one had stay back at the cabin with her mom)

This is where we stayed. It was beautiful!

Ashlyn & Allie waiting for the fishing poles.

Family Reunion Trip (part 1)

We packed up the kids last week & headed south to the Austin area for a family reunion. For some reason, I'm still shocked at how much a family of 5 brings on a trip. This was the longest car ride for Sydney so we broke it up into two sections. Overall, she did great in the car (those first 6 hours had us a little worried!). The kids enjoyed hanging out with all of their cousins! They were always doing something while we there--swimming, playing nerf wars, walking around in the woods, fishing, playing twister & so much more!

Philip & Meagan
Ashlyn & Allie

Sydney loved this rockin' chicken!

The girls hanging out in the pool--Reese, Ash, Allie & Meagan

Kaitlyn, Philip & Guy

Fun at the Lake

We went to the Vinyards lake house over the weekend. This was Sydney's first experience with a lake. She loved it! Her favorite was playing in the sand. I forgot to mention in the previous post that Philip broke his arm a little over a week ago. He has a buckle fracture & will wear a cast for 3 weeks :(. He was the designated boat driver for the weekend! This was Ashlyn's first year of really experiencing the lake. We could not get her out of the water! She loved everything about the lake--tubing, playing on the beach, jumping off the boat, etc. We can not wait to go back!

Friend of ours wake-boarding.
Sydney just playing in the water.

PJ & Ashlyn just having fun!

End of the School Year

OK--So I'm a little behind with blogging. I'm hoping to catch up with everything in the next couple of weeks. The kids had a great last week of school. Philip was chosen out of 52 kids to share his experience of his six years at our school. It was a wonderful little speech--he did awesome!! Philip was also given the President's Award. The award is based on academics & citizenship for 5th graders. We are so proud of you Philip!

Philip with his President's pin.
Family picture!

This is Philip's teacher! We will miss her next year. Feel like she is part of our family now.

Miss Ashlyn Grace at her school celebration! We are so proud of you Ashlyn!

Baptism

Last night was a BIG night in our house--Philip & Ashlyn were baptized during our church service. We are so proud of them! And can not wait to see what God has in store for them. They were so nervous. Philly was teary during our prayer with Shawn (elementary pastor). Love Philip's sweet heart. Ashlyn felt like she needed to go to the bathroom every 2 seconds! And I love her enthusiasm for everything. Thank you to everyone that shared in this experience with our family. It meant a lot to Philip & Ashlyn.

Philip III & Ashlyn Grace before the service.

In the blue suits!

Love this picture. A sweet memory--glad I captured the look on their faces. (yes I know it is dark!!)

Thank you Shawn! You are wonderful with the kids. Philip will miss you next year.

Your love for Jesus Christ
Shines through in all you do
For there are many that will see
The hope of Christ in you
We thank the Lord for you
For bringing you to this place
To be baptized in His precious name
And to walk on in His grace.

Cadillac Ranch

The big kids & Mimi went to Cadillac Ranch after school yesterday. Philip & Ashlyn LOVED it! You can spray paint cadillacs anyway you want. The cars are buried nose-down in the ground. If you are ever driving through, you should stop by & paint one!