"Where are we???"

At 6:40 this morning Brian looked out our living room windows and saw deer in our neighbor's front yard! We live in a neighborhood, people! We aren't supposed to see deer outside! He took these pictures through the window, so they're not super clear.

They trotted across the street to our front yard.

Those poor deer were probably not too happy to have gotten lost!

They soon disappeared, but then at 10:00 a.m. we saw them again, this time running straight up the middle of the road, and disappearing at the top of the hill! In our 6 years here in this house, we've never seen deer in our neighborhood. I hope they found their way home!

D's first time "on the cob"

Brian grills the best corn on the cob in the world! He grills it with the husks pulled down so that it actually grills the kernels, not just steams them. Then bastes them with butter that has garlic, parsley and salt & pepper. I posted the recipe on our blog last summer. So tonight was our first grilled corn on the cob of the season, and Dawson's first time to ever eat it "on the cob". Corn in general is his very favorite veggie, so he thought this was about the greatest thing in the world! Towards the end, he got pretty silly, not holding on to the cob, and shaking his head back and forth like a dog on a bone!

Cheesin' it up with his half-eaten cob. He never did get into his baked potato or chicken very much!

One Tough Cookie!

I have to brag on Peyton today. Off and on she has talked about her shots that she needed to get for Kindergarten, just occasionally asking questions about them. I could tell they were hanging over her head, so I knew I wanted to get them over with sooner rather than later. This morning I finally remembered to call and make an appt. They said, you can either come today at 3:00, or August 21st. Well, I didn't want her to miss the first week of Kindergarten because of not having her shots done yet, so I obviously chose today!
I didn't tell her about them and just put her down for her nap as usual. I woke her up at 2:45 and said, "We're going to your Kindergarten doctor appt. today!" She kind of giggled and asked a few questions, but remained very calm.
Of course once we're there, they do the hearing test (passed), the eye exam (20/20), the weight (83rd percentile), height (86th percentile), blood pressure, etc. Then Dr. Sneed comes in and listens to her chest, back, feels all around her (she was very impressed at her muscular build for such a young child, by the way! Made her Daddy proud!) Anyway, I was thinking "Get on with the shots, already!" I'm sure Pate was thinking the same thing.
Finally, Nurse Angie comes in and tells her she's getting 2 shots in each arm. Peyton turns toward me so that she's not looking, and before we knew it, Angie was putting the first syringe down! Pate never even flinched! The second one Angie had said would sting the worst as the medicine went in, and Peyton started calmly saying "Ow, ow, ow, ow, ow" with a slight grin on her face. I couldn't believe it! We switched sides and while Peyton and I were laughing about how good she was doing, Angie gave her the other two shots! Not a tear was shed. Not even any whining (which is actually a pretty bad habit Peyton has!) Angie said it was VERY unusual! I've bragged on her all day. Even Kellen was impressed, and not in a jealous way. Kellen was tough with her shots, too, but did have some silent tears coming forth. We are all proud of our tough little Kindergartener!

Pre-School Party!

Blogger was giving me troubles for a few days, so these pictures are a little late! Peyton & Owen go to the same pre-school, and they recently had their school-wide, end-of-the-year party. With alternating between visiting Peyton and Owen, I got lots of good pictures, so bear with me here! They each have such neat friendships at school, and I know we all look forward to seeing what next school year brings! (But in the meantime, we are going to enjoy our SUMMER!)
Peyton loves blowing bubbles (what kid doesn't?)

Maggie, Orma, Abby & Peyton

Owen racing trucks with his buddies

Owen & Holt--he talks about Holt a lot!

The girl can jump!

Meyer & Owen. These two became good buddies last year and seem to have a sweet friendship.

Deanne & Peyton. They met at Mother's Day Out when Pate was 18 months old, and have been together at pre-school for the last three years, as well!

Wow, I can't say enough about how much Owen loves his Mrs. Linda!!!

Deanne, Peyton, Brianna, Layla & Eva Grace

Owen wanted his picture taken with Mary Sloane, too! She had just been upset about something, so that's why she looks so sad. But what gorgeous blue eyes!

Deanne & Peyton on the big slide

After lunch the kids got to do lots of water activities. This slide that sprayed you as you went down was a huge hit!

Peyton's sweet class making a "silly" picture!

Mrs. Kelly was just wonderful for Peyton this year! Very friendly and nurturing, but didn't put up with any messing around! We are really hoping that she is Owen's teacher next year!

More of Owen's buddies---Noah, Cole & Harper.

Owen got chilled and wanted to lay on his towel, which quickly turned into wanting to be wrapped up in his towel!

Peyton was full of giggles every time she came off that water slide!

Owen liked the bike-riding area. He actually is making progress here at home with riding his bike without training wheels. He's much more interested in it than Peyton (she's chicken!), so he'll probably beat her, even though he's 17 months younger!

These three seem to be inseparable---Peyton, Layla & Eva Grace

The three amigos again---enjoying some popsicles after their water play.

Trenton & Lacey's wedding

Trenton & Lacey were married this past weekend, and it was a beautiful wedding.

Here they are taking communion together.

Trenton & Lacey are in our community group, and we've loved getting to know them so much better this past year!

We barely saw the kids during the reception, but thankfully they run around in a pack, so we feel they're pretty safe!

Brothers! Dawson really likes to "pose" nowadays for pictures. Doesn't always produce the best smile, though!

Yum! Wedding cake!

Charlie, Kate, Kellen, Colby, Peyton & Cade

Happy Birthday, Macy

Macy Maher, the daughter of our friends who moved to TX last year, turned 5 years old earlier this month. She really wanted to have a "Jonesboro party" when they came back for a visit, so Friday night we gathered at Slade & Mallery's to help her celebrate.
Here are Judah and Dawson playing in the sand/water table. We don't have a sandbox, so Dawson really enjoyed this!

Their backyard is a great set-up for letting the kids play. Lots of fun toys and room to run!

Tara feeding Molly, Ashley, and Pamela (showing her crazy face, depsite us begging her to smile normal!) ;-)

Dawson also loved pushing this baby doll stroller around the yard!

Friday had been spirit day at school, so Kellen and Colby were twins with their matching shirts.

A little parachute play!

The brothers on the swing.

Macy with the tower of cupcakes.

She also had a donut cake which was a big hit.

Dawson & Daddy, Chuck & Lindy

The inseparable three amigos---Kate, Colby & Kellen

Molly was supposed to be in bed, but I think she knew she was missing out on some good fun, so she woke up and let us know that she wanted to be back out at the party!

More Sleeping Kids

So the boys didn't disappoint us again tonight! They're going to love these pictures when they're older!

Then we went and checked on the girls and they were pretty funny, too. First of all, Kellen normally sleeps up in her top bunk, but sometimes Peyton convinces her to come down and sleep with her. Secondly, Kellen often likes to pile up about 4 pillows and sleep in a semi-upright position. Does not look comfortable to me! And thirdly, Kellen's folded hands and the way she laid her hair out on her pillow made us laugh! You can't see much of Peyton, but she's basically curled up with her "mimi" (favorite blanket) and probably is sucking her thumb, unfortunately!

Daw Daw and Owee

We often find the kids in entertaining positions when we check on them before Brian and I go to bed. Tonight was no different, and I just had to post another picture like I did a few months back.

Title Explanation: Peyton was only 17 months old when Owen was born, and "Owee" was the way she said his name. Then, Owen was 20 months old when Dawson was born, and all he could say was "Daw Daw". Hence, their nicknames, which have stuck all these years!