Hey, Baby!

 This weekend I had the pleasure of attending a baby shower for my lifelong friend, Lissa. We met a few years ago....in kindergarten! I was able to go down to Fayetteville on Friday and spend time with the other "Flippin" girls who were planning the shower with some of Lissa's co-workers.

 In addition to the invitation and thank you notes, I made some artwork for Riley's nursery.

Donnell, Brianne, Etta (Donnell's little sis) Lissa, Christel and Carrie

Catch & Release

 Blake and Braden had the opportunity to experience a guided fishing trip. They left at 5 a.m., mainly to beat the heat, but also to accommodate the fish. All in all I didn't get a total count on the number of fish caught, but from the pictures I can tell they were all impressive. It was a catch & release trip, but the fight of the fish was the best part!

 Kyle Wilkinson is the guide, his family has land here in Pittsburg, and the strip pits are stocked with fish. Hunting is also available on their land. Want to know more...check out his site here.

Garden Streaking

 For some reason the boys were picking veggies AFTER bath. Mason didn't quite get his PJ's on, so he decided to pick in his undies....without any hesitation whatsoever! That he definitely gets from his Dad!

 Blake just spotted two tiny watermelons on the vine! This is a first for our garden so we hope they make it!

On Saturday we had friends drop in for lunch, and this is one of the dishes I was able to throw together....straight from the garden! A little basil garnish on sliced cucumbers and cherry tomatoes. We also had a delicious pitcher of ice water flavored with fresh mint and cucumber slices.

Happy Birthday Blake!

 It took two days to fully celebrate Blake's birthday. We spent the weekend in Rogers, and he competed in a triathlon on Sunday. By the time we got home, we are all exhausted. We had a light dinner, and blew out candles on a flamingo brownie!

 Smile like Mason!

 The card Braden made of he and Blake playing baseball

 The rest of the celebration took place Monday night, with his traditional birthday meal....fried chicken, okra, mashed potatoes and grease gravy. This year we added squash, because the boys picked two out of the garden!

This recipe was an experiment.....Chocolate Fudge Pie with a cream cheese drizzle. It had to refrigerate overnight, so the boys and I made it on Sunday night. I usually don't like to experiment with recipes on special occasions, so when we sat down for the first bite I was nervous.....but pleasantly surprised! It was heavenly!

Happy Birthday, Daddy!

For Blake's birthday, he was out the hotel door by 5:15 am, to pick up Dusty and head to Horseshoe Bend in Rogers, AR, for a triathlon. Despite a balmy morning in July, he finished the event in 1:30:02. We have been in Rogers since Thursday night, seeing lots of friends and family, and getting our moneys worth out of the indoor pool! Along with the Kennedys and their girls, ages 6 and 18 mos, we have left our mark on NWA. Because we have amazing husbands, Amy and I snuck away for 4 hours without kids, which wasn't enough to catch up on 4 years, so we snuck away after dinner, too. I saw midnight for the first time in a long time! Two of those hours was sitting in her hotel parking lot....still catching up! Sent from Yahoo! Mail on Android

Lovin' the hotel pool

In Rogers for the weekend, and the nieces came to enjoy the indoor pool! Sent from Yahoo! Mail on Android

Mason makes the paper

A story about the parade on Monday, was featured in the Joplin Globe. They snapped a pic of Mason on his trike! Sent from Yahoo! Mail on Android

Machine Pitch Season

 This was our first season of Machine Pitch baseball. Braden left for Forrest City as soon as school let out, which was also a week before his first game. Fortunately Pop was able to take him to the batting cages a few times.

 This was our last game, on Saturday. All in all Braden did well with the machine pitch, and even played pitcher well. He got a few hits, and was never fearful of the machine. His swings were so hard that his few foul balls went into the crowd. It's hard for him to stay focused in the field and keep his eye on the ball when swinging. He seems to have a great throwing arm, and runs fast!

 Pop was able to be at his first game, helped coach and even helped get the machine aligned.

 Mason so badly wants to be just like Braden. It's even harder during sports, because Blake is out on the field, and that's where Mason thinks he should be, too.