TEETH

So I have been meaning to update my blog with the news about Trey's teeth...he has some. It was on Father's day that he cut his first tooth. Suprisingly, it was not one of his bottom teeth, but it was his top left tooth that cut through first. The one to the left of that tooth cut about a day later, giving him two teeth in a very unusual pattern. He looks kind of funny when you actually look close. As of today he still only has those two teeth, but the top right front teeth look like they could pop any day. He has had a couple of days where he was a bit cranky with the teething, but other than that he has been good.

Speaking of more teeth, Bayley had an exciting discovery yesterday. I was brushing her teeth yesterday morning and looked behind her bottom teeth between the tongue and teeth and saw something white. She has her first permanent tooth poking through. Still no loose teeth, but after speaking to her dentists Spencer and Leigh, they said that the tooth should become loose soon. She is so excited!!! She was disappointed last year to be one of the few kindergarteners who had not lost a tooth, so now maybe she will lose one before her sixth birthday! We will be giving you updates!

And finally, another note about teeth, the kids and I headed to Georgia on Wednesday for a short trip to see Spencer and Leigh to get our teeth cleaned and checked, as well as just to visit them in their new home. Spencer personally cleaned Bayley's, Kendal's, and my teeth. He did a great job. We love their new office and are excited to see their practice grow. It is going to be great to have them close by enough to use their expertise. After getting our teeth clean, we stayed the night at their house and had a sleepover. The girls jumped into the pool with Spencer after dinner and had a great time. After the pool, they took their turn in the jetted tub in Spencer and Leigh's bathroom and then headed to bed. On Friday, Spencer and Leigh were kind enough to take us to the Lake! We rode the tube, the jet skis, swam, and had a nice cookout. It was a great time! We can't wait to go back!

Happy Birthday Jeff!!!

Yes, Jeff has had another birthday. He is now a whopping 34 years old! Having kids makes birthday's extra fun. The kids were more excited about Jeff's birthday than I think he was (surprise, surprise). They wanted to make sure that he had a nice breakfast, presents, a nice dinner, and of course a cake. Jeff I think had a pretty good day, given the fact that he worked. He did cut out a little early from work and was able to play 10 holes of golf. After golf, he met us at the pool for a swim and then we had Papa Johns pizza for dinner (his request). We are so thankful to have Jeff in our lives. He is such a great father, husband and friend to us all. His kids absolutely adore him and so do I. We love you!

Trip to Indiana

I've finally found a quiet moment this evening to write about our trip this last weekend to Indiana. The kids and I met Jeff last Friday afternoon in Birmingham, which is about 1 hour from our house. From Birmingham we travelled north as far as Louisville, Kentucky and then spent the night in a hotel there. The kids did all right travelling...I think they were tired and it has been a while since we have done that long of a trip...yea, it has only been 3 months but for us that is a long time. Saturday morning we got up early and ate breakfast at the hotel and then headed further north to Madison, Indiana to spend the day celebrating Great-Grandpa Thornton's 80th Birthday. It was a beautiful day, so we grilled out and spent most of the day eating and visiting. The kids had a great time outside and loved getting to see all of the Thornton's. It was fun to have Aunt Karen in from California. She took over the duties of entertaining the kids with crafts, drawing, and other fun nick nacks. She found time to do this as well as function as photographer and planner. I look forward to seeing her pictures. Here are a couple that I captured of the fun day!

Kendal eating and visiting with Uncle Barry

The Thornton Family

Trey, Alisha, Jeff, Daryl, Kendal, Karen, Terri, Kelly, Cheryl,

Barry, Bayley, Grandma Thornton, Grandpa Thornton

After a fun day in Madison, we headed back to Lousiville to spend another night at the hotel. Sunday morning we got up early, ate breakfast and headed to church there in Louisville. It is so nice to go anywhere in the world and be able to find a meetinghouse where you feel comfortable and you know how and what they are going to worship. After church, we headed to Rising Sun, Indiana to spend a couple of days with Papaw Rick, Grandma Nancy, Dixie, Jason and Jordan. We had another couple of days of wonderful weather so we spent a lot of time outside. The kids played hard and didn't get there normal amounts of sleep. Towards the end they were starting to show their fatigue by their behaviour. Anyway, I'll try to cover some of the highlights of our time in Rising Sun.

Definitely one of the activites that my girls enjoyed the most was riding on Jordan's Powerwheels truck. Bayley and Kendal couldn't get enough of the toy. Jordan did a great job sharing and we have been reaffirmed in our belief that the girls and no where near ready to drive on the road. It was fun to watch!

Even Trey got in on the action

That is one tough truck...it could still move with all 3 of them hanging on

Another highlight of the trip was our trips to the pool Monday and Tuesday. Rising Sun has a brand new swimming pool with a waterslide, baby pool and diving boards. The girls and Trey had a great time there...however, the water was a bit chillier than we have become accustomed to. Here are a few pictures!

After the pool, the girls enjoyed their afternoon popcicles on the porch swing. The porch swing also served as a mock roller coaster at one point in addition to being a swing. Sitting on the swing under the porch made me even more excited about getting our new porch swing here at our home in Alabama. There is nothing like sitting next to someone you love at the end of the day and enjoying the tranquility of a day winding down. Here are some more pictures!

Popcicles on the front porch
Porch swing roller coaster
Of course we had to have a silly picture on the porch swing

We didn't get to see Papaw Rick very much because of his work schedule, but when he was around we enjoyed his company. The girls begged for a ride on Papaw Rick's new Harley and he obliged. Here are the pictures.

Well, there are most of the highlights and pictures! We had a great time and appreciate all that everyone did to make our trip a success! We can't wait to go back!

Sunday Pictures!

As most of you know, every Sunday before church we take the kid's pictures. It has become a tradition of sorts. It is usually, I say usually because there have been exceptions, the time when the kids are all looking good and will cooperate for a pictures. This week they were on their best behavior (except Kendal who wanted to close her eyes) and I got a couple of good ones. Enjoy!

Summer Has Begun!

So this week was our first full week of summer. It is going to take a week or two to get Bayley used to our routine here at home. We are bound and determined to continue her learning despite it being summer break. This week we signed her up for the Summer Reading Program at the library, where they have incentives to keep the kids reading over the summer. So far she has averaged a book a day, but I see that quickly increasing as she continue to improve. Kendal is also participating and between Bayley and I we usually read her a couple of books a day. After our errand time, school time, lunch time, and nap time we usually spend the rest of the day next to the pool. We love it! The girls are improving so quickly in their swimming and are learning new tricks everyday. The bonus fish in our family is Trey...he loves the water too, as illustrated in these pictures! He will kick and splash his hands the entire time he is in the pool...it is hilarious.

Mom and Dad came last night to watch the kids while Jeff and I went to the Temple. The kids looked forward to seeing Grandma and Grandpa all week and enjoyed getting to spend last night and most of today with them. I appreciate Mom and Dad and their willingness to take time for all of their kids. We love having them here just as much as the rest of the kids love having them at their homes. This morning Kendal and Grandma made homemade ice cream sandwiches. They are really good! Grandma also helped Bayley excavate dinasour bones this morning. Bayley got a kit that has miniature dinasour bones encased in plaster. She loves that kind of stuff. The girls showed off their swimming prowness in the pool for Grandma and Grandpa, and of course a weekend with Mom and Dad would not be complete without a project being done by Grandpa. He power-washed our porches this morning with Jeff. We love having Mom and Dad so close to our home and look forward to many quick visits!