Happy Birthday

On Saturday, we had a Birthday party for Riley and Ethan. Their Birthdays are so close together and most of their friends have siblings that are close in age of both of them, so it made sense. Riley wanted a jumpy. Tim and I decided to get them a trampoline so they could enjoy it more than one day. It was a hit! Riley and Ethan loved it and so did their friends!

They also played with a pinata. Everyone had fun trying to hit it.

Riley had decided he wanted a Yoda cake and Ethan wanted a Mickey cake. I found a way to pull them together and my good friend, Jama, made the cake for me. She did an amazing job!!!

On October 5, Ethan will be 3 years old.

He got a little shy after he blew the candles out.

 Riley turned 5 years old.

Present Time 

On Sunday, I had a race and then we came home to get ready for a family party. While we were waiting for family, Tim jumped on the trampoline with Riley and Ethan.

We had a great family party! They both loved being with everyone, especially their cousins, Cody and Carson. After we ate dinner, we heard the Kona Ice Snow Cone truck. So the boys sat on the curb and waited. The snow cone truck comes every Sunday so its become a tradition for us!

And the truck finally came!

Riley made a pretty rainbow one.

 Ethan likes for someone to feed it to him.

Then we had just a few more presents to open.

It was a great Birthday weekend for Riley and Ethan! Tim and I are so blessed to have such good friends and family members who love them both so much!

Kung Fu

Riley has been taking Kung Fu for a few weeks now and he loves it! I'm glad he's doing something he enjoys and I don't feel like I am running all over town 3 times a week! I would love for Kung Fu to be something he sticks with for a few years. Here are some pictures of him outside of his studio.

I love Shutterfly cards

Stationery card

View the entire collection of cards.

Our Trip to Gatlinburg

This past weekend our family took a vacation to Gatlinburg. We had a great trip and left with great memories. On our trip we let Riley and Ethan sleep in the same bed. They did great sleeping together and I think they enjoyed it. This was our cabin we stayed in.

On Monday night, we celebrated Tim's Birthday. On Tuesday, we took Riley and Ethan to an arcade, they rode rides at The Track, and we went swimming. 

On Wednesday, we went to Dollywood. Now that the kids are getting older they are able to do more there and we all had a great time! Their favorite ride was the River Rampage. They loved getting wet. Here are some pictures from our day.

On Thursday, we took the kids on their first hike. The hike to the waterfall was 1.3 miles. I was hoping Ethan would be able to walk some of it but he did not make it that far. So Tim and I took turns carrying him. Riley, on the other hand, did great walking!!

 On the way up, we saw a bear cub and a mama bear!!

On the way back down, Riley stepped in a BIG pile (of what we think) of bear poop. We took his shoe off and then he stepped in it with his bare foot. GROSS!!

There are days when Riley does NOT want his picture taken. So he makes this face that drives me CRAZY!

Tim and Riley making "The Face"

We had a great week and we are looking forward to going back to Gatlinburg in December with all of my family!

My Little Captain America

This has been my first week teaching Riley to read. This will definitely be a year to learn Riley's learning style. Right now he's keeping me on my toes because I'm learning I have to keep it interesting. We both enjoy doing his reading lesson on the couch. I love how laid back we can be! So far he is doing great and he's already reading a little. He can already read 2 books!!

I went for a walk on Monday with the boys and God gave me such a peace about having both of the boys home this year. I love that Riley can be in his Captain America costume and I can be teaching him at the table!

Visit with family

Last week we visited my family. It was good to see all of my family. Riley and Ethan loved playing with their cousins. One morning, my mom got out some her paints and let them paint outside.

Another morning we went to a park before it got too hot.

After the park, we went to GiGi's to get some YUMMY cupcakes!!