Pumpkin Vase

So I have a new addiction. Pinterest.com. I'm on it all the time getting great ideas like this one! Lilly helped pick out the pumpkin and the Aster. She was not much help cleaning out the pumpkin, but she was a great help cleaning the seeds for roasting! Here is our finished vase!

Sta-cation - Day 2

We all know about the "fully stocked bar", but I have never heard of, much less seen, a fully stocked playground. This playground was across the road from our building. Stocked with playground balls, volleyballs, basketballs, horseshoes and a huge sandbox, not to mention the normal stuff - swings, slides, monkey bars.


Oh - did I mention we were right on Tablerock lake? We had a beautiful view and the lake was just a short walk away.

Where we pretended to know how to skip rocks to teach the kids how.


And then went to the docks where we tried out the paddle boats!
Yes, free paddle boats for the guests. And can I just say how proud I am of Ernie and I?! No, I did not want Lilly this close to the water. No, I did not want us to do a paddle boat. No, I did not think Lilly would sit still for the paddle boat. But we did it! And as much as I wanted her to just sit on the bench and enjoy the scenery, we paddle-boated. She enjoyed it and neither of us were too over-bearing. At least I don't think we were. Good job parental units!

Another perk: fishing poles! The kids loved this. And Megan actually caught one. Something with gills and beady eyes.

Sta-cation

I got a great groupon recently for a weekend stay at a resort in Branson. So we planned a staycation with my friend, Kelly, from Oklahoma. Lilly was so excited to go. She was in the car and ready to go for about 10 minutes waiting on Ernie. I finally talked her out of the car to try to go potty and wait on Daddy inside the house instead of the garage.

Our little sooners who hung out with us: Megan
and Matthew.

Intense yahtzee. Matthew really enjoys that game!
Root Beer floats! Great just before bedtime, right?!
Matching pajamas.
Creative play do. By the way - I made that play do!

And that is the high lights of our first few hours of staycation. Not included in this post, the trip to Walmart (I still don't like that store) for groceries and a bathing suit for Lilly and a visit to the pool for about 30 minutes before forcing these kiddos to eat a spaghetti dinner!

Dorothy Schaper

In my time at Edward Jones, I have met so many people and have considered it a pleasure to help them with anything. Dorothy and her husband, Tiny were such a wonderful couple. I'll never forget the day Dorothy came in and told me Tiny died. And I've always tried to be super sensitive to Dorothy's physical needs as she had several health issues herself. She thanked me so many times for helping her after Tiny died and really, it was my pleasure. She insisted she wanted to get something for me to say thank you. I insisted it wasn't necessary.

She did not agree. And since I wouldn't allow her to do anything for me, she bought something for Lilly. Unfortunately, she died before being able to give it to Lilly. Dorothy's daughter and granddaughter brought it to me recently. Lilly adores her horse. It was so sweet. And not at all surprising considering the gift giver.

My Street Wise Hercules

Our favorite boy, Cole had a super hero birthday party. And I'm not sure what she was more excited about: seeing Cole or the party. She rode the whole way to the party holding his gift with great care.

The Heffingtons had a slip and slide for the little kids which looked like fun! And Tom O'Brien did a great job pushing them. And one would think this would be enough for Lilly.
But the Heffingtons (who could be crazy) also rented this monstrosity of a water slide.
And of course, Lilly wanted to go down it.

I didn't get a photo of her coming down because I was extremely nervous and prepared to rescue her. And even though there was all of this fun around, her all time favorite thing was the super hero cape Kristin made!

Hill Play

Some random photos Papa took of Lilly playing on the hill.

My new screen saver at work. I just love this photo!

Happy Birthday!

That time of year came around... again. Yep, I turned 32! (again....) Aunt Cathy, Mimi, and Papa were in town so they helped Lilly bake a cake.
She really does love to bake; even if it includes a box mix!

And of course, the best part is getting to eat it!
I don't know. I think she enjoyed it. She's simply adorable. Thank you Lilly for making my birthday so special!