Danica Rose's Garden

Tumbling at the YMCA

2012-02-15T08:20:00.000-08:00

12-31-10

Since Mommy had the day off work we decided to go to Tumbling class at the YMCA. Dani learned to do a lot of new stuff!

Then it was time to play with the big parachute!

Then there was more exercise and stretching then everyone got a sticker!

How to know when...

2012-02-15T08:15:00.000-08:00

How do you know when your little girl has her Daddy wrapped around her finger? You take pictures like this :)

Day after Christmas 2010

2012-02-15T08:07:00.000-08:00

So, I know as far as a timeline goes these last several posts have been all out of whack...but hopefully soon that will change and I'll get them going back in the proper order. And if not, then tough cookies for you :-P

12-26-10
We went to Aunt Kiley's house to have Christmas with her and Tristin. Of course they both got presents.

Tristin loved his Spiderman book and Dani loved her princess gloves.

Post Thanksgiving 2010

2012-02-15T08:03:00.000-08:00

After Thanksgiving 2010 Dani spent the weekend at Grandma Zonnie's house. Mommy and Daddy helped get stuff out of the attic at Grandma's work so they could decorate.

Dani really liked the elves that were just her size.

While they were there Dani got her teeth looked at, just for practice.

And she was such a good helper!

OLD random pics

2012-02-15T07:38:00.000-08:00

These are some random pics from way back...and I mean way back...so here they are.

Cupcake face :)

Thanksgiving Day 2010

2012-01-01T16:42:00.000-08:00

As I was going through my older posts and my pictures I realized that I hadn't posted anything from November, including Thanksgiving! So, even though I'm more than a year behind...here it is.
First we went to Grandma Zonnie's house.

Then we went to Grammie's. Where Brandy ate a bee or wasp or some other stinging, flying insect and got stung on her tongue. And although I took pictures of her swollen tongue I also promised not to post them anywhere, so you don't get to see them :-P

And of course Dani ate more food.

The rest of Christmas 2010

2011-12-26T11:01:00.000-08:00

At Grandma Zonnie's there were more presents as well as lots of family time.

Dani got a very life like baby that she named Baby Maddie after a friend at school.

We took her new bike with us and she had a blast riding it around with Parker.

Then they rode around on Parker's new 4-wheeler.

Parker drove his 4-wheeler on top of his bike, luckily Dani wasn't on it at the time, and neither the bike or the 4-wheeler were damaged.

And when all that fun was done we headed back to Grammie's for a little more family time.

This truly is the most wonderful time of the year.

Christmas Morning!

2011-12-02T14:06:00.000-08:00

We start Christmas morning at home, in the kitchen again. Most of Dani's presents were books, and she was happy with that.

Then she noticed that there was another gift on top of the cabinets

Her very own digital camera!!

Then we went to Grammie and PawPaw's for breakfast and more presents.

After that was the drive to Grandma Zonnie's house for the rest of our Christmas day.

Christmas Eve

2011-09-18T18:41:00.000-07:00

A friend through work has been making hats. When Dani saw my first one she decided she wanted us to have matching pink hats, so that's one of the presents we got. Of course Dani got to open them.

As is tradition, we all got new Christmas pj's and Dani got to open them.

Next she got her first pair of roller skates. I couldn't get over how tall they made her look! The skates and all 4 pads have Tinkerbelle on them so that's always a bonus.

She never stopped smiling even when she fell down.

Next was her shopping cart, which she wouldn't take her skates off to push.

Lots of little stuff.

Last came her first BIKE!!!

And what's the point in getting a new bike if you can't ride it immediately?

And this is what I got after her first wreck.

And here it is, the traditional Christmas new pj's picture.

Christmas Traditions, Part 1

2011-09-05T05:35:00.000-07:00

We have lots of little Christmas traditions that start long before this one but this is the first BIG one each year. We spend Christmas Eve at Grandpa's house with the Thornberry branch of the family. This year they just couldn't make it on the 24th so we had our first Chrismas Eve gathering on the 23rd. Besides...having family together and being in the spirit of the season is what it's all about, so who cares if we did it a day early?

Of course, when you have Christmas with little ones, you also have presents.

Money was tight so the grown Thornberrys got an album full of pictures of the family, mostly Ellie. Maryann actually cried over their gift album (we didn't know at the time that pregnancy hormones may have played a small role in her tears).

Dani got a Dr. kit which both girls had lots of fun with :)

I was so busy enjoying everybody's company that I hardly took any pictures.
The best gift was time with family.

School Christmas party spirit :)

2011-09-04T13:44:00.000-07:00

12-17-2010

Party time again! Dani showing off her school Christmas party shirt.

Parker's Party

2011-09-02T09:17:00.000-07:00

12-12-2010

It's time for Parker's birthday party! Of course there was family, cake, and presents.

And pin the tail on the donkey.

Uncle Tim was a great sport playing pin the tail with Dani.

Christmas card faves

2011-08-12T06:44:00.000-07:00

These are some of my favorites from our Christmas card shots. I like them so much I didn't want to put any of them in a collage and decided to post them individually.

And the final result...

(sorry it it's a bit grainy, it's a scanned copy.)

I hope you enjoy these pictures as much as I do!

More family beach time!

2011-07-20T12:52:00.000-07:00

12-5-2010

We had another great family beach weekend. The morning sun coming in through the front door was just beautiful.

Dani loves her "Baby Ellie".

While there we took a lot of pictures hoping for just the right ones to use on our Christmas card this year. So of course there are a lot of extras for me to share here :)

Later there will be a separate post of my favorites.

And can I just take a moment to say how much I love living in Florida!!! I mean really... how many places can you do beach pictures in short sleeves with bare feet in December and be totally comfortable?

Dani and Ellie found two big holes to play in and lay in.

We are so lucky to get to spend time with our family and enjoy the beach at the same time!

Halloween!

2011-07-16T07:18:00.000-07:00

10-31-2010

First we took our little Tinkerbell to the pumpkin patch.

Then we went to visit Mr. Merry. We are so blessed to have him in our lives and love him so much!

Then we went back to Grandpa's house.

After changing from Tinkerbell to Dani she helped us carve the pumpkin.

She wasn't too sure about touching the "guts".

She wanted Grandpa to draw a face on her too.

Then she got to enjoy a very messy cupcake.

And the final result.

Ready for Halloween

2011-06-11T11:19:00.000-07:00

10-30-2010

Grandma Zonnie took Dani and Parker to Universal Studios for Halloween. In the process she bought Dani a new Tinkerbell costume.

School Halloween Party

2011-06-01T09:57:00.001-07:00

10-29-10

Time for Dani's school Halloween party again. So she got dressed up in the shirt her teacher helped her make. I think this time the teacher had more to do with it than Dani but that didn't bother her.

Another trip to New Smyrna Beach

2011-05-22T13:57:00.000-07:00

10-23-10

We went to visit the beachy part of our family. We ate at Breakers and oh my was it yummy!!!

They leave the windows open so this was the view from our table.

That night the moon was sooooo cool! It was so bright that it looked like the sun in some pictures.

After dinner we walked around and then had ice cream.

That night the girls played like crazy and Grandpa got stuck in the tunnel!

The next day the girls had popsicles before heading down to the beach.

Everybody helped build sand castles.

Dani still wanted to play but Ellie was getting pretty tired.

Daddy and Grandpa showed Dani how to surf on a boogie board.

Next it was off to the pumpkin patch.

Grandpa posed with his girls.

After we got back to the house the girls wanted to dance.

And before we left we took some family pictures.

Stanley Pond Farm Fun

2011-05-20T12:42:00.001-07:00

10-17-10

Mommy was told about a new pumpkin patch at a place called Stanley Pond Adventure Farm. So Mommy, Grandma Zonnie, Dani and Parker all went to check it out. First we met a mini horse named Prince (he actually came from Animal Control)!

I love the way they hold hands everywhere they go!

There are plenty of places to stop and take pictures.

And then there was the pumpkin patch!

There is a little area for the smaller kids to play and tractors everywhere!

But their favorite part was "the dirt pile". Actually it's very clean playground sand and tons of fun. Dani started off jumping and landing on her butt.

Then she started running down it. She would go so fast she would lose her footing and fall down when she hit the bottom!

For some reason the sand on their feet looked like it had sparkles in it.

Parker found a group of girls he tried to hang out with ;-)

We will definitely be headed back to this place!

Another sneaky visit

2011-05-15T14:12:00.000-07:00

10-16-10

We were treated to another sneaky visit from Big Shawn! And even though he hates having his picture taken he allowed me to take plenty :)

Punkin time

2011-05-14T06:51:00.001-07:00

10-5-2010

It's Punkin time again! And I don't just mean the big orange ones!

We visited our first pumpkin patch of the season and Dani had a great time. For some reason she loves them, just one more reason for us to call her Punkin.

I love how she's running toward me in the bottom right picture.

The pumpkin in the top right is almost as big as she is!

And I can't believe I managed to catch the half a second that pumpkin was balanced on her head!

This is one of my favorite times of year, Dani's too!

Illinois trip - Day 4

2011-05-13T12:23:00.000-07:00

9-6-2010

Monday

Before heading back to Florida we stopped to visit Rosie and her family. First we went to her house...yep, the green carpet is still there :)

Then as is tradition, we went out to eat. This time it was Cracker Barrel. And with full bellies and big smiles (no, not big bellies and full smiles!) it was time to snap some pictures.

We are so blessed. Whether by blood or by bond, you are our family and you mean so much to us. We love you all more than we could ever explain.

Illinois trip - Day 3

2011-05-10T05:57:00.000-07:00

9-5-11

Sunday

We took all the kids to the park to play. They loved it all, the swings, the slides, the tank, the big tires, the spider web...all of it. Then we started flying kites!

I love how they're holding hands in the next ones...too cute!

When Al and Katie showed up to fly kites with us they had a suprise. They attacked John with silly string!

Then they started attacking each other!

Then we went back to Shawn and Brandy's house where they attacked Candy!

Their payback from John was mayo under the car doorhandle.

The kids got to play some then we went to the school to fly kites some more, and let the kids play some more (even the not so little kids).

That night we went to another carnival.

This one was more ride oriented. Twila even took Parker on the octopus!

Dani rode the car carousel...several times...

Twila took Parker down the giant slide.

So much fun.

Until it was time for Dani to be done riding the cars...

Then she realized I was taking pictures of her fussing and that made her really mad!

Dani hated the fireworks again but I still managed to get a few after dark pics before they started.

Illinois trip - Day 2

2011-05-09T16:01:00.000-07:00

9-4-11

Saturday

We played for a while then went to a carnival followed by a rodeo. Dani started off in her blueberry dress but it was too cool for her to keep that on so she ended up in her cowgirl outfit. Before we headed out there was some "love on Daddy" time.

While at the carnival she posed for pictures after we ate lunch.

The following is my favorite set.

Uncle Darrel had a booth set up there so we stopped to visit.

Dani got to ride her first carousel.

More "love on Daddy" time.

Then we went to the rodeo but none of the pictures from that turned out.

Illinois trip - Day 1

2011-05-08T09:39:00.000-07:00

9-3-2011

After work on Thursday (the 2nd) Mommy, Daddy, Grandma Zonnie, Dani and Parker all loaded up to head to Illinois for a long weekend! The little ones traveled very well. We got there late Friday morning and started with the pictures :)

Parker tried to ride on a scooter but crashed.

Of course there were a few shots with Big Shawn's big truck.

Dani wanted to show her patriotism.

And pose with the kitty.

But she wasn't too sure about the hamster.

The rest of the day we took it pretty easy and no more pictures.

Short visit

2011-05-07T18:28:00.000-07:00

7-28-11

Big Shawn managed to sneak by in his big truck for a quick visit. We had dinner with him and got to hang out for a little while. When I showed up Dani was in the driver's seat of the truck.

As always, it wasn't enough time together and I cried when it was over. We love you Shawn!

Visiting PaPaw Mike

2011-04-17T07:47:00.000-07:00

7-25-10

Mommy, Daddy, Danica and Grandma Zonnie decided to go to the Veterans' Cemetery and visit PaPaw Mike. First we all had to get dressed and ready and Grandma couldn't get over how long and pretty Dani's hair had gotten.

The cemetery was beautiful as always. I think I could spend a whole day there taking pictures and soaking in the peace and quiet of the place.

This was the first time we had seen the official name plate. Dani showed PaPaw the "I love you" sign and gave him kisses and posed with Daddy.

But of course, the pictures don't stop there.

It was a good visit.

We miss you PaPaw Mike!

Party time!

2011-03-13T11:32:00.000-07:00

7-24-10

Chris had a birthday party! And Dani had fun with her friends.

Bunny time

2011-03-06T13:09:00.000-08:00

7-14-2010

While playing at Grandpa's house Dani put her fairy tutu on her bunny for story time. Then she posed it so she could "take pictures", that's when Mommy took over and snapped some real pictures. I love the bottom one where she's "taking a picture" of me at the same time.

Life's a Beach!

2011-02-22T13:36:00.000-08:00

7-13-10

We love going to visit our family at the beach! Not only do we get to enjoy the sand and surf we get to spend time with loved ones we don't see often enough.

Dani and Ellie both had a great time in the tide pool. I love the middle picture on the left, they remind me of two little old ladies sitting on a porch.

This is my favorite of all the beach pics, it just gives me such a happy feeling.

We are a very loving family as you can see.

I especially love Dani showing her belly button again (bottom left). It gives me flash backs of when Ellie was tiny, every time Dani would see her she would show off her belly button :)

Blueberries!

2011-02-15T13:28:00.000-08:00

7-10-2010

We went to Mr. Chester's farm to pick blueberries!

Every time I tried to get a picture of Dani she was stealing blueberries from her bucket!

Grammie, Pawpaw, and ODoug all met us there and let us get pictures.

Independence weekend

2011-02-11T09:09:00.000-08:00

7-3-2010

Mommy and Dani had a fun time at McTureous Park.

After that we went to Grandpa's house where he made Dani her very own splash park!

On the 4th Mommy and Dani just stayed home and didn't do much of anything. John went to help a friend for the day but we figured that since Dani was so scared of the fireworks a few days before that it wasn't worth putting her through it again.

Independence Day Fireworks

2011-02-09T06:24:00.000-08:00

7-2-2010

Before watching fireworks we had dinner at Crazy Gator and Dani was adorable as always, but I really love the girl posing in the background :)

Before settling down for the show we stopped to check on a geocache. We know it's there, we just haven't actually "gotten" it yet. It's attached to the floats so you have to fish it out of the water.

Random cuteness while waiting

Unfortunately, Dani DID NOT like the fireworks!

Big family dinner

2011-02-08T10:23:00.000-08:00

6-27-10

The whole family decided to meet at Blackwater for dinner! Dani and Parker were super cute as always.

Uncle Tim taught Dani about "face five".

And I just love how her eyes look in this pic.

2011-02-07T04:39:00.000-08:00

6-24-2010

Another day at the splash park. Mommy takes too many pictures here because Dani has soooo much fun!

The cute little boy in black came over to me to ask Dani's name and introduce his self. He asked how old she is and he said he's 5. It doesn't seem like much difference until you look at it as he's twice her age! But he was so cute, keeping his hand at her back while they went up the steps to the slide, waiting for her so they could go down the slides at the same time, and hanging around to watch her play. :)

A fun soggy day for all.

Pre-swim poses

2011-02-06T12:24:00.000-08:00

6-19-2010

There are only a few things Dani likes better than going for a swim, one is posing for pictures in her bathingsuit.

So silly

2010-12-14T02:59:00.000-08:00

6-6

We have been blessed with such a happy silly girl. I can't begin to express how happy I am that God brought her into our lives. I am thankful for her every day, but especially when she's in her silly moods :)

2010-12-13T03:35:00.000-08:00

6-5-10

We all went over to help Tristin celebrate his birthday. He was very excited about his Iron Man outfit.

He was also very happy with his Spiderman swim gear.

Of course Dani had to try on the Iron Man helmet.

And the Spiderman goggles, Iron Man boots, hardhat, and anything else she came across.

Even the grown ups got to try out Tristin's new gear.

And there was plenty of random happiness to go around.

Totally Random

2010-12-11T03:27:00.000-08:00

I started putting this together back in Sept '09! When I would have one or two cute pics but not enough to make a full blog post I would throw them into the random draft. Now that I've run out of regular drafts that are ready to post I'm putting this one up. I don't want to ruin my streak and I'm sure I can use my day off tomorrow to put together a few more for the upcoming week. I want to continue putting up one post a day until I'm caught up to the current date :)

So...here it is, the random picture post.

Going to "The Hamas" on "the big boat"

2010-12-10T03:01:00.000-08:00

5-27 we set sail!

We went on our first cruise and it was GREAT!!! First here are some pics of the "big boat" as Dani calls it. The top right is looking down at the Ledo deck, bottom right is looking down at the grand atrium.

DAY 1

Before we set sail we got a few pics of Dani in the casino (it wasn't open for gambling yet) she immediately loved the slot machines in case you couldn't tell by the huge smile. Grandma Vickie would be proud!

That night we had a casual dinner in the formal dining room, this was the view out our window.

Dani was in a great mood and already having fun. She had pizza for dinner so she was extra happy.

During dinner the waitstaff danced for us the first night they danced to "apple bottom jeans". It was a silly dance but as soon as it started one of the waiters scooped Dani up and got her to dance with them. I don't know who had more fun, Dani or the staff :) Especially once he realized he could let her go and she would just keep danicing! Our main waitress was Rungnapa (we called her Napa) from Thailand, her helper was Ekadinata (we called him Ekad) from the Phillipines, and our drink girl was Supunnee (I think she was from the Phillipines as well).

After dinner we caught a show. I think it was called "it's not over yet" (or something like that). It was an 80's music tribute and it was great!!! We were singing along and bouncing in our seats. Due to copywright laws we couldn't take any pictures during the show, but of course I took some before it started!

Day 2 (Friday)

This is the day we actually get to the Bahamas (or "The Hamas" as Dani says). Mommy and Daddy were all set to go snorkeling and Granma Zonnie was going to take Dani shopping in the straw market.

We started with breakfast. Daddy ordered the baked apple with his breakfast and it came out cold, which we weren't expecting. But it was delish! Even Dani wanted some...

Of course I took waaayyyyy too many pictures! And I took them all over the boat!

Dani is sitting on the windows that look out over the front of the boat. That walkway and those windows will always be high on my list of relaxing places with an incredible view.

And of course there are some with the Carnival trademark.

SNORKEL PICS!!! They're still in the underwater camera...someday they'll get developed and posted :)

That night was the formal dinner and Dani started hamming it up early.

That night they danced to "That's Amore"

After dinner we left the boat again to walk around Nassau.

On the walk back I couldn't get over how pretty our ship looks at night.

Every day they made our bed, every night they turned down the covers for us and left us with a new towel creation. The puppy was Dani's favorite.

Day 3

Saturday - our fun day at sea.

Daddy slept in while Dani, Grandma Zonnie and Mommy went to breakfast then went swimming. Dani didn't like the pool (on the ledo deck) because it was very salty and hurt her eyes. But the splash area a few decks higher was filtered and not salty so she had tons of fun there!

Getting ready for dinner that night she decided to wear Daddy's shoes and kept asking me to take her picture.

She danced her last dance with Napa to a song from Slumdog Millionaire. I love the bottom middle picture where she's got the guy in the chair dancing with her.

Our favorite photographer was Julia. Here's Dani with her new friends.

We watched a beautiful sunset that night.

Then we went back to the upper deck to let Dani run around and get rid of the last of her energy on the mini golf course.

John showed that he is "king of the world"

Day 4 - Sunday

Was a crazy day! We had to be off the boat fairly early, but not too early to take pictures of the movie star!

Return to Mad Beach

2010-12-09T02:48:00.000-08:00

5-21-10 & 5-22-10

Mommy and Dani went down to the beach to watch the sun set while Daddy waited for dinner to be delivered. We got to play in the sand and surf while watching the beauty in the sky.

The reason we were there was the Madiera Beach mini-triathlon. Mommy, Aunt Kat, and Mommy's friend PJ were all in it, and all did great!

After crossing the finish line and going back to our hotel for a quick swim and shower, we all went to John's Pass for our traditional celebration meal at The Friendly Fisherman.

Yes, it's a tourist trap! But it makes for some great pictures and the food is sooooo worth it!

And here are some of my favorite pictures from our sunset on the beach time.

Mommy's oops!

2010-12-08T10:57:00.000-08:00

Shhhh! Don't tell Daddy!!! I'm not sure where I put my little camera and don't know what pictures are on it! I know there's lots of videos, but who knows what else! It will turn up soon I'm sure and until then I'm just going to continue on with the 3 full memory cards (one of them 8gb!) that I have handy :)

Mother's day

2010-12-08T10:31:00.000-08:00

5-9-2010

For Mother's Day we had lunch at the Elk's Lodge where Mommy and Daddy got married. Grandpa was working there carving meat so he didn't get to sit with us. We still had a full table with Mommy, Daddy, Dani, Grandma Zonnie, Grammie, and PawPaw. Somehow I managed to not get any pictures of lunch! I know Grammie has some but I'm not going to worry about them right now. After lunch Mommy, Daddy, Grandpa, and Grandma Zonnie took Dani to the splash park! Of course I had my camera for that ;-)

John and I were blessed when God picked our Moms for us. As a Mom this was the best day, to watch my girl do what makes her happy is all I could ask for.

Sleeping beauty

2010-12-07T02:58:00.000-08:00

5-7-2010

When I went in to check on Dani before going to bed myself I saw that she was asleep in an unusual position. She was laying partly across the bed rail intended to keep her from rolling out of bed. She was so completely out that even the camera flash didn't bother her :)

Tristin J's 2nd birthday party

2010-12-06T02:57:00.000-08:00

5-1-2010

Dani has two friends named Tristin. Usually we're talking about Tristin C but today we're talking about Tristin J. Her birthday party was at the splash park! So before the cake and icecream and presents Dani got to splash A LOT!!!

It was a Dora themed party, they bought the Dora cake but Tristin's Daddy made the Boots cake! And the birthday princess wore a crown, like any princess would.

After the party I dropped Dani off with Grandpa so I could work out at the barn for a bit and couldn't help taking some pictures of the horses.

And this is how I found Dani when I went to Grandpa's to pick her up :)

Barn smiles

2010-12-05T07:10:00.000-08:00

4-25-2010

We were at the barn to take care of the horses and Dani asked me to take her picture. Did you really expect me to tell her no???

Girl's weekend!

2010-12-04T17:28:00.000-08:00

4-18-2010

Dani and Mommy headed to the beach for a girl's weekend with MaryAnn and Ellie while Joel was out of town. It was overcast and breezy but still warm enough for the girls to enjoy the ocean.

Dani's first swim lesson

2010-12-03T03:02:00.000-08:00

4-12-10

Danica started Safe Start swim lessons at the YMCA. Heather was her teacher, she actually graduated the class before our Bahamas trip. Eventually there will be video to follow but right now my priority is to get the pictures on these three memory cards caught up.

She wasn't too sure about having to do as she was told, she would have much prefered to just splash and play but that's not what lessons are all about. Even so, when it was all done she said it was "awesome" and gave two thumbs up.

Return to the jungle

2010-12-02T03:03:00.000-08:00

4-10

Another trip to Jungle Zone! Different grown ups, an extra kid, and tons of fun! This time there was Mommy, Daddy, and Dani, Grandma Zonnie and Parker, Kiley and Tristin, and Rooster and Morgan!

Kiley bounced Tristin around the bounce house.

Dani loved the big slide and went up the ladder by herself several times.

Even Grandma Zonnie had to play on the big slide!

If you look closely at the top left picture you'll see that Dani actually burned her arm on the slides because she kept rubbing her left elbow on the way down.

Once again the kid asleep at the end of the day wasn't mine! This time it was Parker!

In case you couldn't tell...we love this place!

Easter

2010-12-01T03:01:00.000-08:00

4-4-2010

First we took pictures after Church, it was a lovely service and a beautiful day, I'm so glad we got to spend it as a family.

Dani was especially photogenic that day.

As we were getting done Dave showed up with his kids so we added them to the photo shoot. Dani has been blocking the sun from her eyes like that ever since she saw Sierra do it.

They all want to hold Dani's hand and give her hugs all the time.

After they left Dani took a few minutes to run and play.

After Church we did a photo shoot at home while we were all dressed up.

As you can see from the bottom right picture we even had a visit from the neighbor's dog.

Then it was off to Grammie's house for Dani's first Easter Egg Hunt.

She especially liked going inside and opening all her eggs.

After that she got her basket. This year's had a baby dressed like a frog, last year's was dressed like a bunny.

Happy Easter!

Black Bear Festival

2010-11-30T03:26:00.001-08:00

3-27-2010

We went to the Black Bear Festival in Umatilla again this year. Mommy tried her hand (for the first time) at French braids, they didn't turn out very well but Dani wouldn't let me take them out.

At the festival Smokey Bear came out to dance with the kids, but Dani was too scared to go near him. There were people riding their horses down the street, something you'll only see in a small town like ours! I wonder if the city realizes they lined the park with hitching posts.

Of course Dani noticed the swings. I decided to take the opportunity and get some shots of my super happy girl :)

The slides were fun too.

Even though I know they're nothing great I love the pics below.

Then I decided to stick her in a tree for a last round of photos.

While we were there we got to visit with Kurt who came out of his pizza trailer just to get Dani hugs. Dani got to pet a mini-horse but was much more interested in the full size horses the people rode around. We wished Daddy could have been there but it was still a pretty fun time.

Daddy's birthday party

2010-11-29T06:48:00.000-08:00

3-19-2010

We finally got to have our family celebration for Daddy's birthday! It was a very small gathering and a very nice evening.

Happy Birthday Daddy! We love you!

Game Night...Sort of

2010-11-28T05:42:00.000-08:00

3-14-10

Kat hosted another "game night" at her house. But it had been so long since we had all gotten together that everybody just hung out and chatted and didn't play any games.

Dani actually got to go this time. When she got tired she still didn't want to miss anything so I convinced her to lay down on Scamper's dog bed and she fell right asleep.

We are very lucky to have so many great friends.

Welcome to the Jungle!

2010-11-26T14:58:00.000-08:00

3-13-10

We took our first trip to Jungle Zone. It's an indoor inflatable fun park with slides and all sorts of fun stuff including an arcade. We had a whole group in attendance, there was Tim, Crystal and Parker, Kiley and Tristin, and Mommy and Dani. Uncle Time was all about Danica that day :) including showing her how to go through the wall of the bounce house since she was too short to climb over it (see the bottom left picture in the collage).

And Tim got to act like a kid too!

Dani and Parker discovered the area that's just for little kids and had a blast.

Even in the little kids section the slides are super fast. The bottom left in this collage is my most favorite picture of the whole day.

Even the water fountain was fun!

Eventually I convinced Dani to change out of the strawberry dress she picked for the day. She kept stepping on the front of it and having a hard time climbing to the tops of the slides because of it. So she changed clothes and we went into the castle/maze/obstacle course thing.

Of course Uncle Tim made sure everybody was having fun there too.

So much fun!

Relaxing at Grandpa's

2010-11-26T14:39:00.000-08:00

3-9-2010

Mommy couldn't help but take pictures to try to share the calm feelings the glassy lake caused.

Dani and Grandpa enjoyed it from the porch

Can't help but love days like this!

Another play date

2010-11-25T02:54:00.000-08:00

3-8-2010

We had another play date at the park by the Astor Library. It started with just Dani and Tristin and lots of fun, then Parker came to play too.

Tristin kept going down the static-creating slide then trying to shock his Mom. You can see the static in her hair!

They are growing so fast! And constantly having to prove how big they are!

There's a big field behind the park and a big dirt pile too. In front is a tennis court that's a great place for them all to run.

Dani found some flowers and I got her to pose for some more pictures.

Then she gave them to Kiley

After Tristin left Dani and Parker had to show how well they balance. (And Dani had to show "I love you")

I just love this little face!

And check out those pigtails bouncing!

And that's the end of yet another play date.

Daddy's Birthday!

2010-11-16T06:35:00.000-08:00

3-7-2010

The Saltsdale Mudhole was open for a fundraiser on Daddy's birthday! So we loaded up in "the big truck" and headed down. Grandma Zonnie, Granpa, and Uncle Ray came too.

As usual there were plenty of trucks needing to be pulled out and just as many on site repairs. If you look closeley at the bottom left picture you can see the fire under the truck! (You may have to click to enlarge.)

Rooster tails everywhere! There was even a mudtruck airplane.

Even with all the noise Dani was able to take her nap (she gets that from Mommy).

It was Dani's first time at the mudhole and she loved it!

Introducing Zara!

2010-11-16T06:34:00.000-08:00

2-26-2010

There was a new arrival at the barn where our horses live! Here is Zara (and her Mommy, Bliss).

It was pretty cold that day but that just makes it more fun to steal Dani snuggles!!!!

Happy Birthday Baby Ellie!!

2010-10-28T12:04:00.000-07:00

Feb 21, 2010

Ellie's first birthday was February 21st. The day was so nice they decided to have her party on the beach.

There were whales playing with a boat just off the coast! (Until the Coast Guard chased the boats away)

Ellie got this cute little lion that she loved posing with.

Dani loved playing in the sand and surf.

Ellie got to "stroll" the beach, give lots of hugs, and hang with her cousins.

Dani was soooo cute in her party hat.

Then it was time for Ellie to have cake!

Of course Mommy had to take lots of pictures of everything.

Dani had a great time in the sand.

All that fun makes for a tired little girl, but this time it wasn't my tired little girl :)

And even though she's not a baby anymore Dani still insists on calling her "Baby Ellie". It was also very cute trying to explain that my dad is Ellie's Grandpa too, not just Dani's Grandpa...Dani didn't seem happy to have to share him :)

Beach vacation 2010

2010-10-28T09:38:00.000-07:00

As most of you know, we go to the beach for vacation every year. This year the weather wasn't as nice as it has been in recent years so Mommy didn't take as many pictures as usual. But no matter the weather or the number of pictures taken it was still a great time for all of us. We checked in on Sat Feb 6th and checked out on Sat the 13th.

2-9-10

It was Tues before I pulled the camera out for a few quick pics. The sky was stormy and full of birds.

While giving Dani her bath it seemed necessary to take a picture showing how long her hair has gotten.

2-10-10

Started the day with a beautiful sunrise.

Then we went to Gary's house to help him. He was using a loader to clear out his pond and it fell in a hole. His property is beautiful!

John spent the day helping try to get it out of the hole.

Dani and I went to Sugar Mill gardens while Daddy was working at Gary's. It's changed a lot since we were there 2 years ago! Now you can walk right up inside the ruins!!

Dani seemed to enjoy it too.

The ugly dinos are still there. I didn't notice the sign until after I had taken pics of Dani sitting on it...OOPS!

The flowers there are beautiful.

The next day we went back with Daddy!

I'm teaching Dani early to take the time to stop and smell the flowers

More beautiful flowers

More dino fun

In the 3 on the left you'll see that Daddy pretended to put his head in the dino's mouth, so of course Dani had to copy.

There were some neat looking holes in the wall of the fern grotto that we took advantage of

With being able to go up in the ruins it made for some nice family pictures.

The front gate gave another nice opportunity

After that we didn't take many pictures but here are a few of the beautiful stormy sky

Unfortunately, it had to end some time!

Play Date!!!

2010-09-16T07:43:00.000-07:00

1/29/2010

We had a play date at the park in Astor beside the library. We had Kiley and Tristin, Tim, Crystal and Parker, and Mommy, Daddy and Dani there.

Tristin had to show what a big boy he was.

So did Parker.

Dani spent most of her time on the swings.

And the kids weren't the only ones who got to play!

The boys really liked going down the slide at the same time.

And of course I have to show my favorite picture of the day.

2nd Birthday Party!!!

2010-09-15T07:40:00.000-07:00

1-24-2010

Dani's birthday party was in Cadwell Park in the same building as last year.

There was lots of time spent with family and friends!

Lots of people Dani's age :)

Lots of adults too. And plenty of food!

After getting a bite to eat it was out to the playground for a bit.

Then it was time for cake and presents. Dani picked an Ariel cake again and seemed happy with her choice.

After presents it was back out to the playground.

Dani tried to hug Lizzy but knocked her over in the process.

There were plenty of Dani hugs and kisses to go around!

And then we went home and crashed early!

Birthday Portraits

2010-09-14T11:17:00.000-07:00

For Danica's first birthday we had professional pictures done and I spent about $200 for 8 poses. So this year I decided I could do the pictures myself and get a lot more for a lot less. So I hung a sheet on the front of Zonnie's Tahoe in the front yard at my Mom's house and started snapping pictures. Here are some of my favorites, and don't forget you can click on the collage to expand it. The rest are in a Walgreens album, just let me know if you want the link.

And the ones below are my individual favorites.

Danica's second birthday

2010-09-13T09:00:00.000-07:00

Jan 22, 2010

First thing in the morning Dani's birthday bear sings to her. This was a gift from Bev when Dani was first born and we promised to play it for her on her birthday and thought it would be a nice start the day right birthday tradition.

Mommy took the day off and we played in the park for a while. Even though it was January it was pretty hot!

While we were there a cool old plane flew over. Dani was the first one to see it :)

Then Sierra showed up to play too!

The tube slide proved fun for everyone, Dani, Sierra, Dani's Daddy and Sierra's Mommy!

That evening we went to Grammie's house for dinner and it was a food explosion! Literally! One of the dishes exploded and sent glass everywhere! Into all the other food, all over the counter, there were even shards in the ceiling! But the important part was nobody got hurt. So we improvised dinner and moved on to presents!

We finally gave her the kitchen set that we had been holding on to. It came with all the extras and she loved it!

Then it was cake time!!!

And...like mother like daughter :) She likes being behind the camera almost as much as she likes being in front of it.

A.P.E.S. visit

2010-09-09T18:48:00.000-07:00

On Jan 2, 2010 we went to visit our friends at APES. For more information on their facility visit http://www.apesplace.com/

While we were there we did plenty of relaxing and snuggling and Mommy got to take LOTS of pictures!

I love the set below, especially the middle bottom picture. To me it looks like he's smiling :)

Not all the love goes to the furry friends!

And a GREAT BIG YAWN!!

The rest of Christmas Day

2010-09-04T10:20:00.000-07:00

After Grammie's house we went to Nuna's. We weren't there too long and I didn't take very many pictures. Parker decided he didn't want to pose w/ Grandma Nuna and Calvin so he started fussing which got Dani fussing too. Here's what we ended up with.

Next we went to Grandma Zonnie's house. First was posing for pictures, then stockings and presents!

Dani got another box of princess shoes!

Tim and Crystal got a washer and dryer which made Crystal cry!

Then the kids got to play in the box

John got the inversion table he's been wanting for years.

Then it was time to go outside and play!

The bowling set was a huge hit!!!

Dani decided it was more fun to kick the pins over than it was to roll the ball at them.

Uncle Tim tried to juggle the pins (with a little help from John)

But he got very frustrated with it!

And here's my favorite of me and Dani :)

Christmas at Grammie's

2010-08-01T16:32:00.000-07:00

After doing presents at home we went to Grammie & PawPaw's for breakfast.

Of course we had to start with stockings and they were all stuffed!

Dani got lots of presents, of course.

Daddy got a new leather jacket and another gun (that also used to belong to his dad).

And a good time was had by all

And then it was time to go to Grandma Nuna's then to Grandma Zonnie's house.

Christmas morning at home

2010-08-01T16:01:00.000-07:00

I know it's not conventional but we did our Christmas morning in the kitchen, that way I could see Dani's face when she walked out and saw her presents.

She was very happy about her new fuzzy pink crocks!

And she got a fairy dress up trunk and a box full of princess shoes!!

I think it's safe to say she was happy with her presents. I love the top right pic of her.

Daddy got a gun (which previously belonged to his dad) and Mommy got horse stuff. Dani had to wear her crown and heels, even over her footie pajamas. Our tradition is to take a picture of all of us in our new Christmas jammies in front of the Christmas tree on Christmas Eve. But we were all so tired and Danica was already asleep when we got home from Grandpa's that we postponed it. There are a few jammies/tree pictures in this collage.

All this happiness makes for lots of kisses :)

Christmas Eve '09

2010-08-01T14:39:00.000-07:00

In keeping with tradition we celebrated Christmas with Grandpa on Christmas Eve at his house. We had already done an early Christmas at his house with Joel, MaryAnn, and Ellie. Dani loved her parrot hat (yes, she's already a parrot head...AKA Jimmy Buffett fan).

Again, with tradition...we all get new pj's to wear for our Christmas picture. All of them were wrapped together and we let Dani open them.

She also got a fairy tutu, fairy slippers, and an Ariel camera.

Along with a pony! She was soooo cute "riding" it around (in her tutu).

Jim made her a present and wouldn't even let Grandpa in on it! It turned out to be a big toy box. The dog on top was named "Jim Dog" and he sleeps in bed with Dani every night.

By the time we got home Dani was exhausted so we didn't do our Christmas pj picture until the next morning.

Christmas with Tristin

2010-08-01T09:31:00.000-07:00

12-19-09

We had a small early Christmas celebration before Tristin had to go back to his daddy. His favorite toy was a tool bench. He even let Dani try on his safety glasses and hard hat.

Causey Christmas Party

2010-07-25T14:31:00.000-07:00

12-19-2009

We attended our friend's annual Christmas party...

First there was cookie decorating for all the kids

Of course you can't just decorate them, you have to eat them (or wear them)!

Once again Dani didn't want anyting to do with Santa

There were plenty of friends and Mommy took lots of pictures

And we even managed to get a picture of Dani with Santa and she's not crying or screaming, although I wouldn't say she was happy about it.

School Christmas Party!

2010-07-24T13:28:00.000-07:00

12-18-2009

At school Dani and her friends made shirts to wear to their Christmas party. She was so cute and excited that morning! And sooo sugared up that afternoon!!

2009 Christmas Card

2010-07-23T11:35:00.000-07:00

Of course we took lots of pictures for possible use on our 2nd family Christmas Card. Here are some of the better ones.

And here is the final product

If you didn't get one but would like one in 2010 just contact me and let me know.

Old pros

2010-07-22T17:55:00.000-07:00

Here are 2 sets of old professional pictures. The first is only 3 pictures, but they were her first school pictures!!! They were taken in October '09. I made the dress she's wearing and I like the bottom picture best.

When John and I went black friday shopping we got a certificate for a free sheet of pictures. Close to Christmas we took Dani in to use that certificate. In the first picture, if you look closely, you can tell she just got done crying.

She looks so different now! So much more grown up!

I guess they do that...

Parker is having a party!

2010-07-11T07:26:00.000-07:00

12-12-2009

There was a small party for Parker's second birthday. Dani had a great time playing with Parker's 4-wheeler. Parker helped by pushing and pulling and letting Dani push and pull him too.

There were plenty of random pictures...Dani relaxing, making faces, etc, Crystal standing tall to get the shot, a pretty flower...like I said, random...

Of course Uzi was there and cute as ever.

There was cake (made by Crystal).

And because none of the adults wanted any cake we just let the kids dig in. Dani started with a fork, notice how clean she is in the top left picture.

Cake face!!!!!!!!

Birthday boy cake face!!!!!!!

Presents!!!

As you can see in the top right, Dani had to test some of them first.

We couldn't go that long without pouting a little.

Not just cousins, they're friends too.

After the party we went to the races. While Dani's been there plenty of times, for Parker it was certainly something new and cool.

Tired = Silly

2010-06-26T19:33:00.000-07:00

11-28-09

Dani was tired and in a very silly mood...these are the results

Black Friday

2010-06-26T18:48:00.000-07:00

On Black Friday Mommy and Daddy got up super early to go shopping. We were supposed to go to Gatorback again this year but Mommy wasn't feeling good and Dani had a runny nose. We really didn't want to get the rest of our family sick so we just stayed at Grandma Zonnie's.

Dani decided to be helpful and take out the trash. She wouldn't let anybody help her. How that bag didn't have a hole in it after she was done dragging it around, I still don't know!

Then she got Grandma Zonnie to "play bubbles" with her. No matter how bad she feels, this will always make her happy!

And that's how we spent our Black Friday :)

Thanksgiving

2010-05-23T10:13:00.000-07:00

11-26-09

We celebrated Thanksgiving at Grandma Zonnie's house. There was lots of food and even more time spent playing in the yard.

We are thankfull for many things, the food we eat, our health, our princess but most of all, we are thankful for our family.

Pasture Bash '09

2010-05-21T10:00:00.000-07:00

November 21, 2009

The annual Pasture Bash at Father Time's house was a great success as always. There was great food, good friends, and fun for everyone.

Father Time's band was rockin'!

And all the kids (especially Dani) were dancin'!

And a great time was had by all!

Plumwood Party

2010-05-16T09:11:00.000-07:00

November 15, 2009

Same day...different party :) This one was celebrating the completion of the riding arena at Plumwood South. It started with food and friends.

Then we got a demonstration of why the arena was built. It was amazing!

And here's the crew that made it happen.

Ending with a very tired Puddin'

Day at the park

2010-05-16T09:00:00.000-07:00

November 15, 2009

Brandy and Alicia had a cook out at the park. Dani had a great time dancing and playing with the big kids...

...and by big kids...I mean Brandy and Alicia :-P

I'm posting this picture because I think Brandy looks just like her mom and it makes me smile.

And this one because I love the look Dani is giving Brandy, like "hey! that's my PawPaw!"

The food was great, the company even better. I love days like this.

Tumble time!

2010-05-16T08:22:00.000-07:00

November 11, 2009

We went to tumbling class at the YMCA! Before class started Dani played basketball with Daddy.

She had lots of fun and made lots of silly faces.

Mommy's co-worker, Melissa, was there with Christopher. He had lots of fun too.

Dani did great with the log roll and somersaults!

They got to play under a giant parachute!

Then it was time to stretch (and be silly with Daddy).

And with such a big area to run and play Dani got to demonstrate her "wiggle butt walk".

So much fun!!!!!!!!!!!!

Halloween!

2010-04-10T14:01:00.000-07:00

10-31-09

We waited until the last minute to get Dani's costume, but she actually picked it out herself. She was Little Red Riding Hood. First we met Daddy, Grandma, Parker, and Aunt Kat at Perkins for brunch.

Kisses for Aunt Kat!

And I love this picture of Dani and Grandma, they look so much alike!

After that and lots more stops we went to visit Grandpa and Mommy took lots of pictures.

And for no special reason this is my favorite picture of the day :)

Fishing N Fun

2010-04-09T11:20:00.000-07:00

10-25-09

At the end of October Dani, Mommy, Daddy, and Grandpa Mac went to visit Joel, MaryAnn and Ellie. We all went over on Friday and the idea was that the guys could do some surf fishing. Friday night Danica wanted me to sit with her at bed time and I ended up falling asleep. When I woke up I went to see how the guys were doing, after hanging out for a little while with them I went back to the house. Since MaryAnn and Ellie seemed to be asleep I went back to bed. John was the big winner of the night with 3 catfish. The next day Joel and MaryAnn had errands to run so the four travelers headed to the inlet for more fishing and fun. That was the first time Dani ever really got to PLAY in the ocean and she loved it! But the tide was very strong and wore John and Grandpa out quickly. It was so strong it would pull Dani's feet out from under her! She loved it! It scared the heck out of Mommy!!! Sunday morning John and Joel got up extremely early and went fishing on the boat, the rest of us had a relaxing day. That day is when we all went to the pumpkin patch (see previous post). We were having so much fun through it all that there were no pictures taken until Sunday! So as soon as I realized that I had to make up for it!

There was Ellie/Grandpa quality time

Dani pictures!

Extreme close up! (Notice the sun burned spot under her left eye where I missed with the sunscreen)

MaryAnn took Ellie for a jog and when they came back Dani decided to stretch with her

Before heading home we went down to the beach one more time

SO MUCH FUN!!! You know it's not just good...it's great when I don't even think to stop and take a picture until the very end!

Post-pumpkin geocaching

2010-04-03T19:19:00.000-07:00

10-18-09

After our trip to the first pumpkin patch we went geocaching! We found several... all over!

While we were in Eustis Dani got to enjoy the lake walk and play in Pendleton Park.

It was such a fun day. Mommy got to take a lot of pictures, Dani got to play, Daddy got dragged along for it all ;-P

2009 Pumpkin fun!!!

2010-03-27T08:35:00.000-07:00

Our first pumpkin day was October 18th. Mommy, Daddy and Dani went to a local pumpkin patch! There were several spots set up for pictures so of course Mommy took advantage!

Danica even made a new friend

On the 25th Mommy, Daddy, Dani, and Grandpa went to visit Joel, MaryAnn, and Ellie. While we were there we went to another pumpkin patch so again Mommy took too many pictures. There were "punkin" pictures and family pictures and Dani pictures galore :)

And Dani had to prove she's the coolest kid around in Grandpa's hat and shades.

I've uploaded all the pictures from both days to Walgreens albums, you may have to set up a walgreens account to see them but here are the links...

Day 1 http://photo2.walgreens.com/thumbnailshare/AlbumID=4210506006/a=34983286_34983286/otsc=SHR/otsi=SALBlink/COBRAND_NAME=walgreens/

Day 2 (with Ellie) http://photo2.walgreens.com/thumbnailshare/AlbumID=4239383006/a=34983286_34983286/otsc=SHR/otsi=SALBlink/COBRAND_NAME=walgreens/

Hopefully those links work :) Bye everybody!

Eustis Folk Festival

2010-03-22T08:46:00.000-07:00

10-10-09

There were lots of of great live bands and Dani had fun stealing the show! She was wearing one of the dresses I made her and had her hair in a single pony tail for the first time. It made her look so grown up! When we left, the food cart guy complained that I was taking his entertainment!

Fall festival

2010-03-17T07:46:00.000-07:00

10-03-2009

Altoona School (where Mommy went to elementary school) had their annual fall festival and Mommy and Dani went!

Dani had fun dancing to live bluegrass music.

And was totally cute as usual. Especially when showing off her pink boots!

Fountain fun

2010-03-16T12:48:00.000-07:00

10-02-2009

We went to one of the Eustis street parties. The only pictures I took were at the fountain. I got one of Daddy and Dani that Daddy hates but too bad :-P

Then I took a few of the fountain that I really think turned out well.

Fun at Grandma Zonnie's

2010-03-15T09:01:00.000-07:00

9-27-2009

We went to hang out at Grandma Zonnie's with Tim and Crystal and Parker. Dani and Parker had lots of fun playing in the leg space under the desk. The best part is somewhere there's a picture of Mommy and her cousins Josh and Todd playing in the leg space under a different desk :)

Then it was time to play with balloons! Uncle Tim started the fun by putting one up his shirt and letting Parker hit it, and the game continued from there.

Then it was time for hugs and kisses goodbye.

Goodbye everybody!

Race girl

2010-03-14T12:51:00.000-07:00

9-26-2009

We all went to the races in Barberville but they got rained out that night. But Dani had fun and that's what matters! :)

2010-03-10T03:13:00.001-08:00

9-21-2009

After getting home from the beach Dani got to "drive" her new car which we got from a yard sale. The car actually drives but her little legs aren't long enough to reach the pedals so Daddy has to run behind her holding the pedal with a broom handle, but she doesn't mind.

Grammie's Timeshare

2010-03-08T16:49:00.000-08:00

Sept 19-21, 2009

At the end of September Dani and I spent a few nights at Grammie's timeshare at the beach. The first day/night I didn't take many pictures, the camera didn't even come out until Dani was asleep...

The next day we started by reading and practicing some sign language.

For those who don't know...that's a two handed "I love you"

Then the three of us hit the beach! The top center picture is her waving goodbye to the waves :)

After that Grammie went to get PawPaw so Dani and I played in the room.

She had fun modeling the dress I made her for the cute little girl in the mirror.

She played on the extra bed in "our" room for a while, pointing at people out the window and making faces at the girl in that mirror.

After Grammie and PawPaw got back it was time for us all to go swimming!

The next day she showed off her cool shades and posed some more before we had to head home.

Before we say goodbye...here are a few of my favorites of Dani and Grammie.

The end :)

A big day!

2010-02-25T12:50:00.000-08:00

September 6th, 2009
What a big day! I woke up to a naked Dani! When I first went in to see her she handed me her diaper, then she laid back down. I just couldn't resist the naked butt picture! (I'm sure she'll hate me for it someday)

I love this little sleepy face!

Then we went to Grandma Zonnie's and played in the pool...A LOT.

She had so much fun!!

I think she wants to be a ballerina because she kept using the hand rail to stand on her toes.

Always a princess.

Sorry the pictures in the next collage are so small but they are all from the same sequence of events. Dani would stand outside the pool and John would throw water at her, she loved it! Please click on the collage to get a better view of the individual pictures.

Most of you know that my kid is a goof ball so these next pictures should come as no surprise. She was doing this crazy little "airplane" run where she would put her arms out, tilt, and zoom around, then it kinda turned into dancing.

Here are some of my favorites of Dani and her Daddy (I love you both!)

That was a super fun day!!!

Splash park!

2010-02-19T09:03:00.000-08:00

September 4, 2009

There's a splash park in Tavares that we finally visited. It's only $2 per person and you can come back any time during that day. And of course Danica loved it! I wasn't planning on getting wet so I wore regular clothes, but Dani had different ideas. It was an overcast day but still nice enough to play and have fun.

She especially liked the crocodiles that shoot water out their noses.

At one point she scraped her toe. First I had to kiss it then take a picture. (Notice how wrinkled her foot is!)

I think there was supposed to be another picture or collage here but I'm not sure. If I find it later I'll just throw it on a random post. Lots of soggy fun!

Mommy made a dress!

2010-02-18T10:53:00.000-08:00

August 29, 2009

I saw this material and fell in love with it so I decided to try my hand at making a dress for Danica. I did the whole thing in one morning and she wore it that afternoon.

I know it's super simple but I'm very proud of this little dress! And Dani seems to like it too :)

Dani's big geocaching day

2010-02-17T07:28:00.000-08:00

August 22nd, 2009

Some of you know that I love geocaching, some of you are probably wondering what that is. For those who don't know, geocaching is a global scavenger hunt "where you are the search engine". You go to the web page www.geocaching.com and look up the area you want to hunt in, from there you get the coordinates, enter them in your handheld GPS and start looking! Our family's team name is AScarlettRose, A for John's middle name, Scarlett for mine, and Rose for Dani's. There are geocaches everywhere from in the middle of town to the middle of no where and they come in all sizes. We've found 50 cal ammo canisters and "micros" the size of a pencil eraser. Some have goodies inside (if you take something, leave something) and some only have a log for you to sign showing that you found it. For our family it's usually a team effort, I'm good at getting us to exactly where it should be and John is good at actually finding it.

So in August we took a trip through the woods to see what we could find, and we did pretty good!

For the next group you may need to click and enlarge. The top left is peeking out between the palm fronds. Top right is a camo ammo can, dead center. Bottom left is in the crook at the bottom of the tree (35mm film canister). And the bottom right is John fishing it out of the end of the log.

There were a lot of these pretty little purple flowers in bloom all over the place.

It ended up being a rainy nasty day but we still made it fun. These are some of the trails we took, several times John had to get out and remove trees or limbs from the road. Once he had to raise a tree a few inches so I could drive the jeep under it. The top right picture is an area we drove through that had me very nervous, I don't think we were supposed to be driving through there!

We stopped and had a picnic lunch in the back of the jeep and as expected Dani fell asleep in her car seat before it was all said and done.

I also have a page for my geocaching adventures it is www.geogoodness.blogspot.com but be warned...I'm even worse about updating there than I am here!!

Visiting with Tristin

2010-02-14T08:26:00.000-08:00

August 15, 2009

Our little family went to play with Aunt Kiley and Tristin!

And we got a demonstration of how to play Superman...first you bounce on the bed then you have somebody bigger than you throw you onto a pile of pillows. After that you laugh a lot and beg them to do it again.

After a while you start a pillow fight

And here's my favorite picture of Tristin from that night. He's such a cutie!

Playing at Raymond's shop

2010-02-12T10:11:00.000-08:00

August 8, 2009

Daddy went to work on his big truck AKA "Babe".

Dani loves this truck so when I told her we could go visit Daddy AND see the truck there was no stopping her! But once we got there and she saw that she could sit on the forklift she decided that was fun too.

And a few random favorite pics...

Goodbye Papaw Mike - We love you!

2010-02-03T03:23:00.000-08:00

On August 7th we put Papaw Mike's ashes in the Veteran's Cemetery. First we had to get the princess dressed and ready.

The grounds are beautiful. I'd like to spend a day there just wandering around with my camera. Most of the pictures in this collage were taken from the window of the car.

Parker and Tim said their last goodbyes then it was Dani and Daddy's turn. I love that in the bottom right picture she's blowing him a kiss.

Times like this make you appreciate the family you still have.

Talk about kissing cousins!!!

There was plenty of random Danica cuteness to keep us all from getting too depressed.

And I had an opportunity to get a couple good pics of Grandma with her grandkids and great-grandkids.

I would say it was a nice day but as expected it was very sad. So I'll close this post by saying... we miss you Papaw Mike and we love you. You will always be with us in our hearts.