Peyton turns 4!

                                    My baby turned 4 today!

He suddenly seems so much older and more mature than the 3 year old he was yesterday. Last week we were in Alabama all week and so we were able to have a party for him last Thursday at Chuck E Cheese. He has been pleading with us to go there for some time now, and he was not disappointed. We invited his best friends from our old neighborhood to the party which made Peyty very happy. He tells us how he misses his best friends Tate Tate and Tayler all the time. Chase had a blast with his 2 best friends Tayler and Drew.

All the kids were able to go to Pump It Up as well that same morning. Wednesday we went to Alabama Adventures with Tayler and her mother and had an excellent time. At first the kids were a little sceptical of the rides, but soon remembered how much fun we used to have on them 2 years ago when we had passes to the park. It was a hot day and it rained a little but thank goodness it never lightninged so they didn't make us stay out of the water.

This morning when Peyty got out of the shower we gave him his new bicycle and other gifts and cards. I lit a '4' on a small cupcake and we sang Happy Birthday to him. At church the primary kids sang a birthday song to to him and since I am his Sunbeam teacher, I brought tiny cupcakes to class and had the kids sing to him yet again. After church we went to Skogie's restaurant for lunch. After naps we put the boat into Lake Lanier for our traditional birthday boat ride. Peyton drove the boat like a champ. After a dinner of leftovers* we ate SpongeBob birthday cake.

*At Skogie's the waitress made so many mistakes with our order that we ended up with a lot more food than we had ordered for free. They were really sweet about their mistakes and we were in jovial moods so it was no skin off of our backs. Who can complain about free food that tastes good? Not us!

The Mirror Has Two Faces

My kids were drawing one day and wanted to display their artwork. I don't have anywhere for them to do so, but then they got creative with the living room mirror.....

Dual use mirror.

New Items From Grammie

When we were in Florida last month, Craig's mom Linda gave us some lamps and plant stands. They look really great and we are happy to have them.

I love this lamp. I know she had 2 of these, I hope she gives us the other one some day.

This lamp will be sprayed black where it is gold now and will get a new lamp shade. I will put it in the guest bedroom downstairs.

I got a plant from the ward for Mother's Day and it is really taking off. Good for you plantie! I don't know what it is though.

Photos of Recent Updates to Basement

Here are some pics of the drywall that Craig and I put up in the downstairs bathroom.

This is the new bathtub. The one the renters left us was solid metal, but if the coating on the tub ever chipped then it was hello rust. They also left a flimsy, cheesy surround. When we returned the tub and surround to Home Depot we found out they were the cheapest you could buy. We got the money back and bought a very nice tub. For the surround , Craig is going to tile it.

The closet that the renters built in the family room was overwhelming and didn't fit the space. When you came downstairs and turned into the room it stuck out like a sore thumb. Craig lopped off a the front half and now you hardly notice it when you enter the room. It fits the space and gives us room for a couch now.

Closet before.

Closet after.

Here is how the ceiling in the family room looks now.

My hubby is working hard to get this basement finished. Thanks, hun!

Independence Day Trip

For the 4th of July we spent the holiday weekend at Stone Mountain, GA with friends of ours from AL. We were introduced to friends of our friends and all-in-all we had a group of about 22. We ate a lot of food and had a lot of fun.

House Updates and Trip to Florida

Updates on the basement include a brand new bathtub, there is some drywall on the ceiling, and Craig took the closet in the family room and cut it down by half. It looks great. I also ordered a 5 drawer chest of drawers that matches my master bedroom suite. We recently purchased a new bed frame for the guest bedroom and bought Chase a brand new mattress as well.

Craig removed the giant mirror above the boys' vanity in the bathroom. He needs to paint the yellow wall that was behind it blue and sand down the tar that they used to hang it.

We went to Orlando in June in the RV. The boys and I spent time at the pool while Craig worked.

We stayed at an RV resort called Tropical Palms. It was right next to Old Town which had shops, dining, and amusement park type rides. They boys enjoyed playing putt-putt and riding on the 2 seater go-carts. (Daddy drove) Then we drove to Naples, FL to see Craig's mom. The boys spent lots of time playing at the beach and swimming in the pool at the RV park.