Dad Turned 50!

Dad is surprised, very surprised...we had a surprise 50th Birthday Party for him at his sister, Leslie's house near his birthplace in South Carolina. We were able to have lots of his family and friends from that area be a part of the celebration. Mom worked hard to make it a success. It was a fun time!

This is my Dad's sister Leslie. She is like a sister to me and family memebers think we look and act a lot alike. It is almost scary sometimes!

These two are inseparable when they are together. Cousins: Cason and Ethan.

This is my Grandma Mary, my Dad's Mom. Can you believe she is 72? I can't, I hope I look this good when I am her age!

Thanksgiving Feast

At Cason's school they have a Thanksgiving Feast where they dress up like little Native Americans and display their crafts while we have a big feast of delicious Thanksgiving food. I take the opportunity to make sweet potato casserole each time to relieve a craving that is slowly growing out of control by that point.





Cason's first portrait of Luder.

I made Abram's favorite meal for his birthday dinner; pancakes, eggs and bacon. We followed that with a family birthday party complete with cupcakes.

Welcome Matthew

One of my best friends, Carol had a baby and he is precious. Matthew Scott Settle. Born on November 15, 2007. Welcome to the world little man, you are going to get to know me pretty well...





"Sweet dreams little one;
your life has just begun.
May angels guide your journey
and keep you safe from harm."

Two Birthdays at Chuck E. Cheese

We had the boys birthday at Chuck E. Cheese this year. Abram turned two on Nov 21st and Cason four on Nov 8th. As long as they will let me I will have their bday parties together. Everyone had a great time. They were so lucky to have lots of family (all four grandparents, I don't think that has ever happened to Luder or myself)cousins and lots of friends. They had tokens for the games, pizza, cake and their own personal Chuck E. Cheese show. It is the way to go for a parent!!!

4 years ago..........

Today is Cason's 4th bday. He was born November 8, 2003 at 4:23am. I can't believe he is already four! Time goes too fast. Today we gave him a little family party. He and I made a cake and he wanted "chicken legs" for dinner. My good little southern boy! I am so proud.
He is a friend to me when I need someone, he challenges me in ways I never thought possible and he makes me laugh constantly. He is full of hugs and sweet compliments. On top of all that, this little man is smart! He amazes me with his complicated questions.

Happy Birthday Cason! Congratulations to me for being a new mom and making it this far!

Halloween and The Little Dragons

First off, the kids were so sick. Cason missed school and they both had high fevers. Abram was in the hospital Sunday night. By Wednesday things weren't a lot better but they still wanted to go so we hitched up the "dragon wagon" and pulled them around. Kids are funny, Abram didn't want to trick or treat, he thought it was too fun to ride and pull the wagon in his costume. Whatever, I wasn't going to make him get candy. I just enjoyed how cute they looked.

Luder came home a little early, he was so excited to carve our traditional pumpkin. The sad part was, no one got up from couch.

My little dragons in front of our house.

Cason and Granmoma, the kids were so lucky, Granmoma, Gramps and Grammy were all there. Grammy flew back from a convention and couldn't get home because she got sick so she got to see the kids on Halloween. Gramps stayed at the house to hand out candy. It was fun!

I asked for a smile and he is trying so hard to make me happy. Poor kid.

This was the most I had seen out of Abram in days. He was so happy.

My Fashion Icon

I love this little man, almost every day he makes me stop what I am doing just to laugh and enjoy life. He has brought me more joy than I could have ever imagined.

Cute

I go in their rooms at night to check on them and I watch them sleep so peacefully. They make me laugh with their hilarious sleep positions.

Bermuda, Bahamas, C'mon Pretty Momma.....

In October my parents took my younger brother and me on a Bermuda cruise. It was so relaxing and wonderful. I didn't have to clean or take care of anyone but me! I slept, read, swam, took in sun and a lot of good food. Thanks Mom and Dad! Thanks to my wonderful husband, mother-in-law and Carol who held the fort down at home!

This is one of my favorite spots on the trip. It was absolutely gorgeous.

This was the ship, I was on my way to shop and hit the beach with my fam.


We took a cab tour of Bermuda as a family. This photo was taken on a 100 million dollar estate. The concrete/grass pattern in front of us was a map of Bermuda. The mansion overlooked this pool. The average home in Bermuda is worth $1.3 million.

This was taken on an old military base. This bench had the most incredible view of the water - which had SO MANY different colors.

I took this picture at a park we visited. The cab driver led us as we walked behind a parking lot and down a little trail with no one was around. Just when I thought he had lost his mind, this view appeared. I just stood there for a long time, I didn't want to leave but we were at the top of a cliff and it was dangerous.

This was the fist thing I did on my cruise, I sat down in a lawn chair. This was the view as we headed down the Delaware River out of Philly towards Bermuda.

Here we are pulling out of Philly to start the trip. It was cool to see the skyline and go under bridges. (I didn't know if we were going to be able to fit!)

Milton Reunion

On September 22, 2007, we had a Milton Family Reunion in Fredericksburg with Luder's parents, siblings and their families, (minus Becca/Uli and Shannon). Patti had organized a very special hay ride at a local farm just for our family. We had a great time.




Abram thought the hayride was a blast - he just threw his head back and laughed for about 3 minutes straight!


Then he started getting hot......


Just as the kids started melting they got to hit the watersports!


None of the kids could get up enough speed to get a good slide on the slip and slide so Gramps got pressed into duty. He must have been bent over slinging kids down that slide for about 45 minutes. I imagine he was sore later but the kids absolutely loved it. I thought a few of them were going to catch some air!

First Day of School

On September 10, Cason went to his first day of preschool for the year.

We went to a family reunion in NC and he was so excited to be in a hotel!

I take the boys to the Children's Museum frequently and they love playing in the water exhibit.

Where are they going?