School Days

Well it is official, both of my babies are in school now. WOW...where does time go? Blake started 1st grade on August 20th and Ava started 3 year old preschool today. They are both loving school and having a great time.

Mr. Blakey's first day of 1st grade!

Miss Ava's first day of 3 year old Preschool!

So Many Reasons Why I Love Blake

It has seemed like a really long summer, but at the same time it has gone really fast. Needless to say Blake and I haven't gotten along 100% this summer, so I thought it would be good for me to remember all the reasons why I do love him to death and can overlook the things that drive me nuts.

• His "Blakey" colored eyes! The doctor says they are hazel, but I still prefer "Blakey" colored.
  
• The way his eyes sparkle and twinkle when he is laughing and being nothing but ornery.
• The way he calls Ava "big girlie"
• The way he complains about having to watch Ava's movies, but yet after she is long gone he is still sitting there glued to the screen.
• When he climbs in bed with me after Ryan leaves. He says he is not tired, but minutes later he is sound asleep.
• The way he talks about Jesus and thinks He is pretty cool!
• The way he masters any electronic device he touches.
  
• When he always chooses fruit before anything else to eat.
  
• His ears. They stick out just a bit, but they are perfect to nibble on.
• The way he hates yet loves it when I make his toes "pop".
  
• The way he still drags along his "blue blankie" even though he will be in 1st grade.
• The amazing things he has taught Ava whether I wanted her to know them or not. She is one smart cookie and I really owe the credit to Blake.
  
• His favorite game to play on Wii is the original Mario Brothers. I find that hilarious!
• The way he rescues me from frogs.
  
• His "see through" skin. You can almost see every vein in his body. We think it is pretty cool though. But he asks me way to many questions about it.
• And my favorite of all... Even when we have a bad day, he can't wait for me to tuck him in at night, kiss him, and tell him that I love him. Thanks Buddy! I love you too!
  

Blake's 6th Birthday Party

Blake really lucked out this year. He ended up having 3 separate birthday parties. One at school, one in Mississippi and then the one here. It was nothing but Transformers too! I feel like we have a Transformer toy store in our toy room. And it is the darnedest thing, I can't transform those things for the life of me. Instruction booklet or not, it just doesn't happen for me. Now Ryan, he gets a hold of them and can just about transform them with his eyes closed. Must be a guy thing. Anyway enjoy some pictures!

This is only like his 3rd birthday cake!

Some of the party participants.

You Know Vacation's Over When...

Enough said!

The Last Few Days Update

Well I did so well the first 8 days. The last few I guess I just kind of gave up. We are home now, but I will give you an update on the last few days of vacation. On Thursday we drove to Corinth, Mississippi to see some of Ryan's family. Corinth is a very historical town. Some very important parts of the Civil War took place there. They have plaques everywhere. It really was fascinating. Friday night we celebrated Blake's birthday with the relatives we hardly ever see. I think we all had a good time except Blake. The restaurant was a Mexican place that likes to celebrate birthdays with huge a sombrero and cake in your face. Well Blake didn't go for that. The waiter went to put the cake in Blake's face but he pushed it away. Well good ole' Mom picked it up and smashed it in his face anyway!! I loved it!! Blake crawled under the table and claimed he was "NEVER COMING OUT"! That changed when he heard there were presents and a Transformer cake he could eat and not wear. We headed for home Saturday afternoon. First Tara and her boyfriend, Michael, took us to tour his old Firehouse in Corinth. Blake loved it. He even got to slide down the firepole. Our last stop of the trip was Lambert's Cafe in Sikeston, Missouri. If you have never heard of it check out the website www.throwedrolls.com The are the home of the throwed rolls. Yes, they actually throw your dinner rolls at you! It was a blast! And the food...Oh my goodness! I have never seen that much food in a long time. They just keep bringing it to you. If you are ever down in Missouri, you have to go. Well enjoy the last of the vacation pictures. Until next time~

My little Confederate solider boy.

Blake's reaction when they started singing.

Ava and Blake sitting on one of the firetrucks at the Corinth Firehouse.

Ava's attempt at catching her roll.

Day Eight- Cochran 2009 Southeast Tour

Another day come and gone and I am really starting to run out of things to say. Eight days of blogging is hard! Anyway we were in Nashville all day. Went to the Opry Mills Mall and toured the Opryland Hotel. WOW!! What a hotel. I felt like we were back at Disneyworld instead of in Nashville, TN in a hotel. They even have a boat ride inside the hotel. The kids were dying to do it. It was actually fun. Nothing exciting but very informational. Not a lot of pictures tonight, we really didn't take that many. Plus the camera is acting up. I think it "ate" to much sand at the beach. Until tomorrow~

Can you believe this is in a hotel?

Yup this too!

What a bunch of goof-balls.

Day Seven- Cochran 2009 Southeast Tour

We finally made it out of North Carolina. Don't get me wrong it is a very nice state, but we have been in it since Thursday. We are slowly making our way home and drove through the Appalachian/Great Smoky Mountains. They are beautiful! Another one of those moments when you can really see how awesome of a God we serve! We are here in Nashville, Tennessee now until Thrusday. I will keep you posted. Until tomorrow~

What a view! Not quite to the top, but pretty close.

Here we are at the top. There was a rest area here. Thank goodness for "real" bathrooms.

Ava and I standing in a Mountain Stream. That water is COLD!!! It felt really nice though. I wish we would have had a picnic lunch today, there were so many great spots we could have stopped at.