On the Oasis {st. thomas}

Our second stop was in Charlotte Amalie, St. Thomas. We shopped and walked around in the morning, hopped back on the ship for lunch, then back on land for a snorkeling excursion.

the Oasis parked away from the other ships at St. Thomas

 while we were on the catamaran, we spotted Oceana, the beachside restaurant where we had Mom and Dad's 40th wedding anniversary celebration in 2010

 headed out to snorkel!

 there's Cote Sud -- the house we stayed in for a week in 2010!

 Jerry snorkeling with the sea turtles

 climbing back on the boat

 St. Thomas is FILLED with loads of these creepy iguanas...

 boarding the Oasis -- getting ready to head to St. Maarten tomorrow

 trying to take the "perfect" picture :)

We couldn't leave St. Thomas without taking a pic of one of our favorite restaurants from our previous stay... the Green House in downtown Charlotte Amalie. Memories, memories!!

On the Oasis {nassau, bahamas}

Jerry and I just returned from a FABULOUS week-long cruise in the Caribbean aboard the Oasis of the Seas... the largest ship in the world. We loved every minute of it!

We left out of Ft. Lauderdale, FL and our first stop was in Nassau. We had been there once before... and we were excited to check it out again. We didn't plan any specific excursions... just wanted to take a water taxi over to Paradise Island (where the Atlantis resort is) and wander around.

 That's the Oasis of the Seas on the far right... there were 5 cruise ships in Nassau that day. This was taken from the water taxi.

 The water was such a beautiful blue-green, and the ship was so huge... we couldn't stop taking pics!

 on Paradise Island

 beautiful beach behind Atlantis

 We wandered around the Marina Village at Atlantis -- beautiful shops with monstrous yachts parked all around!!

 one of the yachts with Atlantis in the background

 loved all the flowers!!

 up close of Atlantis!

 on the water taxi back to the ship

the fun pastel-colored buildings on Paradise Island... pic taken as we were leaving!

carter & mitchell go to the zoo

Carter and his little buddy, Mitchell, had a fun playdate at the zoo last week. It has been very warm here...so we have tried to enjoy lots of time outside, soaking up the sun.

what we did this weekend

What did you do this weekend?

We had a fun time... it was the first weekend of Spring Break.

The boys were so excited... Carter keeps saying, "I'm on Spwing Bweak, too!"

Yes, buddy, you are.

I think your life is a "Spwing Bweak".

Anyway, here are some of the pics from our weekend!

 Wichita had some monumental "openings" this past week. Cabela's is now a 5 minute drive from our house. Grayson asked Jerry if he might work there when he retired. Jerry's thinking about it. :) The boys have been to Cabela's... oh, 3 or 4 times already since last Wednesday when it opened!

(Have you ever seen a deer carrying a gun? Hmmm.)

 Then we headed to Chick-fil-a for lunch! It opened this past week as well. They are policemen everywhere... directing traffic... because the drive-thru line is soooo long. And, people in Wichita want to go to Chick-fil-a!! :) It was yummy, and we only had to wait about 5 minutes in line to order. Not bad!

 Carter was giving me lots of love that day... oh my. :)

Afterwards, we headed to Grayson's first outdoor soccer game for the spring season. They won, 7-5! It was so windy, it wasn't even funny. Welcome to spring!

And last, but certainly not least, we watched our beloved Jayhawks pull out an amazing victory to beat Purdue last night. It was not a fun game to watch... but the ending was great!!! (This is Bill Self right after the win!)

We are headed to the Sweet Sixteen!!

Rock Chalk, baby!!

a bug birthday party {part 2}

We loved hanging out with all our new insect, spider, and four-legged friends! Here are some more snapshots from the party...

 the kids getting ready to make some "goo"

 there was a super-cute 17 week old PIG wandering around... it is bottle-fed (every 2 hrs!!) and its name is Baby... of course NOT after baby-back ribs or anything ;)

 Amy loved, loved, loved the pig!

 the birthday friends!

 G & C got to make cockroach art. The Bug Lady dipped the Madagascar Hissing Cockroaches into paint, and then they ran around on the boys' canvases. So fun!!

Grayson holding a crayfish!

Happy {bug} birthday to the boys!! A fun afternoon was had by all.

a bug birthday party {part 1}

We celebrated Grayson and Carter's close-together birthdays with a party at the Bug Lady's Science Academy. It was a fun time of touching bugs and learning about animals... both for the kids and the adults!

 Grayson holding a Madagascar Hissing Cockroach

 Carter loved the stuffed iguana!

 But, the real iguana was on the loose in the party area when we arrived :)

 Henry the dog just hung out with the kids during the presentation

 a tarantula up close!!

 Aunt Laura had to dip her hand in a bucket full of cockroaches :)

 Chad had a BIG bug on his back!

 the millipede up close... so many legs!!

 Amy got to hold the hairless rat... ewww!

 Singing "Happy Birthday" to the boys!!

And then we all ate cupcakes with dirt and worms. Perfect!

More pics to come...

Happy {seventh} birthday, Grayson!

Grayson turned 7 today! I still remember the day of his birth so well.

It was a really, really long day. I was in labor for 26 hours, and then he was born via C-section.

What a way to go.

By that point, I didn't care. At all. Just wanted him OUT!!! :)

My OB kept saying... "I think he's a big baby. Bigger than we thought."

And, he was! My firstborn weighed in at a hefty 8 pounds and 14 ounces.

Oh yeah.

And I'm five-foot-one. :)

We had no idea the blessings, laughter, joy, tears, and love our sweet Grayson would bring into our lives. I can't imagine life without him.

So, as we were eating dinner tonight, he asked me what I was going to write about him for his birthday blog. Of course, the firstborn, the planner... is thinking about what comes next. :)

Some fun Grayson facts:

His current favorite hobby is doing Legos.

He has a whole Lego city built in our basement!

He loves, loves, loves soccer.

He just finished his indoor season and is about to play outdoors again.

He loves Jesus and knows lots of Bible verses.

His favorite subjects in school are reading and phonics. He also likes PE. ;)

He loves riding his bike, being outdoors, talking about hunting with Jerry.

He loves animals and bugs, and is having a bug birthday party.

He is a great big brother to Carter -- usually very patient.

He calls himself "GSP" -- Grayson Samuel Pointer (like a hunting dog). Oh my.

He is so stinkin' skinny... I think I can count all his ribs.

He is constantly on the move... running, jumping, climbing, and chasing balls.

Happy birthday, Grayson Samuel. We love you LOTS!!