Summertime!

Since I am a self-proclaimed "worst blogger ever", I will go ahead and once again let this post be a free for all catch up post.

My baby is growing up...18 months old now. He's saying new words everyday and trying his hardest to keep up with his big brother.
We celebrated Dave's birthday. The boys and I decided to decorate the house before Daddy came home from work. We blew up (or I did) a whole bag of balloons and put them all over the house with a big Happy Birthday Banner. T was so excited for him to get home. Tripp picked out hand cuffs and a police badge from the dollar store for his birthday gift to Dad.

No cake for this Daddy, he's a cobbler man...this particular night was peach.

We met my brother and his family and one of Dave's sisters and her family at the lake for 4th of July. We had pool time and lake time and TONS of fun!
Judson, Corrie, Ellie, and Tripp.
Cullen , Chapman, and Josiah having a pool snack.
Jud and Trip are still BFF and cousins :)
The Sachs/Corrie clan on the Fourth!

My little chunky monkey! It was HOT and he miserable! Maybe just maybe I'll get my act together and post some more summer fun before Fall ;)

This and That

We've been busy since the Tornado...but thankfully with fun things!

Tripp turned four and we celebrated with a splash party in the backyard complete with a huge water slide and baby pools for splashing.

It got a bit muddy in our backyard that struggles to grow grass :)

AND I got to go to the beach with one of my very best friends and all of her best friends for her birthday!

Me and the birthday girl, Georgi!

And I saved the best for last...we celebrated the most special man in our lives with his favorite breakfast. My husband is THE best daddy and the most selfless, loving husband. Happy Father's Day Dave...my Daddy would be so proud :) We love you!

Tornado 2011

As most of you know, on the morning of April 27th (Tripp's 4th Birthday) horrific tornadoes ripped throughout the south. One of those tornadoes hit my mother's home, my childhood home. My mom was home at the time and by the grace of God was unharmed by the damage. However, the house is unrecognizable. David and I spent the last two weeks helping my mom move into a rental house and salvage what we could from her home. I am heartbroken for the families who lost loved ones. We have lost something that is material and can be rebuilt. New memories will be made. Please continue to pray for those who are mourning the loss of family and friends. God be with them.

Mom's house is under those trees

The living room.

That is where Cord's bedroom used to be.

The porch and living room from the outside.

Cord's bedroom...his bed is underneath all of the debris

Action shot of my husband. He and my brother worked their tales off getting the 34+ trees off of the house along with the other workers. There were more than 100 trees down on and around my Mom's house. There are NO more trees left on my mom's property. So sad. It literally looks like a war zone. Again, we are so thankful for God's grace and mercy during this time. I took over a 100 pictures, but they all start to look the same after a while, so I just posted a few.

It's been long enough...

Last week we headed to Guntersville to spend my nieces and nephews spring break with them. They drove down from Southern Indiana and we all got together for some long overdue family time. There were so many kids and I honestly couldn't tell you how many there were. Each of them brought a friend along for the trip. The more the merrier, right? David's sisters Jennie and Valerie were there with their families. Shout out to Lisa and the Russell family who we missed terribly! Tripp had THE best time and soaked up every single minute with his cousins. The weather was not perfect, but even overcast, rainy days are beautiful when you are at the lake.

Tripp and Landry are BEST cousins! They get along so well and love each other so much.

Some of the kiddos after dinner out one night. I think we had a table for 20!

Cullen got some major lovin from his Aunts and cousins. He's pretty happy in this picture because he got a sucker from Uncle Tim...his very first sucker. He's so stinkin cute I can hardly stand it!

With older cousins comes built in babysitters! The adults even got away for a night out...Sushi at Surin...yum!

My two favorite Mama's in the whole wide world. Milma and MiMi you are loved by so many!

David and Tim's idea of posing for a picture:)

The mornings were cool, so Dave and the boys would have a warm fire in the fireplace waiting for me!

This is how we feed the masses at Milma's house. Buffet style not lacking in flavor...ever!! Prime Rib, mashed potatoes and gravy, macaroni and cheese, and Strawberry Salad. Divine!

I hope we can get up to Indiana very soon...we already miss everyone so much!

Stone Mountain, GA

We had a wonderful day hiking Stone Mountain this weekend. The weather was overcast and cool, but not too cold. Tripp had a blast running free, climbing rocks, and being in "outer space"! Ha, that's what he said when we got to he top of the mountain, "are we in outer space now"! He also said, "I can see the whole world now"! I love that kid. There is never a dull moment with him around and I love it that way!

Little brother made the trip too! He was content hanging out in the pack all day!

On top of the world!

Hiking back down the mountain. Cullen still in tow...

Tripper found a good resting spot!

Family

A few weeks ago when I ran my marathon, we stayed with my brother and his family. We love going to Birmingham to be with them. With there 5 children and my two, there is never a dull moment. It's managed chaos as my mother likes to say:) We wouldn't have it any other way. And believe it or not, we sometimes combine my side of the family with Dave's side of the family and we have 20 kiddos. Anyhow, this post will just be my side of the family.

Let me introduce you in case you don't know already. From left to right: Jeremiah, Uncle Cord, Josiah, Ellie, Judson, Heather Bear (that's what my boys call her) and Saddler Elizabeth! And we LOVE them!

I took this picture from the balcony. It makes me smile because they are all such good buddies and literally play for hours and hours.

We were at the park when most of these were taken. This little guy was having fun just pushing the strollers around.

After the park we headed out for pizza and ice cream...I could eat these three! By the way, can you tell we are Auburn fans...just wondering! War Eagle!

MY MARATHON

I'm sure if we are facebook friends, you know that I have been training for my first marathon. I am happy to say that on Sunday I completed 26.2 miles. I am overwhelmed with joy and lots of body pain;) Three weeks before my marathon, I injured my knee during training. I took the last two weeks of training off and was basically scared to death that all of the handwork during training was going to be for nothing. Around miles 19 and 20 my left knee was in excruciating pain and doubt started to creep into my mind that I wouldn't finish. I knew it would be by the grace of God if I was going to finish. I now understand to the fullest extent what they mean when they say that finishing a marathon boils down to a mental game! My husband met me at mile 25 and ran the rest of the way with me. Tears were streaming down my face when I saw him running towards me. My knee was in so much pain and I kept telling myself, "just get to your family and they'll pull you through". I knew that my family would be waiting for me at the finish line! I have the most supportive husband and family. It was one of the greatest moments of my life finishing this marathon. My time was 4 hrs. 30 min. 45 sec. to be exact!

My running partner Sharon. This is early in the race.

My amazing family that waited for me at the finish line...screaming their heads off. I love every single one of them to pieces!

After I came through the chute (the gates of the finish line) David was there to get me and literally hold m up because my knee was shot!

My little man, Tripp was so proud and excited!

I love my brother, he was so proud of me. One of the first things he said to me was, "Dad would be so proud of you"!

My family sacrificed a lot during my training, especially my husband...I am extremely grateful!

I'll leave you with my NASTY, GROSS feet! No pain, no gain!