Farm Day

Today we decided to head to Folkston, GA with our friends Mrs. Ashley and Ava and Bryce. We had no idea what to expect and boy were we pleasantly surprised! Ashley's in-laws have a beautiful vineyard and farm. Emma loved visiting all the animals and spending some time with her pals!

First stop: The new puppies! Emma fell in love with them and one of the pups especially loved Em!

It was love at first lick!

Then on to the horses which were absolutely beautiful! Emma was amazed by them and she wasn't scared at all! Of course Ava and Bryce are old pros with the horses so I think Emma followed their lead!

Mr. Kriner let the girls feed the gorgeous horses some treats. Emma was a little hesitant about letting them eat out of her hand but she had no problem tossing them!

This is the best we could do with the 3 of them! It's certainly a task to get one to be still, never mind 3! They are some precious animal-loving babies!

After playing outside for a bit we all went inside to enjoy some yummy southern cooking thanks to Mrs. Kriner. I felt like I was back in NC with my fabulous family! We enjoyed ourselves so much and are so grateful to Ashley, the girls, and Mr. and Mrs. Kriner for having us over! We had such a great time! We still haven't stopped talking about it!

Valentine's Playdate

We had our Valentine's Playdate at Deanna's house and we had a blast! The kids were able to play in the backyard that is better equipped than most playgrounds! Emma loved the swing and the trampoline!

Each of the Mommies brought something for the kids and Ms. Sarah brought the Mom's some yummy stuffed shells! We all ate way too much but it was so good and so much fun!



Yummy!

Brycie enjoying the swing set! I'm getting more and more smiles out of this one! Yay!

All the kiddos! Walker, Gabe, Griffin, Madeline, Kate (holding Madeline), Emma, Ava, Big Emma, and Bryce.

Thanks Deanna for hosting such a wonderful playdate! The goody bags were precious and we always love your crafty ideas! Emma has her "flower arrangement" on her bookcase! We can't wait until the St. Patrick's Day playdate!

Valentine's Day

Emma woke us early Valentine's morning ready for a day of fun! This was her 2nd Valentines Day and it was very exciting for us because her Daddy was deployed on V-Day last year. So I decided ahead of time that I was going to have very little rules for the day and just let her enjoy herself!

She began the day by munching on some grits (that's our country girl!) and playing in Maddie's water bowl. What a combo! (And yes, there are 2 hairbows in her hair. We have to do what we can when it's time to eat or else she has food ALL in her hair!)

I then made a yummy breakfast of heart-shaped french toast! I was so proud of myself because I am definitely NO Betty Crocker! Richard and Emma loved them!

Then it was time to play outside! Although it was rainy and chilly, Emma had a blast playing with her bubbles and picking the flowers!

After a drizzle she saw the rain coming down from the gutters. This fascinated her to no end. Here she's trying to fill up a popsicle wrapper with the water.

And after she discovers that she can fill up Maddie's water bown from the drain she's super excited to chase Maddie around and force her to drink the drian water! So cute!

She loved watching the birds fly around between showers, so...

...she and her Daddy decided to feed the birds! They got the birdseed and after making some fun crafty birdseed things, she threw the remainder of the seeds in the marsh behind our house.

This was a fabulous, low-key Valentine's Day and we wouldn't have wanted it any other way. We enjoyed some steaks and sushi for dinner (thanks Richard!) and hung out together for the evening. Emma was such a mess after her day playing in the mud...and super exhausted. I can only hope to have many, many more precious, priceless Valentine's holidays in the future!

Zoo Time!!!

Last weekend, Emma's Grandma Rita, Great-Aunt Kimmie, and Aunt Wee-Wee came for a visit! On Saturday we were so excited that the weather was perfect for a visit to The Jacksonville Zoo! So we all loaded up to go see the animals!!!

Emma loved posing on the concrete alligator but she wasn't such a big fan of the real thing! Most of them remained under water so Emma couldn't really figure out what we were all staring at! So she just hung out with the safe alligator!

Emma certainly enjoyed petting the baby llama's (is that what these things are?) In this picture she was giving one a kiss! I'm sure that was sanitary. Needless to say, she washed her hands very well after this stop!

Next, it's time for a Carousel Ride...or not. Emma screamed wanting to ride so Richard put her on the zebra and when it came time for her to be strapped in, she was done. They issued a refund and we were on our way. No carousel ride for Em! But you'd never know it looking at the picture!

And who could pass up the photo op with the gorilla? Emma kissed him also!

This turned out to be a classic. As we were leaving the park I realized that I didn't have any pictures of Em with her Gma and Aunt Kim! So...I quickly turned around and yelled "FREEZE" and this is what I got. Who knew that Emma knew what that meant!

We had a blast with our family and we can't wait for everyone to come visit us this spring and summer!

She's a Natural!!!

Yesterday after Book Babies, Ashley and I decided to take the girls to the Mommy and Me Gymnastics class at the Rec Center here in Kingsland. The girls had a blast and aside from a few minor setbacks, a great time was had by all!

Of course, I'm partial to gymnastics for Emma and I think she did a fantastic job! Ava and Bryce also had a blast! Ashley and I had as much of a workout as they did!

Emma LOVED the rings and was just swinging away! She stayed on them until her little knuckles were turning white!

Still swinging...

I think she's looking at Ashley like "Hey Mrs. Ashley, are you getting a good picture of this?"

Emma and Bryce just tried out the balance beam and neither of them were impressed. They look like they are chatting about how much they disliked the beams! Maybe next time, girls!