Hello! We had a great day today. Nick and I got a little too much sun, Caroline got her hair wrapped, and we took our first nap. Other than that we swam all day in the big pool. So much for that rest and relaxation I had planned on and those 4 books I planned on reading. I got the disc made tonight so I have pictures they are self explanatory.

Florida fun

Sorry for the delay in posting. I still haven't found the cord that goes to my camera to download my pics to my computer. So I don't have any pics.

The kids have grown fins and gills. They have amazed John and me. They are jumping in with no fear and swimming to the side. I wish I had a video camera bc a picture would not do it justice. So much for my relaxing vacation (with my 4 books) by the kiddie pool. We were in the kiddie pool for a total of about an hour yesterday and the rest of the time in the big pool. I think pool life has forever changed. Just another sign they are growing up.

We have been keeping late hours so I have been letting them sleep in the morning. So it is about 10 or 11 before we get up and ready and out to the pool. It is hard to get 2 kids to go to sleep when your all in the same room. So John and Nick are sleeping in one bed and Caroline and me are sleeping in the other, which are a total of 4in (and I am not kidding) apart. We literally can hold hands across the gap.

OTher than swimming the only other thing we have done was go to downtown disney. They have an area that is geared towards kids. The kids loved that. Nick used his money to buy "Mack Truck" from the movie Cars. He has had more fun with it. Caroline bought princess that are like fashion pollys. They had the neatest toy store ever. You could build your own Mr. or Mrs. Potato Head, My LIttle Pony, Make Goof Candy., Princess crowns, and really cool stuff like that. They had a lego store that had an entire wall from top to bottom full of bins and you could fill your bucket up with as many legos as you could get to fit for a certain price. Outside they had a playground and an area where you play and build with legos. It was just really neat. We might go back tonight.

We miss everyone, but we are having fun. John started his meetings yesterday, but he is enjoying is first vacation as a father. I'm hoping bedtime will be a little easier when we get to the beach and we can sit on the balcony while the kids go to sleep or in the other room. In this hotel room you are right on top of each other. The kids are enjoying getting to sleep with us instead of each other.

That is all for now. I'm going to try to get a disc tonight so if I do I will update tonight and add some pictures.

We're here!

WE are finally here thank goodness. It was a very long, challenging journey. We arrived at Aunt Carol's about 1:oopm on Sat. We visited with her until 4:00 then headed to Orlando. We arrived here around 8:00 due to my bad directions. The hotel is very nice. We brought our stuff to the room and headed straight to the pool. The kids love it.

They have 3 pools, a slide, and hot tub. Caroline suprised both of us by jumping in the 3ft pool (not the kiddie pool) and swimming to the side. Not to be stopped and Nick was close behind. So I don't know how many lazy days hanging around the kiddie pool I will have. Oh well, my babies have officially grown up in the last 24 hours.

I don't have any pictures tonight bc I can't find the cord that connects to the computer. So, I will look for it and hopefully add pictures tomorrow.

We hope everyone at home is doing good. We miss you and will talk to you soon.

Vacation!

This is probably our last post before we leave for vacation. It has been very busy around here trying to get some work stuff done and get stuff ready for vacation. We have never been on vacation as a family before so it has been a little overwhelming to decide what we need and what we don't. I have been operating at danger stress levels.

The kids are very excited about vacation. John has a conference in Orlando so we are tagging along for that, then we are going to Panama City to play at the beach for the rest of our time. We leave Friday afternoon and won't return until the next Sunday. I hope everyone is happy and safe while we are gone. We will miss everyone and I'm sure we will be glad to get home when the time comes. But right now the kids can't wait to see the ocean, play in the sand, see Aunt Carol, and see some dolphins, whales, fish and that kind of stuff. We are lucky enough to be there on Aunt Carols Birthday, which will be lots of fun. We will be safe and see you when we get back.

Here are a couple of pics from today.

The kids are making shoebox oceans!

We are studying oceans and what lives in them right now due to our upcoming vacation.

Here is my cool dude on third base tonight at tball practice!

Our first sleepover!

Ok Nana/Aunt Carol here you go!

We visited in L'burg on Sunday and came home with a guest...Skylar. The kids have been so excited. The girls giggled until about midnight. So I ended up on the blow up mattress between them until I was awaken at 4:00am. Needless to say I didn't get the best nights sleep. We headed out this morning to run a few errands and then went to the pool. They have been very good and enjoyed each other very much.
Enjoy the pictures!es.

I took the kids to the radio controlled air show on Sunday. Nick was amazed. Actually, it was very awesome. The pilots were all over the USA and competed in competitions. The tricks they did were astounding. Nick couldn't wait for me to put these pictures on here. So enjoy them. This one went 300mph! It was awesome as Nick would say

Here are my gorgeous babies! Yes, Nick is wearing Big, brown, girl sunglasses, but I think he wears them well. I forgot his and he couldn't see so we wore mine. I could post pics all night bc he made me take pictures of every plane and helicopter. It was a great time. We will definitely go back next year. Caroline enjoyed the first couple of planes then she sat behind us and played in the rocks.

Nick in the outfield
Nick batting....He hit the only ball that went up in the air and past the pitcher mound.
team pledge before game.
Check out the sisterly love!
look at my boy for his 1st t ball game!
oops! suit malfunction!
Can this boy swim or what?
Ok, sorry it has taken so long to get these on here. It has been a long weekend. Hope you enjoy.

The pool is not the same without popsicles!



ok. as you can see it was a very busy weekend. On Sunday I took the kids to the radio control air show. They loved it. I was very impressed too. I will post those pics tomorrow. It won't let me post anymore tonight. These are from pool and Nick's 1st tball game. He did great at the game. It was very funny, cute, and enjoyable. He can't wait to the next one. Hope everyone had a great weekend.

Happy Memorial Day!

Another great day here! We painted the potting bench and sealed it, John cleaned the gutters, We went several places looking for a runner to go inthe living room to help keep the carpet a little cleaner, then headed to the pool. It was very hot today. But we had fun. Nick nearly took out a couple moms with his killer soccer kick. We had to put the ball up for a while. He almost went off the diving board today. He made it out to the end, but wouldn't jump.

Here is a picture of my potting bench. It was a stained wood I sanded and stained green. It is a little dark. I'm hoping it will lighten up after it sits. Hope you like it.

PS the bunnies are on the way out....they peed, yes you read that right, on Nick's geegie (blanket) which was on my couch. I posted them on the loop tonight to sale them and Nick's blanket is in the process of being disinfected, much to his disappointment. CAn you believe it? I am sooooo mad. We are taking up the Dean, Barfield, Uhls family motto...ONLY FISH. And Yes DD and Mel have and are expected to smack me if I even act like I want an animal.

Oh I forgot we have algae know so we can get an algae eater. The kids are excited about that. They like the way they stick to the glass.

SO much for my rambling. Hope you had a great weekend.

Just like I promised pool pictures. We had another great day at the pool. We shampooed the carpet in the living room, sanded my potting bench outside, and set up the sandbox (an idea we borrowed from Uncle Jason) for Caroline. John golfed this morning shooting a 72. He was very happy with his score. We met up at home and headed for the pool. Doug met us there. We are in for more of the same tomorrow. Chores in the morning and pool in the afternoon. Hope everyone is having a great weekend.

Here is the sandbox. I thought Caroline would drive me crazy before I got it set up. Nick helped me get if from the back of the yard to the deck. We borrowed the idea of putting it up on containers from Uncle Jason. Caroline loves being able to stand and play in it. Normally, Nick would sit in the box and she wouldn't have room to play. So now they can both play.

This is Caroline playing in the pool. She was throwing diving sticks and then diving for them. Isn't she too cute?


This is Nick trying to catch a ball John is trying to throw to him. This picture cracks me up. It is so Nick...look at that face.

We love you all!

Pool...Pool...Pool...Yes I sat my behind in a chair with a book beside the pool for about 4 hours today. It is what the kids and I have been waiting 2 months for. We were all so excited and we enjoyed it so much. But Like a big dummy...I got the camera so I don't have pictures.
we are going back tomorrow so I will take some then. We are also doing lots around the house, shampooing carpets, landscaping, staining, working on the fish tank. STuff like that.

That is what is going on here. I hope everyone has a safe and happy holiday weekend. I will take pics and post again tomorrow. We love you all.

PS Aunt Carol I know the only reason you haven't called is because Danny didn't tell you I called 3 days ago?????? I wanted to make sure you saw the pics from recital. When you get a chance give us a call.

Dance recital

The cutest DANCER ever!!!! John and I are so proud of our little dancer. She sang every word and did almost every move. She had her own little fan club there. Nick was sitting in John's lap during the performance and kept calling "wowine", there's wowine. After the performance I picked her up in the dressing room and Nick met us in the hall way, ran up to her and said "Wowine, did you have fun?" It was too cute. She was all smiles. We are all exhausted today. It was a very busy week trying to get everyone ready for recital and Nick's Tball pictures.

Enjoy the pictures! They are great!
Sorry the this is late. The blog wouldn't let me put the pics on. I hope it was worth the wait.

Well, recital is here. We have successfully completed dress rehersal. She looked beautiful. She was scared and lets say she danced a ....little.
This is her friend Lindsay!
She is very excited. As I write this she is having trouble sleeping because she is so excited. I hope you enjoy the pictures of her getting ready and of rehersal. I was so overcome with emotion I didn't take many pictures. I can't believe my baby girl is old enough to be dancing on stage, wearing makeup, and being anxious about an event. It has been a very emotional week and I haven't even gotten to Nick yet.

Now for Nick. He had T ball picture taken today. He is so very excited about playing. All he does is practice. As soon as he gets up he ask if he can go out and hit balls. They took team pictures and individuals. He did great on both. His team is very cute. There is another little boy on his team that is a twin with a sister. The only difference is he is 5. Nick is very excited about that too. When we got home from pictures today he told Caroline all about it. Then John when he got home from golf.

It is fun to watch them both to be so excited about something. I has been a very hard mom week. My babies are growing up to fast. My emotions are sky high. DD I know you can appreciate that with your pregnancy hormones. This feels sort of similar. I just know I will cry just like a fool tomorrow when she is on that stage doing her thing. My babies are growing up.

I will post tomorrow after recital. Enjoy these. Miss you all!

First T Ball practice

Nick had his first t ball practice tonight. He was so pumped up all day! John even got home early from work so we could eat and head to practice. Here is a picture of Nick before we left with his bat, tshirt, and hat. Look at that smile. The other pictures are from practice. Nick did great. John decided Nick and Michael are the best on the team. All the kids had trouble catching the ball and most had trouble hitting off the tee. It was fun to watch. Caroline had a little jealousy trouble. When practice started she cried for John. John is helping coach and she couldn't understand why daddy couldn't hold her. Then started again because she wanted to play with Nick. Who knows....you don't have to ask. Before practice started she wasn't paying any attention to them just playing in the grass.

We finally got the house clean. So, as I go to sleep tonight I can say my whole house is clean even (especially) the basement. Whoo Hoo! All that we have to do tomorrow is go to the grocery and the pet store. I will update after Caroline's dress rehersal on Friday. Hope everyone is doing good.

Love and miss you!

Happy Mother's Day to all! We have had a great weekend. To check everyone up...Caroline had her last dance class on Saturday. Recital is this Sunday. Nick had his team meeting for tball. He is soooooo excited. We stopped on the way home to get all the neccessary attire. Uncle Jason will be very impressed and excited. he hits down the line off the tee and can run pretty fast. Still needs work on throwing and catching ball, but we haven't had our first practice yet. Practice starts this wednesday. Here is a pic of him with his new equipment.

I had a great Mother's Day. It was very calm and no running. Just taking it easy. John had a great gift idea this year. The kids and him made this stepping stone for me. Isn't it great?

I hope to see most of you this week. I might not get a post this week it will be very busy here. I hope you all have a good week.

It has been an exciting couple of days here. Our hamster Ally has gone to a new home and we purchased a fish tank. It is in Nick's room and both kids are very excited. It took 3 trips for Nick to find just the right decorations. I don't know if you can see them, but we have 4 fish. They are supposed to be good for starting your cycle. We'll see how we do. They are not dead yet.

We made it through derby. John won $400 nobody else did any good. We had some friends over and the kids played outside all day.

Ok...here are my crazy kids putting a new spin on the term "doo rag". John had them helping him put up clean clothes and they decided to put Nick's underwear on their heads. I really wonder where they come up with the stuff they do.

Not much else going on here. Caroline's dance recital is next weekend so we are getting ready for that. Nick's t-ball orientation is Saturday. He gets to meet his teamates and coach. I can not tell you how excited he is. He keeps asking everyday when he gets to play. I"m sure there will be lots of pictures and talk of t-ball in the future.

Enjoy the pictures. Talk to you soon.

PS we want to say congratulations to DeeDee and Steve on the upcoming arrival of their 4th baby girl Sara Kate. We can't wait to see them when they visit in July.

Hope everyone had a great day! We had a good one here. We ran a couple of errands, came home and planted some flowers, rode bikes, took a nap, then went back outside for more planting. Grandma was here for a little while. After dinner we went back outside. Lots of outside today it was beautiful today.

I got a couple of good pics today. This one is Nick playing fireman this morning! The other is Caroline taking a nap in the closet. I went to check on her and couldn't find her. I happened to check the closet and there she was. Now she wants to sleep there tonight. Craziness. Enjoy!