They're Coming . . . . . .

Nan, Harper, and Gram

April, 2009

Harper and Reese, brace yourselves. The Grands are coming! We are in preparation for a VERY big week around here. Harper knows that her Nan and Liz, and Gram and Papa are heading down tomorrow and she can hardly sleep. She is anticipating trips to Target, chocolate milk, and tons of fun. Reese is excited to get to know her Aunt Liz a bit better, seeing that she last saw her in NOVEMBER!

We can't wait for the Laughlin family to stop in, Pops to join us next weekend, and maybe even a few more visitors (ahem, Wilsons, Mr. Corn, etc.). Everyone will be anxiously awaiting Cash's debut on Monday, and he will come home to a house full of fun. Hurry on down everyone!

A Few of My Favorite Things . . .

Ok, so I have been feeling like absolute DEATH for the past few days. I thought I had the flu, but the test was negative. As I am only 4 days away from giving birth to sweet Cash, I decided that I need to look on the bright side of things. I know I'm no Oprah, but this is my FAVORITE THINGS blog entry! WHOOO! Ahem, so let me explain.

These brownies are the absolute best thing that ever happened to me. I'm no organic earth mother who bakes from scratch, so this box is like a little bit of heaven. Not to mention, they were on sale at the Winn-Dixie! Try them with a scoop of mint chocolate chip ice cream.

As I mentioned, I am VERY pregnant and REALLY not feeling so well. Tylenol PM (or the Walgreens equivalent pictured here) has been my BFF. I might have inherited the habit from Nan, but boy are these things magical. Sleep, here I come!

This is Cash's sweet new "diaper bag". It is manly, rugged, and his dad even likes it! Thanks to Nan and Pops for this little jewel. BTW- it's the Land's End Lighthouse Zip Top Tote Bag and it is made of durable water resistant "man" material. Check it out!

Of COURSE my little dears are some of my favorite things. This was last Sunday and Harper was enjoying her first EVER ice cream cone. How did we make it this long? I couldn't tell ya. She was thrilled, to say the least.

This is Reesey and her sneaky face. I just love those cheeks!

Soooo, those are some of my favorite things at this moment. What are yours? Any other boxed brownie mixes I should know about?

**Disclaimer- all photos are from my phone. Sorry for the quality.

Why We Love Our Dad

Hey guys! It's Harper and Reese here. We speak on behalf of Cash too. Since Father's Day is tomorrow and our daddy is off on a wild west adventure, we just wanted EVERYONE to know why our dad is just the best. In David Letterman style- here are our Top 10 reasons.

1. He takes us on special father/daughter days to the movies and Chuck-E-Cheese and to eat pancakes and other fun stuff.

2. He plays his guitar for us and we dance and play and love it.

3. He is the BEST gift giver. He gives us things like watches and zebras and harmonicas and pink monkeys.

4. He loves our mommy- even when she is pregnant and crazy. He must REALLY love her.

5. He works hard to make sure we have a soft bed to sleep in, a roof over our heads, and all the Yankees hats we could ever want.

6. He loves Jesus and works hard so that all the high school kids we know will love Jesus too.

7. He does a GREAT Elmo voice that makes us giggle.

8. He does a wonderful job of fixing our hair and even putting bows in it. Not EVERY daddy has that talent- you know!

9. He wakes us up and gets us ready every morning while mommy is getting ready for work. Not EVERY daddy has that talent either.

10. He loves us UNCONDITIONALLY. Through our tantrums and tears, through our giggles and grins- he shows us love EVERY SINGLE DAY.

Here are some pictures of us with our daddy, in case you forgot how cute we were.

Chad and Harper at the glorious University of Oklahoma

December 2006

Swinging Harper in the front yard

February 2007

Holding newborn Reese

April 2008

Holding newborn Harper

September 2006

Chad and Reese at the Smith's farm

April 2008

Silly Faces at E.A. Prom

May 2009

Chad and ALL of his girls

August 2008

Dad and his little girls

August 2008

We love you Daddy! Happy Father's Day!

Workin' at the Carwash!

It's HOT here. I know it is June and I know EVERYONE who lives in the Southeast feels like where they live is the HOTTEST. All I know is that it is H-O-T here. We are doing whatever we can to stay cool. Chad needed to wash the car last week so we donned our "babin suits" (as Harper calls them) and decided to help. Harper was REALLY into scrubbing the bugs off the front of the car. She was great! Reese just wanted to climb into the bucket of soapy water- don't worry mom, I didn't let her. Anyhow, I documented our fun. As for the video, I must say that this is something Harper learned at daycare. I wish I could take credit for her dancing abilities, but we all know that's not the case. Enjoy!

Harper splashed more soapy water on herself than the car.

Reese was keeping Chad company

She's working so diligently- she's her father's child.

She had a bit of an impromptu dance party too. You just never know with this girl.

Sweet dance moves.

Yes, she's doing the Stanky Leg. She just does it briefly at the beginning, so you may have to watch it more than once to catch it. She's the best.

Dearest Dad

Since Father's Day is Sunday, I thought I would dedicate this blog to my dear dad- Bill Bryan. Since having grandchildren, he is now affectionately known as Pops.

I know I am probably a LITTLE bit partial, but I'm pretty sure that my dad is the best dad in the world. Not only did he survive living in a house full of women, but he provided (and still does) the services of a handyman, a coach, a counselor, a driver's ed teacher, a referee, and much more. He put up with nose rings, running late, strange boyfriends (my sister's), numerous wrecks/tickets (mine), and he still loved us unconditionally.

Some of my fondest memories are of the Father/Daughter trips that my dad took Liz and I on during our formative years. We went camping, canoeing, biking, hiking, ropes-coursing, skiing, and loved every minute of it. He instilled a spirit of adventure, confidence, and independence in me that makes me the woman I am today. He has been the portrait of a loving father that I know my husband strives to emulate.

Here are some photos that capture the essence of Pops. Some were scanned, mind you- sorry about the quality!

Father's Day 1990

Liz and I look thrilled and my dad has on some SWEET shorts

Rocky Mountain National Park- 2000

Destin, Florida- 2002

My wedding day- 2004

Harper and Pops- 2008

Dad, you are a Godly man who has taught me more than you could EVER imagine. You are the best Pops a girl could have. I love you up to the moon! Happy Father's Day!

The New Baby

NO NO NO- Cash has not made his debut yet. We are welcoming another new baby to our family in the form of a car. We have been doing the one-car-family thing for a while now, and we know that it won't last much longer (especially when we move in July). In an attempt to be thrifty, Chad has been on the hunt for some older model cars that we could just buy. Well, he found his new man-mobile in a 1985 Toyota FJ60 Landcruiser. What's the catch you say? Oh, it's located in Montana.

At 5:00 a.m this morning we loaded up the car, drove Chad to the Pensacola airport, and sent him on his way to Montana. He'll take the next few days to drive his new baby across the country (it tops out at 65 mph, mind you) and hopefully find us a place to live in Manhattan, KS along the way. I'm REALLY excited to hear all about his adventure, but I do hope our other new baby doesn't decide to appear before his dad returns!

The Music Man

Harper absolutely LOVES for Chad to play his guitar for her. She will just sit and listen in total awe and wonder. Reese has started to enjoy it as well, and she'll even throw in a few dance moves.

Anyhow, we were riding in the car and listening to the ole ipod. Harper pointed out, "Ohh, that's a harmonica." How does she know what a harmonica is, you might ask? We don't know. So, of course the first thing that Chad decides is that this child needs a harmonica. The rest is history. The little girl LOVES making some music with her daddy. They laid down a track on the computer and I captured some video footage while they were working it out. Enjoy!

Disclaimer: pay no attention to Chad's "Cash stache". He says he shall grow the piece of art until Baby Cash arrives. Why, you ask? No one knows for certain.

FOR SALE

Well, it is official that our first home is now for sale. It has been SUCH a great little house for us and even though we jumped into buying it without much knowledge/thought, we have loved our little 1940's home. My reasons for putting up pics* of our house are two-fold. 1) Some of you have never even seen where we live and might enjoy the voyeuristic peek inside and B) Some of you HAVE seen where we live and would like to see the fun changes we've made.

We had two solid weeks of MAJOR work (which was not fun for a giant pregnant girl like myself), but it is completed now and ready** for a buyer. Do you know anyone in Atmore, AL who needs a cute 3/1 with a lovely sun porch, laundry room, fenced backyard, LOTS of charm, and on a corner lot? Let me know.

View from the corner and our cutesy "porch"

Den

Den/Hallway/Beginning of Dining Room

Dining Room

One side of the kitchen

Sun Porch

(Chad was reluctant about my "pumpkin" paint choice, but I still stand by it.)

Harper's big girl room

(minus a plethora of toys)

Sweet Reese's room

Master bedroom

Teeny Tiny Bath

This jewel was totally gutted (down to the studs) by my husband and completely redone all in about 1.5 years!

We'll miss you 708!

*Please keep in mind that these photos are not indicitive of my photographic ability- I was in a hurry.

**We moved several pieces of furniture and "stuff" into storage, so the house would look more spacious (and a bit sparse if you ask me!).

As Seen on TV

Well, have you seen the sweet infomercial for the Jack LaLaine Power Juicer?  If not, then you are really missing out.  We happened to see it one Sunday morning and we were instantly mesmerized by it's juicing capabilities.  Now, don't get the wrong idea.  We didn't call up and agree to pay 4 easy payments of $29.95.  Instead, we got it for next to NOTHING at our favorite Atmore shopping destination- Dirt Cheap.  Yep, it's a real store.  They get slightly damaged or maybe just overstocked items from stores like Target, Kohls, Old Navy, Lands End, and much more.  It is the greatest place EVER, if you are willing to go on a bit of a treasure hunt.  They are owned by the Hudson family of stores, which you can find all over southern MS/AL.  Anyhow, that's just a side note!

So, Harper REALLY loves to get in on the juicing action and make it quite a family event.  We have made some wonderful juices and it feels just a tiny bit healthier than the Country Time lemonade we've been throwing back.  Ok, so here are some photos of our recent juicing venture.

Strawberries and blueberries are a must, along with oranges, pineapple, and apples.  Mmmmmm.

So focused and intense

It's almost ready!

Tasting the final product. . . .

Ahh, delicious.  

Harper's quote of the night was, "Daddy, it's so good it's like chocolate."

Girl after my own heart.