Douberly Family Happenings

A surprise in the middle of Sacrament Meeting!

2012-01-04T21:38:00.000-07:00

What a way to start the new year! Jenna lost her very first tooth in the middle of Sacrament meeting! It's been loose for a very long time. It was barely hanging on and a friend of our told her to twist it! Pop! Just like that- out it came. I rushed her out of there pretty quickly but it was so loose it barely bled at all. She needed one drink and she was good to go! She's growing up so fast!

Happy New Year from the Douberlys!

2012-01-04T21:35:00.002-07:00

Stealing the Show!

2012-01-04T21:34:00.000-07:00

While in New Orleans we stopped to see some really great street performers. They told funny jokes, teased passers-by, and did some really amazing break dancing/crazy stunts with their bodies. When the show was nearly over they mentioned the beige bins at the front of the stage...that we could feel free to drop in a $5 or a $10. They had just carried the bins around the crowd and set them back down when Kelsey went over and took some money out of the in and brought it back to us. The people watching got the attention of the performers who laughed and said, "She must be a Republican!" You bet your bottom dollar she is!

An afternoon in the Big Easy!

2012-01-04T21:30:00.001-07:00

DANITA PAPPAS!

Danita has been my friend for nearly 25 years! Wow! She was spending a few days in New Orleans and I HAD to see her! It had been way too long. We met up at Cafe Du Monde and chowed on some yummy beignets. After our yummy snack we meandered around a bit and talked and had lots of laughs. It was a short little visit, but totally worth it! I love you, Danita!

I couldn't resist posting this...

2012-01-04T21:25:00.003-07:00

...she is just too cute! I love this photo of her!

Merry Christmas!

2012-01-04T21:24:00.000-07:00

Here are the troops on Christmas morning. They all had a wonderful Christmas. Thank you to Grandma Pat, Grandma Pamela and Aunt DeAnne for sending such wonderful presents. Everyone was so happy to give and to receive. The children love their new craft table. It's a hit! Dustin and I were also super spoiled- Dustin got a GPS enabled watch with heart moniter that tracks his running. He just plugs it into his computer when he gets home and it tracks distance, speed, length of time. It even puts up a google earth map of where he ran! It's pretty cool. Dustin got me a Kindle Fire which a absolutely LOVE! We hope you all had a wonderful Christmas, too!

Christmas Eve with the Douberlys

2012-01-04T21:14:00.002-07:00

The Release

2011-12-19T08:15:00.001-07:00

The weather here is lovely and even in December all of our high temps have been in the 60s and 70s. This means our butterflies could be released into the wild! We set them free this past Friday. It was neat to see them fly off. They were great little sports for Henry's project. Here's hoping they enjoy their last three weeks on the earth!

Henry's Science Project

2011-12-19T08:09:00.000-07:00

We had a lot of fun with Henry's science fair project this past month. Henry wanted to raise butterflies. We bought a kit online and got started. As we came to understand the rules more clearly (this is our first project) we realized Henry needed to "test" something and follow the scientific method. We found one idea online about testing whether the butterflies liked salty, sugar, or plain water but that wasn't very interesting. Then we had the idea of seeing which color flowers liked best. Once our butterflies emerged, Henry chose 3 different colored plants of the same type of flower and we created a butterfly habitat in their bathroom. Henry made observations at different times and charted where the butterflies were in the bathroom. While his hypothesis was wrong (he thought they would like the purple the best) he won 1st place in Botany for 4th grade and 1st place for Botany 4th/5th overall. He gets to go to the district fair next! Way to go, Henry!

All Lit Up!

2011-12-19T07:25:00.000-07:00

We finally got the Christmas lights up on December 12th! It's the first time we've seen this house in Christmas lights and we LOVE it! We didn't get it done last year, but we promised the children we would this year. We think it looks so pretty!

Our Famous Mississippian

2011-12-19T07:21:00.001-07:00

Earlier this month, Henry participated in a 4th Grade night of Famous Mississippians. The program started out with some fun songs and facts about the great state of Mississippi. Following this combined program, the students went back to their pods and created "wax museums" of famous Mississippians. Henry chose Fred Haise, the lunar module pilot on the Apollo 13 Space Mission. The children memorized a short narrative about their famous person and would recite it as each family came around to them. Ms. Schifano complimented Henry on having written one the longest narratives and memorizing it so thoroughly. She also liked his costume. We thought Hen did a fantastic job!

KELSEY!

2011-12-01T12:59:00.001-07:00

JENNA!

2011-12-01T12:53:00.001-07:00

JEFF!

2011-12-01T12:50:00.001-07:00

HENRY!

2011-12-01T12:49:00.001-07:00

A Thanksgiving Visit from Santa

2011-12-01T12:47:00.001-07:00

My sister-in-law works at the Mall taking photos of Santa! He stopped by on Thanksgiving and we had a lovely visit. Who knew Santa was retired Army? :)

Cousins!

2011-12-01T12:42:00.001-07:00

For Thanksgiving last week we packed up the van and headed to Montgomery, AL to see my brother Dennis and his family. We ate lots of yummy food, shared some good converstation, fixed part of Dennis' van, and the kids had fun staying up most of the night and goofing off with their cousins. We had a visit from Santa and took a walk to the park. It was a nice relaxing little break from reality!

Jenna's Preschool Thanksgiving Program

2011-12-01T12:39:00.001-07:00

Jenna's Thanksgiving program wasa absolutely adorable! The children learned and performed several super cute Thanksgiving songs and then we enjoyed a wonderful Thanksgiving feast together. Jenna's preschool is wonderful. She is learning so many wonderful things. She even came home today with her first little reader- in Preschool! I can hardly believe it! I have come to the conclusion that Preschool (half day, 5 days a week) is really the old Kindergarten!

North Bay Reading Fair

2011-12-01T12:35:00.001-07:00

Jeffrey chose the book "My New Boy" for this year's reading fair. It's a cute book written from the view point of a puppy who chooses a new boy and teaches him all kinds of things when really the boy is teaching the puppy lots of new things. We thought it would be cute to take photos of Jeff and Missy that looked just like the illustrations in the book. While we didn't win this year, we think it turned out really cute and Jeff got lots and lots of compliments on his board.

Camp Carnival Talent Show

2011-12-01T12:32:00.001-07:00

Jeff, Jenna, and Kelsey all participated in the Camp Carnival Talent Show. All three sang a song and they did a great job!

Camp Carnival

2011-12-01T12:27:00.001-07:00

The kids LOVED Camp Carnival!

We thought we would maybe use Camp in the evenings so that we could have a date each night, but the kids loved it so much they were in there all the time. They had so much fun. The ladies who worked in there were total angels. Erica, who is pictured with Jenna fell in love with our girls. She even got misty eyed when we said goodbye! We loved these ladies!

Let's Eat!

2011-12-01T12:20:00.001-07:00

There was a whole lot of eating going on! That's part of the fun! The kids had so much fun being able to choose what to eat all week long. There were lots of burgers and pizza and icecream, that's for sure. One morning we ate breakfast in the formal dining room. The boys thought it was so neat that they got a tiny chilled pitcher of milk for their cereal. So fancy!

Pool Time

2011-12-01T12:16:00.001-07:00

Second Stop: Cozumel, Mexico

2011-12-01T12:07:00.001-07:00

Dustin and I enjoyed Cozumel on our own and had a great time. We had asked the kids if they would rather go explore Mexico or go to Camp Carnival and they chose Camp! Yay for us! Dustin and I have been to Cozumel before, I've been there twice and we were not impressed. We decided to do something we've never done before on a cruise and rent a car to go exploring in. Usually I am too nervous to get very far from the ship. I am too afraid of being left behind. We found out we could drive all the way around the island in an hour and a half. We spent $55 and 3 hours and had a blast! The other side of the island, the one you don't see from the ship, is gorgeous! I've always spoken badly of Cozumel. I've been wrong! We went snorkeling and Dustin lost his wedding ring (again!) only this time he miraculously found it again! It was a beautiful day and I am so glad we were a little more adventurous this time.

Jenna & Kelsey at the Cenote

2011-12-01T12:05:00.001-07:00

The Cenote at Dzibilchaltun

2011-12-01T11:59:00.001-07:00

Add caption

These photos are from the cenote at Dzibilchaltun. A cenote is a natural sinkhole that reveals groundwater. They are fairly common on the Yucatan Peninsula. Not only was this a source of fresh water for the Mayan city, it was also used for human sacrifice. Now it is used a swimming hole and it was wonderful! After a long morning's walk it felt great!

Our Boys at the Ruins

2011-12-01T11:36:00.001-07:00

Our Girls at the Ruins

2011-12-01T11:34:00.001-07:00

Mom at the Ruins

2011-12-01T10:21:00.001-07:00

Dad at Dzibilchaltun

2011-12-01T10:18:00.001-07:00

Dzibilchaltun

2011-12-01T10:14:00.001-07:00

We had an amazing time touring the ruins at Dzibilchaltun! It took about 20 minutes from the cruise ship to the park by tour bus. On the way the tour guide talked and talked and talked. By the time we got to the park and he had tried to sell us some stuff we were kind of all talked out. We ditched the group and went exploring on our own. We were glad we did. We barely had time to see everything we wanted and take a dip in the cenote before it was time to get back on the bus. While we had an amazing adventure exploring this amazing site- we realized as we explored that we had no idea what we were really looking at! Oh well, we can look all that up later. We had so much fun it didn't really matter!

First Stop: Progreso, Mexico

2011-12-01T10:07:00.001-07:00

Here we are getting ready for our tour of the Mayan Ruins of Dzibilchaltun! We were so excited. The weather was perfect- not oo hot, not too cold. We knew a great day was ahead of us on the Yucatan Peninsula!

Well Dressed & Well Fed!

2011-12-01T09:59:00.001-07:00

Henry with the medal he won at Camp Carnival's Dance-Off! Way to move it, Henry!

Jenna & Jeff enjoying all the yummy bread!

Kelsey had a GREAT time at dinner!

Our Formal Night in the Dining Room

2011-12-01T09:50:00.001-07:00

On Formal Night we all ate together in the Main Dining room. The other nights we either let the kids eat with Camp Carnival or we got them their dinners and then took them to Camp. Dustin and I then enjoyed dinner together in the dining room. It was so nice to enjoy date after date while on the cruise. This night, however, was all about the family. We all enjoyed eating in the fancy dining room. The children used their best manners and were excited to order absolutely anything off the menu. They were so good. It was a wonderful meal!

The Girls on Formal Night

2011-12-01T09:47:00.001-07:00

The Boys on Formal Night

2011-12-01T09:44:00.001-07:00

Here we all are looking dapper in our formal attire. It was fun getting all dressed up for our fancy evening.

The Cutest Costume on the Ship!

2011-12-01T09:35:00.001-07:00

Kelsey Anne won the trophy for the cutest costume for the whole cruise! She did look stinkin' cute!

A Frightfully Fun Halloween!

2011-12-01T09:16:00.001-07:00

We had so much fun celebrating Halloween on the cruise. It required some extra packing, but it was worth it! The only sad thing was that security tried to confiscate Henry's proton pack. We had time so we asked if we could return it to the van rather than having them throw it away. (We were annoyed later on when we saw a grown-up whose proton pack made it thruogh security while our's had not!) Henry was of course pretty bummed but got over it pretty quickly as we boarded the ship. The children got to go trick or treating all over the ship after which we attended a Halloween Party with a costume contest and dancing.

Our Family Cruise!

2011-11-30T12:18:00.003-07:00

I have so many photos to post- it's crazy!

We took our first family cruise earlier this month and had an absolutely fabulous time! We sailed out of New Orleans on Halloween and sailed to Progreso, Mexico and then on to Cozumel, Mexico. We had so much fun. The kids keep saying they wished they had a time machine so that we could go back and do it all again! I was a little nervous about taking all the children, but I shouldn't have been. I can't wait to do it again!

Getting Ready for the Trunk or Treat!

2011-11-26T12:16:00.004-07:00

Henry as a Transformer!

Jeff as a Ninja!

Jenna as a Pirate!

Kelsey as a bumblebee!

Kelsey's First Haircut!

2011-11-26T12:03:00.002-07:00

Back on October 27th Kelsey enjoyed her very first haircut! Melissa Boles, Jenna's Primary teacher, came over to do the honors. I was a little nervous about how Kelsey would behave, but she was perfect. We cut her bangs and trimmed off some of the back to avoid her sporting a lovely mullet. This was our best choice since the little stinker hates to have her hair done. Only recently has she even let me put a bow in it to keep the hair out of her eyes. This way she can finally see again! I'll keep working on getting pony tails in to stay. She looks so cute when they are in, but she pulls them out as soon as I let go. Maybe someday she'll leave them in. Only time will tell!

Henry's First Broken Bone!

2011-10-28T19:58:00.004-06:00

We're 3 for 4! Henry joined the ranks of those needing a cast this past week. Last Saturday we attended a bicycle party. It was held to celebrate a young member of our ward who had learned to ride her 2 wheeler. There was a sidewalk loop which the children were racing around as part of the party. Well, the sidewalk on one corner was significantly higher than the sandy ground beside it. As the children got too near the edge of the sidewalk their wheels would fall off, rub on the edge of the sidewalk and they would crash. It happened a few times without major incident until Henry tried to pass someone and down he went. He stayed down for a while and when I went over to help he only had a few scrapes, nothing to worry about I told him. I brushed him off and sent him on his way. About ten minutes later I found him at a picnic table, crying, and holding his left arm. We all decided a trip to the ER was warranted. A wonderful friend took the three other children to her house and off we went. It was broken. He has a buckle fracture to his Left Radius. He was in an ER splint all week until yesterday when they saw him in Orthopedics and put him in a fiberglass cast. Since we are headed out on the cruise on Monday, however, I had to order online a special liner that will make his whole cast waterproof. He will get a new cast, with a new liner on Monday- the day we set sail!

School Pumpkin Patch

2011-10-28T19:42:00.003-06:00

Each year the boys' school hosts a pumpkin decorating contest and they fill the front garden with pumpkins. This year we made a witch and a Slimer. We didn't win, but we had fun buying and decorating our pumpkins!

Woolmarket Baptist Preschool Trunk or Treat

2011-10-28T19:32:00.003-06:00

Jenna's Preschool held their Halloween Activity yesterday. The children looked so cute al dressed up. Mrs. Auney even took Kelsey around with the class to fill he bucket up, too. Jenna's preschool is absolutely wonderful! She loves it! Kelsey didn't want to smile for me but I think it makes the photo that much better. Little stinker!

Jenna's First Field Trip!

2011-10-28T19:21:00.004-06:00

Jenna went on her very first fieldtrip on the 18th of October. They went to the St. Mary's Pumpkin Patch. They got to each choose a tiny pumpkin and decorate it with fun stickers. They also enjoyed a fun outdoor story time. Jenna and Kelsey both had a great time.

81st TRSS Fall Festival

2011-10-28T11:56:00.003-06:00

Jeffrey's Operation Hero

2011-10-27T20:52:00.003-06:00

Henry at Operation Hero

2011-10-22T19:58:00.005-06:00

Operation Hero is an activity on Base where the boys spent the morning "deploying" with the Air Force. The received Dog tags, got "uniforms", became part of a flight, took their "immunizations" (kool-aid in a syringe), met with the chaplains, learned how to stand at attention and other commands, and boarded the bus! Our friend Tony went with the boys on the bus and through the remaining activities because Dustin was TDY and I was finalizing everything for the squadron Fall Festival later that afternoon. The boys went on to have their faces painted, to tackle an obstacle course, to check out military vehicles, to be a Wounded Warrior, and to try out Chemical Warfare gear. It was all followed up by a big hot dog roast. The boys had a great time!

My Birthday!

2011-10-22T19:52:00.003-06:00

Happy Birthday to me! My friend Shaley Spitzenberger took me sailing on the Back Bay and it was wonderful. A storm had blown through the night before and the bay was super choppy. We got totally soaked. The water felt fabulous and we had a great time. We talked and laughed and laughed and laughed! It was a great start to my special day.

Kelsey's Present Time

2011-10-11T13:58:00.004-06:00

Kelsey has been so cute about her birthday this year. When we would tell her it was "her" birthday she would ask, "For me?" and we would say, "Yes! For you!" and she would laugh and give us the biggest smiles. She sure was ready when it came time to open her gifts as well. The other children had a great time choosing gifts for their littlest sister. They are great at choosing gifts, too! She loved them all. Kelsey really loves SpongeBob right now, which I really shake my head over. Anyways, Henry chose a SpongeBob projector flashlight which is actually pretty neat and works remarkably well. Kelsey loves to take it to bed. I think it must have an auto-off feature or she really knows how to work it. Either way, the thing is usually off in the morning and the batteries are still going strong. Jeff chose the giant SpongeBob bouncy ball which has also been quite a hit. Jenna chose the talking Dora backpack which Kelsey will kindly, alright not-so kindly, inform you is hers'! She also got a new halloween costume and the ride-on truck from her Grandmas!

Kelsey and her Candles!

2011-10-11T13:49:00.003-06:00

Here is beautiful Kelsey Anne and her two bright candles! She didn't quite know what to do with them. We told her to "foof" them out like blowing on her hot food. She couldn't quite get it so Daddy helped her blow them out. She did not, however, have any trouble eating her cupcake!

Kelsey Anne is Two today!!

2011-09-29T10:11:00.002-06:00

She was more interested in her "pippy" than taking photos!

Where does the time go? Kelsey Anne is two years old today. It doesn't seem like that long ago when we were hoping Daddy would have a little bit of time with her before he deployed. They let us be induced a week early and choose her birthday to boot! This was the only birthday we got to choose. It's a good one: 9-29-09! Daddy got to be with us for 5 weeks before he left. Although he didn't see her again until she was 8 months old, she's is Daddy's girl! No doubt about that! When we ask her, "Who's your buddy?" It's "Daddy!" everytime. We call Kelsey the little monster. She has such a vivid personality and says the craziest things. I always mean to write them down, but I always forget! She is super smart and is always listening. We're often surprised that she really, really does know what's going on! We can't imagine our family without her. She is such an amazing little girl. Soon she won't be a baby anymore and we're kinda excited about that and about all that lies ahead for our little family!

It's Party Time!

2011-09-27T10:12:00.002-06:00

Jenna had just won the "Hot Potato" game! She was so excited!

Jenna got to have her very first birthday party this last Saturday. She was so excited. We joined forces with another family in the ward who also had a turning 5 birthday princess. We had a joint party and it was wonderful! The other mom and I put together a super fun pizza party. We made the little chef's hats and aprons for all the party guests and they all looked so stinkin' cute! We read "Curious George and the Pizza Party", the children all made their own pizzas, we played some party games, had cupcakes, and watched the girls open their gifts. All the children had a wonderful time. It was so nice splitting the work with another mom, too. It was, dare I say it? Easy? Yes, and fun, too! Jenna and Lydia were so happy to share their first real birthday party together. What a fun time we all had.

Opening Gifts at Home

2011-09-27T09:58:00.003-06:00

Here is beautiful Jenna Mae opening her gifts on her big day. She was so excited about the gifts we chose for her. Daddy brought home the roses and chocolate. That's his special tradition. I hope it's one he'll keep up forever! Jenna is our little princess. We love her so much!

Jenna is 5!!!

2011-09-27T09:43:00.003-06:00

Jenna is such a big girl now! We think she is the most wonderful little girl in the whole world! Jenna is kind and thoughtful. She is the most generous child you will ever meet. She will even give you the very last candy she has if you ask her for it. She loves to do crafts and cut and glue and color. Her imagination is full of surprises. Jenna is learning all kinds of wonderful things in preschool. She is learning to write all the letters and can sound out some words herself. We are so happy to have her in our family. Jenna is a treasure!

Jenna's Special Day at Preschool

2011-09-27T09:38:00.003-06:00

For Jenna's birthday at school, Kelsey and I went to the school to do face painting for Jenna's class. It was snack time when we arrived and we got to watch Jenna be the special helper. She was so excited to be helping Mrs. Auney. After snack I painted the children's faces. We all had a good time and the children loved it! Even Mrs. Auney got her face painted, too. Kelsey Anne thinks she is just as big as Miss Jenna and got her own seat at the table and joined them all during snack time. She is growing up, too!

National Blue Ribbon Award Winners!

2011-09-17T06:55:00.003-06:00

North Bay Elementary was named a National Blue Ribbon High Performing school by the US Dept. of Education! We are so proud of all the children and staff. We absolutely LOVE this school. They made the announcement yesterday with a big school wide party having asked all the children to wear blue for Friday. Coach Pugh, one of our favorite guys ever, came out of retirement for the big day, too. These photos were posted on the district website and I swiped them! There were only 2 schools in Mississippi to earn this distiction. We are so happy that we made the effort to find a school for the boys that we felt good about. Days like these help us know it's the right thing for our family to pay tuition for public education. We know they are in good hands!

Henry is a Bear Scout!

2011-09-13T09:23:00.004-06:00

Here is Henry ready for his first night in his Bear Den.

He is growing up so fast!

(Yes, he's lost his beads that are supposed to be hanging from his right front pocket. I always forget to take care of that in between Scout days!)

Jenna's First Day of Pre-K!

2011-09-06T07:50:00.005-06:00

Today is Jenna's first day of Preschool. She was so excited to start. She didn't even care that we were dropping her off. In fact, Kelsey was the only one to even get a hug! We know she is going to have a great year!

It's a rainy Sunday afternoon, thanks to Tropical Storm Lee

2011-09-04T18:53:00.007-06:00

Tropical Storm Lee has been turning our Labor Day Holiday weekend into a stay indoors and get things done kinda weekend. Yesterday, Dustin fixed the broken seatbelt in the van and helped me hang six shelves in our family room closet for our food storage. Those are two jobs I am soooooooooooo happy to have accomplished. We've been putting them off for ages and it's super that they are off the To-Do list. The rain kept us indoors again today. We went to church, of course, and headed to the base chapel to enjoy Break the Fast with the Airman who cannot leave the base or who are hear for training without transportation. It was super fun. I think we'll have to do that every fast sunday. This evening Dustin got the Lincoln Logs out of the attic and he and the kids built this amazing "lodge"! It's pretty impressive. I like quiet evenings like this!

Jenna's First Meet-the-Teacher Night

2011-09-04T18:49:00.004-06:00

Thursday night was Jenna's chance to head to school for the very first time to meet her very first teacher! She was so excited! We even went through three outfits and two different pairs of shoes before we knew we were finally ready. Mrs. Auney is awesome! She seems like the perfect preschool teacher. Jenna was excited to find her desk and her own hook as well as her cupcake on the birthday calendar. I think she's going to have an amazing year at preschool. Now, if Tuesday can only hurry up and get here!

Splash Pad!

2011-08-30T19:24:00.008-06:00

Our friends, the Davis', showed us a new Splash Pad today in Gulfport, MS. It's a little bit of a drive, but not too bad. It was nice to get out and enjoy the sunshine. It's been so hot lately that we haven't been leaving the house much at all. The park was fun with lots of changes and surprises from the fountains. Afterwards, we hit McDonalds for their cheap-o Happy Meal day. The kids were thrilled. After we got home and had eaten it was way past Kelsey's normal nap time. I thought I would just have her wait since we had to leave to pick up the boys in about an hour's time. She sure suprised me when she took my hand and asked, "Nap?" I said okay and we toddled into her room. She was out like a light! She is so stinkin' cute! I love it. Jenna and Daniel, a little boy I have been watching, start school one week from today. It's going to be just me and Kelsey and I think we're going to have a lot of fun together!

On my Farm!

2011-08-30T17:56:00.006-06:00

Here are a few shots of me at one of my most favoritest places on earth! It's my little home in Cornelius, Oregon. It was the place my parents brought me home to as a brand new baby and they still live there. I love that I grew up here! Love it! It is so beautiful. My childhood is full of happy memories from that little spot of land. They have had a really cool summer so the berries weren't quite ready but there is going to be just gazillions of them in no time. I spent about an hour picking berries and brought them home to my family who loved them. Going back always makes me so happy!

Terry's Baptism & Confirmation!

2011-08-30T17:46:00.008-06:00

Here we are at Terry's Baptism. It was a great service and we are so excited for our family. Terry is really a low-key kind of guy and didn't want a big service. In fact he wanted the whole thing to be 7 minutes long: one minute each for opening song, prayer, talk on baptism, actual baptism, talk on Holy Ghost, closing song, closing prayer! It lasted a little longer than that and we had to move from the RS room to the Primary room. After the service we all went back to their super-cute new house for yummy food and awesome visiting. It was so fun! What an awesome day!

Going to the Temple

2011-08-30T17:34:00.006-06:00

The weekend of August 19th-August 22nd turned out to be a whirlwind adventure for your's truly! DeAnne woke us out of bed the Wednesday night before to tell us that her husband, Terry, had completed his baptismal interview and was going to be baptised that weekend! What a surprise!! So, the next day I hit the Delta website to see how many miles we had and to see if there was even a flight available. Between the two of us we had plenty of miles and I flew out Friday afternoon. Only my mom knew I was coming and we surprised them in the Winco parking lot at 11:30pm! They were beyond surprised! On Saturday morning, DeAnne, Mom, and I were able to attend the temple together and had a fabulous time. We topped it off with a trip to Deseret Book, Clothing issue, and Burgerville! Oh, yeah! Then mom and I hit Washington Square while DeAnne headed home to prepare for the big night!

That crazy cat lady...

2011-08-17T13:00:00.003-06:00

I really like this photo of our little kitty! She's absolutely crazy but we still love her!

Back to School!

2011-08-12T09:33:00.005-06:00

The boys have been back in school for about a week now and things are going really, really well. The boys both love their teachers and have settled into the morning and homework routines very smoothly. Henry is doing most of his homework on his own and has only come to see a couple of times for help in math. He is becoming a more responsible young man I am so pleased. Jeff was tested and placed into the gifted program at North Bay. I was a little apprehensive (and still am on some levels) about labeling children as young as Jeff, but on the other hand he will have more opportunities to be creative in the gifted class and he LOVES the visual arts. He would draw all day at school if they let him! On another note, for the first time ever I am keeping a little boy during the day. I was super nervous, but it is working out better than I even hoped. He and Jenna are the same age and they play so well together. They play and imagine and create all day. Jenna has been worn out at dinner time everyday he's been here. Once they both start Pre School in September I will only keep him in the afternoons. It is truly a blessing for both our familes!

Dustin's NCO Academy Graduation

2011-07-18T20:23:00.003-06:00

Dustin graduated from Keesler's Non Commissioned Officer Academy last week. The NCO Academy is a required course for every Tech Sgt. hoping to make Master Sgt. Most people travel here TDY and stay in the dorms. It's a 6 week long course in leadership, public speaking, Air Force history, and military customs and procedures. Dustin did a great job, especially considering he had major distractions like family, regular work duties, and church work that his classmates left behind at their home bases. Dustin even scored the highest grade of the entire school on the final examination by only missing one question. We are so proud of Dad and are excited to have him done with studying for a little while!

Cody's Last Day on the Gulf Coast!

2011-07-18T20:11:00.002-06:00

Devin's Last Day in Biloxi

2011-07-18T19:45:00.003-06:00

Henry is 9!

2011-07-18T19:35:00.002-06:00

Henry turned 9 on July 5th. He is such a great kid. For his birthday we all went to lunch at Sicily's. It's a family favorite. He got to open all of his gifts at lunch. It was quite the party. He even got a surprise gift at lunch. Some members of our ward were there for lunch and came over and gave Henry $9! It was so sweet of them and Henry couldn't believe it! Following lunch Grandma and Grandpa had to hit the road for Montgomery, AL to spend some time with my brother, Dennis, and his family. I always hate to see my parents go. In the evening Dustin took all the kids to Chuck E. Cheese where the teenagers helped the boys and Jenna get a million tickets. Okay, not a million, but way more than we've ever gotten before! I stayed home with Kelsey who had a fever and wasn't feeling well. I didn't mind, though, after 10 of company to have the house all to myself for about 3 hours! Overall, Henry had a great day. We love Henry so much. He has so much energy. We are still hopeful he will harness that energy for good one day! :) He is super smart and a great reader. He loves baseball and swimming and the Wii! We are so blessed to have Henry in our family.

The Boys and the 4th!

2011-07-18T19:23:00.002-06:00

Happy 4th of July!

2011-07-18T17:28:00.005-06:00

My parents, Dustin, and I all said that Biloxi presented the best fireworks we have ever seen! It just kept going on and on. To top it off, we chose perfect seats for the show as well. We had no idea we were choosing great seats, but the barge from which they lit the fireworks parked out in the harbor right in front of us. We arrived very, very early. The kids and Dustin all went swimming and then we ate KFC and all the trimmings. YUM! Because of a lack of rain, Harrison County forbade all fireworks except on the sand so everyone was out on the beach lighting things off. It was a bit like a war zone out there. We were glad we were seated all the way up by the sidewalk because, at times, it was really quite dangerous out there on the sand. We even got to witness some redneck women fighting over fireworks! It was such a fun night. I can't wait for next year!

Our Pretty Little Firecrackers!

2011-07-18T15:44:00.002-06:00

Here are the girls all ready for church on the 3rd. They looked so pretty and we had time to take pictures and be on time for church! That's a good morning around here!

My Parent's 51st Wedding Anniversary!

2011-07-18T15:17:00.006-06:00

While my parents were here they celebrated their 51st wedding anniversary! Wow! We took them out to the Shed for dinner that night. We had a good time, bit boy was it hot! The food was good and the music was great! We listened to T-Bone Pruitt and he even congratulated my parents on their special day. My mom was excited to go somewhere that had been featured in Diners, Drive-Ins, and Dives! We also saw Cars 2 that day! It was a great day!

At the Space Center

2011-07-18T15:12:00.003-06:00

Into Space...

2011-07-18T15:03:00.002-06:00

Our next stop was the Stennis Space Center!

We had a ton of fun at the Space Center. This is where all of the shuttle rocket engines have been tested since the 1960s. We toured the testing facilities and the museum. This photo-op was my favorite part of the whole trip. It was so cool. The photo of Devin makes me laugh everytime I see it! The museum was beautiful. It even has a moon rock! Fred Haise, one of the atronauts aboard the Apollo 13 still works at the Space Center but we didn't see him. I was hoping my Dad would get to meet him!

Kelsey at Flint Creek Water Town!

2011-07-18T14:53:00.002-06:00

Jenna at Flint Creek Water Town!

2011-07-18T14:40:00.002-06:00

Jeff at Flint Creek Water Town!

2011-07-18T14:27:00.002-06:00

Henry at Flint Creek Water Town!

2011-07-18T14:14:00.004-06:00

Flint Creek Water Town...Here were come!

2011-07-18T14:02:00.004-06:00

Flint Creek Water Town is awesome! We took everyone out there on July 1st and had a great afternoon! The slides go right into the lake and they let the little ones ride with big kids. The kids rode slide after slide after slide for 4 hours! Who needs a fancy water park at $27 a day, when you can have this much fun for $6? We cannot wait to go back!

Davis Bayou

2011-07-18T13:57:00.004-06:00

For our first activity with the family we went to Davis Bayou which is part of the Gulf Shores National Seashore. It's beautiful out there and we all got to see an alligator from the dock we were standing on. They have a really nice visitor's center there, too. This would be the start of a very, very busy ten days! We love having family come see us!

Huh? What? My dad plays Ping Pong?

2011-07-18T13:48:00.003-06:00

So we are that wierd family that has a ping pong table in their living room. I love to play ping pong. Recently we had my parents and two of my teenage nephews come to visit. There was lots and lots of ping pong playing going on! Then one night my dad, who I have never seen play ping pong in my life says he'll give it a try! He says he hasn't played since a vacation to Bermuda in the 1960s! He goes ahead and beats my 15 year old nephew! Hello! I never knew he could play ping pong! I guess you really do learn something new everyday!

Choose the Light- Girls' Camp 2011

2011-07-18T13:38:00.003-06:00

Let me start out by saying I had a great time at camp and that I love the girls from the Biloxi Ward! We had a great time...when we made it a point to have a good time. Camp itself was a mess, to be polite. Heck, it was held at Camp Special, what could be expected? I had to put out a fire IN A SWIMMING POOL for heaven's sake! Overall it was poorly thought out and didn't follow the plan prescribed by the handbook at all. Leadership took the phrase "adapt as needed" and ran with it as far as they could. The only reason I would ever go back would be to make sure the girls of my ward had a good experience despite what was placed before them. But enough of that! The Biloxi girls rocked camp! We were the ONLY ward to be on time to everything, to fulfill every assignment as it should be, to be the hardest workers, and we had the BEST skit ever! I am sad that some of my girls are moving away soon. Thank goodness for facebook!

Jeffrey Turned 7!

2011-07-18T13:26:00.002-06:00

Jeff turned big number 7 in June. He actually got to have 2 birthdays this year since his special day fell on a Sunday. I was at Girls' camp (photos to come) the week prior to his big day and came home on the Saturday before. Once I got home and unloaded we headed for Chuck E. Cheeses for a night of pizza and games. On Sunday, Jeff got to have his special cake with a puppy made of donuts (his special request) and presents. He is growing up so quickly. We love having Jeff in our family. He is a kind hearted boy who loves to draw and color. He also loves, loves, loves Baseball and swimming. He a super bike-rider and has a spectacular imagination!

Henry's First Pinewood Derby!

2011-07-18T12:59:00.003-06:00

Henry's first Pinewood Derby as a Cub Scout was held on June 4th. Both he and Jeff (with my help) made cars. Henry chose a Ghostbusters theme and Jeffrey's was a shark. I think they both did a really great job. The Pinewood Derby was very low-key. The boys just ran their cars down tracks over and over again. They all had a really great time and didn't seem to care that there wasn't a winner or awards. Next year I hope to track down a real racing track so things can be a little more official, but we'll have to wait and see!

I think it was hot that day...

2011-07-12T08:30:00.008-06:00

This is Dustin's motorcycle kick stand sinking into the concrete! I think it was a little bit hot that day!

Gerson at the Temple!

2011-07-12T08:26:00.006-06:00

(left to right) Brother & Sister Cruz, Stake Pres. Garrett & his wife, Gerson, his parents, me, Dustin, and Bishop Perkes

Our friend Gerson Calderon, in preparation for his mission, went to the temple on May 28th. His parents also went to the temple that day for the first time and they invited us to attend their sealing as a family. We felt very honored to be invited to this special occasion. Gerson is now serving well in the Baton Rouge, LA mission. We miss his smile at church but are so proud of his service.

Kelsey at the Zoo!

2011-07-12T08:21:00.008-06:00

Jenna at the Zoo!

2011-07-12T07:49:00.002-06:00

Jeff at the Zoo!

2011-07-11T20:21:00.006-06:00

Here are a couple of photos of my sweet Jeff at the zoo. Enjoy! :)

Henry at the Zoo!

2011-07-11T19:37:00.007-06:00

Henry was such a ham at the zoo this time. He wanted to pose with just about every thing at the zoo. I ended up getting some cute photos of him which is always a good thing!

Dustin at the Zoo!

2011-07-11T19:28:00.010-06:00

I really like this photo of Dustin! So dang cute!

The Audubon Zoo

2011-07-11T19:12:00.018-06:00

So I am super, and I mean super, far behind! This is the first of about 15 posts I need to add in order to be "caught up"! So here goes. This is all of us at the Audubon Zoo back in June. It was super hot that day but we all still had a lovely time. It's a beautiful zoo. I can't wait to head back in the cooler months so that we can see animals doing more than napping in the exhausting heat! They are all really good nappers at the Audubon Zoo! You'll also notice we took along our friend Sydney. Having a nanny is awesome! I would have one on every vacation if we could. We brought Sydnet along because this trip included a temple sealing and we needed a sitter for that. She was wonderful. It was so nice to have another set of eyes and hands with the children. We may just have to take her everywhere!

Pamela's Motorcycle Ride

2011-06-05T19:21:00.004-06:00

After our cruise we got to spend a week with Grandma and Phyllis. Grandma's flight went out of New Orleans early Saturday morning so we headed out Friday morning and spent the night there. We had been invited to a temple sealing on Saturday afternoon in Baton Rouge, LA so we took a teenager with us so that she could help us at the zoo and then babysit at the temple. I now know why people hire nannies! It's wonderful! So, since we had the six people from our family, the two grandmas, and Sydney we couldn't fit in our van. Grandma and Dustin rode the motorcycle and I think grandma really liked it!

Stop Three: Cozumel, Mexico

2011-06-05T19:14:00.003-06:00

Our last cruise stop was in Cozumel, Mexico. We decided not to purchase an excursion for this stop and we went shopping instead. Dustin is really good at bargaining for a great price! We made sure we got a little something for everyone and headed back to the ship. I wasn't really impressed with Cozumel in the past, and I wasn't that impressed with it this time, either. I did hear from other cruisers that the snorkeling was amazing so if I ever head back there a snorkel tour will top my list!

Stop Two: Grand Cayman

2011-06-05T19:10:00.002-06:00

Grand Cayman is beautiful! The water is so amazing. This was my second time in Grand Cayman and again it tops my list of favorite cruise stops. Dustin and I went snorkeling and to Sting Ray City where we swam near a stand bar with huge rays that are not afraid of humans. I took lots of photos with a water-proof camera, but I haven't taken them in to be developed yet. Those will be coming soon!

Into the Caribbean Sea

2011-06-05T19:05:00.003-06:00

Here are a couple of shots of us riding the horses in the ocean. There are only a couple because while the camera adds 10 pounds, the horse riding appears to add another 20! All kidding aside, this was one of the coolest experiences of the whole week. The horses went right out into the water. We really had an awesome day in Jamaica!

Horseback Riding in Jamaica!

2011-06-05T18:55:00.003-06:00

Dustin really wanted to go horseback riding for one of our shore excursions. We chose to go riding in Jamaica. It was much more fun than I thought it was going to be. We first took a ride around the ranch and polo fields, then up into the hills around the ranch. Finally we got to ride the horses into the ocean! The horses were beautiful and healthy and our guides were superb. All of the guides were polo players on the ranch and were so comfortable around the animals. I was truly impressed. Prince Charles used to play polo here when he visited in the past. On part of the ride there was a steap drop off to the left and my horse wanted to walk right along that edge. So much for me leading the horse! The guide kept telling me that the horse wouldn't fall but he finally hopped off his horse and pulled mine over to the right until I was good to go again. I was very grateful for while I put on a brave face and laughed at the horses disobedience, I was very nervous we were going to go right over that edge and into the jungle!