God's Splendor

Beautiful sunset from the 34th floor of the Venetian Hotel in Vegas.  Breath-taking!!

Viva Las Vegas!

Our good friends Renee and Lee got married this past weekend in Vegas.  Renee's daughter, Kate, is Sarah's best friend.  It was a fabulous wedding; Elvis actually married them.  The wedding was creative and funny!  Here are some pics of Lee and Renee McDowell.

Blackmail

So, these are from last April, but oh so funny.  Some day I will have proof of his crazy-five year old moments.  And I am sure I will miss them. :)

OR, even bettert are these from Dec 2008...

I took these!

Well, most of them anyway.  Sarah took the one of me by myself.  We went out to Nash Farms and Botanical Garden in Grapevine to get some new photos!  Both of these great, beautiful locations are on Ball St.  Exciting to be able to capture these and to use my camera!

Off to CAMP

Ready or Not...Sarah is off to her first resident camp.  She is spending the week at Girl Scout Camp Timberlake in Azle, TX.  They were supposed to go Sunday - Friday, but late Sat night they called to inform us that there was a water-main-break and camp would go from Tuesday to Sunday.  She is staying with three of her buddies in a cabin.  It felt like we packed everything possible, with the exception of air-conditioning.  Her camp theme is Mystery Madness.  She will learn all types of detective skills and clue-finding.  Hopefully these will transfer over when looking for missing shoes or articles of clothing!  One can wish, right?  One of the grandmothers dropping off told me that when she went to camp, they could only take what would roll up in the bed-roll (sleeping bag).  I can assure you that Sarah's camp essentials barely fit into the new suitcase I bought her.  What are the essentials, you may ask:

1.  Sheets and a sleeping bag

2.  Clothes and swimsuits

3.  Battery powered lantern, flashlight, mini, hand-held fan (extra AA batteries)

4.  Sunscreen, bug spray, and anti-itch cream

5.  SWAPS and craft items to complete during quiet time

6.  Stationary, labels, and stamps (...hoping for at least one letter!)

Camp Buddies...Kate, Olivia, and Hannah

Sarah was super excited and a little nervous when we dropped her off.  We asked her if she had butterflies as we entered the camp; she said she had a pterodactyl in her stomach!  Once she saw her buddies, she was fine.  I know she will do great and I cannot wait hear the stories she comes home with.

Newest friend...inside the girls' lodge, which is the common area for the 5-6 cabins in the Pioneer Unit.

Cabin with flaps down over screened windows and cots

Guess Who?

These pics were taken last November.  Kids must have gotten these at a carnival or something.  I was cleaning out folders on my desktop and ran across them.  Both kids have those deep, deep dimples. Often when we are out, people will comment on how cute their dimples are.  I didn't realize that all people didn't have dimples until Sarah was born.  When she was in the NICU, birth - day 12, the nurses would Ohh and Ahhh over her dimples.  I thought this was strange, but my mom explained that not all people have them.   Go figure!!

{Thanks Cari for Sarah's pjs.  She wore them out, so unfortunatley they won't be passed down.}

I love the way Sarah's eyes sparkle.  They seem full of mischief in this picture.  She is my honest, always play-by- the-rules kid.  Shane on the other hand...

Creative?

I came upon Shane last week watching tv this way.  Don't know what was more comical, that he was watching The Polar Express in June or that he was sitting and watching from the end of my banister.  Silly, creative BOY!!