Luke's super fun fair day!

This is fair month in the city of Memphis! First we had the Delta State Fair and now the Mid-South Fair is in town. I was actually ridiculed by a friend of mine for going to the Delta State Fair, because it isn't the REAL fair. The Mid-South Fair is the real deal. If you grew up in Memphis, you know it's true. Nevertheless, Luke has now been to both!

Mimi and Grandpa called us up yesterday and asked to take Luke to the Mid-South Fair. Ohhh, how much fun we all had! Luke learned how to be a farmer and picked eggs and apples and put them in a basket. He played in a hay wagon and had a blast sliding down a slide into hay. Luke also went to several petting zoos, held and almost strangled a chick, kissed a real live bunny rabbit, fed some goats, and ate yummy fair food!

The highlight of his fair trip with his grandparents was probably his pony ride. He was giddy with excitement to be riding on a real horse! Mimi and Grandpa definitely spoiled him too. He got ice cream and they even bought him a blow up "Boots the Monkey" (from Dora the Explorer) balloon!

He had the time of his life! He talked about the fair the rest of the day yesterday saying "The pair (he uses "p" for "f") was so much pun, and the pony, and the bunny rabbits and Mimi and Grandpa and Mommy!" Even today he asked me if Mimi and Grandpa could take him to the fair again!

"Mom, really. I'm trying to load eggs into my basket. This is serious stuff!"

Grandpa and Luke getting ready to feed some goats.

These goats were hungry!

Here's Luke kissing a real bunny!

Luke had the biggest smile on while riding this pony! He thought it was so cool!

Mimi, Luke and Grandpa---what a super fun day!

Hawaii (Part 2) Maui

So after our fun time in Honolulu on Waikiki beach, work was done for Chad and off we went to Maui!! Oh my goodness, we loved it! Maui was beautiful and green and lush. You could see ocean an mountains of rainforests at the same time. Amazing.

Anyway, we decided against staying at a resort on Maui, since we already did that on Oahu. We opted for a smaller, more secluded spot called Mama's Fish House. We had a cottage equipped with everything we needed (full kitchen, laundry, etc.) It was cute. The restaurant is actually the most famous restaurant on Maui and was delicious! Just look at their menus and see for yourself. Here's a view from our beach at Mama's Fish House.

We actually weren't at our cottage all that often. We rented a convertible when we arrived on Maui and the second day we were there, we headed off on the Road to Hana. That was my favorite day. We had a blast hiking and climbing waterfalls. We were gone for 12 hours that day!! Anyway, those pictures are by far the best, so here's a taste of that day!

Our first stop on the road to Hana was a great hike with a pretty view. We didn't stay terribly long because there was lots more to see!

Here I am pointing out 3 waterfalls we hiked to find. On the actual road to Hana, you can pull your car over and see them from a distance, but Chad and I found a secret path and we climbed down boulders and hiked through the forest to get up close and personal with these falls! It was awesome!!!

Here's another picture of those falls---so pretty!

Though lots of our Road to Hana adventures involved hiking and climbing waterfalls, we did stop at Hamoa Beach to lay out and catch the waves for a short time. One of Chad's favorite things to do in Destin in body surf. Imagine the waves in Hawaii---he was in his glory!!

We also stopped along the way at one of the famous black sand beaches in Hawaii. We found this cave and it was mesmerizing to watch the water come in and out of the cave and crash on the rocks just beyond the opening.

Here's a beautiful view from the end of the Seven Sacred Pools. They are several waterfalls that all pour out into the ocean here.

Here's a picture of us before our 4 hour hike up and down the waterfalls. You don't want to see a picture after we came down as we were pretty sweaty, muddy and soaking wet!

And finally, though this picture doesn't do it justice, here is the ultimate waterfall that we came to climb. Gorgeous!!!! Everyday we were in Maui we were just thanking God for his amazing creations!!

So, we have TONS more of pictures and stories---you would definitely get bored--but we wanted to share some of our adventure with you. We truly had the best time. Coming home though, to our little Luke was incredible. We missed him SOOO much!

Hawaii (Part 1--Waikiki Beach)

Aloha!! We are back from our wonderful vacation and are so thankful that God gave us this time to spend together! As many of you know the first part of our trip (on Waikiki beach) was slightly business as Chad was recognized for completing a series of exams giving him CPCU status---too long to explain here, but let's just say it's an elite group to be a part of and I'm super proud of myhubby!! The rest of our trip was in beautiful, heavenly Maui!

Between us, we took around 500 pictures, so needless to say I won't be posting most of them. I will try to show you some of our fun times and the gorgeous scenery, but I'm breaking it up into a couple of parts so you won't get bored. It's amazing how beautiful everything is in person. We tried our hardest to capture it on camera, but it just doesn't do God's creation justice. Nevertheless, we have some great pictures to share! This first set of pics is from our time in Honolulu. Enjoy!

One day after Chad finished some sessions, we climbed Diamond Head, a famous crater that people enjoy hiking in Honolulu. I thought I was going to die, but we made it up and it was great! The views from way up high were awesome!

A view of Waikiki Beach from Diamond Head!

Here's a picture of Chad and me--I was giddy that I survived the climb and we had made it down too!

Chad and I both got new cameras before we left for our trip. Here's a picture of our beach that Chad enjoyed enhancing with his new toy!

And, while I'm not a fan of just throwing pictures of myself on this blog, I just had to show you that even when you are pregnant in Hawaii, you can still enjoy FUN virgin drinks!!

quick update

I thought I'd be able to post before we left for those tropical islands I mentioned, but getting us ready to leave and trying to spend maximum time with Luke and Chad's parents before we left, made it impossible.

So, while Chad is getting ready for the beach (I'm ready and waiting), I thought I'd make it up to those of you who are our faithful blog readers by sharing our exciting news!!!!! Drum roll. . . .

I know it's blurry, but I'm hoping you can see our exciting news!!! Yes, we are expecting Baby #2 in early April 2008!!!! We are thrilled and feel so blessed! That's all for now. Next to come. . . pictures from Hawaii!!

Fun at the fair!

This past weekend was LOTS of fun! Saturday was of course full of college football and we had a blast watching the start of this wonderful season. Luke loved cheering and peering up from his toys to see what was going on with the football on tv. We never have the tv on during the day, except for special sporting events and college football in the fall, so he was intrigued! Luke enjoyed it so much that yesterday he asked for football and pointed to the tv. How cute!


We also made it to the fair this weekend. Though it wasn't technically the Mid-South fair that many of us grew up going to, it was still a fun fair---and it was in our neck of the woods--at the Agricenter! Luke was able to feed the animals at the petting zoo, had his first Pronto Pup (for those of you non-Memphians, these are corn dogs, but even yummier) and enjoyed watching rides and looking at a classic car showroom!


We now have Chad's parents, Luke's Nana and Poppy in town visiting and learning some ropes for when we dash off to some tropical islands on Friday! I'll try to post again before we leave. Stay tuned! Here are some pics from the fair!

Going in for his first bite of a Pronto Pup! Watch out, Mommy might snag a bite!

Mmmm, this is so yummy!!

Feeding the goats with Daddy!

These little goats sure are hungry and awful pushy too!

Luke and Daddy in front of a longhorn. This is for Poppy--Chad's dad went to UT--Texas that is!