Catching Up!

Soooooooo, yeah, I've got a LOT of catching up to do! Just working part-time, being mom to Ava, managing my MOMS Bible Study group, and running my household was too much, so I decided to step back from my wonderful job. OK... so that's been a couple months ago and I'm ready to get back on track with our blog!

Ava and I have been having a fantastic summer! It's going by way too quickly already! She's really progressed in the pool this summer even though we haven't been swimming really all that much (if it were up to me, we'd go at least a few times a week!). She swims under water a few yards at a time and can go down and pick things up from the bottom of the shallow end now. She's having a blast trying new things in the pool this year. About a month ago Ava and I spent several days at my parents' house in La with my sister and her kids. Those cousins had a great time together:) We also had the privilege of mom and dad's neighbor, Gabby, coming over to join in the fun! I have a new favorite sound... Gabby's giggle! I wish I could can it and listen to it whenever I needed a smile! The week before last Ava struggled with a really bad case of strep throat, so last week was spent with her eating us out of house and home to catch up from eating hardly anything that entire week! Oh, and Ava got to spend a day with her GG and TomTom, who took her to the Chattanooga Aquarium and then she got to spend the night... more great memories made:)

We also had a yard sale, which went very well... most of all, I got rid of extra stuff! Yay!! Ava sold some toys and earned herself a new scooter, which she already rides like a pro! We are still so blessed to have little Brady next door to spend lots of outside time with. They LOVE picnics and request one at least a few times a week... well, last week Brady's uncle Dan made him a new picnic table so we've had the joy of using that nice gift! This past Saturday we were so blessed to get to enjoy an incredible marriage conference at the church, put on by Dale and Jena Forehand. If you ever have a chance to hear them, don't miss the opportunity!

The rest of the summer and fall proves to be busy and filled with fun! In a week, Shawn will be in Nashville for a training and Ava and I plan to join him for at least a few days. Then comes the start of soccer for Ava, a last summer trip to Louisiana (my parents house), the start of Kindergarten for Ava, the children's ministry consignment sale, the beginning of my MOMS group... and that's just August! September will bring Ava's birthday and a visit from my parents plus a trip to the beach:) And yet, we'll have plenty of time together in between. We're not big rushers... we like to spend lots of quality time together as a family so this is a busy schedule for us! But, we'll be sure to make lots of time for each other:)

Shawn has gotten even more new camera equipment and gained more knowledge and skills, so I will be posting some great new pics very soon. He also plans to referee high school football this fall, so he's really, really excited about that!

I'm sure I'll think of something later that I've forgotten, but this will have to do for now. I promise to keep future posts less wordy and to post pictures soon!