Well Mandy gave me the responsibility of this weeks post while she is at girl's camp. I refer to it as girl's retreat since they stay in cabins and have electricity and showers. I'm not as knowledgeable about how to use this fun little tool so there will not be any pictures to go along with this post. Last weekend for the holiday we decided to take a trip. I've been overwhelmed with school and work and Mandy was stressing over being one of the stake leaders for camp and we needed to get away. Originally we were going to head down to the gulf and camp on the beach but the weather was going to be terrible. I still wanted to go, mostly because I needed to get away. We looked at the weather forecast and it was going to be bad pretty much anywhere we could go to find a beach on the Gulf or the Atlantic. We started looking at hings we could do inland but still the weather would not cooperate with our plan to camp, and we couldn't afford a hotel, at least not one we felt comfortable staying. Mandy checked our Marriott rewards and somehow we still have points in fact we had just enough for the one night stay. We thought about going to Chattanooga to ride the choo choo, but it was sold out. While looking we stumble on a the Raccoon Mountain Cavern which said it would be open rain or shine. What better activity to do in a thunderstorm than go under ground. We were planning on leaving right after Sacrament meeting Sunday because I was asked to sing but the Mission President, who is going home next week wanted to come speak in our ward and since I am the new ward mission leader I figured I should probably be there so we left right after church. We stopped and picked up Bekah's man Boyd and off we went. We thought we would take the boys swimming at the hotel to wear them out a little and went to bed little late hoping they would sleep in, but once again I'm sure one of those curses my parents put on me was used and the boys were up at 6:00. Anyone that knows the boys knows they're not the quietest when they wake up. They really wanted to go swimming and at 6:30 we ventured out to the pool to find it didn't open until 7. I called the front desk to see what the chances were of getting in early since I knew the boys could be as loud as they wanted in there. Thank heavens for understanding hotel workers he let us in. The boys were so excited I'm sure they woke up the whole first floor with there yelling. We were of course the only crazy people in the pool that early which was really fun. Chase was once again getting comfortable in the water. In fact as we got out we decided to get in the hot tub and James and chase actually started swimming on their own. Bekah took some video of it but like I said I don't know how to use this thing so you'll have to wait for Mandy to get back to see it. That was really the highlight of the trip. The cave was nice but I think the fact that the boys were not allowed to touch anything combined with the slow pace of the tour it just wasn't as neat and exciting for them as we thought it would be. All in all it was a nice trip and one we'll need to take again. Net time we'll have to go to the cave with the waterfall though.

To be so care free!

James--to be so care free! To go swimming in our clothes and not worry about it--to go swimming in the buff and not worry about it(obviously I didn't take pictures of that fun excursion) To love pink, and yellow ducks, kisses from mommy and daddy, and not worry about it.

I wish sometimes that I was more like you, I wish that I didn't care what people think so much, although I try and tell myself that I don't! You Jimmy are just you--like it or not, you are you! Strong and sensitive, brave but still want your momma, happy little boy!

It's getting hot in here!

Well it's rainy this week but still hot! I am so excited for summer time--well not the scorching heat and the sweat but for playing in the pool and popsicles!

An interesting development this year--Chase our avid waterbaby has no desire to get in the pool--in fact I have to force him to get in the tub lately? He has always had such a love for water I am not sure what happened to cause him to change but perhaps it is the fact that James has decided that he LOVES the pool which is a change from last year where he would cling to me for dear life if the water was deeper than 2 feet. This year he puts his float on and jumps right in loves it--goes underwater, splashes, is even daring enough to take the float off! All things that I thought last year would be impossible. But while I am excited for Jimmy I am sad for Chase, he loved water so much and I hope he can find that love again!