WALKING!!!

Hudson started taking steps at 9 months and walking at 10 months. Now he is almost 11 months and practically running! However, we have lots of falls, lots of bruises, and in no way is he steady yet. He does really well until he sees something he wants and then he gets really excited and moves a little too fast!

Swim lessons were a success!

So we partially blame ourselves for Hadley not swimming by now but last summer was CRAZY and between moving and being 8 months pregnant we did not make it to the pool very often. Therefore, when we started the summer Hadley didn't even want to put her face in the water. She loves the water but has never liked getting her face or hair wet! After a few scares we decided to see how she would do in swim lessons....

We could not be more pleased! Hadley loved her teacher and after 6 lessons I would say we are pretty close to swimming. She goes underwater and swims but when she comes up for a breath she has a hard time getting momentum again to keep going. She jumps off the diving board, tries to dive, and begs to go to the pool everyday. We are so proud of her!

Here is a picture from the 2nd day when she was still learning how to put her head in the water:

One of the million reasons I am not liking this heat...

DOG HAIR!!! Everywhere. And our spoiled dogs do not go outside in this heat. 30+ days of 100 degree weather means very lazy dogs inside and also means I get to vacuum every single day!

And because our wood floors are a constant reminder how much hair is on the floor, our house has been pretty clean lately!

But these faces make it worth it....I guess:

Just because...

I admit to taking a few more pictures of Hudson right now because 1) He is exploring so much and it is such an easy, fun stage to take pictures and 2) 90% of the time that I ask to take Hadley's picture she says no so I have to catch her off guard.

So when we were eating lunch the other day at the table she saw the camera sitting on the counter and said, "Mommy, will you take a picture of me in my dress?" I gladly jumped up before she changed her mind and took some quick pictures at the table of my grown-up girl!

Playroom fun

I love that the kids are starting to really play together. Actually, I mean, Hudson watches Hadley and tries to do the big stuff she is doing. We spend a lot of time upstairs in the playroom and here are a few pictures from the other day...

Hudson and Daddy making their way into the playroom:

Monkey #1

Look at him watching her and getting some ideas in his head:

Taking a break to change her shoes:

Monkey #2
And just when we thought the playroom was babyproofed:

3 days!!!

Here are the two reasons I am thrilled to only be working 3 days a week again:

1.

2.
I just finished my first week of only 3 days and it was wonderful. I feel like I can spend one of the days cleaning, doing laundry, and spending time at home with the kids. The other day we play, play, play. I cherish every moment I have with them because they grow up WAY TOO FAST!

Swim Lessons

Due to our two recent swimming scares, Hadley started swim lessons TODAY! She was so excited to go and because I was working, my mom took her. We got a wonderful report. She learned how to go completely underwater and even swim to the bottom step of the pool to pick up rings. When I walked in from work she begged me to take her swimming and wanted to tell me the three things she learned:

1. belly button looks at the floor

2. move your arms like this (just picture her showing me)

3. kick your legs

Hopefully, a few more private lessons and we will have a non-floatie swimmer!

Our first houseguests and another beautiful wedding

Well, it was another crazy weekend and another fabulous wedding.

Wednesday evening Matt's brother, Drew, and his family made it here from Tampa and came to our house to spend the rest of the week with us. Davis is 22 months old and Sloan is 5 and I quickly realized the chaos of four kids under 5. But fun chaos! Hadley was thrilled to have Sloan sleep in her bed and Hudson would just sit in the middle of the floor and watch all the kids run around like crazy. The boys played golf, the girls got their nails done, we played outside a lot, and went swimming. Everynight was a late night and by the end of the weekend we were all exhausted. But Matt and I cherished the time we got to spend with Drew and Padgett. They are expecting their third child, a girl, in November so it may be a while before we get to see them again.

Matt's sister, Amy, was also in town with her family and most of the time her two girls were over here too. I am thankful that all of the girls get along so well because they spent A LOT of time together!

Hudson and Davis sitting on the back porch. Davis was sharing some goldfish and Bentley was sure that one of them would drop some.

Hadley and Sloan sitting at the picnic table. Such sweet girls!

Thursday night Jane, Judy, and Jim had a welcome party at Jane and John's house for wedding guests. It was a great night of seeing everyone again. They served Big Truck tacos and we even had a surprise visit from Pistol Pete. I am not sure if Erin or the little girls were more excited! I also never thought I would see myself in a picture with Pistol Pete but I guess marriage requires compromise...

Some of the Holloman crew:

Hadley LOVES Pistol Pete! She was so excited when he got there.

The backyard was beautiful but the pool was pure temptation for the kids. When we first walked into the backyard my thought was, "I wonder who will be the first in the pool?" It started with all the little girls sticking their feet in. Then their hands. And then...I heard a splash, looked over, and saw my non-swimmer daughter flailing in the water. At this point it was slow motion as I am running over to jump in and grab her when my 6 month pregnant sister-in-law jumps in fully clothed and lifts her out of the water. Hadley cried for about 10 minutes (although I believe this was mainly because her dress was wet) and I was a little shaken. But thanks to the 100 degree temps everybody dried pretty quickly!

WEDDING DAY!!!

Erin and Tim had their wedding in Jim and Lynn's backyard. It was beautiful. There were tables and tents everywhere and it was so nice and spread out. The band was wonderful and the food was fantastic. Erin deserves such a great husband and it made the entire family so happy to see the excitement Erin had on her wedding day.

To explain a little bit about my pictures. It was 110 degrees on Saturday! Of course, this set a record. Hadley has never liked heat. She won't even walk out to get the mail with me ever since it has been in the 100's. So I have a 18 pound child on my hip, a whiney 4 year old that doesn't want to take pictures because she is hot, and the last thing I wanted was a camera hanging around my neck. I regret now that I didn't get as many pictures outside as I would have liked but I will add more as soon as we get some back from the photographer.

Here are Hadley and Sloan all dressed and ready for the wedding:

Of course, she can't be happy for all the pictures!

Much better...

Hadley and Sloan "playing the piano."

Apparently we don't put shoes on Hudson enough because he would not leave them alone. I believe we had them on for about 1 hour.

Hudson and his new uncle, Tim

I was just waiting for a little finger to swipe through the icing on the wedding cake.

The wedding party

E and her girls

Watching all the guests arrive

Hadley and Banks

Katie and Hadley

Beautiful women - Amy, Erin, and Lynn

Hudson and Kase

And she danced all night again...

Taking a break...

...and needing a drink

We are so happy for Erin, Tim, Lexi, and Jase. Everything went wonderfully and the joy could be seen on Erin and Tim's face.  We are also thrilled that they bought a house in Rose Creek and will be living only a couple blocks away from us!