Flora/Bama 08'

Claire in the annual "Beach Chair Picture." We have used the same chair every year since Jesse was 12 weeks old and at the beach for the 1st time! Claire loved it!
Beach picture.....we stayed in our swimsuits from early morning til bedtime.....
A sweet moment with the kids taking a break from the ocean.
Claire just played on the last day of the beach til she couldn't go any more. Grandma enjoyed every minute of it!
Uncle Tommy (Gretchen's brother), Gretchen, and Grandma (Gretchen's mom) enjoying the ocean breeze.... Once again, sorry for the delayed post. Hope you all enjoyed the photos! Will post again soon!
Love, Gretchen

Vacation Time....2008!

Well, we began our vacation by stopping off in Prattville, AL at Mary Grace's Home for a lovely cookout lunch! Claire and Mary Grace are from the same orphanage and we traveled to China with Leigh Ann and her good friend Amy! We had a great time and the kids were good and tired when we got back in the car for the rest of the trip! Always great to see Mary Grace and her family!!
Mary Grace immediately took to Jesse, as he did her!
This is what I woke up to this morning! Ready to start their day on the beach!
Claire had a great time on the beach today. She actually prefers the ocean to the sand. She kept wiping the sand off all day and finally gave in and just enjoyed playing in it! She just went from relative to relative for snacks.....

Will post lots more tomorrow!!! We are enjoying lovely weather and company! We have about 50 family down here now and a blast is being had by all!

Love,gretchen

A Homerun for Jesse!

Sadly, yesterday I was so caught up in Jesse's baseball game, that I failed to take a single picture! Jesse stepped up to the plate and cracked his 1st home run last night. I would have damaged the camera if I were holding it anyway, as I was jumping around like a lunatic. The look on his face as he was rounding the bases was priceless. He was chased down from 3rd to homeplate and I swear to you I've never seen my son run so fast! I knew he had it in him! His whole team cheered him on and he was beaming the rest of the game. He also assisted on making an out and that added to his delight! Way to go Jesse!!!! Last regular season game is Friday evening and I promise pictures will be taken.

Will post again soon!
Love,Gretchen

Jesse & The Sea Lion

Jesse and Claire went to the zoo Friday and Jesse found a new friend.......

Here Comes Sun!

Claire has been taking advantage of this beautiful weather we've been having. She decided to water my lantanas after taking a dip inher new baby pool from Nana and Pawpaw.

Lily Grace and her mom dropped by with these brand new shades for Claire. Lily Grace is sporting her new shades as well! Thank you Lily Grace!!
Jesse is smitten with Lily Grace and of course, had to have his picture taken with the girls. Lily Grace had no problem plopping down in Jesse's lap for this picture! Will post more soon....2 days left of school!!!

Portrait of Claire

My wonderful neighbor, Chantel, painted this picture and brought it over on Claire's Birthday. I was just overwhelmed beyond words when I saw it. It captures the essence of Claire perfectly and can't wait to find the perfect frame! Thanks Chantel!

Will post again soon!
Love,Gretchen

Planting with Grandpa

Jesse was so excited when school was out Tuesday because he knew it was the day Grandpa and he were going to plant tomato plants. He immediately ran upstairs and changed into his "dirty clothes" and started to help Grandpa. They had great fun and can't wait to see our first sign of tomotoes! Claire and Grandma were onlookers, as Jesse and Grandpa did all the work!



Jesse with his finished product and and fresh new scrape form the chicken wire! What is it with boys wanting to show off their injuries?

Will post again soon!
Love,Gretchen

Claire on the go....

Well, Claire has been under the weather this week, but I have been able to snap a couple of decent shots when she's not being held....Jesse is finishing up the 1st grade and I will have lots of "end of the school year" photos soon! Baseball pics to come soon also!
Claire puts this backpack full of heavy blocks on and scoots through the house saying "Bye Bye"!
Claire with her new "bike" from Nana and PawPaw she received on her 2nd Birthday! She loves it and thinks she's one of the big kids! More to come soon!

Love,Gretchen

Happy #2 Claire!!!

Claire woke up on her big #2 with an Elmo balloon, a tiara, a special gift, and her favorite breakfast! The day was very yucky outside, so we stayed in and made cupcakes and played all day!
Claire's Birthday Party was wonderful and our fabulous family and special friends celebrated Claire's Day with her! We hung pink and orange lanterns all over the house and Claire followed mommy around going "oooooh" to every lantern. We are so blessed to have such a sweet daughter and wonderful family and friends!
Will post again soon!
Love,Gretchen

Guess Who's Two?

Cousin Alice looking all grown up!
Daddy helping Claire open her gifts! I think Daddy has as much fun as Claire!!!!
Claire and Lily Grace sharing a Birthday hug!
Thanks to Ms. Ann for the delicious cake! We had barely any leftover!
Claire on her Birthday making strawberry cupcakes...of course she had to try the icing.....

Guess Who's Two (continued....)

More pics from the party! Here is Cousin Peyton looking so sweet while watching Claire open her gifts!
All the party goers....Cousin Amy in the backgrund and our friend Carrie and her new baby Mary Sofia! This was Mary Sofia's 1st Birthday Party!

The kids grabbing the loot from the pinata. Lots of bubbles and fruit snacks to be had for all!
The birthday girl!!!

Lots to do in April!!

Claire got a haircut today to get ready for her party on Saturday. She insisted on sitting on the chair by herself and squealed when Ms. Kelly put her pink cape on!
Jesse at Tiger Fan Fest on Saturday. He always has a blast feeding those goats.
Jesse and his class went on a field trip Friday to the Botanic Gardens. Here is Jesse with a few of his classmates! 4 more weeks til summer break! Yeah!!!
Here is our own little American Idol jamming out.
Not sure what this pose was all about, but it was Crazy Hair Day at Jesse's school. May I say that lots of gel was used on that day!

Having fun in April!

Claire's new thing to do is to put on shoes of ours....the bigger the better. Here she is with some of Jesse's. Everyone is learning to make sure their closet doors are good and shut!!
Well, after a long wait and much anticipation, Claire's friend Mary Sofia has finally arrived from Guatemala! These are a few photos from their 1st play date, which, I might add, went very well!! Claire was insistent on feeding Mary Sofia!!

Happy #7 Jesse!

Jesse celebrated the big #7 with his family and friends with a party and viewing of "Horton Hears a Who." They all had a blast and enjoyed going to a movie with their friends!
The birthday boy making a wish!
The kids enjoying their cake and ice cream! Notice the dad with blue hair! That was the day before the Tigers played in the national championship!
The moviegoers!
Zoi giving Jesse his adorable homemade card.

Jesse really appreciated all his friends and family taking time to celebrate with him. Thanks to everyone for making his day so special!!

Love,Gretchen

Claire and Mary Grace reunite!

Here is a short video of Claire and Mary Grace saying goodbye. We hope to see you soon, Mary Grace!!

Claire and Mary Grace reunite!

Claire was reunited this weekend with Mary Grace from Prattville, Alabama. The girls were in the same orphanage together for 10 months until they both were adopted. MG lives only 5 hours away, so this weekend we were invited to Leigh Ann's wedding, where the 2 girls got to meet again. They are both so sweet and by the end of the day, were pushing each other around on push toys, feeing ducks, sharing snacks, and just having a great time. We definitely will continue to get the 2 girls together on a regular basis, as they had such fun together. Leigh Ann's wedding was beautiful the weather was warm and perfect!