Discovering new things!!

Here are some pics from when Miss Rea discovered T.P.
I just sat there and watched her unravel the entire roll because I just couldn't believe my little baby was in this stage. You hear about this and see pics of other babies doing this, but I couldn't really believe that this time it was mine. A cool moment, but hard to explain.
Needless to say, I no longer sit back and observe. I'm a bit more proactive these days! So if the next time you visit us and there is some wrinkled T.P. on the roll, just use it and smile. :)

Poolside on vacation

Other highlights from the trip...entire family poolside, MORE frisbee golf for the guys, sharing current events from the past year, a girls trip into "town", more yummy food, campfire by the river, WHITE WATER RAFTING.

(Side note...I have gone rafting several times and always make it very clear that I do not want to flip. Its not that I don't like the adventure or getting soaked by the freezing water. My issue is quite simple....I saw a Rescue 911 episode once where some people got stuck UNDERNEATH the raft. Well to spare you the details again, the punk kid made it a big deal that we had to follow his next command and so we did and over we went.....Sure enough, little 'ol me was stuck under the raft, BUT luckily not alone. My survival skills kicked in right away and I remembered to swim up to the pocket of air in the raft. Then my lifesaver, J.J. (family friend) either yanked my life jacket from underneath the raft or he lifted the raft so I could swim out....maybe he did both. Shortly after that, I was leisurely floating down the river...well, choking on the water I had swallowed. Moral of the story...I survived! AND my $10.00 Target sunglasses stayed on my head the entire time. (Some folks were hating on me for wearing them....taking bets how quickly I would loose them! Ha!)

Great people! Great memories!

Remember at this age...

~opening ziploc baggies
~two molars on top and the 3rd tooth on the the bottom....9 teeth in all
~walking
~first official haircut

Looking forward to eating with a real spoon again and sleeping in.

Vacation continuation...

Basically, the first few days were spent eating and hanging out. The men quickly fell in love with the frisbee golf course. Here are some of the kiddos playing, exploring, keeping busy, etc.


In efforts to get out of the house, I initiated a little hike down to the river. They said there was a path so I loaded Rea in the stroller, gathered any kids or adults interested, snapped a quick photo to capture the excitement, and we were off. The "path" was more like a jagged, gravel road that had a steep decline, so I was trying to push the stroller over the boulders, but also slow her down so she wouldn't slide down the hill. Geesh! Why is everything so difficult?!? Although my gut was telling me to go no further because on this day "what goes down must come back up", I pressed on for memory sake. We laughed and had good conversation on the way down. We gathered the children for another picture (I was determined to take pictures of something!) and we began to calculate our adventure back. In efforts to spare you the details, the trip back was challenging. Too steep and rocky to push Rea, so I carried her and Mr. Adams senior carried the stroller. In was stinky in the moment (this is why there aren't any pictures of the return trip), but I'm glad we did it.

After a few good laughs and practicing healthy communication...

We made it! My cousin, Sarah and her daughter Braylen met us there. Reagan and Braylen played a bit and ate snacks together while the adults visited. We went out for another yummy meal and then we were heading north to Blue Ridge...supposedly! So good to see them...wished we lived closer!

All of the Dan and Joy Adams family and the Patterson family (old family friends from Ohio) were all rendezvousing at our cabins throughout the afternoon. Well, after some winding mountain roads, a long, unexpected trip at a random Wal*mart, and the co-pilot dozing off, we once again found ourselves off course and approaching the Tennessee border. Our two reoccurring issues during our visit to Georgie, 1. the roads are named 6 different things. (i.e. one street may be called....county road 587, highway 5, John Smith Parkway, AND junction 62) and 2. we didn't have a map....just stupid little turn by turn directions from some stupid site like map quest. This visual learner needs to see the whole picture. HOWEVER, I am too cheap to buy a street map! Furthermore, once we got near the cabin, we were instructed to use a separate set of directions that cannot be accessed anywhere on a map. Unfortunately, we learned the hard way that there are two tiny, winding dirt roads with the same name!!! Same fork in the road, same "Broken Bridge" sign, etc. (Side note....I have to mention all of our directional handicaps because it is sooo unlike us...I might venture out to say that we've never been "off the path" like this!

By now, all of the vacation participants have arrived and settled in at the cabin. They are now waiting for us to start dinner! Although we laughed (mostly me) most of the time, we were beginning to wonder if we would ever get there.....

June Vacation - 1st stop

So as I've mentioned previously, we were heading to Cumming. We had a little mix up around downtown Atlanta and well, it seems as if we missed the little city altogether. We didn't make it to Cumming that night because we were heading to Tennessee. Jon's Uncle Tim and Aunt Lois from Suwanee were gracious enough to open up their beautiful home to us. (One of many reasons a large family comes in hand.) They had dinner plans already, so the three of us snuck out and had a yummy Mexican dinner. After dinner, we walked around a little shopping plaza and discovered a piece of heaven.... The Fresh Market. Where have you been all my life? LOVE, LOVE, LOVE...the selection, the presentation, the freshness, the cleanliness, the fine products, etc. We bought a little dessert and I sampled some delicious gummies. (Side note....the clerk offered me a sample and I forgot to use the giant tweezers to take a piece. I just stuck my greasy hand in...oops!)

The next morning we got up and made our second attempt at visiting Cumming. Maybe a good nights sleep would help us...

June Family Vacation

Alright, you've been waiting (maybe). You saw a picture of us packing for the trip...here are pictures from the trip!

We started off Tuesday morning at 8:00...we left in a very stress-free, calm mood. The house was tidy and this always makes it easier to come to.

We went all the way to Ocala before making any stops. Rea was a trooper! When we stopped at a rest area, we met the state mascot....the alligator. I overheard a family from Oklahoma discussing the little friend. The father said to his children "Look kids, its a crocodile." Then after using his brain he corrected himself. Poor children being led astray.

Is it true?!?! Yes, it is, indeed...we were approaching the Promise Land....G.ville! We didn't make any stops, but smelled the beautiful aroma as we drove by. On the road....first stop...the Bodie residence in Cumming, GA!