The Big 3-0!

So last week, Ronnie had a pretty big birthday. On August 24, he turned 30!! He wasn't too concerned about his birthday...not sad, not excited. Just content. I, however, was pumped because I've been working on his present and party for a LONG time!
As soon as the clock struck midnight on the 24th, I gave him his present. Two tickets for us to see the Cowboys play IN Dallas....8 rows up on the 35 yard line behind the Cowboys' sideline. Yeah!! He was SHOCKED and super excited! We will be spending 3 nights in Dallas and mom and dad are going to have the girls. I was also going to get tickets for a stadium tour the day before the game, but unfortunately it was too early to buy tickets. It's going to be fun!!
On the 27th we had his party at our house. I wanted to make his birthday party extra special, not only because he was turning 30, but also because we never really had any type of party to celebrate him finishing residency. He's worked really hard and accomplished a lot in his first 30 years and I thought it was really worth celebrating! He knew he was having a party that day but I didn't let him know any of the details. I rented a huge, blowup, double lane slip n slide for the backyard. When he first saw it he thought it was a blow up bouncy house, and said, "Are there going to be that many kids here?" I said, "No!! It's not for the kids, it's for YOU!" I then had him take another look and explained what it was. It wasn't long before he was out there having a blast! We had food from Bootleg BBQ...pulled pork, wings, baked beans, corn on the cob and twice baked potato casserole. It was all amazing. Those wings are just unbelievable...I see those being ordered in the future for football games! The food was followed up by an awesome "30" golf cake made by our neighbor, Cheri. There were lots of friends and family who came to celebrate with us, many traveled a long way to get here. Thanks so much to everyone who was with us to celebrate Ronnie's big birthday! Here are some pictures:

Ronnie with the slip n slide!

Ronnie and Nic doing what they do best - competing!

Ronnie launching Ella down the slide!

Kendall doing what she does best - eating!

Ronnie and his awesome cake. Thanks, Cheri!

Ronnie getting ready to bust open the pinata!



I forgot to mention, I finally got a new camera!! I LOVE it!! It's a Nikon D3100...I still have a lot to learn about it but so far I absolutely love it! :) 

Fun times at the lake!

Friday, August 26 was a very important day for our family. It was the girls first trip out on the lake! Ronnie would rather be out on the lake than anywhere else in the world, and I quite enjoy it too. He is literally counting down the months (weeks?) until he buys a boat…there will definitely be one around next summer…but this past weekend one of his coworkers was kind enough to let us use his boat out on Taylorsville Lake. We took advantage of the opportunity!
Nic, Toni and baby Grace were able to go out on Friday so we were excited to get to spend the day with friends. A few days before we went out, Ronnie went to Dick’s to get Kendall an infant life jacket. We had already purchased some boat “accessories” that were 50% off – life jackets for the girls and Ronnie for next summer, but Kendall isn’t quite big enough for it hers yet so she needed one that fit. While he was there he found a really nice tube that was half off. Perfect!

Unfortunately, Ella woke up the night before with a 102 degree fever. It was at least 102…she had her mouth open the majority of the time that I was taking her temperature, so who knows how high it really was. I was expecting to have to stay home with the girls while Ronnie went out on the lake, but the next morning she seemed to be feeling much better and was anxious to go out on the boat, so we all went!

We had a great time…well, everyone but Ella! Poor thing, after splashing around in the water for awhile, she became very quiet and actually ended up falling asleep on the boat. Anyone who is around Ella very often knows this is NOT the norm for her…she usually doesn’t sleep anywhere except her bed or occasionally the car. She went out on the tube once and had no expression whatsoever. No cries, but no smiles. I felt so bad for her, she had been so excited! The girls and I only ended up staying out a couple of hours, then I took them home. Ella woke up when we went to put gas in the boat and she was begging to go home, and at that point Kendall was desperate for a nap. When we got home I realized that Ella's temperature was very high again, and she ended up falling asleep curled up in a chair in the living room. I hate seeing my girls sick!

We still had a great time on the lake, and it was a nice little taste of many fun times to be had in the future! Both the girls were able to splash around a little in the water and got to ride on the tube with Ronnie. Toni and I were able to ride on the tube together. And of course Nic and Ronnie enjoyed throwing each other off the tube and the knee board!


Ronnie and the girls sitting on the tube

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

 
Toni and Grace

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Kendall getting ready to tube with Daddy...she isn't nearly as excited as he is!

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Poor Ella...

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Ella and Daddy on the tube

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Me and the girls...poor Ella is sound asleep.

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Daddy and the girls

 
 

Ella's first trip to the movie theatre!

Sunday was a big day for Ella...it was her first trip to a movie theatre!! We have been anxious to take her since Cars 2 and Winnie the Pooh came out. For the last few months we thought she was ready and able to sit still for a movie, but we were waiting for something appropriate to come out. We still haven't taken her to see Cars 2, but after church and lunch on Sunday Ronnie and Ella had a daddy-daughter date and he took her to Tinsletown to see Winnie the Pooh.

I'm not sure which she was more excited about - the movie or the popcorn! That girl can throw down some popcorn. Ronnie bought a large tub and it sat in her little lap the entire time. Ronnie said she ate double-fisted, non-stop until it was all gone. Ronnie swears she ate more than half the tub and said he was just waiting for her to throw up all over the movie theatre. She did great during the movie. Ronnie said she sat still and may have said five words the whole time the movie was on. Winnie the Pooh was just over an hour long, so it was a perfect first-time movie experience.

Ronnie and I both love movies...if he isn't working then we most always watch a movie after the kids go to bed. I'm glad Ella is mature enough that she can enjoy trips to the movie theatre now...and we will anxiously await Kendall being old enough to go so the whole family can go!

My camera is broken (which means I will soon be buying the camera I have been eyeing for months!! I've never been so happy for an electronic device to break!!) but Ronnie got a few on his iphone. Unfortunately I can not get them to upload on here correctly...hopefully I can get it figured out soon!

The Red Guy and the Purple Guy!

On July 25, Ella and I went to see the Louisville Bats play with Laura, Tim, Charlie & Peyton. The Bats play at Louisville Slugger Field and are a Triple-A team affiliated with the Cincinnati Reds. This was Ella's first Bats game and the first one I'd been to in a few years. It was the Greater Louisville WKU Alumni night and before the game Charlie was recognized for a scholarship he received. Big Red was at the game and I was so excited when Ella was able to see him! She wasn't quite so excited, and was a little intimidated! But she liked looking at him...the "Red Guy"...and also liked seeing Buddy the Bat..."the Purple Guy".

Before the game she and I had dinner at McAlisters (kids eat free Monday-Thursday!) and shortly after arriving at the park Ella was ready for popcorn. She loves popcorn and I had promised her earlier in the day that we would get popcorn at the ball game. She was great at the game and enjoyed yelling at the ball players every time a foul ball was hit near us..."Hey! Throw it to me!" Unfortunately no one ever threw one to us! Aside from the popcorn, she also enjoyed two "blue" Gatorades and some cotton candy.

A few innings into the game she wanted to go check out the playground and merry-go-round. It's a really great set up, because parents can still see the game while the kids play in the fenced in playgrounds. The only bad part of the evening occurred at the playground, when a yellow jacket stung the holy crap out of my leg. I hadn't been stung by a bee in a long time...I forgot how much that hurt!

We had a great time at the game and a great time hanging out with the Rhea's. I think there will be many more Bats games in our future!

Ella checking out the field

Meeting Big Red

Pretty girl!

Cotton Candy!

Having fun!

VBS!

"I love you more than money or fame, I love you more than ice cream!!" These are the lyrics Ella has been singing since our church held Vacation Bible School July 17-21. I love VBS. It's such a great way to get kids (and their families) in church to learn about Jesus in a fun way that's on their level. I think my most cherished memory of Ella thus far came after last year's VBS. She was only two and a half but participated in the 3-5 year old preschool class. On the last night as I was buckling her into her car seat I asked what she had learned that night and, without hesitation, said, "God has a plan for me." I can't imagine my children knowing anything more important than that.

This year the theme for our Bible School was "Big Apple Adventure." I helped with the snacks, and the theme gave us some great stuff to work with. We made taxi cabs out of Zingers, stoplights out of sugar wafers and M&M's and we decorated the snack area to look like Central Park. The kids really seemed to enjoy the food!

Ella loved being in the preschool class. She had excellent teachers who really give the kids great information while making it fun. One evening after VBS I was putting her into bed and asked what she had learned and she told me nearly the entire story of Peter walking on the water. The big line that she learned this year..."Jesus loves me." It was a great five nights and I'm so glad Ella had so much fun learning more about Jesus!

Here are a few pictures from VBS...none of them were taken by me. :)

Here is Ella doing crafts. This might be my favorite picture of Ella, ever. Thanks Jenny Winstead. :)

Ella eating in "Central Park" with her preschool class

Kendall muching on a brownie. Seth being Seth. :)

Ella and her preschool class dancing to their song on the final night. Thanks for taking pics, Chelsea!