Moments

This is a card my mother-in-law gave me for my birthday this year. I have it hanging up at my desk and I read it every day...

...to help myself remember not to take any moment for granted because every moment makes us who we are. So spend more time with the people you love and make sure you laugh every day...and spend less time worrying about whether or not the floors have been mopped :-)

Puppy Dog Breath

My husband and I are BOTH "dog people." And we're proud of it. In fact, this was a selling point for both of us when we first started dating. If you don't like dogs, you're out. Every time we look at houses for sale, I think..."Hmmm, I wonder how many dogs we could have if we lived THERE?!?" Seriously, I have a problem. An addiction, really. To dogs.

We already have an 8 year old black lab, Maggie...and a 3 year old cat, Max...

We have been talking about adding to our pet family for quite a while. I found a great breeder, and on Sunday, Josh and I made the trip to Conway to pick up our new little angel, Miss Miley Mae!! She is 6 weeks old and sweet as can be! One of my favorite things is smelling her puppy breath when she licks my face! We haven't gotten much sleep over the last 4 nights, but she's more than worth it...

"Properly trained, a man can be dog's best friend."

Maggie still doesn't know what to think of Miley.

and Max hasn't come out of the guest room in 2 days.

"Women and cats will do as they please

and men and dogs should relax and get used to the idea."

"There is no psychiatrist in the world like a puppy licking your face."

Miley looks so proud of herself for tackling Daddy

She was exhausted after her first day as a Knight!

Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Fireworks

"This nation will remain the land of the free only so long as it is the home of the brave."

Thank you, Daddy,

for being one of the brave.

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The 4th of July is one of my favorite holidays, but has always been devastating to our bank account. Josh and I are both OBSESSED with fireworks! When we walk into the fireworks stand, our eyes light up and we don't know what to grab first. We are like 2 kids in a candy store that just can't get enough. We have to make several trips to the car to load up our loot. We visited the fireworks stand every day over the holiday ;-) I know some people think fireworks are a waste of money, but I think they're WELL worth it!
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We started the 4th of July weekend with a trip to the lake...

Sissy and her prize fish

Grayson trying to decide if he likes the fishy or not

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Friday after the lake, my whole family went to Brook & Jesse's for a cookout and fireworks display #1

The boys and their arsenal

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On Saturday, Josh and I attended the 10th Annual Shrimp & Crawfish Jubilee to benefit the Fayetteville Fire Fighters Association Scholarship Fund...

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Then we cooked out at Aaron & Christina's and headed to Springdale Country Club for more fireworks...

Mary & Brian, before the wheels came off the bus :-)

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Then we went to Mary & Brian's more MORE fireworks!!!

Hunter & Leanne - just after Hunter got done telling me girls shouldn't shoot fireworks... and then caught his arm on fire.

Leanne, her brother Chris and sis-in-law Kris

It was a GREAT celebration of our freedom!!! Happy Birthday, America!

The Beauty of the Beach

During the last week of June, we took a family trip to the fabulous Naples, Florida. It was definitely one of my favorite places I've ever been. Typically at the end of a vacation, I'm ready to head home, but I did NOT want to leave Naples! The white sand beaches of Naples are nestled in the Gulf of Mexico and are gorgeous! . The town of Naples is so relaxing and non-touristy. We felt like we lived there (and we even discussed that this is the ONE place I could move besides Fayetteville!) The town is so amazing and welcoming. My parents rented a beautiful house...

The house was absolutely perfect. It was open and airy and every room opened to the pool. I got to spend several mornings watching cartoons with Grayson (loved it!) Back Yard The pool at night

Josh fishing in the beautiful waterway that ran behind the house

Grayson was walking like crazy exploring the house!

This alligator was swimming in the ocean by the Snook Inn on Marco Island where we ate seafood by the ocean and listened to live music!

Friday night we had "date night" on 5th Street (think Downtown KC). We had a great Italian dinner at Cafe Luna and drinks on the patio at McCabe's Irish Pub.

Our last night, we went to Randy's and bought fresh seafood to cook at the house.
We had Grouper, Salmon, Halibut and Alligator!

Josh cooking his fresh alligator - it was YUMMY!!

My sister took a bike ride every night - I think it was her favorite part of the trip.
You know the old saying "it's like riding a bike"? That saying did not apply to me after a few glasses of wine...the bike and I had an altercation.
I LOVE this picture of my parents = happiness :-)

Jesse, Grayson and Brook

This is how sad I was to leave :-( I can't wait to go back every year!! THANK YOU Mom & Dad for taking us to this gorgeous slice of heaven!!