We're going on a road trip

We're going on a road trip!

It's gonna be a big one!

It's a beautiful day, we're not scared.

Oh, oh, the mommy car - the big white mommy car.

We can't go without it; we never would make it.

We might as well pack it!

We're going on a road trip!

It's gonna be a big one!

It's a beautiful day; we're not scared.

Oh, oh our grandparents, we call 'em Papa and Gigi.

They live far away, we sure do miss them.

We might as well visit!

(photo taken by LindseyFaith Photography)

We're going on a road trip! It's gonna be a big one!

It's a beautiful day; we're not scared.

Oh, oh, Cory. Our fun Uncle Cory.

He just might tickle us; he definitely will play with us!

We can't wait to see him!

We're going on a road trip! It's gonna be a big one!

It's a beautiful day; we're not scared!

Oh, oh Juie. Our stylin' Aunt Juie!

She sure likes to hug us, and maybe even kiss us!

We just might kiss her back!

We're going on a road trip! It's gonna be a big one.

It's a beautiful day; we're not scared.

Oh, oh Lincoln, our newest cousin Lincoln.

We've seen lots of pictures, we think he's very handsome.

We can't wait to hold him, and play with him, and love him!

We're going on a road trip! It's gonna be a big one!

It's a beautiful day; we're not scared.

Oh, oh our road trip. Our five state road trip.

We sure are excited, we can't wait to get there!

We better start packin'!

These boots were made for. . .

Sleeping?

Each night before we go to bed, David and I do a walk through to check on all of the children. Imagine our surprise when we walked into Carter and Summer's room and found our little fella asleep with his boots on! Too precious! I had to capture this moment. Maybe he was dreaming of the wild west and rodeos. I couldn't help but think of the song, "Momma's don't let your babies grow up to be cowboys!" You know, my prayer for my children is that they will grow up and serve the Lord with their lives, and if that's as a cowboy, then so be it. He sure would make a cute one, don't you think?

A friend loves at all times

Do you have a friend like this? I have several dear friends who are just so very precious to me, and I could not imagine life without them. They make everything more fun and special just by being there, you know? Destinee is one of them. She and her family moved to the 'boro when we were in 6th and 7th grades, I believe. They joined our church, and we have been inseparable ever since! Well, almost anyway. There were those years she moved away to college and then I moved away to college, but we always kept in touch, always! I have so many memories with this sweet girl; she probably remembers way more than I do though, this girl has a memory like no other. We experienced so many firsts together: learning to drive, proms, boyfriends, road trips, airplane rides (for me), wild animals inside apartments, the list goes on and on. Lucky for me, Destinee and her adorable husband, Jeremy, (who is just perfect for her in every way - isn't it neat how God works to put people together; I feel the same way about David - he is perfect for me in every way!) moved to Atlanta a few years ago, so we are not only in the same state, but the same city too! The only downfall is that I don't get to see her as much as I would like to. However, this past weekend we remedied that. Jeremy and Destinee drove cross country from Dacula to Austell to meet the newest member of the O'Dell family. What fun! It was truly refreshing for my soul; good friends do that for you, you know? I hope it's not so long until I see my sweet friend again. In the meantime, thank goodness for facebook and emails! We love you, Destinee and Jeremy! Come back soon!

Destinee meeting Story

Girly girl, Summer, had to get in on the picture taking too!

I love how Story is looking up at me in this picture! I think she likes me!

Tilly was smitten, I mean smitten with Jeremy! She could not get enough. He was such a good sport to play with her and flip her and let her crawl all over him. Here is Tilly "showing you her smile" with her newest buddy!

Baby, it's hot out here!

A precious family in our church, better known to us as Mr. Scott and Mrs. Pat, have graciously allowed us the use of their pool this summer. Our children have had so much fun. Let's be honest, it's been quite nice for mommy and daddy too because summer in Georgia is H.O.T! The oldest girls have blown us away with their fear factor, or lack thereof. Summer and Tilly don't think twice about jumping in the water and have been seen on more than one occasion going off the diving board. I just close my eyes until they are safe. Carter, our only child who has had swimming lessons, is definitely the more cautious one. I have no idea where he gets this from, ha! He is finally putting more than just his toes in the water. Story, well she just continues to be the rock star that she is and chills in her seat or on the swing while the rest of us enjoy the pool.Tilly is looking at me like really Mommy, right now? Just put me in the water!
Cheese, Mommy, now can we swim?
Okay, Mommy, let's go!

How cute is that face?

Can you see how excited we are to be at the POOL?

Tilly and her sassy self!

Carter hanging out on the steps, his favorite place at the pool.

Summer playing in the water. She is like a little fish!

Tilly testing the waters.

Thank you, Mr. Scott and Mrs. Pat! We hope you don't get tired of seeing us this summer!

You been farming long?

This precious picture hangs in my grandparents' home, has for as long as I can remember. I think this picture is precious, and it reminds me of home. David gave it to me our first Christmas together as husband and wife. Today, it hangs in his office at the church. I grew up in Southeast Georgia on the north end of Bulloch County, on a farm if 250 acres of pine trees counts as a farm. In fact, my grandmother still owns a good deal of property in Bulloch County. My grandfather was a farmer, and all of my uncles are farmers. Come to think of it, when I was younger, my grandparents had two chicken houses, with about 50,000 chickens. In the summers, my sister and I would help pick up eggs. I don't know if to this day I have smelled anything worse than chicken houses. Thankfully, it did not dissuade my love for the gospel bird! Today, Carter and Summer got to experience a little farming, and I was so sad not to have my camera handy. We have been going swimming lots at a sweet friend's pool; there is actually a post scheduled to appear soon on this very topic. Today, when we got to the pool, Miss Pat was taking a break from the bush hog. Not long after we arrived, she decided to hit it again, and . . .she gave Carter and Summer a ride. They loved it! My papa would have been so proud!

Not that there was ever any doubt. . .

But these photos are evidence beyond any reasonable doubt, that this handsome fella is definitely mine, and I couldn't love him more if I tried!

I hope his love for reading and books will only grow as he does!

The words I would say

Couldn't help but to think of my little ones when I heard this today.

Story's baby dedication

Sunday, June 20, what a great day, Father's day - a day to celebrate the rock star daddy to my children and love of my life, and Story's baby dedication - a day to celebrate promising to raise our daughter in a God-centered home. David and I proudly stood with our newest daughter, Story, before our church family promising to them and to our Lord to love our daughter, to teach her biblical principles, and to raise her up knowing and loving Jesus. My prayer for our sweet daughter and all of our children is that they will accept Jesus into their hearts at a young age, and that there will never be a time in their lives when they did not know Him and love Him. As parents, what more could you want for your children than to live a life that honors and glorifies Him?

Daddy and Story on his day and her day!

Story all dressed up and ready to go to church.

This is the same outfit she wore home from the hospital.

It's from Mama, so I thought it would be special to have her dedicated in this outfit too.

Our worship pastor, Steve, praying over us and Story.

All of my sweet babies!

Daddy's girls, and let me tell you - their hearts belong to him already!

Mommy and Story.

Daddy

Don't you just love the name, Daddy? I do, always have. Maybe because it just sounds nice when you say it. Maybe because I remember the night he found out he was going to be one like it was yesterday. Maybe because I remember even better the look on his face when he saw 1, 2, 3, & 4 for the first time; it was magical. Maybe because he is the one who changes all of the diapers in the hospital. Maybe because he is the one who gets up with me in the night to feed and take care of our little ones. Maybe because I picture my girls and our boy calling him this when they are all grown up. Maybe because he does the stuff that no one else wants to and takes care of us better than anyone else. Maybe because he just makes it all better. Mostly because this man I married is the BEST daddy EVER! Happy Daddy's Day, David! Carter, Summer, Tilly, Story, and I love you to the moon and back! Thank you for wearing the name so well!

I made this slide show last year, and rather than start all over because I love looking at these pictures, I just added to it some sweet pictures taken since then. You will notice there are not many more. It's because he is always the one behind the lens, selflessly taking pictures of everyone else. Daddies do that, you know, at least ours does!

Breakfast with T

About once a month, sometimes more, sometimes less, we meet my mom (T) and her husband, Hart, for breakfast in Atlanta. Today was one of those meetings for us. We always meet at this yummy french cafe, La Madeleine's. The atmosphere is perfect because it is cozy, but airy, and the food is delicious. I made note today that I was thankful someone else was louder than we were, ha! Side note, while we were there, I ran into my 8th grade honor's English teacher, Mrs. Minick. She is the reason today that I love to read and write. She also instilled in me a love for grammar, I know crazy right? While in her class, I loved it! I have not seen her in years, probably since I graduated high school, and we won't talk about how long that has been, ha! What a treat! Today also marks the first time we have taken Story out anywhere other than to church, so it seemed appropriate to document our outing, and let me just tell you our girl did great! I only captured a few pictures, and I did not manage to get any of Summer or Tilly, whom I must say both looked especially pretty in their dresses and behaved exceptionally well. With four children, four and under you never know what you are going to get when you go out in public! They sure made their momma proud. Sunday in honor of Story and Father's Day, we are having her baby dedication at church. What a special event on such a special day.

I snapped this picture just before we left; check out those cheeks and that dimple!
Here is our sweet girl all dressed up and ready to go!
Carter is SMITTEN with Story, SMITTEN!
See what I mean!
Story with T.

Thank you, T and Hart, for meeting us today! We enjoyed seeing both of you. Hart's birthday is on Tuesday, so we hope you enjoy your special day! Hopefully, T will take you somewhere special to eat. She used to let us pick where we wanted to eat out on our birthdays, so hold her to it, ha!

Happy Father's Day, Papa!

We have two special men in our lives to celebrate this weekend, Papa and Daddy. Daddy's post will come later, so for today, we will celebrate Papa.

Happy Father's Day, Papa!

Thank you for being a great example of what a father is all about. Our hope is that you feel loved and appreciated on this special day. We will celebrate with you in a few weeks when we come for a visit. In the meantime, here are some pictures we thought you might enjoy.

We love you very much,

David, Heather, Carter, Summer, Tilly, & Story

Papa and Gigi with their Georgia grandchildren.

Papa meeting Story.

Papa meeting Tilly.

Papa entertaining Carter and Summer the day before Tilly was born.

Papa with Carter and a brand new Summer.

Papa with Carter on his first birthday.

Welcoming Carter and becoming Papa for the first time!

1, 2, & 3

Well, not any more as of May 27, when big brother turned 4, which he reminds me of daily. But, Mommy, "I'm four now!" Sorry, Carter, you still can't have my diet coke or drive the mommy car. They are no longer 1, 2, & 3, but these 3 have been so much fun this summer and so sweet to their new baby sister. They have been inseparable and played so sweetly together. David and I have been thoroughly entertained. Our favorite thing they do right now is play hide and seek. The game in and of itself is not that big of a deal, but it's what they say. After they count to ten, they holler in their sweet little voices, "Don't woooorry, here I come!" So funny! I have no idea where that came from, but we have not had the heart to change it either. Love it, love them more! Lately, they like to get together and have me take their picture. Maybe they are noticing that Story doesn't seem to mind when I take her picture, and they are not about to be shown up by their baby sister! Too bad I can't seem to get them all looking and smiling at the same time, ha!

Love these 3, but so thankful there are now 4! Our quiver and our hearts are full indeed!

Is the look on my face any indication how much I am loving this mommy of four stuff?