Happy Times!!

We returned home on Thursday and some of our Dallas friends came to visit on Friday. Since Mike was going to tile the kitchen floor of their home with some help, Amy decided it was a great time to get away with the kids. We are so glad they did too. Kaylee and Ashlyn had the best time. They seemed to pick up where they left off. There was no arguing or tattling going on the whole weekend. What a nice age they are at:) Poor Parker was greatly out numbered but he did not seem to mind. Campbell had so much fun following him around and he was gracious enough to let her.

While Campbell was napping on Saturday, Amy and I took the rest of the gang to the zoo.


The giraffes were in rare form and ate anything we could give them. All our kids thought that was too funny. It was priceless to watch them jerk their hands back each time the giraffe licked them when trying to get a cracker from their hand.

The other highlight at the zoo was feeding the ducks. I think the girls would have stood on the dock forever watching them. The huge fish were fun to watch too.

All Parker wanted to do at the zoo was see the zebras and when we got to them all he could do was hold his nose and say "shew...stink". I tried to get us out of that area as soon as possible. Sorry Parker:)

After the zoo we went to Chic-Fil-A so the kids could play a little bit on the playgound in the air conditioning and eat a little something. When we got home Cary was feeding Campbell and it was naptime for Parker. After a brief rest we loaded the older girls up to go to the mall.
We took them to Diva Party Palace (which is a lot like Libby Lu) and they got to get their hair, make-up, and nails done. Kaylee went for the Tween style so she could get the glittery headband and Ashlyn went for the Diva so she could have pink hair. (Luckily it came out very easily in the bath before Sunday morning church.) They had such a fun time getting pampered. Who could blame them? Afterwards Amy and I even managed to do a little shopping at Gap Outlet...of course we only bought things for the kids. The next stop was Bahama Buck's for a snocone. We found out that the sugar free coconut tastes like soap (sorry Amy) but all the regular flavors are great!! Then we took a quick drive by tour of ACU before returning home.

My sweet husband grilled hamburgers and hot dogs for dinner so I would not have to cook and they were delicious:) Everyone ate like a champ and then the kids were off to play in the backyard. It was actually a nice night to be out. The cutest thing was watching Parker take Campbell on her first "car date".
Don't they look like they are headed for trouble with those innocent faces? They look like they are trying to form a plan to me. Don't worry we watched them very closely and there was no stopping behind the tree.

Campbell looks like she has been riding with her Daddy too long. Her hands seem to be ready to brace herself for sudden stops and high speeds. Just kidding Honey:) Parker did a great job of driving because he never threw Campbell out and was very careful with her.

I am not sure if Parker is practicing the "laying on of hands" in this picture or simply making sure his date's hair looks good. Either way he was a perfect gentleman. Yep! (That is for you Parker.)

We had a super weekend with most of the Smiths present. (Mike, you have to come next time. We missed you:) What a gift it is to have friends that you can just pick up the conversation where you left off as if you have never been apart. It was sad to see them leave but we are already looking forward to making more memories next time they come to see us. Sorry for the long post to those who suffered through it.