Days with the Davis': July 2007

Wednesday, July 25, 2007

This week I have attended workshops for school. It just reminds me that soon it will be time to head back to work. That always bring some dread as well as excitement to begin a new year. This year I will take on a new position as a Title I teacher for reading and math. I am not quite sure what grades I will be working with, but it will be a new adventure.

Jonathan also will begin a new position soon. He will be an account manager for Coca Cola. This is a good move that means not having to get up so early to go to work. Right now he leaves very early which means he often goes to bed before the boys or at the same time. His new job will also not be out int he heat and as much stress to his body. He will begin in early September.

While I have been gone to workshops the kids have gone to Mrs. Bonnie's. They enjoy going there and playing with all the kids. Chloe has done well and has several little friends her age. Mrs. Bonnie will keep Chloe this year. I am excited for her to be around other children her age in a new environment.

The boys will soon be back in school and of course have mixed emotions about this. Kale is the least thrilled about going back to school. In fact, he has told us MANY times that he would like to move to Papa's house to live. Guess he doesn't realize that he'd still have to go to school!

So as our summer winds down, we look forward to the last few weeks. We are ready to head out in the canoe, our church mission project, and hopefully a family trip to Busch Gardens as well as a few other small trips. I also have a few home improvement projects I'd like to complete. So, as sad as we are that summer is coming to an end, we will enjoy the last of it!!

NC trip part 2

After arriving at Nana Jo and granddaddy's house we just chilled out. The boys and Chloe promptly pulled out all the toys and played. Chloe likes trucks and would sit for quite awhile and play. We also enjoyed an afternoon snack of chocolate cake right after frosting -- it was fantastic!!

Aunt Cindy and Amber stopped by to visit us and meet Chloe. The boys always play hard to get when they are around, but Cindy and Amber won out and got hugs from all.

Kinston has opened a new spray park and that where we were heading for Friday. It was a very hot morning!! It was crowded, but Chloe and the boys had a ball. They ran threw the water, stood under a big bucket that dumped water, sprayed the "hose" and stood on top of several fountains. We hung out there for awhile and then headed back home for lunch and naps.

After lunch, we all crashed (minus Keegan) for naps. Apparently, we were all very tired. Jonathan was on his way so the boys were quite excited. Uncle Danny, Aunt Carol, Cara, and Travis were also stopping by to see everyone. Everyone arrived at the same time so it was lots of fun. Keegan would not leave Jonathan's side -- he is very much a daddy's boy!! We all ate supper and enjoyed hanging out. After Danny and crew left leaving Cara behind, we settled down for some TV time. Uncle Ronnie and Aunt Rose stopped by later to visit and meet Chloe. Chloe had already gone to bed, but they hung out with all of us. Uncle Ronnie got in trouble a few times for getting everyone so wound up. Finally, we all were sound asleep!!

The next morning, Nana Jo cooked up a big breakfast for everyone. Uncle Clyde, little Ronnie, and Aunt Innes all came by. It is nice to see everyone since we see all these folks so little. Aunt Faye and Uncle Steve brought Wilbur's BBQ for lunch. We also received news that Stephanie became engaged!! Congrats to her!! Cindy joined us for lunch, also. Jennifer, Barry, Allison, and Skylar joined us for the afternoon. The kids played hard outside all together while everyone else hung out inside catching up on each others lives. We left early evening and headed back to VA. We had a nice trip back with our canoe (thanks Papa) and the kids slept for a good portion of the trip. We will see everyone again at the reunion in September!!

North Carolina trip

On Sunday, July 16 Papa was heading back to NC and we joined him. I am not sure who was more excited. . . Papa or the boys?!?! We rode in my dad's conversion van which the boys love. They laid in the back wrapped in their blankets and watched CHiPs. They looked awfully cozy.

Chloe, however, did not do quite as well on the trip. She was very fussy and slept on and off. Once arriving at my dad's we took her to an urgent care. She had a double ear infection!! No wonder she was so fussy; who wouldn't have been? She began her antibiotics and was fine by Tuesday morning.

Papa and the boys had many exciting events planned for the next few days. My dad always makes sure they have their fill of ice cream. We visited Burger King and all had milkshakes as well as pie. Dad had a big dirt pile out back with shovels and trucks so they could enjoy. The dirt is VERY black so instead of being orange (which they are at home), they became black. He also had a few items left in the garden for the boys to pick. We also went to New Bern to get life jackets for the BIG event.

The BIG event was riding the boat and fishing!! The boys were extremely excited about being able to fish with papa and ride in his boat. On Tuesday night, we went to a nearby pier and the boys fished. They have never really been fishing so we needed more hands than we had. Keegan and Kale like to reel in quite often and therefore, my dad and I were having to throw out for 3 boys way too many times. We could not keep up with that or the fact that they needed bait often. The boys all caught some fish and had lots of fun. They enjoyed for my dad to give them the fish to throw back in. I was able to snap some nice pictures while out there. Chloe chilled int he stroller while we were there due to Keegan being scared she was going to fall off. He was freaking out to the point he made me paranoid!

The next morning, we woke up to thunder and rain so I was a little worried we would miss our fishing trip. Papa, however, had a feeling it was a storm only right there and we could head out and be fine and he was correct. It was a beautiful day -- not too warm and not too chilly! We rode for awhile and just enjoyed looking around. Eventually, we stopped for some fishing. The boys did a little better. Again, they all caught some fish. Papa made a few stops along different shores where the boys and Papa all explored in the water. Chloe enjoyed watching from the boat. Later, she feel asleep on the front of the boat and stayed there for the rest of the time.

Later that evening, we again went to the pier and the boys caught a few more fish. Keegan was being his usual self and driving us crazy. I said aloud, "I am gonna throw that kid off!" He promptly took off running for Papa's van. When he came back, he was prepared with his life vest. Guess he thought if was going overboard, he'd be ready.

On Thursday, we got up and packed up to head to Kinston to Nana Jo and granddaddys. Papa prepared a grand feast for breakfast and then we headed out. We made a small stop in New Bern and then headed to K-town. We drove all around town looking at things that had changed including the house I grew up in. Papa enjoyed sharing many stories. We ate lunch at Wendy's and then he dropped us off at Nana Jo's.

We had a wonderful time with daddy in both NC and VA. The boys really enjoy spending time with him and he has so much to share. I enjoyed spending some downtime with him and just hanging out. We all love papa very dearly and can't wait for the next road trip!!

Just a note. . . there are over 100 pictures in this slide, so sit back and ENJOY!!

Tuesday, July 24, 2007

Women of Faith plus more

The Pillar ladies attended the WOF event in DC a few weekends ago. We had a great time and enjoyed the speakers. I look forward to reading some of the books that were mentioned. Anita Renfroe was very funny and has a video that I am hoping to view soon.

Chloe had her first haircut on July 11. Mrs. Lori Kennedy from Stafford Baptist cut her hair. She did great job and Chloe ate about 3 packs of fruit snacks!! She has a little bit of fringe bangs and we are working on evening out the back and sides.

My dad, Papa, came in on Wednesday, July 11. He enjoyed spending time with the boys and Chloe. While I was away at WOF, my dad and Jonathan took care of the kids. Jonathan let Chloe ride the dirt bike with Cody--the things they do while you're away:) On Saturday, they went to the park and Uncle Matt and Aunt Wendy joined them. Of course, no trip is complete without visiting the Dollar Tree. They bought many things to use at the park. We all met at Joe's Crabs Shack for supper.

On Sunday, Jonathan had the pleasure of preaching at Pillar. You can check out his sermon at pillarchurch.sbc and go to resources and then audio for Christmas in July. He did a wonderful job! After the boys begged papa to go, he relented and joined us at church. The boys were thrilled to show off their Papa.

Thursday, July 05, 2007

Random pictures

Fireworks, food, and friends

For July 4 this year, we decided to have some friends over to eat and enjoy the fireworks. All of the kids played in the yard while the adults had fun sitting around and chatting. We were worried the rain was going to halt our plans, but it heald off. After eating, we headed over to the lake to watch the fireworks. We were not sure how Chloe would react, but she was thrilled. She laughed, tried to "reach" the fireworks, and oohed and ahhed! After the show was over, we came home and everyone waited out the traffic. We had fun as did the kids as Cody wanted to know could this become an annual event?!?!

NC adoption get together

On June 29, Jonathan, myself, and the kids headed to Salisbury NC for a Taiwan get together. We stayed the night in a hotel on Friday and the boys loved that. We learned Chloe is a great car rider and that is a good thing since our 4 hour trip to NC turned into about 12 hours on the way home (more later on this one).

On Saturday, we headed over to Dan Nicholas Park in Salisbury. It is a great park with lots to do. Amanda and Scott had planned this wonderful day. Many thanks to them for all their hard work!! There were many families there some with their children already home and several who are in other stages of waiting. Amanda's little girl, another little one, and Chloe were all little girls from SLC so that was really neat. We took a cute picture of the 3 of them together. Chloe loved on everyone and enjoyed all the events. The boys had fun as well at the water section, playground, putt-putt, and paddle boats. All in all it was a grand time and we plan on joining in again next year.

Saturday afternoon, we headed to Hickory NC to visit some old neighborhood friends, Kim and Keith. Keith was acutally camping with Boyd so we didn't get to see him. However, we had lots of fun thinking of the old days with Kim and meeting her little girl. It was nice to see her again. We spent Saturday night in another hotel where everyone went swimming before bedtime.

On Sunday, we began our journey back to VA where we decided to take a different route. It was a different interstate through the mountains. I really wanted to ride on a more scenic route so therefore we ended up on a different route that was fun, but LONG!! The kids did enjoy the stop at the Dollar Tree and Sonic. Near Richmond, we stopped and ate supper at a state park. The boys also enjoyed skipping stones and playing. It was a cool park!

Even with the long trip home, we had lots of fun family time together. We did lots of singing and talking since ridingin a car for that long there isn't much else to do. Enjoy the pictures!

enjoying a paddle boat ride