Ella Does the Do and a New Seat, Too

Once again, Blogger has let me down and stopped letting me scoot my pics to where I want them...and with one left. Soooo frustrating! So, this should have been the last pic at the bottom.

Little Ell-Bell cheesin' it. She loves it when I take her picture. She breaks into the hugest smile/giggle. I love it.

My Little Miss Ella has decided to grow up just a little bit more. Her beautiful strawberry blond hair has been getting longer and longer everyday. I am one who likes my children's hair done and Ella had left me in a bit of a quandry. Her hair isn't long enough to do any girlish hair-dos that I am accustomed to and it has grown too long to just have a curl on top and the biggest problem is that she REFUSES to have a headband on. I figured it was just a matter of time before it happened (due to the overwhelming number of mothers that had came up to me, complimented Ella on her bow and then told me that their daughters had refused to keep them on...*collective sigh*). I had thought about putting a little "spout" pony in her hair...but let's just say that her cheeks are a little too healthy for that look to work right now. So, I decided to put a little gel in her hair and curl it all over. I had forgotten how curly her hair can get with a little help. It has seemed to work and I think has turned out pretty darn cute. The only problem is that I have a drawer full of ginormous bows that she isn't wearing (and won't work with this look). Sooo, drum roll please...I get to buy even more bows. To say that I like to do this is an understatement...I l.o.v.e. buying bows. So, I headed down to the boutique in town and was able to start the purchasing of small bows (not too small, after all I AM a Holyoak ;) It has been fun watching my sweet baby turn into a nearly toddler.

Isn't she a cutie-patootie?

Showing all sides of her "new do"

Now for the next big event, Phillip and I decided to upgrade Ella's ride. My little baby has put on some weight since she was born...that's a good thing...but she has become quite the load to pack around in her carrier. About this time for each of my kids we transitioned them into the bigger car seat. My boys were pretty hard on the seat that they both had, so we chucked it when Grey outgrew it. So, we were planned on purchasing a car seat when Ella needed one . They've changed the pattern since we bought Cooper's...and as the color sensitive girl that
I am--I was pretty excited (it looks great with Ella coloring). So, mostly for my sis' benefit, I took some pics of my little girl sittin' pretty.

Spicy!

I thought that I would take a quick break from the "travel logs" and post something a little fun and different. I'm not quite sure that I agree with everything that it says (mild temperament...have they met me?!) but I thought it was fun nonetheless. There is a link to do the quiz, if you want to...I would love to see how spicy you are.

You Are Basil

You are quite popular and loved by post people.
You have a mild temperament, but your style is definitely distinctive.
You are sweet, attractive, and you often smell good.

What Spice Are You?

Belated Summer Fun

For some reason Blogger isn't allowing me to scoot these swimming lesson pictures down to the bottom of the post...grrrr. I'll have to edit it later... So, when you are reading this these pictures should have been last.

Greyson playing in the pool on the last day of lessons

Cooper in the deep end after he got to go down the super-fun slide

My cutie-patootie Grey

Cooper after he had jumped off the diving board

Cooper swimming underwater

"Look Mom, no life jacket!" (wahoo!)

Greyson getting ready to go down the slide

As I mentioned in the previous post- I have a lot of catching-up to do. So, I am diving in head-first.

My kids had been asking us nearly all summer to go bowling. So, after a long month of Phillip going to Tulsa M-Th 'til around 9 p.m. we decided to treat our family to an afternoon of bowling. The boys were estatic. We all had a great time and as an added bonus Ella slept through about half of it and so I had my hands free. The boys did really well...you 'gotta love bumpers. I, on the other hand, did not do so well. I decided that you really do have to practice! I finally figured some things out-like I have to roll the ball a little more to the right or else I would gutter the ball. Overall, it was a lot of fun and a nice, air conditioned break.Cutie-Coop with his toothless grinGreyson looking very excited

Greyson's own way to roll the ball down the lane

Cooper getting ready to bowlElla taking a much-needed rest

Now, the next part is a very tardy post on the boys' swim lessons. This year I did something a bit different, and I was super glad that I did. I enrolled the boys in two swim lesson sessions back-to-back. They did really well in the first session and learned even that much more in the second. I was really pleased to see how much they progressed. Greyson got to Level One and Cooper progressed to Level Two. Cooper ended up swimming like a fish and Greyson was learning to swim a bit on his own. Both of the boys had the same teacher for Level One and she was great. It was nice to have a teacher that was competant and really cared. The boys looked forward to their lessons everyday and got a cute little tan out of the whole deal, too. I, on the other hand nearly melted. With temps over 100 degrees and the heat index higher, I have never wished that I could be in a pool more. Overall, it was fun to see the boys swim and progress...even through my sweat.

I've Got You Babe

I'm a bit of a blogger-looser lately. I am extremly behind on my posting, so...I'm trying to catch up bit by bit. So...here goes.

Phillip and I celebrated our eighth anniversary on August 4th. I wanted to let him know that I love him deeper today than I ever dreamed possible eight years ago. I knew I would love him more...I just didn't realize how. He is a wonderful man that supports me in everything that I do. He is an exceptional father. He has the kindest heart that I have ever seen. I was such a lucky girl to find him. He has the foundation to hold my family steady and I am eternally grateful for that. Phillip is a hard worker and is very family conscientous. I found my other half and I couldn't be luckier. Here's to eight years and so many, many more. I love you, Babe.

Me and Phillip in Branson. (this picture is at a bad angle...phillip's chin is not that big and he isn't that bald...he wanted me to add that...and it's true!)

Growing, Learning and Living

Today I sent my babies...or rather my big boys, off to school. I am so very proud of both of them. Cooper, who can be a bit anxious about new situations, was such a pro. He tried to help Grey feel at ease and was such a wonderful big brother. Greyson was nervous but ended up doing really well. They are such wonderful boys and being away from them for a bit makes me even more grateful to be their mother. There really isn't many things that make my heart swell more than seeing my children waiting with excited eyes to see me after school. I love you boys, and I am so excited for you. Keep on growing, learning and living up to the wonderful princes you are.