24th of July

On the 24th we went to the parade. Let's just say BORING! It was so long and really slow, but the kids love it. Troy's brother's Insurance Office is right on Washington Blvd. and he lets us sit there every year and its in the shade, so I shouldn't complain. We usually go with Callee and her kids. This is all of us waiting patiently for the parade to begin.

Me, Miley, Callee and Riley Dax, Carston and Kord

After the parade we went to see Harry Potter with all my family and then had dinner and swam at my parents. Then we followed tradition and did fireworks on their driveway. Here is my dad helping the boys light their sparklers.

Of course Miley hated the whole thing!The boys loved it though! Troy had fun too. I don't know what it is about fireworks, but they always bring out the inner pyro in everyone!

The Best Surprise Ever!

Just a little shout out for my guy. Troy had to go to Baltimore for a couple of days for work, so the sneeking guy planned a whole vacation around it for just the two of us. He surprised me with the details a week before. You might not think it could get any better than that. . . except that he got the baby sitting all planned and typed up an itinerary for our activities each day. He bought all the tickets for everything that we were going to do and had even scheduled some shopping time in. I couldn't believe it, I was seriously jumping up and down screaming. I especially lost it when I saw that he got tickets to Wicked, thats about when I started jumping up and down on the bed like a little kid. We had such a great time, I didn't even mind when he had to go to his conferences. Who doesn't love a little by yourself time to take a nap and read a good book and eat Milk Duds without being bothered. Thanks Troy Boy, that was the best surprise ever!

This is at the Harbor in BaltimoreWe went to this awesome aquarium, it was 5 levels. The top level was a rain forest and the outside walls were all windows, so it looked and felt like you were outside. This was one of the first things we did and we were both like "I wish the kids could see this." Isn't it funny how as soon as your away, you miss them. The sharks of course were the best part!They had some street performers. We watched a juggling comedianTroy was his assistant Once Troy's work stuff was done, we took the train to New York. Here it comes! New York, here we come! I was so excited, I had never been there.We stayed right by Time Square. Look at all the lawn chairs in the middle of the street.Troy had gotten tickets for The Lion King and it was awesome. We had another I wish the kids could see this moment. Enjoying the New York night life. There are people every where no matter what time it is.We went to a Mets game. It was so cool. The stadium was bran new. Troy was really hoping that the Yankees would be in town, but they weren't.You just can't go to a ball game without having a hot dog.We ate dinner at Serendipity's. Here we are with their famous Frozen Hot Chocolate. It was one of the best things I've ever had. This was the night I had been waiting for the entire trip and it did not disappoint. It was so awesome. I did not move a muscle the entire time. I was so giddy and I was singing and practically skipping down the street after. I'm sure Troy was so embarrassed, but he let me have my moment.By the end of the trip, we were pros at riding the subway. It took a while, it is so confusing trying to figure out which one to get on and when to get off and which one connects to the next.We goofed off a lot when no one else was in our train car.Our last stop was the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island.The trip was wonderful. The plane ride home was a different story, our plane got delayed because of the weather and by the time we finally boarded, everything was so backed up that we sat on the plane for almost three hours waiting for our turn to take off. We didn't get home until 3:00 in the morning. We were both really glad to be back to our quiet little town and our cute little kids. Thanks again sweetie!

Banzai Skimboard Surfer

Carston got this really cool skimboard slip-n-slide for his birthday and the kids love it. Even Troy had a blast trying it out. It took a while for Carston to figure it out, but now he's even trying tricks on it. Of course Troy just jumped on for the first time a couple of days ago and picked it up in 2 seconds.

I'm such a pro, I didn't even need my swimsuitTroy and the boys getting fancy Okay, you caught me, those last two pictures were staged.

4th of July

We had a great 4th of July! The best part was that it was overcast all morning for the parade and festivities at the park and then the sun came out just in time for the pool party at Grandpa Iverson's. I love holidays, but I've always hated the heat on the 4th of July. Most of my memories consist of dripping with sweat before the parade even starts. We finally had a sweat free Independence Day Hooray!!! We watched the Farr West Parade that conveniently goes through our neighborhood and ends at our park. Miley loved picking up the candy. The boys in their handsome shirts. They later decided that they only wanted to wear the red shirt underneath, so I'm glad I got this picture.

Carston getting ready to dunk his cousin Cort Dixon. He dunked him on his second try.

Fireworks! Farr West put on a great show!Poor Miley, she hated the fireworks so bad. She screamed for the first few minutes and then finally settled down with her face in the blanket and she laid like that the entire time. I thought she might have gone to sleep, but as soon as the fireworks were over she hopped right up and was all happy again.