Shining Stars

We've heard that friends are a lot like stars....you don't have to actually see them all the time to know that they are always there! And that's about how we feel about our close friends....we love the stars in our lives! About lunch time, the Miller family came over and we all went swimming. That family has basically become like family to us and we are so thankful for their friendship. It was cracking me up to see the girls all playing together - especially when Abby decided to try out Kismet's flippers - no matter how much we told her she needed to be careful when she was walking, she had to try them out for herself, and promptly busted her bottom. With just a sniffle and funny frown shown, she was back up and having a ball at the pool.

However, our pool time was cut short today for good reason! One of our close family friends, Mary Frances, had called this morning to say she'd be driving through town and would love to visit! We haven't seen MFF since the fall of 2009 so needless to say, we were all excited about her visit! She is not only one of our Class of 2002 Cumberland alumni, she is also a proud member of the "I was in the Wade Wedding...finally!" party, ha ha! She was there from the get go of not only our relationship, but has also been a part of all of our family crisis, drama, life, family, kiddos, and homes....and we couldn't wait to spend the afternoon with her. And thankfully, she didn't get upset when we made her turn the afternoon into the entire day, ha! MFF, we love you and loved your visit! Hope to see you again soon!

Wordless Wednesday

Havin' fun with Hayden

Today some of our good friends came over to spend the day with us and we were loving their visit! Jennifer and Hayden (almost 4 months) came over and we had the best afternoon! We were laughing, talking, playing and even got the kiddos outside to the backyard (and back porch) pools. Hayden wasn't necessarily too thrilled with Blaire splashing him with water but he took it like a man, ha! Thanks Jennifer for a great day!

Black and Blue

"Blue eyes say, Love me or I die; black eyes say, Love me or I kill thee." (Spanish Proverb)

Last Wednesday night (June 1st) Abby was at her Wednesday night church class, Mission Friends, and was playing a game with some of her friends. To make a long story short, Abby ran in one direction and a friend followed....when Abby stopped and turned around, her friend came crashing into her - into her eye to be specific. Within minutes, while the crying and screaming was still going on, a bruise started to appear...and by the next morning, Abby had her first black eye. Since then, it's turned from black, to brown, to purple, to blue and now yellow. Although she's shown it off, she wanted nothing to do with me taking a picture of it until now. She'd handling it like a pro, although whenever she accidentally touches it, she says that it still really hurts. My heart just goes out to her when she's in pain. But the sweetest thing is to hear her response to me saying "I'm sorry you have a black eye." She replies "Mommy, you don't have to be sorry. It wasn't your fault. It wasn't anyone's fault. It was an accident - that means no one has to be sorry."

Sum-sum-summertime

It's not technically summertime yet, but we are going to party like it is! After a long couple of days and nights this week, we knew we were in for a rough day today...all three girls had been missing naps, getting to bed late and just in general having long days. So today would have been the perfect day to rest up - but of course all three had different plans, ha! A normal early morning full of playing, eating and hanging out together finally led to a nap by the younger two! But when they woke up, we had a special surprise in store for them - we all packed up and headed over to Aunt Carol and Ra Ra's for a fun afternoon at the pool. It was a great afternoon and made even all the more better when we came home with no sunburns, ha!

Three Cheers for Friday

Hip hip hooray for pool parties!
If you are reading this and are anywhere near southeast Alabama, you are hot. Very hot. With temps reaching into (and over) the 100 degree mark lately, and no rain in sight, it doesn't take long for you to decide that a pool party is a must! Today, some of our best buds, Derek and Courtney, came to join us for a dip in the pool. Our three girls are water fanatics and today both Reagan and Abby were cracking up when thrown all over the pool. Yea for pool parties!

Hip hip hooray for cousins!
Our newest family member, little Ethan, is a little over 2 weeks old and is simply adorable. This afternoon we headed over to the Bryant's house to get lots more snuggle time! And, it was the first time that Abby got to actually see Ethan in person! As soon as she saw him, she said "Oh he's just so cute!" and couldn't wait to get her hands on him! We are so happy that he's a member of our family! Yea for baby Ethan!


Hip hip hooray for birthdays!
We are on a birthday train lately and now that we've celebrated Blaire's, Reagan's and Eric's, it was time to move on to the next one. Eric's brother, Aaron, has a birthday this month as well and we celebrated it with him at dinner and then after with dessert and presents. Yea for A's birthday celebration!

Seminars and Sunshine

If you are a lawyer, one thing you hate to be reminded off are the dreaded CLEs. Each year, an attorney in the state of Alabama has to go through 12 hours of Continuing Legal Education in order to keep their license current and in good standing with the Alabama State Bar. It's no fun sitting for hours in a classroom undergoing a boring seminar...but what is fun is finding a CLE that is not only interesting but at an interesting locale! And that's how Wade & Wade, Attorneys at Law, work it! Ha! Today I headed down to Sandestin for the 25th Annual "Divorce at the Beach" CLE hosted by the Family Law Section of the ASB. As always, it was a great seminar! But today was a bit more special because I was able to enjoy the seminar, knowing that my three love bugs weren't almost 2 hours away but rather 20 yards away - swimming and hanging out pool side where the seminar was held. Thanks to the help from Eric's mom, Angie, we were all able to head down to the beach, enjoy a scrumpdidliumpcious breakfast, hang out pool side, attend some seminars, head to the beach, grab a beach side dinner and make it home safe and sound just in time for goodnight kisses!

Pomp It Up!

Today was the day...the graduation service for the Wicksburg High School Class of 2011! Although there were several graduates that we loved celebrating this special day with (a special shout out to Stetson, Taylor, Sam, Zack and Shelby!), we truly loved watching our "4th daughter" Jessica Renee Ganous walk across the stage and receive her diploma. Although we've known Jess for much longer, it was 4 years ago that she became part of our family...she's been there for babies, birthdays, vacations, slumber parties, play dates and much much more. We are very proud of her and wish her much success for her future while she attends ESCC/Troy and receives her degree in Early Education! Congratulations Jess - we love you!!!!

Making Memories

"A daughter may outgrow your lap, but she will never outgrow your heart." (Author Unknown)

If you take a glimpse into our home, every now and then you will find two children (one still at heart) sitting in the downstairs den prolonging bedtime by enjoying each other's company while watching a movie on television. About a year ago, the night included the movie Kung Fu Panda. And when the previews for Kung Fu Panda 2 came out last month, Abby started asking when she could go. Tonight, she enjoyed a dinner and movie date with her Daddy....going to see the "lawyers" (a.k.a. warriors), go get "in a piece" (a.k.a inner peace) with "Matter Seafood" (a.k.a Master Shifu).

P.S. On a side note, today was Memorial Day. Memorial Day, originally called Decoration Day, is a day of remembrance for those who have died in our nation's service. We are thankful for the service these men and women gave to our country, and we lift up their families as we remember them today.

Arggg maties!

The final celebration for Eric was another birthday dinner and party with his parents, brother and sister in law. We headed out to eat and ended up at what will soon be called the place where all of us go for our birthday dinners - Santa Fe. So far, three out of the five of us have celebrated out birthdays there...and tonight didn't disappoint. After dinner we headed back home for cake and presents. Another Pirates of the Caribbean kinda night around here....Happy Birthday!!!

My sunbathing beauties

Abigail Lee
4 years, 3 months, 25 days


Reagan Nichole
12 months, 13 days


Blaire Elizabeth
12 months, 13 days

BFFs in the hizzle

"A true friend is someone who thinks that you are a good egg even though she knows that you are slightly cracked." (Bernard Meltzer) Here's to our wonderful friends, the Godwins! We love you all and are very fortunate to have you in our lives...especially on days like today when we can spend the entire day together laughing, playing, talking and enjoying each other's families! Hugs and Love dear friends!

Wordless Wednesday

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, ERIC!!!!

Happy birthday to you,
Happy birthday to you,
Happy birthday dear Daddy,
Happy birthday to you!

That's what Eric heard from his four favorite girls first thing this morning! Yep, it's Eric's birthday!!! He's now 35 years old! And although he already had some birthday celebrating this past weekend, we had some more plans up our sleeves for the big day! As soon as Eric headed off to work, we all got bathed and dressed and followed right behind...to surprise him at lunch! Sondra (his secretary)
and Scott (the other lawyer at the office) were taking him out to eat and they were in on the secret plan! Eric didn't know we were going to be there until he opened the restaurant door and we yelled SURPRISE! We all enjoyed a yummy meal - and the birthday boy even got some singing and dessert! Then, while he headed back to the office for some more surprises and treats, we headed out for some party store shopping to get ready for tonight! Abby, Blaire and Reagan all helped me pick out some perfect pirate decorations for the Pirates of the Caribbean party theme we've had going! When Eric got home that night, there were balloons, plates, glasses, eye patches and the perfect present Abby picked out for him - 2 pirate swords for the two of them to play sword fights...just what every little 4 year old girl does with her Daddy, right? We ate another one of Eric's favorite meals - fried pork chops, salad, BBQ bread, corn and rice. And we snacked on key lime pie for dessert. Yum! The perfect day for our perfect man! Happy Birthday - we LOVE you!!!!!

Work hard, play harder

Today everyone that lives in our house and is over the age of 5 had to go to court! And we needed someone to hold down the fort so we called in the heavy guns - Kasey and Lydia! LOL! All kidding aside, Kasey came over to help us out. She watched the girls until I came home from work and after a little lunch, we all headed to the pool. It was a great afternoon - we ran into a bunch of friends and neighbors at the pool...and we enjoyed ourselves a ton! Oh, and no sunburns - woo hoo!!!!

Fun in the Sun!

Well, if you've kept up with us on Blogger or Facebook for the last week, you might have noticed that something's been missing - not only our Abbyisms, but our Abby! After we celebrated the twins first birthday, she took off with her Gramercy and Papa Doc for an entire week of fun in the sun in Sandestin, Florida - where they live. We missed her terribly so - in fact the twins would go bonkers when they saw her on Skype! They had a great week alone with Mommy and Daddy but sure did miss their Big Sister! And this afternoon she headed back home and we welcomed her with balloons, presents and a dinner of her choice! Welcome Home, Abby!