Zoo!

Drew and Anna Kate had their first trip to the zoo today! It was so much fun!!  Aunt Ashley went with us and we met some friends and our cousins there.  Drew and Anna Kate had so much fun they couldn't settle down to take a nap.  Needless to say, they were exhausted by bedtime but were really good and despite the lack of a nap, were never whiney.

The prairie dogs were one of the first things we saw.  They really liked watching them eat and play with each other.

Watching the prairie dogs.

Me and my girl at the elephant exhibit.

Drew wasn't quite as interested in the animals as Anna Kate was.  I think he was playing in the misters instead of really looking at the elephants.

We met up with some friends (Tassi and her boys and Kim and her little boy... Poor Anna Kate, the only girl again!) and went to see the Meerkats next.  I would say that they were probably their favorite part.  The Meerkats were interactive with them and would come over to where the kids were and would run back and forth with them. We spent quite a bit of time at their exhibit.

Playing with the Meerkats. They would come right up to the glass and stand up almost looking eye to eye with the kids.

Brody (Tassi's son) telling Anna Kate and Drew all about the Meerkats.

Watching the River Otters swim back and forth. They were another animal that really caught their attention. Since they didn't know what animals to be looking for at the different exhibits, the animals that were moving around were the most exciting.

Drew brushing a goat at the petting zoo. Surprisingly, Anna Kate was scared and wouldn't let me put her down.  She is used to the goats across the street from DotDot and Grandaddy's and insists on feeding them everytime she is there.  I guess she is only used to goats if there is a fence seperating them.  There were turkeys in the petting zoo area too (another animal we are familiar with). One of the rules was no screaming and since that is how Drew & AK "talk" to the turkey that was the first thing Drew did when he saw one.  We left pretty quickly after that so we wouldn't get kicked out!

Grandaddy would be so proud!  We went to the indoor play area after meeting up with Whitney, Price, and Hayes.  This tractor was one of the first things they went for.

Playing on the blocks with cousin Price.

Eating some lunch before we hit the Splash Pad!

Anna Kate and Aunt Ashley.  I'm not sure we would make it without her!  She is always such a big help.  Drew and Anna Kate were both disappointed when she didn't go home with us.

Drew playing in the water at the Splash Pad. It is new at the zoo and so much fun. Since Drew is my water lover, he got right in and got wet. The wind started to blow after we were there for about 20 minutes and he got cold. Mix that and the fact that it was 30 minutes into normal nap time and he was ready to go.

It is so hard to get a picture of them together. Typically, they split ways so this was a rare opportunity.

Anna Kate talking to Hayes and Whitney.  She likes the water but really likes to just walk around and check things out.

 Curious but not getting too close.

Summertime fun!

We had a full weekend of all kinds of summertime fun!  Most of it was spent around water as it has been hot, hot, hot here.  John Clay didn't have to work this weekend so having him with us was a great added bonus!!

 Saturday morning, Drew and Anna Kate spent some time "working" before all the fun began.  Here they are sending out their text messages.

 And then they had some emails to return.

 After naps on Saturday we went swimming at Ninnie & Helen's house again. Their pool is very shady and is the perfect place for them to play without having to worry about getting scorched.

 Drew tries to get in the pool like he gets off the couch. He will turn around and back in. He jumped off the diving board a couple of times again but this time was a little more apprehensive for some reason.

 After we swam, we went to eat dinner at the Backporch restaurant in Townsend. Mamaw and Papaw had been swimming with us so they went too.  Anna Kate and Drew were perfectly behaved which is always a relief!  Here Anna Kate was trying to eat a cracker with her spoon.

 John Clay was "manning" Drew so he gave him his phone to keep him preoccupied while we waited for our food.  For some reason Drew really took up with our waitress and every time she would come to the table and then leave again, he was stick his hand in the air and wave and yell "Bye-Bye". 

 We had our normal Sunday lunch with the Joneses.  Grandaddy bought Anna Kate and Drew a fun pool with a slide and waterfall last year and we broke it back out this weekend. It came with these blow up dinosaurs that for some reason Drew wanted to drag all over the yard by it's tail.

 Of course, Repeat needed to do the same.

 Fun in their awesome pool!  They still don't seem to have the appreciation for how much fun this thing actually is but they did enjoy it.

 This was about the extent of Anna Kate's time in the pool.  She stayed in for a few minutes then wanted to get out and swing, ride on the golf cart, pick flowers in the yard, try to find some snacks, etc...

 Drew liked the slide.  He actually tried standing on it and falling into the water. Silly boy!  He played in it more than his sister and actually when it came time to go inside, he got very interested in playing and didn't want to get out.

 Doing "stunts" with Aunt Ashley.  She will have Anna Kate in a cheerleading uniform in no time!

Doing a little swinging.  We were surprised when Mimi Jo and Pops and Nanny Norma and Uncle Papaw joined us.  It was so much fun to have everyone there to play outside with us!

Daredevil

It seems that I may have a little daredevil on my hands.  Actually, I very likely have two! But more on that in a minute....
Yesterday morning I had to run to the bank, utility company, etc.... I thought it probably wasn't much for them to get all loaded up in the car and not get to do anything fun so we stopped by Grandaddy's office.  He wasn't there so I decided to make an impromptu park visit.  I have memories of going to the Greenbelt as a kid and feeding the ducks. I figured Drew and Anna would enjoy seeing the ducks so we headed that way.  Well, to my surprise, they were doing work at the Greenbelt so there were no ducks in site (or even water for that matter) but there was something that may have been just as fun.... heavy machinery! We saw big dump trucks, bulldozers, etc... We went for a quick walk in the stroller and then stopped to watch the guys as they worked.  One of the dump truck drivers drove by and even honked his horn.  It was way exciting!

 Just watching and having a little snack.

 Moving dirt with big loud machines is so exciting!

We had a casualty while we were there.  Anna Kate spit her "papise" out to get a drink of water and it rolled right under the railing to a grassy area with no access.  Bye-bye "papise"! She actually handled it a lot better than I thought she would.

John Clay got finished with work early yesterday so after lunch and naps we went swimming at Aunt Helen and Ninnie's house!  It was so nice that he got to go with us.  Drew and Anna Kate are getting more comfortable with the water and have a lot of fun when we go swimming.  John Clay dove off of the diving board so you know what happened next don't you?  My little daredevil, Drew, had to do it too!  He jumped right off the diving board to his Daddy in the water several times. He has no fear!  Sister came over to the diving board like she was going to do it too but never did.  I think she would have if she hadn't been cold.  Mamaw Katherine and Papaw Hubert came by too and Papaw Hubert got in and swam with us.  Drew and Anna Kate liked when Papaw dove into the water too.  They would have stayed there all night if it wasn't already over an hour past their dinner time.  I see a lot of pool time in our future this summer! 

Father's Day

We had a great weekend celebrating Daddy and Pepaw and Grandaddy and Papaw Tim, and Papaw Hubert! Man, we sure are blessed to have such great men in our lives!

Saturday afternoon we started the celebrations at Aunt Donna's house.  We weren't able to stay long because of prior commitments but got to visit with the Garner side of the family and even got to swim for a little while.  Of course, I left my phone in the car and then got in the pool so I didn't get any pictures while were there so you will have to believe me when I said we had a good time.  We will definitely have to go back soon and look forward to getting to spend more time with everyone the next time.
After we left Donna's we headed to DotDot and Grandaddy's house to have dinner.  Aunt Ashley was there and we had a good dinner and then played outside until it was bath time.  Drew and Anna Kate were so tired they fell asleep on the way home and barely woke up when I got them out of the car.

 Helping Aunt Ashley make dinner.

 Eating his corn like a big boy.  He kept trying to eat Aunt Ashley's so she finally just gave him his own.  He did a good job!

Grandaddy got a new toy for himself and the babies.  A golf cart!  They loved riding around the neighborhood on it. I have a feeling that thing will rack up many miles over the years to come.

We went to Mamaw Katherine's and Papaw Hubert's on Sunday to celebrate with Papaw Tim and Papaw Hubert.  We had more yummy food and more fun outside!  Again, they were so tired they fell asleep on they way home and went right back to sleep after we brought them in and put them in bed.

 Playing in pool. Drew (especially) has become quite fond of the water.

 Flirting with Megan.

Anna Kate got a splinter in her foot and Daddy had to do surgery. All she needed was some strawberries and she was very cooperative.  There were no tears or anything! Brave girl!





Solo

Anna Kate and Drew got to spend a little one on one time with their mommy and daddy today!  I can only count 3 times that they have ever been separated.  All three times were for doctor appointments and were really too young to understand.  I needed to go to the grocery store and the bank this morning and John Clay needed to go to Guitar Center.  So, we just decided that if he took one and I took the other, we could accomplish what we needed to.  It was different to only have one child with you and so much easier! Even though it was easy, I would never trade the multiple trips to and from the car, having to have a stroller to go anywhere, the need for a strategic/logistical plan at all times, etc... for anything in this world!

 Drew all loaded up in the truck and ready to go.  John Clay said he didn't make a peep the entire way to and from Knoxville.  He said as soon as they walked in the door at Guitar Center, he could see his wheels turning just trying to take it all in.  They just walked around and checked out the guitars and DJ equipment/lighting first.  Then, they hit the mother load in the drum room (or the "boom room" as Drew called it).  John Clay said he loved sitting on the drum thrones and hitting the drums and cymbals. I don't know who had more fun!

Anna Kate got to ride in the middle and see out the front windshield. When we first got started, she kept pointing to Drew's side of the car and saying "Uh Oh, Uh Oh". I'm pretty sure she was worried we forgot him.  We started our trip at Walmart.  Anna Kate saw some ballons and got really excited about them so guess what she came home with?! :)  She was very well behaved but got a little put-out when I wouldn't let her have the "moes" (what she calls tomatoes) that I put in our cart. We had quite the surprise and ran into Grandaddy while we were there. We got all we needed there and headed to the bank next.  We made it home about 5 minutes before Drew and Daddy and just in time for lunch and a nap!

All in all, I would say our solo trips were a success.  We were a little nervous about how they would react to being apart but they did great.  We want to try to do one on one outings with they often.  I'm sure they will love some undivided attention. 

After naps we ran out the door for Father's Day celebrations with the Garners and then with Grandaddy but I'll save those for another post.



Twenty Two!

Today Anna Kate and Drew are 22 months old!  It is so hard to believe their second birthday is so quickly approaching.  To be honest, I kind of lost count on how many months old they were past 18 months.  They change so much everyday and really are little kids and not babies any more.  A few fun facts about the two munchkins:
-Drew's most favorite food is probably blueberries.  Anna Kate's favorite is definitely tomatoes.  That girl would eat a whole tomato like an apple if we would let her.  Drew has recently developed a little aversion to meat.  He is my good vegetable eater while Anna Kate will go for the meat and carbs first.  They both love any kind of fruit and of course love ice cream or any kind of cake or pie.
-They both recently had a growth spurt.  We measured them this past weekend and they both had grown almost 1/2 inch in a month!
-They are still good sleepers.  Drew is usually the first one up and will wake Anna Kate up in the mornings or after naps.  They sleep about 11 hours per night and usually take a 2 hour nap during the day. They are both quite flexible and are really good if they are up late or have to delay or miss their nap.
-They are both talking more and can repeat pretty much anything  but still do a lot of grunting and pointing (that is our fault for responding to grunts!). They both know pretty much all of their body parts and can identify primary colors like red, yellow, blue, and green. They can also find a few of their letter books.  They know A, C, D, K, and U (random, I know!).
-They play great together and are getting better about sharing with each other.  I love that they have each other to play with.  They also look out for each other.  If one gets hurt or cries, the other will always come check on them. They play well with their cousins and other kids.
-They still love going outside and taking baths.  They are developing a love for the pool also.  We are looking for somewhere to send them for swim lessons.  They still don't have any interest in watching TV but do like to play with the remote because they like to see the TV change.  They still insist that it is on even though they aren't watching. They still like books but because they have been spending so much time outside, we really haven't been reading as much lately.
-Drew is quite inquisitive about how things are made, work, etc.... He loves cars, trucks, and mowers. He surely is all boy. He plays rougher and will take more risks than Anna Kate.  Anna Kate is more into girly things like her babies and her clothes.
-They are both busy but so very sweet.  They will play for a while then want to come cuddle and sit on my lap for a while. 

 My phone has the flip feature where you can turn the camera around and see yourself on the screen.  This morning I let them play with it.  Anna Kate liked pointing at herself and making funny faces.

 Drew was quite puzzled by it and was trying to figure out what was going on.

This is a bad picture of an incredibly sweet moment.  After they finished eating lunch Drew reached over and patted Anna Kate on the back. I said "Aw, Drew, you're a sweet brother".  He then wanted to give her a kiss.  The moment had passed by the time I got my phone to take a picture so this was the best I got.  This was their version of giving each other a kiss. HaHa!

Parading

Drew and Anna Kate attended their first parade on Sunday. The theme was "Proud to be an American" and was honoring all past and present military. They had a good time and were super excited when it got to the end and their Grandaddy came riding by on his tractor! 

Waiting for the parade to get started.

 Looking at the helicopter flying over.  That was one of their favorite parts of the parade. The poeple in mascot suits were also a big hit.

 The parade was a bit long and they were starting to get restless so they got to experience another first.  Their first sucker (Dum Dums to be exact)!   Drew went right after his and eventually bit into it so we had to take it away. Anna Kate just sucked on hers.  They definitely did the job and bought us some more time while we waited for Grandaddy to come by.

 There he is!!

 A little post parade snack.  Jello!

Bucky bucked Drew off while we were playing outside after dinner!