Fourth of July Weekend (Nearly a Month Late) and More!

Wow! I can't believe it has been over a month since my last post...but a busy month it has been. As most of you know, my parents, brother, sister-in-law and nephew came to visit us Fourth of July Weekend. This has become somewhat of an annual tradition for my parents, as they have been coming to visit on that holiday weekend for the past three years. However, this was Brandon, Emma and Cole's first visit, and we were so happy that they were finally able to do so. Their visit included a morning at the beach (which the babies loved!), dinner at one of my and Bruce's favorite restaurants in Ocean Springs--Jocelyn's, a visit to the Katrina Memorial in Biloxi, a tour of Beauvoir (the last home of Confederate President Jefferson Davis) and last, but not least, a walk-through of our new home.

The babies playing with the toys that Cole brought.

Cole and his Daddy enjoying the beach.

Brinley and her Nana wading in the water.

The gang at Beauvoir.

Brinley and her Uncle Bubbee reading a story the morning that everyone left to go home to Texas.

The following weekend, Bruce, Brinley and I moved into our new home with the generous help of some WONDERFUL friends of ours. Within the first few days, we had the living room, kitchen and dining area set up to our liking. There are still a few decorative touches that I would like to finish in Brinley's bedroom and the guest bathroom. Also, the master bathroom still needs a little organization, and the master bedroom still needs a few pieces of furniture swapped around in it. Other than that, things are going well. The spare room, which is acting as a storage room at this point, still needs some work. There are probably a handful of boxes in there that I need to go through, but I'm taking it one day at a time--and I have to with a little one under my feet that likes to 'help' Mommy. We still haven't fully decided what the spare room is going to be used for (whether it be an office, playroom, etc.) so that makes it kind of hard for me to find homes for things. Of course, time is also a huge contraint for us. Since Bruce commutes out of town for his job, that cuts down quite a bit on our weekday evening time which means that all the major household chores get squished into the weekend. Through trial and error, we're trying to find a routine that works well for us.

I think the one thing that we have absolutely fallen in love with about the property is the yard. At first Brinley was a little unsure of the different textures of the grass, sand, gravel and mulch that cover various parts of our property, but now I think she loves to explore. She definately knows the word "outside" so Bruce and I have to be careful not to use it unless one of us is able to take her out to play...otherwise we're asking for a fit.

Brinley and her Daddy kicking the soccar ball around one evening after Bruce got home from work.

She LOVES to play with her ball outside.

I can safely say that Bruce and I still haven't gotten used to the quietness of the neighborhood. You wouldn't think that would be such a hard thing to get used to, but it is, especially when you're used to living living in a crowded apartment complex right off of a busy highway. There are times during the day when nothing in the house is running--not the washing machine or the dishwasher or the dryer-- and I feel like I have to turn on the radio because it is just too quiet. The good thing about the quiet is that we have so many little critters come and visit our yard--various wildbirds, butterflies, squirrels, and the like.

Mr. Squirrel that comes to visit our backyard nearly everyday...

...and a pair of wildbirds that decided to sit on one of our side fences in the backyard.

I hope y'all have enjoyed this update and that everyone is doing well. Until next time...