Carowinds

I won these cute monkeys by playing "Lucky Ducky."
Grandmama, Grandpa, and me

DORA!
DIEGO!
Getting ready to ride my first roller coaster!!
Mommy and me.
Check out this cool airplane!

Today, Grandpa and Grandmama treated us to a fun-filled day at Carowinds. It turned out to be such a beautiful day and the park was not crowded at all. We didn't have to wait in any lines and were actually able to ride some things twice without having to get off and get back in line.

When we arrived the first person to greet us was Dora the Explorer. I thought Eli would flip! She was ecstatic to see Dora in "real-life." Then all of our Noggin friends just began coming out of every corner as you can see in the pictures.

Eli also rode her first roller coaster today. She rode two different ones and we rode them both about 7 times! She couldn't get enough!

She held up pretty well, even though I soon realized that my baby girl is a lot like me...she can't stand the heat! She would get really whiney at times, but as long as we were riding the rides she was a happy camper.

Thanks Grandpa and Grandmama for an awesome day!

Fundaygo Playdate

We headed to Fundaygo yesterday for a fun playdate with our friends, Daniel, Heyward, and Mia. Eli had a great time and Mommy got a good work-out! Whew...it will wear you out going up and down those slides!

Snorkeling

Joye, Karen, and I decided to relax after the snorkeling. The guys decided to try jumping off the high platform (you can see Jonathon diving above.)
This is the cave that we went in...the water was cold!

The lagoon...This was our first stop. We swam from the lagoon out to the reef. We swam for 2 hours!
Master snorkelers with our guide Tonya...she called Jonathon "Chebelo" (some movie star there in Mexico). I think she liked my husband a little too much.

Our Fabulous Vacation!

Our first day and we were ready for some drinks!
The girls...Karen, Joye, Amanda, and Wendy
Will and Joye begged to wear these sombreros...ha, ha, ha!
The guys...Jonathon, Jeff, Steve, and Will.

As soon as we arrived we all got suited up and headed to the bar and pool area. Joye and I were ready for some drinks! We probably tried 15 different drinks until we found the one...MIAMI VICE! All of us got hooked on these yummy drinks...even the guys! One of us especially loved the Mexican tequila...I won't mention any names! Everyday we were entertained by some crazy guys who led various games around the pool. Jonathon said that it was like a married spring break...he hit the nail on the head with that description. Our men also entertained us with thrilling volleyball games...they were so competitive!

We did venture out to go snorkeling...the experience was incredible! I'll post some pics from that trip next. We bought a cd of pics that they took for us on the trip. You'll be able to see some really cool sites where we went snorkeling.

Overall it was one of the best vacations I've ever been on...good food and drinks, relaxing time with my hubby, lots of laughs, great memories, and the best part was making new friends with Jeff and Karen! We had a blast with everyone!

Can't wait for the next trip!

A Room with a View

This is the view that Jonathon and I woke up to every morning! Isn't it amazing?!?

We're BACK!

Jonathon and I just got back from a wonderful vacation! We went to the Riviera Maya which is about an hour from Cancun. We missed Elizabeth Grace terribly, but it was very nice to get away from the "business" of our marriage. I got that quote from a movie we were watching there and I completely related to it...like worrying about the everyday things of life-taking care of our baby girl, paying bills, taking care of the house, blah, blah,blah... It was nice to just focus on each other and have fun with our friends.
I do have to add one thing about my incredible daughter...before we left I hugged her tightly and told her that I was going to miss her so much. She leaned up and held my face in her chubby little hands and said, "I'll dream about you Mommy." It took all of my control not to sit and cry right there in front of her!
I'll post some pictures from our trip soon!

Swimming Lessons!

Floating on my back!

Kicking my feet!

Cheesing for the camera with one of my instructors...I'm such a ham!

Eli is really enjoying swimming lessons at the prestigious Lakeview Club! (Ha, ha, ha!) Here are some pics of what she's learning and a cute one of her and Daniel.

A Fun Visit

Yesterday, we had a special visit from two of my friends that I used to work with at Cheraw Primary, Lenette and Jamila. These pictures are of Elizabeth Grace and Jamila's little girl, Jalaya. Isn't she cute?

Ellis' birthday party

Eli was dressed and ready for Ellis' party!
Ellis and Eli...aren't they precious!?!
Our friend Sara Preston who had the cutest bathing suit on at the party!

We had so much fun at Ellis' birthday party yesterday! Ellis had a pool party and everyone had a great time, especially Elizabeth Grace. She loved jumping into the pool, doing belly-flops and splashing everyone. In this last pic, you can see my big girl getting beside the adorable birthday girl anxiously awaiting the cake!

Happy 4th!

More tball pics

My friend, Meredith, took these wonderful pictures of Miss Eli at one of the tball games. Meredith is becoming quite the photographer!
I love these pics because as you can see, Eli didn't find tball very thrilling! She dressed the part as cute as a button though, if I do say so myself!

The "juiciest" tball team ever!

Eli has had fun this summer playing tball through the rec department. Her team is "Juice." Our friend, Meg, who owns the children's shop Juice sponsored a team. We've had a great time watching all of the children run around. They are so precious!
Thanks for the picture Meredith!

More wedding pics

She has her daddy's eyes!
Our little family.
Eli had a blast on the dance floor!

1 Wedding and a funeral

Erica and Elizabeth Grace
The Bridesmaids
Eli and Sara


This past weekend was a very eventful time for us. My cousin, Erica, was married on Saturday in Lancaster. We had a great time at the wedding. Eli loved wearing her dress and her favorite part was dancing at the reception. Our celebration soon ended though. Very early Sunday morning, my step-dad's father passed away. He fought a long battle with cancer. We will truly miss him. He was a sweet man.

I'll try to post more wedding pics later.