On the morning of July 4th we went to Cedar Key.  We had planned to go to Blue Springs, but it was closed that day, so since everything was packed and ready we decided to head to Cedar Key.  The kids had a blast, and the water felt so nice on such a hot day.

 Perfect seats!

 I was out running one evening and saw this black lump in the road and from a distance I thought it was a rock or something.  As I approached, and my sneaker was literally about to land on it, I realized it was a baby rattle snake.  Ahhhh!  Unfortunately, I had nothing to kill it with, and by the time I got back to that spot on my way back, it was gone.  I'm glad I didn't step on it!

 Before Frances had Chloe we had set up a night where I was going to take her out to get a pedicure.  Well, Chloe decided to come a couple weeks early, so we finally got to it a few weeks ago.  We had a fun evening out.

 The girl's in some new Sunday dresses I made....

 Chick Fil A fun!   This was about as good as a pic as I could get with a bunch of hungry kiddos!

 Blue Springs....

 Not a bad spot to run the office from!

 A storm rolling  in....

 So, after a few weeks of exercising alone, we realized if we do this early, Patrick can come with me!! We leave early, and sometimes several of the kids are still sleeping. Adrian has done a great job keeping everything in check.  We go running together every morning, and it's so much more enjoyable doing it with someone than alone.   Going on two weeks now of doing it together every day, and it's definitely more motivating to go now.

 One Saturday the girls and I walked around Kirklands.  We like this store, because in their words...."It smells good, and has so many pretty things!"

 Besides climbing, this boy loves to help unload the dishwasher.  That is primarily Brandon's job, and he will always come when he sees him doing it, and he'll help out.  This particular day he started doing it by himself, and proceeded to empty the entire dishwasher for me by putting the dishes on the counter to be put away.  When he was almost done, and I realized he hadn't broken a single dish, I grabbed the camera to remember this.  It was so cute! (Yes, I know, he's standing on the door! That's probably not covered under warranty, but he's learning to help! : )

 He's a climber, and that keeps me on my toes. But, this day he was so happy that he was able to get on the piano bench and play the piano. I had to stop and take some pictures!

 Some yummy cinnamon rolls that I made one afternoon with Brandon and Hannah-Lynn.  They loved getting to help out, and the rolls were SO good.  They didn't last in our house very long! : )

 A few weeks ago I began exercising and the first couple weeks I walked around 8p.m., and I so enjoyed getting to see the most beautiful sunsets.  It's not working out to faithfully exercise then, so I moved it back to 7a.m., so sometimes see the sunrise.

 This boy likes to snuggle in our bed for some extra winks after we are up!

 July 4th Festivities in Williston....

 A beautiful sunset we saw on our way to the fireworks....

He loves to help, and knows where the broom is kept, so he'll get it out to try and sweep!

Summer happenings..

 The girls were making a man out of sand!

 We've had many trips to Cedar Key this summer.  It's our favorite place to go hang out for several hours.  It's not far from our house, and with the super nice playground and the beach, it's enough to keep the kids busy and entertained for hours.

 A picture of the kids and their Daddy taken on Father's Day....so thankful for my husband the the father that he is to our kids.  He comes home from work every day and steps in to help out.  Many times when he needs to work more, he'll come home, have dinner, devotions, and help the kids all get to bed, and then go back and work early into the morning hours, just so he can be home in the evening while the kids are up.  The kids all love him to death, and we are thankful for him.

 Our new colt, King.  This was the day he was born four weeks ago.  We had been gone to piano lessons and came home to find that Aztec had this colt.  We were shocked, as we didn't know she was expecting, and she is very old and in poor health.

As you can see, the boys were absolutely thrilled!!!

 Date night....

 A quick visit with Susan when she was down...

 These girlies having fun!

 Our new German Shepherd puppy, Duke...

 Sunset...

 Working with my hubby one Sat serving food at an event...

 This boy loves him some cuddles when he wakes up from his naps....

 Sibling dinner one night with all the brothers and sisters that live around here...

This baby boy has been on the move independently now for about five weeks....