Picking Strawberries

Wow look at me, two blog posts in one day.  I was going to wait and do this post tomorrow but I was too excited about it, so everyone will have to read both posts today.  I noticed that the strawberry sign was on the side of the road a couple of weeks ago and thought that would be fun to go pick some this year.  I see it every year but I have never gone to see exactly where it is, but both of my girls LOVE strawberries and those strawberries in the little containers at the grocery store are going to break us!  Hayden has always loved strawberries and now Gracie loves them too, I am so happy that she is finally eating much better, she is actually starting to eat lots of fruits and some vegetables at least it is something besides chicken nuggets!  Anyway, since it was a nice afternoon I thought after we got done with ballet we would pick some strawberries.  When I mentioned it to Hayden, her eyes lit up and she got so excited and well Gracie was excited but really didn't know why!  They were both squealing in the back of the car the whole way there.  This strawberry place is just right up the road from us, so it is going to be very convenient for the next couple of weeks or at least until June when they close down.  It is a small place and looks like it is someone's back yard, but it was perfect for our first time.  We were the only people there and Hayden really did enjoy it.  She picked the whole bucket by herself, and Gracie tried to steal a few to eat, I had to keep a close eye on her.  Next on the list is blueberries because those cost a lot of money at the grocerty store too and Gracie ate a whole thing of them this morning.  I guess she is going to love blueberries as much as Aunt Kim does!  I had a great time with my girls this afternoon and as I update this blog for the second time today, Hayden is watching her new Alvin and the Chipmunks movie and Gracie is taking a nap, hopefully a good one. 

Mommy look at all these strawberries and Gracie is trying to figure out what is in the bucket:

Wow Mommy these are some big strawberries:

Look at this one:

Stole one from the bucket:

Doing such a good job:

Here comes Hayden with another handful of them...

Park

Sunday we took the girls to a really nice Park in Athens to play with Kierstin and Mark Brantley.  Hayden and Kierstin had lots of fun they were most excited about seeing the Bear.  Hayden says it is a silly bear because it was playing with a ball!  They also got to touch a snake, yeah I couldn't believe that Hayden actually touched it and then she surprised me even more when she touched the crocodile...There are pictures below.  Gracie stayed in her stroller for a little while and then she decided she was a big girl and had to walk with Hayden and Kierstin.  She walked around the whole park, I bet her little legs were tired but she would never admit it!  Gracie's favorite part were the swings, she stayed in the swing for at least 45 minutes and would not get out, but then again if some one were pushing me in a swing while I was sipping on a frosted orange from the Varsity, I probably wouldn't want to get out either.  The girls had lots of fun, in fact they had so much fun that Hayden cried when it was time to go and to make matters worse she had forgotten TIRED so it wasn't really a pleasant ride home. 

Here are lots of pictures from our exciting day at the Park...

Finally

Uncle Randy had to go to the to Czech Republic to work at the Standridge building over there for approximately 3 or 4 weeks. He wasn't very excited about the flight or being over there, but it is a great expierence for him. He left Tuesday around 12pm, he was supposed to call some one and email me when he got there, but we didn't hear from him until yesterday morning at 8am, he finally called Mema, her phone number was the only one he had memorized and coming from Uncle Randy that doesn't surprise me. However, he told Mema that they went straight to work from the airport and worked for two days straight and he had finally got some sleep and that his laptop was broken, go figure! He also told Mema he thought he could fix it so I have included a video from Hayden and Gracie to make him feel better! Hopefully everytime he gets homesick he can watch these two little angels.

We love you and miss you!

Happy Anniversary

Five years ago at this time, I was waiting to walk down the aisle to marry the man of my dreams...I was also praying that I didn't fall down the steps or trip over my dress to get there.  I was mainly nervous because all eyes were on me, I know that is the point but it still makes you a little nervous.  Once I made down the aisle and was looking eye to eye with Mark everything else seemed to disappear even the nerves.   I don't even know if anyone really heard our vows because I wasn't talking very loud and Mark had been sick and pretty much didn't have a voice at all, but we heard them and that was all the mattered.  I truly felt like a Princess that day and Mark was my Prince.  Everything that day was so perfect from my dress, family and friends helping us prepare, to the ceremony and of course the reception. Our ceremony was quick and to the point, which is what we wanted but it was in one of the most gorgeous spots with a lake in the background.  We have always said that our reception was one of the best ever, there was not one person that didn't have a great time.  I mean every one was dancing at some point, it was so much fun.  It was even so much fun that Mark and I didn't want to leave, but the DJ told us we had to because our ride was there to take us to Atlanta. 

Then it was on to Costa Rica for a week at a luxirious resort, it was amazing the water was so blue, seriously I have never seen water so blue, and it was so HOT but we managed to hang out at the pool bar for most of the day drinking some fruity drinks and then we would eat at a nice restuarant every night, we tried every type of food they had!  We also went deep sea fishing, but it was so hot that it was pretty much miserable, but it was an expierence we can share with our kids one day.  We had so much fun but we were ready to come home to spend some time with all of our friends and family before returning completely back to reality and boy did we have a HUGE surprise when we got back home.  Chris and Art picked us up at the airport on a Thursday night and kept the biggest secret until we pulled up in our driveway.  When we pulled up we noticed that our yard had been completely done...from sod,  to flowers, well house was built and I can't even remember everything else and the best part was the every one who had helped out was hiding on the other side of the house and came running out to greet us.  It is something we will never forget.  WE HAVE THE BEST FRIENDS AND FAMILY EVER! 

It has been the best five years of my life.  I love Mark with all my heart, we truly met each other at the perfect time of our lives.  We really do have the perfect marriage, and we are each others Best Friend. In these five years we have had two amazing, beautiful little girls and they make us complete!!!

Playing Puppy

Yesterday afternoon the girls were so good, not that they are ever bad, but they played very well together for a couple of hours in Hayden's room.  I started to take a picture of her room because it looked like a tornado had been through it, but I figured at least they were only messing up one room in the house so I didn't even attempt to clean it up until they got done.  I took advantage of them playing so well together and started uploading pictures into Shutterfly so that I can have them printed.  They always play pretty well but usually at least every 30 minutes one of them is crying or telling on the other one, but not yesterday...It was really cute and sweet!  As I was finishing up some of my pictures (being that I had over 300 pictures on my memory card it is going to take a couple of days to do them all), I heard the girls in the kitchen playing and I thought to myself, well my time is up now to go see what they are up to!  As I walked toward the kitchen I heard Hayden say "It's okay little puppy do you want some water and food" , so I figured they had their stuffed puppy dogs in Ms. Sue's cage.  Well to my surprise they were playing puppy but Gracie was the puppy...Hayden had her locked in Ms. Sue's cage and had given her a sippy cup full of water and some fruit snacks as food!  I couldn't help but laugh it was hilarious, and yes I took a picture, which I am sure Gracie isn't going to like one day.  I told Hayden even though it was fun to play puppy that we needed to only pretend with stuffed puppies!  Thank goodness I heard them in the kitchen and Gracie was only confined for about a minute, but the other funny part is that Gracie actually cried when I made her get out!  I never know what is going to happen around here, but it is always interesting.

Playing Puppy:

Fishing

We had a fun weekend, Saturday we celebrated Mark's birthday with friends and family.  The girls got to play outside all day, which makes them very happy.  Pop got a new puppy this weekend, Hayden and Gracie were very excited to play with her.  Gracie really liked the puppy, but is not real careful with her.  Hayden is like a little Mommy to the puppy...I think they decided to name her Jesse, personally I liked the name Belle! 

Sunday we went fishing at Grandmama's house.  Hayden loves to go fishing but she only likes it when the fish are biting really fast.  She doesn't like to sit and wait on the fish, she expects to throw in the line and catch one immediately.  I don't know where she could possibly get that from, but I know it isn't me(just kidding she is just like me).  Hayden enjoyed fishing and they ended up catching 24 total!  It was a beautiful day to be outside at the Lake, it made me wish we had a boat and a Lake house!  Gracie made me a little nervous fishing yesterday, I was so scared she was going to fall in the water, so she got to play with Aunt Linda, Mimi, Grandmama and Jesse.  Aunt Linda did a great job entertaining Gracie...They fed all the ducks and walked around the yard exploring.  Then Aunt Linda took Gracie in to get something to drink and from what I understand Gracie ended up pouring it all over her, so then Aunt Linda had to put Gracie's shirt in the dryer and give her a bath in the sink.  Linda brought Gracie back outside wrapped in a towel, she told us what had happened and of course being the Mommy with the camera I found it to be a great opportunity for naked pictures while standing on the dock.  I didn't post any on the computer even though she is only one, it just didn't seem appropriate, I think she would like her privacy!!!

Gracie playing with Jesse:





She loves to swing, just look at that smile:

Ready to fish

What a beauty:

This is how she likes to fish, I thought it was very cute: 

 Pop and Hayden caught a big one:


Feeding the ducks:


 Beautiful flowers, beautiful girl:




Mommy and Hayden:

 Smelling the flowers:

Happy Birthday Daddy

Hayden and Gracie are wishing you a very happy birthday! Hope you have a wonderful day and we love you so very much!!!

Princesses

Today the Stancil girls felt like Princesses, including myself.  Mimi took us shopping at Kohls and boy did we rack up on Summer clothes.  It was so much fun, and I love watching Hayden shop!  Gracie was a good little girl today, she sat in her stroller the whole time and Hayden pushed.  It got a little scary at times, but overall she did an excellent job taking care of her little sister. I finally found some shorts that actually fit me this year, which is very exciting and Hayden pretty much got a new Summer wardrobe, including panties and flip flops.  Gracie got a couple of outfits, but she has all of Hayden's really cute hand me downs.  I always have such a good time going through all of Hayden's old clothes and remembering when she wore it and which were my favorites.  Gracie is just as cute in each outfit as Hayden was, and fortunately Hayden took very good care of her clothes when she was little.  After shopping it was time to go meet Aunt Kim for lunch at our usual Wednesday place, Chinese!  We ate our lunch and then we all went for pedicures.  Hayden got her fingers and toes painted also and Gracie once again was a perfect little girl and sat in my lap the whole time just watching.  Hayden is so excited about her fingers and toes because the really nice lady put pink finger nail polish, sparkles and flowers on them!  It really is CUTE!  I told her she looked like she was ready for the beach in her sundress and perfect toes!  The lady that did my pedicure put a little lotion on Gracie's legs and rubbed them, it was so funny because Gracie really did enjoy it, she even wanted her to do it again.  We were all getting ready to pay and call it a day when Aunt Kim told us that she was paying for everyone today!  Now you know why we feel like Princesses today, we got to go shopping, eat lunch and get a pedicure!  It was really nice day and we so appreciate it Mimi and Kim! 

Thanks again Mimi and Kim! We love you!

Here are a couple of pictures of the girls in their cute dresses that Aunt Kim and Uncle Artie gave them and Hayden's pedicure!

Stool

About a month ago or so, I broke our stool that went in the kitchen. Mark and I got the stool when we got married, but now that we have kids, it is their stool. Hayden would move the stool from room to room to get whatever she wanted or thought she needed, and Gracie has also figured out how the stool works, which can be a little scary... so of course when they realized I broke the stool they were a little upset. Mimi told the girls that she would take it home with her and Pop would fix it...Well there was no fixing that stool, so Pop made the girls a new stool. I guess Mark and I can use it too, if we ask first(that is what Hayden told me anyway). Pop put a lot of work and love into this new stool. It even has their names on it, princess stickers and a special message from Pop underneath it that says "built for two precious girls, Hayden and Gracie with all my love, Pop". Thank you Pop for the stool the girls absolutely love it!!!

She how excited they are...

Thank you Pop...

Thank you Pop, I think I just figured out how to get to all that Easter Candy Mommy put up so high...

This is a picture of the stool so that everyone can see just how much love and work went into this stool...It is Perfect!

Here is a special thank you from Hayden and Gracie:

Easter

Easter Bunny left some special baskets for two precious little girls Saturday night.  Sunday morning Hayden woke up and jumped out of the bed to see what he had left, Gracie still had no clue what was going on but she was very pleased when they entered the living room and there was candy and toys!  Hayden was so excited about her puzzles and Princess and the Frog nightgown, that is what she had asked for!  Gracie really only cared about the M&M's and the ball that she got.  They both had a healthy breakfast before getting ready to go to Nana's, Mema's and Grandmama's...It consisted of M&M's, cotton candy and Reese's!  I figured it was okay to splurge for Easter, Right?  The girls were beautiful in their matching Easter dresses!  Of course they are always beautiful! First we went to see Nana and Steve's house and Hayden had to swing, which was a little scary for Mommy. I could just see her getting that beautiful white dress all dirty.  Then we went to Grandmama's to have lunch and the Easter Egg Hunt.  Hayden was so excited about hunting eggs and well once again Gracie was like okay, whatever, but she did enjoy opening the eggs up and eating whatever was inside, and we found out that she REALLY likes white chocolate! Hayden and Gracie were excited to see Katelyn too, and did I mention that Katelyn looked just like a little Princess.  Hayden really enjoys playing with Katelyn and Gracie finally came around a little at the end of they day.  Gracie is a very busy little girl, she doesn't stay still for too long!  It was such a beautiful day spent with all of our wonderful family! 

Hayden and Gracie want to thank everyone for all the Easter gifts.  They really racked up from Aunt Kim and Uncle Artie, they went to the best place ever,  THE DISNEY STORE!  Hayden can hardly wait to try out her new Princess swim suit and beach towel and Gracie is going to be the cutest Minnie Mouse ever!  Mimi and Pop also gave the girls a basket full of goodies that had sunglasses, bubbles, books, puzzles and more CANDY!  Nana gave the girls one of my old classic Disney movies Lady and the Tramp and Hayden got some bubble gum, that is the one thing that Nana always has to have if Hayden is coming over!  Mema and Pop gave them both a stuffed bunny, boy these girls are going to confuse Easter with Christmas!  Mark and I have two LOVED little girls!!!!!!!!!!! 

I know, I know everyone is just ready to see the pictures, Well here they are:

The Easter Bunny left some baskets:

She LOVES M&M's:

Swinging at Nana's:

Trying to get a good picture of them together...

Still trying...

Still trying, but Gracie decided Daddy needed a kiss:\

Finally got one...

Everyone always says there are no pictures of me, that is because I am the one always taking the pictures:

I LOVE THIS ONE:

Princess Katelyn:

Katelyn liked sitting in Hayden's lap:

Gracie loves white chocolate:

She found a BIG one:

I love that smile:

I love these even though neither one of them are looking at me, I think they are just precious:

Biggest Loser Update

I have to brag on my wonderful husband, and I do mean wonderful.  He is such a great husband and Daddy. He has officially lost 28lbs since January.  We are so proud of him!  He looks great and we can tell that he feels better too!  He has been very determined and stuck with his diet and it has really paid off.  He has lost the most weight out of everyone playing the game, which is no surpirse to us.  Now we just have to buy him some smaller clothes, the other night he was giving Hayden and Gracie a piggy back ride and his pants fell down to his knees!

Keep up the good work Daddy, you are almost at your goal weight.

WE LOVE YOU SO MUCH!!!

Mommy, Punkin, and Poot

Hunting

Hayden and Gracie went hunting with Mark and Pop.  Mark and Hayden put the birds out in our yard and then turned out Rowdy and Sue to find them.  Hayden says that her Daddy has the best hunting dogs ever!  They did an excellent job, and while they were hunting Gracie ate her popsicles..She just isn't quite old enough to understand.  She just likes being able to walk around and explore.  They both just love spending time with their Daddy and Pop!!!  Mimi and I went hunting too, Mimi helped watch Gracie while I took lots of pictures to share. 

She is even beautiful when she is hunting.  The vest she is wearing was actually Mark's when he was little:

Sue and Rowdy showing off:

Daddy, Can I do it???

She sure does love her Daddy:

She absolutely loves popsicles, when she finishes one she stands at the freezer crying for another one.  The vest she is wearing was also one of Mark's when he was little:

Look at those CURLS:

Gracie enjoying her walk:

This is one of my favorite pictures, just look at that happy little girl:

Daddy's Girls, Just look how much they LOVE him: