I love my Ry-guy! He's sooooo handsome - but don't you dare ever tell him that because he'll get super mad at you! Oh, but he is soooo handsome and I just love his crazy personality! He's sweet and caring and fun and crazy all rolled up into one handsome little boy! I just love him to pieces!
Jackson has a new hobby to add to his long list. BMX bike racing! Well, we're working our way up to the racing part. James has taken him to watch the kids race several times and about 6 months ago Jackson decided to try it for himself. He LOVED it so much that we bought him a used BMX bike to start practicing on. He started out needing a lot of help at the starting gate, but has improved to the point that he can do it by himself. He still has a ways to go before he actually races, right now he just goes on nights where they practice. It's fun to watch, at least until he crashes and James has to help him! (That's when I hide my eyes!!) We'll see where this new hobby goes - good luck, Jackson!
Jackson's the one with the white helmet and long sleeve blue shirt. James is running off to the side, towards the booth. They are required to wear full face shield helmets, okay by me!
Jackson taking the jumps! Yeah!
This last weekend we got to join most of James' family in Central Oregon for a family reunion/camping trip. It was our first time ever going camping as a family (I've gone once without James and just the boys- that's another story!) and we had a great time. James' cousin, Tracy and her husband, Tom, brought their wake boarding boat, plus there were Kayaks, canoes, campfires and on and on. The kids had a blast, especially Hailey who enjoyed getting out of her sleeping bag to bother her brothers when they were supposed to be sleeping! We really had a good time and are so thankful to all of James' family for everything they did. Can't wait for the next one! 
If you click on the photos in the collage they should appear bigger! (I'm crossing my fingers, anyway!)
As I said in the last post, James' birthday was the end of May and we celebrated a couple of times. We had a just the kids and I present party where the kids gave him homemade cards and some pool toys. Then we had a pool party with some of his co-workers from the fire station. (No pic's from that party) Finally, we celebrated with his Mom and Dad while they were here visiting. I think he made out pretty good in the birthday department this year, not to shabby at all! Happy Birthday, Mr.That would be Grammy and Grampy Irvine. They came for a visit the first of the month and boy did we have fun! Of course they were hoping for some fun in the sun and pool, which we did have about a day and a half of, but we also got to watch a great thunder and lightening storm one night. We managed to have James' brother Rob, his girlfriend Katie and her son, Landon over when we did get to enjoy that day of sunshine. We also celebrated some birthdays while G & G Irvine were here. James celebrated his on May 30 and his Dad's is just two days before on the 28th. They also brought Miss Hailey a present for her b-day, which was on the 6th. All in all, it was a great visit and we sure enjoyed having them here. Hopefully next time we'll have lots more sunshine so we can lie around in the pool even more! Thanks for coming Grammy and Grampy!
A little pool volleyball while sitting on a pool floaty! It doesn't get much lazier!
Yep, Grampy's gonna kill me for posting this one! But I just had to do it anyway! :-)
We had Hailey's 2nd birthday party here over the weekend, our first official pool party! It was a perfect day, with perfect company, and Hailey enjoyed every minute of being the center of attention! She received some wonderful gifts, girly gifts I might add, and was delighted with every one. I think she managed to play with every single toy and read every single book and wear every single item of clothing, including her princess dress, before bed that night! I was so happy to have my Mom and step Dad here all weekend to help out with the party, too, we couldn't have done it without them! Thanks to all who came, you made it a very special day for Hailey and me!
As promised, almost two weeks ago, here are the "after" pictures of the patio cover and the front yard that James did! They turned out so good, I'm so happy with both! We've also added some lights to the pool area, which look awesome but are hard to photograph. We plan on putting the same lights around the rest of the yard, as soon as we can figure out how to wire them! All in all, I think our backyard, and front, look awesome and I feel so BLESSED to have them! I'm also blessed to have a such a hard working hubby that can do so many things! Hope you enjoy the pics and then come on over to the house to enjoy them in person!
Notice there is grass by the patio now! Yeah!
Our house is on the left and the neighbors is on the right. James did both yards since they were connected and we wanted them to match.
The first picture of the lights is a little blurry, but the second one is okay. We put spot lights on the palm trees and we've added them to the waterfall since these pic's were taken! Guess you'll just have to come to our house to really see them! :-)
So this post is a couple of months overdue, but I just have to do it anyway. Ryan got a pair of yellow rain boots this past winter and he absolutely LOVED them! He wore them anytime, anywhere he could (including pre-school which got him banned from all the playground equipment because they were too slippery!) and I just think he looks so cute in them! I had the camera with me one afternoon and wouldn't you know it, Ryan was wearing his yellow boots! I got some pic's to remember Ryan's Yellow Boots!
We had our first little pool party last week when we invited the neighborhood over to swim! We ended up with eight kids and seven adults, at various times, and it was a blast! Check out the kids on the waterfall!
We've made another addition to our backyard oasis - a patio cover! Although it's not totally finished in this picture, it looks pretty cool! It's so nice to have a covered area outside, we've eaten out here for at least one meal a day since it was done! I'll get some finished pictures of it tomorrow and you can see the whole thing in all it's glory! :-) We've also replaced the grass that you see is missing next to the patio, along with the entire front yard. James, along with some help from an awesome neighbor, repaired the damage that was done by the pool company and all their equipment to the front yard. It looks amazing and I'll get some finished pic's of that tomorrow, too! In the meantime you can see the before pic's and be amazed when you see the after ones!
James rented a sod cutter to make cutting out the rest of the old grass easier.
We also re-did the neighbors yard since they were adjoining. So, after our little vacation to Disneyland and Gramma's house we were so excited to get home and go swimming for the first time in our new pool! Unfortunately when we got back it wasn't so hot anymore. Not to be discouraged, we decided to brave the cooler weather and much cooler water and go for it! It lasted for about 20 minutes before everyone's lips were blue and we were all ready to go inside and warm up! It was fun though, despite the cold, and definitely worth it! Check out James' dive and the expression after, then check out the water temp on the thermometer! The good news is that it can only get warmer from here on out!
Miss Hailey was the only one smart enough NOT to get in the water, although she was ready for it!
The boys braving the cold!
The dive!
Yes, it really does say 65 degrees, and yes we are crazy!!
I can't believe my little girl is 2 years old! How did it happen? How did it go by so fast? I can honestly say that it has been the best two years of my life because I cannot imagine my life without this beautiful, sweet, funny, and happy little girl. She has brought such joy to my heart and such contentment to our family. I thank God for you Hailey Elizabeth! Happy birthday my sweet baby girl. 
Hailey Elizabeth - 2 years old!
