Carolina Panter's Topcats Replaced!

Wes has been doing this with Rachel since she was 6 months old!

She has just started saying, "Go Panther's!" I'm pretty sure this cutie could knock a few

Topcat Cheerleaders for a loop!

Happy Halloween!

Happy Halloween from Winnie the Pooh!

After trick-or-treating, we went to our friends , the Martin's, for dinner and a play date.

Weekend Packed with FUN!

This weekend Wes' family came to visit us! We had a fun-filled weekend. We went to the Lazy 5 Ranch on Saturday (despite the morning showers), we celebrated Pop's birthday, and we went to the Carolina Balloon Festival on Sunday. Whew! We did a lot but it was fun!

Lazy 5 Ranch

Rachel woke up her daddy Saturday morning, ready to go to the Zoo.

It was raining but we were still having fun.

Daddy and Rachel check out the camel.

Wes gets kissed by a giraffe.

Rachel was daddy's girl today!!

Rachel was brave enough to feed the animals.

Pumpkin Time!

Happy Birthday Pops!

Rachel entertains us at dinner by singing, "You are my Sunshine."

Carolina Balloon Festival

We had fun at the Balloon Festival....however we got there around 9:00am and the balloons didn't launch until 4:30pm. We had a lot of time to kill but Rachel (and family) did great and we had a good time. We're only sorry that Wes' family left after lunch and didn't see a single balloon, maybe next time.

Rachel was pretty fascinated by this inflatable army man. She followed him around and tried to walk like him!

They had a Kids Zone at the festival. Rachel and her cousin, Alyssa, jumped and jumped!

We had plenty of time to kill before the balloons launched so we walked around quiet a bit. Rachel did GREAT!!

Yeah! The balloons are finally getting ready!

Ahh! How pretty!

Daddy, Rachel, balloons, and homemade potato chips....priceless.

It was cool seeing the balloons up close! Once they were full of air they wasted no time taking off. Now, I'm ready to ride in one....I think!

Raptor Center

We took Rachel and my mom, to the Carolina Raptor Center today. We saw different kinds of hawks, owls, falcons, and vultures. We also saw the most beautiful bald eagles. What a great place to spend the morning with the people I love. Check out our pictures with the Great Horned Owl!

Time with Wes' Family

A few weekends ago we went to see Wes' family. We had a nice visit and we were glad we got to see everyone. Here are a few pictures from our trip.

Rachel and Pops reading her new book that Nana gave her.

Rachel eating Oreos for dessert at her Daddy's favorite Mexican restaurant in town, the Ranch!

We heard the sounds of a train coming, so we ran as fast as we could to the tracks to show Rachel the train. This was the first time she had seen a train, especially this close. We saw the train several times, it went passed us, then backed up, then went passed us again! She was scared at first but daddy kept her calm.

Daddy and Rachel playing in an old Red Caboose.

Daddy found a flag in the caboose. He opened the window so that Rachel could fly it. She loved this! What can I say.... she's an All-American Girl!

This was the second time we saw the train pass us, it's backing up in the video. Rachel calls the train, "Thomas", wonder where that came from? :) Ryan she's a cousin after you're own heart!

Alyssa is a great cousin/babysitter. She always keeps Rachel fully entertained. Rachel has so much fun hanging out with Alyssa. "Alyssa, Thanks for being a great cousin to Rachel, she loves you so much!"

Making Muffins

On Wednesday morning, Rachel helped me make banana muffins for breakfast. She watched me pour the mix in a bowl, break the egg, and add the milk. She helped me stir the batter and then wanted to help me put the batter in the muffin pan. What a big helper she was. She loves to cook in the kitchen! She also loves to eat her muffins, yum, yum!

Where Did September Go?

September is a week and half from being over and I haven't blogged since August! Life has been busy. Rachel and I started back to Weekday School at the beginning of the month. We go 3 days a week this year, last year we went 2. It's been great being back in school. It has provided a lot of structure for us. Rachel really enjoys going, in fact her teacher wrote today, "Rachel has been busy talking on the phone, taking care of babies, and singing today." Sounds just like my Rachel.

UPDATES ON RACHEL

Rachel is growing like a weed. She is talking pretty good and is now running everywhere she goes. She enjoys being outside and going on walks. She loves to play with baby dolls and walk around with a purse and cell phone. She enjoys singing, she has quite a list of songs she knows. She also loves to be in the kitchen when things are being cooked and she will often want a chair to stand on so that she can help stir or just look on. She is certainly becoming a two year old and her favorite words of late are NO, STOP, MINE, I DON'T WANT TOO, and I DO IT! But this too shall pass, right?

UPDATES ON WES AND LIZZIE

Well, there is not a whole lot to update. Wes is still working harder than ever. Business seems to be good, we are so thankful for work and a job. Like I said earlier I'm keeping busy working at my church in the Weekday School program 3 days a week. I work with two year olds. It's a lot of fun and I'm learning a lot. We're still living with my mom. She seems to like us being here and we enjoy living here. Things have gone very smoothly. We will probably start the dreaded house hunting in the spring.

Enjoy the pics and videos!

Making funny faces with dad.

Rachel loves to look at our blog. She thinks she's pretty funny. She's laughing at the time she was playing with the milk jug in the kitchen with Wes.

Rachel likes to eat corn on the cob and pickles!

Rachel loves to splash in the tub! Her daddy loves to encourage her to do so ;)

Rachel has always liked books. Her favorite book right now is Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See? She can almost recite it with me.