Summer Fun 2018 Part 1

Oh my goodness! I've gotten sooo far behind again. With the Holidays, lots of random sickness and beginning of the year accounting work busyness, unfortunately, blogging had to take a backseat for the first quarter of 2019. I mean I pretty much kept up with my blog post a month goal, but I haven't done one of my seasonal recap posts since November 2018! I really hope I can catch up soon-ish since Xan is finally sleeping really well at night and I'm figuring out how to make work more manageable so I don't have to work at night or on the weekends at all.

Her cake was the cutest! They had a beach
 destination wedding.

Some how this is the only pic I snapped of the beautiful bride that day.

Ok! Let's get started with Summer 2018! Our first event of our super fun summer was my cousin Amanda's Bridal Shower. She was the last of us Daugherty cousins to get hitched and we were so thrilled for her. Her wedding was a few months later in Punta Cana. It sounded amazing and I would have loved to be there but our budget didn't allow us to take the trip and it would have be kind of hard with a 4 month old. Anyway the pictures I got to see of the wedding were beautiful!

Daniels Girls!

Great Aunt Lisa getting some newborn Xan snuggles

I left Atlas at home with Sam for this event. So we had a girls day! We had almost all of the Daugherty side women together, Me, Jane, Xan, My mom, my grandmother, my aunt and my cousin. Xan did awesome, she's such a content little baby! Jane was pretty well behaved too. She loves any kind of party! We all really enjoyed ourselves. Congratulations Amanda! We are so happy for you and Jonathan. <3

Buddies!

I love the way Jane is standing while she watches Nathan
open the gift she picked out for him.

Sweet hugs!

Two weeks after Jane's Birthday at the end of Texas Spring comes her best friend Nathan's Birthday! Jane had a blast with Nathan on the inflatable water slide, but Atlas was terrified of it and wouldn't even come outside. Haha. My little opposites. I left Alexandria with Marmee for the first time to make it a little easier for myself. It felt really weird to not have her with me, but it worked out pretty well. Even though we now live about an hour apart from the McNairs, we still make time to see each other about once a month or so and make it to the kids birthday parties. :) Nathan was the first friend Jane asked to call on the phone. They have such a fun friendship! I hope it continues.

How is this happening again??

You know how I talked about us getting a stomach virus just two weeks after Xan was born? Well, just a little over a month later we caught another one! :O I could barely believe it when Jane started throwing up. :( I cried and told Sam I couldn't do it again so soon. I told him I was so scared of the baby maybe catching it this time and I really didn't feel like being sick again. Sam was strong for me and told me it would all be ok and we shouldn't get overwhelmed by things that hadn't even happened yet. He gave me the push I needed to be like, "Ok, We got this." He gave me the optimism that it might be different than the last time. He was right, it was different. For one thing I didn't get sick first like the last one, so I was able to get ahead of it and take care of the kids myself. (Sam can take care of them when they're sick, but lets be honest moms are just better at it.) It was a lot easier that it started with Jane because she's really good at telling us her tummy hurts and getting to a toilet or bowl before she actually throws up. So then I was ready to catch it in the bowl and to look out for it to start in Atlas. Huge win!! Every barf was contained. Super amazing compared to the last one. AND Sam and I never caught it. Xan stayed healthy through all of the sicknesses. God is good. It felt like He knew exactly what I could handle at that moment. Definitely a trial in trusting God to give me the strength I needed for whatever happened.

So brave!

When did she get big enough to go off the diving board?!

Look at that girl!! She is amazing! At just over 4 she went off of the diving board on her own with no floaties and no hesitation! She loved it. She did great waiting her turn and swimming straight to the stairs. I think she went off like 10 times. She only stopped because they opened the deep end for swimming. I asked her if she wanted to try the slide next, she said yes. So we climbed the stairs together and she sat down to slide, but when she realized she wouldn't be able to see the bottom while going down she decided she was not comfortable with that. I told her that was totally fine! We would just try next year if she was ready. We did not go to the neighborhood pool often this year. It was a little much for me with a newborn and two other busy ones! That's why we are so grateful we get to swim at Marmee and Pappaw's house!! I couldn't pick just a couple pictures so here are most of my favorites from the summer.





All of the kids experienced so much growth in their swimming this year! Obviously this summer was Xan's first time to get in the pool. She accomplished her first step in learning to swim! Jane is a completely independent swimmer now. She can swim all the way across the pool with no help, without touching the bottom or the side. Of course we still make sure she has someone dedicated to watching her the whole time, but I was able to breathe a little easier with her in the pool this summer. Atlas is the one who makes me nervous now. In fact, my dad caught me rushing into the water fully clothed to pull Atlas out of the pool on his security camera. :O It caught me off guard because he was scared of the deeper water so he always stayed on the sun shelf to play. But you just never know when they'll decide to be brave. I was talking to my mom while watching them in the pool. I looked at her for a few seconds and looked back and he was under water. All of the sudden my mind went straight to, "I have no idea exactly how long he's been under." Although I could have probably fished him out from the side I didn't even think of it as an option. I just went straight down the sun shelf stairs right to where he was in the water. Watching it on the replay he wasn't under for more than 5 seconds. Man, was it scary though! He was a little shaken for a minute, but it didn't keep him from swimming. He decided having his head under water was not a bad thing and he wanted to start trying to swim on his own. He made his first forward motions in the water near the end of the summer. So I'm hoping next summer he'll get swimming down! We spend a lot of time working on swimming. Since my parents have a pool and we are there so often, it very, very important to me for them to learn how to swim as early as possible and be natural in the water.

Atlas staying safe in the pavillion

Storm clouds in the background. As long as it didn't thunder, we were there!

Finally convinced Atlas to play with a cup.

Biggest group we had all summer!

As soon as June hits it gets too hot to have park days in the afternoon with our Heart group. I asked around and a few families were interested in having weekly splash pad days instead. I was happy to coordinate since we have a splash pad just a few minutes from our house and both the kids loved splash pads last summer! What I wasn't expecting was for Atlas to hate it this year... :( Also after the first couple of weeks our attendance got really low, even to just us sometimes. So Jane got bored and realized there was a pool next to it that we could go swim in. I couldn't blame Jane, the splash pad is kind of simple, but I was very intimidated by the idea of swimming with three young children, one of them just a couple months old, by myself. I told myself the pool is very small, doesn't have a deep end and the kiddie pool is a generous size. So maybe we could make it work! Let's try it!! And although it was kind of exhausting and a little stressful, everyone had a great time! So whenever it was just us at the splash pad after the first 45 minutes I told them we could go swim. Most weeks Jane was asking if we could go swim yet. ;) I definitely committed myself to too much going to the splash pad every week. I just didn't think about how much harder it would be than doing park day. Having to juggle the heat, swimsuits, sunscreen, a newborn and a little boy that didn't want to be there most days was pretty hard. I will definitely rethink how we do it next year, but I really want to keep doing something with our group through the summer.

This is pretty much the whole pool.

This was the pool next to the splash pad. It's the perfect neighborhood pool for littles. Jane can swim across this pool with ease and there are steps along the side that Atlas likes to jump off towards me and swim back. I can stand throughout the whole pool.  There are two kiddie pools and bubblers. We will definitely be back here next year, just maybe not on a committed weekly schedule. At the same time I'm kinda glad I felt like I had to go to the splash pad every week and we didn't have a lot of attendance because otherwise I don't think we would have made it to the pool much all summer. The very best thing about our splash pad days was meeting some of our best friends and we didn't even realize it at the time. On our last splash pad day of the the summer the Combs, Jordan, Paige 3 and Parker 1, made it out to join us. Since her kids were pretty young I didn't even ask her if she was part of Heart at first. Once we figured it out and started talking we realized we knew some of the same people growing up since we both grew up in Kingwood. It wasn't until we got home and friended each other on Facebook that we realized she was neighbors with my parents!! Just two doors down actually. :O AND went to college and graduated with my brother. Also our daughter's birthdays are just a year and a day apart. So we end up having birthday parties the same weekend on the same street since I have a pool party at my parents for Jane. One of our party guest walked into the wrong party one year. ;) Seriously the coincidences and similarities between us are pretty insane. A few months later we realized our daughters had become best friends. And I'd say us moms pretty fond of each other too. Once the boys get a little older I'm pretty sure they'll be buds too.

So many fun elements!

Yay smiling Atlas!!

Jane always loves splash pads but especially loves this one.

Jane screamed in delight every time the bucket dumped.

I was so proud of him trying everything!

Near the end of the summer we decided to try out a splash pad that was a little farther away from us. Everyone had told me was the best one in our area, but I hadn't made it out there because we were busy going to the other splash pad every week and I felt like I couldn't fit it in another splash pad visit in a week. They were totally right, it is definitely the best! Atlas and Jane both loved it. I didn't have to encourage Atlas to go play at all he went right for it. Jane was absolutely in love with the timed bucket dumps. She loved the anticipation and the deluge. It also has a great park right next to it with lots of shade. It's worth the 15 minute drive! I'm thinking maybe next summer we'll try to go to this splash pad every other week instead of trying to go to the one close to us every week.

Three days apart!

These two cuties got to meet for the first time in June when Esther and Andrew flew into Texas from Ohio to visit family. I was excited and grateful I got to catch them for a quick lunch before they went on to see their family. It was one of the first times I took all three kids out to eat with me on my own. I brought lots of electronic devices to entertain them when they were done eating so I could get as much time to talk to Esther while we were together. It's precious time! Timothy was born three days before Alexandria, even though he was due 10 days after her. We went against the norm with me having a late baby for my third and Esther having a early baby with her first. It's so much fun to have them so close together. They are so different too! Xan is big and bald and Timothy is a little petite but has a head full of hair! The thing that they have in common is being completely adorable! Can't wait to watch them grow up together through the visits we'll have with the Wegeners throughout the years.

Getting so big!!

Man, this girl. She is getting so big on me! This summer she took her first step in her relationship with God. She accepted Jesus as her savior on 6/15/18. I know she is young, but I could see her little heart was moved to come near to God. We had watched the movie The Star that day and right before bed Jane wanted to read her toddler Bible and started asking some questions that brought me to sharing the gospel with her. I asked her if she wanted to pray with me to accept Jesus and follow after God. She said "Yes!" So she repeated after me and had the biggest smile on her face after we finished. I know at her age it's hard for her to understand the whole picture, but it's the beginning!! And that is very exciting! I accepted Jesus when I was 3 and I never remember not having Jesus in my life. I was always trying to do my best to love God and obey him. So it's definitely worth noting when Jane's journey to know and serve God began. I'm looking forward to having a front row seat to watching the most important relationship of Jane's life grow.

I wish I could put a sound element on here. Such sweet giggles!

A baby's first giggle is so special! I remember the first one with each of my kiddos very clearly. Jane laughed for the first time when I spun a toy on her walker, Atlas laughed for the first time when tickled his tummy trying to keep him happy while I changed a diaper. I just knew Jane would be the first one to make Alexandria laugh for the first time! I was right. Jane had been trying to make Xan laugh since the day she was born! She finally succeeded when she was entertaining Xan by doing some silly dancing with the singing puppy toy. Alexandria thought it was hilarious! She didn't just have one little giggle like Atlas and Jane did when they laughed for the first time. They were real belly laughs, one after another. I even got the whole thing on video. It was just the best!! <3

Happy 80th Birthday Mama!

Papa is just the best with his great grandbabies!

At the beginning of July we threw a 80th birthday party for Mama Daugherty at my parents house! It was a special time because most of the family was able to be there. Jane is always extra excited if she gets to see 2nd cousin Colin. :) I think this is the perfect time to share a little bit about my spiritual heritage AKA the Daugherty grandparents. I can barely begin to say how grateful I am to have such amazing grandparents. They've been such a blessing, encouragement and great example for me throughout my life. Believe me, I know just how fortunate I am to have them around still and in such great health! My grandma always sees the best in everyone and can find something positive to say about almost anything. She's the sweetest lady you'll meet. She cares so much about others and is such a prayer warrior and writes the most amazing and accurate blessings from God. She's such a good sport and is always up for a fun game or to try something new. She's played everything from guitar hero, to Quelf, and just about anything on the Wii. She still teaches harp and keeps herself sharp and fit. Also, she's got really great taste in baby clothes. ;) I've always loved how she would ask for such specific prayer requests from us. I remember her saying something like "You need to be detailed with your prayers to God. Even if you don't get exactly what you want he's heard you and you can feel heard. He always wants to know your heart!" The most memorable thing was one time, after I had graduated high school, she asked me and my brother what we wanted in our future spouses. I started going on about character qualities I wanted and then she stopped me and said, "Oh yes, that is all very good, but what do you want them to look like??" :D I told her I didn't really care as long as he was attractive to me. She said she wanted one thing she could pray about and I said "Ok, so I don't really like red hair." I'm pretty sure God heard her and wanted to point it out to me and say "See! You do like red hair and you didn't even know it." Haha! So great.

Gotta throw it back with some old photos!
My grandma took me to a special American Girl Luncheon.

Have I ever mention that I was baptized by my grandfather?
(please excuse my face I was nervous to be in front of so many people.)

Pretty cool if you ask me.

I can't talk about my grandma without talking about my grandpa. The person I've always aspired to be like most in my life is Papa Daugherty. (I've always felt I've had more in common with him than my grandma, it doesn't make her any less amazing. :) ) I think the thing I love most about him is the way he relates to people. He makes pretty much anyone comfortable around him even the most socially uncomfortable people I know. (Like Sam for example.) He genuinely cares about you and talks to you about what you care about. If you ask him anything he will go above and beyond to find an answer for you. He will paint your house for you, he'll install new blinds, he'll buy you the curtains for your house you don't think you need, but afterwards you totally realize you did. I could go on and on and on. He just serves anyone and everyone. He might not play every table game we get out at a family gathering, but he will get out on the baseball field and jump fences to run after the home run balls. He'll try out my dad's dirt bike on the back ditch and fall off, roll down the ditch, then jump right back up and only have a bruise or two. He's super fit and works hard to stay that way. He'll grow a beard at like 80 and look 10 years younger! He is the most with it grandpa I've ever met. He stays tasteful in fashion, he knows how to work computers and doesn't get too behind in technology. He's smart, wise, funny, kind, and most all, loving. The way he loves is basically like Jesus. I've always felt so loved by him and I don't think I ever realized how much until I saw him love on my kids. I rarely ever catch him thinking about himself. He's not perfect, I would never put that expectation on him, but you can tell perfection is what he strives towards and you know what? He does a pretty good job at it. I hope when I'm a grandparent people will be able to say the same things about me.

At their 60th wedding anniversary party

I could keep going on about them, but I'll just say one last thing about my grandparents. You can't really think of one of them without thinking of the other. They go together. They celebrated their 60 anniversary a few years ago. I think it's going to be 63 this year. They compliment each other so well. We had a 60th anniversary party for them in 2016. It was a pretty big event and everyone had a chance to get up and share a memory or just share about what a blessing they are and whatdda know... everyone else in their life feels the same way about them that I do. They are special people. If you ever have a chance to meet them, get to know them. You won't regret it.

This was just half of our summer look out for part 2 hopefully before Summer 2019 begins! ^_^

Philippians 3:12-14

Not that I have already attained, or am already perfected; 

but I press on, that I may lay hold of that for which Christ Jesus has also laid hold of me. 

Brethren, I do not count myself to have apprehended; but one thing I do, 

forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forward to those things which are ahead, 

I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus