OBX day one

Our amazing house...we have room for more!
Payton and Asher playing in the pool.... Payton and Daddy looking at the horses...

We are having such a fun time at the beach with our friends the Cowells. The weather has been perfect..not to hot, but hot enough to tan! This morning we woke up and Brian went to play golf. We headed down to the pool while Payton took her nap and when she woke up we headed to the beach to let her have her first sand experience! She loved it and got so wet in the waves that we had to let her roam bare....it was too cute. We have just been hanging out and relaxing...there is not much to do here, which is so fine by me. Nothing is wonderful. There are wild horses that come up and eat the grass by the house and then run on the beach....they are descendant of the Spanish horses that were brought here in 1600. Pretty neat. There are so many pics that I want to show...I should just make a slide show of our time here...maybe stay tuned for that.

It's time for OBX 2008!

Payton and Daddy on the plane...

Payton zonked in the car :) Payton and her 1st Happy Meal!! Chicken nuggets and apple dippers!
Driving on the beach to the house!
The road to the house!

Well...if is finally vacation time, we have only been planning this trip for months and we can't believe that the countdown is over and it is finally here! We left early on Saturday morning to head to the Tulsa airport to fly to Outer Banks, North Carolina! YEA! Payton did great on the plane- she ate her breakfast on her first flight and lunch on the next...she shared her snacks with dad on the plane too! She is such a sweet girl! We made it to Norfolk where we were renting a truck and then driving on to OBX. You can tell from the pics that we had to have a 4 wheel drive to get there because you have to drive on the beach to get to the house! Payton was zonked before we had even exited the airport...the 20 minute nap she had on the plane and the hour and a half we had to wait on the rental was a little much for her. The drive is about an hour and a half- and we had to stop and get her some dinner...so she had her first happy meal! I wasn't thrilled about it, but you do what you have to do.

Once we made it to OBX Ryan met us at the store in town and guided us down the beach and through the dunes to our house. It was simply amazing....I still can't belive how beautiful it is here. There are wild horses and the ocean is amazing. Here is a picture of the road to the house if you can call it that- and a picture of us driving on the beach to get there. We went through a horrible rain storm, but it let up as soon as we hit the beach and it has been blue skies every day since....I hope it stats that way!

I'm a big girl!!

Well we gave in yesterday and decided to turn Payton's car seat around! She was 19 pounds and 4 ounces at her doctors appt 2 weeks ago...and the nurse said they gain about an ounce a day...so we are over 20 pounds! We went out and about and went to the driving range with Daddy...We loved being able to turn around and see her pretty face looking at us and not at the back of the seat! I am sure she loved it too!


Here we are at the driving range....is this a choking hazard??
Just a little look back....She was so tiny in her car seat when we brought her home from the hospital...She weighed 7 pounds then...such a little bundle of joy who is now a bigger bundle! We love you so much sweet Payton! Thank you Jesus for such a sweet angel...this year has been nothing but mind blowing and such a testament of the Father's love for us!

Will's Birthday Party

Saturday after fan day we went to our friend Will's 3rd Birthday party at FAC. It was a little chilly so dad took on the job of pool monitor...Payton didn't mind, she loves the water...and so does her friend Andie!

Happy Birthday Will! We are going to miss you so much when you move! Payton, Andie, and Will....Having fun with those noise makers!

Razorback Fan Day....Go Hogs!

Saturday was a busy day, we stayed home most of the morning doing some spring cleaning...now that summer is almost over...and then we went to fan day for the razorback football team. It was fun to see all the cheerleaders, players, and coaches. Payton was so ready to get there that she didn't take an afternoon nap!


Here's a hint...if you are single and want to meet some cute cheerleaders....come borrow our daughter for awhile...she was a star of course and the cheerleaders loved her..and her squeaking shoes (thanks granjann). We ran into my friend Amy and her daughter Lauren....they were instant buds! Lauren will be 3 soon...so they will be at the University at the same time!
Payton was a little hesitant to meet Sooie...but she reached out and touched his hand..and he was so good with her and sat down on the ground to be on her level..but in the end, she was a little scared! It was so sad, but cute at the same time. Maybe by the end of the season she will warm up to him!

We are so sleepy....and so sweet cuddling with Daddy on our walk back to the car...we still have a birthday party to go to!

Time Flies...and I am old!

Well it seems like yesterday when I babysat for the cutest twins...they were 18 months old and I was pretty nervous because they were dressed the same but were so different. I was given instructions to put them in certain cribs because Mary could crawl out of hers...which one was Mary again?? Oh yes...the one with socks on...wait she took her socks off....which one was she again??? Well that lead to five memorable summers spent on the East coast and now they are almost 15 years old and I feel ancient! But they came through NWA on their way home from camp and it was so good to see them again. Mary is on the left and Emily is on the right.

Payton loved Emily's hair...and her braces!

Happy Birthday Sweet Payton!

Ok well I tried to make the pictures be in order, but I don't have the patience for that today...so here is a collection of pics from our special day. When Payton woke up on Saturday, I was in awe of the fact that she was growing up so fast and just couldn't believe that it had been a whole year since the day she was born. We have had such a wonderful year with our sweet angel and can't wait to see what we have ahead of us. She has such a sweet and kind spirit already and loves to be around other babies. She surprises us daily with the things that she is doing and we love her so so much. I hope that you enjoy these pics and much as we enjoyed taking them.


Here she is on her pile of presents before we started opening them...note the shovel in her hand which was her favorite thing and wasn't even a present, it was decoration....she wouldn't let it go! Here is her first baby doll...she loves kissing it and the last few days she has really enjoyed taking it in and out of the stroller that goes with it.
She got a stool from her Great Aunt and Uncle in LR- she really likes that she can take the pieces out...we will see how long it is until we loose one!
Payton and Daddy on her new mat from Uncle Nate...the day after the party. We are still trying to arrange the room with all her new toys!

Ok...like I said, photos out of order...but here is her delight digging into her cake! Sugar finally!!
Payton was so lucky that so many of her friends came to her party! We had so much fun!
Porbeck Family with Aunt Frannie and Uncle Jeff who came from Dallas to see the big event.
Webb Family...who came from LR....especially Mark who went up and back in one day!
Payton with Grand Jenny who is my mom's sister who also came from Dallas to be at the Party.

Some of the Party guests playing in the dining room which has been given a face lift to a playroom!
Jessie and Ava who live down the street from us....one of Payton's friends!
Is she too cool for school or what! She put on these glasses and just smiled! I think we have a future star on our hands!
Now it is cake time! I think we liked it a little too much! She kept licking her hands and scooping off the icing and shoveling it into her mouth...she has a sweet tooth like her mom!


We made her a pancake in the shape of a 1 for breakfast. I think we are going to make that a tradition every year on her birthday. She had never had a pancake before and needless to say she chowed right down...if you haven't realized it yet, this girl loves to eat!

Some of the decorations with the beach cupcakes and sand buckets....
We made her a flip flop cake to eat, strawberry cake with strawberry icing....yummy! Brian's mom helped make the cookies and they were so good!