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Sunday, November 6, 2011

Double Dates

Travis, me, George and Mary ready for our big adventure

Mary looks a little too happy to be dating my husband:)
George and I ready to go!

Today Travis and I were so honored to go on a double date with our good friends George and Mary. It was a running joke that George was my date and Travis took Mary. Do not let their appearance fool you these two are a handful and can party! We all drove up together to Alexandria to see the movie Courageous. Mary and George are always entertaining and never cease to make me laugh.

Trick or Treat


Charlie shirt says "I love my Mummy"
Our neighbors and us waiting for kids
Travis and Henry
Katie's pumpkin inspired by Charlie
Travis's pumpkin inspired by Henry

This was the best Halloween ever!!! Travis and I came home and carved pumpkins for the kids. Then we ended up having a BBQ and handing out candy to the neighborhood kids. I was surprised at how many kids we had show up. I ran out of candy after about an hour and a half and had to hide in our neighbors house for the BBQ. It was really fun though and Charlie and Henry loved all the attention they got from their costumes. I found out that Henry loves sweet tarts:)

Sunday, October 30, 2011

The Pumpkin Hunt

Seeing that Halloween is tomorrow Travis and I decided to carve pumpkins tomorrow for the first time. We didn't think that buying pumpkins the day before should be a problem but unfortunately we ran into a few bumps in the road. There weren't any pumpkins on base so we ventured off post to the new Market Basket.
Our spirits were high walking into the store but little did we know that they had just sold out. Luckily the employee told us of a pumpkin patch on our way home. It is called Anderson Farm and it has hay rides and a petting zoo and believe it or not LOTS of pumpkins still. Travis will be carving his pumpkin for Henry and Charlie asked me if I would carve his. Watson is allergic to carving he says since it might mess up his lovely black coat. Watson always gets very anxious around Halloween I think it is due to his all black coat. Travis and I try not to play into his tricky tactics and treat him just like our other boys.
Travis and I had a great time picking out what we thought the boys would like. We also spent a little time just playing around.



We were still in high spirits after the devastating news of NO pumpkins!
Charlie will love his pumpkin
Trav hunted for the perfect pumpkin that Henry would love

Travis loves pumpkins!

The Boys and Their Dad

Travis tried swaddling Henry after my quick lesson on Charlie. It started out a little rough


Almost there
Henry finally got the idea of snuggling. Unfortunately due to Henry's large size he hasn't become our lap dog.

Charlie and I after a quick swaddling lesson for Travis
Charlie after being swaddled by me.
Charlie and Dad snuggling up after a movie


Henry getting his daily rub down

Not only was I ecstatic to have Travis home but all the boys were as well! Henry has enjoyed jogs with Dad and all the one on one time. Charlie has found his new snuggle buddy and doesn't mind Travis practicing his swaddling skills on him. Travis can tell that the boys love their routine but Travis has fit right in and hasn't missed a beat being gone.

Travis Comes Home


Can you find him?
Right after I found him!

Finally after a year long deployment Travis came home October 10th! Both of us are very happy for him to be back.

Saturday, August 27, 2011

Out for a Walk

Henry on his new bed. I think he likes it!
Charlie laid out next to me on the couch
Henry playing fetch

We have lived in our house now for about a year and a half and it was time to get our carpets cleaned. The woman did a really good job and I love the results. While she was cleaning the carpets though I took the dogs up the a field and we played in the woods for a little bit. Henry loved running free and although Charlie was on a leash he didn't complain while marking every branch or blade of grass as his. It was extremely hot though and all of us were glad that it didn't take to long to clean all the carpets.

Cindy Lou

Camryn and Cindy Lou
Cindy Lou and Camryn

Since I can remember Camryn has begged for her own dog! She loves dogs and every where we go she will stop anyone with a dog and ask to pet it. Finally since her dad, Andy is now a fire fighter she was given the dog she has been dreaming of! Cindy Lou is a poodle, Chihuahu, and terrier mix. My mom says the two are inseparable and Camryn takes full responsibility for her dog. Cindy Lou already follows Camryn everywhere she goes and cries if Camryn isn't holding her. It will be fun to see these two become best friends!

Out and About

This was a replica of the largest crab every found! Scary!!!
Jax and Camryn feeling the sea creatures
Colt on his Walrus
Camry and Colt loving the sharks and each other!
Camryn and me
Jax, Randee and me

Me and Colt


Looking at the sharks Randee, Taylor and Me

One day we went and got delicious clam chowder in Newport and then went to the Aquarium with the kids. This was so much fun watching them learn and watching the kids react to the different things in the Aquarium. There was a shark tunnel which was my favorite to watch them discover. Also there was the tide pool area where the kids could touch the different animals. It took some convincing but soon they had their hands in the water feeling the different sea creatures. It was so nice to be all together with my family! We all really missed Travis though and talked about how he would have loved to have been there too!

Kid Time

Cal my snuggle buddy I tried to hold him as much as humanly possible!
Camryn and Colt playing on the toys
Jax hanging out
Best Buddies (Seriously could they be any cuter!)
Dave and Jax on the beach!

My favorite thing about this trip was being with my nieces and nephews! I am always shocked how quickly they grow up! But watching them play and playing with them was AWESOME!!!! Colt and Camryn are best buddies and loved to do everything together! Jax although quiet knows exactly what is going on and chooses each word very carefully. It is so funny to ask Jax questions and he manages to answer with one word! Cal although not really talking is a ladies man and is always begging for a kiss! Case was my snuggle buddy and I loved holding the baby while he slept or cried he is so good! We all wrestled, laughed and played in the sand which was the highlight of my trip!

On the Road to the Beach

Camryn and Case
Me, Kenzie and my Mom
Camryn and Me out on the beach
Randee, Me, Kenzie, Dave and Taylor trying to take a family photo of just us kids!
Camryn and Colt (Best Buddies!)

We got on the road pretty early for all of us and so many little ones. However it took all day to get to our condos. We stopped and ate at a pizza place about an hour into our trip and that is when I knew to just kick back and relax because no one was in a hurry! One of the best things was we stopped at a huge outlet mall in Woodland, OR (I think) and we shopped till we dropped. Being in Leesville the shopping is very slim so it was literally a culture shock being able to have so much to choose from! I had to buy a bigger bag for the trip home. It was a good thing I did buy so much though because I did not pack appropriately for the cool Oregon coast beach. After just getting home from the hot beaches of the Dominican Republic I had that type of beach vacation on my mind and so it was good that I bought a few more layers! Our condos were wonderful after a long days trip in the car. The next day we went to the pool and hung out on the grass above the waves and played with the kids.

Surprising the Family


Cal and me waiting for our seat at Red Robin

Camryn at swim lessons she is a real fish!
It was pirate day!

I had such a wonderful time with my family and it made it so much more exciting surprising everyone and watching their reactions!!!! I got in late and the first person I surprised was Randee who kept telling me I wasn't supposed to be there. Kenzie jumped up and screamed and danced, my dad had a few tears, Carolyn hugged me so hard I thought my head might pop off! I had one whole day in the Tri-Cities so I went to Camryn's swim lesson where she asked her instructor if she missed her Aunt Katie as much as she did. It was good to be home!