Train Trip

Last Saturday, we all headed to Branson for a small family reunion (pictures to come very soon!). But before we met up with everyone, the Powers and Thompson clans thought it would be a fun thing to go on a scenic train ride. It was so much fun and I'm so glad we got to do it!

Me and Emi

Emily, Papaw and Nana

This is how Brady spent much of the 2+ hours...

Or like this!

Grandpa and Grandma

Me and my family enjoying our snack on the train

Me and Emi

Me and the folks

More Time W/ Emi

Thursday Tumbling
Jolee is quite the tumbler, for those of you that don't know. So much so, that she asked to start going a 2nd night a week! So last Thursday was her first 2nd class of the week, and since Emi was in town she got to go with us. I love seeing her do what she loves to do!




Out At Lunch

Me and my boy. I never know what kind of smile he's going to give for a picture these days!

Jolee and Auntie Emi

After a hectic lunch with the kids. You can always tell when Jolee takes a picture, cuz it's always pointing up! LOL

Emily and Jolee with Jolee's painting

Me and Emi

The Start to A Great Year

I am such a lucky girl! My birthday always falls on Spring Break. I used to hate it when I was younger, b/c that meant that most of my friends were out of town on vacation. But now that I'm an old person now, I love it! It means that my mom and dad pretty much always get to come down for a long visit. So I end up being able to spend my birthday with my favorite people in the world: Brian, the kids, and my parents. There is no other way I would rather spend my day.The only thing that would've made it better would've been to have the sun shining instead of it being yucky, but oh well! My Dad even got to go eat lunch with Jolee at school, and then my mom and I went today. So sad to see them leave today!!!

Brian did a great job picking out a cake!

They had quite the spread

Brady finally got into the party spirit

Me and both of my kiddos

Me and my wonderful Brian

The kids were getting rather sugar high at this point!

Me and my wonderful parents

Lunch with Auntie Emi

I love this time of year! Once spring break rolls around, I know that I can count on always getting some freat family time in. My sister and parents almost always come for a nice long visit. Since my sis Emily is so awesome, she came down again to hang out with us! She got here on Wednesday, and on Thursday we went and enjoyed a wonderful lunch at school with Jolee. Emily really loved getting to meet all of Jolee's friends and seeing where Jolee spends her days!

These girls are so beautiful! Kaylynn, Hannah, Haley, Haley, Jolee and Courtney

Jolee and Emi

Jolee, Aunt Emi, and Brady

Getting Settled

Brady thinks the kitty is so cool!

Copper is sooooo interested in what Rio is doing.

Just a good shot of him

Cats have amazing balance!

Venturing upstairs

We sat like this for a while today...no fights for a little while :)

Jolee's been very patient waiting for him to adjust. This was the first time she got to hold him

Kitty Powers

The Powers family are now the proud owners of a kitty cat!!! I went to KC yesterday to pick up the little guy from the shelter that he has called home for the last year, and we made it back home today at about 4. Even though we've only been actively looking for a cat for a short time, it felt like it was forever! It just makes us all that much more grateful that we found our little boy in the end :)
It's so funny that we ended up finding him at a shelter after all. Since we needed a hypoallergenic breed, I figured there was a slim-to-none chance of finding one at a shelter. I then turned to a person who said they had a kitten to sell, and would ship to us (they were in FL). We thought that it sounded great, and went ahead with it. In the end, it turned out to all be a scam centered around an imaginary kitten. Our collective hearts were broken. The idea that we had lost money didn't even compare to the feeling of disappointment, confusion and plain old anger.
Several days later, on a whim, I called a shelter about a potential kitten. This kitten had just been adopted out, but there was another slightly older cat that needed a home :)
We were all excited, but were trying to not put the horse in front of the cart (I had to explain that one to Jolee the other day LOL). After some correspondence with his "Mommy", we realized that we would be bringing this little boy home! YAY!
As of right now, he is still in Brady's room getting aclimated to his new surroundings. The kids don't quite understand that cats are different than dogs, and may not be as interactive at first. We are all so in love! I'll keep everyone updated!
PS- His name is Rio, but were still debating on if that will stay...

Sheer Genius

My child is a genius. I know this comes as no suprise. My belief was re-affirmed today at daycare. Here's my proof:


Brady had his very first day of daycare/preschool today! He got dropped off at around 9, and then I picked him up around 12. With this being his first day, I didn't want to push it too much. Heres a shot of how excited he was on the way:



Brian tried to take a picture of him posing in front of the building, but I think he was so excited that he couldn't stand still! LOL



Today was a wonderful experience for ALL of us. (Plus, Mommy got to go shopping!)