McGuffee Family Reunion

We had the McGuffee Family Reunion last weekend at Jimmie Davis State Park in Chatham, Lousiana.  Ron's mom, aunt, uncle, grandmom, and many more McGuffees met for a good old fashioned fish fry on Saturday.  We got there Friday night in time for a little visit to the park's beach before dinner and bedtime...

There's something about throwing rocks in the lake.  The kids just ate it up!

The boys enjoyed riding their bikes...

Sam just loves Baba Dee.  They've always had such a special relationship.

The kids had a blast pouring water over the dirt/sand and building little sandcastles.

Luke and Laney were so attentive during the fish fry.  They'd never seen that much fish before!

Here we are again with the boys throwing rocks.

The kids ate a little, but were ready to get back out and play.

By this time, my kids were pooped.  They sat in their lawn chairs enjoying desserts.  We made our way back to the cabin for a little nap.

After nap time, we went to the beach again.  The puddle jumpers came in handy, giving them the freedom to swim and bob in the water all by themselves.

Grandee got a birthday cake for all of the June birthdays, which included her, Laney, and Baba Dee.

We even got to stop for Johnny's Pizza on the way home... a Louisiana favorite!

And if that wasn't worth the trip, we passed by the Duck Commander and snapped a few pictures.  We enjoyed watching this season of "Duck Dynasty" on A&E, so I was beyond excited to see the property in real life.

The weekend went smoothly and we packed in a lot of fun!  Memories were made...

Laney's 3rd Birthday

Laney's birthday fell on a Sunday...Father's Day to be exact.  Since we go to the 8am service, we had to get going quickly.  We started out with biscuit coffee cake and a few candles before heading off to church.

The Philleys and McIntyres were in town for the weekend.  She requested Mexican food for lunch.  There are four Mexican restaurants we go to from time to time, and the kids refer to them not by name but by "atmosphere", more or less.  There's the one with the pretty lights, the one with the pretty stars, the one where they play music outside, and the one where the kids get a ice cream push-pop when they're done.  She requested the one with the pretty lights...Habaneros.

All the kids enjoyed looking up at the ceiling and seeing their reflections.  So from my seat below, I took a picture.

She didn't take her eyes off of the man who put the hat on her head.  She only smiled after they finished singing.

Aunt Bekah gave her a great little kitchen helper set.  She loves putting the apron on and helping me cook.

Ron and I gave her a new bike that we thought she would love.  She loved that it had a little seat for her baby.  But that's about all she loved...she still hasn't ridden it.  

Sunday night was the Banks' family celebration at my brother's house.  Laney shares her June 17th birthday with her oldest cousin, Anne Madison.  They have a sweet bond.

Pops and B gave Laney a princess dress-up box and she adores everything in it.  And Ron and I happen to think she looks beautiful all dolled up!

At one point in the evening, while the other kids were jumping on the trampoline, Laney was in Pops' lap checking out his bird book.

But it wasn't long before she was back out there jumping like crazy.

I hope you had a fun day, Laney Grace.  Daddy and I love you!!

iPhone images

Laney loves playing dress up with her cousins' old things...

And she loves dressing herself in the mornings...

Luke was invited to a birthday party.  He was one of a few boys and loved every minute of it...

Laney found a few feathers on a nature walk and stuck ALL of them in her hair...

taking pictures to waste time...

Ron and I enjoyed our time at the Lady Antebellum concert... (thank you, B, for babysitting)

The kids love the horse at the Mississippi Welcome Center...

A trip to the Hoover Library Theater...

Luke at gymnastics...

I wish this picture showed up better.  It's what I found when I went around back at Cahaba Cycles to get a bike box for Ron.  They use their basketball goal to hang their cycling clothes from...of course!  What other use would a cyclist have for a basketball goal.

preparing for sewing

times have changed...

The Youth Barn

The Barn officially opened last month and I realize I never posted the pictures.  Briarwood was given an amazing opportunity by being offered the old Scrushy property for a really low price; it's where he had his barn and one of many extra homes.  The Barn has been transformed over the past 6 months and is amazing, while the house has a ton of offices for the youth and other ministries.  The goal of the barn is to equip and reach teenagers in the Birmingham area for Christ.

This is the view of the barn from the second floor of the house.

Scrushy had a NICE wine cellar in the basement.

Picnic tables are along the back side of the barn.

The youth will have a great place to meet.

And great places for hanging out.

There are even ping-pong tables when you walk in the front door.