Our Trip to PA (the first week)

What a time it has been since arriving in PA on the 17th! It started with a fairly decent trip to PA (my mom was kind enough to fly down to Fl and drive back with me and the kids) and has been nonstop ever since! :)  I am going to do my best to recap the time here so far (WARNING: There are lots of pictures in this blog). :)

Saturday:  We enjoyed a nice morning at a local Farmer's Market and tasted a lot of yummy food. :)  Reese discovered that she loves hummus. :)  I also found a nice Steeler's scrunchie for Reese and a Steeler's bib for Jet. :)  It was a nice morning out and about. :)  The afternoon we just spent enjoying the beautiful evening weather. :)

Sunday:  Another relaxing morning - this time it was spent at the house with Reese digging in the dirt. :)  We spent the afternoon over at my grandmother's house visiting.  One of my cousin's and his family was also over there so we were able to visit with them as well.  It was a very nice day!

Monday:  My sister-in-law, her two little girls (her son wisely stayed behind), and her mom met my mom and I (and the kids) at Target that morning to do some back to school shopping.  Reese had a great time walking around with her cousins and "helping" get supplies. :)  Afterwards, we all enjoyed a nice lunch at Steak 'N' Shake. :)

Tuesday:  Preparation Day!  My sister-in-law, her 2 girls, her sister-in-law and her mom came to our house for a nice lunch and work! :)  My sister-in-law had brought the info for the race packets and kids' bags so that we could help get everything put together.  Reese and her cousins enjoyed playing outside (with Pappy supervising) while we adults (and Jet) worked inside. :)  It was a nice morning/afternoon of visiting and getting things ready for the race/fundraiser on Saturday. :)

Wednesday: This was a great down day for us!  Just lots of relaxing and playing outside at my parents' house.  I love the summers here!  The evenings are so nice and pleasant!!  It's great that Reese can be outside so much (Not something she can do very easily in FL).

Thursday:  There is not really a zoo close to where my parents live, but there is a place called Living Treasures.  This place is pretty close to a zoo and is really cute!!!  They had a lot of neat animals and the kids were able to actually feed some of the animals.  A last minute change in plans was that my brother (who had just arrived from MA the night before) came down this morning with all 3 of his kids.  They were able to join us at Living Treasures and stayed for the whole day.  Boy did Reese love playing with her cousins ALL day long! :)  

Friday:  My mom and I (and the kids) did a lot of running around this morning.  We had quite a few things to pick up for the race/fundraiser on Saturday.  Both kids did great, though, and when we got home Jet took a good nap! :)  Reese was able to spend some time with Mimi and "helped" her bake some cookies! :) My cousin from IN (Doug) and his wife (Patty) arrived this evening as well and we enjoyed a nice visit with them.  I was also thankful that my friend Nicole was able to come in for the weekend and she arrived this evening as well.  

The best thing ever was that Frank flew into town this evening and our family was once again all back together!! :)

Saturday:  Race/Fundraiser Day!!  We had such a good time at the fundraiser!  This was the 2nd year my brother and sister-in-law have put together this fundraiser (For more information on why this fundraiser is necessary, please visit their website www.finleyfighters.com.) and it was a HUGE success!  They had a 5K walk/run, a 10K Walk and a 1 mile Fun Run.  There was also face painting, games, animal balloons, basket raffles and a lunch.  Reese had a great time having her face painted (by her Aunt Jessie), playing on the playground, getting her nails painted and playing games.  Jet also had a great time . . . he got to swing for the first time and even had an animal balloon! :)  All in all, it was a wonderful day for a worthy cause (And we raised almost $30,000!!!)!! :)

So that was the first half of our time in PA!  I will blog again once we get back to FL about the 2nd half of our trip (which is starting out to be just as much fun as the first!).  I hope you enjoyed the pictures!! :)

How Time Flies

I cannot believe how much time has passed since my last blog!!  My, oh my, how busy life can get!! :)  This will be a brief post just to catch you up on what's been going on in our lives for the last 8 months. :)

Jet is now 10 months old, has 1 1/2 teeth (the 2nd one is taking awhile to come in), is pulling up on everything, cruising around the couches and with his walker and eating up a storm. :)  He is still a pretty happy baby and can melt your heart with his smile. :)  It has been so much fun watching him grow! :)

Reese is 2 1/2 years old and boy, is her personality showing!! :)  She loves to talk (about anything), build "castles" (out of legos), dance and sing. :) She has such a fun, outgoing personality and really likes to do just about anything.   Reese seems to enjoy playing with her brother, too - she is constantly saying, "Come on, Jet.  Come play with me." :)  I keep waiting for the day, though, when her brother isn't so compliant with the way she plays (I.e, taking toys from him). :)  For now, though - I'll take the peace. :)

Frank and I are doing fine.  Most of you know by now that we are expecting our 3rd child in January. Those closest to us also know that this was a complete shock and surprise!  Frank and I had agreed that after Jet, we would be finished with our family.  My pregnancy with Jet was a little harder than expected (for example, being hospitalized to stop preterm labor and being on bed rest for 5 weeks) and my body doesn't seem to handle pregnancy that well, so we decided to stop after Jet (We were so thankful for having Jet and Reese.  There was a time when we honestly weren't sure we would have any children of our own.).  Apparently, though, the Lord had a different plan. :)  At first we were a little shell shocked and didn't quite know how to handle it, but after a couple of days we were able to see this pregnancy as a blessing just like the others.  I know this pregnancy may not be the most enjoyable for me (praying that preterm labor does not happen again), but God is so good.  We are so undeserving of the children He's given us and then He gives us one more.  When I stop to think about things and the way our life as gone (not as we planned or expected), I can't do anything, but thank the Lord for His hand in our lives and our marriage.  I get truly overwhelmed by His goodness and grace (when I truly don't deserve it).  And so, Lord willing, our family will truly be complete come January when our baby girl is born. :)

That's the update for now!  My mom is flying down this coming Wednesday to travel back to PA with me and the kids (Yes, we are driving.  Yes, I realize this may be a little crazy.).  We will be visiting up there for about 2 weeks.  I am really looking forward to the visit and getting to spend some one on one time with my family! :)  I am also excited for Reese and Jet to get to spend this time with my family as well! :)  Plus, we get to attend my niece's annual 5k walk/run, 10k run this year (If you don't know my niece's story or the work my brother and sister-in-law are doing on her behalf, you've got to check out their website - )!!  It's being held in Connellsville, PA on August 25th - so if you're in the area and want to have some fun that day, come join us!!  They'll be face painting, balloon animals, a BBQ lunch and basket raffles!!  Just go to for more info! :)

Hopefully, I'll be updating again once we get back! :)  Lots and lots of pictures to look forward to . . . :)