Wednesday, March 2, 2016

Florida


So I think I should start calling myself the traveler!  In the last 7ish months, after the month of March, I will have gone to Indiana 3 times, Colorado, Florida and Texas.  We've traveled almost once a month...so St Louis is just a stopping place between journeys. It's the gateway to adventure!  ;-)

But anyways... this is from The St. Louis Edition:

At the beginning of February, we drove down to Destin FL with Dustin and Jessica for a week long vacation!  It was so nice to leave cold weather behind and have a little warmth, comparatively... it was in the 50's and 60's most of the time.  
The drive was a good 11 hrs, so the plan was to get up and leave at 2:30 am so the babies would sleep most of the way.  I got home from our church's Mom's Night Out at midnight and Steven was just waking up.  He felt very wide awake so we decided to just get ready and leave then. We left at 1:30 so I never went to bed that night.  ;-)

We stayed at Steven's company's house  which we get for cheap. It's located in a resort called San Destin.


There was a heated pool with the house.  I enjoyed swimming immensely, especially in the evening after the children went to bed. :-)



We didn't spend a whole lot of time at the beach because it was a little too chilly to enjoy it much. We did go down a couple times.














The second time we went to the beach was an extremely windy day.




Danny loved playing in the sand!











Monday, we visited the Gulfarium with Dustin and Jessica.




We attended a dolphin show and got to see a bunch of sea creatures.

Mama and baby dolphin







Danny with a shark!






One night, we cooked a steak dinner at home.  The guys cooked the steaks on the grill while we girls made sides. It was delicious!



Wednesday, we spent together as a family. We rented bikes from the resort that were actually free of charge because they were "house" privileges.
We road back to the house for lunch and then biked around the resort.









We wore them out!
After we returned the bikes, we strolled around the marina and looked at all the big boats.  It was very windy and chilly.






We met Dustin and Jessica at Jackacuda's on the harbor for a dinner of fish and sushi!


Thursday, the guys spent the day deep sea fishing!  They had a great time and caught lots of fish. I think they'd be hooked on the hobby if it were possible.  (ha ha ha)

The Destiny was their fishing vessel.



Fish...almost ready for eating!
Friday was another family day. We strolled around the resort's village enjoying the sunshine.  It's a really quaint place!





This has got to be the world's most comfortable swing!











Friday evening, we met Dustin and Jessica at the harbor for a Dolphin and Sunset Cruise.  We saw lots of dolphins jumping out of the water but they were too hard to get pictures of.



The seagulls wanted treats.
















Saturday, we left for home. But we first took a detour to see Pensacola Lighthouse.


We took turns climbing to the top because the kids weren't allowed up.  After I went up, I was glad we didn't try to take them with us! Going up was frightening for me but once I was up there, I was fine.  It's 170 steps up and the lighthouse keeper had to carry 2 5 gal buckets of kerosene up all those steps twice a day!





Steven's turn!


On the way home, around supper time, we decided to exit the highway for a pit bull, ahem, I mean, pit stop! (inside joke) Right behind us, out of the blue, was Dustin and Jessica! We decided on a dinner at Cracker Barrel with them before we continued home.

And so our wonderful vacation came to an end. We had a lovely time and it's one of my favorite vacations!


If I take the wings of the morning, and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea;
Even there shall thy hand lead me, and thy right hand shall hold me. Psalms 139:9-10



Brought to you by: Rebekah Benner


Wednesday, January 13, 2016

Snowy Days


This year, instead of barely tolerating the snow, Danny wanted to walk around in it and enjoyed himself.

Delly did very well too. She's a tough little girl.













For to the snow he says, ‘Fall on the earth,’ likewise to the downpour, his mighty downpour. Job 37:6



Brought to you by: Rebekah Benner


Delly's Birthday


We took Delly Jean to Build-a-Bear for her birthday.


Then I made a skirt for the bear to match Delly.


Delly and Mommy also have matching outfits!


Daddy bought her flowers!


For Del's cake, since she doesn't eat a whole lot of food yet, I made her a fruit bouquet with a chocolate sauce and cream cheese dip.




She got to try pineapple, banana and chocolate all for the first time.


And of course, she had to try out her presents too!






This is Delly Jean...joyous but quiet and oh so persistent!


Happy 1st Birthday, baby girl! 

The king's daughter is all glorious within. Psalms 45:13a

Do not let your adorning be external—the braiding of hair and the putting on of gold jewelry, or the clothing you wear—  but let your adorning be the hidden person of the heart with the imperishable beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which in God's sight is very precious. 1 Peter 3:3-4


Brought to you by: Rebekah Benner



Adele is One!


One year that flew by so fast...

From this little baby:


to this crawling baby:


to this walking baby:



...all in one year!

One year old pictures.







The patch of red is her baby hair that has grown out. =)




 You are a wonderful gift from God!  Love you, precious Delly Jean!

I will praise You; for I am fearfully and wonderfully made: marvellous are Your works; and that my soul knows right well. Psalms 139:14


Brought to you by: Rebekah Benner

Thursday, November 12, 2015

Esther Visits


From the St Louis Edition:

Es came to see us for a week!




We found a fun coffee shop in Old St Charles. 
We enjoyed a cup of coffee together one evening.


So artistic!


Danny loves water and greatly enjoyed having his own cup. It consoled him from not having his own cup of coffee.


Steven ordered an espresso.


Danny says "cheese" for pictures very emphatically!



Beautiful Es

Sisters
Es with the babies! They loved having Es around and we were
all spoiled by her. 


Coffee is good to the last drop!


And so are sisters...!

And now abideth faith, hope, charity, these three; but the greatest of these is charity. 1 Corinthians 13:13



Brought to you by: Rebekah Benner