Where Did the Weekend Go??

Little turtle meets big turtle...

This weekend was a fun one in our house, but a big one too!  Saturday we endured the heat and tornado warnings by going to the splash pad for awhile with Ava and my Mom and Dad, who came  up for the weekend. Just to be clear, we went to the splash pad before the tornado warnings, not after :)  It was a wild weather day with horrible humidity and strong storms, followed by a cool rain and more storms.  Sounds like summer to me!  

Since she was wearing her turtle swimsuit, we thought it would be fitting to introduce her to the giant turtle she usually ignores :)  Although she looks shell-shocked (ha ha ha, no pun intended!) she did love sitting on him and getting sprayed by the water he was "spitting" out!  Travis was really sweet to spend most of the time in the water with her and let me sit and watch with my parents.  She is getting so brave and big, but she's fearless and a constant amount of work right now!  

You cannot leave her alone for a second in the water :) Lucky for both us, Daddy was right there to help!  

When we got home, the grill master in our house got right to work grilling up his latest specialty, corn on the cob!  

Doesn't that look amazing??  It was!  We have a little farmer's stand really close to us and we've been buying lots of fresh produce lately and throwing it on the grill.  One of our neighbors showed us a great way to grill corn on the cob and Travis has gotten really good at it this week! 

We both love corn on the cob, but now we love it grilled so much better.  I think it's the perfect summer meal, but what else can you expect a girl from Iowa to say???

The big part of our weekend came this morning when we all got to listen to Travis preach in "big church!"  My parents came up to hear him too and we had a wonderful time.  

I will fully admit that I am nothing but biased and non-objective, but I think he did a great job and I was very, very proud of him.  I was able to go to both services and hear him, which was a fun treat.  He just amazes me in so many ways and I love to hear him teach the Word.  It's so very rewarding to see how God has orchestrated our world to bring us to this season in our lives.  From the handsome, young Bible study leader I fell in love with to a handsome Pastor with (almost) 2 kids, it's crazy to think about how our life has changed over the years!  I'm so thankful for my husband and so proud of him.  For our family members who are interested, you can hear and see the video of him on our Church website in a few days when they get it uploaded.  It's worth the watch :) 

I also happen to know that this little girl is very proud and thankful for her Daddy!  

She tells me everyday when her eyes sparkle and dance at the sight of him walking in the front door...

Now this picture just cracks me up for so many reasons.  First of all, check out Travis in the background, patiently waiting to take pictures that I requested, despite the fact that he was tired and ready to change in to something more comfortable...what a good sport!  And of course, how could you miss the giant shot of Ava, who was desperately trying to grab my camera while I was turning it on!  Our life is so funny these days, full of all these everyday moments that make both of us laugh.  It's a wild ride being a parent!  

Finally this afternoon, we were able to hang with some friends and relax in their pool before we grilled out.  It was the perfect way to end a great weekend!

Ava was perfect, enjoying all the time we spent outside and in the water.

It was a great weekend but I cannot believe it's over already!  Our summer is just flying by and yet we are enjoying so much of it.  I LOVE summer and this one has been full of precious memories I've tucked away in my heart.   

Although I could elaborate more about that, I can hardly keep my eyes open tonight, so I'm off to bed!  

Hope you have a happy Monday!!