Vacation part II

Hayden had the whole week off last week and we hit the road!  We went to Florida for a few days and spent time at the beach with my family (Platten’s).  We celebrated Father’s Day there and Hayden had a blast playing golf with my Dad.  Hayden played while he was in Dallas too and says he forgot how much fun it is, I expect him to get out on the course more this summer.  Hayden and I took a kayak into the ocean one morning too.  That was really fun, we were extra motivated not to tip over because of all the jellyfish we saw floating beneath us, yikes!  His kayak will hopefully be done soon…we’ll definately let you know.
 
Hayden and I just got back from a wonderful 4-day get away!  We had some airline vouchers to use so we decided to meet up with Amber and Dustin (sorority sister from State) in San Francisco.  We were so excited to go out to California, neither of us had ever been to San Fran.  We started our trip with a neat tour of Alcatraz…and somehow got out of there without buying any souvenirs.  A little tour of prison always confirms our decision to remain law abiding citizens! 
 
From Alcatraz we drove to Napa Valley.  We found a great little Italian restaurant where we sat outside and relaxed.  Amber and I couldn’t believe how nice it was to be able to sit and talk without having to reign in our little ones non-stop!  Napa was beautiful and a great place to spend the day.  We started our morning with a balloon ride and brunch.  The hot air balloon was a really neat experience and a great way to see the area.  Next, the limo picked us up for a day of wine tastings and tours…plus a great little lunch in between.  Dustin has a favorite wine, Stag’s Leap, so we made sure that was our first stop.
 
The next day was spent in San Francisco doing all the touristy things we could find: riding the trolley, checking out Lombard St (the most crooked street), shopping in Chinatown, eating in Little Italy (we felt like we were in a mob movie, everyone was speaking Italian!), ice cream from Ghiradelli, then hanging out at Fisherman’s Wharf looking at the Golden Gate bridge and watching the Sea Lions.  We were exhausted! 
 
It’s always fun to get away, but even more fun to get back home.  We missed Haley SO much and couldn’t wait to get our hands on her when we got back.  There were tons of hugs and kisses…even though she was SO tired because we didn’t get in til 10pm.  I won’t even bore you with the long day of sitting on the airplane and losing money in the Las Vegas airport…darn slot machines!  Hayden’s parents watched Haley for us while we were gone and everyone had a blast spending time together.
 
The only other new thing in our lives is our new nephew.  Seth Murphy was born June 25 and we can’t wait to go meet him!  Everyone is healthy and doing well.  We’re keeping the Murphy’s in our prayers because we remember all too well how crazy it is bringing home a new baby!  But, what a joy!!

Vacation…Part 1

Well, we’re almost back. We’ve just spent a week having loads of fun and totally relaxing. We needed a good break.

I was out of town in Dallas for a week before we went on vacation, so I’ve only gotten to sleep in my own bed once in the past two weeks!

We started off our trip going to Florida. And we started going to Florida off with a stop at Captain D’s. Yep, Captain D’s. Three pieces of fish and a few shrimp is the perfect way to start off any vacation!

The weather in Florida was extremely cooperative. And I was a good boy. Wore my sunscreen and hardly got burned. While we were there, Bill and I managed to get in a round of golf. I won’t say that either of us set any course records, but it was definitely nice spending some time with him.

Haley was such a good girl. She seemed back and forth as to whether she liked the beach or not. She did really good on the drives as well. There was one little fussy point on the way to the beach, but other than that, she just hung out in the back seat…happy as can be. Another update will be coming soon about the second leg of our trip…California!

Summer Is Here!

Summer is definately hitting Memphis.  It’s 90′ + but the evenings feel awesome.  We are loving the park near by, feeding the fish and geese at the lake, and playing in our new pool!  (baby pool, that is)
Hayden has been staying busy in the garage- working on the kayak and starting work on Seth’s crib.  Seth is Haley’s cousin and we can’t wait for his arrival at the end of this month!   Hayden is so excited about the beautiful wood he found.  I know it’s going to be gorgeous!  The kayak is really taking shape and we will have a big party for his ‘maiden voyage’ when it’s done in a couple weeks.

Last weekend Hayden and I had a date and enjoyed a day out on the lake with Kim and Kevin.  Now we’re thinking how awesome it would be to have a boat.  But, for now, we’ll just accept invites from our friends for cruises around Garner Lake. 

Haley and I had an awesome time when we went to visit the Holmes’ in Huntsville.  It was a real treat because not only did we get to meet little Emily, but we also got to to meet Abigail Holly.  Anna, Travis, and Alison were all in town and it was so great to visit with everyone.  I only wish we would have had more time together.  Alison got all the girls matching dresses and we took about 200 pictures of them dressed up. Haley and I stayed with Laura for two days and had a ball playing with Caitlyn.  We’ve got adorable pictures and I loved watching Haley soak up everything Caitlyn did…jumping, talking, singing, playing.  Caitlyn is so smart!  My friend Jen and her daughter Emma shared a ride to Huntsville, which made the ride so much more fun!  When we got home, Hayden had the whole house clean AND all of the laundry done!  It doesn’t get better than that.

Haley is walking really great now and doesn’t sit still.  It’s SO much fun to watch her explore everything around her.  It’s also REALLY exciting to listen to her learn to talk.  She’s adding a new word or two every day.  This weekend the big word was “bubbles” and we got her to say “Maroon”!  Although, she doesn’t quite know the concept of Maroon…but it won’t be long!  We’ve already got her cheerleader outfit ready for this season.