Mountain weekend at Lake Nottely

We had the opportunity to stay at a beautiful house on Lake Nottely this past weekend. My parents and my brother Drew were able to drive in as well. We had so much that we will probably try to get this house or one of the 3 they rent out for a week during the year. Although all 3 kids were getting sick and Aidan was already on medicine and our car battery went dead before we headed into town on Saturday....we all had so much fun relaxing and enjoying the beautiful weather and colors. Basketball season officially starts today and so we were all in need of some family time because it is few and far between for the next 4 months.




















My mom and dad enjoying a canoe ride around the my fingers in the lake. You can see the awesome rays of sun shining down on the lake.

























Carsyn enjoying the weather. (I love her dimples...just like her brother!)

















It was Aidan's turn in the canoe with Daddy.



















The family out on the deck of the house overlooking the lake.























I can't show you all the pictures, because one will be our Christmas shot, but here is one my mom took of Brad, the kids, my brother and I.

Brad captured this beautiful sunset while out on the canoe with Drew and Aidan.

A night out

We like to take the kids out one at a time usually 1 time every 3-4 months just with one parent or both to some place special. Tonight was Aidan's turn and we went out to dinner and then took the train downtown to Phillips Arena to see Disney on Ice. We went with one of his best buddies Sydney and Sydney's Grandma. Sydney's mommy was suppose to go, but ended up coming down with a stomach bug. We had so much fun! The night started off at one of Aidan's favorite places to eat, Moes.

Sydney and Aidan on the train.

Once we got there and found our seats, they were able to get a treat of cotton candy and these hats came along with the bag.

Aidan's favorite part of the whole show was the "Cars" scene. I thought it was pretty cool myself. If you get a chance to go see this show I definitely recommend it!

To the farm

We always head to Kinsey Family Farm in mid October to take pictures of the kids, pick out our pumpkins, ride the hayride and this year, Aidan got to shoot the apple cannon. I just love that they have kept their prices down and it is never so busy that we can't find a place to park or loose the kids in the crowd or stand in any lines. We always head over there when my parents are in town and this year it happened that we went on Brenna's birthday. It was a picture perfect day outside and we enjoyed every minute of it!

Aidan shooting the apple cannon...

My dad and mom and the kids on the hayride. Brenna is trying to smile through her tears...she had just taken a tumble on the gravel road. Ouch! They drive us around the tree farm to a pond where they have built this beautiful dock and the kids can feed the fish.

A rare picture of Brad and I on the hayride.

The hayride was a bit chilly...

Hope you all are able to get out and enjoy the beautiful weather and the changing colors!

Brenna is 3 today!

Happy Birthday to our sweet Brenna Caroline who turned 3 years old officially at 4:44 pm today. Some things you may not know about Brenna...

1. She is fiercely independent. Yes, this may be her age, but do not try to do anything for her. She needs to do it in her own time and in her own way.

2. She may be petite, but she is strong and quick. I am almost positive this is a way to keep up with her brother.


3. Although she his strong and quick, she is awfully clumsy. Again this might be her age, but it is amazing how many times she trips during the week or runs into doors or walls. In any case, we love her just the same!


4. She loves to dance. Tap and ballet classes have only increased her liking in this area. I guess it was all the dancing we did with her in the middle of the night when she was small to get her to go to sleep.


5. Her favorite song to sing right now is her ABC's. She absolutely loves school and is so proud of the fact that she can sing this song and it makes us smile!



6. Her weapon of choice...her teeth. We told Aidan when she was young and he would take toys away, that she would eventually use her teeth to get him back. Boy, did we get that right. Although we absolutely do not condone biting, this is how she defends herself against her brother. She has spent many times on the time-out step for this action. Thank goodness no one else has been affected by this.



7. She LOVES her daddy! If you gave her a choice between gymnastics or dance class, chocolate or playing outside, daddy or mommy. She always chooses to spend time with her daddy! Followed quickly by...



8. Chocolate...or anything sweet. The girl loves her sweets. Where did she get that from?



9. She has just recently become a "snuggle bug" as we call it in our house. As I mentioned before, she has and is extremely independent. Never to be cuddled, even as a small baby. We fought with her many times about rocking her when she was upset. This even came into effect when it was time to potty train her. Yes, it happened on her own time and in her own way...ONLY in 1 day last December. (I guess I didn't mind it then!)



10. Our nicknames for Brenna are "bean" because she was so tiny when she was born and "camel" because she will eat anything and everything for 2 days straight and then won't eat anything at all for 2 days. When her food reserve is gone, then she will eat. I keep telling her that this is not good for her metabolism, but she doesn't listen to me.



We love our sweet Brenna and could not imagine our life with out her in it! She bring such an uplifting spirit to our house. Here's to you Brenna Caroline Kudlas on your 3rd birthday! We love you and thank God everyday for you!

Brenna's Birthday Celebration

Today we celebrated Brenna's 3rd Birthday (her actual birthday is tomorrow) with her Gramma and Papa and a couple of her good friends.

She was so excited all week about Ella Beth and Ana Lora coming over and have a "cupcake" party. My creative mom made these adorable aprons for the girls to keep. Here they are enjoying the beautiful weather we are having. I think all 3 girls will sleep in their aprons tonight.

They loved them!

We had 4 different kinds of cupcakes and 4 different colors of frosting and LOTS of sprinkles! Here are the girls getting ready to frost them with the help of Ella Beth's mommy, Amber and Ana Lora's mommy, Monica.
The girls going at it. I think a couple of them had more sprinkles then frosting!
Ella Beth about ready to dive in her yummy cupcake!
Ana Lora is enjoying her masterpiece!
Brenna on her 2nd cupcake. (We will regret that later this evening...)
YUM-O!
Brenna got so many wonderful gifts and a new bike helmet because....
she got a "big girl" bike!
Thank you all so much for making this such a wonderful day for Brenna filled with so many memories!

A little piece of Heaven

After going through 2 years of drought in Georgia, we look at rain a little differently. Recently we had over 20 days without a drop of rain and midweek last week, we were blessed to have a good inch of rain fall. Here is what we got as the rain was moving out....

How can some people say there is no God when you see this.....?

Monday Memories

Brenna Caroline is turning 3 years old this week! Here she is almost 3 years ago. I still can't believe all 5 lbs 13 oz and 19 inches of her could fit in her Daddy's hand!

Monday Memories

This one might make you laugh....

I use to ride horses every summer at a camp in Northern Michigan. This picture just happens to be at a Girl Scout retreat. Got to love those stone wash jeans and side ponytail! HA!

Have a great week!

My favorite season

I absolutely love Fall in Georgia. I can take the 70 degree weather all year round. There are many things about the month of October and November that I love. Enjoy some news photos as well as some old ones!

#1 I love the cool mornings. Those mornings that you have to wear a light coat outside, but then don't have to wear it later in the day. (I can not claim this next picture. It is beautiful though!)

#2 I really do love football season. I am not crazy about having to sit and watch football all weekend, but there is something about my competitive side that wants to watch it and cheer for my team. Plus football food is always good! (Although the kids are decked out in USC and Georgia clothes, we really are U of Michigan and Western Michigan U fans all the way.)

#3 I love being able to spend time outside without having to find the nearest shade. I can open my back door and the kids could play outside in the driveway for hours.

#4 I love all the color changes. Living in the North Georgia Mountains, you can get some of the most breathtaking views of the colors changing.

#5 What I love most about Fall is spending so much time as a family going apple picking, hiking by the rivers, baking and just enjoying each others company before the craziness of basketball season starts.

I am so blessed!

I hope you have a wonderful Fall!

On a side note...if you haven't taken a night out with your husband/wife lately, please go see the movie "Fireproof." It is awesome! Here is the website for info: www.fireproofthemovie.com