Family pictures from this Spring

This past April, we had family pictures done while we were down in Charleston for a few days.  Collin and Aron from Collin Smith Portrait Photography were doing sessions down there, and we jumped on that!  They were painful to take, but turned out great.  A few days later, we went back to Florence and Tessa had portraits done.  They were unbelievable!!!  The hardest part has been figuring out what to order.

Eli decided he was done.  Tessa just had to cover her eyes and hide from the craziness of it all.  Drake decided to take a nap on Daddy's head.  I love this photo, because it depicts our little family perfectly!

This is the photo currently on my phone case.  The way Tessa is holding my hand, and Eli is holding my leg--it just melts my heart!

This was the first of the photos, and let me tell you, this was rough.  The kids did better wasn't it wasn't posed and more formal.  Not good, but better than this beginning.  The picture turned out great, but it wasn't easy to get!

Drake refused to run and hold hands with them.  Little stinker!

And onto Tessa's portraits!  I think this is my favorite of her in the tutu.

Her shy smile

Twirling!

Her fake smile

Her REAL smile!  I love this little face when her real smile comes through!  It lights up her entire face.  I hope she knows how gorgeous she is.  We certainly tell her!

And now giggling!

We had a change of clothes and a walk outside.  This is one of our favorite brands- Persnickety!

Her trademark.

Sooooo cute!

Fake, but hilarious.

Wild Olive Tees---Let me just tell you about this awesome company!  You can buy their awesome shirts, and if you use a family code, a portion of the profits will go to that family.  For what, you ask?  To fund their ADOPTION!!!  What a great program they have!  Love this concept!  There are so many families out there who want to take care of orphans, and don't have the means.  This company is one way families can fundraise, and I just think that's awesome.
If you don't know a family, then you can simply pick one out. from their website.

You can find Collin and Aron through the website, blog, or Facebook!

Another day, another park

Thought of the day

Sums it up! More to come...

A little glimpse...

Of all the fun we've had with our NY family!!!

Baseball and the Lake

After the 4th of July party, Daddy had to go back to Charlotte and work a few days.  We took advantage of the time at Grandma and Grandpa's and had some more fun!  One night we went to a baseball game to watch our cousin play!  Drake was totally into it, especially since Grandpa had gone to buy him a glove and the accessories.  Tee-ball, here we come!  He was concentrating, despite being really tired.

 I just love this sweet photo of Tessa holding her Aunt Maggie's hand.  Our families have accepted her with no questions, and she certainly feels the love.

 And can I just say how happy I am that grumpy camera face is GONE!!!

 Watching and concentrating with Grandpa.

 My sweet little love

 With his Aunt Maggie.

 Cousin Austin!

 The next day I headed to the lake with my Mom.  This was Tessa's first time on a boat.  She fancied driving;-)

 This silly boy was catching the air in his mouth.

 And now this big guy wanted to drive the boat with his Uncle Stoney.

 Time for a trim?

 Time for fishing!  These two were fascinated.  Then Eli got in on the action and they were all 'hooked'.

 The absolute favorite activity at the lake, for all three, was the jet ski.  No surprises there.  I think this was Eli's first ride, b/c I don't remember riding him last summer.  He was too little:-)

Tessa was waving!  Her first time on a jet ski

Next up in blog land...our beach trip!

July 4th

I've worked the last few years on July 4, but took it off this year to head to my parents house.  This was obviously Tessa's first 4th of July celebration, and she rocked it out with her little swimsuit and hair bow.  We had fun swimming the day away, and of course eating.  The kids had a blast as usual!