Norman Pictures...

Last weekend we were in Norman for a wedding and I informed Chris that we had to go get a family picture under "our tree"- it is behind the law school on campus. We missed last year, but have had a family picture there every summer since Eli was born...so this makes 3. :)

The picture isn't the best. And with a tripod, timer and toddlers there is no use in trying to smile for the camera. (And don't take pictures at 11:00 in the morning the shadows are horrific- let's just say the morning didn't go as we had hoped) :)

But....for closer-up shots, 11 is just fine.

Love this little guy. 

Can't believe he is so big... 

And this little thing? She is pretty cute too. 

Awww...there is a little sweet with all that spice. :) 

I went to get the car- it was close to 100 degrees, and Chris hung out around the law school with the kiddos.

I adore these last two pictures that Chris got. It is pretty much how I see Ileigh every. single. day.

Except, she doesn't smile that big for me.

Memorial Day Weekend- Cowboy Hall of Fame

The next day after the Zoo, Brad, Alison & Emma met up with us. We planned to go to the Cowboy Hall of Fame and Chili Cook-off.

It was great! We have been going for many years, and the kiddos have more fun every year.

We take a tractor ride into the grounds...

We got the easy ride; Ileigh was asleep, so Chris had to wheel her about half a mile, through grass. Such a trooper. 

Excited kiddos. 

The first thing we did was get the kiddos on horses. They LOVED it. 

Eli was tippin' his hat to daddy. :) 

Awww...big smiles! 

We had to say thank you to the horse and pet him... 

We watched a man do rope tricks... 

and made a lasso... 

(even Memamaw made one!) 

Then we went on a stagecoach ride... 

(Ileigh had just woke up at this point...) 

Then a wagon ride... 

ate some stew and cobbler... 

and got our faces painted.  

Between that and the horses, I can't tell what they loved most. 

Then we went inside the museum and watched the square dancers. 

The kiddos entertained a crowd of their own... 

After that we hopped on the tractor for one last ride and headed to the "vacation" for naps.

(Eli calls every hotel he sees a "vacation" and I don't want to explain the difference to him just yet. It is adorable and he is growing up too fast already) 

Can't wait for next year!

Memorial Day- The Zoo

We have a habit of going to OKC for Memorial Day weekend. I think it has been a tradition at least for the past 5 years. :) I like traditions.

For our first day we went to the Zoo with Memamaw and Gramps. It was PERFECT; cool and cloudy. I could have stayed there all day.

Eli was prepared to see lions, 

and tigers, 

and bears! Oh, my! 

We learned last year to take the little tram around the Zoo. So nice. 

This little one LOVES anything with four legs. She gravitates toward any type of animal. 

After the tram we headed to the kid zoo. It was the first time we had been and it was a lot of fun. 

Eli loved the slide...so did Memamaw! 

Then we went into the bird exhibit. Eli wanted a bird to land on his arm so bad. Then one did and its talons scared him. He dropped his nectar, then got his courage back up and they wouldn't come. We had to have stayed in there for 20 minutes. 

For some reason though, they really liked me. 

Ileigh LOVES birds- she calls them "quack-quacks", but hey we are working on it. 

They really liked me...really. 

Then we took another tram ride. 

This is Ileigh's classic face. Pretty much when she doesn't get her way, this face appears. You can imagine it is a staple. 

Three minutes later, she was out. 

The only way we could get her to wear this adorable hat was to wait until she was sleeping to put it on. 

Chris and I hung out with Ileigh while Memamaw, Gramps and Eli rode the train. 

Happy, happy boy. He had a blast! While he was on the train, we ran into the gift shop and got him his own special key to the Zoo. It was really a little plastic key topper with an elephant on it, but it looks like a real key. He LOVED it. Even last week as we were passing through OKC on our way home from Kansas and we were talking about a place to stay the night, he yelled from the back of the car that he had his key to the Zoo so we could stay there! Adorable.

Ileigh hugging her little elephant we got her for her first trip to the Zoo!