3 Year Anniversary

On Wednesday, June 16, John and I celebrated our 3 year wedding anniversary. The past three years have gone by so quickly, but it is amazing to think of all that has changed for us and our family in that time. Last year we celebrated our 2 year wedding anniversary by going to dinner at The Melting Pot. To do so we had to leave Dawson who was only one month old at the time, and after dinner we rushed back to pick up our little baby. This year John suggested that we take a small trip and leave Dawson with family since he's a year older.
Dawson's Grandad, Nana, Aunt Em, and Cousin Drew all came down to stay with him at his house Wednesday through Friday while we were gone. Dawson had a great time playing, showing off, and enjoying all the attention! We did not worry about him at all knowing he was in good hands, but we did, of course, miss him a lot!!
On Wednesday morning we drove to Tunica, Mississippi which is about four hours away. We stayed at the Gold Strike Resort and Casino by MGM Mirage which was very nice. While in Tunica we spent some time in the casino but with no big winnings to report. We did have a good time playing though. Blackjack ended up being our favorite. Wednesday night for dinner on our anniversary we had a great steak dinner at the Chicago Steakhouse at our resort.
Thursday we decided to drive to Memphis which was about 30 minutes away. Since neither of us have actually been to Memphis to do all of the tourist stuff before we went to Graceland and Beale Street. Graceland was neat, but we were surprised that Elivs' house was no larger than it was. All of the information about Elvis was interesting, and it was cool to see his planes sitting on the property across the street from his house.
We walked around Beale Street and decided to eat BBQ for lunch since we were in Memphis. We shared some ribs at a place on Beale Street called The Pig, and they were so good! After lunch we walked up to the Peabody where we saw the famous ducks. We also walked around in a few of the shops in the Peabody and downtown. After downtown we made a stop by the Pottery Barn outlet :) and then ran in one of the Target stores nearby where we happened to run into one of our friends from UT!
After our day in Memphis we headed back to Tunica where we spent some more time in the casino and relaxed in the pool.
On Friday we were sad that our trip had come to an end, but we couldn't wait to get back home to see Dawson! We had a great time, but we're glad to be back home playing with our baby!

Above: John reading up on Poker before heading

downstairs to the casino. Before we left for our trip

I checked some books out from the library on casino games. :)

Above: Beale Street.

Above: Beale Street.

Above: The yummy ribs we shared at The Pig!

Above: We couldn't get a picture of the Peabody Hotel

because we were too close, but we managed to get one of

Peabody Place shopping area downtown.

Above: Walking down Beale Street.

**I really wanted to take a picture of us in the casino, but it was not worth getting thrown out since cameras are not allowed. :)

***I think this is our first blog since Dawson was born with no pictures of him, but don't worry after we celebrate Father's Day this evening I hope to have some good photos of John and Dawson to share!

Water, Animals, and "More"

This week was one of the hottest we've had so far this summer here in Alabama with the heat index over 100 some days, so we made sure to stay cool this week either by staying in doors until evening or playing in water.
Tuesday morning John was mowing our yard and came across a turtle digging a hole behind our shed. John came in to get us to come see the turtle. Dawson was interested in the turtle at first until he realized it didn't move fast and he wasn't allowed to touch it, and then he was more interested in playing in the yard. Dawson loves playing outside, and has started crying and pointing to the door when we finally force him to come inside.
On Wednesday we took Dawson to KidVenture to play on all of their indoor slides and toys. Before we left this time, we let him spend a few minutes playing in the bigger kids area, and he loved all of the "big kid" toys in addition to having fun playing in his area for over an hour.
On Thursday morning John had the idea to take Dawson to PetSmart for something different to do since Dawson loves animals and it would be something cool and indoors. Dawson loved looking at the cats, lizards, birds, fish, dogs, and hamsters!
After his nap that day we filled up his Crazy Crab Pool in our backyard and let him and Bentley play in the water, and I'm not sure who enjoyed this more, Dawson or Bentley. John and I had fun just watching both of them with the water.
Friday morning we talked to some of our friends and learned that a cute Jack Russell Terrier had wondered into their garage to stay earlier in the week and appeared to have been dropped off in their neighborhood. They brought him by our house for us and Dawson to see. As with all animals, Dawson, of course, loved him. Bentley was not quiet as welcoming to having another dog in her yard, but she (kind of) warmed up to him. The owners have not yet been located and this dog has not yet been reported as missing at any of the shelters or pounds in the surrounding areas, so at this point they are looking to find a new home for him. If, by some chance, you're reading our blog and want him or know of someone who does please let me know! He is a male Jack Russell Terrier white and beige in color. He has not been fixed yet, weighs about 25 pounds, and stands about 14 inches tall. When he came to our house he did well with Dawson, so he seems to do well with children as far as we can tell. He will walk on a leash, comes when called, loves attention, and likes riding in the car with his head out the window. :) He seems very sweet. Dawson loved watching and pointing to him and squealing as the dog and Bentley ran around our yard.
Friday was the hottest day this week, so on Friday afternoon we decided to take Dawson to the Pop Jet at Bridgestreet to play. He was cautious of the water at first, but then decided he liked to kick the little water coming out of the smaller jets!
Well, the title of this blog is Water, Animals, and "More" because this week Dawson has started signing "more" A LOT! Many of you know, we've been working on this for 5 or 6 months, and he has previously shown interest but also known that we would still give him more even if he didn't sign it to us. Every time he's been in his highchair this week and wanted more of anything he has signed "more" to us! He has also started doing the sign language for "all done," but it is not as clearly obvious as when he signs "more." We were so thrilled after all these months of signing these couple of words to him that he finally is doing it and knowing what it means!
Well, that's about it for this week. The coming week should be a lot of fun as John and I will be celebrating our 3 year wedding anniversary in Tunica, Mississippi, and Dawson will get to spend a couple of days playing with his Grandad and Nana while we're gone.

Above: Dawson at the Pop Jet at Bridgestreet

standing behind the smallest jet.
Above: Dawson and DaDa when Dawson
learned he could kick the water spout.

Above: And then he realized he could stand on it.

Above: More of Dawson at the Pop Jet.

Above: When we first got there we let Dawson feel

the water barefoot. I think he looks like a big kid

in this picture.

Above: This is the cute Jack Russell needing a home.

Above: The Jack Russell who is in need

of a home.

Above: The turtle laying eggs in our yard.

Above: John, Dawson, and the turtle in our yard.

A Little Bit of Everything!

It's been about a week and a half since we've updated our blog, so you may be wondering what we're doing?? Well, we're chasing Dawson! :) He now prefers to walk rather than crawl, and he is a very, very fast walker. It definately keeps us on our toes, and we are so thankful that we decided to make him a playroom months ago since he now needs the safe area where he can toddle around and play.
Last Wednesday John and I took Dawson to see his first movie at Monaco Theater in Bridgestreet. The theater is having their Summer Kids Film Series where previously released children's movies are being shown to children and their parents at 10am on Mondays and Wednesdays. Last Wednesday was the first one of the summer, so we took him to see Open Season, and he did surprisingly well! He was very busy trying to explore the theater until the lights went down and the movie came on, but then he sat happily on my lap and watched about 40 minutes of the movie before we had to leave because he was getting ansy and because it was almost nap time.
Dawson did so well at the movie that I decided to take him back to see Horton Hears a Who yesterday. This time we met some of Dawson's friends there. Again he had a good time, but only lasted about 40 minutes. When we were leaving the theater we had to stop by the big fountain at Bridgestreet for about 10 minutes because Dawson loved watching the water. A few minutes later Dawson's friend Jude and his mom, Blakeley, left the theater too, and Jude was equally as amazed with the water feature. Silly boys!
On Wednesday afternoon we went to Dawson's friend, Matthew's, house for a playdate and to celebrate Matthew's 1st birthday. We had some yummy egg-free cupcakes that Dawson could not get enough of, and Dawson had fun playing with Matthew (12 months), Caroline (3.5 years), Ethan (22 months), and Austin (22 months). Now that these boys (Dawson and Matthew) are both on the move, it was hard to get any pictures of them playing, but I did get a couple which I have posted below.
Then Thursday evening we took Dawson swimming for the first time this summer and he LOVED it! A few months ago his Lolly gave him a float to ride around the pool in, and he was so happy to ride around in his float! The water was 84 degrees, so we were comfortable and had fun swimming.
On Friday, we loaded up the car and headed an hour north to Lynnville, Tennessee where we stayed in a friend's uncle's house with some of our friends. The house was on about 40 acres and had an amazing view and a pool. We stayed there Friday night and all day Saturday swimming, playing games outside, getting some sun, and relaxing.
Other than these few things we've just been playing with Dawson, going on walks since Dawson loves to be outside, going to the library, and spending time together as a family.
Enjoy the pictures below...

This face makes me laugh! Dawson is

at the library and trying to pick up a

really heavy book!

Dawson exploring the kids area at the library.

Dawson and I at his first movie in the theater.

Dawson and I at the Monaco Theather for his first movie

John and Dawson outside the Monaco Theather for his first movie.

Now that Dawson can walk well, he likes to carry

things while he walks. In this picture he is carrying

a ball around in his friend Matthew's house.

Dawson and his friend Matthew.

Dawson and his friend Matthew.

Daddy and Dawson in the pool for the first

time this summer. Dawson immediately knew

that he should kick his feet to make a slash!

More pool time.

The beautiful view from the pool at the house in Lynnville.

More of the beautiful view.

More of the view. So pretty!

Some of the golfers in the bunch decided to

hit a few balls while we were there.

Dawson and Daddy outside the pool on Friday evening.

Me and Melanie relaxing on floats in the pool.