Daddy's Girls

I went to the lake today for a lesson in jelly making from Cap'n. (And to pick up the girls because Yaya kept them last night-thank you!! Especially considering today was their 38th!!! Anniversary) Now I have to admit that I cheated and really shouldn't even be able to take credit because Cap'n had done the hard part before I even got there.  He picked and washed the Mayhaws and made the juice several weeks ago so all we had to do was the actual jelly making.  It started with boiling 8 cups of juice and then we added 2 boxes of pectin Once that boiled for 3 minutes, I added 10 cups of sugar and let that boil one more minute From there Cap'n poured them in to the jars and we took them outside to can them in a water bath After 10 minutes of processing, we were done!  (Well this is 2 batches so we really did that process twice)  And we ended up with 20 jars of deliciousness that I'm super excited about! I've wanted to learn how to do this for years and in the next

I'm going to steal Honey's words from Facebook because I found it so perfect: "From the moment Duane Craig and I first got serious I made it clear that I would always love Ed and I also knew he would always love his late wife Kathy.  I believed my heart was big enough and vast enough to love again in a new and different way.  You see, new love does not replace what was lost.  New love is its own force and holds a unique and wonderful place in a heart that loves more deeply because lessons learned.  A heart that understands the brevity of life and the importance of living in the moment.   He looked me in the eyes and said "Will you marry me?" I said "Yes!!!!"  We are thrilled over the engagement announcement and it makes my heart so happy that my Dad has found someone that makes him happy again.  It's what we've all been hoping for and I know for sure it's what my Mom wants.  I'm reminded of a friend asking me when Katie was born how it&#

I'm a day late but I wanted to be sure to wish all the Dad's a Happy Fathers Day! Especially Matt who is the best Dad I could have ever hoped for to our girls.  He's our "fixer", teacher, healer, bug killer, griller.... and my best friend.  We love you more than you know.   And of course I can't forget our own Dads, Cap'n and Pops.  They've been there for us our whole lives and supported us in everything we do. Love you! Happy Father's Day! 

We had Vacation Bible School at First Methodist this week. The theme was Everest, Conquering Challenges with God's Mighty Power. The kids learned a different Bible point each day. That God has the power to: provide, comfort, heal, forgive and love us forever.  It was Lilli's first year to go to VBS at this church (we were out of town last year) and my first time to volunteer. I was one of 3 crew leaders in our group ( the others were ages 12 and 13) with about 20 kids we were in charge of.  It was a lot of fun and very well planned but we are exhausted! We were there 8-12 everyday for a day of songs, crafts, games and stories. "Other" Lily joined us too and the girls had a lot of fun bring together. I loved being able to watch them and join the fun! 

For the last week or so we have been watching the forecast for the Red River rising.  The National Weather Service has raised the cresting level forecast 4 times in the last week but it's supposed to reach the highest level sometime tomorrow at around 37 feet.  It's the highest it's been in 70 years so we took the girls downtown today to go see it.  This was around 4:00 and one lane between Benton and Hwy. 1 was closed.  It's completely closed now.   This is the Riverview a Theatre where she had her recitals a couple of years.   And this is the railroad track right in front of Sciport.  It was really crazy to see! I'm sure Lilli didn't get it but she may remember it when she gets older.   But the best part of the night was Jackson coming home! Theresa is going to a conference at Centenary until Wednesday so she brought him back from Baton Rouge where he'd been staying with Lizard while we were on both trips. He's mad at me but I'm happy he's home

We've been thoroughly enjoying our time at LionsGate Lodge this week.  We've spent a lot of time on the huge patio  One of my favorite things we have done is sit around this table for dinner every night while we each talk about our favorite part of the day.  The girls have spent almost as much time fishing off the dock  As they have in the pool  There's also a little beach where they love building sand castles  The "big girls" have enjoyed a walk through the hills each morning But I think the boys like the bar :)  And everyone loves the boat rides.  All of the kids have had a chance to drive!  But the best part is being together to enjoy it all.  

Yesterday morning all of the guys were up before the crack of dawn to meet their fishing guide to fish for stripers on Lake Oachita. If they were sitting at their fishing camp they would say they caught a limit of 22 lb stripers. But In reality they caught 3- 5+ lb fish. Pops was sure to tell us about the FOUR that got away! Matt and Ryan never got a bite but everyone had a great time.  The afternoon was low key spent by the pool before we all piled in to the boat for a ride to Fishernan's Wharf for dinner. It was an evening of great food, plenty of drinks, and lots of laughter. 

We got back from the beach on Thursday with just enough time to repack and get ready for our next vacation with the Craig side of the family.  We left Saturday morning for Hot Springs and arrived early in the afternoon at the house that will be our oasis this week.  All of the bedrooms and the kitchen are gorgeous but we aren't even interested in those because we will be spending all of our time outside with this view.  The kids have spent most of their time swimming While we sit on the amazing patio and watch them The adults have mostly enjoyed the hot tub (no kids allowed!) because the water is still a little chilly.  It should warm up in the next few days  The dock is also very nice with chairs and tables where we've done a little fishing and Michaelyn and Rick also brought their kayack and paddle board.  The boys are fishing now and we're looking forward to our dinner tonight and relaxing here the next 5 days.