Sittin' Pretty

R is getting so big, and becoming such a fun little person! We have an old wooden rocking chair that we have had through all 3 kids now. The girls would sit and rock, but until now little R just wanted to push it around his room or stand up in it backwards!! Just in the last week or so he has started sitting in it and rocking. He almost always sits with his little feet crossed, and it's no different in the rocking chair! As you can see, he is quite proud of the big boy he is becoming!

First Day of School...

T & A ready for their first day of school!

A took Daddy with her...she made sure her "Daddy button" was on her backpack!

T with her new haircut and no braces for the first day of school!

The girls started school again on Monday. They were both a little nervous because they were starting at a new school (AGAIN!), but they have both made friends already and have had a pretty good week. They will get to go the full school year at this school, so that is always an added bonus!! They are even riding the bus to and from school if you can believe that!! We live "in the country" as the girls call it, and traffic was CRAZY at the schools, so after 2 days of baby R and I being in the vehicle for an hour in the morning and afternoon, we decided that was enough! Hopefully this will be a memorable year full of fond memories for them!

Deja Vu

This is A at 9 months old...

And this is R at 10 months old...

Funny how our lives seem to go in circles! This is A just a little younger than little R is right now. We lived in Maryland, and our house had a stairway that you couldn't put a gate on, and she practically lived on that stairway, trying to sneak up them while I wasn't watching. Fast forward 6 years, and here we are living in a house with a stairway that won't accomodate a gate until after the 2nd step...and look what little R spends his time doing!! Great minds think alike!

Teeth, teeth, and more teeth!

This is T before braces...

And this is T after braces!

A with her "snaggle" teeth...she hates the look!

This is what I usually get when I try to catch a picture of R's teeth...

But this time I got them!! Isn't he adorable? You can't help but smile when you see his face light up like this!!

There has been a lot going on in the Willis household involving teeth lately! T got her braces off after 12 months of having them! She was so glad to get them off, but now she is wearing retainers 24/7 for a few months. Her teeth look SO much better though, even if only for a short time until more grown-up teeth make their big 'ol way into her mouth! A has lost two teeth recently, so she is officially a "snaggle", which she hates! Her two top teeth are loose, but she is not anxious for them to come out so she is babying them as much as possible. And finally, just before he was 10 months old baby R's first tooth made a long awaited appearance! Tooth number 2 came very quickly after, and that is where it has stopped! He is almost a year old and has only 2 teeth. They are quite cute though and we are pretty certain that several more are on their way in the near future.

Brandie's Wedding

Brandie's Wedding

Whilte R was home on leave his little sister got married in Oklahoma. He was SO excited that he got to be there for it! T and A were both in the wedding, so they got all dressed up and they both looked beautiful! The whole family was there, and we all had such a good time together...it was such a happy occasion! The girls danced the night away at the reception!! It was too cute...I don't think they sat down through a single song!! Baby R held on as long as he could, but he finally crashed on us around 11:00 p.m. It was great to have everyone together...that hasn't happened in years! We had a great time, and we are just so grateful that R's leave worked out just right so that he could be there for it.

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A visit from family

R took full advantage of having his brother around to help him put together the trampoline!

The kids had a good time together...they played together very well!

R was crazy about Uncle Toby from the first time they met...and nothing has changed!

The Willis Family...aren't they cute?

While R was home on leave we had a great visit from his brother Toby and his family. We haven't seen them much in recent years because they have been travelling with Toby's job, and you all know we travel with R's job!! They came for an overnight visit and we had a great time! Their boys played great with the girls and it was great to see them! We have only seen Tyler one time before this, and that was when he was 3 months old!! We were so glad they were able to visit, and we can't wait to see them again!!

New Member of the Willis Family

This is R trying to look cool in his new truck, but what he was really feeling was pure joy!

"Sierra" parked in the driveway at our new home.

And now she's officially part of the family...a car seat in the back, and a Sonic drink in the cupholder up front!

If you have followed our blog very closely at all you have realized that our vehicles (especially R's) become members of our family. I believe we chronicled the passing on of "Ruby" (R's tiny little car that he drove for over 6 years!) and the acquiring of "Opal" (R's "new" car which was very practical, yet still a big step up from Ruby!). Well, any of you who know R very well know that he has wanted a truck pretty much forever. It hasn't helped that two of his brothers and his dad have acquired trucks in the last few years, and he was still without one. So....we have been on the lookout for a good deal on a good truck for a little while now, and while R was home on leave he became the proud owner of "Sierra"...a beautiful, black truck that he is madly in love with!!! Of course it now sits in our driveway, lonely without him, most of the time. The girls and I drive it on days when we are really missing R because we can feel his presence all over that truck!

More Branson Fun!!

Not many things make R look small, but this HUGE rocking chair at Celebration City did the trick!

No explanation for this one...

T convinced R to go on all the roller coasters with her...she has NO FEAR where rides are concerned!

Hot Tubbin' at Splash Country

Hangin' out in the kiddy pool with little R...he says "HI MOMMY!"

R and I went to Branson on our honeymoon, and I have gone a couple of times with the kids and my parents, but we have never been to Branson as a family. That was one thing the girls wanted to do while R was home on leave...show Daddy all their favorite spots in Branson!! We went to Splash Country and to Celebration City, and then finished off our trip with some Putt Putt Golf and a short visit to the Outlet Mall. The girls loved having Daddy with them (he's the fun parent!) and he enjoyed seeing how much fun they have when they are there. As an added bonus, we found out that R's brother and his family were in Branson at the same time, and we got to meet up with them for dinner one night. It was great!!

A visit from Daddy!!!!

The kids and Daddy when we picked him up at the airport.

We began his welcome home with a trip to the local Mexican restaurant!

Daddy won little R's heart by letting him drive...he LOVES to drive anything with a steering wheel!! (No young children were harmed in the making of this picture...the car was in park and not even running!)

R got to come home for 2 weeks in July, and we were thrilled to have him home! The girls were SOOO excited! We weren't sure what little R was feeling, but it sure didn't take him long to warm up to Daddy! We had a full 2 weeks planned while he was here, and I will add posts of our various activities later. But for now these are from the day he got home...