happy father's day!

caroline and emma

john is a little excited

so is caroline

me and my girl

emma and staci

john and chris...notice the clouds above john's head :(

the daddies and their daughters

too sweet

chris and his mini-me

this girl could go to the beach every day

loggerhead turtles

the lights of our lives

susanna's new smile when she sees the camera...love it!!

the most awesome daddy in the world and his girls

we had such a wonderful father's day!! our friends, the mclains, graciously let us come out on their boat today with them and you all know that nothing much can make john happier than a boat and some water. unfortunately, the weather wasn't cooperating so we ended up heading back to land and going out to folly beach. we all agreed that we're blessed to call a trip to the beach "plan b" :) one of the many reasons we love charleston!! we left our babies at home with sitters and took the big girls with us. it was so relaxing and fun!!

this is what i wrote in john's card today....
john,
you are the most amazing man i know! one of the things i love and cherish is the kind of father you are to our girls. there is no better one in all the world. your love and devotion to them blows me away. you pour yourself into their lives without holding anything back. they are going to be amazing women one day because of you. thank you for all the time and energy you use to be their daddy. i am well aware of the sacrifice it can be and most dads don't do it. however, you are not most dads. you are the best daddy in the world. i love you more deeply seeing you parent caroline and susanna. you are simply the best!!
i love you,
lauren

happy father's day to my dad and john's dad, too! john and i could not be been more blessed to have you as our fathers (and papa and grandad to our girls). we admire and respect you both more than you will ever know and thank you for being such wonderful earthly examples of the love our Heavenly Father has for us...we would not be who we are today without your example and love. we love you both and wish we could have celebrated with you today!!!

go get a Frosty!!

participating Wendy’s stores will be donating 50¢ of every Frosty product sold June 14th & 15th to the Dave Thomas Foundation for Adoption. The funds are being used to help the foundation find permanent, loving families for children in foster care, "so they can find rockin' Dads" as Wendy's celebrates Father's Day in a unique way....

this is a no brainer...it's hot and everyone loves a frosty from Wendy's. the icing on the cake is helping foster kids find permanent homes. could there be anything better than that??

go to this link to find out more and see the cool, rockin' frosty :)

**i found this out through a blog i've been following about steven curtis chapman and his family...please continue to pray for them as they struggle to deal with life without maria.

1st Father/Daughter Campout

setting up the tent!

as you can imagine, caroline was very helpful.

excitement was in the air!

who is the luckiest daddy in the world?

mommy did not want to leave :(

it won't be long before i have them both camping

caroline met a precious friend, Hope

caroline and hope

daddy was a whooped puppy the next day

I had been wanting to camp with Caroline for a long time and finally the time was right. We decided to start out simple and headed out for the James Island County Park after work on Friday night. Mommy and the girls met me at the park and we got to work setting up camp. It just happened to be Memorial Day Weekend and the park was packed. There were at least two boy scout troops camping in the "wilderness camping" section with us. While setting up camp, we met a wonderful family with a precious daughter named Hope. She and Caroline played most of the evening. After we set up the tent, mommy and Susanna had to leave, although I know Lauren wishes she could have stayed. Caroline and I went to bed around 9pm and I think she fell asleep shortly after midnight. The three hours spent together in that tiny tent talking about princesses and all the noises outside were three of the most wonderful hours I have spent on this earth. Like clockwork, Caroline woke up around 7am and we cooked breakfast. The rest of the morning was spent playing with the dogs in the park and swimming at the water park. I am so excited to share many more outdoor adventures with my precious daughters and my beautiful wife. Our next outing will involve the entire family.

-John

caroline's last day of 3K Preschool

last day of 3k - may 21, 2008

she was not happy about taking the pics

lilly and caroline

slip and slide :)

LOVE the "cheeks" poking out...wish mine looked like that :)

mckenna, caroline and lilly

eating pizza and chatting with mrs. perle

loving life AND ice cream

last pic with mrs. perle

swingin' with logan

caroline, logan, rohan and lilly

she's had enough!

caroline's last day of preschool was wed, may 21. i cannot believe this year is already over!! they had a fun play day full of water...sprinklers, slip n' slide and a jumpy house. they also played with sidewalk chalk and bubbles and topped it off with pizza and ice cream. how could you ask for more??? caroline has had an awesome time with all her little friends and loved her teacher mrs. perle. she would have gone to school every day if she could. her best little buddy has been lilly...they get along so well and love playing together. she also has had several little male admirers in her class. namely, logan and rohan. both their moms told me how much their little guys are going to miss caroline. i overheard rohan saying he was going to marry her :) mrs. perle told me to get ready b/c this was my future! lord help me.

susanna's dedication

happy girl!!

a few words from pastor paul

thank you pastor paul!

all the cousins

the grandparents

all the fortneys

all the coles, fortneys and shaws

lunch at our house

andrew chowing down...this boy loves to eat!!

god bless susanna

they would yell "1, 2, 3...go team!!" over and over

how many can you fit in??

we had susanna dedicated the day after caroline's recital on sunday, april 27 and it was so special. we have been blessed beyond belief with our girls and we desire to raise them in a way that pleases and honors the Lord. we love our pastor and he did such a great job with suanna and she was a sweetie. she just grinned and tried to hold his hand the whole time. thank you, Lord, for our precious girls, our amazing extended family and our wonderful church family. after church, everyone came over to our house for lunch and to play. all the kids had a blast and played until they couldn't play any more! a huge thank you to our families for making the trip here to celebrate with us. we love you all so much!!