Long Lost Family

Sadly this portion of our trip had to come to an end ...

Saying goodbye was aweful. Driving away from Matt's Mom crying broke my heart. Saying good bye to Gramma was really hard too. We love you all!

This trip was so chock full we didn't get any time to see Aunt Kelly and Uncle Don but we did get to at least say goodbye.

Now.....it's been 18 years! EIGHTEEN years since I've seen this side of my family. They all live in Georgia and I haven't had a chance to get back there to say hi. We were only going to be driving through and I was hopeing to hit as many people at once as was possible, I had NO idea so many people would be coming!!! I was SO excited! Cousins I have never met in person, Aunts and Uncles I have never met or whom I haven't seen since my Dad's funeral in 1992. Everyone was so fun to see! Thank you all for who arranged it and for everyone who came! I have so much family I wish I was closer too. Maybe one day? This was the 1st time my sister Amy to meet Aidan and Matt. Only the 2nd of my family to meet him at that point. Now I can say that A LOT of my family has met him..lol Thanks again to MawMaw who offered to let us stay at her house, and cousin Jennifer who offered as well, we decided to drive straight through to Kristy's house that night and didn't tell her in time and I fear we left her hanging (one of my least favorite things to do. Total pet peeve of mine...not telling people when your plans change) Sorry!!

We did get to go to dinner with Maw Maw , my Mom (who is taking the picture....so not in it...boo) and Aunt Debbie . It was so fun ......I'm totaly miss family already!

Predeployment Family BBQ

Matt parents are such sweet hearts. They wanted to make sure that Matt got to see as much family as possible while he was home on leave, so they planned a bbq. Unfortunately not as many people showed up as had RSVP'ed and frankly....that's rude folks.....if ya say you're coming...COME..if you can't come...rsvp accordingly. If you have a family member or a friend who comes home once every 2-4 years.....MAYYYYBBBBEEE you should show up...take 2 hours out of your very busy Saturday and say "Hey man." For those who showed up....thank you. I know how much money and time was spent by my wonderful in laws for this bbq. I especially appreciate it because I know how much money they spent while we were home on this trip, doing things with us, and the day of that bbq it was BLISTERING hot! Who wants to stand next to the grill when it's already that hot out? Grandaddy...... sigh. Thank you guys!

Fortunately two of Matt's really good buddies were able to come. I know how much that meant to him. It was so cool for him to get to see Brandon and Anthony

MeMaw came, Grandaddy's Mom, obviously Aidan was NOT a happy camper. The bbq was held in the court yard of the hotel we were staying at so I was able to take him back to the room and the AC every so often to cool him off.

Stacey & Stephen White and her family came............She's a riot...lol wish I lived closer and could get to know them better.

Grandaddy............grillin in that heat.

All the little ones eating in the heat...can you see them sweating...whooo..they were all dieing to get into the pool.

Me, Aidan, Matt, Memaw, Aunt Donna and Uncle Donald.

My beautiful Mother in Law Lisa, the perfect Hostess. She looks so pretty here.

~ Anthony, Matt and Brandon.

Thanks again Mom and Dad. The food was great, the company better. You guys are great.
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The Fountian of Youth

One of the gems of this Florida trip was going to Ponce De Leon Springs State Park. I fell in love! If we go back to Florida we are defiantly taking a day trip there again!!! SO worth it! I was lured in by the pancakes you made at the tables. They were freaking awesome! Taste-tastic! You order your pancake filler (chocolate chips, fruit and so on) and they bring you two types of batter. Your table has a griddle in the center and you literally cook your own eggs and pancakes at the table it was so fun. What kid wouldn't love making their own pancakes?

Nana, Grandaddy, Matty and cousin Hunter seen here waiting for their food to cook.....cook faster darn you! Matty was in a hurry to eat!Cody and Michael were waiting on their batter....ya...that's a good idea....equip them with weapons when hungry.....genius! jk

Aunt Brittany, Aunt Amber, and Uncle Jordan.

US

Cody flipping his own pancakes.

Yup...I make breakfast for us even when we go out to eat...it's inevitable...Momma can't get away from the kitchen...haha

Now for those of you who are history buffs, this was cool! This is where Ponce De Leon discovered what he thought was "The Fountain of Youth". Do I think these waters were magical? Uh ya! It was hot as (insert explicative here) out and the springs we swam in were FFFFFFFF-REEEZING! OHHHH happy, happy, joy, joy! I neglected to bring a swim suit so Grandaddy lovingly lent me his shorts! Awwww that man is so sweet, he perpetually gives, gives, gives! Love him!

Here Matty and I are standing under what used to be a part of the original sugar mill.

The Fountain of youth. If you want to know more about it, read here.

http://www.floridastateparks.org/poncedeleonsprings/default.cfm

Cody and Matthew looking at the alligator filled lake. Uh, no seriously there were signs all over...."No Swimming, alligators"

Look at that sweet face. Man I hated my freckles as a kid but now I see why my parents called them Angel kisses. Each of my boys so far has some freckels. I love them!

One of the other things we got to do while here was paddle boat...HOLY CRAP what a work out!!! My knee was SCREAMING at me by the hour mark when we returned the boats.

Britt, Me, Amber and Matty on one boat....

Michael, Cody, Matt and Jordan on the other.

We loved our day spent at the springs! I really hope one day to go back..I love being able to teach my kids about history and yet get to do fun activities. So cool! Highly recommend going if you are in the area!

Family Pictures by Jordan Morris Photography

Matt's brother Jordan has started doing photography on the side and while we were visiting family in Orlando he took some family pictures of us and the whole gang. I loved how some of these turned out. I love this shot and wish Matty's face was a little more visible and that Matt's sun glasses were off. It was really cute though.

This is another of my favorites, I just love the color and the kids faces.

I loved Daddy and Aidan's feet with the dog tags.

It was SOOOOO bright out that's why none of the kids could pull off thier "picture" smiles..lol

My gorgeous Mother and Father in law......in-laws used to be a dirty word to me.....I love these people so much!

Amber and I

I love this shot too....it was a moment he caught in between shots and it sure worked.

Another perfect shot......Daddy loving his Son.

~SMOOCH~

Another random shot of Matt and I and Aidan and it was so cute.