Barn Bash

This last weekend, Nate and I went to FBC's Barn Bash and had a blast! Everyone dressed up for the occasion, making it all the more fun!. We enjoyed some great BBQ, line dancing and even bull riding. It really was a finger-lickin', toe stompin' good time!
Me and the girls

The bull has met his match...

My dance partner

Best dressed woman, Bettina and Chaz

Two stepping extraordinaires, Jared & Kristin

Although this is wrong on so many levels, I truly admire Matt's attention to detail...sorry, Angela, I had to share it! :)

On a sweeter note, Livia Jane is now 3 months old. She seems to be growing so fast. She sleeps through the night like a pro, for which I am very thankful! She giggles and coos and follows you everywhere with her eyes. She loves to watch her mobile and has just started sitting in her Bumbo while I cook or do dishes. She has rolled over a few times and discovered her fingers which she nibbles on as a between mealtime snack!
Pig Sooie!

I am still waiting to see if her eyes will stay blue...I am hopeful!

Her face doesn't show it, but I promise she likes it! (the camera in her face is a different story!)

The Justice League...kind of

For Halloween this year, the kids wanted to be superheros, and they turned out to be pretty cute.

Will: Batman...he really bulked up this year-Gotham's criminals were no match for him!

Kate: Supergirl...pretty and pink and faster than a speeding bullet

Eli: Spiderman...watch out Mary Jane, this Peter Parker is a real cutie (and not afraid to lay a wet one on you!)

Liv: Wonder Woman...girl power flying to the rescue


We trick or treated at Ryan and Rachel's house and had lots of fun with all of the Blackwell-Kitchen-Turner kids...never a dull moment!

Star Wars, Pumpkins & Baby Cheeks

The last two weeks have been eventful at the Brown household. First, William Nathan turned six years old last Thursday...SIX! Where has the time gone? It seems like just yesterday, he was my baby, smiling and army crawling across our teeny tiny rent house living room. Now he is the oldest of four, going to school, playing sports and talking like he's fifteen. He is such a sweet boy, sensitive to others feelings and always trying to please. He is a people person, loves making friends and fearless (to his own detriment at times). He is a great big brother which can be seen in how much his siblings adore him, follow him and always want what he has (a common complaint at our house). William has a good heart and can be a strong leader. I can't wait to see how God uses him throughout his life. We celebrated his birthday at the infamous Chuck E. Cheese with our family, most importantly cousins Zach, Taylor and Nykile. He wanted a Star Wars cake and Star Wars presents, which of course he got plenty! I barely saw him the entire night between skee ball, air hockey, car racing and insect shooting--he was all over the place. He had a great time and was thankful to everyone who braved the tornado and torrential downpour to celebrate with him!

All the cousins (minus the babies-Liv, Brady & Reed)

One of the many Star Wars gifts

Cute picture of Pop & Liv at the party

Saturday, my mom and I took the kids to the pumpkin patch at McGarrah Farms in Pea Ridge. It was a little cool, a little far and a little muddy, but tons of fun and the kids loved it! We went on a hayride around the farm (where the kids were introduced to headless, bleeding bodies hanging in trees...great), barrel rides through the fields and got to cut our pumpkins from the patch. The kids enjoyed every minute of it and would have picked a million pumpkins if I had let them. Besides the inappropriate tree decor, it really was a neat place and made for a special family outing.

Liv all dressed and ready to go

The hayride

The barrel train was their favorite...only in Arkansas!

Cruisin' through the patch

Picking pumpkins with Nanny

Will and his carefully chosen pumpkin...not really, I think it was the first one he saw!

Kate admiring our pumpkin picks

Eli checking out the produce

Liv wasn't too thrilled about the pumpkins

My wagon-ful

Last but certainly not least, Liv is now 2 months old! It seems like she's been part of our family forever, yet I am still amazed at how quickly the last two months have passed. She has the chunkiest cheeks which I love to kiss. She is starting to smile and respond like she knows you. I really am loving every minute of her, although i might be willing to give up that 3 am time! Friday, we stayed at the house all day and I took way too many pictures, but I couldn't resist. She was giving me smiles right and left. Here are some pictures of her the last couple of weeks.

A Weekend in Savannah

This last Sunday one of my best friends Natalie Carnahan (or should I say, Natalie Baggs) tied the knot in Savannah, Georgia. Until a couple weeks ago, I was not going to be able to attend, but God provided and opened doors, and I am so thankful that I was there. Liv and I flew out early Saturday morning with another good friend Susan. Our flights were fairly uneventful, and Liv did great! We met up with the Johnsons' who drove down from Charleston to see us and spent the afternoon with them. We intended to go down on River Street, but a monsoon changed our plans to lunch and relaxing in their hotel--still fun. Liv got to play with her best friend Ava and although she was rather exhausted, she enjoyed the girl time. Saturday evening we attended the rehearsal dinner and got to catch up with old friends. Sunday was the big day, and we were all praying for the rain to hold off and it did! It was nothing but blue skies and sunshine. Natalie's wedding was in a little park in midtown. The said their vows under the most beautiful tree-it was a picturesque wedding and just what Natalie had always wanted. The reception was at a trendy little restaurant downtown called Cha Bella's where they had hors d'oeuvres, cake and dancing out on the patio-so fun. I could tell by the joy on Natalie's face that it had been a perfect day. After the wedding (and quite possibly the highlight of my trip) we embarked on a mission to find a Sonic so I could have a DIET DR PEPPER--for some reason, Savannah likes Pepsi products (yuck!), and I hadn't had one in three days(way to long). We had to drive through good ole' Thunderbolt, USA to get one, but it was totally worth it and made for a good time! Liv and I flew back Monday afternoon and were greeted by the rest of the gang at the airport. I was so glad to see them all and needless to say, Nate was thrilled to see me and have some relief from "mommy duty!" Thank you to everyone who made our little trip possible (& helped Nate out back at home)!

This is how we traveled through the airport. My little papoose turned quite a few heads.

Travel Buddies

Relaxing at the hotel


Natalie's rehearsal dinner

Two generations of friends

The ceremony at McCauley Park


The reception at Cha Bella's...they make a cute couple!

Me and Mrs. Baggs...my Natalie's a married woman now!



Happy faces at the Thunderbolt Sonic...praise the Lord, NW Arkansas has plenty! :)


On a different note, Liv is 7 weeks old this week and getting bigger everyday. She has started smiling and grabbing at things (my hair mainly). She still sleeps a lot but she is much more alert and interacts with us when she is awake. She is a sweetheart and so much fun to love!

Silver Dollar City

This last weekend we took the kids (& a couple friends) to Silver Dollar City in honor of Will's upcoming 6th birthday. It is one of their favorite places to go, and we always have a good time. This trip, we took Pop & Nanny, our little friend Addy and cousin Zach. It was Eli's first time at the park, and he was in heaven. He continues to ask when we are going to "silver city" again. Liv stayed behind, but got some quality time with Gramma & PePa, who spoiled her with lots of hugs and kisses! The roller coaster Thunderation was the boys and Kate's top pick. Watching Kate on a roller coaster is one of the cutest things I have ever seen. SHE LOVES THEM! She is all smiles and giggles the whole time--drops, curves, abrupt stops and all! Zach & Will had to be "cool" and keep their hands up the whole time--Will looked a little nervous, but wasn't about to admit it in front of Zach (you gotta love peer pressure)! Eli loved the Shoot Out where he got to shoot the bad boys, and Addy just enjoyed running around and getting wet. They ALL liked getting wet--thank goodness the sun decided to shine in the afternoon! By the time we left that evening, everyone was satisfied and exhausted. The ride home was much quieter than the ride there. Will told us thank you for a great day which of course made it that much better!





Liv is 6 weeks old today. Her Aunt Chi Chi (Rachel) made this cute onesie for her. I'm just thankful my friends and family are creative! Check out Liv's newborn pictures on Rachel's Photography website. Click on "Clients" then type in "livia". She did a great job!

Sweet Baby Girl, 5 weeks old

Liv was five weeks old on Tuesday and is growing so quickly. Her cheeks have filled out and her little thighs are starting to get some meat on them. She has finally graduated from her premie clothes into newborns, so she has a whole new wardrobe! Yeah! She still has that sleepy newborn look and I am trying to savor every minute of it. I look back at the other kids pictures and realize how quickly they change and grow. It saddens me that I remember so little about each of their life stages. I wish I had taken the time to write down all the cute things they did and said, but since I didn't, their pictures are all I have, and I am thankful for them. Liv is the highlight of our family right now, everyone wants a piece of her. Kate gets so upset if I change Liv's position to where she can't see her eyes. "Stop moving her; you never let her see me!" is something I hear constantly. Will has to kiss her every morning before we leave for school and Eli likes to put on "Libi's" socks when they fall off (which happens frequently because her feet are so tiny). I miss her (well, all of them) throughout the day while I am at work and enjoy every evening, although they seem so short. We make the most of the time we have and really appreciate my Fridays off. She only wakes up once at night around 2am and starts her morning everyday with a bottle then some Baby Einstein--I'm not sure she can really see it yet, but she humors me by sitting there quietly! She is a good baby and oh so fun to cuddle. Let me just say that I wish I could bottle up that sweet baby breath to have forever. Nate says I am weird, but it is precious to me and always reminds me of how blessed I am. Here are some cute pictures in her new newborn attire. Hope you enjoy.

Gotta love the tongue...she gets it from her dad.

Headed to dinner with the High's

These pictures are for my garden girl, Kate. For weeks this summer, she begged me to plant some wildflower seeds, but I never had the energy. Right before Liv was born, we finally did it. This last week our sunflowers have shot up and our first flower has bloomed (I know they won't last long because its getting cooler, but she is in heaven!) Kate had to have her picture taken with the flowers that were taller than her.

Little stairsteps...see what happens when you tell them to say "Cheese!"

Kate with our first flower that she decided to pick...notice the outfit; we're still working on matching.

Our first flower (prior to being plucked from the ground)

Last, but not least, we had a family picnic at the park this last weekend with some of our cousins. It was fun to get all the babies together and let the kids play.

All the cousins

Baby Rylynn and Liv

Brady and Liv, always best buds

Our first family picture...terrible of me (I think I was in mid sentence), but its good of everyone else, so I'll put aside my pride and share it. :)

Labor Day Weekend

Our weekend was fairly uneventful. We tried to spend as much time outside as possible. Sunday we went on our first family outing with Liv--a hiking trip to Devil's Den. The kids had a great time hiking around, climbing on rocks, and looking for insects. Liv enjoyed napping in her moby wrap while I led the pack, and Nate spent most of his time keeping the children from falling off boulders and cliffs!Everyone had a lot of fun and was thankful to get out of the house.




Monday, the kids and I spent most of the day on a blanket under the shade of our little maple tree. We ate lunch, napped, read books and played with Liv. Nate missed out on the fun because he had to replace our microwave which decided to punk out on us and anyone with kids knows that a microwave is essential! We ended the day with pizza and a movie. It was a lovely weekend.