Georgia Aquarium

Atlanta was our last stop on the way to North Carolina for Wilson's conference.  The boys had a great time at the Georgia Aquarium.  We had been with Andrew when he was about 2 1/2 months old when we were visiting my uncle for Thanksgiving 2006 - see pictures here.

I think he got a little more out of this trip. :)

Forrest was a happy boy during this stop.  He loved looking at the fish, big and small!

There is the cutest play area for kids inside the aquarium.  Wilson and Andrew both went down the big whale slide.   

Andrew came down the slide first and then was looking for Wilson who was right behind.

Wilson and Andrew are petting a sting ray!

This picture was taken at the entrance to the aquarium.  Andrew was in awe of all of the fish!  It really is so fun to watch him experience new things!

After we left the aquarium, we headed to Brevard, NC.  We had lots of fun in the mountains, and I don't know why we didn't take any pictures!  It was a great week with our little family!

A few more...

Here are a few more pictures of our Day out with Thomas (this is really the 2nd part of the post beneath)....

Andrew playing with the trains,  Forrest and I meeting Sir Topham Hatt (Andrew was a little unsure, which I'm sure you can understand :), and didn't want to be in a picture), the boys in front of Thomas, and Forrest playing with  trains.

A Day out with Thomas!

This was our 2nd planned activity on our family trip and was by far our favorite!   "A Day out with Thomas" is a touring Thomas that travels to different cities (with a train station, of course!) and sets up a fun weekend event. We went to Calera, AL, where they have an old railroad station and museum.  There was so much set  up for the kids to do.  We spent 4 hours there and had a blast! That's a really long time, considering the ages of our boys, and they loved every minute.  Our day included a 45 minute ride on Thomas, getting Thomas "tattoos", meeting Sir Topham Hatt, playing in a tent full of Thomas train tables, story and video time in an old railroad car, jumping in a blow-up, a visit to the gift shop, and lunch outside with live music!  There was even more that we  didn't do!  I would highly recommend this event.  We'll definitely be going again!

So excited to be boarding!!

Right before we boarded... Did I mention that it was COLD that day??  Brrrr!  But that sure didn't stop us from having a great time.

Pretending on an old railroad car

Andrew's 1st tattoo... Thomas!!

As we first walked up, Thomas was coming down the track with his whistle blowing and steam rising!  What a perfect way to start our day!  Andrew, along with many other boys and girls, was in complete amazement at seeing one of his favorite characters in real, live action!  In the picture, Andrew is blowing his Thomas whistle.  So fun!

Forrest and I on the train ride.  Do you see Forrest's tattoo?  His is Percy. :)  

(On a side note...  throughout the day, Andrew would ask, "Where is James?  Where is Percy?"  We told him they must have been working on a different railroad... being useful engines, of course!  He loved seeing Thomas but missed seeing all of Thomas' friends.

Forrest is waving bye-bye as we pulled out of the station.  

You can see a man outside waving to the train.

A family picture during the train ride

I just love this one of Andrew on the train.  He was in heaven!

A sweet one of Forrest and Wilson

Family Fun!!

At the end of March, we went on a little trip...  Wilson had a conference in North Carolina, so we decided to leave a couple of days early and have some family fun along the way.  Our first stop was the Birmingham Zoo.   The boys loved it!   Our Jackson Zoo family pass gave us free admission - and it is a great zoo with wonderful exhibits.  We were there in the afternoon and the weather was perfect.  We saw a lot of animals, but the boys' favorites were the lions, giraffes, monkeys, and kangaroos!

Happy Boys!

This picture just makes me laugh for some reason... Andrew is checking out the zoo brochure while Forrest entertains himself with his shoe. :)

Andrew and I were lucky enough to be to able to watch the zookeeper "herd" the kangaroos at dinner time.  They were so cute jumping across the field.

Forrest joined his big brother at the rail to see the lion. 

 He was so proud to stand there with Andrew.  What a big boy he's becoming!

Andrew loves a carousel and had the giraffe picked out as the animal he wanted to ride!

Forrest was happy as he could be in his stroller while we watched Wilson and Andrew on the carousel.

A cute picture of the boys walking down the wisteria-covered trail.

Quick Update...

All is well at the Shirley house.  I realize that I'm almost a month behind in posting pictures!   I downloaded hundreds from my camera yesterday.  Between a family vacation, a new nephew, Forrest's first birthday & party, and Easter, we have some great pictures and I hope to be sharing them very soon!  Hopefully I'll have some time this weekend to blog so check back in to see what we've been up to around our house.  I did take the time to make a new header.  It occurred to me yesterday that I was still looking at snow pictures in the header!!  It was definitely time for a change.  The new pictures in the header are from Forrest's birthday party. 

Happy Birthday, Forrest!

We love you so much!! You will never know the great amount of joy that you have brought into our lives. We thank God for you every day.

Baby at 18 weeks

For you created my inmost being;
you knit me together in my mother's womb.

I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made;
your works are wonderful,
I know that full well.

Psalm 139:13-14

We had our 18 week check-up and sonogram yesterday for Baby #3. Praise God that all looks healthy and well with our newest little one. Baby was quite a mover and was so cute smacking his/her lips the whole time!

We stuck to our original plan and didn't find out if the baby is a boy or girl, so we're excited about the surprise! During the sonogram, it was tempting to just find out (this is what I had done at Forrest 18 week sonogram), but I had said after Forrest was born that if we had a 3rd then I wanted to have another surprise... so we're doing it!

We didn't find out with Andrew, but we did with Forrest. So, we have had both experiences. As strange as it seems to some people to not find out, it really is such a sweet, special moment on your baby's birthday to hear "It's a boy!". And, Wilson loved being able to introduce Andrew and share the news of our son with our families. Of course it's special either way, but the surprise really adds something to the day, and we're looking forward to that again.

The baby is measuring good - 4 days ahead. This makes Wilson think it's a girl. Both of our boys have measured bigger at this sonogram. Andrew measured about 2 weeks ahead! I can't help but think it's another boy - it's just hard to imagine anything different!

So, I'd love to hear any predictions... what do you think Baby #3 is - boy or girl?!?

Good stuff...

Check out this blog - http://girltalk.blogs.com/girltalk/ for some very relevant and encouraging words to moms of young children. This blog is written by 4 Christian women - actually a mother and her 3 daughters. The posts are always good but I felt like the posts starting on March 10th and up thru today were great for my stage in life (and there may be more coming!). It's a quick read that will encourage you in your walk with the Lord and in your marriage. For future reference, I keep a link to their blog on my sidebar. Be encouraged and enjoy!

They make me smile!

Our days are quite busy and oftentimes crazy, but these 2 fellas sure make me smile. I love being able to catch these cute, sweet moments on camera so I'll always remember these times.

At naptime today, Andrew brought a blanket and pillow to Forrest's room and told me he wanted to nap there with him. Then he set up a spot for Forrest. :) It was very sweet... I think they'll be good roomies when Baby #3 comes along.

Well, I have to say I think this boy is pretty smart - it amazes me how he picks up on things. Today we were in the kitchen, when I heard a clacking noise at the door. This is how I found him, standing up and reaching his highest to the door knob with the keys! My mom saw him do this a couple of weeks ago, but now I've witnessed it too.

Dr. Andrew??

Wilson was the engineer behind this rig (and he was right beside them on the sidewalk too). Andrew has finally mastered driving the tractor - woo hoo! He loved taking Forrest for a ride. Although Forrest may have loved it more!

He's a climber - and fearless. Forrest was pretty proud of himself for doing this and came back to the spot several times before we finally moved the chair!

My Handyman and his helper

One thing I love about my husband is that he is a great "handyman". He can build just about anything, fix just about anything ("Dada fix it" is one of Andrew's most common phrases), and to top it off, he enjoys a project! After Christmas, Wilson decided to build a deck in the backyard. He and Andrew worked hard and finished it in a few days. They had a great time working - as you can see. I love these boys!

Buddies

I love seeing the boys play together. They are great buddies! Wilson and I often wonder what they would do without having the other to play with. :) Here are a few recent pictures of them having a good time together...

And Baby makes five!

Here is the first little picture of Baby Shirley #3, due in August! This picture was taken at 8 weeks. I'm 12 weeks now, and we are just now sharing the news with everyone.

God certainly surprised us with this precious one, but we completely trust in His timing and His perfect plan for our family. I will honestly say that it's a bit (okay, a lot!) overwhelming to think of having 3 under the age of 3, but we also know that God will give us the grace to make it thru the busy, busy days ahead. In fact, this has been my easiest 1st trimester out of all 3 pregnancies. To me, this is just the Lord demonstrating how He does and will provide for all our needs.

We look at Andrew and Forrest now and how much joy they have brought into our lives.... how could we not be thrilled at this new life and addition to our family! We feel extremely blessed.

So, I'm sure you are wondering about the ages... Andrew will turn 3 on September 11th, Forrest will be 1 on April 8th. They are 19 months apart. The baby is due August 26th and will be 17 months younger than Forrest. Wilson and I have always agreed that we'd both like to have at least 3 children. Even though this is a little closer than what we had planned, we are still very excited!

We'd love your prayers for this new little one.

Happy Valentine's Day!!

What sweet, sweet valentines I have!

Precious boys!

May May came over to bring a valentine happy. The boys loved them!

Andrew was so cute about Valentines Day. He loved making valentines for his friends and teachers to take to school for his Valentine Party on Thursday. When I picked him up after the party, he ran to me saying "Valentines, Momma!" He is still toting around his bag with the valentines and candy! The picture above is him spreading out his goodies after lunch Thursday.

He came and gave me a kiss in the bed this morning saying "Momma, Valentine's Day!" He and Wilson brought me beautiful tulips and he was so proud. My boys, little and big, have a special place in my heart! :)
Wilson did good this year, too... he made us reservations for dinner about 2 weeks ago and even lined up the babysitter! A very sweet hubby! :)
I love my boys!!

10 months!

Our baby boy is 10 months old! What a blessing to see how he is growing and developing! I'm amazed at God's workmanship in his design of our little ones and how they grow. It's truly a testimony of an almighty Creator who knows and cares for details and a Heavenly Father who loves his children.

Forrest is standing for longer periods of time by himself, cruising more, and taking steps while holding onto our hands. He's loving big food and really starting to make it clear to us that he's not such a fan of baby food anymore! He wants the real stuff! Of course, I'm a little paranoid with food allergies (mainly due to my husband's allergic tendencies - sorry about that honey), and I'm very careful about the foods I offer him. It's a little tricky finding things that I feel OK with giving him and things that meet his standards. :) Any good ideas from anyone about finger foods? I feel like I've already forgotten this from when Andrew was this age.

Forrest is waving bye-bye and is holding his own bottle. He has a new-found love for books and will sit and flip through them repeatedly. He's also begun pushing Andrew's cars and trains around - too cute! His big brother still gets his constant attention, but he'll share a hug and quick cuddle with anyone (that is before he's off to the races again.)! He's a busy boy!

One of the most fun new developments in the past couple of weeks is hearing Forrest say a few words. He says "cracker", "bottle" and "Daisy" (the dog), and he names these things when he sees them. He also says "bye-bye" when he waves. He has said "Da-da" for awhile, but Wilson and I both agree that cracker is really his first word. It's the cutest thing to hear him ask for a cracker! I guess watching and listening to Andrew has just made him learn things a lot quicker.

He's still the sweetest thing and such a joy!

Looking like a big boy in his overalls... Loving his wagon ride!

A beautiful day... a fun time swinging!

This precious boy brings a smile to my face!