Hello Katie!

About 2 weeks ago, Samantha & I were able to visit my brother & his family; including his new little girl Katelyn. While we were there we also had the chance to visit with my grandmother & Uncle Rob; Aunt Jan & her daughter Charity; Uncle Joel, Aunt Sydney & their daughter Ashley. So this post will be a barrage of photos!

We flew in- Samantha loved pulling her suitcase! It has Winnie the Pooh & Tigger on it- she is a big fan!

My brother, Bobby, with his princess.

Hello Katie!

While there we took some pics in the pretty bluebonnets!
My brother & his family.


Zach wanted to take mommy & daddy's picture!

Sisterly love.

A photo of Nana with her grandkids- they weren't too keen on the idea!

A morning of fun- a walk & some play time.


Zach challenged Nana to a race & Samantha decided to join in.

Merry-go-round fun.


Crawfish festival.


What a cutie pie! Oh & she loved her first funnel cake!

Uncle Bobby showed her how to rub our entrance stamps (on our hands) against her hand & that way she could get a stamp too.

A photo of most of us- Katie helped Tosha take the photo!

Oh & we caught the talk on gators vs crocs!

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Lastly- here is a photo of Samantha from this morning before church. This is a dress that I wore at her age. Although when I asked Samantha to look at the camera she came running to see the photo in the view finder herself! We'll work on the pose thing!

Spring has sprung!!

The first signs of spring around here!

Happy BIRTH day!

Congratulations to my brother Bobby & his wife Tosha- they had their little girl, Katelyn Faye Colwell. Also congrats to big sister Madison & big brother Zach!

He is Risen!!!

Happy Easter to all- belated that is! We had a great Easter at the Maynard household. We started with church- there was no childcare for the early service so we joined a few other families in the cry room, where the kids played and laughed & the parents munched on the doughnuts & coffee that was provided.
I often wonder how futile it is going to the cry room as we only end up catching a point here or there. After service, Lance & I compared notes & ends up we both caught the same point- guess we needed to hear it!
We returned home to Easter baskets...

Then half of the Thomas clan came by for a late lunch/early dinner. We flew kites...

Samantha & grandma


Lance & grandma




We had an Easter egg hunt...




Played with sidewalk chalk...

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This photo is for Uncle Chris- the shirt you gave Samantha last Christmas finally fits!!

Samantha checking out her Hollywood look in the trash can reflection.

I love my slide!

Or "side" as Samantha calls it. She is gathering more & more words by the day but refuses to pronounce more than one syllable! She loves to be chased & is finally allowing me to pull her hair out of her face. Although when she gets mad at me the first thing she does is pull her hair band/bow/hat off & throw it down! Samantha has mastered the temper tantrum- but has also mastered hugs & kisses. How can someone so cute be so frustrating?! Here are some pics of her on her slide during the warmer weather last week.

I told Sami that she needed boots before she could go outside, so she found some!




Samantha "posing" with her daddy. Just before & after the photo she was laughing & smiles.

I believe this is the reason Lance likes our home! This girl is one of many who trek through our yard daily.

Lastly, a recent belly shot- please excuse the dirty mirror- I was cleaning the bathroom & also excuse Sami without pants- she likes to try out the big girl potty sometimes.

Ironing & Painting my floors!

To start with here is a 4 month belly shot.

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But as for the title; we have been slowly attacking our fix-it list for the house. One of which was putting a floor in the kid's bathroom & getting rid of the pink formica counter top! There was vinyl underneath the flooring & we were having a difficult time getting it up so my ingenious husband googled it for me & we got the tip of steam ironing the floor- it really works! So I spent Valentine's Day ironing the floor. Then we had to paint a water sealant on it. Gee, I'm learning a lot! But I know it'll be worth getting rid of the pink counter tops!!!

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To leave you I found some photos from Samantha's first birthday- we blew up a bunch of balloons & she had a blast playing with them.