Cheer Competition #6...

This past weekend we headed to New Orleans for Cheer Competition #6...this one was a two day competition so they performed Saturday and Sunday.  In my opinion, the girls had the best routine they could have had but still came in 6th out of 6.  We were a bit out of our league and were up against some unbelievable talent.  But...it was fun to get the experience of competing in a big competition.

6:15 AM on Day 1...we had to meet at 6:45 AM Saturday and Sunday.  Thankfully this little girl did awesome and did not give me one second of trouble getting ready at 5:30 AM.  

Rather she realizes it or not, she has the BEST cheer dad!  The day will come where we have to divide and conquer...but for now, we are thankful we can both be there to watch her cheer.  And Cooper...well, he is perfectly happy at Nanna's!

Love these three girls...Anna Lauren, Sydney, and Ava...

And love these moms...couldn't be a cheer mom without Terann and Katherine!

More cheer moms...

And here we go with day 1 of competition...I actually didn't take a hundred pictures this day...put my camera down and watched rather than watching through my camera.

After they competed, we had lunch and then headed to catch a couple Mardi Gras parades...

Waiting on the first parade to start...

It was actually a little cooler than we thought so the girls took turns wearing Matt's pullover...

Throw me some beads!

Anna Lauren was getting tired so we left the parade and went to Morning Call for an afternoon snack...cannot beat a beignet and a coke in a glass bottle!

So yum!  After our snack, we went back to Tim and Beth's house (thankfully they let us stay once again) and then headed to dinner with Beth's family.  We went to a local seafood place and had the BEST crawfish.  It was a fun time a good break from the cheer craziness!

6:30 AM on day 2...

And this is what you do while waiting when it is 6:30 AM in the morning...but honestly, the girls were so much better than I ever imagined this early in the morning.

For birthdays, they make a tunnel for the birthday girl...she has to crawl through and each girl gives her a pat/birthday spanking...Sunday they celebrated Brelye's birthday.

Happy Birthday Brelye...

Day 2 of competition...

This picture makes all the time and money worth it...she is doing something she LOVES!

If you cannot tell, she is out of breath...she is all over that stage...she is breathing so hard when she finishes.

Just hanging out waiting on awards...

And thankfully this is her attitude...no matter what place they get!  I know this will change as she gets older so for now, I'm enjoying that "it's fun" attitude!  We have a little break now...next and last competition isn't until April.  

Ms. Currie's Surprise Baby Shower...

Shortly after school started, we were thrilled to hear Ms. Currie was going to have a baby!  You see, Ms. Currie is very special...this is her second year with Anna Lauren and Anna Lauren ADORES her! With that being said, it didn't take Anna Lauren and I but a minute to decide we had to host her a baby shower.  Then it became even more fun when we decided to have a SURPRISE baby shower!  

The door did not even cross my mind so I was so glad Ms. Burkhalter had this done for the door.  

Ms. Burkhalter suggested we just have a "light" snack and play games...she thought the kids would really enjoy the games, which they did.

We just had cupcakes, animal crackers, and capri suns...

We took up money so Ms. Currie got a nice gift card to Babies R Us and then a few people brought presents.

While Ms. Currie was on the playground for recess we got the room ready...on her way back inside, a teacher stopped her so the kids could get to the room and in their seats.  In she walked and they all yelled SURPRISE...they LOVED it!

When 25 six and seven year olds know there is a party, there is of course some chit chat.  Don't think she knew what was going on, but I think she had an idea something was up.  However, she was such a good sport and played along great.

It was so fun to watch the kids...they were so excited about everything...from presents to the games.

Cooper's backpack like this is one of my favorites, so I thought Tate needed one too!

They played guessing the baby food game and then cutting a string long enough to go around her belly.  They really, really liked this one.  And again, she was such a good sport!

I'm telling you...these kids are just funny!  She would get so tickled at them...

Such a sweet little group of kids...hard to believe they are almost done with 1st grade!

And you don't get them to take a normal picture without promising to take a crazy picture...

Valentine's Day...

Our Valentine's Day...

Table is set for breakfast...

Couldn't find the kind of cinnamon rolls I wanted so I had to make these work...not my favorite hearts.

Anna Lauren was so proud of the big card they got me and the present she wrapped all by herself.

My boys...Cooper is in the "cheese" phase...have to catch him off guard to get his sweet smile.

My card and chocolate from Matt and the kids...

LOVED the inside of my card...

This is a big deal and it for sure made me smile...Anna Lauren does not say nice stuff like this EVER!

Our cruise is fast approaching...so...Cooper got a new swimsuit and flip flops.  Yes, he will be the cutest little boy on the ship!  Anna Lauren got a gift certificate to go shopping for her own swimsuit...that is more fun to her!

Matt rolled his eyes when he opened his present, and Anna Lauren and I got our feelings hurt because we were excited about his "organizer".  He thought I was trying to "organize" his life...but really, he handles all our travel stuff...from planning, to paperwork, to directions, etc.  So...I found him this cool folder with 8 pockets so he can organize all our cruise stuff rather than carrying 10 manilla folders (what he normally does).  He then decided he liked his present.

Our candy bowl is full and treats from school have not even made it to the bowl...oh my!  And check out these super cute monkeys Nanna sent...I loved them!

Cooper showing off his love bug shirt his teacher made for everyone in his class.

Anna Lauren's treats from school...

Cooper's treats from school...

Matt and I were so excited about our family date night...on the way, the kids got quite...yep...sound asleep!  We were like...really?

Love the rare moments we catch them loving each other!

So...here we are...family date night at Waffle House, one of our favorites!  You could make reservations for this fine dining experience, which came complete with pink waffles!

So excited her waffle was pink!

This child...so full of life!  Love her to pieces, but I will never say she is not difficult...she challenges us every single day!

So so thankful for the "loves" God has blessed me with...and on Valentine's Day and every other day, I'm glad they are mine!

Of course Anna Lauren wouldn't cooperate...she called herself being funny when she messed up every single picture.  But...I love Cooper's sweet smile!

Fun Valentine's Day...and now we are on to our next thing.  Hosting a baby shower this week and back on the road to cheer some more! Let's just say we are in a SUPER busy season of life right now...I'll be ok when things SLOW down!