7 Months Old

Banks is 7 months old now and is still the sweetest little guy. He is growing up right before our eyes! He is sitting up like a big boy all of the time. He loves to eat and his favorite foods are in order of preference: pears, apples, carrots, butternut squash, bananas, green beans, sweet potatoes, peas and peaches. He is still sleeping fairly well and smiling all of the time. One of the jokes at the family reunion from some people was that Banks cries "once a week" . He does cry more than that, but not much. He is the best baby and we love him so much! He still does not have a tooth and he is not showing any signs of crawling any time soon. My sister says he is "lazy" and she might be right. All we know is that he is precious and growing up way too fast!

It's that time of year again...

The time has come again to have Casey's long and THICK hair shaved. Last year was her first year with a short 'do and she loved it. We are a little late doing it due to trips and vacation, but today, Casey went to the vet for a grooming session.

Casey Before

Long, thick, and Dark (and beautiful) hair

After

She got so excited, she ran out in the yard and started eating grass.....

And doing lots of this....

Oh, this feels so good on my back!!!

Thanks Mom, for getting all of that HOT hair off of me!

Irby Family Reunion

Over the weekend, we headed up to Gatlinburg for the Irby Family Reunion. Bryan's Mom, Maxine Irby Johnston, was the youngest of 5 children. Her brothers, Bill, Frank, and Tom, and her sister, Sara Jean, planned a wonderful and relaxing weekend in the Smoky Mountains. It was a great weekend and so much fun for the family to meet Banks.

On Friday night, we celebrated Stephen's birthday with none other than a Mississippi State cake!

On Saturday morning, most of us got up and went white water rafting. We were part of the "Johnston" raft. I was the most scared, mainly because I could not keep thinking...."I can not get hurt and not be able to take care of Banks!"

Bryan and Me and Ricky and Brooke on the way!

Laura Katherine

Jennifer Lynne and Stephen jumped in when we were finished.

Our Group in ACTION!

The ENTIRE group after the adventure. We were totally drenched and freezing!!!!

Later that night, we took some group shots. This one is all of the Irby Grandchildren.

Next, all of the Irby Great-Grandchildren.

Our Family

Did anyone know that the mountains are FULL of bears? Well, they are! It seemed like every time we got in the car or looked out the window, we saw one of these guys.

We even saw a Mama and her two cubs.

Bryan, calling me to tell me to look out the window.

True to form, I was upstairs primping...but was able to come out on the balcony.

They are ALWAYS looking for human food. They even have these locks around the trash cans so they can not get into them. Doesn't everyone remember that Yogi Bear was always looking for a picnic basket?

Sara Jean and Banks

Jennifer Lynne and Laura Katherine

Sunday night, Bryan and Kevin grilled Grandpa Irby's grilled chicken recipe. It was delicious!

Parker, Stephen, Michael, and Howell

Banks playing with some of his cousins

It was a great weekend and we will look forward to seeing everyone all again in October for Parker and Kayse's wedding.

Happy Father's Day!

I know I am one day late, but we were in the Mountains over the weekend with Bryan's family, leaving little time to blog. With that said, I want to wish Bryan a very Happy Father's Day. Bryan is the best Dad to our little boy and we are so blessed to have him!

Happy Father's Day, Bryan!

I also want to wish my Daddy a very Happy Father's Day. I wish I could be in two places at once, but we are coming to visit next week!

I love you, Daddy!

Happy Father's Day to Weejie too! It was great to be with you over the weekend. We love you!

Happy Birthday Mary Colman!

On Saturday, we went to Mary Colman Smith's 2nd Birthday party. Mary Colman is the precious daughter of our friends, Cali and Colman. Cali had the "bee" theme going on and boy let me tell you....It was ADORABLE! She really did an amazing job with the decorations. She and Leigh Anne should go into the party planning business! Colman grilled burgers and we all had the best time.

Mary Colman enjoying her party.
Mary Colman and "Tesie", Cali's mom



Mary Colman LOVED hearing everyone sing "Happy Birthday" to her. She even joined in and was very loud and I must say, she is a rally good singer!

Banks could not resist the swing, even if it was PINK!

Cody and Bryan
Lauren and Cody, who are expecting a baby in November. Who Hoo!!!!
Erin and Kelly