First Annual Sturgis Family Reunion

Ben's mom and aunts planned a wonderful family reunion on Lake Ouachita, Arkansas.  The weather did not cooperate with us the whole time, but the weekend was all about family!  

JP, Pauline, Marie, Joe, Cora, Jerry Sturgis

Aaron Wagner

The cousins:  Pam, Cathy, Johnny Sue, June, Johnny Sue

JP and Marie

Ashley and Ashlee

Mylah Jo and John Roess

Tyler, John, and Reece

Melanie and Adley

Pauline and Willis

Kelley and Andy

Mylah, Daniel, and Robert in an intense Jenga game

I loved Mylah!

Robert and Eli (he's in there somewhere)

Me and John tubing!

A good time was had by all, and we hope to get together every year!  

Clark Family Reunion 2013

My dad's mother was Carolyn Clark, and we had a reunion with her remaining sister, Betty.  Betty lives on Lake Amon G. Carter in Bowie, Tx, and it was the perfect setting for a reunion!

Great view!

Playing catch

Enjoying the cowboy campfire breakfast:
Betty, Linda, and Angela

Jake

Dax and Petey

Uncle Steve and Daxtin

Sweet girls feeding Eli

Dad with his Aunt Betty and grandson, Eli

Melissa and Daxtin

Hood Brothers:  Willie, Bruce and Steve

We wish we could have stayed longer, but God willing, there's always next year!  Hopefully more cousins can join us!

First Mother's Day

I had a great first Mother's Day!  I had to work Saturday and Sunday night, but Ben made a delicious breakfast for Mammaw and me!  Bacon, eggs and chocolate chip pancakes, YUM!

Mammaw decided to come down for an impromptu visit as soon as she saw the video of Eli waving!  He is changing too fast, but getting so fun!

Thompson Cousins

My cousin Lana came for a visit with her twin boys, Neal and Mace.  They are 11 months old and lots of fun for Eli!  It was...interesting to say the least!  Luckily, Lana is a pro at this Mom thing and we had a great time!

Eli was a bit in shock when the rascals first arrived!

Mace had fun pushing Eli around!

They played really well together

Eli, Neal and Mace (Lto R)

Feeding time was interesting!

Being around the older boys really pushed Eli into some big-boy activities!  They clap for themselves, and after they left Eli has been experimenting with putting his hands together...no clap yet, but it's close!

We spent a lot of time outside enjoying the cool weather!

We had a great time and hope they can come visit again before Lana and Steve and Knox, Neal and Mace move to North Carolina for Steve's next assignment.  We are very proud and thankful of our Marines and their families!

BP MS150

Ben rode the BP MS 150 for the 2nd year in a row!  He really loves the ride, the camaraderie, and the small part he is doing to help find a cure for MS.  I see the tolls of MS frequently in the hospital, but Ben really gets to meet the people afflicted with MS that he is helping during the ride and on the overnight in LaGrange. They are all so appreciative and it really helps you to be thankful for a strong, healthy body.  We are all so thankful for the donations this year.

Last year Eli was in my belly when we met at the finish line, but this year he was able to get in on the fun!  He always lights up when he sees Daddy!

Chilling out waiting for Daddy!

Some of Ben's teammates from Team Hott Wheels

Eli also got to try some German fare:  sauerkraut, bratwurst and wiener schnitzel!  He liked the pickle best!

One proud rider!

Eli and Mommy got a quick overnight visit with Mammaw and Pappaw.  Pappaw enjoyed relaxing for a minute with Eli in between feeding the cows and the catfish with him!

Making a pie with Mammaw!

v  

The Yorks graciously hosted us on Friday night and Eli finally found a dog, Smokey, that tolerated him!

We had a nice, quick visit from Grandma & Grandpa to do some legwork for their home building and to see Eli.  We had a lovely dinner Tuesday night and lunch out on Wednesday.  Grandma babysat while I got a little extra sleep before working tonight.  Always appreciated!  Eli enjoyed playing and showing off for them! 

Pappaw's 59th Birthday

For Pappaw's birthday Eli, Uncle Justin, Jaden, Jordan, Jentry and myself went to see Mammaw and Pappaw.  We had a big weekend with fishing, baseball tournaments, and hanging out!  The boys enjoyed catching lots of fish and were getting un-yuppy-fied as Papa Phil would say!  Eli loves playing with his cousins even though he was teething and a little more fussy than usual.  Jaden got to practice his driving (still can't believe he's got his permit)!  Jordan's team won a great tournament in Franklin.  He hit a triple, clenched the win in the semi-finals with a walk-off single, and pitched the championship game!  Jentry, Eli, and I headed to Brenham on Sunday for a baseball scrimmage.  He did very well, especially his fielding, which he says is his specialty!