M - Ferguson Family Fun 2008

We had our annual family get together a couple of weeks ago.  This year we went to Lake Tenkiller.  On Saturday we got up in the morning and went to the marina where Darrell and Willa Rae rented a pontoon boat for the family. Baby Joel took a while to settle down.  Mostly we just had to take his life jacket off. Shhh, don't tell.  

That afternoon, we took all the kiddos to the pool.  Baby Joel decided he really likes the water there, and now, he splashes me all the time when he takes a bath.  Lily had no fear going down the water slide, and Liam is quite a diver off the diving board.  

In the evening there were steaks, potatoes and smores to eat.  Don't you wish you were there?  Sunday at lunch a big storm came through making grilling difficult.  Uncle Joel had his handy wok though.  So, he saved the day by cooking on the range.  The smoke detectors only went off once!  Here are a few pictures.

Neil and Joel in their shades

Joel and Stefani on the pontoon

Aunt Di and Lily

Uncle Joel grilling inside

Uncle Matt and Luke fishing.  

They're the only ones who caught fish, I think.

M - A day at Granny & Grump's

A few weeks ago, Neil had a conference in Tulsa.  So, Joel and I went with him and stayed at his parents house.  While Neil was busy working, Joel and I were busy having fun with Granny and Grump.  

His favorite thing was the swing at their house.  Who wouldn't love a swing that is attached to a branch much taller than the house.  

My camera doesn't record sound, but here is a video of the swinging from a distance.  You just have to see how far he goes in this swing.  

M - Bible Class in McAlester

Nick is Joel's cousin.  He was born three days before Joel.  He weighs somewhere between 2 and 4 pounds more than Joel.  He is seriously one of the sweetest babies in the world.  Even when he was crying after getting shots, Nick still managed to smile at the nurses.  He went to Bible class for the first time in McAlester over Memorial Day weekend.  He and Joel sat by each other.  They look happy don't they?

Approximately 4 minutes after this picture was taken, I was back in the room because Joel was heard by literally everyone in the auditorium screaming at the top of his lungs.  What was wrong?  His sweet, precious cousin kept taking his pacifier away from him and he had enough.  When I picked up Joel, Nick gave me the biggest grin.  

M-For he's a jolly good fellow

On this Father’s Day, I’d like to take a moment to reflect on some of my favorite things about my dad. It’s no secret that we’ve bumped heads a few times, but what else can you expect from two pretty stubborn people. So, here’s a list of five of my favorite memories.

1. We used to go out in the evenings in the cul-de-sac and play Frisbee together. He’s really shockingly good at Frisbee. It may have been only a few times that we did this, but for some reason it really made an impression on me that he came outside to play.
2. On my 18th birthday he bought me my own fishing pole and took me to a friend’s lake house. We spent the whole day fishing together. This is by far one of my favorite days.
3. During my junior and senior year of college, he used to call my cell phone almost every day on his way to work. He’d leave me a message saying how proud of me he is. There were definitely times when I erased the message before really listening to it, but there were other days when I saved them and listened to them over and over.
4. One year he came to Dear Ole Sooner Youth Camp as a teacher. I was pretty nervous that he would cramp my style, but really it was great to have him there. Secretly, I wish he’d come again.
5. There was a time when he commuted to Kingwood from Edmond every week. My mom and I would go to the airport each Friday evening to pick him up. He never failed to save his peanuts from the flight for me.

These are just a few moments in a thousand spent that I could write about. Instead, I’ll stop here and say, I love you, Dad!