It’s life lately around here! And life has been BUSY! Busy in that fun, summer way we love so much.
So, this will always be remembered as the summer of “the cannon ball contest” in my heart. Every day at the pool, the lifeguards blow their whistle around 12:30 and thus, the cannon ball contest begins. This is a HUGE deal to my kiddos. We talk about it every day…who will win the cannon ball contest? I LOVE this age!
We were playing golf the other night after dinner and found a turtle on one fairway. Turtle spotting has become another Shull family hobby.
After golf, a we played in the sprinklers. By the time we were done, all five of us were in the pool with our clothes on…one thing leads to another and before you know it, you’ve jumped in wearing your shorts and such.
The big kids wrapped up basketball camp last week, so on their last morning, Ashby and I decided to have a little diner breakfast together while we waited for them to be finished. Love spending time with this sweet girl!
A large portion of our weekend was spent waiting on baby Samuel to arrive. Here we are taking selfies in the middle of the night. My kiddos are such troopers!
When you decide that the waiting room is just too darn bright and cold, so your family all gets in their cars and naps for a few hours. At this moment, you have to laugh at how silly life can be sometimes.
2:31 AM and you’re all sleeping in the car…
At one point during the night, I found myself walking through the parking garage with my grandmother and mom discussing how good a McDonald’s breakfast sandwich sounded. #randomness
4:00 AM has nothing on this girl!
We LOVE Monica!
I have no idea what time it is here…but this picture makes me laugh!
After a long night, we came home and slept a few hours and then…the big kids upgraded their bikes! My kiddos are bike riding fools and their smaller bikes were just too small…so, we headed to the bike shop and upgraded. I love how much they love to ride bikes!
When you’re just so tired.
Lovie had her annual July 4th party on the 3rd! We did lots of swimming!
And jumping!
And floating!
On Monday morning, we headed down to our town square for the annual July 4th parade! This year, it rained all morning long, so the weather was cool when we got there (72 instead of our usual 96 or so!).
I love this picture. My friend Brooke took it of me and two of my favorite people, Manda and Andrea.
Brooke took these next few picture too. I just love my sweet Kensington!
The parade is such a framily affair!
So many sweet kiddos!
When you have a four year old sister.
Ashby really gets into her parades!
I’m so blessed the Lord called us to plant our roots in McKinney, TX.
She was playing My Little Ponies while I cooked dinner…such a sweet girl!
And this picture cracks me up! A very large turtle decided to lay eggs in our backyard…and as you can see, my big kids found it quite frightening. #holdme
That’s life lately! See you tomorrow for my Friday Favorites!
Rebecca says
Good Morning!! Looks like it is an awesome summer:) I would love to know where you get the girls’ bows? Thanks so much!
Mix and Match Mama says
One Stop Bow Shop! My cousin owns it :). http://www.onestopbowshop.com My girls get the XLJumbo Grosgrain bows!
Michele says
Looks like a busy but fun weekend! Congrats on the newest addition to the family! Can you tell us what lipstick you’re wearing in the hospital pictures! Have a great day!
Mix and Match Mama says
Yes! It’s from my post on Friday! NARS pencil in Sex Machine and gloss in Baby Doll!
Narci Dreffs says
What a great life lately!! We had so much fun with you at the parade!! Also, love tray picture of Andrew and Ashby sleeping !! Sweetness!!
Mindy Tierney says
Hello! Such a fun and exciting post! What size shirt was Ashby wearing from Gymboree? My Brother-in-law and Sister-in-law are on their way to China today to adopt a little girl who is 3 years old. They also adopted a little boy a week after you got Ashby. He is now 4 1/2. Anyways – I picked up a clothes on clearance for her at Gymboree and got a 3T. I am hoping I got the right size. I was worried the 2T would be too small. I scored amazing deals there! I miss shopping there as my daughter is now 11 years old and about a 1/2 inch shorter than me (I am only 5 foot 1 inch and my husband is over 6 feet). Was fun shopping for little girls and scoring beyond amazing deals. Even found some long sleeve holiday shirts at Gymboree that I picked up! For those I got 3T and 4T before I loved them so much! 🙂 Thanks!!
Mix and Match Mama says
Right now, she’s wearing a 3T :). How exciting for your family!!
Mindy Tierney says
Thanks so much for the quick reply. I was pretty sure 3T would be the best size to start with.
Keep you posted on their updates! 🙂
They have a 8 hour layover in Boston today before heading out to Beijing tonight. I suggested they check out the Boston Children’s Museum as they are taking their 4 year old son with.
Have a fun Thursday!
Brooke Richardson says
I loved the hospital pictures!!! The one of Andrew and Ashby napping is so sweet! And I agree the parade weather was just perfect and so much fun!!!
Robyn Gainey says
What kind of sunscreen do you use on your kids?
Mix and Match Mama says
I believe it’s Coppertone Kids!
Erika Slaughter says
I hope they make Kensington’s exact bike in a grown up size!! Tab and I finally decided our kids can ride faster than we can walk and we should get bikes to bike with them. Love K’s new bike!! And-if you see me out pushing my bike up a hill-don’t be alarmed. Hahahaha!
Sheaffer Sims says
Y’all have had a big week for sure! So impressed with your family and your baby waiting skills!!!! Great parade pictures. It ALMOST makes me like a parade. 😉
Nicole says
Hi Shay!! Wondering if you would do a post about your everyday diet? You mentioned in your fitness post that you keep a clean diet – would love to hear more about that!! 😉
Mix and Match Mama says
Sure! I’ll add that to my sticky note list of things to do. It would probably be very boring though ;). I eat breakfast (this morning, toast with almond butter and a veggie juice), lunch (lots of salads, small sandwiches with a side of hummus and/or fruit and such), I snack on almonds/cashews/walnuts and things, and then for dinner, I eat whatever I post on my blog (like for instance, last night, I had an open-faced burger with a salad. So…if you check my recipes on my site here, you’ll see everything I eat (because everything I make, I eat) and the rest is mostly whole food and now, I’m trying to eat mostly vegetarian during the day (except for supper with my family) and a few days a week, vegetarian completely. Hope this helps Nicole!
Nicole says
Thanks so much! You just saved yourself a post 🙂 That’s pretty similar to my everyday eats too! What about treats after dinner? What’s your usual rule with that? Thanks again! Love your blog!!
Stephanie says
Andrew’s pose in the one picture at the hospital! ????????
Andrea M says
Such a cute post!! Those pictures that Brooke took are so sweet!!! Loved getting to spend the fourth with y’all 🙂
Ashley says
Hi Shay! I am planning a trip to Iceland/Amsterdam at the end of August, and would love if you could share a packing list and any best practices.
Sanna says
Hi Ashley, I don’t want to answer for Shay, but I am actually from Holland, but live in the States, and so I always fly a direct flight from the US to Iceland and then another flight from Iceland to Amsterdam. I went two summers ago for the whole summer to see my family, and so I was also there in the month you are planning to visit. So, since I grew up in Holland and was just there, I thought I would just give you some native tips. Dutch weather is a little bipolar. Summers can either be gorgeous and warm and quite humid or it’s windy and rainy. Most of the time you’ll get a little bit of both. I had this type of fluctuating weather two summers ago, for the whole time I was there. So I would think in terms of packing to pack a variety. As an example, on the beach in Holland I was in a bikini and shorts the whole day, and then at night I had a summer sweater on with a windbreaker puffer vest over it. It got chilly fast. I wore my cropped jeans and cotton capri pants the most and cotton button downs and tees. I also lived in my Converse and Toms’ flats there. Bring a light jacket for sure, because the nights can cool down quite a bit, especially if it decides to be windy. I was actually happy I had my puffer vest with me. A scarf is also smart to pack because you can bring it in your bag for the day, it doesn’t take up a lot of space, and if you get that breeze, you can wrap something over you shoulders and neck. I have never once had a whole week in Holland where it didn’t rain, even in the summer. Actually the first week in August when I was there, there was a serious downpour all day every day. So keep that in mind. It’s generally a rainy country. Although in the summer you do get some hot days too. Variety packing is the best thing you can do. Also, I think you are probably flying Iceland Air from what your trip sounds like. One tip for that flight: PACK SNACKS!! You have to buy your food on board the plane and the menu on board is small, as are the portions. Everyone on board was hungry. I expected to be fed on an International flight, yeahh, not so much. It was a good flight overall but keep that in mind. Have the best time!!
Ashley says
Thank you, Sanna!! Do you fly Iceland Air for your trips? Reviews seem to be a mixed bag, what’s your experience?
Sanna says
Hi Ashley, yes I do fly Iceland Air. I think they are the most convenient for flights to Holland. I booked Economy Plus, since the price difference wasn’t that much and I am tall, so they put you in the emergency row exit when you book Economy plus, so much more room. The flight and connection in Iceland went smoothly. The main thing that surprised me, in comparison with lots of other airlines I have flown on to Holland, is that they seem much much more basic. The thing that stood out as a negative to me the most is that the food portions were small and if you fly economy you have to pay for every meal. Since I flew Economy Plus (which is pretty much a step up from Economy but a step down from Business class) I did get one meal free. They hand you a menu that is very small and very basic. Everyone at baggage claim was talking about how hungry they were on the flight. So make sure you pack snacks for on board and eat a big meal at the airport. The International airport in Iceland is small, which I actually liked because it made connecting to another flight from Holland very smooth. Customs went really really fast, and you’re not walking great distances to get to your connecting flight. Therefore you don’t need to book a lot of layover time in between. (This obviously makes no difference to you if you are actually staying in Iceland for a few days). Customs there have always gone fast. I hope this helps. Also, totally unrelated, but as Shay mentioned as well, make sure you go to a pancake house in Holland. They are phenomenal. Completely different from the pancakes in the States. The pancakes there are considered a lunch and dinner item, not a breakfast meal.
Wendy says
Is Smith doing the Dab in the sprinkler picture? Love it! Reminds me of my little guy. 🙂
Gina Christopher says
Loved the update. Your babies are beautiful!! Motivated me to get on a 4th of July post.
Angie says
That picture of Andrew and Ashby napping is the sweetest!
Rebecca Jo says
What a good sister staying so late for the arrival of your nephew. Congrats on the new family addition.
That parade just SCREAMS USA 🙂
Kammy says
Hi Shay! My family lived in McKinney, TX from 1992-1999 (1st – 7th grade for me!) before moving to Pennsylvania, a huge culture shock! It’s so cool to see your posts about Downtown McKinney, I have so many fond memories of growing up in that town! Now I live in busy DC and miss the small town life (although I know it’s grown a lot in the last 10 years). Could you do a post about your favorite places to go in McKinney, maybe a visitor’s guide? I would love to see some updated pictures! 🙂
Melissa Carswell says
Love all the great pics. This is a completely random question, but do you use eyebrow gel and if so, what kind/brand. Thanks.
Mix and Match Mama says
Bobbi Brown 🙂
Lindsay @ Lindsay's Sweet World says
You guys are having such an AMAZING summer! I can’t get over how old Kensington looks now that she’s getting her big girl teeth. Where does the time go?
Leigh says
SO much fun! I cannot believe how big that turtle is in your yard!!! And pulling an all nighter with the kids – amazing!!
Aniel Yu says
Looooove all ur Life Lately posts! Makes my heart so happy:) God Bless!
Jaren says
Those parade pics are fabulous! I love your little town!
Sara says
Where is Kensington’s Fourth of July dress from?? Love it!
Kati Matthews says
Love that romper! And yay for speech therapists! Woohoo!
Megan says
Your kids are troopers!! Seriously, I’m impressed they stayed up all night waiting on baby Samuel! And I bet they loved swimming in their clothes! Such fun memories!
Shelly Janac says
Your 4th pictures are so great! We were in Missouri last week and I so tried to get my husband to stop in McKinney for the night on the 3rd so we could join the parade fun I remembered seeing last year. I guess I thought about it so much I seriously dreamed I went and saw you there…but you were totally wearing some clothes you would not wear in real life. 🙂
Shelly||The Queen in Between
Renee Hester says
I know that you wear a ton of tank shirt for the summer time and you rave about them. I was wondering what type of undergarment do you wear under them. What is the best bra to wear basically, as I always have the straps showing and hate it. Would love to hear what you wear under them. Thanks.
Karleigh Johnson says
Hey Shay! Just curious, I read a post about Ashby having some “sass”, and I was just wondering what you said/did and how you handled it? You have such good advice for everything else-just wondering how y’all have handled discipline with Ashby.
Thanks!!
Xoxo
Katie says
Would love an update on your friend Manda, I hope things are improving for her. Will continue to pray for her!
Lisa P. says
LOVE following you and your family on your travels. You have mentioned bedore that you get motion sickness- does it bother you when flying? I get motion sickness riding in the passenger seat of a car, and have bad anxiety with flying because of my fear of getting sick- do you have any tips?
Sarah says
What brand of bikes do your kiddos have? We are now looking to upgrade our kiddos bikes, almost decided on Treks. Would love your input 🙂
Mix and Match Mama says
Eeks! I don’t know? I’m going to have to go check for you!
Sanna says
I want Ashby’s 4th of July shorts in adult size. So cute!!!
Sarah says
We need Ks red Fourth of July dress! Where is it from? Thanks!!
Mix and Match Mama says
Gymboree!