The Foxes on the Funship

Here are some shots from one of our weekend adventures aboard the "Funship", our lovely vintage pontoon boat. It has made for many a fun weekend.......here is my handsome hubby on Skyler's jet ski.

Pawpaw & Rylie Kate hanging out on board...


Rylie & John Gavin having a Cheetos fest. Those kids love their Cheetos!
"Unca Skyler"

I love this picture of my in laws! It is so cute! Darlene was a trooper....she didn't feel too well that day, but came out anyway & ended up jumping in with her clothes on! We even rode the tube together:) A fun day!

John Gavin was worn out....he fell asleep on Pawpaw's shoulder!

***As many of you know, Skyler (Stewart's bro.) has been in the hospital for a week & a half now after suffering from a traumatic brain injury in an accident. He was in Neuro ICU for 4 days & then to a room & is now at HealthSouth undergoing treatment. He has come a long way in his recovery, but he still needs your prayers. He is still experiencing short term memory loss & vision problems. God is the great physician.....he will heal us physically & spiritually. Keep Skyler & the fam in your prayers....they need them:)

Birmingham Zoo

Rylie & I went to the Birmingham zoo with Dawn & Kaylen Wilson. We had so much fun! Here is a lovely shot of Dawn breaking the rules, feeding the giraffe! Some kid was trying to do it & he couldn't reach, so Dawn said "let me see it" & the giraffe took it! Great photo op....did I mention she is a teacher? HAHA! Such a rebel!

Rylie & Kaylen found this bunny statue outside of the butterfly house & they both started hugging it! So cute!

Hangin' out in the strollers! This was taken in the monkey house. There was a baby monkey in there with all the adult monkeys & it was acting crazy! It was fun to watch.

The look on their faces was classic! This was a birdhouse you could go inside & they would land on you & fly around your head....a bit creepy.

Posing in the botanical garden...

O.k......this is totally not at the zoo, but cute, nonetheless? It is in our front yard & I just had to throw it in the mix!

A little about our day....we got to the zoo & it was 1/2 price day, so it was pretty packed. We went inside & grabbed some lunch & headed for the live animal show. As we waited in the sweltering heat ( no shade in this area on a sunny July day) with at least 50 other visitors anxious for some animal interaction, Rylie & Kaylen began to get bored & played in the rocks, with Kaylen eventually taking the stage. After 2:30 came & went we assumed there would be no show & left the theater area. We ventured up to the area where the elephants are housed only to find THERE ARE NO ELEPHANTS!!! What!?! Rylie loves elephants & there were none to be found. Isn't that a zoo staple? So on we went & we found an area where you could ride a camel. We went all over looking for an ATM (cash only for the rides) & when we found the lone ATM machine, wouldn't you know it....it was out-of-order! What the French, toast? Apparently no one in the entire zoo can provide you with cash, so there were no camels ridden by us that day. We came to the conclusion that 1/2 off day is just that....you get what you pay for! Sheesh!

Here was one of the cool things we saw....the Rhino getting a mani.....or is it a pedi? Anyway, the zookeeper blew his whistle told him to sit & he did! Who knew they were trained like that? Rylie saw the Rhino & said "Dinosaur!". Pretty funny!

Rylie checking out "flow-ders" in the butterfly garden!

See her eyes wild with excitement! Nothing like a "pock-scicle" as big as your head to cool you down!

Rylie Kate

I just wanted to add these....I love the simple black & white. These capture the essence of a warm summer day, just swinging in the yard! All you need is some lemonade! I will try to have some more posts up later this week....I have tons of pics on my camera that need uploading!

Rylie is getting so big.....she learned her colors & shapes & when we ask her "what's mommy's name?" she says "A-mily" & "what's daddy's name" she says "Stewart" & if you ask her name she proudly says "Rylie Kate Fox". It is so fun to watch her grow & learn new things every day! She loves to say the blessing & we all have to hold hands around the table. She is trying to learn "God our Father" (especially since her buddy Kaylen says it!). Last night while we were having dinner, it suddenly occured to me just how blessed we really are to have dinner each night, to not have to worry where our next meal is coming from, like so many less fortunate than us do. God is Great......God is Good.

Jeep! Jeep!

Is she Stewart Jr. or what? We scored this jeep at a garage sale & the battery wouldn't hold a charge, so naturally Stewart souped it up with a battery he had on hand....twice as fast! He has to run along beside her as she speeds through the yard! He took her out yesterday & she had her first wreck...she hopped a curb! She escaped with only a busted lip & she was ready to ride again! She loves it! Definitely her daddy's child!

This is Rylie speeding by as I snap the pic....note Stewart RUNNING behind!

Mamie & Pawpaw came to visit....here is Rylie getting some sugar from her Pawpaw!

Rylie & her Mamie!

This is Jonah, Kaylen & Rylie after a day of riding the carousel at Bridge Street & playing in the fountains downtown....they had an impromptu game of ring-around-the-rosies! So cute!

4th of July

Here are some pics from our family beach trip for the 4th. It was a nice week at the beach , and an exciting one because Melinda & Kenon got engaged! Congrats, Mel & Kenon!!

Here is the gigantic fish my dad caught in the ocean from his KAYAK!! It was crazy big & drug him way down the beach & when it got tired, dad reeled him in! All the other men fishing from the shore were green with envy!

I just love this picture of Breanna, Melinda, Haleigh & Kenon....so sweet!

Rylie & Stewart building castles in the sand! Every since we went on the trip with Haleigh & Bre (our nieces) Rylie has been calling him "Uncle Stewart" because she heard it all week from the girls!! Don't worry, she still calls him "Daddy" too! (Although that could be weird if the wrong person heard her say both....we are from Alabama!)

Breanna, Haleigh & Rylie!

Grandmom giving Rylie a pedicure! All week Rylie would say"pretty nails" & show us her toes!

Rylie & Mommy

The Fox Family

My dad always sits like this, so the girls took the opportunity to mock him! Too funny....even Rylie did it!

Daddy's Big Helper

I meant to post this right after Father's Day, but if you know me, it sometimes takes me a little while to get around to all my ideas. Rylie is such a daddy's girl, as you will note in the following pictures! She is his little sidekick & loves to "help" him with all his handy-man projects around our house. Last night they came in from the garage & Rylie was FILTHY....complete with dirt smudges on her face & grease under her nails. I asked Stewart what they had been up to & he said they had been working on the Jeep! He promptly took her to the bathroom for a bubble bath!
I love this picture of her little hand....it is dirty, because she just helped daddy pot some plants.

Daddy teaching Rylie how to use a hammer & drill.....hmmmmm? Useful skills for a 19 month old to have! I will have to watch her ever more closely now! Did I mention that we got a Jeep power wheels at a garage sale on Saturday? It was a steal, a bright blue wrangler complete with KC lights! We went home & plugged the battery, but the next day it still wasn't running. Not to be discouraged, Stewart & Rylie headed off to the garage & after some tinkering, Stewart yelled, "IT's working". Now for those of you who know Stewart well, you will know why I became a bit wary when I heard this. I went outside & me fears were confirmed, because her power wheels went from your run-of-the mill battery to one TWICE as fast....thanks to her daddy's master rigging skills! Rylie literally burned rubber taking off in the jeep with Stewart frantically running after! Don't worry....it is all on video for your viewing pleasure! Rylie had so much fun riding around the yard & doing doughnuts in the driveway! She is just like her dad!

A sweet picture of Rylie & Stewart on the boat.

Story time with Daddy right before bed each night. Stewart asks her how many stories she wants to read & she always says something like "nine stories" & they negotiate a smaller number! It really doesn't matter how many they settle on because she always suckers him in by holding up one finger & saying "mooore 'tories".

I am a slacker....here are some random pictures!

It has been waaaaay too long since I have posted! I have so many pictures to post that it will take a few posts to update you on all of them! Disregard the dates on the pics....they say Jan., but I am not that far behind! I just left the battery on the charger a bit too long & it resets the date & I didn't notice until I had taken a zillion pictures. I love this one of Rylie....she has her Daddy's big brown eyes & curly hair!

This was lunch at Victoria's with Grandma Fox & Mamie. We had a great time & Rylie entertained our fellow diners with a dance!

This is a shot of Rylie & her cousin Haleigh getting ready to take on the sprinkler! They had a blast running through the water!

Our good friends, the Roberts, gave us this cute table & chairs....it used to be Keely's. (Thanks again, Keely!). She LOVES it! She has tea parties with her babies & whatever friend is over at the moment! Here is her "Elmo bear" having a chat with her at her table....she calls him that.

Once again, Rylie showing her love for all things Elmo! She loves her Elmo shoes & her Elmo bear! (Note: this time for some reason the date says Feb., but it is really May!)

Rylie & Grandmom hanging out on the boat! This was a fun, relaxing day on the water.

Rylie & Grandmother posing for a pic after church!

Rylie & Aunt Haley & Aunt Lakyn....not sure where Aunt Alaney was? Anyway, we couldn't get Rylie to smile or look at the camera! I have very pretty sister-in-laws!

I love this picture of Rylie & her daddy on the trampoline! They had so much fun!

Daddy's big helper! Stewart calls her that & she will say "big halper, big halper!" He is getting her started early on the power tools!

More posts soon!!!!!