Walking 4 Hope

So, I know that every one reading this blog should know who that girl is.
Hope.
Or Hopie, as she is affectionately called in our house.
Our niece.

However, what every one reading this blog may not know is that this is also Hope.

This is Hopie with all of her shots.
That's right, Hope has Type 1, or Juvenile, Diabetes.
She was diagnosed in 1st grade almost 2 years ago!
She is now 8 years old and is loving life and overcoming her fears every day.
This year she transitioned to an insulin pump which was scary for her but has been an amazing experience for us all.
We are very proud of her and all that she is learning and doing daily!
To show our support for Hope, we are planning to walk with her again in the JDRF Walk to Cure Diabetes on October 30th.
We all walked last year and it was such a great time for Hope and our family.

Here was our team...

...and here are a few of our pictures from the day...

So, needless to say we're very excited about this walk again this year.
We want you to be excited too and to consider helping us.
Please go here to find out more about how you can help:

click here

(To Hopie, We could not be more proud of you! You have done things that have absolutely amazed us. Keep smiling "Munchkin" and know that we love you!)

Weekend in Atlanta

About a month ago we went on a great weekend trip with some of our friends to Atlanta!

We had decided to all go down there for the UNC game and hang out together for the entire weekend! It was the GREATEST idea!!!

We got there on a Friday evening and had reservations for a tour at the Coca-Cola factory that evening. I had been to the old one before when I was younger but this was an even better experience. They had lots of cool exhibits and of course some yummy (and not so yummy) samples of coke from around the world. The boys had made a decision to try all of the flavors before we left and I was game until after about 40 samples and then I felt like I either needed to puke or quit. Needless to say, I picked the 2nd option! ;)

On Saturday the boys had football on the schedule for the entire day so they girls were left alone to enjoy the aquarium, some shopping, and yummy lunch and dinner. It was AMAZING! The aquarium was HUGE and had so many fascinating animals and exhibits. (YES, even me with my panic issues enjoyed this experience!) My 2 favorite things from the aquarium were the up-close observations of the penguins (AWESOME) and the whale sharks (SCARY BUT COOL)!!! It was a great day spent with great friends and I'm very thankful for the fun times and the memories!