Back Together Again

Leaving ain't fair you know
Parting ain't just
People got to move on
People got to do what they must
And we're back together again
And I'm never gonna lose you as a friend
                                            --INDIGO GIRLS

Today, we got to celebrate precious little Isabel's birthday. Aunt Miki, Uncle Charlie, Isabel and Jasper have been living over in Russia working missions in orphanages for over a year now.  They returned this month to visit family back here in the states and we were so excited to be able to see them and celebrate a birthday with little Isabel.  We were also thrilled that we got to meet Jasper for the first time and that they were able to meet Chad. Jasper and Chad are only one month apart in age, and are so much fun. They even have little teeth in the same places growing up to the same level. They were beginning to copy each other in their motions and they frequently had their eyes on each other.  Cari was so excited to be able to play with Isabel, and of course, Andy loved beating up on Ethan and Aaron, as always. 

We met at Red Top Mountain State Park for the Disney Princess Party for the little Princess Isa; as we arrived the clouds were beginning to part, and the sky was no longer a heavy gray, but a lighter and brighter blue. The kids took no time chasing after each other, hunting down the M&M bowl to scoop a few out and into their mouths faster than [they think] anyone can see them.  We sat down and gobbled up yummy food, laughed a little, told good stories from days of old, laughed a little more, marveled at the kids, and laughed a lot. As the sky cleared up even more and we could see the sun beams coming down outside of the pavillion, we broke out the cake and ice cream as we belted out our very best out-of-tune song of Happy Birthday to sweet little Isa.  The kids sat the most still for traditional eating of the cake, and then we hiked up the hill in an attempt to get the traditional happy picture of all six kids. Ha! Good luck.

Cari, of couse, played the entire time in the dirt...

This is Chad's first taste of ice cream; only, I was too busy snapping the shutter to see what was actually happening!

Isabel was just too cute in her little red hat.  Too bad it is UGA colors. Blech.

Chad was none too pleased that his Mommy was the photographer.  He got tired of no-mommy-time and let us all know how he felt!

I think he's saying here, "Ha-ha suckaaaaaaasssss! What do you mean, you can't always get what you want?"

Comfort item #2: Mommy's hair.

Comfort item #3: Mommy's nose.

I love the sequence of photos that follows.  I can just hear the conversation: "Here, watch me, this is how you do it."

"Kind of."

"Eh, not sure. Let's go in."

Just as the heat came bearing down on us, we threw on our suits and hiked down the hill to the lake to jump in and cool off.  Cari showed off her swimming skills, Jasper loved splashing his little fingers in the water, Ethan and Aaron got dunked eight-too-many times by Uncle Andy, and Chad had a dessert of fistfuls of sand.

Chad's first time playing in sand.

Chunka-munka!

What a wonderful birthday celebration. Thank you so much for sharing it with us, Chastain family! So glad you were able to make it home for a little bit of family time and we look forward to seeing you again before you return to Russia!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, ISABEL!