DOLLYWOOD 2008!

We had Ryan's annual plant picnic at Dollywood again this year and had so much fun. Unfortunately the real train was closed this time and some of the kiddie water area were closed too. But, we still found plently of things to do and see. Here's our pics.:

Thomas took Daddy on the "Amazing Flying Elephants" and showed him how to push the button and make it go up and down. Joseph watched from the sidelines and was happy to NOT go on the elephants. He still is telling us he doesn't want to go on the scarey elephants.

The boys played on a big playground near a wooden roller coaster, which scared us out of our skin everytime it barreled by.

We played at the splash pad and enjoyed watching the boys' surprise when the water came up from the ground and sprayed them. Thomas just got sprayed in the face to his surprise!

Joseph's trying to see if he can make the water stop. It took him awhile to warm up to the water but once he did he had all kinds of fun running with the bigger kids.

Daddy pestered the boys a little.

The Dollywood Carousel

Thomas' first ride on a carousel and to no surprise, he loved it. Joseph was holding on for dear life.

Great Aunt? Hooray!

I am a GREAT-Aunt at 25 yrs. old

Yes it's true. Ryan's brother's stepson (my nephew) & his wife welcomed there new baby girl into the world this morning, very early I may say. Ryan's brother (John) and family are headed over immediately to TX to see the new addition. They are thrilled to be grandpa and grandma. And I am sure Shelby (Aunt) and Jordan, Luke, Calvin, & Daniel (Uncles) are excited too. Ranging in ages from 16 down to 8 they make very young elders to their new niece. I think there was an oxymoron in that last sentence. Well I am looking forward to seeing her in person, but for now here is her announcement:

Introducing with love…

Savannah Mary Ellen

It's a girl

4/18/2008 2:50:00 AM

20.75 inches

7 pounds, 5 ounces

World Famous Tic-Toc Ice Cream!

Well, the first sight of spring has arrived in Loudon. Here we like to start the season with a visit to Tic-Toc Ice Cream Parlor which closes every winter and opens just before the weather starts to warm up good. We celebrated Thomas birthday with some of their fresh made original ice cream. This place is so popular that anytime we have visitors they usually turn down my desserts for ice cream. Thankfully though it can get kind of pricey so we have to limit how much we visit. It's just a block from our house so if you visit, we'll probably be making the stroll down there.

Joseph recommends:

Rainbow Vanilla (pink vanilla w/ rainbow chocolate pieces)

Thomas recommends:

ANYTHING Ice Cream!!

Megan recommends:

Loco Coco (coconut w/ real fresh coconut)

or

Chocolate Raspberry Truffle (w/ real raspberry and truffle pieces)

Ryan recommends:

Chattanooga Chocolate (plain chocolate, interesting name)

or

anything chocolate including hot fudge!!!

(Come and see what your favorite is, if you can choose of course!)

There's another Hixson in the world!

World, let me introduce you to Hayden Alexander. This is my new nephew and the last son of my brother's (or so he and his wife say). He was born around 4:15 pm on March 28th. And of course I am partial in thinking he resembles ME!!! Well he also reminds me of Joseph. He is welcomed into the world by his parents, Brandon & Danielle, and siblings, Ethan (8), Jonah (5), & Riley(3). And for all those who are wondering about his name, yes, we are Iowa Hawkeye fans and Hayden (Fry) was a former coach.

Thomas' 2nd Birthday! VROOM, VROOM!

We recently celebrated Thomas' 2nd Birthday! He had a cars themed birthday party and we had a great time with the Hixson side of the family. Thomas enjoyed the black frosting, but thankfully I had a great tip for making black frosting and it didn't stain at all. He was blessed with some really nice gifts and go figure his favorite was the drum I bought at Goodwill. Just proof that you don't have to spend a fortune on your kids! Ha, ha!

Up top:

Aunt Tiffany riles up Thomas, as if he needs any help. Haha! While Mamu (My mom) asks Riley the deep questions.

2nd down:

Papu (my dad) is at his familiar stance with a camera in hand.

3rd down:

Thomas, the birthday boy, looks around with a puzzled yet happy look that everyone is singing to him.

4th down:

Thomas digs in, with no concern, to the black frosting.

Last:

The remake of a goodyear tire that says "secondyear".