CDO Graduation

Well, the kids are graduates! From the nursery, that is! We celebrated their first semester at CDO (Children's Day Out), the daycare the twins attend while Kendal and I are at work. They started in January and adapted so well to the school and quickly made friends with their classmates. Their teachers, Ms. Naomi and Ms. Courteny, were fantastic and loved on both Carlisle and Jackson Camper every single day.



Immediately following their "graduation" from CDO's 2007-08 school year, we jumped in the Jeep and headed to Hattiesburg to visit Lauren's family for a few days. It was a quick trip but we had a great visit with Lauren's grandmother (Mama Diket) and GanGan and Big Daddy. We also got to grab a quick breakfast with Lauren's sister Anna and her boyfriend Matt before they headed to see Radiohead in Houston. Matt just graduated from Southern Miss with a degree in film so we're so excited to see where his budding career will take them. We just hope it's close enough for frequent visits!

Jackson Camper took full advantage of Mama Diket's walker during our visit, claiming it as his own! He is very close to walking - heaven help us! JC and daddy took quite a few trips up and down the hallway and our little speedracer handily overtook the other residents in walker races! Carlisle has amazed us, though, with her efforts to stand up. She is working on a lunge/stand and will probably be on her way to standing on her own very soon!

A Great Visit

Lauren had the opportunity to take Carlisle and Jackson Camper to Mississippi for a visit with her family. The twins were troopers in the car and happily drank their juice while mom listened to a book on CD - what a nice surprise! We stopped in Jackson to visit Lauren's very first friend Emily and her girls Anne Elise and Ava - we watched the kids roll/run around and had a wonderful visit. While in Mississippi, we also got some great visiting time in with the twins' great-grandmother. She got to watch them play, listen to their belly laughs and do a little cuddling. It was a great time. We also got to spend some special time with one of Lauren's best friends, Cara, and see her son Cole and new baby Claire. We had a great visit and even treated the twins and Cole to a trip to the zoo, complete with a visit to the local tiger! The remainder of our trip was spent with Big Daddy and GanGan. Jackson Camper learned to climb the stairs on his very first try (a little horrifying!) - Carlisle has not yet followed suit.



As the twins first birthday approaches, we are in awe - sheer awe - of the amazing, busy, sleep-deprived, affirming, beautiful year we've had with these amazing twins. We've been in a reminiscing mood lately and are constantly shocked to observe how quickly the kids have grown and developed their own personalities. If you have not seen the news story that featured the Land twins on their birth day/Father's Day, click here!

Point of Grace!

Anyone who knew Lauren during her high school years knows that the Christian group Point of Grace is her favorite - many of their songs were sung in her car AND in church! Last night, Lauren had the opportunity to host an alumni Meet & Greet for the girls, three of whom are alumni of Ouachita. It was an amazing experience - the girls could not have been nicer, they gave several shout-outs to Ouachita during the concert AND the show was absolutely amazing. Pictured above is Lauren with the girls and her Ouachita friends Keisha, Rebecca, Kirt and Justin.

Also performing with Point of Grace last night was the Christian group Selah (they are FABULOUS!). My friend Brittany has linked a blog to her site called Bring the Rain. The author is the wife of one of the singers in Selah and her story of their fourth daughter is both heartbreaking and a testament to how big God is. Take some time and read her story, it is so inspiring. Her husband Todd shared daughter Audrey's story and there were many tears throughout the audience.