Photos by Sincerely Gone Photography at Haile Plantation Golf & Country Club
Chris, Andrea, Emma (7) and Lily (5)
Occupation(s): Chris is a middle schoolย English language arts teacher at Kanapahaย Middle School. Andrea is an ESEย curriculum & inclusion specialist withย Alachua County Public Schools.
Favorite family meal: Emma and Lilyย are always requesting steak, macaroniย & cheese and edamame. It is by far theirย favorite family meal!
Favorite date spot: We love theย restaurants in Tioga, especially Blueย Highway and Saborรฉ.
Our family is most like: A rock band.ย Emma and Lily are always vying to be theย lead singers.
Movie in our DVD player right now:ย โPaddington.โ
The kidsโ favorite books: โMagic Treeย Houseโ series and any โFancy Nancyโย book!
Mommy and Daddyโs favorite TVย shows: โModern Family.โ
Websites we love: Andrea enjoysย Pinterest & Etsy, and the girls enjoyย watching Ms. Booksy episodes on YouTubeย or doing activities on Starfall.
Favorite sports/extracurriculars toย do: Running! We love to run local racesย and Emma runs Morning Mile daily atย Meadowbrook Elementary. We are alsoย involved with soccer at the Jonesvilleย Soccer Complex and weekly gymnasticย classes at Sun Country.
Favorite sports to watch: Any Gatorย sports are of high interest to our family!ย Emma and Chris really love to watch college football together. We also have fun watching UF soccer games and gymnastic meets.
Favorite family activity: We loveย going to Kanapaha Botanical Gardens on Sunday mornings as a family. Emma and Lily love running through the maze and we all enjoy the beautiful scenery.
Favorite local picnic spot: We love theย parks and playgrounds in Gainesville, but most recently we have been picnicking in our backyard. There is a large wooden fort/playground in our backyard and the girls think it is the best treat ever to eat lunch or dinner out there!
Pets: We have a 1.5-year-old dog, Bailey. She is a sweet and incredibly energetic terrier mix that we adopted from Helping Hands.
Favorite day trip: Cedar Key for fishing and Crescent Beach for a beach day
Favorite family vacation destination: Last spring break we took an amazing family vacation to Asheville, North Carolina. We zip lined, mined for gems, toured the Biltmore, hiked to waterfalls and the girls experienced snow for the very first time.
What makes my kids laugh: Weย love to have family dance parties, which always end up with the girls acting silly. They are at the age where they are truly interested in entertaining us, and it is so much fun to watch them interact with one another.
Why we love living in Gainesville: Weย both grew up in Gainesville and are very fortunate to have our families living in town. In addition to family, the education and experiences that Gainesville has to offer are the perfect fit for our family. The girls both adore school (Emma is in first grade at Meadowbrook and Lily is in Pre-K at Gainesville Country Day School) and we’ve had the opportunity to make so many lasting friendships with people in town. We feel so lucky to raise our daughters in Gainesville!
Something that we want our children to have that we didnโt haveย growing up: Self-confidence โ the ability to reach out and be friendly to everyone.
First word you think of when we sayย โfamilyโ: Happiness.
Must-have item(s): Running shoes,ย books and multiple water bottles.
Three words that describe ourย family: Loving, caring and creative