Going Out With a Bang

And just like that, we realized that the summer was coming to an end. We had one week left in Raleigh and one week at Bald Head and then school would start again. Hard to believe! So we took advantage of our last free week in town by checking off some of those summer bucket list activities.

First that week was to visit the Museum of History and have lunch downtown with Dad. Check! (I really love checking things off a list.) :)

Next up? Several playdates with friends...check!

 

 

Sleep in? Check! Watch shows in our pjs? Check! And the final activity of choice for the girls? Three Bears Acre! And this time the Moores got to come with us which made it really fun. Those kids wore themselves out running all over the place...

 

 

  

 

 

Sweet Luke was a trooper all morning...

 

and watched in amusement as the girls checked "go on a waterslide" off the summer bucket list.

 

 

 

We went out with a bang this summer. Next up? BALD HEAD ISLAND!!!!

A Weekend of Celebrating

The weekend of Aug. 12-13 we had a lot of important people to celebrate!

First off, it was Adair's 3rd birthday at Flour Power Kids Cooking Class. Adorable party where Addie got to make her own pizza and dessert. She definitely showed off her skills in the kitchen!

I took Luke so he could play with his bud Patrick, and he had a great time chewing everything in the toy kitchen and watching people. He doesn't get to go to many parties so he was really living it up. :)

 

Back at the ranch, we were getting ready for party #2- Marty's 80th birthday! Can you believe Marty is 80? He really makes 80 look great. We offered to throw him a big bash to celebrate this milestone birthday, but he decided what he really wanted was a family dinner at J. Betski's and a birthday pie. Done!

I had a lot of fun making this blueberry peach pie, and it turned out fantastic thanks to the Barefoot Contessa.

I was worried how the kids would do at the nice German restaurant, but other than Collins putting her feet up on the table, Addie questioning why she didn't get a bun with her brat, and Luke spilling puffs on the floor we came out okay. And dinner was delicious.

This is the face you make when your Mom bribes you with a dessert if you try the sauerkraut! :)

 

Marty's other birthday wish? A trip to Hawaii! He and Donna left the following week.

Celebration #3?!? Collins's half birthday of course! I was a little sad because I missed our traditional ice cream cone celebration because I was going out of town, but Brian treated her with some Howling Cow extra early in the day so she was happy. Can't believe our girl is half way to seven!

The fourth and final celebration of the weekend? Rachel and her identical twin baby girls! Andrea, Mandy and I went down to Huntersville so we could take Rach out to brunch and celebrate this miracle. Jen came too, and it was special to see her before she takes a new job, moves to a new city, and gives birth to twins! WOW Rach!

What a weekend. It was exhausting in such a good, happy way. So grateful we had so many blessings to celebrate!

Camp Week

We had two weeks of camp this summer. The first was the dance camp that the girls did together (an Addie request). The second week they split up, and Collins headed to art camp (her request). Addie went to two days of camp at Hayes Barton, her new school, in hopes this would help her acclimate better. It all worked out really well!

Collins LOVED Wild at Art's camp. Every day she would try a new art technique- drawing, painting, ice-dyeing, clay, etc. She was up early every day dressed and ready to go. She really just lights up when she gets to do something creative. Reeves also did the camp with her so that made it all the more fun for her. She came home with some fantastic pieces that we have already hung on our walls.

Addie was unsure about camp at Hayes Barton, but it helped that Tyler went too. She did some fun art projects, learned how to play hot potato, and got to play all morning in what will be her preschool classroom this Fall. She also had no trouble when I dropped her off. All good signs!

The days she didn't have camp, we ran some errands and had some fun at the park. It was a good week!

First Library Cards

We have a cleaning service now- HOORAY! So we had to get out of the house one afternoon so they could clean so we headed to the library. And I told the girls this would be the perfect opportunity for them to get their first ever library cards. They excitedly found their wallets, and we headed for Cameron Village.

It was a really cute process as the librarian asked them to confirm their name, age, and address. Then they had to sign their cards...

Addie gave hers an "A" because that is the only letter she knows so far...

Luke had fun in the stacks (I have got to get this boy some shoes), and the girls picked out tons of books to scan and take home with them. Collins got several non-fiction crafting books, and Addie selected several picture books.

It was a fun way to spend the afternoon. Now if we can only keep up with those library cards and avoid those overdue fines... :)

Yates Mill Visit

I had heard that the Yates Historic Mill might be a neat place to visit so we headed there the weekend we got back to Raleigh. It's located right past the Farmer's Market so we stopped there too because we needed tomatoes for a tomato pie!

We learned how they make corn meal with this elaborate machine powered by a water wheel. The girls were not completely bored. :)

There is a one mile hike around the lake so we did that with a nature scavenger hunt to make it a little more interesting...

It was a different and neat place to explore so I'm glad we checked it out!

To Kiawah!

We survived the long road trip relatively unscathed...and our prize? Lewis Barbecue! We met the Slossons there (who were living in Charleston for the summer) and ate ourselves sick. Literally. I could not eat dinner because my belly was still aching from stuffing so much meat in my face.

But man...that brisket!

Upon arriving, I realized the first thing I forgot...swim diapers! Poor Luke inflated quite quickly...

 

 

Sunday morning we woke up to the most perfect weather I have ever experienced at Kiawah. It was about 75 degrees, low humidity with a soft breeze...almost Fall-like conditions. In a place that you always expect to be stifling, it was a real treat. In July too!

So we took advantage of the amazing weather and went for a bike ride. Okay, Brian and Collins went for a bike ride, and I pushed Addie along on her tiny bike. Then we gave up and headed for the ocean...

where we were delighted to find tidal pools!

 

We also found shells...Addie was in heaven.

Then along came the other two in typical Kiawah fashion...

  

so the girls ran the beach, and I soaked up every moment of the perfect Sunday morning.

 

  

Back at the beach house our son was trying to crawl! He had gotten himself to move forward slightly before we left home, but it was on once we got to Kiawah. We put the ball out in front of him, and like it was no big deal, he crawled to get it. GO LUKE! I could not believe what I was seeing. Already crawling at seven months?!?

I'm so glad it happened at Kiawah where Brian, Mom, and Baba could see it. It was a neat milestone that I won't forget. And it wasn't like it happened once and then not again. He crawled all over that beach house that week...he was particularly fond of chasing after my phone!

 

He was also fond of standing frequently and using our hands to walk. What is with this boy? Why is he in such a hurry to walk?!?

Addie was cute scooting to the beach. She did her "tree" pose on the way there which we thought was funny...

but then again, Addie is usually pretty entertaining.

Beach vs pool? Think the pool won out this year with the girls, but they still had a good time exploring the beach...

 

 

Luke did not do well with beach time at Wrightsville, but I think that was because he was sick. Because he really did well at Kiawah! He surprised me by playing in the sand (i.e. eating the sand), sitting in the tidal pools, riding some waves with me, and playing in the beach chairs. He is such a good baby.

  

 

 

 

And then there was this magic moment where I captured all three of my children smiling at the same time!!! This will probably go down as one of my favorite pictures of them ever.

After a little while, they would wonder...can we go back to the pool now?

So this is where we would end up...

And for the record, the doughnut beverage floats did work!

 

 

When we weren't at the beach or the pool, chances are good that we were gaming...either Emoji Uno (go Addie), Rummikub (don't mess with Al), or a puzzle (did not realized I enjoyed doing this). Or doing some adult coloring. Or reading. Exciting stuff!

And of course there was biking because we had to work off all that food we ate...

And finally, guess who turned a year older while we were on vacation?!? We celebrated Mom's birthday with a cookout and Baba's banana split cake.

 

And the one picture my sister managed to snap while we there? Could not love it more.

We had a wonderful Kiawah vacation this year. I'll always remember the perfect weather, Luke crawling for the first time, so many great meals, and the fun we had just hanging out. It was a special trip!