First Summer Vacation!

It felt like it had been a long time since we were down at Wrightsville Beach so there was a lot of excitement built up to this first summer vacation. As soon as Collins finished with VBS, it was time to hit the road!

But unfortunately, this road trip was not a quick or easy process. Door-to-door the trip should be 1 hour 45 minutes. It took us three plus hours after three traffic jams, stopping off an exit ramp to feed Luke, and one blowout diaper situation...sigh. Not fun. But the moment we stepped out of that car, felt that sea breeze, and headed to the beach, we were all smiles. Especially these three!

The most important thing that happened on this beach trip is that...the cousins from Colorado came!!! The girls were really excited to hang out with Wyatt (10) and Chase (8). Collins was only three the last time they came to North Carolina, and she didn't really remember them. And the Williams' crew had never met Addie or Luke so we were looking forward to hanging out. Corey, Greg, the boys, and Connie and Charlie all made the trip and had rented a house across from ours on the sound.

The girls were so shy around the boys until this boat ride, and then after this time together it was  constant giggles at their antics and conversation. By the end of the trip, they were fast friends!

Aunt Connie knows boys and was more than happy to hold this one...

Brian playing lacrosse?!? Never thought I'd see this happening. He and Greg hit the ball around.

Tacos in a bag?!? We learned so much from our Colorado family!

The week started off bad because Luke got sick for the first time...we first noticed it Saturday morning when he woke up really hot. Well, his temperature continued to rise until it hit 103 degrees which completely freaked me out. I HATE when my kids get fevers, and to see my small baby so lethargic and hot was really terrible. I ended up taking him to a Wilmington pediatric urgent care just to make sure it wasn't something other than a virus. It wasn't, and his fever finally broke on Tuesday. What a relief! But I still felt like we had a shortened vacation because Luke felt so bad for so many days. Once he was back to normal, I felt like I could finally relax and enjoy the vacation.

We crammed as much fun as we could the next few days...including lots of beach time.

Love Addie's thumbs up...she learned to love riding waves with us on this trip. It was a great feeling to have her little arms wrapped around my neck tightly as we jumped over waves together and laughed. She did the same with Brian.

We bought a boat! Reminded me of the one Alli and I had so much fun in when we were little...

Brian dug lots of holes as always...

Addie brightened up one cloudy day...

And we managed to get a family photo!

Then there was the dock side...

where Addie caught her first fish...

where Charlie became a fish...

and where we would go for dips in Lollipop Cove.

We had so much fun renting a boat for a day last year that we had to do it again this year...and it was just as awesome.

We "docked" on Lee Island, Rhett's Bluff, and Masonboro...and decided that private, uninhabited islands are the ones for me! I don't really need to see other people when I beach it.

These two were inseparable on that boating adventure...both staying on it the full eight hours that we had it.

Lunch at Dockside...

More exploring...

and finally heading back to the marina. Days like that just make you want to own a boat!

Back at the house there was lots of silliness...

and some more serious homework time. Not a bad spot to do your required reading!

We attempted to go out to dinner once...I say attempted because Luke and I did not make it past the beverage portion of the meal before he lost it and we had to head back. But Collins and Addie got to eat seafood with their cousins which made them happy...

and remembering these guys at this exact same spot at the Boathouse three years ago made me happy. Wow- what growth!

The back of the Williams's house provided some amazing sunset views...

and then like that, it was time to return home. The week flew by! But lucky for the girls, the cousins were staying in Raleigh for a few more days. So no goodbyes quite yet!

Bible School

The girls were super excited to go to Bible School this year. Collins had been enough times to not be scared, Addie was getting to go for the first time, and I was going to be a shepherd. And most importantly- Mimi was coming to take care of Luke and help fill in the gaps! We were all excited for the week ahead.

I got to lead the "Scooters" around to the various centers (VBS was back at our church this year now that our renovation was complete). It was a cute bunch.

Addie did great with her first time at Bible School! I was worried she would be scared and not be able to separate from me, but she had no problems.

 

But she only went two days so she could spend some time with her Mimi...

I was proud of Collins because she acclimated well to a new group of friends. She didn't really know anybody in her class going in. But she had fun with the other kids, loved the music she learned, and got to make some cool crafts. VBS was a success!

 

Father's Day

Father's Day was pretty low-key this year...the way Dad wanted it! It involved a breakfast party (girls couldn't wait any longer to give him their cards/gifts), lunch out, and a family bike ride. Brian is really an amazing Dad. He works so hard to provide for us all, makes spending time with the kids a priority, and shows us so much love all the time. I'm so grateful for the wonderful Father he is every day! And Collins is grateful that he takes her to Amedeo's! :)

First Week of Summer

We wasted no time getting into some summer fun this year! We loaded in the activities the first week out of school...maybe I was a little too excited about our break together? :)

The first official day out of school, we had a wonderful playdate with the Kaspers and the Flynns at our fave, Banbury Park. All nine of the kids played together and ran wild and free around the park/woods/creek. Loved seeing how much all the kids had grown and having the chance to get them all together.

After our playdate, I decided to treat the girls and let them watch a movie that afternoon. They had never seen "Aladdin" so I thought this would be a good time to snuggle and watch it. Addie got bored somewhere near the end and disappeared. When I found her, she had painted her baby's head blue! Look at that mischievous face!

The next day, I was watering the garden, and the girls got a hold of the water hose. I knew where this was headed but just let it because that is what summer is all about!

We had Celia-Gray's birthday party at Pullen Park that week, and man was it hot. But despite the sweating, we had fun riding the train...

 eating popsicles...

and riding the carousel. Pullen Park is a summer-must, and we went ahead and checked it off the list! 

Not tired yet, the next day we headed to Coconut Charlies for some jumping. The girls don't normally get to go with just each other (they are normally there for a bday party) so it was neat to see them tag-team with each other until they were completely worn out.

Next up? The science museum! This is their favorite museum in Raleigh, and they were excited for Gigi to take them. They each got a new stuffed animal, and when they came home we made a diorama for each of them.

And almost every afternoon that week, we headed to the pool for swim team.

I'm pretty sure we maxed out that first week of summer! It was really fun having all my kids home and enjoying some of our favorite activities together. Next week- VBS!

A Trip to Greensboro

Poppy and Nana were sweet to take us to see Sesame Street Live a few weeks back. We headed to Greensboro for the show, and I'm pretty sure the girls were more excited to see Poppy and Nana than they were Elmo and Big Bird!

Luke thought the show was a bit of a snoozer, but the girls really enjoyed it. :)

Heading out of town, we had to make a pit stop so I could feed Luke and we happened to pass this cool new garden on the edge of Greenboro. The girls had fun exploring and got some energy out before heading back to Raleigh.

 

 

 It was a short visit, but so glad we got to spend some time with Poppy and Nana!

Swim Team

We tried something new this summer- swim team! We joined the Northbrook pool in part so Collins could join the Dolphin swim team. We had heard this was a great (and cheap) way to get your kids swimming really well, and we also thought joining an athletic team might be a good way to increase Collins' confidence.

I had heard lots of complaints from other parents about swim team going in (kids didn't want to practice, parents didn't want to go to the meets, too hot, etc.), but I have to say it has been a positive experience for us. Collins wanted to go to practice, loved socializing with her friends in the pool afterwards, got excited about the meets, and has significantly improved her swimming times in each event.

Of course, we did find that the meets were chaotic (so many people), that is was unbearably hot, and it was hard to entertain two littles ones for long of a time. They do seem to go on forever.

The first meet was at Greystone, and it was very overwhelming for Collins (and me too). We had no idea what was going on, and there were some tears when I forgot to pack her swim cap and she didn't know where to go.

 

But I was really proud of her...she went out there in front of hundreds of people and swam the freestyle, backstroke, and breaststroke to the best of her ability. That could not have been easy for a six-year-old (the youngest division out there)!

She earned a participation ribbon (didn't bother to ask what that meant because she didn't care...it was a RAINBOW RIBBON). She was thrilled!

Her only smile of that entire meet may have been when she got a Kona Ice, but she learned a lot that night and was already excited about meet #2!