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| Watermelon |
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| Flag |
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| Popsicles |
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| Hydrangeas |
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| Chillaxin' |
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| Floating |
Thursday, July 21, 2011
Summer Sightings
Just a few sights that let me know it is summer for sure. Sweet summertime!
Sail Away with Me....
What better way to celebrate ten years of marriage than to have an anniversary cruise with our best buddies who will also be celebrating their tenth year in a couple of months. We had too many double dates to count with Marc and Hillary so it seemed only fitting that they should joing us for a moumental anniversary. In the words of Dolly and Kenny, "Sail away with me to another world..." is exaclty what we did. Three days of just relaxing and enjoying each other. Kind of like the pre-marriage days were....no responsibilities, no children, no alarm clocks!
We found dates that would work for all of our schedules and booked it back in April. It kind of snuck up on us and felt surreal as we rode down to the port without having to pull over for emergency potty breaks or to entertain someone who was getting cranky. We quickly settled in to a "cruisin'" routine and knew exactly what decks served the food! We ate more than we ever have in our lives, laughed a whole lot, and made more memories to tell stories about for the next ten or so years!
We are thinking that an anniversary of the anniversary cruise is definitely in store!
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| Bahama Mamas |
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| The Meelers |
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| The McCullers |
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| A little bit of paradise |
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| Julie-n-Hillary VBFF |
We found dates that would work for all of our schedules and booked it back in April. It kind of snuck up on us and felt surreal as we rode down to the port without having to pull over for emergency potty breaks or to entertain someone who was getting cranky. We quickly settled in to a "cruisin'" routine and knew exactly what decks served the food! We ate more than we ever have in our lives, laughed a whole lot, and made more memories to tell stories about for the next ten or so years!
We are thinking that an anniversary of the anniversary cruise is definitely in store!
3, 2, 1, Lift Off!
I've been a bit of a space geek this summer. While in Daytona, we took a day and went to the Kennedy Space Center. It was stifling hot, but we hoped to inspire a little person in our company with a bit of imagination about discovery and science.
Then, we we found out our anniversary cruise would be boarding on the the same day as the final flight of Atlantis, we decided at the last minute to leave in time to see it. Actually, I had wanted to go all along, but didn't want to pressure anyone into leaving early, especially since it's never a sure thing depending on the weather. Since I had only experienced launches on tv, I wanted to be able to see it with my own eyes just once. Luckily, Marc and Hillary really love me, so they agreed to jump in the truck and head on down a night before we had planned.
We arrived at the port with just minutes to spare. We didn't know where to park to watch it as there were tons of people stopped on the side of all the roads. There were boats riding in from the ocean to see it. That in itself was something to see. We didn't want to be stuck in traffic and not be able to board our ship on time. So, we go all the way to the port (a full two hours before boarding time) and find a spot in the parking deck. Much to our dismay, we found out that they were already boarding the ship. We didn't have time to go through the check-in process and get onboard before the launch. If we had known about the early boarding, we would have made it in time to board the ship so that we could have watched it from the top deck. Instead we positioned ourselves in a window of the parking deck.
Being a "live launch" rookie, I didn't know what to expect. There was no countdown in real life, so all of the sudden the onlookers start to cheer. I see smoke from the launch pad, but I don't see anything else. I couldn't believe what was happening. I had gone out of my way to see this and drug my husband and bffs with me. In all the hustle and bustle to see it, I had a sudden fear that I was missing it. I called out in desperation, "I'm missing it!" Being the rock that she has always been, Hillary pointed my eyes to the right spot so I wouldn't miss the historical event. Phew! What would I do without her. Turns out I was seeing it, I just wasn't sure that the billowing white clouds was "it."I finally found the glowing orange flame that was pushing the shuttle and was able to watch it until it went behind the clouds. It wasn't until then that we finally heard the rumble and roar of the engines powering the object into space.
Thanks for giving me this experience and for being such good sports about it. I do try to hide my geekiness most of the time. I know it definitely shined through for this event! Thanks for loving me despite of it.
Then, we we found out our anniversary cruise would be boarding on the the same day as the final flight of Atlantis, we decided at the last minute to leave in time to see it. Actually, I had wanted to go all along, but didn't want to pressure anyone into leaving early, especially since it's never a sure thing depending on the weather. Since I had only experienced launches on tv, I wanted to be able to see it with my own eyes just once. Luckily, Marc and Hillary really love me, so they agreed to jump in the truck and head on down a night before we had planned.
We arrived at the port with just minutes to spare. We didn't know where to park to watch it as there were tons of people stopped on the side of all the roads. There were boats riding in from the ocean to see it. That in itself was something to see. We didn't want to be stuck in traffic and not be able to board our ship on time. So, we go all the way to the port (a full two hours before boarding time) and find a spot in the parking deck. Much to our dismay, we found out that they were already boarding the ship. We didn't have time to go through the check-in process and get onboard before the launch. If we had known about the early boarding, we would have made it in time to board the ship so that we could have watched it from the top deck. Instead we positioned ourselves in a window of the parking deck.
Being a "live launch" rookie, I didn't know what to expect. There was no countdown in real life, so all of the sudden the onlookers start to cheer. I see smoke from the launch pad, but I don't see anything else. I couldn't believe what was happening. I had gone out of my way to see this and drug my husband and bffs with me. In all the hustle and bustle to see it, I had a sudden fear that I was missing it. I called out in desperation, "I'm missing it!" Being the rock that she has always been, Hillary pointed my eyes to the right spot so I wouldn't miss the historical event. Phew! What would I do without her. Turns out I was seeing it, I just wasn't sure that the billowing white clouds was "it."I finally found the glowing orange flame that was pushing the shuttle and was able to watch it until it went behind the clouds. It wasn't until then that we finally heard the rumble and roar of the engines powering the object into space.
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| Julie: "I'm missing it!" Hillary: "It is right there....the big orange glow." |
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| The smoke that followed the glow. This is when we could finally hear the rumbling. |
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| The smoke over the boarding area for the cruise ship |
Thanks for giving me this experience and for being such good sports about it. I do try to hide my geekiness most of the time. I know it definitely shined through for this event! Thanks for loving me despite of it.
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| From one out-of-this-world experience to another! |
Braves Game with the Boys
Doo's Father's Day gift was a trip to the Braves game. He had never been to Turner Field, and for such a die-hard fan, this was an injustice! The original plan was for the "boys" to take him. Somehow (thanks to my sister who booked it) I ended up with the boys in place of Tony who had his own baseball team to root on. I was Doo's original "boy," so it was fitting that I join in. I think they were glad to have me because I packed the snacks and kept up with the tickets for them.
We had a fun night full of laughs, chops, and a win for the Braves! Couldn't have been better!
We had a fun night full of laughs, chops, and a win for the Braves! Couldn't have been better!
Beach Bums
As usual, our summer isn't complete without a trip (or two) to the beach. We crashed Daytona, the world's most famous beach, this year with Tommy and Kim and some friends and then hit our usual Amelia Island with the Phillips family. We didn't plan it quite right as we had a week lull in between. It would have been perfect to have been away for two straight weeks, but we choese to drive 8 hours there and back, then 6 hours down to AI and back! Grateful for kids who don't get carsick and for two that can wear headphones while watching movies in the car. We kept the suitcases all packed and ready for the week in between. One summer, maybe we can get our weeks just right. Summer baseball is usually what dictates our weeks. However, it also helps to fund our fun so we have to work around it.
We declared this to be the best summer yet since becoming parents. This declaration comes largely because now that both Cam and Maeve love the water! As a toddler, we had to lure Cam out to the beach and pump him with snacks. We could only hope to get a couple of beach hours in with him. While he still doesn't love getting sandy and is a little apprehensive of the murky ocean waters, he does have fun digging, playing baseball, and searching for shells and sand fleas. Maeve had a cranky first year on the beach mostley because she was just a few months old, but last year and this she has had a blast on the beach. She doesn't mind getting sandy (or eating sand) and loves to busy herself in the sand by building castles and retrieving water. She will jump a wave with the big boys and has no fear of what lurks underneath. Some of her best naps have been passed out under the umbrella.
Phew! Finally a little time to relax in my new beach chair! There is nothing more perfect than sand underfoot, breeze whipping the sides of my oversized hat, and the sounds of waves crashing nearby.
Spoiled. For sure. Yet another reason why I LOVE summertime!
We declared this to be the best summer yet since becoming parents. This declaration comes largely because now that both Cam and Maeve love the water! As a toddler, we had to lure Cam out to the beach and pump him with snacks. We could only hope to get a couple of beach hours in with him. While he still doesn't love getting sandy and is a little apprehensive of the murky ocean waters, he does have fun digging, playing baseball, and searching for shells and sand fleas. Maeve had a cranky first year on the beach mostley because she was just a few months old, but last year and this she has had a blast on the beach. She doesn't mind getting sandy (or eating sand) and loves to busy herself in the sand by building castles and retrieving water. She will jump a wave with the big boys and has no fear of what lurks underneath. Some of her best naps have been passed out under the umbrella.
Phew! Finally a little time to relax in my new beach chair! There is nothing more perfect than sand underfoot, breeze whipping the sides of my oversized hat, and the sounds of waves crashing nearby.
Spoiled. For sure. Yet another reason why I LOVE summertime!
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| Daddy made Cam some giant feet |
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| The braided pigtails must make her feel serious about playing |
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| Cam and Maeve's Castle |
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| Snowcones on the beach |
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| Matching McCullers |
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| Cam, 5 years old |
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| Maeve, 2 years old |
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| Posing (He would not lay or sit beside his name) |
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| My shrimps with the patriotic shrimp |
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| Riding the waves (first time ever!) |
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| Teaching Maeve how to jump the waves |
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| Fine-looking Foursome Wonder how long they will stay stairsteps? |
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| I couldn't get her to pose on the sand with her name, but she had no trouble striking this pose by the tree! |
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| Love this place. Love these two. |
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