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! 

Daddy made Cam some giant feet

The braided pigtails must make her feel serious about playing

Cam and Maeve's Castle

Snowcones on the beach

Matching McCullers

Cam, 5 years old

Maeve, 2 years old

Posing (He would not lay or sit beside his name)

My shrimps with the patriotic shrimp

Riding the waves (first time ever!)

Teaching Maeve how to jump the waves

Fine-looking Foursome
Wonder how long they will stay stairsteps? 

I couldn't get her to pose on the sand with her name,
but she had no trouble striking this pose by the tree! 

Love this place.  Love these two.

Sensational Summer Celebrations

We just can't say enough about summer and all the fun that it holds.  We have lots of summer birthdays to celebrate as well and just lots of time to be with those we love the most.  Here are our summer sensations so far:

An afternoon with Anna Belle
(These girls are starting to enjoy each other so much!) 

Carson's 9th Birthday (He let Cam and Maeve share his throne)

Jumping at PumpItUp

Sliding head first

Feeding the baby lamb at Caroline's Farm Party

Maeve and Brenna checking out the laughing bird

Conquering the Water

Although Cam starting swimming on his own last summer, the winter months had robbed him of his water confidence.  He was having fun in the water but still feeling very limited in his abilities.  I was determined that he was going to be my waterbug this year so I recruited some help from a swim instructor.  Knowing that he was probably going to unveil his strongwilled nature and make a scene, we opted for private, one-on-one lessons with a girl that I found on craigslist.  (I did a little facebook research before I contacted her, and no...I never completely left the two of them alone!) She was able to fit us in on the days before we headed off to our summer water destinations. 

After much fretting, questioning, and bellowing, Cam is now a swimmer. In just two short weeks, he has transformed from a lump of sugar who was afraid to hardly get wet to an outright fish who can't seem to get enough water! And luckily, little sister is following his lead and venturing off the steps to try out her own little flipper feet too! 

Trying to make-up for all that lost time spent on the side of the pool

Scoping out his next destination

Getting braver and braver

Just being her silly self

Swimming calls for snacking

Her first time trusting her crab float.
(She might do much better if she could concentrate more of her efforts on swimming instead of making sure anyone in a ten mile radius knew about her adventure by exclaiming, "I fwimming!  I fwimming!" )

Cam is so confident with his own skills that he can now help out his little sister ;~)

Ahh...I finally will know what it feels like for my children to beg to go to the pool and not be ready to go as soon as we arrive.   Cheers to a saturated, swimming-filled summer!

We be Camping!

Since we bought our camper in 02', this has been our camping catchphrase.  Then it was just three campers:  Tony, CoCo, and me.  We have nearly doubled that and now boast a brood of 5 all packed into our tiny camper.  We jumpstarted summer with a camping trip to Lake Lanier with Moo and Doo.  We sandwiched the trip between swimming lessons and VBS.  I think that the two smallest campers would not complain if we spent the entire summer camping.  We need to take advantage of our getaway on wheels more often.  Although it was extra hot, it definitely hit the relaxing spot!

Maeve's first boatride

Helping Doo drive the boat

Captain Cam

Nothing beats a camping breakfast

Moo being overly cautious (as usual)

Maeve did the big slide!

Cam sitting and looking out at the lake

Maeve made sand her mission

Relaxing and trusting the life-jacket

Carson highjacked my float

The Sug(pronouned like first part of sugar) of Suggy Island

The four cousins living up summertime

May Madness

One of my parents at school made the comment to me sometime in the midst of May that she would rather have three Decembers as opposed to one May.  I had never considered that comparison, but it spoke volumes to me.  Why is it SO busy?  Maybe it is because it is unexpected hectic whereas at Christmas we prepare ourselves for the hustle and bustle.  Or maybe it is because the anticipation of our routine coming to a screeching hault.  We all know the anticpation can be excruciating.  Maybe it's just that we try to cram so much into one month...between Mother's Day, graduations, and the end of a school year, there is a whole lot of celebrating and gift giving.  Here is our May summed up in pictures: 

A little strawberry in a strawberry patch

Silly Strawberry Sleuth

The NewAge was of keeping little ones tamed in church

Mother's Day Treat

Ice Cream run in our pjs!

Swim, swim, swim at Nonna's

Maeve's end of the year party at her "baby school"

Cam's Pre-K Muscial

Singing "Vegetable Jamboree"

Posing with our favorite little one who is ready for Kindegarten

Our Slugger

The last game ended with a team celebration

We have our work cut out for us with the potty training task

Soaking up the SUN!

Success after 5 days of swimming lessons!

And these were just the events that I took the time to capture!  We are on the fasttrack and looking forward to a slower pace for the next couple of months.  Ahhh, sweet summertime, here we come!