Red Letter Day: Fire Station and Meeting Ms. Bell

We had a busy morning with a trip to our local fire station and an individual visit with Henry's new teacher, Ms. Bell.

Henry was so excited to see the fire trucks and climbed right on in like it was his job. I had to laugh because I remember taking Evie on this same exact tour and she spent the entire time on my hip. Henry does have Evie holding his hand and leading him around like a Mother Duck. 

It's always fun to learn about firefighters and how they keep us safe. I was surprised to learn that they take turns making dinner and the bad cooks have to keep practicing. On the menu for them tonight, was Zatarin's gumbo and corn muffins. Henry climbed up to the bar ready to indulge with the firefighters. 

The best part for both kids was getting the hat! It's always fun spending the morning with friends.

After the fire station tour, we headed across the street to Henry's school to meet his teacher. It was love at first sight. Henry was impressed with the classroom and the hermit crab. He kept calling it a snake. Ms. Bell seems like a delightful teacher and I know Henry will learn so much this year. Can't believe that my baby boy is ready for the 2 year old class.

Weekend in Review!

Another weekend has come and gone! Not much happened but it was a very nice weekend. Carl and I went on a date on Friday. Taylor came to babysit the kiddos and Evie was beyond thrilled! We just went out for a quick bite to eat and some errands. Even that is bliss without children. Don't get me wrong, we love our children dearly but it's so nice to have a break from them.

Saturday was spent hanging around the house. We walked over to the park to get out of the house for a bit. It was so much fun playing with the kids. Carl grilled dinner and we called it an early night.

Church this morning and then hamburgers off the grill for lunch. Evie went to her friend Molly's house for a play date. She was so excited to go "all by myself, no Mama's" and had a ball. I ran a few errands and then came home to spend some time with Carl. Henry decided to protest his nap this afternoon so he hung out with us too. 

I had a meeting tonight so Carl hung out with the kiddos. That about sums up our weekend. Nothing too exciting, just time together which is always nice after a busy week.

Weekend Update - Husk, Church BBQ and Swimming

It's been a nice weekend! Our first weekend at home in several weeks. So nice to be home!

Carl and I enjoyed a date night at HUSK. We were so excited to see they opened here in Nashville because all of our Charleston friends have raved for years. Everything was delicious, immaculately presented and the atmosphere was perfect. I had a butter lettuce salad, with freshly picked tomatoes, blue cheese shavings topped with an amazing dressing. Carl started with oysters that must have been divine because those suckers vanished within moments. I had the veggie plate for dinner with grits, eggplant, beets and succotash. Carl had chicken and dumplings. The word dumpling was used very loosely in my opinion because he was served a HUGE piece of chicken with 8 tiny little dumplings. Dessert was the best part! We split a peach tart topped with butter pecan ice cream and pecans. It's at the top of my list for yummy desserts. Both of us really enjoyed dinner but we have enjoyed most of our dinners in Nashville. I like getting my favorite dish again and again and that's not possible at HUSK. The chefs create a new menu each day for both lunch and dinner.

I cut myself off from the Internet for 24 hours. My dear friend, Lindsay, joined me for the challenge. It was incredibly eye opening for both of us to see the grasp that our iPhones have on our lives. It was hard at first but by the afternoon we both felt less stressed and free. I will definitely unplug more often! 

Courtney and the boys came over for a playdate which thrilled my kiddos hearts. They play like siblings which is so nice for us so we can chit-chat. We spent a morning outside and it was just perfect. No elaborate snacks, no cleaning houses - just sitting outside in lawn chairs. That's my kind of playdate!

Carl cooked BBQ at church on Friday with a bunch of guys. He had a ball and is already looking forward to the next big BBQ. It was a great way for him to get to know some guys in the church.

Saturday, we headed out to eat the BBQ. It was yummy! Evie and Henry declined the BBQ but sure enjoyed partaking in the bake sale goodies. I enjoyed the macaroons with salted caramel frosting. We spent some time walking around the bluegrass festival and ran into some friends. 

Carl took over kid duty so I could run out for a pedicure. My leg and feet are still hurting and I am trying some steroids and muscle relaxers now. Getting old is not fun and there's so many more years to go. I am feeling much better tonight! It was so nice to come home to sleeping kiddos.

We went to early church and played outside until naptime. Carl and Evie went to the pool while Henry and I stayed home. It was just what we needed a nice relaxing weekend. Carl grilled some chicken for dinner and then we took a little stroll around the neighborhood.

That's about it, folks! Hope you had a wonderful weekend and that your week gets off to a terrific start.

Two Year Old Pictures!

Here's a few pictures of sweet Henry at his 2 year old photo shoot. Lindy did an amazing job capturing the personality of our little boy. We LOVE these! Can't believe that our little guy is 2. 

It's been a busy week getting back into the swing of things after a week away. I am taking the day off from the Internet tomorrow. That means that I will see you in a few days. My brain needs a break from all the stimuli of the dings and pings of my phone and the constantly changing screens of my computer.

Happy Friday, y'all!

Beach Week 2013

We enjoyed our week at the beach. It took Henry a few days to get into it but he warmed up after holding his little hand up at the ocean while yelling stop. Let's face it, vacations with kids are are not relaxing. Instead, it's a chance to spend lots of time with your family and make memories. We made lots of special memories and enjoyed being together very much.

Here's a quick recap for memories sake with lots of pictures.

Saturday: We drove to Jacksonville and spent the night to break up our trip a little. Evie and Henry are infatuated with hotels and it was a fun night.

Sunday: We drove to St. Augustine and walked around a bit. I was excited to tour the oldest schoolhouse in America. Last time, we just snapped a picture of it. We enjoyed a yummy lunch followed by a trip to the candy shop. It was a short jaunt to the beach from there. We were all excited to see the ocean and play in the sand.

Monday: We hung out on the beach. Evie loved building castles, islands and writing her name in the sand. Henry enjoyed eating way too many snacks and tried to stay faraway from the ocean. We went out to dinner at a restaurant on the beach. Henry was a tiny bit loud and I could tell the couple behind us was annoyed. It was a flip-flop kind of restaurant but we moved. The couple made it clear they were not too happy with us as they walked out the restaurant with some unfortunate word choices and gestures. It was really bad! Carl and I decided to skip restaurant eating although they caused way more of a scene than sweet Henry. 

Tuesday: More of the same - sand and sun! Evie turned 4.5 so I took her out for a sweet treat and to pick out a present while Henry napped. She was so excited to be 4.5! I was excited that she picked out a $4 jewelry box at a consignment store plus a $1 train for Henry. We headed back out on the beach and made dinner at our condo. 

Wednesday: Marineland was our morning activity. Both kids loved seeing the turtles and fish. We climbed up 204 steps to the top of a lighthouse. Evie was a trooper and made it all the way up the spiraling steps. It was worth the effort to see the beach from a new perspective. We dined with the birds for lunch. Henry loved that! It was an outdoor restaurant with pelicans coming in for occasional landings. The waitstaff pelted them with water guns to keep the birds from invading our space. We spent the rest of the afternoon and evening at the beach. Henry decided that the beach was a blast and willing went into the water. He even encouraged Carl to take him further out into the water. Henry played in the sand and learned to wash his hands in the water. Carl and I were more than thrilled when Henry decided that he liked the beach.

Thursday: Our morning was spent on the beach. Everyone was in the groove and the kids played so well on the beach. We decided to try an early dinner and everyone did great. We came back for pictures on the beach and then an evening swim. Evie was so excited to use her new diving toys. 

Friday: Another day of fun in the sand. We broke out the boogie boards and got a little exercise in pulling the kids around in the waves. Henry and Evie would make great beach bums. It was a fun day! It's always sad to leave the beach.

Saturday: We left Ormond Beach and headed to Tybee Island to see Mary and Lucy. Evie was so excited when she found out the surprise. She loves her cousins and had a ball jumping off the dock, taking a boat ride and having a sleepover with Mary and Lucy. They take such good care of her that it is break for me. I wish they could move in to help me out on a daily basis. Kurt and Lollie picked up a delicious shrimp dinner and we had so much sitting outside enjoying dinner. What a fantastic way to end our trip!