When Joe told me earlier in the year that he had to travel for a week long conference in July, I had a choice to make. Did I want to stay in NY solo with three kiddos for a week or should we drive to Florida a week earlier than our scheduled vacation and stay with Nagymama? It was a no brainer. So, Joe loaded up our family just three days after our return from Utah and drove us to Florida before he flew out to Arkansas for the week.
We left around Juliet's bedtime. The girls were set up with their dvd players and activity boxes. Joe and I ordered our venti coffees. Our co-captain was ready and we were off to our next adventure. Here we come, Nagymama!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JPui5uSYNZw
The kids slept through the night and before the sun even started to come up, we were in North Carolina.
We started at 7:30 pm and made it in 22 hours with minimal complaining and a car full of people who couldn't wait to see Nagymama. We arrived to a delicious spread of Chicken Paprikas and cucumber salad. Then, we all collapsed into bed! Curling up in those sheets always feels like home.
The drive is always worth it when we get to wake up to this site! Day 1 and we jumped right (literally) before breakfast.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hmGdOm1vRxc
Joe had one day with us before he had to fly out, so we soaked up lots of quality time with him by the pool before he left.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nrXRdBvF-X0
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NMeCaS-hfvY
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ix2TojeAqZ0
When you start swimming before breakfast and play hard all day, bedtime comes easy...and early.
My Aunt Valerie and Uncle Bob came to visit for a few days while we were there. It was special for me because my girls hadn't met them yet. They brought the girls a sno-cone machine (which was really fun for me because I remember them giving me a Snoopy sno-cone machine when I was four) and they spent lots of time playing with the girls. Uncle Bob even taught the girls all about Nascar. :) It was a fun visit!
"I'll have ALL the colors!"
Of course, it didn't take long for Ollie to make a new friend. He knows a dog lover from a mile away.
This is my happy place when the girls are having nap/rest time for a bit after lunch.
Good thing, I wasn't try to read or anything? :)
Some afternoons just call for Florida exercise (laps in the air conditioned mall) and Starbucks so mommy doesn't fall asleep before bedtime. Day 4 without daddy and though we were in our own little version of paradise, this momma was tired. Totally thankful that I got to spend the week in Florida with Nagymama and the girls instead of solo parenting for a week back home. Only two more sleeps until daddy is back!
When we picked Daddy up from the airport, I thought our car was going to explode with excitement. He's home! He's home! We had a ton of fun with Nagymama, but it is so much better when our family is in one place.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qS5Xi2saggE
He's home! He's home! (part 2) Daddy is on duty for a bit. Mommy needs a minute. Family vacation starts now.
Post dinner trip to Sweet Scoops, then to build some sandcastles at the beach!
We waited for Daddy to get home before we headed to the beach because he didn't want to miss Juliet's first time.
We have another beach babe. Watching Juliet discover sand for the first time was the best. It only took her ten minutes before she start chowing down on the fistfuls. She was all giggles and smiles when her toes hit the ocean!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gmPLBJ4gRxA
There aren't enough words to say how much I loved all the time we got to spend together. I love the time Joe and I get with Mama, but then I also get to watch my girls make the same memories with my grandmother that I got to make as a little girl. It doesn't get any better than that. Pool parties, Olympics, watching Mama sew, walks around the neighborhood together, evenings on the beach, Uno, Wheel of Fortune after dinner, palacsinta making and lots of laughter marked many of our days.
"It is the sweet simple things of life which are the real ones after all." - Laura Ignalls Wilder
It's amazing the difference a year can make! One year ago, we stood on this beach and surprised Mama with our baby girl's name by writing it in the sand. Now she's here making memories with us. Last year, Ella was just a baby who still needed potty training. Now she is such a grown little girl! Abby was still nervous in the ocean and now she is swimming like a fish in any water she can find. Something about the ocean and these summer days make me so aware of just how sweet these moments are. These gifts aren't lost on me. I'm so thankful to be their mom. I love making memories in our special place.
Total happiness after the first dip!
"Maybe that's precisely the main purpose of this mommy calling. Maybe it's not as much a call to train your kids as it is a call to treasure them. Children change quickly. Let's enjoy these good days God has given us. They are his gifts, glimmers of his goodness, which lead us to say with C.S. Lewis, 'What must be the quality of that Being whose far-off and momentary sparkles are like this!'" - Trillia Newbell
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| our sparkles: the glimmers of His goodness |
matching Grace and Ella
These two are the best of buddies also.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cRnfZOI-o2A
Thank you Snapchat for memories like these:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TgqH-UjGeGE
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0dLhJpYN6BM
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pUj-rqjwMZk
Family vacation 2016
Abby ran into the kitchen, grabbed Mama's hand and said, "Happy Birthday Mama! It's your lucky day. Come sit at the table please! As a late birthday gift, I am going to draw you. Your very own self portrait! Aren't you excited?"
Our little artist. I love this girl so much!
Big news: While we were in Florida, both Abby and Ella learned how to swim by themselves without floaties. First, it was Abby. Then, Ella decided she didn't want to wear floaties anymore because she was a big girl like her sister. It took extra watching from mommy and daddy, but she was confident and practiced alongside Abby. By the end of the trip, they were both jumping in the deep end and swimming on their own!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qiO6P_-FaHM
I love this video because you can see how Ella was sitting on the sidelines cheering her sister on while pretending to take a video on her fake cell phone.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WDO0iNFYNIw
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n8b5QcMqm0w
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X6ozf4Q3R-8
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EUWmMO_fX6g
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