Family time in SC

The past weekend we spent visiting my husband's family in Summerville, SC. Even though it was HOT (100F/ 39C), we enjoyed seeing Grandma and Grandpa as well as all of Derrick's brothers and my sister in-law Bahar (Lee and Bahar were visiting from CA).

Aunt Bahar, Amelia and Elliot

Grandma and her grandbabies; Uncle Lee and Elliot; Elliot and Uncle David

The kids didn't mind the heat though as they were happy cooling off under the sprinkler.

And they also played some soccer, ran around in the yard and played with the dog.

We also got some cuddles in with our little boy who is still teething.

On Saturday, Derrick and his dad worked all day on the boat (a 1972 Marquis) to get it ready for the drive up North to our house. We can't wait to go boating with the kids at Lake Norman soon. 

While the men worked on the boat and I chased the kids around, Grandma and aunt Bahar cooked a delicious dinner.

On Sunday morning, we went to Lake Moultrie where Derrick's oldest brother, Toni, had a beautiful cabin rented on the lake. 

The scenery was great but unfortunately we couldn't swim in the lake due to alligators and snakes. 

We all enjoyed each others company and a delicious BBQ.  Here is Derrick with his brothers Toni and Lee:

And the rest of the gang:

Since it was another sizzling hot day (100+F), the kids enjoyed playing with a bucket full of water and ice. They also pretended to drive in Uncle Toni's electric car.

The fishing pier was right behind the cabin and looked very inviting to catch some big fish.

 We had a great time being together with family and are looking forward to seeing them again soon.

Water Babies and Princesses

This week was all about sunshine, water and princesses. It definitely felt like the first week of summer with daily temperatures in the high 80'sF (30C). Thus, we were either in the splash pool, at the lake or the community pool. After going to our "private" beach on Tuesday, we took the kids to the community pool on Wednesday afternoon. It reminded me of the community pool in the 90's movies (i.e: Caddyshack). The kids were excited and ready to jump in. 

The pool has a shallow entrance and some overhead sprinklers, which was just perfect for the little ones.

But every hour for 10 minutes they pull everyone out of the pool so that the adults could swim some laps. So Derrick took advantage of the empty pool while 50+ kids watched him swim his laps (it was a pretty funny and a surreal scene). Luckily, the wait was short and then it was back in to the water.

Other days we spent playing in the backyard. Elliot loves playing soccer with Daddy, Amelia helps me with my garden and they have fun playing with their toys. But the best part of a hot afternoon is when they can enjoy a cold Popsicle on the deck.

 

But all that playing,being out in the sun and splashing in the water makes for tired children. So after dinner, we read stories together. Even though my little boy is very tired at that point, it doesn't keep him from reading his favorite books. Actually, Elliot loves reading books all day long. Multiple times (i.e: every time I sit down) during the day he will come up to you, crawl in to your lap and then makes sure we will read his book (several times) to him. I'm just happy to see that he enjoys books as much as the rest of the family. 

Today I surprised Amelia by taking her to "Princess Night" at our local Chick fil-a. Every Thursday night during the summer, the restaurant offers some fun activities for the kids. And this one was just perfect for my little princess. Eating while we wait for the main attraction to arrive. 

And the princesses arrived in style:

Welcome Belle, Cinderella and Aurora:

Since Amelia was first in line, she was greeted by Cinderella and then walked over to the carriage for a ride. Even mommy was allowed to join in on the fun.

The carriage ride took about 5 minutes and was lots of fun. Cinderella chatted with the girls (3 children plus mommies), sang a song and taught them how to wave like a princess. When we came back, there were lots of little princesses waiting for their turn in the carriage. 

Amelia loved greeting each princess and gave them all a big hug.

The princesses were all super sweet and reminded me of true Disney characters. It all felt like a dream come true. Thanks to Chick fil-a I took one happy girl back home.

It makes me happy when I see my girl beaming from ear to ear. I could tell she loved it as she said "thank you" several times on our drive home. Remember, you can be anything you want to be, my little princess!

Our Private Beach

This morning Derrick went fishing at Lake Norman State Park, which is located approximately 15 miles from our house. While he was there, he discovered a little hidden gem: a small, secluded beach. When he came home to tell us about his find, we decided that we wanted to go there. The weather was great and the kids were ready to splash around in the lake. To get to the beach, we had to walk a few hundred yards on the hiking trail but it was totally worth the little hike. 

The beach is just the right size for a family to hang out and enjoy beautiful Lake Norman. Since it was mid-afternoon when we got there, the beach was already in the shade and the water had a nice temperature of 82 F (28 C). Ready to jump in:

My water babies were in heaven:

Even I got in as the water was just great: warm and no algae at all.  

After an hour of splashing around, the kids were ready for a snack.  

We had such a spontaneous and fun afternoon that we definitely will revisit our little private beach a few more times this summer. 

Summer Reading Kickoff

Our local library had their summer reading kickoff celebration today and we made sure that our entire family was there (with at least 150 other people) to party. Every summer they choose a theme (this year it is called Be a Superhero) and they encourage young and old to read more over the summer months. I have signed Amelia and myself up (I'm reading a lot lately) online at their webpage to keep track off what and how many books we read over the summer. Once you read a certain amount, the library will give you some prizes. It is a nice incentive for Amelia to do her daily readings (she is reading Level 1 books and usually finishes one, they are small, in a day or two) and to explore the world of books they offer. During the entire summer, the library also has events, movies, and crafting activities going on, all related to their theme. We will make sure to participate in as many as we can (its' for free after all).  

The kickoff party started off with bubbles while we were waiting for the main attraction to arrive. 

To shorten the wait, they had a story time too. My little guy climbed up and seated himself next to the other kids. He was so proud and enjoyed listening to the books like a big kid. By the way, he didn't want to sit next to his sister...lol.

And then it was time for the main event: an animal show. The library had invited a representative from Zootastic Park, who talked about exotic animals and brought in a cockatoo, baby alligator, ferret, an albino corn snake and even a red kangaroo.

We got to see, learn about (for example: ferrets stink and are not good pets even though they are the third most common pet in America) and then touch all of the animals. It was very cool indeed as I nor my kids ever touched a kangaroo before.

Isn't he the cutest???

My little girl was brave and petted every animal:

And even Elliot was interested in the animals, but when I got too close he tried hiding on my arm. He did hiss like a snake when we stepped closer to the corn snake.

The library also offered a scavenger hunt for the older kids and adults had the chance to meet everyday heroes like emergency workers and learn how they themselves can become a local hero. Outside, the local police and fire department had set-up a pretend accident scene so that the kids could see how the firemen use their equipment to save people. They also handed out stickers, hats and pencils to the kids, A terrific morning indeed.

Now, it is naptime for all of us as I will meet some other mommies for a girl's night out tonight. So looking forward to it, just some girls, wine and appetizers at a local Tapas Bar. Happy Weekend to all of you!

Little Boy, Big Changes

Elliot is almost 18 months old, so we decided that it will be time to initiate some changes. Over the course of the next few months, we will wean him off his pacifier, start potty training and probably take the front off his crib since he is getting so big (27+lbs). These are a lot of changes for a  little boy.

Especially, since he is and always will be my baby boy. For a while after we moved, he wanted to be rocked to sleep and I loved it as much as he did. You could say I'm trying to hold on to his "babyness" for as long as possible.

Other than that, he is no baby at all. He is running after his sister, climbing on the couch and bed, dancing whenever he hears music, and jumping around like a bunny. He also mastered our stairs very well and walks them up or down like a big boy. 

He also knows exactly what he wants and what he doesn't' want and lets you know by shaking his head and saying "No,No" or "Yeah".   

A few days ago, I pulled the potty out of the garage and Elliot seemed interested in playing with it. For the past two nights we put him on it before bath time and nothing happened, except today he peed in it (and then put his hand in it and tried licking it afterwards-such a boy). I'm one proud mommy even though I know it will be a long journey till he is fully potty trained. Nonetheless, we celebrated his little achievement (Elliot got a gummibear and I'm having some wine).

Little by little we will get there. My goal is that he will be potty trained by his second birthday, more or less. Since he likes imitating his sister I hope he will do the same when it comes to going on the potty. So far my second born is learning and growing up much faster than my first baby did. Sometimes I wish I could stop time and keep him little just a bit longer. Don't get me wrong, I love that he is learning and exploring the world and becoming his own little person but I do miss the days when he was a baby and I could hold and cuddle him all day long. However, this time has passed and I'm happy that Elliot is blossoming and becoming more independent every day. It is hard for a mother to accept this since he will always be my little boy but this little saying keeps things in perspective for me: