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summer vacation

End of Summer Recaps: Vacation

October 6, 2015
I am being forced to accept that summer is over. Especially after the weather we have had in here SC recently and the cooler temperatures that have finally arrived. Over the summer, I took plenty of pictures, but haven’t really gone through all of them. Now that we are stuck indoors, I’ve finally gotten a chance to look through some of the memories we made this summer and decided to share some of them here.

I would like to apologize in advanced for the number of pictures in this post. I have a problem with decision-making.

In July, we took our annual family vacation to the beach. I was a little nervous about taking a then three-month-old to the beach, but it worked out just fine and we all had an exhausting, wonderful week! We went to the aquarium on the way down, spent every morning and most afternoons on the beach, skipped naps, and stayed up late.

Colette spent her days napping on the beach in her very own tent or eating under our favorite Turkish Towel.

Cullen had so much fun digging holes, jumping waves, chasing girls down the beach, playing putt-putt, and fishing in the canal with his Papa.

I wish we could go back right now, but I will settle for embracing fall and looking forward to returning next summer!

summer

Summer Bucket List

June 11, 2015
Since I’m out on maternity leave and will have lots of extra time with the littles, I’m hoping to take advantage of everything summer has to offer. Here are some things we hope to do over the next few months.
1. Grow some vegetables – mini garden style. 
2. Spend as much time playing in the pool and sprinkler as possible.
3. Eat dinner outside often.
4. Host our 2nd annual 4th of July cook-out.
5. Picnic in the park.
6. Visit the zoo.
7. “Camp out” inside.
8. Catch lightning bugs.
9. Make homemade popsicles and ice cream.
10. Go to the beach at least once.
11. Visit our favorite sno cone stand a lot!
12. Slow down and enjoy every minute of this summer!

What fun things do you have planned for summer?
summer

More Water!

August 6, 2014
You have already seen our trip to the aquarium and our family pictures, but I’m back today (a little later than promised) to share about the rest of our family vacation. (Read as “what Cullen did all week”.) This was our annual family trip with my Mom’s extended family and family friends. They have been going on this vacation for over 45 years. We go the same week and stay in the same houses every year. This year we had over 30 people with us and we all had a blast!



We all love this week so much! It is a chance to relax and spend time with family and friends we rarely get to see. We spent most of the week sitting on the beach, reading, eating, and chatting on the back porch. Our most pressing concern of the week was making sure we remembered to reapply sunscreen. 😉

Saturday afternoon we took out time getting settled, stocking up on food for the week, and saying hello to everyone for the first time since last year. The rest of the week was spent soaking up the sun, building sand castles and jumping waves. Cullen fascinated by the sand and the ocean. 

This kid has no fear and took on the ocean like it was a puddle. If a waved knocked him down he, quite literally, rolled with it and grinned ear to ear. Then he was back up to do it all again. One of my favorite moments from the week was when he was standing in the edge of the surf, he threw his hands up and yelled “more water!” as the waves sank back into the ocean. I think that sums up how he feels about the ocean. 




If he wasn’t in the water, he was carrying sand back to the ocean. I can’t begin to count how many times he carried handfuls of sand from the beach and threw them into the ocean. Because that’s where the sand goes, right?

Cullen’s Papa, Daddy, and uncles tried to teach him the art of sand castle building. What ended up happening was he dug holes while they attempted to build a sand castle, then he knocked over said sand castle. And then asked them to build it again. Apparently he is more into demolition. It was great seeing him truly enjoy time with the men in his life. It is easy to see how much he already looks up to them by the way he imitates their every move (burping and finger-pulling included!)


When he did take a break from throwing sand and jumping waves, he chased birds, ran after 20-something-year-old women, ate sand covered goldfish, and took naps under the tent. Cullen took advantage of every minute we had on vacation and made a lifetime of memories in this one week.

One rainy afternoon, when we couldn’t play on the beach, Cullen caught his first fish. Mom and I were out shopping when I received this picture of Cullen and his fish. The look on his face is priceless; he is so proud of himself and his fish (rightfully so!) Weeks later he still grins ear to ear and tells you how big his fish was when you ask.


There is not much else that can beat a week at the beach with family and not a care in the world. It was a great trip, and we are already looking forward to next year!

summer

Say Cheese!

July 30, 2014

Last year, on Cullen’s first beach trip, we started a tradition of taking a family picture every year at the beach. I really love how some of these turned out this year, and can’t wait to get them in frames.




It has already been made clear by other family members that I cannot choose our colors next year. Something about I only pick colors based on pieces in my closet. Not true…I was just lucky enough to find this dress after I picked the colors. I decided on the colors based on what Cullen already had. 😉
summer

Turtle!

July 29, 2014
A couple of weeks ago, we went on our annual family beach trip. We usually take our time getting down their and try to be at the beach house by lunch time. We decided to mix things up this year and left early enough to make it to the aquarium just after it opened.



Cullen loves animals and always has fun at the zoo, so I was thrilled to see his reaction to all the sea creatures. And it did not disappoint. It is a bit of understatement to say that Cullen loved every minute of the aquarium. He pointed out every fish, turtle, crab, snake, shark, and lobster he saw. (His favorite were the turtles!) I think he would have sat at each tank all day watching the fish swim around.


The best part may have been the touch tank. He got to pet a starfish and horseshoe crab (and would have been able to pet a sting ray if they weren’t so quick!)  If we had let him, he would have jumped right in the tank. Talk about pure happiness. I mean, look at that smile!


I wish I could fully describe how beyond excited Cullen really was and capture how infectious his smile was the whole time. I’d say making our little animal lover’s day was worth getting up at 4:30 in the morning!

I’ll be back later this week with more about our week at the beach. What have y’all been up to this summer? Any fun trips or adventures?