Saturday

Since our first trip to the beach Little Peanut has talked about lighthouses. She kept wanting to know when we were going to see her lighthouse and climb to the top. This past weekend was predicted to be warm so Nathan and I decided we would go on Saturday.
We got the kids ready and packed up the van. Planning for contingencies can leave you with lots of stuff in the van. We set out a little later than we planned but enjoyed the drive.
We picked Currituck Beach Lighthouse because it was slightly closer than Hatteras and it was also the one that Jon and Kate Plus 8 visited last summer and the kids wanted to see it. We got to the lighthouse about 1 pm. After a much necessary detour we headed over to the lighthouse. There is a charge for adults but kids climb free. We made it to the first platform, just 12 -15 up and AJ was pulling a Daniel, using his hands on the steps because he was scared. We stopped to read some of the information before going up to the next level. AJ's fear spread to JM and neither one was going to budge any further. At this point Nathan had been carrying Grasshopper and I was holding Peanut's hand. Nathan and I switched and I took the 3 boys back down and outside.
A couple of minutes later JM and AJ saw Daddy up at the top with Peanut. We smiled and waved. At this point JM decided there was no way he was going to miss out seeing what was up there. After Nathan and Peanut came down JM and I started up. I told him that I couldn't carrying him but I would hold his hand. He did great. I was so proud of him. He was very nervous but walked around on the platform and looked out to see. I was very nervous too.
We came down and I thought that was harder than going up.
Next on the agenda was lunch and the beach. We ate in the van and drove across the road to the public beach acess. After being slightly stuck in the sand we parked the van. Once again, Peanut was on a mission, headed for the beach. There weren't many people on the beach so we spread out. Peanut got her feet wet once and that was it. She played in the sand the rest of the day. Yes, they were all well coated with sunscreen. Grasshopper loved the sand as well. The waves, not so much. He screamed at them and was upset anytime one of us went in the water.
It was really cold but the sun and sand were so hot that it felt good. AJ loved being in the waves. JM liked getting his feet wet but not much more than that. Nathan spent a large part of his time helping people get unstuck from the sand.
We got home about 9 pm that night at which point Nathan thought, yeah, it might be nice to get a house at the beach for a vacation. Sounds like a great plan to me, anyone want to go with us???

Wordless Wednesday

We love Uncle Michael's house.

Birthday Girl

Peanut's birthday is later this month but since both my family and Nathan's family live around each other in Ohio we decided it would be better to have it here where everyone is. She was so excited to be a princess. The dress and crown were a gift from mommy and daddy. Even her cousin came dressed up for the princess party. It was Aunt Tabitha's birthday so she got to wear a crown too. There have been so many boy parties for so long that it was fun to have such a girlie party.
Grasshopper had so much fun too. He caught some serious hang time.

Wordless Wednesday

On the Road Again

Day two of driving was. umm. insane. We made pretty good time though. I felt like I was driving from spring into winter. We went from green leaves and cherry blossoms to bare trees and old brown leaves blowing in the wind.
This was the view for most of the day.
Here's my trusty GPS. I knew where I was going but it's nice to have satellite confirmation.
Yeah, we made it. Ooo. Look. Nice rearview mirror and look, there's Nana waiting.
JM flung himself out of the van into Nana's arms. I was just glad to be out of the van.
Coming soon to a post near you, the Birthday Girl.

Halfway House

Yesterday my plan was to leave home at 10 am. Thanks to very slow pokey people at the supercenter lube place it was more like 12:30. The kids did great though. They feel asleep and we didn't make any stops. My GPS kept saying arrival time 4:30. I thought, "Man, I rock!" Until it was 3:30 and I realized that the GPS hadn't figured out the time change. Darn it! We did good even with traffic though and made it about 5:30.
There were so many motor homes on the road yesterday. License plates from Quebec, Ontario, New Jersey, New York. It was like an exodus north. I get giddy when I see signs for Washington. I know there is something important about that. Nathan and I are loving the adventure that we are discovering in front of us.
And something that makes me so goosebumpy is the Bay Bridge. I do really well driving over it in daylight but the last time we drove over it was at night in fog. Here is was today.
Finally, we made it Uncle Michael and Aunt Melissa's. PLAY TIME!

Yesterday Morning

Here's how yesterday morning went.


6:45-get up, make AJ's lunch, go back to bed, note to self MOPS today

7:20-Nathan wakes me up to say goodbye, doorbell rings, me-in jammies, Nathan tells me Grasshopper is in need of a change

7:21-neighbor missed the bus and needs a ride to school.

7:22-throw on clothes and ask what time she has to be there, thinking I'll throw clothes on the kids and take them with us and get ready for MOPS when we get back, reminder from Nathan about poopy diaper on Grasshopper

7:23- neighbor informs me she has to be there at 7:35, I realize there is NO way we'll make it in time, mind scrambles, I hand her the keys to the van and say, "Have your mom bring the baby over, and I'll watch him while she runs you to school."

7:24- start changing diaper, poop was an understatement, massive overflow disaster would have been more accurate, move Grasshopper to the bathroom

7:25-neighbor baby (boy 18 months, almost size of JM) shows up, crying cause he's never been over here, I turn Clifford on for him, run between mess in bathroom and hysterical baby in living room

7:26 start rinsing Grasshopper off, wash his hair, remember today is Mops mom's birthday and I was supposed to make warm nutty caramel brownies, remember that we have no rollos, no chocolate chips, and no brownie mix. Mild panic

7:28 dry and dress Grasshopper, dress Peanut, make JM get dressed, hope and pray neighbor will watch kids while I run to the store

7:40 neighbor returns, girls to school on time (YAY!) agrees to watch kids while I run to wal-mart

7:50 arrive at Walmart, grab 3 items, get in checkout lane behind person with birthday party supplies.....t a k e s f o r e v e r.

8:15 arrive home, grab kids from next door, note to self fix hair before leaving house again, throw brownies together and double and triple check recipe to be sure I'm not forgetting something, continue feeling like I forgot something.

8:20 put brownies in oven

8:25 fix hair, check brownies, pack diaper bag, do makeup, grab necklace and watch, throw cute scarf on

8:40 take out brownies, put rollos in, realize I forgot to put the nuts and brown sugar on top before baking, top with chocolate, herd kids to the van

8:50 buckle seat belts, prep front seat for hot stoneware

8:55 check with neighbor about going, she's waiting for a phone call and can't go

9:10 pull out of driveway with everything

9:30 arrive at MOPS and ask other moms who forgot to remind me about making snack.....

can I have a nap now?

Wordless Wednesday

Because mommy said you may not get up at 6 am.

Toile Tuesday

Pretty Organizer over at Pretty Organized Palace is hosting the TOILE PARTY!!!! Yea!!! As I posted earlier this month I was pretty ambitious with my projects. I will say that my procrastination has been in full swing. Peanut's curtain has been done for over a week now but I loved my other fabric so much I was quite nervous to cut into it. Here are my first tentative cuts. It's just so pretty.Here are my curtains waiting to get hung.
However, after working hard all day today here are some pictures of my living room. I think it's progressing nicely. To the left of the loveseat is our front door. Here's a lovely little addition to the loveseat. Hi Miracle.Here is Peanut's curtain. It didn't turn out quite like I wanted but she loves it.
Now on to some pretty pictures I found on the internet. I love these curtains and bedset from Pottery Barn. But the prettiest, sweetest bit of toile I found was this gorgeous bassinet. What baby wouldn't sleep peacefully all night long in this sweetness. I'm in. love. sigh. Want to know the catch? This lovely little bed is $800. Can you believe it?

Friday Night Fun

Friday evening Nathan met us in town to do some serious grocery shopping. We haven't done major shopping for awhile now. Since we were getting a late start we met at the one. the only. Triple A. Actually it was Chick-fil-A, AJ is teaching them to say it correctly and that makes me a little sad.
I was surprised that it wasn't really busy so I relented and let them play in the play place for awhile. I figured it would wear them out and they would be more patient with our shopping. It worked for the most part. Here are a few pictures that I took with my cell phone.AJ was to busy for me to get a picture of him. They had fun, which was the point.