Sharing our life - all our adventures and bumpy rides. Family of four with two young boys - moved back home to allow them the similar experiences and opportunities we had living in North Carolina. Come explore with us!
Brock and I were taking the very short little flight from Charlotte to Raleigh, which made for the perfect opportunity to actually SEE the airplane before boarding. I thought Brock would enjoy this - walking up the steps and realizing we were ON an actual airplane - but I think he was a little scared of the loud noise.
Once we arrived at my mother's house, Brock opened his new gift and couldn't wait to try it out! In the week we were there, it was adorable to see how much he progressed learning how to ride his push trike!
He did pretty well... as long as there were no bugs in his eyes! Poor Brock!
Tuesday morning, my Dad took the day off work to run around Marbles Kids Museum with Brock. Oh my goodness, I think we were all overwhelmed with everything there! Brock had a blast!
Brock and my Dad posing with the indoor pirate ship! Brock loved driving it!
There were so many rooms to explore, buttons to press, big kids to watch! My Dad and I had so much fun watching Brock. What a very fun kids museum!
Brock also enjoyed showing off his dunking skills after all that practice with his basketball hoop at home!
After a solid morning of activity, Brock needed a nice long nap that afternoon - my Dad said he slept really well that night too!
With all that running around, it was time to refuel and boy did Grandma make some yummy food!!
"Before"
"After - and after seconds!"
A separate occasion enjoying the leftover chicken juice on the bottom of the bowl!
We also had so much fun in the baby pool outside! It was so hot that everyone jumped in the water at one time - even Mia!
Brock enjoying a popsicle
I also had a little time to visit with a few friends - Beck and Will came over and joined us in the baby pool one morning and I was able to visit Jill and her new baby Nathan, just born July 1st! Jessica and her husband, Alex, had me over for a delicious dinner one night too!
Me and Jessica
Then it was time to pack again - the next day was our trip up to Busch Gardens for my mother's birthday!
Brock and I planned an overnight layover in Charlotte to visit Great-Aunt Carol and Great-Uncle Jeff! It was a perfect little stop to show just how much their home was NOT baby-proof! :)
Of course they did have some spectacularly fun things to play with! Like Cousin Evan's baby blanket we just had to pose with!
And oh my goodness did Brock enjoy Coco and Caramel!
Yes, this is Caramel hissing at Brock!
Unfortunately I don't think they enjoyed his company as much, as the picture below shows where they were for most of Brock's visit!
Aunt Carol and Uncle Jeff took us out to an Italian restaurant so they could see just how much my child enjoys his favorite food! Brock was enamored by Great-Aunt Carol's drawing skills!
But then equally enamored by Great-Uncle Jeff's Donald Duck impression! He was belly laughing!!
After dinner, Uncle Jeff showed him how to hold a baseball bat......
....how to properly enjoy dessert outside on the deck with nature....
....finally how to make his own quacking noise!
I think if Brock could talk, he would tell me he would want to always stop in Charlotte before visiting Raleigh!
My sister-in-law Brandi, invited our family to join them on the beautiful white sandy beaches of Panama City Beach, Florida for a week and Brock and I had to go! Unfortunately by the time we looked at airfare prices for Brent (coupled with timing at work), it just wouldn't work, so Brent opted to stay home and keep the dogs company.
Reagan was there for a softball tournament, so my in-laws were wise to make this a family vacation by renting a beach house! What a location! It was nice to be so close to the water because it was hot!
We managed to get in one softball game and Brock watched it from the comfort of Aunt Brandi's red collapsible wagon and enjoying the shade of a tent. The team did really well - winning that game 5 to 2, if I remember correctly.
Reagan running to first
Some of Reagan's games were not exactly close to the house, but we managed to keep ourselves occupied with other activities (besides sitting all day in that hot sun!) while they were gone. Blaine, Brock and I explored Dave & Buster's indoor arcade - and their fabulous air conditioning.
Brock was not quite understanding how these games worked and tried several times to put the tickets back in to the machine.
The beach house hosted a luau party for the softball team one night and Brock was very excited about it....
Maybe more excited about playing with all the beach balls!
Brock and I thoroughly enjoyed the sun and water. The sand was a different story....
It took a little time for Brock to get used to the stuff sticking to his hands and feet (he definitely did not like that part), but he really liked the water and watching as Blaine and I ran after whichever toy he threw in to the wave taking it out to sea!
The beach house had a few beach toys that were perfect for Brock!
Most importantly, we were there to spend time with the family and it really was such a nice trip to be all together in the house.
I know that Grandpa and Gammy loved watching Brock for the week and saw so much of their own son in Brock's mannerisms. We had so much fun and really enjoyed our visit - thank you so much for inviting us! Looking forward to seeing you again in September and seeing some fun things in Nashville with Toddler Brock!
Happy Fourth of July everyone!! We had a wonderful day today! It was a beautiful day so we packed our lunch and headed to Gene Coulon Memorial Beach Park for the festivities!
Caroline made Brock that cute animal blanket and we keep it in his stroller for outings :)
The weather was absolutely perfect for a picnic lunch before exploring the park! And the best part - when Brock made a mess dumping out his raisins, we just shook out the blanket!
We were all dressed patriotic for the day! Brock in red, Brent in white and I was in blue! Not even planned!!
Lake Washington
Brock had so much fun running around in the grass and pointing at the ducks. So many ducks!
We walked around the pier and checked out the boats....which made Brent really miss his. Maybe in a few years...? Brock loved watching the water and finding new things to explore!
Checking out the water under the pier
Then it was time to make the long trek back to the car, which was the only time Brock napped for the day! Guess he was so excited to celebrate the Fourth he didn't want to nap.
"Daddy! Let me out! I'll help you grill!"
But we had fun grilling out at home for dinner and playing with our Fourth of July schwag. Maybe next year Brock will be big enough to stay up to see the fireworks (more so than the ones going off in our neighborhood) and jump in the bouncy houses at the park. For now, we are content playing with our own toys, at home, for the holiday.
I signed Brock up for his first swimming lessons this week and I think he mostly liked it.... as long as the sun was out. :) Monday and Tuesday were beautiful! High 80's and Tuesday saw a high of 91!! Gorgeous weather for a 30 minute morning lesson in an outdoor pool in the state of Washington.
Brock loved the cute little songs they sang as we splashed in the pool, learned "reach and pull" and how to kick. We learned the correct way to get out of the water and that he needs to wait for either Mommy or Daddy to get in first before he gets in. It was so cute how he would sit at the edge and reach out his arms for me to bring him in!
Brent was working from home on Thursday so we thought it would be wonderful for him to do the class with Brock that day! Unfortunately Mother Nature had other ideas and the temperature at the time of the class was a balmy 64 degrees!
I think Brock was cold and took it out on poor Brent! He liked the songs of course, but when it was time to give up his "reach and pull" toy, he was UPSET! At least it was a short class since it was the last class and we were able to get free time all over the pool.... so we all huddled around a water vent that was blowing out warm-ish water. :) Haha we are such southerners - no cold water for us!! We are ready for some Florida water! :)
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