Our Watercolor Vacation - We Loved It!!

I have been looking forward to it all year...our vacation at WaterColor in Santa Rosa Beach - near Destin. Ever since my first stay there, I have enjoyed no beach like this one. We were first thinking of going in June, which rolled into July, then August...and finally Derek and I nailed down a date in September. Our friend's place came available and we snagged it for the week that led into Labor Day. So we went down on Tuesday the 1st and came home on the 8th. It was such a nice time away.






We took our time getting out of Atlanta and arrived at the beach house around dinner time - just in time to hit the beach and see the sun set. Each day was a little different, but we always rode our bikes, played at the beach and took a daily nap. Some days we would stop by the Beach side pool and grill for lunch and let the kids swim in the kiddie pool, other days we headed home early so we could rise from our afternoon nap sooner for dinner out. Towards the end of our trip, we took to hitting the beach at night to see the moon and stars and "hunt" for sand crabs with flashlights and nets. The kids really took to that activity - Hatcher would just reach down and pick them up. This year we we out on the lake for a boat ride - and debated fishing from the docks...but never made time.












Hatcher was amazing on his bicycle this year. He rode with Derek and I through many of the miles of nature bike trails that wind around Watercolor and for the most part he kept up. There were some days when he insisted on being first or "the leader" and rides took a bit more time.




Moments to share...

While watching random TV one night after bath time and getting the boys in their PJ's, a Muppet skit came on with Ms. Piggy and Kermit the Frog and with the most serious tone, Hatcher looked up and Derek and me and exclaimed, "Hey. pigs don't have hair!" Derek and I busted out with laughter and not knowing why, Aidan felt the need to join us.

Although i don't have a picture, Derek and I both witnessed a first...a couple pushing their dog around in a stroller for a walk outside. What? Are you kidding me - taking the dog for a walk typically doesn't equate to going for a ride in a stroller!

One night while reading bedtime stories to Aidan, he grabbed Teddy, his nighttime teddy bear, and held his hands up to make Teddy flip the pages of the book. After each successful flip, he told Teddy, "good job Teddy!"

As always - too many pictures to share on this site. I think i took nearly 550 pictures on this trip. So, here are a few of my favorites and I will come back and load the video montage when I am done.

A trip to pre-historic times...Fernbank Museum

Saturday, August 15 (I know I am behind...) I took the boys to Fernbank Museum to see the Dinosaur exhibit. The suggestion came from Owen's mom, Heather. She called us and told us she and her sister were taking Owen and wondered if we were up for it. Perfect timing, Derek needed to do some additional work in the basement and we needed to be gone all day. So we got dressed and headed downtown to see the Dinosaurs. I don't know that I will visit any more museums anytime soon - the kids plowed through the place in 20 minutes. They have no interest in what the informative plaques say or how cool the bones look in different lighting. Although they did have some voice over audio, we weren't able to hang around anyone place long enough to hear the details. They spent most of their time in the play area - designated as the "hands on" area of the museum. Still - only 20 minutes in there. When you pile on the bathroom breaks and chasing efforts - the tour took about an hour and a half. But, it was something fun to do on a hot Saturday indoors. Thanks Heather for the suggestion.

Welcome Sophia (Sophie) Elizabeth Estes

Our dear friends Neil and Ramona welcomed their beautiful baby girl into the world on Monday, August 10th. She was born at 7:52 pm and weighed 7lbs, 2oz and was 20 inches long. The proud parents are beaming with joy and only just now beginning to suffer from loss of sleep. Below are just a few of the pictures I was able to take when we were there for a post-delivery visit.
Congratulations Estes Family...we wish you all the best!

Hatcher's first Gymnastics Class

Hatcher is always doing somersaults and talks of learning cartwheels. So, when Amy (Hailey and Tomy's mom) and Jodi (Ava Mei's mom) told me about Ultimate Gymnastics offering a class for 3-year olds, I thought we would give it a try. I enrolled Hatcher in the Tiki Tikes class with Ava Mei and Hailey - their first class was on Monday. Hatcher was so excited that he told everyone in school about it. When I went to pick him up the day of the first session, all the teachers wished him well in his gymnastics class. While Aidan, Hatcher and I headed to the first gymnastics class after school Monday, Daddy headed to the hospital to await the arrival of Uncle Neil and Aunt Ramona's baby girl. We hope he can make it next week!

All the moms headed up to a balcony area to watch the kids tumble their hearts out. There is a big range of kids that use the facility - so some of the equipment they don't even use. It was fun to see the kids in action. Aidan had such a hard time watching Hatcher and not being able to participate. We both walked down closer to where they were and every time Hatcher finished an exercise, Aidan would clap and say "Yeah Hatchee!" (It is so sweet - Aidan still doesn't pronounce Hatcher's name correctly - so he calls him Hatchee.) Aidan even had to take his shoes off like Hatcher did...too cute.

Hatcher said his favorite part was jumping in the foam pit. I didn't get a picture of that...but must say that when I took gymnastics as a small child, that was my favorite part too. I remember it vividly - flying through the air and landing into a pit of giant sponge blocks. What fun! When we went to leave, Aidan repeatedly tried to sneak onto the practice mat, with his mischievous grin, running around probably imaging he was practicing too.

No School Today - Georgia Aquarium

Last Friday the kids daycare/school was closed, so I told Hatcher we could either go to the Zoo or the Aquarium. In hindsight, I should have only offered the Aquarium...with it being near 100 degrees outside and the Zoo being all out in the open...outside...in the hot southern heat! Thankfully Hatcher chose the Aquarium. At first Derek was going to be at work, but surprised us all by getting some time in the morning to join us to the Aquarium. It was a good day to go as the crowds were light and everyone was in a good mood. The boys loved it! Hatcher has been really big into sharks lately. Every night before he goes to bed he requests tickle time with Daddy and takes on the role of a shark, either a fight shark, a whale shark or hammer-head shark. It is too funny. So, that is all he wanted to see at the Aquarium. We saved it for last since we knew he would want to stay in that section of Aquarium the longest. Aidan liked most of the fish. All the fist are "Nemos" so - anything swimming right by or in front of him was a huge highlight.

Hatcher was so excited that he picked out his dolphin shirt to wear that day - and had Aidan wear his Octopus shirt. It is amazing how much they think about stuff at this age. We had such a good time and we were home before it was time for a nap.

The Goddard Gang

Finally...we pulled it together enough to have the Goddard Gang over for dinner and fun. There is a group of us whose kids all attend, or did at one time, the same school. The kids all hang out together and the adults get along great as well. Over the summer, most everyone has hosted or had some sort of a function at their home where we have all attended...that is except for Derek and I. So once we synched up everyone's schedules...we locked in a Saturday afternoon where we could host the gang for dinner, drinks and fun. As usual, the laughter kicked off early and lasted late. We are lucky to have met up with a great group of people who like to have as much fun as we do. And - all our kids are close in age to boot and can whoop it up in their own way together while the adults can sort of let loose too! We were able to help celebrate Jodi and Christy's birthdays. Jodi and Dave brought Jodi's favorite cheesecake and so I put a huge candle on top for the cerimonious "make a wish and blow out your candle."

Thanks everyone for coming. We had so much fun...I know the boys did too! Until next time...