Summer vacation 2012

 

Without a doubt, this vacation was about the boy!  Anything, and almost everything, he wanted, he got.  You want another donut...that makes 3, ok!  Beach....yes!  You want to sleep in NaNa and Paw Paw's condo...of course!  I think it was a real vacation for him.  It was a busy week, and he was exhausted at the end of every day.  No real chance to be scared of anything. 

 

We were able to get outside a little bit on our first real day there. Emaline had her first trip to the pool, and seemed rather unaffected.  No smiles but no signs of distress either.  The weather kinda deteriorated that evening, and we weren't able to go to the beach.  We didn't need the beach when we had NaNa and Paw Paw! 

 

The next day was forecast to be bad weather (it wasn't), so we planned a trip to the Airplane Museum.  They had some really cool stuff there!  Gavin enjoyed himself and Paw Paw enjoyed telling Gavin everything he knew. 

 

The rest of the time was pretty much a repeat of the day before...Gavin waking up wanting to go to the beach!  And he did.  And he loved it.  He loved chasing the tiny birds.  He loved digging in the sand.  He loved crabbing at night, which is a ridiculously fun activity to watch and to participate!  You are basically hunting these little (and sometimes BIG) crabs in the dead of night armed only with a flash light and net.  Some people, Gavin and NaNa, caught said crabs with their bare hands! 

 

We ate dinner together every night and just spent time as a family...the way it should be!  Michelle and Leonard came over the weekend to help celebrate Paw Paw's 60th birthday!  We grilled out and ate cupcakes to help him welcome in the new decade!

 

 

 Emaline laughing at brother....

 Me and my big boy.

 Gavin loves his Paw Paw...

 I WAS RUNNING!

 Get 'em, Dada!

 Poor little crabs...we let them go at the end of the night.

 Gavin helping Paw Paw with his present.

 Bathing beauty.  She did not like the sand!

 Uncle Leonard and Gavin burying Dada.

 Happy birthday, Paw Paw!

 THAT's why!

 Glad you're ok.

Best pic of week! Sums it up pretty good.

 

We had so much fun!  Can't wait until next year when Emaline is a little older and can enjoy the beach a little more.  

Four months old

It's hard to believe my baby girl is already 4 months old! 

We had her 4 month old appointment this week. Emaline is growing well! She is 15 pounds and 25 inches long...in the 75th and 90th percentile, respectively. She also has a big, uh, brain. She officially has two teeth...bottom center.  She is a drooling machine!

She's so big, and yet still so small.  She is quite the character and is described by most as a "pepper".  She is "talking", but yells, and screams like a grown woman, too.  Sometimes.  Other times she is the calmest, sweetest little thing.  She loves her big brother!  You can tell she just wants to jump up and join in with him while he's playing!  He was responsible for her very first laugh...which kinda sounds like gas pains :) She also responds to Dada, even on FaceTime.  He sings her a little song that always makes her smile..."Standin' tall, Emaline...standin' tall, Emaline!"

I love how she plays with her toes and her hands.  It's infuriating and precious the way she cries when waking up from a nap and then gives you the biggest smile when you walk in the room.  She's almost surprised and thrilled to see you.  She was sleeping through the night, but it's been disrupted.  It seems like she wakes up 30 minutes earlier every morning.  The last couple of days, she wakes up every 30 minutes to an hour...but always happy to see you. 

I think she's beautiful and such a blessing to our family.  We all love her so much!

Toes

"Who, me?"

Beautiful, sans bow.

Tummy time!

Look at the cute little body!

Teething...she looks deranged.

Half cry and half smile.

Getting so good at grabbing things!

Isaac

Hurricane Isaac turned out to be a real pain in the butt this week!  There is never a good time for a hurricane, but this was really bad timing!  We decided to evacuate because electricity goes out in this Lynnmeade house with a brisk wind, so we knew it would be out, for a while, after this storm.  We packed the kids up and drove up to Dad and Ellie's house in Hattiesburg.  It turned out to be a fantastic decision!  We never lost power in Hattiesburg, and outside of a few minor inconveniences, it was like a vacation!  Nana came up the first night and entertained us all week!  As an added bonus, Paw Paw came up later in the week.  Gavin was thrilled!  He loves Nana and Paw Paw! 

The real thing hanging over our heads was the move into our new house.  Once we got word that we had power there, we packed up and camped out for a couple of days on Piper Lane with no furniture or modern luxuries. We cleaned and painted and prepared for our move.  Gary, Gavin, Emaline and I slept in the same room.  We all kept each other up.  Ok, mostly it was Emaline who kept everyone up.  When the lights came back on in Gretna, we headed back to wash clothes and have everyone sleep in their own beds (and watch TV).  Now, we pick up where we left off before that darned Isaac visited.

Our move is scheduled for this weekend.  Hopefully, my next post will be all about our wonderful new house!