Tuesday, August 21, 2012

Maine

We just got back from an amazing week in Cape Elizabeth, Maine.  We went with my parents and my brother's family and we all stayed at a great house right on the water.  Poppy and Sam loved every minute spent with their cousins.  We packed a lot of fun adventures into this week...

{Poppy loved climbing the rocks and exploring in the tide pools.}

{The swing was a big hit-}

{with both the kids and adults!}

{Have I ever mentioned how much Sam loves dessert?  He devoured this cupcake.}

{There was plenty of cartoon watching and cereal-stealing in the mornings.}

{Higgins Beach was great.  Sam loved waiting for the little waves.}



{The view from our cottage - it was amazing!}

{cousin tubby time!}

{sleepovers with Amelia and Poppy}

{I snapped this pic of Marc, Poppy & Sam exploring while we were waiting for our lobster dinners at a nearby restaurant}

{Sam & Poppy would have nothing to do with eating lobster, but they were entertained by my "talking" lobster.}

{We went out on a lobster charter and although Poppy was pretty terrified at first, she now says that it was her favorite part of the whole week.  We all had a blast.}


{checking out a crab that was found in one of the lobster crates}

{We're all geared up and ready to catch some lobster!}



{this was all serious business for Poppy}

{We had to measure each lobster to determine if we could keep them - I couldn't believe Poppy got this close to a live one!}

{Afterwards, it was time for some serious lobster cooking back at the cottage.  Upa was ready!}

{It was the best lobster I've ever had!}

{After dinner it was time to give the lobster shells back to the sea.  (which was really because we didn't want raccoons to try to get them out of the garbage cans.}

{These two became quite the amigos.  Our first day home and Sam asked "Where Lou?"}

{We had one day of rainy weather so we headed to the Portland children's museum for some fun!  This was the highlight of the day for Sam!}

{Early morning fishing for the guys.  Marc was the only one to catch anything and he's still talking about it.}


{Bon fire on the beach!}



{Letting go of a paper lantern.  I love watching them float so high into the sky.}


{Card games were played.}


{We took the kids on their first geocache.  Everyone had fun with looking for the hidden treasure.}




 {Portland was only 10 minutes away, which was perfect for heading into the city for dinner and ice cream.}
We had an absolutely amazing time.  Maine is gorgeous.  I loved everything about it.  We even survived the 9 hour drive and as soon as we got home, I felt like I wanted to start planning a trip back.

Friday, August 10, 2012

summer days

Summer is flying by.  Finding the balance between go,go,go- do as many fun things as possible days, and nice relaxing days is hard.  For me, finding that balance is always hard, but because I only have a few short weeks left before going back to work full-time, right now it seems impossible to get it all in.  But at the end of summer, these are things that matter most...

summer toes with Poppy, Amelia & Audrey...

 (behind the scenes photo set-up was full of giggles)

 The other night I opened Sam's door to say good night and saw one of my favorite scenes...

these two playing together in their sandbox...

and I had to include this picture - when I was done asking them to smile for the camera, I looked up to see Sam standing there with his mouth open (not saying anything, just trying to catch some flies apparently) and Poppy looks like she is praying hard for something!

..............

Lately, I get asked at least once a day, "So how do you feel about going back to work?".  Surprisingly, I feel ready.  I can honestly say that the last 2 years of being home with my kids have been the best, most amazing time of my life.  I wouldn't have traded it for anything.  But I feel like part of what made it so enjoyable was knowing that I wouldn't be home forever.  I'm definitely looking forward to having some adult conversation at lunchtime, having to get up and put on some clothes that actually fit me and look presentable and I even miss being able to listen to NPR in the morning on my way to work.  Not to mention having the extra cash flow to buy some things that we've been putting off for the past few years.  I'm excited that Poppy will be in kindergarten while I'm at work and I feel confident that Sam will be well cared for and even having fun being spoiled by all of his grandparents that will be watching him and Miss Rose at daycare.  And we were lucky enough to find a perfect part-time nanny that will be able to get Poppy off the bus a few days a week, as well as get dinners started for us and do some of the housework.  So as we approach the last few weeks of summer, I feel like everything is coming together and we'll be able to transition into my return to work just fine.

We are off for our last little vacation of the summer - a week in Maine, including our first road trip!  Wish us luck!

Wednesday, August 1, 2012

Adventures in Camping

We had an amazing time at our camping trip this year!  Poppy and Sam loved every minute of time they spent with their cousins and Marc and I did a lot of relaxing.  Good times.
{the Morris cousins}

{me and my brothers} 

{cousin lovin'}
 {silly cousins}

 {marshmallow roasting is serious business}


{sitting around the campfire listening to Aunt Amanda tell scary stories!} 

 {swimming in the freezing cold water}

 {Poppy was impressed that her daddy jumped in!}

{I told you, marshmallows are serious business} 

 {she said her favorite part of camping is getting to stay up waaaay past her bedtime}

{this kid was in his element - he loved the mud, dirt, rocks, sticks, bugs and toads} 


{Amelia spent the night in our tent on our last night and they were both so cute about it - already planning their next sleepover...}

I can't believe how much I've come to love camping over the past few years.  Marc even complimented me on how I never tried to bail and go home, even though it rained almost every night and morning.  But just seeing how much my kids love it makes all the mud and grime (and piles of laundry to deal with once we get home) worth it.  And I love the simplicity of camping - you only bring the absolute necessities with you.   I like being disconnected from the outside world for those few days each year - no phone or internet or to-do lists that usually dictate my days.  Who knows, maybe next year we'll even go for 2 camping trips!
Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...