Back from the Beach

We went to Myrtle Beach for a large family vacation last week! George's Mom was there as well as my parents, the Watsons, Gundersons, Mandiches and Lindseys! What fun! We spent almost every day at the beach enjoying the gorgeous weather and we spent the rest of the time eating, laughing, playing games and enjoying seeing family we don't get to see often enough. Drew wasn't big on the ocean this year although he loved the sand and shells. Last year he loved the water and I had to chase him down to keep him from going too deep. I wasn't too disappointed when he shouted "No water, you stop it!" when a wave came toward him and then he raced back to the chairs saying the water was scary. I wasn't in a rush to convince him otherwise since sitting under the umbrella sounded great to me! CC used a big tub to carry the sand toys in and Drew used that as his personal pool most of the week. Good times! It made for relaxing days at the beach! He did come out every once in a while to pick up shells or beg someone to race him down the beach. He also got plenty of Italian Ice treats when the cart came by. Thanks to CC and Day Day for those because I forgot my money every day! It was a fun-filled week and we miss everyone terribly! Thanks to Judy and my parents for the great hospitality!

Drew in his tub at the beach. What a great idea this was!
Drew and Sweet Mae Mae play games!

CC and Drewby in the ball house.

Drew rides his new four wheeler from Grandma! What fun! This is his 4th riding toy if you're counting! His grandparents spoil him a bit :)

Drew and Whitley help Day Day open his Father's Day gift.

My three favorite fellas!

Drew and Grandma fill the wagon with shells.

The golf cart made it to Myrtle Beach! Lila and Whitley take a spin around the backyard.

Then Drew takes Whitley for a ride.

Drew, Day Day and cousin Bev (or "Big Day Day" as Drew called him!) rough house on the floor.

Drew gets some clothes from Sweet Aunt Kim and Uncle Dreg and doesn't want to let go of them! He insisted on wearing the turtle shirt immediately.

Resting with Day Day on the beach.

Lila opens some gifts at her early 2nd birthday party! Sweet CC had gifts for Drew and Whitley too so everyone was happy!

Drew and Day Day run on the beach.

Drew and CC play a silly game with koozies. Drew thought it was big fun!

Sparklers! Drew kept telling CC to "Be careful, it's hot!"

Drew makes a dino at Build-A-Bear! He loves that dino and named it "Dino T-Rex" even though it's not a T-Rex :)

Tom, Daddy and George on the last day.

Drew's In Love!

My best friend Angel came to visit from Mississippi and it was love at first sight for Drew! From the moment we met her at the airport Drew was 100% smitten :) Angel is so good with kids that it was no doubt Drew would adore her but I was surprised at exactly how much. He wanted to be with her at all times, waking up and going straight to her room to peek inside, sitting next to her at meals and showing her his many, many toys and books. He thought she was his friend and in the rare moments that he didn't have eyes on her he would ask, "Where did my friend go?" One night when just she and I went shopping Drew asked George, "Where did my friend go? and when George said she went to the store he responded, "But I miss her." So sweet! We had the best visit with Angel and I was devastated to see her go (Drew too!). She arrived with some wonderful news... she's engaged! We are absolutely thrilled for her! Thanks so much for visiting Angel, we enjoyed having you here more than you know! Come back!!!

Trip to the Mountains!

We took Drew to see Thomas the Train (next blog post) this weekend but prior to our Day Out With Thomas on Sunday, we spent Saturday in Boone, NC. It was so gorgeous and we really enjoyed the beautiful views and cooler weather. Our neighbors and friends, Kevin, Sharon and Preston went with us so we picked them up on Saturday and headed for the Appalachian Mountains! The minivan sure came in handy with room to spare even after four adults and two toddlers got comfy. After arriving in Boone, we decided to visit Grandfather Mountain, a popular tourist spot and highest point in the Appalachians. There were animal exhibits as well as beautiful sites and delicious fudge :)

Drew points at a Bald Eagle.
Preston and Drew watch the otters swim. Love those curly-haired boys!

Sharon, the boys and I.

George holds his hand out with a treat for a bear. It was so neat to watch the bears so darn close, maybe a little too close!

The bear waiting for his treat! So cute! We got a kick out of them sitting back like that waiting for food. If the treat didn't go right in their mouths, they didn't even walk to get it, they would just wait for another one to be thrown. Drew threw a few and had really good aim! He loved it! When we first got to the bear exhibit, all of the bears were sound asleep. Preston and Drew started yelling "Wake up bears! Wake up big black bear! Wake up!" The funny thing is the bears actually woke up. The boys were so proud!

Family photo at the top of Grandfather Mountain.

Our attempt to get a picture of the boys with the Mile High Bridge sign. What a joke!

Sharon and I getting ready to cross the Mile High Swinging Bridge. It was a tad scary for my taste!

George and Drew way too close to the edge. I was scared and begged them to come back. Of course they are both laughing at me.

Killing time while George and Kevin go further up the mountain to check it out. Sharon and I hung back with the kiddos.

Keeping Drew entertained while George was living on the edge. Drew of course wanted to follow his Daddy so I had to hold him tight and distract him with a game of "Which animals live in the mountains?" He said "bears, lions, spiders, snakes and sheep." Cute!

Calling Day Day, CC, Grandma and Aunt Cristie from the hotel room to tell them all about his day. I unplugged the phone of course but that didn't stop him from making calls! After he made his calls he insisted on going home. It was hysterical! He is quite the home-body and couldn't understand why we weren't at home for bedtime. When I set up his bed he started dragging it to the door saying "this goes home, I go home now." He was really upset and trying to get him to understand that we would see Thomas the Train after a good night of sleep was hopeless. He finally fell asleep with me half in the pack-n-play rubbing his face and hair. He slept great and was geared up for the big day when he woke up...

A Day Out With Thomas!

Drew had a really big weekend! We took him to Blowing Rock, NC to see Thomas the Train! Thomas is one of the hot things for young boys and Drew has many of the trains, books and videos. Thomas visits Tweetsie Railroad for two weeks every year and we decided, along with Drew's friend Preston and his parents, to take the boys this weekend. A ticket buys a ride on Thomas as well as all of the rides and activities at Tweetsie Railroad amusement park. Drew and Preston had a ball and were so thrilled to see Thomas!

George holds Drew up so he can see Thomas come around the mountain! It was so exciting for the kids and we were so excited for them! I even found myself screaming, guess the thrill was contagious!
Family photo on the train.

Riding a gondola to another section of the park.

Drew and Preston enjoying a ride.

Little pilots!

Drew and I on a racetrack. He was such a good driver!

Here we come! Drew did not want this ride to end!

Stephen's Graduation Party!

Drew ended up sick last weekend so we were so disappointed that he wasn't able to enjoy the neighborhood pool party or Andrea's birthday party like we planned. We went to the birthday party but he just wasn't himself. He watched her blow out the birthday candles but then we headed home. He didn't even protest when we left so I knew he was under the weather. By Monday he was feeling better so we went to the pool with some friends. Then we went to see Blake and James, a couple of the 5 year olds he idolizes, play t-ball on Monday night. Drew enjoyed that and was the first one to yell "Good hit!" or "Good try!" I can't wait till he can play organized sports, I am sure I will the obnoxious Mom in the stands! The rest of the week flew by with typical stuff; laundry, cleaning, running errands and of course lots and lots of playing with Drew. Today we went to my cousin Stephen's house for a pig pickin' graduation party! Drew was thrilled to see so many of his favorite people; Mae Mae, Uncle Ralph, Melanie, Stephen, Cristie, Tom, Whitley, Tom's sweet parents and of course Buddy the dog. My Aunt Betty and Uncle Mike were there too which we don't see often enough but Drew warmed up to them in no time. He thought Uncle Mike was a "cool dude" and was pleased to find another man that would rough-house with him! It was a super hot day but the party was tons of fun!

Drew, Blake and Katelyn in the pool. They had the most fun in their "float parade!"

Drew strolling through Home Depot in his McQueen and Mater slippers. The heat and fatigue must be getting to me because I never go for this kind of stuff. He asked if he could wear his slippers and I just figured "what the heck?" I didn't have the energy to talk him into wearing his shoes. I also slacked on sunscreen that day at the pool as you can see from his sunglass line. I felt so bad about that!

Drew standing next to the graduation bear at cousin Stephen's party.

Melanie shows Drew the pig on the huge BBQ pit. He didn't know what to make of that!

Whitley and Drew cool off with some ice. They spent most of the party with their hands in the cooler but it was in the shade and it beats chasing them around so Cristie and I were all for it!

Uncle Ralph stands over the hot grill. That pig was yuuuummmy!

Drew with Stephen, the big graduate! We are so proud of Stephen and his many, many accomplishments! Best of luck at Appalachian State!