Busy Days!

This is going to be a very long and picture-heavy post so settle in and read on! As you will recall, my brother and his family were in town from GA week before last (the week of July 4th). Last Sunday, Merv and Angie went home and left us with their two terrific boys, Brad and Josh! In addition to that, Dave's brother Mike and his wife Deanna arrived from PA on Saturday night! So this has been a busy week! Let's recap:

Last Sunday (July 11th) was my 33rd birthday. We got up early, as usual. After Allie's morning nap we headed to meet Mike and Deanna at the beach. I haven't had such a relaxing time at the beach since before JD was born! We put the umbrella up and spread out a blanket for Allie to play on. She sat and played for a while and, when she got tired, fell asleep. It was so cute! Meanwhile, JD, Dave and Mike dug a big hole and even buried each other in sand. I simply sat in my chair and soaked up the sun with no kids crying or pulling on me. It was fantastic!

After the beach we came home and I put the kids down for a nap and then went to the grocery store. Later that evening my mom came up with Brad and Josh to babysit. Dave and I went out to dinner with Mike and Deanna. I ordered grilled shrimp and scallops at Bonefish Grill. While we were waiting for our food the manager arrived with two lobster tails stating that the kitchen staff cooked my shrimp and scallops in butter and were in the process of preparing me a new meal. But she hoped that FREE LOBSTER would make up for it... I'll say! What a freakin' deal! Not only did I get my shrimp and scallops but two free lobster tails as well! It was a wonderful dinner. After dinner we played mini-golf, which I haven't done in years... it was a ton of fun! We got home around 10:45 PM. Poor mom and Brad had do drive all the way back to Pawleys. Josh, however was bunking with us for a few nights!

Monday Josh went to Wild Wing with Dave to play around on the golf course. I went to pick him up around 2:30 and, of course, had to take JD for a golf cart ride. As soon as we turn in to Wild Wing he starts saying "coff cart ride" very excitedly... every time we go there! Monday afternoon JD said his first four-word sentence: "JD wash feet, Dada"... as he sat on the counter with his feet in the sink, washing off the grass! Monday evening Mike and Deanna joined us at the house for dinner. We had a ton of fun hanging out and just playing around with the Wii.

Tuesday, Allie, JD, Josh and I met Mike and Deanna at the Wild Wing pool for a dip. Allie was in a great mood and had fun playing with Aunt Deanna in the water. Josh and Mike had swimming races and JD just had fun in the water, as usual. After about an hour Allie was ready to go home for a nap so I put JD's car seat in Deanna's car, told Josh he could either come home with them or stay and hit some balls on the range and went home! I got about an hour of quiet time before JD came home but he went right down for a nap and slept for 3 hours. Swimming must really wear him out! Josh and Mike went back to Wild Wing to play some golf..... after Dave and Josh got home, they hung Allie's baby swing and she LOVED it. She just grinned and laughed. And she sat there swinging for a long time. JD also liked swinging with his sister.... We all went to bed fairly early that night as Wednesday started early!

Josh was a little worn out from his busy day.... this is how I found him when I went to tell him supper was ready!

Wednesday was Kent's 34th birthday (yes, we're a little less than a year apart) and all the boys had an 8:00 tee time. I took the kids out to Wild Wing for a golf cart ride and to snap a few pictures of the birthday outing. Later I cooked a ham for dinner and had my mom and dad, Brad, Josh, Mike and Deanna over for dinner. I sure am ready to have a dining room that will seat 8 people! While my mom and dad were up they picked Josh up and took him back to Pawleys for the rest of the week... but they also left Brad with us for the next few nights!

We only joined the guys on the course for 2 holes but it was so hot out there that Allie quickly learned to drink from a water bottle. She was attacking the thing like she'd been in the desert for a month!

After dinner, Josh introduced JD to the Wii.... JD didn't really "get" it....

Then the boys headed outside for some backyard badminton!

Mike and Deanno brought their cute little dog, Casey, with them. JD had SO MUCH fun playing with this dog!

Mike playing Mega Blocks with JD... he loves these things!

Thursday was fairly uneventful. I had to take Brad to the Verizon store because his phone broke and then I dropped him off at Wild Wing for some golf. Unfortunately he only got about 4 holes in before he got soaked in the pouring rain! When he called me to pick him up the babies were sleeping but Dave was headed back to his office after a meeting so was able to bring him home without him having to wait around too much. Thursday night Mike and Deanna stopped by for a quick bite before hitting the road back to PA. After they left and I got the kids down, Brad and I played with the Wii for a little while and then went to bed.

Brad introduces JD to the guitar!

Dave made himself a cocktail before dinner and JD wanted some too so I gave him a small cup just like Daddy's and put just pink grapefruit juice in it. He thought he was such a big boy!

Friday was pretty uneventful too. I let Brad take my car to the Tanger Outlets, just down the road from my house, to do some shopping. He came home in one piece and the car was fine too! Around 5:00 PM, Dave drove Brad to meet my parents so they could take him and Josh to dinner and then both boys stayed in Pawleys. It sure was quiet around here that night and I put both kids to bed early. Allie at 6:30 PM and JD at 7:30 PM. Allie slept all night without a peep. JD decided to visit us at 3:00 AM. It's the first time he's left his room in the middle of the night since he learned how to open the door! I've found him asleep in the hall just outside his room but he's never gone wandering around the house. He didn't say anything to us. I keep the door to our room cracked so Sammy (the cat.. JD calls her Hammy) can come and go. I heard the door creak and initially just thought it was Sammy. Then I heard the pitter patter of toddler feet on the wood floor in the living room! I got up and JD was headed back towards his room. I called his name. He turned around, threw his arms in the air and ran to me. When I picked him up he said "Coff cart ride!" He must have been dreaming about a golf cart ride. I put him to bed and didn't hear or see him again until the morning. One other thing of note, Allie was wiggling in her crib after her afternoon nap and I went in to get her. She had her knees under her and looked like she was going to get up on all fours and rock like she's been doing but she ended up figuring out how to get into a sitting position! It's the first time she's been able to sit up from lying on her belly all on her own. She had the cutest look of surprise on her face!

Saturday we went to the farmer's market in Conway and got some good stuff. JD really likes going to the "ma-ee". Saturday afternoon we attended Peyton's 2nd birthday party. When I brought Peyton's present out of our bedroom and set it by the door this morning JD got very excited and said "party, party! CAKE!"... he's a smart kid.

JD ready for the market!

Birthday Boy Peyton got some clothes for his birthday... he thought the shorts went on his head... silly boy!

He also got a motorcycle that all the kids at the party quickly started fighting over.

JD was more interested in the cat than any of the toys. I had to chase him (JD, not the cat) out of Abby's bedroom like 100 times!

JD was happy to finally play with the gift that we brought. He didn't like me much when I brought this into the house and wouldn't let him play with it!

What's better than the cat at Peyton's house? "Coff cart rides"!!!! My son is in love with golf carts and was excited to drive Peyton's mini golf cart!

Waving to Peyton as he drives down the road.

Sprinkler fun!! Peyton loved it and got soaked... JD was a little more tentative.

Yesterday we went to my parents house to celebrate mine and Kent's birthdays. We usually do it in between the actual birthdays but we've just had such a busy week it had to be postponed! Since I'm dairy, soy and wheat free (and beef free too but that doesn't apply to birthday cakes), my mom and Josh made me some Rice Krispy treats as a birthday cake.... they were yummy with just the right amount of marshmallows! And, I was uber excited when I opened my gift from Kent and Sarah. They gave me a Cannon Powershot point and shoot camera! My current camera has served me well but it's just so big and heavy! And it's getting older so the lag time between pushing the shutter button and actually taking the picture was L-O-N-G, which means I got a lot of shots of the back of JD's head. So, the Sony will be retired as I tuck my new, lightweight camera into ky pocket and take lots and lots more pictures!

Today is Monday and my parents are driving to Augusta to drop off Brad and Josh.... but don't fret! More family is driving down from PA as I type. Dave's parents, Nana and Poppy are coming in tonight... HOORAY! I can't wait for them to get here and play with the kids. Both of them have grown so much since they were last here.