clean up time

Dave and I had put the kids to bed and sat on the couch excited that it was eight and we had a quiet house and looked around the room to see this...

Siena had said she cleaned up but just moved all her toys to the corners of the room so we wouldn't step on them. Clearly, something she learned from me. We need to work on actually putting things away in the correct spot. Good effort Siena.

Apple picking!

We decided to pass up talk like a pirate day activities in Old Town and go apple picking instead. I was sad we missed strawberries and peach picking this year but made sure to get some good apples. It was the perfect apple picing day, sunny and cool weather. It is about mid apple season here so some of the apple trees were picked over but there were so many. It was so beautiful. We went out to Poolsville MD and saw some beautiful 'princess' houses as Siena would call them. She pretended that she was Diego and took pictures of them with her pretend camera click. It kept her entertained for the 45 minute drive. She was so excited when we got there. We got a wheelbarrow and off we went. Ben stayed in the wheel barrow most of the time and ate the apples we picked. Siena was on the lookout for a ladder to climb to get to the top of the trees. She loved picking the ones that were just her height and she made sure not to pick up the squished ones on the ground. She was an excellent apple picker. We got lots of varieties and some are in the oven right now drying. We will see how they turn out. We bought a lot and are planning on making lots of applesauce! We loved looking at all the animals and are looking forward to October when we can pick pumpkins and go on a hayride.

the kids were exhausted when we got in the car. Siena was just so excited to pick apples she would run and sing and dance in the fields. She had a lot of energy to run off. I don't think she took a breath the whole time she was running and singing. excuse the bumpy camera work.

talk like a pirate day!

did you know there was actually a day for pirates? Siena dressed up in honor of pirate day. Ben ran around the house with the sword.

more beach fun

A lighthouse in Corolla, about 15 minutes from where we stayed. It was a lot of work carrying kids up there and then walking down with them without falling down the stairs. Thanks Dave for carrying Ben up.

Our goal was to just sit and chill at the beach and not worry about doing other things but we had to find a couple other things to do when the weather wasn't great. There are a lot of things to do down there. We found this bouncy house/laser tag. They had 2 inflatable bounce houses and lots of riding toys to run around the room. The kids loved it and it was perfect for a rainy day.

Beach House!

walking to the beach to go crab hunting
the warm tub...as Siena would call it.
of course we have to eat at the beach
So excited about her Dora swimsuit
Southern Belle
This place is my favorite place ever! We had an awesome huge house that we shared with 6 other families. We were 4 houses down from the beach so we could hear the waves crashing with the windows open. It was wonderful. The weather didn't start off great as it was a little rainy and cloudy but mostly windy the first 4 days. So we didn't stay at the beach long the first few days. Luckily we had a pool and a hot tub that we cooled down so the kids could go in it. They loved the hot tub. It was a really relaxing time and the kids did so well. They were happy and everyone just relaxed with great food. The boys did the best surprise ever. The first day we were there they sent the moms off to the spa. I got a pedicure and a facial. It was a beautiful spa right on the sound with a pool and sauna. I didn't have time to use the pool and sauna but other girls did and it was great. The facial was heavenly. I loved it, it felt so good and relaxing. Then we had a lunch brought in as we sat there nice and relaxed. It was an awesome retreat from the kids and all the ladies at the spa were really impressed that our husbands were so good to surprise us this way. Finally the weather cleared up and we were able to spend lots of time on the beach. It was so nice. The beaches there are all for the residents of these rental homes and for some reason there weren't a lot of people there so we really had a private beach. Last year Ben spent his time at the beach eating the sand and it wasn't that much different this year. The dads built a huge hole for the kids to play in and the water would come in and fill it up and Ben was sitting in it when a huge wave came and filled it up. He was about done with the beach after that happened. I am still trying to get sand out of his ears. We had a wonderful time and miss it so much. Ben cried at the door for a whole half hour when Dave left to go back to work when we got home. They had so much daddy time, it was awesome. Can't wait for OBX 2010.

The kids were so good on the ride down there. We found a McD's about halfway down with a playplace and we lasted for 30 minutes then we were off again without any more stops. On the way home it seemed like we stopped every 30 minutes. It wasn't as successful. They did find ways of entertaining themselves. Ben rearranged this box of crayon for about a half hour a couple different times. Who knew that was so entertaining.

Crab Hunting

We had an awesome trip to the outer banks of North Carolina. I am waiting for more pictures from everyone there to post but here is a video of night crab hunting. Siena was so excited and Ben wanted to get in there and touch them. We took our glow sticks and flashlights and went down to the beach at sunset and caught the crabs. When you shine your flashlight on them they freeze and that's how you catch them. Our friend Josh was catching them with his bare hands until he got bit. It's terrifying and great fun. We put them all in a bucket and watched them fight. Kinda gruesome I know but so much fun. We realeased them at the end. Some of them were huge!

6 wonderful years

A lot has happened in the last 6 years! We spent our anniversary driving home from the beach. Not a fun thing to be doing but I did get to eat at Sonic. We plan on celebrating later.

Make a Smilebox slideshow

Here are some pictures of the early years.