Girls Trip to the Beach

Last week I did the most AMAZING thing ever....I went to the beach WITHOUT KIDS!! :) Some of my friends and I rented a house right on the ocean at Topsail Island. It was BEAUTIFUL! :) We left behind kids and husbands for a week of fun in the sun! There are no words to describe how wonderful it was. We are already planning our trip for next year.

We sat on the beach all day, swimming and reading in the sun, then we would eat dinner together at night, and play games laughing so hard there were often tears rolling down our faces! :) Then some of us night owls would take our beach chairs out to the surf and lay back looking at the stars and talking.

Everything was perfect about that week except two things....my good friend Erica got stung by a stingray on our third day there. She was such a trooper though and persevered through the pain and still managed to have a great rest of the week. The other thing is that there were lots of SHARKS!! There is nothing like looking next to you and seeing a 6 ft shark swimming around! I have seen sharks before but usually from the bow of a ship, not while standing in the water. After the second day of swimming amongst the sharks, we didn't go in the water much. :)

I am so grateful for the amazing week that I was able to have. It was so nice to have a break and spend some time with some great women. I can't wait till next year!


Erica and I


The Ladies

My Cub Scout

When Sean turned 8, he joined cub scouts and became a Wolf scout. He is loving it so far and this week we are hosting the Pack Meeting at our house. We will be using our fire pit to learn how to build a fire and then cooking s'mores over it...YUM! Ever since we bought our house, Sean has been wanting to have an activity or party here, so he is verrrrry exited about Thursday! :)

Here are some pics of our handsome cub scout...

My Big Girl

Last week, Avery started preschool. I can hardly believe it! She goes Monday, Wednesday, and Fridays for three hours. It is hard for me because it is the first in many steps of her growing up. Next year, in July, she will start Kindergarten and then both my kids will be in school all day.

Avery is outgoing and loves to play and socialize. She has wanted to go to preschool forever and she is really enjoying it. She has two great teachers and lots of nice kids in her class. On the days she doesn't have school, she still asks if she can go. Why are kids always ready to grow up before parents are ready for them too?

I can't even imagine what a mess I will be on her first day of kindergarten! Oh my.....

The best two weeks :)

Our old friends Damon and Shanna came to visit us this month. We had such a blast! We hadn't seen them since before Avery was born so a visit was definitley in order.

We did lots of fun things together...we went to Bush Gardens and Water Country USA and had tons of fun, ate at Friendly's(YUMMMM), went to the beach, and just chilled out.

We plan to do it all again next year. We definitley can't let 5 more years pass between visits!




These are pictures from the best night ever at Busch Gardens! We had come back to the park early that night to ride more roller coasters, and literally as soon as we scanned our tickets in, the skies just opened up and let loose. It was quite the storm with heavy rain and lots of lightning. We had so much fun running around the park in the rain, playing the arcade games soaking wet, and riding the haunted house ride with a real storm outside. Awesome!!!


Shanna teaching Sean to crochet.


Damon playing a game with Avery.

Eric and Damon at the beach.

Sean's 8th Birthday

A few weeks ago, Sean turned 8. I can hardly believe he is really that old!! Where has the time gone? On his actual birthday, I brought in treats for his class party and then we had dinner at Red Robin and then cake and ice cream at home. Sean had wanted a Kirby cake and so I decided to go all out and make one for him, complete with fodant and all. It was so much fun to make and by some miralce, it tasted yummy too! :)

Then, on Saturday, the day after his birthday, he had a bowling party with his friends. It was great! All the kids had a good time and the best part for me was that someone else did all the work. :) I think we might do it again next year.

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First Day of Second Grade

I don't know how in the world it happened, but it did. I am now the mother of a second grader! Last night was Meet the Teacher night and we all went to see Sean's new classroom and meet his new teacher. I was so worried about what kind of teacher he would have because his last teacher was AMAZING and had set the bar high. But I needn't have worried. His new teacher is going to be just as amazing. I was so impressed with all the things she had in the classroom as well as her high emphasis on loving and caring for each other. I think Sean is going to do very well in her class.

When it was time to leave, she gave each student a bag filled with special things and a note about what each thing was for. I was so impressed and touched by it, I want to post it. :)

This is what it said:

An eraser to let you know that it is OK to make mistakes.

A shiny gem because each one of us is valuable.

Smarties to show that everyone is smart in their own special way.

A piece of gum so that we can all stick together.

A star to remind you that you will always shine and do your best.

A heart to show that my class is a safe and caring place.

A team pencil because I am lucky to have you on my team.

I am so excited for the year ahead and feel so grateful that once again, Sean has been blessed to have an excellent teacher.