Summer’s Close

Summer, at least in the summer vacation sense, is coming to a close. Levi will be starting his first year of real school in a few weeks as a Kindergartener. Bethany still has a while to go.
We had a great summer and it was a busy one. We’ve been in more than a dozen states, spend nights sleeping in nearly as many cities and gotten to have lots of fun. Of course all good things must end and so our summer is wrapping up. If only the heat would go with it.

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A friend's sister made the cabbage patch head cover for Bethany, and when we saw Minion ones she made those too.


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One of our little minions. She doesn't speak so well either.


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A better view


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The other minion in his hat making a silly face.


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This summer I made myself a desk for one of my projects. Here it is before the last stain and seal.

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This summer we learned not to go to Chick-fil-a on Ninja Turtle night. It was full at 4:30 and stayed that way for a long time.


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Bethany decided she likes this place, though, much like Levi did.


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She ate most of 4 grilled nuggets and a fruit cup.

One sad event coming up is the departure of some friends. Kendra’s friend Eva and her two daughters are moving to Russia for two years. Her husband works for NASA and has gotten a great opportunity to lead the office in Russia, the downside is being in Russia for 2 years. We had the girls stay with us for a few hours so their parents to go get some alone time for their anniversary.

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Levi, Brooke, and Ashley did some painting.


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They painted picture frames that a picture of the three of them will go into.


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They had lots of colors to choose from so they could customize


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They also painted some stars to put on as accents


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And then painted little bird house decorations.


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Bethany just hung out, played and snacked.


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All together


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Nice smiles


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The next day Brooke and Ashley had a going away party with some friends and a slip and slide.


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Levi had no problem slipping.


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and sliding


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They all had a lot of fun


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They were out there for a long time.


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Eventually they decided self propelled wasn't enough


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So we went kid tossing


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Bethany thought it was all very funny (check that tooth out)


Bethany has also started really moving. In June she had started crawling. Not long after she started pulling up, and now she is a climber.
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Hey brother let me see your coloring book.


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Trying to climb back up


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Love that smiling girl


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Bethany is also a great eater


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So far she has eaten pretty much anything we've given her.


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The main stuff she hasn't liked was things that felt weird to pick up.


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Here she has macaroni, carrots, chicken and peas.


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Levi loves hugging on his sister.


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Sometimes she's done before he is.


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Kendra's aunt Karen came into town for one night from Austin.


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We went to lunch with her, her husband Russ and Kendra's dad and stepmom.


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Bethany likes to explore under tables, and also to chew all over her sippy cup.


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She isn't always sure how to get out of hte places she goes.


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What you don't see here is the crying after she bangs her head.


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Our nine month old, though at this point she was much of the way to 10 months. Busy summer.


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She loves remotes and things with buttons.


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Such a pretty girl.


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Crawling around again


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This time she was playing with the doggy bowl

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This summer we also went to Fort Worth to visit Kendra's friend Trudy's family. Bethany got to meet them for the first time


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Bethany hung out with the big kids playing Skylanders


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She wants in on the action


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But decides to pursue other interests


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Kendalyn really liked having her there.


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She got to feed her and hold her a lot


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Saturday morning we watched Peyton, Kendalyn and Woodrow get their stripe on their blue belts


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Receiving the belt


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Afterwards we headed to Legoland in Grapevine Mills Mall.


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The entrance


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The kids helping with the factory


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Bethany giving me a high five.


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About to go shoot bad guys.


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The way it worked out I got to dual wield and cover Bethany, who's seated between the ladies.


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A giant dump truck made of Legos


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28 inch baby provided for scale.


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A Yoda poster made of Legos


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Mos Eisley in Lego. I want this


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The cantina with dancing band


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Buildings


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Giant Duel


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These are not the droids you're looking for


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Blue milk!


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Disabling the tractor beam


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Trash Compactor


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The death star


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Getting ready to drive


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Peyton ready to go


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Levi leading hte pack


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Coming back inside


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Kendalyn right behind him


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Funny enough only Peyton wrecked, when he got stuck on a wall.


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The giant play place they ran through for a while


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Snack time


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I think Bethany needed to pee.


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They have a giant metroplex city scape


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Another view


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DFW


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Jerry's World (Cowboys Stadium)


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I think that's Great Wolf Lodge


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Bethany contemplating a Godzilla like attack


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Gaylord Texan, I think a hotel


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Hot air balloon


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The mansion from the show Dallas


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Oil derricks


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The State Fair ferris wheel


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Bethany for scale again.


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She really wanted to play with their Legos


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They kept taking them away though.


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On the way out of town we stopped at McDonalds. Bethany really wanted some of Kendra's ice cream cone, which at this point had no ice cream left.


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For some reason she got dramatically upset.


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But not enough to stop trying to chew it.


We finish with this picture. Its easy to catch anyone making goofy faces, but its far cuter on babies.
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I swear officer, I haven't had anything to drink.

 

Posted in Bethany, Kendalyn, Levi, Peyton, Trips, Trudy Tagged with: , , , ,

Summer Fun 2013

Summer comes with lots of fun outdoor stuff. It also comes with lots of heat, so swimming is always a good outlet.

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We got back from our vacation just in time for the end of season party for soccer


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Here's Coach Dan handing out the trophies


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Team Photos


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Now with the assistant coach


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Swimming next door


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Taking a break for popcicles


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Levi and Gabe liked theirs


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Happy girl


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Another happy girl


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Craigslist and a few boards later and Cory made a racing slide


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Giving it a try


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Little miss loves her remotes


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8 months old


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Such a cutie


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With her big brother


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My father's day 'cake' a favorite tradition of mine


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Looking sleepy at the pool


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Brooke swimming with them


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Look out, behind you!


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He loves playing with his friends


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And she loves watching big kids


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Playing is sleepy work


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The hat for some sun shading


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Snack break


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That cheesy smile.


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Wrigley was spending a lot of time with Mimi while his parents got used to having Abby around and they came for a visit


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Bethany wants to see that toy


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Playing with the ball popper


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Little miss plays on the ground a lot now


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Playing together


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Sometimes you need a hat


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Even if it is a popcorn bucket


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Surprise!


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Little miss got a new hat


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It just so happens it looks like a cabbage patch doll's hair


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Wrigley wearing a different hat. They were having fun playing, though he kept telling her to stop when she was moving the elephant blower part.


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He didn't let that stay on long.


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She's used to bows and such on her head.


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Little crawling girl


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Peekaboo


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Hanging out with Brooke and Ashley at lunch


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If you look very closely you can just see Bethany's first tooth, which she started getting right around 9 months


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Swimming again


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She likes playing with goggles and glasses


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Unfortunately she also likes crawing out of her cruiser


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She thinks she can crawl on water


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Touring around the pool with mommy


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Playing with the water


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Playing with the water coming in, trying to spray it around.


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Hanging out in the theater after watching Epic, next to a display for another movie we want to see


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Little miss at one of her classmate's parties


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At another party for a friend's daughter


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Good think she doesn't mind all this stuff on her like the lei and head band.


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I was trying to take pictures of Bethany's tooth.


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She was trying to play with my phone, though you can see the tooth here.


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Best shot so far.


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4th of July in their homemade shirts


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We went to the League City festival with the Esbecks


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Little miss in her bow that she would wear some of the time.


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Cute kids


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Eating some popcorn


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And of course some cotton candy


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Quietest they were the whole time.


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It didn't last though


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Almost looks like a beard


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Most of the family. Levi was playing at the time.


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With the miss


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She likes swinging


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And crawling to play with Levi's old toys.


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Fourth of July night Kendra, Levi and her dad and Rhonda went to watch fireworks while I stayed home with Bethany. Good thing, since simple ones we shot later scared her.

 

Posted in Bethany, brooke, fireworks, Levi, Olivia, summer, swimming, teething, Wrigley Tagged with: , ,

Road Trip 2013 – Part 7 – Going Home

After North Carolina we heading back towards home. We planned to stop in Orange Beach Alabama one night and then get home late Friday night. Of course while we were in North Carolina a hurricane popped up in the gulf, but luckily for us (though not others) it heading in towards Florida.

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We crossed a state border 16 times on our trip. Bethany slept for probably 11 of those. That's good, but it also means you miss some of the best rest stops and fancy signs.


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We did make it to Orange Beach, and while there was no hurricane there were some strong currents. We played a lot on the beach though.


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Levi bringing in water for sand castle building.


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A selfie from Kendra


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Bethany watching the waves and activity


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Kendra's view


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Little miss looking cool in her shades


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Little miss needing some pacifier time because she doesn't like her shades.


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When we go to the beach we dig big holes.


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Levi was enjoying leaving footprints.


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Looking for shells was fun too.


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Being silly in Bethany's sunglasses.


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Man I need to lose weight.


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Fancy sun shading hats


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Bethany experiencing the beach for the first time.


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Why is it wet?


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She was screaming about the tiny bit of the wave that touched her.


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This was her first dip in an ocean.


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Not so sure


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About the scream for mommy to save her


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Happier now that she's up.


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She was getting tired at a point and so the fuss was strong.


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In the pit


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Bright sun makes it hard to see


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Playing in the waves


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He got nailed by one and I had to scoop him up, but we had fun for the most part.


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The beach and our hotel on the left.


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The girls again


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This is me saving him from a big wave


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Taking him out to splash some.


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Looking at Florida (its only like 5 miles)


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Looking at Alabama


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Smiles


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Smiles and a fuss.


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Levi in the Castle


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Sleepy baby passed out on me while we walked a bit.


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After we did the beach we rinsed off and did the pool. This was Bethany's first time in a pool I think. She liked it.


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She was sleepy though.


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Silly grins.


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Oooh, a camera.


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She did really well in the pool, even laying flat on her back, something most babies hate.


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Getting packed up to head out. She fit perfect by the ice chest.


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One last look at a nice beach.


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Cheesy smile


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Stretching the baby into the air


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Posing for a picture


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getting a geocache in Florida


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Right at the border.


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He likes it until we have to start driving 8 hours. Notice the sleeping baby in the mirror


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Back into Alabama, where I'm governor.


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Passing through Mississippi


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They have beautiful sculptures made from reclamed wood at the rest stop. This is an Eagle


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A crab


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A horse head (how very Godfather) and a shark

We had a great vacation and needed a weekend to recover. We still haven’t finished unpacking some things. Our kids did a great job road tripping and I’m sure we’ll do it again. I’d like to thank Toyota for making a nice dvd player and video screen in the van with RCA inputs and Nintendo for the Wii and Smash Brothers, without which our trip may not have succeeded.

 

Posted in Beach, Bethany, Levi, Trips, Vacation Tagged with: , , , , ,

Road Trip 2013 – Part 6 – North Carolina

After Baltimore we went down to North Carolina to visit with Kendra’s Maw Maw and Granddaddy McGowan. They live far out on Pamlico Sound, near the Town of Bath, which is the oldest incorporated town in North Carolina. It also has the distinction of being the former home of Blackbeard the Pirate.

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We took a ferry across the sound to go vist a fossil museum. Levi hung out in the car with Granddaddy and I. Bethany went with Kendra and Maw Maw to tour around.


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The ferry sign


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I think Levi was afraid because he hasn't really been on a boat much.


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It wasn't very crowded because most of the people who use the ferry do so at shift changes at the local phosphate plant.


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It was a rainy day


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The ladies out for a walk


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Levi, content to play games on his mommy's phone.


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The Aurora Fossil Museum has lots of fossils found near the Pamlico sound, many of them dug up by the nearby phosphate mining activity.


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Levi is inside a scale replica of an ancient shark


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A jaw on display


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Some very large teeth


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A baby with no teeth.


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Levi gets nervous around new things


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Especially when you act like you're tossing him out.


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Cheese


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Acting afraid


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Posing with his sister inside in a break from the rain.


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Back at the house. Bethany was hangin gout with Granddaddy


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Then myself, Bethany, Levi and Maw Maw watched some TV and relaxed


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Trying to get the two of them together


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This one turned out the best. He got the turtle at the fossil museum.


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The next day we went into Washington, NC to their Estuarium.


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This is part of a water cycle art display. It actually has a ball that moves through it to show the water cycle.


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Swinging at the park


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He wanted pushed high.


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Cute little miss.


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She was having fun watching all the other kids


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Headbutting mommy.


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This is the front yard of the house


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Looking back towards the house. Its a rough life I'm sure.


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Pretty sunsets from the patio.


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Eating ice cream from a cup. Maw Maw has ice cream every night.


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Chilling on the patio.


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This is Kendra's cousin Carolyn. Levi is explaining some games to her.


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Another patio shot


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I was out looking at jelly fish that had made their way up into the sound.


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A family shot squinting in the sun


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Another one with more family


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Carolyn with Bethany. She has two little girls of her own that are 3.


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Bethany with Maw Maw and Granddaddy.

We had a great visit up there, and its such a beautiful place to visit. Kendra’s mom is going to be building a small home up there, so I’m sure there will be plenty of future trips with even more family.

 

Posted in Bethany, family, Levi, North Carolina, Trips, Vacation Tagged with: , ,

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