selfies

Selfie -a photograph that one has taken of oneself, typically one taken with a smartphone or webcam and shared via social media.

So we went to our first Black Bears game in August. It was a family night with the Kozels. The boys had a great time being a little more independent. The grown ups got to catch up after a long time of not seeing each other. And we paid $10/ticket for the girls to spend the evening taking selfies.

 

 

But check out that non-cross bite. That expander is working beautifully!

And we have also made it back to the Young Life office for Leadership and some First Year stuff. Ted sure does love the skit closet. If dressing up in costumes was a love language, that would certainly be Ted's. So during a recent meeting we had with leaders, Ted got in on the selfie action. He's very set on creating the perfect Halloween costume.

So, my kids are getting in on the selfie action these days. Minus the posting on social media. So I'll just do it for them.

surfside beach - part 1

After a day at the aquarium and Broadway on the Beach, we headed to Surfside Beach for a week with Ben's family. (Our family's don't vacation regularly, but the past two times they've vacationed it's been the same year!) 

We had this great duplex (we had the left side).

The pool was my favorite part.

Our room was at the tippy top - 4th floor. We got our exercise that week.

The 4 of us cozyed up in our tippy top room which was kind of fun to be up there by ourselves.

Henry loved the beach.

My kids loved being with Henry and Isaac.

The beach was red flagged most days and Ted had developed a fear of sharks. So we did mostly sand playing, surf sitting and pool swimming.

But we had some great conversations in these chairs.

(I totally missed the picture of Ben and Andy sitting in the surf one day under the shade shack!)

Our first day there the beach was pretty crazy. But thankfully it wasn't this crowded everyday.

Ted, Ben, Andy, Doh, Pap & Steph hit up a Pelicans game on the last night we were there. Ted learned he could throw 43 mph, watched a game with a walk off home run and got to run the bases after the game. He had a GREAT time!

We even got to see the Pelican when we checked in.

Highlights of the beach included:

family dinners

mornings at the beach

afternoons by the pool

after dinner dip in the pool with pap

reading a book

ben's toe injury and subsequent visit to urgent care

connecting as a family

being really tan (which didn't last when I got home)

henry & isaac playing together

golf cart rides

walks to ice cream & the pier

bike rides

the farmers market

date night with andy & courtney

ted's 100 jumps in the pool

sunrises

sunrise wedding

pelican's game

masks with aunt courtney

lunch at riverside cafe

the shade shack

game playing

our top story room

mini golf

Click here for more pictures

surfside 2015 - part 2

 Read Part 1 if you missed it.

More pictures from the beach . . . 

I had a really bad summer of sleeping - which was a real bummer.
But I got to see some beautiful sunrises.

One morning I got to see a sunrise wedding.

The kids baptizing each other on the pool.

Checking out the fishing on the pier.

Snuggles on the couch.

Walks for ice cream.

Cruising in the golf cart with Henry.

Henry loved Bubba.

More cruising with Isaac.

Sophie & Aunt Courtney did facial masks.

The boys taught Uncle Andy how to play Pokemon.

Ted learned how to make waffles.

And Pap treated everyone to Krispy Kreme.

We lost some things and found them again.

And played in each other's rooms.

We left around noon on Friday. But before we did, we snuck in a game of mini golf.
(NOTE: Best time to play mini-golf is 9:00 am. Not a person there!)

 Ted got 2 holes in 1!

All-in-all, it was a great trip! Traveling home on Friday was amazing because we missed all that crazy Saturday traffic around Wythville. The kids were absolutely beat by the end of the beach. Our time at home in between the cabins and the beach was busy and full so they were pretty worn out.

 Ted fell asleep while watching a movie. NEVER happens.

 

We ran the wheels off this thing this summer.

And we packed her full.

Family pictures from the beach to come later when Ben gets them uploaded and edited!

We are beyond thankful for our families (and friends who are family) who have given us so much in the way of vacation. There have been many years we didn't vacation simply because we just can't afford it. Although vacation isn't necessarily "vacation"when you have younger kids, it's still a great time to get away, put your phones and away and be together as a family somewhere new and different and fun. These jam packed weeks were spent with our favorite people in the world and we came home with some pretty full hearts.