Category Archives: Uncategorized

New York

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I’ve been looking at old blogs recently. My love for the girls and life was so fierce and passionate. I loved the girls so much that I literally wanted to squeeze them so hard sometimes – my patience and love extraordinary for my tiny humans. Fast forward the past few years and somehow they have grown up before my eyes. Yes, they are still little but they are far from toddlers. They whine, they don’t appreciate, and they fight a lot….it drives Justin and I insane sometimes and I turn into a mom, a person I never thought I would be. I’m rude to them, short with them, and honestly I want to just yell and say to them “what the f**k is wrong with you.” I hate that version of me…it is not who I am or who I aspire to be. The girls are not going to get any younger so I need to figure it out…need to figure out how to be that mom that I once was – the mom who simply adored her children, the mom who literally couldn’t stop smiling when she looked and thought of her kids.

This past weekend we went to New York City for the weekend and it wasn’t a good weekend. It makes me sad to write that, to think that, but it is true. We had good moments but the truth is every wrong turn, bad meal, or change of plans got to each of us this weekend.  We will go again to NY….it won’t be tomorrow but we will go and the ugly of this trip will long be forgotten. Pictures were far and few between but there were a few – and this is how we will likely remember this trip in the days to come.

And we will end this on a scrumptious mouth watering worth every calorie cookie because for those few minutes I was in complete and utter decadent bliss!

10 Year Anniversary

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I have always said that I could live in Colorado.  Ironically, I had never been to Colorado. So when it came time to planning our 10 year anniversary trip, we opted for the Colorado mountains instead of our typical tropical destination.

We wanted hiking, good food, beautiful scenery, and just a tad of relaxation.

Hiking – The hiking and the beautiful scenery were pretty much one in the same, granted we did see some amazing views when we weren’t hiking.  We took a total of five hikes, all quite different in nature.

Hike 1 – Maroon Bells (11 miles outside Aspen)
Once we decided we were going to Colorado, Maroon Bells became a must visit.  We opted to visit Colorado on one of the busiest fall weekends of the year.  While the bus lines to get to Maroon Bells were longer than normal, the lines moved pretty quickly and we started our hike through the bells at about 9:30 a.m.  It was simply amazing.   We experienced amazing views and had a great time hiking for three hours.

Hike 2 – Hunter Creek Trail (Aspen)
Our original plan was to hike Hanging Lake trail in Glenwood Canyon; however, it was closed for construction so the concierge recommended a trail in Aspen.  We started our hike around 8:30 and Justin and I first thought it would be a relatively easy hike based on how it started out.  The hike kept getting better and better.  There were not many people on the trail on our hike up and a few times we questioned if we were going the right direction.  When we arrived at the observation deck, I was in disbelief.  I don’t know what I was expecting, but certainly not to see the entire city of Aspen.

Hike 3 – Grizzly Creek Trail (Glenwood Canyon)
This was another hike that we did as an alternative after not being able to get into the parking lot (it was full) of Hanging Lake.  We hiked along a creek for 45 minutes each way.

Hike 4 – Palmer Trail in Garden of Gods Park (Colorado Springs)
We started our hike at about 8:50.  While this was relatively the same time we started or prior hikes, the temperatures in Colorado Springs were much warmer than Aspen.  For two hours, we were hiking among red mountains.  To arrive at this destination (Siamese Twins) was amazing.

Hike 5 – Manitou Springs Incline (Manitou Springs – 8 miles outside Colorado Springs)
As if our morning hike wasn’t enough, Justin and I challenged ourself to hike the Manitou Springs Incline, 2500 stairs to the mountain summit.  We paced ourselves and took breaks frequently, monitoring our heart rates the whole time for some HITT training. We had just reached the lower summit, about 2100 stairs, when the skies looked like they were about to open up.  We made the hard decision to take the trail down from the lower summit instead of reaching the upper summit.  It was a tough decision because while physically it was challenging, we know we absolutely could have finished and would have had it not been about to storm. The 400 additional steps and the trail down were estimated to take an additional hour (two more hours) had we chosen to continue.  And while we had been prepared with our raincoats and emergency gear for every other one of our hikes, Justin chose to take his raincoat our of his camelback earlier that morning. The hike took us a total of two hours.

With each hike, I had fun taking selfies.

With each hike, I felt such a sense of accomplishment. Seriously we hiked on average three hours a day.  The hikes were challenging but we felt good during and after our hikes.  Justin remarked that he is in the best shape of his life and I would probably venture to say the same for myself.

Each hike was uniquely different, yet each beautiful and scenic. We spent more money than we would like to admit on hiking gear prior to the trip (back packs, hiking shoes, hiking shirt, hiking pants, Patagonia jacket, socks, gloves), but we don’t regret a single purchase.  We had the right gear and ALL of it will come in useful for our future hikes, which we plan on doing many.  Perhaps they won’t be at the same elevation, but we are going to take advantage of the hiking closer to home.  Speaking of elevation, we acclimated pretty well after the initial day we arrived. The day we arrived we drove the three hour drive from Denver to Aspen via Independence Pass, a road that is so dangerous it is only open about half the year.  I felt my stomach drop at times during the 20 mile “scary” strip and couldn’t look at the views.  We got out at the Independence Pass overlook sign and about 100 steps out of the car later, the altitude got me and I had to sit before returning to the car.  Fortunately, we hydrated well, took it easy physically the day we arrived; I refrained from alcohol that night at dinner and adjusted to the altitude by the following day.

Food – Food was by far better in Aspen than Colorado Springs.  I read a lot of restaurant reviews on tripadvisor prior to and during our trip so that didn’t really come as a surprise.  Justin and I cleaned up well each evening before dinner; yet for some reason I did not take any pictures in the evenings of us dining. Aspen had a ton of excellent food choices so making the decision about which one to go to was hard!

Wild Fig (Aspen) We had reservations at Element 47; however, after walking into the restaurant which was an enclosed space in an upscale hotel, we decided it wasn’t the right spot for us.  We had passed by Wild Fig a few times and the menu was calling our name. We ate outside and enjoyed a delicious meal.

The White House Tavern (Aspen) This was actually Justin’s selection.  It was the number one rated restaurant on tripadvisor and while it looked good, we only had so many times to eat.  I was going to pass this restaurant up until a coworker of Justin’s recommended it as the best chicken sandwich one of his friends had ever eaten.  When we arrived back in the town of Aspen Friday from our Maroon Bells hike, we put our name on the wait list and ate a late lunch.  This is the chicken sandwich….it didn’t disappoint.  My salad was excellent too, although I would have preferred grilled chicken in it instead of pulled chicken, much of which was dark meat.  An excellent meal though.

Meat and Cheese (Aspen)Meat and Cheese was another restaurant that we had walked by several times.  It was small, quaint, and the menu was right up our alley.  We ate outside and enjoyed a delicious dinner our second night.

Glenwood Canyon Brewery (Glenwood Canyon) Saturday morning we headed to Glenwood Canyon, about an hours drive from Aspen.  The restaurants in the area were just okay so we settled on Glenwood Canyon knowing the highlight would probably be the beer.  The food was okay but it met expectations.  We were in and out of there pretty quickly allowing us to get to our next adventure.

Matsuhisa (Aspen) We had reservations for this place, restaurant of world renowned chef Nobu Matsuhisa, which was upscale and highly rated.  Food was delicious.  Service was a different story.  I want to say it was bad (it was) but odd probably better describes it.  We walked in and the hostess kind of ignored us for a minute after we told her we had reservations.  Finally we were led to the table by the other hostess and he literally plopped the menus on the table while Justin and I took our own seat.  We sat there for a few wondering if we should pick up the menus since not a word was said by him (i.e. enjoy, your server will be right with you, etc.).  We decided not to.  When our waitress came, she simply asked if we knew what we wanted to drink.  At that point, we figured we better pick up the menu.  There were a ton of specials but she didn’t go over any of them or even make reference to the fact that they had specials.  When I asked a question about one of the entrees, she answered my question but chose not to elaborate about any of the other items which would have made sense since clearly this place and menu was new to me from my question.  I will say the bus boys were great and on top of refilling our waters and clearing plates.  We ordered four basic sushi rolls and split one tenderloin entree (6 oz. of steak with vegetables).   A modest amount of food in my opinion yet twice, she seriously told us we had ordered a lot of food, almost in a way that she was calling us fatties!   I’m still in disbelief as I write this.  We go out for sushi at home a lot and I often think too myself how much more other people order in comparison to us.  While we truly didn’t order a lot, what if we had!  Again, very odd.  The food really was delicious. Our favorite roll was the shrimp tempura.  It was warm and included a piece of asparagus giving it an excellent crunch.  Delicious food but way to pretentious and stuck up for me.  I like personable service and this was far from it.

 

Tapateria (Colorado Springs)
This was more of a cafe serving tapas.  It was good, certainly not great. If this restaurant were in Aspen, it would not have even made my list, but the restaurants in Colorado Springs were just lacking in terms of the ones that Justin and I normally enjoy.  So with reset expectations and taking literally all day to even settle on this one, it was good.   This was our final meal in Colorado Springs.

 

As for the rest of our meals in Colorado Springs, we made do.  We stopped at the store and bought fage Greek yogurts and strawberries that we ate for breakfast.  The night before we ate at the hotel lounge.  Our expectations weren’t too high so we shared three small plates and had a drink (after having some veggies and hummus in the hotel room that we had bought earlier in the day).  We opted for a late lunch Monday so we could do both hikes first. Based on where the restaurants in Colorado Springs were there wasn’t a true downtown area…well there was but when we finally found it it was kind of run down.  We walked in and out of the few restaurants that I had finally thought may be a good option.  It was nearing 3:00 and Justin could have probably eaten his left arm by now so we popped into a brewery (Colorado Crafthouse).  If we ate lunch there, being that it was 3:00, this would have been our last meal in Colorado Springs.  The menu just did not excite me so after ordering a flight for me and two beers for Justin, we decided to order the nachos (something we never do but seemed kind of fun and okay since it was our lunch and we had truly burned some calories) and then find a better option for dinner.

Hotels

The Limelight Hotel (Aspen)

This hotel was nice…great spot in the city, great service, and an excellent breakfast included as part of the rate.  Since breakfast was included and quite delicious, we ate a big yummy healthy breakfast each morning before setting off to hike.  The rate…the rate was insane and Justin and I chose to go all out with the nicest room since it was our anniversary.  We typically don’t and while having the fireplace was nice as well as the separate toilet, the truth is we aren’t in the room that much when we go on vacation and the best room was not worth the additional $600 in total that we could have saved.  This is especially true for a hotel that is in the city…we need to remind ourselves for future that the smaller room in a nice hotel is our preference.  Oh yeah, the bed was very comfortable and Justin and I got about eight hours sleep each night, even waking up around 6:15 a.m.

Garden of the Gods Resort (Colorado Springs)
Clearly this hotel has the word resort in it, but I’m not sure I truly thought about what that entailed.  Our room was enormous with a walk in closet bigger than our closet at home.  Our balcony had a beautiful view of the mountains.  The amenities were great and we took advantage of going to the hotel gym (three short workouts) and sitting by the infinity pool. While our room was great and the price tag far cheaper than the price tag of The Limelight Hotel, the truth still remains that we don’t need the best room.  We are out and about most our time on vacation and really spend so little time in our room.  Oh yeah, the bed at this hotel was also was very comfortable and Justin and I got about eight hours sleep each night, even waking up by 7:00 a.m.  The comfortable king beds at both hotels had Justin and I re-visit the discussion of getting a king bed and new bedding for our bedroom.  The verdict is still out though.

Other
Independence Pass
Glad we drove this way, but probably a one time thing in my opinion.  The rest of the drive in from Denver to Aspen was truly just as amazing, and not as frightening!  The time spent in the car from Denver to Aspen and Glenwoood Canyon to Colorado Springs was truly breathtaking,
Aspen Museum
We stopped in the Aspen Art Museum, a free muesuem Friday night prior to dinner.  It was small so we were able to explore the whole thing in less than 45 minutes.  Justin enjoys art much more than I do; however, I like to go knowing he appreciates it.

 

Iron Mountain Hot Springs
I’m not sure what I was thinking when I gave our travel agent the go ahead to purchase these tickets for us.  I guess its safe to say I wasn’t thinking.  Had I done the research I would have realized this was a big party fest where people drink in hot tubs.  The idea is kind of cool, but not what we were interested in spending our time on.  We had already purchased the tickets ($25 each) so we went and dipped in a few different pools and easdropped on a few awkward conversations for 45 minutes before taking off.

 

Tram and Cave
Same story here as the hot springs.  If I had done the research, I would have realized the tram (which by the way Justin and I hate those sort of heights) took us to the top of the mountain which was an amusement park.  Again, cool idea if you are wanting to spend the day there with your family doing rides and games, but again not really our cup of tea.  We had already purchased the tickets for the tram ride and the cave tour ($29 each).  As for the cave tour, it was cool, but we have already been to Luray Caverns and we aren’t exactly excited by that sort of stuff (granted I admit it is amazing) so again I have no idea why I had our travel agent book it for us.  The only thing I can think of are I’m not sure I realized booking it would be an actual charge (I think I thought it was more of a reservation that could be cancelled).  Second I think I probably thought it was an easy add on since we would already be in that location from  Hanging Lake.  However, Hanging Lake was closed for four days and when it re-opened Sunday, we still were not able to get in.

 

It was really a great vacation and I feel so blessed that I can finally say I have been to Colorado.  This vacation was different than our normal tropical vacation and Justin and I loved every minute of hiking and exploring and our beautiful surroundings.  We did miss the girls and talked about them a lot!  A LOT as to the point of whether we wanted to add one more to our family!  This thought has occurred many times before and this trip was our final yes or no.  While it was a difficult decision, we decided our family is great as is and to take advantage of them being older with no more strollers, diapers to change, or babies to carry.  With that, I have already been looking at possible vacation spots for our family.  I want to explore the world…..now just need to come up with a game plan to make that happen!

Happy 10 Year’s together Justin.  It seriously feels like yesterday that we just started dating.  AND that was almost 20 years ago!  You make me a better person.  You are my partner, my teammate.  I love you.  I love our family. I love the life we have created.  And by the way, we had an amazing wedding 😍

Happy Birthday Spookie

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(Guest Post – Justin)

Happy 39th Birthday Stefanie.  This is the last year of your 30’s and I am about to do something that I constantly advise against . . . a blog post with lots of pictures.  I cannot help it (and now I kind of get why you do it) . . . today was a good day.

We started the day with the traditional breakfast in bed and the girls helped by cutting the strawberries.

Larissa had decorated the kitchen last night, so did not want the girls to eat breakfast in there.  They went to the craft table and Harper made her own tray.

Little Ms. Avery was still with fever today, so we decided to take it easy (Maddy easy anyway).  We started the adventure with cake that Larissa and the girls made yesterday (talking 11 AM!! cake people).  The girls shared their presents with Mom.  Larissa did an awesome job all week helping the girls with their gifts.

We were off to Meadowlark to hang out and then have a light snack picnic, that way we could still eat for our 4:30 dinner reservations with all the other old people. (Happy 39th Birthday Stefanie).

We even checked out the Atrium where Stefanie and I got married (a week and it will be 10 years!!).  Stefanie showed the girls the Bridesmaid room.

After our picnic at Meadowlark we headed off to Gravelly Point to watch the Airplanes take off.

 

Even this guy was saying Happy Birthday!!

Our 4:30 dinner just wore this little girl out.

I love you more than anything, Happy Birthday Stefanie.

Oakton Elementary: They Are ALL Off

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Summer came and went and these girls are ready to embark on the new school year…this time all three girls are in the same school.  Avery and Emerson are in 2nd grade and Harper is now in kindergarten.  The years are passing bye so quickly…its crazy!  Harper didn’t say she was nervous, but she was acting extremely tired all morning…she wouldn’t even smile for the pictures.

Avery was excited for the start of school but as it approached the time to leave for the bus stop, her stomach started to bother her and she kept telling me she was having “nerves”.

Emerson was probably the most excited about school as she loves the social aspect.

All three girls together at Oakton Elementary school this year!

As usual, I had my workout clothes on and Emerson could not believe that I had not showered and was going to take them to the bus stop in my workout clothes.  Its my uniform on my work from home days so she is used to it, but apparently still doesn’t approve.

Me, Larrissa, and the girls.  Larrissa is going to have to get accustomed to her new schedule and having time off during the day!  She spent some time today organizing the art supplies!

Pic with Daddy.

And the whole family.

I wanted a family picture of us making funny faces but Justin jumped out of the picture too quickly and it was just me and the girls.

After pictures, the girls set off to walk to the bus stop.

Harper saw a dirt pile that she stopped briefly to check out.

But quickly realized her sisters were still walking.

And she took off after them.  This picture makes me smile.

Emerson realizes Harper is behind and stops to help her get her back pack on properly.

Avery meanwhile looks on, not offering to help.

Mom and Larissa follow.  I brought watermelon this year as our contribution to the bus stop breakfast.

All the kids from the neighborhood at OES.

And then they were off to learn, grow, be challenged, make friends, and make this world a better place.

Harper Turns Five Again

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I had every intention for this blog entry to be a short one.  I intended to post a picture of all the kiddos and be done with it.  BUT with over 150 pictures that tell the story of a great day and celebration with friends and family, I’m at it again writing late Saturday night (while Justin is in bed snoring across the room) so I don’t fall any further behind in my posts (I still haven’t finished my beach blog).  Anyway, Harper’s party started at noon.  Kids and adults ate and played while others continued to trickle in for the first 45 minutes of the party until the Vienna Singing Princesses arrived.  They started the party by letting each kid pick a charm for a necklace.  Harper chose face painting as the activity she wanted the princesses to do. Earlier in the week, Emerson and Grace decided they didn’t like princesses and were too old for it….thus the older girls were not going to get their faces painted.  That was fine with me because we were actually over the maximum limit of kids had they all chose to get their faces painted.  I left the room for a few minutes and while I did, the older kids decided face painting was indeed cool.  Harper and Avery were already getting their faces done and Emerson was next in line when I realized what was occurring.  I reminded Emerson of our prior conversation about the older girls going last.  With Avery being almost done, I let her finish.  Emerson did not take it well.  And for the next hour of the party was pouty, refused to smile, and stuck to herself.

Hannah

Avery

The Birthday Girl

Zara was so cute and every time I saw her after her face was painted, she would roar. 

Ella and Eric

Dylan

Sloane

Sophia

Ashely

Finally, it was Emerson’s turn and after all the wait, she opted for something simple.  Later in the evening, she told me she thought doing her whole face would take too long and she would miss out. 

Avery and Emerson.  Emerson snuck up from behind and Avery was not too pleased.

When all the kids had their faces painted, we took a picture with the princesses before they left.  Harper was shy and trying to get all the kids looking and smiling in the same direction is near impossible. 

This one cracks me up the most…check out Ava grabbing her crotch.  Meagan and Grace laughing at one another.  Jacob looking at them like they are crazy. Dylan taking a bite out of Sloane’s head.  Sophia looking at him like he is crazy.  Harper slowly falling out of the princesses hold. I could go on…just so funny.

Ironically, not liking being the center of attention in a large group setting. 

The kids made crowns and tiaras next.  Larrissa was awesome and helped set it all up.  Standing proud!The kids had a great time…even the boys!  

After crafts it was cupcake time!  I got these at Walmart (shh…don’t tell).  They were actually delicious! And of course I got way to many (as I did with the pizza)!!

Harper again got really shy being the center of attention.

And with every second that we continued singing to her, her head started to sink downward more and more.  Meanwhile, as I do every year, I have to fight back tears as I sing Happy Birthday to my kids.  Seriously, singing that song to my kids each year gets me choked up every time!

Emerson looked at Harper to nudge her to blow out her candles.  

She stepped back to have Avery and Emerson do it for her. 

It was actually sad and super cute at the same time.

Once cupcakes were over, I felt a little more relaxed as all the organized activities were done.  As is the case with hosting a party, I never talk to anyone long enough because I am running around.  Not to mention, I think I peed seven times during the course of the party.  I had two beers and an insane amount of water!  Anyway, I had Justin running around to making sure he was capturing the moments.  Mila came and while I personally didn’t catch up too much with her, the girls were glad she was there!  I LOVE all of these pictures!  

Emerson went last taking her picture with Larissa and Mila.  She didn’t want her picture taken…she was still mad about the face painting situation. So Larissa and Mila played along.

I then realized I needed a recent picture with my “oldest” friend.  Thirty eight years later and still friends…we look a little older but still pretty good if you ask me!  I told Lish I wanted to get a picture with her and she was like “I look like crap.”  My response was well “I look good.”.  Thus, her initial pose and my laughter. 

Then of course, I realized we must take a recent picture of our kids together!

Harper is all daredevil and boy sometimes.  Case in point for the former.

The kids had a good time playing on the swing set as well. My girls don’t use it much on their own, but it seems to be a big hit at parties.

And last but not least, I needed a picture with my older kids.

Followed by all my kids.

A good time was truly had by all.  Happy 5th Birthday Harper…again!  We celebrated three times this month…that’s quite the celebration for a princess. And since we alternate years between the family and friends birthday celebrations, I’m hopeful that in two years if we are having a kids birthday party at our house, a new open concept kitchen will be in the background!

Outer Banks – 2018

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Saturday: Saturday was the drive…it was 7 hours door to door, which wasn’t too bad. The girls all watched Netflix on their IPADs most the car ride, so they were pretty quiet. Harper received a new IPAD for her 5th birthday, two days early so that she could have it for the car ride! Normally the day of arrival, we don’t do much else besides unpack and go to the grocery store. This year, we arrived a little earlier than normal (3:30) and with the help of Larrissa, were able to unpack quickly. Gus, Erin, and I went grocery shopping together to pick up items for dinner (we grilled burgers and hot dogs), and we still managed to spend a little time at the beach (this year our house was on the beach) and also go to bed early!

Sunday: Harper’s Birthday! My baby turned five. Honestly, this was a tough one to swallow. At age five, I clearly don’t have any babies…I don’t even have toddlers anymore. Ironically, Harper started acting older! I joke you not. I kept telling her happy birthday and in an annoyed voice she would respond “Mom (not even Mommy or Mama), you already told me that.” Then, she would not even let me pick her up! Maybe it was because she was with her friends! I hope so!

Anyway, Sunday morning the girls woke early….starting at 6:30! They never wake that early! Not sure if it was because it was so bright out or if it was simply the excitement of Harper’s birthday. Either way, they were up early…as were Mommy and Daddy. I started the first of many pots of coffee and then proceeded to make breakfast pancakes at Harper’s request. They were a hit!

We spent the morning at the beach and were on the beach by 9:30 am after what felt like a very leisurely morning. The light was amazing and I was having a ball with the camera!

The girls loved the water. The laughs that were coming out of them was so amazing to hear and brought such joy to me! These pictures of Emerson especially make my heart so happy because she is a tough one to please.

While Avery still didn’t like going in the water this year, she had a thrill getting close to it and having the waves hit her feet.

They even boogie boarded and had a blast riding the waves.

A little pool time followed by some lunch and then some quiet/movie/play time for the kids. While Harper and I went to the grocery store to pick out her cake, Daddy and Larissa took Avery and Emerson back to the beach.   Harper and I joined upon our return but the threat of lightning and thunder abbreviated our afternoon beach time. So we took showers and ordered pizza to celebrate Harper’s fifth birthday! And we topped it off with cake, which was also a hit. These pictures are so funny because you can see the reflection of the kids in the table!

Happy 5th Birthday Harper Paige Maddy!

Monday: Monday morning Harper was up again early but the older girls slept in until around 8:00. We spent the morning at the beach. While the light wasn’t amazing, I still managed to take some incredibly pictures using filters and taking black and white photos. Again, their joy was abundant.

Some pool (and hot tub) time followed before eating leftover pizza for lunch.

In the afternoon, our family went miniature golfing. Emerson is extremely competitive and couldn’t handle the fact that Harper wasn’t playing by the rules. We eventually had to split up in two teams so Emerson was separated from her sisters. Her attitude improved by the end; however, while we played she was having a very tough time. It was Larrisa’s first time playing and she had a great time.

It was HOT playing and we were all dripping sweat. Ice cream seemed like the perfect thing to do next…we went to Booty Treats and it was delicious!

Next stop was Nags Head Pier, where the girls saw a 40 pound cobia being gutted and fileted. We took pictures on the pier.

Then went underneath the pier and on the sand for a few. Emerson and Harper got closer to the water than I was planning. The light was amazing again.

We came home to a delicious dinner of salmon, chicken, shrimp, and asparagus that Gus and Donald cooked. Followed by watermelon, dance parties, and fun.

Tuesday: Tuesday morning we made our way to the beach again. Harper and Emerson especially loved playing in the sand, water, and hours later still weren’t tired of doing so. Avery on the other hand loved playing near the water initially but was much more apt to complain after about an hour that she wanted to head to the pool. She doesn’t go into the water as much as the other girls so I think she just gets hotter. I tried pouring buckets of water on her a few times, which helped for a few minutes at a time.

The girls took a dip in the pool next. I stayed behind and read some on the beach!

After lunch our family went to Jockey’s Ridge. We went smack in the middle of the day in the sweltering heat. Emerson complained quite a bit and Avery and Harper some but overall enjoyed the short time we were there. Emerson refused to come up the final dune, thus why she looks like spec below!

We enjoyed Taco Tuesday at the beach house courtesy of the Brophys.

Wednesday: Wednesday morning we went to the beach again followed by pool!

Wednesday early evening the three families headed to Jenette’s Pier for our annual family picture taking.

Our family

The Brophys

The Nidays

The kids….Quinn wasn’t really into it and Harrison too wanted nothing to do with it.

Everyone!

Just when we were about to leave, some guys caught a shark. The kids had a great time watching it. Avery especially was laughing hysterically watching it wiggle and twist until the man threw him back in the water.

After the pier, the families went out to dinner on our own. Justin and I decided to make it a date night and went to our can’t miss spot, Blue Moon Grill Café. Even arriving at 5:45 p.m, the wait time was 1 hour 45 minutes. After about 40 minutes and a beer at the new bar, we snagged a seat at the bar and ate a delicious dinner! Justin ordered the shrimp and grits. I ordered the swordfish special and they were both delicious! We even splurged on the lemon mascarpone cake, which too was excellent, and I had no regrets about ordering.

After dinner, we headed for a quick walk back on Jenette’s Pier since our walk on pass was good for the entire day. Justin snagged a picture of me on the turtle….the same turtle that the kids take a picture on.

We also took some selfies!

Thursday: Thursday we switched everything up…starting in the morning. I took my morning walk on the beach. The girls went swimming after breakfast, while I went to The Fresh Market to get dinner food for the evening. The girls were a little disappointed that they didn’t get to go out to eat last night so we quickly left the beach house at 11:10 to beat the crowd before doors opened at 11:30 to eat lunch at Kill Devil Grill. Lunch was delicious and fun.

Justin and I spent an hour together in the afternoon and went for another walk and a quick trip back to the grocery store since I didn’t think I had enough flank steak for dinner. He took a picture of me on a massive chair in the parking lot.

We went to the beach a little after 3:00 today and it was nice to enjoy the beach later in the day.

Dinner was flank steak with salad and of course a lot of other “little things”…pesto, chimichurri sauce, fruit, green beans, olives, sweet peppers. I didn’t get up to take my pitch, but HOMERUN!!

Friday: Our last day…always bittersweet! Justin and I woke up before 6:00 a.m. intentionally – he wanted to take pictures of the sunrise. I wanted to see it as well and figured I would just start my walk early on the beach – of course the multi-tasker in me would do that! I was on the beach walking at 6:07 a.m. Justin was waiting for the sunrise and it looked hazy….I started walking and close to a half hour later turned my head toward the ocean to see the most beautiful sunrise. Justin had said the sun started rising 14 minutes before I noticed it rising behind me. I brought a ziplock bag with me on my walk today and collected seashells at the same time. My walk ended at 8:00 a.m. – and I had 10,000 steps by then! Score!

We indulged in Duck Donuts for breakfast courtesy of Donald and Gus! I indulged having half with an oreo topping and half lemon coconut and then the crumbs and drippings in the box! Up until today, I ate darn well (nutrition wise)….todays nutrition was so-so at best.

After breakfast, we beached it up for one last time on the vacation. I took turns going for a walk and looking for shells with each of the girls individually. They enjoyed the one-on-one time.

The afternoon was spent packing and getting ready for our departure. And of course, the trip wouldn’t be complete without another trip for ice-cream. We went to Booty Treats again…just a different location. It was packed and we even got to see a few girls displaying their own booty treats. Emerson too was staring at the girl at the cash register who was wearing a string bikini thong and at certain angles appeared to be truly naked from the back.

The highlight of the day for the kids (perhaps even the week) was when the fire alarm went off and the code to turn it off wouldn’t work, triggering a visit from the police department. All was well and the kids received hats from the fire department and then proceeded to play fire and rescue in the beach house the next hour.

Our last dinner we did take out from Sooeys Barbecue and while I made better choices than I would have in the past, the hush puppies coupled with the donut, ice cream, left over slice of cake, and chocolate covered beans, clearly made today’s eating a bit disappointing in some ways. As for the entire trip, I nailed my exercise averaging 20,000 steps each day and not missing a single hour of my 250 steps during the 14-hour window. While I did indulge some earlier in the week, I made great choices for the majority of the trip!

I feel so blessed to be vacationing with the Brophys and Nidays again. The kids get along great and the memories that these kids are going to have just warms my heart. This vacation while I was more active then ever, didn’t get a single nap in or have much R&R, I still managed to take a vacation from giving my kids showers and brushing their teeth….Larissa did it daily, which was a nice break for this mama! We certainly made memories that will continue to last us a lifetime! Until next time Outer Banks!

 

Avery and Emerson Turn 7

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These girls turned seven this past weekend! The celebration started with white chocolate chip pancakes at their request. We had a leisurely morning allowing us time to open presents (a new water bottle, beach shoes, and swimsuits from Mommy and Daddy), and for me to read my annual birthday letter to each of the girls. Larrisa joined the girls and me for their birthday mani/pedis at RainLilly Salon. After enjoying their spa experience, we met Daddy, Papa and Grandma at Matchbox for lunch. Followed by some group picture outside the restaurant.

Followed by some birthday cupcakes.  Followed by swimming at Papa and Grandma’s and then a low key evening at home, which included ice cream for dinner to top of their birthday!

Sunday was the girl’s birthday party. In March, Avery and Emerson had gone to a birthday party (a mining birthday party) and at their request, I booked Tim’s Gem & Mining for their 7th birthday. The girls invited a combination of friends from their class and the neighborhood. We also invited the Brophys and Nidays on Friday since we had a few remaining spots and I knew they wanted be offended by being on the B-list. They weren’t! Luckily they didn’t have any other plans yet and they were excited to be able to join in the fun!

In total we had 14 girls, including Avery, Emerson, and Harper. They had fun running around and being silly.

They had a great time mining (despite it being so hot in the trailor!).  There was  A/C but it was really hot outside!

….eating cake

….and painting

Happy 7th Birthday Avery and Emerson!  May you always shine bright in each other’s eyes.

Shin Guards

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THIS!  Seriously, my heart is going to explode out of my chest.  They are growing up so quickly!  Just look at them.  THIS picture is everything…I can’t stop smiling looking at it!

4th of July Week

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The 4th of July fell on a Wednesday this year, so Justin and I also took off Thursday and Friday to make it an extra-long weekend! Originally, we were going to head to Baltimore for the weekend, but when that didn’t work out, we decided to make it a staycation and plan some fun local events while still getting some stuff done around the house.

Tuesday night we went over to Papa and Grandma’s for some evening swimming and pizza. After a long search, I found a place online (googlesnmore.com) that would make Avery’s prescription swim goggles. She is finally acclimated with them – the new goggles coupled with their new swim teacher has really led to significant improvement. Harper too is also greatly improving. Emerson was already further ahead with her swim skills, but she too is progressing and hanging out in the deep end of the pool now.

For the actual 4th, we hung out and did organizing around the house most the morning. We had the girls help us go through their toys and donate ones that were too young for them. Our neighborhood parade is now Labor Day weekend so we weren’t missing any neighborhood festivities by spending the morning indoors organizing. After lunch, we headed to the Vienna Community Center, where Emerson and Harper went on a couple water slides (Avery didn’t feel like going). Afterwards, with the girls in their bathing suits already, we headed to my parents for a little more swimming. Avery and Emerson wanted to see the fireworks while Harper did not. We left Harper with my parents for a sleepover and Avery, Emerson, Justin and I went to Southside Park in Vienna, where the fireworks were being displayed. I had not seen real fireworks in over 10 years and I was amazed! They were awesome. They were also incredibly loud! Neither Avery nor Emerson cared for the sound – Avery covered her ears with sound reduction headphones and Emerson with her own hands.

Thursday we took Jana out to Sweetwater for her celebratory dinner to commensurate her year being with our family.

Harper’s face!  Haha…she was being so silly….it was hilarious!

Friday after lunch we headed to National Harbor. It was a gorgeous day and while it was a bit touristy, we had a good time eating, relaxing, shopping, and just hanging out.

Late Saturday afternoon we had the Brophys and Nidays over for a low key get together and the girls (and Harrison) had so much fun together. Cannot wait for our vacation in a few weeks with one another!

Sunday it was a trip to Nats Park!  I managed to get five tickets for $36!  Two beers cost more than all our ticket seats!  Granted we were sitting in the nose bleed section, but still a great time…and a beautiful sunny relatively mild day for a ball game.  The only thing that could have made it better would have been, had the Nats won!

Oh just look at that excitement!