a bit blogged down

Each year, our family heads to the beach with my parents.  This is our one guaranteed trip each year.   Jason and I started making this annual trip when Carter was 6 months and we hope to be able to do it every summer.  We go for a full week and can’t wait to escape the Bakersfield heat.  The beach has to be my favorite place to be.  It feels like a second home for me.

We left on Friday and weren’t able to check in to the house until about 4 pm, so we went to the park in Cambria, had a picnic lunch, and let the kids run around.

We popped into the farmer’s market for a few items and then it was time to head to the house.  This year we were fortunate enough to have a large house on the beach.  What a treat this was.  It’s so nice to see the ocean first thing when you wake up in the morning and to go outside and have a cup of coffee as you watch the sun set.

Although we did a lot this trip, we still got to spend a lot of time hanging out enjoying the company and the view.

We also did A LOT of this…

Dad was just the only one who got caught in the act.  I got to nap with Carter everyday and I enjoyed every bit of it. 

Jason got his bbqing in, of course.  It wouldn’t have been a good, tasty trip without it.  We had a healthy, but tasty menu every night and we only went out a couple of times.  We all really enjoy our meals cooked at home.  We had the basic staples:  spaghetti, fresh fish, and chicken, but we also did a crab boil that was DELICIOUS!!

The deck was enclosed, which was perfect for the kids to run around freely.

We had fun inside, too.  Here is Carter playing dice with Grandpa.

Here’s Emma after her bath feeling clean and giddy.

and apparently she’s working on her modeling skills for later in life…

Here’s a picture of the back of the house from the beach.

and of course, it wouldn’t be the beach without some amazing views.  It was sunny everyday in the afternoon and we got a few overcast mornings and a few sunny mornings.  It was a nice balance.

Man I sure do love these two boys!!!!

Note:  I’ve decided to write these every 6 months until each kid turns 5 and then only every year, so this will be my last 6 month update on Carter.

Dear Carter,

When you were young and little, people always called you a “little man,” but you really are turning into that.  You are mature and responsible and you make good decisions.  You frequently tell me the way things should be and the rules, as if I don’t know them.  I know it’s good though, so they can be reinforced in your head.

You love pretending to be a teenager.  You want to grow up so fast.  It makes me sad.  Today, I was buying you mouthwash and I asked you if you wanted the blue Spongebob one, and you told me you wanted the regular one, just like the teenagers use.  Oh my.  You are SO grownup.

You are about 49 lbs. and I have no idea how tall you are, but you’re taller than every four year old I’ve ever seen.  You wear a boys size small on the top and 5T in pants and shorts.  Your feet get larger everytime I look at them.  You’re about a size 12 now, although it’s hard to tell your actual size since I always have to buy yours shoes about 2 sized to big to start out with so they can last 6 months or so.

You love swimming and watching movies, playing with your sister and playing video games with Daddy.  You love pretending to be a soccer player, just like Adrian.  You love your friends and spending time with them: Adrian, Ryan and Erica, Coldby and Carson, and Luke.  You are always so supportive of others: sharing whenever asked and saying things like “You’re really good at swimming, Colby” or “Great jump, Luke.”  It’s really fun to watch you grow up into such a polite young boy.

You write letters to your Aunt Sis on a regular basis.  At first the letters took hours of work, but now you’re getting much better and quicker with your writing.  I’m so proud of you.  You can read 3 letter words now, but we’re not pushing you.  We want reading to be fun for you.

You boogie boarded at the beach for the first time a few weeks ago and now you have a wetsuit so I’m sure you’ll be in the water even more.  You still golf occasionally, but not quite as much as before.  You’re not picky when it comes to food.  It’s so nice that you’ll eat whatever I give you.  I also like to take you on errands so you can keep me company.  You get in and out on your own, which is so nice for me.  You talk my ear off, but I love our “private time.”

I think the thing I love most about you now, is your love for God.  You are so good at praying from the heart and you’ve learned to go to him in prayer when you need him.  You are such a sweet and caring boy.  I smile every morning when I see your face and when you walk into the living room after your nap.  You brighten my day…everyday!  We’re so blessed to have you in our lives.

Dear Emma,

You have changed so much in the last six months, not only physically, but developmentally.  You are becoming your own person.  You definitely know what you want and that is having things your way.  I’m sure you get that from Daddy.  Opinionated is sometimes how I describe you.  You are still very attached to me, but Daddy is moving on up the ranks since he’s been off work.  Playing and wrestling with your brother is one of your favorite things to do.  You don’t even care what he’s doing, you just want to be near him.  When you bend over and put your head through your legs, he happily pushes you over so that you can do a somersault.  He even carries you sometimes and helps you up onto his bed so you can play.  He loves to chase you around the house and you scream, pretending you don’t like it, but Daddy and I know the truth.  You love it!  Even though you come running up to us for us to save you, we know you only want more fun time with your “Bubba” as you call him.

You are mischievious and love getting into things.  “No” is a word you hear often and you know exactly what it means, although you don’t always choose to obey.  I’m also frequently hearing “No, Emma Ann” from Carter a room away as I wonder to myself what you could be getting into now.  Ornery is your middle name and stubborn is your last.  You are more stubborn than me and you are starting to rival your father.  He’s not afraid to tell you no, but when he does you get very sensitive and you don’t like it. 

You are still mellow and easy going.  I think your personality will be similar to Carter’s.  Although, I think you’ll be more like me, missing that perfectionist gene…thank goodness.  (I can’t handle more than two of those in my house.)  I’ve noticed a few freckles that you’ve recently picked up due to the summer sun I’m sure; one on your neck and one behind your knee.  You’ve still got that strawberry glow to your hair, which reminds Daddy daily of his mom.  I think it’s getting a bit darker, but I think you’ll always have that reddish tint.

You’re such a small delicate little thing.  You weigh 22 lbs. 12 oz which is only the 25th % for weight and you’re 31.25 inches long, which is the 50th % for height.  You wear size 18 mos. clothes and you are a size 5 in shoes.  You are such a girly girl.  I always fix your hair before we leave the house with no complaints from you and then we always go show Daddy “what a pretty girl looks like.”  You sign quite a bit now: please, cheese, more, milk, water, grapes.  Your favorite word is cracker, which of course comes out sounding like “caca.”  I think that is all you’d eat if I’d let you.  You definitely get that from your Grammy.  You also say thank you, which sounds like “tank to,” Bubba, night-night, blanky which sounds like “baby,” Mama, Dada, and I think that’s it.  You love to wave and say hi and blow kisses.  You are so good at understanding what we say and you love to follow directions.  In fact, we ask you to put our shoes in our room so much, that last week when Grammy came over, you immediately put her shoes in our room when she took them off.  You’re SO CUTE!!

You are such a good girl and you are loved so much.  I look forward to watching you grow this next six months, while still hanging onto my little girl as long as I possibly can.  I’m completely fine with you always being a little girl, just so you know…well that is until you’re a teenager and then I’m sure you’ll want nothing to do with me.  Hopefully not. 

Thank you Lord for our healthy, beautiful, precious Emma Ann Pannell who we love with all our hearts!!

Carter has been telling people that we have a pool.  I don’t think when he says that, that they’re imagining this…

so then, I have to give the backup explanation that it’s not a real pool.  It is nice that Jason and I can at least get in and cool off.   Here’s a couple cute boy pics.

Carter went to Vacation Bible School (VBS) for the first time this summer.  We were excited that he was finally old enough to go.  It was everyday for a week from 8:30-12:00.  Carter loved going and it’s so cute to hear him sing all his Jesus songs while chanting and pointing up to God.  This will definitely be a must every summer.  God bless those vbs teachers.  I know it’s only a matter of time until I’m recruited.  Here are a couple pictures…one from crazy hat day and one from crazy hair day.

I’ll leave you with a sweet random photo of my wonderful kids showing how much they love one another.

God is great!

We had an exceptional time in Cayucos for 5 days with our great friends.  Cayucos was mostly overcast in the morning and would clear up by lunch time.  I love beach weather.

We took Carter down to the beach a few times so he could dig and play some beach golf.

Then Jason took him down to boogie board and he got in the water without a wetsuit and loved it.

Here’s Carter having a snack at the bar.

Carter, Ellie, and Emma playing…

We got some good outside time on the patio with some afternoon sun.

and “someone” ruining all the fun

The boys, Jason and Brad, and Amy’s brothers celebrating a USA soccer win.

Jason and Brad decided to try surfing for the first time and they loved it!  They say they even surfed some waves, however, I have no pics since I was home watching kids.  Maybe next week.

Spending time with friends at the beach is priceless!  Thanks Brad, Amy, and Ellie.

Yesterday, Mom and I decided to take the kids to the Seven Oaks pool so Carter could swim and Emma could get used to the water since she hasn’t had swimming lessons yet.  It was about 85 degrees outside and perfect for swimming.  So we lathered the pasty white kids up and ourselves and went for it.  We had a blast!!  It took Emma a few minutes to get used to the water and then she LOVED it!  She even wanted us to dunk her head under. 

Here’s Emma pondering life…

Watching Carter…

and just plain having fun!!

We will definitely be going again VERY soon!

Most parents see the first sleepover as a step toward independence.  At four and a half, Jason and I weren’t sure how Carter would react to spending the night at someone else’s house.  He’s only stayed at our house, Grammy and Grandpa’s house, and Jessie’s house (when Emma was born).  I was envisioning at least a weepy phone call, if not a drive at 10:00 to pick up a homesick little guy.

Here’s what happened…

Carter had his first sleepover last weekend with the Elofsons.  He had been looking forward to it for weeks.  We got him all packed up and ready to go.  Jason got a bit sad seeing him all packed up and ready to go off to a sleepover like a big boy.

As soon as we got there (about 3ish), Carter asked me to leave so he could have private time with his friends.  This sends a pretty strong message to the mother expecting the puppy dog eyes filled with tears and prepared to tell her son to “Be brave.  You’re a big boy!”  Despite his request, I stayed and chatted with Jill and Brian for a couple hours.  After that, I wanted to make sure he’d have the “private time” he’d been so desiring, so I left.

The boys played soccer and ran through the sprinklers.

They ate a delicious bar-b-que dinner and drank root beer floats.

After showers,  it was quiet time on the couch with a movie.

At bedtime, the boys were all tucked in.  As you can see, Carter is having a very difficult time  adjusting without his loving parents.

I texted Jill at 9:00 and the kids were long gone to dreamland.  :)  I was glad for Carter, but a bit sad for me.  My boy is growing up so fast. 

In the morning, they ate breakfast and played and then it was off to the park.

And one last stop to get ice cream before he came home.

All in all, he had a blast and didn’t have a lick of homesickness.  He was exhausted and took a great nap when he got home.  I think I’m over not really being needed as much anymore…well, at least until the next sleepover.  I’m not really sure whether this experience was about Carter builing independence or me…hmmmm.

Thanks Elofsons for the great memories!!  We love you!!

READ three letter words!!!!  He’s known his letters and sounds for quite some time now, but he’s actually reading now.  It’s so neat to see your child learn something as important as reading.  We’re so proud of him!!!!

I have been so lazy lately updating the blog.  It seems I only get motivated to do it about once a month and then I have a ton of stuff to post.  Well, I’m hoping I get less lazy, but that’s unlikely.  Anyhoo, here are some random pics of the kids from late May and early June.

Fun in the backyard while Daddy bar-b-ques.

Spaghetti!!

On our way to the beach to hang with the Grumbles.

Is that a cowlick or what???  Yikes!

Hanging at home.

Night-night!