Louisiana Trip- Part 2 (Days 11-16)

Day 11- Mom, the boys, and I left at 7:15 to head for Destin, Florida! It may seem a bit absurd to travel 9 hours with a 3 year old and almost 2 year old just to go to the beach for a couple of days- but it's the beach! Had we known that our 9 hour trip would take 12, we may have re-thought the decision- Nah! The boys did pretty well- and we were thrilled to get to our beach house...

We spent our time there with eight other ladies (all friends from back home)! It was so fun- and the boys didn't seem to notice they were completely outnumbered!

Days 12 & 13- This was the first time my boys have been to the beach. Their responses were so different. Noah loved to play in the sand with his stick- but anytime his hands got dirty, he ran to the ocean to rinse them.But my Jonah just loves being dirty. He immediately sat down and just dumped handfuls of sand down his face and body!Noah chased the seagulls- he tried two different tactics: sneaking up on them, and just running full force toward them. The result was the same- he never caught one! Jonah just played in the sand for hours. He'd build towers with Ashley, and then had even more fun destroying them!
They both played hard- and the second day, Jonah couldn't resist a little nap with Mima on the beach...Now, I really think the Oregon coast is beautiful, no doubt. But there is something wonderful about the Gulf of Mexico: the water is warm enough to enjoy! You don't even flinch when you get in- it's the greatest!

I could never convince Noah that the water was called the "ocean;" he insisted that it was the "beach" and the sandy part was just "sand." He was a little leary of the water at first, but ended up loving it!


Jonah ended up enjoying the ocean, too.

Noah loved playing with the water guns. He spritzed the ladies as they sunbathed. Mrs. Kathi played guns with him, though! Both Noah and Jonah are crazy about their "Ms. Kaffee."

Here's our group of ladies- they were so much fun- and so helpful with my boys! Thanks, Mrs. Jo for orchestrating the trip and for letting me and my boys crash the girl time! It was so relaxing and wonderful! After our time at the beach each day, we'd stay up half the night just talking and laughing... and laughing... and laughing. It was the greatest!

And Mom, thanks for making the long road trip with us- you are so helpful and encouraging during this busy time of life! I appreciate you treating us to the beach trip- it's a wonderful memory that I'll always cherish.

Day 14- We left Florida around 9am to head back to Mima & Papa's house. The trip home took just under 11 hours. Again, the boys did great- considering the circumstances!

Day 15- Rest, recoup, and pack! We were worn out!

Day 16- Drive three hours to the airport, fly back home! What a busy, wonderful trip to visit my family- we loved it! We were glad to see Daddy, though!

Louisiana Trip- Part 1 (Days 1-10)

I know it's been forever (well, at least 3 weeks) since I posted, but I've been a bit busy getting back into our routine since we (me and the boys) spent 2 weeks with my family in Louisiana. It's taken me almost a full 2 weeks to adjust back to being a full-time mom without Mima, Papa, or other family and friends to help police these busy boys during the day! We are so glad to be back home with Daddy, though!

I'm attempting to give you a glimpse of our time in Louisiana- it was a busy trip, but very fun!

Day 1- Fly from Idaho to Texas, and then the three-hour drive to my hometown. Ms. Melanie had us over for dinner- and it was delicious! So good to be back home with family and friends!

Day 2- Recovering from our travels and enjoying time at Papa and Mima's house. Papa brought home a big box from work and made the boys a house. I sketched out the windows and doors, and Papa did the carpentry work! The boys loved it!

My boys are so content to be outside at my parents' house. They just roam around playing with the dogs, gathering sticks- and Jonah LOVES the dirt in Papa's garden!

He got so filthy- and they both gotten eaten alive by the mosquitoes, but they didn't seem to notice!

Day 3- Kristina came over with Drew and Cathryn for some playtime (but we forgot to take pictures). Then, Elizabeth came up for the afternoon with two of her girls, Bailey and Olivia. Noah had fun playing with the girls outside in the rain. They were too funny together!

I love that my childhood friendships are continuing into this phase of life- where our kids can be friends!

Day 4- We headed to the lake (about an hour away) for the weekend. My brother, Brent, and Amanda drove in late that night. I was so excited to get to spend more time with them before their big move to Texas!

Day 5- Although it rained off-and-on, we were still able to spend some time on the water. We had a cookout with several family friends, too. Ms. Diane took me for a ride on their jetski- it was my first time- pretty fun!

Uncle Brent & Aunt Amanda played with the boys in the water while I was jetskiing...

Then, Noah & Jonah decided they wanted to go for a ride! I couldn't believe it! They had fun- despite mom's nervousness! Ms. Diane said they did a good job of holding on.

Most of us just enjoyed the boating (in Dad's new boat!) the rest of the day (despite the dark clouds looming overhead)...

But Brent skiied...

And so did Papa!

After naps, Mark found a turtle for the boys to see- we think it was a snapping turtle, although we couldn't get it to snap at anything. This picture cracks me up because it looks like Brent is imitating the turtle!

We decided to set the turtle free and release it back in the water after we had our fun watching it try to escape off the porch!

We concluded this day with a couple of rounds of Settlers of Catan- our new favorite boardgame! Brent & Amanda are now hooked...

Day 6- There were showers throughout the day, but again, we enjoyed the water when we could. The lake was so high, there wasn't much of a "beach" area, but the boys just laid in the water anyway!

During one of the thunderstorms, the boys napped while Brent and Amanda taught Dad, Mom, and I to play "hand and foot," a card game - it was a fun and relaxing afternoon. When the sun came back out, Noah and Papa did some fishing on the pier... Noah kept saying, "Let's get another one" after each catch! Although they were tiny, he considered them "big guys."

I didn't ski this trip, but I did give the tube a try. Amanda and I have just about decided that we're too old for this! It makes you ache later!

That night, we drove back to Mom & Dad's. Brent & Amanda came, too.

Day 7- Everybody had to go to work except me and Amanda. So, we had some good chat time, and Amanda baked a cake for Brent's birthday. Happy 27th, Boo Boo!

That evening, Mr. Tom & Ms. Kathi and Ms. Melanie joined us for supper- boiled shrimp, per Brent's request. So fun to be together!

Day 8- Mom, the boys, and I headed to visit Mamaw and Papaw (about 3 hours away). It was so good to see my grandparents and enjoy our time to get caught up. Unfortunately, we completely forgot to take pictures with them... I must remember next time.

The boys played so well- and so quietly- until we checked in on them and discovered that they had pulled out every board game Mamaw owns and scattered all the pieces around the bedroom! I should have taken a picture, but I was too mortified at the moment. Use your imagination- Parchesi, Checkers, Chess, Pictionary, Rumikub (2 sets), Outburst, Careers, and several more that I can't remember. It took me, my mom, and my Aunt Sylvia about an hour and a half to pick it all up! Oh, my boys!

Day 9- Mamaw let Mom and I go through my great grandmother's jewelry to see if there was anything we wanted- there was! Of course, the boys thought it was fun, too!

That afternoon, we headed back to Mom & Dad's, but stopped to visit with my Uncle Wiley and Aunt Amy for about an hour. It was a quick, chaotic visit with the boys bouncing off the walls, but still good to see them.

Day 10- We had to take a day to recover from our travels... and pack for the next trip... to the beach! More about that in Part 2!