Vacation 2012: Part 1

We decided to split our summer vacation into 2 parts this year. A little time at the beach, a little time at the lake. First off, OCM (that's what us repeat visitors get to call Ocean City, MD)!

We left Saturday morning, stopped at the outlets in Hagerstown, MD, then continued onto Annapolis for supper, a visit with our friend Nick, and to stay over.

This was my way of hinting around it was time to leave!

 The boys were a tad excited to find this beaut in the parking garage.

The boys with Nick!

We arrived at the beach Sunday, early afternoon and stayed until Wednesday afternoon. We packed our days with swimming, swimming, boardwalk fun, eating, and a little more swimming. The days seemed to fly by and I kept telling the boys to remind me that we need to book the beach for an entire week next year. There was seriously n-o down time - we packed every minute of the day!

The animal lovers feeding the seagulls (it started out with just a few gulls and, well, you can see how it ended)

Aside from my hair doing its humidity/beach weather thing, I love this picture of me and the boys.

It's funny because we love going to the beach, but we really only spend 1-2 days on the sand/ocean.

This year we only went over to the beach in our swim gear 1 morning (for about 3 hours). The boys would rather swim in the pools and that's OK by us. The waves are a little too rough for us.

Break time @ the pool - the boys waited so patiently!

Our tradition - supper @ Hooper's!

Jude always get a good picture on the Good Humor truck (@ Hooper's). 

A big surprise for us!
Francis Scott Key Resort, the place we stay, was celebrating their 40th anniversary. Part of the celebration included this rock climbing wall (which Jackson ascended a dozen times)......

 ...and this bouncy house obstacle course (Jude's all air on this photo).

I think the family would agree that the best part of vacay was spending all day together. We really didn't split up at all, except for my morning runs.

You can just feel his sentiment. This picture was taken Wednesday right before we left for home :(

Up next:

Family vacation, Part 2: The Lakes



Firecracker!

We had a birthday this week - Mr. Jude! He turned 5 on Wednesday - he's our firecracker!

I can't believe he's 5. Where has the time gone?

Jude keeps saying that this is going to be..'the best year ever!'

We started out his birthday with me running the 4th of July race in Altoona. I was so lucky to have my support crew (the 3 Js) chasing me around the city to switch out my water bottles, cheer me on. It was an early morning adventure.

We came home and packed what seemed like 100 bags and coolers for our next adventure, which was the best part of the day:  our family trip to Glendale Lake for a picnic, a swim, and a boat ride.

It was so hot out, but the perfect day for a picnic and to celebrate little man's special day.

The birthday king

Serving up the burgers and dogs!

Time for cake and candles

Several years ago I made a construction cake for my friend's little boy and Jude requested that same cake for this birthday, so I made it. But don't worry, Grammy Linda's got a cake in store for him for later in the month when we have another party!

The kids are all squinting because the sun was so bright - but I love this picture of them!

Unfortunately, the day ended with Jude spiking a fever, sore throat, belly ache. A trip to the Dr's the next morning confirmed a case of strep throat. Really strep throat? On my little man's birthday? That's not fair. It's been a quick recovery, though!

Oh! And everyone was kind enough to support Jude's quest for an iPod. So we're headed out today to pick it up. You might wonder if 5 is too young for an iPod.....um, maybe, but when Jude shows me how to use my iPhone, I'd say he's ready for his own device!

JUDE - here's to the best year e-v-e-r!



Graduation Day, Graduation Day, Graduation Day is Finally Here!

What a wonderful day - Jude's preschool graduation.

Some of the things we'll want to remember:
* There were 18 students in Jude's class

* His teacher was Miss Katie (with helpers: Miss Jean and Mrs. Bender)

* The students sang: Graduation Day, There are 7 Days, Months of the Year, He's Got the Whole World..., I've Been Going to my Preschool, Jesus Loves Me, Rags the Dog, This Little Light of Mine.

Coming up....

Jude finished his last day of Pre-K today. He graduates on Wednesday.

Jackson's last day of school is Thursday (1/2 day).

Then summer begins! I can't believe the school year is coming to an end (of course Wednesday is the start of the 6 week summer semester for me - seems so cruel). My boys have grown sooooo much.

Photos coming soon!

A Special Friend

A week ago we lost our special friend, our dog, Gertie :(

She was as much a part of our family as anyone.

She lived a good 12 years and we're really missing her.

We don't know exactly what happened to her but she started losing weight in the late fall, but was still eating and fairly active.

She got sick last Sunday, we took her to the vet on Monday evening (he was not sure what was wrong with her but did mention she may have a tumor in her abdomen based on what he saw on the    x-ray), and she died early Tuesday morning.

We are still very sad and miss her so much. I expect to see her when we get home, or around the lake, or at the back door for supper. There is some peace in knowing that she died under her favorite bush and Jeremy buried her close to that bush.

We'll always remember her as loving the outdoors, always puppy-like, and a big sister to our boys!

"I think dogs are the most amazing creatures; they give unconditional love.

For me they are the role model for being alive."

- Gilda Radner

Who Needs a Vacation when you Have This?

My goodness, what a beautiful day.

We packed a picnic and took the boys for a hike in the woods behind our house.

Who needs a vacation when you have this (on a Monday evening to boot):

Heading out!

Heading toward the creek

Crossing the creek

We found a nice place by the creek to set up our picnic. The boys weren't as interested in eating as they were in playing in the water.

It's hard to believe this is all on the other side of the lake, just a 5 minute hike from our doorstep.

I have a feeling this is going to be a fun summer.