Monday, June 20, 2011

Beach Trip 2011

I'd love to title that Beach Trip #1 of 2011, but I guess that's wishful thinking...

We had a wonderful time at the beach! Avery Claire entertained from the time she woke up 'til the time she went to bed {which was not much earlier than the grown-ups!}. Seriously, where this girl gets her energy is beyond us!
Photobucket

On the way down, we stopped in our first "home" as a married couple - Demopolis - met some old friends and drove by our first house. We enjoyed our time, Hill family!
Photobucket
Photobucket
Photobucket

After unloading and resting for a few minutes, we made our way to the beach. We were all itching to let Avery Claire's feet touch the sand.
Avery Claire didn't mind the sand. She enjoyed walking in the wet sand - not so much the dry sand. She would walk if we held her hands, but couldnt' figure out why the ground was so soft. She loved watching the boats and waved at every one that went by.
Photobucket
Photobucket
Photobucket
Photobucket
Photobucket
Photobucket
Photobucket
Photobucket
Photobucket
Photobucket

Photobucket

We spent our days laying out, playing in the shallow waves {the boys played in the deeper waves}, walking in the 1ft kiddie pool - perfect for Avery Claire, and playing in the mushroom waterfall in the big pool. We spent our nights eating, playing putt-putt, shopping, playing, and hanging out. Avery Claire's pack-n-play may or may not have been in the walk-in closet and she may or may not have slept with Mommy and Daddy when she woke up at 4 am two different mornings.


We met Matt-Matt and Coty (and some of their family) for lunch one day. The girls took an afternoon trip to Foley when we decided we'd soaked in enough sun for the day.

For memories sake, this shopping trip was when my child put an entire golf ball in her mouth. Yes, the whole thing. Nana told me to look at her as I was searching for a parking space {because this was the 2nd time she'd done it. Nana got the ball out the first time}. I might have overreacted in the way that I said "Avery Claire!!" This upset her, she wailed, clenched her teeth, and Nana couldn't get the ball out. Sarah and I panicked. I panicked big time. I thought the ball was stuck and had no idea what to do if your child has a golf ball stuck in her mouth. Obviously, this was going to obstruct her breathing, right? I had no idea where the nearest ER was. Thank God it was not really stuck, Nana got it out, and we went about our merry way. I, however, was definitely shook up.


Photobucket
Photobucket
Photobucket
Photobucket
Photobucket
One of my favorite pictures...

Photobucket
Photobucket
Photobucket
Photobucket
Avery Claire took two nosedives into the kiddie pool within the first 10 minutes on the first day. She learned after that that the water would not hold her up when she put her hands down. We were proud that she didn't have a complete meltdown and got right back in the pool after Papa fished her out....both times.
Photobucket
Photobucket
Photobucket
Photobucket
Photobucket
Photobucket
Photobucket
Photobucket




She may or may not have been calling for Gaga....yep. Instead of Nana, she says Gaga. Nana says she doesn't care what Avery Claire calls her. But she does correct her when she says Gaga.


After reading an article about cool, hip grandparent names, we've deemed Papa as Big Dawg and Nana as Gaga. Isn't that fitting?
Photobucket
Avery Claire got her toenails painted for the first time. That lasted 15 seconds until she rubbed her toes into the rug and Papa had to scrub it out.
Photobucket
Family pic attempt #1
Photobucket
Attempt #2
Photobucket
Photobucket
Photobucket
Photobucket
Photobucket
Photobucket




Avery Claire made it through 16 holes of putt-putt in her stroller. We were very surprised impressed! Maybe she was just too tired to fight it.



Photobucket
Photobucket
Photobucket
Photobucket
Photobucket
Photobucket
Photobucket
And our favorite look of the trip:
Photobucket
Seriously, this is the funniest face you'll ever see. When someone leaves the room, this is her surprised "where did they go?" face. I have to get it on video.



We had such a good time on our trip! Thanks, Papa, Nana, Matt, & Sarah for sharing your week with us!



We got unpacked asap Thursday. That's my thing - I cannot stand bags sitting around that need unpacking.



We had lunch with Becca Friday and spent the weekend celebrating Daddy and cleaning out cabinets/packing. We are figuring out a nice little summer schedule that includes sleeping in a little and taking good afternoon naps!




Photobucket



Photobucket



Photobucket




The girl is into everything!




Photobucket



Photobucket




Photobucket
Disclaimer: I promise the cup is empty. She did not have access to a large McDonald's sweet tea. But the cup entertains for a good 20 minutes.

7 comments:

Brandi said...

So glad ya'll got to get away and enjoy some sand and sun! I L-O-V-E Avery Claire's face in the pic "where did they go?"!!! I know "Big Dawg" and "Gaga" enjoyed Avery Claire's first trip to the beach, too!! My parents got to go with us on Noah's first trip to the beach and loved every minute. They loved getting to see how he reacted to the sand and the waves (and secretly loved getting to spoil him the whole time!). She's growing up so fast. Enjoy every second with that sweet girl!

Anonymous said...

What a wonderful beach trip!! We had so much fun!! We look forward to many more trips in the future! Dusty, Brooke, Avery Claire, Matt, & Sarah, we love every minute we get to spend with you all! You are our whole world and we love you all so very much! We are so very blessed to have such a wonderful, happy family!! This was such a special faimly vacation for us! Avery Claire, you were such a good girl! You enjoyed every minute of our beach vacation! I am so glad we got a picture of you holding those sweet hands up asking "Where did they go?" Absolutely precious!! I wish I had counted how many times you waved! You waved at everyone, every flag, & every boat! You are so friendly!! We love you all so much!! Nana & Papa (or whatever Avery Claire calls us!)

Rosie said...

I could seriously comment each picture. They are all so sweet and I just love all the outfits you have her in and the cute little swimsuits. But my fave is the "surprise face." How on earth did you teach her that? So funny!
That's great ya'll got a little getaway! I'm sure it's much needed.
Oh and the golf ball thing-I'm sorry, but I had to laugh. Gavin puts them in his mouth and pops them out. It scared me at first, but now I'm used to it. Just have to keep a close eye.

Carly said...

I would have panicked too! We are going to the beach in a few weeks...maybe I should be proactive and put the ER address in the GPS before we even leave town. Ha! Looks likes a great trip you all had!

Ashley McCollum said...

Emma slept in the closet for her first two beach trips! Last year she was too big for the pack 'n play, so we left it at home and she slept with us. We've already been saying that we hope the place we are staying this year has a big closet to put Luke in, ha! :)

Darius Cartmell said...

Pretty nostalgic going back to your first home to meet some old friends, no? And the beach has such a grand view! The sky is so bright and blue, while the sand looks like snow blanketing all over the place. Also, Claire looks totally cute when having fun swimming in the kiddie pool. What a ball of energy she is!

Donna Parsley said...

Wow! The beach you guys went to looks nice. I was looking for a place to spend our all-girls get together party, and it seems like the beach is not a bad idea. Thanks for the idea.

Post a Comment