Seacrest-Departure Day & a visit to Gramma's

What a great trip! We had perfect weather and really enjoyed our first visit to Seacrest (near Seaside, FL). We had heard it was a perfect place for families and now we know why. The whole area is picture perfect – I told Kevin it was like Utopia! The home we stayed in was super nice and Seacrest has a 12,000 sq foot pool…yes – that is HUGE! It was a very short walk from the house and we made a trip there every day. The stairs in the pool were very deep and wide, so we spent a lot of time playing on them. Riley was even going under on her own and coming up with a smile. They really both did great in the water. We joined the Jordan family (Scott, Angie, Jack, Josh and Jacob) for their week at the beach, so Angie and the boys had already scoped out the best playgrounds and the best spot at the pool. We went to the park both mornings, went to the beach one afternoon, went to the pool every day, took a few walks on their new tricycles and went to the play in the water fountain. We were busy, but yet still had some time to relax and rest. It was central time, but we weren’t really there long enough to worry about adjusting, so it was early mornings and early evenings. The Jordan boys are working on manners (yes ma’am, no sir, thank you, etc.) so it was refreshing to hear these young boys with such good manners. They were all well behaved and played well together. You would think 4 adults and 5 children under 5 would be a bit chaotic, but it was actually a very relaxing vacation. To someone without children it was probably their worst nightmare, but for us, it was fantastic. We have officially turned the corner to having some relaxation on vacation! We didn’t think that was possible until they were much older, so it was a very nice surprise. Yay!!! We ate some great pizza the first night and then we had date night on Thursday while Scott & Angie stayed home and then we switched on Friday night. We had a nice evening and even ran into one of my friends from college – Jennifer Foster and her husband Matthew – at the Red Bar. I had always heard of The Red Bar, but had never been there, so we decided to check it out for dinner. It was packed and we had a short wait, but the food was good and it was so nice to have an adults-only night out. Saturday we had a safe trip home and it was really uneventful except for a few exchanges between Kevin and me on our way out of town. It might have had something to do with the gas light being on and not a gas station in sight, but outside of that it was a delightful ride home. We were so proud of how well the kids did. They watched more movies than any children should be allowed to watch in one day, but they were happy so we were happy…and would you believe that when we walked in the door they went straight to their chairs and said “movie”! I guess they could watch them forever!

After church and naps we went to see Gramma (or Maw-Mee as Ryan says it). Her back has been giving her bad trouble, so we took her a few meals and helped do some things around the house. We picked some tomatoes and green peppers and Ryan bit right into it and ate the entire tomato. He doesn’t get that love from me! They watched some of a movie with Gramma so she could stay off her feet. They enjoyed playing with her and playing with the new purse Gramma sewed for Riley. It has a drawstring and came full of goodies! Ryan got a small bag with goodies as well so he was not left out. We are home now and the kiddos went straight to bed without a fuss at all. Looking forward to a busy week…back to reality…and counting down the days until we return to the Seaside/Seacrest area!

Web Albums Added:
http://picasaweb.google.com/hutchinson.heidi/20090725SeacrestDepartureDay#
http://picasaweb.google.com/hutchinson.heidi/20090726SundayGrammaS#

Riley's "real" twin...

We've decided that Jacob & Riley look more like twins than Riley & Ryan. They have the same shaped head and their nose and hair is almost exactly the same. So funny to see. The more I see them together the more alike they look to me and we all agree... funny stuff!

Seacrest Day 3

And this about sums it up

If Ryan could say it I think he would say that today was the best day of his life!!!

He LOVES playing in the fountain...

Web Albums Added:
http://picasaweb.google.com/hutchinson.heidi/20090724SeacrestDay3#

Seacrest Days 1 & 2

Will blog about the details of the trip later, but wanted to share some (well, I mean hundreds) of pictures! Having a perfect time!

Web Albums Added:
http://picasaweb.google.com/hutchinson.heidi/20090722SeacrestDay1#
http://picasaweb.google.com/hutchinson.heidi/20090723SeacrestDay2#

Barbecue

We went to the 35th annual Tanner Family Barbecue this weekend. We have lived next door to the Fenzls since 2003 and I think we've attended every year, so that would have made this year our 7th year to attend. It's held at Lori's parent house every July. It's such an enjoyable day, but we realized that it was a lot more relaxing prior to having children. We spent most of the day chasing Riley & Ryan around and making sure they didn't get into trouble. They had such a fun time exploring, but it was totally exhausting to us. We were there from about 1:00 - 5:30, and we were totally zonked. I can remember years we were there from noon until the late hours of the evening, but this year is was just a few hours and it wiped us out. The weather could not have been nicer - it has been absolutely beautiful these last few nights. I even needed a fleece last night sitting out on the deck...can you believe it is July and I actually needed a fleece? Crazy, but I love it! We have sat outside for the last few nights and it has been a perfect way to wind down!

2009
They were obsessed with eating ice...it kept them entertained for quite a while!

2008

2009

2008

We had a nice day today - went to church and then came home and Riley, Ryan and I all took an almost 3 hour nap. We all needed it...it was a crazy week last week. We played this afternoon with Gran-daddy and Riley & Ryan rode on their new tricycles. We love them because we can push and steer them without breaking our backs and they love the independence. They've even figured out how to ring the little bells on the handle bars. They are loving Sable and Sam these days. They love to hug and kiss them and the dogs are so very patient. It's amazing how gentle they all are with one another. The kiddos have started feeding the dogs and sometimes I think it's the highlight of their day. They go over to the food container and fill up the cup and carefully take it over to each bowl and pour it in. Some days are better than others when it comes to spills, but they do a fantastic job! They are so proud when they are done and do a great job of taking turns. I'm amazed that they are not even 2 and they put their dirty clothes away every morning and night, put their towels away after bath, take their plate to the sink and feed the dogs. All under supervision and with several reminders, of course, but I'm still so proud that they are little helpers! I've learned to involve them when I'm cooking and it seems to be better for all of us. Instead of them just fussing at me the whole time, I can ask them to help me get things out of the pantry or fridge and take them back and they just love it. I think they like feeling like they are a part of things and it actually has saved me a trip or 2 to the pantry!

Bad Hair Day
it's been one all day, but isn't he just so cute! His shirt says "Miso Cute" with a bowl of soup under it - like Miso Soup! :)

We leave for Seaside, FL on Wednesday and I could not be more ready for a vacation! Get ready for LOTS of beach pictures on my next post...stay tuned!

Web Albums Added:

http://picasaweb.google.com/hutchinson.heidi/20090719TannerFamilyBBQ#

http://picasaweb.google.com/hutchinson.heidi/20090719Sunday#