Charleston Vacation

Wow, these last few weeks have really flown by. We found out last Thursday that Poor baby Claire had the flu. She has been staying home with Grandma this week to recover and while she's definitely enjoying her time at home, we wish she could spend time with Grandma when she's NOT sick. We plan to send her back to daycare next week and hope we can avoid the doctor's office as much as possible this winter. Thank you so much Grandma for driving up from Baton Rouge to keep our contagious little girl. Claire is almost 100%

So, now for the good part of the post....our super fun vacation at Aunt Debbie & Uncle Chad's house in Charleston, SC. We went to the pool, beach, aquarium....you name it. The only thing we had to cut out was a shopping trip, but that may have been a good thing. I have TONS of pictures from our vacation, but will try to narrow it down as much as possible. Thanks to Grandma for joining us and driving AND Debbie & Chad for the great hospitality. We were so upset Grandpa and Daddy James couldn't join us on this trip. James stayed home to work (but don't feel too sorry for him, he still managed to fish, swim, and attend 2 birthday parties) and Grandpa took care of things at home. Next time the guys will have to join us.....and take advantage of Debbie and Chad's backyard which just happens to be a golf course.

DAY ONE: POOL

Claire loves her Aunt Debbie

Abby and I pause for a quick pic while playing shark.

Claire wore Abby's flip flops everywhere (even the water).....she loves some shoes!

Time to rest after all that fun in the sun.

DAY TWO: BEACH

Proof that Claire actually liked the sand this time. WOW!
Someone always has to get buried in the sand...this time it's Abby.
Don't lose the kite....which we did once, and our floats about 50 times. It was really windy.
Everyone wanted to hold the kite.....looks like we need more than one next year.

More fun in the sand.
Grandma just dug right in with the little ones.
Our little beach hunk!
Ready, set, go!
Snack break (Claire always smiles for a capri-sun)
I don't think we could carry anything else!

Baywatch girls to the rescue
DAY THREE: AQUARIUM

Downtown Charleston....on our way to the aquarium. (hey...Grandma made it in a picture)

Abby's not afraid of the sharks.
All of the kids loved the snakes....ick!

Walter doing his signature robot move inside the log.

Claire can't decide if she wants to join him or not.

Too late....off he goes!

Captain Walter T

First Mate Abigayle

Watch out for the shark!!!Oh boy....we found a place to play!


Claire's reaction when we told her it was time to go.

Got...

...to...

...see the fish!

WATCH OUT!!
Everyone does their scary shark face:
Oh no....the shark got Abby & Walter.
but, Claire doesn't seem too concerned!

Our vacation is over...we'll miss you guys!
Unfortunately now it's back to work and school as usual....but we're looking forward to Claire's 2nd birthday in just a couple of weeks! Will post more soon!

Pigtails, Popsicles and a Porch Swing

We've really enjoyed spending time outside since we got our new porch swing earlier this summer. One Saturday afternoon, we relaxed on the swing with some popsicles....it doesn't get much better! I've also included a few pictures of Claire's porch swing. James finished the stand and it looks adorable.

Yummy (gotta love that face)

Our little aquababy...

This summer, Claire and I took an aquababies class at the YMCA. We went 6 Saturday mornings for about 45 minutes. I'm not sure how much Claire learned, but at least we got to play in the water and get her used to the pool. The idea was to teach her to kick and to immediately go to the side and hold on if she were to ever fall in or need help. Daddy went with us to our last class to take pictures. We ended being the only ones there that day b/c it was raining that morning so we had a private lesson. Next year I'm sure Claire will be swimming laps like a pro!

Ready to get started

Kick....kick....kick

Holding on to the side of the pool...

...which is not her favorite thing to do!

Look at that big girl under water!

Claire had no hesitation going to our swim instructor, Ms. Christina - she was great!

We practice floating on her back, which almost makes Claire go to sleep.

A little playing always helps!

Here's a short video of Claire swimming - sorry about my yelling (screeching)!