West Virginia Cuties

We just returned from a fun-filled week visiting friends and family in West Virginia.  One of the evenings, my cousin hosted a nice cookout for my best friends and our families.  I got the kids together for a few photos once the sun started setting.

L to R: Jack, Ethan, Corinne, Sophie, Andrew, Ben, Daniel, Leah, and Brooke

Beautiful Sophie

I took these beautiful hills for granted when I lived there.

Everyone had a good time playing together and I can't wait until we see each other again!

Not so wee garden...

Our little garden has been keeping me busy this summer.  Click here for a comparison from when I planted it on March 22.  The fish or fish sticks or tomato food or covering these babies during frost or maybe a combo of all has really paid off.

May 10.... waiting to turn red!

our first crookneck squash

More May 10 beauties.  Just waiting....

This bounty was posted to fb on June 22.  We had a few previous harvests, as well.  Lots of friends gave great suggestions for freezing and stewing and the like.  And we have given to neighbors, friends, and family.  Go, fish sticks!

The remaining photos were taken July 6.

Every day, I can pluck 4-5 ripe beauties off of these plants.

Dora is glaring at me because the sun is in her eyes. I made her pose by the drooping sunflowers.

Grandma's kettle

perennial garden and poor droopy sunflowers

cucumbers are the bullies of the garden

love this mandevilla and plan to get an attractive garden hose container...

Just Dora

Animal Ninjas. "You can't see me!"

Some animals are better than others when it comes to hiding in our yard. The leezurd shots were taken May 10 and the others were snapped May 26.

July 4, 2014

This year we did the usual fireworks in our street, but then decided to brave Sandhills for the first time ever to be right under all the big firework display action.  The weather was perfect and the fireworks were great, but the crowd/traffic was a little crazy, so we might rethink next year's plan.

5 Days, 5 Posts. Myrtle Beach 2014. 5 of 5: The Beach

We spent more time on the beach this time than we ever have with the boys.  We just didn't take any electronics out there.  I took these photos on Thursday, our last morning.  In the days before that, we spent many hours out there digging in the sand with all the gear, making sandcastles, burying Daddy, jumping and jumping and jumping the waves, and checking out the wildlife.  They also loved playing on the pirate ship playground, which I did not get a photo of.  Next year!

my favorite

Ethan got so, so much braver about the waves this year

Andrew was tenacious.  He kept diving into the oncoming waves and would have been perfectly happy out there by himself if we had let him.

We spent a good bit of time as a family out where it was fairly deep, beyond the breakers.
That's all Andrew wanted to do after that.

My three guys. XOXO.

Here's to next time!  We hope to go again soon, rather than a year from now....

5 Days, 5 Posts. Myrtle Beach 2014. 4 of 5: Medieval Times

Dinner our last beach evening was at Medieval Times. The boys had never been, and it had been years since Jon or I had done a show like that. We all loved it.

waiting to get in

more waiting

starting to lose it...

IN!  and checking out all the cool stuff

the falconer

so beautiful

messing around on the grand floor

"entertaining" the captive audience as we wait to be called in to dinner

dinner and tournament time!  eating with our hands is right up our alley.  sigh.

our guy was the red and yellow knight

he didn't win

it was fun watching him joust, though

and cheering for him.

Stay tuned for the final post in the Myrtle Beach 2014 Series: Beach.