God bless America, land that I love....

Our fourth of July weekend was a whirlwind of activity. We headed to Georgia for the weekend to visit Philip, Michelle and their adorable dog, Grazie. It was a very fun trip and, true to form, we packed in as many activities as we possibly could. :)



Annabelle loved Grazie. Grazie loved Annabelle. They followed each other around the house throughout our visit. Grazie gave Annabelle lots of baths kisses. Annabelle willingly shared her sippy cup of milk with Grazie...on several occasions They soon became best friends.

After what seemed like a very short night, we woke up and drove into Atlanta to see what we could seee. We ended up at the Children's Museum. Jacob and Annabelle had a blast. Both of them were sleepy, as we arrived during their naptime (they both fell asleep in the stroller), but they still had tons of fun. Jacob ran from exhibit to exhibit, playing and exploring, not sure what to do or where to go next. Annabelle acted much the same way.

Much of Jacob's time was spent near the grocery store. He liked unloading the truck and pushing the boxes down the conveyor belt. I thought this was going to be his favorite area...until he found the tree house.When I asked him to tell me his favorite part of the museum, I was 95 percent certain he would say the treehouse. I was right. He loved climbing up and down the rope ladders, going down the slides, hopping across the bridge, running up and down the stairs. He couldn't get enough of the treehouse.

Happiness

Annabelle thoroughly enjoyed the huge water table play area. She had so much fun fishing and splashing in the water. Thank goodness they had little raincoats for the kids to wear or she would have been completely soaked.

Jacob had fun here, too.

After we left the museum, we walked to the World of Coke. Jacob and Annabelle, once again, fell asleep in the stroller and it worked out well because we waited in a Disney World-esque line just to get through the door. Jacob slept through most of our tour, but Annabelle woke up during the first informational movie. I thought it was funny that the child we had to pay admission for slept the whole time, while the one who got in free woke up. Oh well. It didn't really bother me. I wasn't about to wake Jacob from his nap. Anyone who knows Jacob knows what a mistake that would have been.

We met the Coca-Cola bear. Sorry, Jacob. You missed out on this one, but at least you're in the picture!

My favorite part of the World of Coke has always been the tasting room, where you're free to try all kinds of sodas from around the world. I don't know why this is my favorite part because, in my opinion, most of the drinks are not good. So many of them taste like cough medicine. Even though they're gross, it's fun to try them out. I even tried all the gross ones I remembered from years ago just to see if my tastes had changed. Nope. Still gross. Reason #5,372 why I'm glad I live in America!

It's not July 4th without fireworks, so the next night, we went to a local park where a festival was being held...complete with fireworks. Earlier that day, we went to church and the service was fantastic. Jacob had so much fun in sunday school. For the rest of the day, he talked about it -- about the games they played, the snack they ate, the friends he made. I think Annabelle had a good time as well.

On our way to the park!

Already looking for fireworks.

I love picnics...and chips!!

I love Uncle Phil. He gives me rainbow Jell-O!

Jacob had his face painted for the first time. Sure, he's painted his sister's face with a Sharpie, but he's never had his own painted...until now! He sat motionless in that chair...much like the way he sits for a haircut. He asked for a star...

and a star, he received!

Hey, look! I got stars, too!!

...because you can't celebrate America's freedom without.......a whoopie cushion?!?!?!

Thanks for the lift, Aunt Shelli! Now I can REALLY see these fireworks. The question is, can you?

Later that night, we let Jacob play with a sparkler -- another first for him. He liked it just fine until the sparks were about halfway down the stick. Then, he yelled for someone to TAKE IT!

The Race Is On!

Don't you know? It's playtime!!

Annabelle, attempting to wake her brother from his nap.

She was standing there yelling, "Datcha! Datcha! (Jacob! Jacob!) If she is awake, he is not supposed to be sleeping. At least, that's what she thinks. They fight. They yell. They aggravate each other. But they can't stand to be apart.

______________________________

So, in my last post, I commented that I wasn't sure if the summer would pass by slowly or quickly. I can most definitely tell you now. The race is on...to fall. Summer? What summer? It seems every time I blink my eyes, another week goes by. I can't remember another summer flying by so fast. Seriously, I can hardly believe we're already halfway through July. Wow!

PRESCHOOL
Teaching the three year olds has been fun, but certainly not without its challenges. Take for instance, potty time. Taking a large group of three year olds to the bathroom is not easy and not something that is done quickly. Bathroom breaks can take up to 20 minutes...and that's no exaggeration, as most of them need individual help. Actually, now that I think about it, doing ANYTHING with a large group of three year olds is a slow process. But that's ok. They're adorable, fun to work with, and they crack me up all the time. Between the giggles, screaming outbursts, glue accidents, and numerous trips to the bathroom, hopefully, they're learning something. :) What can I say? I'm having a good time and the kids seem to be enjoying themselves. That is what really matters right now. Isn't it?

Jacob moved up to the 4 & 5 year old class because he's so advanced for his age. Ok, so maybe that wasn't the real reason, but he did move into that class. Since the three year old class was so large, two kids who fell in the "almost four years old" category moved up to "lighten my load." Jacob was one of the two. From what his teacher tells me, Jacob is doing very well and knows as much (or more) than some of the four year olds. Hmmmm. Maybe he is advanced for his age. I've always suspected he was a genius. :) The other reports I hear about him usually have to do with his incessant talking (not in a bad way). This does not surprise me. He does the same thing at home.

Annabelle loves her class. She typically walks right in -- all smiles, no tears. Here are the reports I get about her from her teacher: "She loves to eat and she sometimes takes other people's food. Every time I turn around, she's getting into someone else's applesauce." Annabelle, apparently, likes to be a helper too. When she's not trying to snag it for herself, she enjoys feeding applesauce to her classmates. It cracks me up that she is the little "snack snatcher." Especially because she is the littlest (in terms of size) in the class. She eats the most, yet weighs the least. I think her favorite part of the day is when she gets to play on the playground. She loves playing with sand and there is plenty of it out there. Sometimes, even her ears are filled with sand. She doesn't mind getting dirty. That's for sure.


STOMACH FLU, COLDS, & EAR INFECTIONS! OH MY!
For four weeks, Jacob and Annabelle have been battling runny noses, coughs and ear infections. Jacob has been fortunate to escape the ear infection, but not Annabelle. She came down with a double ear infection three weeks ago and went back to the doctor Monday only to discover she still has it...along with a nice case of conjunctivitis (pink eye). She started the summer with a stomach bug which caused her to throw up ten times in three hours. She got sick at preschool one Friday in June and her teacher informed me that was the very first time a child had ever thrown up on her. She's been teaching that class for years!!!! Can you believe that? Of course, it had to be my child...the very first week. Ugh. Annabelle, that was not exactly what I had in mind when I told you to make a good impression. :) Oh well. I believe she has since made up for it. Thank goodness, she was the only one who caught the stomach flu.

As soon as Annabelle was well, Jacob caught a cold, gave it to his sister and they can't get rid of it. It's been four weeks, yet the runny noses and coughs still persist. To top it off, I got strep throat over the weekend -- loads of summertime fun. Heath has had a sore throat off and on for several days. Although he hasn't felt great, he hasn't been bed-ridden either. Hopefully his sore throat won't turn into strep. I'm praying we'll all get well soon and at least have a healthy second half of the summer. If Jacob and Annabelle don't get over their colds, I will most definitely go insane. Do you know what it's like to wipe two runny noses 24/7 for FOUR WEEKS?!?!?!?!? AAAAAAGGGGGHHHHHH!!!!!! Just had to get that out.

BEFORE WE WERE SICK
At the beginning of June, we took a weekend trip to Charleston. Heath and I celebrated our eighth anniversary at Peninsula Grill. It was amazing. If you haven't eaten there, I highly recommend it. We'd been talking about having dinner there for years, but never got around to it until this year. Funny...we had an incredible meal at Peninsula Grill while my parents stayed at the hotel with Jacob and Annabelle dining on Chick-Fil-A combos. Even though it doesn't really sound fair to me, I don't think my parents minded a bit. Plus, we brought them back a large slice of coconut cake.

The next day, we played...as much as we could in the 100 degree heat. Jacob and Annabelle had fun at the park in Mount Pleasant.