The End of Vacation

What a way to end the vacation!  On our last full day at the beach, it was momma's day.  My mother-in-law and I left the girls with the boys and we each got a morning of spa treatment.  While waiting for her massage, I took a little me time at the pool....

That makes up for the stress, and makes the vacation a vacation.  Ahhhh.....

I take that back....moments like this also made up for the stress...

And this....

And this...

And this...

And this...

And this...

And this...

And finally, this.....

A good, worn out time, was had by all!!!

Worn Out

Chris, Jon, and the Pilot finally made it down to Myrtle Beach. We've had rain since we got here, and this morning it was no different.  We got the girls ready and headed to the pool to wait it out (weather maps sure looked like it was going to clear...) 

Finally, the rain cleared and we headed out to play.  

Madeline passed out twice on my chest...

But Savannah was just like the energizer bunny today. She would have no part in laying down on anyone's shoulder.  She just wanted to go, go, go!  She even brought her sissy one of her paci's (Madeline does not take a paci, but she just thought it would help!) and would give her kisses on the cheek.  

But sleep herself?  No....not having any of that!  

She wouldn't sleep until we left the water park.  So, that we did.  Before we even made it back to the condo, Savannah was out.  She was out cold.  I carried her on my shoulder all the way inside, took off her swimsuit, changed her diaper, and not once did she wake.  Slept harder than a rock.  And so did Maddie!  For her 3rd time, she napped right along side of her sissy.  The sun, the fun, wore these girls flat out.  

But what a day they had.

The Cost of the Tour

Not a picture you want to see when you're on vacation.  I love my Honda Pilot.  Love it.  It has really given me no problems in the 4 years I've had it.  Of course when you're on vacation, bad things just have to happen.  Out of the blue, our AC fan blew.  We took it to a local mechanic who spent 2 1/2 days working on it - called it electrical, called it everything else under the sun.  Meanwhile, Chris and his brother stayed at his parents while the girls and I took off down the coast with his parents to our next destination, Myrtle Beach.  Paul had meetings there, so we couldn't wait.  Finally, this morning, the car is ready and Chris and Jon will be able to come down and join us.  Unfortunately, it sounds like once it was all said and done, the mechanic took full advantage of us out-of-towners and a dispute will be on its way.  So frustrating....what a way to take the vacation out of vacation. 

Tour de Coast

The grand tour has begun.  With as many adventures as we have been on this summer, we have yet to actually go on an official summer vacation trip - no work, no responsibilities, nothing.  Just family time.  We have not made it to the beach yet this summer which is very rare for our family.  It's August, for goodness sakes!  So finally, after long anticipation, the beach and our family will finally meet at the end of the summer.

We started our trip with a quick stop off at Mimi and Papaw's house.

With an overnight stay, the girls had just enough time to get into a little bit of fun.

After picking up Uncle Jon along the way,

...we headed next for the Atlantic coast - starting with Nana and Papa's.  They live on the North Carolina coast, just south of the bottom tip of the Outer Banks, so off we went.  Arriving at their house, Nana had lots of goodies ready for the girls to play with, like hats and boa's......

And shoes....lots of shoes!

And hats...lots of fun, old hats!

And in a flash, Nana and Papa's house had been hit by the twins.....

But Papa had surprises of his own for the girls...forget the shoes and boa's and hats.....

Donuts!!!!

After spending a few days here with Nana and Papa and playing on their beach, we'll head down the coast with them to South Carolina beaches....should be a nice getaway for us all!

S P O I L E D

Remember way back, before the girls were born, when I was worried about how our dog would adjust to his new role of not being the baby in the family? But instead being placed on the back burner to our new arrivals?  

Well, for those that may have been wondering, he's doing juuuust fine.

Little Girls

Little girls are made of daisies and butterflies and soft kitty cat purrs
And all the precious memories of times that once were.

Little girls are made of angel's wings and giggles and a firefly's glow
And all the happy feelings, deep inside, that we all know.

Little girls are made of cinnamon and bubbles and fancy white pearls
And snowflakes and rainbows and ballerina twirls.

Little girls are made of sunshine and cupcakes and fresh morning dew,
And these are the reasons, little ones, why everyone loves you.

-Karen Barnes

(And that's also why next time we're all pretty for church I will have my real camera at my fingertips instead of only my phone camera! Argh!)