Burns Blast!

We all went to Hilton, NY to visit Aunt Rachael, Uncle Mark, Collin and Lauren. Nana was there for the weekend too and Papa joined us for a fun day! It was so nice to catch up with everyone. Rachael and Mark were wonderful hosts. Lucy & Lauren had an especially good time playing together and Collin has a real knack for making Lulu laugh out loud! Nana got the younger kids hopping balls, which were a real hit. Lucy got to experience a slip 'n' slide for the first time, I am not quite sure that she ever really got the hang of it, Lauren is a real pro though. She did have fun sliding into the kiddie pool though. Nana hurt her finger, which did create a bit of excitement. It was a wonderful trip and we look forward to our next get-together with everyone!

Vacation Time!

This year we headed to Atlantic Beach, North Carolina for a family vacation at the beach. Kenzie was able to join us, so it made the trip extra special. Atlantic Beach was a lot of fun. We spend time at the pool and on the beach at the Sheraton, we checked out a bunch of really tasty local restaurants - my personal favorite was Mosquito Amos - and we visited local attractions. Highlights of the trip included a ferry ride to Shackleford Banks, which is home to wild horses. We had a great time walking along the pristine beach collecting shells.  Then we ventured inland to find some wild horses. The beach there was so nice, we also enjoyed hanging out and swimming. We went to the Aquarium, a local minor league baseball game - with awesome fresh kettle corn! - and played mini golf. Lucy loved jumping repeatedly into the pool, so we all had to take turns catching her. The vacation was certainly worth the long ride! Here are some pictures of our vacation:

 

 

 

 

 

 

All Aboard for a Father's Day Picnic

Happy Father's Day to a wonderful Dad! To celebrate we decided to keep the tradition going and took our third annual ride on the Wilmington & Western Rail Road. The weather today was perfect - on the cooler side, without too much humidity. We got great seats on car 603 and enjoyed the scenery on the way to the Mt. Cuba picnic grove. During our short stop, we ate a picnic lunch complete with sandwiches, chips and donut holes!

The ride back to the station was equally as nice. Lucy was a little nervous, but enjoyed herself anyway. The whistle did really scare her when we were back at the station checking out the locomotive. (It is really quite loud!)

Tonight we will have one of Daddy's favorites for dinner - chicken parm. I hope he enjoyed his day and his celebration with his two girls who couldn't have a more loving father!

Running Free!

Lucy & I headed to Longwood Gardens for another relaxing play date with Heather, Alex and Isabel. The kids enjoyed their regular trip to the Italian Water Garden, we explored both tree houses and then played in the children's fountain and ran through the maze.

We ended our trip by letting them run around in one of the fountain garden areas. They had so much fun just running in the wide open space! It is so much fun to watch children run around just having a great time. Another great day at Longwood!

Happy Birthday Zoe!

We celebrated Zoe's sixth birthday at Aunt Amy & Uncle Paul's house. WOW - Zoe is turning 6!

Uncle Paul made his now famous pizzas on the grill - yum! Lucy loved her pizza. She also loved swimming, running around and playing with Zoe, Ella, Alex and Isabel. Zoe seemed especially excited about her new pogo stick from Nana. All the rest of us just enjoyed having a chance to visit. The weather was perfect for enjoying the patio, though the clouds threatened a little, no rain actually came to spoil our fun. We all hope Zoe has a wonderful seventh year!

Take Me out to the Ball Game!

Today we went to the Wilmington Blue Rocks game. It was wonderful weather for a baseball game - warm, but overcast, so the sun wasn't too hot. The Blue Rocks were playing the Potamac Nationals, and unfortunately, they lost 5-4.

Lucy was so excited about going to the game. We had a Family Fun pack, so we had great seats just six rows back right behind home plate. The deal came with dogs, drinks and 2 web kinz. Lucy loves her little kitty and decided to name him "Stripes." What I was most impressed with was how well Lulu did. She sat in her seat for the whole game (minus a trip to the rest room). She was attentive and asked questions about what was going on and what the players were doing. She clapped and cheered for the right team. Lucy was very clear that we wanted the Blue Rocks to win and that they were wearing the white & blue uniforms. She was a good little fan yelling yea at the right times and saying "Go Blue Rocks."

Following the game - yes, we stayed for the whole game - Lulu ran the based with Kenzie and a bunch of other fans. She looked so cute out there running as fast as she could, holding Kenzie's hand, as she went around the diamond. I, for one, am so happy that our little girl is looking like she will be a baseball fan. Go Lucy!

Music Mix

Lucy has been learning a lot of songs in school and enjoys sharing them with us. She is really good with the opening line of the song and then some other parts, but doesn't quite have all the words down yet. I don't always know all these songs (maybe I should and just can't remember...) , for example "Down by the station early in the morning..." Lucy loves this and sings that first line over and over, sometimes dragging out the morning part. Then there is something about "pufferbellies." If you don't know the song, trust me, pufferbellies is part of the song. Anyway, yesterday Lucy was singing away - at top volume of course - and seemed a little confused about her songs. She sang:

"Dinkle, dinkle little star, Up in the sky, Where are you next time sing with me."

This is her version of Twinkle Twinkle Little Star meets the ABC Song. At least those are two songs I know and can help her learn!