Family Fun: Getting a Little Fresh Air
Brina swinging on the jungle gym
One of the best parts about the warm sunny days when they hit in the middle of winter is the family can go outside and get some fresh air. Since it is the season of colds and sickness the fresh air is wonderful for everyone. We try to let the girls get some play time outside when the weather permits and we even join in on the fun. Whether it is pushing one of the girls on the swings or playing catch it is important that we spend some time relaxing together.
Karlie playing catch with Daddy
Thankful for the warm and sunny days in South Carolina as well as the opportunity to spend some extra time with my family! 🙂
Family Outings: A Walk in the Park
Brina and Karlie pausing “briefly” on our walk so I can snap a picture!
Every once in awhile when the girls are off school and it is a beautiful day we get to meet Daddy for a quick picnic and walk in the park. Legacy Park is pretty close to Jake’s work so he can pop over and meet us over his lunch hour. I think the girls get more excited about going for a walk around the park then eating, ha!
Legacy Park has paved paths for walking, biking or jogging plus a playground for the kids, beach volleyball, and a big open field perfect for flying kites or playing soccer. On those hot days they have plenty of shade and restrooms (which are very nice for little kids). I treasure these moments when we get get together over the lunch hour to grab a bite to eat, walk, talk, and play together as a family. I think it is important to have some relaxing times built into our schedules. Not only do we get a few extra minutes together as a family we get fresh air and some exercise which is beneficial for all of us!
Do you have a park you enjoy going to for a picnic or to play?
Family Activities: Enjoying Time with Extended Family (Part 2)
There are so many things I have to be thankful for in my life with family being one of the top on the list. As a child I had the privilege of knowing and having wonderful memories with all four of my Great Grandma’s. All four of my Grandparents are still healthy and are now able to be a part of my girls lives. It is exciting to see my girls spend time and with their Grandparents and Great Grandparents because I know these precious times together are memories they will cherish. I posted a few other pictures in an earlier post. Here are a few pictures from our most recent visit with our Grandparents, Great Grandparents, Aunts, and Uncles in South Carolina.
Great Grandpa CE reading books to Karlie and Brina. The girls were super excited about all the fun playing and book reading while everyone was visiting us.
Uncle Josh helped the girls put together a huge marble mazes! They were quite impressed with his building skills and loved racing the marbles through the maze. Karlie is racing her marbles while Uncle Josh helps Brina put hers together.
Grandma Penny coloring with Brina. Thankful for a time to relax and enjoy spending time with family. Brina’s was thrilled to have some time coloring with Grandma Penny.
Karlie is quite pleased with the lego, marble maze, and horse farm that Uncle Josh helped her put together.
We had a blast with everyone visiting for several days. The time flew by quickly and before we knew it everyone was leaving. The girls did pretty well with saying goodbye to everybody but as they watched the car drive away they started crying….. When asked why they were crying Brina said “I had so much fun I wasn’t ready for them to go yet.” and Karlie said “It went by too fast…I don’t think it was really 4 days…” I am thankful for the opportunity to spend time with family; these moments spent together become treasured memories for the entire family.
Working in the Yard & Building Bonfires
We were planning on working in the yard and doing a bonfire. As soon as we got into the yard it started to rain. So we decided to take a little break and eat popsicles.
Skipper hanging out with us too Skipper decided to stay and hang out with us. Maybe she could get a nibble of a popsicle, ha!
Toasty fire to warm us up We ended up doing a fire once the rain, thunder and lightening subsided. It did sprinkle on and off but we still were able to pick a lot of sticks and limbs off the yard to make our bonfire.
Boiling water for hot chocolate We cooked the water for our hot chocolates on the stove since the bonfire was so hot.
Karlie drinking her hot chocolate and watching the jiffy pop start popping Karlie enjoying her hot chocolate and fascinated by the jiffy pop.
Brina munching on some freshly cooked jiffy pop! We made jiffy pop for a fun snack at the bonfire. The girls and Skipper loved it! It was both a productive and fun evening together with the family.
Vacation & Travel: Family Time at Tybee Island, Georgia
We had an amazing trip to Savannah, Georgia this year. We were able to explore Savannah, celebrate a cousins graduation from SCAD, and go to the beach on Tybee. Here are some more fun pictures from our trip to Tybee Island:
Checking out Savannah's Wildlife! The girls were thrilled to find this “pretty green frog” at Grandma Penny’s hotel! As we were leaving one time we were greeted by this little guy! It is amazing how fascinating a frog can be for the kids!
It was fun to spend time with my sweet Mom in Savannah! We were so happy that Grandma Penny was able to go with us on the road trip to Savannah! The girls loved hanging out with Grandma Penny!
Karlie watching Daddy out the Grandma Penny's hotel window! Karlie wanted to make sure Daddy wasn’t going to leave us.
Brina's ready for the beach, she's swinging her arms to dry off the sunblock! We found that putting sunblock on at the hotel, letting it dry, then heading to the beach was the key to stay unburnt and sand free!
The girls know we are getting close to the beach on Tybee once they see the giant shark! They think the shark is hilarious. The first time we went to Tybee we stopped by because they wanted a closer look. Now when they see it they just giggle!
Aunt Mary Ann and the girls were the first to get their feet wet! The girls love testing the water for a few minutes before going right into the ocean.
Karlie loves Tybee Beach! Karlie running up the beach to take off her glasses so she can go swimming in the ocean!
Everyone starting to enjoy the beach! It was great having an opportunity to go to the beach with extended family. Tybee was beautiful and really only a few people were out on the beach with us.
Come on in Grandma Penny, the water's great! The girls had a blast swimming with Grandma Penny, Aunt Renelle, Uncle Eric and everyone else. The beach adventure was a lot of fun for the girls.
Mom and Renelle enjoying their time at Tybee Beach! Everyone enjoyed a relaxing swim at Tybee. We even saw some DOLPHINS! I didn’t have my camera handy when they came but thrilled they came to visit us during our swim!
Karlie "helping" Uncle Eric dig a giant hole in the sand! Every time we go swimming on Tybee Beach we see several of these cargo ships going by. It is amazing the amount of cargo they carry on these ships as they go in and out of Savannah’s harbor.
Brina having fun riding on Daddy's shoulders! The girls love the water! I am thrilled that they are becoming more confident with their life jackets but still (for the most part) stay near us!
Aunt Mary Ann enjoying the shade while talking with Jake! It was a beautiful day at the beach! We are so thankful to be able to share it with so many family members!
Brina swimming with Daddy and Karlie swimming with Grandma Penny! The girls thought it was awesome being able to swim with a lot of different people, they usually have a choice between Mommy or Daddy. Thankful that they love the ocean and had fun with family!
Brina and Karlie "helping" Daddy dig a hole for a sand castle! Thanks Laurel for the awesome sand toys! The girls had a blast making a sand castle at Tybee!
Brina and Karlie taking a lunch break in the beach tent! The tent was a nice place out of the sun for the kiddos to take a break and eat lunch. Thanks babe for taking care of us so we didn’t get crispy in the sun!
The sand may be messy but it sure is fun playing in it with Daddy! One of their favorite activities to do at the beach, dig in the sand!
Lunch time at the beach! We were thrilled Mom could join us in the adventure! My Mom was able to fly up to Greenville and come with us on this road trip. That weekend was packed full of fun with the graduation celebration, beach adventures, the road trip and many more exciting activities!
Checking out the lobsters at Red Lobster! We didn’t have a chance to stop at a seafood restaurant in Georgia so on the road trip back home we ate at Red Lobster. The girls were fascinated with their lobster tank!
“A Vacation To Remember” series is a reflection on our recent trip and ways we relaxed. Life is short and we were thrilled to have the opportunity to build memories with family and explore of of the most amazing places during our time away. Go with a good attitude and looking for fun and it will be an awesome trip jammed packed with positive memories. It is refreshing having some time away from the regular routine. Make it a once in a lifetime opportunity to meet new people and learn. You just might see or try something new that takes your breath away!
Cleaning Up the Yard & Spring Bonfire
We are blessed to live in a wonderful area with a creek and woods. While the trees provide shade they also are known for dropping branches occasionally. Since we had some limbs piled up we decided to clean up the yard by building our first Spring bonfire. The girls had fun gathering the twigs and branches in the yard and bringing them to the fire. Once the fire was good and hot was roasted hotdogs, did a little more work collecting branches, followed by relaxing together and roasting marshmallows.
Sweet Sisters and Best Friends having fun gathering twigs in the yard together! 
Brina loves hanging out with her puppy - Skipper! 
Karlie telling a story while Daddy cleans the wire for her hotdog. 
Bonfire conversations with the family! 
Daddy and the girls relaxing around the bonfire! Love spending time with my family. We were able to get some work done in the yard and relax together. It was awesome having some time to talk and make new memories with the kids!
