Water Play

One of the fantastic things about being home was taking full advantage of my brother's pool! The kids haven't been in the water much in their little lives so I wasn't sure how they would do. But Granny got them these fabulous swim suits that have life jackets built in them and they were awesome! We had so much fun splashing about and pretending to be "divers" (the kids love to watch this DVD about underwater life and it has scuba divers in it. Timo kept saying "look Mommy, I am a diver!" as he moved his arms back and forth).

I was alone with the kids for the first hour and it was bit challenging trying to manage them both by myself. They had to be held in the water so I could only have one in the water at a time....and I was freaking out that the other would fall in while sitting on the side...ugh. But luckily Cameron was happy just relaxing in the big floating chair...so she was safe while I played with Timo a while.
They both were a little shy in the water to begin with but quickly warmed up to it once I told them to kick their feet and splash like they couldn't do in the bath tub!
Their cousins, Kaylee and Kenzie, jumped in and the fun began! They pulled the foam noodles out and the kids got a chance to semi-float on their own. Cameron actually did a great job of wanting to do it all by herself...as long as she didn't get any water in her eyes...

Then our savior showed up...Daddy! Young got back from his meeting early and came straight over. Thank goodness! Now both kids could get in and enjoy the water together.
Cameron wanted back in her floaty chair so that gave me a chance to play with my nieces and Young a chance to work with Timo on floating. (A big thanks to Aunt Angie for taking all the great pictures!!)
We stayed out there two hours but it felt like only 20mins! I couldn't believe it when I checked the time and it was past lunch and nap time. No crying or complaining from any of the kids. But needless to say, the kids passed out as soon as we got home. Their cousin Kenie was so tired too and wanted to nap with the twins...three peas in a pod...

Pig Pickin' Time

After visiting Grandma Cameron, we loaded up and headed to my old hometown of Apex for the housewarming of my adoptive parents, Roy and Judy Howell. The Howells were our neighbors growing up and their daughters, Wendy and Shannon, are like sisters to me...literally, Shannon has 8 year old boy/girl twins too! Anyway, we all grew up in the sleepy tobacco community called Green Level. Green Level is now being bought up by housing developments and constrution for future freeways. Our old house, which my mom and dad sold to Wendy when they retired and hit the road, and the Howell's house were recently bought by the state for a new freeway interchange. I visited my old homestead and found a big mound of bricks and dirt where our house used to stand...very sad.
Having said all that, the Howells had to sell their house of 35years as well and bought a new, beautiful home just a few miles away. They decided to have a housewarming Green Level style...a big pick pickin' with a about 100 of their closest friends! Roy and Judy gave an emotional speech about having to leave their home but thankful for God's provision of a new house....we were all in tears. But we had an absolute blast eating and seeing so many of our old childhood friends...and their children!
It was the first pig pickin for the kid but you would have thought they were old pros. I think they ate as much BBQ as I did. (It's good to know some of my southern bones made it into them) They enjoy almost everything we gave them...maybe because it came with the promise of watermelon at the end!
After eating, the kids found the scooters and spent the next hour trying to master them...without much success, I might add, but they sure did have a fun trying!

Cameron eventually ditched the scooter and headed for her favorite activity...swinging!
And to top it all off, the kids got to see their first afternoon thunderstorm...the drops of rain were so big, Timo was trying to catch them! You can tell our kids don't get out in the rain very much! We had such a great day all around. Thanks Roy and Judy...we love you!

Great Grandma Cameron's House!

Going to my Grandma Cameron's house is always a must when I'm home visiting. I make my request of chicken and dumplin's and cornbread way ahead of my visit just in case she forgot they were my favorite. And as usual, Grandma didn't disappoint! She put on quite a spread for, I think, 18 people!! Did I mention that she is 86 years old??!! Yes, she cooked the whole meal by herself and wouldn't let anyone help her clean up either...she said she could do the dishes after everyone was gone, she just wanted to sit down and visit with us while we were there...I love her!! This picture isn't even all the food...there was more on the counter and more tables set up on her back porch.
And it just warmed my heart that the kids gobbled up 2 helpings of the dumplins just like their mama...
After lunch Cameron relaxed on her Great Grandma's front porch with Grandpa for a little swing.
It was so hot outside that we staying inside most of the time. Grandma, like most grandmas, has lots of little trinkets and knick knacks around. I was so terrified that the kids would break something but Grandma was VERY firm with me that the kids could play with anything they wanted. Love her!! I was sad when we had to leave, I never get enough time with my Grandma. The kids wanted to give kisses too and Cameron go a little upset she had to share Grandma with her brother...
Grandma, when is your next train trip out west...we miss you already!!

Museum of Life and Science, Durham, NC

There are so many cool museums close to my parents that I wanted to take the kids to but we only had time to go to one. After a little research, we chose the Museum of Life and Science in Durham because they had a train and dinosaur park! My niece, Kenzie, was on crutches but was such a trooper keeping up her sister and the twins....

There was an outdoor area and an indoor area....we hit the outdoor first before it got too hot. Cameron parked herself at the music area, of course, and Timo planted himself in the middle of the dump truck/digging area with several trip inside the big caboose...some things are no surprises with my kids!


Thank goodness we had a train ride to catch...I'm not sure we could have gotten Timo out of the dirt pit otherwise. And oh what fun we had on the train!! The driver even let the kids come up and ring the bell, Timo was first in line! We took up quite a few cars with our crew and we had a blast. The ride was about 20mins, just long enough for the little ones.


Afterward, we traveled back in time to prehistoric days. They have a massive dinosaur park there with lots and lots of life size dinosaurs. There was also this "digging for fossils" area where the kids could search for sharks teeth.

It got really hot outside, too hot, 98degrees, so we headed inside for the toddler activity area. Cameron was showing off her super climbing skill and Timo was making works of art at the water painting area.

There was also a bug exhibit, space ship, weather making area and more that we checked out but it was all very hands on with the kids and I didn't have a free hand to take pictures. We had so much fun, I can tell this place is on our list to come back to next time we're in NC!

Granny & Grandpa's House

My parents (Granny & Grandpa) live in a big travel trailer and travel all over the country most of the year. During the summer, they park it in NC and keep my brother's two girls while they are out of school. This gave us a perfect opportunity to go back and have some good quality family time while Young had lots of business travel.

Mowing the grass, or rather riding the tractor, was by far the most exciting thing happening at Grandpas! My parents have about 2 acres of land there so there is lots to mow!



Relaxing in the warm summer heat, eating strawberries and playing with their cousins took up a good part of their summer days...guess that's why they call them lazy days of summer...

We had a little incident with Timo and a bloody nose. I think all the dry air might have been the cause b/c we had a few nose bleeds from him during the vacation. The first big one just had to happen when he was wearing a white shirt!! But my mom was a real trooper in cleaning the stains out of all his clothes!! Thanks Granny!!
And as I mentioned before, Young had some business travel so he rented a car one day to travel to Charlotte. The kids were amazed by the "new car" and spent a good hour or so climbing all around in it. They even went inside to get their "keys" toy to start the car! I guess that's the beauty of having lots of space, we could open all four door and let the run around and around while we sat in our lounge chairs to watch...something we could never do in the city.

We're Home!

We have made it back to SF safe and sound, praise the Lord. We had such a great time back east and I'm not even really sure where to start blogging. I just uploaded over 500 pictures and probably have that many stories, if not more. So I guess the best place to begin is the beginning...

Our last time on an airplane, almost a year ago, was a bit of a nightmare, so I was a little nervous going into this flight. I wanted to make sure I had all the bells and whistles to keep the kids entertained for a full 8 hours of traveling. Turns out, all we really needed was lots of juice with straws and Young's IPad. We drank our way through the airports and flights and played with the DoodleBuddy app on the computer.

We did manage to get Cameron to take a nap but Timo was way too excited to be on an airplane to sleep!


And traveling was so much easier this time around with extra pairs of hands! They loved pulling the suitcases. I packed their backpacks for the trip, which I ended up carrying most of the time, but I think it's time to get the kids their own rolling backpacks for the next trip!

Needless to say, we arrived safe and sound and all in all it was relatively uneventful. We spent the next day adjusting to the heat and settling in, catching up with Granny and Grandpa!

checking in

Hi Everyone! Just wanted to post to let you know we are having a great time...and have no time to post! I had so hoped that I would be able to keep you all updated while we were away but each day has been an adventure, leaving us all exhausted and a wee bit too tired to write.

So we'll be home soon and I'll try to catch you all you up on our travels and adventures!

And We're Off!

The next time you hear from us we'll be sweltering in the North Carolina heat and humidity but in the loving arms of our Granny and Grandpa! See ya'll soon!