summer vacation!

a few weeks ago we took a jaunt to the low country... south carolina ya'll! ever since gracie was a wee one my mom and i have tried to make the trip down to visit family.  it had been 3 years since we were last there to spend some quality time with the great-grands and other sweet family members. gracie and jack were so excited to get back to charleston and to aunt debbie's pool! in the south, life moves at a slower pace, the food tastes better and tea is served extra sweet. :)how could a kid not resist that!


highlights of our trip involved staying in charleston with one set of grandparents and meeting all their friends whose faces would light up at the sight of my two kiddos, getting sprayed by water during the 4D planet earth film at the south carolina aquarium, watching jack guzzle down 3 glasses of sweet tea like nobody's business, walking on the beach at isle of palms, butter beans and rice at browns bbq, trying to catch lizards by the pool, eating a big juicy watermelon with my sweet grandpa gordon, watching grace in all her glory riding a horse named jet, catching up with my aunt debbie and savoring all her hospitality.it was a blessing to spend time with those we love but don't get to see very often. memories were made and gracie and jack are ready to become low country bumpkins.

catch up!

they say a picture is worth a thousand words. here is what we have been up to since i last posted...

gracie and i spent an evening out with friends at a secret keeper girl event!

jack fell out of bed and got a black eye. poor kid.

we were slap happy and made a kabillion mustaches on a stick to sell at the salisbury festival!

we finished our geography homeschool co-op class with a 'food from many nations' party! we studied japan and made candy sushi! it was a hit! (and we also cleared peoples nasal passages with wasabi peas!)

we blinked and summer was here! goggles + blow up pool = endless summer fun!

 and most recently, gracie showed us her moves at her dance recital. what a beauty!

 we are glad for a break in our schooling and looking forward to a busy summer. life is good. Jesus is better!

swim suits for sweaters



last day at the beach

 summer is over and fall days are here.  back to the books for us. as a home school family our days are full of learning, creating and plenty of whining of course. it is a true blessing to watch grace and jack learn and grow in knowledge.  but the older they get, the faster time seems to fly and i am not sure how i feel about that. i try and savor every moment, but truth be told some days are tougher than others. kids will be kids... and who really wants to sit and do addition and subtraction worksheets!? we will miss our lazy days of picnics on the beach and finding giant clam shells for the front stoop. i guess it's time to trade swim suits for sweaters and beach towels for blankets. thanking God for the sweetness of fall which makes the transition not so hard; cool days, big pots of warm soup, crunchy apples, leaving the windows open, and picking out the perfect pumpkin of course.