Reminiscing...

Today was my due date last year! Hard to believe it has really been a whole year.
I remember this time last year, hoping so badly that I would just go into labor and have that baby! I was ready... but all the walking and eating spicy food didn't make Claire any more "ready" to enter the world. She made me learn to be patient and trust that everything would work out ok.
It's been fun looking back at pictures and going down "memory lane" - we are so excited about Claire's 1st birthday in just a few days!

This one's for the Normans...

Go Dawgs!

Claire was excited about another win yesterday!

We're thinking about our dear friends in Georgia and we'll especially be thinking of Mr. Norman on Wednesday. I think he would have been pleased with this little "Puppy Dawg" :-)

Our Three-Generation-Family-Vacation Part II

Photo and video editing at www.OneTrueMedia.com

Our Three-Generation-Family-Vacation! Part I

We're back from our vacation in Topsail and we had a wonderful time! Many many thanks to Mom and Dad for such a fantastic week. Here's a little sneak peak at our adventures from the past week. More to come...

Here's Claire getting dressed for our family portraits. This was our gift to Mom for her 60th birthday. Check out the photographer's blog if you'd like to see some of the pictures. It was the only time we didn't look like beach bums all week! Claire is wearing the dress that Madison (our godchild) wore to our wedding. It made it extra special to see her all dolled up in such a beautiful dress. Thanks Jessica!!

Yes folks, even Papa Jim made it out onto the beach. It's a rare sight, but he actually got in the ocean once!! It was wonderful for Claire to be around her grandparents for a whole week.

We brought the pool out onto the beach for Claire to play in. Mostly though she crawled around in the sand and played in the surf. I was shocked by how much she loved the beach. She showed no fear and just had a blast.

We had great weather, with the exception of a few storms that rolled through. One afternoon we were sitting at the table eating lunch, and my brother jumped up and yelled "tornado!" We all ran out to the deck to see about 5 water spouts across the ocean. It was a pretty crazy sight. Luckily they all stayed over water and by later in the afternoon, we were back on the beach in the sun!

This one's just for you Tara! Your favorite little beach creature crawled out to say hello Sunday morning when we went to check on the turtle nest.

Claire got TONS of practice "walking" around on the beach while holding my hands. She would head straight to the water. All that practice really paid off.....she took her first steps on Friday!! We got a little video the next day which I'll post in Part II!

Southard Family Reunion

Good times visiting with all the Southards (Harwell, Gammon, Barnes, & Mason families too!) at the river on Sunday! It is really great to see all of Rob's mother's family and especially fun to watch Claire play with everyone. She especially loved Brooke.... Presents from Aunt Mary Lynn!! A little practice for the big day in 1 MONTH! Claire got her first Vera Bradley purse!
Who needs toys when you can play with a plastic water bottle or a Snapple bottle???
Reading new books from Joe, Tara, and Brooke. What fun! Claire's favorite thing to do these days is to read her books. She will bring me one after another and hand them to me. (I have all our current titles memorized....Snuggle Puppy, Going on a Bear Hunt....you name it, I know the words.) I am excited to add some new ones to the mix!
Just enjoying a beautiful river day. (Ann, I didn't realize we were in matching outfits!)
Thanks Bob & Coral for hosting and thanks to everyone for making the drive. I love to see all of you and wish we could do it more often.

So long Johnny, it was fun while it lasted...

After checking the instruction book for the Johnny Jump Up, I realized Claire had definitely outgrown it. I kind of figured since her knees were practically dragging on the floor. I was so sad to pack it up!! Thanks Scott & Danielle for hours of jumping and fun! (Now how am I going to get my kitchen cleaned, bottles made, dishes washed.....???)

On the road again...

This has been the busiest summer with all our traveling! This time Claire and I joined Grammy on a visit to see her friend in Virginia Beach. It was a great get-away and fun to spend a little time on the beach!
Here's Claire's first view of the ocean....per her usual style, she was very hesitant at first and a little scared of the crashing waves. She slowly warmed up to having her feet in the sand and enjoyed playing with a bucket of seawater!



Every morning my little "human alarm clock" got me up in time to walk down to the boardwalk and see the sunrise. Here she is having her breakfast on the beach! Not a bad life! As much as I'd love to sleep in, I truly enjoyed seeing the beach in the early morning and watching the dolphins swimming out in front of us. It was so beautiful and relaxing!