Home again, home again, jiggity jig!

We are home from a glorious trip to the beach!! Hilton Head was so wonderful! We spent our days at the pool, shopping, way too much eating, biking around the island, listening to entertainers on the docks while enjoying some cold beverages and ice cream and so much more. We stayed on Sea Pines Plantation in South Beach in a darling cottage-like Inn. We will definitely be going back in the future! It was such a wonderful family friendly place to vacation!






One gorgeous cabana boy, Roberto!


Sophie LOVES 'Berto!


Our friends, Mary Beth and Roberto came along with us! It was so much fun!


The whole family out at Harbor Town...



My beautiful sun kissed teenagers at the Salty Dog Cafe at South Beach!



And some babies helping their mommies with some important business! Those limes don't get in there themselves, you know?!


See? Happy Mommies!


We went out on a dolphin excursion and saw TONS of dolphins, including a pod of about seven strand feeding together with babies in tow... so cool!








And, of course, our traditional pictures at the beach:












We even got Mary Beth and Roberto to join us for some family pics on the beach.


I can tell you that getting ready for the pictures and getting toddlers and teenagers to cooperate for pictures on the beach is not the most fun evening you can plan... but I think the results are worth it!

Day's End on the Sound... the most beautiful sunsets!


We cannot wait to go back again. It was one of the most enjoyable vacations we have ever had!

"Head"ing to the Beach

TOMORROW... and we can't wait!!

Splish Splash She Is Taking A Bath

A little background... about a year ago, Bug woke up one day and decided that baths were suddenly terrifying! She screamed bloody murder if you tried to get her into the tub. I began letting her shower with me, which has worked out well as it is quite quick and easy. But, she was missing out on all the fun and relaxation that a bath can give a girl!

Well, for her birthday, she received some Dora bubble bath. I had put it away in the linen closet thinking she would not use it but decided to save it for "someday". She found it this week and asked to take a bubble bath. Thought I would share some pictures of her "aha" moment!

Hmmmm Mommy... I wonder if I am going to like this?


I think I do!


Ok, mommy, this is really FUN!!!


Why didn't you tell me what I was missing?


Can I take another Dora Bubble Bath tomorrow?


And she has... every day this week. Throws a three year old tantrum if she does not get to... I think I have created a monster! ha ha... A Bubble Bath Monster!

And, several of you have asked for a status update on her scar. I took her back into the plastic surgeon last week as she still has bruising under her eye and the scar is still very red and has a deep ridge. He told me that it looks good and that it is not uncommon for it to still be bruised even 8 weeks after the trauma. Since the metal handlebar went through the muscle and hit the bone, he is not surprised that she is still bruised. And as for the scarring... we are using Vitamin E twice a day on it as well as Mederma twice a day... he believes it will continue to fade as it heals and will remain red for a few more weeks. He may need to do some adjustment on the scar if it needs it, but probably will not for at least six months. I hope that it will fade over time... we will continue to take good care of it. Any suggestions or ideas for doing anything more to help it?

Oh... and Sophie had her first car date last week... stay tuned for pics!

Favorite Foto Friday #48 - HOORAY FOR THE RED WHITE & BLUE

It was a soggy Fourth of July last week, so our big plans for the pool and fireworks did not really happen. But, we did get to pick Grant up from camp and Sophie was SO excited to have him home again! So, we spent most of the day hanging out at home and playing outside between the raindrops.

Here is Sophie "painting" outside and modeling her Red, White & Blue




Sweet Smile


The New Cheesy Smile


And a happy reunion between brother and sister


You never have to follow the FFF theme... if you would like to be included in FFF, just post your link into Mr. Linky below... it is fun to follow our FFF friends each week!

Now... for the MR LINKY FFF LINKING DIRECTIONS!! Go to your blog and click on the title of your FFF post - your post URL will appear in the address bar in your browser and it will contain the exact link to your post! Simply highlight the address, right click, choose copy and then paste it in the "URL" spot in the Mister Linky - just under where you put your name (you can put your name and the name of your child/ren in the picture). Don't forget to click the "Enter" button and voila... you are linked!

It is important that you are linking just your post and not just your blog web address so everybody can link directly to your FFF post!!


I am going to be out of town on vacation next week but I will try to get online if I have internet access to do FFF. If not, then check back the next week for more FFF fun! Please post among yourselves and choose your own FFF picture for the week!

Works For Me Wednesday

Recently, I came across this great blog, Rocks In My Dryer, that links many helpful hints for almost anything you can imagine! Today, and very timely to boot, I learned of a great idea... before sealing up your can of paint after a room is painted, pour a small amount of paint into a glass jar (baby food jar, etc) and label the jar for which room the paint matches. For quick touchups, you can simply reach into the cabinet and pull out the tiny jar of paint and voila... with a tiny little paint brush, your boo boo can be repaired in minutes without pulling out the entire large can of paint!

Also, in timely fashion, I learned from this blog, about a cool way to save money when eating out! I am not a great cook and we eat out ALOT... by buying gift certificates to favorite restaurants for a fraction of the face value, we could be saving money every time we eat out!

I do not have any creative ideas this week but will definitely be reading this one every week for great tips! I even learned how to better use HTML code today as well. Now, I can be cool like Michelle and Holly and cross out my words when I don't really want to say what I have to say be sarcastic!!!

Just you wait... this could be fun. Join in!

Favorite Foto Friday #47 - SHAKE YOUR GROOVE THING!

DORA STYLE!!

Sophie got a Dora Dance Mat for her birthday from her friend, Gabriella, and she LOVES to dance on it, complete with the Dora outfit and maracas! She would dance every night if she could!



It takes immense concentration to shake those maracas at just the right tempo!



And every once in a while, you must check your foot placement on the mat!


Maracas do not make good sunglasses, but they sure look good!


And the look I get when I ask her to look away from the video and smile for Mommy - LOL!


Can't wait to see all those DANCIN' moves and everybody SHAKIN THEIR GROOVE THING!! And, HAPPY FOURTH OF JULY!!



You never have to follow the FFF theme... if you would like to be included in FFF, just post your link into Mr. Linky below... it is fun to follow our FFF friends each week!

Now... for the MR LINKY FFF LINKING DIRECTIONS!! Go to your blog and click on the title of your FFF post - your post URL will appear in the address bar in your browser and it will contain the exact link to your post! Simply highlight the address, right click, choose copy and then paste it in the "URL" spot in the Mister Linky - just under where you put your name (you can put your name and the name of your child/ren in the picture). Don't forget to click the "Enter" button and voila... you are linked!

It is important that you are linking just your post and not just your blog web address so everybody can link directly to your FFF post!!



Next week's theme... RED WHITE & BLUE! Get out those cameras over the holiday weekend and post your favorite next week!!