Special visitors

A couple of weeks ago we were treated to a wonderful visit from Michael's grandparents and cousin Sarah from Gettysburg, Pennsylvania.

 Sarah came bearing a housewarming gift from her parents--a personalized bucket full of ice cream sundae goodies and bowls. Awesome.

 It was really special being able to show Grandma and Grandpa Weiler the beam from their barn in its home above the fireplace. 

We feel very blessed to be near more family so we can get to know each other better and introduce our children to their great-grandparents. Since I never met my great-grandparents, I am thankful that my children know at least one set of theirs.

Family is what it's all about.

An evening at the fair

Last week we went to the Rockingham County Fair. By Fair standards, I don't really know how it compares to others seeing as how I've only been to a fair a couple of times before in my life (my first experience I got to "help" milk a goat--very exciting). For these parts, though, it's a pretty big deal. With all the farms around these parts, we really enjoyed seeing the 4-H and FFA club animals. Michael saw several of his younger patients, one of whom showed us his prize-winning sheep that he had raised himself.

There's just something quaint, redneck, fun, and American in an evening spent at the fair. The kid(s) weren't up for any rides, but I am not a big fan of those anyway.

 Robbie was more interested in sucking on the very sanitary sheep pen than in the sheep themselves.

 Charmer.

 Mom, I can't smile right now; I'm eating.

 Clara isn't a big fan of unexpected noises. The roosters were not her favorite.

 I loved seeing all the prize-winning produce and flowers. Not sure if they held a baked goods contest, but I wish I could have seen it/eaten it if they did. Have any of you read Squashed by Hope Bauer? A great Fair book.

 Two charmers.

 Clara is very mindful of keeping Robbie safe. Most of the time it's totally awesome and very helpful; occasionally it takes some convincing for me to help her understand that he can take risks sometimes--like climbing on a big rig with both his parents nearby, for example.

 Uh, a little help here?

 I think there might have been a little vicarious living going on here. Michael's mom tells me that he would get very excited as a toddler when he saw a semi-trailer and would point and say, "Big buh!" whenever he saw one.

And now to bed.

Blonder and longer

I was going through my photos to finally put together Robbie's 1st year album, and I couldn't believe how much his hair has changed during his first year. His whole look is different.

 Cute at any age, but I'm liking the current look a whole lot.

First time at OBX

We had a great short vacation to the Outer Banks (Hatteras Island, Avon specifically) a few weeks ago with another family from church, the Mayfields.

The first day was rainy for much of the day, so we took the opportunity to visit some historical sites. The Hatteras lighthouse was lovely. Clara was hiding behind us for this shot.

At the top.

Clara climbed 258 steps all by herself. At one point Michael told her, "You're doing great!" and she responded, "Quiet, I'm focusing!"

Success!

So technically I didn't actually get to climb the lighthouse since you had to be at least 40" tall (sadly Robbie didn't make the cut), but we enjoyed the view from the bottom.

The ocean was pretty rough when we went out later that afternoon.

Clara wasn't eager to get too deep into the ocean (I didn't get in at all), but she enjoyed having the shallower waves wash over her as she sat up on the shore.

We were thinking that Robbie would be hard to keep track of by the ocean, but with his lack of enthusiasm in the sticky sand and big waves, he was pretty easy to watch.

Chris was very kind to let Clara help him steer his trick kite. It was one of those moments that as a parent you think, "Oh, I should intervene and not let my child possibly annoy this other adult," but then I decided to not get involved. Clara really was proud of herself and I was very glad I hadn't stepped in assuming I knew best.


Super windy.

Michael braved the waves and enjoyed some boogie boarding.

Chris joined him but unfortunately got a near concussion when a big wave threw him headfirst onto the shore. Ouch ouch ouch.

The following day was perfect and we spent it on the sound side of the Outer Banks. SO much more kid-friendly and relaxing.

We rented these stand-up paddleboards (SUPs) which were totally awesome and manageable even for the Mayfield's three-year-old boy.

Another friend let me borrow her infant life jacket for the trip for Robbie, but he wasn't a big fan.

Clara rocking the boogie board.

When your kid does something that you aren't sure she would ever venture to do (even if it's in calm waters), it's pretty special.

Calm waters = happy people.

Trying out the SUPs.

Not being a big adventurous person, the SUP was just the right speed for me and I really enjoyed it. Hey, what can I say? I don't like doing things that scare me.

We found a dead crab in the ocean (it was turned upside down onto its white tummy, which is why we even saw it) and Michael fished it out. It was a hit with the kids.

The girls hanging out on the SUPs. It was so great for Clara to have friends her age to play with--she was more adventurous (and we enjoyed not having to entertain her as much). These girls were very kind to her and encouraging and inclusive.

Robbie had a lot of fun in the water and on the sand, but he was also happy to chill with me as a fellow pale person under the umbrella eating snacks.

 

The trip was a wonderful break from the stress of the move and work and life, and it was made even better by sharing it with friends. It was especially great when we got to trade babysitting and each go out on a date one night. For our date we went out for pizza and ice cream, and Michael had gotten tickets to see "The Lost Colony" musical play about the abandoned colony on Roanoke Island. It was really fun. Besides the yucky traffic on and off the Islands, the trip was lovely and a definite memory-maker.

More visit pics

Here are a few more pics from the Heiss visit, courtesy of their camera.

Girl's got her own sense of style.

 Hey, that's connected to my head!

 Crazy juicy black plums.

Budding musicians.