We decided to spend Saturday night at the Jersey shore because we were basically there by arriving in AC. Amy's in-laws have a place in Woodbine and graciously opened their home to our giant clan so we could have a little beach get-away. It was perfect, exactly what I needed! I haven't been to the shore in YEARS and have had the itch for many months to get there. It was Hannah's first trip to the ocean and hopefully we would have better luck with her in the sand this time around. (She wasn't too fond of it the first time at Lake Michigan in June).
Thankfully the beach was a hit! She was a little iffy about the sand and water at first, but basically we just put her down and made it "deal with it". She was playing up a storm in no time. All the kiddos had a great time in the water and sand. Grace and Andrew were in the water almost the entire time playing on their boogie boards. Matthew had fun digging in the sand, chasing birds, and wandering around. It was a fun first day.
Hannah snuggled up between Andrew and Grace as they played on their iTouches. She had a play phone and thought she was doing the same thing they were. So cute!
On the second day, Sunday, Kim and her family drove down for the day. John and I engaged in a sand castle building contest, (I kicked his butt) and Hannah helped out some. The kids had a great time playing together and were definitely ready to leave once the long day was over.
This trip to PA we really tried to keep our plans open. Most of the time we cram so much into the week, that it seems to fly by that much quicker. Don't get me wrong, I enjoy cramming as much as we can into our trips, but this was more laid back and it wasn't so bad.
Here is a fun, sunny afternoon spent playing in the backyard at my parents house. The kids love bubbles, so those were always a hit. There was lots of running, laughing, and smiles. And sunshine, did I mention that? We had absolutely beautiful weather, it was perfect!
On our only rainy day (which only lasted one morning), we took a drive to my old gym, Berks Gymnastics Academy to catch up with my old coaches and let Hannah have a little fun. I haven't seen my coaches in quite a few years so it was nice to spend some time chatting. Hannah loved jumping on the trampoline, swinging on the bars, and watching the girls flip around. I forgot to take my camera, so these are cell phone pics courtesy of Kate.
On Wednesday evening we had a picnic with the Bauman's and Novia's at Mandarach Park. The girls had a great time playing on the slides and just running around. They could have cared less about actually eating their food, they just wanted to play. I tried to get some pictures, but these ladies were just on the go. What a fun time watching our kiddos play together :)
Julia snapped this picture on her phone, which captured all the girls looking in the same direction.
We had a little "birthday party" for Hannah. Aunt Kate made a delicious cake and Hannah was truly so excited to have everyone sing to her. She literally squealed out loud when the cake was carried over and she clapped and blew out her candles. It was so cute to see. She will certainly be a ham when we celebrate her official 2nd birthday in September.
Derek and Kate have a lab MacKenzie and the kids just loved playing with her. MacKenzie was wiped out and Hannah was loving on her, it was adorable. This kiddo just loves animals.
The kids played together so well, they shared Hannah's new toys and were giggling and laughing at whatever their minds come up with. It was fun to watch them all interact together.
A picture of all the cousins together (minus Dylan and Bryn who we sorely missed. If only they could have moved to North Carolina after this week) We will have to photoshop those two into this picture.
And last, a picture of the beautiful sky as we departed Atlantic City on Sunday evening. JD didn't believe me when I told him you fly in the clouds so I snapped this picture for him.
We ended up delayed leaving AC and didn't arrive to our house in Lansing til well after 11pm. Hannah didn't nap all day and fell asleep within 5 minutes of getting into the car on our drive back from Detroit. She did really well the whole day considering and was no problem at all. Thank goodness for technology and fun books, games, and apps on the iPhone! All is all, it was a wonderful vacation. We had a blast doing everything and already have our week picked out for next summer's adventure! Love you all!
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