New Years at Myrtle Beach

If you hadn't already gathered by this photo taken on New Years Day, we spent the holiday weekend at the always tacky-fabulous Myrtle Beach.  We brought along Ashley and John and baby Liam, Another Nathan, and Mr. David (originally of orange shoelace fame). Turns out? Six adults and four babies makes for a slightly chaotic road trip. In case you were curious.

But the weather was absolutely gorgeous. Sunny and 70 in January = God bless South Carolina.  We got to play on the beach, take naps, read, play games, go outlet shopping, and cook a lot of good food including a multi-course fondue and a several-layer birthday cake.

And consumed one or three (ahem) adult beverages in the process.

Anyway here's our trip, in pictures --

Charlotte's first time at the beach!

Love seeing my babies running and playing together.

Another Nathan is completely fascinated by the beach. #midwesterner

Have I mentioned recently how glad I am that we now own two of these dump trucks? (Also, don't be fooled by their bare feet or my mention of nice weather.  The water was frikkin freezing.)

Myrtle Beach, home of keepin' it classy. Because why wouldn't you close down a trashy amusement park and replace it with a neon-lit ferris wheel? I mean duh.

Playing taboo...

For the record, this is how Another Nathan actually gives clues: ummmmm ummmmm ummmmm it's punctuation... and it has a sister. Or maybe a brother? It's a this or a this-this! Yes, David totally got it right. FROM THAT. Color me impressed.

(Bonus Erin-loves-you points to the first person who's as smart as David and comments with the right answer.)

Mark successfully photobombed us like six times. *sigh*

(And yes, we are Those Friends who have matching hoodies. You will not judge us. They are cute.)

My beautiful beach babies. I melt.

For more pics of our weekend, click here. Happy beachy new year to you all! And remember, kids: it's a this... or a this this.

Pool Renovation!

How to renovate your pool in ten simple steps:

Step 1: Glare at the murky mess in your deep end for four or five months.  Complain about the noise of the frogs who live in the swamp that is your pool.

Step 2: Hire workers to pump putrid water out, remove multiple bags of gross swampy debris, blast off old paint, and repair cracked cement and plaster.  Optional: let you children and dog run around in the empty (but clean!) pit in the backyard.

Step 3: Refuel said workers with lots of soda and gatorade as they coat the inside of pool, transforming it to a beautiful shade of bikini blue.

Step 4: Wait impatiently for three days while paint coating dries.  Get very excited about swimming.  Go shopping for floats and rafts.  Realize you waited about a week too long to find floats and rafts still on shelves.  (Back-to-school stuff already?  Really?)  Settle for sub-par floats.  Be happy they only cost a dollar.

Step 5: Hire a tanker truck to come fill the pool.  (Stand in shock when it takes three truckloads to fill it up!)  Allow tanker truck to entertain your children on a hot summer day when Daddy is out of town.

Step 6: Watch water dump into pool.  Start to get very excited at surprising your husband with a full and cold clean pool when he comes home!

Step 7: Cry a little when the second truckload goes in a little bit, um... greener than it was supposed to, and the pump isn't up and running correctly.  Begin to regret jumping the gun on having pool filled before husband comes home.

Step 8: Take frantic steps to clean and prime pump, repair pvc pipes, and shock green pool water. Begin to feel better (and proud!) when you actually successfully get everything, including the new-to-you saline chlorinator, working correctly.  Smile and take deep breaths as water clears up pretty fast.  Welcome your husband home to his new pool.

Step 9: Haul your very-pregnant belly and the rest of your family into the pool, and go swimming!  In your very own backyard! 

Step 10: Try not to mock your husband for being thirty years old, yet still playing with toy torpedoes.  Just relax and revel in the pool awesomeness.

The Big Dump, on Daddy's Watch

Apparently my children have a new Thing.  One I didn't know about til I was sorting through pics taken on Mark's cell phone.  A Thing where they ride in the big dump truck ("my big dump" as Nathan still calls it) (which still makes me giggle every time) and push each other around.

On more than one occasion, since clearly these pics were not taken on the same day.

You should know that this is not designed to be a ride-on toy.  Fun? For sure.  Safe? Unlikely.

Oh, the things we find out about daddy-supervised playtime when we sort through cell phone pics.  :)

Afterthought: these pictures give the impression that my children share the dump truck well, and can have fun with it together.  Don't be fooled.  It's the most bickered-over item we own.  We will be aquiring a second one, as soon as someone has free shipping (or I can't stand it anymore).

Ice Cream Truck at Church!

Nathan and Anneliese had their first ice cream truck experience this afternoon!  (This mall playdate was cute, but doesn't count as the real thing.)

We have a toy ice cream truck, so the concept wasn't totally foreign.  We have talked a lot about ice cream trucks and what they're for and what they do, but my kiddos had never seen one in action before.  But our church had arranged for one to come by this afternoon, and invited all the kiddies in the congregation to come by for a treat.  So we did.  And they loved it!

Nathan was a little bit intimidated by the truck itself at first.  But he was so in awe of the fact that I was going to let him pick whatever treat he wanted, all for himself, that he got all grinny and brave.  He narrowed it down to a green sno-cone (green is his favorite color.  did you know?  has he said it recently?  like, anytime anyone says anything about the color green?) and a fudgesicle.  And eventually went with the "chocolate ice cream on a stick, please."

True story -- you don't get that messy eating a fudgesicle if you also use a handful of wipes as part of the process.  Just ask Nathan.  He has it down to a science.  (Except for the shorts.)

For Anneliese and me to share, I picked a coconut-sicle (?) based solely on the fact that it was white and she might be the messiest child on the planet and she was wearing a winning combination of her church dress and no bib.  (Mommy fail.)  She wasn't too into the ice cream (she usually isn't) but she did have a ball running and playing (in the mulch, of course) and driving the toy ice cream truck around.

Yes, of course we brought the toy ice cream truck when we went to see the real ice cream truck.  Please don't act surprised.

And then our choir director, Dr Z, climbed a tree.  (What?  That doesn't sound like a totally normal part of an ice-cream truck outing?)  And made a few terrible puns (jokes?) about how Dr Z means Zaccheus.  Or something.  Yeeeeeeah.

But I have to say, all the kids loved it (picture several of them standing on the ground below pointing and shrieking and laughing) and it made quite an impression.  Maybe even more than the ice cream truck.  It was definitely the first thing Daddy heard about when he got home!

We should totally do this every Sunday.

Bumgarner Beach Trip 2011

Every year for as long as I can remember, and with very few exceptions, my family has rented a condo at the beach for a week during spring break.  We've vacationed at various locations up and down the east coast, and every year has included different combinations of my siblings, our friends, our spouses, and our babies.  This year was no exception -- Dad and Cathy rented a condo and invited us all down, and we gladly went.

This year's crowd was Ashley and her husband John, my stepbrother Sean and his awesome girlfriend (seriously she's a keeper) Olivia, and me and the kids.  Don't worry, we didn't leave Mark at home just for the move.  This week was his relief shift at work, so he had to stay within two hours of Raleigh anyway (the beach was just a convenient way to get the rest of us out of the way, which is why the move was scheduled this week in the first place).

Ashley took Nathan and Anneliese on Monday, and they got a head start on the beachiness.  I didn't get down here until Wednesday afternoon, and I was shocked at how much more both of my kids were enjoying the beach itself (sun, sand, surf) than they have in the past. 

Nathan usually does fine at the beach, but when he's done, he's done.  Usually that happens when there's too much sand in his eyes or something.  But this time he was all over the place, fearlessly pushing his dump truck (his big dump as he calls it.  makes me laugh every time.  yes I am such a grownup.) right up into the waves. 

He also spent some time fishing and flying kites with John (his newest hero).  And by the looks of things, loved it.

And Anneliese?  Hoo boy.  She was just about the most adorable sweet little sand crab you've ever seen, crawling all over the place, scampering on all fours across the beach.

She also liked Nathan's big dump.  :)

And did some walking practice with Grandpa.  She let him do it holding just one hand (a special feat of bravery she won't try with just anyone... like, for instance, not mommy).  This picture makes me smile so much.

Anneliese has been feeling under the weather the past few days (lots of fussing, low grade fever off and on, I think probably she's the newest victim of the Fifth's Disease that's been going through her mother's morning out class -- but it's mild, and she's managing) and I think the beach totally wore her out.

Even though I cringed to see her dozing in the sun like this, none of us could bear to wake her because A- she's so darned precious, and B- she finally wasn't fussing.  So I re-coated her in sunblock and let her be for a short nap.  During which I took (maybe a lot of) pictures.  Of course.

Today it's been too chilly for beach play, so Ashley and John and my dad took Nathan to play mini golf.  He had been once before, but it was kind of a disaster.  Apparently today he did much better! 

Although he did hit his ball into the river and somehow convinced John to go fish it out for him instead of just getting a new one. Nice huh?

Both my kids love their grandpa! (And his hilarious animal noises while reading bedtime stories.)

Thanks for the getaway, Dad! :)

For more beachy cuteness, click here for the photobucket album.

Renovation, Days 20-22

Today begins the fourth of a "four week" home renovation.  Someone tell me this house looks like it's a week from being done.  Someone?  Anyone?

{{cricketschirping}}

This week has brought our most expensive and frustrating construction "surprises" (those lovely things everyone warned us about with home renovations) to date.  The termite damage under the guest house is far more comprehensive than was originally estimated, and when they pulled up the floor to treat the foundation and prevent future infestations, they found...

Nothing.  Those blasted termites ate every floor joist, down to absolutely nothing. See where those beams end? 

That's the difference in using pressure-treated wood (which termites apparently won't touch -- they have picky toddler appetites, don't you know) and regular old termite-yummy wood. So this half of the guest house was basically being held up by air.  Comforting, no?  Who wants to be our first guests?

So instead of just treating for termites and laying new flooring, they're now basically rebuilding the whole underside of the house.  And the bottom half of one of the walls, both inside and out.  Oh, and added some construction scaffolding and beams so the workers can do their jobs safely without the whole thing, you know, falling down.  Good times, good times.

This is the guest house from the back.  Budget stretched tight though it is, we're definitely putting doors back on, don't worry. 

In other parts of the house, a paint elf stopped by earlier this week and did almost all the touch-ups needed in the living room and kitchen.  The new bedding for our master has arrived and we love it.

And the bonus room is being pieced back together, bit by bit... still waiting on that new bay window, as you can see:

Oh, and the big truck perpetually parked in our front yard is currently sporting Czech plates on the front.  Because... of course it is.

We're meeting with lots of pool renovators this weekend and we hope to pick one and get the work started super-soon.  We figured out this morning that it's a fancy saltwater-chlorine system and is in better-than-expected shape, which is making me even more excited to swim!!  And that's what I'm thinking about today.  Because pool fun totally trumps termite damage.

Every time.

Leaf Sucker Truck

One of Anneliese's newfound skills is standing by the window and watching the world go by.  She can't pull up yet, but if we prop her into a standing position this will keep her happily entertained for upwards of ten or fifteen minutes (that's a long time at her age). 

When the leaf sucker truck (yes, I am very sure that's the technical and official name, don't question me about this) came by yesterday, she and Nathan stood together at the window to watch.  The leaf sucker truck is a rarely spotted animal, even in its natural habitat, especially in January.  Seeing it, and both of my kids standing at the window to watch it... um, kind of a big deal.  Just sayin'.

Why the clapping, mom? I'd do this all day.  It ain't no thang.

We're so so proud of our sweet little lady for finally (and consistently) bearing weight on her legs!  This is such good progress!  Yay Anneliese!!

The Pictures I Didn't Take*

*Alternately titled: Another Nathan Goes to Huntersville!

The kids and I (and Another Nathan!) spent the first half of the holiday weekend at my dad's.  With two cameras in tow.  Both of which were very underused.  Here are the top ten pictures I should have taken this weekend but didn't.

10.) The airplane sailboat that tipped over in Lake Norman and caused even-worse-than-normal traffic jams in the whole area because it totally looked like an airplane.  Seriously, I thought it was an airplane.  Apparently everyone on the radio did too.

9.) Another Nathan changing his first poopy diaper while taking care of my kids so I could go to the orthodontist to get my retainer fixed (because apparently it's 1994 again) and then get my hair cut.  He came in town with me partly (2%) because he had a couple days off and was ready to get out of town himself, but mostly (98%) because he's ridiculously helpful and a great friend.  (Don't worry, he got back at me for the unscheduled poopy diaper by no small amount of mocking when he saw my painfully awkward middle school pictures.)

8.) The burp cloth my mom duct-taped to Anneliese as a makeshift diaper.  I'm pretty sure that bringing extra diapers is on the top ten list of obvious things moms should know.  Fail.  Good thing my mom is all kinds of redneck-handy.

7.) The logging truck masterpiece in crayon. Ok, technically I do have this picture -- not a photo, but the one that the Nathans drew together. If I could put my hands on it, I'd scan it in and post it, since it's quite impressive. Another Nathan's crayon skillz make Mark and me look like lazy coloring parents.  Slacker childcare provider, he is not. I'm pretty sure it's fridge-worthy, even coming from a grown-up.

6.) The red silky lady-scarf my mom's trainer Michael used as a sling for his newly-broken arm.  Apparently he fell while running.  Why is there always someone in my family who has just fallen and broken something?  No, really.  Why?

5.) Both Nathans playing the piano together.  More specifically, the look of sheer joy on my Nathan's face when they played.  Although as cute as it was, it sounded horrible. The two of them seemed happy with a cacophony that most certainly did not require a master's degree in organ performance (ahem).

4.) My dad's gorgeous new screened-in porch.  For which he is laying the tile himself.  (While recovering from broken ribs.)  Wearing impossibly dorky comfortable knee pads.  With a "helpful" toddler standing in the doorway letting forth an unending stream of What's that called, Grandpa?  What are you gonna do next, Grandpa?  What kind of glue is that, Grandpa?  Is that a really big rectangle, Grandpa?  But really.  His porch is awesome enough that it's making me consider going the screened-in route at whatever point our own deck gets a makeover.

Update 9/6 -- my dad texted me pics of his finished porch! So awesome.

3.) Ikea!!  More specifically, a picture of us inside Ikea (as opposed to just pics to show Mark later when we're ready to buy stuff for our new kitchen).  Or maybe a picture of Another Nathan opening one of the zillions of cabinets that said "look inside" -- instructions he apparently doesn't have the willpower to resist.  Or maybe a picture of our lunch in the Ikea cafeteria.  Or the pet bed he pretended was a magic flying carpet.  Any of those would have been good pictures to take.  Bummer.  (But can you tell I *heart* Ikea?)

2.) Another Nathan juggling both kids.  Picture this: Anneliese on one hip, while he balanced a half-dressed Nathan standing on the bumper under the hatchback while we wrestled him into clothing.  (A feat all the more impressive considering he was also up against my typical pre-meal moodiness.)  Seriously.  Rock star friend.

1.) The silliness that ensued in the car.  Yes, it was loud.  But it was happy noise.  Making each other giggle, holding hands, (kind of) sharing toys.  Do you think I'll ever get tired of how adorable they are together?

May Day Update

I'm not gonna lie, I've had kind of a crazy/stressful week. I'll not bore you with all the details because I'm in a very good mood today and I'm ready to put the week behind me, for the most part. It's the first of a new month, and I'm generally feeling positive and optimistic about life in this here moment. So here are a few updates on the four of us.

Nathan. Besides potty-training, which has taken lots of his our energy recently, Nathan has also learned even more about cars and trucks and driving.

First: fire trucks are even cooler in person than in a matchbox version, especially when you get to climb on them and wear a themed hat for the occasion (as discovered when there happened to be a fire truck there for the climbing when Mark took Nathan to the bank).

And second: you're never too young to appreciate traffic laws, and even be a backseat driver in your efforts to enforce them (as discovered when he saw me turn right at a red stoplight and said, gotta wait for green, mommy! from the car seat in the back. Never in my life did I imagine that mommyhood would mean arguing about traffic rules with my two and a half year old. {sigh}

Me. So I'm sure you all had this marked on your calendars and just haven't had a chance to get those well-wishes emailed yet, but today is my half-birthday. So... better get on that.

{crickets chirping}

Well, even if none of you got the memo, Nathan did. He grew me this plant in preschool. Specifically to say, "Hey mom, congrats on being closer to 30 than 29. Glad you're still not stressed about that whole getting old thing." (Don't question me on this. He told me. I promise.) In all seriousness, though, I don't think I could have felt more like a mom than when he walked up to me holding a disposable cup full of dirt and some grass and a construction paper flower. I'm like... a real mom, y'all.

Anneliese. Our sweet baby girl has had quite the exciting week. A couple of you noticed the cuts and bruises on her face when I posted this picture and emailed to ask about it. Yes, you're right -- it's an injury. She was sitting in her bumbo seat on our driveway (something she has done countless times before) while Mark was doing some yard work, and apparently the incline was greater than he estimated... and she face-planted. Onto the cement. Mark said the sound of her cry coupled with the sight of her, face-down and bloody in the driveway, was one of the most awful moments he's had as a dad. I can believe it. I got home shortly after it happened and the huge goose-egg on her forehead, her awful awful crying (seriously it was a new sound of misery), and the blood/tears/snot she kept smearing all over her face were bad enough for me. But she was back to her sunny(ish) self later on that day. And we calmed down once she was calm enough to clean her up, and after talking to Dr. Marmie and ruling out serious head trauma. Took a big chunk out of the side of her nose, though, and I think she might look a little banged up for a while. Good thing she's every bit as beautiful this way, don't you think?

And because those cuts and scrapes are kind of hard to look at, here's a happier picture. Nathan was singing her the itsy-bitsy spider song, and doing the spider part on her legs... which she loves. (If they had a smarter mommy, the video button would have been pressed, and you'd have more than just a still shot.) Watching these two play together makes my heart smile every. single. time.

Mark. Can we blame the whole Anneliese injury on the fact that Daddy couldn't see well because he was wearing Nathan's sunglasses to do his yard work? Because... he totally was. Probably unfair to blame it on Mark in any capacity, though. Still. Toddler sunglasses? On your ginormous head? Really, hon? Not hott.

Mark also dropped some hints about how he'd like to own a deep fryer. I kept resisting it because I cringe at the idea that we would want to eat enough deep-fried foods to justify it. The sad truth is, though... I think we might. Well I got a hankering for sweet potato fries when we got a big batch in our farm-share produce box this week, so I got on board and bought one. I'm pretty sure that's why people join CSA's, don't you think? To deep-fry their fresh local produce? Yeah.

Anyway we had a friend over for dinner last night (and by "had over" I mean, he did half the work, Mark did half the work, and I did next to nothing... it was something close to awesome)... we grilled burgers and deep-fried sweet potatoes and ate cheesecake (I did make that, so I guess I didn't do nothing... and no it was not fried in any way shape or form). And we sat out on the deck and talked and laughed and it was actually a really pleasant way to spend a Friday evening. The verdict is in: cooking your own deep-fried junk food is way more fun than just getting takeout, and maybe even a teensy bit healthier (or not). So anyway... Mark was right. Which means he's pretty much been up to... the usual. :)

Happy May!

A Tow Truck and a Musical Poo

Because bad things sometimes come in threes (as my aunt pointed out on facebook), we can now add a broken car to the list of things to spend our tax refund on this month. First the washer, then the dryer, now a broken accelerator cable in Mark's car. I was stressed about it last night, but now I am just laughing. Which is easier than crying. And I can't control any of it anyway, right?

I met a tow truck this morning where the car had been parked all night, and as you can imagine Nathan was beside himself. A tow truck. Towing Daddy's car. Complete with big tires and orange lights and a big hook. A real big hook, to be specific. He was briefly disappointed when it wasn't Mater, but he got happy again as soon as the tow truck started doing its thing. The driver told me that Nathan's excitement was really flattering. He said very few customers are that appreciative. And he almost never gets applause. :)

********************

In other Nathan news (and he is going to kill me when he's 18 and realizes I told the internet about this), he has recently created an odd routine when he needs to poop. First we ask him if he wants to try on the potty and he emphatically says no. Then he gathers up his recorder, maybe a tool or two, and a bunch of cars which he packs into his red box and carries into his bedroom like a briefcase. Then he spreads everything out on his bed or armchair so he can look at his cars and play his recorder while he does his business. I understand people taking books and magazines into the bathroom, but playing a recorder while you poop? That's weird, right?

(I tried to get it on video, to no avail... he wouldn't even let me take a picture until he was done.. apparently he needs privacy. Which is weird in light of the whole recorder thing.)

It's a Dump Truck! A Huge One!

So.... a dump truck came to our neighbors' house a week or so ago, and dropped off some dirt and gravel. Which is pretty much the best thing that could have happened to Nathan, in his wildest imagination. And yes, it was everything he could have hoped and dreamed of. :)I feel fairly certain this will be the highlight of Nathan's year. Because I can't imagine another situation that could produce the same adrenaline rush of half-ecstatic, half-terrified that this dump truck caused.
He's still talking about it. Someday we'll look back on this as a phase, as just a fleeting moment in time. Because someday he won't care about trucks anymore. But today is not that day.

Thankful

Mark and I have been talking about it a lot this week, and we've decided that we are incredibly thankful for the abundance of blessings in our lives.

We are thankful that God had a better idea on "family planning" than we did, and we got Anneliese.
...And we are thankful that little Anneliese sleeps so long at night.

We are thankful that in a year of lost jobs and pay cuts, Mark still has a secure job for which his compensation is enough that I could afford to walk away from mine when I needed to.

We are thankful for our church -- the fellowship, teaching, and spiritual growth it helps provide our family (including Nathan's preschool class where we shared our first Thanksgiving "feast" this year -- note the pumpkin muffin in his teeth), and the outreach and support it provides to our community and the world.

We are thankful for our puppies -- barking beasts though they may be -- and their constant loyalty and companionship. And that they're house-trained with very few accidents. :)

We are thankful that our children are warm and fed and have a roof over their heads -- which makes them better off than millions of other children around the globe.

We are thankful for beautiful Carolina weather, particularly this fall.

We are thankful for all SIX grandparents and the love they show our children. And yes, even the junk food and plethora of toys, because ultimately those are also gifts of love. Love and whininess, but mostly love.

We are thankful for music.

We are thankful that in a season of healthcare debate and change, and the worst flu in recent memory, everyone in our family is healthy. At the top of that list is a gratefulness for the current lack of hives!

We are thankful for inane conversations with Nathan, because all too soon they will start making sense, and then that will mean he's growing up really fast.

Also, we asked Nathan what he is thankful for, and he said trucks.
....And we are thankful that our son has passions of his own.

We are thankful for friends who love us and support us, and whom we can trust with our children when we need a night alone.

We are thankful for our marriage -- hard work, and so very worth it.

We are thankful for a faithful God who has made our little family possible. It's simple and it's not unique, but it's the best thing in our lives.

What are you thankful for?

Happy Birthday, Nathan!

I am going to try to not cry as I type this: my little baby is now officially two years old. I don't know how it happened. I do know that two years ago today, this little creature made me a mommy and nothing will ever be the same now. And that every day I love him more.

I love him, and I like him. Everyone should be so blessed to feel this way about their kids.

We spent Nathan's birthday in the most low-key way possible. We went to church in the morning, then Nathan spent the afternoon napping while Mark and I worked a little bit in our new "office" downstairs, then we opened a few presents and had some dinner and birthday cake.

Besides the rockin' awesome Thomas birthday balloon I got for him yesterday (doesn't take anything fancy to please a two-year-old, I promise!), Nathan also got a new truck to play with (thanks Grandma!), and spent most of the evening unable to part from it -- it's a car carrier. Yes, it's a truck that holds cars. He was kind of beside himself, as you can imagine. And as you can see in this picture (that's the face he makes when he says oooooh it's a big truck; I'm so glad Mark got it on camera, even if it wasn't intentional! this face has become one of Nathan's funny everyday moments). He had a ball loading his cars and trucks and yes -- trains! -- into his new car carrier.

Nathan also got an assortment of non-toy gifts (we really try to keep the toys to a minimum, though we know it will get harder and harder as he gets older) including money for savings. Our families are so generous with our little boy!

Anyway the whole day was much less eventful than last year's celebration (no black eyes!), and overall a very pleasant and stress-free day.

And I am proud to say that this year's giant cupcake also worked out much better than last year's version. I wanted to make it into a colorful rainbow cake, but I didn't have a lot of confidence. Well, it turns out I did fine. I used gel colors and a sour cream/cake-mix recipe (for a thicker batter so the different colored batter wouldn't run together), and then bought icing in a can for easier decorating (I wanted it to actually look like a cupcake, not just a mound, and it worked... and I will never go back to regular icing) and I think it looks really neat!
For more pictures of Nathan's birthday (including photographic evidence that I'm really the one who made this cake!), click on the birthday boy, below.

by mgoetts