Overdue for a Catch-Up!

It's been a long time since we've posted, and we've been busy! Caroline turned two months old yesterday, and she's becoming such a big girl. Sam, meanwhile, continues to be a hilariously fun little man. I know it's a cliche, but times REALLY flies when you have little kiddos. I have to remind myself to slow down and appreciate it :)

About two weeks ago, we went out to the beach for a couple days to see the Hathaways. We had fun at Ragtime with Katie & David Thursday night, then Sam had a blast playing with Cohen on the beach Friday. Henry came over after his naptime and all 3 boys played at Chip and Phy's house. Sam was SO EXCITED to see the boys, and he wore himself out having a good time with them! (Sadly, we forgot our camera, so we don't have any pictures!)

No rest for the weary, though, because the next morning we packed up and headed to NC for a week with all the Stricklands! It was SO NICE to spend a week with family that we don't see nearly often enough. Having a full week gave us plenty of time to catch up (in between running around after all the kids!)

Sam loved, loved, loved playing with Nana and Papa and all his second cousins. We owe credit to Uncle David for most of these photos. Although we remembered our camera this time, we were having too much fun to pull it out of the bag and take pictures!

By Wednesday, Sam was completely exhausted from playing on the beach, so Clay took him to Beaufort for a change of pace to look at the boats. Once there, they decided to take a ride on the ferry, and Sam was in heaven.

Aunt Tricia and Aunt Sandra planned so many cute activities for all the grandbabies. They decorated hats, played with bubbles and toys, and made "cousin shirts" -- bright yellow t-shirts they decorated with each others' handprints. So adorable!

While Sam was busy playing on the beach, boating, and crafting, Caroline soaked up some time with her grandparents...especially Nana, who showered her with love and attention!

And Clay managed to find some time to sit and relax...a real luxury these days! :)

And I enjoyed the gloriously cool weather. It was in the low 60's most nights we were there, and it was SPLENDID.

David, a long-time Hockey fan, has adopted the Bruins since he arrived in Boston, so he & Dad had fun watching the Stanley Cup finals all week.

All that cheering is exhausting...

And the family celebrated with an early birthday cake for my cousin Drew (my "birthday twin" - we were born on the same day 11 years apart and have celebrated together at the beach every year for as long as I can remember!) and I. Huge kudos to Emily for the amazing birthday cake complete with a fondant boat and sand castle!

We traveling back Saturday night, and we celebrated Father's Day at home with Clay. We were all pretty tired, but it was a great day! Clay got to relax and watch the U.S. Open, and the kiddos (okay, mostly Sam) showered him with homemade cards and presents.

I can't say enough about how amazing a father Clay is. He is the rock of our family, and I couldn't imagine going through life (especially this parenting adventure) with anyone else. I used to think holidays like Mother's and Father's day were cheesy holidays created by Hallmark. That may still be true, but now that we're parents I'm so very grateful to have a day set aside to celebrate and be thankful for the wonderful fathers in our lives.

And, finally, a few cute pics of the kiddos at home from the past couple weeks. We tried for weeks to get a cute picture of Sam beside our dogwood tree, and now we can't get him to STOP posing in front of it. Every time he walks by, he stops and says, "CHEEEEESE!"

Sweet Caroline!

Happy Memorial Day!

It just didn't feel like Memorial Day not being at the River. I can't remember the last time we weren't there for the weekend...but this year, with a 5-week-old, we were not quite in enough of a groove yet to take on the adventure of an 8-hour drive each way within 3 days and sleeping with two pack n' plays in one room, especially knowing we would be getting up with Caroline twice at night (and therefore probably getting up with Sam twice at night too!).

We missed everyone, but we had a good low-key weekend here in town. We spent plenty of time at the BEACH! Sam had an indescribably fun time. He had a great time playing on the beach with Phy (who is, by the way, the only adult with enough energy to keep up with Sam!), and Miss Caroline got some snuggle time with Chip.

Here's sweet Caroline snoozing in her tent and enjoying the ocean breeze...

Sam running to check out the super-exciting SAILBOAT!

..and playing in the sand!

We spent yesterday at home and had a fantastic Memorial Day cookout. Delicious pork tenderloin with pineapple and mango salsa (Clay hasn't had many chances to cook in the last month, but when he does, it's delicious!). Sam took a marathon nap yesterday, and when he woke up he and Caroline spent some time hanging out in his crib. He showed her all his favorite toys and books. It was so, so sweet.

Sam holding Caroline very gently :)

It was a great Memorial Day weekend. Mom missed the River, but we'll be up that way later this summer (hopefully when we're all a little more rested and a little more settled in normalcy :)!

We'll sign off with some sweet pics of Caroline from today. She's giving us tons of happy smiles, but of course I can't manage to catch one on camera. I did get one the moment BEFORE she smiled and one the moment AFTER. Smiles or no smiles, these pictures of Princess Squishycheeks are pretty sweet (look out Henry Hathaway! In another month or two, she just may give you some competition in the sweet-cheeks department!)

Baby Toes!

Is there anything in the world sweeter than baby toes and fingers?

As Caroline was waking up from a nice long nap yesterday, I grabbed the camera for some sweet pictures.

Although it's much easier to put her down in the swing, I'm trying to make sure Caroline gets one or two naps a day in her crib so she can get used to it. Our bassinet, though very sweet (it's the one my dad & all his sisters slept in as babies, then my brother and I and some of our cousins slept in it, and my aunt let us borrow it for Sam and now for Caroline) - anyway, though it is very special, the bassinet is small, so she is almost outgrowing it already! She'll be moving to the crib for nighttime sleep soon, so I want her to start getting comfy in there!

We love this sweet face!

Mother's Day Weekend

Clay, Sam, Caroline, and Annie made it a very special Mothers' Day Weekend at our house. I had a great weekend surrounded by the people I love most in the world.

Saturday was pretty HOT, so Caroline enjoyed some playtime inside while Sam cooled off in his pool outside.

On Sunday, we had a Mothers Day breakfast picnic at the "boat park." The weather was cool and breezy, and we had the park to ourselves for a while. It was a perfect way to celebrate with my two munchkins!
Sam giving big hugs and kisses to his little sister...

Sam peeking out of the tunnel to say hi!

Miss Caroline turned two weeks old this weekend, and she is growing so fast! She had her first growth spurt late last week, and she is getting so strong already! When I hold her, she picks her head up off my shoulder to look up at me, and she really likes tummy time. Here she is having tummy time fun on Sunday afternoon...

And I love a good sleeping baby picture! Here she is enjoying a catnap in her swing.
It's only been two & a half weeks, but it feels like little Miss Caroline has been part of our family forever. Sam continues to be such a sweet big brother, and we continue to be thankful for how smoothly everything is going.

More pictures to come soon!