The Hidden Beach

We promised Hyrum a trip to the beach during Bry's break. The poor kid was getting very frustrated when we kept stopping at old buildings and museums. We were constantly diverting his attention by challenging him to find "wild animals". He'd say, "Renember Daddy, when you see a wild animal, point and scweam."

We were elated and surprised when we accidentally came upon a darling little beach in Yorktown. Hyrum was satisfied, and we didn't have to drive another hour to Virginia Beach- win, win.

It was a terrific break. It's so amazing to have Bry home all day to play and help. Now it's back to the old school grindstone again. Bry is the Class President so he's a little extra busy, but I'm proud of him. He's a great leader. We are becoming more accustomed to the strenuous schedule.

I have grown so much in the short time that we've been here. Sometimes I feel like being away from dear home and family is like "life boot camp". I've tried to stop being a "victim" and start choosing happiness. I'm not saying that some days aren't difficult, but it's not worth complaining and grumbling. It's so easy to focus on the negatives, but I'm avoiding that as much as possible. Scripture study, fervent and constant prayer, exercise, music, books, creativity, and laughing have become my most important allies against despair and depression.

My outlook on motherhood has completely changed too. Being a mom was the only thing I ever wanted to do. I used to pretend like I had other aspirations, but deep inside I only wanted to be a mommy. That's why I was so stunned when it didn't come completely natural to me. I used to feel so trapped and claustrophobic. But recently I realized that I'm not stuck here, I could walk out at any time. For some reason the realization was so liberating. I'm staying at home because I think it's what's best for my family. I have no boss or paycheck or quarterly evaluation or any substantial way to measure how well I'm doing- maybe that's why motherhood is so difficult. It is a real sacrifice. I still have so many goals and dreams that either need to be put off or just stretched out over time- but who said sacrifice can't be fun too?

Sewing, Weaving, and Dyeing

We had a chance to do some super fun touristing during the Summer break and took way too many pictures! We visited Jamestown, Williamsburg, and Yorktown. One of the Colonial time business signs in Williamsburg read' "Sewing, Weaving, and Dyeing".

Somehow that sums up traveling with kids perfectly.

My favorite author Shannon Hale wrote, "Memory ached in its stone arches, crept down its narrow alleys..." This is the feeling I get when we visit these cherished sites. It always makes my heart full to discover the struggle, sacrifice and resilience of our early settlers. Did you know that 6 out of 7 people died in the Jamestown settlement? They would have never survived if it wasn't for the Powhatan tribe. It was perfect to visit these treasured spots right before Memorial Day. I'm so grateful for the people that have sacrificed to make this country so blessed and free and awesome!

Landscaping Warriors

On the first weekend of our summer break we busted out a pretty cool new backyard. We decided to wait until the fall for grass- bummer (but apparently smarter).

Here's before: (We installed the stone wall thingy)

Yes! I count my blessings everyday 'cuz I married a construction worker!

AND... after:





So far I have loved pretending to have a green thumb.
One day I hope I won't have to pretend anymore- which means I will know what I'm doing! Thanks for all the hard work Bry!

Yes, We Think We Can Dance

In honor of our favorite show here's our first (posted) dance video.

Soccer umm... Adventure?

We had such high hopes.

Normally Hyrum would be overjoyed racing around the grass,

chasing a ball with little ones his own size.

We don't know if it was the shin guards, cleats, screaming parents, or restraining rules,

but instead of being enthusiastic like this:

He was usually moping- much more like this:


We did catch him in a few happy moments.

We have HAMMERED certain rules into Hyrum's sweet little head:

SHARE

DON'T PUSH

TAKE TURNS

PLAY NICELY

One day, I hope he'll enjoy throwing the rules out the window the second that whistle blows.

Easter Bunny Comes to Town

Who knew the Easter Bunny had so many names...thanks so much to Grandma, Parvana (our adorable and kind neighbor), the Mackays, and the Walkers for helping us celebrate Easter!

We have enough candy for next year's town egg hunt, it'll stay fresh for a year right?

We spent a fun day with the Mackays hunting for eggs and sharing fun times with good friends.

Easter Sunday:

The kids have started sleeping in on the weekends and what kind of mother would I be if I stopped that trend? So, they're not in their nice Easter outfits (we'll have to do a fashion photo opp in the future).

Our backyard isn't the softest, most luxurious place to find eggs. I like to call it the mud pit. Bry has a break in a few weeks and we are planning on sodding and planting and pretending like we are master gardeners even though we kill everything we touch. So exciting!

We made "edible arrangements" for our great neighbors.

I think they turned out pretty cute and I know our friends appreciated that we didn't give them candy!

Walking and Riding

Hyrum and Ivy have both reached fun milestones in the last few months. I know the Grandmas will love to see our silly home movies.

Ivy is the cutest little walker. I'd been waiting and pining for her to walk so we could spend more time outside without scratching her hands and knees (not to mention staining all her clothes with mud and grass). Now I really can't decide which is worse: a crawler who depends on you for mobility or a toddler who understands that if she wants to walk over and throw all of the apples out of the bin, she sure can! It has been an adjustment to have two kids running in different directions, but Hyrum has been a wonderful help.

Hyrum has graduated to a big boy bike and has only fallen THREE TIMES. Who gave him the clumsy genes you ask? Yes that's right, ME.

Warm Weather Regrets

There's only one depressing part about the warm weather... Ivy can't wear her hat anymore! We received HUNDREDS of compliments on this hat and I agree- she looks adorable in it! Thanks Aunt Traci!

OBX

When we moved out here I couldn't figure out why SO MANY people had OBX bumper stickers on their cars. I finally found out that the letters stood for Outer Banks, North Carolina. So of course I had to see what all the hype was about!
We rented a beautiful house with 9 other Dental School families and became professional beach bums for a week.

The drive down was surprisingly fun- thanks to Raffi. Bry and I even busted out "The Wheels on the Bus" and "Old MacDonald" (about one hundred times- who knew Old MacDonald had elephants and snakes and dinosaurs on his farm?)

The house was great. Really beautiful, tons of room for everyone, and it was like a 3 minute walk to the beach.

Ivy LOVED the beach. She just giggled with joy the entire first day.

Anytime we're near water Hyrum has to cast his fishing pole (even if it's a puddle). He's gotta keep practicing his form right? His Grandpa Webb should be proud.

Our little glamour queen.

I wish you could have seen Hyrum's cute little legs chugging along trying to keep his kite in the air. It was adorable. Bry and I were both surprised how fun it was to fly the kite... something about the inner child... maybe we should try out a hula hoop sometime.

When we weren't at the beach we were doing some serious touristing.

This beautiful lighthouse was closed for the winter. It would have been awesome to see the view from the top. Who's idea was it to have SPRING BREAK in March?

We walked through a "wet land" and onto this peer. It was fun teasing Hyrum about "little boy eating alligators". I'm sure he'll seek his vengeance when he's a teenager.

Bry had surprising natural talent for the drums and guitar when we played rock band. What isn't he good at?

Look at those adorable faces. These were very rare moments of calm.

We were VERY lucky to have warm weather for the first half of the week. But, the cold weather was a great excuse check out the aquarium and do a little shopping.

This guys was hilarious. He reached into the ray tank and pulled out this Horseshoe crab for Hyrum to touch. It was a cool little creature.

Hyrum wouldn't touch the crab, but he loved the snake. Uncle Golden anyone?

Very rarely is something worth all the hype, but this place really is special. I can't even fathom how fun it would be in the spring and summer when everything's open. I can't wait to go back. Maybe we'll even get a bumper sticker next time.