1st trip to the beach

I loved the beach as a kid. So we jumped at the chance to take Matthew when Pop-Pop invited us to go with him and G-ma to Myrtle Beach in mid-May. We were quite excited about Matthew's first trip to the beach. Brian and I discussed all the things we hoped to cram into the long weekend - walking the beach, going on the pier, building sand castles, swimming in the pool, going to to boardwalk.

Matthew's 1st glimpse of the ocean

A visit to the aqauarium topped our list. Matthew loves to look at the fish at Wal-Mart, so we knew he would love a trip to the aquarium.

We felt like it was a little pricey, but once we got in and walked to the first exhibit we realized it was well worth the price of admission. The look on Matthew's face when we walked up to the animatronic T-Rex was one of pure amazement.

We actually had to visit the dinosaurs again on the way out of the aquarium. Matthew enjoyed seeing the big fish and walking through the underwater tunnel.

He tried desparately to touch a sting ray, but his arms were too short.

After we finished in the aquarium we fed some fish off the dock at Broadway at the Beach (and some ducks as well). Matthew gave them all of his goldfish crackers (is it canabilism for fish to eat goldfish crackers?)

After dinner out at Planet Hollywood (deep fried lasagna - need I say more), we went back to the hotel so we could take a walk down to the beach. Matthew was a little tired, but one look at the giant sandbox rejuvenated him.

He ran, jumped and played in the sand. He looked for shells (there were very few). And he walked down to where the waves were breaking on the beach. He got surprised and a little wet when he got too close. We only played for about an hour that evening, thinking we would have plenty of time the next day. A long night of Matthew's cold symptoms intensifying and poor sleep told us that we probably wouldn't cram as much into our long weekend as we had hoped. A morning of shopping at the outlet stores completely wore Matthew out.

He didn't even want to play when we got back to the room. After his nap, he still wasn't up for anything. So we stayed in. That night his fever climbed over 102, so first thing in the morning we drove back home. (A trip to urgent care when we got home revealed a very severe case of croup.) Even though we didn't play nearly as much as we had hoped and the sun didn't come out at all, we still enjoyed Matthew's first trip to the beach. I loved the beach growing up. It is amazing how something you've seen before (the ocean, the sand) or done countless times before (visit an aquarium) take on a whole new meaning when you do them with your child. It is like experiencing things for the first time all over again when you get to do them with your little one.

Family fun

We had a quick trip to Ahoskie so we could take a large (4 generation) family photo with my dad's side of the family. It was a hectic trip (we were there less than 24 hours) but the resulting photos and fun were worth it.

We didn't get a single family photo where every person was looking at the camera (it is hard to coordinate 22 people at once). But we did get quite a few photos that turned out really well.

By the end the kids just wanted to run around, which yielded some good candid shots that I captured while our photographer was taking posed pictures of the grownups.

Moments like these make me wish we were all a little closer so Matthew could play with his cousins more. I have countless childhood memories of riding bikes, baking mud pies and hunting shark's teeth with my cousins. I want that for Matthew.

I also realize how blessed Matthew is to have 5 great grandparents to love him. I can still recall going to my Grandma Katie's house and getting a homemade biscuit out of the basket in the corner kitchen cabinet (the only great grandparent I have memories of). I pray that when Matthew is my age he will be able to lovingly recall each of his great grandparents with specific memories because they all lived long enough for them to be firmly implanted in his mind and heart.

Saturday in the Park

It was as hot as the Fourth of July.

We have been enjoying the weather (even though it is a little hot for my liking). We have made several trips to area parks. Matthew enjoys playing on the slides, swings and jungle gyms.

He likes walking around and looking for bugs, lizards, and other critters.

He most of all likes the sand and mud (just like a little boy).

We braved the crowd and the heat one Saturday morning and went to the park where Brian used to work to check out the new features. Pullen Park is Raleigh's oldest park (I think.) We took a ride on the train.

Matthew rode a little boat all by himself.

We really had fun feeding some baby geese and avoiding the wrath of their protective parents.