We spent the week on the beach in Panama City,
Florida with Rick, Sue, Stacy, Justin and Brian’s Grandpa. The kids had a blast, especially Jacob who
turned 6 while we were there. The kids
brought home a bucket of shells, Jacob would have spent all day in the water if
possible, Gwyn loved hanging out at the surf, and Annie loved the sand and
loved being in her little ring out in the ocean. The water was so clear and you could see fish
swimming around out feet. The weather was perfect, everyone got a tan...so much so that Jacob asked if we were turning into a black family:) Here are the pictures of the trip, we buried Jacob...Gwyn wanted no part in this:
She seriously giggled and screamed the entire time:
This one would stay busy for hours under the umbrella shade digging in the sand:
Brian and Rick with Jacob and Gwyn:
Love this sweet face:
G and Annie getting some sun:
Sitting in a BIG chair before dinner:
Grandpa enjoyed an afternoon nap in the shade:
We attempted the "white-shirt-at-the-beach-at-sunset" picture...these were the best I could get of all three kiddos:
Our first family pic in awhile!
This one of Rick and Sue and the kids turned out great:
Annie was done at this point, but I had to get a picture of Grandpa in there, he looked so nice!
Love those sweet little Gwynnie Bear toes:
Jacob started off his birthday with 6 donuts from Starbucks...there were only 6 left and the guy in front of Brian wanted to add one to his order, but decided not to at the last minute...it was a good thing, Brian didn't want to have to offer that buy $10 for that one donut so that Jacob could have 6 for his birthday breakfast!
He LOVES being 6!
He had Rick write this in the sand:
A birthday surprise of a go-cart ride...Jacob had a huge smile the entire ride, all 20 minutes of it, and when he got off he said, "Now that's what I call a birthday!"
A meal and balloons at dinner:
Sue made him a birthday cake and wrote Happy Birthday Jacob in Swedish fish:
A few more pictures from the trip, Annie loved the sand:
A double rainbow!!! Gwyn was in heaven!
Birthday boy with his Cardinals hat from Great Grandpa...he would have wore it to bed if possible:
We drove over in two days, we stopped in Mobile, Alabama at
the U.S.S. Alabama, which Jacob thought was the coolest thing he’s ever seen in
his whole life (he also said that morning the free breakfast at the Hampton Inn
was the best breakfast he had ever had in his whole life!). As much as Jacob loved it, Gwyn and I were ready to go...it was too hot!
We stopped on our drive over at the Abita Brewing Company,
Brian and I had gone there when we lived in New Orleans…Jacob enjoyed his
freshly brewed root beer. We did learn
that letting Jacob drink two 20 ounce root beers before getting back in the car
to drive another couple of hours before
we stopped for the night was NOT the best idea…I think we stopped 3 times for
him to pee!
A first for us...all 3 kids on one side of the table...I haven't sat beside Brian in YEARS! We ate at Buck's Pizza in Mobile, Alabama and were wishing we were sharing pizza with John and Claudia!
The kids flew back from Panama City with Rick
and Sue, and Brian and I drove back together by ourselves…we stopped in New
Orleans for a night and ate at Commander’s Palace, the best meal either of us
has ever had! It was a nice 24 hour
getaway, and apparently the kids did great, especially considering their plane
was 4 hours late!
We got back from Florida on Friday, and turned around on
Saturday to have Jacob’s birthday party at the house. We had 2,000 water balloons delivered to the
house, an Angry Bird pinata, an original cake designed by Brian, and a visit
from the ice cream truck at the end of the party…it was a hit! The water balloons were supposed to last
about 45 minutes, I think they only lasted about 20, and Brian is estimating
that he got hit with at least 1,000 of them.
We had some games planned, but with fifteen 6-7 year old boys, it ended
up just a water fight of who could hit Brian the most! Jason was an awesome sport and kept the kids
out of the street and let the younger siblings try to hit him with water
balloons. Rick kept the water balloon
supply coming.
Water balloons galore!
Pinata time:
Of course Brian didn't disappoint, even when Jacob decided he wanted Perry the platypus from Phineas and Ferb on his cake...
Jacob taking a swing:
Ice Cream Truck!!
Gwyn got a Dora ice cream...she tried her best to stay clear of all the water balloons and boys:
In the week before the trip to Florida, Annie got her first
haircut! She gave her signature scowl
the entire time…the one that says, “don’t mess with me.” She did enjoy that lollipop after the
haircut! This is her before her haircut:
During her haircut...the stylist asked if she was tired and needed a nap...my reply, "No, that is her signature look...that is her friendly face!"
After the haircut, all three had haircuts, they were all smiles and enjoying her lollipop:
I found the kids playing “puppy” with Annie, if she needs
counseling later in life, this might explain why, poor Annie!
We celebrated the 4
th at a neighborhood pool that
had a high dive, and Brian got to show his high school swim team diving
skills…he’s still got it, and surprisingly Jacob went off the high dive about
20 times!
Here is the 4th of July High Dives video:
After relaxing at the house for a couple of house after the
pool and watching “Best Burgers in America” on the food network, we googled
“best burger in Houston” and ended up at the Hubcap Grill…a little hole in the
wall place in the Heights…it was pretty good and the kids enjoyed their own Saint
Arnold Root Beer made in Houston. We
also found out that Annie LOVES cheeseburgers!
We are taking advantage of the summer and crossing things off our "to do" list...we've hit the $1 movies, multiple pools, and
we parked down by the zoo, rode
the train in to downtown and met Jason for lunch. The kids thought the train was awesome.
A couple of pictures, the kids were playing Buccees pirates outside...best buds:
Annie has become an expert at getting as many animals as possible strapped into the stroller:
One last video of Gwyn hula hooping...she has come a very LONG ways in a few months:
Oh, and I finally discovered why my flowers were dying even though I water ALL the time... the little rascal:
Funny things the kids said this week:
Annie: Gwynnie gave me the hiccups.
Me to Annie: Do you like to tattle?
Annie: Yes.
