Doing the tourist thing

Sam's cousin Alysa and her family (hubby Scott, son Chase and daughter Avie) came to visit this Memorial weekend. We had a lot of fun showing them our favorite places in Charleston.

The Charleston Battery

The Pineapple Fountain

Our screened-in porch

The Beach on the Isle of Palms

Jimmy had so much fun playing with his cousin Chase, he asked if Chase could be his little brother. However, Susie had a somewhat different opinion of the little man who was interested in her toys and no matter how many times she went to sleep, he was still there when she awoke.

Alysa and Scott are moving to Kansas City this summer, so we will have a long distance between us again. We hope to meet up with them in Colorado over the holidays soon.

Open Wide!

Susie had the pleasure of her first dentist visit this week. She did really well, and I think I owe that to the pediatric dentist. He has a little weiner dog that he brings to the office, and she had fun watching the doggie run around while Jimmy had his teeth cleaned, and then she got her turn. Susie is a textbook little sister, in fact I'm shocked she doesn't say "me too" yet.

Through Jimmy's Eyes

Jimmy got a Kid Tough digital camera for his birthday, and here are some pictures he took with it.

Here is his buddy Dylan shooting the rocket from the Buzz Lightyear spaceship

A picture of mom taking a picture of Jimmy for school

Susie all gussied up for church

Susie feeling slighted because she wants to hold the camera

Daddy relaxing after a baseball game

Hanging up the cleats... or is he?

Sam has played in an "Over 30" Men's Baseball league the past two summers. He says that this summer was his last, but I'm not so sure I believe him. I know the games got pretty hot in the SC sun, but I also know how much he loves the sport and the fun of pitching from the mound. Here are a few shots of a game in the spring.

Buzz Lightyear to the Rescue!

About a year ago (not more than two weeks after his third birthday), Jimmy told me that he wanted a Buzz Lightyear birthday when he turned four. And true to his word, he didn't change his mind. So this week we made preparations for and executed a lovely Buzz Lightyear birthday party. While I was scared that it would be too crazy, it ended up working out fine. We had a little rainstorm during the first half of the party, but just as the kids were going stir crazy indoors, the rain stopped and they were able to go outside and run off some energy and hit the pinata. Here are a few photos, and yes, I did make the awesome spaceship cake.

Walking with the Dinosaurs

As a special treat on Jimmy's birthday, we took him to see Walking with the Dinosaurs at the North Charleston Coliseum. Here are a few shots from the performance... my favorite was the Brachiosaurus, but Jimmy liked the Pterosaurs the best.

Which animal is your favorite?

Sam is taking classes towards his MBA, and three Saturdays a semester he has to spend in Columbia at the University of South Carolina. So this Saturday I decided to drive him up and take the kids to the zoon during his morning class, then we met him for lunch and were home in time for naptime (oh yeah, he carpooled back later).

The Columbia Zoo is an hour away, so this is the first time Susie saw big animals in real life.

Jimmy was in a great mood, and wanted his picture taken at every exhibit.

I love this one, with the giraffes in the background.

They have a platform where the kids can feed the giraffes. Susie had no fear of that massive black tongue, and jumped at the chance to be a "big kid".

We almost skipped the reptile house, since we go to the SC Aquarium so often, but it's a good thing we didn't, it was the only part of the zoo that Susie really took an interest in... I hope she understands that there is ZERO chance of us getting a pet snake!

Paradise

Need I say more? Sam and I took an adults only vacation to the Dominican Republic this winter. It was so nice to have the break. We were planning on trying for baby #3 in the spring, so we figured this was our chance to reconnect a little. Thank you to Paula and Tom (aka Gramma and Pop) for staying with the kiddos and helping them keep their schedules.

We chose The Excellance Punta Cana in DR, and we would go back again, no doubt about it! this resort is an adults-only, all-inclusive on the beach in Punta Cana. It had everything we needed and more!

The beach even had elevated king sized beds for lounging on during the day

Every dinner was special - the food was great, the tables crayon-free and we could eat anytime we wanted (we didn't have to get in before the rush and in time for baths and bedtime).

We took a tour of the area, which included stopping at a sugar cane plantation,

a cigar rolling demonstration,

and a chocolate and coffee farm. This fruit holds the pods from which chocolate comes.