Summertime and the Livin' is Easy

Oh, summertime... the best time of the year... no work... lots of sun... plenty of time on Jekyll and Tybee... less makeup... less clothes... oh, the list goes on. So many reasons to love that special time of year. And since we are still landlocked and have not yet made our permanent pilgrimage back down to the coast, we are happy to have Grandmama's pool to keep us cool in the summer months (some dear neighbors, too!) Caroline is finally learning that she will not drown if she puts her face underwater and Emily just loves splashing and playing in the water. The days passed too quickly, though, and, before we knew it, summer 2012 was a thing of the past!

Getting ready to jump in the pool!

Maddie and Em being silly at Grandmama's pool.

 "Summer afternoon - summer afternoon; to me those have always been the

two most beautiful words in the English language." 

~ Henry James

I am a teacher, after all...

... and so, therefore, my children are forced to participate in educational activities year round. There is no summer vacation from learning. The good part is that the learning can be a lot of fun! One of the things we did this summer was participate in the summer reading program at the local library. The children's coordinator there is great and she booked some creepy, crawly guests for the kids to enjoy. The June visitor was Jason from Southeastern Reptile Rescue. He had all kinds of cool critters! Some were pretty scary - like the Timber Rattlesnake and the Cottonmouth, but we knew we were in good hands. The July visitor was The Bat Lady, Vicky Smith. She brought some of her beautiful and mysterious bats for the kids to see, learn about, and enjoy. It was really fun to take the girls to both of these events. Here are some pictures from our visit.

Waiting patiently for the program to begin.

Emily was a little nervous about the snakes!

Fears are educated into us and can, if we wish, be educated out. ~ Karl A. Merringer

New Adventures on Old Tybee

The BEST trip! Outside of our sacred pilgrimages to Jekyll Island, Tybee is our other favorite place. Beside the fact that it is in such close proximity to Savannah, Caroline's birthplace (she will always remind of of this) and my all-time warm fuzzy place to be, it's a funky, somewhat derelict, but unabashedly real and humble little beach town. This time was different because we got to take the Miss EmiLee Grace out to sea. During the days Trav and Granddaddy fished and the girls parked it on the beach, but in the afternoons we all went out for a little sightseeing. We took the girls to see Fort Pulaski, Cockspur Island, and all through the creeks and sounds. They were born pirates! No fear and eyes alight at the beauty! There's nothing like the salty air and marshy, muddy smell of that brackish water :) We were visited by a really curious and friendly pod of Atlantic Bottlenose dolphins who got very close to the boat. We almost always see dolphins while out boating, but they are usually very aloof and act like they don't even see us... and they never get this close. This cluster was full of characters!

Flipper

Fish? Anyone?

We thought this one would have climbed into the boat if he could have.

They were close enough to touch!

The kids (and the adults!) had a lot of fun watching the dolphins play. It was a highlight! Of course, now, every time we go out on the water, the girls don't understand why this does not happen every single time. It's still fun to look for them, though! Here are a couple of other shots from our boating adventures.

Dolphin spotting

Captain and First Mate

Silly Em

Cousins

Cousins

Me and my girls

Silly Em again!

All the girls

All the grandbabies

 "Though pleas'd to see the dolphins play, I mind my compass and my way." ~ Matthew Green

Field Day!

Caroline got to take part in the most holy of all rites of schoolchild passage - Field Day! I remember being a kid and LOVING field day! We did things like the three-legged race, the egg carry, and tug of war. It was a blast (or at least I thought so then... not so sure of how I would feel about having to do Field Day today as a teacher?). Anyway, she did fabulous and ran in the relay race, jumped rope, and pulled in the tug-o-war. It was adorable and I was able to go down to the gym (rain) and watch her events. Of course, EVERYONE got a medal so nobody would feel left out (ugh, I hate that mentality), but the kids had fun and Caroline took away great memories with her kindergarten buddies.

Caroline and Tessa Messa

Get ready to PULLLLL!

Caroline and Bailey!

Burnette's All Stars

She's Learned How to Text

I am typing this waaayyyyy after the fact, so it seems even sweeter and cuter to me now than it did when it first happened. Now Caroline is a full-fledged text messaging maven and has no problem shooting off her thoughts and words on my phone... but this was her very first text. I was at Hobby Lobby with Becky picking up a few things we both needed when my phone beeped. I looked down and this is what I saw. Looks like autocorrect got her, too!

 "Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistingushable from magic." ~ Arthur C. Clarke

I Now Pronounce You Q and U

Every spring at East Lake, kindergarten celebrates the wedding of the letters Q and U after they finish covering the unique rules that apply to those two letters in the English language. It's a beloved tradition! The teachers select a bride and groom and wedding party and they rehearse and, on the big day, everyone dresses up and Mrs. Barnes officiates the ceremony. Caroline was chosen as a bridesmaid and walked down the aisle with her sweet buddy Knox. It was a great experience and I bet the never forget that Q & U are "married!"

Caroline and Knox Man

The 'maids

The bridal party

"After all there is something about a wedding gown -

 prettier than in any other gown in the world."  

~Douglas William Jerrold

My Put on Some Me-Up

Emily Kate loves, loves, loves to play with make up. She possesses such artistry when she wields the mascara wand, eyebrow pencil or shadow brush. Her creations take time and a keen eye for color and light. She also has a very heavy hand. She does this quite often, but this particular day really got me. She came strutting out of my bathroom (and I know when she has been in there for a while that she is doing her make up). So, anyway, she came out of the bathroom and said, "Momm-eeee. I so pwitty I put on some me-up." Love the heavy hand on the eyebrows. So dramatic. Love this little chicken.

Ready for her close up.

“The best thing is to look natural, but it takes makeup to look natural.” -Calvin Klein