Kiawah Island/Charleston Vacation: Part I

Luci has been waiting for our beach vacation for the past 6 months.  Every time we get in the car she says we are going to the beach...I honestly think she had given up on us ever really going.  I mean, how do you explain to a 3 year old that you are going to the beach at the end of July?!

Well, we finally made it!  We left Arkansas Friday morning and headed to Augusta, GA to spend the first night at Ryan and Sherri's house.  It was a LONG first day and we finally made it about midnight.  Luckily the 2nd day's drive to Charleston was going to be short so we could spend some time Saturday morning visiting instead of getting straight back in the car.  Very nice!

We made it to Kiawah Island, SC late Saturday afternoon and immediately hit the beach...had to prove to Luci that we weren't lying! 

Sunday was spent at the beach as well with a side trip in to the local marina for a dinner of seafood...delicious!

We headed to the South Carolina Aquarium on Monday.  Fun times!

Up close look at the lobster tank!

 

Chasing the pigeons outside the Aquarium...what is it about Luci and chasing birds?!

 Tuesday was rainy so we decided to spend the afternoon at the Children's Museum and then walked around the streets of Charleston admiring the architecture. 

Painting at the Children's Museum

One of the many beautiful churches in Charleston

 I'll update on the remainder of the week in a later post!  Enjoy the pics!

We have succeeded in wearing out our sweet, tireless Luci!!

Birthday Weekend!

In Luci's words..."I getting bigger Momma!"  Yes she is!  I can honestly say that my baby is no longer a baby...she is a big 3 years old.  What she lacks in size she more than makes up for in personality!!!

We had the big birthday weekend this past weekend...Luci and Jason both added a year to their age on Saturday.  Luci is now 3 (although she will hold up all 5 fingers) and Jason officially entered mid-30's.

I will warn you now...this post will be mostly pictures but I did want to recap the weekend and give my readers a run-down of Luci-things.

Saturday was the actual BIRTH-day and we celebrated just the three of us.  Luci went to work with Jason in the morning for a camp close (and so I would have some time to clean the house for the big party).  When they got home, Luci spotted the presents immediately on the table and wanted to open them.  We can't say no...she loved her 3lb. bag of gummy bears (actually for her and Jason), her real camera (a Luci blog post in the near future) and a matching/memory game with animals.  We had a delicious dinner at home (all of Jason's favorites) and just relaxed together.

Sunday was the big party.  Luci woke up Sunday morning and immediately announced it was "PARTY-TIME!".  She was excited all day!  She definitely understood the whole birthday concept this year.  It was all about her!

Waiting for all her "peoples" to arrive!

So what is Luci up to in her 3rd year?  So much!  It is truly hard to believe how many changes a child this age goes through in such a short period of time.  Luci...

• is talking CONSTANTLY...not just single words anymore.  I am able to carry on a back and forth conversation with her and many of the things she says are HILARIOUS!
• is still my sweet girl!  She wakes up every day and announces "I need to snuggle".  She means it too!  This is one girl who loves to cuddle.
• still doesn't eat much...much to my dismay and not for lack of trying on our part!
• is a whole 26 pounds but the pediatrician is never worried about it...she is healthy as can be!
• answers questions honestly and always beginning with "maybe..." such as maybe in there, or maybe over here, or maybe Sunday, etc...
• is still extremely coordinated and loves to jump, run, and dance.
• sings all the time (her current favorite song is her own combo of You Are My Sunshine and Ring Around the Rosy...cracks me up!).
• loves her chickens, helps collect their eggs, and feeds them lots of "scratch".
• loves her family and is EXTREMELY attached to Mommy right now.
• has begun to drop the "Momma" and started calling me "Mom"...isn't it a bit soon?!
• loves to help cook, help clean, help shop, just HELP!
• is very excited about our upcoming beach trip and talks about "making sand castles" all the time.
• is a ham but can be subtle about it if you don't know her.
• is the absolute light of every day!  We love you Luci Kate Da-In!

First TRACTOR Ride and some Cousin Time

Luci has been fascinated with tractors for the past 6 months.  We drive by tractors on the way into town, on the way to school, as we go by hay fields, etc...  She will squeal with delight when she sees them and never fails to explain that "tactors workin' hard!"  It is a special treat when we get stuck at a red light by a construction site!  I don't know where this fascination came from but it appears it might be here for a bit.

When Uncle Kerry found out about the tractor fixation, he immediately offered to take Luci for a ride on his tractor...anything for some Luci love!  She loved it and has talked about it several times since the ride.  Uncle Kerry, you may have found the key to her heart!

The look on Luci's face says it all!

Done already?!

I couldn't resist ending the post with a couple edited pictures of the cousins, Luci and Allie!  These girls LOVE each other and it is so fun to watch them play!

Father's Day

We spent Father's Day in one of our favorite places...tucked away in the perfect swimming hole on the Buffalo River.  The pictures below say it all!  This is one devoted Daddy who absolutely adores his daughter...and the feeling is mutual!  I love my two loves!

Daddy and Daughter

Helping Luci swim

Talking to my Daddy

Tricked Daddy...he thought Luci was going to give him the cookie she just ate!

Miss Independent..."I do it meeself!"

SPLASH!

Watching Movies

Thought I would take a few minutes and let you all have a peek inside our living room.  The following shots are of Luci as she was watching her movies this past week.  Let's just say she has a lot of energy!

With a few of my friends!

And upside down...!

13 Years of Wedded Bliss!

May 30, 1998

In addition to being Memorial Day, today was also our 13th wedding Anniversary.  Our wedding day had to be the hottest day of the whole summer even though it was only the end of May.  My grandfather recently reminded me that it had to have been at least 100 degrees!  Even though it was hot, our wedding was beautiful and the past 13 years have been full of love and adventure.  It is hard to imagine that we are even the same people that said "I do" that hot May day so long ago.  We have been through so much together and have grown through it all.  I can't imagine sharing that time with anyone else!

Well,  Jason and I had our Anniversary date last night and decided today was a "whole family day"!  We spent this beautiful Memorial Day on the King's River floating from Rockhouse to Trigger Gap.  The river was up and super easy/fun to float!  We are always ready to get in the canoe and go so we took advantage of the beautiful weather and headed out.  As always, we had a blast!!!

Ready to go!

Eating chips in the river

Beauty all around!

End of the trip...exhausted!