Fun in the Sun

Dyl & I had so much fun this morning! After a roasting hot walk down to the post-office, we decided it was the perfect weather to break out the baby pool, sand table, and sprinkler. The last time we tried the sprinkler Dyl wasn't too sure about it, but she LOVED it today! (I might've loved it too - you're never too old for a sprinkler!)

Trying to grab the fountains. :)

Sticking her face in the water - crazy girl! 

"This is fun, Mommy!"

Being brave and running into the middle of the spray. 

I want summer to last forever. 

Tiny Dancer.

She would play in the sprinkler more if I kept it on a lower water pressure, but she wanted me to keep it on high and kept requesting "more, more" when I'd turn it down low.

<3 p="">

Trying to get a drink - she did this all on her own!

Ruby likes playing outside too, but no sprinklers for her. Dyl can say 'Rudy' now, and is a big fan of this puppy!

Stealing my camera cord and lens cover after we moved inside to dry off for lunch - ornery munchkin.

One more cute sprinkler shot. :) 

A Detour to D.C.

       We had the most incredibly wonderful time during our beach vacation to Surf City, NC with Chad's family. Honestly everything was as perfect as we could've hoped for - except the fact that it was cut one day short by flood warnings and hurricane watches. With a forecast like that, we all decided to head out a day early. Rather than heading straight home on Thursday, we decided to take a detour to D.C. so we could finally see Aunt Kelly & Uncle Jesse's new(ish) house. We just got home today, and we had a lovely weekend seeing their home, visiting their places of employment (Secret Service head quarters for Jesse, University of Maryland for Kelly), going out to tasty restaurants, making a brief stop by the Museum of Natural History, shopping at IKEA, and having a great time at a BBQ at their house with 50 of their friends. It was a busy weekend, that's for sure! Thanks for having us, Kelly & Jesse!

Dylan trying to lure Buju over to her side of the baby gate to play with her. He's not convinced. (Smart cat!)

Trying on Uncle Jesse's hat (all baseball hats make her say "Pawpaw".)

 "Here Aunt Kelly, you should try this on."

One hat...

Two hats...

Three hats...

Four hats...

Whoops, nope, four is too many. Dylan is taking that one back! She really enjoyed dressing Aunt Kelly in as many hats as possible. :)

Playing with Aunt Kelly's iPhone. A vision of the future.

Ahhh, a little slice of Heaven. Wine, cheesecake, and a sleeping baby. ;)

So glad we took the last minute detour to DC - thanks for having us, K&J!

Kelly & Jesse's adorable bungalow. It felt amazingly spacious and their neighborhood is gorgeous and full of trees.

Dylly trying on some of Aunt Kelly's shoes. Of course she went straight for the pink ones. 

So many choices!

We had a great time at the beach, and in D.C., but it felt SO good to get home today. 9 days is a long time to be away from home and our routine. Dyl was thrilled to play in her yard and with her toys again. Our house might be piled with dirty laundry and bags that need unpacked, but it's our house and it's good to be home again (not to mention to see all our dogs and cats again!) Grandma & Grandpa invited us over for dinner tonight. Dylly was so excited to see them when we were talking about them driving over there. But when we arrived and she actually saw Grandma, she went all quiet & almost sad. Then she said 'Pawpaw', so we went to find him, and same thing. Quiet & reserved once she saw him. I think she was almost overwhelmed after not seeing either of them for 9x longer than usual. Of course she warmed up after a bit and was very happy to see them. She sure loves her grandparents! We had the most delicious dinner too - thank you so much, Mom!

I'm officially exhausted - time to sit on the couch and watch some TV before bed. My alarm clock (or Dylan) will be going off far too early in the morning I'm sure! ;)

Wednesday - Beach Day 4

The most ridiculous manicure of all time: Disney Princess Press-on Nails. I bought these for Kylee in Ohio, but they must've been meant for slightly older kiddos with larger nails. We had fun applying them all the same, even if she was ready to take them off again 10 minutes later. :) 

Press-on earrings were also part of the package, we chose Ariel earrings since we're at the beach. Those were more of a success and might have even been worn to bed! (Getting her to look at the camera instead of Disney On Demand was an impossible feat though... ;))

The view from our balcony - gorgeous. 

Chadmo helping Kylee & Dylan play together on the teeter-totter at the park across the street. It's good to know he can handle two little girls. :)

Aunt Melissa with the happiest baby ever, Connor!

More pictures from the park, taken from our balcony - very convenient. 

Facetiming with Judy & Jim - it's easier than photoshopping them into our pictures later! ;) Wish you were here, Jbo & Jimbo!

Dylly loves to walk down (& up) the stairs by herself - and she adores having Aunt Melissa hold her hand!

Aunt Meliss, Dylly, & Mommy - walking on the beach after Melissa's birthday dinner. Happy 32nd birthday, Aunt Melissa!

A little blurry, but too cute not to post. Looking like a driftWood Nymph, with her windblown hair and curled up in her Daddy's arms. 

Us. Loving all these memories we're making.

A certain little Miss may have been having a minor fit trying to get Aunt Melissa to quit taking pictures and come back and hang out with her instead... ;)

Hearing Kylee sing 'Happy Birthday' to her momma tonight was possibly one of the cutest things ever. (Along with the quote "Would somebody please get me some milk without any cake in it?" - out of the mouth of babes!) 

This is the life. 

Two pretty girls in two fancy dresses. 

:)

Checking out the waves.

Running in for a big hug!

Someone is going to be very sad when her Aunt leaves for Wisconsin...

My Chadmo.

Haley is always with us, everywhere.

I swear my black eye looks worse in pictures than real life...

Another fun day full of family, the beach, delicious food, wine, Cards Against Humanity, and general merriment. I'm a bit of a homebody, so I might be feeling a little homesick at this point, but I still don't want this vacation to end. It's been wonderful. I'm definitely not ready to think about heading back to the real world - but then again it's only Wednesday, so I shouldn't think about that anyway!

Tuesday - Beach Day 3

I was lazy and never got my camera out today, shame on me. But I did raid Uncle John's camera, so about half of today's pictures are from previous days and the other half (all the group shots at the end at least) are truly from today. Enjoy!

Connor zonked out in his stroller. He looks so big in this picture!

Pixie/Wood Nymph Princess Kylee.

Mermaid Uncle Daddy Chadmo - good team work, Kylee! (Dylly was quite distressed to have her Daddy buried in sand, and did not enjoy this experience at all. As cruel as it sounds, it was actually pretty cute to see her worried about her Daddy.)

Dylly & Auntie Melissa. While we were walking the other evening, Dylly actually requested to hold Aunt Melissa's hand instead of mine - it was quite the cute moment!

I don't think I've ever met a happier baby. The other morning he was making grumpy sounds for about 10 minutes, and I swear that's the only unhappy noise I've ever head him make. We can only hope that any future Stevelt-Mitchell babies are as sweet & laid back as 'Conny' (as Dyl calls him.)

A trio of cuties! Kylee sure loves her baby brother, and he adores her!

The Mitchell-Marshalls at Surf City beach!

Another adorable photo that looks like it should be in a brochure for Topsail Island - you are too cute Connor!

Cuteness overload.

Kylee's taken to the beach like a fish to water. Here's hoping these beach trips become an annual thing.

I've never had a better shopping partner. I hope we get to do lots of shopping and beach trips together as you grow up, Miss Kylee.

3 generations of Lee women. <3 p="">

Miss Serious.

Melissa & John this evening, before we headed out to dinner at The Bistro (definitely the best restaurant on the island! Thank you again for taking us to dinner, Melissa & John, it was delicious! And a big thank you to Grandmum WI for watching the kiddos so we could have an actual sit-down meal!)

 3 generations again! We're so glad we can all be together on this trip and have all this cousin-aunt-uncle-grandma bonding time. Thank you for coming to Surf City with us, Diane, Melissa, John, Kylee, & Connor.

Mother & Daughter. :)

The Stevelt-Mitchells.

Torturing Kylee with kisses - but that's the price she pays for being so cute!

Grandmum WI (or Grandma Bob as Kylee calls her), Kylee, and Auntie Melissa. Oh, and of course Big-Blank. ;)

The Mommas in their maxi-dresses (which Kylee heartily approves of) and the girls in their PJs. 

We love the beach!