Reading Books!

I'm a big fan of books!  I like having stories read to me and also just looking through book after book.  But I also like reading them myself these days (and especially turning the pages)!

I can read this one all by myself! (It's actually a 2nd copy because I "accidentally" ripped off so many of the flaps in it!)

And I'm trying to read this one to Mom, but SOMEONE is determined not to let me!  I had to try to get him to be quiet so I could read!

Race for the Cure!

Georgia-Pacific was a sponsor of Race for the Cure so our whole family participated!  The race was a 5K (3.1 miles).  I ran over a mile of it all by myself!  When I needed a break I just hopped in the stroller with Clara.

Here we are right before the race - all smiles!

Waiting to start... 

After the race we did some of the activities and I got my face painted!

That same weekend, Mom's friend Meg and two of her kids came to stay with us.  We had met Will and Kate (they are twins) before but it was over a year ago so we didn't really remember them.  But it didn't take long for us to have lots of fun playing together!  

We had dinner with them plus another friend - a nice relaxing dinner... 😁

I showed Kate some of my tricks!

We had plenty of Paw Patrol time on the couch!

This was the kids' table for breakfast!

The best picture pose we could get together for Mom!

Looking forward to seeing them again - maybe at a Clemson game next time!

Bye Bye House!

Grandma and Grandpa Young moved out of their "big house"!  We got to make a couple of visits to it right before they moved.  We've had a lot of fun times over there, but are excited that they will be closer to us in their "bungalow"!  And we still have our own room at the bungalow.

Highlight of the visit was getting to pose with the American flag! We have a game in the car where we yell out every time we see an American flag.  We have eagle eyes! 

Last picture in the porch swing!

Mom has taken many pictures on the porch and in front of the house over the past 24 years!  She wanted one last one with use before we said good bye!

Beach Pictures!

Of course the beach is a perfect place for pictures!  And Mom never misses an opportunity for that!  But Clara and I are good at saying "cheese" these days.

Here's the whole gang! 5 families- 8 kids and 10 adults! Our 3rd year at the beach together.

Clara was being extra cute in the mornings!

Here's all of us kids with some snacks after time in pool!

And here we are in order of age at the bonfire!  (Clara was done with pictures at the end of the trip!)

Here's our family at the beach!

And in our swimsuits!

Here's our annual "kid" picture!  New house so we had to adapt to the different furniture!

Silly faces!

And this year the grown ups tried to recreate the "kid" picture too!

Here was our kid picture from 2016...

And from 2015...such babies!

More Beach Fun!

When we were at the beach we did more than just go to the beach and play in the ocean...

There was a pool at the house that was refreshing after being at the beach!

We made sure to leave room in the car for our scooters so we had those to ride!

We had Popsicles and the ice cream truck came one afternoon!

Clara's favorite friend during the trip was Landon!  He probably got to hold her the most (besides Mom and Dad)!

Our last night at the beach, we did a bonfire at the beach and made S'mores!

Clara relaxed with Dad in front of the fire and Landon and I played with the ball - until it got too dark and we almost couldn't find where we buried the ball!

During the trip, Clara and I slept together on the blow up mattress.  We were so busy during the day, we didn't have any trouble at all sleeping!

Playing on the Beach - Clara!

I definitely did not start out the trip liking the beach like Owen did.  The sand felt funny on my feet and I didn't want to walk in it, stand on it or sit on it!  But by the end of the first day I was okay playing in it a little.  By the end of the second day, it wasn't that bad and after the third day I had no trouble walking or playing in it!  I even ventured out in the ocean.  I liked jumping waves with Mom or Dad the best!

Snacks at the beach are a must!  

Dad decided to join me with his own snack! 

When I finally tested out into the sand, I liked to dig and fill up buckets the most.

Dad and I after jumping some waves!

Beach naps are the best - so relaxing with the breeze and ocean sounds!

It's pretty fun to have a big brother to show me how much fun the beach can be!

This is about as much as I wanted to get in the ocean by myself!  Maybe next year I'll be out there with Owen and the others!

I did have fun going out in the ocean with Dad or Mom though!  Every time we came back to the beach, I told them I wanted to do more!