Beach Bums

We did it!  We went on a family vacation!  On the Monday after Mother's Day, we loaded up and headed to Panama City Beach.  GrNanny and Big Guy went with us, but Uncle Bubba and Aunt Audi didn't get to go this time.  This was the first time the boys have been to the beach so we weren't really sure what to expect.  You know Big Hoss doesn't always adjust to new experiences really well.  For example, it took months of taking a bath before he realized he could splash and play.  It took many times of him screaming the whole time we were shopping because he didn't like to ride in a shopping cart.  Turns out the beach was really no different.

It didn't take long though before he was adjusting, just a little time in Daddy's arms.

Before we knew it, it was old hat...playing in the sand, riding in the dump truck, checking out things Bubba was finding in the ocean, like this crab.

It was all fun and games until the surf got him.

For me personally, I can only take so much beach.  I mean really, the ocean water tastes awful if you accidentally ingest it, it burns your eyes and there are just some places that you just never want to get sand.  So, I spend a good bit of time at the pool by the beach.  Turns out my boys like the pool almost as much as the beach.

Of course we went out to eat and had some fabulous food.  The first night we went to Angelo's Steak Pit.  YUM!  It was fantastic!  It got too dark for us to take pictures with Gus that night so we went back the next night to make that memory.

 Hoss wasn't afraid at all and even "honked" Gus' nose.

The next night we went to Captain Anderson's.  It wasn't fabulous, but we still got some cute pictures and had a fun evening.

For our third night we went to Margaritaville.  We had never been to a Margaritaville before, but we will go back for sure!  Did you know there's one in Nashville?  We all ate something different and everything was delicious.  During dinner, there were stilt walkers there who were making balloon animals and hats.  They were fantastic at keeping the "party" upbeat and happy.

By the way, that's about as wild and crazy as Granddaddy ever gets!

Another dining experience was Fudpuckers.  Now when I say experience, let me tell you it was an experience!  There is a moat under the restaurant that is full of gators!  We went inside and ate gator! We all had a bite, but Granddaddy and Hoss liked it the best.  When we were through eating, we went back to "Gator Island" and got to feed the gators, then Jax got to hold one!  It was a true dining experience.

We also did lots of fun things that you usually do on vacation you know, the Gulfarium, miniature golf, The Miracle Strip at Pier Park, go karts, meeting celebrities.

Nothing like a little late night ice cream to keep tired boys happy!  Hoss loved GrNanny's Georgia Peach and Jax had Superman flavored.  

 Here are my big boys taking a spin on the carousel at The Miracle Strip.

Jax spent some energy bouncing on this thing.  It's like "The Blob's" that are in lakes at summer camp only instead of being in the water it was buried in the sand.  He loved it and wants one for our backyard!

 Jax's first time on a Ferris Wheel.  He was great, even when it stopped at the top.  Vince was a little less great.

 Then they rode these balloons.  Jax loved it!  Vince, however, does not recommend eating a Cheeseburger in Paradise at Margaritaville then riding the Ferris Wheel, Carousel and Balloons back to back.  Can you say Woo

ooozy?

Arrrrgh Matey!  Praite Golf was a blast.  Granddaddy got two holes in one and I spent a lot of time getting my ball out of the bushes or water.

We spent a morning at The Gulfarium in Fort Walton.  Mom and I went in 1998 and loved it, so I wanted to be sure the boys got to experience it.  Quite frankly, it was as wonderful as I remembered it being.  Kind of like when you go back to your elementary school and everything is so much smaller than it was when you were a kid.  I think because our Aquarium here is so amazing that it's hard to beat that.  The one thing that saved the day was the dolphin show and sea lion show.  The dolphin show was very educational (which was good since Jax missed a week of school to go to the beach) and the sea lion show was educational and fun!

 Boys on the half shell!

We didn't see much wildlife actually in the ocean, which is fine with me.  Jellyfish and sharks can really ruin a beach trip!  One afternoon though, after we had gone back to our room for lunch and quiet time, we heard squealing from the beach and realized there were some sting rays swimming along the shore.  There must not have been much to eat in the stretch of beach where we were because they didn't stick around very long.

On our next to last night there, Mom and Dad drove by Bayou Bill's Crab House and saw this sign:

So it was decided where we would eat our last night at the beach.  Now y'all just have to know that my Mama, Daddy and Jax love, LOVE to watch swamp people, especially my Mama and Jax.  And so it was that we pulled in the parking lot to this 

Well my Mama has always told my us to act like we know what we're doing so Dad bypassed the double line of people around the building waiting to see Troy and Jacob Landry and marched himself to the hostess stand to get a table to eat.  Turns out the wait for that was very short and because we were eating, he also got us a number to meet the guys.  We had a fantastic supper and finished just as it was our turn to meet The Landry's.  Jax got an alligator tooth necklace and had Troy sign it, and a t-shirt and the picture of him holding the gator from earlier in the week.  I'm just glad it wasn't any of The Robertson's or we would have gone to camp out the night before.  We ALL love the Duck Guys!  As we headed to the car after meeting them, Jax declared he now wants to be a "swamp people".

Of course Jax squeezed in some go kart time while I was shopping one afternoon.  I think his thumbs up kind of sums up the whole trip!

I know my boys had a blast everyday because every night this happened on the way back from supper.

Too soon it was time to pack up, snap a couple of pictures and head home.  And, Ladies, if you've ever wondered how to get your big floppy sun hat home without crushing it.....

On our way out of town, we met up with Vince's sister, Carolyn, and two of our great nieces, Savannah and Jordan.  Jax was thrilled to meet more cousins and we had a good visit with family we don't get to see nearly enough.

I hope y'all enjoyed sharing this glimpse of our vacation!  I have learned two things from this trip.  If Mama needs a vacation, taking two little ones to the beach is not the way to get it.  About the time we got everyone fed, sunscreened,and down to the water, someone was hungry or had a diaper or needed a nap. The second thing is that I now need a vacation to recover from my vacation.  "Welcome to motherhood" was my Mama's response as she and Dad headed to their chairs by the sea!

Just kidding, we could not have done it without them.  They were so helpful with the boys and Mom and I stayed up late talking like we did when I lived at home.  They treated us to many of our "extras" and we are so grateful to share these memories with them!

 I'm planning to start blogging more often once school is out, so check back soon.

Love, Carie

It's Just Hair

Wow!  Who knew a change in 'do' would cause so much upheaval and drama??  I never realized how many people are so interested the hair on my little ole head!  So, for those of you who are concerned, sad, confused or glad (and  for those of you who are just nosey)...this is the story of my 'new do'.

This is what I looked like in the 7th grade at Baylor School in 1987.  

This is what I looked like at Christmas 2012. 

That's 25 years y'all!  Ok, I'm a little fatter and if you look closely you could find some gray hairs that my little Hoss has brought into my life, but other than that, it's basically the same do.  I've had it shorter, longer, grown it out for locks of love and cut it off, had bangs and not had bangs and except for a tragic experience with Sun In in the summer before 9th grade, it's been the same color and style for as long as most of you can remember.

When God created the hairs on this head, He made them stick straight as dictated by my one tiny drop of  Native American ancestral blood.  He also made them plentiful.  When I was a little girl, my Mama always rolled my hair on sponge rollers or Kleenex.  (If you don't know what those are, you cannot possibly have been raised in the South).

On Saturday nights, she would wash my hair and dry it, then she would sit on the couch with me on the floor between her legs and she would roll my hair.  I liked having curls and she loved for me to have curls, so even though I fussed about her pulling and it being uncomfortable to sleep on, she almost always rolled me up.

When I was old enough (maybe 9 or 10) she let me have my first perm. Anne McNew was the stylist and I think the salon was called Tangled.  It was up on Highway 58.  I was such a big girl, and my hair (at least in my mind) had never looked better!  No more sponge rollers or lumpy nights and I still had curls.  I could swim or shower and still have curls ... immediately!  No waiting for rollers!  

Now, let me just pause in my saga here to state one thing very clearly so there is no misunderstanding or confusion.  To me, IT'S JUST HAIR!  That has always been my philosophy on the subject.  Many of you have asked me about a style you were contemplating or lamenting a style you had already chosen and you have heard me say, "It's just hair".  You can cut it, color it or shave it off and, given enough time, it will grow back or go back to it's original condition.  You may even remember the post about Jax cutting his hair in which I initially freaked out, but eventually got back to that fundamental belief of mine.  IT'S JUST HAIR!  It is because of this belief that I haven't really felt the need to make a change in 25+ years.  I had a style that I liked that worked for me.  I didn't care that the general population thought I looked like an actress from an 80's soap opera.  It's just hair. I liked it.  Period.  End of story.  

I would love to tell you what I think so many of you want to hear, that I have grown and matured into a woman who recognizes my hair is a reflection of my inner strength and value as a woman, wife and mother and that I needed to update my do in order to be the best I can be...blah, blah, blah.  Come on, y'all know me better than that!  I was surfing pinterest, saw a style that I liked and went the next day to get it cut.  

 



Here's the new do.

It's a drastic change for me, one that should have had stylists world wide breathing a collective sigh of relief and cheering my arrival into the 21st century, or at least the 90's.  I had no idea the upheaval it would cause in my little world.  Hoss looked and looked at me like he wasn't sure it was really his Mama.  Jax cried and Vince likes it.  But let's face it, as long as I'm not griping about it, he wouldn't care if I dyed it purple and spiked it to the ceiling.  It's not that it's a bad haircut, quite the contrary.  It's just NOT good ole me.  It's an adjustment. I'm learning how to fix it.  I'm better at one side than the other and I get the round brush all tangled in it when I am trying to blow dry it.  I don't love it yet, but I don't hate it.  Sometimes I look in the mirror and am reminded of a little girl who had long beautiful hair and cut it herself and this is all the stylists could do with what was left.  Sometimes I look in the mirror and think, ehhh, it's not so bad.   Who knows, I may even get to the point where I look in the mirror and think, "Lookin' Goood!", but don't hold your breath.  Mostly I think it's just hair and it will grow back.  

Hopefully, it will ease many minds to know this.  SO FAR, I'm not a short and straight girl, although I can now say I've tried.  I'm a long (or at least longer than this) and curly girl. Rest assured that I already have a tentative date in my mind for getting it permed again.  Never doubt that  my principal hair rule has not changed or wavered.  It's Just Hair!

And,  for those of you who couldn't care less about my hair and just want to see what this blog is usually about...here ya go!

The Best Birthday Party Ever

Jax always has the Best Birthday Parties Ever.  This year was no exception.  We always celebrate his birthday the first weekend in November because the weather is warm and beautiful.  We always have an outside party at GrNanny and Granddaddy's house.  This year was no exception.  It's always a blast.  Jax is always thrilled.  This year was no exception.

This year we invited his whole class from school, so there was no shortage of kiddos.  Jax picked a cowboy theme which made decorating a lot easier since, you know, we've got TONS of that kind of stuff.

It was a little cool and rainy when we woke up the morning of the party, but God provided us with a beautiful dry warm afternoon for the party.  

We had a petting zoo with pony rides...sorry there are no pictures of that.  We had a giant inflatable bouncy slide, fantastic cakes, the barrels of fun, and a hay ride.  There were tons of kids and we had a blast!

One thing we included in the favor bags was stick on mustaches.  They were a hit!  So was this UTC football jersey that was a gift from Nonna.

But, the favorite present from the birthday party, hands down, was this...

his very own Lightning McQueen Bathrobe.  It's terribly soft and for about a week every time we came home, Jax wanted to strip down to his undies and put on his robe!  Ha!

Because Jax's party is early in the month, but his actual birthday isn't until the 24th, we end up celebrating all month long.  This year we got to go to St. Nicholas for Jax's Birthday prayer.  It's a sweet time.  Even Hoss was feelin' it...See?

Being prayed over by our headmaster.  That's Jax in the red, black and grey striped jacket.

After chapel, the kids all go to the music room and sing Happy Birthday to the birthday kids.

Then get to take their birthday hats home, so guess who wore Jax's?  

Because Jax gets so many presents from his friends at his party, Aunt Audi and Uncle Bubba usually wait to give him their gift until his actual birthday.  Mom and Dad usually give him something for both.  This year they were in a quandary about what to give him.  There were only two things he kept asking for a 4 wheeler and a boy puppy named Buddy.  Well he's not old enough for a 4 wheeler and his Daddy said no to his puppy.  So, what do you get the boy who has everything and wants things he can't have?

A GIRL puppy* ...Meet Sassy...

* edited to say they didn't buy her without our knowledge.  I found the dog and went with them...didn't want it to sound like they went into this kind of a commitment for us without our knowledge.

 She's a 9 week old Petit Basset Griffon Vendeen or a PBGV.  He wasn't sure about her at first, and asked me a few minutes ago when she had to go home.  

 I explained to him that this was her home and he said, "I get to keep her?".  I said yes and he grabbed his beloved new bathrobe and covered her up "so she will feel safe and cozy".

So it's been a great birthday month and we still have until Saturday to finish it off!  We know we're headed to Chuck E. Cheese, so there will definitely be more fun in store.  

Happy 5th Birthday our precious boy!