Ft. Sumter

On Thursday we headed back to Charleston to do a little sightseeing.  We started our day in the harbor and went to Ft. Sumter.

Ft. Sumter sits at the opening of the Harbor, it's the entry/exit to the Atlantic, and is the site of the opening battle of the Civil War.

Major Anderson prematurely moved Union troops to the Fort after South Carolina succeeded from the Union.  Confederate forces then began bombing and attacking, and had forced Union forces to surrender in 33 hours.

The walls here are only a fourth as tall as they were in 1861.

The 30 minute boat ride over put little man out.  This would be the ONLY nap he took from 8am-10pm!!!

Some of the walls were not completely destroyed.  You can still see remnants of artillery casings and where the cannons hit.

The only picture from this trip that I have of the six of us!

The wind was so strong, so we turned around.  Mallory's face is cracking me up, haha!!!  : )

Nothing says family photo like standing in front of a hole for a canon, right?!

After our trip to Ft. Sumter, we had lunch at East Bay Deli in Charleston and then walked around through the historical district.

A little Hunger Games shout out...

We also walked through the Market Place.

Then we went to Waterfront Park to cool off and play!

I kept my iPhone Run Keeper app going throughout our afternoon and we walked over 5 miles!  After cooling off with icees, we had dinner at the Charleston Crab House.  It was delicious, and if you're ever in Charleston you should go.

We ended our evening dining on the rooftop.  The weather was perfect and it was the perfect ending to a great day with friends!

Windy Days

I'm no good at coming up with titles for my blog posts.  Sooo not catchy at all, I know, but the past two days have been very windy.  : )

Tuesday was windy and chilly, so we did what everyone does when it's cold at the beach - we went shopping!  We drove to the outlet malls in Charleston.  I didn't go too crazy there at all.  My husband must have prayed our way through the place, but I did manage to get something for myself and Eli.

Eli and Abigail riding the train at the outlets.

I love this picture.  Eli loves to get kisses from Mommy and Daddy at the same time.  If one of us is holding him and the other comes near, he stretches out his arm and motions to get us to come towards him until he's able to put both arms around our necks.  Melts my heart every time!

Wednesday was much warmer than Tuesday was.  We headed out for more fun in the sun, but this time decided to try the bay.  I personally liked the beach better; there were a lot more shells on the shores of the bay, but the scenery was certainly enjoyable!

Eli has been working hard to master his shoveling skills.

Abigail and Eli

They also enjoyed more hole digging.

After a few hours on the beach, we came in for baths and naps, and then headed out to the park for some extended play time and supper from the grill!

And because we have to add a little excitement whenever we can, we enjoyed watching an alligator attack a turtle in the pond nearby.  The brave ones then stayed to see what else the alligator would do, but Eli and I were not in that crowd.  : )

Edisto Beach

Hello from the beach!  We're having such a relaxing time.  Edisto is very uncommericialized, and Spring Break traffic is very low.

This was our view at the beach on Monday.  I told Wesley, it was my kind of beach - not a soul on it!

The water was FREEZING but that didn't stop little man from getting his toes in it.

Eli loved the waves!

Eli and Abigail loved digging in the sand.

Daddy buried Eli.  He found it hilarious.

Then we dug some holes to try to contain the babies.  It worked for Abigail, Eli just climbed right out.

All that digging and running around made the boy tired.  Like his Momma, he enjoyed a nap on the beach.

Thankfully, we avoided sunburns (at least on the babies).  We asked several of the locals, and this place was recommended for supper - The Pavilion.  The food was alright, but the view was better!

After supper we played some putt-putt until dark.

We should have known to get Eli his own ball.  He insisted on holding at least one the entire time!  : )

Spring Break

Hello from the beach!  Eli and Abigail send a big shout-out from Edisto Island!

19 Months Old

Eli,

We still think of you as our baby boy, but now we're getting close to 24 months (I can't say '2' just yet). You are growing up soo quickly.  We love you so much and are so proud of you.  You are such a sweet both with such a kind spirit and I pray that you never lose it.  Your smile and laugh are infectious.  You bring so much joy to us and our family.  You are so curious and we love watching you learn and discover new things.

-Mommy and Daddy

News headlines:

Peyton Manning gets dropped by the Colts and signs a new contract with the Broncos.  Tim Tebow ends up going to the Jets.

Treyvon Martin/George Zimmerman murder case in Florida.

Rick Santorum wins the 2012 Republican Primary in Alabama.

Milestones:

You are becoming very adept with the iPhone.  It's a little scary what all you know how to do on it!  Your vocabulary grows each day.  You are also throwing and kicking balls often.

Measurements:

25lbs, 31 inches, size 4 diapers, 18 months clothes (but some of the shirts are getting short/tight)

Like Mommy:  You still love books, we both drink a lot of water/juice throughout the day (or sweet tea/Diet Coke in my case).

Like Daddy:  Neither of you will eat mac n cheese, you both could probably live outside.

Favorite toys/games:

Any ball, you love to sing-'Itsy, Bitsy Spider', 'Wheels on the Bus', and 'If You're Happy and You Know It' are some of your favorites.

Words:

You are saying something new every day!  I don't know that I can list them all.  You probably have about 30-50 words that you can say.  Your favorite new word is "bus".  You love buses!  You also will really get to talking like you've got some serious to say and just jabber for the words you don't know.

Challenges:

*Coming inside from outside.

*You want to climb in the car and get in your carseat all by yourself.  Once you get in you don't want to sit down.  It's becoming quite a battle at times to get you all strapped in.

Our days:

You're up by 6:45 or 7 on school days (7-8ish on weekends).  Mommy takes you to school between 7:30-7:45 and picks you up around 4:15.  After school we play, read books, and sing songs.  We have supper around 6:30 most nights.  You get a bath usually 3-4 times a week and are asleep around 8:30.

Funny/Favorite Moments:

Mommy's:  Spring Break of course!  I love taking you places and exploring new sights with you and Daddy, and of course no daycare always makes Mommy happy!

Daddy's:  Hearing you say "uh-oh!" when there's trouble and when you race from one end of the house to the other - we love how your right arm gets to swinging when you run!

Upcoming Events:  We're currently enjoying Spring Break, Easter

Catching Up

We've had some visitors over the past few weeks.  Two weeks ago Ginny, Pops, and Grandmama came to visit,

and last weekend Nana came to visit.

This weekend we had no visitors, but really enjoyed the warm (upper 80s) temperature!  Saturday night we met friends at the park to play and picnic.  We finished the night out with homemade ice cream!

Eli and Abigail loved riding power wheels!

It wasn't the easiest task to get a picture of the two of them!

Sunday afternoon we filled up "the pool" and went swimming.

("The pool" is an old sand box that our neighbors were getting rid of.  We cleaned it out, and it works perfect as a pool for Eli-for this year anyway!)

Just one more week until Spring Break.  I'm most looking forward to all of the quality time with our family and seeing my husband for more than two hours a day!  : )