The weekend was a blur! We stayed busy every day, but it was all fun!
Friday night we had our Cub Scout den over with their families for dinner (cooked by the scouts) and a marshmallow roast.
They grilled the hot dogs :)
After dinner they practiced erecting a tent and some fun with slingshots
Saturday morning we drove up to our capitol city of Richmond, about 2 hours away to bid farewell to a friend who is "stationed" there as a Mormon missionary (can you tell I'm a military wife?) Two years on his own dime and only 4 phone calls home, that takes a lot of dedication for someone his age.
We loaded up at Whole Foods (we don't have that either down here!) and had a picnic lunch at a park overlooking the city, what a great view! The next day he would be off on a flight back home to Washington state to get back to family, friends, college, dirt bikes and whatever fun the summer will bring. I wonder if he will miss the past 2 years of Virginia heat and humidity? Yeah, probably not :)
Of course we had to make a pit stop at "Disneyland"...er, R.E.I.!
The closest R.E.I. is this one at 2 hours away, but we were a little disappointed, it was more like the "convenience store" of REI's... next time we will just wait to go to the bigger one back home in Minnesota near my parents' house.
We were home in time that evening for hubby to get out on the water for a few minutes and then tacos at a local taco shop on the beach.
We dropped off Loch at a friend's house for a sleepover and then it was just Finn with us for the night. Here's Finn learning the in's and out's of rooftop paddle board hauling-
and enjoying a root beer and taco night with us, dinner out was cheaper minus Loch that night :)
Fish tacos
yummy Carne Asada tacos
Next day was more beach (the Chesapeake Bay) and paddle boarding...
Loch is growing up so fast...
Monday was yet more beach, the ocean this time...
Finn's wipeout:
He was doing pretty well for awhile but the surf was getting really strong with the tropical storm moving up the coast, I pulled him out right after this. He's a decent swimmer after all these years of lessons, but rip tides don't discriminate.
We ended the weekend with a cookout at a friend's house, a car that looked like a sand dune, showers at home that looked like those at a campground and two really tired little boys!
Finn's tip for the next big weekend:
"Remember, SAFETY FIRST"!
Did I mention it was 90ยบ and 82% humidity all weekend? Yuck. Now it just started pouring a few minutes ago and we are supposed to start seeing the rain bands of Tropical Storm Beryl start arriving tonight, we are expected to get from 6-8 inches of rain over the next 2 days. I can't believe how early this hurricane season started. The official start date is June but we never really see storms until August, this is going to be a wild year.
I have a feeling that we will be doing more fun things this summer and possibly leaving the garden to look a bit more unruly than usual summers. It looks like hubby will be deploying to the Middle East again in February, so instead of fighting the insects and weather of 2012, we may just try to enjoy family & friends as much as we can this summer.
Sounds as if you had a GREAT weekend. Your descriptions of the days had me feeling the sand in MY teeth and exhaustion from the heat and humidity. No wonder you spent so much time in/near the water!
ReplyDeleteNot real happy to hear about your man being deployed again in February. How long is this stint scheduled to be?
Mama Pea, don't know yet how long he will be gone so I'm hoping for the minimum of 6 months! The worst part of deployment is actually the 6-8 months preceding it, that's when they are home for a couple weeks than gone for a month, repeat...! It's called the "workup cycle" and any military wife will tell you that's the worst because there is no schedule to be had and the kids are miserable not knowing who is "alpha" around the house LOL!
DeleteI couldn't get past the slingshot part right at the beginning. FUN.....with SLINGSHOTS???? I had a barn.....that USED to have windows....Fun . WITH. Slingshots. Hmmmm. You're a brave mom.
ReplyDeleteSue, oh yes!!! LOL...
DeleteThe den looks like they had a great time and now I want fish tacos! lol. Sorry to hear DH is headed to the sandbox again. This military wife will be praying. Take the time and enjoy each other - absolutely!
ReplyDeleteTina, "Join the Navy, see the SANDBOX??????" LOL that's what hubby says a lot, sarcastically of course haha!
DeleteThat sounds like a fantastic weekend. I don't know how you survive with that heat and humidity though!
ReplyDeleteSorry to hear about the deployment but at least you know when it is and it's a long way away so you have the summer and Christmas to enjoy with your man.
Sparkless, every fall I think the same thing... "how did I get through the summer?" LOL!
DeleteI don't know how you guys do what you do in that weather --- er, those weathers! Sorry about the deployment and I think you've got a good handle on what matters. Those weeds and tomatoes will wait.
ReplyDeleteStefaneener, I don't know how we make it through either, there must be something added to our water supply - uh, except I'm on a well LOL!
DeleteSeeing your pictures of the paddleboarding makes me realize how peaceful it must be...
ReplyDeleteRuth, it is really nice, a really good workout for sure. Your friend has certainly been mourned by people in the sport that didn't even know her, but have a common love of the sport. I was saddened to hear that she didn't have a river leash (it is different in that it has a quick disconnect from the vest) on but she was certainly having fun and enjoying a sport close to nature. Here we don't have to worry in the bay since it is sandy bottom, but Back Bay here is a trove of tree stumps and swamp so I'm more leery of that now for sure.
DeleteSo when your in the water ,playing ,surfing ans so on,is the water refreshing or not?
ReplyDeleteJudy, right now it is since the water temp is about 66ยบ, but by August it will feel like a bathtub out there :)
DeleteYour weekend was packed full of fun things! Living so close to the water/ocean really makes for fun outings. I do hope the hurricane season is not too wild for you guys.
ReplyDeleteSorry about hubbies deployment. :-( That really stinks, it seems like he hasn't even been back that long. Enjoy your summer with him and the kiddos!
Anke, you too... I hope we are all left alone this hurricane season! (As I write we have gotten several inches of torrential rains today though LOL)
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ReplyDeleteSo, were the 'little' parents tired, too? I was tired just reading this post. But it sounded like so much fun - just what you're supposed to do on a holiday weekend! Sorry to hear, too, about your hubby's deployment. Hope it's fast and uneventful. Very uneventful. With this wild weather we're having, I'd just throw a lifeline to the garden and wish it luck.
ReplyDeleteSusan, I didn't realize how exhausted I was until Tuesday morning, I got the kids off to school and after folding one load of laundry I was D.O.N.E.!
DeleteEck, sorry to hear there is another deployment on the horizon. I think enjoying the summer as a family and not worrying about the garden and the rest of the world for that matter, is fantastic idea- deployment or not!! Those tacos looked amazing, fabulous beach food.
ReplyDeleteKelly, I figure I need some diversions from crying over the insects in the garden LOL I know they will be awful this year!
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