Finding Shade in the Summer

This past weekend it was SO hot. We wanted to spend some family time outdoors but we didn't want the kiddos to burn up so we headed to one of our favorite parks, Pooles Mill Park. We haven't been to this park in some time and it brought back memories of one Mother's Day that we spent their in 2010. My babies have gotten so much bigger if you will notice in the pictures with the slide. We played on the playground and enjoyed a picnic lunch before showing the twins the mini waterfalls. I knew once they saw the water then they wouldn't want to do anything else. They were excited to put their toes in the water and splash around and loved that Daddy took them further out onto the falls while they were safe within his arms. 

Summer Time with Cousins

The twins always love going to GranMacon's house but it is even more fun when their cousins are out of school for the Summer. We spent long days playing and we played hard! We started out the week with a Father's Day bar b que with lots of treats for dessert. It was so sweet of big cousin Michael to share his ice cream with Bailey. We had nightly popsicles on Granny's back porch. We spent lots of time in the pool because it was so hot. The twins had to have on their goggles just like their cousins! We took a field trip which consisted of a trip to my old Elementary School where the kids loved playing on the playground. It was kind of fun to share stories with them about how it was where Mommy went to school when I was a little girl. We enjoyed a little picnic and then went to Museum of Arts and Sciences. The exhibit on showcase was the Dinosaurs and they were pretty real looking. Gracie and Bailey were not too sure what to think about these huge creatures and they did not take their eyes off of them! The Cobb's house is always fun because they have so many different pets which include "bunnies, a dog, turtles and a bird." I guess our house is pretty boring because we just have a dog. The twins love having the bird, George sit on their shoulder. Gracie and Bailey were brave and also jumped on their first trampoline. Thank goodness our cousin's home is so much fun. Who needs Summer camp with you can go to Granny's and have all this fun!

Stone Mountain Park

Last weekend we invited my Mom and Dad and sister, Laura and her husband, Ken to join us for a day at Stone Mountain Park. My mom had mentioned that she had not been in a couple of years and so we decided not to wait and to take the twins for a day of fun. I started telling them about it earlier in the week and every time they would see a mountain "or hill" out the window they would yell "look there is Stone Mountain."We had quite an experience on the sky lift as when we got up to the top it kind of bumped the side of the entrance and then the doors didn't want to open for a couple of minutes. We got out and within minutes they announced that the sky lift was temporarily closed and so we were basically stuck at the top of Stone Mountain until they got the lift up and running again. A bag of popcorn seemed to help with the wait for the twins. Next we went to "The Barn" which is a kid friendly area that has tons of balls and games. We watched the 4D Yogi Bear movie which was the twins very first movie. I am not sure if that was a good idea or not because now they have pretty high expectations for movies. Grandma spoiled them with a trip to the candy store where they each picked out huge candy necklaces. Bailey's favorite part of the day was of course the real train ride. I love the picture of him and Preston watching for the train to come down the tracks to pick us up. Somehow we picked the perfect day as it was overcast and not too hot. We had a great time discovering all the fun things to do at Stone Mountain. After the day the twins and I drove back to Macon to spend a couple days at GranMacon's house. They were asleep within about 10 minutes of being in the car.

Ice Cream Cones and Playgrounds

Two of our favorite things to do in the Summer are to enjoy ice cream cones after dinner and to visit playgrounds on days when we are out of school. The twins still can't eat ice cream because they are lactose intolerant but they don't know that they are missing anything because they are able to enjoy sherbet. I remember as a kid always having ice cream after dinner and it brings back lots of memories of childhood when I hear Gracie and Bailey beg for ice cream after dinner. By the time they are done with their cone they are as sticky as can be but that is ok because we always end the night with a bubble bath.

During the day if the twins are not in school then I always try to plan something. Sometimes it is a playdate with our friends, sometimes it is a special game or project at home but usually it is visiting a park/playgrounds. I have discovered that it is alot less work on me if I can keep the kids busy and out of the house. It really pays off on keeping the house clean and wearing them out for nap/bed time. It also seems to help me out because if I am at home then my mind always seems to wonder to whatever is next on my to do list. I love watching them at playgrounds as they learn to do new things and meet new friends. Today they both learned how to climb up the "net ladder." I was a little nervous at first but all it took was a little help and then they did it over and over again. It is nice that Gracie and Bailey always have each other to do things like the see saw together. I know that I will miss these days when my kiddos are in school all the time and I am blessed to be able to spend these fun times with them. 

Family Fun

Sometimes you just need to have a little fun and so that is what we did last weekend. Gracie and Bailey are always begging us to go to Chucke Cheese and so we finally gave in and said "yes." We told them that we were going because they have been doing good with potty training. We played games and rode on little rides and then enjoyed pizza. The games were perfect for the twins age and they really seemed to be into winning the tickets. They traded in their tickets each for a sweet tart and whistle and could not have been happier! I love that about 10 cents can make them happy at this age. After lunch we headed next door to the Mall of Georgia where the twins enjoyed playing in the outdoor fountains. There were only a couple of other kiddos in the fountains and the twins had a blast. The twins always love "SaturDaddyDay" as we call it and I am glad that we could spend fun family time together. 

Obsession Summer 2012



We visited the Beach house in mid May with Preston's family and we had a blast. This trip was so different from our last trip to the beach because it seemed as though our kiddos were so much bigger which allowed them to do so much better! The car ride went great with only one stop on the way, yes one stop for a six hour trip with two almost three year olds is pretty amazing! We were proud of how great they behaved in the car. While at the beach we spent mornings in the sun and sand and enjoyed long afternoon naps. The twins were so tuckered out that they would nap for about three hours each day which allowed for some breaks for Preston and I. We had a couple days of "excursions" which included a trip to our favorite local Zoo and also a Ferry ride to Dauphin Island. Preston enjoyed playing golf and I enjoyed mornings sleeping in thanks to Grammy and Daddy Bob. Gracie and Bailey spent lots of time playing with their cousin Mary Elizabeth who is starting to really be able to "play" with them. I am pretty sure that the twins will remember this trip to "Grammy's Beach House" as they remind us on a daily basis that they would like to return.