Vacation 2012: Outer Banks, NC

We have a fantastic vacation!  It was the perfect mix between relaxing and sightseeing!

I was really dreading the drive because I wasn't sure how Natalie would be. I made some new toys, bought some new toys, Bobby downloaded movies on the iPad, and I even wrapped some toys to reward Natalie for good behavior in the car. I packed lots of snacks and just prayed that the 15-16 hour (without stops) drive would go smoothly. We planned on driving 11 hours and stopping, then finishing the trip on Saturday. We had also gone back and forth about leaving during the day vs. night. We decided on leaving early in the morning and driving all day. I could not have asked the girls to be any better in the car!  They were absolutely AWESOME!  I didn't need to even break out the iPad or the wrapped gifts. We actually drove farther than we had anticipated and would have driven straight through if we would have known how great the girls were going to be. I think we used the iPad for maybe a total of 2 hours during our entire trip!

It was so nice to be with my family because they helped out so much with the girls. It definitely takes a "village" to raise kids. You can never have enough hands. Natalie loved the beach and pool...the ocean, not so much. Aubrey loved the water, too!

It was overall just a great time and we can't wait for the next trip!

Friday, October 12

We left in the morning and started our road trip. The leaves changing colors (probably at the peak time) made the drive go by so quickly because of all the beautiful scenery.  We actually met up with my parents at one point, but got about 2 hours ahead of them by the end of the day since they were on their motorcycles and needed to stop riding at dark.  We made it to Richmond, Virginia, which left us with only 4 hours left.

Saturday, October 13

Arrived in Rodanthe, NC by 4p!  The location of our house we rented was perfect!  Great view of the ocean, steps from the beach. The sound of the crashing waves was so awesome to listen to at all times of the day. We were south of the most touristy part of the Outer Banks, which made a 30 minute drive north or south to get groceries or do touristy activities.

The first picture I took and I love it!

our house was the blue one

path to the beach

House right down the beach that was used in the movie Nights in Rodanthe 

Doesn't get much better than this!

Sunday, October 14th

We enjoyed the beach, heated pool, and hot tub!

Monday, October 15th

We headed south to Cape Hatteras Light Station.

 

The site where the lighthouse was originally but was then moved to where it stands now.

Tuesday, October 16th

We headed up north a bit to Jockey Ridge State Park and later did some putt-putt golf.  The park has huge sand dunes which was interesting to climb with a baby strapped to you!  It was very windy and chilly at the top of the park, but with lots of sunshine!

Where did the ball go?

 

Wednesday, October 17th

Happy Birthday, Dad!

We went up to Corolla, NC to see the Wild Horses (looked like tame horses that had escaped from someone's farm). The ride on the beach was the most fun of the tour and both girls fell asleep. It was pretty chilly.

Later that night, we celebrated my dad's birthday with dinner and a homemade birthday cake!

Aubrey spent a lot of time in the Moby wrap this vacation since our double stroller didn't fit with all our other luggage

Beautiful sunset

Thursday, October 18th

We just lounged around the house, walked the beach, swam in the pool, soaked in the hot tub, and played in the sand.

I wanted to try and get family pictures for our Christmas card this year, but it didn't go as planned since the lighting went away quickly.

Friday, October 19th

We headed to the Wright's Brothers Museum which was very interesting...I liked it more than I thought I would. Bobby of course loved it, too!

Saturday, October 20th

We all left (well Matt and Amanda left the night before) and parted ways. We headed to Baltimore (7 hours) to visit the Mumaw's...those pictures will be in my next vacation post!

Halloween Pictures

Because today was probably our last "summer-like" day, I decided I would take the girls to the park to take pictures of them in their Halloween outfits. I will most likely still take pictures on Halloween but it was just too nice outside!  Bye-bye Summer...Hello Fall/Winter!

Here is our cute flower and spider:

 

Quick Picture Update

Since I haven't blogged for awhile, I thought I'd share some cell phone pics to try to keep everyone updated.

Prior to vacation, Natalie and I went to a Fall Festival at our church. She sat still just long enough to have this simple cat face painted on, but definitely didn't like her nose being painted.

At Daddy's softball game...it was cold!  They had a double-header, but we only made it through the 1st game.

 

After the game, Natalie needed a bath from playing in the dirt, but she could not wait long enough for me to take her clothes off, so she is playing in a full tub fully dressed!  Silly girl!

Took both girls to the doctor before vacation since Natalie had a bad cough, runny nose, and fever. Aubrey just had the congestion and occasional cough. Doctor thinks it's just allergies, but put them both on an antibiotic and said to give them both Claritin since the Zyrtec didn't work for Natalie. Aubrey took her antibiotic well...Natalie, not so much!  We haven't started Aubrey on Claritin yet, but it seems to be doing great for Natalie. I hate taking the girls to the doctor by myself, especially getting them both undressed to be weighed...that was fun (sarcasm)!

Our view from our house in Rodanthe, NC (Outer Banks)...much more to come from this trip!  We had such a great time!



 Natalie's breakfast view...we sure do miss the sound and sights of the waves crashing.

The drive to and from NC was so beautiful with the colorful fall leaves...breathtaking!  Pictures just don't do it justice.

Made a stop in Baltimore, MD to see the Mumaw's in their new digs. Glad we made the trip!

At Camden Yards (where the Orioles play)

Good job taking the picture, Evan!

If you didn't see the motorcycle in the background, you would think they were going snowmobiling!  Didn't envy them!  My parents on the trip out to NC.

Natalie Update:

She is getting funnier and smarter by the day. She is beginning her imitation phase where she tries to repeat or do anything she see or anything she hears. She so darn cute!  She did amazing on our long road trip...I was so proud of her!

Happy 5 Months, Aubrey!

We can't believe it has been 5 months already!  Plus, we are almost to November, where has this year gone?  

I am now going on 5 months of very little sleep and there are definitely days that you can tell!  Bobby would probably say every day he can tell...haha!

We just got back from vacation (pictures and blog to come) and we had a fabulous time!  I can't get over how good both of the girls were.

This is the first time I think I have had to take pictures of Aubrey for her "month birthday" on a day I had to work. So, we didn't get them in until later this evening after dinner, but at least I'm getting it on the blog in the same day since I haven't blogged in almost 3 weeks!  Things have just seemed so busy around here lately.

Had to put this in because her face cracks me up

Going down the slide is so much fun!

Aubrey Updates:

1. She is getting rice cereal put in every bottle she takes which seems to be helping with the reflux.

2. Started oatmeal last week and she likes it. Eats it once in the morning then again at night.

3. Tonight I introduced her to carrots, which she actually enjoyed!

4. She has shown that she can roll from her belly to her back, but is still pretty lazy about rolling in general.

5. Tolerates tummy time only at times.

6. Finally starting to put some weight through her legs when we try to have her stand.

7. Loves watching Natalie's every move!

8. Has a high-pitched squeal. I think the nickname 'Squeaker' may just stick around.

9. Still in size 1 diapers but ONLY because I want to finish using up the box of 1's she is currently in, but needs to be moved to size 2.

10. Overall, she is a very happy baby who loves to laugh, but nighttime proves differently at times. 

11. Still not sleeping through the night...ugh!

12. Awesome little traveler!

13. Loves the water...just like her sissy and dad.

14. Tonight was the first night I put her in her baby tub without her being reclined and she's longer than her tub now...when did she get so big?!

15. No teeth yet, but I have a feeling the bottoms are in her very near future!

4 Month Check-Up

Aubrey had her check-up today, and according to the doctor everything looks great. He thinks she is a little overweight, but we think she is just right!

Weight: 13lb 3.8oz (between the 25 and 50 percentile)
Height: 25in (between the 50 and 75 percentile)
Head Circumference: 15 3/4in (between the 10 and 25 percentile)

While we were waiting for the doctor, Aubrey rolled over twice, but of course when I tried to capture it on video she stopped...stinker!

She was happy until it came to shots...poor girl screamed, but fell asleep in the car and took a good, long nap.

Natalie was good overall during the appointment, but got a little whiny at times when the attention wasn't on her.

Aubrey is running a low fever tonight...I'm sure from the shots.

The doctor said to start adding cereal to her milk, so I guess more pumping for me...yippee!...to try and decrease the amount of spit-up. Other than that and medicine, he didn't say much else about it, so I imagine he thinks Aubrey will just eventually outgrow this.  He also said to start her on cereal. I tried after her nap and she loved it and ate all of it; however, when I tried this evening, she wanted nothing to do with it...maybe because of her fever?!

The doctor also said to start with food, but I think we'll wait a little bit for the food. As far as sleeping through the night, he basically said the cereal should help, but I will believe that when I see it because when we did that with Natalie it didn't change anything.