Charleston - Day 2
Our 2nd day in Charleston involved a morning spent at the beach and an afternoon spent in downtown Charleston. The girls played in the sand and water and hunted for shells for hours! Ava couldn’t wait to splash in the waves. Zoe was a little hesitant but finally came out and loved it! That is, until we took her out a little farther and she had a wave crash in her face. She was done with the water after that. But, walking along the beach collecting as many shells as she wanted was a huge hit!
After we cleaned up at the hotel, we headed into downtown Charleston. We walked to the pineapple fountain park and then to the market. It was definitely a different experience going to the market with the girls and explaining the history to them. Zoe isn’t old enough to understand the significance of the Market but Ava does. It is eye opening to look at that historical place through the eyes of a brown skinned person and realize how significant it is to her history. The girls loved shopping in the market and checking out all the amazing items. Of course, they each left with a sweetgrass rose…can’t go to Charleston without getting one of those. It was a fun day together!
Charleston - Day 1
We FINALLY made it to the beach!! Zoe’s dream of seeing the beach finally came true this summer! I realized after the fact, that the last time we were at the beach was the first week of April 2017…when Zoe was born and we didn’t even know it! We spent 4 days in Charleston/Mt. Pleasant/Isle of Palms in July. We timed this trip to be there for Ava’s birthday, which ended up being a super fun way to celebrate her birthday.
They were calling for rain the day we were arriving (thanks to Hurricane Elsa) so we made plans to head straight to the aquarium. The girls really enjoyed the aquarium and seeing the sea turtle hospital. Once we finished there, we headed to our hotel to check in and eat supper. After supper, we surprised the girls and headed to the beach to walk around and let Zoe see the ocean for the very first time. We thought we’d just walk along the sand and put our toes in the water…but as you can see from the pictures the girls (especially Zoe) had different ideas. Zoe ended up completely soaked but it was worth it to see the joy on her face!
Dancing at the Drive Game
Zoe was invited to be part of a special event at a Greenville Drive baseball game. Her dance studio was hosting a princess night at the game and was going to be dancing on the field between one of the inning breaks. They invited the studio regulars who took part in their Princess Dance Camp this summer to do the dance. We agreed to let Zoe do it as part of a fun way to start our family vacation (we were heading to the beach the very next day). It was such a fun night! They hosted a special princess party before the game with 5 princesses. Then, after a rain delay, the girls danced with Mrs. Molly and Mrs. Beth to their Princess Tea Party dance after the first inning. We stayed for a few more innings to let the girls watch their very first baseball game. We had a great time and Zoe did such a great job dancing with Mrs. Beth (although, she was NOT a fan of Reedy, the mascot)! Again, we can’t say enough how much we love our dance studio!!
Children’s Museum Fun
My aunt and uncle were keeping their granddaughter, Blake, for a week so they invited the girls and I to join them for a fun day at the Children’s Museum. The girls had a blast with their cousin! The adults spent the day chasing the crazy girls as they ran from exhibit to exhibit. We love watching them play together and seeing their bond grow! We can’t wait for Lucy and Baby G to join the fun when they get bigger!
Happy 90th Grandmama!
This year was a big year for my grandmother, she turned 90 on June 19th! We had a family party to celebrate her big milestone birthday. It was such a fun day to have our whole family together to celebrate this special lady. I think the highlight for her was having all of her great granddaughters in the same room together for the first time (including Baby G who is due in Sept). We all love you Grandmama/GG!!!
All the Last Days of School
Time for my typical post comparing all the last days of school….wishing time would slow down!
Last Day of 3rd Grade
Ava officially ended the strangest school year ever on June 4th. I thought 2nd grade was strange (and it was with the sudden shut down and never returning back to school) but 3rd grade was even stranger. This school year started with 4 days of e-learning and 1 day in-person. Moved to 2 days in person then 3 days in person then all days in person but with masks and plexiglass on the desks. The kids couldn’t get close to each other all year. The teachers had to get creative with parties, like sending in Valentines or snacks 3 days in advance so they could quarantine. On top of all that, Ava’s teacher had a hip replacement a few weeks after school started and was out most of the fall semester. Thankfully, her long-term sub from last year (who is also her tutor) filled in while her teacher was out so she had someone familiar to help with the strange transition. In spite of all this, Ava had a great year! She loved her teacher (and the long-term sub) and made some great friends. She finished with really good grades and learned so much! She won the Ravenous Reader award from her teacher, Honor Roll, Technology Award and E-Learning award (for being one of the few kids to complete all e-learning assignments). We are so proud of how well she did in such a strange school year. It was definitely a school year we will never forget. We are hopeful next school year will be a little more normal! Just cannot believe she only has 2 more years of elementary school!!
Playing Hookie
The end of the school year is always filled with fun and not a ton of work. So, after Ava had her state testing, we decided she deserved the chance to play hookie. And to be honest, the day was just as much for me as it was for her. I took the girls to the American Girl store to see the original 6 dolls (the ones I grew up with, like my doll Kirsten) that they brought back out in honor of American Girl’s 35th birthday. I invited my mom to come with us since she experienced those original dolls/catalogs with me when I was Ava’s age. It was so cool to see the dolls back in their original outfits with the “Meet…” books in the original Pleasant Company design. My cousin made the comment that American Girl couldn’t have planned this better because all of us who grew up with those original dolls now have little girls who we are buying dolls for and she was so right. It was definitely a fun girls’ day out!
Career Day
Ava had one final dress up day at school before the end of the year…career day. She decided to dress up as an art teacher this year. We think this is actually a really great career option for her! (Although, we should have turned her apron around because she said people thought she was a worker from Publix, haha).
April 7th
April 7th is always a day filled with so many mixed emotions. It is a joyous day to celebrate Zoe and all that she means to us. We are so thankful she was born 4 years ago on April 7th. It is also a day filled with sadness. We are sad for Zoe’s birth mom because we know this day is filled with loss and grief for her. We are also filled with our own grief remembering my dad’s last breath on April 7th, 6 years ago. It is a day to celebrate new life and death. We are so thankful God chose us to be Zoe’s parents and chose to provide some redemption for such a hard day in our lives. We all miss my dad so much and wish he was still here with us to celebrate this precious girl with us. But like I always say, even though he never met Zoe, we know they share such a special bond in this day.
This year, we spent the day in my dad’s favorite place. We drove all through Cades Cove, walked to the cabins, enjoyed a picnic, saw a bear and admired the gorgeous mountains. We took the girls’ Grampie bears with us and made sure to get some pictures with them. This place was definitely his happy place so it felt so right to be there celebrating his and Zoe’s lives. It was definitely hard to go to all those favorite spots without him but it was also fun to show the girls all the things he loved so much.
Zoe, I know I say this every year but your Grampie loved you so much. He never met you and for that we are so sad. We grieve what could have been in your relationship. He would have loved playing with you, laughing with and at you (since you love to make people laugh), trying to sneak you candy, and exploring the mountains with you. He was an amazing Grampie and I hate that you never got to meet him. But, I know you love him. You talk about missing him and that makes my heart happy and sad at the same time. I love that you recognize him in pictures and you know how special he is in our lives. We all look forward to seeing him again one day in Heaven and never having to say goodbye again!
