Kumquats and such

After an extremely busy weekend, Reagan, Tommy & I hopped in the car and headed to Oak Island to see the Petree's and the Moore's!  As soon as we got to the house, Lynsey blew up the kiddie pool and we let the babies play on the front porch.  The water was a bit chilly, but Grandpa Petree came to the rescue with buckets of warm water:)   After the pool fun, Reagan hung out with one of her favorite people on one of the two delightful porch swings! Then, we packed up our bags and headed for the beach (a short walk from the house).  The weather was magnificent and the water temperature could not have been more perfect.  Zach and Taylor came down too!  As she did the other day, Reagan went straight for the water and loved playing in the waves.  Brian and I took turns taking her out beyond the breaking waves and she had a blast.  Mason was new to the ocean, but was very brave testing it out. On Sunday night, Grammy & Grandpa Petree trea...

As most of you know, getting Reagan to drink a bottle was a 7-month battle.  Regardless of the type of bottle we tried, it ended up in lots of crying and unimaginable frustration.  But those days seem to be behind us (knock on wood!).  Thanks to the ingenious design of Dr. Brown's bottles, Reagan will finally drink a bottle without much complaint.  And recently, she learned to hold it and drink it all by herself!  Our girl is growing up!

But I'm so excited about the Father's Day gift we made for Jason, that I thought I'd share it with you all. Last year, when he was deployed on the MEU, I sent him a small book (like a children's hard book) of pictures of the two of us.  This year, Reagan and I thought it would be appropriate to send him a picture book of the two of them (plus a few of me too).  I'm quite pleased with the final product and just hope it makes it to Afghanistan in time! Book Spine ("for my daddy") Front Cover (Jason teaching Reagan how to crawl) Pages 1 & 2 (first meeting at 3 weeks old; shark attack on the deck - quote: "I love my father as the stars- he's a bright shining example and a happy twinkling in my heart." ) Pages 3 & 4 (Reagan "tasting" Tommy's leg; starting to crawl!) Pages 5 & 6 (Family picture in the backyard; one of the many Christmas card shots - quote: "Have you ever noticed that while you're going throug...

With record temps down here in NC, the garden is doing great!  It takes a bit more dedication to go out and water it every evening, but it's totally worth it.  I grew enough radishes to feed the neighborhood and the season is almost getting too warm for them now, so I better start giving them away.  My husband just missed the potato crop:(  The raspberry bushes (3 out of 4) are doing great!  They produce anywhere from 5-20 new ones per day and make a great addition to my cereal bowl.  The pea plants were thrilled to finally have cages to stand up in and I'll pick them tomorrow for a delicious snack.  The cucumbers and tomatoes are growing fast and will definitely produce a good crop!  (If the hornworms stay away!)  And not pictured are my herbs (rosemary, basil and mint) which have all doubled in size and the pepper plants (3 different varieties) which are doing great.  The fig tree isn't growing nearly as fast as I anticipated, but it's...

Ok, so more like an hour at the beach, but it was still a great way to spend a Wednesday morning!  On our first real trip to the beach, I came to a realization...the beach definitely needs to be a "family" event.  I carried Reagan in one arm and a huge load of stuff in the other.  It was one of those moments where I really missed Jason's extra hands to help!  I'm sure I looked like quite the yard sale toting the diaper bag, 2 towels, one pail and shovel, a water bottle for each of us, my camera, Reagan's hat, bathing suit, and swim diaper, and a sun shade (just in case).  Despite that debacle, it was a great trip.  We met up with Maureen and Sean Patrick and enjoyed the beautiful weather and warm water of the Atlantic.  Here are a few pictures from our adventure: Maybe I should eat this... Water baby:) One of my new favorite pictures Sean probably ate a pound of sand...and loved every bite! When these two get married, we can put this picture in t...

On Monday morning, Reagan, Tommy & I packed up the car and headed to Raleigh to see Keith, Colleen, Max, Chance & Molly.  We had intentions of meeting Lynsey and Mason too in order to take some pictures of Max, but unfortunately, Mason was sick and they were unable to come.  We definitely missed them.  And Max is going through a growth spurt and eating every hour and a half or so (to the dismay of his exhausted mommy) so he wasn't really up for pictures, but it was great to see everyone and Colleen surprised me with a much needed break from my fabulous daughter while I got a massage!  Our friend Jakki, a physical therapist in training, came over with her massage table and gave both Colleen and me 1-hour long massages.  It was incredible.  I felt like we were on an episode of The Real Housewives of NC!!   After the massages and putting Reagan to bed, Colleen and Keith made delicious, HUGE salads and we shared a bottle of wine.  It was a fa...

Today is Rick & Cindi's wedding anniversary.  I've searched the 5275 photos I've taken with our new camera and I do not have one single picture of the two of them!  (That will be rectified in June:)  So, much to my dismay, here's a shout out to two of my favorite people sans pictures.  Happy Anniversary to the best in-laws a girl could ask for! You have set an amazing example for your friends and family with your lasting marriage. We are so happy for you guys!  Congratulations!! What counts in making a happy marriage is not so much how compatible you are, but how you deal with incompatibility. Leo Tolstoy I think this quote appropriately sums up   two very different, but equally wonderful people.  Through thick and thin, they have dealt with it all.  And in the end, they've come out on top.  Still together, and still happy.  We should all be so lucky.  And while I realize that luck really has nothing to do with it, please...

Reagan and I had good intentions of hitting the beach today, but real life got in the way:(  On Wednesday afternoon, my friends Rich and his son Joe were hanging out in the backyard with Reagan and me.  I volunteered to watch my friend's dog for the week, so Haley (a german shepherd mix) and Tommy were playing with us too.  Rich's wife Laura returned from a dental appointment with some Chinese food for his lunch.  We all sat on the deck while he ate and the kids tasted some rice.  As is the case with dogs, Tommy and Haley were underfoot from the first smell of people food.  In the process of eating the chicken and rice, a few crumbs fell to the ground.  Tommy started eating them immediately.  Haley tried to get her portion and within a few seconds, there was a snarl from Tommy as he lurched forward at Haley who yelped and retreated.  I scolded Tommy and looked at Haley.  I thought I saw a bit of blood on her nose and as I went to further...