Knock! Knock! Is anyone home?

Sorry for the absence that has ensued here but we have had our fair share of business going on around here.

Lawyer's uncle (Lawyer calls him Nano) was here for a long weekend which Lawyer thoroughly enjoyed. By last night you could hear the worry and panic that Nano was going to be leaving and Lawyer kept trying to see if Nano was going to stay. He loves his Nano. Nano lived with us for about 3 months a few years back when Lawyer was really little so naturally, Lawyer and him have this really fun bond.

Lawyer's aunt (Lawyer calls her Hantie) will be traveling from Indiana next weekend to stay for 4 days and I'm sure we will be having more than enough fun. I'll report on that next week.

So this week is Lawyer's last week of school for the summer and I'm hoping that with the small break we'll get to spend some quality time with one another.

I've got several recipes I want to post and some pictures that need viewing so I will be returning soon!

A Huge...

Thank you mom and dad for providing a week's worth of fun at the beach!

Love,
Jason, Amii & Lawyer

More beach pics

The Beach from the Pier
The Pier
Playing at the Beach
I saw this couple walking down the beach and thought it was a cool picture.
I love these sunset silhouette pictures from last night:
I love this picture of Lawyer with Jason in the background:

Thrill Seeking

We stopped by one of the gazillion mini amusement parks that are here in PCB and let Lawyer get his fill of thrill.

Before the ride started:

After the ride:



Oh and here were some evening pics (the sunset pic is for you dad! haha!)

Who you gonna call?

My husband says "Ghostbusters"! This just occurred on the beach about 45 minutes ago and it was insane...the lightning was even crazier, but I didn't get pics of that.

Art Studio to Go

My three year old boy is VERY artistic and creative in an OCD/perfectionist kind of way. So to celebrate this, I thought that with a 14 hour car ride to Florida, I should pack some coloring books and such. But I started thinking and came up with this...a HUGE over sized school binder with pockets, 3 ring binder, zippered pouches, etc. filled to the brim with all sorts of art supplies that would keep "The Law" happy and me as well with the organization aspect.

Here is what I bought before our trip (keep in mind that if you want great deals on art supplies, now is the time to buy it up since a lot of stores now want your back-to-school business): 24 pk. of crayons, 24 pk. of colored pencils, 16 pk. of triangular shaped crayons (more on those below), pip squeak markers, stickers, coloring books, activity book, a sketch book, a Color Wonder set (great for not really wanting markers everywhere in the car), scissors, a ruler, a watercolor and paintbrush set (hidden until we got to the beach for all practical purposes).

It ended up being heavy and huge but since we were just opening it up to get what was needed and then setting it back down, it worked. This trapper keeper (is this what they are still called or am I really dating myself here?) had a file folder side where I put the coloring books.

I bought some colorful zippered pencil pouches to put the markers, crayons, etc. in.

The see-through mesh on the front of the binder housed the stickers so they could be easily visible. My favorite item - by far - are the triangular crayons from Crayola. They stay put and don't roll around which makes it ideal for traveling in a car or plane with these babies. Also, they help your child hold the crayon like they need to for when they begin to learn to write. I only wish crayola would take this farther and make triangular makers and colored pencils.

I also had one of those plastic TV trays (think breakfast-in-bed) for kids so I put that over the arm rest of his car seat so he could have a table to color on while we were in the car. This was one happy kid when I surprised him with this while we were traveling and, in all honesty, it's been the biggest hit since we came to the beach!

We're Here!

We made it to the beach! We drove a little over half-way to New Orleans where spent the night and walked around the following morning. NOTE TO PARENTS: Do not take your kids on a casual stroll down Bourbon Street, even during the morning!! I felt like I constantly needed to shield my 3 year olds eyes from the ridiculum that IS Bourbon Street.

Anyhow, these were my favorite 10 photos - not the best, but my favorite - that I have taken since we left on Thursday. Enjoy!

Driving through LA:

The French Quarter:

The Beach:

I'm Batman

Well, not me (although I am coerced into putting on the batman mask by my ever-enthusiastic 3 year old)...I've seen him lurking about. I managed to catch Batman in all his glory late this afternoon.

Try This!

This juice is my FAVORITE drink and I'm really just a water girl when it comes to beverages. The Pineapple and Coconut Juice from L&A is everything you don't expect from a bottled grocery store juice...it's rich, creamy and exotic-tasting!

Here is what I like to make with this juice: Put yourself some ice in a glass, fill with equal parts pineapple juice, orange/peach/mango juice, pineapple/coconut juice and ginger ale. It's fizzy, juicy and creamy!! You might need yourself some Jimmy Buffett, a hammock and an umbrella in your drink!

Fun on the 4th of July

What a great day to be an American, a day in which all of us come together to honor those who have fought and died for us to be free. Think about how blessed we are that God has allowed you to be raised in a free country, to be wealthier than probably 99% of the world (even the destitute in this country is considered rich) and to be able to openly pray and worship to the One and Only God above. As Lee Greenwood sang it best "God Bless the USA".

Enjoy!

Check out the light Jason put behind our star! I love it!
Jason also spot-lighted our palm tree.