Vacation in Virginia

Finally - vacation arrived! We headed down to Virginia for a week of fun and sun. We took a pit stop at my parents' the first day of the trip to relax, see family, and eat some Ledo's pizza (yummy!). The next day, Aunt "P" joined our group and we headed to Williamsburg. Here are some pictures of our people-packed mini-van:

Baby C (sitting beside mama)

The kids in the back (not sure why S looks distressed)

Glamorous Aunt P

The Pilot

Me aka "Toy and Snack Keeper"

Our first stop was Waller Mill park where we let the kids run around on the playground since they had been cooped up so long. We had a few more hours before check-in so we took the kids to the Yankee Candle Company, which they loved! (It snows inside the store, a train chugs throughout the building, and the huge wall clock opens on the hour and puts on a show.) For dinner, we went to IHOP and then got everyone to bed to rest up for the next day.

The following morning we drove down to Virginia Beach. S spent about an hour holding his Aunt's hands and jumping up and down in the waves. G ran back and forth from the water to the sand, busy with her sand creations. Baby C ate some sand and then spent the remainder of the time trying to crawl away until eventually he nursed and fell asleep under a beach towel.

Trying to keep the kids from getting swept away

Excited!

Lovin' the Beach

Delicious sand

A brief moment of rest for Mama and Aunt P

After the beach we grabbed some lunch and headed back to Williamsburg. Some wicked storms ruined our plans for mini-golf and also for eating dinner at our favorite BBQ spot. G did have some fun girl-time with Aunt P while we were waiting out the storm:

First time having her nails painted!

Sparkly and girly fun!

After dinner at Panera, we were relieved to find that Sno-to-Go still had power! It was a nice ending to a busy, hot day.

Baby C enjoyed the sno, and the tree

G picked coconut and S picked watermelon - and for once they didn't have to share

The next morning we awoke to an absolutely gorgeous day. We took the short drive over to Colonial Williamsburg and walked down to the bakery to grab some ginger cakes.

A rare picture of just the two of us

Mmmm...ginger cake!

The kids ran around the Governor's Palace lawn, checked out the vendor tent, and petted the horses. Their eyes grew quite large with amazement when we entered the gourmet candy store where I let them choose what flavor of jelly beans we would buy.

It's funny that even almost two years after our last visit this is still the kids' reaction to the lawn - run!

S thought it was a phone. I'll explain it when he's older.

Enjoying the gorgeous day

Colonial S

Candy Store

The power was still out at the BBQ joint :( so we ended up at a restaurant in our hometown before stopping by Randy's Aunt C to visit for a few hours. Aunt C showered the kids with beautiful coloring books, toys, and snacks while they enjoyed running around her house and front yard. The kids ate their weight in cucumbers and then we headed to a small park to let them run off the rest of their energy. Then it was cookout time at Uncle C's place!

These girls missed each other

Cousins :)

The kids were not ready to leave their family, but we said our goodbyes and headed back to Nana and Grandpa's house.

We spent the next two days relaxing after a busy beginning of our week. We spent time at the pool, ate ice cream and watermelon like it was our business, and Randy and I enjoyed an amazing kid-free dinner at Aunt N and Uncle A's place.

Naptime with Grandpa

Recooperating

Pool time!

Big pool with Daddy

Sweet Frog - The kids picked Cake Batter frozen yogurt with marshmallows, sprinkles, cookie dough, and more!

It was good.

Scraping the bottom of the bowl

Mad because Mama won't let him have any more

Grandpa supplied the kids with a never ending selection of fruit (and waffles and anything else, for that matter)

On our last day, Aunt "P" joined us once again and we headed to the National Zoo. What's better than the zoo on the last day of a vacation in 100 degree weather? Almost anything, that's what. But the kids loved seeing the animals and they had been wanting to visit the zoo for a long time. <Sigh.> The things we do for our kids. :)

Hot and cranky

Hooray for misters!

Hooray for Aunt P! (and her infinite patience)

The whole hot family

Wiped out

We arrived in PA later that evening and got the kids to bed as quickly as possible, given the lack of adherence to bed times or schedule in general during vacation. While the trip had its hurdles (kids trying to escape, smashed fingers, closed restaurants, dealing with the heat, etc.), we had heaps of fun too. Thanks to the hospitality and generosity of family, we were so well taken care of in between and during our adventures. We made some great memories and it was worth any sweat and tears. :)