Celebrating Father's Day in Alabama

The kids and I set out to surprise Keith for Father's Day with a stay at one of our favorite resorts, The Ross Bridge in Hoover, Alabama. Keith was working in Kenner, Louisiana this weekend and was not going to make it home to see the kids for Father's Day. So Kaden, Kendall and I left Sunday afternoon just shortly before noon to make the 2 1/2 hour drive to Birmingham, AL. Kendall fell asleep and slept for about an hour and a half...perfect. However, when she woke up all hell broke loose. Thirty-eight miles took me one hour and twenty-two minutes!!!! She was hungry, she needed a new diaper, Kaden had to use the bathroom, and the list goes on. Anyways, we did make it to the hotel safe and sound and got to enjoy the afternoon at the hotels beautiful outdoor pool. We had room service and waited up for Keith to come in and get his Happy Father's Day hugs and kisses from the kids. Well Kendall fell asleep way before his 10:00pm arrival and Kaden fell asleep about 15 minutes before he arrived, but the important thing was that he got to see them and kiss them goodnight on his special day.

If you are looking for a quick getaway at one location that has it all then check out the Ross Bridge Resort, which is a Renaissance Marriott property. It has golf, the longest course in the world so I'm told, a Spa, an indoor and outdoor pool, water slide, two restaurants, pool side service, kids club, game room, exercise room, coffee shop and bar. And its only a short drive on I-459 from my favorite retail shopping center...The Summit. OMG...the damage I can do at this location! It has everything from Janie and Jack to Anthropologie & Urban Outfitters. And I'm usually not a big Belk fan, but this location is awesome. The women's boutique upstairs is worth checking out if you are in the need for some designer jeans or a special occassion dress. We also frequent this location for its awesome eateries anytime we are in town. Our top two are Cheesecake Factory and California Pizza Kitchen. The Summit is located off I-459 at exit 19 and The Ross Bridge is off exit 10.

Sleepover and Firsts

Kaden is now almost 4 1/2 years old and just enjoyed his first piece of gum this past Friday :) I know this is a bit shocking, but if you know Kaden you know how particular he is about food...including candy! Keith and I never really offered it to him until he was over the age of two or so. We were always too afraid he would choke. Then he just never asked for it or wanted it. Well during our "popcorn and candy picnic" at his sleepover this weekend he decided to give it a whirl. He chewed a whole pack with each piece lasting about one minute before he spit it in the trash can. I think he liked it b/c it was green; just like his favorite ice cream, which is mint chocolate chip!

Addison, Kaden, Kendall and Maddie had a pajama/slipper party at our house this past Friday. This picture is of them in the theater room watching Lady and the Tramp. They all had such a good time and played so well together. Maddie and Addison are the same age as Kaden and they have all grown up together as they are each daughters of two of my dearest girlfriends. The favorite game of the night was called 'Baby' in which Addison and Maddie took turns playing me (the Mommy) or Kendall (the Baby) and Kaden was always Keith (the Daddy)...it was too cute! Such sweet kids and I just enjoyed sitting back and listening to their innocent and joyous conversations.

Kaden's swim lessons

Kaden w/ his swim coach, Mark, and the rest of his class...Abby and Jack.

Kaden & Lala by the pool

Aunt Jenna relaxing by the infiniti edge


Kendall thinks her new float that Linny & Pops blew up for her is super cool

Kendall makes friends during Kaden's swim lessons.

Kaden gets launched into the air by coach Mark Hibbard's daughter, who helped him this week.

Kaden finished up a week of swimming lessons on Friday afternoon. He took lessons at a friends pool w/ coach Mark Hibbard; who taught him last year as well. After the week was over he is swimming the length of the pool, coming up for air, kind-of diving in :) and even swimming on his back. Can't wait to see what he learns next year.

Three days this week, after swim lessons, we headed over to Lala & Pops pool to practice what we learned and take some time to play. Their new pool was finished up last week just in time for all of us to enjoy it this summer :)

Charleston, SC

Kaden gets center stage and shows us a few of his moves during the concert @ children's museum
Keith & Kaden heading aboard the USS Yorktown in Patriot's Point

Kaden & Kendall shop @ the children's museum

Keith & Kendall @ Jestine's Kitchen

Fountain @ Freshfields Village

Enjoying Ice Cream Cones @ Ben and Jerry's in Isle of Palms

Myself w/ Kaden & Kendall strolling on Isle of Palms Beach after dinner

The last week in May after my birthday was spent in our favorite vacation spot... Charleston, SC. We visit at least three times a year and the city is always surprising us. We find something new to enjoy each and every time... whether its a new beach, restaurant, hotel, golf, attraction or shopping. Our plan was to stay at the Sanctuary in Kiawah Island, but with Kendall's ear infection and high fever we had to leave a couple days later than originally planned and didn't want to do the beach with her not feeling 100% so we stayed in the city at the Renaissance. I think it is the 6th or 7th hotel we have tried out (still looking for the perfect place to lay our heads in Charleston :) The hotel was ok, but the pool was a little disappointing.
We revisited the Children's museum on Ann St., which has a tiny kids grocery store that was a hit for both Kaden and Kendall this time. Kaden also loves the hands on kid size shrimp boat. We even took in a kid friendly folk concert in the museum's garden this visit.
Also a must for me every visit is to get in a little bit of shopping on the world renowned King Street. It is the perfect mix of shops both unique and name brand....love it! I usually start out at Bruegger's Bagels( 347 King) for a quick bite in the morning and then its off to the shops before it gets too crowded.
We just so happened to be in town during the Spoleto festival once again, which is an annual art festival held in Charleston. So one afternoon I packed up the kids and visited the arts and crafts section in Marion Square. I purchased a beautiful photograph of iron work to hang in my red and black bathroom and some too cute hair bows for Kendall.
We tried a couple of new restaurants this visit. Two establishments will definitely be on our must stop list from now on.

Jim N Nicks BBQ: After a long day of shopping it is the perfect place to stop in for lunch or dinner. Located at 288 King Street. The BBQ Pork Sandwich melted in my mouth! Jestine's Kitchen: Down home southern vegetables and fried chicken. I will forever remember the pineapple bread pudding for dessert. Keith said the shrimp poboy wasn't half bad either. (side note: If there is fried shrimp or shrimp poboy on the menu that is what Keith will order EVERY time) Jestine's is located at 251 Meeting Street, but also keep in mind that during the week you can also try Jestine's Sweet Shop which is just around corner at 54 Wentworth. Good stop for a pastry as you head out in the morning or to refuel w/ sweets as I like to do.

New shopping: Southern Belles in Mt. Pleasant. I will go so far as to say this is the absolute best children's clothing store I have ever stepped into....and this speaks volumes as I love to shop for my kids and HAVE TO stop at every kids clothing boutique that I see! They were having a huge sale so I stocked up on some baby Zutano for Kendall and my new favorite brand for Kaden, Vineyard Vines. I bought him the cutest pair of pink seersucker shorts to wear for Kendall's birthday.
Attraction: Keith and Kaden loved visiting the USS Yorktown (aircraft carrier) & USS Clamagore (submarine) at Patriot's Point in Mt. Pleasant . We tried to take the tour boat from the aquarium wharf to visit Ft. Sumter and Patriot's Point but had just missed the last boat of the day...good thing seeing it was like a 3 hour boat ride...Kendall would have lost her mind! It was a little too hot and too much military history for Kendall and I. But it was well worth the look of awe on Kaden's face to suffer through the heat and boredom on my part!

We drove over to the Isle of Palms on Saturday night and went for dinner at Coconut Joe's (1120 Ocean Blvd). It is your typical beachy restaurant, but we have visited several times and their tropical wrap and cold margarita always does the trick if you can stand the crowds in season and the drunks on the rooftop :) After dinner we took the kids for a stroll on the beach and then to Ben & Jerry's for ice cream. It was the perfect way to enjoy the last night of our trip.

Next time we visit we will definitely be staying at the beach in Kiawah Island. Mainly b/c we couldn't get our deposit back and have to use it within a year or forfeit it!!! In preparation for our next visit the kids and I took a drive down to Freshfields Village on Sunday,which is located right where John's, Seabrook and Kiawah Island meet. It is the most charming cove of shops, almost like a little old fashioned town. We can't wait to revisit Indigo Books (very kid friendly book store) and Vincent's Drug Store for an old fashioned malt and grilled cheese...yummy!

Jenna & Kylee's Birthday

Today was my sister's birthday, Jenna, as well as my niece, Kylee. We celebrated with a big family lunch at California Dreaming restaurant in Kennesaw. The whole gang was there and each child had a melt down all of their own at one point and time. But then again what good is a family get together without a little drama :)

Kendall 10 months

Our Kendall "Bee" is now 10 months old and her first birthday celebration is well into the planning stages! Our tiny girl is on the move...turbo crawling, walking around furniture....into everything. She loves doors, shoes, baby dolls, dominoes and cell phones. She has one top tooth, 4 bottom teeth and the other top tooth is slowly coming in. She is finally getting enough hair where I can put a little clippy in her hair. She can say mama, dada, bubba, more, no-no and uh-oh! She has also already become quite the little traveler w/ 11 states visited.

She is a very easy baby and we all feel blessed in her presence :)

My Birthday

We had a wonderful celebration for my birthday last Sunday. We started out at the Braves Game w/ my sister Lindsey and her husband, Ken, along with our friends Tara and Cope and Jeff and Sarah. We had fun even though we got some funky sun tans :) Then we headed off to dinner at Taco Mac where I was greeted by all of my best friends. The evening was spent eating, laughing, dancing and I was even serenaded by the band. What more could a girl ask for!

On my actual birthday we ended up having to run Kendall to the doctor with a high fever and double ear infection. We did have birthday cake and lunch brought in by my family from my favorite spot, Moore's Market. The best bday present was when Kendall's fever finally broke.