Ocean Air is Good for the Soul

Well, we survived another month of being gone four out of five weekends! I wouldn’t change one minute of all the fun adventures for a second, though! May began with a kid-free trip to Ocean Isle for our friends’ wedding. Trent’s parents came in town to play with Brayden while we vacationed. Thank you for doing that for us! It was great to relax with our “tailgating” crew during the off season. Of course, when football isn’t around, we get crazy in other ways (read: Mexican wrestling masks). Trent is now officially in his mid-30s (35, to be exact) and we celebrated with a yummy dinner, which was soon followed by a weekend guys’ trip to the Darlington race.

So, while he was doing that, Brayden and I ventured off to Charlotte that weekend to spend time with Nana (Mother’s Day weekend) and attend Owen’s 1st birthday party. Kyle joined us, where he and Brayden got into a cupcake fight and a piece of cupcake landed in my spiked sweet tea. I’ll let Uncle Kyle (the corruptor) tell you what happened next. After the party, a bunch of us attended a free concert in Tega Cay, where it poured rain and we all huddled under a sopping wet blanket. We had an absolute blast! Brayden stood in line for a bouncy house for about five minutes with Kyle where she finally handed the lady $1 when it was her turn and then just walked away. We laughed SO hard (“Here’s a dollar for waiting in line. See ya.”). We returned on Sunday to find a nicely prepared chicken marsala dinner, a stargazer lilly and a massage gift certificate.

The next weekend we were actually in town. We went to Trent’s coworker’s barbeque (130 lb. pig) and attended the Durham Bulls baseball game on Sunday night. I redeemed my massage for Mother’s Day as well. Some of the Capex girls enjoyed a quick dinner and pedicure to prepare for the final week of the month: the beach trip!

Lastly, we spent an AMAZING vacation (May 23-30) in Holden Beach with 12 of our friends. Ten adults and five kids in an oceanfront house with a private pool. You would think it would be a circus, but it was pure bliss. The weather was a bit overcast some days, but we all managed to get a nice tan and even exercise. Each night a different couple took turns cooking dinner and one night we went out. Each night also had an associated theme night (wigs, PJs, Hawaiian, Karaoke, dress like your spouse, and 80s), so you can imagine the hilarity that ensued. Trent’s hockey playoff beard quickly converted to a Freddy Mercury replacement ‘stache. Let’s just say that I didn’t post all of the pictures that we took! One day, Brayden decided to wake from her nap and unplug her baby monitor (I thought the battery had just died). When Leslie opened the door, she found Brayden covered in my lipstick with black pen writing on her belly, arms, and legs. She had also completely emptied out my purse and wallet and had the contents spread all over our bedroom. It was hilarious and reminded me of things I did when I was her age. What a hoot! It was awesome watching Brayden play on the beach and build sandcastles (even though she was convinced the ocean was going to “get her”).

As for Brayden’s adventures, she went to the dentist for the first time and did extremely well. We were told that she needs to stop sucking her thumb, so we are trying to work on that now. She gets more and more inquisitive with each passing day and I can see the days where she starts asking “why” to everything are rapidly approaching. I guess the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree, huh? As you can imagine, trying new foods presents a challenge almost every day and we are determined not to become short-order cooks. But, for all those challenging moments are the ones when her utter sweetness, contagious smile and infectious laugh having you feeling blessed every single moment.

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