Aloha Pennsylvania! Aloha!

Aloha! I am not afraid to sport a grass skirt! Our Hawaiian themed visit to Grammie and Gramps' house was nothing short of a fun luau filled with all sorts of great activities, I think I am going to need some be-lone time when I get home! While in Pennsylvania we had a great time at Grammie and Gramps house as well as at camp! Let's start with fun at the house - we did so much I don't think I would be able to remember. But thanks to Grammie, she was able to document all of the fun to be had! We baked and decorated (I sneaked some icing) cupcakes, had ice cream and movie night, visited the big wooden park, went to the library, and shopped at Pfaff's market! My most favorite activity at their house would have to be visiting the clubhouse (aka bathroom) in the basement and taking the opportunity while I was down there to get more trucks out of the box!

At camp, when I wasn't asking when we could drive the side-by-side, we had fun with all kinds of outdoor activities! Mommy made fun of me because she said I was playing like I was in the olden days by pushing the hula hoop around the yard. During the day we drove in the side by side, decorated our stones, and saw some big elk! After a picnic dinner we visited the horses up the road, got to hit a pinata that Grammie and Gramps had made, and released balloons (sky lanterns) into the night sky. I was so happy that we released a blue one! For once, I actually passed out on the ride home from camp because all of the activities wore me out! Aloha and goodnight!

Father's Day In PA

Our trip to visit Grammie and Gramps has started out great! The adventure began before we even got to their house! Along the way, we stopped and met Grammie and Gramps at an amusement park! Although I woke up that morning with my ankle hurt, resting it on the trip and having all of the rides to distract me made it feel better! I literally jumped from ride to ride! My favorite was the helicopters; I must have ridden them 5 times! We had dinner at the park, then headed up the road to Grammie and Gramps! We finished the weekend with a great Father's Day! It rained off and on during the day, but after dinner it cleared up and we took a walk to the park. (I skipped and jumped over puddles the entire way.) I can't wait to see what is in store for the rest of our visit!

Poolside Preferred

Clearly, I'm still not a fan of the ocean.

This weekend we celebrated the arrival of the 90+ degree heat by spending the day at the beach! We drove to Carolina Beach and had a fun day at the beach! I enjoyed snacking, watching the Ocean Rescue truck drive through the "snow", lounging in the "clubhouse", and building sand castles near the water's edge. That's about as close to the water as I would get. I'm definitely not a big fan of the ocean water yet; not nearly as much as I love the pool. I did enjoy being at the beach and eating at the restaurant after our fun day in the sun. I impressed Mommy and Daddy at the restaurant - I needed more milk to drink and I successfully asked the waitress for more milk by saying, "Excuse me, may I have some more milk please?" I am not shy when it comes to talking. The day was so wonderful that I didn't want it to end, even on the drive home. We started driving home around 7:30. I talked, sang or tapped on my legs until after 9, even asking a few times if we could take a walk when we got home. All the while Cora was snoozing next to me. I was just trying to prove that when we drive to Grammie and Gramps house next week that I will do fine on the long trip without any entertainment except for myself, and maybe perhaps some music on the radio.

Building a sandcastle with the "creamy mud" by the water.

As I mentioned, I love the swimming pool. If I had my choice right now, I would choose the pool all day long. This past week, I spent EVERY day at the pool with Mommy and Cora because Cora was taking swim lessons. Sometimes I would wear my swimmy to swim. Others, I would just stand in the shallow end, splashing my arms and humming. On Wednesday I finally overcame my fear of jumping off the side. Little did I know I had been missing out on the fun. I started out Tuesday with my first trial jumps, with Mommy holding both of my hands. Then, like magic I decided to try it all on my own. The rest was history. I probably jumped in 30 times at least. Up the steps, jump in the water, up the steps, jump in the water. I've never had such fun! Thankfully I jump into the shallow end so I can stand in the water. I haven't quite mastered swimming on my own or going under the water. Perhaps with many more weeks left in the summer I'll be able to work on other skills. For now, jumping works for me!

Prepare for the jump

My Crowning Achievement

And my crowning achievement for the week is…eating my first s'more without it falling apart! It was, however a messy experience filled with screaming due to the melty chocolate and gooey marshmallow. I don't think I have been this covered in food since eating cake on my first birthday. I will look forward to eating another s'more soon and I think this time Mommy and Daddy will be prepared with wet wipes to clean up the mess!
The s'more was quite an achievement, although the real crowning moment of the weekend was watching the horse racing. It was apparently a historical moment that I witnessed. I watched a horse named American Pharaoh win the Triple Crown in horse racing while sitting at the dinner table eating my dinner one slow bite at a time. I can't figure out why everyone else rushed to eat their dinner, when if they had all eaten slowly like me and taken an hour to eat, they could have enjoyed dinner AND a horse race.
This week was my last week at Tracey's pre-school. Cora was invited to join us again this week. As a special treat for Tracey, Cora and I sang a Bon Jovi duet of "You Give Love a Bad Name." She was quite impressed with our singing and drumming. I will miss walking over to school at Tracey's house next year and I thank her for getting me accustomed to being around others and away from Mommy. If that's the only thing I learned this year, than I think it was a crowning achievement!

My favorite pastime - pretending the pool noodle is a leaf blower.

Visiting the ducklings!