Almost a month ago, this giant truck showed up at our house in Haslet and loaded all our things inside. Bob and I cleaned our empty house, took a trip to the zoo with Aunt Faith, then made a LONG drive along I-10 to Jacksonville.
We started our drive both days around 3 a.m. The boys slept until around 7 a.m., we stopped for breakfast, then kept on driving. My mom rode with the boys and I she definitely put in her time entertaining the kids. Ryan especially got antsy, but we made it to the hotel by around 2 p.m.
On the second day, I learned the joys of bribery. The kids really didn't want to get back into the car after a brief stop, so we let them pick a treat, and then they didn't even fight me getting back into their seats.
Although this picture is a little blurry, love how James is chomping on his sucker. Michael told me that this sucker was very "tasty." They boys are talking up a storm lately. Michael is constantly talking, especially in the car. He likes to tell me about going to the zoo with Uncle Zach and Aunt Mandy and feeding the giraffes. James spent a large majority of the car ride hiding underneath his blanket to ignore his brothers.
After we made it to Jacksonville, we spent a little time exploring our new city. We took the whole family to a restaurant on the beach, ate a little seafood, and spent a little time playing in the waves.
Aunt Faith had a pretty decent time at the beach. She spent most of the time she was here trying to do her on-line school work. She'll be back in November to go to Disney with us. When I talked to her the other day, she asked if it would be warm enough to go to the beach too. I guess that's a pretty ringing endorsement of how much she enjoyed it.
Ryan and Grandma Newhouse hang out and wait for the food to come. In the restaurant, there was a fake palm tree and parrot that Ryan was fascinated with.
Michael and "Papa" read the menu. Lately the boys have dubbed Jim "Papa," and I think it's going to stick. Michael reads everything. He likes to sit and flip through the pages while describing what's on each page. In the Just Like Daddy book, he calls the big animals daddy and then the small ones are Michael. It's pretty adorable to watch.
James and Grandma hang out waiting for shrimp and beach time fun. Right after Mom and Faith left, the boys kept asking about seeing them. We've started video chatting with Grandma and Papa Joe, and the kids love it.
Aunt Faith and Grandma lead the troops into the ocean.
No matter how much of an organized, well prepared person I used to be, for some reason, as a mother I tend to forget very important things like swim suits for the beach and sunscreen for myself.
Grandma and Ryan prepare to enter the surf. Somehow I ended up holding all of the shoes and purses while everyone else ran around and played in the water. It worked out okay since I got to snap a few pictures.
James was constantly running back into the "wawhurr." James speaks in single words. Lately he will come over to you and say "hand" because he wants to hold your hand. He also comes over and asks for a hug. It's so cute.
Running around having fun at Jacksonville Beach.
Examining our toes in the water.
Running in opposite directions.
Michael cons Papa out for a dip.
James tells Aunt Faith all about the coming wave.
Ryan lays down on the job. He was the first to go "all in."
My tiny monkey loves to run and splash. He loves to roll around in the surf and feel the waves wash in around him.
Aunt Faith grabs a quick hug from the fearless wave hopper.
Michael loved digging/throwing the sand. He likes the feel of it between his fingers and toes (and sadly the taste of it in his mouth). He spent a large quantity of time playing in the sand and picking up shells.
Daddy joins the fray and gets his feet wet. Bob is not really a lover of all things sand and water, but he has been great about taking us all to the beach. We might have to try it one more time before it gets too chilly.
Michael shows off his water moves.
Tragic consequence of too much fun in the surf - droopy shorts.
James concentrates on attempting to escape Grandpa and head back into the water. After our trip to the beach, we got the keys to our new place and spent the next day moving in. Despite it being much smaller than our house in Texas, we have managed to fit most of our remaining things (we sent a ton of stuff out the door in Texas to family, friends, strangers, and Mission Arlington) into the house. We've unpacked all the essentials, but still need to sort out the books, cds/dvds, and pictures. So far, I am enjoying Florida. I need to find some way to make a few new friends. We've tried a couple of churches and will try a couple more. The boys are having lots of fun. Since we are so much closer to civilization, we've managed to do more fun things. We've been to Chic-fil-a (where we caught some Florida germs and are all suffering from runny noses and sore throats), all of the boys have gone to see the Lion King (individually and with separate adults), and we've gone shopping several times. I think in the long run, we will all be very happy here.
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