Beach Trip Part II - Pensacola

My brother and I were born in Pensacola, about 45 minutes give or take from Gulf Shores.  My dad was raised there.  I spent many summers there growing up, visiting my grandparents.  I have so many memories there.  And of course my mom and dad and aunt have even more.  We made a day trip over to P'cola to visit the synagogue my grandparents were members of and where my grandpa served as a President and picture still hangs on the wall.  It is a place we all have so many memories of from when we were little and me and Adam especially wanted to show our spouses and show our kiddos as well.  

 Family's name still on the row of seats they used to sit in each week

 Torah holder my grandparents donated

 Close up shot of plaque on Torah holder

 After the synagogue we visited the greasy spoon spot, The Coffee Cup, where every one that used to work there knew my Grandpa and Nana and would ooo and ahh over my brother and I when we would come to visit.  Another place with loads of memories. Some of my grandparents old friends also met up with us here.  

And then we went to visit my Grandpa at the cemetery.  It is a Jewish custom to place a stone on the head stone of your loved one's grave as a symbol of your visit and that your loved one has not been forgotten.  My mom brought some nice stones from home to ensure we'd all have one.  We placed one on my grandpa's grave as well as other close loved ones buried there.  Blake, who has the sweetest heart I've ever known, asked my mom for another stone because he saw some one's headstone that didn't have any stones on it and wanted them to have one too.  Love that kid.  

Gulf Shores Beach Trip Part I

 My extended family has been talking about a family vacation for years now.  Its just never been feasible, mostly because of  my mom's health.  But with my mom's health in a stable enough state we started vacation dreaming again.  We booked the beach condo like six months ago I believe and had been talking about the trip for so long now, it was hard to believe the day finally arrived for us to go.  It was a much needed vacation for my family, with all we went through recently with surgery and illness in our house and my dad hasn't taken off a week from work, like, ever.  And it had been FAR TOO LONG since we had seen my brother and his family which includes my sweet and adorable nephew.  And the icing on the delicious cake was my Aunt was joining us as well.  Another family member that had been far too long since we've seen.  All of us makes ten people. Seven grown ups and three kiddos.  And because we needed a place without stairs for my mom, a hard or impossible find for a house on a beach, we opted for a condo route.  And because we had so many people, we needed a lot of bedrooms.  So we ended up booking the penthouse, which was on the 26th floor.  The living room was surrounded by floor to ceiling windows.  GORGEOUS.  The views alone.  We also had a flock of pelicans fly right next to our window several times.  It was magnificent.  I have to say, nothing makes you feel more like a jerk though than getting on the elevator and when asked what floor they can push for you, having to answer "Penthouse please."  

Condo and Views 

 

It was the best feeling to see my boys play with their cousin.  All three boys running around, having a ball.  Every morning they would run and give each other hugs and if one of us arrived back to the condo before the other after being out, they would run and greet each other with hugs upon the others' return.  It was adorable.  It was also really sweet to see how much Blake really adored his Uncle...my brother.  Loved it.  

Pics of the cousins and with Uncle A.  Also a video:

 Adam and Blake did this sumo thing a lot.  Video below.  It was so cute.  Also, my brother hurt his back very badly towards the beginning of the trip and was walking hunched over.  At one point Blake ran after my brother because he wanted to ride in the same car as him, but he ran after him hunched over too.  Wanted to be just like his uncle.  HA! 

Back to Reality

This has been my view for the last week.  (you can see Brad and the boys near the water building sand castles)  Hence my break from the blog.  Now its back to reality.  Boo!  We had the best week ever and there will I'm sure be several posts made to document our family vacay.  For now, back to getting the household back in order...

What we've been up to

Its been a long while since I've posted anything.  I just needed a break I guess and getting back to a sense of normalcy around here.  Its starting to get that way, thankfully.  Brad is continuing to improve, although, my oh my, what a long recovery.  Sheesh.  Knock on wood, we've been healthy and I pray it stays that way.  A certain someone that I am madly in love with had a birthday last week and Brad and I managed to have a date night (thanks mom and dad!!) and it was so nice to have a night together, just us.  We got to see Brad's mom and stepdad as they came through town again last weekend which was an added bonus as well.  And just trying to enjoy the summer days.  Nothing exciting, but in our case I think that's a good thing!  

Blake was really excited about me snapping his picture!

He is getting so grown up by the minute.  He's pretty precious too.  Last night he ran up to Brad and asked, "Daddy, when will I be sixteen??"
Brad asked, "Why do you want to be sixteen??"
Blake, "Because I'll be taller when I'm sixteen."
See?? He's precious.

Brady steering a pirate ship.

 I still just want to attack this boy with kisses and squeezes all day every day.  He's such a love.  He will come up to Brad and I and say I want a hug and kiss.  Or tell us I love you throughout the day without us saying it first.  He's just such a LOVE.  Brady's weight still weighs on my heart.  He's approaching his third birthday and wears 18 month size shorts after all.  But it does not weigh on my heart nearly as much.  I can officially say we've seen every specialist I think one could see for something like this and had I think every test known to man and he even graduated yesterday from having to see the immunologist again unless something changes with this health, so he is doing really well and that does make me so.incredibly.happy.

These are the days

You know those days when everything you try just doesn't seem to be working out and you just want to crawl back under the covers and have a "do over"??  I feel like a lot of my days the last few weeks have gone that way.  Like when, my four year old on the flip side of throwing up, couldn't go to the bathroom for days...  and then laid crying on the couch in agony from it all.  Then we gave him doctor approved medicine to help with that.  And he finally went.  And then couldn't control it.  So I spent the afternoon cleaning up #2 accidents all over the house.  And then my dog decided to pee a lake on the carpet after that.  And then one of my new sandals broke, while out in public so I had to walk around like an idiot with one shoe on.  And then I spilled water all over the kitchen floor.  And really, none of this is a big deal.  At all, in the grand scheme of things.  But just after the exhausting few weeks I've had, its just like enough.  I will climb back in bed now and wait for next year. Wake me when its 2013.  
I was laying in Blake's room the other night though trying to help him fall asleep and I laid there thinking, in spite of all this CRAP, all this little, doesn't matter crap, these really are the days.  Like Natalie Merchant singing, these are the days.  Blake will be away from my side for three days a week when he starts preschool in the fall.  The following year, he'll be in school all day long for five days a week.  Even though a big part of me is looking forward to having some more peace while he's in school, thinking about it, makes me sad too.  I'm going to miss the heck out of that boy.  In a blink of an eye both my babies will no longer be anything remotely close to babies.   I will long for these days.  I know I'll want to give anything to have all the not so fun, lack of patience filled days, just to have one more snuggle or hear one more giggle fit.  To be able to kiss away boo boos.  To build forts and play hide and seek.  To finger paint and play catch.  So, its a balancing act.  Trying not to wish away the days filled with poo and pee clean up and choosing to embrace the snuggles and giggles.  I'm choosing to remember the snuggles and giggles.  Although, believe you me, I'll save plenty of the stories of "Do you know what I went through when you were little?!?!?!?!" to guilt my teenage sons with. Its a rite of passage for them growing up after all.