Week 36

Week 36 | an update

How far along: 36 weeks

Best moment this week: 

Knowing that I can now officially stay in town to welcome our newest addition is a pretty big highlight of this week. At today's appointment, baby's heartbeat was 135bpm, head was still down, and my doctor estimated that if baby would be born today, we'd be looking at about a 6.5 lb bundle of love. We can expect baby to gain about 1/2 lb per week from here until delivery, so unless baby comes early, we could be looking at a pretty big baby! If you do the math...and we make it to my due date, that would put baby right around 8.5 lbs. I'm hoping we don't make it quite that far since I just removed tags and washed several newborn sized outfits yesterday! As we enter the last four weeks before baby's arrival (eeek!), I will start weekly OB checkups to keep a close watch on everything happening with our newest little.

Maternity clothes: 

For the most part (above dress). I'm still able to rock my non-maternity elastic waist shorts, but tops are another story!

Sleep: 

Not too bad this week, and I've actually been able to make it through the night without a restroom wakeup call. Is this a product of staying up too late most nights, or baby's position changing...I don't know.

Miss Anything: 

Getting around easily. I'm seriously missing regular exercise. With the weather being crazy hot lately, and my overall uncomfortableness, I haven't been able to get in any reasonable amount of exercise lately. I'm also paranoid about my water breaking when I'm a half hour or more walk from my vehicle plus another half hour minimum from the hospital...assuming I had my 'go bag' packed and ready...which I do not...womp womp.

Baby Movement: 

Still lots of movement this week. I've been fortunate to escape heartburn as baby continues to use my internal organs to practice karate!

Cravings/Aversions: 

Nothing in particular. I made this Baked Honey Berry Oatmeal over the weekend, and I'm planning to mix up these No Bake Chocolate Oatmeal Bars sometime this week, so I guess you might say oatmeal?

Symptoms: 

Pretty standard this week. No contractions and only some minimal round ligament pain, so that is something to be thankful for. My rings have been tighter this week, so maybe a bit of swelling. I'm also feeling quite a bit of abdominal pressure as baby continues to grow and run out of space.

Looking forward to: 

July 4th is this weekend, and it is my favorite holiday. I am excited to bbq, watch fireworks, and celebrate with family and friends. I'm also looking forward to having our last photo shoot as a family of three next week at my maternity photos. I didn't do any official maternity photos with C, but I'm using a different photographer this time around as my current photographer is taking a step back to focus on family. Anyways...part of the new baby bundle is a quick maternity shoot, so look forward to seeing these pics soon! In the meantime...maybe I'll dig up our unofficial maternity pictures (a.k.a. snapped by Mama J) from when we were expecting C!

On my mind:

I really need to get my hospital bag put together, and decide for sure what to pack. I have a short list in mind, but need to get it finalized and decide on a bag. Speaking of bags, I'd LOVE to have this charcoal weekender bag from Birdling Bags for packing myself and two kiddos on all of our upcoming weekend travels after baby arrives. Condensing our gear into a larger bag and cutting down on the 40 bags it seems like we currently travel with would be great, especially since we have not upgraded to a larger vehicle yet, and this bag has awesome reviews. 

Two Year Photos

Around C's birthday, we had his official two-year-old photos taken. It was a beautiful day, and our photographer had a great outdoor location scouted out for pictures. Luckily, C was all about being the center of attention, and after exploring his new surroundings a bit, was more than happy to have his picture snapped. I am so happy with how they turned out, and think they are a great representation of C and his joy of life at this age.

Such a little love boat! I think the ladies are in trouble. They don't stand a chance against C!

Pregnancy Favorites

As I near the end of pregnancy with baby #2, I got to thinking about what some of my pregnancy must-haves are. Since I enjoy reflecting, I put together a little list of my favorites to share with you. Get excited! But seriously...I love reading other mama blogs that share similar information, and I'm hoping this may be of interest to some of you who have been following along with me this time around, or who may be expecting yourself.

Maternity Activewear (great options at Target & Old Navy) // Baby Pics App // LaCroix flavored water // Soma Embraceable Cool Nights Sleepwear & // Palmer's Cocoa Butter Lotion // Mayo Clinic Guide to a Healthy Pregnancy // Humidifier // Maxi Dress

After basically giving up on pop (not that I drank it much anyways, but I do try to avoid aspartame and empty-calorie sugary drinks), and wine (which I'm still trying to come to grips with), I got pretty tired of being stuck with boring old water all day long. T did make me a few mocktails earlier on, but I'm not a huge fan of sugary drinks with fruit juices or ginger beer, and I prefer something a little more light and easy to drink without all of the extra calories. Enter LaCroix flavored water. An all natural sparkling water that comes in just about any flavor you could imagine. This has seriously been one of my biggest wins during this pregnancy, and I grab for one at least once a day. The coconut flavor is my absolute favorite for summertime, and if I close my eyes, I can almost imagine I'm in some tropical destination sipping an umbrella drink on the beach. Sigh... Surprisingly, I've found that Menards of all places carries the most variety of flavors if you are having trouble finding a specific one. Also...I just discovered this recipe list of mocktails to make using LaCroix. You can bet I'll be trying some of them out this weekend!

Continuing on with a health-related mindset, I've been using Palmer's Cocoa Butter Lotion for stretch marks for the second time. Everyone has their favorite anti-stretch mark remedy, but this one is cheap, easy, readily available, and did the trick the first time around. That being said, studies say that the ability to avoid stretch marks really just comes down to genetics, so take this advice with a grain of salt! Another great thing to have around...a humidifier. Pregnancy brings with it many bodily changes, but one that you can actually do something about is that constant stuffy nose. I found this particularly helpful over the winter months, but now that I near the end of pregnancy, I think I'll bust it back out as I've been really stuffy lately with the additional stuffiness brought on by pregnancy hormones.

Speaking of health, having easy snack and dinner options on hand is key. Takeout, grilling, slow cooker, or dinner reservations...easy and simple is what it's all about. During the first trimester, while battling the worst of the morning sickness, and the rest of the time when trying to juggle the responsibility of raising a toddler and choosing healthy options while growing a tiny human, for me, having a quick grab-and-go snack like granola bars, trail mix, bananas, or hummus have been a lifesaver when hunger strikes.

On maternity clothing...Unless you are a tiny little toothpick, chances are, you are going to need to invest in some sort of maternity clothing. Since the second trimester, I have been living in maternity activewear (favorite leggings here ), and maxi dresses. The black dress I linked above is perfect for mixing up accessories and dressing up or down depending on how the mood strikes you. It was in my hospital bag when I had C, and it might be a repeat this time!

Soma's cool nights sleepwear line has been a favorite of mine since I treated myself with a set after C arrived (favorite cami & shorts). They are suuuuper soft, keep me cool, come in a ton of color options, have support up top (key when you are pregnant!), have an empire waist (great for both pre and post baby!), are nursing friendly, and stretch for daaaaays. If you haven't already been whisked away to check them out, do so now. I won't judge.

A word on social media and literature. With C, I spent time drawing out chalkboards for my weekly bump updates. In this current life I live with a toddler who would likely destroy a chalkboard drawing before it even had a chance of being captured in a picture, I switched mindsets and have been using the Baby Pics app. I LOVE IT. There are so many great stickers you can add to photos depending on what you are wanting to share about not only your pregnancy, but also baby milestones, holidays, etc. Highly recommend for anyone who is lazy or doesn't have a creative bone to speak of. On literature, T & I are once again following along with the weekly breakdown of what is happening with baby in our favorite pregnancy book, Mayo Clinic Guide to a Healthy Pregnancy. T used this one while in residency at Mayo, so for obvious reasons, it was, and still is, our go-to for all things pregnancy related. If I find the time before baby arrives, I'd also like to re-read Bringing Up Bébé, another of my favorite pregnancy/baby books from last time around.

Do you have any pregnancy favorites?

Week 35

Week 35 | an update

How far along: 35 weeks

Best moment this week: 

Over the weekend, we celebrated Father's Day with all of the special dads & grandpas in our lives. We also got to hang out with nearly all of C's aunts & uncles, and cousin J. Unfortunately, C was running a temp most of the weekend, and it was super hot outside, so he had to miss out on some of the more exciting outdoor activities. Overall, we still managed to have a pretty great weekend anyways. Baby related, I picked out a couple of tiny outfits for coming home from the hospital for baby, and am feeling more prepared than when we had C and he ended up in a last minute Walmart option! Now I just need to get them all washed up and ready to go!

Maternity clothes: 

Yes, (similar top here, similar shorts here). At this stage in the game, I feel like I mostly rotate between about the same five dresses and shorts/tops combos all week long. I'm looking forward to getting back into some non-maternity clothing! Of course, then I will have to deal with the joys of dressing a postpartum bod, and my self-confidence in my new body will probably fly right out the window. Ugh. Really a no-win scenario! At least this time, I know somewhat what to expect, and have stocked up on some loose drapey nursing-friendly tops and postpartum-friendly wardrobe options that hopefully won't draw unwanted attention to the fact that I'll likely still have a post-baby bump for several months after delivery. Pat yourselves on your back all of you mama's who just go right back to your pre-baby bods. When I had C, it took about six months to get back into my regular jeans, and I imagine that it will be even more difficult this time around with two kiddos to look after (I gained about 25-28lbs before C was born at 37.5 weeks, this pregnancy I have average weight gain, and so far have gained about 18lbs as of my 34 week checkup last week). Reminding myself that it took 40 weeks to create our little miracle, and accepting that it will take some time to get back to normal...or that there may be a new normal...will be important for me to remember as I adjust to my new body image after baby.

Sleep: 

Not that great this week. Rolling over in the middle of the night has become seriously uncomfortable as baby continues to pack on some extra padding (1/2 lb a week from here on out!), and I continue to get up during the middle of the night for the restroom. It is what it is, and before long, I'll be lucky to get any quality sleep at night, so I'll make the most of the next few weeks of minor interruptions before my sleep schedule becomes even more sporadic! If anyone wants to sign up to entertain C and watch the new baby for a couple of hours so I can catch a nap after baby arrives, I'm all about it!

Miss Anything: 

Being able to do anything quickly or easily. In particular, I miss biking. Mostly, I miss biking when we are out in the garage and C walks over to the bike trailer and climbs in wanting to go for a ride. Little guy doesn't understand why we can't go. Poor C! Until about four weeks ago, we were still going on regular weekly bike rides on the trail or to the park, but T officially told me I should probably not do any more biking until after baby arrives, so we've been sadly avoiding our biking routine since then. Hopefully, we will have grandparents on hand who would love nothing more than a little snuggle time with new baby, and C & I can sneak out for some fall bike rides in September after the weather cools down a bit and I've had some time to recover.

Baby Movement: 

Still lots of movement this week. T is amazed by how active baby is when I lay down at night to try and sleep. Of course...T usually falls asleep about 30 seconds later, and I lay there awake for who knows how long until baby decides to finally settle down enough for me to sleep. Baby is also usually pretty active late morning or early afternoon, and seems to like listening/dancing to music as well. That's a good thing since C & I snagged a couple of these instrumental lullaby arrangements from Baby Blanket Music yesterday (we got the Elton John & Michael Jackson CDs), and have been listening and dancing to them pretty much non-stop ever since.

Cravings/Aversions: 

Nothing too particular this week. I've been drinking lots of water to try and stay hydrated in this hot weather, and yesterday had a donut craving that C benefitted from by a morning adventure to Spudnuts for fresh donuts. I would love nothing more than to have The Donut Experiment and their amazing cake donuts available since I'm not a big glazed donut fan, but I'll take what I can get!

Symptoms: 

Pretty standard symptoms this week. I don't have any round ligament pain or Braxton Hicks to report, so that's good. Overall, I'm mostly just feeling uncomfortable with this heat wave we've been having, and am looking forward to hopefully some sort of cool down so that C & I can get outside some more. Until then...ice cream!

Looking forward to: 

Next week marks 36 weeks...a.k.a...when I would no longer need to be transferred to a larger hospital far from home if baby decided to come early. After that, we are all looking forward to meeting this newest little bundle of love! I have my fingers crossed for a delivery sometime in the July 10-July 20th range, but of course, we don't get to decide when baby will come. In the meantime, we will just pray for a healthy and safe delivery at least 48 hours before my brother's wedding on July 30th!

On my mind: 

T & I really need to work on finalizing a name for our newest addition, and have been thinking a little more seriously this week about our options. We've got one name that has been at the top of the list pretty much since the beginning, but I know a couple of people who have used it recently, and I am not crazy about choosing a super popular name that the new babe would have to share with multiple classmates. At the same time, we're not all about choosing something too unique or untraditional either. Ahhhh...naming littles...if only they could come into this world and name themselves!

Two Years of Carter

Once upon a time...we woke up to a two year old. It's wild to think how fast time has gone these past two years, and as we move into the summer months, no doubt it will go even faster. C at two year's old is the most joyful, full-of-life little guy we've could have hoped for, and is so much fun to be around with his bright smiles, belly laughs, and curiosity for the world. He has changed so much over the past year, and has grown into such a little sweetheart. 

13 MONTHS

14 MONTHS

15 MONTHS

16 MONTHS

17 MONTHS

18 MONTHS

C has sooooo many adorable characteristics and such a cute personality at two years old, that I wish we could slow down time and stay in this fun stage for oh, I don't know...maybe the next 16 years or so until he goes out on his own in the world. Some of his most recent antics that I can't get enough of:

1.) Blowing kisses when he gets tired to let us know he is ready for bed. He also blows kisses when saying bye-bye. He's not much of a hugger yet! He also loves to touch foreheads with T at night to tell him night-night, and loves to give mom kisses on the lips.

2.) Saying 'Yes' and 'No'. It's nice to finally have a little bit of an idea of what C is thinking! It particularly cracks me up when we are out on an adventure...usually at the park or breakfast at the coffee shop, and he stops whatever he is doing and exclaims 'YES!' out of the blue, and for no reason other than that he is just so excited to be spending time with T & I, or whatever family we happen to be with doing something fun together.

3.) Waving and saying 'Hi' to everyone we pass while out and about. Typically, C tends to zero in on people who are shopping alone, or are older. He's not nearly so vocal when someone comes up to him to have a conversation afterwards though, and he usually chooses to play the shy card instead.

4.) C is great about holding hands, and loves to grab ahold of the fingers of whoever has come for a visit to drag them around the house to show them ALL of his favorite toys. He is also all about holding hands at the park so that he can make sure that we are seeing all of the amazing things he is. He doesn't want us to miss out on anything! 

5.) When C really likes something he is eating, he loudly exclaims 'Mmmm!' after every bite. He is great about sharing, and when he starts to get full, or if he doesn't necessarily love whatever morsel he has picked up, he is particularly fond of giving a piece to whoever happens to be sitting with him at mealtime.

6.) Favorite activities include; endless hours spent splashing in the water of his water table and pouring water back and forth between buckets or cups; playing with cars and his Little People racetrack; shooting hoops or playing catch; and being chased.

19 MONTHS

20 MONTHS

A DAY IN THE LIFE:

8:30-9:30 a.m. // Wake up and start the day with breakfast. Usually, this means a sippy of milk, some yogurt, fruit, and a muffin/pancake/banana bread/peanut butter toast etc. If it's a hot day, and I have the right groceries on hand, C loves to have a smoothie with breakfast. After breakfast, unless we have someplace to go, we usually play at home inside, and C helps me do the laundry, clean the floors, or play with puzzles, diggers, cars, and read books.

Noon/12:30-3/3:30 p.m. // C's nap schedule is a bit random at two years old, and is really dependent on when he gets up for the day, and what we have going in the morning. He has backed down to one nap a day, and it is usually falls around the noon hour. I'm ok with this since his nap time coincides with the hottest time of day! Depending what time he ate breakfast, he usually has a snack before nap time, and then something more substantial when he wakes up. In the afternoon, we usually venture outside for some fresh air and exercise. Many times, this means a walk to the park, splashing in the water table, or a road trip to the music park. Typically we would include a bike ride in that list, but we've had to take biking off the list lately with baby #2 coming sometime in the next month or so, and biking not exactly being a safe form of exercise for the 3rd trimester. Womp womp...I feel so bad about it when we are out in the garage, and C goes over to the bike trailer and climbs in just hoping we can go for a ride. Maybe if the temps cool off, I can get T to take him for a ride one of these days.

6:30 p.m. // Dinner time. I try to be consistent with dinner time, although many times it means that C ends up eating a boring old sandwich instead of whatever T & I are eating for dinner. With T's work schedule most of the time being all over the place, we can rarely plan on a set dinner time on a daily basis. At the very least, if we don't all get to eat together, I always try to sit down at the table with C during mealtimes.

7:15 p.m. // Get ready for bed. Bath time, teeth-brushing time, PJ time, and story time, then it's night-night time. This routine takes us about 20 minutes, so on a typical day, C is usually firmly established in his crib by 7:30-7:45p.m. Keeping to this schedule during the summer can be pretty difficult, but C is so much happier when he is well rested, that we try our best to stay within or as close to this timeframe for bedtime as we can, otherwise he ends up sleeping until 11a.m. the next morning, and half the day has gone by before we can get going! 

21 MONTHS

22 MONTHS

TWO YEAR FAVORITES:

Blowing kisses

Going out to eat...particularly for breakfast!

Reading

Night-night blanket

Playing in the water (water table/pool/ocean/bath/etc.). He particularly loves pouring water back and forth between cups or buckets.

Trips to the park...especially the music park

Ice cream

TWO YEAR LEAST FAVORITES:

Letting anyone besides mom put him to bed...he's only recently become more accepting of Papa T helping with bath time. I think this spells T-R-O-U-B-L-E for when his new sibling arrives in July!

23 MONTHS

TWO YEARS OLD

...Hold him a little longer,

Rock him a little more.

Tell him another story,

You've only read him four.

Let him sleep on your shoulder,

Rejoice in his happy smile.

He is only a little boy,

for such a little while...

~ Author Unknown

Week 34

Week 34 | an update

How far along: 34 weeks

Best moment this week: 

We went to the FlagFest parade in Spencer over the weekend, and C had so much fun watching all of the floats, fire trucks, horses, etc. Baby related, at this morning's checkup baby was measuring right on the mark for 34 weeks, and heart rate was still a steady 140bpm. According to my baby book, at 34 weeks, baby weighs approximately 5 1/2 lbs., and is about 12 1/2 inches long from crown to rump. In positional news, my doctor this morning was able to confirm that baby is head down, and laying on the right side with feet kicking me on my left side. I think this must be a favorite position since it pretty much matches up with where I've been feeling kicks for at least the last month.

Maternity clothes: 

Yes, for the most part. (Above top here, similar shorts here.) I busted out some elastic waist shorts I snagged on a shopping trip to the LOFT outlet store while we were in Florida earlier this spring, and am so glad I decided to pick them up. Originally I had been planning to save them for post-baby, but when folded down below the bump, they will be a great summer option to pair with some of my maternity tops for the inevitable hot weather I'll get to enjoy before baby comes. Now I need to find some loose drapey T's to pair with them post-baby!

Sleep: 

Not too terrible. Still getting up for the restroom during the morning earlier than I'd like to get up, but other than that, not too much to complain about this week.

Miss Anything: 

This past week was suuuuuper HOT, and I was pretty uncomfortable any way you slice it. The breeze and shade helped, but any sort of exercise dreams flew right out the window with the heat, and I'm hoping for some nice cooler weather so C & I can get in some more walks to the park this week.

Baby Movement: 

Lots. There really hasn't been any noticeable slow-down in baby's movements, so space must not be too limited yet...although I certainly feel like baby can't have much more space to expand into. I have been lucky to not have experienced any sort of heartburn or kicking in my ribs yet, so hopefully baby continues to cooperate on that front!

Cravings/Aversions: 

Nothing in particular this week.

Symptoms: 

My overall comfort level seems to decrease with each day closer to baby's due date. This is in large part likely due to the recent hot weather we've been experiencing, so hopefully it will cool off a little and I won't feel so drained from the heat.

Looking forward to: 

Thinking I should probably start planning out my hospital bag for baby's arrival sometime in the next six weeks. Eeeek! When C was born, we were completely unprepared for him to be early, and had not packed a single thing. I feel like now I have a little better grasp of what I will want to have in my bag, but I still need to make sure I have the essentials stocked up for our return home so that I won't have to make any Walmart runs with an only days old newborn and toddler in tow. Ooooor maybe I'll just sign up for Amazon Prime, and then I won't have to worry about it!

On My Mind:
Probably my biggest concern leading up to baby's due date (aside from actually making it to the hospital and safely delivering a healthy baby), is how the heck to keep everyone fed around here! I am terrible about menu-planning, and have never tried doing the weekly meal prep of food like so many other mommy bloggers out there swear is a lifesaver when you have more than one little to think about. None of us are really very good about eating leftovers (unless we're talking about homemade mac & cheese, lasagna, or brats & kraut/smoked meat), and most days it seems like C & I just rotate between boxed mac & cheese, peanut butter & jelly sandwiches, and cheese, crackers & fruit (I do usually cook something more exciting for breakfast as it is both of our favorite meals, but half the time, C goes to bed before dinner is ready, so he ends up getting the same old stuff for lunch & dinner). I'd love to get a deep freeze to get some slow-cooker meals and frozen dinners stocked up before baby's arrival, but T hasn't been too proactive about going to look at them with me and actually committing to ordering one. They are a pretty big investment, so I feel like he probably needs to be fully on board rather than just distractedly agreeing it would probably be a good idea. Maybe I can convince him to go look this week sometime! Here's wishing!

One Last Vacation as a Family of Three

A couple of months ago now...back in April (don't judge! We've been busy!), we took our last big vacation to Anna Maria Island as a family of three.



T was attending a CME, and we were lucky to coordinate our trip to be the same week as my brother N and his fiancé C would be visiting. We just love to have friends and family around when traveling...particularly when C is with us, and we all stayed busy and had a wonderful week together in the sunshine state. 

The trip started off with a bang when C got lucky and found himself in a row with an extra seat to sit in...and snagged some pancakes from the airport restaurant to take on the flight.

Later that evening, after arriving on Anna Maria, we headed out to the beach to watch sunset, kick off our shoes, and dip our toes in the ocean. C promptly found a tide pool to sit down in (without swim gear on of course), and had fun splashing around until the sun went down.

The next morning...after making sure all of the vegetable cans were where he left them on our last visit, we headed out for some exploring on Pine Avenue and an iced coffee date at Hometown Desserts. If you go, their caramel iced coffee is to die for, and perfect for a hot day. Of course, there's no getting a cup with a straw by C, and after blowing the saleslady a kiss on the way out the door, he demanded a drink. Unlike most kids, who probably hate coffee at his age (or at least I know I did), C would have been perfectly happy to drink the entire thing! A boy after his Dad's own heart!

Hanging out with Uncle N & Aunt C by the pool was a definite favorite of the trip! 

This picture pretty much sums up our little C on vacation, and has to be one of my all time favorites. I mean, have you ever seen a kid as chill as this one!? 

Oh hey girl...

We got to see this pelican up really close while waiting for dinner one night. C was fascinated watching it, and the other birds dive for fish...or fisherman's bait off the pier. 

I don't know what it is about this bench, but C loved to climb up on it with whatever his latest treasure was to sit and relax.

For a change of pace on a particularly warm day, we took a trip to Ellenton Premium Outlets for some shopping. C is a great little shopper, and had so much fun exploring all of the shops. 

One of our big adventures of the week was a trip to the Big Cat Habitat in Sarasota. The Big Cat Habitat is a safe haven for big cats, bears, and other animals in need. It's a bit rough around the edges, and not nearly as structured as a zoo (think gravel paths and port-o-potties), but was really fun to see. The enclosures are designed for viewing the animals up close (compared to a zoo that you are sometimes lucky to see the animals at all), and C was in complete awe watching them. Something he did NOT like...llamas. The llamas were one of the animals that you could feed or pet...if you were brave, but that was definitely not the case for C who was literally shaking with fear. Poor little guy! For kids who are a little older...or more brave...there was a great petting zoo with goats of all ages.

C got to go on his very first pony ride at the Big Cat Habitat! He was such a little stud, and not afraid at all of riding horseback. Surprising after his interaction with the llama!

We went to the 'show' where we got to see a Barbary lion (extinct in the wild), a liger (cross between a lion and tiger that only happens in captivity), a tiger, and an orangutang that did tricks. 

After our busy afternoon at the Big Cat Habitat, we stopped in St. Armands for an early dinner at one of our favorite Italian restaurants, Venezia, and ice cream at Kilwin's (toasted coconut & brownie double scoop in a bowl is our favorite for sharing). C loved the Kilwin's stop not only because he loves ice cream, but also because their sweets are displayed in a glass case at just the right level for him to ogle over.

We made it back to the island just in time for a quick walk on the beach and another absolutely gorgeous sunset before calling it a night.

Of course, no trip to Florida would be complete for the guys without a day spent fishing, and after a few windy rough days, they got their shot. The haul was pretty good in the end, but they took a picture after pulling in this little guy just in case they didn't have any luck during the trip after a slow start. The fish they kept were grouper, and one yellow snapper about 40 miles offshore. 

Meanwhile, while the boys went fishing, C & I, Aunt C, Aunt T, and Uncle J had our own adventures. We went to the city pier in Anna Maria, and C learned all about playing maracas, and how to put a tip in the tip jar for the live entertainment!

On this trip, C became quite fearless about the ocean. He LOVED nothing more than to run along the beach where the waves were breaking, and stomp in the water and sand. As the week went on, he continued to get more brave, and tested his luck by pushing it to the limits on how far into the ocean he could get away with before T or I swooped in and scooped him out squealing in delight.

No trip to Anna Maria would be complete without a visit (or two) to The Donut Experiment, and as you can tell, C would agree. Between the exaggerated 'Mmmm's' coming from his mouth and shoveling in donuts as fast as he could, I think it's safe to say that The Donut Experiment has been firmly established as a must-do on every trip we ever take to Anna Maria Island.

On our way home, as you can see, T was frustrated by having to wait for a hot second in a line at the airport (because no one has ever had to do that right!?). This picture cracks me up, particularly the fact that C is pointing out how annoyed Papa T is. Hahaha...







C did great on our flights home (we had a short layover in Minneapolis), and had so much fun watching all of the busy workers and airplanes coming and going at the airport. By the time we got on our final flight, he was fighting sleep pretty hard, but held out until we made it through the clouds...falling asleep sitting straight up watching out the window as the sun was setting. A sure sign of a great trip!