Corolla Vacation 2017

SORRY! Life has been a whirlwind over the last two months.  I will try to recap what we have been up to this summer.  One of the most exciting trips we went on was Harrison's first family (minus D.J.) vacation to Corolla in the Outer Banks.  My family has been going there since my mom was pregnant with me, so it's a pretty big family tradition.  Over the years, the group has gotten smaller and smaller due to travel from Pennsylvania, everyone having their own lives and the family expanding tremendously.  This year though, we had THREE houses and over 30 people come which was SO much fun.  Four of my mom's six siblings where there with their spouses.  My first cousins that were there ranged from 40 to 27 and my second cousins that were there ranged from 18 to Harrison! He was the youngest.

We stay in Corolla Light - the best resort on the Outer Banks! So many great activities for the kids, adults and our all time favorite - BINGO. However, I remember bingo being a lot more fun as a child than WITH a child.

Here are some of my favorite pictures from the trip....

Lots of beach days with cousins.

Our group ruled the beach!

Cousin love!

Gigi is the best.

Mom and her sister in law, Janice.

Surfin USA!

Every week the resort has a sand castle contest and Uncle Johnny is our family artist.  This year was a flamingo because thats what his granddaughter Emery asked for!

And as you can see, our daily routine was exhausting! So exhausting that Harrison fell asleep in the high chair!

As much fun as we had, it really stinks not having daddy on vacation with the family.  We can't wait to make an off season family getaway to make special memories with daddy!

Summer Lovin'

Ok, I admit it.  The blog has taken a back burner.  But how can I resist spending every minute I can with this cutie?!

Our summer has been flying by, which I'm having mixed emotions on.  Every day that goes by, our little man gets bigger but in the same breath, that means D.J. gets to come home that much sooner.  The Minor League season lasts until Labor Day Weekend, if they don't make the playoffs, so hopefully about six more weeks.

Being away from D.J. hasn't been too terribly hard.  Except for when I hear "Dont Miss Your Life" by Phil Vassar. Cue the tears. We try to FaceTime every day before the game to make sure HC gets to see his daddy and hear his voice.  I know it's not normal to everyone, but this is our normal and we have to stay positive and keep striving towards that dream!

Our summer has been crazy busy.  Lets try to recap July in one blog post. Sorry for the photo overload.  July 4th Weekend was spent with lots of family in town for my cousins retirement from the Navy after 20 years! Way to go, Shawn!

Harrison had a blast in all of his July 4th outfits!

D.J. was able to come home for the All Star Break for three days! We are so blessed that the teams he has been on are relatively close to home so he is able to come home for multiple days off.  HC and daddy had lots of time together and we made sure to snap lots of pictures of our ASB....

 We cashed in our date night, thanks to Gigi and Grandpa Bieber! We enjoyed dinner at Watermans, a trip to Target without baby, and then came back to a sleeping kiddo! Tuesday D.J. and HC gave me a little taste of what night time will be like when he comes home.

Bath time with his favorite! 

Melt my heart, please.  Matching in their robes. <3 

Other than D.J. being home those days, we have only seen him two other times when his team played in Richmond, VA.  We were able to drive up after work and see him play which was awesome.  We have been spending a lot of time at the pool, over at our neighbors house for Sunday Funday and getting great workouts in! 

It really does take a village to raise a child and we am so thankful and blessed to have such amazing people in our village. From our parents and family to our friends and everyone else that helps with HC, we love you all! Thank you for making this summer (so far) one to remember! 

Pool Baby

Y'all, we for sure have ourselves a pool baby on our hands! Harrison absolutely loves the pool.  And I could not be happier.  Growing up we always had a pool in our backyard.  We used to spend our entire summers in there. Between the playground and mud pits we used to make and catching the balls when we jump off the diving board, we made so many memories in the backyard. 

Living three blocks away from my parents is the best thing in the world.  I cannot explain how fortunate we are that we live so close.  Harrison gets to see his grandparents pretty much every day and will get to make the same memories I did in the pool growing up. 

Summer days are here and Harrison made his first dip in the pool last weekend! It's hard because at this age they can't have any sunscreen yet, so we have to make sure he stays in the shade as much as possible. 

We are obsessed with the cutest little water hat by George Hats. I came across them on Instagram and knew that with all the beach and pool time Harrison would be having this summer, he had to have one! He seriously loved having his little toes in the water and being out there with everyone at the pool!

This weekend we spent both days at the pool and in the water.  We decided to try and see how he did in this little float, and he was GREAT! It's still a little big for him, but it's better than holding him by his armpits. I mean, does he get any cuter?! His little hair is growing in more and his personality is really coming to life these days. 

He is a giggling machine these days and those make the best little smiles ever. 

This kid makes my days so special.  His smiles, his eyes, the way he looks at me... I love it all. I hope he knows how much his daddy and I love him every day of his life.  I hope we can give him the life he will always dream of and more. 

Mama loves you little boy! I can't imagine summer pool days without you now! 

Weekend Wrap Up: Baseball Signs Galore

This weekend was full of finishing off some orders and getting this bronze of mine on! 

Friday night we had a happy hour downtown Norfolk for work.  It was a great turnout and really wrapped up the school year for parents and faculty.  After the happy hour, I went to my parents house to see the whole gang to have crabs! My brother, Bobby, was in town for the weekend so we all tried to get together.  By the time I got home, Bobby was already out with friends so we missed eachother.  After I had some food, I took Stryker back home and we laid low for the night.

Saturday morning I woke up, did some lawn work (I wish the bird and squirrels would eat my weeds instead of my plants!), and then had a hair appointment at 9.  It was a long overdue hair appointment, considering my husband told me my highlights were growing out! I got a little trim while I was there too.  Afterwards I went to Norfolk Collegiate for the 4th Annual David Gayle Memorial Lacrosse Game! It was a great turnout and the scholarship raised a ton of money.  It was a great way to remember a friend and carry on his spirit.

After the game, Ansley, Colleen and I hit the beach.  It was so great to chat with Ans since I haven't seen/talked to her in AGES because of her grad school! But now she is graduated, so she is all mine! Saturday night I babysat for some pretty awesome kiddos and got home late.

Sunday morning I slept in till about 8:30.  I got up early to finish some signs to have them in the mail tomorrow!

So excited to be able to document these baseball families stories and can't wait to finish the next two over this week!

Sunday afternoon I laid by the pool, threw the ball to Stryker in the pool, and then went down to Harborfest for about an hour or two.  We had a nice family dinner outside followed by a game of Hand & Foot with mom, Bob, and Nana!

I hope you all had a fabulous weekend and are looking forward to a great week of blog posts from Blog With The Browns!

And even though its Monday, its a Happy Summer Hours Monday to me!

Now go check out my amazing sponsor!

Summer Monogram Giveaway

Happy Thursday everyone! I hope you all are looking forward to the weekend and hopefully catching some rays!   I am so excited to be a part of this great giveaway for all you lovely readers to participate in! I hope you take advantage of this special monogram giveaway! Mason Jar and Beach Towel!? Who could say no!!

And remember- it's open for 7 whole days!!

Summer is finally here and to celebrate we have gathered some great ladies to host an awesome monogram giveaway! Meet your hostesses below & enter for a chance to win a Marley Lilly monogrammed beach towel + matching mason jar tumbler. Our goal is to get you beach ready so we are also throwing in a $25 Amazon Gift Card for a new book, beach bag, or any other summer accessory you just can't live without!

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Thanks for joining us & good luck! 

Here's to a perfect monogrammed summer!

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