Surfside? More like Sandside!

A long Memorial Day weekend gave us a chance to spend time with family at Surfside, which also means time on the beach.  Cory and I knew that Henry took some time to "warm up" to swimming last summer, but we blamed it on our neighborhood's chilly pool that, truth be told, caused us our own pause before entering.  But, since we spent a recent Saturday swimming in a friend's heated pool, we thought Henry might be ready to splash in the ocean.

We thought wrong, and Henry wasn't ready to splash in the salty water.  He did, however, give it a try and break out a few smiles after a couple of walks in the shallow waves.  Eventually, I would say that he gained an appreciation for the ocean, but it didn't come close to his strong affection for the sand in which he played for about six hours.

Obliging Uncle Joel and Daddy covered Henry over and over with the grainy stuff that found its way into the car, house, and bed. 

Henry also broke out his silly walk for the family.  We love this walk, and I really hope to catch it on video before it finds its way among the other funny things he "used to do."

Pool time was in order for Sunday, and Henry eventually loosened his death grip on me and let Nana swim him around.  And, in the last bit of water play time, he relaxed enough to get some gracefully aided laps around the pool.

We didn't have enough time to make it back down to the beach on Monday but did manage to eat some delicious hot dogs and burgers.  Thanks, Hughes family, for a wonderful weekend.  We love you and miss you!

Mr. Personality

Henry's "good note" from school on Thursday afternoon said, "Henry is SO funny!  He has a great personality!" 

We completely agree with the formal assessment.

The apple doesn't dig far from the tree

Oh, my dear Henry.  Someone, I'm not sure who, should probably teach you not to procrastinate.  My own school year memories are peppered with "Mama!  I need to read a book that I don't even have... by first period tomorrow... and I need to do a presentation with visuals!"  Or, at the ripe age of 30, staying awake all night, not to tend to my newborn, but to begin researching and writing a paper due the next day.  I got an A. 

Tonight, I almost forgot that we were supposed to collect a soil sample from our yard for Henry to take to school tomorrow.  The result was a post-bath dirt dig in one of the beds in our front yard.  In the end, we got the required bag of dirt and had a good time just in time.  I think he'll get an A for Amusing... or Awesome hair.

Like I said, Henry, someone should probably teach you to not procrastinate.  Daddy and I will get around to it someday.

Quick trip to Paris

... Mountain State Park for a Sunday picnic of baguette et m&m biscuit...

fresh champignons...

and "stuffed" ducks...

Followed by a (not pictured) paddle boat road along the lake and lots of strolls and sits along the historic bathhouse grounds.

Henry looks so much like a little boy here... not my little toddler at all!

We caught a gander at a black snake and some glimpses of a few salamanders.  They were not on our menu, but they skittered away as though we were waiting to slurp them off the stone wall.

I sure do love this snake, salamander, duck, boat, bug lovin' boy and his spontaneous hugs!

Late Nite

Henry had a chance to stay up laaaaaaate on Friday night--10:00 PM!  By the end of the night, he was delirious but still anxious to play with and entertain Darion and Christine.

No, Darion is not teaching Henry gang signs.  Henry's instructing Darion to do various hand tricks.

 Christine prepped him for bed with a quick book read--hand tricks not included.

The Secret

We had an amazing weekend filled with lots of good times with lots of good friends and neighbors--from a pool party to a garage band party.  Long afternoons and late nights can usually lead to Henry waking up with his cranky pants already on for church on Sunday, but he did great all day up until he and Daddy got back from Publix tonight, and the spaghetti that I made wasn't up to his standard.  (Actually, he just wanted to eat "that big cheese," the block of parmesan.)

But, you know what, it was all good.  I had a massage this afternoon, and I now know the secret to being a perfect, patient mother--a professional massage.

Close Encounters

Henry met a mime on Mother's Day while we took advantage of the last hour of Greenville's Artistphere.  Or, perhaps we should say that a mime met Henry.

I cannot blame Henry for being suspect of a silver-faced man who doesn't change his expression unless you put a dollar in his bucket.  Plus, there's the whole idea of getting a bunch of suckers from a stranger who just suddenly took them out of his suitcase.

But, really, all's well that ends with a sucker or five.

On Monday, we celebrated the random state employee's Confederate Memorial Day observance by taking a mid-afternoon trip to the Greenville Zoo where the iguana took a special interest in his observer.

Again, I can't blame Henry for getting a little worried about a super large lizard taking a special interest in him.

You have to admit, though.  If you were a lizard, you would think Henry was cute, too!