School Supplies

This morning Zoe and I decided to go get all her school supplies for 2^nd grade. We grabbed the list off the fridge and off we went. I think I love back to school shopping just as much as Zoe does. I always always always buy extra and of course I always find some kind of pen that I just must have.

This year it was all about the color purple. Any supply on the list the teacher didn’t specify a certain color – it was automatically purple. Zoe had a great time picking out all her cool funky #2 pencils, folders, pencil bag, and crayons, and this year she even needed a calculator!  Picking that out was a huge deal, (Zoe picked a yellow one with black stripes).

We must have been in the store for over an hour, we were so into it. Of course, we ran into a few of her friends who were also shopping for supplies. All the kids are excited and looking forward to going into 2^nd grade. I’m sure mommy will get excited too when she gets over the fact that her baby girl is growing up and going into 2^nd grade.

We are BACK!

We are back! To say we had a summer adventure would be an understatement. We had a summer none of us will ever forget. We drove about 4,000 miles over a period of 3 weeks. We went through 8 states and had about a million potty stops along the way. We sang, we had long talks, we fought, we laughed, we cried, but the best part of all, we made memories to last a lifetime. Will I ever attempt this long of a ‘road trip’ again? Probably not but it was worth all the memories we made along the way. Sometimes in life we take certain things for granted but when you are on the open road with hours upon hours to think and reflect, I think it’s good for the soul.

It was wonderful to see friends and family, and we miss them all already.  However, we are happy to be home safe and sound. We are blessed to have had time with our loved ones and we look forward to getting back to our schedule and settling in for the remainder of the summer.  It won’t be long before school starts and our road trip is the subject of the ‘What I did this summer’ essay!

Georgia

We spent a few days with Granddad and Grammy and it was lots of fun. Zoe was in heaven going all around town with them. Grammy took Zoe to her office to show her off (along with her other cousins), they went to the park; they did a little shopping, ate banana splits, stayed up late, and ate lots of yummy southern dishes. I’m not sure she could ask for much more. Zoe absolutely loves her family and has had the best summer vacation any kid could ask for.

The last night we were there, Zoe wanted to sleep in Grammy & Granddad’s camper so, that is what we did. Zoe and I stayed up until midnight in the camper telling scary stories. We had a blast and were laughing so loud we thought everyone in the house would hear us. I live for those one on one moments with my daughter. (I also loved that the camper had air conditioning.)

Farm Visit

We had a nice stop over visit with Aunt Pam and Uncle Eddie at their farm and even had a wonderful home grown, and home cooked meal.  Complete with Uncle Eddie’s famous venison burgers.  It was so much fun to watch Zoe ‘help’ out with afternoon ‘chores’.  Zoe got to water some plants, get the grill set up, take out compost, and browse the garden for any additional ripened veggies.  Best of all, Zoe got to drive Uncle Eddie’s tractor and help grade the new drive way gravel.  There was even time to climb the magnolia tree and grab a few figs along the way.  Zoe worked up such an appetite; she had TWO burgers and a several rounds of veggies.

It was wonderful seeing Pam and Eddie, and I hope they enjoyed our visit as much as we did.  Out of all the things we’ve done and seen over the month of our summer vacation, I’m not sure anything so far has topped Zoe getting to drive the tractor!

Zip Lining 101

I can’t remember the last time I had this much fun (except for when I went white water rafting). Before leaving Georgia there was one more item on our ‘to do’ list: a zip line tour with Zoe.

When we got there, they made Zoe weigh in to make sure she met the weight requirement, (she made it by 4 lbs.) and we all had to sign waivers, even Zoe! She thought it was serious because she had to sign what she called, ‘a contract’. Once all the paperwork was in order, we were off to the pick up our equipment and get a safety briefing. After suiting up, Zoe was intently listening to all the safety instructions. She was called to the front to make sure she could hear and see everything because she was the youngest one there.

We were in a group of about 12 people and as we all lined up to cross the swinging cable bridge that led to the first platform, Zoe didn’t hesitate. She stepped right up when it was her turn and handed the guide her safety clips and followed the directions she was given. There are two safety clips attached to your harness. When you reach each platform, you have to clip one at a time to safety cables on the platform and as you transfer them you have to say to the guide, “transfer one”, then he checks to make sure the first clip is secure, then answers “transfer one” you then clip the second saying, “transfer two”, which he replies, “transfer two”. Zoe was all business but, a natural, Shelli and I would chuckle every time we would hear her say, “transfer one……”

The course had 9 platforms all different but equally fun. The only scary part was the bridge for me. I won’t lie, I was a little weak kneed when we got off that thing. I was glad it was over and hoped there were NO MORE swinging bridges. At the end, none of us were ready to go. We had it down pat and were ready for a more challenging course but Zoe wasn’t needs about 40 more pounds on her before we can do the other ones. I’m sure this adventure is one Zoe won’t soon forget!

http://www.historicbanningmills.com/zipline/

Ice Cream

Banana Splits are always a win-win however, Granddad took the prize on making his look PROFESSIONAL!

 After all, who eats healthy when they are on vacation?!

Georgia & Horses

Not long before we left on our road trip, Granddad and Grammy sent Zoe a very special book on the local painted horses being displayed around the town where they live in. Well, today the book became real when we got to go into town to see them all ‘in person’. We walked around and checked them all out and Zoe thought it was super cool. It was even cooler that her cousins, Katie, Andrew, and Brianna were in town visiting too and went with us to check them out.

http://petschfamily.blogspot.com/2012/06/special-delivery.html

Mamaw & Pop Pop

Staying with Mamaw and Pop Pop for several weeks has been lots of fun. Zoe got lots of quality time to do her favorite things with them. She did it all from work in the yard, play outside, go to the park, play in the pool, slide down the slip ‘n slide, along with lots of cuddle time in front of the TV and of course, one of her favorite rituals to do with Pop Pop is eat peanut butter on a spoon with him every morning. Mamaw would read to her at night and she loved that too! She loved every second she was here and as much as she was missing her friends, she told me that her friends will be there when she gets back, right now it’s her time with Mamaw & Pop Pop.

On another note, while we were here my mom and I got to enjoy a few days away just the two of us. We drove to Naples for 2 days. We did lots of shopping, eating, chatting, napping and of course laughing. It was nice to stay up late having girl talk, I know I’m far from perfect however, I'm lucky and super blessed to have parents that support and love me so much.

 Thanks for everything Mom and Dad. We love you and will miss you bunches!