Independence Weekend in Maryland

Our summer started out with a bang this year!  My parents flew into Maryland from Utah in late June.  Jade didn’t get out of school until June 25th, but the fun started quickly after.  We headed down to my sister, Kristen’s house in Maryland for the 4th of July weekend, where she had lots of fun plans in store! 

After playing tennis and replenishing the calories with donuts and slurpees, we headed to Dares Beach on Chesapeake Bay, just a few blocks from Kristen’s house. 

Separation anxiety hit Tanner hard right before this trip, so he took awhile warming up to everyone.  He did, however, become attached to my dad real quick!  I figured he would, because the way I interact with my kids is very similar to how my dad is with them:  silly and playfully physical.  Tanner loved him right off.

 

After the hot walk to the beach, we were all happy to cool off in the water! 

 

I even caught my parents flirting in the water.  Still in love after all these years!  So cute. 

The girls (Jade (7), Lucy (7), and Hannah (10)) loved swimming in the water.

  

The boys (Ridge (3 1/2), Tanner (1 1/2), and Perry (5)), loved playing in the sand. 

  

That night we went to a concert in the park at St. Mary’s College in Southern Maryland.  We had a picnic, played games, and ate treats on the lawn before the concert started. 

There were lots of people at the concert.  Lucky for us Kristen snagged us a spot to the side up front, so we had a better view than this! 

All the cute cousins with their fun grandparents!

Sisters with the parents.  You can definitely tell we are related!

The boys loved being with their grandparents. 

 

Just under three months apart in age, Lucy and Jade are great pals.  They even tried to coordinate their glow sticks to be the exact same. 

 

On Independence Day we went to the Maryland Blue Crabs baseball game.  On our drive to the game, a major rain storm hit.  It was so bad we could barely see and we started hydroplaning at one point.  The storm was so quick though, by the time we reached the stadium, the clouds were already clearing.  The rest of the evening was great weather!  It was so bizarre! 

We had seats on the lawn to allow the kids room to run around and play. 

 

Being all together is so fun (and rare), we had to take lots and lots of pictures!!

 

 

  

Towards the end of the game, we moved to the regular seats as they set up for fireworks.  Tanner was getting tired and started to snuggle with his blanket.  Ridge was so sweet and started to cuddle and kiss him too. 

 

Our last full day at Kristen’s was Sunday.  Their church is really late, so the kids had plenty of time to hang out beforehand.  I thought it was really cute when I found them all reading in the living room. 

Of course, we had to take the opportunity being all dressed up to get more pictures! 

This picture with my parents and all the grandkids is my absolute favorite!!

We had such a fun time being all together with the Staley family!!  Then Monday morning we loaded my parents in our car to take them home with us to get a taste of New Jersey!

Son & Father, Mom & Daughter

Cody took Ridge on the church Fathers and Sons campout on Friday.  Ridge was so excited all day!  He kept asking when it would be time to go camping with Daddy! 

Jade was really excited for Ridge too.  These two little cuties said their cute little goodbyes. 

Ridge got to play in the dirt, run around with the other little boys, roast hotdogs and marshmallows, sleep in a tent, and then wake up and go fishing!  He was in heaven.  Apparently, the fishing was real good.  And by good I mean the fish were easy to catch, not so much eat. 

According to Cody, “Sunfish are not the brightest fish in the sea.  They take the worm as soon as it hits the water.  They sit about 15 feet from the shore watching the cast.  As soon as the worm hits the water they swarm it!”  Cody even shared the worms with the other little boys, and just about every kid who wanted to was able to catch a fish. 

It wasn’t long before Ridge was casting the line out and reeling it in on his own. 

The boys’ day ended with 8 blue gill, 1 trip into the lake, and “1 accident.”  It was a good day.  While they were fishing, Ridge told Cody, “You are the best daddy for taking me camping and fishing!”  He also repeated the same thing to the rest of us several times after he got home.  Sounds like he must have enjoyed himself! 

Meanwhile, back at the homestead, I had planned a fun-filled weekend for mom and daughter!  Originally, we had planned on Tanner going on the Fathers and Sons, but in the end decided he is still a bit too young.  I really wanted Cody and Ridge to enjoy themselves and not have to worry so much about chasing Tanner the entire time!  I determined to carry on with Jade as planned even with Tanner around.  Besides, he goes to bed early and takes a long nap, so we’d have plenty of one-on-one time anyway!

Jade came home to a little surprise waiting on the table for her:  a small gift, special snack, the weekend’s itinerary, and even a new book from Grandpa R. that had arrived in the mail moments before!  

To get Jade extra excited about our weekend, I typed up a schedule for her to follow along with.  It was also to keep me focused on the kinds of things I wanted to be doing with her.  Getting distracted by housework and to do lists is so easy for me; this way I would stay focused on the quality time I wanted to have with Jade.  Instead of doing the typical going out to eat and watching a movie, I decided to fill our time with activities I would love to do more often with Jade but can’t because of time or the boys being too destructive little. 

I knew our agenda was a bit ambitious, but we were actually able to do almost everything!  We didn’t watch a movie and we didn’t play dolls, but that’s because Jade chose to do the other activities instead.

Here are a few of the highlights.  Double chocolate waffles for dessert on Friday night. 

Chocolate crepes with fruit and whipped cream for breakfast on Saturday morning.  We made several kinds then took turns trying them and ranking our favorites. 

Making a tutu for Jade’s new dog, Sparkles.  Earlier in the week, Jade had mentioned she would like to make a tutu for Sparkles.  I like the way she thinks!  Because, c’mon.  Look how cute. 

The one hiccup in the day was when Tanner pushed my sewing machine off the table.  We had purposely set up our sewing downstairs, so he could play with the toys.  The sewing machine was still too appealing though.  Tanner climbed up next to me on the couch and with one shove, sent my machine flying!  We managed to finish our project, but there is something seriously wrong with the motor now.  Guess I won’t be sewing again for awhile.

Playing Truth or Dare while we ate turkey croissants for lunch.  This was Jade’s idea.  She dared me to do things like “eat paper” and “keep my eyes open for a whole minute.”  I received honest answers to questions like “have you ever felt like we don’t love you” and “have you ever kept a secret from me.”  Let me tell you, it is a great game to play with a seven-year-old. 

Preparing art for the church talent show.  Jade loves to draw and decided she wanted to display a castle at the talent show this weekend.  With my limited ability, I had been teaching her 3-D forms and perspective.  I told her she needed to practice until she had it down and then could make her final drawing for display.  She caught on pretty quickly.  While I put Tanner down for a nap and took a shower, Jade drew this final version all on her own.

Cake baking and decorating lessons.  This was probably the highlight of the day.  A craft that’s actually a treat or a treat that’s actually a craft?  Now we’re talking Jade’s language!  While the cakes baked and cooled I gave Jade a lesson on piping.  She practiced on wax paper before trying it on the cake.

Jade was quick to tell me she already knew how she wanted to design her cake.  She wanted a garden theme:  green frosting for the “grass” base and pink flowers with yellow centers for the “garden.”

Jade frosted and decorated her cake all on her own.  She even added lettering that reads, “Happy garden frend.”  She was so thrilled with the result! 

Right as we were finishing up our cakes, Cody and Ridge walked through the door.  What timing!  My time with Jade was so meaningful (and I’m pretty sure Cody feels the same about his with Ridge).  Although the house was utter chaos by the end and we were all exhausted, I am so glad I took the time to do these things with Jade.  We may have worn ourselves out, but we felt oh so happy!