Myrtle Beach with Calvin

A few weeks ago Paul and I decided that it would be a good idea to go to the Tanger Outlet Mall in Myrtle beach to buy me some postpartum clothes since I was no longer able to keep my maternity pants up and my old jeans were still too tight.  I love outlet malls and the beach so it sounded awesome.  It wasn't.

Calvin hates the car for some reason and cried almost the whole day.  We got some dirty looks in Banana Republic as I hurriedly carried his screaming head out of the dressing room, followed by Paul and our humungous stroller.  Calvin also gets really scared at loud noises and screamed his head off when I was changing his diaper in the mall bathroom and someone dared to dry their hands with an electric drier.  Poor baby.

When we got down to the beach after shopping Calvin managed to fall asleep in the stroller so we did get to enjoy the boardwalk a little.  It was pretty cloudy.

The drive home took us more than 3 hours because we had to stop and soothe him practically every 5 minutes. 

On the bright side, I now have jeans that fit me and a pretty cute top to wear with them.  And I think (3 weeks later) that we might be figuring out how to keep Calvin from freaking out in the car.  Maybe.

Sumter County Fair

Calvin has had his fair share of outings for being such a little guy.  He's been to several restaurants, grocery shopping, out to Swan Lake, to church, and just this weekend we took him to the fair!  Yup, it's fair season again!  Talk about sensory overload for the little babe!  There were so many sounds, sites, and smells to take in but he handled it like a champ. 

Paul and I had a good time as well!  This time around we bought deep-fried Oreos and deep-fried Rice Krispie Treats.  I wasn't a fan of the Oreo but I looooooved the Rice Krispie Treat.  I think it was even better than the deep-fried Reeses that we tried last year at the State Fair.

We thoroughly enjoyed walking the midway, perusing the exhibits, and seeing all of the animals.  Calvin is always really good when we take him out but I think he especially liked the fair.


And for those craving more news about the little guy . . . He really likes being swaddled and rocked.  He also loves being outside.  At his appointment last week he weighed 10 lbs 14 oz, and I'm sure he's gained a ton since then.  He likes his bath only every other time and he's losing some of his hair.  He also tricks us into thinking he's responding to or smiling at us when in reality he's just filling his pants.  We love being his parents though and feel lucky that he's fitting into our lives so nicely!

On the 4th of July

We celebrated our nation's independence by taking a hike at Harbison State Forest in North Columbia.  I made Paul walk ahead of me so I didn't have to walk through the spider webs.  It makes sense though . . . I mean the webs hit me in the face but they hit him in the shoulders.  That seems like it would be much easier to handle.  No one wants a spider in their face.  After the hike we did a little baby shopping then came home for some hamburgers on the grill.  Later we went to the park to watch a spectacular fireworks show with practically the whole city.  Once again it was incredibly hot and muggy.  Story of my life.

Paul left today for yet another TDY.  I swear we've only been home for 3 of the 7 months that have gone by this year.  I'm sad I can't go with him this time (ya know because I'm pregnant and all that jazz) but Annie's coming to keep me company and that basically equals party time.

Lake Wateree

Hi, I'm Abby.  I'm 34 weeks pregnant and I went kayaking on a lake with my husband in 100 degree weather.  This was our kayak.  It weighed about a million pounds.

This is me showing off my life vest that was too loose on the top and too tight on the bottom.  Also, sidenote, I bought a lot of pink maternity clothes . . . you might suppose I'm having a girl, but no.

Here's Paul the man waiting to return our life vests.  He was the champion paddler/steerer because he has all the muscles and stuff.  Also, he's an Eagle Scout.

We kayaked out to that little island in the middle of the lake, had a picnic, and swam in the water.  And we got majorly burned by our friend the sun.  Did I mention it was 100 degrees?

But it was a fantastic day.  And I'm glad my husband is so nice.  And also strong enough to help me and my baby out of a kayak.

And just for fun, here's a picture of the cockroach that I found in my shower the other day.  I killed it, don't worry.

Killer III

We finally went camping again after an almost two-year hiatus!  I think the last time we went was the summer of 2010 when we went with Tyler to Zion's National Park . . . if you don't count the time we set the tent up in the backyard.

This time we went to Poinsett State Park, just a 30 minute drive from our house.  We went mountain biking there in the fall and thought it was gorgeous.  And last weekend we went there for a little hike and freaked ourselves out by imagining menacing alligators around every corner (for the full story check out Paul's dream blog).  Now we've probably done everything there is to do at this particular state park.

Camping was a great time, like it always is.  We gathered wood and built a killer fire to roast our hot dogs and JUMBO mallows.  JUMBO mallows are delicious but require a little different roasting technique since they're so huge.  I think we got the hang of it though.

After the cold, cold night we packed up our gear and drove to the nearby Manchester State Forest to do some mountain biking.  We rode a 10 mile trail named "Killer III" and boy was it killer.  After a few miles of riding we ran into this creepy guy who looks like he might actually kill you.

Creepy right?  I was pretty weirded out by him until later we ran into this guy:

And then this guy:

And then this shivering kid with goggles on his head:

And on and on it went . . .

I didn't realize how many creepy statues there would be on the trail!  My favorite is probably the purple alien at Ridge Ride, with Indian Mound, Watermelon Field, and Twistys following close behind.  It was nice to have some "company" and especially nice to have reasons to rest!

We had so much fun.  Mountain biking is hard and exhausting but worth it when you have a great riding buddy and a beautiful day to enjoy!

Charleston, SC

After our trip to Fort Sumter we decided to head to downtown Charleston to see the sights.  We had a tourist map that we used that to navigate through the historic district and to help us find the cool buildings.

First we walked along the water and found this cool fountain.  The weather was perfect.  If I lived in Charleston I would just sit at the waterfront and people watch.  Say cheese!

Then we wandered through the streets and spotted these neat buildings.  I thought the area was lovely and would like to go back again sometime.

We had a delightful dinner and then drove home.  I'm glad we could give my parents a little taste of the south (that isn't Sumter).

Fort Sumter, SC

While my parents were visiting we decided to go to Fort Sumter, where the first shots of the Civil War were fired.  The fort is located on a man made sandbar in Charleston Harbor.

To get to the fort you have to ride a ferry about 30 minutes across the harbor.  We departed from Patriot's Point where the USS Yorktown is housed.  We decided not to go in and see her, but she looked pretty cool from the outside.

On our ferry ride across the harbor we saw some pretty cool birds.  You know, pelicans and the like.  Then there were these seagulls that followed the boat the whole way there (and back).  Probably they were looking for fish in the wake, but I did see a Dorrito or two tossed from one of the upper decks.  I did have a video, but I'll have to work on getting it uploaded later.

The fort itself was pretty cool.  There was all kinds of artillery, shell fragments, and historical memorabilia, like the flag.  Lots of information to take in and facts and tidbits to remember, which I'm never very good at.  Paul and I had a good time looking at the canons and imagining ourselves firing bombs at the enemy. 

A good time was had by all!