Tuesday, June 30, 2009

About a hundred million...

Pictures - 
and reasons we loved our week at Newport Beach.

Especially Noah.  The kid was in heaven.  The entire week.  Loved the beach, the water, the sea creatures.  The family, the attention, the junk food grandma kept giving him : )

Alex wasn't quite a beach babe.  She liked it for the first hour or two everyday and then she'd had it.  With the sun, the sand the wind.  So we'd bury her in towels and she'd fall asleep under the canopy to the sound of the waves.  But I think her favorite part of the day was going back up to the beach house for her bath : )

Me?  Well I'm not gonna lie and say it was easy.  Being 5 1/2 months pregnant with baby #3, having constant Braxton Hicks contractions, suffering from Plantar fasciitis, dealing with 2 jet-lagged children, and being without my husband was no piece of cake.  Not to mention the traveling, about 12 hours door to door (but I'm not even gonna go there).  Lucky for me, I've got great in-laws from Grandma and Grandpa to the aunts, uncles, and cousins who helped out and were of course fun to be with.

To be honest with you, Noah alone would have made the trip worth it.  It was so fun to see him having the time of his life.


Noah, Alex, and Cousin Jack our first morning in Newport
Noah, of course, was immediately searching for sea creatures among the rocks
And he took to the waves like a pro.
The kids loved building sandcastles with Grandma
and just chillin' together on the beach.
Noah and Jack in their sandpit.
Grandma took Noah down under the pier early one morning to catch starfish - a highlight of his week, he can't stop talking about it.
His other favorite activity?  Catching crabs - with pinchers (he would want me to specify)
He was brave - got pinched a couple times by some big ones, and one tried crawling up his arm under his swimshirt
And let me tell you, he was good at it!
He was also a pro at digging for sand crabs - even managed to impress some girls he met on the beach one day : )

Noah tried to teach me how to play tennis, but decided I wasn't very good at it.  He also learned how to throw a frisbee, thanks to his uncles.  I'm NO help in the sports department...
Just enjoying a diet coke on the beach
Kidding - it's mine.  Although I'm sure he stole a sip or two...or three or four.
And here's me and Alex, warming up after playing in the waves.
We have to thank Aunt Ginger for our beautifully painted toenails and for doing Alex's hair.  The "paint nails" was a highlight for Alex.
In the mornings and evenings we'd sit outside the beach house, blow bubbles with the kids and watch the grown ups jumprope.
Yeah, I said that right - but I missed out on those action shots.
Noah was pretty easy on this trip - Alex, on the other hand, was a little crazy.
Can you tell?
That's what I felt like too by the end of the week with her.
More fun in the waves - Alex got braver as the week went on.  But her favorite was when I held her in the waves.  She squeezed my neck, kissed my face, and said, "Mommy you're so fun!"  The next day my back was killing me, but it was worth it : )
Alex in action.
And then there's Alex and her infamous naps on the beach.  A few times I think she slept for at least three hours - I kept checking to see if she was breathing.
Yeah, that's her under there.

And of course she's hanging on tight to "Little Deery"
Traumatic incident of the week - which occurred on the first day of the trip before we'd even arrived - Alex losing her blanky for good when she dropped it over a ledge at the Denver airport during our layover.
"Little Deery" (her affectionate name for one of her favorite stuffed animals) has become the replacement.
And here's a belly shot for you - it might be the only one you get.  I wish it wasn't me in a swimsuit but - who am I kidding?  I've been to the beach, the lake and the pool enough times already that way too many people have seen me pregnant in a swimsuit for me to care that much anymore.
Rolling in the sand - a great way to warm up, give yourself a rash and get sand in your eyes and so you cry for the next hour.  A daily occurrence.  
Noah being super cooperative for a picture, as usual.
How cute is she?
And I love the look on this kids face.
Walking the pier one evening.
Searching for more crabs and starfish - he also loved sticking his fingers in the sea urchins.  He made me do it once - ew, so creepy.
I told you Aunt Ging was good at hair didn't I?  
I love it!
Last day at the beach...


Other things we loved about the beach:

The morning walk to the donut shop
walking the pier every evening and stopping for ice cream
corn dogs
The Crab Cooker (sans kids)
my first taste of Pinkberry

Alright, it wasn't ALL about the food...

Although Noah did say at one point, "Mom, why is Grandma just giving me all the junk food?"
This was not a complaint, just confusion, happy confusion.

The trip was equal parts

Family
Beach
and Food

And it was awesome.


Thanks Gunn Family, we love and miss you!

15 comments:

Sarah said...

Oh my goodness, Summer, you are a trooper! :) Traveling across the country with your kids by yourself while being pregnant and feeling so lousy - you are amazing. You are one good daughter-in-law!!! I love all of the pictures, Noah's faces are so, so cute. And Alex cracks me up. I'm glad you guys survived and had so much fun at the beach :)

Tiffany said...

I LOVE all the fun beach pictures!!! Looks and sounds like you guys had a blast! I am so jealous! :) I sure miss you and the kids after seeing all these pics...can't wait to see you and Alex in just another week and a half!
P.S. Love the belly pics too, you look so cute!!!! :) Can't wait to see the belly in person!
Love you guys! XOXOXO

Brooke said...

Miss the beach, the food, the sunshine, the no-schedule schedule and everyone - including you and your absolutely darling kids!! Thanks so much for the fun week! Tell Alex, Noah (and Deery) hello!
XO

Lezli said...

Such great memories. . . . we love and miss you! XOOX

Rich and Natalie said...

So fun to see pictures of your trip! Looks like it was great. Hope you're recovering and feeling as well as possible :)

Lori said...

You look SO great Summer! I can't imagine doing that without a husband - you're a brave one. Glad you could enjoy the sun :)

Michele said...

that noah loved it so much makes me so happy and he isn't even my kid, so im sure it really did make it all worth it for you. all moms want is to make their kids happy! makes me want to go to the beach so bad. and i already told you this, but i think your tummy looks SO cute in a swimsuit. so excited to see you in a few weeks! oh, and one more thing... is ginger good at black girl hair, cuz she has talent and i don't, so maybe she can teach me a thing or two.

Faye said...

I am so glad you have so many great pictures to help hang on to all the memories of the trip for all of you. Noah sounds to me like he was meant to be a California kids - what do you think?

Shellie said...

Looks like you had fun. Can't wait to hear more details!

Lexie said...

Wow, what an amazing trip. I love your pictures and I am so impressed that Noah found a sea star. For what it's worth, I think you look amazing in your swimsuit, even prego, I look like a whale when I'm pregnant. Your kids are growing up and are just so adorable. I can't wiat to see #3!

Lisa said...

So fun to read about the beach - you are amazing to travel like that. Can you tell a difference yet with Paul's non-intern schedule? I've made a list of questions - finally- that I want to ask you about Rochester and Mayo, so I'll email you soon.

Catherine Call said...

Sum-Sum--So glad you made it back.....alive! Great pics! You look so great! I am really glad that the trip was fun....mostly for Noah!!! HA!

Carrie Anne said...

i LOVE the crab cooker! we've been to newport so many times...oh what super fun memories you cute pregnant momma!

Jessica O said...

Now that beats the beach at Chester Woods, for sure!
I'm glad you guys had so much fun.
I love all the pics.

Carmen said...

Summer, You're one hot Mama!!