Minds on a Permanent Vacation. Ocean is my only medication!

It's no secret that we miss terribly the ocean, hot weather and our family and friends down south. At the beginning of June we were able to get a dose of all the above. It was a much anticipated vacation and one we really loved taking. The kids and I headed to Roanoke a few days early to spend time with the grandparents and great grandparents. Then we headed to Ridgeland and HHI for our big family vacation. My side of the family spent a week in HHI. After a few more days in Ridgeland the kids and I hit the road for Wilmington to see some of our closest friends and then finally back down to Myrtle Beach for a couple days to spend time with my best friend, Amy. Of course, we saw Aunt Lissa, Granny Roach and the girls too! Shew-we, what a ride but well worth every mile!

Granny Peggy adores her grandchildren and we love her so much!
1-2-3...Jump!

The water was too cold for me so Carrington was trying to splash me - of course, her father was encouraging her!

Sims Girls

Nephew and Uncle

Rough life!

Grandson and Papa. These two loooove each other!

First shot of toes in the water!

The haze was from a fire somewhere in the area.

Hasn't stopped lovin the water!

Dippin' those little pigs in the sand and water.

Spent most of his days loungin' in the tent.

The Gang

That book must have been good!

MB crew - Jay, Melissa, Katy, Kelly

Showing off her 'kini and pigtails

Cousins - Their first vacation together!

Give me a smooch!

Pretty little lady! She use to spend the night with me when she was not much older than Carrington. That seems like yesterday!

Cousins

Oh, how I love these two!

Carrington wouldn't sit in the tree by herself this year but once Kelly jumped up there it was a whole other story.

Beautiful sisters

Mother, Daughter

Handsome Boy

Madison's juggling act

Yum,yum

playing together

One happy mommy - with her kids, on the beach.

5 year anniversary date - love him!

Play time at the beach.

The next few pictures were taken when Aaron was braving an Oyster Shooter Shot. It was a five step shot that proved to be hot, hot, hot! Aaron wasn't alone in taking the inferno shot - Melissa, Paul Sr, and Greg also took the shot but aren't pictured. Note...all were in tears before the end was near.

Just the beginning...

So hot he is drooling out the side of his mouth

Notice the glistening on his forehead

And again...

Almost there - eating the ginger to cool the heat.

Granny Sims on fussy baby duty.

Family dinner

Aunt Lissa and Uncle Jay with the girls

Carrington loves her Baylor

Favorite picture from the trip!!

One happy Sims family!

If Carrington could spend everyday with Baylor and Kelly she would be in heaven!

MeMe swinging with her grandbabies (and the dog who thinks it's a baby) before she heads home.

Berry picking in Wilmington with The Shaw Family

They wasted no time hitting the berry patch.

Five in the mouth, one in the bucket. That was Carrington's strategy.

The girls catching up over a bucket of berries

You would think there were full after eating their way through the field but it looks like they made room for more even after having ice cream

Supper Club with the ol' neighborhood gang. Carrington got to play with her favorite, neighbor friend, Miss Hayden

Carrington once again loving on her Kelly.

This was the one and only picture taken in Myrtle Beach. Amy and I tried to take a picture of our three kids together but they were not having it.

4 months old

Grayson turned 4 months old while we were on vacation. We were gone for 2 1/2 weeks and he did a super job traveling, having fun with family and friends and SLEEPING! Sleep is great and at 4 months old he has mastered the art of marathon, night time, sleeping. Thank you, thank you!

He has also taken off in growth and is now in the 95th percentile in height at 26 1/2 inches and the 75th percentile in weight at 15lb12oz. That's up 2 inches in one month!!

He is more interactive with each day making his awake time a lot of fun.

I'm sure he is sorry that he didn't get to chime in on this months update but that's what happens when you learn to sleep. Sleep takes first priority!

Our baby can...

The last two days have brought two new milestones for Grayson. First, we woke him from his early evening nap yesterday and found him like this...

Yes, our baby can roll!! When we put him back down for bed last night he immediately went from his back to his belly and has done so with each nap today. It makes me a little nervous because he puts his face in the mattress when we cries himself to sleep. Interestingly, we still have not seen him roll on the floor when playing.

Second, he is ticklish and laughs when you get his sugar (neck area) and his baby ribs. I love the sound of him laughing and seeing a big ol' smile on his face!

Sleeping update...I could kiss all over the pediatricians face! I needed his advice on not going in to get Grayson when he cries at night. The first night, Grayson cried all night but I didn't get him out of the crib until 5:30am (I couldn't make it to 6am after hearing him cry all night). It's been up and down, some nights he cries early on and doesn't cry again until 5:30-6:00am and other nights he'll cry in the middle of the night and fall back asleep until 5:30-6:00am. One morning he didn't wake up until almost 7am!! I think we've only made it one or two nights without any crying but he is on the right track. I think once he gets use to sleeping on his belly he will do even better.

With that, I guess our baby is trying to sleep, working hard on the "can" sleep!

3 months old

Mom said I should just start with the elephant in the room... I.DON'T.SLEEP.AT.NIGHT. When I say don't sleep at night, I mean I cried more last night than I slept. The doctor prescribed mom a plan when I was two months old and it started to work. For a few nights I made it through the night. Then I got sick and the swaddle blanket stopped holding my arms in and now I don't know what to do with myself at night. It's really, very miserable for all. We went back to the doctor today and we have another sleep prescription (really, it's the same one as before but mom didn't follow this part). This time I eat at 8pm, take a bath, and then go to bed at 9pm. No earlier, no later. Same routine every night. And best of all, my mom and dad are not allowed to come in my room in the middle of the night. If I decide to cry from 9pm-6am, then I'm all alone with my swan song. Doctor says this should cure me in a few days and I'll be back to sawing logs. Mom said she'll post an update at the end of the week. Regardless, pray for all!!!

I've really grown into my facial characteristics and expressions in the last month. My newborn face is no longer. I'm just one, handsome, infant, hunk, now. I enjoy the sound of my voice and have been dubbed Chatty Chuck. My big sister is my new fascination. I could watch her run circles around me all day,every day. She makes me laugh a lot too. When I get fussy, mom has her come in the room so I can get a good laugh and forget about my woes. I have almost mastered rolling over but need to figure out how to get my arm out of the way. Mom got this great seat out for me a few days ago. Since I can hold my head up and it doesn't wobble as much anymore, I get to sit in the seat for a few minutes and look out at the great big world. I'm lovin the view!

My 3 month stats are impressive. I weighed in at 14lbs,6oz and am 24 1/2 in. long. This jumped me into the 75th percentile in both weight and height. Even more reason I don't need the two or three feedings I'm demanding at night.

Mom added some Mother's Day pictures to this blog. She doubts she will get a blog up about Mother's Day, which was wonderful for a wonderful mommy. She got treated very well that day and as always, enjoyed spending the day with her family.

See y'all next month,
Grayson Walker Sims

Two and a Half! Need I say more.

Where to start! Okay - Hello, Baby Hollywood! She is everything you hear about being a toddler morphed into everything you hear about being a Hollywood superstar. She's got personality galore and spunk like it's her job. She can look at you one moment with big eyes and lots of love and the next minute be on the floor kicking, screaming, and crying - giving her best on screen performance. She is smart as a whip and too often is outsmarting her parents. Miss Smarty Pants loves to talk, sing, read books - just about anything that keeps her mouth running. Those verbal skills pay off though because she is often complimented on how well she speaks for a two year old. She has sweet, tender moments that remind us being a toddler isn't so bad. She holds onto our face and pulls us in for a kiss. She rubs our back when we hold her. She steals kisses from her little brother and she tells us she loves us several times a day. She continues to make me understand unconditional love. There's never a dull moment - it's always full of laughter, love and hair pulling fun!!!

A look back at the last 1/2 year...

Don't hate her because she is gorgeous!
Pretty day at the park

First kisses for her new baby brother

Valentine's Day 2011

One of many snow days in NEPA

Swim lessons with daddy

Christmas 2010

Thanksgiving 2010

Happy 2nd Birthday!!