Noakes' Nest: Spring and Summer 2013

Hello Friends and Family! It has been waaaaaayyyy too long since I last blogged. The last time I blogged Caroline had just turned one. Now she is over a year and a half! We have a full fledged toddler on our hands. Here is what we have be up to the past few months. Ignore the inncorrect picture labels. I had already uploaded and organized all the photos on this post when I realized they were labeled wrong.

APRIL 2013
Caroline had her first birthday party a week after she turned one. We had a great time! We also celebrated Emily Day by going to the Hospital to deliver more blankets. We had a picnic at the park, and just relaxed and hung out as a family. It was perfect. One of the other highlights of the month was going to see my Grandma in Ohio. She had only met Caroline once (when she was 6 months old) and I really wanted her to see Caroline walking around.

Let me play!

MAY 2013

The highlight of May was when Caroline and I spent a week in North Carolina after Phil's mom had foot surgery. We had a great time visiting with family, taking care of "Yaya", and entertaining Yaya.

Reading with Yaya and Gran Dan

Train with Papa!

Huffy face! Well at least Grandma and Mama are doing it.

Just hanging out with her heart surgeon :)
What a change 1 year later

Loves her bear

Uh-oh

JUNE 2013
In June Phil and I went away to Charleston, SC for a four day weekend while Phil's parents watched Caroline. It was so great to getaway. In June Caroline took swim classes! She screamed during the whole first class but did better the other classes. She loves the water, just not being held in it. She is miss independent and wants to explore on her own.

Loves her girlfriends

Bye-Bye!

JULY 2013
July was a big month for us. We spent the Fourth of July at Colonial Beach with Phil's family like we do every year which was fabulous. Our Godson Hudson was Baptized in mid-July in a lovely ceremony. It was also 1 YEAR since Caroline had heart surgery! We took heart shaped cookies and a handmade heart thank you card to her pediatrician, cardiologist, my OB/GYN, and St. Mary's Hospital Pediatric Unit to commemorate the day.

The big highlight though was our week long trip to the midwest. Right after Hudson's baptism party we left for Louisville, KY (8+ hrs away). We spent the night with Phil's sister and went with her to church and brunch the next day.

That afternoon we drove 2 hours north to my Aunt and Uncles for a family get together. Most of my Aunts, Uncles, and cousins were there. I was so excited for them to see Caroline again because they hadn't seen her since last fall. My grandpa was excited to have both of his great-grandchildren there (my cousin Melanie has a son who is 8 weeks younger than Caroline). We stayed in Indianapolis from Sunday until Wednesday afternoon. Caroline and Will got to become great friends (see photos and video below). We took the kids to the zoo, the children's museum, and just hung out at our Aunt's house. It was perfect. The kids (and us!) had soooo much fun. I just wish we all lived closer together.

On Wednesday afternoon we drove down to Clarksville, TN (5hrs away) to WELCOME MY BROTHER HOME FROM AFGHANISTAN!!!!! We are all very proud of his service but extremely relieved that he is finally HOME.

We stayed in Clarksville until Saturday. Then we drove 7+ hours to Winston-Salem, NC to stay with Phil's parents on the way home. Caroline and I decided last minute to to stay the whole next week in Winston because we were supposed to be back there the following weekend anyway for a get together with most of Phil's family. So She and I stayed while Phil went home to work. We spent the week hanging out with Phil's cousin's kids and his parents. It was so much fun! At the end of the week we had a big get together at Lake Norman with Phil's family. That Sunday we finished off our 2,000+ mile trip by heading home.

All the driving was totally worth it because we got to see so much family. My biggest piece of advice for others traveling by car with a toddler....stop at a mall for dinner. There is so much for them to see, there is usually a play place, food courts don't care that you have a toddler that has been in the car for hours, and it doesn't matter what the weather is like.

HATING the life jacket

Auntie Amy!

Cleaning the kitchen

She decided that she need to wear all these bows :)

1 YEAR POST-OP!

Cousin Will!

Auntie Cammie and Unkie Matt!
WELCOME HOME UNKIE MATT!!!!!!!!!!!!!

AUGUST 2013

I turned 30 in August! I had a dinner party with some close friends the weekend before my birthday. Honestly it was one of the best birthdays I've had as an adult. At the end of the month Caroline and I spent a week with my brother and his fiance at our parent's home while Matthew was on Army leave. Then Matthew, Cammie, Mom, Dad, Phil, Caroline, and I went to Stonewall Jackson Lodge in WV. We had a great time kayaking, hiking, biking, swimming, and playing mini golf.