Family Vacation 2

Checking out the new WWII memorial

Lucas looking at his future home :)

Mt Vernon

National Harbor

Lucas and I have become quite the travelers! We went with my parents to visit our nations capitol for a family vacation. It was sooooo much fun! We stayed at a nice resort at National Harbor - which is a new area near DC with lots of shopping, restaurants, and a convention center. It is in the first phase of six development phases so it was not too crowded or busy. I think it is going to be pretty amazing when it is all done but right now it has just the right amount of "city" for traveling with a baby.

I think it is probably pretty easy to get swept up in the tourism hubub of a big city vacation but we tried really hard not to do too much and overwhelm Lucas. I did not want to become that parent who was hauling around a tired and cranky child. What is the point of trying to fit in a million sites that he would not even remember? So, we would let him get some crawling/play time in during the mornings and then take off to see one or two things after his morning nap. We would come back to the hotel for a late afternoon nap and then go out to dinner or order some food in. With this restricted schedule we still saw a lot! We visited Alexandria (and the pharmacy museum), Mt Vernon (where Lucas saw his first movie in a theater), the National museum of Natural History, and a bus tour of the monuments. The best part of the entire trip was seeing Lucas interact with his Babby and Grandpa. He is one loved little boy :)

At the peeps store

Playing with Grandpa

Learning to look up to see those T-Rex bones!

At the Natural history museum

Babby playing with Lucas and his new snake stuffed animal

Car ride home - check out his hairdo!

Family Vacation!

It is official! I am way behind on what has been going on in the Gille household! And a LOT has happened in the past month+! I will begin with our family vacation to Virginia Beach. Garry and Kippy (Bompa and Nonni) rented this awesome beach house with enough room for the entire family - plus a pool :) Lucas had a great time meeting and playing with his cousins and we enjoyed the camaraderie of the adults. There is just something about spending time with family that makes me all warm and fuzzy inside (especially after living away).

Lucas and Wesley in the makeshift playpen

Lucas and Annie

More playing

Beach time with Gretchen

Taking in the site and sound of the ocean

The 3 story house with a pool! I have secretly always dreamt about what one of these houses might look like on the inside and now I have seen one!

Gretchen and Annie in the pool (it took a million shots to get this one)

Lucas in the pool - on day 3 he finally smiled in the water :)

Funniest picture ever...Uncle Clint with all the kids at the end of the photo shoot. As you can see most of them had had enough posing for the camera.

Aloha!

Sorry it has been so long since my last post...we went on our first family vacation with Lucas to Hawaii! We had so much fun! We stayed with family at Kailua beach and spent the majority of days out and about and the evenings with the family. This ended up being perfect for traveling with an infant because there was an "at home" feeling for the little guy :) He did great on the plane(s), he ate during the ascent and descent and slept for the duration. In fact several people went out of their way to comment on what a good flyer he was (maybe they were concerned at the beginning of the flight). Vacation with a baby is soooooo different from vacation before - everything takes so much more planning and time to get ready (I never got to do my hair and one day I didn't even get a shower!), everyone gets sleepy sooner (Luke stayed on EST while we adjusted to Hawaii time), mom and dad never get to swim in the ocean or snorkle together (someone has to hold the baby), no time for shopping or the spa, and I had only 2 island drinks. Ha! We had a fabulous time despite these differences. Welcome the baby years!

Here is a picture summary of the trip:

Lucas sleeping on the first plane

Hiking at Makapuu

Macadamia Nut Farm

Lucas being held by Aunt Taryn

The family at Hanauma Bay

Grant looking at Luke like - just roll over already!!

Daddy and Luke at the pool

Mommy and Luke with a Luau dancer

Luke catching some zzz's at Waikiki beach

Sea Turtles at Turtle Beach

Ross and Matt swimming

Catchi9ng some zzz's at Bellows Field Beach Park

Carter the Paleontologist

Myrtle Beach

Well, somehow my family is terrible at taking pictures when we are together so I do not have any to share...but I had a great time visiting with them when they were vacationing in Myrtle Beach last week. Ross and I drove down for the day on Sunday and the girls hung out at the pool while the guys went golfing. And I was not the only pregnant lady at the pool...I had three friends but I had the best bathing suit. And Keisuke made the most amazing teriyaki chicken and broccoli for dinner. Seriously, if we all knew how to make broccoli like this - everyone would be much healthier and asking for their little trees. My mom was able to come to our house for a quick visit at the beginning of the week and we went shopping for my hospital bag goodies (robe, nursing tops, nursing bras, ice cream - oh wait, I already ate that). And finally the family wrapped up the week at our house :) Too much fun!

I was so happy Leanna was able to come on vacation and she brought her friend Allie, who was hilarious. Leanna actually got to help me out a little with my schoolwork while she was here...it was hard not laughing during our mock "counseling sessions". She played the part of a troubled teenager who recently started dating a boy and now doesn't participate in Key club or band and her grades are dropping....and I was the school counselor, of course. The best part of this whole thing was when my mom burst into the room and said "I'm taking orders for bagel bakery, what do you want? Oh no! Don't transcribe this into your paper!" Sometimes I wonder what it is going to be like when I counsel a child who actually is having a legitimate issue - not just pretending. I guess time will tell! Probably less giggling when I ask, "how does that make you feel?"

I have learned that my body is not so happy about walking out in the heat and humidity anymore because my ankles swelled and turned a lovely shade of black, blue, and purple. Must love being in the final stretch of pregnancy during the hottest time of the year...in the south. Woohoo!

On a side note...we have finally zeroed in on both our girl and boy names and now I wish we were having one of each so we could secure both of them ;) Sorry...not sharing until baby Gille arrives! I'm so excited!

Weekend Getaway!

We decided to get away for the last weekend of my spring break to Charleston, SC. It was absolutely beautiful there because all of the flowers were in full bloom...and there are a LOT of flowers in Charleston! This city is one of the oldest and largest harbor cities in the US providing a lot of architechture and gardens to admire. We were able to take a historical carriage tour, visit the Exchange (where the Constitution was ratified by SC), and also spent an afternoon at Magnolia Plantation (which was apparently advertised in the early days as a must see stop in America, up there with Niagra Falls and the Grand Canyon).

While we had a great time in the holy city, I couldn't help but feel bad that I was not able to be out walking all day. My lower back was not happy with all the walking I wanted to do, so, we had to head back to the hotel a little earlier than we would have otherwise. I don't think Ross minded though because he was able to catch the Master's and Red's games on the TV while I napped/relaxed. And thankfully I did not over-walk myself to the point of cankles! Let's hope this happens later in pregnancy if it is going to be an issue.

Now we are back to the daily grind and I am back in school! This quarter I am taking Child and Adolescent Counseling and Developmental pupil services. Should be interesting and busy!