Crawford Family

Audrey at the ocean (July 2012)

It was Audrey's first time seeing the ocean - she was a little nervous at first and wanted to be held by Mom and Dad.

 

She thought the sand felt very funny under her feet and she was a little uncertain about getting wet from the ocean.  After Daddy helped her feel comfortable, she eventually warmed up and loved it!  Every time another wave came to shore she seemed very surprised and said, "More coming!"  By the end of the week she loved the ocean and was having a blast splashing and playing in the water.

Fun at the pool (July 2012)

Our rental house had a pool and most of the family enjoyed it.  Miles and Audrey were especially big fans of swimming with their family members, splashing, and floating around.  Miles had been taking swimming lessons all summer and they definitely came in handy.

Laurel, on the other hand, was very nervous about the pool.  It was a major accomplishment just to get her to come on the patio and sit on a chair nearby.  By the end of the week we finally convinced her to sit next to the pool and get her toes wet, but that was about it!

Fun and games in the vacation house (July 2012)

Everyone had a fun time enjoying amenities of the rental house, like the pool table and foosball table.

   

Miles enjoyed playing putt putt outside and playing with toys and games inside.

Beach house fun (July 2012)

We all stayed in a rental home near the ocean and the kids loved being so close to their grandparents, aunt, uncle, and cousins.

 

We all especially enjoyed the big porches and the views of the ocean. 

Another favorite for the kids was the elevator in the house - they rode on it every chance they got.  Laurel was a big fan of it, and called it the "alligator!"

Girls just wanna have fun (July 2012)

Here are the Crawford girls with the Dunn girls on vacation.  Stephanie got the hang of holding both girls at once!

Laurel gets snuggles from Aunt Tracy and Stephanie.

Stephanie and Audrey were special buddies on vacation.

Birthday dinner on vacation (July 2012)

 

While on vacation, we celebrated Grandpa Kent's 65th birthday.  It was fun to have everyone together for the big birthday celebration in such a great location.

Dean enjoyed his cake and showed great maturity shoveling it in!

The kids enjoyed the cake of course, and everyone enjoyed spending time together on the huge porch.

Trip to Emerald Isle (July 2012)

In July we took a family vacation to Emerald Isle, North Carolina.  We were there with the Dunn Family and Grandma and Grandpa Kent (who also flew on the same plane as us).  It was the first flight for the girls and they did wonderfully!

The kids were very excited in the airport while waiting to board our plane.

 

Audrey was ready for takeoff and very excited once we were in the air.  She was happy with her toys (like the little doll with hairbrush), stickers, and juice. 

Laurel was very excited to be on the plane too and made sure to read the safety instructions!  She held hands with Daddy during takeoff and liked turning around to see Grandma and Grandpa in the row behind her.  She was also happy with the snacks during the flight, especially digging around with the chocolate mixed in!

 
Once we landed, Laurel was happy to hold hands with Grandpa in the airport.  She conked out within minutes of getting in our rental car, but Audrey was still so excited that she stayed awake for a while longer!

Coloring time (July 2012)

Miles was doing a worksheet one morning and the girls wanted to join in too.  Audrey's two babies helped her out in her highchair too!

Fun times with Mom & Dad (July 2012)

Scott helping the girls play dress up with their baby dolls

Stacy riding the kiddie choo choo train at the mall

Daddy's birthday

We celebrated Daddy's birthday with our own ice cream sundae bar, which all the kids though was fabulous. We also made and threw our own confetti. It made a huge mess, but Laurel was ready to help pitch in and clean up with her toy vacuum!

Birthday party time

The birthday festivities continued with a joint party for Tracy and Scott over the weekend. Everyone had a great time, and especially enjoyed the ice cream cake.  We got to use our confetti again, and Audrey was so kind as so help clean it up.  The girls also had a fun time wrestling with their cousin, Stephanie.

Good times at the parish picnic

We took the kids to the parish picnic at my parent's church and everyone had a fun time.  All three kids got to go on rides, play some games and win prizes.

 

A highlight of the evening was Miles' 1st roller coaster ride with Daddy.  He was a little nervous at first, but ended up loving it!

Music and fun at the library

I took the kids to see a "Babaloo" concert at the library.  Miles loved it, but it was a little too loud and rowdy for the girls so we waited outside in the children's area.  The girls had a great time playing in the little log cabin and with the train table.  

 

Pretend birthday party

Ever since their birthday party, the girls have been having a fun time setting up pretend birthday parties with fake cake and candles and singing "Happy Birthday" to each other.  Here is a short, cute video of them singing.

Family fun on the 4th of July

4th of July parade and festivities

Again this year we walked in our neighborhood parade. We decorated the wagon for the girls and Miles' tricycle with flags and pinwheels. They all enjoyed waving at the spectators, watching the firetruck leading the parade, and especially the festivities afterwards.  Miles and Audrey loved running through the water from the firetruck, but Laurel preferred to stay dry with Daddy.  All 3 kids were excited to get balloon animals from the clown (a frog with a real protruding tongue for Miles, a ladybug bracelet for Laurel, and a bumblebee bracelet for Audrey).  The girls were so excited about their balloon animals that they wore them around for 2 days straight!

4th of July picnic

After the parade, we enjoyed a 4th of July picnic in the neighborhood with the Kents and the Dunns. The kids had fun checking out the petting zoo, riding the horse (Miles), eating delicious food (Audrey's favorite was the ice cream sandwich, Laurel's was the baked beans), and jumping in the bounce house (Miles and Audrey).

Laurel enjoys the outdoors

Here is Laurel enjoying the outdoors... picking flowers (actually weeds, but she doesn't mind!) from our yard, and holding hands while out for a walk in the neighborhood.

Audrey's highlights

Here are a few highlights from Audrey:  Vacuuming the deck holding 2 dolls, driving a car holding 3 dolls, and trying on Miles' magician outfit.

Miles' highlights

Here are a few highlights from Miles:  Helping Mom make ice cream sandwiches and lasagna, getting his suitcase ready for the library (we get so many books at a time that a regular bag won't hold them all!), driving the toddler car on the deck (that he is way too big for, but he doesn't seem to mind!), and playing his new game, Connect 4.

Lego time

The girls had fun playing with legos one day and Laurel was especially proud of the tall tower she constructed, as you can see by her expression!

Girls do tumbling

Audrey and Laurel started taking tumbling classes this summer and LOVE it so far! They seem to know just what to do, after watching their big brother for so long. They enjoyed showing off their skills one day for Grandma and Daddy at class.

  

Beating the heat

We haven't been playing outside very much at all due to the heat, but the kids did enjoy splashing in the kiddie pool one day on the deck.  Audrey was thrilled to finally have a chance to splash to her heart's content (she usually gets in trouble for splashing in the tub because she gets water all over the bathroom, her sister, and mom!).  She and Miles make good playmates because they both love to get rowdy and don't mind getting wet.  Audrey got herself soaking wet and loved every minute of it, she even dumped buckets full of water right on herself.  Laurel also stomped around a bit in the pool, but the best part for her was wrapping up in her favority kitty towel afterwards!

Miles does summer camp

Miles attended summer camp at the Science Center, and loved it! The theme of the week was "Dinosaur Discoveries." He enjoyed seeing the huge animated dinosaur and making his own pretend dinosaur prints, among other things.

Girls do the Science Center

While Miles was at summer camp, the girls and I got to go on some special outings, including exploring the Science Center.  The loved playing in the Discovery Room, where they got to play with blocks, a dollhouse, dominoes, a train table, and a doctor set.  They also enjoyed roaming around on the skywalk, where they got to watch cars zooming by the interstate below.  They were too nervous about trying to walk on the window on the floor, though... to them it just looked like a hole in the ground!