Blueberry picking

Yes, I opted to wear the ridiculous hat they provided to help keep the gnats away. 

Amazing views!

We took this picture on our way out of the farm-just beautiful!

Today we visited Frog Eye Farm to pick blueberries. It turned out to be a great idea to visit the farm in the morning because it was nice and cool outside and it wasn't crowded at all.  Driving into the farm, Pat and I immediately fell in love because of the beautiful views and the laid back attitude of the owners. We were also pleased that they do not use any chemicals or pesticides and follow natural farming practices.  They even encourage you to taste the blueberries which we thought was pretty neat because most places do not want you to try the blueberries without paying for them first. 

We ended up picking 2.5  lbs. of blueberries. Sophia tried to eat her weight in blueberries in the car ride home. I found a great recipe online from the 100 days of real food website and made delicious blueberry muffins. I may or may not have eaten three blueberry muffins. ;)

First family of four trip to Chincoteague 2014

We just arrived at the beach house!

First time on the beach!

Hitting the beach for the first time after driving in the car for 5 hours with 2 little ones.

Victory! Isabelle fell asleep on the beach. I love how I can bounce her to sleep in the stroller. Side note-it doesn't always work.  

Our campsite on the beach with sleeping Isabelle. 

The temperature at the beach was great it wasn't too hot to carry her around in the k'tan wrap while we took a walk on the beach. She fell asleep pretty quickly once I put her in the wrap but unfortunately woke up when I tried to lay her down when we got back from our walk. :/

Sophia led us on our walk on the beach and was too tired to walk back so she got to ride on Pat's shoulders.

I wanted a picture of the 3 of us...this is what I got. 
Sophia found this headband in our bag and put it on-yes she is wearing a headband on the beach but if you know her you wouldn't be surprised. 

Pat was tired of taking pictures but I insisted one more picture to remember that Isabelle was only two months old when we went to the beach for the first time with her.

The many faces of Isabelle...

Happy Birthday, Mimi!

Successful walk on the beach = sleeping baby

Another message in the sand for Mimi

We love ice cream!!

Sophia loved the horse that lives next to where we stayed. The first thing she'd ask for in the morning was-"Horse!"

Last night on the beach!

I love how Isabelle watches Sophia...so cute!

She loved playing with daddy!

Sharing ice cream with daddy

Hanging out on the beach the last night we were there.

We had a great time at the beach and I'm so glad we were able to go. 

We were packing up Tuesday night when the power went out because of a thunderstorm. We were hoping to leave early the next morning but our packing was delayed with the power being out. We ordered a roof bag for our CR-V, but it wasn't going to arrive until Wednesday afternoon. Not only that, but the hardware we needed to attach the roof bag to the car wasn't going to arrive at the Honda dealership until Wednesday also. So things were not looking optimisitc for us to leave in the morning like we had planned. I was convinced we'd have to drive two cars to bring everything we needed for our trip. Surprisingly and thankfully our power came back on at 11pm and that morning we started to pack all our gear into one car. I brought everything that needed to be packed into the car outside and Pat packed the car like a game of Tetris. It's pretty amazing the amount of things we got packed in so snugly. A big thanks to my husband! 

We hit the road at 9:15am which was pretty impressive considering all our delays. Then...we hit traffic on 70. The whole road was closed because of a big accident and we had to detour onto some back roads. This delayed us about forty-five minutes, but then we had a pretty smooth drive for a few hours. With only about 30 minutes until we arrived in Chincoteague, Sophia started melting down -- she was done and so was I! 

We finally arrived at the beach at about 3pm. We ate a quick dinner at Woodys and then hit the BEACH!! We only stayed for about an hour before a storm rolled in, thankfully we left before it really started to rain.

The next morning we hit the beach. I tell you things have changed a lot since Pat and I first started dating 10 years ago. Our first beach trip was to Hawaii and then the Outerbanks. Gone are the days when we only brought 2 towels and small beach bag filled with 1 bottle of sunscreen and 2 bottles of water. Check out what we have to bring now:

A tent at the beach is necessary with little ones. Since Isabelle can't wear sunscreen we had to keep her in the shade. A big thank you to our friends the Remmerts for letting us borrow their tent. 

It took us two trips back to the car to pack everything up and about 25 minutes just to leave the beach! Leaving the beach wasn’t fun for anyone especially the little ones because we stayed as long as we could until right before meltdowns! Woo - I have to hand it to parents with multiple children - you amaze me! 

Sophia was not a fan of the waves like she was last year but she really enjoyed playing in the sand. It's amazing how little ones are sand magnets. I totally forgot how much I used to be covered in sand when I went to the beach.  She also made up a game where she would chase Pat's shadow by the water and Pat would lure her into the water that way. 

Here are some great places we enjoyed:

We stayed at Steve's cottages, nothing fancy but it was a 2 bedroom place with a small kitchen and living room which is all we needed. We went out to dinner one night and had the best crabcakes at Etta's. Island Creamery was a daily place to visit to enjoy some delicious homemade ice cream. One day we had lunch at Poseidon's Pantry. Pat picked up lunch here with Sophia while I stayed back with Isabelle, and he came back and said how the store was "so me". The store was stocked with healthy, organic, all natural products. He couldn't believe all the things that were in the store are things that we have in our kitchen at home. 

Until next year, Chincoteague :)

Resources that helped during my pregnancy

I love it when people share about products they use or things that helped them so I thought I should write about things that really helped me during my pregnancy:

1.       Books

I really enjoyed reading these books because they educated me and also encouraged me to pursue natural childbirth.

Ina May’s Guide to Childbirth by Ina May Gaskin

My doula (Shawna) and a friend recommended this book. I found it very encouraging and there was even a chapter on vaginal birth after caesarean which of course I had to read first. The first chapter of the book was filled with other people’s birth stories. I don’t know about you but I love hearing other people’s birth stories. I appreciated how the book was dedicated to speaking positively about birth. Many people fear birth, but the book made the point that our bodies are meant to give birth and how it doesn’t have to be so painful. These were just the words I needed to hear!

Hypnobirthing: The Mongan Method by Marie Mongan

This is the book that is part of the Hypnobirthing class. If you’re interested in Hypnobirthing then search for a class near you! This book really inspired me that natural childbirth was achievable. I watched several YouTube videos of people sharing their personal experiences with hypnobirthing. I also listened to the relaxation CD that was included in the book that helped me remain calm during the birth. I would often listen to the CD before bedtime to help me unwind and fall asleep better.

2.       Doula

My doula, Shawna was awesome! I loved using her as a resource because she was so knowledgeable. I valued her opinion and trusted her. I felt sao peaceful every time we met, which made me feel great! 

3.       Chiropractor  

I first visited the chiropractor when I was 20 weeks pregnant because I injured my tailbone and was in a lot of pain. My tailbone injury got better over time. As my pregnancy progressed I continued to go to the chiropractor to make sure the baby was in good alignment for delivery. It was nice that I could take Sophia to my appointments because they had toys in the room where I was adjusted and the appointment always went quickly.

4.       Husband

I’m very thankful for my husband!  I thank God that He brought him into my life. He was and is so supportive of me. Don’t tell Pat I listed him as #4, these items are not in any particular order!

5.       Exercise

I exercised throughout my entire pregnancy for many reasons. First, I was accustomed to working out and it made me feel “normal” because exercise is a part of my everyday life. It was good for my mind and body. I really just modified my exercise routine as my pregnancy progressed. I was very active when I became pregnant which helped me maintain many of my work-outs.

My exercise routine consisted of: spin classes, stroller strides, kickboxing, and running -- but not on the same day!  <@:-). When I was 20 weeks pregnant I stopped taking kickboxing but continued with everything else. I just modified my intensity with all of my work-outs. I also was not working out as many days a week. I basically listened to my body and if something didn’t feel right I stopped doing it.

I’ll admit I got some funny looks at the gym when I was running on the treadmill at 30 weeks pregnant and still taking spin until two days before I went into labor. I even got some crazy comments like, “you’re still pregnant?”  I say this because I want to encourage you:  don’t worry about what people say or the looks people give you. If you know you’re doing the right thing for you, the baby, and your body then do it!

I started taking yoga when I was about 22 weeks pregnant and continued until about 35 weeks. Yoga was so energizing! I always left class in a better mood. It always amazes me how the poses get harder to do as you get bigger – haha. It also helped me slow down and just breathe!

6.       Stay positive!

This is so important!! Both of the books I read stressed the importance of staying positive and not listening to negativity. Carrying a baby is hard work and unfortunately people don’t always realize that. People often forget that pregnant women are very sensitive and it’s good to speak positive and uplifting words. I was so thankful for people that were supportive and gave me positive words of encouragement. Thank you!

Father's Day!

We had a great time celebrating Father's Day "splashing" around at Catoctin Creek. We haven't been to the creek since this past fall and it was Sophia's first time putting her feet in the water since last summer. She was a little apprehensive at first (you can tell by her face in some of the pictures) but then had a blast walking around in the water. This trip made daddy very happy. He loves outdoor "adventures".