Vaca # 2....

Well, now that we have been home for 2 and a half weeks, I am finally getting around to posting some pics of the vaca. Hows that for lazy?! I thought for sure I would stay right on top of this blog and not get behind like I did with scrapbooking, but it appears that I am headed in that direction. I really want to keep up with all this because the whole 'scrapbooking family albums thing' has come to a screeching halt. Its just too much to keep up with. Anyway, geez, i can really get sidetracked, back to the vaca....

This trip was truely awesome! We had such an amazing time together. It was so perfect, that during it I almost felt like "this is too good to be true, whats going to happen to burst my bubble?" (what a great attitude,hey? :) ) The weather was perfect, the ocean was spectacular, and I was with my favorite people...whats not to love?!

Just to warn you, this is going to be a LONG one, I mean a really long one....I just have too many pics I love and want to post for memory's sake! So sit back, grab a cup of coffee, relax and come on vacation with us...well, in digital form, anyway! :)

Hey, look! All that stuff fit in the back of the van! See, miracles still DO happen.


And were off! (uh, Aaron, it may be helpful to look at the road!)

This picture just makes me smile. These little headsets took care of all the " How much longer?, Are we there yet?", questions that start after only being on the road 20 minutes. Our new van has a TV/dvd player in it and it was such a great thing to have. The kids loved watching a little Alvin and the Chipmunks and Aaron and I had a great time talking and listening to cd's! Oh my goodness, it made the long trip go so much smoother! Looky there, miracle #2 and we haven't even gotten out of the car yet. :)

Kensi all kicked back and enjoying the ride.


On the way, we went to this great zoo in Norfolk. It was so beautiful. We spent a couple of hours there walking around looking at all the animals. I have never even heard of this zoo, but we were really impressed and decided we think its better than the DC zoo.

Kobe being brave feeding a goat. Kensi did not like being that close to the goat. haha. She wanted to keep it moving.

Come on, just look at that bunch! Cute. Cute. Cute. (aren't those flowers in the background gorgeous?! The grounds were so beautiful and they had random pieces of land just filled with all these flowers.)


It was CRAZY....this rhino actually let us ride him! It helped that it was only a statue, but still...:)

The Kobester

Look at this beauty! She was just hanging out under a tree trying to keep cool. The rest of her buddies were in a cave to the right of her.

Now is that a sweet looking face or what?!? I think elephants are just so cute! They are filthy, nasty-dirty with 5 inches of dirt on them, but cute all the same! Kensi would get so excited when she would see all the animals and start squealing and blowing them kisses. It was hilar! Then she would point to make sure we all saw them as well.

Cute little Indian Hut ...


And then we were off to the beach!

This is from the first night we got there. We had to go straight out on the beach. I love the ocean at night! Just look at those two...they are happy to finally be there!

My man. Just relaxing and enjoying his vaca with meeeee! :)

UP CLOSE AND PERSONAL. Those 'self taken pics' always turn out just a bit scary. But, still part of the memory, so we must include it. Aaron looks like he is about to bust.

And this is what greeted me when I walked out on our balcony in the morning. Amazing. Beautiful. I just think of the words to the song "How Great is Our God" by Chris Tomlin when I look at this pic. So big. So beautiful. So endless.

My sweet Maddie. Had to get a little photo shoot before she got in.

This one we had to convince to get into the water...

...and this one we had to try and keep him from going out to far in the water. :) This boy is definitely his father's son. Well, we knew that already, but you know what I mean. He has no fear. Iyiyiyiy...I was on edge just keeping him in my sights and making sure he wasn't too far out.

And she's off....daddy & Maddie stayed close behind....she thought this was a fun little game crawling thru the sand with daddy...

...just a little bit farther...almost there...

Ah, finally! I made it.

Such a sweet picture. She absolutely loved the ocean! She would squeal as the waves crashed and came up. So cute...

Maddie warming up to the ocean...

Getting braver....

Kobe's pants were constantly filling up with sand because he kept riding those waves in on his boogie board. So he and I made quite a few trips to this little shower here on the boardwalk. :)

Meanwhile, daddy and Maddie had beeen working on a sand castle...

The finished product. Nice job, guys! You two have mad sand skills!

And just because I love this pic! Doesn't it make you burst out laughing! What a funny girl.

Aaron coming in from riding some waves. Looking good, baby, looking good!

Cheese!

All that playing leaves you hungry! Nothing like a sandy apple to satisfy.

At night we would go out on the street. They had all kinds of performers and singers, etc on every block. It was so fun! At this particular one it was people that juggled fire. It was so cool. Kobe raised his hand to volunteer and here he is learning how to do it. Don't worry, it was just a tennis ball in the end of a sling...no real fire, but he had fun just the same.

A sweet man offered to take our picture for us. We were having a good old time! There is just so much to do here at night. We saw magic shows, singers, fire jugglers, people walking around on stilts that make them look 10 feet tall, concerts on the beach..and so much more! I am pretty sure the kids didn't get to bed before 11:00 the whole week, but thats what vacations all about.

Our good friends Erin & Neil and their kids came down and joined us for the weekend. It was so much fun. Here's Erin on the beach after just arriving. The guys and the kids were all playing football in the sand and we were on baby duty.

Little Bri-bri had enough. Even the big ocean couldn't keep her awake. Precious!

The three muskateers!

Kensi's excited to get out to the ocean again.

The guys and on baby duty. Erin and I took the boogie boards and went out and caught some waves! Thats right, I broke my boycott of the dirty water and actually got in. I just tried to not think of what all was in there with me ...from animals and humans. Man, I am always Debbie Downer.:) But I did have fun!

I am pretty sure these were the two cutest little men on the beach.

Playing in the water...

Our family...yay, everybody's looking...well, almost :)

Their family...what a good looking crew!

You know we had to do it again. We took the old family mobile out from 9:30 - 11:30 one night. We stopped off at the pier for ice cream and then at a concert on the beach. Good times, for sure!

Be still my beating heart. I love this picture....its a framer!

Aaron and Maddie were evidently looking for China, because this hole they were digging kept getting bigger and deeper. They were pretty proud of themselves.

Somebody was having a good time.

Brianna....what a sweetie!

10 foot tall guy....;)

You guys are just so precious! Whoa, Kobe snuck in the crazy teeth!

On Saturday and Sunday nights they set fireworks off from a ship out in the ocean. It was truely awesome! On saturday night we were out on the pier and got a great view and then Sunday night we watched from our balcony. They were beautiful. It was funny because its such a busy place with everybody hustling all around, but when they set fireworks off everyone just stopped to watch. It was literally hundreds and hundreds of people. And when they were over everyone cheered. It was pretty cool. Kensi loved it and just stared wide-eyed and would occasionally reach her hand up, like she was trying to touch it...so cute!

On our last morning there, we were eating breakfast on the balcony and watching as all these dolphins were just jumping and playing in the water. They were so close to the shore, I couldn't believe it. It was so fun to watch and the kids were completely in awe. I tried to take a picture of it, but you can't really see them in this. See Aaron, I really need a new camera....:):)


As we were packing up to leave, I heard hollering from outside so I went out on the balcony and there were all these sargeants with a whole group of guys that were Navy Seals in boot camp. They were there to do their morning exercises. It was awesome to watch. Well, I hate the whole 'getting in your face, screaming part' from the sargeants, but it was neat to see how they moved in unison even while doing all these insane exercises and being screamed at by some crazy man. They even made them link arms and walk straight into the ocean and do squats and lay down and do leg lifts while they waves crashed over them. It was crazy! They were quite a spectacle and drew a big crowd. We watched for a while and Aaron said that it was really similar to what they did to him in the Academy. And I say, 'ain't no way, ain't no how' would I ever put myself thru that. :) Anyway, it was very interesting to watch!

And we had to have one last hooraa before coming home. We packed up and left the hotel and stopped by 'Motor World' on the way home. This is go kart mania with 30 different tracks. Aaron & Maddie raced Kobe around the track, while me and Kensi cheered them on.


As great as the trip was, there is nothing like coming home! We were all ready and glad to be back home. We had such a great time together and I am so thankful for being able to get away for a while with my hubby and kids.

PS. wow, now I know why I put off doing this post for so long! This has to be close to the longest post ever, don't you think? Oh well, its my blog so I can make 'em as long as I want! hahahaha.