Tag: Myrtle Beach

You Wanna Day at the Water Park, You Say? Well, It’s Going to Cost Ya!

On By Doser3In Dreaming of Mommyhood - GeneralLeave a comment

Who remembers the days of going to the pool, waterpark, lake, or beach and all you needed was a towel, your sunscreen, and a good book?  Hey, I remember those days.  They’re not so far gone that my boys haven’t completely obliterated the memory and feeling of being solo.   I can still see those days, they’re hazy, but not so distant.  Sometimes I think I can reach out to touch them, but when I do they’re completely wiped away.

These days I have a love/hate relationship with the pool and the waterpark and even the beach.   Our first summer at the beach as a family, Davey was just 9 months old.  I can remember my husband asking me to bring his book down to the beach so he could relax and read.  I laughed at him hysterically.  I mean I literally laughed at him like I was some crazy haired, wild eyed, nut case who should be locked up in an insane asylum, straight jacket and all.  Sorry, sweetheart, there’s no relaxing with a kid in tow.

Last week, the boys and I spent two days on the water.  The first was at Otter Creek waterpark here in North Greenville.  We went on a Thursday afternoon which I had hoped would mean it was less crowded, but it’s summer…it’s ALWAYS going to be crowded.   Kids these days are privileged during the summer, with camps and programs, and accredited day care.  My brother and I had some old lady who watched us in her house.  The closest thing we got to a water park, was a blue piece of tarp, with a hose and running water on it.  We actually used an actual tire to slide down the hill in Mrs. Powell’s back yard.  Ah, memories.

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Kids frown on you if you offer up something like that now.  Well older kids, who are raised by my generation (Generation X) do.  They have a sense of entitlement and a need to deserve nothing less than the best.  Someone needs to slap those kids silly or maybe their parents.  Of course, I’m one of those parents as I took my kids to a waterpark.

My original intent had been to go for the day, but I seemed to underestimate the physical cost to my body.   I forgot that Henry must run free, he can’t be contained, and he doesn’t meet a stranger.  I actually helicoptered over him, but let Davey have a bit more freedom.   We ended up spending just three hours there.  My plantar fasciitis started kicking in (or that’s what I told myself and my kids), but really it was getting close to closing time.

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But here’s the thing, for those three hours that we spent at the water park, it took me an hour to get everything, including the boys, ready.  So the opportunity cost of going to the water park really meant less time of playing in said water park, as opposed to just sticking the kids out in the back yard with a good ole fashioned hose pipe, a blue tarp, and a kiddie pool.  My boys are pretty smart and creative.   I’m sure we could have had the water pouring down the slide at their club house and into the huge kiddie pool.   That’s like having your own personal water park in the backyard!  Why didn’t I think of that before?  Because my kids have sucked me of all brain cells.

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All joking aside, these three hours at the water park, only cost me $11.  That was my cost to enter.  Thankfully, Henry is still free and I had a coupon for Davey.  Outside food and drinks are discouraged, but since they don’t inspect bags I was able to “movie theater” it and bring in my own drinks and snacks so as to not have my wallet assaulted by the concessions.

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My boys enjoyed themselves.  Henry suffered a few battle scars from running and falling and Davey proved to me that he’s capable of diving and can indeed swim without a life jacket.  The other perk?  They both went to bed early and slept like babies.

Adios, Summer 2014

On By Doser3In Dreaming of Mommyhood - GeneralLeave a comment

At 10:29 last night, Fall 2014 officially came into town. Since I’ve been a bit slack this summer with posting photos, adventures, and writing blogs, I thought what better time to give a quick rundown of our summer than with this “Goodbye to summer” and “Hello to Fall” blog!

June 21st, at 6:51 am, was this year’s Summer Solstice…otherwise known as the first official day of Summer! Fortunately, or unfortunately depending upon your view, summer in the Deep South seems to start in mid to late April. We’re hit with hot and humid days, sweltering heat and the occasional thunderstorms that only seem to make breathing worse instead of better. This year was no exception, but we won’t start with when it felt like summer, but instead the actual day. So, without further adieu, here is how we spent our first summer together as a foursome:

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Davey got his first official bicycle and began learning to ride. He was a quick learner at it and we ended up taking it every where with us this summer including Mimi & Pop’s who have a much longer driveway to ride it on.

Bike Riding Davey

We also took a field trip of sorts to our local free “waterpark” located in beautiful downtown Greenville, SC, outside the Lazy Goat. It’s nothing more than water fountains and spouts all along a fake train track, but Davey thoroughly enjoyed it.

Water Park Davey

July 4th we were in Rochester, NY visiting family for the week. We enjoyed everything from go kart racing to miniature golf, fireworks to parades, live music to horse races, and even had a cook out complete with our personal bouncy house. Another first was Henry’s plane ride and Davey now officially getting his own seat. We had a love/hate with Davey having his own seat. It was nice to NOT have to hold him, but ridiculous to pay for his seat.

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July 4th

Davey became a more advanced swimmer this year as we spent 3 days a week usually at Mimi and Pop’s house in their pool. Henry was introduced to his first pool experience and while he eventually came to enjoy it, it was a bit of a labor to get him in.

Swimmer Davey

Swimmer Henry

We threw in some zoo trips with friends and adventures at the Children’s Museum before finally getting our opportunity to enjoy the beach in mid August. We visited aquariums and battle ships. We built sand castles and rode the waves on boogie boards. Henry had his first experience with a crashing wave and quickly learned he didn’t like the taste of sand. Davey hunted for seashells and played miniature golf.

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We managed to find some time to take Davey to his first movie experience where he saw “Rio 2” and “Planes: Fire and Rescue.” We had amusement park rides and outlet shopping. I found time to participate in 2 triathlons with Davey finishing both of them with me.

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Finally, we closed out summer with Davey’s first season of soccer, some apple picking, backyard shenanigans, and 1/2 price ice cream cones.

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To Summer 2014, we’d like to say, “thank you for the memories, the adventures, and the heat. You were not a disappointment.”

And to Fall 2014, we’d like to say, “Bring on the pumpkins and leaves, the bonfires with s’mores, college football Saturdays, chili, and the smell of apple pies baking. Can’t wait to see what you have in store for us!”

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Big Boy Bed

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Try to say that three times really fast!

So, last week I took advantage of the Labor Day holiday, which meant my husband was home and could entertain Davey, in order to start work on Davey’s new big boy room. I’ve put it off a lot longer than I did with his first bedroom. I’ve toyed around with ideas on what would be best. Did I want to do a room devoted to Mickey Mouse or did I want to do one with a different Disney theme? Side note…anything Disney rocks this child’s world!

Then I thought of practicality. Did I want to redo a room again in a few years when he’d outgrown some of the kiddie/baby phase? Not really. I needed something easy, something convenient for me, and something that would grow with him. That being said, we quickly decided to avoid a themed bed (he has a racing car bed at his Grammy’s house in NY), just because I didn’t want to fork out the money again for another new bed in a few years. We landed on a contemporary, with a hint of the traditional, full size wooden bed. Bedding can always be changed.

For a month the bed sat in our garage as the days ticked by as we awaited anxiously the ultrasound that would determine whether we were having a boy or a girl, hence dictating which room the bed would actually be placed. After a trip to Rochester to see family, and a quick jaunt to Myrtle Beach to kiss summer goodbye, we began work last week, and I must say so far I’m pleased.

enjoying some quality time on the new bed
enjoying some quality time on the new bed

It’s a nervous arena, being the parent of a child who’s growing, one that you wish would stay your little baby forever. I cried when we converted Davey’s crib into a toddler bed! How the heck was I going to react to this? Truth be told, I was second guessing moving him into another room. First, the nursery is a tad bigger in size than his new bedroom. There’s more closet space, more playroom. Second, what if he became really irate about giving up his room? What if he didn’t want to move? Of course, this hasn’t been the problem and we haven’t even referred to the nursery as Henry’s room.

Finally, with the walls painted, the bed up, and new bedding on top, we decided to let Davey have a “go” at the room on Saturday. Naptime is much more different. No longer do I rock him to sleep. Instead, I say “nap time” and he runs up the stairs (just like he always has) and I tuck him into his bed, give him a kiss, read a book, and then close the door. it takes about a half an hour to 45 minutes of him “talking” to himself or “reading” one of his books to his stuffed animals before he finally goes to sleep. Bed time is much the same, which has become quite shocking to both me and my husband. We both thought we’d have a bigger issue with getting him asleep in the big boy bed.

first official night
first official night

From time to time, I see my little baby in his big bed and I do get a lump in my throat. I love the new stages and his growth and development, but I am super sad to know that one day he may be much too big for that bed.

Vacation, All I Ever Wanted

On By Doser3In Dreaming of Mommyhood - GeneralLeave a comment

Ah, vacation, an illustrious, sometimes coveted, despised, and even long sought after of a word. Vacation. One little word can stir up so many interpretations of what it is, how to have it, how to enjoy it, and even what to do with it.

My Merriam & Webster Dictionary (yes, of course, I still have one of these sitting on my bookshelf!) states that vacation, as a noun, is a period of rest from work, a holiday to use the British terminology. It can also be used as a verb, in that I take a vacation, or I am on holiday (I really like using the term “holiday”, it just sounds much more stylish and glamorous.)

When you become a mom, your interpretation of vacation may vary slightly from what it once was in your youthful days of frolicking on the beach, or independently touring international cities. I once went to Germany. I enjoyed wonderful food, tasty beers, and pretty eclectic clubs. I walked silently through the museums and castles, took in the history, sat outside in the parks and watched the people walk by.

My husband and I used to partake in cruises, usually one every 18 months or so. I loved those vacations, if for no other reason than I really felt like I was on vacation as electronically I was completely disconnected from work. We sat on beaches, did some biding at art auctions, snorkeled in Grand Cayman, toured the Mayan Ruins in Cozumel, took a river cruise in Ocho Rios. We were completely free spirits. What a time! And how long ago those days seem.

Last summer, we went on our first official family vacation with Davey to Myrtle Beach, where my parents have a condo. My husband took two books to read, he didn’t finish reading half of one. I planned to sun bathe by the pool. I came back about as white as I was when I left. We definitely didn’t go to a fancy dinner anywhere. No sir, not with a nine month old running around.

These days, I don’t look to beaches or far away places for vacation. I actually look a mile down the road to our local Wal-Mart. You see, being a stay-at-home mom (well, maybe any mom for that matter), a vacation becomes any time, even if it’s a mere half an hour, when you have some time alone. Who would have ever thought that I’d ask my husband to watch our son long enough for me to make a jaunt into Wal-Mart? No, honey, there’s nothing I need there. I just need to get out of the house. Oh, you and Davey would like to come along too? Yeah, well, that’s not really what I’m looking for.

Does this sound bad? Maybe. When I first became a mom, it worried me that I wanted time away. Almost 19 months into the job, and yeah, I don’t feel quite so guilty.

What I do feel bad about, though, is that I consider a trip to the grocery store ALONE a vacation. I LOATHE the grocery store, or at least I did. Now, it’s my saving grace especially when my husband comes home.

You know, maybe one day, my husband and I will take those vacations of yore. I’ve always wanted to go on a Mediterranean cruise, but for right now I’ll consider my 30 minutes perusing through the gossip magazines at my local drug store as vacation enough. My, my, my, how times have changed.