Road Trippin': Wilmington

We planned to get away MLK Jr. Weekend to Wilmington. The kids had to be back at school Monday because of the missed snow days the week before, but Chris still had it off so we decided to go ahead and follow through with the plan.

Wilmington is approx 3.5 hrs drive from Charlotte and has lots of beach access, aquariums and some cool Naval (and Civil War) things to check out.

To be honest though, the kids seem to love the hotel aspect the most! We've done so many little trips in the last year that they have the routine DOWN.

On their MUST DO AT THE HOTEL list:

• Try to crack the safe code if there is one
• Ask, "When can we go swimming?"
  
• Turn the closet into a secret clubhouse
• Leave little notes clipped onto the pant hangers in "Clubhouse"
• Establish where everyone will sleep as soon as we arrive and set up those areas
• Ask "WHEN are we going swimming???"
• Plan a movie and popcorn night for the 2nd night after sightseeing all day

This is at a State Park and Nature Preserve where we stopped for a picnic the first day. This is the Flytrap Trail. Venus Flytraps only grow wild in a 120 mile swath around Wilmington. We saw a pitcher plant on this trail, but the flytraps are so small and they are not blooming this time of year so we didn't see any. We DID see some later though. (We also went to Wrightsville beach right before this, but I have no photos since my battery needed charging. The kids spent the entire time collecting seashells. It was frigid!)

Swampy Critters seeking out flytraps in their natural habitat!

My little Monkey-girl!

After lunch (and about 45 minutes spent watching the kids collect spent air-soft pellets...don't ask) we headed the the Fort Fischer Aquarium. Bonus: Free entry with our Zoo Pass. I love reciprocal programs, don't you?

Croc attack! Ahhhhhh!

Syd loved the touch tank at the aquarium. They had lots of sea-stars, anemones, horseshoe and hermit crabs.Horseshoe crabs getting friendly...

SEA HORSES, my favorite!

And lo and behold, on our way out of the aquarium they have a little boardwalk and a VENUS FLYTRAP PLANT! See how small and easy to miss they are in the winter?

We thought this was cool too....this is the level the water got to during each of the listed hurricanes! Hard to imagine...


On the way back to the hotel we stopped at Carolina Beach and walked around for a few minutes...not too many shells, but the beach and pier were pretty.


The next day we only had ONE thing on the agenda: USS North Carolina


The kids were so excited to check out all 9 levels of this beast!

Just look at all the dials and buttons and wires! It's a little boy's dream! The kids were running this way and that, like they were going to run out of time before they could explore everything.

Savi's got something in her sights...this was in the room where they aimed their big cannons.

Gunnar in one of the many bunk rooms. They slept 4 high. The info posted talked about how HOT it would get inside the battleship and how STINKY the mattresses would get after being sweat on all night and having to be covered during the day. They would take them up on deck on sunny days to try and air them out. Ick.

It was truly amazing how many levels there were, it just seemed to go down forever, pipes and wires and dials and switches EVERYWHERE. The kitchens were pretty amazing too. They had to feed 2000 men within an hour! Pretty incredible stuff. I coveted the potato peeling gadget. (Basically a sandpaper surface pot, throw in the potatoes and some water, agitate, and out came peeled potatoes)

Definitely a cool experience.

I'm sure we'll be back to visit Wilmington when it's warm so we can enjoy the beaches more. :)

Ice Day (S)

Last week we were kept housebound for the better part of 3 days by 4 inches of snow layered with some ice. School was cancelled for 3.25 days and the kids had a grand time "skating" down driveways, shoveling snow where needed and pulling the wagon around in the snow.

Here is the fort they've been building since summertime with fallen branches in the woods. The squirrels love it!

You can see the cracks in the ice as my boot touches down. It was the loudest, most alarming sound just walking around the yard.

My attempt to show the thickness of the ice. I'm estimating it was around 1/2" or so. Not bad on the grass, but on the roads it is deadly.

I love the iced over dogwood...looks like ice berries!

This is sunset on the 3rd day. The snow has melted underneath next to the grass, but it stayed in the teens so the ice didn't have a chance at melting!

I am still avoiding it on my runs in the shady spots over a week later!

I love snow days and a chance to snuggle in with the family for a bit. However, I do not love that we are having to make up these missed school days during previously planned holiday weekends. I would take a long weekend over being cooped up for an unexpected day or three anytime!

Happy Birthday Junebug!

Sydney, 4 years old

Four years ago today, our kids became The 3 Critters. Sweet Sydney June was born and our family will never be the same. She is the Sunshine in our family..if you've ever spent more than 2 minutes around her, you know what I mean. We love her like PB loves J!

Blessing Day (approx 9 weeks)

3 Critters (Sydney, 3 months old)

Sydney's birthday cake, carrot, made by her Mom at her request this year. :)
She's 4 going on 90, old soul, I tell you!

Dear Sydney,

You are such a fun girl to be around. We are so happy to have you as the caboose of our family train! You are very passionate about the things you love, and "don't love".

Some of the things you love at 4 years old are:

Favorite Homemade Meal: Broccoli Cheese Soup with LOTS of rolls to dip

Favorite Fast Food: Tacos

Preferred Ice Cream Flavor: Mint Chocolate Chip

Favorite Cake: Carrot (must have icing carrots on top)

Activities: Coloring with markers, going to tumbling & ballet class, playing with friends, telling stories and singing songs

You are also a great little sidekick for Mom. You are always up for errands. As long as I have some Key Lime Gum in my purse you are happy to go along to 3 or 4 different places in an afternoon!

You look forward to having your big sister and brother come home from school everyday, they are your best friends.

You love it when Daddy gives you a ride on his back up the stairs at bedtime.

You still love snuggles.

We love you!

Hugs and Kisses,

Your family <3

A Merry & A Happy!

Happy New Year! We are excited to be in Twenty-Eleven. I have a feeling that it's going to be a very good year for us, and I hope good things are in store for you, too!

We've been busy, with plenty of blog-worthy happenings, but sadly, I haven't been feeling like sitting down to keep track lately. I will try to do better.

For now, though, I just wanted to share some of our December with you.

Chris' parents flew in from California to visit us for TWO WHOLE WEEKS. Chris took most of that time off work. It was a luxury to have him all to ourselves and we had lots to look forward to.


While the kids were still in school, Sydney and the big people took a little hike out near Lake Wylie at McDowell Nature Preserve. It was a cool area we'd been meaning to check out for a while. Sydney led the pack, too!

Grandma Hovik also had lots of pre-Christmas shopping to get done since she didn't want to fly all of her gifts out with her. We braved the week of Christmas mall traffic, but got some fabulous deals, too! All that running around kept us pretty busy between outings with the group and life support. (preparing dinner, doing dishes, grocery shopping and all of my other household chores that wouldn't go away..ahem, laundry)


Our first day trip took us to Asheville to visit The Biltmore, the Vanderbilt's 1895 Estate and the largest home in America. It was fabulously decorated....sadly, they don't allow photography inside the home (so they can sell you a $20 glossy book of them), but there must've been at least 500 Christmas trees decked out through the whole place. The views were Ah-Mazing! The photo above was taken off the rear porch. There is no questioning why the house was situated in the spot that it was. Glorious.

The gardens were obviously not at their prime, but they were still pretty cool to see. Those vines are Wisteria. Can you imagine what it will look like in the summer?



We attempted to get a family photo inside the greenhouse. (I had no clue the rock candy pops were in their mouths....lovely, eh?)

Normally we build a Gingerbread house in December, but I saw these little guys at Trader Joe's this year, and Grandma decided to treat the kids to them. Extra bonus, the Grandparents volunteered to be in charge one evening during their stay and work on this project with the kids while Chris and I went to dinner and a movie. It was so nice for us to have some kid-free time! (thanks again!!)

Christmas Eve took us to the NC Zoo in Asheboro. We had only been to the SC zoo to this point, and were excited to see this one....like the one in Columbia, it's also about a 90 minute drive from our house. It was an awesome zoo with 2 separate sections, Africa and North America, connected but also with tram transport between them. Lots of room for expansion, but it already has about 5 miles of paved trails taking you from one exhibit to the next. Nicely done! My favorite were the seals and sea lion.

It was a frigid day. We were all bundled up with hats, gloves and big jackets! This guy was just soaking up the sun though, love him! Bonus, on Christmas Eve, we were one of probably 5 family groups at the zoo during the four hours we were there! It's a nice way to do the zoo!

We hustled home for a nice ham dinner for Christmas Eve. Luckily it doesn't take too long to heat up fully cooked ham in the oven, and I had prepped our traditional Christmas Jello (recipe from Grandpa Cline's childhood) the night before. We were eating about 75 minutes after returning from the zoo. It worked out perfectly!


Can you tell what the critters were most excited about?


After dinner we had our Christmas Program, complete with poetry reading by Grandpa H., a skit with Grandma H. and the kids, and some caroling from the critters. It was a lovely evening and the anticipation of Christmas morning was palpable. Kids make everything more exciting!

We had a wonderful morning, full of blessings, hugs and thank yous.

The best part of this holiday season has been watching the kids embrace the spirit of giving. They each paid a percentage of every gift they gave this year with their allowance and it was absolutely amazing the difference that made. Such a sweet feeling accompanied the usual Christmas joy. I'm so thankful for these little people and the things they teach us as parents.

And, as if on cue, the snow started to fall Christmas Night.

This is what we woke up to December 26th!

Snow angels and snowmen and sledding, OH MY!

I hope you and yours experienced some magic this season, and may this new year bring you more blessings than you can imagine!

Thanksgiving Reflections

It's been a month since my last post. Time flies when you're having fun! Here is a snapshot of our November:

We took a trip to the zoo on a gorgeous Saturday mid-month. Chris needed to visit the dealership nearby (Columbia, about 90 minutes from our house) to pick up his new car, so it worked out perfectly for us to drop him and go to the zoo until he could meet up with us. We loved seeing the penguins, lions, crocodile and the new kangaroo walkabout.

I was pretty excited to see a festive family activity come home in Sydney's backpack one day early in the month.

It says, "Five Fat Turkeys Are We. We sat all night in a tree. When the Cook came around, we were nowhere to be found. That's why we're up here you see!

Poor Tom Turkey had a major problem, he is afraid of heights and cannot climb trees like his friends. Could your family help Tom out this Thanksgiving season and disguise him so the cook can't find him? (Only until after the holiday, of course) Be creative and dress Tom up, which is better than the cook dressing him, if you get my drift. "

We ended up dressing him up like a snowman. There were some pretty cute submissions, which were all posted on the bulletin board in the school hallway. My favorites were a fish, a guitar, Perry the Platypus and Dora The Explorer. There were also the requisite princess and fairy dress-ups. Fun idea!
Isn't he cute? I love that the orange pipe-cleaner doubles as a carrot and/or a turkey beak!

One of the things we were MOST grateful for this Thanksgiving was that Aunt Kasey and Uncle Jimmie came to share the week with us!

Last time Kasey was here (in September for the Blue Ridge Relay) she asked Sydney about Uncle Jimmie. Syd's response, "Oh, him DIED!" Very nonchalant. Hehe. It had only been 10 months since the kids had seen him, but apparently it was TIME for a visit from UNCA Jimmie!


The kids loved having him here, always ready for a wrestle, our Unca Jimmie. ;) Jimmie made time to spend a day up near the Virginia border doing some genealogy work and the guys even took a trip to the National Whitewater center for some big kid fun. They took a rough ride down the rocky man-made river and tumbled out. Poor Chris got a little more up close and personal with the boulders than his knees liked.

We had an adults (plus Sydney, who had a cough yucky enough not to leave her at swap) date night. We saw a terrible dollar movie and had some awesome mexican food with the best fresh limonada I've EVER tasted!

And the sisters did lots of shopping, cooking, running and creating. Just what we like to do best!


This was after our hilly 8K Turkey Trot Thanksgiving morning. It was a cool 49 with misty rain at the start. Pretty perfect for a race day. We ran strong and felt fabulous all the way through. I smell an annual tradition!

We brined our turkey this year, and used rosemary and orange to season it. It was wonderfully juicy! It was so great having 2 cooks in the kitchen, someone to split the work with and someone to chat with all day made it super fun. It made it much less hectic, and the timing worked out perfectly. Double ovens totally pulled their weight this week! (So very grateful for them!)

We had a lovely dinner with some classics (Gpa Cline's berry jello, green bean casserole, mashed potatoes) and some new additions (roasted butternut squash, POM cranberry sauce, sourdough starter rolls). It was wonderful to share with each other what we were feeling most grateful for and really reflect on how blessed we are.


We also spied a design at Anthropologie that I wanted to rush right out and imitate....so, of course, we had to make time! We got Sydney and her BFF Paris together to play, and Shanda, Kasey and I went supply shopping and spent some crafty time working on some bling. K's is a pearl bracelet with pleated grosgrain, it turned out so cute!

The kids were so sad when our guests left. I'm not gonna lie, there were tears! Luckily, we're related, so there's a pretty good chance we'll see each other again soon!

Now we are all decorated for Christmas, getting ready to wrap gifts and preparing for Chris' parents to spend a couple of weeks with us during the Christmas holiday. Chris is taking 2 weeks leave and we're looking forward to LOTS of family time! <3

Halloween Visitors

We had the Happiest Halloween this year! My parents flew from California to visit us for a few days! What a TREAT!

We played at the park in the cool fall weather, had a picnic and walked around the lake (with sticks to stir up the mud, of course!)

We did last minute errands for costume necessities and popcorn ball supplies to take to our Church Halloween Bash Friday night.

Grandma was the make-up artist, she did a fabulous job completing the kids' costumes! Savi was a Hocus Pocus Witch, Gunnar was a Zombie and Sydney was Abby Cadabby, from Sesame Street, this year. They all chose their own costumes this year and were SO HAPPY!

This was pre-neck-slash, scary already! I love how in-character he already was. Dad helped him slash up his old clothes and get him dressed.

We trunk-or-treated with our church family this year! It's the only way to do it, in my opinion! I love only getting candy from families that you know and trust. AND THEY HAD PLENTY! No razor blades in my candy bars, thankyouverymuch! ;) Next year, I'll actually get my act together and decorate my trunk with spider webs and what not! There were some awesome ones this year!

Saturday morning we got up and went to the Nascar Hall of Fame uptown. We've been meaning to go for a while. It was interesting to learn about the origins of the sport and how it became a past-time for so many fans, especially in the southern states. Bootleggers, anyone? ;)

This is Savi on a 26 degree slope. Crazy steep!

They had a cute kiddie area where the critters could practice being part of a pit crew. Gunnar was loving that drill! Did you know the gas can weighs 86 lbs? Yowza!

And a race-day qualifier simulation for the big kids! I crashed and burned. I think I should stay UNDER 160 mph. It would be best for everyone! :)

Saturday evening the kids and I carved pumpkins with Grandma while Dad and Grandpa watched some football. I finally perfected my pumpkin seed roasting technique and Gunnar ate about a pound of them. ;P

The big kids did most of the carving on their own this year, and Sydney was very involved helping Grandma with hers. I was so impressed with how cute they turned out.

Sunday, we had some friends of ours come join us for dinner and some low-key Halloween fun. We had Chicken Tikka Masala (and chicken nuggets for the little ones), bobbed for apples, made gauze ghosts and handed out candy....we also had a fabulous pumpkin dessert, provided by our guests! It was a great night, all around!


Love this shot Will. Those kiddos didn't hold back.

Unexpected bonus, they each ate about 3 apples, instead of candy! ;)

Monday, Chris had work, the big kids had school, but Sydney didn't, so we ventured to the zoo in Columbia.

We love our zoo, and even though it is a 90 mile drive, it's worth it. The weather was perfect, around 65 degrees and the animals were incredible to see.

We loved feeding the lorakeets, seeing the flamingos, elephants, bears and penguins.
It was fun to spend the day together. Sydney was on Cloud 9 with all the adult attention.

She loved feeding the goats. I don't know where she gets it from. I hate goats, so does Chris.
Evil, I tell you!

After this encounter, on the way to the sinks to sanitize, she saw a glass fronted case that was a little grimy. She couldn't quite see what was in there. In slow motion (or so it seemed) she lifts her hands to her face, licks each palm (full of goat slime) and rubs on the glass. I threw up a little in my mouth. HURL.

She seems OK so far. But I don't think I've ever felt more sick. Bleck.

Good times, right? One day I will laugh about it, I'm sure.

We're so grateful that our family is willing to take time out of their busy lives to come and make memories with us. We love visitors!

We are looking forward to having house-guests for the next 2 upcoming holidays too! We'll keep you posted on all the fun things we get to do together...stay tuned..