Massachusetts Trip: Beachside at Oceanside

We had such an enjoyable Labor Day afternoon enjoying the beautiful weather, beautiful beach, good food, and wonderful family at the Oceanside on the Cape.

This cute little beach was just down the steps from the outdoor cafe. Aunt Eileen played with Cooper on the beach while Hudson napped, and Nate and I enjoyed lunch and conversation with his extended family.  This picture shows Eileen and Cooper WAY down the beach, on a walk.

Then Coopsta swiped my sunglasses and enjoyed some lunch of his own.

Hudson napped and then hung out in the shade in his stroller.

Great Grandpa Gunning took Cooper for a walk out on the jetty. It was Cooper's first time on a jetty, and he felt so big! Precious moment between Cooper James and his great grandfather whose middle name he is named for.

Cooper also played with Cordelia.

Uncle David helped Cooper get dry and warm.

Cousin Ryan even took Cooper for a stroll and some play time on the beach.

This was my view--baby and beach. Couldn't get much better. Was such an enjoyable day for us all. Cooper was spoiled with attention, and Nate and I were spoiled with being able to visit with his family who we miss so much.

Massachusetts Trip: Labor Day Pirates--Ahoy Mates!

The morning of Labor Day Nathan and Cooper set out on a pirate adventure. Right off the bat, Cooper was sure to show his pouty face because he didn't want to take a picture. But because Hudson was below the age requirement for passage, I didn't get to join them on the adventure, and requested lots of pictures. This one was by far my favorite.

Practicing sword fighting--a pirate must.

He means business!

Get 'em!

Sailing to find buried teasure.

Finally a smile!

They sailed to find a buried treasure box. Coop came home with a bunch of loot (smal toys/prizes). He had a such a great time being a pirate, you may see some of this re-appear around Halloween.

A few days later we were enjoying some shopping in Hyannis, and went for a walk along the waterfront. Cooper was excited to show me the boat. He was all smiles this time.

Massachusetts Trip--Family Labor Day Cookout

We've been saving for a few years to take another trip to Boston to visit Nate's family there, and we finally got to go!  We were so excited to take a week to see family and have a little vacation.  Cooper and Hudson did amazingly well on the plane ride there.  I forget that it's only 2-1/2 hours flying, rather than the 4-1/2 hours it takes to go to Utah, so the flight seemed so short.  The kids did really well until Hudson hit his breaking point about 20 minutes from Nana and Grandpa's house.  But after travelling for 10 hours, it was understandable that he was screaming for that last little bit.  I had expected MUCH worse, and was so thankful that they both did so well.

Cooper was so excited to visit Cape Cod.  He has a storybook about it, given to him by Nana.  He loves to read about all the fun things to do on the Cape.  The one thing he kept asking about was going over the bridge (the Sagamore bridge).  He was practically leaping out of his seat when we drove over THE ACTUAL "Cape Cod Bridge."  The only thing better than that was getting to sleep over at Nana's house.  Here he is zonked out after just a few minutes in bed the first night.

 The next afternoon Nathan's family threw a Labor Day weekend cookout at Nana's house so that everyone could come see us.  It was a smorgasbord of great company, great food, and great weather.  What more could we ask for on vacation?!  Our Massachusetts family got to meet Hudson for the first time.

 Hudson and Aunt Eileen

Cooper helped Grandpa and Ryan shuck the corn for the cookout.  He was happy to be doing "real work" with the "big guys."

 Hudson enjoyed hanging out on Nana's screened-in porch.

Nana took good care of Hudson, careful not to let him roll off the bench that his mommy had set him down on.  Glad she was there to look out for him!  He did his first full roll-over from belly to back while we were at Nana's house.  Gotta be careful now about placing him on things he can roll off of.

Hudson and Uncle Peter

Elizabeth (11) and Cordelia (1)

Cordelia had just started walking and preferred some hand-holding to help her get around.  Elizabeth was a great babysitter.

 Samantha (11) and Cooper (3-1/2)

Samantha and Cooper played together for hours and hours.  They played in the backyard in the dirt, in the front yard collecting leaves and things in Cooper's new dump truck from Uncle David, and also played with the toys and games in Nana's basement.  Oh, and let's not forget the computer time where they nearly used all of Grandpa's paper printing who-knows-what.  Cooper idolizes Samantha, and asked for her every day thereafter while we were in Massachusetts.  Sadly the girls had to go to school, or we would have seen them more for sure.

 I'm making this picture extra large because it's one of my most favorite from our vacation.  Kinda funny that Samantha, Elizabeth, and Cordelia are actually Nathan's first cousins, and Hudson and Cooper's second cousins.  But these were all the "littles" at the party.

 Proof that I was at the party as well.

Background L to R:  Jimmy Gunning, cousin Paul and his wife (I know their last name, but no idea how to spell it!), Eileen, Ryan, Peter and Stephen.

 The Picazio Grill Masters: Ryan, Stephen and Peter.  We can always count on these guys to make something amazing on the grill, and this time was no disappointment with sausage, chicken wings, hot dogs and hamburgers.  Stephen made some amazing fresh guacamole and salsa (OMG!).  I couldn't stop eating it.  The Picazios definitely know how to make some good food.

I enjoyed sitting at the table with this crew and talking about genealogy, making sure I had my facts and people straight.  It was fun to hear them validate the information I'd gathered on my own, and then also give me new information and stories.

L to R: Ingrid, Grandpa (Jim Gunning), Nana (Mary Jane Gunning), Eileen Picazio, Susie Hayes, David Gunning, and Jack Hayes.

Delia and Cordelia (one of the most beautiful little girls I've ever seen--the strawberry hair and big blue eyes!)  Everyone was teasing about Cordelia having the Gunning concentration tongue when she walked.

Cooper enjoyed many hours exploring Nana and Grandpa's beautiful yard while we were there.  He had lots of fun digging in their nice, black topsoil and getting good and dirty before the party.  During the party I caught him pretending to water the flowers.

Poor Ryan getting teased  by Nathan about when he's gonna get married and have one of these of his own.  He was a good sport.

Nate and Ingrid discussing the fact that Hudson does NOT have the Gunning head.

Hudson, Delia, and Cordelia (just realizing--how did I miss getting any pictures of Tom?)

Nana and Hudson hanging out indoors as it got later in the evening, and cooler outside.

We attempted to get some family photos while most of the crew were together (we sure missed Denise and her family!), but alas, we waited a little too late, and lost the natural light.

Elizabeth, Nana, Samantha, and Cordelia

The Girls: Chrystal, Delia, Elizabeth, Nana, Cordelia, Eileen, Samantha, Ingrid

Nana and Grandpa with their grandchildren and great-grandchildren (missing Lindsay and Allison)

The Guys: Ryan, Tom, Stephen, Hudson, Grandpa, David, Cooper, Nathan, Jim

It was such a great party.  We had a wonderful time and enjoyed visiting with everyone.  Only wish we could have had more time together.  We sure do miss seeing our family more often.

Do You Swim in a Pool to Keep Yourself Cool...

Tonight at bedtime Cooper and I sang Oh What Do You Do in the Summertime?  When we got to the verse about "Do you swim in a pool to keep yourself cool..." Cooper stopped and said, "Hey! We did that!" Yes, yes we did.  We didn't make it to the water park as much this summer as last, due in part to our addition of little Hudson this year, and also in part to the cool/rainy weather we have had quite a bit of, but we did get to go quite often.  Yesterday afternoon was the first time I tried to put Hudson in the water.  Before that I just felt he was too little still to be dipped in a public swimming pool.  But it was too cold for him, since it's been cooler here lately, and the pool isn't heated.  So next year Hudson can enjoy the water with us.  This year he spent his pool time hanging out in the baby carrier on the front of me as I waded, usually with a light blanket covering him to protect him from the sun.

Cooper, on the other hand, was a little fish, and spent every possible second in the water.  It was rare to see him with a floatie, but I happened to get the camera out yesterday as he was playing with one of his friend's.    The water park is closing after Labor Day, and having other plans, yesterday and today were our last days at the water park for the summer.  We met up with our friends Stephanie, Ethan, Adison, Natalie, Julia, and Amelia both days.  They have been our swimming buddies all summer.  I'm sad the water park is closing--I'm not ready for that part of summer to end yet.  However, Cooper was quick to remind me that the indoor pool will still be open for our swimming pleasure.  The boy loves to swim.  The kids wouldn't really stop for pictures, but I still managed to get a few.

Cooper

Amelia

 Ethan and Cooper

 Ethan and Amelia 

 Cooper, Julia, Ethan, Adison

 Adison

 Hudson and Mommy

 Ethan, Cooper, Adison, Amelia (Julia chose not to be in the picture)

I'm so glad we have friends to share these fun summer memories with.  Looking forward to it again next summer!

The Boys: Milestones

The boys have both had milestones in the last few days.  Well, maybe Hudson's is not so much a "milestone," but it's the longest amount of time I've ever heard him talk, and I'm pretty sure he tried to say "I love you."  The other day I had laid him in his crib for a few minutes to grab a few things in the boys' room, and he started talking to his butterfly mobile.  Since he was perfectly happy, I left him there for a few minutes while I did a few other things.  I came back to check on him a few minutes later, and he was still babbling away.  He babbled and coo-ed for 25 minutes!  He must really like his butterfly mobile, or maybe it was talking back while I was away.  I was shocked to be able to get it on video, since the last few times I've tried to record him, he gets quiet and intently stares at the design on the back of the phone.  Apparently the phone was no match for his beloved butterfly.
It's a long 4 minute video, but I thought at least the grandparents might enjoy it.  If nothing, skip about 20 seconds from the end, where I tell him I love him, and I swear he tries to say it back; at least he gets the general sounds and cadence right.  Crazy!  He's such a verbal little guy, and I LOVE it.
If the embedded video doesn't work, here is the link:  http://youtu.be/hBVBbUiQbl0



Cooper, on the other hand, had a MAJOR milestone last Saturday.  He begged Nate to take the training wheels off his bike, because according to him he has "great bounce" [balance].  Nate took them off just to prove a point, but then Cooper surprised us both when he was able to actually ride the bike a bit.  Nate has been helping him a little every day ever since.  The learning hasn't been without a scraped knee or two (although he still refuses to wear his elbow/knee pads for more than a minute), but he begs every day for one of us to go out and help him.  It's a bit challenging for him since our driveway and our street are both sloped, and the bike without the training wheels has some problem with the pedals getting stuck, but he is doing amazingly well, especially considering he's a month shy of 4 years old still.  It may be time to take the training wheels off his other bike so he can pedal better, and really take off.  Our little guy is growing up!



Here is the link in case the embed doesn't work.  http://youtu.be/oX3OMSmVcXg

Lastly, I took this picture today of the boys playing together while I was making dinner.  Cooper had asked if I could get out the activity mat/toy hanger with the lights and music.  He was excited to make the lights and music go for Hudson.  It still kinda freaks Huddy out, but he tries to be brave with his big brother showing him.  It's pretty cute.