Showing all posts in GEORGIA LIFE

 

I feel pretty spoiled that Niall gets three day weekends.  While there are definitely times when the ten hour workdays Monday to Thursday feel really long, it’s totally worth it come Thursday afternoon… I feel like a school kid about to get out for her summer holidays.  I know I know, sounds like I’m exaggerating but for a stay at home mom, having three whole days with dad home is pretty sweet:)

 

We haven’t been the best about taking domestic trips, but now that we are officially settled in after the big move there’s really no excuse!  So, last week we decided to take a little day trip about an hour and twenty minutes south to Saint Simons Island.  Our first stop was Sandy Bottom Bagels — I had done a little research and we just wanted something quick and easy for breakfast.  It was perfect!  We don’t have a fresh bagel shop close to where we live which is probably a good thing… I’d be there too much.

 

 

I always seem to know ahead of time what cute coffee shops are in any town:)  So I knew we had to stop at Wake Up Coffee Co. before hitting the beach!  We got iced lattes to go and I oohed and ahhed over the cute outdoor back porch that we definitely could not sit out on … one giant double stroller that wouldn’t fit through the front door and two whining kids?  Nope, not gonna happen.  However, Niall sweetly waved me off as he knew there were several cute shops that I wanted to poke around in while he kept the little ticking time bombs moving.  Maybe the kids could smell the saltiness in the warm air… I think deep down they suspected we were just a few minutes from the beach.  Or, maybe they just whine a lot (yea, that’s probably it;)

 

 

 

 

We parked easily and followed that lovely salty scent until the ocean was in view.  The kids were in HEAVEN — it was especially fun to watch them for those first ten minutes.  Eamon was a crazy man, just yelling and waving his hands in the air as he ran in and out of the water.  Just the cutest thing ever!!  It made my heart so happy:)

 

 

 

 

 

We left the beach sunned out and happy.  It was honestly so good for our souls to have a beach day and do a little exploring in our new home state.  I’m sure there were so many other things we could have done but with two little ones we wanted to keep it simple:)  And we were glad we did.

 

I had bought a Southern Living magazine a month ago and read a snippet about a place called Southern Soul Barbeque, an old gas station turned barbeque joint — they called it one of the best in the South … and it was in Saint Simons.  Sold!  We headed there for a late lunch and it did not disappoint.  The casual outdoor picnic tables with all the condiments ready to go on the table made it a really easy place to go with kids.

 

 

 

 

 

Ok, if you’re ever feeling sad, just order fried Oreos and you’ll forget about your problems (for a little while anyway).  Seriously though — what do these Southern folk NOT fry?!  I was skeptical at first but they were pretty amazing.

 

 

Last stop was Brunswick, a town we drove through to get to Saint Simons — there was a craft fair there I wanted to check out.  Actually, it was pretty much the main thing that inspired this little day trip!  I had seen a flyer for it a few weeks prior and thought it would be fun to go.  We strolled around a bit, I bought some cute stationery (because if you know me you know I love snail mail), and then loaded in the car one last time.

 

 

We are enjoying every minute of being able to be outdoors so much and we are loving life in Georgia so far — even though I constantly have mosquito bites all over my legs!  We’re looking forward to taking more trips, even if they’re only for the day and involve plenty of all the mishaps that go with traveling with kiddos.  I’ll always remember our beach day in Saint Simons and the way the sea and the sand made us all smile.

 

 

Last week we said good bye to my little sister, brother-in-law and sweet niece who were here with us Georgia folk for a whole week!  Even though I still feel very far away from my family, living 2,500 miles away instead of over 5,000 has its perks.  : )  No one needs a passport, currency exchange isn’t an issue and you don’t need to spend half the trip getting yourself (& kids) over jet lag.  Hooray!

 

I should never have told my three year old that her cousin Audrey was coming a week in advance.  She asked me approximately 3,864 times about their arrival.  “Is she coming today?”  “Are they here yet?”  “Do Audrey and Auntie Heather want to see me?”  Oof.  Her questioning was endearing at first, but I think I developed a slight twitch from all of the repetition by the time it was finally THE DAY — lesson learned.  ; )

 

I hadn’t seen these three since last summer and there’s just nothing like catching up in person.  It was fun showing them our new home, strolling around downtown Savannah, and just shootin’ the breeze.  The girls are in that three year age range… so half the time they were hugging and laughing and looking like the cutest little things ever; the other half, we’d hear screaming and one of us would rush to the scene to find them clawing at each other (sharing is not their specialty).  Luckily, they usually loved each other again a few seconds later.  Oh to be that forgiving.  ; )

 

 

 

 

 

I just love that picture of us in the room.  : )  Kids under pillows, grown ups lazing around.  We hadn’t planned on sprawling out and chatting for an hour in the room but it just sort of happened and it was great.

 

Everyone can agree that hosting can be tiring.  You don’t have your own space, meal planning takes a bit more thought, and your day to day routine is put on hold.  But I kind of love the craziness, the cleaning that gets done beforehand (even though you know it’s gonna get messed up after the first twenty minutes), and the late night chats that happen on week nights when you should really be in bed.

 

 

As our three visitors drove to the airport in their rental car, we stood in the street and waved until they turned right and we were left staring at the corner stop sign.  I always really dislike the first hour after guests leave.  After making our way back inside, the house felt unusually quiet.  I made Méabh some lunch and tried to brighten the mood by talking about how much fun we were going to have that afternoon.  She wasn’t buying it.  She started crying in between mouthfuls of peanut butter toast saying “I miss them” and “when do I get to see Audrey again?”  I told her summer.  I explained when it gets reeeeaaalllly hot here, we’re going to go on the airplane to California and see Audrey and Auntie Heather and Uncle Mark and ALL our family again.

 

As you can imagine, I’m getting a lot of questions about ‘summer’ these days.  Lesson learned… again.  : )