Sunday, August 16, 2020

Kayaking adventure

I was supposed to go to the beach for a girlfriend weekend, but once again, a hurricane foiled our plans, so I got to be a part of "dangerous stuff with Dad" weekend! It turned out to not be that dangerous, but a very nice kayak ride down Cape Fear River. We will definitely be coming back and doing this again!








COVID-19 Quarantine Blog

We find ourselves these days in some pretty crazy times, with the news changing by the minute, businesses closing down, schools closing and rules being set about social distancing and quarantining our families due to the global threat of COVID-19. This is most definitely an unprecedented time to be living in, and who knows what the "right or wrong" thing is at this time... I hadn't planned on documenting the process, and I don't know how long I'll feel like doing it, but for now, I'll make a weekly post to keep everyone up on some news snippets I've captured, give y'all a glimpse into our quarantined family life at the Beach household, and share some of the best memes to keep a little humor in our lives... This is serving as a bit of a "journal" to keep for my kids to keep track of this time in history that their kids will be reading about someday. My prayer is that you all stay safely in your homes and stay healthy! And when you have time, feel free to drop a text, email, call or Facetime... heaven knows I have nowhere else to be!

Feel free to check out our story from the beginning:

The Beginning: Quarantine Blog

Week 1: Quarantine Blog

Week 2: Quarantine Blog

Week 3: Quarantine Blog

Week 4: Quarantine Blog

Week 5: Quarantine Blog

Week 6: Quarantine Blog

Week 7: Quarantine Blog

Week 8: Quarantine Blog

Week 9: Quarantine Blog

Week 10: Quarantine Blog

Week 11: Quarantine Blog








Saturday, August 15, 2020

Weeks 21 & 22: Quarantine Blog

The last 2 weeks had a bunch of fun things for us as we wrapped up our summer "vacation"! We tried to do some different things, and while some worked out, others were foiled by coronavirus... again...
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We started this week off with Abby's 1/2 birthday, and she finally got her homemade waffles that she's been asking for... well, at least a half a waffle!
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The governor made the announcement that we will have another 5 weeks of Phase 2...
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New York has REALLY started cracking down on travel... We hope things change soon so we can have a visit from Nannie & Grandpa!
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The memes have slowed down, but they haven't stopped!
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Hurricane season in the South is no joke, and it has definitely begun... unfortunately, Isaias wreaked havoc on the beach at Oak Island, which is where I had my girls weekend planned for the weekend... It wasn't looking too good for us.
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The highlight of the week was Ben's birthday and his birthday party with the backyard waterslide! We all had a blast, and it was so much fun to do something different! Check out his whole birthday blog post here: Ben's 9th Birthday
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Apparently, 2020 is throwing it all at us, and we woke up Sunday morning to an earthquake in North Carolina! We didn't actually feel anything, but our neighbors all around us said they did, so I'm not sure how we missed it!
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Unfortunately, Oak Island remained closed almost 2 weeks after the hurricane and my annual girls trip to the beach was cancelled :( We are still hoping to reschedule, so keep your fingers crossed for a break in the weather, and stay tuned for pictures hopefully!
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Our numbers as a nation, and as a state are both going in the right direction, so hopefully we keep moving this way!
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Unfortunately, we are still hitting record high numbers, and globally, we hit the 20 million milestone...
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Things should get interesting as school gets ready to start, and I just hope everyone can do it safely!
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We will be starting our virtual academy next week, and we're ready!
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One last image to sum up our last two weeks... Brian's unicorn head came in the mail for a work meeting, and everyone's loving it! Hope you're finding ways to laugh each day and stay safe!
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Saturday, August 8, 2020

Happy Birthday Ben!

Well, it turns out turning 9 can be pretty epic! Ben got to spend his birthday with morning coffee & donuts, opening presents, time at the pool with friends, his favorite dinner & cake, and then we even had an epic backyard birthday party with a waterslide! Everyone had a blast, and thank you to everyone for the cards, calls, gifts & well-wishes! We have one very lucky boy!


Dad got donuts and lattes to start the day off right!


His new school uniform!


His favorite gift was once again, a stuffed fox!



Fortnight "V-Bucks" were a big hit this year too!




Dad got an awesome remote control paper airplane set!



We enjoyed some time at the pool with friends in the afternoon!






Ben's dinner request was pork chops, mac & cheese, tater tots and triple chocolate cake!





Saturday turned out to be a beautiful day, after a string of soggy ones, and we had an AWESOME time renting this 20-foot water slide for the day! It was a great way to stay cool outside since our indoor parties are still limited these days! The pictures make the water slide look terrifying, but it really was so much fun for the kids AND the grown ups!!




























We kept snacks to a minimum and enjoyed cupcakes with friends!


We even enjoyed some present opening on the lawn!






The gift of the century was his giant creeper! I love that this little guy hasn't TOTALLY grown up yet! 


Happy Birthday buddy! We love you!

 

Happy birthday Brian!

For Brian's birthday this year, Nannie & Grandpa came for a quick visit and we went out for one of his favorite dinner experiences.....