Beach, Ben and Bottles

We are back from the beach and oh, what a trip it was! We left on a Friday to split up our 16 (well, 18) hour drive down. Sam did amazingly! We were so impressed and SO lucky! We arrived in Holden Beach, NC around 7 on Saturday evening and ate some burgers and relaxed! The next day, we took Sam to the beach. She loved the waves and really enjoyed the sensation of the sand underneath her feet. She splashed in the waves with her feet for a little while, and then got cranky. The wind was unbelievable and she didn't know how to handle it. After a while, it would get to her! She was rather loved by cousin Sean and enjoyed her playmat, bumbo chair, great grandpa and grandma Bryant, and the rest of the crew. Great Uncle Bob was a wiz at dancing her to sleep. :)

Greg and I got some beach time too! We truly enjoyed our time there and relaxed as much as possible! We went for runs and bike rides and just enjoyed our time together as a family.

The ride home we did in one day. Sam was so GREAT! 16 hours and only fussed the last 1/2 hour of the trip!!! We are so lucky to have such a wonderful baby. :)

I will post pictures eventually. We took over 500 pictures so it will take me a while to go through them. I promise to post this week though!

Today is my first day with Ben. What has happened since he has been here...for an hour?! He has introduced himself to Sam, Finnegan and slobbered on some toys. He is currently passed out in the pack n play, Sam is passed out in the swing and Finnegan is passed out in the dining room! What a morning! :) So far, so good.

Just last week, Sam has figured out how to grasp onto toys and bring them to her mouth to "chew" on. And just last night, she began to hold her own bottle!!! She has been grasping it for the past week, just like her toys, but last night was the first time I didn't have to hold on to the bottle to help her. What a smart girl! We will continue to encourage this so that soon she will be doing it on her own ALL the time! Hopefully this will be in the next few weeks!

She has also begun to sit up on her own, as long as she is propped up. Just this morning she was in her bouncer and held on to the sides and pulled up. Can you say smart girl?! I can just see her in a few months pulling up on things to stand up...oh boy!!! :) I'll enjoy what I have while I have it!