BABY HOBBS HAS ARRIVED

Baby "Chubs" (since Mama and Dada Hobbs have not given him a name yet) was born June 24th at 2:30ish a.m.

He weighed a whopping 9 lbs. 5 oz. (had Baby Summer Ann beat) and was 23.5 inches long.

BIG BOY!!

Congratulations Jen and Dave!

(Of course we get to the hospital to meet the new addition and my camera battery was nearly dead and the 8 Gigawatz card we have that can hold 3000 pictures was almost full....)

Beach Bums

(I would go ahead and shut off the music...a couple of videos below)

We went on a mini-vacation. I found a little motel called the Sea View on the water in Melbourne off of A1A. We went over to see the shuttle launch (which was cancelled) and to relax on the beach.

The motel was just our style. It was just bought by David and his wife and being run with the help of their daughter Casey. Very relaxed, small, quaint, beach-bummish, and almost on the water. The beach was a beach ball throw away.

Our room was on the 2nd floor and had a pink/salmon door. #6. Definitely not for those who like to be pampered at a resort-style hotel. They were friendly but not overly accommodating, but there if we needed something, but not in our business.

It was just a relaxing getaway from work, laundry, yard work, bills, the mundane routine.

The beach was very long and wide, very different from the beaches on our side. And the best part- no people! We pretty much had the beach to ourselves. The only other people were the 3 couples that were staying in the motel. They were there celebrating Carol's birthday (yes we know their names, ages, weight, blood type, etc.) Our new beach neighbors were very entertaining (and intoxicated the entire weekend.) They adopted Bryce and we became one big vacationing family. Good times.

Bryce did really well in the water and once he figured out the pattern of the waves, he was able to keep his balance...the new wave would rush in and the old wave would recede back into the ocean.

We really had a great time collecting shells and chasing the birds, building (Bryce destroying) sand castles, and fetching water for the king (he would pick up his bucket, point to the water and send me to get more.)

Mike found a grasshopper (don't they live on the prairie or something??) and deceided to put it on my knee...Okay, I'm not squeemish about bugs but it was sitting there, staring at me. To top it off, I had seen its brother hopping along earlier and thought it was a hummingbird. That's how big it was.

Bryce thought it was funny and I could tell he wanted me to give him the thumbs up and let him take it home as his new pet. Not happenin'.

We found out that sea turtles lay their eggs at night on this stretch of the beach. There were turtle tracks up and down the beach as far as I could see. On Saturday night I went down to the beach to see if I could see any turtles making the trek up to the beach but it was too dark (cloudy). Of course the next morning there were tracks everywhere. Maybe next time I will be able to sit out there and wait and watch. I guess it's a long process and they get spooked very easily.

Saturday, after our morning trip down to the beach, we all took a nap. I haven't taken a nap in, well, let's see....how old is Bryce?

The room was really chilly, but not too cold, and we all crashed on the bed and slept for a good hour, hour in a half. We ate lunch when we woke up. Bryce is able to feed himself now. He does a pretty good job. He is able to get more food in his mouth than on the floor so therefore has He has graduated to the "self-feeder" category (if one exists).

Bryce is sitting on our make-shift booster seat...pillows

(Check out that view)
So depressing and awesome at the same time. My little baby is growing up. Just wait Tonya, Jen and Katrina. You guys will celebrate the milestones but secretly wish they were still goo-goo-ga-ga-ing and totally dependent on you. Just wait!

Sunday morning I woke up early and walked on the beach to collect some shells and take pictures of the turtle tracks. It was me, 2 people fishing, and some birds.

(those are turtle tracks going up the beach)

Could it get anymore peaceful???

I made cinnamon rolls for breakfast (okay, I heated up the pre-made ones) and then we went down to the beach. Our neighbors were heading back to reality and so we said our good-byes and thanked them for letting us invade their grown-up weekend.

Aunt Melly and Scott were on the East Side as well for her cousin's wedding. We got to hang out for a little bit on Sunday before heading back to Tampa.

I have decided to collect shells from each trip we take to the beach (very original I know) and put them in jars in my bathroom.

VERY IMPORTANT SHELL-HUNTING TIP: If you decide to hunt shells whilst strolling along the beach, early morning, observing the birds searching for breakfast in the water and the sand ahead of you, taking in the alone (but not lonely) moment that you rarely have, and you happen to come across a black, twisted shell that has a little creature in it, go ahead and snap a few pictures and then put it back in the water.

HOWEVER, if you come across a white/cream and greyish colored, twisted, looking shell, DON'T PICK IT UP.

Damn birds.

Photo and video editing at www.OneTrueMedia.com

Thought of the day

"I would rather be a dry, brittle leaf than one that is dew-dropped daily. For dry and brittle will break and scatter whilst dew-dropped will never tatter."

-Anaughtymouse

Remembering Dave O.

Today is the 1 year anniversary of Dave Olinger's death. Please say a prayer for his family and friends who all miss him very much.

Tonight his parents are hosting a gathering at their house.

Say a prayer for his family. Pray that they will be strong, that they will confide in the Lord for understanding, acceptance, and comfort, that their faith will not faulter but grow from this tragic ending to a loved ones life.

We miss you Dave O.

(Unfortunately, these are the only pics I have saved to my work computer. These are from Dave's pre-deployment going away party...)

A little bit o' this, a little bit o' that...

Cram Blog (from 6/9):

Friday night:

Went to Ellenton to see Nona (Bryce actually has named her Noni)

Saturday morning:

Ate breakfast with Noni and Bud

Saturday afternoon:

Went to the Outlet mall (to buy clothes from stores for teenagers and "Tweens" that made us feel old...I want to thank the kid who said "excuse me Ma'am." Anyone know where the closest fountain of youth is?)

Bryce stayed with Noni. She babysat him for 2 hours. I called her after an hour and she said he was fine and they were just playing and not to rush. So we took another hour and then decided we better head back before we push it.

Saturday night:

Went to Circles for Russ' birthday with the crew. Had a great time with the girls. Felt like a Sex & the City Episode (talked about bikini waxes, kids, boob jobs, husbands.) Got to see prego Katrina and Baby Belly O'Sullivan (and that guy she is married to...what's his name?) :)

Make an on-line slide show at www.OneTrueMedia.com

Also ran into Jeff and Denise who we haven't seen in awhile and who are moving to Asheville, NC in July. :( I am very excited for them and hope they will settle into the next chapter of their lives with ease and zero hiccups. We will miss you greatly and will plan a trip up to see you guys.

Went over to Becca's house. Lots of laughs, yoga, whacky jacks, reminiscing, etc.

Sunday:

Bryce went to church with Grandma and played with his buddy Sam. We went to Grandma and Papaw's for dinner. Ate way too much...and then had bananas. With ice cream. And hot fudge.

5 minutes ago:

Bryce just called me to say "Mommy" into the phone. Mike said he misses me and wanted to call. I 100% believe him. He is a bit of a mamma's boy lately and cries (if he is awake) in the morning when I go to work. It doesn't upset me though because the night before I make sure I toss my heart into the garbage disposal and turn it on for a minute or two. I call this "planning ahead"...a program that automatically uploaded when I was inaugurated into parenthood. Daddy's have to have this installed.

Ohio Series Blog to continue soon....

Enough rambling. I stayed up too late and my brain is working on standby mode.

My Little Chef Bryce-ar-dee!

Tonight Bryce and I made banana bread muffins. We had too many very ripe bananas and didn't want to waste them. Plus Bryce wanted to stir something. It's his new passion. He makes the motion of stirring with his arm and hand. Air stirring.So we went to Wal-mart and bought all of the ingredients and disposable muffin tins and of course we had to have the Diego cupcake/muffin holders.

We pulled over a chair and put the towel down so he could "stir without limits." We added all of the ingredients and poured the batter into the Diego cupcake holders. Bryce would poke his little fingers into the batter and lick it off. I would pour, he would dip and lick.

They turned out pretty good. I think I will use 4 ripe bananas next time instead of three.

Bryce ate a muffin...and then he pooped. Life at the Byrdhouse. :)